soul_logs | [Closed] "The burgers are really good"

Entry tags:

duo maxwell,
haruka

[Closed] "The burgers are really good"

Characters: Duo and Haruka

Location: Outside Casualty Communal -> an out of the way diner.

Rating: G

Time: 20th of February, middle of the day.

Description: Haruka and Duo meet, chat and eat.

[Haruka sat on a bench outside the Casualty Communal, crutches resting against the side, softly humming a tune while she waited for Duo to arrive. She had so many things she wanted to talk to and ask him about and that combined with the prospect of great food had filled her with a great deal of anticipation. But the weather was great, she thought as she soaked up the sunlight, and made patience come easily. Not only that, it was more than warm enough for her to wear her regular clothes from home - a major plus. She liked the clothes she'd gotten from the arrival basket well enough, but her few possessions grounded her. No matter where she went, if she had something familiar with her, it put her just a little bit more at ease.]

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[ He stands by, ready to assist if she needs it, but of course not crowding too closely. They've just met, after all, and that might be a little creepy. He was maybe a little super sensitive to personal space. ]

Yeah. I was born there, actually, and lived there for the majority of my life. In fact all of my friends were born in space too.. [ At least, as far as they knew. ]

That's incredible... It's almost hard to imagine. Back home, we've made it into space but nobody lives there. We probably won't for a long time - the land's been so kind to us, we don't really have a reason to see what's beyond it. That, and there's still so many mysteries within our own world to be solved. There's so little that we really understand.

[But her expression is perfectly content, rather than frustrated or unhappy. The mysteriousness of everything is partially what makes every day an adventure.

There's a thoughtful pause, before she continues.]

How do you live up there? Are there many people that do? What are the biggest differences between living up there and down here?

It's still the same way at home. We're discovering new things about time, space, and Earth all at once now. Science advances so fast when people aren't focused on making war machines, believe it or not. Right now we're terraforming Mars in order to live there like we do on the Lunar base...

[ Still he sounds so jaded about it all, though that may very well be a side effect of living with war as far as he could remember. He may be barely an adult, but he's surely never been a child, and he's bound to sound older than he actually is no matter what. ]

We live in colonies, thousands of people. They have controlled environments and complicated air and water systems in order to keep everything from being contaminated with radiation or.. all sorts of other things that can go wrong. Colonies are circular floating satellites that spin with Earth's gravity a lot like the moon.. [ But then comes a little laugh, as he plays with the base of his braid. ]

Honestly? I haven't been to Earth enough times to really make out many differences, other than the blue sky looks a lot more real..

[Haruka felt herself frown in confusion. War... machines? Machines that made war? How did that work? She wanted to learn more, but before that-]

Colonies even have skies? That's amazing!

[There are so many new ideas that it's become hard to visualize all of them. But she does her best, and soon she's back to the things she can't. For a moment, the girl is torn between curiosity and tact, because it's certainly not a very happy topic. But...

...Curiosity wins.]

I'm sorry, but there's something I don't understand - how do machines create war?

Edited 2012-05-27 14:19 (UTC)

Well I mean, they're holograms... [ But he has to admit, it's getting pretty funny to see people's reactions over colonies. He'd dealt with them all of his life, so it was strange to have people so enamored at the idea or even shocked about it.

There's a long pause as Duo debates how to best put this, rolling words around in his head and trying to establish what might be too much. He doesn't ever strive to inspire people to pity him or want to change things about how his life had been, as even he'd come to terms with it as it had been. He decides to go with something easy. ]

Where I'm from, people often fight with robots instead of tanks and bombs. They're huge humanistic war machines, in that way.

Holograms... that's still pretty amazing to me! [A fake sky is still a fake sky.

In the silence that comes from Duo thinking over his answer, Haruka starts to worry - maybe he really didn't want to talk about it, maybe she should have left the topic alone and asked somebody else later. When a response that doesn't imply 'back off' comes, she silently sighs in relief.

Haruka wracks her brain for points of reference. Huge robots... okay, the Rocket Gang sometimes used those to try and capture Pikachu. They tended to be kind of goofy-looking, but a war fought with them would be... scary. And the ones from Duo's world probably didn't look goofy, if they were for war. She had no idea what tanks were, but bombs... and they fought their wars with machines more destructive than bombs? Involuntarily, Haruka shivered.]

I'm sorry. It... it sounds so frightening and awful.

[After a moment of silence, she tries to explain.]

I ask because my planet hasn't experienced war in centuries, and it used to be fought with people and Pokemon, not any of those things.

There's... a lot I need to learn, especially now that I'm in the middle of one.

