He ticks the time away--

[neargenius]

Who: a neargenius & a soldiershin
When: shamelessly/shamefully backdated to Tuesday thanks to my lame & F. Scott Fitzgerald!
Where: the super secret no-one-allowed MN apartment in some slightly sketchy sector in scenic Siren's Port!
Summary: Jomy has never played Risk. This is a crime against humanity. He also promised not to cheat. Oh, and he might be useful in the

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[soldiershin]

Near's text had come to him as a surprise. He hadn't expected his impromptu request to be humored, nevertheless followed through with. It was a nice break, though; he enjoyed games (more than reading), and he always had a keen interest in learning something new. Even if it was something as small as a game.

It would be a lie if he said that he wasn't doubling this opportunity to meet this Near, however. Always using text, Near was one of the few people he would be meeting in-person that he'd had no information about beforehand, save the fact that the boy (girl? What gender was Near, anyway?) was clever, and smart. He wouldn't read Near's mind, as promised, but his empathy was a passive ability. Nothing he could control.

Emotions gave away someone's personality more than their thoughts anyway.

Now, a few things to note: he actually didn't take the long way (that is, walking) so it'd taken him a much, much shorter time than it may have had any other person. (Still, he made sure he was on time than being too late, or too early.) He was also battling a cold, one that he was going to get checked out later in the evening. It slowed his reflexes due to the novelty of it all (when was the last time that he'd gotten sick?). As a consequence of the last point and his increasing dislike for the chill, he was wrapped up in more layers than it was absolutely necessary.

In conclusion? He knew he looked rather ridiculous- he didn't care.

Having teleported to a quiet, empty alley near the apartment (he knew it was empty because he'd checked), Jomy glanced down at the blinking map on his NV to double check the address. When he was certain that he'd gotten the right building, he strolled right in. It was several moments after that that he caught onto the fact that the elevator was broken.

After enduring a slight surge of exasperation, he took to the stairs, going up a few steps to hide himself from any stray eyes before teleporting upward, right onto Near's floor. Checking the time briefly, he decided it was on time enough for it to be normal. Raising a hand, he knocked.

[neargenius]

Near didn't lift his head at the knock on the door. He stayed where he was, curled on the floor, one hand in his hair. But he did narrow his eyes, and his finger stopped winding around the strand of hair, leaving it half-coiled just short of his knuckle.

It was a faster arrival than he had anticipated. Immediately, his brain began to work on this: to think a faster arrival was to assume that it was Jomy at the door; to question if it was Jomy brought back the familiar paranoia, thoughts moving quickly past paranoia and straight to caution, because paranoia was boring and trivial and kept one anchored, whereas caution allowed for curiosity and investigation.

He stayed a moment longer on the floor, but eventually rolled over and crawled to the door. The carpet was prickly. It would be better to pull it up and install a tile floor. Tile floors also provided better traction for most toys. It was something worth considering.

The peephole on the door was almost too high for him to see out of. Near pulled himself up, using the doorknob as leverage, and stood on his toes in order to look out into the hall. His legs were a little weak, and he couldn't maintain that stance for very long--but it was long enough to establish that it was indeed Jomy knocking at the door. It was difficult to determine his identity at first--he was nearly concealed by his outerwear. But a few minutes of study concluded that it was him.

After a second's pause, Near stood on his toes once more, to try to see if there were anyone else in the hallway. The peephole provided a very limited view, but it didn't seem as if there were anyone in the immediate area--and he had the tranquilizer gun if anything were to go terribly wrong. It was only a small comfort, but it was better than nothing at all. And Mello, too, he reminded himself--but that was still a strange thought in so many ways (a rival who wasn't a rival but was still a rival sometimes, coupled with the thought of protection) and he pushed it away.

He unlocked the door--three locks, and the chain, and the heavy bolt, his hands working slowly and carefully--and pulled it open a small bit, just enough so that he could see out into the hallway. It seemed that Jomy was alone, unless some second person were concealed beneath his layers of clothing--unlikely, but the thought was still there. Satisfied--still wary, still as cautious as usual, but carefully blank, too, a deadpan face belying a buzzing mind--Near stood back a little and let the door open still wider. He didn't say anything, but the open door would potentially indicate what was to happen next, an unspoken come in.

[soldiershin]

It was the quietness that was novel, the blankness that felt both strangely welcoming and. . . not. It was almost like sticking his head into a sound-proof room against the backdrop of loud cacophony. A little jarring, but not an altogether a bad experience despite its rarity in this city.

Jomy peeled off the layers covering his face before he stepped inside, eyes flickering here and there around the revealed living room. That lasted for about a second, as his focus snapped back onto Near (a... child?) with barely concealed curiosity. The boy was smaller than Jomy had anticipated (though, really, he hadn't entirely expected a child either), even when he was compared to Jomy's physical body.

Of course, there was no way to know if Near was really a child. This city did not allow one's abilities to remain unique for long - it wasn't unreasonable to think that there were others like the Mu, was it? Though Near had told him that he didn't have abilities like his, it'd been through text. Nothing he could make judgment over.

