4 ❧ a piece of you for a piece of me; it's hard coded (locked to timeto_smile)

[headedforhope]

[Mami wakes up with a start, tense and ready to spring into action. She knew before she opened her eyes that, somehow, the blank ceiling of her bedroom wouldn't be there to greet her. Although she relaxes slightly when it becomes apparent that there's no immediate danger, the confusion in her eyes clears merely to make room for a new wariness

Comments

[perfektsymmetry]

[Crowe awakens, and blinks at Mami. Then he looks around.]

A-Ah. Hi. So it's us this time, eh? W-Well, this is much better than the car...

[headedforhope]

The car? I'm afraid I don't quite follow.

[She stands, massaging the knuckles of one hand with the fingertips of her other, feeling the reassuring cold weight of her Soul Gem.]

[perfektsymmetry]

Oh, last year... We were all paired up and trapped in cars. [He stands up, stretching.] This is much nicer, really.

Um.

This is odd, I know, but ah, we can make the best of it, yeah?

[headedforhope]

I see....how strange. I suppose it does stand to reason that we'd be as equally unable to leave here, then. Do you know the why of it all, though?

[a pause as she surveys their surroundings again before cautiously nodding]

We can....although I must warn you that I don't know how to bowl.

[perfektsymmetry]

We can try, yeah, but I guarantee that the doors will be locked for the next several hours. Looks like they left us food this time.

Ah. Well, that's alright, yeah? We don't have much else to do, so I can teach you, if you want.

[headedforhope]

[she considers that for a moment, then smiles at Crowe, although the warmth doesn't quite reach her eyes.] No, that's all right; I believe you. Let's just enjoy ourselves how we can, like you said.

Oh, you'd be willing to do that? How kind of you.

[perfektsymmetry]

We're going to be here for quite awhile, if it's anything like last time. So we might as well at least try to have some fun, yeah?

Ah, I guess first is to find some shoes and a ball...

[headedforhope]

Our regular shoes won't do? Hmm.... [Mami glances around again and, after a few minutes of searching, finds two pairs of bowling shoes on the other side of the seats where they had woken up.

Just two, and they look like a perfect fit.] Like these?

[perfektsymmetry]

Yeah, that would be it. Um, I think the shoes are made to not scratch the floor. A-And are ugly enough that you won't walk out with them. [He grins, taking his shoes from her.]

Um, I don't know a lot about bowling, but I can at least show you how it works, I guess.

[headedforhope]

Aha, that's true....I definitely wouldn't want to admit to owning these. [She sits and takes off her usual shoes, slipping on the remaining pair. Mami wiggles her toes inside them, testing how they feel.] That's all right, you still know much more about this sport than me.

[perfektsymmetry]

I'm more of a football - ah, soccer - person myself. A-And for a little bit here I played this insane game called Blitzball.

[Shoes on, he'll go and pick up a bowling ball.] Basically, all you have to do is roll the ball down to knock down as many pins as you can. You get two turns per frame, and there's ten frames. Each pin is one point. Sounds easy, yeah?

[headedforhope]

Blitzball? I'm afraid I'm not familiar with it. [Or any sport ever, what is being dainty!

and spending all your time shooting things....she nods, following him once it's apparent that the shoes indeed fit just fine.] Mm, it does. So if the ball lands in those depressions- [she points at the gutters] -that's something of an automatic failure, yes?

[perfektsymmetry]

I wasn't either, till I got here. It's pretty intense. Sorry of like underwater rugby.

Ah, right! The gutter. Zero points for that. Your best bet is to try and aim down the middle. People usually pull left or right when they throw, so you should move yourself around till you find the right spot.

[He'll demonstrate. Crowe's right handed and tends to curve it left, so he stands more to the right. He rolls the ball, and manages to knock down five pins.]

See? Not too hard.

[headedforhope]

[ >underwater rugby

NOT EVEN GONNA TOUCH THAT]

Oh, you did it! [a bit of polite applause]

[perfektsymmetry]

[He'll throw again, clipping off two more.] There we are. Care to give it a whirl?

[headedforhope]

[She waits until the machine clears away the remaining pins and sets up ten more for a new round, watching the process, before nodding. Mami goes to take the bowling ball as it rolls back to them and takes a careful aim, polite expression never wavering. She looks a little silly, really- a dainty girl like her holding such a huge, heavy thing.

She throws with a smooth, measured swing of her arm. It's a good shot, considering, clearing out six pins.]