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Date & Time: Earlier afternoon
Location: Aoba and Ren's room
Characters: Aoba, Ren and Koujaku
Summary: Surprise friend meetings!
Warnings: Nope.

[ It hadn't been a horribly long impromptu mission he'd been sent off on, but a week sure felt like a long time. The fact that he'd come back to the aftermath of a zombie invasion just made him feel like he'd missed out on a hell of a lot. Not that Aoba's particularly broken up over the fact that he hadn't had a chance to experience zombies for himself, but still... it's a pretty big thing to come back and realize you could have come back to everyone a bloody corpse or an undead monster themselves, and to be honest it made him a little leery of going off on single missions anymore.

He's done his best to catch up with everything he missed on his return, but it's left him feeling wiped out and right now he just wants to go collapse in his shitty moon bed right now.

He's not even looking up as he walks through the door. No, Aoba's attention is focused on his feet as he tries to tug off one of the boots the Initiative gave him, hopping into the room on one foot. ]

Ren, I'm back.

[ He's not actually sure if Ren is in the room, but he figures at worst he's talking to the air just just looks slightly stupid. ]

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[ Aoba stares back at Ren, a little confused by that reaction, but more than anything because he doesn't want to look up at Koujaku while he's still feeling sort of disappointed by the rejection of his offer. ]

I wasn't that happy.

[ He was pretty happy. ]

And ah, I guess that's true. The people here seem pretty nice for the most part. Though there are some...

[ No one outright awful that he's met, but he's run into some pretty rude kids here.

He sighs and holds out a hand to Ren, expecting him to come closer so he can pick him up. ]

.....

[Ren seems to be hesitating. It's pretty typical that he would willingly walk into Aoba's hands, and a part of him wants to. But after his talk with Koujaku, and his time away from Aoba, he has really set his mind to thinking about how he wants to be seen. Still, he's missed Aoba and curling up in his arms would be a familiarity that wouldn't be entirely unwelcome. Blah blah existence problems for not-so-robot dogs.

He doesn't want Aoba to worry there's something wrong with him either, so he eventually approaches his hand cautiously.]

[He watches the exchange between Ren and Aoba, feeling like something is off. Maybe Ren is still acting strange from before, but he's not going to bring that up. He still looks as pumped and excited that Aoba is back.]

So Ren told me you went on a mission. How'd that go? Got anything good out of it? I got told once you went to the beach. Either way, Aoba, welcome home. All of us are glad to have you back.

[ Koujaku's not the only one thinking that Ren is acting a little strange here. Even though Ren does eventually approach Aoba the hesitation already causes Aoba to worry some. This isn't like him, and Aoba has to wonder if something happened while he was gone.

He makes a note to himself to ask about that later. He doesn't want to talk about it with Koujaku here, even if he does trust Koujaku. It still seems like something that should stay between him and Ren.

For the time being though he scoops Ren up, trying to be a little more careful with him than usual (though it's not like he's usually rough with his robro).

He stands up and nods his head once in thanks for the welcome back. He's not sure he likes this place being called home, but he doesn't say that out loud. ]

Un, but the beach was something completely different. This time was really uneventful, but I did get some food and water, so I guess it was a success? There's not a whole lot to say about it.

[Ren curls up against his chest, paws tucked together, and eyes slightly narrowed. As he suspected, this position makes him feel uncomfortable again. He thought it might be different with Aoba, but it isn't the case. Whether it's with the person most important to him, or just a friend, it all leaves him feeling troubled. But he doesn't know how to tell Aoba that, nor does he really want to with an audience.]

It was a success. [Ren agrees mechanically.] There are few provisions here, the Transports and Initiative would welcome anything additional. Thank you for your hard work, Aoba.

You can tell me about the beach next time. [He laughs once entering the room and leaning against a wall. ] But what happened this time? And like Ren said, there's a lack of resources here, so having water and food will make things easier for the all of us. [He smirks.] If you're willing to share, that is.

I wish I had some food or something to drink to celebrate, but it seems this place is about as lively as the old district. [ he would have found some lay away plan for a little cake or some alcohol. ] Hopefully you don't mind I stayed here until you got back -- Ren was the best roommate I could've asked for.

[ He's not letting go of Ren though. In fact, he holds Ren a little closer to reassure himself about Ren's strange reaction earlier. ]

Ahaha, you don't have to thank me for something like that. It's something we all have to do anyway.

