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Date & Time: 5th April, evening
Location: Disciple's apartment
Characters: Disciple, Helmsman and Nepeta
Summary: Disciple wants to introduce her descendant to her best-friend-who-doesn't-remember-he-is.
Warnings: None, I think!

"I'm really glad you said you'd meet her!" Di babbles at the Helmsman, clearly excited and a bit nervous over the meeting which was about to take place. When he'd been going to meet Sollux she'd been more worried about how the younger yellowblood would act, but with Nepeta at least she felt reassured that she'd be kind and friendly towards the Helmsman.

She just hopes it won't be too awkward. When she'd first told her descendant about her dear friend and what had been done to him she'd done her best to explain how he was now, and not to expect so very much in the way of friendliness perhaps. That his appearance would scare her is another concern, but then again Disciple has such a high opinion of her young descendant that she feels sure she'll rise to the occasion.

All she wants is for them to get along, and that maybe Psii, what little or a lot remained of him inside the Helmsman, would see how proud she is of Nepeta, and how much it means to Disciple for him to get to know her.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"System made user Drift'th shanikth run away and then cleaned user'th chronometer." In other words, he gave Drift a run for his money and then cleaned his clock. So yes, he enjoyed it.

"System ith going to program more of user Drift'th gameth at a later point in time."

Give her a moment to figure that one out. "Oh!" She laughs. "Beat him at his own game, then? I'm not surprised. But it's great that you're going to program more of them for him! Would you...would you maybe teach me how to play some of them?"

She doesn't want to impose or make him think he has to. She knows that Drift is a friend he's made on his own and that, although the Helmsman won't admit it, he almost certainly enjoyed playing against him. That's what she wants for him, fun, not any kind of self-enforced duty.

"System can teach user Disciple if user ith interested in learning."

He did enjoy playing with Drift, and he likes the idea of playing more games with someone else. The fact that she wants to learn and play with him is kind of flattering, and although his expression doesn't really change, his posture relaxes a little, and he doesn't look as tense and highly strung as normal. "What kind of gameth doeth user Disciple enjoy?"

"Oh, I am!" That he's taking it well makes her glad - he seems eager for it, if anything, and just seeing him relax that way makes her wish she'd thought of it before. "I know a few card games. And other games that I used to play with my lusus, but those wouldn't work as well. I'd be happy to try any you'd show me!"

"System hath some simple gameth user Disciple could play. Or user Disciple could teach system card gameth." He's not trying to be insulting, really; she just doesn't really strike him as the strategy game type.

"I'd be honoured to teach you a few of the ones I know," she says, very sincere in her words. It already means a great deal to her that he'd ask her at all - and she's pretty sure he'll be winning each and every single match before long. "It was a friend who taught me in the first place," she adds, smiling a little at the memory. "So it only seems right that I'd pass it on to another friend too."

"System ith a friend?" Pardon him, he's a little shocked by that statement. First Drift, now Disciple... he has never had friends before, and now suddenly he has two.

"Of course you are!" She manages to stop herself from feeling bad that he hadn't realized before just how much of a friend she considers him to be - after what he's been through, it's not surprising that it feels like a completely alien concept to him. "A very dear friend," she adds with a soft smile.

The Helmsman ponders this for a few minutes. He's familiar with the concept of friendship, of course, but not so much the practice. Everything he knows about it leads him to one very obvious conclusion.

"System disagreeth. System ith not capable of being a very dear friend. System doeth not behave in thith way."

It's not you, it's him, Disciple.

"That's not true, Helmsman. You just think you aren't, but you are. And I already feel that you are, and I really cannot help it if I feel that way about you." There's a small grin from her, teasing a very tiny bit. "I'm afraid you'll have to put up with an affectionate old cat troll hanging around a little while longer."

He stares at her blankly for another moment or two, then blinks and turns his attention elsewhere. "What game did user Disciple want to teach system?"

She lets it go, thinking over his question. Which game would be fun to play for him? Poker would be impossible, seeing that he has the most impenetrable poker face in history, and some others are just...

Hmm. "Would you like to try Snap?"

Yeah, good luck breaking this poker face. It can't be done.

"How ith the game Snap played?" He floats a little closer, hovering so he can see what she's doing.

"It's quite simple," she starts explaining, hunting out a packet of picture cards from amongst her heap of cushions. "I shuffle the pack and divide it between the two of us, face down, and then we each take turns placing one face-up in a pile in the middle. If the one you place matches the one directly beneath it, the one who shouts 'Snap!' first is safe and the other has to take all the cards in the middle into their pile. Whoever gets rid of all their cards first wins!"

Those rules are very simple, and the Helmsman has no trouble understanding them. There is one thing he's unclear on, however.

"Query: do playerth have to shout?" There are two problems with this: his vocal cords can't withstand extended shouting, and loud noises make him nervous.

"Oh...no, you don't have to!" She's quick to reassure him, guessing what his problem might be. "It can make the game a bit more fun and exciting but what's important is saying it quickly, not loud! There doesn't have to be any shouting."

"System would like to request no shouting." Look at that, making personal requests. Someone is almost turning into a real person. "System can shuffle?"

It will be much quicker with his psionics.

"One no-shouting match of Snap, coming up!" she laughs, grinning. It's so good to hear him actually demonstrate a preference for something. "Of course you can, they're all yours." The cards are placed on the floor and pushed over towards him.

The Helmsman uses his psionics to pick up the cards, and blue and red light flashes all around them as he shuffles them thoroughly. For all he can use his psionics to move spaceships and slam meteors together, he can also use them to do extremely fine-tuned things like this. Once they're shuffled, they flower upwards like a fountain, neatly dividing themselves between the two of them.

"System ith ready."

"Oh, wow..." She knows full well what he's capable of with his psionics, but sometimes a delicate display of skill like this is still enough to take her breath away and make her look on admiringly. "That was wonderful, Helmsman! Okay, I'm ready too! You can start the game if you want."

She knows, does she? Knows knows? Eheheheheh...

Showing off done, the Helmsman flips one card up and lays it flat between them. It's a three of clubs. "That ith the symbol for auspiticism."

Yes. Knows knows. She also knows you're in there smirking at her, Psii. Stop it.

"That's right!" She chuckles as she remembers something. "Rosa always used to mediate between us so much we'd tease her that she'd be the perfect auspictice for anyone." Her own card is flipped over and placed on top of the pile. Ace of hearts.

"Symbol for matespritth," he informs her when he sees that new card. He lays down another of his own (another heart card, so he doesn't bother to identify it). "User Disciple ith talking about user'th friendth?"

That gets a nod and a small, tender smile from Di. She looks lost in thought for a moment. "Hearts bound together. It suits." One more, another club, but she's paying more attention to him than to the game now. "That's right. The ones I left behind... I miss them a lot, Helmsman. All of them."

The Helmsman lays down another card, a diamond, before answering. "There were many that user Disciple misseth?"