[Closed] Fuck this shit I'm out...

[padadin]

Who: Shiro + Thor, Ulaz, Baku, Makie
Broadcast: No.
Action: Yes.
When: Beginning of April.

1. Thor + Reactor building on the planet

[Shiro has always been the kind of guy that keeps himself busy, especially when there's stuff in his mind he's escaping from... like the bunker. Two steps in have been enough to know what's inside, and he leaves before a panic attack could be triggered - he does see in his mind some flashes of cells. He knows where things could be going.

This is awful, just awful. There are lots of things to be said and discussed, about terraforming and people playing god. But he doesn't want to think about that right now, he just wants to make things right. Remembering the deformed animals Ulaz saw and the conversation about radioactive energy that followed it, Shiro makes his way to the reactor building... only to find someone doing the same.]

I see I'm not the only one worried about that uncontrolled machine. Hey, Thor.

2. Ulaz + SS Caprine

[He's moving by instinct right now, his mind a blurry mess of emotions. This can't be happening, it just can't! Damn Atroma, damn their enjoyment of their drama, damn allowing himself to relax in here. He isn't sure how he gets to the pod or how he ends up on the Caprine really, he's on automatic - why the Caprine anyway?

As he slams open the lab door, face white and panting, it becomes easy to understand why. He can't drop the bomb on the team, not yet. Here's the only man that understands.]

Ulaz... [A pause. Deep breath.] ...she's here.

3. Baku + SS Caprine

[After the talk with Ulaz, Shiro is... okay, maybe not fine, but okay enough. He should feel bad for taking the Caprine's doctor to his ship, but he can't deny the comfort that Ulaz's presence brings him. Speaking of the Caprine... there's someone else here that he's fond of. Someone who has also offered help. Shiro stops in his tracks, hands closing in tight, trembling fists. He went to Ulaz for help... his team have been nagging him about it too for how long now?

The subject of his dreams is still delicate... but not more than Haggar. He needs to learn to reach out.

So here he's now, going from the way to the exit to the way to the rooms, and knocks on certain friend's door, nervous but determined.]

Baku? Do you have a minute?

4. Makie + SS Blameless (backdated)

[The sound of the confetti and the musical tune are very familiar by now - Shiro has been in the fleet for a year, and the Blameless changes crew members all the time. So he makes his way to the new arrival, welcoming smile on his face as always.]

New member, huh. Welcome to the SS Blameless. I'm Shiro, captain and pilot of this ship.

Comments

[dreamvour]

I don't sleep. [though she does appreciate the apology, as pointless as it is. She considers him for a moment before she steps aside, gesturing for him to come in]

This is as private as it gets, I think. But no one will bother us.

[padadin]

Thank you, this works.

[He comes in, but doesn't sit anywhere. In fact, he paces - well, as much as one can pace in these small rooms.]

I think... I think I'm ready for you to start eating my dreams. [A pause.] ...nightmares, really. But even if you've seen a lot at your age, I want to make sure that you know what you're getting into, and that I can trust you with that information.

[dreamvour]

[Baku takes a seat instead, watching him pace as she sets her hands in her lap, neatly folded]

I don't speak about what I see with anyone. Not even to the person who's dreams I've eaten. [she tilts her head, slow, studying him] I know exactly what I'm getting into. Or are you worried about something else, too?

[padadin]

[When she says she doesn't talk to the owner of the dreams either, he stops pacing, considers things for a second and sighs before finally resting his body against the wall, arms crossed in obvious guarded body language.]

I can accept questions if you have them. My nightmares are a mix of real memories and dream inventions, and my amnesia probably makes them messier than they would already be after everything I went through. I'd rather you have a clear picture of what you'd be dealing with.

[He doesn't like the idea of talking about this stuff, but he will if he has to. Baku is a friend - maybe not as close to him as Sokka or Jim, but the circumstances are making him take tough choices.

A dry, sarcastic snort.] I worry about plenty of things. About your health after consuming such dark thoughts. About what you may think of me. About the person from home that caused those dark thoughts and just showed up in the fleet.

