❀ ᴠɪᴅᴇᴏ

[aojona]

[ The feed on the screen today displays both a strange sight and from a strange angle; it appears to be a view from the top of a building in Heropa (from what other scenery suggests), angled in such a way to capture an alleyway -- and the walls that frame it -- below.

On the ground there's a yellow spray-painted silhouette of a woman, her hair a wild, spiraling cloud that also spreads over part of the walls; in the shapes of her hair appear numerous eyes, painted in green, an there are red poppies growing from the ground precisely where her face would be.

Also, the camera is being held upside down.

Pablo himself doesn't speak immediately, although the view on the screen shifts a little as he moves the arm holding the communicator, giving a glimpse of the fire escape that he's lying on. ]

I found that here this morning. [ Almost definitely his doing, but he doesn't remember doing it. ] It reminds me of my sister, actually -- it's her birthday today.

[ His twin sister, if he's mentioned her. ]

We haven't seen each other in a few years, but I uh, I always try to do something anyway... I think it's nice to have rituals like that, you know? Um, or in general. But I think it can help, like, keep people close to you even when they're not. Does anyone else have those?

Comments

[eatsnutsandkicksbutts]

I have a little necklace in memory of a friend who passed on a few years ago. I usually go out to the park and feed the squirrels in his memory.

[aojona]

Is that something you two used to do together?

[eatsnutsandkicksbutts]

Yeah... he liked chestnuts the best, and he'd go nuts for anything covered in peanut butter.

.... he was a squirrel, I probably should have lead with that.

[aojona]

Oh, do squirrels make good pets? I don't think I ever knew anybody with one.

[eatsnutsandkicksbutts]

They make good friends, for sure. Me and Monkey Joe were pals.

[aojona]

Oh, that's neat. What are they like as friends, then? Was that his name?

[ Because Pablo is not the sort of person who would assume someone named Monkey Joe is actually a monkey. Duh. ]

[eatsnutsandkicksbutts]

That was his name, yeah.

[ she pulls out a little necklace with the letters 'MJ' hanging from a chain. ]

Squirrels are just like people; you just have to get to know them. Monkey Joe always gave good advice, and he was happy to know someone with opposable thumbs.

[aojona]

Huh. [ He considers that. ] Wow. And his advice could actually to humans, too? That's pretty impressive. How did you understand him, though?

[eatsnutsandkicksbutts]

It's my thing. When I turned ten, squirrel-chitters just started making sense.

[aojona]

Oh, I get it... so you could do that back where you come from, too. That's cool. Was it hard adapting to, uh, different communication styles? Or is it about the same?

[eatsnutsandkicksbutts]

Nah, it's a bit like deciphering different dialects or really thick accents. Some words and terms are new? But for the most part, once you get the hang of it it's not too hard. I even taught Squirrelese to a couple of my friends back home.

[aojona]

[ That makes more sense to him -- it's what he assumed, anyway, before remembering that it's never good to assume anything. Always interesting to hear about, though. ]

So have you made other squirrel friends while you've been here?

[eatsnutsandkicksbutts]

Yeah, man! The ones in the park are super friendly.

[aojona]

Oh, good. What kind of things do you guys all talk about? Um, if it's not too private, obviously.

[eatsnutsandkicksbutts]

Nah, s'all good. Mostly I bring them snacks, they have a lot of feelings about dogs, and jars of peanut butter that people throw away in recycling bags.

[aojona]

That does sound about like what I know of squirrels. [ Which isn't much, but still. ] What advice have you gotten?

[eatsnutsandkicksbutts]

... Well, I met MJ when I was like ten, right? I was still pretty insecure about the tail and everything - it's real, by the way - and I'd just moved to a new town, and everything kind of sucked. At least, it felt like it did. He helped me feel like things were gonna be ok, and that I was gonna grow up into an awesome person.

[aojona]

Oh, that's always important -- it's hard being different and in a new place too if you don't even have friends or anything. Do you feel better about the tail now?

[eatsnutsandkicksbutts]

Oh, god, of course. I mean, puberty's hard enough to go through without a tail, but everything kind of levels out once you're past that stage of your life, yeah?