[text] @riku; lost & found and other stuff [open]

[equinoctials]

Hey. Hope you're all staying safe. It's icy out there.

The Postmaster gave me a package. Couldn't tell you who sent it but I think there's been a mistake. This was inside.

[ There's a picture attached of a yarn snowman wearing a knit black cap and black and white knitted scarf with green buttons for eyes. It's pretty cute... ]

Does this belong to anyone?

One more thing.

The movie theater downtown has a stage and multiple film projectors. Big library of films too. The spirits working the concession counter seem okay too.

Only problem is it needs power. Take a look at this.

[ The attached picture shows five slots that look like they could fit a big square car battery or something like it. ]

Not exactly urgent. Still, a movie sometimes might not be too bad.

-Riku

Comments

[equinoctials]

[ Riku's trying not to lean in too heavily on that all work and no play lifestyle, but he has his good days and his bad days. ]

Right. There's morale to consider too.
I keep thinking about that near miss with the parade.
If we lost anyone, what we found in the theater wouldn't have been nearly worth the risk. It's frustrating.

[webshoots]

[ peter honestly has no idea what work-life balance is, but he SURE CAN distract away from that with terrible jokes. ]

Objectively speaking, no, but it was a choice we all made.
And you know I don't say this lightly, but if we can't take risks here, we're not going to have any wins.
You and I both know that not every risk is going to pay off, but as long as can go in with a degree of preparedness, we can at least try and limit what we lose.

[ and by preparedness, he means a mixture of plans and choosing the right people. ]

[equinoctials]

This stuff is a lot more complicated when the people you trust to have your back in a dangerous situation...
Are the people you want to lose the least.
Right. Well, we made it. That's what matters.

[webshoots]

Trust me, it's not any less complex when they're not.

[ sent first and followed by a delay. peter tends to be an open book as far as emotions are concerned, is rarely embarrassed to admit what he's feeling or why, but that doesn't mean he doesn't feel uncomfortable in moments of relative emotional vulnerability. doesn't mean he doesn't want to respond with flippancy instead of sincere agreement because whilst it's true, it's also—

the thought of losing someone important isn't one he wants to linger on.

he thinks about remarking on how lucky they've been to this point, which he almost immediately trades for— ]

Have you ever thought you might be part cat?

1/2

[equinoctials]

here we go

[ Riku you don't get to act like the long-suffering one here ]

[equinoctials]

I touched a nerve, didn't I?
Sorry. Just one of those days.

[webshoots]

Nooo.
You've lost me actually.

I meant in a nine lives sort of sense.

BELATED 2/2

[webshoots]

What do you mean "here we go"?

[equinoctials]

You crack a joke whenever the conversation gets uncomfortable.

[ To be fair, Peter wisecracks all the time, uncomfortable content notwithstanding. It more says something about how often Riku talks to him about something kinda personal. ]

What did YOU mean by nine lives?

[webshoots]

That is NOT true.

[ it is true. it's true and peter hates that riku's noticed. he hates even more that he's calling him out on it. he thinks the last person to do that was tony, right before—.

right before may had been shot. ]

Cats have nine lives.

[ wait, no, start again— ]

Uh... I mean, they don't. It's an old wives tale. Or a proverb. One of the two. It just refers to how cats have a tendency to survive accidents common sense tells us they shouldn't survive. It's purely biological and mostly refers to falls - they've got a large surface area:weight ratio, fast reflexes and flexible ligaments but...

It basically means they're lucky.

...You haven't heard that before?

[equinoctials]

I don't believe you.

That's not what I mean. Why'd you ask in the first place? You think I believe I'm... lucky?

[webshoots]

It's not! I joke all the time.
My sense of humor is basically my defining trait...
Next to the charm and the good looks.

I don't think YOU believe you're lucky, but ...kind of?
Of course, it's not strictly luck - like I said, it's biological and cats don't actually have nine lives, but...
Eight months, right?

[equinoctials]

Now I definitely don't believe you.

[ Eight months, though. ]

To tell you the truth... I don't know if I would have made it this far if it wasn't for a promise I was asked to make.

[webshoots]

I'm hurt.
My aunt tells me I'm funny, good-looking, and charming.
Are you calling her a liar, Riku?

[ she does not say he's funny. ]

Promises can go a long way.
I know I'm a scientist and traditionally speaking, we're supposed to be skeptical of things like magic...
(Hey, I know magic exists, you don't need to start with that.)
But I've also seen things that go beyond anything like that.
Bonds, I guess.
What I'm saying is I believe you.

It's been a long time and you've been through a lot.
I've stopped being surprised at what allows a person to put one foot in front of the other at times.

[equinoctials]

Yeah. Originally, the deal was to survive so my heart could guide him, like the lighthouse guides the ferry.
That Sora never came back.
By the time I could see the truth, I had found other reasons to keep going.
He used to say corny stuff like "my friends are my power". But... you know?
I think there's something to that.

And your aunt's a liar.

[webshoots]

I'm sorry, Riku.
I know it sounds trite, and I know that words can never make something like that feel any better but...
You want to hear something else corny?
I think that even when we lose someone like that, physically, the fact that we can carry memories of them with us means something too. There's a lot to be said for remembering everything that a person was and what they meant. How they affected you and what they meant to you.
Maybe you lost Sora, but you didn't lose him.

She's the best person I know.

[equinoctials]

I was kidding about your aunt. Sorry.

[ The king told him he should try opening up more, that he'd feel better if he didn't keep it all locked inside. Riku's starting to think the problem isn't the process not having the desired result, it's just him. ]

[webshoots]

Yeah, I know.

You're not wrong though. I ended up with a bowl cut when I was 10. She still told me I was her handsome little guy.

I've seen the photographs.

It was terrible.

[equinoctials]

She sounds like she's sweet on you. I hope wherever she is, she's doing alright.

[webshoots]

I think we're operating on different definitions of 'sweet on you'.

[ "OH MY GOD." ]

She raised me. She's my mom.

[equinoctials]

Isn't that what moms do? Love and nag you?

[webshoots]

Being sweet on someone normally means you have a crush on them.

[equinoctials]

As far as cultural crossed wires go that's probably the grossest one I've ever seen.

[webshoots]

Shall we just agree to backtrack like 5 messages and pretend it never happened? Because I am right there with you.

[equinoctials]

I don't know. I can't read the last 5 messages suddenly.