[dreamvour]

[it's interesting, she thinks, getting permission this way. To see how nervous a person gets, knowing that someone else is about to see the horrors in their dreams. And it's interesting that he's still concerned, even knowing what she is. No one has ever been concerned about it before]

Asking questions goes against what I just said regarding speaking about it. [there's the faintest hint of amusement in her voice and a ghost of a smile before she's all business again] But if you want to speak about it to ease your own concerns, I'll listen.

However, dreams do not necessarily reflect what a person is like in the waking world, Shiro. And I refuse to judge a person based on what tortures them at night. [her expression shifts just a touch, though, when he points out the cause is here. Now that was dangerous] I will ask about this person, though, if you feel comfortable talking about them.

[padadin]

[His sense of humor can be pretty morbid, so that hint of amusement doesn't bother him. ...well, not much, because he has to wonder what brought that out. Something about him? Something about herself?

He should speak about his own concerns, he knows it, it's hard for him to do so. But Baku keeps going, her words reminding him she's old and wise. And kind - so kind. He can't describe how touched he is by what he hears. He has to wonder if it'll stay like that after she looks into his mind, and reminds himself he's supposed to be reaching out and trusting people right now.]

...thank you.

[His voice is so sincere, so raw. Almost a little broken. She asks him about "this person", though, so he takes a deep breath and uses the chance to tell her about his story so she's also well aware of what she's getting into.]

Before we started fighting them, I was a prisoner of the evil alien empire that took over my universe. They gave me this arm, the scars I carry. [He raises his metal hand and makes it glow purple for a moment before going on.] We were slaves for their torturing entertainment and experiments. And the witch that was part of the arm project, the emperor's right hand... she's here now.

[dreamvour]

[she isn't a difficult person to please, but it means the world when someone trusts her enough with something - it doesn't matter how little or big it is, just that it's there. She can count the number of friendships - long-lasting, genuine relationships - she's had with anyone on one hand; two if she includes the humans she's interacted with over the years. But there was always a certain distance she had to keep from them, because she could only stay there as she was for so long - "trust" was a dangerous commodity, a rarity.

So when Shiro decides to tell her, she's polite and patient, her full attention on him. Her eyes drift to his arm as he raises it and she nods faintly in understanding - she realizes she'll see all of this sooner or later.

She isn't a vengeful creature. Revenge, her own or on behalf of someone else, never works out like one hopes. But she is protective. It's in her nature]

I see. [she tilts her head, her expression no less serious] Is she a threat to you and yours? Or to the fleet?

[padadin]

[Baku stays quiet as she listens to what he has to say, and Shiro is thankful for it. There's no judging... but at the same time, it makes him more nervous, not being able to tell what she thinks of this. Of him.

And then comes the million dollar question.]

My first instinct is answer yes. I met her, we talked, so has my team. It seems she'll behave because she understands the circumstances, but I can't tell if that's the truth, or for how long this-- truce? will last. I don't trust her, but she isn't dumb, either.

[dreamvour]

[Baku is a hard one to read, and that's less an accident and more out of necessity. Long ago, she would wear her heart on her sleeve and it would work against her. Now, it's important that she doesn't show how she feels - at least, not without her deciding to]

I hope that she keeps to your truce. Please let me know if she doesn't.

[she means that; there isn't much she can do, but there are some things]

Are you all right? Talking about this must not be easy.

[padadin]

If she doesn't, everyone will know.

[It's a very serious tone, almost a threat. If he was a dog, he would be growling. He won't hesitate to act as soon as Haggar moves her pinky finger.

By the way, scratch what he thought before. This is the million dollar question. Is he alright? One day there will be an easy answer to that.]

It isn't, but I've been learning to reach out more to others. My team consists of a rather persistent bunch of lion cubs, you see. [He tries to sound exasperate, but he's obviously proud of them. And he didn't answer the question but hey, details!] Don't worry. You'll already be helping a lot with the dream eating.

[dreamvour]

Good. This isn't something you and yours should take on alone.

[while she doesn't want Shiro's personal business spread out there, the fact that this woman is a threat is absolutely fair game]

I'm glad to hear that. Please don't be afraid to reach out aside from that; I'm more than just a dream eater. [a pause, and - she regards Shiro with a raised eyebrow, and she can't help it - this conversation has been too heavy for her not to tease]

If they're like lion cubs, does that make you their mama?

