fandomtownies | The street in front of JGOB, Wednesday afternoon

Entry tags:

The street in front of JGOB, Wednesday afternoon

Ringo hadn't been entirely sure what to expect from her first class at the community center. She'd been kind of extra-nervous when she'd come to the conclusion that she was the only one in the class who was a student. Well, actually, they were mostly students, since they were in the class, but the only non-adult student? Something like that. But it had actually gone pretty well. She'd learned how to make an American-style omelette (which was pretty weird, but way easier than the kind from back home).

So she'd eaten quite a bit during class, what with all the experimenting she'd been doing. Which probably should have meant that she was full, but there she was, standing outside of JGOB, eating her second brownie. Because, come on, who could say no to brownies?

It was probably no surprise to anyone that she was in town wearing ATs, but it might have surprised people that she wasn't stuffing that brownie in her face while doing something dangerous at high speeds. In fact, she was just standing around. Like she was waiting on someone.

Ringo glanced at her phone to check the time. Then glanced down at the paper bag in her hand. If someone didn't hurry up, she'd have herself a third brownie and then have to pretend that she'd never planned to share any in the first place.

[ooc: Expecting one, but totally open!]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Alluka was tired and sweaty from her lesson with Dante, but her spirits were undaunted as she made her way (much slower than Ringo would) through the town on her ATs.

She wasn't great at turning, but she was being careful, and she'd only tumbled once by the time she made it triumphantly to J,GOB.

"Ringo, Ringo hi!" She beamed at the other girl. "Did I make you wait too long?"

Ringo beamed. "Alluka! You made it." She saluted with her half-finished brownied. "And I've only been here for a brownie and a half. So not that long at all."

She grinned. "Speaking of." She held out the bag that had the last brownie in it.

Telling time by brownies? That was the best idea.

"You got me one?" Alluka squealed as she took the bag. "Thank you so much!"

"Well, it would have been selfish to only get them for me."

Ringo grinned. "So you eat that, and then we can play around a bit."

"I only fell once on the way here!" Alluka reported as she dug into the bag and pulled out her brownie.

She took a bite of it and sighed happily.

Chocolate really was the best thing.

Ringo popped the last of her own brownie into her mouth so that her hands would be free to clap together. "Awesome! Was it a fun ride?"

"Yes!" she said, as she swallowed her bite of brownie. "I didn't go too fast, though, because the stairs are kinda scary."

There were a lot of stairs in Fandom, Ringo. A lot of them.

The stairs were one of Fandom's best features! If Ringo couldn't have skyscrapers, at least she could have narrow streets with lots of stairs.

But she grinned. "You don't have to go fast to have fun. Besides," she smirked, "you can work your way up to fast. If you want."

Alluka took another bite of her brownie.

"You're making fun of me!" she protested. "Or, or challenging me!"

"Maybe challenging you a little bit," Ringo admitted, holding her thumb and finger up an inch or so apart.

She hesitated for a moment, then shrugged. "It doesn't bother you, does it?" Some people it might, but Ringo responded pretty aggressively to challenge herself, and maybe Alluka was the same way?

Alluka considered that as she finished off her brownie.

"No," she decided, and grinned at Ringo. "Because, because you're never mean about it."

"Good." Ringo smiled. "I mean, I don't try to be mean. It's just that, well, for me, challenges are good? Like, it feels nice to stretch myself to meet them."

She glanced over at Alluka. "Know what I mean?"

Alluka just looked at her, baffled, and shook her head.

Not even a little, Ringo. Not even a little.

That baffled look earned Alluka a similar one in return. "You never challenge yourself?" Ringo asked curiously.

"What, what would I challenge myself with?" Alluka wondered. "My toys and I are friends and, and we have parties and I spend time with other friends and... and that's about it?"

"And you don't want, I don't know? More?"

Alluka just looked even more confused.

"What, what would I want?"

"Ambition? Something new?" How did you explain wanting to grow to someone who might never have done that?

Alluka blinked at her.

"I'm learning to skate?" she offered.

Maybe start at the beginning, then.

"Do you want to get better at it?" Ringo asked.

Alluka looked down at her ATs. They were still shiny and new, not worn down or really broken in all that much at all.

"I like to skate with you," she said, shrugging.

"And I like to skate with you." Ringo smiled gently. "I also like to skate really fast."

