Grace Is Gone

[skyward_eyes]

WHO: Nida Nomura, Some Closed Starters, Otherwise OTA
WHAT: Drinking with Wanda, Missing Persons Announcement, Dangerous habits
WHERE: Wanda's Room, Roof of Dorms
WHEN: August 1st - 7th
WARNINGS: Drinking, Grieving, Possible mentions of death and self-harm.


One Drink To Remember - Closed to Wanda

When he wakes up, bed mostly cold, arms empty, no noise from familiar breathing, his heart aches. This hadn't happened yet, not to someone he knew. Not so far as he knew. Because it definitely hadn't been a year. Not even close. Not even...

Within an hour he's gone to the store and come back, and is knocking on another door in the dorm. Pounding really. He's got a nice tall bottle of vodka, grief in his heart, and someone that needs to know before anyone else. Especially since he couldn't find their information on the network anymore.




Then Another To Forget - OTA

This isn't what he's supposed to do. He knows that. It's not healthy, it's not smart, and it's definitely not what he should be doing, but hey, who needs good life choices? In this case the choice manifests in the form of a young man lying on the edge of the building, a bottle of vodka near at hand, claimed every few minutes for a swig as he stares up at the sky above him.

Is this a risky place to be, especially tipsy? Hell yes. Does Nida care? No. But he does flinch when the door to the roof opens? Yes. Is that possibly bad? Yes.

"Close the door," he'll call, his voice a bit uneven. "You're letting the warm out."

Which he thinks is pretty funny, leaving him chuckling.




Network Post - Audio Only

[Definitely Nida's voice, but also very clearly slurred just enough to imply someone has been drinking. Probably more than he should. Which is any at all.]

For those who would care? Billy Kaplan and Tommy Shepherd are gone.

Filtered to Seifer

Yes, I know. You're disappointed and I shouldn't be drinking. Whatever. Can I borrow Eos for a few nights?


[OOC: Nida is going to be in a bad emotional state, and mostly walking through life a bit broken. He's cool to have custom starters for anyone, just directly message me, hit me on plurk churbooseanon or discord (Churby#4290). I can have something ready rather easily.]

Comments

[notalive]

[If somebody didn't know Maggie was an android, she wouldn't give the game away - she's wagging her short tail and panting happily as she pushes into the hand petting her, and Connor's grinning like the proud dog-dad he's already getting used to being.]

I didn't know it could be that big of a problem.

[Which is true enough - he knows what allergies are, broadly, but that an allergy to dogs could be this bad and the medicine so inconvenient? Little things like that are the things he's still learning.]

Well, Maggie lives in the building now, if you ever want to pet a dog without oozing and passing out.

[Oozing is the only word he's got for it. It's an awful word. He need a better one.]

[skyward_eyes]

[She really is the best and Nida can't help the warmth of his smile. Yes, this almsot makes up for the pain by distracting him so very, very well. He just wants to snuggle this beast.]

It's not oozing. It's sneezing and tears and rashes sometimes. If there were dogs like this at home, I'd definitely have one.

[notalive]

That sounds worse than oozing. To me, anyway.

[Tears are one thing - androids can at least cry, so he thinks he gets that. The rest? That's the kind of thing that makes him understand the androids who think humans can be a little bit gross. Not that Connor dislikes them any for it - it's actually pretty fascinating.

Maggie is very open to snuggling. Apparently understanding already that all these two want to do is shower her in affection, she steps forward a little and cranes up at Nida, wagging her tail so her whole backside waggles and panting happily.]

Have they got any androids back where you're from?

[Nida's a mechanic, he remembers, but he's not totally certain what for.

Also, this isn't how he envisioned helping distract Nida from what's troubling him, but it's working pretty well at the moment, as it turns out. Maybe it looks like Connor's just smiling at Maggie at that moment...and he is, a little, but also at the warm feeling filling his chest.]

[skyward_eyes]

In some ways it is.

[He finally stands, his hand happily resting on the creature's head. Maybe... maybe he needs a pet of his own. Badly. He can't keep borrowing other people's pets to feel good.

At last he steps into the hall, closing the door behind him.]

No, we don't have androids. Just war robots.

[notalive]

I was going to suggest you try to jury-rig something, but...maybe not.

[Not that it wouldn't be interesting to see if somebody could reprogram some kind of walking artillery into a lap dog.]

Like I said, Hank got Maggie for us, so I don't know where she came from - but maybe there's more like her.

[Does Nida feel the enabling in the air here?]

[skyward_eyes]

I repair mechanical things, I don't build them or reprogram them. And I'm not really the sort of guy who should have pets.

[Everyone would agree that he wasn't in a place to take care of anything, not even himself. But that's what he thinks. He gestures for Connor to follow him toward the elevator. Easier on the dog.]

