[Kaworu's face contorts with an emotion that's triangulating between confusion, anxiety, and excitement. Right now he's staying very still--very, very still--in an attempt to mimic the sculpture at the fountain's center. If he moves even a centimeter, he thinks, he's going to upset the delicate balance he's struck with Lilin. Just for that reason, it's really a good thing his ears aren't too ticklish; these Lilin feathers keep brushing against him and it's kind of uncomfortable.
On his shoulder, the pigeon bobs about and says, "Coo."
He tightens his jaw for a moment, wondering if that's a good coo or a bad coo. Communicating with humans is stressful enough on its own, but these bird things seem like an insurmountable challenge. The language barrier is too great for him. And, for the record, he never asked for this.]
Tr-- Triela.
[It's a tense whisper and he almost regrets the breath he has to take to say it. He can't pivot his head to look at Triela, but he certainly forces his eyes as far to the side as possible.]
What is it doing? Is it angry with me? I don't understand.
[The idea of feeding pigeons at this generic, rundown park has turned into a bizarre ordeal. Kaworu would cry if he knew how to cry at will: he's never had Lilin perch on him, and it's strangely upsetting. To its credit, the pigeon isn't being too abusive... it seems less interested in Kaworu's bread bits and more interested in poking at the loose strands of his hair. Maybe it's looking for prime nesting material.]
[Were she watching an adult, Triela wouldn't be smiling like she is right now. She'd be glancing sideways, back straight and expression snide, just derisive enough that the adult in question would feel chastised by a child. She'd turn her face away like she couldn't bear to look at such an embarrassing thing, and steady the case strapped to her shoulder. (It reads Amati, but really, she just doesn't like leaving home without a few guns, even here.) Then again, Triela can't imagine any adult acting like this is so novel. It's not every day a pigeon perches on a person, but the grown-ups she knows are too stuffy to appreciate it, probably. (Though if she lets herself visualize about the look of surprise on Hilshire's face— )
Because it's Kaworu, she's grinning. Her arms are folded over her chest and she's trying not to laugh, because she doesn't want to scare the bird away — but when it coos, she has to clap her gloved hand over her mouth to keep quiet. He may be a weird guy, weirder even than most teenage boys, but it looks like he kind of has a cute side, too. (What a hypocritical thought; she gets irritated when adults say exactly that about her!) Now she's bending at the hip, leaning to the side, peering at the bird and Kaworu's stressed expression.]
Aw, [she says softly,] I don't think he's mad. He'd probably peck you if he was, right? I think he likes you...
[She covers her mouth again, muffling her half laugh, and straightens once more. Once she's brought her hands to her hips, it's like she's gotten an idea.]
Oh, I know. He wants to curl up in that messy hair of yours. [She's really big on looking presentable; Kaworu probably gets an earful from time to time.] See, that's what happens when you don't brush it down. He wants to make his nest in there, now, and you're just going to have to deal with it.
A nest? [Kaworu's voice is little more than an indignant squeak. It's one thing for Lilin to perch on his shoulder, and another thing entirely for Lilin to-- to-- to nest in his hair, whatever that implies.] I don't want to become a nest, [he squeaks.] You told me the birds wanted to eat our slices of bread. You didn't say anything about a nest, did you?
[If this is the true consequence of having messy hair, maybe he really will employ a comb from now on. Properly, that is. Thus far it's been more useful as a makeshift backscratcher... or a short spaghetti stirrer... and it feels good to rub the tines between his toes, too. His toes are curling up inside his shoes now, responding to his mortification--the pigeon is pressing its luck by tugging on a strand of hair. He could smack the thing aside with his A.T. Field if it inflicts any pain, but right now it isn't pecking at him. Maybe it does like him, just like Triela said... Maybe this is an uneasy truce between Angel and Lilin...
But birds often lay eggs inside their little nests, right? In that respect, Kaworu has more in common with a baby bird than he does with a baby human, but he never agreed to become a host to these hypothetical eggs. This type of bird must be very stupid if it's staking its claim on an ambulatory creature. What if the eggs slid off and hit the ground? What then? He doesn't want to have innocent yolk on his hands. Without a doubt, Ikari-kun would never approve of that. Oh shit.
The sum of Kaworu's weird, meandering thoughts has to be,] Is he going to lay an egg on me? [His eyes widen even more, still seeking out Triela and her answers. He's an unmanageable child most of the time (99% of the time), but he has recognized Triela as someone worth listening to. The pigeon belongs to her collective; she probably knows all sorts of stuff about it.] If he starts to lay an egg or something, you have to warn me.
