i fell for circuit boards, rocket ships, pictures of the stars

[readytosee]

Who: Casper Darling and OTA
What: Reactions to event-related things, and other starters
When: All through January, possibly into February
Where: All around Milton

Content Warnings: None yet, will update if needed!



i. dots and dashes

With the Sundered Pass being open, Darling can't help but think of Randvi, and her adventurous spirit. How he wishes he could be half as brave or as resourceful as she was. Is still, he hopes, somewhere. That death here is not permanent and that perhaps her soul or her mind or some part of her has returned to her home. He does, however, have her radio to remember her by, which he keeps safe in his cabin for the time being. Which would be infinitely more helpful if Darling knew more morse code. Thus the cheerful note he'd posted on the community board, and also why he sits in the Community Center now, scribbling on bits of paper and trying to teach himself. Any help would be appreciated.



ii. gifts of ink

The Holiday Boar was very generous to Darling, in his opinion. Not only did it bestow upon him a typewriter, but it (he?) also gave the scientist several ribbons of ink. It's not terribly heavy, maybe fifteen pounds or so, and so Darling is able to load it (carefully) into his messenger bag and tote it over to the Community Center. Then at least he can be social while he works on converting his notes from random poorly written scraps into something more cohesive. And tidier, certainly.



iii. 22 thompson drive

Casper Darling's door is always open! Not literally, as it's quite cold out and he catches a chill very easily, but the spirit of his door is always open. There's usually a fire going that can be seen through the windows, and if he's not in the Community Center, he's there. If you live on his street, or even if you don't, feel free to stop by and say hello.



iv. wildcard
[hit me with something! or contact wherethefigslie for plotting things ♥ ]

Comments

iii.

[misshuang]

The youngest member of the population has been.... managing. She's been doing fairly all right for herself, keeping fed up at the Community Center and staying warm enough with a fire in her own cabin and plenty of clothing (none of the kids' clothes had been picked through at the old clothing store). But it's only just that — managing — and after several weeks spent in this place and still not being picked up by her supervisors, she's begun to feel far less hopeful.

Then the nightmare happens. Only it's not really a nightmare. The fear is real, the terrible horrible fear and the green glow and the looming threat of some impossible predator that closes in on this town. Miss Huang has never experienced anything like it in her life. It breaks all the rules. Shatters all the safety. And abruptly she feels completely alone.

It hasn't been long since that's happened, and she hasn't quite recovered. She's afraid to leave her home, but then the fire goes out and she doesn't have enough firewood stocked up, and she's so cold. So she gathers up every ounce of courage she can, bundles up, and heads outside again. It's as she's passing one of her neighbours' windows that she sees a cosy fire going on inside. There's a moment when she tries to convince herself she doesn't need help — surely, Lumon is keeping up with everything she does, noting every weakness. But.... she's cold, and she's scared, and despite everything else she's been conditioned to be, the child is still just a child at heart.

She steps up to the front door, lifting a mittened fist to knock.

[readytosee]

The Darkwalker attack had been hard on Darling, too. Randvi had been very dear to him, perhaps one of his closest friends here. He's not a religious man, but he does hope that somehow, being released from this place, she got sent home. But the scientific side of him struggles to make that thought stick, so here he is. Setting himself to the mindless task of copying his scattered notes out on the typewriter.

He almost misses the knock, with all his clacking and clunking on the typewriter. But when he pauses and hears it again, he hurries over to see who is at his door. And it's --

-- a child? Or someone of very short stature, at least. She's bundled up, thankfully, but Darling ushers her inside anyway. "Come in, come in. I hope you didn't walk very far in all this. I'm Dr. Casper Darling, I don't think we've met. Do you want some very weak coffee?"

[misshuang]

She doesn't know to be afraid or careful around strangers. She's from an especially sheltered place, one that's both safer than most (or maybe it's just that the dangers are more hidden, concealed behind masks and locked doors and terrible truths.) Regardless, there's no fear in the girl to knock on a random stranger's door, and when he coaxes her inside, Miss Huang does so without any hesitation.

She rubs her gloved palms together, shivering as she looks up at the man with a quick, grateful nod. "Yes please. I would be very appreciative for some coffee." (She's been drinking it ever since she arrived to this place, so that she'll seem more competent and responsible, like any adult should be....)

"I apologise for interrupting your evening, Dr. Darling." She's relieved to hear his title; that puts him in a certain category of authority. Most definitely, he's no innie. He must be a very important Lumon worker. "I'm staying a few cabins down from you. I'm Miss Huang."

[readytosee]

"I promise, you're not interrupting anything at all, Miss Huang. Feel free to hang up your coat, if you want." He gestures to the sturdy tree branch he'd stripped the needles off of to serve as a sort of coat rack by the door.

"It's not very good, or very strong. I use a little bit of instant powder in boiled water, so it's more of a hot water that's been next to something coffee scented, but I want to make it last, so that's what it is. Do you have a first name? You're free to call me Casper, if you want."

