dualislogs | they show you how to swim

they show you how to swim

WHO: All Dualizens, old and new
WHAT: Your regularly scheduled NAPs event for the month
WHERE: Dualis Oasis
WHEN: Nov. 7-10
WARNINGS: Please use these if applicable!

Look at all of these bright, shining new faces! There’s even a few less bright, less shining faces - maybe even a few folks without faces - but hey, this city welcomes all types. Chances are, if you’ve just arrived, you're seeing some pretty crazy things, unless you're used to an eye-blinding amount of neon, robots, weird-ass technology, magic, and an omnipresent police force...and hey, if you are, congrats, you're gonna settle in juuuuust fine. But for the rest of you, the Head knows this has gotta be pretty overwhelming, right?

Well, since your quaint individual processing units are probably having a hard time, why not link up with another one? By which the Head means...

Hello, new citizens of Dualis,
and welcome to your monthly Network Adjacency Protocol~!

NAPs are a monthly community networking event similar to the Earth concept of speed dating! Two citizens (new arrivals and old hands alike) are placed at a table together with a handy cue card of queries to help break the proverbial ice. Ask queries and receive results, or ignore the card and yeet yourself straight into a brand new friendship! But don't be too shy, you've only got ten minutes together, and if you just sit in silence for the whole ten, the Network Admins are likely to come supervise and try to repair the uplink through a mild shock to the ol' central nervous system. You might find yourself saying all sorts of unintended facts about yourself if that happens...probably better to just make friends, right? Who doesn’t like friends?!

The weather outside may be taking a turn toward chilly, but you can still get your swim on during this month’s NAPs, held at the Dualis Oasis, an indoor temperature-controlled aquatic amusement park with giant slides, swimming pools, and lazy winding float rivers. Appropriate swimming gear is required for entry to this part of the park, but there are a number of shops just outside that will gladly sell you swimwear and accessories.

For those of you who wish to avoid a humid environment or just hate fun, a dehumidified lounge and restaurant offer quieter, dryer spaces for chatting and snacking. The actual speed-friending itself is in progress here, but you’re welcome to stick around and continue conversations with your new friends.

So c’mon, what are you waiting for? Just dive right in for fun and friendship - the water’s fine, fine, fine, just like everything else in this fair city. But hey, remember to play safe. No running!

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Connor just got here, donned his totally stylish trunks and now this skinny human-looking android is standing by the pool, just...peering down into the water. It's his first time even seeing water that's safe for someone to get into (because the Detroit River is very much not that) and he's just a little bit wary of it, of the sight of people splashing around in it. So for a moment, he's content to just...look at it. He can smell chloramines, a chemical smell that feels at odds with everything he's seeing.

And he's so fixated on all this that he doesn't pay any attention to the approaching figure until it's far too late - hands make hard contact with his back, he almost recovers - doesn't - and the last thing he hears before he hits the water with a colossal splash is uproarious laughter.

The water is cool - but to his chassis after being warmed by the AC of the indoor park, it feels freezing, so he's shaking, LED spinning yellow on his temple, as he breaks back to the surface and clambers to the side. He's spluttering chlorine out of his nose and mouth.

This is not pleasant.

Swiping his hair back off his forehead, he stares in utter bewilderment up at the culprit.

"What the fuck." The moment those words leave his mouth is the moment he realises he's spent too much time around Hank. (or maybe not enough time)

Alright, should she maybe feel bad? Probably, most likely. Does she whatsoever? Not in the least. She's still laughing as he makes it to the side, a mean, mischievous twinkle to ice blue eyes. His words only make a sharp grin split across her lips, shoulders shrugging as she steps up until her toes (and purple painted toe nails, thank you) are almost touching over the edge.

"Oh. Whoops." She deadpans after a second of getting her amusement wrangled in, blinking down at him, "Didn't see ya there, pal."

"I'm going to--" he flips his hair out of his face again before it can drip in his eyes as he looks up at his assailant, "--go ahead and say you're lying."

It probably was pretty funny to anybody watching. And imagining what it must have looked like brings an unwilling smile to Connor's face that he has to try to will away to keep up the whole 'I'm not happy' facade.

