From our window we could see

[velveteened]

Date & Time: June 24, 8 pm
Location: Unit 403
Characters: Kate Kane, Gilbert Nightray, and Oz Vessalius
Summary: Gilbert offers to make Kate dinner. Oz wants to meet his mysterious lady friend.
Warnings: SHENANIGANS

( he'd been curious.

gil had been acting really strangely, oddly surprised at oz coming to the apartment at this time. oz had only wanted to ask about something trivial and not so important it needed to really be dealt with now; but the fact that gilbert had asked just that -

if it really can't wait, if oz can't make do for a bit, he can't go anywhere right now but later...!

- had made oz decide to change his plans.

so gilbert is now off to search nearby shops and stalls for a local specialty, because rhubarb berries are totally real and being sold nearby but if he doesn't hurry he'll miss out for the whole rest of the summer!!!! - and oz waits to investigate just what it is gil had been expecting. )

Comments

[retraced]

[He hesitates a moment. Everyone had their own terms for military, police forces, but 'soldier' sounds more like an agent of Pandora than a random member of the standard military. Nobility problems.]

Oh - ah. I guess they do.

[itscomplicated.png]

[gevurah]

[ ITP: Nita and Sarah throw their hands up in the air over world building in PH. ]

Where I'm from most countries have their own armed forces to defend them. [ There's a lot more to that, but she'll keep it as simple as possible. ] I'm an army brat; I grew up on bases for a while. My father's a Green Beret and my mom was in the Air Force.

[retraced]

[A sad hard life all around.]

Green Beret? Sorry, I've never heard of either of those.

[But the title of Air Force has his imagination going a little wild.]

[gevurah]

[ And she hasn't even gotten to the Navy yet.

She puts down her spoon a moment and wipes the corner of her lips with a handkerchief (or tissue paper -- which is provided) and then points to the tattoo on her arm. ]

It's exactly what it sounds like: their berets are green. [ It's distinctive. ] Their primary tasks are unconventional warfare, foreign internal defense, special reconnaissance, direct action... and a few other things.

[retraced]

[The words all make sense for the most part, but putting them in context of an organization that watches over the entire world...well, it's a bit much to take in. Pandora only had influence over a small part of one country, which (probably) is part of a much larger world. He looks at her tattoo warily, as though he himself can feel the weight of the responsibility of such a position on him.]

How many others are part of this group?

[gevurah]

[ American politics are a fickle, overwhelming, and often confusing topic. The higher up in ranks you go in the Army, the more political it becomes. ]

Overall? I can't give an exact number, but somewhere around five thousand.

[retraced]

[That many people just for one section of a much larger, united army. He still looks like he can't quite wrap his head around the idea of it all, but it's at least starting to make more sense.]

...Your world sounds much larger than mine.

[We assume.]

[gevurah]

Maybe you just haven't seen enough of yours. [ That's a strange thing for him to say. ]

[retraced]

Mmh. It's true, I haven't traveled much except when it was necessary.

[He says it more like an apology than a statement of fact.]

[gevurah]

[ She takes another spoonful of her soup, then another, not wanting to waste it. ]

Maybe you will someday.

1/2

[retraced]

[If their ending is happy, then maybe. But right now traveling anywhere is the last thing on Gilbert's mind. He'd figured, once, that they'd save Oz from the Abyss and then there would be a lifetime to make everything up to him, to take him wherever he wanted, to welcome him back into the world that he'd definitely return to at any cost. There was no time to make happy memories in that world now.

Also not the best dinner conversation so let's insert long winded speech #457.]

Traveling is tedious. Trains are loud and filthy, no matter which section of it you're sitting in. Inns never serve fresh enough food, and you never know what sort of markets they'll have in the cities where you're staying. It can be days before you get to do any laundry. Riding in a carriage too long, your legs go numb, but all of these things are still preferable to walking anywhere at a long distance.

2/2

[retraced]

[A small sigh. No, he can't get away with just saying all that and not adding the most important part of what he's thinking.]

But...there are places that Oz would probably like to see someday. If it's for his happiness, I'd put up with it without complaint.

[Not out loud. Much.]

[gevurah]

[ She stares at him, baffled for a moment before her confusion gives away into amusement. ]

Right; they don't have private jets in your time. [ She chuckles softly. ] Traveling's nice as long as you enjoy moving all the time.

[retraced]

A private what?

[More words that just don't match up with anything he understands, and his imagination isn't good enough to draw anything more than a very solid blank.]

[gevurah]

Airplanes; they're big and fly up in the sky. [ She motions with her hands to indicate a wingspan. ] We've got ships to cross the ocean, but with a plane it's much faster. Smoother, too.

I bet you could find books in the library about them.

[retraced]

[The bombs that had fallen had come from things flying in the sky, but Gil hadn't stopped to watch them at the time. Chains flew, but for the life of him he couldn't picture getting on Raven's back and letting the giant bird fly him across the country. Though apparently this happened with Barma and Leo and Vincent what the hell, canon.]

At least the library here is more or less the same...

[Now to just wait for the librarian to be in a good enough mood to help him find a relevant book without giving him the stink-eye.]

Thank you for explaining everything to me. These questions probably get annoying after a while.

[gevurah]

[ Don't fly on the flaming bird of death, Gil.

It's easy for her to picture people soaring in the sky, wings or not. Superheroes can do that. ]

Hardly. Other universes are interesting to hear about.

[retraced]

[He turns his eyes back down towards the table. Just let him apologize for being awkward without being nice in return, sobs internally.]

The food is the same, at least. [And then, deflating:] Sort of.

[gevurah]

[ She chuckles and finishes off the rest of her bowl. ]

This place tries. It's better than nothing.

[retraced]

[He puts his own spoon down when he notices that she's finished. He has a few bites left of his own.]

Was it really okay...?

[gevurah]

[ She nods as she dabs at her mouth with a handkerchief and sets it down neatly on the table. ]

It was great, Gil. Thank you.