Second Floor Common Room, Tuesday Afternoon

[era_two_triangle]

There was a Camp Pining Hearts marathon on the television. Peridot had found out about it mostly by accident, and was now fixated on the television screen for what was probably going on the eleventh episode, now. She'd needed to break for class that morning, true, but that only meant that by the time she returned to the television, she had a rather large collection of hand-toasted marshmallows with her.

A few had even been dipped in chocolate, not because she figured they would be better that way, but because her hand had slipped and some had fallen into the fondue pot. There were some others that had similarly been dipped in cheese, which people were welcome to sample if they so desired. She wouldn't be, naturally. She would just be laying down on the floor in front of the television, a myriad of yellow roses and one white carnation sticking out from her hair here and there, enraptured by the antics of Percy and Pierre.

... And Paulette too, she supposed, even if she was terrible.

[OOC: Snow day, the revenge! Open!]

Comments

[era_two_triangle]

Peridot's answering smile to that was almost fond.

"Humans, always concerned about boredom," she noted. "Even when it comes to things you need to do in order to continue living."

[intotheout]

"I had to spend weeks once living on whatever I could find in abandoned stores and vending machines," Tip said. "We totally can just eat whatever's handy, but it gets kind of agonizing. We're just . . . built for change, I guess."

[era_two_triangle]

"That... makes a lot of sense, actually." Peridot nodded a little, taking that knowledge at face value. "It seems like everything you humans do is a vehicle for change. It's remarkable to watch."

[intotheout]

"I read somewhere that our whole bodies regenerate every seven years." Give her a moment, and she'll realize that that wasn't phrased anywhere near clearly enough. "We're constantly changing."

[era_two_triangle]

"Every seven years? Entirely?" Peridot leaned forward a little, fascinated. The adventures of Percy and Pierre were completely forgotten, now. "How?"

[intotheout]

"Um." Right, there was that realization. "Not -- all at once. Our individual cells die off and grow new ones all the time? And it takes about seven years for all the cells in your body to be totally new."

If she was even remembering this fact right. Sometimes, Tip rather thought she maybe shouldn't be the one always teaching aliens about humanity.

[era_two_triangle]

That was an interesting factoid unto itself, really.

"With the exception of the ones that regenerated seven years ago, which would be about due to die off again," she theorized. "So, old-new. Less than seven years old new. Which... is still very new."

When you were thousands of years older than all of your high school friends, seven years just wasn't all that impressive.

[intotheout]

"Geologically it's basically a blink," Tip agreed. "But for humans it's . . . kind of both? A seven year old kid is really young, but spending seven years doing anything is a really long time."

[era_two_triangle]

"A side-effect of being made for constant change," Peridot theorized. "You would have more basis for comparison, between one moment and another."

Whereas Peridot could do the same job, tirelessly and repetitively, for centuries without so much as taking a break.

[intotheout]

"Right. Like . . . I'm changing right now, while we sit here. Not just the cells thing, but I'm growing. I guess . . . more cells are being made than die?" It was weird thinking about her own body in those terms. "I'm probably not going to be done growing up for another few years at least, and even when I've reached full size, I'll still change in lots of other ways all the time."

[era_two_triangle]

Peridot nodded a little, and then, almost hesitantly, she asked, "And how long does that process continue?"

Gems were so much more straightforward. They were put into the ground, they came out of the ground, they existed until they shattered.

But they tended to last much, much longer, before being shattered.

[intotheout]

". . . You mean how long do we live?"

[era_two_triangle]

Peridot kind of squirmed a little, and then, finally, she nodded again.

"Yeah. How long do you live?"

[intotheout]

"Depends," Tip said honestly. "Without any really bad accidents or fatal illnesses or anything, I guess, like . . . 80 years? Maybe 90? I think the oldest anyone's gotten is 120, but that's super rare."

[era_two_triangle]

Oh. That was... short. That was really, really short. Peridot frowned, but didn't say anything for a few seconds longer than was probably entirely comfortable.

"And how many years has the average high schooler been living?"

'You.' She was asking 'how old are you?'

[intotheout]

"Average?" Tip shrugged. "Sixteen? Freshmen tend to be, like, fourteen." She raised her hand a little to indicate herself. "And seniors are usually around 18. So average that out. . . ."

[era_two_triangle]

Still so short, but still distressingly far into a tiny human life cycle. By some miracle, Peridot managed to keep from squirming and whimpering.

"I think..." She paused. "I think I'm beginning to understand why humans find it so important to enjoy themselves so often."

Peridot could potentially have an eternity to have fun, eventually.

Humans... had a very short amount of time to fit it all in. And if Peridot was going to go around befriending humans, she was suddenly faced with the realization that her time with them was short, too.

[intotheout]

"It's just . . . kind of nicer than waiting for the years to pass," Tip said. She tilted her head. "Are you okay?"

[era_two_triangle]

Peridot really wasn't sure. She left that question unanswered, and then, tentatively, she ventured, "May I have another hug?"

Was that how it was done?

[intotheout]

Which Tip took for an answer, anyway. "Absolutely," she said, and held her arms open for Peridot.

[era_two_triangle]

Peridot nodded, and then stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Tip again. She was maybe a tiny bit more clingy this time around than she had been the last time.

She figured she understood hugging a little better, too.

[intotheout]

She could cling all she liked. Tip didn't mind at all.

She even threw in a tiny little back rub while she was at it. Look, Peridot! Variations!

"Any time you want one," she said. "Just let me know."

[era_two_triangle]

"Thank you," Peridot replied, and then, after a few more seconds, she let go and stepped backwards.

She wasn't going to go so far as to cry, stars help her, but there was a definite bit of emotion in her voice.

Emotions were such a pain that way.

[intotheout]

Tip totally got that. Emotions were a giant pain in the ass.

"So," she said, because when emotions were being mean, distractions were usually a good way of dealing. "What's this you're watching?"

[era_two_triangle]

"It's..." Peridot blinked and looked at the TV. "Oh! It's a Camp Pining Hearts marathon. We're just ending the end of the first season. The finale is a real treat to watch; it really gives perspective on who the best possible match-ups in the camp really are."

Percy/Pierre OTP for ever.