. . . He really did feel blind. But, whatever. His focus shifted back to what was happening at present.

A tilt of the head. "Hello, Near."

The caution pricked at the back of his neck, forcing a small twitch out of him, though it wasn't so bad as to hinder his movements from looking natural. Another step in, and he was unzipping his coat to reveal yet another coat, making it unconsciously easy to see that it was nothing more than layers and layers of clothing that was adding bulk to his frame.

"Thank you for inviting me." A hopeful way into conversation.

[neargenius]

Near shut the door the minute that he could, carefully doing up all the latches again. Then he turned to watch Jomy silently for a moment longer, continuing with this treatment even after the pleasantries had been offered. As each of Jomy's layers came off, he was afforded the opportunity to study his opponent more closely. Opponent seemed too strong of a word, even to Near, but there was no other way to express this.

Guest, maybe. He tipped his head slightly, eyes sliding over to study the wall instead as he considered the change. Guest would probably be okay.

"Yeah," he said aloud.

Another pause, and then he shuffled away from the door, over to the coffee table, eyes fixed on the floor. A less observant person would assume that Near was ignoring Jomy, for all the attention that he was paying him--but he wasn't; he was incredibly aware of someone else being in the apartment. It was a bit strange, as it was usually so empty.

Near was a bit excited, honestly. Playing for the pleasure of playing wasn't an opportunity that he received very often. Usually games were tests, or ways to work out problems, or competitions. This was no less a competition, but one of a different sort, one that could be enjoyed. And Jomy had never played before--that was a good opportunity. Even while having fun, observations could be made.

He crouched down beside the table and reached underneath it, pulling out the box. "People usually offer food and drinks, so do you want those?"

[soldiershin]

A smile tilted at his lips at quiet excitement unconsciously, a habit more than anything. It was the kind of innocent (if one could call it that) type of emotion that made it sometimes enjoyable to be an empath. Such instances didn't come all that often, so Jomy didn't have the habitual curbing of physical reactions as he did the negative ones. So his smile was out in the open as he followed the other further into the apartment.

He sat across from Near to leave the table between them as he settled himself down on the carpet. With a slight shift in posture to make himself comfortable, he eyed the box that was uncovered by the boy curiously.

At the question-slash-offer, he glanced up, shook his head. "No, I'm alright. Thank you."

His own excitement wasn't as palpable as Near's, but it didn't mean that he wasn't looking forward to it. A strange sense of friendly competitiveness stirred briefly in the pit of his stomach, its presence brief and light. It was old, that feeling. How long had it been since he did anything like this - something that was inconsequential to whatever came after?

The thought made him smile again, and further renewed his interest in the game to come. "Do you still have the instruction manual?"

[neargenius]

Near wriggled the top of the box off and began unpacking the pieces. He had already played by himself, three times, so they were separated into plastic bags, sorted by color and type. After a glance, he picked through the pieces--blue, black, red, yellow, green--and then selected the gray pieces, carefully starting to line them up against the edge of the table in a neat, straight row.

He didn't stop in this work at Jomy's question, but continued, silently--at least for the moment. "Probably," he answered eventually. "I didn't need them when I got the game, but they might still be in the box." He was nearly finished setting out his pieces, his hands moving quickly. "At the bottom. I wouldn't have thrown them away, because they came with the game."

He kept his head bent over his pieces, but looked up at Jomy through his fringe. He had been smiling. Was there something particularly amusing? Humor in itself was somewhat of a puzzle. It wasn't that Near didn't make jokes, it was that no one understood them. They made sense to him, and that was all that mattered. But humor in others was a bit of a mystery, because it was so often less than formulaic. This instance was no different. Nothing funny had happened; nothing funny had been said. What was it?

It wasn't that Near cared, precisely, it was more a casual sort of curiosity. He kept watching Jomy's face, in case something else would cause him to smile.

"You can get the board out, too," he ordered, "if you're going to look for the instructions. Which color do you want?"

[soldiershin]

His answer was instant, like naming a favorite color. "Blue, please."

Bending down toward the box, he reached in and pulled out the board as requested (ordered, whatever). He didn't lay it out in front of them immediately, taking a short moment to glance down at the designs and markings. These were the continents and countries, probably, drawn in the way that the people of Terra viewed their political boundaries.

He caught his thoughts before they strayed too far into that topic. Smoothing the board over flat onto the table, he reached back into the box to pull out the instructions. Jomy stared at the words for a brief moment, then flipped the first page over. A quick skim and vague understanding of the rules was as far as he got before he found himself setting the pages aside, propelled by his desire to play.

"Alright." Eying the way Near's pieces were placed, he copied the placements with his blue pieces. It was a rough copy at best, but it was good enough, he figured. Glancing back up, he tilted a touch to find Near's eyes through the boy's hair (somewhat). "I'll learn the rest as I go."

