"not here right now.
leave a message. will get back to you soon.
probably."
TEXT
CALL
VIDEO
NOTE: As of 12/2016, Rey has adopted the alias "Fiona Stransky" when working with the Guard. Something to keep in mind, as Rey maintains a low profile with her involvement in the group. Other than what is mentioned in the Guard records, there is no trace of a "Fiona" identified on the network.
[Firo's about to be offended, but he softens when she mentions her brother. That means she's not being dismissive, right? He finds himself smiling a little.]
Then it sounds like your brother's a pretty good guy. You guys look out for each other?
[Better than her, as far as she is concerned, and someone more worth protecting. Fortunately, that isn't a can of emotional worms that Rey is going to open right now.]
We do look out for each other, I think. He was there for me when things were... rough, for a few years. Even though he didn't have to be. Appreciate him a lot for it.
You mean you never saw other people with brothers..?
[That seems awfully weird to him, having grown up with a set in a neighborhood where families tended to be large. He and his mom were the odd ones out.]
[Firo thinks he understands this too. He'd seen happy families in movies and stuff, but he never thought one would be his no matter how much he wished for it.]
Oh, I get it. But you still wound up gettin' one anyway, huh?
Suppose if any of this can happen, it isn't impossible. Muscovy seemed to know things about me that I haven't told anyone else here, so that information had to have come from somewhere.
[She was wondering if it'd be the same case with Firo. At least she can confirm that much.]
It isn't too outrageous as you'd think. People were able to land on the moon at one point. Though we didn't quite get to space travel.
[When you've got a sentient quantum AI that thinks propagating to other frontiers is a disastrous outcome, that endeavor didn't end very well for anyone involved.]
[And here Rey was hoping she had told Firo something new.]
I don't know if it's possible for us to "remember" things that happened to someone else. Or different versions of us. [Having been different people in different bodies before, that actually isn't such a farfetched concept to her.]
[She isn't going to argue over Firo having his priorities straight, at least.]
Probably. He called me his "mother". [Which is still weird no matter how much she thinks about it. Rey's never seen herself as the maternal type, even though she does have a fierce protective streak.]
[In retrospect, she feels bad and ashamed of her reaction to the whole thing, so much that Nick felt the need to intervene. She should've been better than that.]
[He grunts in agreement. He hadn't realized it would color her own feelings about motherhood, but now that she points it out it makes sense.]
Right. And everybody who becomes a parent knows exactly what they're supposed to do.
[Just a bit of light sarcasm there. Only a moment later, though, he does have to concede her point.]
We owe it to him to do our best. I guess that means knowin' our limits too. We can't be his parents, but... well, I don't know about you, but I'm gonna do what I can for him.
[Doesn't mean that they do, though. Rey knows this, but she stands by her sentiments.
[She hesitates before she speaks again, processing Firo's response as well as everything that's happened so far between their lot. One could easily say she doesn't owe anyone shit, but that would just be cowardly.]
Kid's got a weird head on his shoulders. I'm not sure what there is I can even do for him.
[As if things would've been different/better if Muscovy was a "normal" child, pfft.]
[But on to the main point--which he can and will argue with.]
So what if he's weird?
Look, we were family before, right? Don't you think any kid who winds up in a crazy place like this is gonna miss his family? All we have to do is be around for him and look after him.
[Make sure he knows how to use a weapon, keep him from being eaten by monsters. Family stuff.]
[She starts to shoot a quick, dismissive retort when she considers Firo's words with a little more care, and frowns at herself. She didn't even mean anything negative by calling the kid weird, considering that she's hardly average herself, like many of the people here.
[What do, man.]
Well. Wasn't planning on leaving him high and dry.
[Not anymore, anyway.]
Just not sure what to do with him. I'm not exactly the type any kid should take after.
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Funny. That's something my brother would say. Or... he did say.
[All the more reason you'd like him, Firo.]
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[Firo's about to be offended, but he softens when she mentions her brother. That means she's not being dismissive, right? He finds himself smiling a little.]
Then it sounds like your brother's a pretty good guy. You guys look out for each other?
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[Better than her, as far as she is concerned, and someone more worth protecting. Fortunately, that isn't a can of emotional worms that Rey is going to open right now.]
