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[ Little known fact: avocados don't sit well with Roland for one reason or another. Something about the taste or his experience thereof. It's why his plate is decidedly devoid of it, no matter how abundant the ingredient of the month. And even the sight of it on Tidus's plate as he sits down next to him makes him want to cringe. That definitely shouldn't taste any better with eggs. Gah.

Other than the offending fruit, Roland greets Tidus with his usual air of welcoming, making room on the seat and wiping his hands on a napkin. A rather simple meal of toast and leftover honey is all he eats, apart from an almost empty mug of coffee. ]

Heh. Good morning to you too. [ Or whatever counted for mornings on trains in voids with no concept of time anymore. ] You read my mind, actually. A little exercise will go a long way come mission time.

[ Plus, the last time he sparred with anyone was with...well, he can't tell him that. Roland glances over to the teen, shallow sips to his drink. ] Any developments on new moves, then? Anything you wanna show off?

[ Lucky for Roland, the subject of avocados is currently avoided by Tidus missing any particular looks, his interests elsewhere - like in swords. He's tearing a piece of the toast, forking some of the eggs and avocado on as above, he hums uncertainly. ]

Not really. I didn't do a lot of training after last mission 'cept with Piccolo, [ for reasons Roland can take a guess at, ] so I'm jumping back on board now.

But I won't go easy on you! [ He lightens up easy. ] You still practising at the grav cons with Inigo?

[ Huh?? Or maybe he's moved onto his hookshot. ]

[ Yes he can definitely take a gander at why that was all Tidus was doing, but then again, Tidus would have taken a good shot at why Roland was stuck in his own head at the library had he known about it.

He adds honey to his toast using a small teaspoon, drizzling it over the bread from a reasonable height. ]

Good. I don't want you to. It'd be an insult to both of us if we don't give each other our all. Besides, I'm not planning on becoming a sitting target for you either. [ Bite. Cruuuunch. Chew. ] And no, unfortunately. I should remind him more often, thanks. Though truth be told, it seems Inigo is more adept at that thing than I am. He's built to be fast, just like you. [ Which he says with no small hint of pride. ] I can barely maneuver gracefully in the air, if you recall.

[ Y'know. When said hookshot tried and failed to get a lead on those twin teens. Did the three of them ever actually help a solar station that fateful day? It is a Nion mystery...! Though this too, he points out with amusement now. ]

Edited 2021-01-07 17:27 (UTC)

[ 'reasonable height' ok show off ]

That's why they control the gravity, you know? [ For whatever fun Tidus can poke at Roland about grace and flight. But this is quitter talk in his ears, and he won't have it!

Just let him stab his fork into this bit of toast, and start half-chewing, half talking. ] You won't be flying around with that toy you got from Senku if you act like that about it! Alright, so I'll tell Inigo to whip you into shape too. No more skipping out on training for you, either.

[ Hah, Inigo whipping Roland into shape. Okay. ]

You got any way of practising that in here anyway? Not a lot around you wanna stick some hooks in...

[ Hmmm. ]

[ They can joke around all day every day, but when it comes to matters like self-improvement, Roland does stop to listen to the guy who he's seen flip like crazy and still hit the target like it was nothing. He takes every piece of advice given, despite how roughly he packages them. But by this time, Roland can only pretend to scoff or chuckle at it, an antic he's used to, and has come to expect and translate.

Can't stop trying to be better! - essentially. He wholeheartedly agrees. ]

I welcome it. I'm not throwing in the towel, don't get me wrong. I guess I'm just inclined to sticking to what I know are my strengths, heh.

[ Which are admittedly, not necessarily in combat, but that's an aside! His toast is almost finished by the time he reaches for another sip, but he eats at pace with Tidus so they can take their trays out in sync for dishes. So what if Purple doesn't have dish duty anymore? He's disciplined enough to clean as he goes! ]

The last time I practiced, it was stationary. I used the dummies, and other small items to grab onto. Nita helped with her floating lance, but that only refined the grip of the hook. Didn't have anything to do with moving me around using it. [ He crosses his arms as he finishes chewing. ] Hm. I do wonder though...

[ About his pistol, new and improved - ]

Think it's possible for me to make a whole new move using the grapple? That'd be mighty handy.

[ Yeah, you better not be trying to rush over there!! Tidus isn't going to with all these eggs piled on his toast, the avocao, the tomatoes and a handful of green leaves to make his plate colourful. He continues to use his fork to tear at the toast, despite the perfectly good knife there. ]

A new move? [ Oh wait, look. He can use that to pin the toast and make it easier to drag his toast apart. ] Didn't you say you can put energy into the bullets? Guess it depends on how you move.

[ Hmm. ]

What if you could stun someone you hit with the grapple hook? [ He's only using one hand for his food again with the fork, and with his empty one, Tidus makes a 'pew' gesture, meant for the hook. ] Send it out, stun, go flying in with a spray or one big shot to the face.

[ .......The way Tidus eats is truly the eighth wonder of the world. Roland glances at this horrendous use of utensils, withholding the brewing storm of corrections threatening to overtake his conscious mind. That's not how you use a knife!

