IC Contact - City of Ariel

[forgivetheinsubordination]

Right. Because people are going to be leaving messages in my head now.

Try it.

Comments

[whomheloved]

Lies and slander! I guarantee that you will like it.

[She giggles.]

That I do. I'll be there soon.

[forgivetheinsubordination]

Yeah, yeah. Guarantee all you'd like. We'll see what the results are.

[whomheloved]

A hug back, I'm hoping.

[forgivetheinsubordination]

I might be able to swing that.

[He might even need that. But Garrus isn't saying.]

[whomheloved]

That is extremely kind and generous of you!

[Why is she still talking to him here, she's right outside his door...
Is that a knock?]

[forgivetheinsubordination]

[He opens the door to see her there, and his mandibles flare.]

Can I help you? If you're selling something, we've probably got five. Humans. They like to acquire stuff.

[His voice is rich with teasing, but there's something raw lurking in his eyes that undermines it just a little. Garrus steps out of the way to let her in the house.]

[whomheloved]

[Di smiles back, easily hiding her worry at the way something is clearly off with him just now. She steps in, resting a hand on his arm.]

Oh, no, I only sell my lasting wares to trolls. The piles they make! You should see them. I'm sure humans have nothing on them. But right now I have a very special all-you-can-grab offer on perishable goods! Hugs, to be exact.

[forgivetheinsubordination]

Piles?

[That's new. And Garrus is pretty sure he's got his emotional turmoil successfully hidden, too.]

And I don't know. Do they come with squeaks? Because I was starting to like the squeaks.

[whomheloved]

Haven't I shown you one of our piles yet?! Oh, I have to fix this!

[Di is super-sensitive to her friends, Garrus. It's going to take a hell of a lot of acting to hide something like that from her.]

They might come with squeaks. [And yes, that's a bit of a blush as she giggles.] I believe squeaking happens the most when they're being reciprocated, though.

[forgivetheinsubordination]

The hugs being reciprocated? Or the squeaks? I can do one. The other's not gonna happen.

[Garrus has never been a good actor, but sometimes he fools himself into thinking he's got a decent mask going. The door is closed behind her and Garrus takes a step closer, fully expecting to be basically tackled at any time.]

And unless you're talking about the stacks of pillows you had going on in your living room, I can't remember piles.

[whomheloved]

I meant the hugs, but if you insist on giving me ideas like that...!

[Tackling is only fun if he's not expecting it! So Di bides her time for now.]

That's right! That's only one kind, though. Trolls will make piles of just about anything they like. Psii's tend to be stacks of computer hardware.

[forgivetheinsubordination]

Never let it be said I didn't give people bad ideas.

[He tilts his head.]

But why stack hardware? Why not use it?

[whomheloved]

Never let it be said I don't take you up on them!

[She giggles.]

Because it's comforting to him to nap on it? He probably manages to have it all hooked up even when he does use it for a pile, knowing him. It was only one example, anyway.

[forgivetheinsubordination]

I know who to team up with, then, next time I want to prank someone.

[This could be good. He just had to find a time when the city wasn't breaking people.]

Though what I don't know is how someone sleeps on hard computer parts. It'd be like falling asleep on a turian.

[whomheloved]

Oh yes. I love pranking people!

[She sounds entirely too gleeful about it, actually.]

It's a troll thing! Technically we need sopor slime to sleep in, but we've learned to do without. [And now she's smirking.] I wouldn't mind falling asleep on a turian. [A particular one, of course.]

[forgivetheinsubordination]

[And there's the shadow in his eyes again, for the briefest moment, before he's shrugging and gesturing for her to go ahead and really come in, closing the door behind her.]

A turian, or a pile of turians? We complain a lot; I can't imagine a whole stack of us would go over well. Plus there's the whole pointy thing. Now a stack of salarians, you probably won't risk poking your eyes out with them. They'll wriggle, and likely spout scientific data at you, but they should squish well enough.

[whomheloved]

Just the one.

[She smiles at him, softer than she usually would for that glimpse of something in his eyes. Her hand rests on his arm a moment as she steps in, then waits for him to join her.]

Trolls don't really need something soft to sleep on, anyway. We could complain back and forth at each other.

[forgivetheinsubordination]

I couldn't complain about complaining with someone.

[Teasing is a lot more fun than thinking.]

Granted, it'd be hard to arrange me right. There aren't turian beds here, so I'm stuck sleeping on my side. Maybe more of a lean-against thing? But then you're still dealing with sharp angles.

[whomheloved]

[Di looks around for somewhere to sit, quite happy to try out this piling-onto-a-turian idea.]

Oh, I don't know, I'm sure we'd manage! I could drape over you. A few sharp angles aren't going to bother me...you have turian beds? Trolls have their own too! I haven't been able to find any here, though.

[forgivetheinsubordination]

[The couch is a bad idea. Garrus is trying to avoid the couch... but there's a rather large comfy chair they can use, one that's been positioned to have a good line of sight on the entryway of the house. They're pretty close to it now, even.]

So it would be more like wearing a Di coat, instead of being a pile? And yeah. They're made so the carapace can sink in and not leave our heads without support. Others are made to let people sleep on their keelbone if they really wanted to. But I take a lot of pillows so I can sleep, here.

[whomheloved]

[She's quite willing to be guided by him - it's his house, after all! - and seems more than happy to wait for him to take a seat in the comfy chair.]

A little bit of both, I guess! And that does sound a lot more comfortable for you. We're supposed to sleep in sopor slime to help control our nightmares, but luckily we got used to doing without it back home too. The younger trolls have had more trouble adjusting, though.

[forgivetheinsubordination]

[He takes the seat, stretching out a little so as maybe, somehow, he can be at least a little comfy. Even if he's not sure it's possible.]

A lot more, yeah. It's all about the neck support. Or lack of it. But what do you mean, younger trolls? I'd had you pegged as one of the younger ones, sorry.

[whomheloved]

[Di waits for him to make himself comfortable before settling on his lap, curling around him in that impossible-looking flowing motion that cats are so good at. Her arms are settled snugly about him and her head nestles into the crook of his neck, the rest of her somehow managing to also wrap around him quite thoroughly.

She sighs in contentment - and then bursts into surprised laughter.]

One of the younger ones! Darkleer is a lot older than me, but that's about it. Signless and Psii are only a sweep or two older. I meant trolls like Nepeta, and Karkat, and Equius. Oh, and Horuss and Kankri and Meenah too. They're all quite a bit younger than me.

[forgivetheinsubordination]

[There's definitely some tension in his body, but it starts to fade as she snugs in close. He chuckles at her explanation, shrugging.]

Sorry. I'm no good at judging ages of people who aren't turian.

[His arms go around her, voice on the quiet side of normal.]

How old is old, when it comes to Darkleer? I'd ask about you, but I'm aware that it's rude to ask a lady her age.

[whomheloved]

It's okay. Do I really seem so young, though?

[She doesn't sound either offended or complimented, merely curious and a bit surprised. She did know she could be rather silly and playful most times...

When he moves to hold her she hums to herself happily, apparently perfectly content.]

Is it really? I don't think it is! I'm fourteen - fourteen Alternian solar sweeps, that is. It's something between twenty eight and thirty earth years. I can't even begin to guess at Darkleer, though, bluebloods live a really long time, and he'd worked his way to an important position in the military, which takes ages. I'd say...he could be a hundred sweeps old, or more, even.