neverjoinyou | lastvoyages IC Inbox

[Ford seems to notice exactly none of Luke's frustration.]

Excellent. Come by my cabin. I'll have enough for two people ready by then.

[Luke nods and signs off, smiling slightly because the word 'coffee' is still funny and cutesy to him, but he sobers soon enough when he reflects on the dream. And, even more, Ford's response. He's sorry he pried, however inadvertent, but now that he knows, he's pretty sure there's something here other than Ford being chagrined over past errors.

But he won't say any of that, at least not right off the bat. Instead, he'll head to Ford's room, which he's been meaning to do anyway for awhile, what with everything they've been through.]

Thanks, [he'll say when Ford opens the door and lets him in.] I guess eventually I need to learn how to make the stuff.

I could put together one of your own, if you like.

[The machine Ford pulls a coffeepot out from under is...homemade. It's blocky and has blinky dials and a LCD clock. It certainly does the trick of heating water and sending it through grounds and a coffee filter, and unlike, say, a french press, this one has a timer.

He pours two mugs of steaming caffienated bean water and passes one to Luke.]

You could. [But Luke examines the machine as he wraps his hand around the mug, peering at it from several angles.] But that would take the fun away from me.

[Ford waves a hand unconcernedly.]

Eh, suit yourself.

[He settles on the sectional that serves as a bed, pushing the blanket that lets it serve its dual purpose off to the side. He doesn't have any objection to Luke looking the machine over and makes no move to stop him.]

[Luke glances over briefly, worried he's offended Ford by refusing the gift--but the truth is, he likes to tinker, too. And it's been awhile since he's built anything other than a weapon or an engine. He wanders over with his mug, perching on the edge of the bed on the other end.]

What else is new?

[Plenty.]

Well, I'm working on a hydroponic garden out in the greenhouse with Laura.

[Luke shakes his head, chuckling to himself.]

No matter how far I get from Tatooine, water just being a thing you can use for, well, anything still seems crazy.

I grew up right by the beach, so...the constant presence of vast quantities of water was something I took for granted. Stan and I used to play by the ocean all the time!

[...ah. It's no sooner out of his mouth then Ford regrets it a little -- not because he's trying to hide it, but because thinking of Stan causes a sharp uptick in the amount of loneliness Ford's been feeling. Ow, whoops. Better not to bring Stan up.]

[Luke smiles gently.]

You two... didn't overlap here, did you?

No, we didn't.

[Luke nods, and takes a sip of coffee. Noting, perhaps belatedly, the terse answer and the tension.]

I haven't been as... available as I should. [It's not quite a change of subject, but object.] So what else have you built, or discovered?

[Ford leans back against the couch and sighs.]

Oh, this and that. Having a precision instrument for analyzing matter helps with just about everything. I did put together a comprehensive multidimensional ruleset for Dungeons, Dungeons & More Dungeons. Played a short campaign.

[That had been fun! Ford's thinking about running that game, and how fun it had been. He's focusing on this a little bit deliberately, since there are other things he doesn't want to think about.]

[He wants to ask about the matter analyzer but gets distracted by the number of words he doesn't understand in the second part. Luke gets a quizzical expression on his face.]

Dungeons? What sort of dungeons?

[Ford's face lights up. He thought you'd never ask.]

Oh, not literal dungeons. It's a fantasy role-playing game! It's from my world -- and, apparently, a couple others. You use the manuals to create your characters, then play through an adventure the Dungeon Master's made up for you! Sometimes you win, annnnd sometimes the entire party dies. But either way, it's a lot of fun!

[Luke’s still trying to picture this.]

So like… the Enclosure?

Not exactly. It's mostly in your imagination! With plenty of pens, paper, and overpriced miniatures to help keep track of it all.

Huh.

[He still doesn't quite get it, so he tries to imagine it, biting his lip for a moment.]

Wait. So... it's like when, ah, I used to pretend I was a fighter pilot in my room.

[Except with actual friends or whatever.]

[He laughs.]

Sort of, if it had rules, dice, and 2-8 players.

[Luke rolls his eyes.]

Well, that's what I meant. With actual friends.

[Oh. Well. That's both sad, and relatable.]

Aw, cheer up, Luke! I didn't find anyone who wanted to play it with me until I was in college!

You do realize that I'm not going to home home and play games, right? Or... go to college?

...well, then, what are you going to do when you go home?

[Luke sighs, leaning heavily against the wall he's next to.]

That's sort of what I'm here to figure out.

[Ah. Ford realizes he doesn't exactly know when on his timeline Luke is from. He sits there awkwardly for a moment.]

Really? I thought for sure you would know exactly where you were going.

lastvoyages IC Inbox

[video]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]