bug crossing

[ourtomorrow]

Who: Ken (the young one) (er, the sad one) (er, the one who learned Duel Monsters) (.....THE ONE WITH A BUG), said bug, & YOU!
Where: Hallways of the train
When: Llama 20
What: Wormmon is a slow walker. Oops.
Warnings: prepare to be crushed beneath a weight of apologies, and maybe also the weight of some other things


Ken-chan!

Ah - !

[ WHUMPF.

That is the sound made when a young boy, carrying a pile of bedsheets higher than he is, trips on the bug that was waddling in front of him.

And everything he was carrying is now falling right towards whoever's approaching.

His eyes widen. ] Look ou---

[ And he hits the ground, hard. Ken had been so worried about warning his fellow passenger that he neglected to look after himself! ]

Comments

[averyusefultray]

[If she'd seen him just a little sooner, she might have predicted this. Blocking one's field of view is only a good idea in Jedi training exercises. But here she is, pushing bedsheets aside.

He sounded more lively, at least]

Hey, you okay?

[ourtomorrow]

Yes......I'm sorry.

[ Ken hangs his head. At least he had been on the way to the laundry room instead of returning....

The pile really has scattered everywhere. He sits up, begins gathering them up again in a hurry to get out of Hera's way. ]

[averyusefultray]

[They're not in combat. They're not in danger of combat. THere's absolutely no reason to not stop and help him pick the scattered sheets up.]

It's okay. But you don't have to work so hard that you run the risk of getting hurt.

[ourtomorrow]

I'm all right. This is our chore....

[ Or, well, he thinks it is. Cleaning bedrooms? Does that include sheets, when sheets are also laundry? He hopes he has not overstepped. ]

She's right, Ken-chan. Don't push yourself.

[ Wormmon, ever sage, has a pillowcase draped over his body like a blanket. ]

[averyusefultray]

On my ship I expect my crew to all contribute, but that doesn't mean I want the kids overdoing it.

[Sure, she's not the captain here, the train is its own captain, but it's still only reasonable]

No one's going to have a problem with you only taking as much as you can see over.

[ourtomorrow]

[ ...He sees the logic. This is good to remember: attempting to do too much can, in its own way, backfire. Taking care of himself also helps him take care of the people who worry about him.

Ken nods. ] Thanks.

[ Here, Wormmon, he'll just...retrieve that pillowcase, and start straightening up. He is a very crisp, precise folder of sheets! Look at him go. ]

Can I carry some, Ken-chan?

Sure.

[averyusefultray]

Let me take some too.

[Purple is supposed to be on laundry duty this month anyway]

Stopping yourself from seeing is only useful in Jedi training exercises.

and that's how ken ichijouji became a card-game-playing space monk

[ourtomorrow]

"Jedi"?

[ Ken doesn't know that term. ]

Is that something from your world?

Re: and that's how ken ichijouji became a card-game-playing space monk

[averyusefultray]

[She nods]

My galaxy has something called the Force that connects everything alive. Some people are able to... communicate with it and use it to do things that wouldn't be possible.

Jedi are people who are trained to use those abilities to help and defend others.

[ourtomorrow]

Woooowwww.

Something that connects everything alive. [ Ken closes his eyes, trying to picture this. Everyone...connected. And using that connection - to assist. ]

That's admirable.

[averyusefultray]

I'm not sure about the details of how blindfolds are supposed to help but... they manage to do amazing things.

I still wouldn't want Ezra doing laundry like that though.

[ourtomorrow]

Ken-chan, I want to be a Jedi. Then I could protect you better!

She's saying that Force is unique to her world. [ A quick glance: right? ] And we're already connected. By our partnership.

[ Wormmon has to pause from attempting to help in order to just. React. With his whole body. ] Hyeeeee!!!

[averyusefultray]

I haven't heard of anyone outside my galaxy knowing about it. Even then, most people are part of it without being able to communicate directly.

There's still plenty people can do to help without being able to use those specific abilities though.

[ourtomorrow]

That's true.

[ Wormmon feels better now, as well. Ken gathers a bundle of sheets up and - oh, Wormmon is in it now, okay.

Wormmon grins. He is getting a hug. ] There's something everyone can do on any world, isn't there.

[averyusefultray]

There is, and it can all help. There are two Jedi on my crew, but we still need everyone's skills to finish our missions.

[At least Wormmon is comfortable]

[ourtomorrow]

Chosen Children are that way, too! Every Digimon has a way they fight.

[ Ken nods. ] No one lacks value.

[ What a wonderful thing to be able to say. What a wonderful thing to be able to believe. ]

[averyusefultray]

Is that your team at home?

[He's young for fighting but... it happens. And the Digimon friends change the equation a bit.]

[ourtomorrow]

Mm. It's...children with partner Digimon.

[ Technically it's a little more complicated than that - some children qualify, according to Koushirou-san, as "Chosen Children" and some as "children who happen to have partner Digimon" - but he hasn't heard anyone else draw that distinction. And he doesn't want to make himself sound more 'special' than anyone else. ]

They live throughout the world, so I haven't personally met many. But we collaborate. And each partnership is unique.

[ Just like each heart is unique. ]

[averyusefultray]

It's always nice to know there are other people out there working toward the same things you are.

[She smiles down at the very comfy caterpillar]

The two of you make a good team.

[ourtomorrow]

Eheheheyeee.

[ Wormmon would rather have Ken-chan than any other child! Than any other ANYBODY!

Ken is touched, if embarrassed. ] We'll do what we can.

[ Like get the sheets where they need to go! ]

[averyusefultray]

That's all any of us can do.

There's nothing wrong with trying to improve, but you don't need to force it.

[ourtomorrow]

I tell him that ALL THE TIME.

[ This is said in the most conspiratorial of squeaky nasal voices.

And Ken does have to laugh, just a little, because it's true. ]

[averyusefultray]

That's because you're smart.

[She gives him a wink]

How many rooms' worth of sheets are here anyway?

[ourtomorrow]

[ He's smart! He's a smart Digimon! Wormmon nearly coos with delight, though since he is a smol bug full of web, it ends up more of a gurgle.

Ken, for his part, is....having to admit to his overachieving. He hides his face behind his pile. He knows. He should have paced himself better.

But knowing means he should admit it, right? ]

......Four.

[averyusefultray]

It'll still get done if you only do three.

[Four bunks in each room... that's a lot of sheets]

No one will think you're not pulling your weight unless they're trying to get out of their share.