with fingers crossed they'll talk to me

[buildstherobots]

[phone]

[This... this is a drunk dial. It's obvious from Dist's tone, the way he's slurring... hell, even the subject matter. He's been brooding a lot lately, mostly due to being brainwashed. Twice. To have your mind forcibly taken... it's not an easy thing to recover from.]

We're all... here, we're all surrounded by people. Prisoners, like ourselves. But who among us... who doesn't feel lonely? Disconnected from all those around you... I fear that's their goal. Isolation, even in the face of a crowd.

[Dist takes a deep breath, possibly taking another swig from his drink.]

We're overdue for a town attack. Divide and conquer. Without unity... I don't know what we'll do in the face of whatever they throw at us.

Comments

[Phone]

[windows_hyliaedition]

[Oh dear.

She finally gets contact with the one who wrote that letter and he's drunk. Not that she knows it's him at least.] You appear to be rather inhibited, judging by the slurred tones of your voice.

May I ask who is calling. [May he ask what you just said, Fi?]

[buildstherobots]

Dist. My name... my name is Dist.

Who are you?

[windows_hyliaedition]

[D-Dist?? There's a bare minimum of surprise in a typically monotone voice, so it probably won't really show.]

I am called Fi. You say are Dist? The same Dist who authored the letter describing our current location?

[myblimpisbigger]

[Dist, no.

Dist, stop.

It surprises and yet doesn't surprise Klaus at all to find that he feels strangely protective of Dist, certainly enough to be worried to the point of answering this call. Dist has had a rough patch lately. Klaus knows this perhaps better than a lot of people.]

You are not isolated. There are still those here who consider you a friend, and for as long as that remains true, you are not entirely alone.

[Come on, Dist. He made you swanpet for a reason.]

[buildstherobots]

[And Dist treasures swanpet. Even now, it's curled up in his lap.]

I didn't say alone.

[myblimpisbigger]

You said lonely. Disconnected. Isolated. Tell me those are not the same thing.

[Time to be a good friend and thus be brutally honest and kind of a douche.]

I know very well how precious few friends you have here. I do not believe for a moment that this is about nothing more than your worries about the next hypothetical attack. You are worried about yourself.

I'm worried about you. Yours would be a dangerous mind to lose to depression.

[abravelikehero]

I don't feel lonely. And even if I might I would just go visit a friend.

[buildstherobots]

That's lucky for you. We don't all have that luxury.

[abravelikehero]

Is it really that hard to make some friends? There's so many people here who aren't NPC's it shouldn't be too hard.

action because housemates

[chibi_emperor]

[ Yes, Emperor is listening in on his housemates' phone calls. Last time it was Rikku, now it's Dist's turn.

He stares disapprovingly at how drunk the man is.

He grumbles to himself ] Kids these days, can't hold their liquor at all.

[ And he grabs whatever Dist is drinking and takes it away from him. He's already drunk enough. ] The hell are you talking about?

action forever

[buildstherobots]

[Dist scowls, making a grab for his drink.]

Shouldn't you be in your kennel?

[chibi_emperor]

[ Nope, Dist is not going to give it back. In fact, he'll make sure of that by drinking it himself. ]

Why would I be in something like that, little drunk brat?

[perfectsymmetry]

[Disto :C]

[After a recent conversation with someone, Crowe was thinking this same subject over. But he's come to a conclusion.]

I-It does feel like that, doesn't it? Waiting for the next attack. I'm not sure what's worse sometimes.

I does often get lonely, e-especially when friends get droned all the time, and you never know what sort of horrors are i-in store next. But... But the thing is, we're all in this together. We're not isolated. I-In this place, each other is all we have.

[buildstherobots]

That's not something any of us can count on. There's no true companionship when anyone you grow close to could become a walking shell at any moment. All we have is our self, and that self can be stolen. It's not just Mayfield that can do it, either.

[perfectsymmetry]

Then we need to make the best of the time we have with people while there here. We've both been i-in this town a long time, and know h-how hard that is. I can't even keep count any more of the people I know who've gotten droned a-and stayed that way. Or have come back from it not remembering me at all. But... i-if you let your self be isolated, be divided, then it's like letting Mayfield win.

[celes_chere]

[Celes doesn't recognize the voice, though she is aware that it must belong to one currently quite drunk. Still, she feels compelled to listen to the entire phone call, as if she kind of understands what this man is talking about.]

I have not been here long, but I think I understand what you mean, at least to an extent. I'm still learning who to trust and who to avoid, but yes, I feel we're all prisoners. Otherwise we would not have been so abruptly snatched from our homes.

[The town attack part takes her by surprise, however, and she comments on such:]

Attack? From whom?

[buildstherobots]

Mayfield sometimes likes to torment us. Occasionally this leads to insights about the town, but more often it simply leads to pain. We all fracture at time like this.

[Phone]

[selfobservation]

Very philosophical, my friend.

I can say that I do not feel lonely.

[buildstherobots]

It's just a truth. I'm not theorizing.

And that's just good for you.

[forgottenmagia]

Mmm, but it does seem quite hard to unite us as a whole, does it not? We as a town population share different world views, different alignments, different mindsets...and I do know a few who don't even wish to escape.

[buildstherobots]

I may be becoming one of those people.

[strike_you_out]

'Pray for death.'

What did it mean?

[buildstherobots]

The Major wanted me to deliver a message to your house while I was under mind control. That's what I was programmed to say.

...Thank you for killing me.

[photonicfighter]

[She almost ignored the miserable, slurred voice on the other end of the phone... but she was pretty sure that she recognized it from a while back. Dist? Or something about Roses?

He never did show up for the self-defense lessons she had offered to give him.]

...I've heard people talk about being alone in a crowd. Mayfield's got quite the crowd. Prom proved it. [She pauses.] I think prom may have proven a few things. Didn't we all come together for the same reason? Or similar enough ones?

But something's coming. Something has to be.

[buildstherobots]

I'm an adult. I didn't go to prom.

But I agree with you; they don't let up on us for long.