[video]

[bulletbiter]

[ the feed opens to julius in the garden, standing beneath a fruit tree - a young man in his early twenties, with blond hair and clear golden eyes. he looks a tad tired, with dark shadows under his eyes - but for those who knew him from before, he appears to be in better condition than they last saw him.

notably, he wasn't at the icebreaker. but - those are minor details. ]

Hello, everyone. My name is Julius.

[ he gestures to the greenery behind him with a sweep of his hand, a slight smile tugging at his lips ]

I'm interested in developing the garden - we may need to upkeep it ourselves in the future, and I would imagine the relevant skills would be necessary in other worlds for ensuring a consistent food supply. However, I don't have much knowledge on cultivation myself. If we work together, we'll have a better chance at succeeding.

[ his expression settles back into its usual quiet seriousness now, as appropriate for something more dangerous ]

I was a soldier back home, and I used to teach drills to my teammates. In the interest of keeping our skills sharp, I would also like to propose some sparring sessions and other exercises.

[ a pause, before: ]

If you're interested in either of these, please let me know. I look forward to working with everyone here.

Comments

[bulletbiter]

[ there's much that he still wants to comment on, the fact that something he had just come to terms with was taken away from him so abruptly - but there's a certain sanctity to geir's hopefulness, one that he doesn't dare disturb.

so: ]

Yeah.

[ he can think about the rest later. ]

I'm in less pain than before. But I don't think I can change my form right nnow.

[rootandbranch]

I'm glad your body feels better.

[Geir's hopeful, but not naive, and he pays attention to the things said to him. he peers solemnly cross-eyed at Julius, his scales warm underneath his petting hands.]

You said you don't know how to feel about it. Are you okay?

[bulletbiter]

[ it's a good thing that geir is so attentive, it means he can actually bring up the things that are bothering him without feeling interruptive. ]

I'm not sure.

[ this he willingly admits ]

It's true that I feel less pain. But... all of that, my curse, and what I could do with it; I was comfortable with being 'that sort of person' before. Now that I don't have it, I feel a little strange.

[rootandbranch]

[being attentive is, in a lot of senses, all Geir feels he has. without the ability to watch people closely, to recognize patterns in their behavior and breaks in what they say, he wouldn't understand any social rules at all... and more to the point, Loki would have fooled him a lot more often than he did. You're too easy to lie to, the trickster god had told him contemptuously.

it's true that Geir is naive, and takes a lot at face value when perhaps he shouldn't. but he watches people. he's watching Julius now.]

Are you a different kind of person without it?

[his head is tilted, trying to quantify what Julius is saying.]

[bulletbiter]

[ being attentive helps. different people have different blind spots, and geir has often caught his... like this one. he has to think, putting a hand to his chin ]

I... think so. I can't fly anymore, for example.

[ he can't assume that kind of form which he used to break the coven out of jail. he can't fly, shoot lasers, or do all sorts of complex things. he's back to being a human again ]

I'm just worried. What if we get into a place of danger again, and we need to fight? Then, I'm not that useful anymore.

[rootandbranch]

I suppose we'll have to find weapons.

[he's musing out loud...]

No one arrived with a lot of weapons, did they? I didn't see a lot of them around the Temple. Maybe Astoria doesn't expect us to need to fight.

[he snorts.]

Not that that means we won't. But we'll still have our powers.

[bulletbiter]

[ solving things without fighting is an ideal situation - but as with most ideal situations, it rarely comes to pass, does it? ]

Yeah. [ at least they have that.... but he's a lot less confident in that power, as it's just for growth. ] I guess... I just want to be able to be useful again.

[ he says this looking up wistfully, his eyes on the sky above ]

[rootandbranch]

[Julius finds himself the subject of one of Geir's narrow-eyed, penetrating looks, the way he gets when he's giving his full attention to someone or something. he's focused intently on Julius now.]

I don't think anyone has to be useful just for fighting.

[bulletbiter]

[ this Look is how he knows he can't use his self-deprecation to escape further questioning. he struggles to meet that gaze, innstead directing his attention somewhere at the floor ]

..... I guess. But I don't really know how to do anything well, other than fighting.

[rootandbranch]

[Geir's eyes go wide again; they're filled with sympathy now.]

That's okay. I don't know how to do anything. I'm just, myself. With all the god-stuff... I guess at least I'm still big and strong like this, but it's not like I'm better at anything important!

[bulletbiter]

[ that's what they are, really. people out of their element, with little experience, who have to learn from scratch.

so he has to smile, looking up just once ]

Someone once told me that the only way to go from here is to improve ourselves. So, maybe that'll help if we look into learning new things.

[rootandbranch]

[there's a return smile in Geir's expression. it's not really on his mouth, but just something about the way his head tilts and the ridges along his cheeks and above his eyes change shape...]

Okay. You gotta figure it out with me too, okay?

we're about done here? :D

[bulletbiter]

Yeah. Thanks.

[ it's good to be with friends. he's grateful, after all this time ]

almost ;D

[rootandbranch]

[funny he should say that...]

Julius-- that reminds me. I wanted to ask you!

Are we friends, too?

[after all this, Geir's hesitant and unsure of the answer. he never really knows, with people. he still doesn't have any confidence in his ability to read this kind of thing. how could he?]

ayyyy

[bulletbiter]

[ there's a blink as he takes in the question, and then: ]

We are.

[ even with his own uncertainty regarding socialization, this is something he can say with confidence. ]

[rootandbranch]

Oh.

[it's always a victory when it actually happens. Geir sighs in pure pleasure (and not a little relief), and bends his head to nuzzle Julius's shoulder again.]

Well, good.

[bulletbiter]

[ he returns the gesture with a pat on geir's snout. it's nice to just be able to chat with someone, so they'll be here a while. ]