Now that she's inside, it's more clear just how young she is, especially with the tidy pigtails. "Is it just you in the cabin?"

cw: Severance spoilers

[misshuang]

The girl is quick to take him up on that offer, peeling off her coat and hat to drape both neatly on the rack, then following suit with her gloves.

"It sounds delightful no matter what," she smiles pleasantly at the man, knowing it's no small thing for him to be sharing his valuable resources in a community like this. At the question, she pauses. She's been under strict orders not to reveal her first name to the innies; she's to be known only by her own authoritative title. But he's clearly a higher-level worker, and if he asks her name, then....

"My first name is Eustice." It's a rather peculiar name for a child of the modern era, though she doesn't know this. "It's just me," she smiles again, almost proudly this time. She's been surviving! All on her own! ...But the smile melts just a little as she has to admit something she's a bit ashamed about.

"I ran out of firewood and kindling, though. I should have stocked up more. It got really cold inside, really fast." It shocked her a bit, just how cold, and how quickly.

[readytosee]

"Very nice to meet you, Eustice." It is a bit of an old fashioned name, but there are people here from all different places and times, aren't there? He shouldn't judge. And besides, his name is Casper.

Carefully, he pours boiling water into two mismatched cups, adding a little of his instant coffee powder to each and stirring with a spoon. "Let this cool a bit before you drink it.

Why don't we get cozy, and you can tell me a little bit about yourself?" he offers, carrying the mugs over to the fireplace, where there's both a sofa and a comfortable chair for them to sit on. A little worn, of course, as all things in this place are, but definitely still useable.

"It's always so much colder than I think it's going to be, whenever I step outside. It's been even colder lately. But I have plenty of firewood and kindling, I don't mind sharing. Might as well make myself useful around here."

[misshuang]

She follows him over to the living area, brows lifting as she takes in just how cosy the space is. Admittedly, she hasn't done much in the way of decorating her own space; it's functional, and that's it. This is.. quite different from the sterile while walls she's used to back home, too.

"Thank you for your generosity." She moves to sit down on the sofa, lifting her palms to face the fire, already warming up so much more than she can remember being in a very long time.

"I've been learning how to use an axe to chop wood," she offers, helpfully. "I can make some more for you, as reciprocation. I want to be useful, too. Especially since I'm here for training." She nods, reaching to take her mug into her hands, but listens to what he says about not taking a sip yet until it cools. "What kind of doctor are you?"

[readytosee]

Casper Darling has always been a cozy sort of man, in his layers of sweaters and his wool and corduroy. He likes comfort, and so to him it was worth it to drag the most comfy looking furniture over to his cabin.

"That's very kind of you! I think there are some smaller trees nearby we can tackle together.

I'm a doctor of physics, mostly. I study theories about multiple universes and alternate realities." Though her comment about training sinks in, and he blinks a little. "For training? Are you here on purpose? I think most of us are here by happenstance."

[misshuang]

Physics? That grabs her attention, mostly because of how novel it is. There are scientists in her world, but everything is very.... contained. Each branch of study and work is insular, especially within the walls of Lumon. That's where all the real advancement is — in the world of science, of pharmaceutical, of all the big brain stuff.

She is fully assuming this man is from her world, of course, so it's very inspirational to get to speak with someone from one of those more isolated departments! Though the man's next words makes her pause, looking a little confused.

"Happenstance? You mean... most people who were sent here weren't supposed to be?"

There's an uncomfortable pang in her chest. That can't be what happened to her.

"I'm in the middle of training, yes. I was meant to be sent to Svalbard next, to the Empathy Center. But it seems I'm supposed to be here for a little while, first."

i.

[sputnik]

The loss of Chloe and Randvi has been.... Konstantin can't quite find the words. He's never mourned the loss of someone, not like this. Never allowed himself to.

When his father disappeared, his mother took it like a death. That was part of why it destroyed her. For Konstantin, even as a young boy, he thought differently. The not-knowing was safer; the man could be dead or alive, and he would never ever find out. He's better with handling loss that way: keeping people at some safe arm's distance, in some inbetween state.

But there's no guessing, here. There's a possibility that they're both still alive in their worlds, but here...? No one who's ever died here has come back. Konstantin knows that he'll never see his friends again. And the way they died...

When he sees the message, he almost doesn't show up. What makes him go is the thought of Randvi, who'd had one of those radios, who'd asked him about some code meanings, and the ache and yearning to hold onto some memory of her however he can. So the cosmonaut will approach the scientist where he sits, offering a tip of his head in greeting — and two weak coffees.

"Doctor. Making any headway on that Morse code of yours?"

ii

[wolf_lover]

Don't mind the young man peering over Casper's shoulder like the nosy nuisance that he is. Connor has got no sense of personal space and a large amount of curiosity, which has combined to lead him to this point.

"What are you typing up?" He's trying to read the page that Casper is currently working on.