pc catchall for shess (nonbelligerent)

[foodbin]

Comments

[foodbin]

How high is your bar for what you don’t have to take?

[nonbelligerent]

People acting hostile towards me—or those under my care—before I've even done anything or while I'm trying to help them.

[with some exceptions but emma really doesn't need to know about those.]

[foodbin]

I hope it’s not that common for you.

[nonbelligerent]

Not that common, I think?

[foodbin]

Every week, every month...?

[nonbelligerent]

[he lets out a silent laugh.]

Longer than that.

[though frequency's relative. when you're old.]

[foodbin]

Well, good. Constantly dealing with assholes is not fun, trust me.

[nonbelligerent]

That makes it sound like you're the one constantly dealing with hostile people, not me.

[foodbin]

Do you know what a barista is?

[nonbelligerent]

Something to do with drinks, if I recall correctly?

[foodbin]

Half the job is making coffee. The other half is having to deal with the assholes you’re making coffee for.

[nonbelligerent]

I don't understand the point of being an asshole to someone making food for you.

[foodbin]

Yeah, well. It's not hard to stop treating someone like a person when they're only there to do something for you, I guess.

[nonbelligerent]

I suppose that is an unfortunate constant of many societies.

[foodbin]

Right.

[She sighs.]

Well. It beats what came after, at least.

[nonbelligerent]

That's an unfortunate thing to be able to say.

[foodbin]

[She pauses for a moment.]

I haven't told you much about it, have I?

[nonbelligerent]

No.

[foodbin]

Well, as stupidly cliched as this sounds... It all started when the meteor hit my town.

[She shrugs.]

You said there were... not people from your clan, but other people you knew who would go to other planets and try to wipe out the people there, right? It was a little bit like that.

[nonbelligerent]

[he nods slowly, his expression grim.]

[foodbin]

Well, the way it worked was... Whatever they were, they didn't have bodies of their own. They had to take over the ones around them, which kicked whoever was already in it out.

[Which probably explains her thing about possession. Hm.]

And there's not really a way to get them out or bring back the person who was there before.

[nonbelligerent]

[...]

Almost like a parasite, then. A dangerous enemy to have to deal with.

[foodbin]

Yeah, well... Most parasites can't act and speak like the people you trusted. So, even worse. Figures, right?

[nonbelligerent]

I take it things haven't gotten better, then.

[foodbin]

[She pauses for a few moments.]

It seems weird to say, but I was lucky to come here. There's no way things could have gotten better anyways.