[padadin]

Thank you. I'll keep that in mind. It's easy to forget some times, your disguise is very--

[Good, he wants to say, because she totally looks and behaves like a young woman. But then she has to make that question, doesn't she? Shiro pinches the bridge of his nose. Somewhere in the Wonderduck, Fie is smirking.]

It makes me their leader. An older brother, if you will.

[dreamvour]

Unassuming? That's the point.

[she's always picked a form people wouldn't take a second glance at, or would underestimate. It made her work easier, even if at times she wished she had picked something a little older.

She keeps a straight face, though, because - yes, okay, this is a good place to divert to]

But you implied they were your lion cubs, so that makes you their mama, Shiro.

[padadin]

I was thinking more in the lines of convincing. But yes, unassuming too.

[...are they seriously having this conversation. Why does this keep happening? The team jokingly calling him "space dad" was one thing, but not it's like... evolving. First Fie, now Baku. What is his life?]

I said they were my team and they just behave like lion cubs.

[dreamvour]

Oh. That, too.

[she has no idea that it's become a thing, which - if he ever tells her, will just make this even better. She just likes to be a troll. A gentle one, but a troll nonetheless]

Ah, my mistake. [...] But I still think being a mama lion would suit the situation.

[padadin]

[ S I G H

There's no winning this one, is it. Why does he even try, he has to wonder some times.]

If the Black Lion ever shows up here, I'll let her know.

[dreamvour]

Who's the Black Lion?

[you can't just say that and not explain, Shiro]

[padadin]

[Oh, right. He hasn't told her the whole story, just bits about fighting a war. Well, at least her of all people won't be freaked out much by this.]

My team and I pilot five giant robot-ships into battle to protect the universe against the Galra Empire. [Yes, that would be Ulaz's race, she's free to notice.] They're shaped like lions and they're-- semi-sentient? The Black Lion is the biggest one, and the leader. She also has wings. I'm her pilot. You'll probably see her in my dreams.

[So, you know. He's in charge of the mama lion, oops?]

[dreamvour]

—ehhh, you're a mech pilot? [that's it, that's the part she latches onto. While most of the time she comes off as someone old and disconnected, there are times where it's very obvious she's immersed herself in her fake, human life]

[padadin]

[He's so glad she latches onto that - this way they can leave the topic of mama lions behind. He does recognize the term - how could he now, when he used to build mecha models when he was a kid

A smile and a nod.] They combine into a giant robot, too. I'm the head of Voltron.

[And chest too, but details.]

[dreamvour]

Heeeh . . . like sentai. [she totally thinks you're a power ranger now, Shiro, congrats] That's really cool. They have things like that in TV shows in Japan, but none of it's real. [...] Mechs are kind of real, but they're more - experimental, I think.

[padadin]

[Well, she's... not entirely wrong...? It gets Shiro laughing at least.]

I know super sentai, I used to watch it as a kid. We have the color coded armor, if that's something you want to see. [Outside dreams, he means, but that goes unsaid.] We've all arrived wearing it, although Atroma cut some of its functions.

[But mmh, experimental?] I believe I told you I come from a more advanced Earth, but our ships still not include transforming mechas. The lions were made by an alien race called Alteans.

[dreamvour]

A friend of mine is really into the sentai shows, she makes me watch them with her when we have time. They're fascinating. [there it is, that's how she knows about them. Otherwise, it'd be all blank faces] Really? I'd like to see it.

[she nods, then looks thoughtful] Aliens made them . . . ? Heeeh . . . so more like kamen rider, maybe . . .

[padadin]

Come by the Blameless any time and I'll show you the black armor. Lance and Keith are in the Huntress with the red and blue armor, and Pidge is in Bishop with the green armor. You missed our pink and yellow, they were here for a while.

[Well, technically Allura didn't arrive with the armor, but details. Something else calls his attention though.]

A friend of yours, huh? A human friend or another spirit or fae?

[dreamvour]

Okay, I'll stop by. It's been a while since I have anyway.

[a hum] A human friend. I go to her school. [she continues after a moment, because she knows it'll get asked sooner or later] When I started posing as a teenager, I started attending schools too. Human children are incredibly good sources for strange things going on.