We do look out for each other, I think. He was there for me when things were... rough, for a few years. Even though he didn't have to be. Appreciate him a lot for it.
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But that doesn't mean he's worth any less, of course.
[Plenty of people would cut and run.]
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[If it's one thing Rey would never argue on, it's her brother's worth.]
Just never really had a nice idea of "family" before. Not until these last few years. Didn't think it was even possible to have a brother.
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[That seems awfully weird to him, having grown up with a set in a neighborhood where families tended to be large. He and his mom were the odd ones out.]
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No, that isn't... [Sigh.] What I meant was, I'd never really had a family before. Not a great idea of one, anyway.
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Oh, I get it. But you still wound up gettin' one anyway, huh?
[Isn't that lucky?]
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[Although she was reluctant to ever say anything about it, she feels like it's something worth addressing.]
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Did you understand any of that?
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[Pause.] Well, yes.
Suppose if any of this can happen, it isn't impossible. Muscovy seemed to know things about me that I haven't told anyone else here, so that information had to have come from somewhere.
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[Embarrassing things. That's stuff he definitely wouldn't have let get out to someone he wasn't close with.]
It makes it easier to believe, even if all the stuff about the ship is pretty far-fetched.
...Then again, I don't really know any kids who could cook up a crazy story like that.
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It isn't too outrageous as you'd think. People were able to land on the moon at one point. Though we didn't quite get to space travel.
[When you've got a sentient quantum AI that thinks propagating to other frontiers is a disastrous outcome, that endeavor didn't end very well for anyone involved.]
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[That's just crazy, right? It's so far! But that's not the point.]
Okay, so I guess he was tellin' the truth about all that too.
You think we can ever remember what went on there?
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[And here Rey was hoping she had told Firo something new.]
I don't know if it's possible for us to "remember" things that happened to someone else. Or different versions of us. [Having been different people in different bodies before, that actually isn't such a farfetched concept to her.]
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[Any other time, he would've been amazed and skeptical. But Firo's always been pretty good at compartmentalizing when he really tries.
He sighs.]
You're probably right. I just feel kinda bad when he talks about how things 'were' for us.
...He's gotta be lonely like that.
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[She isn't going to argue over Firo having his priorities straight, at least.]
Probably. He called me his "mother". [Which is still weird no matter how much she thinks about it. Rey's never seen herself as the maternal type, even though she does have a fierce protective streak.]
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Huh... How'd that go, exactly?
[Motherly? Firo's thinking along much the same lines, though he does recall how surprisingly kind she was to his child self.]
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Not as well as one would hope.
[In retrospect, she feels bad and ashamed of her reaction to the whole thing, so much that Nick felt the need to intervene. She should've been better than that.]
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So... what're you gonna do?
[She can't just abandon the little guy, right? :<]
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[Sort of. At least she can assume that Firo has a general idea on what happened to her, and Rey/Fiona's role in it all.]
It doesn't seem right, taking on such a responsibility over another person like that. I wouldn't even know how.
[Never mind how she responded to the young Firo. That's totally different. Totally.]
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Right. And everybody who becomes a parent knows exactly what they're supposed to do.
[Just a bit of light sarcasm there. Only a moment later, though, he does have to concede her point.]
We owe it to him to do our best. I guess that means knowin' our limits too. We can't be his parents, but... well, I don't know about you, but I'm gonna do what I can for him.
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[Doesn't mean that they do, though. Rey knows this, but she stands by her sentiments.
[She hesitates before she speaks again, processing Firo's response as well as everything that's happened so far between their lot. One could easily say she doesn't owe anyone shit, but that would just be cowardly.]
Kid's got a weird head on his shoulders. I'm not sure what there is I can even do for him.
[As if things would've been different/better if Muscovy was a "normal" child, pfft.]
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[But on to the main point--which he can and will argue with.]
So what if he's weird?
Look, we were family before, right? Don't you think any kid who winds up in a crazy place like this is gonna miss his family? All we have to do is be around for him and look after him.
[Make sure he knows how to use a weapon, keep him from being eaten by monsters. Family stuff.]
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[What do, man.]
Well. Wasn't planning on leaving him high and dry.
[Not anymore, anyway.]
Just not sure what to do with him. I'm not exactly the type any kid should take after.
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