Private Finished Entering a Whole New Ballgame

Keen

Keen

Clown Town
Nov 23, 2016
4,470
keens-bakery.carrd.co
Gender
Agender
Pronouns
They/He
Posting Status
Irregularly
Relief was plain on Sprinkles' face. By any means possible, he wanted to avoid being the cause of Kallias freaking out. "Good. Well, tell me if I'm doing anything too weird or overwhelming. I don't mind explaining things.

"Anywaaays, I'm like this because my dad wanted me to look unique from humans. When I was made, they gave me colorful hair and a skin condition a lot of normal humans have called vitiligo. Vitiligo is where people have patches of dark and light skin, by the way." Sprinkles eyebrows tilted upward somewhat. Perhaps he said too many complicated things.
 
Romi

Romi

Secretly a Bird
Administrator
Supporter
Jun 18, 2015
10,109
Gender
Female
Pronouns
She/Her
Posting Status
Irregularly
There was a lot to work through there, and even though Sprinkles had gone out of their way to answer his questions, he didn't feel like he understood any more.

"Your dad... wanted you to look unique? But don't you burn? Isn't it bad?" He knew people who were paler tended to burn in the sun. Having patches seemed like those patches would burn, and that would be... well, wouldn't it be uncomfortable?
 
Keen

Keen

Clown Town
Nov 23, 2016
4,470
keens-bakery.carrd.co
Gender
Agender
Pronouns
They/He
Posting Status
Irregularly
Sprinkles' cheeks turned red. In his father's attempt to make him stand out against all other humans, he ended up giving Sprinkles the flaw of easily burnt skin. Sprinkles understood why this was. He was never meant to leave the house, so having skint that burnt wasn't a big deal. Having his flaws pointed out still felt embarrassing, however.

"I didn't go outside much before coming here. When I did, I used sunscreen." He dug into his bag and pulled out a small bottle of sunscreen to show Kallias. "It's a product that you use like lotion. Keeps the sun from burning you. I'm pretty good at taking care of my skin, but if I ever got tired of potentially burning, I can change my skin color. It's no biggie."
 
Romi

Romi

Secretly a Bird
Administrator
Supporter
Jun 18, 2015
10,109
Gender
Female
Pronouns
She/Her
Posting Status
Irregularly
The idea of just not going outside felt as surreal to Kallais as a phone. How could you not go outside? Everything was outside. Only the obscenely wealthy could just choose to not go outside, and he looked just as confused as he looked at the bottle, trying to understand the mechanics and... not really getting it.

"You are... aristoi?" He asked after a moment, his language charm simply giving up when trying to translate a term that had no clear exact translation. "Or..." No, he'd been taught this. "There is no system. I forgot."
 
Keen

Keen

Clown Town
Nov 23, 2016
4,470
keens-bakery.carrd.co
Gender
Agender
Pronouns
They/He
Posting Status
Irregularly
Aristoi? An aristocrat? Those terms sounded similar enough. Was Kallias asking if Sprinkles was rich? It made sense, but just in case, Sprinkles decided to admit he wasn't familiar with the term.

"Never heard of aristoi before. If you mean 'aristocrat,' then no. My dad was rich, but, well," Sprinkles grimaced, "things happened." Not letting himself look unwell for too long, he put back on his cheer smile. "Now I live at the school with a nice roommate and have a job. I'm living a pretty nice average life."
 
Romi

Romi

Secretly a Bird
Administrator
Supporter
Jun 18, 2015
10,109
Gender
Female
Pronouns
She/Her
Posting Status
Irregularly
"Aristoi is..." He took a moment, trying to pull his thoughts together. "The nobles. The elite of the state. Aristoi means best, because they were the best of us. The life everyone has here..."

There was a long pause there, as he struggled to explain it.

"...Seems very nice."

That wasn't at all what he'd planned to say, but it seemed kinder than the alternative. Less likely to be seen as insulting.
 
Keen

Keen

Clown Town
Nov 23, 2016
4,470
keens-bakery.carrd.co
Gender
Agender
Pronouns
They/He
Posting Status
Irregularly
"Then I was right! Aristocrats are people who are basically at the top in societies. Nobles and the rich." Sprinkles nodded proudly at his guess being proven correct.

"Life here is good enough. The citizens here keep catching me off guard though, and it's still weird to me that I can just go outside. It's why I have these walks. By the way, if you're getting tired, we can find somewhere to sit down and relax."
 
Romi

Romi

Secretly a Bird
Administrator
Supporter
Jun 18, 2015
10,109
Gender
Female
Pronouns
She/Her
Posting Status
Irregularly
Kallias vigorously shook his head at the offer to sit down.

"I can manage," he said. "I walked a lot before. I wasn't allowed to ride before, so if I was going somewhere, I would have to walk." He'd always been told he had strong legs, and it was at least one feature he was mildly proud of.

"This place is... strange. Everything catches me off guard. There is no... no order to it?" That seemed like the best way to explain it. He was used to a certain order, a certain way of doing things. But Manta Carlos had none of that.
 
Keen

Keen

Clown Town
Nov 23, 2016
4,470
keens-bakery.carrd.co
Gender
Agender
Pronouns
They/He
Posting Status
Irregularly
That sounded awful. Sprinkles couldn't imagine himself being forced to walk while someone else rode beside him. He couldn't accept that. It was unfair and beneath him. "Don't push yourself too hard, then. You can actually relax here."

His feelings on the island were much more relatable. "There's order, it's just very... complicated. It's easier for me because I was raised in a society similar enough to this one. There are still poor people and rich people, laws, and unwritten expectations when around people. Once you add magic and demons and alternate universes into all of that, then it becomes muddy and unfamiliar. That's, uh, how I see it."
 
Romi

Romi

Secretly a Bird
Administrator
Supporter
Jun 18, 2015
10,109
Gender
Female
Pronouns
She/Her
Posting Status
Irregularly
"That all sounds... muddy and unfamiliar," he admitted. "None of the things people do here makes any real sense to me. Everyone is... strange. People are from all over. But... everyone does their own work. No one goes to war. People have strength but do not use it. People have a say and do not use it. Everyone here is..."

He struggled for a moment to find a way to explain himself without it being insulting, and then let out a resigned here.

"It feels to me like everyone here is very... complacent."
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom
Forgot your password?