Main Campfire, Monday Evening

[puppy_fair]

Okay, so today had admittedly not been the most productive day that Zack had ever had. He'd skipped work today after having the meaning of Memorial Day explained to him by the gym teacher, and then he'd handwavily headed down to the graveyard. Angeal wasn't there, no, but it was about as close as he was going to get, and the time to just sit quietly and pay his respects had been good for him.

Now, to wrap the day up, he'd grabbed some marshmallows, bars of chocolate, and graham crackers, and he was working on getting a decently sized fire going.

Okay, so Zack's idea of a 'decently sized' fire was possibly not what most sane people considered to be one. He'd heaped the logs on kind of ridiculously high, and then he'd lit that sucker with a Fira spell. The result had singed his eyebrows a little at first, but hey, all the better for making s'mores, right?

... Once he blew out the marshmallow fire.

[Open!]

Comments

[hotmugofstfu.livejournal.com]

Blackagar just nodded in agreement with that. He gave a resigned little shrug because everyone seemed to make that mistake at first. Well, everyone but the telepaths, that is.

[puppy_fair]

And that was because telepaths were all insightful. Weird, that.

"Didn't think so," Zack replied, twitching a little smile that was still kind of awkward, after that whole hot marshmallow thing. "I'm Zack. You're new, then?"

Yeah. These were the conversations upon which a student's entire first term was based, weren't they?

... Maybe with less burning.

[hotmugofstfu.livejournal.com]

Holding up a finger to have him pause, Blackagar reached into his pocket and pulled out a helpful little card.

My name is Blackagar. I am unable to speak.

Luckily the whole Dan thing had been figured out already.

[puppy_fair]

"Black-a-gar," Zack read, grimacing a little as he did so. "I hope I'm not butchering the pronunciation of that on you."

That would be a great way to top off that whole marshmallow thing.

"In any case, it's good to meet you!"

He'd figured out the unable to speak part all on his own!

[hotmugofstfu.livejournal.com]

Blackagar shook his head, still looking rather good natured about it. No more than anyone else had. It didn't seem to fit in with most everyone else's names, after all.

He held out his free hand to shake. As was the custom here.

[puppy_fair]

Handshake! Zack's grip was firm, but not hand-crushing. It was possible that he put conscious effort into not crushing hands, nowadays. Sometimes his strength got away from him when he was excited and not paying attention.

"You seem to be settling in okay, at least. Not from around here, though?"

... It was really the only way Zack could rationalize away not expecting a molten marshmallow to be hot.

[hotmugofstfu.livejournal.com]

Blackagar nodded gratefully that someone understood how... different Germany was from here. Germany didn't have marshmallows or people who acted like dogs.

...unless you counted those changed to have canine features by the mists, of course. But that was something else entirely.

[puppy_fair]

"Me neither," Zack admitted. "One of those different world things, here. But at least Gaia is fairly similar to Earth."

Except for all of the insane parts, of course.

"It's not too bad, once you get used to it. I mean, so long as people don't go and do stupid things like forget to warn you about hot food." Little grin.

[hotmugofstfu.livejournal.com]

Well, yes. As long as you got over that quick enough, it all worked out.

Blackagar smiled about the same, shaking his head. Setting his 'sandwich' down on the seat near him, he dug out a small notepad and a pen.

Gaia?

[puppy_fair]

"Gaia," Zack agreed after taking a moment to read what Blackagar had written. "Most of the locals just call it The Planet, but it has a name. I think it's one of those different reality worlds, instead of being from outer space somewhere in this universe, though. We're only just now developing a space program, back home."

Space was big and kind of nifty and all, but Zack sort of preferred keeping his feet on the ground. Usually.

"With Fandom, it's kind of hard to tell."

[hotmugofstfu.livejournal.com]

I think it is more interesting here than anywhere else in space, Blackagar wrote down in neat, careful letters.

If only because the Kree were out there and not here.

[puppy_fair]

"You've been out there?" This was Zack's impressed face! Oooo! "What's it like?"

[hotmugofstfu.livejournal.com]

Blackagar smiled and shook his head before jotting down a response.

Not me, but it's been heard of back home.

In Germany.

[puppy_fair]

Dude, if Zack had known Germany was this awesome, he would have gone there for all of his vacations. Ever.

"Oooh, yeah? So it's sort of one of those things that's not really public, too? Some kids around here, it feels like they grew up in space. I think some did, actually."

Some who were sitting at this very campfire, perhaps. Shocking.

"It seems neat. I mean, once you get your head around all the stuff you don't know about out there."

[hotmugofstfu.livejournal.com]

You can't know everything, Blackagar wrote down after a moment. And it's for the best, I think.

[puppy_fair]

"Probably is," Zack agreed after another moment of reading and mulling over those words. "There are some things that I've learned since coming here that I... kinda wish I never did. Knowing everything would be way too much of a burden."

Was that a hint of seriousness in the puppy's voice? Nah. Couldn't be.

[hotmugofstfu.livejournal.com]

One some people must take so that others don't have to, Blackagar wrote back.

He called that 'leadership'.

[puppy_fair]

Zack just called that 'kinda crappy.'

"Then... I think I feel sorry for people put in that position. And they have my respect, too."

[hotmugofstfu.livejournal.com]

Blackagar gave a little shrug at it, not happy or sad at the description. Then, carefully wrote back:

Everyone has their place in life.

[puppy_fair]

Zack offered Blackagar the barest hint of a smile at that.

"Speaking from experience?"

[hotmugofstfu.livejournal.com]

Things are set in place back where I am from. That can't be changed.

In Germany.

[puppy_fair]

"I've heard that before," Zack replied, the smile not leaving his lips at all, even though he didn't mean to smile in the slightest. "I guess so long as people are reserved to live the way it's been laid out for them for all the right reasons, there's no point in trying to change it."

But that hinted that there was such a thing as wrong reasons, as well.

[hotmugofstfu.livejournal.com]

Speaking from experience? was the curious not back to him.

[puppy_fair]

"I had a teacher who spoke a lot about burdens and honor and duty, back home," Zack explained, vaguely.

The had was there, to be interpreted however anybody cared to.

"Some stuff went on. It's nothing that really matters all that much anymore, anyhow."

[hotmugofstfu.livejournal.com]

Blackagar gave him a look that could be considered sympathetic and simply nodded, letting him leave it at that. A private matter, no doubt.