Chilly Boulder [Wednesday evening]

[momslilassassin]

Ben was on his nightly food run (when your cooking repetoire consisted of microwave popcorn, reheating soup and making salad, you ate a lot of take-out) and decided to make a stop at Chilly Boulder for milkshakes.

He walked through the door, smiled a bit as his phone beeped an alarm for the hour and texted a quick still here to Ender. He'd set the alarm to go off just after he heard Jaina on the radio that morning about William and seeing that the employees of the ice cream shop seemed to be down to one shell-shocked looking guy only reinforced his reasoning that it was better to be a little obsessive on checking in right now.

"Two chocolate milkshakes, please," he said with a tiny smile. "Extra whipped cream."

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[not-the-irs.livejournal.com]

Two Auditors walked into an ice cream shop, one male, one female, just in time to hear the boy's order. It was yet another thing that didn't make sense to new brains, one more thing that needed to be questioned.

"Why would one need two of one thing?" asked Mr. Blue, seemingly not noticing that his voice might be heard by others not Ms. Periwinkle. "Would one of one thing not be sufficient?"

[momslilassassin]

"I'm taking one back for someone else," Ben said, turning slightly towards the visitors, even as his danger sense began screaming.

[not-the-irs.livejournal.com]

"Why?" asked Ms. Periwinkle, stepping closer in order to watch what the worker was doing. "Would it not be simpler to consume this... ice cream here?"

"Perhaps the seating serves another purpose," said Mr. Blue, and looked to Ben for an answer.

[momslilassassin]

"Oh, I could sit here," Ben said, edging a bit into a defensive position so that he was between...whatever these were...and the poor ice cream dude, "but my friend's not with me and his drink would melt while I finished mine."

[not-the-irs.livejournal.com]

"Why would you not consume the drink together?" asked Mr. Blue.

"Might it not melt while you return to your friend?" asked Ms. Periwinkle.

"What is a 'friend'?" asked Mr. Blue. Auditors, believe it or not, had no reasons to know of such a thing. Total shock, really.

[momslilassassin]

And they'd seemed like such people people!

For not being people.

"That's a lot of questions," Ben said. "It won't melt before I get back if I leave right now. And a friend is...a friend. Someone I like spending time with who I have a lot in common with."

[not-the-irs.livejournal.com]

The two looked at each other. One of those qualifications fit them. Neither was comfortable with that.

"Explain 'like spending time with,'" said Ms. Periwinkle.

Apparently they were not planning on letting Ben leave right now.

[momslilassassin]

Well, they were going to explain to Ender why his milkshake was all separated and gross, then.

"Enjoying the other person's company?" Ben tried, sending the ice cream guy a nudge through the Force that it might be a good time to take a break right now and perhaps not come back.

[not-the-irs.livejournal.com]

A pause.

"Explain 'enjoying the other person's company," demanded Ms. Periwinkle.

Mr. Blue leaned a bit closer, as if he was trying to read Ben's face and trying to figure out what it was doing and why.

[momslilassassin]

Ben took two steps back, his hand darting for the hilt of his lightsaber. "They make you laugh," he said, not drawing the weapon just yet.

They were being creepy but not actively attacking. He couldn't make the first move.

[not-the-irs.livejournal.com]

That definitely didn't apply to the Auditors, no.

"We do not understand this laughter," said Mr. Blue.

"Laughter is the act of expelling breath with a vocal sound to express pleasure at a thing," said Ms. Periwinkle. "He seems alarmed, and is reaching for an object."

Mr. Blue continued to not respect things like personal space, probably because he didn't know such a thing existed and would question whether or not it really did exist if it was explained to him, and took two steps forward for Ben's two back, still leaning a little too close.

[momslilassassin]

"You're making me uncomfortable," Ben said, putting some of the Force into his voice as he took another few steps away from the door. "Back off."

[not-the-irs.livejournal.com]

"That does not seem possible," said Mr. Blue, confused as to how one might take their back off, and where one might put it, and what purpose that would serve.

"He is hostile," Ms. Blue advised, even as Mr. Blue reached towards Ben.

[momslilassassin]

Ben's lightsaber was ignited in an eyeblink and he took another step back, finding himself pinned against the window.

Bad tactics, Skywalker, he scolded himself.

"Don't touch me," he said. "Please."

[not-the-irs.livejournal.com]

You just blew a couple Auditors' minds, Ben.

"Let us see this beam of light attached to a cylindric handle of some sort," Mr. Blue demanded, holding out his hand for it.

[momslilassassin]

"Not a chance," Ben declared, holding it between them. "I just want to leave. Don't make me hurt you."

[not-the-irs.livejournal.com]

"How would you hurt us?" Ms. Periwinkle said, genuinely curious.

That would be when the door opened again, and the third of what had been a trio till Mr. Aquamarine had insisted on studying the sign for longer than strictly necessary entered. "The sign does not appear to be a chilly boulder, but rather reference one," he announced.

It didn't look like Ben was going to get his wish to leave.

"Beam of light," Mr. Blue demanded, holding out his hand again. "Please." His mouth did not want to say that word. That word was entirely unnecessary, and yet his voice and breath and mouth all conspired against him to say it anyway, without consulting him.

[momslilassassin]

Three against one--those weren't bad odds, Ben told himself. He'd taken out assassin droids, survived torture, gotten through the two different living nightmares that had been trips to Kaeleer...he'd be fine.

"No," he said, moving the lightsaber to slice the man's arm.

[not-the-irs.livejournal.com]

Calling him a 'man' was really very inaccurate, and also insulting, narrative. This was maybe evidenced by the way the lightsaber fizzled when it hit Mr. Blue's arm, and the arm stayed intact.

"That was ineffective," he said, having expected more, not that something like expectations were something that they were supposed to have, and made his arm raise and reach to Ben's hand.

[momslilassassin]

Ben had never intended for his final words to be "Oh, stang."

But most people aren't consulted about when their time was going to be up.

The Auditor's--Ben was sure of that now--hand reached out and touched his and Ben disappeared as if he'd never been.

Someone was going to be late for his check-in.