No, I didn't say anything about— [Triela has to cover her mouth again, and she laughs against her palm. Then she purses her lips to keep from laughing more, clears her throat, and straightens her necktie, acting all businesslike but unable to keep a smile entirely off of her face. It seems like this is kind of stressing Kaworu out... She shouldn't be a jerk, especially when he acts so much like a kid... Or maybe most teenagers are like this? Triela doesn't have a lot of experience, but when she thinks of Kaworu, the word that comes to mind is juvenile. She thinks of Mimi Machiavelli, a teenage girl who seemed to want to be Triela's friend, and who pitched a childish fit after losing at chess. Triela doesn't like adults very much, but she has no idea what to do with teenagers. She's much more used to the subservience of the other cyborgs, the sweet calm and wondrous youth of Rico and Henrietta. Kaworu, on the other hand, seems like he should be going to school, or being scolded for not going to school. There are days when Triela finds herself wanting to nag him into doing so, before she catches herself.
From what little Triela knows, Kaworu isn't especially great at socializing, either. Maybe that's why she finds herself talking to him more than to others their age: even if they handle things differently, even if they're strange in different ways, they can sort of relate to each other because they weren't raised around other (or, in Triela's case, normal) kids. And maybe Triela's being a jerk again, but being around Kaworu makes Triela feel... competent?
She shakes her head, and smiles like she's a little exasperated.] Sorry, I'm being a little mean. He won't really make a nest on you — you'd make a terrible tree! Don't worry, okay? I do think he likes you, maybe he thinks you're pretty, but I promise you he's not going to lay an egg on you.
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speciocide) wrote2014-08-28 03:21 pm
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On his shoulder, the pigeon bobs about and says, "Coo."
He tightens his jaw for a moment, wondering if that's a good coo or a bad coo. Communicating with humans is stressful enough on its own, but these bird things seem like an insurmountable challenge. The language barrier is too great for him. And, for the record, he never asked for this.]
Tr-- Triela.
[It's a tense whisper and he almost regrets the breath he has to take to say it. He can't pivot his head to look at Triela, but he certainly forces his eyes as far to the side as possible.]
What is it doing? Is it angry with me? I don't understand.
[The idea of feeding pigeons at this generic, rundown park has turned into a bizarre ordeal. Kaworu would cry if he knew how to cry at will: he's never had Lilin perch on him, and it's strangely upsetting. To its credit, the pigeon isn't being too abusive... it seems less interested in Kaworu's bread bits and more interested in poking at the loose strands of his hair. Maybe it's looking for prime nesting material.]
no subject
Because it's Kaworu, she's grinning. Her arms are folded over her chest and she's trying not to laugh, because she doesn't want to scare the bird away — but when it coos, she has to clap her gloved hand over her mouth to keep quiet. He may be a weird guy, weirder even than most teenage boys, but it looks like he kind of has a cute side, too. (What a hypocritical thought; she gets irritated when adults say exactly that about her!) Now she's bending at the hip, leaning to the side, peering at the bird and Kaworu's stressed expression.]
Aw, [she says softly,] I don't think he's mad. He'd probably peck you if he was, right? I think he likes you...
[She covers her mouth again, muffling her half laugh, and straightens once more. Once she's brought her hands to her hips, it's like she's gotten an idea.]
Oh, I know. He wants to curl up in that messy hair of yours. [She's really big on looking presentable; Kaworu probably gets an earful from time to time.] See, that's what happens when you don't brush it down. He wants to make his nest in there, now, and you're just going to have to deal with it.
no subject
[If this is the true consequence of having messy hair, maybe he really will employ a comb from now on. Properly, that is. Thus far it's been more useful as a makeshift backscratcher... or a short spaghetti stirrer... and it feels good to rub the tines between his toes, too. His toes are curling up inside his shoes now, responding to his mortification--the pigeon is pressing its luck by tugging on a strand of hair. He could smack the thing aside with his A.T. Field if it inflicts any pain, but right now it isn't pecking at him. Maybe it does like him, just like Triela said... Maybe this is an uneasy truce between Angel and Lilin...
But birds often lay eggs inside their little nests, right? In that respect, Kaworu has more in common with a baby bird than he does with a baby human, but he never agreed to become a host to these hypothetical eggs. This type of bird must be very stupid if it's staking its claim on an ambulatory creature. What if the eggs slid off and hit the ground? What then? He doesn't want to have innocent yolk on his hands. Without a doubt, Ikari-kun would never approve of that. Oh shit.
The sum of Kaworu's weird, meandering thoughts has to be,] Is he going to lay an egg on me? [His eyes widen even more, still seeking out Triela and her answers. He's an unmanageable child most of the time (99% of the time), but he has recognized Triela as someone worth listening to. The pigeon belongs to her collective; she probably knows all sorts of stuff about it.] If he starts to lay an egg or something, you have to warn me.
no subject
From what little Triela knows, Kaworu isn't especially great at socializing, either. Maybe that's why she finds herself talking to him more than to others their age: even if they handle things differently, even if they're strange in different ways, they can sort of relate to each other because they weren't raised around other (or, in Triela's case, normal) kids. And maybe Triela's being a jerk again, but being around Kaworu makes Triela feel... competent?
She shakes her head, and smiles like she's a little exasperated.] Sorry, I'm being a little mean. He won't really make a nest on you — you'd make a terrible tree! Don't worry, okay? I do think he likes you, maybe he thinks you're pretty, but I promise you he's not going to lay an egg on you.