handwritten

[wastingtime]

[the number here may or may not be familiar to some, but its pen taps the paper for some time, as if trying to decide how to start. finally;]

How best do you convince the taximan (and whatever police he threatens to summon) that you did not, in fact, pack a greatsword with your luggage and the fact that there is one in there now is completely out of your hands?

And for that matter, am I allowed to keep said greatsword if I insist it was some sort of prank? It was my luggage, and if something saw fit to give it back to me I believe I should very well keep the damn thing. (Especially after it ruined my best shirts.)

Lyall, I hope you'll read this before you reach our meeting place. I believe I may be delayed for some time.

To the rest of you- if we've already met, I do apologize for these months of forgetfulness but I consider this headache my due punishment. If we haven't - my name is Elian, and I will be pleased to meet you once I am done convincing this poor man I'm as much a victim in this little debacle as he.

Comments

[radiantchicken]

How big is this sword you've gotten, exactly? I'm still not exactly sure what sort of sword my other self might have used. I was using a letter opener to great effect, but then I hit my growth spurt, and it's much too small.

[That was not at all a weird statement, was it? Torin doesn't think so.]

Age doesn't seem to mean much in the grand scheme of things, at from the things I'm remembering. I get the sense that my other self was very old, and he used swords all the time.

[wastingtime]

A good size. I believe if I stood it on its point, it'd come up to my waist, at least. [beat] I take it you weren't human, before? You write remarkably well.

[another pause]

I remember saying something about ages and eons. I think I was old, too. In which case I'm quite cross that all of this didn't happen sooner.

[radiantchicken]

That sounds like a reasonable size. Not too large, and not too short.

And thank you! I had to work very hard at reading a great many things in order to teach myself how to write properly. Growing hands certainly helped. I used to be a small parrot.

It is strange to think about being that old, for I remember walking with the dinosaurs and then doing things in what appears to have been the equivalent to the present day. It's especially disconcerting considering that I'm only six.

[wastingtime]

[he's not sure if that's young or old for parrots. well, he seems young, at least.]

That would be some millions of years. I hadn't thought of how much harder the years must weigh on the younger, and I do apologize for that.

[radiantchicken]

Nothing to apologize for. It's a bit disconcerting, but I don't find it worrisome. What happens, happens.

And anything is better than spending years of your life in a zoo.

1/2 i need two different icons for this

[wastingtime]

On that, we agree.

2/2 A FEW SECONDS LATER

[wastingtime]

Has anyone actually tried to put you in one?

[radiantchicken]

I was actually born in one and spent the first few years of my life there. It wasn't until I got my numbers that I became intelligent enough to escape.

[wastingtime]

That explains that. I hope you at least have some happy memories there, but either way you're here now.

[fascinating]

Are you able to live a life of sorts, now? I imagine it mustn't be easy.

[radiantchicken]

It's a good zoo. They take care of their parrots, even when the parrots are prone to biting and making absurd amounts of noise at all hours of the day.

[He was kind of a hellion as a parrot.]

I have an excellent life right now! There is a coffee shop in Locke, Espresso Yourself, that is owned and operated by the numbered. I have just recently been promoted to manager. I'm actually doing very well for myself, even if my appearance makes it difficult to go out into the wider world. I cannot complain.

[wastingtime]

Even with the chaos in Locke? From what I've been told, it's quite dangerous there. But them, I imagine a former-parrot-wielding-a-sword knows how to handle himself.

In fact, your appearance may very well be a bit of a boon, there.

[radiantchicken]

Don't get me wrong, it has been bad. People have gotten hurt. They've been killed. But now I'm strong enough that I can protect them.

I hope it is. I've had good luck at silencing particularly petty complaining customers just by showing up out there when someone starts demanding to see a manager.

[wastingtime]

I suppose that's another thing going for you. I do hope it doesn't end up with someone trying to have you put in a zoo!

[radiantchicken]

They would have trouble if they did. I would find a lawyer and break myself out in the meantime.

[wastingtime]

You may want to reverse the order of those.

[radiantchicken]

That is an excellent point.

[wastingtime]

It's either that or hope one visits you first, because otherwise you'd be staying there quite a while.

Unless we have one on this network and I haven't yet met them.

[radiantchicken]

I don't believe we have any, at least not in the time I've been here. It's a shame--that would be very helpful for us, if the lawyer in question were up for it.

[wastingtime]

I imagine it would be interesting if nothing else. They'd be, in many cases, charting new territory. And even with all that seems to have happened...I cannot say I dislike the concept of exploring what legal options we have available to us.

[radiantchicken]

I wonder if we could attract a good lawyer with the promise of new and interesting things like this. It might be difficult to weed out the glory-seekers from the ones with good intentions, though.