But this girl is really close to him and the side of the pool, and Connor has more than enough strength to propel himself out of the water... He quickly visualises it - hand on the edge, push up enough grab her around the hip with the other hand, then the leg, pull as he pivots, drag her in.

She'll have to be pretty quick to get out of the way as Connor suddenly lunges upwards.

Aw, what an adorable little drowned rat look he has going on. She is absolutely way beyond amused, she can't help but keep grinning like a dope. And, as she eyes his wet face, she's fairly certain he's not as displeased as he's acting, she can swear there's a touch of a hidden smile there...

Now. She is going to entirely and adamantly insist the next thing that happens is not a true reflection or herself or her awesome skills. He was only able to pull this stunt because a combination of being distracted with her amusement, and having had more drinks than anyone probably should around water. Otherwise- there's no way she wouldn't have been able to leap out of his reach and be entirely safe on dry land.

Unfortunately for her, she definitely is distracted, and tipsy as all get out, and was about to crouch down to be a pain and push her palm at his face or such ornery behavior. However, before she can do more than start to relax her stance, no doubt helping his attack, he's lunging and she's caught totally off guard.

She manages to flail slightly and let out a good, startled yelp, and then she's going down in the least graceful way possible. Knees and elbows fly, she's not exactly trying to nail him with any of the octopus-like limbs but it's not impossible for them to whop him. At least, as she's dunking into the water, she does have the forethought to take a breath and hold it mere seconds before her head is under.

As she eventually surfaces, she still sputters a bit but not as badly as it would've been if she had tried to breathe water. One hand blindly fumbles for the edge of the pool, the other now aiming to swat at him for returning the favor she bestowed on him moments before. She's smiling again though, even if she's trying to glare at him once she shakes enough water and hair out of her eyes.

"You are such an asshole!" Hypocritical? Maybe. Possibly. A little bit...

He catches the vaguest smell of alcohol as he grabs her and maybe feels a bit bad for about a split-second for dragging a drunk woman into the water...but it’s gone by the time they’re both flailing into the water and an elbow slams him in the face hard enough to split the lip on a human. He doesn’t feel pain and his skin is way tougher than that, though, so when they both emerge, he’s looking like exactly the same drowned rat as before they both tumbled in.

She reaches the surface OK and she doesn't have trouble swimming - at least he didn't dunk someone who's drunk and can't swim. As soon as he has that thought he realises she pushed him in without thinking about that and he didn't know if he could swim until right now, where he's realised that in an ungainly sort of way, yes. Yes, he can.

Her swatting hand misses him, but it does splash some water on his face right as he's wiping it away, making him scrunch his nose comically.

But she's smiling - and glaring - and calling him an asshole - and there's a moment where he stares at her, opening his mouth to defend himself...and then he just bursts into laughter. It's not at her, but he just has to grab onto the edge of the pool with both hands and laugh it out.

"Yeah," he eventually manages. Doesn't bother arguing. "And so are you."

Contradicting the idea that he only got the drop on her because she’d been drinking, South would entirely insist she wasn’t even buzzed and could effortlessly swim. Which is the truth? She doesn’t even know. But she’s not sinking to the bottom or anything, so, it’s probably fine either way.

“First off, I’m an absolute delight.” She lets out while still grinning, considering him a moment with a look before she splashes at his face intentionally, “Secondly- it’s not my fault anyways, you started it by looking too hot. Thought the water might help.”

So. Not her fault, all his, she’s definitely not an asshole. Even if it was totally untrue and wouldn’t make it okay even if it was true, she’s an absolute angel! Nevermind she doesn’t consider seeing if her flailing had hurt him, and previously didn’t even hesitate to wonder if he could swim or not. Doesn’t matter, she’s forever the innocent one, just ask her!

"I'm sure you are." Connor's grin widens, and though he recoils from the water, eyes scrunched shut automatically, he retaliates, splashing right back at her with one hand swiping at the water. "I'll let you know when I see it."

...And then he's genuinely a little bit torn. Because the word 'hot' has two meanings, but the idea of deciding it's one or the other meaning, saying something, and being wrong makes him internally squirm a little.

So he settles for being totally vague on the matter - he raises one eyebrow and says, very sceptically, "Did I."

