Only one bed

[madmeemey]

there's only one bed!

Two characters have to share a room for the night. Every room is occupied, but fortunately there is one last room available.

There's just one problem — there's only one bed, and the characters aren't comfortable sharing it.

- TV Tropes

[ Get Memes! ]

Comments

[alivian]

It crossed my mind, but I'd not suggest it. Just. Pointing it out.

[Alivian glances up at him again once he's a bit more clothed.]

You're really trying very hard to give me some measure of hope, huh.

[His expression is carefully blank, for the most part, with a faint hint of bewilderment that's there and gone in a couple of blinks of the eye. Eventually, his body automatically shifts to take weight off of his left leg, just like before.]

Well. If we get there, I won't stop you.

[If he doesn't get his hopes up, he can't be let down!]

[educated_wish]

Am I?

[ Is that what he's doing? He hadn't realized. Maybe he just wants to see someone else, who seems to be caught up in despair, saved from it just like he was. Especially when it's someone he can't help but care about. ]

We will get there.

[ He doesn't know how he'll make sure of it, but he will. Somehow. He hasn't lived so many years under Charles' guidance to give up hope now. ]

But let's hunt that food, so you can eat.

[ He's hungry himself, though he doesn't really want to admit it. ]

[alivian]

Don't know. Feels like it, though.

[Food though? Yes. Give.]

You'll eat with me, right?

[He looks at Logan expectantly. While he's used to eating alone, the other day was-- it was nice. Eating together, that is. And, well. None of it was bad in the slightest. (Okay, except for the stank-fish.)

[He clears his throat with a frown.]

...I want to eat with you.

[educated_wish]

I will.

[ He might not register hunger very often anymore, but he still knows when his body genuinely needs it. He doesn't know that his body is already starting to break down in certain ways at this point, and not registering hunger is one of them. He just knows it's an odd thing that he's noticed. ]

  - As long as it's not a stinky fish.

[ He narrows his eyes at the thought. ]

[alivian]

No, I learned my lesson. It is seared into my memory and I'm never going to attempt to eat it again.

[He clears his throat and averts his gaze.]

If we're getting fish again, I recommend we make a pair of spears. We'll stay drier. Though that will take time. I don't want to take a dive in while injured if I can help it.

[educated_wish]

If diving is necessary, I'll do it.

[ He's not great at it, but he can manage. He wants to prevent infecton. ]

But we can make the spears. I shouldn't just use my claws again?

[ That had probably looked so awkward and silly, but he's not aware of it. ]

[alivian]

A spear can cut through the water more cleanly with less noise. Which means a fish won't be as likely to notice until it's too late. Driving it far enough also means that the fish is stuck on the spear. And with the right target point, it won't suffer long.

[He's not going to be the one to tell Logan that it looks silly, though.]

Your claws are useful, but have a shorter range than a spear, and are also tethered to the rest of your arm. A spear can be thrown - therefore extending the range of how far you can hunt.

...Though that's probably all pretty obvious...

[It's nice to be heard, is all.]

[educated_wish]

....is it obvious?

[ he hadn't been thinking about all of that at all. He tends to be singular minded in his weapon usage - claws, claws, claws. The only other thing he uses is his fists. ]

We'll use the spears, then. I guess we look for that shit first.

[ That was obvious. He also likes being heard. ]

[alivian]

...Isn't it obvious?

[Alivian's eyes go somewhat innocently wide (and for once, he probably doesn't look as worn out as usual, brief though the moment is,) but nods.]

Ideally, we find sticks or something for the base, something to tie it all with-- I guess that thread is useful after all -- and then something sharp, or something to make another something sharp. Obsidian, for one, if we can find it. It's softer to carve out compared to other materials, but it's remarkably sharp like glass when done right.

[He seems excited about this knowledge, like "did you know?"]

[educated_wish]

...you're cute. You're getting excited about it.

[ He never gets excited about teaching. Never did, never will. He just did it because it was required to stick around the Academy. Maybe if it'd been something he was interested in, but it was first art and then history. Both were really terrible. ]

I'll get the thread.

[ He disappears into the kitchen area, where he's stashed the sewing kit in a cabinet. ]

[alivian]

[Getting complimented prompts Alivian to immediately sputter, surprised -- and embarrassment lingers on his face with the very, very successful flattery.]

It's-- I just--

[From verbose to barely verbal in five seconds.

[He's still trying to recover his vocabulary by the time Logan gets back, face and demeanor alternating rapidly between frustrated and slightly giddy.

[...Yeah, he really liked that and doesn't know what the fuck to do with himself.]

[educated_wish]

[ Logan can't help but laugh and press a little with the complimenting. ]

You just trying to prove me right?

[ He throws the sewing kit at him, unprompted. ]

Here, catch.

[alivian]

No?! I'm not!

[It's like he's trying to be indignant, but can't manage it. He does, at least, catch the kit. His tail gives a few irritated flicks, but he shoves the kit also into his coat pocket.]

Are many humans so bewildering, or is it just you?

[educated_wish]

It's me.

