[audio] @Lucky; Roommate Quest [open]

[mindofathief]

So, uh.

[Some fiddling on the other end. Duster is almost used to the audio function.]

I've been crashing here and there for the night, but considering that it's always cold and I can't risk sleeping outdoors anymore, does anyone have an open space in their house I can sleep in for the rest of the winter? I'll help with cooking.

Comments

[mindofathief]

Sometimes. Mostly I was indoors. [He responds in his low-energy tone.] I'm not used to this cold weather.

[There was no point in holding onto the memories of his previous homes. He had to make a new permanent space for himself on this island and deal with it whether he liked it or not.]

You mean you need a lock or...?

[maisel]

[ Low energy, meet mile-a-minute New York accent: ]

No, secure entrances are sort of a big important thing where I'm from. A huge city, a place calle the Upper West Side of New York--you need a locked door to the entrance of the apartment building, and a doorman, and an elevator guy, just to make sure no one tries to sneak in and take your jewelry and make sure your kids are safe.

If you need a place, feel free to stay with me. I'm Miriam, by the way, but you can call me Midge--you can call me anything, really. As long as you're polite about it--Mrs. Maisel, too, although at this point it's just a deeply ironic stage name.

[mindofathief]

Oh. [He takes a moment to process all of that.] The Upper West Side sounds pretty dangerous.

[His private room - when he was a local celebrity - was just a locked bedroom door and two club bouncers. This level of security was on par with top secret military bases and 100-floor buildings. How big could this city possible be?]

And I'm Duster, by the way.

...We could see if we can get a lock made for you.

[maisel]

Incredibly so. You really have to be tough. Lock would be great here, too. [ It's very possible she's mistaking Duster's tone for sarcasm and adding on to what she thinks is a joke. ]

Anyway--that's besides the point: hiya, Duster. I'm Miriam. I formally invite you to at least see if my place is up to your standards of living, despite of the lack of an elevator man.

[mindofathief]

[He's been in only one building with an elevator. It was frustrating, but a quick mode of travel. And here was Miriam with her just-as-fancy house with her elevator and door guards.]

I'm sure it'll be fine. I grew up in a small village like this.

[maisel]

I am so, so sorry. [ Was that a joke? Again, hard to tell. ] I couldn't imagine growing up in a tiny place like this. What did you do for fun?

[mindofathief]

[Well that's a thing one says to make themselves feel important...]

We took walks. Went to the beach. Most everyone else farmed while my dad was training me, but we had time to relax.

[maisel]

Training you for what?

[ Is she still worried about him potentially living outside? absolutely, not now she's more curious than anything. ]

[mindofathief]

[He watches her for a few seconds.]

We were thieves. Thieves of Justice, seeing that we were meant to protect the islands from danger. [That didn't go too well.] My whole purpose in life was to retrieve an important item from a castle that was supposed to help us.

...And then I joined a band.

[maisel]

Jeepers. [ She was not expecting that left turn. ] So you're--what, a superhero? Robin Hood, sneaking into castles?

I don't suppose your bandmates are here, too? I'd kill for some live music. Some nice jazz, honestly. Or a Shy Baldwin number. You know Shy Baldwin?

[mindofathief]

I think that's what I was supposed to be. I ended having to save the world a different way, but it apparently didn't work.

...None of my bandmates are here.

[It's been a month. He's been travelling for longer than that, but at least he was busy.]

Never heard of them, either. [He assumes that's a band name.] I don't think any of us share worlds. That's why I can't understand what music Crowley is talking about, either.

[maisel]

Shucks. I've had One Less Angel stuck in my head since arriving here, and I can't sing for beans.

So you're not from Earth, like, at all?

[mindofathief]

Maybe...All I know are the Nowhere Islands, but we were told that the world used to be much bigger before humanity destroyed it.

[maisel]

I swear I just heard you say 'before humanity destroyed it.'

[mindofathief]

I did.

My guess is that I only saw a little more than 100 people living on the islands, if that's all that were left.

[maisel]

Nuclear bomb? War? How does humanity just end?

[mindofathief]

I don't remember.

I mean that I can't remember. Everyone's memories of the old world were erased.

[maisel]

Is th--

--I mean--

--no one got even a little bit curious?

[ Guess what you're blowing her mind ]

[mindofathief]

Oh, I sure was, but there wasn’t much time to ask after we found out.

[They were racing against the clock to save the world while processing everything Leder told them. It was a long day.]

But if I was a kid back then...I could try to find a way to get those back and remember.

[maisel]

Jeepers. Small town or not, you've obviously led one helluva life. [ She's impressed, and it shows. ] My biggest fear when I was a kid was whether or not I could nab a husband before I turned 25.

[mindofathief]

You said you lived in a big city. Wouldn’t that have been easy?