How long have you guys had Maggie?

[notalive]

We've had her a couple weeks.

[He knows exactly how long it's been since he first saw Maggie, down to the second, but that's not particularly interesting to humans.]

Hank mentioned he wanted a pet. I didn't mention it at the time, but I was pretty worried - I thought he meant an organic pet, but I've never had to look after a living thing before. I know the basic things they need to survive, but there's nothing in my programming for looking after them.

[He's smiling to himself as they get into the elevator, watching Maggie walk primly in with them and stand between them.]

But Hank got an android.

[skyward_eyes]

[A very well behaved android. And Nida smiles at the comment.]

He sure did, didn't he?

[Of course, he didn't mean that Maggie was the android he'd gotten. Nida knew the guy was affectionate toward Connor. But that's just Nida's opinion.]

You don't mind going to this place with me, right? I mean, you clearly offered to try and cheer me up.

[notalive]

[Connor doesn't notice the underlying meaning of what he's saying, mostly because he's too busy fondly looking at Maggie and fondly thinking about how far Hank's come since the first time Connor dragged him out of a bar to look at a murder. How far both of them have come.]

I did offer.

[He's happy to go wherever...which brings up his next question. He looks back up at Nida, suddenly looking quizzical.]

Wait, what place are we going?

[skyward_eyes]

The bar place, with the music? I mean, if we go, when we get in, you have to hold my ID, to keep me from having alcohol.

[In some ways, he feels like he can trust Connor with that request more than he could a traditional biological. They would feel bad for him and all of that. Might let him get away with what he shouldn't. But here was Connor, who would take his word hen he was sober and try and keep to it. Nida hoped.]

[notalive]

Right. Don't worry, I'll keep you away from alcohol. Promise.

[It doesn't literally appear as an objective anymore - keep Nida sober or some such thing - but he's determined to do what he's been asked all the same. Just because he's being trusted to do it...which means:]

Just so we're clear - even if you ask me later for your ID back because you want alcohol, I say no. Right?

[skyward_eyes]

Correct. I'm not allowed to have my ID back until we get back here. Or, of course, on the idea that you may be called in suddenly for work, after you walk me from the building we're in.

[That makes sense, right? Trying to make sure he has things planned properly.]

[notalive]

I'm a traffic cop, I don't think we get called in.

[Unless one of those giant late-night traffic jams totally disrupts life as they all know it.]

I repair roombas at night, but they can look after themselves.

If you want to talk about it, by the way - I'm here. And if you don't... I'm still here.

[He wanted to say that and get it out of the way. And it might not come up again this evening, but the offer's there.]

[skyward_eyes]

I'm really done talking about it. It hurts, I'm trying to move on. Thinking about it only makes it hurt more.

[So instead he's just walking and ready to get out of here.]

Have we figured out how to get there from here today?

[notalive]

Then we don't talk about it.

[Connor's someone who constantly feels the need to push. So this takes an effort - more than that, it takes a genuine desire for Nida not to feel any worse than he already does.]

I've found if you just head south and keep trying to head south, you eventually hit the boardwalk.

Most of the time.

I haven't worked out any real patterns yet. Mostly I get places by luck.

[And by leaving at least half an hour more than the route should take. Or calling a taxi.]

[skyward_eyes]

The way this place works, just makes me more suspicious of it.

[That said, they've got a hike to take, and Nida's absolutely looking forward to music. Just music. It's a cheerful thing.]

[notalive]

That's how I try to get to most places. Pick a direction and keep going until I recognise something.

[It's not entirely dark out yet, so it's easy to head south just from what direction the sky is still slightly grey-pink. Maggie walks along between them like the highly alert guard dog she started life as.]

Maybe it works - or maybe I just assume it works because it looked like it did once or twice.

[Connor's very first irrational idea: how to make direction work in a city that forcibly rejects the concept.]

[skyward_eyes]

Seems like a reasonable enough method, given how ridiculous this world clearly is.

[Nida mostly relies on the nav programs on the communication devices, and those aren't always reliable. But rationality is a bit overrated, Connor. At least in a place like this.]

Can I trust you and the pupper to be the guide there?

[notalive]

I'm used to unusual, but... Yeah, I'm still having trouble with outright ridiculous.

[All he can do is try to force it to be as rational as he can. It's not always working.]

You can trust us to guide you...somewhere. Hopefully to the bar. Or a bar. Somewhere interesting, at the very least.

If you see somewhere you like, let us know. Right, Maggie?

[She wags her nub of a tail mid-stride, and he beams down at her. It's an incredibly goofy expression for the usually pretty serious-looking android.]

think we can ftb now?

[skyward_eyes]

I'd rather somewhere interesting.

[He smiles and reaches out, patting the robot-dog's head. This is the best.]

That's really all I care about. Getting out of my room.