They're pretty normal where I'm coming from. [ He gives a little shrug, though the smile says that he doesn't really mind her wonder at all. In fact it's sort of cute, seeing all these people who have no idea about the things he's experienced his whole life. He liked telling them about it and explaining all the technology and parts that went in to these things, if they asked.

Ever the mechanically inclined pilot, here. ]

It's not really all that scary once you're used to it... [ And then he can't help a little smirk. ] I.. have a little experience with piloting them, anyway.

- - -- [ wait for it. ] What the hell are Pokemon?

[There's a slight hitch in her step, and then she's talking animatedly about Pokemon. She likes Duo, and she knows she's not ready to hear more about machines of war just yet.]

The way I understand it, Pokemon are my world’s version of animals? They live in the wild, but they can also live with people, as our partners. Except unlike animals, they come with powers. And they're a lot more colorful and intelligent, too. It's so disappointing, the way animals don't understand human speech. I still can't get over how they're not that large of a part of people’s lives in this world, either. Back home, our existences are codependent.

Well that's interesting... [ He prompts her with a little touch to the arm to turn left, and though the little side street may look a little questionable, she can trust him to keep them both safe. They're getting close, anyway, and this route is shorter, even in the slightest. ]

I've never had a pet or animal like that in my care, but I imagine that'd be pretty cool..

[Haruka obediently turns, her previous words still ringing in her head.]

...I'm complaining, aren't I? Sorry, I'm just... really not used to living without them yet.

[It's the same for Sapphire, if that conversation was any indication.]

Back home, I was a Pokemon Coordinator. I traveled the lands, competing in Pokemon Contests with my Pokemon. It's my life. [And a better one than she'd ever hoped for, given that her parents had kicked her out when she was ten and still afraid of Pokemon.] We demonstrate the beauty, talent and strength of our Pokemon, unlike Pokemon trainers. They just battle.

It's alright. It's a really big difference, so I'm sure it's hard to get used to..

[ He can't help a little laugh at the whole 'just battle' thing - resisting the urge for a whole half of a second to make a stand for the poor trainers of the world. after all, all he knew how to do was battle, and as far as he saw that included a whole hell of a lot of skill. ]

Y'know, battling isn't all that easy either, so far as I can tell. I've done enough of it and seen enough of it to know it takes some skill to enter a battle and survive.

[She smirks, ever so slightly. You're on, Duo. Haruka will never not be willing to defend her profession as the harder one.]

Yeah, but trainers can fight any way they want to - if a Coordinator wants to win a battle, they've got to do it with original, creative style! They don't even have to think about Appeals! And trainers don't have judges watching and deducting points, either!

[-Wait, record scratch. 'Survive'? Better clear that up.]

The battles in my world don't put anyone in any real danger. I've never seen anyone make their Pokemon fight until they were at risk of dying... Not even the bad guys do that.

So... okay, in a way, you're right. What I do isn't comparable to fights of survival.

Well that's good. It'd be kinda nasty if people were killing their pets just to battle them. [ Even though, well, Duo hadn't really batted at eyelash at it. Maybe he was too used to fighting and blood and everything else, but he just smiles at his little victory, not really in the mood to rub in how right he was for right now, as he points out the burger place.

It looks like it might be a bit of a dive from the outside, and the customers inside may look a little rough, but Duo feels right at home. ]

Yeah, doing pretty things and focusing on technique isn't quite the same. But this is our place, don't be fooled by how it looks on the outside, huh?

[She grimaces at the thought.]

You'd have to be super messed up to do that, ugh.

[She's eaten in rundown places before, it's the appearance of the customers that phases her slightly. But... Duo seems fine with them, and she needs to become braver, and there's good food inside! So she's ready to follow him in.]

Okay, I trust you.

...Coordinators are still cooler than regular trainers, though.

Well that's what I was thinking but, you know.. [ He shrugs, as if saying he wasn't really the one to judge that. He'd thought things were odd at the idea of killing pets, but then again, people had done worse, stranger things to humans and animals.

He opens the door for her, waiting until she's inside to head in himself, tossing a cheery smile and a wave to the man at the counter. ]

D'you think you can get up in to one of the stool seats, or no? I'd rather sit where you can get to, considering you're the injured one..

...Oh. Yeah, I see what you mean. [Like Loki and his bloody stories that weren't bloody to him.] Isn't it weird, how much standards vary from world to world?

[Haruka tilts her head, judging the height of the stools against her ability to get up and down from there.]

It should be okay... [To test, she walks over to an empty one and sets her crutches against the bar, supporting herself by placing her hands on the sides of the stool. Then, she successfully jump-slides herself onto the seat.]

Ta-da~!

Edited 2012-06-01 05:16 (UTC)

Yeah, I'd been thinking about that lately, but... [ He shrugs. ] I've learned that over thinking is just as bad as being that kid in the class that asks way too many questions.

