scene xvi

[decadenzas]

[between the attack on the dairy, Vietnam’s droning, and the ensuing confusion, Charles has made himself scarce. seclusion can be a blessing and he’s taken full advantage of that, rarely leaving his bedroom for a while. in fact, he doesn’t seem to exit the house at all, save a short trip to the park to talk with Lucy and an hour during the night in

Comments

A

[scentofbauhinia]

[Charles... Smiling... Yeah sorry bro, but not!dad is just kind of more concerned about you having seen that happen more often.

Anyway, he's tracked Charles down at the crater, mostly because he's just come outside for an absent-minded wander around himself. He's not in the most talkative of moods either at the moment, but he does quietly join babby bat thing, peering into the crater next to him.]

[decadenzas]

[well he's not smiling for the moment at least, massive crater abyss things tend to have that effect. he doesn't look up at HK but addresses him whilst nudging another rock in with the toe of his shoe.]

Where do you think it leads?

[scentofbauhinia]

China? [the joke is weak and he shrugs straight afterwards]

Nowhere useful I bet.

[decadenzas]

[he arches a brow, having already heard of China's droning through the telephones and figuring HK was in the know as well. nothing is said aloud, though.]

It would be nice if there was an exit to be found somewhere down there. Do you know if anybody has tried to climb down yet?

B

[hwamei]

Found you!

[ She's on the ground, looking up at Charles with her hands on her hips. ]

Talking to yourself isn't good, you know. People will think you're weird.

[decadenzas]

I suppose it's a good thing that I'm not one to care much for the opinions of people, then. [his gaze shifts from the bit of metal to Taiwan and he smiles, tilting his hand so the piece slides off and falls to the ground.]

Have you come to take a look as well?

[hwamei]

Mm! That robot looked really suspicious, you know. They didn't build stuff like that in the fifties. Japan hadn't even thought of Gundams yet!

So... it's still pretty hard to believe. [ She lowers her head so he can't see her face. ] Everything.

[decadenzas]

[he studies her in silence for a moment, but certainly doesn't show how rattled he really is by everything] That's how things work here, hm? It's best to keep your guard up so things like this don't catch you off guard as badly.

[he knows it's hypocritical. who could have possibly prepared for the things they had dealt with in the past few weeks?]

B.

[coolbowtie]

Be careful talking to yourself. Evidently, humans find you very strange if you do that and might tell you to stop. They'll think you're mad.

[Sitting next to him on some rubble]

Very good by the way. Bill would have loved to hear how you recite it.

[decadenzas]

Madness is relative. [he shrugs and twirls the scrap of metal between his fingers, watching its movements in mild boredom. occasionally a rough edge catches his fingers, but the cuts are there and gone in an instant.

the last comment seems to pique his interest though and he looks up, both proud of the compliment and curious.] Do you think so?

[coolbowtie]

Oh of course it is. Hamlet might have been mad, and I'm quite mad myself. Even you could be mad. But I don't think so.

[The Doctor smiles softly as he picks up some metal scraps and examines them]

Absolutely. He was always impressed by anyone who could properly recite his works. Very high standards you see.

[decadenzas]

[there's no verbal reply to that, though he smiles in a way that should fit the face of a child, but doesn't sit quite right on his.]

I've read everything he's written more times than I can count and have most of it memorised as well. I suppose that's one benefit of having an endless amount of free time.

A.

[madeofstoic]

[ What's this? Higgs isn't watching you in particular- more accurately he was just walking down the street and heard you throw the rubble in there. So now he's staring down the crater too. ]

[decadenzas]

[he glances over from nudging another couple of rocks in] They're too small to make much noise when they hit the bottom. You would make a nicer sound, you know? Much easier to judge the distance that way. [the nicest. he doesn't make any move to leave his current spot, though.]

[madeofstoic]

[ Oh. Oh god, more crazy people. Great. Deal with it like he's a Spark, Higgs. Like he's a Spark. ] ...No boulders 'round here that y'could roll in?

[decadenzas]

[good thing for Higgs that he actually seems to take the suggestion seriously then, huh. he gives the nearby area a glance-over though he already knows he'll find nothing.]

Not boulders, no, but I suppose a large enough piece of rubble would do the trick just as well. It wouldn't be nearly as entertaining, though.