[neargenius]

He watched Jomy work on his pieces, glancing down at his own to note the similarities between them. A copy, in a way, though a bit more ragged. That made sense: as someone who hadn't played before, he would naturally watch for cues. Near made note of that, slipping one finger into his hair, twining the strand around and around and around. Jomy had read the directions quickly, as well. He could be lying about never having played. But that was too obvious--if he were lying, then he would do a better job of maintain that lie; his reading would have been more deliberate and painstaking. He could be a very fast reader--or he could not have read them too closely. Likely the latter, Near thought, nodding a little as he let the strand of hair spring off of his finger.

"Okay," he said, immediately starting to wind his hair around and around again. "We choose territories now. I'll pick first, because I've played before. You put your piece in the territory that you want."

After a second of deliberation, he picked up one of the army pieces and placed it on Brazil, then sat back, shoulder slumping. "Do you know about these countries?"

[soldiershin]

A shake of the head at the question, "No, not at all."

He then glanced down at the pieces, the piece that Near chose, and paused in slight confusion. The instructions had mentioned different roles for different pieces, but he couldn't properly appreciate how they worked (together) without a first run through. This type of battlefield (that is, fighting on land) was also new, where it felt two-dimensional compared to the three-dimensional nature of space.

Then again, this was just a game. So Jomy made made due with gut feeling. A slight tilt of the head later, he picked up a horse-shaped piece to place it a little far from Near's piece - somewhere on the Asian continent (India, he would later learn).

That done, he gave the apartment another glance around before his gaze swung back around to Near. "Do you live here alone?"

[neargenius]

Near watched Jomy's initial choice of territory with interest, leaning forward over the board just slightly. Opening moves were often very telling, but there was little to learn from this particular choice. India was centrally located, but too easily advanced upon. Definitely a novice at the game, then, and not lying at all. Confidently, he placed his next token on North America, and sat back.

"No," he said simply, in reply to Jomy's question. A beat, and then he sighed a little, relenting. It would be better to answer more fully, to avoid more questions. And it was fairly common knowledge that Near and Mello were acquainted. The fact that they shared a residence would not be damning information, if connections were made. Furthermore, Jomy seemed--based on initial impressions and preliminary thoughts--someone worthy of some certain trust. He had been invited here, after all; that required a substantial amount of trust in itself.

Though of course, the desire for a good game nearly outweighed trust itself. With that in mind, perhaps he had moved a bit too hastily in agreeing to this direct meeting.

"Someone else lives here," he said, elaborating. "Someone from home. And the cat."

He pointed to it, in case Jomy had missed it. Slightly overweight, the cat was crouched in a chair. Its tail flicked back and forth in sleepy irritation, and his single yellow eye was narrowed at Jomy--or at Near; it was difficult to tell, with the cat. "He might bite you."

[soldiershin]

He took the land above his first move after (China) with little hesitation. Not due to a lack of effort on his part, but due to an ingrained tendency to keep (his) people together. Pack mentality - it was both dangerous and safe to stay together so close, but the familiarity of the habit gave him a degree of comfort and confidence. He would adapt at a later time, when the game was actually underway.

It was kind of fun, being able to go head-first into a mistake. He would feel a bit embarrassed at his mistakes at a later time, he was sure, but that wasn't now.

Sitting back, he glanced in the direction of the cat. He smiled at it, almost in wonder; he had his own cat now, but seeing these animals on Terra? It still felt amazing, in a way. He did, however, refrain from giving into his desire to go pet the thing; his lava cat had an extremely mild temperament (to Jomy's luck, really), but it'd still nipped at him once or twice. That had stung. He didn't want to really dive headfirst into a bite.

Back to Near: "What's his name?"

[neargenius]

Near leaned against the table, pushing the little gray tokens forward with his forearms. He let his chin drop to rest on his arms as well.

"Mello," he replied, idly, his voice slightly muffled by his arms. He selected another token and set it down on Mexico. It would be organized to select all of the pieces of a single territory, but this was more fun. "It's okay to tell you, because everyone knows, mostly. but it used to be a secret."

He looked back at Jomy, rolling his eyes up to consider him through his hair again. "You live by yourself." It was a guess, but he was probably right.

[soldiershin]

Placing another token on yet another piece of the Asian continent, he glanced up with a blink. His face was wrought with obvious surprise because - a secret? The name of the cat? That was odd. Head tilting a fraction, he amended his thoughts. No, Near was probably referring to the roommate. Why the roommate would be a secret, he wasn't certain, but it made more sense than the cat angle.

Jomy nodded in response to Near's statement shortly afterward. "I do."

A glance at the animal again. "Though I also received a cat recently."

[neargenius]

"A cat from where?" There was always curiosity to be dealt with, even over the smallest things. Near put down another token, this one on Africa, and looked up to watch Jomy decide on his next piece. "Or did you just find it? Everyone here seems interested in having pets."

He nudged his finger against the token he had just set down, tipping it onto its side. "The things people name their pets is more interesting than actually having them. Sometimes they give them boring names. Sometimes, they aren't boring if you know what the person was thinking when they named them." He sighed a little, pulling in an extra breath. It was a lot of talking to do at once. "What's your cat named?"