She cocked her head, as if wondering what Alluka thought of that.

Alluka laughed, relieved. "I know that! It's because you're amazing, Ringo!"

"And do you want to go fast, too? So that we can do that together?"

"I--"

She didn't understand what Ringo was getting at, but Alluka didn't like that question.

"I know I'm not as good as you, Ringo."

"If I told you that you could be, but that it would take a lot of effort, would you want that?" Ringo wasn't sure if that was actually possible, given her own headstart. On the other hand, given the damage Ringo had already put on her joints, maybe Alluka really could catch up to her.

"I, I don't think that's very nice," Alluka said matter-of-factly. "I'm not you."

"What do you mean?" Ringo asked, unable to get a grasp on whatever logic led Alluka to that statement.

She was frowning thoughtfully, doing her best to understand Alluka's point of view. Especially since last time they'd talked past each other, they'd both ended up in tears.

"I'm not you," Alluka said earnestly. "So, so this is your thing and I like it, it's fun, but I can't do what you can."

So please stop saying she could, maybe.

"Why not?" Ringo asked. "I mean, we both like brownies. It's okay to share things like that, isn't it?" What made AirTrek different?

"Everyone can eat brownies though," Alluka said. "Not everyone can do what you can."

"Why not?" Ringo asked. It wasn't that Alluka was wrong, but Ringo felt like the other girl meant something slightly different than the obvious.

"Because otherwise there's no point in being you," Alluka ventured, not sure of what Ringo wanted from her. "My bunny can never be my elephant, though they both like to have tea parties and wear pretty clothes."

Ringo wasn't sure she understood. "Does that mean that AirTrek is the most important thing about me? That if someone else were as good at it, they'd be me?" That couldn't be what Alluka was saying, but it was the only interpretation Ringo could guess at.

"N-No," Alluka said, after a long pause. "They wouldn't be you, but they wouldn't be like you either."

Yeah, there was definitely something that Ringo was missing, and it felt like she was going in circles. Which probably wasn't helping make anything clear to Alluka, either. So she made herself pause and take a breath.

"Well, that's true. I am pretty uniquely awesome, huh?" She flashed a quick grin.

She shifted slightly, lifting balancing on one foot as she lifted the other and wiggled her AT. "So, you want to go for a little ride when you finish your brownie?"

She wasn't running from the conversation, exactly, but she wasn't really the sort to bang her head against a metaphorical wall all day, either. Especially when there was fun to be had with a friend.

Alluka looked deeply relieved before she quickly swallowed down the last of her brownie--Ringo couldn't ask her strange questions and expect answers while she had her mouth full--and clapped her hands together.

"I want to go for a ride!"

Ringo beamed. "Then you've come to the right place!"

She cocked her head. "Want to just do an easy little trip around town?" No scary tricks. Ringo would even stop and step down any steps they came to.

"Yes!" Alluka was the easiest when it came to this sort of thing, so long as she didn't have to do much more than go along with what someone else wanted.

"Can, can we go by the park? It's really pretty right now."

"Oh, great idea!"

Ringo shot Alluka a grin. "I'm already glad we decided to do this."

"Because it's fun?" Alluka asked, smiling. "I think it is."

"Because it's fun," Ringo agreed.

"And because it's even more fun when you're doing it with a friend."

"Do you get lonely when you're out here by yourself, Ringo?" Alluka asked, carefully skating a few feet and then turning, a bit clumsily.

Ringo kept her pace nice and easy. It took basically no concentration, so she could pay attention to Alluka.

"Hmm. Sometimes? I mean, I'm pretty good at keeping myself entertained, so most of the time I'm just having fun. But, yeah, sometimes I find myself wanting someone to share the fun with, you know?"

For a year she'd had Kathy to fill that role. Funny how so many things reminded her of that.

It took a lot more concentration for Alluka--she really hadn't practiced much--so it took a bit before she answered.

"Kind of... kind of like the way I was when Killua took forever to visit?" Alluka wondered.

He always came and visited, like he said he would. But sometimes it took a long time for him to do so.

"Hmm, maybe like that?" Ringo didn't know Killua, or how long it was between visits.

"You can have fun on your own, but you know that sometimes it's even more fun when you can do it with." She looked over. "Is that how it is with Killua? You want to share the fun you're having?"

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

The street in front of JGOB, Wednesday afternoon

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject