wound up

[blue_ice]

Who: Kaiba and open!
Where: Spa car
When: Imagination 4, very late at night
What: Someone gives into temptation to indulge and has potentially interesting discussions!
Warnings: Implied/possible mention of child abuse, other war/injury discussion possible. Will update if needed.



It's been...a day. Kaiba's spent time this evening working on how to talk to the others. It's clear as a train they need to regroup on a number of topics and make some changes, but how? And does he even want to try to facilitate? Not exactly his strong suit. He can already imagine the headache. He's sketched out a few potential outlines of topics to open the floor on. Maybe the memorial really is the simplest place to start?

But he's putting that out of his mind. After a late night in the standard car hunched over his notebook, he realizes that the train's fallen quiet in the night. Time to head back to bed. He moves through the largely-empty cars, but as the strange new scent of the spa car filters through in the corridor, he hesitates. The quiet is the perfect time, isn't it?

One ruffle through the closet and a quick shower trip later, he returns, carefully folding his legs beneath him as he sinks in. His torso's long enough that he's only covered up to the ribs and the old, angry red marks between his shoulder blades are exposed, but surely it's quiet enough that that's not an issue.

Finally...at last, he hears nothing but the sound of water lapping the edges of the pool. He can finally relax. He closes his eyes, rolling his shoulders back with a soft sigh.

"...hm. Not bad...maybe."

Comments

[emerald_mirror]

Xander nods to Seto. "Yeah, I didn't. It's sort of an uneven friendship, you know? She can't talk, most other people aren't empaths, so she's gotten really good at charades." That and the fact that Cottonball is a thumb-sized white bat with a yellow snub nose and bright oildrop eyes doesn't hurt her cuteness factor. He's pretty sure she's safe anywhere she goes, on that alone.

But Seto's next words sound so much like Alex's that it practically takes Xander's breath away. He gives another weak laugh, then.

"You sound like my twin, Alex, Seto. I could swear he said the same thing--being alone is less complicated. People are complicated. They're hard to understand! I mean. Even I try to come off as uncomplicated, but...it's like a duck. You watch them out on a lake and they look so peaceful, gliding across the water...but then when they take flight, or even if they get spooked, you realize the graceful glide is all illusion, and they're paddling like hell under the surface, just to keep going."

The look he gives Siebren may speak volumes--or, it could only be a look. He's not going to unearth anyone's secrets, despite whatever emotions of theirs he might be registering. Those secrets are their own property--unless either man chooses to share. He's got his own, after all.

"Alex liked to hole himself up in his tower," Xander says, somewhat musing. "He's always had a really hard time interacting with people--when he was a baby, he got trapped in a pocket dimension with Dr. Valkonan and his family, and so he didn't get a whole lot of socialization. He wants to be around people, and be liked, but he still doesn't quite know how. Before I came here, I was trying to teach him...he was jealous of me, because I always find it easy to interact with people...but..."

Xander looks more than a little guilty, then. "It's just...another power, I guess? Like our Earth magic, though he's a lot more powerful than I am with that. He's done so much study and research to get as good as he is, and I just kind of got it. Just like I kind of got my empathy. I can't turn it off, so I have to live with it and ignore it if I can."

Mostly he tries to, because he doesn't want to pry. People's emotions are something private; his being able to read them is like accidentally barging in on someone in a bathroom, except he can't stop it entirely. Just shield as best he can and do his best to ignore it when he can't.

[blue_ice]

Seto listens to both of their words. Siebren's words remind him of Mokuba's from long ago...he needs to learn to smile again. He should play nice with Yugi. He doesn't have to keep his walls up all the time.

"I don't mean to disturb you with any emotion. I'm working on handling it," he offers to Xander. He should really leave, then...but though this Alex character isn't exactly like him? He's similar enough that maybe Xander does know something about helping. And he likes Siebren well enough. Maybe he can discuss this...in clinical terms, at least. Uncertainty swirls, but he presses on.

"I'm only explaining this so you don't jump to incorrect conclusions," he begins. "My brother and I were orphaned and had difficulty getting adopted, so I...negotiated with one of the top businessmen in the country when he visited for a photo op. I knew going into it that sentimentality had no part in our deal, it was purely transactional...but I underestimated how thoroughly he would shape me."

A dark expression crosses his face, and a swell of guilt accompanies it. He really doesn't need to elaborate for them to draw the correct conclusions.

"I was taught to trust no one. To see the world as a series of business transactions, not connections. I've been dragged back down and into something resembling standard friendships since, but I still feel like I'm faking it."

Did he actually say all that? His cheeks warm a little, and he folds his arms over his chest self-consciously.

[namethattune]

He has heard the duck metaphor before, but followed up with an empath giving him a look...well. Nothing quite like being put on notice. Having the ability to put things aside does not prevent Xander from picking up on them in the first place.

He closes his eyes briefly as Seto speaks - evidently correcting assumptions with the truth had come back around. So much for controlling the narrative to prevent that scenario. But Seto is explaining, and Siebren is, as always, curious.

It takes him three sentences to regret that curiosity.

This is...there is little wonder Seto had referred to this as a burden; it would be difficult to carry in the best of circumstances, and obviously Seto had not had anything of the sort. Those marks on his back, and his words...it is not difficult to see what Seto is implying.

The realization sinks in, and for a moment, Siebren burns with rage.

He understands being broken and reformed - he has done it himself, however unwillingly - but Siebren's circumstances were the result of an accident, an experiment gone wrong, and all the choices leading up to it had been his to make. Seto had made a deal to try to care for his brother, and the adult in the equation had abused him - had broken him on purpose - Seto had not deserved that - no child deserves that-

But the businessman in question is in the past and a different dimension, and rage without a target is useless - to Siebren, and more importantly, to Seto. He lets go of it - pushes it away - and the moment fades, taking the fire with it.

"Of course it feels that way," he says, still searching for words even as he speaks. "It is the opposite of everything you have been taught." And pain, for good or for ill, is an effective teacher. "But...progress, by its nature, is gradual. You make an attempt, you learn, and you incorporate what you have learned into your next attempt. You may not be able to see the difference, when you know the effort that went into every attempt, but those who know your starting point would likely be able to see it easily." Whether there is anyone else on the train that knows that starting point aside from Siebren and Xander is a question that does not bear asking at the moment.

[emerald_mirror]

Oh, no. No no no. "First things first, you're not bothering me with your emotions, Seto. Nobody really does, but I can't say it never happens. Most of the time, I'm fine, I swear. It's...been a few months since I was bothered with emotions."

And Xander is not going to bring up that particular happenstance, not now. No sir, no thank you. At that point, it was all he could do to not make a potential mess of things. He hadn't; so that was what mattered. Xander's not going to go into it.

He can feel how angry Siebren is; and really, that emotion echoes his own. If he were in a place where he could get to that businessman? He'd make the dude feel every...damn...thing he'd done to Seto. In spades. And Xander wouldn't feel a single iota of guilt for it, either. But that's not constructive, to think, to speak. Siebren pushes the rage away; Xander swallows his, to ferment. He might be able to use it later, if that ever becomes necessary. His next glance at Seto is one of respect.

"You had balls, though! For negotiating for yourself and your brother? Not everything that came from that was good, that's the truth. You lost a lot, and relearning that sort of thing when it's been taken from you isn't easy. Just the fact that you want to? Dude, that's huge." Siebren is basically saying the same thing, but from the fatherly perspective--at least age wise (he at least looks 18, roster be damned!) Xander is a peer. And that sort of pressure, for good or bad, can also be quite effective.

"And you protected your brother too, right? Having a brother myself, you know--we kinda look out for each other." Xander didn't know the name of Seto's brother, but still.

"So at least you're familiar with strange upbringings, too, huh?" It's a bad joke, but Xander's at least willing to make it anyway.

[blue_ice]

Seto is entirely silent as he waits for the fallout to unfold, shoulders just a little more hunched in. He's just admitted how broken he is, how...off balance he is, and that's either pitiful or disgusting. The unease is off the charts...

At least, until he listens. And maybe this is why he chose to reveal this to them...their circumstances may not be the same, but maybe they understand being set apart. Being forged by pain, and having to fight back from that.

He unfolds slowly, lifting his gaze to theirs...and nods, leaning back against the wall of the tub. He feels relief, a small piece of that burden lifted.

"I'm learning the finer points of being part of a group," he agrees easily. "I appreciate the understanding...and maybe you're right. A middle finger his way with every step."

[namethattune]

Seeing Seto relax is gratifying, to say the least. Siebren is never certain whether he is saying the right thing when it comes to this sort of advice - soft sciences have never been his forte - but basic human empathy has proven effective more than once this evening. Between him and Xander, they seem to have been helpful, and that is a relief.

He huffs a short laugh at Seto's assessment. "There is something to be said for spite as a motivator, provided it is not your only one." There is more to be said regarding teamwork, and the fact that Seto should not have to feel the need to thank them for listening, but lightening the mood first is not, he feels, a bad way to start.

[emerald_mirror]

Seto was right in his assumption that touch does amplify Xander's ability to read emotion, but if that bothered the nephilim, he'd probably do it less. As it is, they all are, Xander hopes, on the way to becoming friends.

Because he gives the other young man a gentle shove--as if Seto were a friend. It's something he'd do to his twin, too. But Xander also doesn't want to start an all-out splash fight in the spa tub, either. It's more an attempt to remind Seto that he's just not that old. And maybe he ought to lighten up just a tad. He hasn't forgotten that Siebren is there, either. He figures the older man might not enjoy a good splashing, so he avoids that attempt.

But he's smiling about it all as he pulls his shenanigans.

"Oh, I don't think spite is your entire motivation, but hey, use it as seasoning! Just don't go buck wild, right?"

[blue_ice]

Seto bristles a little at the shove, but it's mostly for show. His expression is a fair bit lighter, even as he does counter by steadily pushing him back to arms' length, somewhat fond exasperation on his face.

"If you want to play me that badly...soccer or a strategy game tomorrow, your choice. Siebren...I believe I owe you a game as well."

He's (mostly) at peace now, and can resume the relaxation he came for in the first place. "And spite drove me to fight for the longest time...but here, living and working with everyone, I've started to see what else I've been missing. Being conscripted was a ticket to freedom, who would've guessed."

[namethattune]

Xander is correct in his assumption that Siebren is not here to get into a water fight, but the roughhousing settles as quickly as it starts. Good.

He gives a long-suffering and very fake sigh at the proposal. "Seto, I have not managed to win a full match of gin rummy in years, and I am not so eager to be beaten again." He ends the theatrics with a bit of a smile. Seto had won their tiebreaker hand during the void storm, which made the match his; before that, poker had been the social game of choice in nearly every group Siebren had wound up in. He hadn't played gin rummy since-

Since teaching Dr. Winston to play, all those years ago, and once he'd gotten the rules down, that had been the end of Siebren's ability to win a match against him. Harold had just laughed, and called him unlucky, and hey, maybe his luck will turn around next hand, and...

Why does he keep coming back to this?

His smile has disappeared, that same uneasy feeling rising in his throat again to replace it, and he pushes it back down. Not now. There are other, more important matters at hand.

(Xander had likely noticed that; hopefully Seto had not.)

"I doubt any of us would have, but...you take the good when it comes."

[emerald_mirror]

"I haven't played soccer since I was back with the brats..." It's said fondly, but likely Xander means Drake's children. That suspicion would be a correct one. "You're on! But yeah, tomorrow."

Or sometime in the future, after he's yeeted back to his bed.

"I don't know how to play gin rummy," he admits, looking over at Siebren and sounding almost...wistful? "But I mean, if you want to teach, I'd like to learn? I don't know a lot of card games. Mostly board games, whatever the Valkonans had at the Lab." Oh, they probably had card games too, but since it was rather likely that involved things like alcohol and more? Xander wasn't invited to those little soirees.

And then he snorts out a laugh. "At least you can be sure you'll get a couple over on me at first! I'm not that quick on the pick-up!"

[blue_ice]

Seto is smiling at them, surprisingly. They've accepted him, warts and all, and in turn he wouldn't mind getting a little closer to them. And he's in his element once more...games. And as he listens to Siebren's teasing and Xander's wistful wondering, he thinks over where to go from here.

"Until I boarded, the only parties I attended were for business purposes. Social enjoyment had nothing to do with it. I may have a few games I play for competitive edge...but I'm still learning the 'fun' aspect."

He takes a breath. "We can pick a game none of us know, for an equal playing field. As much as I'd love to run the table at Duel Monsters...it's not polite to do that to people you like."

[namethattune]

Siebren snorts at Xander's assessment. "That is exactly what the last person I taught to play told me, and he became the reason for my losing streak! Forgive me for thinking you might do the same." It is banter, pure and simple, and it is easy. Of course he will teach Xander, if Xander wants to learn.

(The emotion does not creep up on him when he talks about Dr. Winston; only when he thinks about him. How...odd.)

He leans back, relaxing a bit more into the sauna as he listens to Seto's proposal. "No, but it can be fun," he admits, letting his sense of humor peek through. "If I might propose an addendum: if there are no games we do not all know, or if they are terribly long and complicated, we play a classic instead. Something based on luck instead of skill." Evening the playing field in a different way.

[emerald_mirror]

Xander thinks about that a moment. "I might, but I'll probably feel bad about it at least," he replies to Siebren, with a grin. Which is entirely true, he would feel bad. He doesn't like grinding people into the dirt when games are supposed to be fun.

But he looks over to Seto with a grin. "You don't do that to your friends," he agrees. "Unless you need to prove a point. Some people just get cocky, and then, since you are the master, you teach them a lesson about getting a big head, right?"

That's the type of thing that makes sense to him, at least. Siebren earns a grin, then. "What, no friendship enders?" But he's clearly joking. "That's what the Valkonans called Monopoly. The Friendship Ender. It wasn't exactly banned, but it was a lot more popular with the kids than it was with the adults. I'm pretty sure that's because we had more house rules, though. But I'm down for something classic if we don't align."

Really, Xander would probably agree to anything, so long as it meant everyone had fun.

[blue_ice]

"Monopoly is a game designed to demonstrate the ruthlessness of the business world. As a CEO with a reputation for especially cutthroat tactics, I'm a master of it," he boasted, a little smirk crossing his face. "But...in the interest of pursuing friendship, I'll refrain."

He lazily stretched his arms over his head, evidently feeling much better. "There's an oversized Jenga set, a Twister mat, and a few dice games on the upper level. As I spend most of my time in that car already, I'll let you two have the first two picks."

[namethattune]

Evidently Monopoly being a friendship ender is a truth across dimensions. Siebren snorts again. "We had banned it aboard the Horizon Lunar Colony. It seems that playing a game known for ending friendships is a terrible idea when everyone involved is living together in a small, enclosed space." His tone is incredibly, pointedly dry. "The last time I saw that particular copy, the box was propping up a broken telescope leg." Where it belongs.

"Should we not first peruse the selection to see if any of the provided games fit our parameters?"

[emerald_mirror]

"Wait, wait! Lunar Colony? You went to one of the moons?" Or, you know, Xander, if Siebren is from Earth, he probably went to THE moon, since it only has one...

That doesn't seem to register with him for the moment, though at least the nephilim has the grace to not bounce, though he's evidently excited. "What was it like? That had to be so cool!"

Xander at least remembers that they were talking about games, and then shakes his head quickly--not to deny anything, but to attempt a reset, probably. "I don't mind going to look at the game car and see if anything agrees with us. It's fine by me."

[blue_ice]

"And that was why I had my space station to myself," Seto huffed. All alone, just the way he liked it. Surveying the planet from high up...it was a perfect view. He's a little nostalgic for it now.

But he's interested in this new direction of conversation.

"We'll get the game sorted later. But it must have been impressive...the work you can do up on a lunar colony, the resources you have. I was performing high-energy experiments on speed travel, and building the first gaming arena among the stars."

[namethattune]

It seems, regardless of dimension, people get excited when you mention you've been to the moon. "Where I am from, Earth only has the one," he tells Xander, filing away Seto's comment about his own space station. Capitalism at its most terrifying, evidently, though his experiments will be well worth following up on.

"The Horizon Lunar Colony was built to study the long-term effects of extraterrestrial habitation," he starts. "It was meant to be a stepping stone into renewed interplanetary exploration in the wake of the Omnic Crisis. It was staffed by a team of scientists - mostly biologists and geneticists, with one behavioral therapist and one medical doctor, as its secondary purpose was the observation and socialization of a group of genetically modified young gorillas. I was the odd man out, as it were; my work had reached the point where I required lower gravity fields to perform the necessary experiments, and Lucheng Interstellar was willing to allow me a temporary space in the colony to do my work. I was there for a little less than a year before I returned planetside.

"It was...incredible, to be honest." He smiles, equal parts nostalgia and a wonder that has not faded with the passage of time. "To be on the moon - to be somewhere that was only a dream a few decades prior...it was an experience I will never forget."

[emerald_mirror]

"Artepus has two, Aion and Ixion. Guess they liked names that looked alike..." Xander shrugged a bit, then. He wasn't even sure who'd named the moons, to be honest. He listened as Siebren spoke, and his brows flew up.

"Omnic crisis? But Orisa's an Omnic and she's perfectly nice." Uncertain how they actually precipitated a crisis, Xander wasn't sure he wanted to pursue that particular line of questioning. He bit his lower lip as Siebren mentioned genetic modification--it wasn't human, but gorillas were close enough, he thought. Uncomfortably so.

He couldn't help but smile at the older man's happy nostalgia, but curiosity was killing this puppy cat. "Did your experiment result in success, and that's why you stayed there under a year?"

It struck him as a bit odd--even in the short time he knew Drake, he knew how many experiments the Master Scientist ran. By no means did he think Siebren was wrong in any way--who is Xander to know about anything like that? He figured Siebren would be only too happy to explain it to him.

[blue_ice]

"I'm from Earth too...a different one, most likely," Seto clarified, but he was content to sit and listen to them. He nodded slightly at the mention of Orisa---she was a curious and protective ally, and he approved of her too. But that involved potentially thorny politics, so he'd listen for now.

He was especially curious to learn about those gravity experiments...

[namethattune]

He pauses at the interjection; it is a fair point, after all. "Orisa is entirely unique, not an omnium-standard creation. As it is, she is far too new to have had any part in the Crisis." Any further reassurances would have required context that only he and Orisa had, and that is an entirely different story.

He cannot help but smile at the optimism on his behalf. "They resulted in progress. Large, sweeping changes in the study of gravity are rare; most discoveries are the result of years of detailed equations and slow progress. My initial experiments were a success, in that the change of environment yielded the change in results I had expected, but further refinement over the following months eventually confirmed that I would need to continue my work in a zero-gravity environment in order to truly progress. The moon could not provide that, and so my tenure on Horizon One came to an end."

He pauses. "But only after losing several hundred hands of gin rummy and one very ill-fated Monopoly game."

[emerald_mirror]

"So did you go back to Earth, or someplace else? Drake has...entire sections of the Lab for his experiments, but I think he has some way to compress physical reality. Do I understand that? Oh hell no," Xander said, half-chortling to himself. "I feel lucky I understand my own magic. Among other things."

Not that he really wanted to go into those 'other things', either. Self-consciously, he rubbed at his right wrist.

"But your luck has changed since then, right? At least with gin rummy?" Sure, Xander will look on the bright side...or he'll try. "I mean, the Monopoly game deserved it. By questionable virtue of being what it was!"

That's Xander's story, and he's going to stick to it.

[blue_ice]

"We can see if his luck changed," Seto snickered, still looking a little pleased with himself. Honestly, with the run of Duel Monsters games he'd played, that had been a necessary respite. And he'd enjoyed it.

His gaze followed Xander's hand for a moment, but as curious as he was about his companions...he wouldn't voice his guesses for now. He'd just let that curiosity fade into the ether.

"I'd still love to hear more about those gravity experiments...and any other magic I should look for from you," he said, turning to Xander with a quirk of his brow. "But that dimension-warping, that subspace...I've heard theories before. Nothing I could ever act on, though. I was far too busy with crafting a perfect virtual reality."

Oh, he could go on about that...but as much as he was in love with his ego, he was trying to refrain. A little.

[namethattune]

"It has not. Someone has seen to that," Siebren says, looking very pointedly at Seto. The look is for dramatic effect only, and he lets it fall after a moment, rolling his shoulders and sinking a bit further into the water. "But to answer your question, I returned to Earth for a while. There were equations to adjust, permits to apply for, permissions to request, and then all off-planet operations were halted for...some time." Horizon One had been a highly publicized beacon for the future. To see it go offline so catastrophically had been...a blow, to say the least, to the world at large and to Siebren personally.

Best not to dwell, especially in front of an empath. "But that is another story entirely, and I believe I have held the floor long enough. As much as I would love to hear about Drake's experiments-" He turns to look at Seto again. "-I do not believe you would bring up your 'perfect virtual reality' if you did not wish to speak about it." Thereby taking Xander off the hook for explaining procedures he may not fully understand, and keeping the conversation out of dangerous waters.

[emerald_mirror]

Okay, Xander had to respect the way Siebren controlled the conversation like that. Not that it didn't sound like Seto wanted to bang his own drum for a bit, but really, what else was there to do?

Except to talk about things he didn't want to dig too deep into, admittedly. He gave the older man a grateful look, but couldn't suppress a chuckle as he did so.

"There's time for that, but if this gives you any idea--one of Drake's favorite expressions is 'explosions mean progress'. He puts the 'mad' in mad scientist, just a bit."

Though the nephilim was absolutely certain Drake and Siebren would probably get on like a house on fire.

"So, perfect virtual reality? That was the next topic, right?"