[ To Koujaku now. ]

But it's really not much at all. I went out and I spent some time by myself as I gathered food. It took awhile though, since I didn't show up with money in the first place, which made it harder... At least at the beach we got to see dinosaurs.

[ Going to take a seat on his bed now. ]

And I don't mind at all that you did.

[For now Ren doesn't seem to be moving at least.]

Gratitude is warranted in this kind of situation, is it not? Though I do not personally benefit from food or water, other Transports will.

[He hums at the rest of what Aoba says.]

The dinosaurs were very large.

Dinosaurs? [ there's actually a stunned face at first, because he isn't expecting that answer. ] That's certainly something you don't see every day. [he looks at Ren, his face not looking so surprised anymore, but interested. ] Were they? Well, I'd say most people don't tell the tale of seeing dinosaurs and live to tell about it.

[ koujaku has a habit in dropping in mostly unannounced anyway, but still, he uses kind words and politeness to show his gratitude. ] Well, Ren, I'm sure Aoba and I can find a way to reward you, right, Aoba? [ he flashes a playful smile at Aoba. ]

Not all dinosaurs eat meat, you know.

[ Though there's still a risk of being stepped on by some of the bigger herbivores so maybe Koujaku's comment still stands?

He looks down at Ren. ]

Eh? Yeah, if there's anything you want we can get it for you in thanks for taking care of Koujaku. It's a hard job, after all, so you deserve it, Ren.

Ah. [Ren looks a little bewildered.] No, that is not necessary. Koujaku was a polite guest, it was no trouble at all.

[If anything, Ren is probably the one that caused more trouble with his mood swings.]

True, but most are big enough to hurt you, intentional or not. [ at least Aoba is fine and he got to see something most people never get the chance to. ] But that's over with, and I bet you had an amazing and exciting experience.

So modest. [ he instinctual reaches his hand out, about to go pet Ren, but he pulls it back. ] Right, so what are you doing tonight? You should rest up before you do anything crazy. [ he's joking of course. ]

[ Aoba's definitely noticing Koujaku's reaction to Ren. That's weird, right? They seem to be friendly enough, but that's a strange reaction to have. Did something happen between the two of them while Aoba was gone?

He doesn't ask right now though. Instead he snorts at Koujaku's question. ]

Like there's anything crazy to do around here.

[ Except maybe stage a mutiny, but that'll come later. ]

[Ren watches the way Koujaku corrects his hand, and he feels a sense of gratefulness and guilt. For his own selfishness, he's asked Koujaku to change the way he acts around him. Was that really okay? And will he someday do the same to Aoba?

Ren shakes the thoughts off, tuning back into the conversation.]

It was quite hectic while you were gone.

Hey, you never know. People will always find a way to blow off stress and forget the hard times -- you'd be surprised. [ he tries to act like the awkward exchange never occurred, casually talking and acting very relaxed. ]

With all the new people coming, I can't see how it wouldn't be hectic. There's plenty of colorful people here to say the least.

[ For their sakes he'll go ahead and ignore the exchange as well. As best he can, anyway. He does glance down at Ren every so often. ]

That's true...

But the new people arriving isn't usually that hectic for the rest of us. They show up every month, and you get used to it after awhile. Though I imagine this time it was a little different...

[Ren shifts in Aoba's grip, paws resting on his hand, like he's trying to reassure him against whatever it is that he keeps looking at him for.]

There was an outbreak of monsters while you were away, Aoba. I believe they were called zombies, it was very dangerous to wander around.

They all arrive at the same time? Guess this place has a schedule in the midst of chaos after all. [ at least the attempt to be organized is there. ]

Yeah, zombies. They weren't too bad, but I felt like I was in some sort of video game. [ he recalls some things. ] You really do have to double check if they're dead or not.

[ His expression drops right away. Ren's body isn't flesh and blood, he should have been safe from something like zombies, but Koujaku is another story... ]

I heard someone mention something about it. Were they really...?

[ Undead. Trying to eat people? Horrible to deal with? ... Real? This place has had some pretty things happen, but zombies seems way out there. ]

Yes, they came from the agricultural wing I believe. It felt strange to fight them, since they didn't seem self-aware.

Edited 2014-01-06 09:27 (UTC)

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