[ Logan laughs again, especially because of the irritated flicks of the tail. It's not a mean sound, but if anything it's at his own expense because he understands how he can be. ]

I'll try to keep it up.

[alivian]

[That gets another tongue click out of him, but, well, time to head for the door.

[He's not upset about this laughter, at least. He arches a brow at him, as a thought occurs to him.]

Assuming we get out today, need anything from the blanket nest? Or, anything?

[Maybe that cognac?]

[educated_wish]

No. Absolutely not.

[ Logan is firm about this. ]

If we get out, I don't want any reminders, other than your presence.

[alivian]

Not an issue. Just checking.

[That settled, out the door he goes, blinking a bit as he adjusts to the change of lighting. He has half a mind to slap the mask back on....

[Though he starts to wander ahead a little, he doesn't wander far, half-turning to regard Logan and seek out his input. He's been here longer than Alivian, after all.]

How much do you know about this place? Anything useful for navigation?

[educated_wish]

If you mean like an instrument, compasses don't work. They just fuck up.

[ He points up at the sun, the one causing all that painful light. ]

Even that's screwed up. It rises in the west.

[alivian]

Okay. So we know where west is.

[So long as the sun's up, anyway.]

Moon activity? Star formations? ...I suppose that'll have to wait until dark.

[Reaching into his pocket, he pulls out his notebook and the bit of graphite attached to it by twine. He starts to write on a blank page.]

Anything could be useful with the right application.

[educated_wish]

Wind direction is clockwise, so it's a high pressure system. Despite that, there's always so many clouds. You can barely see the moon or stars at night, I couldn't tell you anything about them.

[ There could be two moons for all he knows. ]

Rain is frequent, I'm surprised it hasn't happened while you're here yet.

[ It's still not at the moment, but there is a dampness to the air and the scent of it. ]

[alivian]

The rain is only a matter of time, by the smell and feel of it.

[A beat.]

This coat takes about thirty seconds to be fully soaked through if you jump into a body of water, and even longer when under rain or snowfall. We can use it as a temporary makeshift cover if needed. It retains body heat very well, so long as you don't take a fall into a frozen lake, like I have.

[Body heat, at least, Alivian has in abundance. He runs warmer than the average human - enough that it would be considered dangerous for a human to reach that temperature.]

If we get caught out at night, I'll try to see if I can glean anything more, too.

[For now? Those notes are getting written down, and then shoved back into his pocket. Idly, he tips his face up a little to take a few sniffs of the air, trying to determine the nearest location of prey. The fish had a certain smell to them-- so maybe other creatures have something similar?]

[educated_wish]

Fall in a frozen lake? That sounds like a story to tell.

[ He notices him smelling for the scent of animals and takes a few sniffs himself. There's a familiar, retched meat smell to the deer and that's faintly off in the distance. He points that way, due north. ]

If you want to risk things with eyestalks, there's something that way.

[alivian]

It's not much of a story.

[With that direction in mind, he heads where the weird bad smell is.]

I was taking a shortcut to work and walked across one of the lakes in the dead of winter. I fell in when the ice shattered underfoot. Likely a warm spot from the sunlight that day.

I fell pretty far under, and had to save myself. Fortunately...

[He pats his chest.]

I'm pretty well-padded, so I had more time than someone else might have, and enough sense to make sure my limbs moved as soon as I was physically capable of it. Climbed out looking like a drowned rat, soaked to the bone.

Had to go dry off in the nearest jacket shop and buy new clothes, since I was much further from home than to that place.

[He opts not to mention what kind of jacket he picked up.. if only for now.]

I don't touch frozen lakes anymore, except to catch fish. That's basically it.

[educated_wish]

[ Logan follows. He thinks the deer are pretty bad to eat, but he's never actually tasted them properly. His tastebuds are too messed up at this particular point, so he goes by how they smell and that isn't very good. He's still not going to discourage if they're the only thing - he's eaten them before. He knows they solve hunger. ]

Sounds like a good decision not to risk it again. Were you in a hurry?

[ They soon come across a herd of the deer, who are standing in the distance on a grassy hill, many of their eyestalks peering in a different direction than the front of their heads are facing.

Yes, many. They each have more than two. ]

[alivian]

Yeah. Workaholic. In a hurry to tune out more of my remaining life. Even with the enjoyment of my job in mind. If I'm working, I don't usually think of much else.

[He hears the deer before he sees them, and carefully ducks down a bit to minimize the chance of being seen without making a lot of noise. He focuses intently on one of them.]

...How did you catch one before?

[Alivian's voice is a hushed rumble, his eyes skimming the herd again to try to confirm one that might have a harder time escaping them. His (slightly knotted) tail curls firmly against his hip to minimize brushing into things.

[With their position high on the hill, their prey has a high chance of spotting them if they make any overt moves....

[The deer do have a distinctly gamey smell to him. The "stink" aside, it's far more enticing than stinky fish.

[His ears perk up and tip towards their prey, listening for any sounds that he can even remotely understand. If they make a sound intended as language? That's more he can use to their advantage.]