IC Contact [ryslig]

[catphishing]

WELCOME TO YOUR PRIVATE CHANNEL, OLIVER. FOR SECURE COMMUNICATION, USE 142.58.303.67 *** oliver has joined 142.58.303.67 <oliver> So this is my private channel. <oliver> Talk to me?

Current Usernames

<trashpanda>
<mothman>
<oliver>
<deBricassart> (anon)

Former Usernames

<creepypasta>

Throwaways

<zx01r3z>
<tfk>

Changeling Throwaways

Comments

[fourthsaken]

[She shifts slightly, looking uncomfortable. She's not sure she wants to let Oliver know just how important it was to her to get his gift right.]

I was more worried you already had something like it...

[catphishing]

[He shakes his head, still looking a little worried.]

Not yet. It's not like they have anything specifically designed for them here.

[Even this he's already thinking about tweaks he can make to the inside to maximize protection.]

[fourthsaken]

[There's no need to worry, Oliver, she seems completely reassured.]

You don't have to tell me that, dude. I tried so hard to find something that worked.

[catphishing]

You did a good job. This should be easy to fix up so it protects it.

[He nods, setting both bag and shirt carefully on the table.]

Ready to open yours?

[fourthsaken]

[Jade nods, obviously excited, actually looking like your average teenager, excited and happy to be receiving a gift from a friend.]

Yeah, definitely.

[catphishing]

[He watches nervously. The two larger ones are securely bound note pads, and the smaller two contain a case with a shiny new fountain pen in one and a bottle of black ink in the other. His gifts aren't exactly the kind of thing teenagers usually dream of, but they'll help Jade. He just hopes she isn't disappointed by them.]

They're for school. I know it's not very cool, but you said you were going back, and I thought you could use one for school and maybe you'd want to write your own things in the other one...

[fourthsaken]

[Oliver may think his gifts aren't very cool, but Jade doesn't seem to agree with him. She grins, holding the two notebooks to her chest and turning over the pen in her hand. She looks completely delighted and overwhelmed. She's definitely not disappointed.]

Holy shit, they're awesome. This is perfect.

[catphishing]

[He laughs, seeming to relax a little as he reaches for his coffee at last.]

Good. I'm glad you like them. I didn't know if I should get you something fun to go with it.

[fourthsaken]

... No, this is perfect. I needed a new journal. The one Enjolras gave me last year is already full.

[catphishing]

I guess I can be pretty sure this will get used then.

[fourthsaken]

[She nods, ducking her head as she carefully flips through the pages.]

Definitely. I keep a journal. I, uh, know it's lame...

[catphishing]

It's not that bad. At least you're not shut up in your room doing coding instead of homework.

That's lame.

[He's fairly sure he beats out Jade in terms of being an uncool teenager by a long shot.]

[fourthsaken]

[She's barely able to hold back her laughter and isn't able to hide back her grin.]

Seriously? Wow, you were such a nerd.

[catphishing]

Yeah. I know. I'm pretty sure journals are fairly normal.

[fourthsaken]

Do you think we would get along? I mean, if you were a teenager... I know I'd get along with Soeki.

[catphishing]

[Oliver falters, looking uncertain.]

I don't know. I mean... you're nice, so probably, but I don't know if we'd have been as close as we are now. I don't know if I'd even have got along that well with Soeki. High school has those boxes. I had a hard enough time trying to figure out how to be gay if I was already a nerd and wanted to be one of the cool people without branching out anymore than that. I didn't realize how dumb that stuff was until I was older.

[Even as an adult he still finds himself wanting to break into cooler groups of people than he is.]

[fourthsaken]

[Jade nods slightly, frowning.]

Maybe we could've been at MGA, probably not at my school in Iowa. I... I wasn't that nice there. Everyone hated me. I wasn't even like, a real person, just the weird girl whose mom hated her and then killed herself. It's hard to be nice when everyone is talking about you but no one wants to talk to you or try to understand.

[catphishing]

Yeah. High schoolers can be pretty brutal. I could be judgey sometimes.

I'm not sure MGA was any better for you though. I think you'd have become who you are now anyway. I mean... that's not the kind of school where you learn to become a better person. Not from what you've told me.

[fourthsaken]

Sometimes I really don't wanna go back there...

[catphishing]

It's okay.

[Or not. He knows what happened to her before she arrived in Ryslig. His mouth itches to correct the lie.]

We can figure something out. Try to. After Christmas? I'll teach you more about phones. We can figure out why you couldn't call from yours before you got here...

There could be a really simple solution to it.

[There probably isn't, but there's still the possibility that there could be.]

[fourthsaken]

[Jade nods, relaxing slightly. It might be the smallest glimmer of hope, but it's still hope. She's glad to have a plan even if she's not going to count on it to succeed.]

I hope it's simple. That'd be cool.

[catphishing]

It might be.

Let's talk about this in the new year, okay?

[fourthsaken]

Okay. Sorry. I wasn't trying to ruin Christmas.

[catphishing]

[He sighs, shaking his head as he offers his arm out for another hug. He's not usually this physical with Jade, but this is a difficult subject. He doesn't want her to feel bad.]

You aren't ruining Christmas.

[fourthsaken]

[She immediately leans into the hug, curling against Oliver's side. She's warm and solid, a huge change from even her most solid shade form which still feels off compared to a regular person.]

I hope not. This is like, the best Christmas I've had in forever.