(Untitled)

[prydeful]

Do you have any idea how frustrating it is to not be able to have caffeinated coffee, not be able to phase, and to have your center of balance thrown to hell, all at once, throwing in the fact that for some reason you're getting morning sickness in the last month or so of pregnancy instead of the first

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[says_the_booyah]

"You really shouldn't swear at computers. They might swear back one of these days." So says the big cybernetic organism at the bar.

[prydeful]

"Actually, the last one pinned me to the wall with a steel beam like a butterfly pinned in a collection," she says absently, and then looks up with a faint smile. "This one, however, is a long way from any form of intelligence. I'm not sure if that's good or bad, at the moment, though."

[says_the_booyah]

"I don't like my standalone computers to be smarter than me, personally. I don't want them trying to over my parts.

"But if you don't have a good computer to start with..." He uses a homemade mix of Banana hardware and Linus operating systems.

[prydeful]

"This isn't mine." She sighs. "But I am currently on a sort of early maternity leave, you might say, which means everyone and their mother has been bringing their computers to me to fix. And most of them don't have the common sense to remember to do something like "defrag" or "update virus definitions"." She scowls slightly and shoves the laptop in question away for the moment.

And then glances at him again. "Do they often take over your parts?"

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

The computer is getting a curious look from a youngish woman in a dark green set of fatigues- they look like something out of White Christmas or similar. The only marking on the fatigues is a small embroidered emblem on the left breast area. As for the woman herself, she's... maybe nineteen or so, with steel-grey hair and a couple of scars that look like she maybe should have paid more attention in a very bad part of town.

The computer's got most of her attention. She'll apologize for the rudeness when she realizes she's being looked at.

[prydeful]

Eyebrow raised, then!

"Um. Hi? Can I help you?"

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"Eeep!" She jumps a little and blushes, turning away from the computer. "I'm sorry- I've never seen one quite that... portable before. Not with a screen that big- and in color, too. I got caught up there- I didn't mean to stare."

[prydeful]

"No, it's okay," she soothes, instantly. "Do you want to look at it? Really, I don't mind." She offers her hand. "I'm Kate, by the way."

[katyafeline]

And someone else is making an absent-minded (and perhaps familiar) warding gesture at her cursing. She knows it isn't quite the same here, that it's very unlikely the words would cause the mischief she's used to...

But she's been doing it for a very long time. It's hard not to just keep going.

And this would also be why she left the computers to the analysts. She would swear they were created to aid the Dark.

"Perhaps if you just... hit it?" She asks, Moscow still heavy in her voice despite almost a year away.

[prydeful]

"If only," Kate says ruefully, and looks up with a smile. Her next words are in Russian, fluent and easy as if she'd learned it from birth. "[Is this easier than English?]"

[katyafeline]

"[It is easier.]" She allows, unabashedly delighted to find someone she doesn't have to drag out her sometimes clumsy English for - she hates the weird echo she can hear through the Gloom when the Bar translates. "[Your accent is very good - does your family have some Russian roots?]" Katya can tell she's not native but, on the whole, it's really not bad.

[prydeful]

She shakes her head slightly. "[--Well, far enough back, I do, a bit. But that's not why I learned Russian. My boyfriend's from there. We met...a very long time ago. He learned English, I learned Russian."] She glances slightly at her large stomach for a moment. ["We had an interesting time choosing a name for the little one. Entirely too many names from two cultures to choose from. I'm Kate. Or Katya, if you ask my boyfriend,"] she offers, as well as her hand.

[a_mere_child]

Kitty's not the only very pregnant woman in Milliways tonight. The other one is busy doing yoga over by the fireplace.

The cursing makes her glance in Kitty's direction.

[prydeful]

She looks slightly sheepish when she catches the glance. "Sorry--am I bothering you?"

[a_mere_child]

"I've heard worse," Alyx says mildly. "Computer troubles?"

[prydeful]

"Mmm. Some kid let it get infested with God knows what all, and I'm trying to clean it, rather than scrap it, and recover his papers at the same time. Frankly, since I was the one who told him not to turn off things like 'firewalls', I'd like to make him restart the papers from scratch, but. Not my decision. Though it does seem to be my problem."

[bad_in_latin]

It's been...well. A long, long time.

And it's not the Kitty Mal knew for so long.

But she's close. And it's important.

"Hello, Kate."

[prydeful]

Is it? Or isn't it?

That's the interesting question. Answers forthcoming, meanwhile, write your own down on the back of a postcard and mail them in.

She looks up and grins. "Wei, Mal. Have a seat. Enjoy dragon piss for me."

[bad_in_latin]

"Since obviously you can't, is that it? Not that you would ever enjoy it in the first instance."

[prydeful]

"Absolutely not," she says, straight-faced. "And hey, it took a hell of a long time to get this kid, I'm not screwing it up this close to the end."

Her smile fades for a minute, for some reason, and then brightens.

"So, do I get a hug? Or do I have to threaten to name the kid something like Maladicta after Uncle Mal and give you first babysitting duties before I do?"

(Shhh, Mal; we know it's confusing, and it's going to get worse, but it's the same Kitty, same Kate, as always.)