"Hey, you see this smile?" She gives a very fake, cheesy grin, gesturing at it with her hand after moving wet hair out of her face again, "That's already delightful as hell."

It's anyone's guess how she meant the word 'hot', and she's not helping any with deciding which it is.

"Yep, entirely too hot just standing their and staring at your reflection in the water. Not sure the water's helped any yet, though." She insists with another good splash.

"It's, uh..." Connor's mouth twitches. "Wonderful."

And he splashes at her again, but only half-heartedly.

"I wasn't staring at it," he protests, and it's true, he wasn't...at that precise second, and not really pointedly. Look, he likes to look neat, even when he's not wearing anything and he's paying attention to other things.

"I've just never seen a pool before."

She snorts after the returned splash, jutting a finger accusingly at him, "You were entirely staring, like you thought your reflection was drowning and you were trying to figure out how to save it."

The last bit earns the absolutely most confused look from her, narrowing her eyes like she's not sure she believes him, "You've never seen a pool before? What the hell?"

He can't really form an argument to that any more compelling than, "That's ridiculous," so that's all he settles with, swiping his hair back out of his face with one hand. It very quickly falls back.

"I..." He expected some surprise, but not outright incredulity here, and that makes him falter a little. It's not that odd, is it? "I never had a reason to go to one. I'm an android," because here, that often doesn't come across immediately, "maybe they didn't think I was waterproof."

"It looked ridiculous." She insists, amused smile on her face still.

Well, the amused smile was still on her face, until he says the android bit. Then there's a whole wave of clear and obvious conflicted thoughts washing over her expression. Android. AIs. Computers who they say can think and feel and act like real fucking people. She has some shit like that back home, but she's beyond leery of the whole thing. What if the Covvies or Innies hack them? What if you have this smart AI in your suit to help run enhancements, and it goes rogue? There's a billion and one ways this shit can be as bad, if not worse, than their current enemies. Why give a toaster a conscious?

But at the same time. He looks pretty...real. Human. His temple has a thing going on, but they have body mods back home, and there's something similar here. She didn't think to consider it meant anything more than a simple mod. Android. Android. But... look at him! He's a cute thing, so far seems nice and funny, amusing. Like it's not a program, not the FILSS program back home who can form some replies but it's all pre-programmed. His replies seem like they're organic. Living.

To her, it feels like she's staring hard at him for an eternity, but it's really probably only a second or two, all of the thoughts swirling wildly like a dozen tornadoes whipping around in her brain. They finally settle on a decision. Like all her decisions. She comes at a new person with however her mood feels, judges them based on initial reactions and responses. They handle her asshole bullshit fine, she'll let it set the mood and her reactions. They get defensive or bitchy, she'll up her attitude.

She hurled him into the pool with so little regard for if he could even swim, that it could be measured in the negatives. And not only did he take the dick move like a champ, but he returned the favor without hesitation or intimidation of her. And has been a splish-splash'y rubber duck with it all, too. So. Fine. Alright. Okay. She's going to just run with it like she normally would. Like he's a normal human person. Since his response has been fun and playful, she will keep it going, the small falter in her smile passing as she gives a cheeky grin again. Even if, in the back of her mind, she's going to keep a close eye for any...behavior changes. If he seems even a little bit like he's not in control, like he's been compromised or hacked. But for now-

"Gross, so you don't bathe or shower? Nasty!" She teases, picks at him lightly, pushing down the unpleasant knot in her stomach at the idea he wasn't....real. He looks real, sounds real, acts and responds real.

South glances at him and impulsively reaches a hand out in an attempt to push at his hair, not bothering to consider the action past it's initial thought and acting instantly on it. She wants to fuss at the wet strands, both because it fell back down and looks dopey, and maybe, just a bit, to see if it feels real. He felt real enough when she first tossed him in, but she was more focused on the action than on the way skin feels. Maybe it was just her mind that assumed it felt real since it's what she was expecting, or maybe it does feel normal. Now she has no idea, can't remember, and it...bugs her a bit.

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they show you how to swim

Shenanigans!

Re: Shenanigans!

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(If I post this to the wrong spot again I’ma scream omg)

(you did not!!)

(i kept replying to the main post like 6 times :I )

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