Well I mean, don't strain or get yourself hurt.. [ Duo lingers near by just to make sure that she gets up there alright, smiling softly as she makes the jump. ]

Good job! [ He slides on to one himself, grinning at the rather gruff looking cook before introducing her as someone new to the place. The menu hangs on a sign above them, and though Duo knows what he wants he decides to wait until after she's figured it out. ]

[Haruka smiles politely and nods at the cook. Manners went well almost everywhere, right? Then she's directing her attention at the sign above them, comparing the options in one part of her mind while continuing the conversation with another.]

Mm, they do say, 'everything in moderation'... I really like it, though. [She'd never had reason to apply her thought in such unusual directions, and the girl found that she enjoyed the mental stretch.] There are so many possibilities I can see that I've never seen before, it's hard not to get a little carried away.

But I promise not to drift too far. It's not what I'm here for.

[Decision made, she turns her head back to him.]

I think I'll have the quadruple-death burger and an extra large pepsitilence. You?

Understandable. Maybe it's just where I'm from that you just go on and don't ask questions.. [ He smile as if he's said nothing out of the ordinary, really, turning back to the sign. Her choice actually sounds really good, and it doesn't take long for the other teen to make a 'might as well' sort of motion. ]

I think I'll have the same. It sounds really delicious! [ A laugh. ] But then again I've always been a sucker for burgers, so I'm an easy customer.

[Another smile and nod, this time at Duo.]

I love trying new food, but burgers will always be the number two food of my heart! The number one is ramen.

[Haruka shyly raises her hand to signal the cook over, before giving him their orders. Once he leaves to prepare the food, she turns back to Duo with a dimming smile.]

Why is that? ...The not asking questions thing, I mean.

Burgers have always been my go to. Cheap and fast, you know? If you're in a pinch they're always available.

[ He gives a little laugh, then, nervous, as she asks him why he prefers not to ask questions, but rather find answers. It's an odd thing, really, and he wonders if she'll view him differently once he tells her things. But then, yet again, he doesn't lie, so he can't exactly make something up and shrug it off, either. So he decides to give an answer that's short and sweet, but not too detailed.

Truthful enough without telling too much. ]

Most times you really don't want to do the answer, in a place where all you really know is war and people fighting it. So you keep your head down and mind your own business until you have a reason to make yourself known. [ A shrug. ]

That's just how it is, really.

[She wasn't sure what to say to that. Maybe it wasn't the best time, but she needed to put together and think about what she knew about Duo - the last thing she wanted was to say something she should have avoided saying.

He had told her he came from a place where war had recently ended, but had clearly been on for most of his life. From the way he talked, he had definitely been involved in some way, although she didn't want to make guesses as to how deeply. All that really mattered was that he had been affected. And now plunged straight into the middle of another war.

But what could she really say to that? She knew only peace. Did she have anything worth saying?

Aware that she had been quiet for too long, Haruka bursts out frustratedly:]

I'm sorry! I don't mean that in pity, I mean... I don't know what I mean. But I really don't like the dark parts of your home, and I like even less that you had to live through them. I know that the world isn't fair, but... it's unfair that you're here now that your war’s over and I hate it. And I hate that I don't know what to say to you about it!

[ He doesn't seem to mind her silence, smiling kindly as she tries to explain herself. It's hard for a lot of people to understand, when he says things like that, and he's come to understand that it's not a slight to either of them that they know about certain things in the world that the other doesn't and vice-versa. ]

Don't worry yourself so much about it.. [ He reaches out to pat her on the shoulder, still smiling in that classic, crooked Duo way. ] I'm used to it, so I'm not really all that worried or anything. Maybe I'm just meant to be here long enough to show people how to fight and then I'll go home.

You never know, right?

[The reasoning and physical contact combined successfully calm Haruka down again. She hadn't considered that possibility, and it wasn't a bad one. Things could turn out okay.]

...Yeah. Things could work out like that, couldn't they?

[The thought left her feeling a little better, at least.]

I know you said you're used to it, but it's still kind of amazing how... okay with things you are.

[She thought she'd gotten good at smothering any personal unhappiness, but clearly, she had several more levels of chill to shoot for.]

I learned a long time ago that losing your mind over something, over thinking, all of that, was pretty self-defeating. If you want to actually get something done you kind of have to... accept it to a point, and then get yourself moving, you know? Fear or anger aren't really conducive to making good decisions or ones that would be, you know... even good in the short run.

[ That and well, when you always made your own decisions... But telling her about the orphanage and whatever else might not ever happen, if he had anything to do with it. Not everyone needed to know these little stories.

Thankfully the distraction of their meal arrives a short time later, and Duo smiles as he thanks their waiter. ]

Oh, great! I was starving!

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