001 [ video ]

[curiosityvoyage]

—and, got it!

[When the feed cuts in, the first thing anyone might see is—a mop of brown curls. Wow. So exciting. After a moment, a young boy's face comes into view, blue eyes alive with an excited curiosity. Some more adjustments, and the background finally makes itself clear: the kid's in a park somewhere in De Chima, and he happens to be dressed like a Ghostbuster like it's Halloween or something.]

Hey, so, I've got a few questions. A lot of questions, actually. [So many curiosity doors, so little time.] To start with: anyone else here from Hawkins? [He hopes so. He—really doesn't want to be alone.] Man, Mr. Clarke'd have a field day.

[Eat your heart out, Hugh Everett.]

Secondly, has anyone started up an imPort A/V club yet? I'm a little curious about how it would work, especially since people from all kinds of different worlds with varying levels of technology keep getting pulled in. I think it'd be a great opportunity for us to learn about technology from other worlds, and from this one too. I know I'd love a crash course in how to use this—they called it a phone, but it doesn't really look like one. [Phones looked very different where he's from, and they definitely can't do half the stuff this device can.

Something warbles shrilly nearby. Dustin's head turns, and he bends down a little out of frame to talk to something just off-screen:] Shh, Dart. I'll feed you nougat later, just gotta finish this up first. [Turning back to the comm:] Also: Is there a species on your world that, appearance-wise, might be comparable to a pollywog but isn't? Like, pollywogs are cold-blooded and need heat and light, for example, but that particular species actively avoids heat? What kind of food would you feed it? [Beat.] I'm asking for a friend.

Comments

[whitefox]

[So it seemed that the aforementioned 'friend' was an afterthought already. Kurama was amused by the sudden development, it was so childishly innocent, but he chose not to point out the sudden change in Dustin's story. After all, the lie was harmless, wasn't it?]

Well, there is sometimes fruit in nougat along with nuts and chocolate, so why not begin there, by separating the components and seeing if he can be weened off the chocolate itself? If he likes fresh fruit, perhaps trying him on greens will work.

[He hummed in thought and then held up a finger as a thought occurred to him.]

How about trying him on sweet vegetables? Like podded peas or rutabaga!

[...Kurama you're such a fucking plant nerd.]

[curiosityvoyage]

[It's a pretty harmless lie, and keeping up with it's too hard anyway.]

Yeah, that might work—from what I hear they're putting oranges in nougat now [which sounds pretty cool, Dustin will have to buy himself some bars of that], he might like that. Then I can wean him off onto fruits.

[A beat. Then:] I didn't get any rutabaga when I hit the store. I can go get some right now, I've still got some money left over.

[whitefox]

It's possible he'll like the rutabaga quite a bit. It has a faintly nutty flavor. It can be difficult to cut and peel, however, so take care when handling the knife.

[Kurama tilts his head.]

So...is Dart native to Hawkins?

[curiosityvoyage]

Got it, I'll be careful.

[Or, you know, just buy the orange-y nougat. Less chance of cutting himself by accident.]

I—don't actually know. [A little shrug.] I picked up some books, but the two closest species to what Dart might be live in South America and in India, respectively. Hawkins is in Indiana, thousands of miles away, so how would a tadpole that's supposed to live in South America or in India end up all the way there? And in my trash, too?

[whitefox]

[Dustin pls. There are no good shortcuts to looking after pets! Especially pet monsters...]

It's possible for different species to be transported by humans from one continent to another, though I can't imagine why anyone would want to transport a pollywog. Or, for that matter, how or why it might have ended up in your trash.

Ah!

[He held up his hand again as another thought occurred to him.]

If there were articles of food in the trash that were luring insects, perhaps Dart was attracted to those.

[curiosityvoyage]

That's what's getting to me: why bring Dart all the way from wherever he's from in the first place? Especially if you're just gonna lose him. [A small offended huff of breath. Dustin has clearly thought this plausible scenario through.]

Also—you know how pollywogs need water? And reptiles need heat and light? He doesn't need either, too much heat hurts him, and he actively avoids water. So maybe, just maybe, he's an undiscovered species. [He grins at the thought of this. Hell yeah! An undiscovered species! This is the best!] I'm not sure about that just yet, though. Maybe someone else has an idea what he is.

[A baby demogorgon, that's what he is.]

The—The food or the insects?