But he doesn't, as a sign of character growth, and busies himself by humming into his mug of coffee before speaking again. Besides, more than the way Tidus eats, which is very much Tidus in nature, it's the combination of food that makes Roland make a face if he ever does at all. ]

I can. But like I said, I'm the weakest to learn magic. We had a place in Evermore called the Spellworks and they listed how many moves I could learn based on my potential. Then, they taught it to me the same way I made Water Slide available for you. I haven't tried to learn anything new since. Maybe we can try it today. I'm ready for anything, disappointment or otherwise.

[ Was that considered quitter talk too? He hopes not. He's not a frustrated magician by any means, but maybe he's looking to expand his own arsenal of tricks? He's got a soulmate for crying out loud, didn't that count for something? Anything? Apparently not. ]

[ Also, he's not letting one thing go, staring at Tidus from time to time, side-glances that linger far too long for it to be ignored. ]

...Does that taste good?

[ Avocados and green leaves on toast, oh Lofty please. Roland controls how he might sound but sorry, that Face is coming out. ]

[ There's some confusion, or perhaps a note of interest in the topic of energy and magic - nothing that Tidus is going to offer anything smart about, other than it's a thing. Except their very normal exchange over breakfast is ruined by- ]

Huh?

[ That question.

Tidus looks down at his food. His ordinary, inoffensive plate of food.

That judgment. ]

What? What's wrong with what I'm eating? [ Tidus looks back up, over at Roland, puzzled. IT'S GOT EGGS. ]

[ It's time to come out with the TRUTH! He's not judging you Tidus, he's judging the train's taste this month. Totally two different sets of judgment! Your knifework though...

And speaking of. His own knife comes to the foray, and he points it almost daintily at the slices of avocado that pepper his plate and his mangled bits of toast, some bits mushed up, others dangling off the edge of a half-eaten piece of bread. Roland is pointing at that and only at that. It's impossible to miss, since he's staring at it too. ]

That's wrong with what you're eating. [ With a voice that's drier than Spira's hottest desert. Or dome. Or plain. Whatever applies! ] It's bad enough on its own. Gah.

[ Tidus coughs out a sound. Incredulous, bewildered - is he actually hearing what he's hearing? Watching where it is the knife points to, and Tidus does have to think which of the foods Roland is talking about. But- ]

The avocado? [ No, that doesn't matter, actually. More important: ] Rol, are you being a food snob? About what people like? 'Cause you don't like it? Seriously?

[ He's not even offended. He's just surprised. Heck, it's funny even! This is what brings out the disgust in Roland? Avocados? ]

I thought a guy like you would be more mature about this!

[ Actually, he may sound like he's having fun with this now... ]

[ Whoops, color Roland a tinge embarrassed. He clears his throat and retracts his utensil back to his plate, slathering on more honey. ]

Ah, no. That's not what I meant. I was asking you if it actually tasted delicious, the combination you picked on your plate. Not that I'm - [ Judging??? Please, he totally was. But his weakness to this green abomination aside, he'll take a bite of his toast to hide behind, can't talk if you're chewing you know. ]

[ He swallows not before long. ]

My apologies. You can enjoy avocados however you want.

[ His formality is a mask for his slipping distaste and it shows, you mister president you. Also, he's running out of toast so he's gonna have to get more or pick at this like a peckish bird. ]

No no no no. [ Please, Mister President, let's not hide behind formalities now. Tidus brings an elbow onto the table, leanings his jaw onto the fist now balled there to take it. Look at this very innocently interested face, the small curl of a smile. ]

It's fine. Why don't you tell me how you can't imagine anyone eating a mouthful of this and not choking on it? [ HEHEH. ] What's the part that makes you wanna gag? The taste? The texture?

[ He's using his singular free hand to pick up the toast through all this, giving up the pretence that are utensils. It looks like everything might fall off if he isn't careful, but he's getting it close to his mouth so far. ]

All the above?

[ Annnnd chomp. ]

[ UGH he's making a show of it, and Roland's stoicism fails utterly, like a slowly melting candlestick in the heat of a strong fire the closer the toast gets to Tidus's lips. Dear Lofty above, look at that green thing sitting on bread, as if it belongs there!!! If the utter disgust in Roland's face isn't going to convince Tidus that he's hit a gold mine here, it's what he accidentally says next that does him in. ]

How about we start with how it smells--

[ He realizes it too late, eyes widening before Roland shakes his head while turning away, back to the safety of his almost empty plate. Maybe he could do with some eggs...but how can he when he knows that the guy next to him is eating plain scrambled eggs with AVOCADOS.

And speaking of it, like some triggered thing despite how stiff he looks and sounds at this point in time. Were they talking about sparring? He'll get to it in a bit. This is so much more important because they're going to have to live with this horror show for a month. ]

Are you aware that back in my world, some snooty cafes down the street by my office actually sell avocado toasts? [ He emphasizes this by pointing his finger down on the table, fingertip pressed hard on the surface. ] Some of it with salmon? Fish? And avocado? [ Point. Point. ] And they're overpriced? Imagine paying...paying...[ How does he express himself in a conversation rate of Aremican dollars to Train points...? ] Paying 45 points for one piece of avocado toast!

[ This would be a good time to throw up your hands in exasperation, but he won't because he's still got a grasp of himself! Maybe! Instead he crosses his arms, letting the honey sink into the bread, softening it too much. ] What a highway robbery.

[ Excuse you. He's got some pepper on those eggs too, alright. Don't diss his eggs!!

But wow, listen to Roland go. And he can almost imagine it, the picture that Roland paints. Forgets that Roland is supposed to be some type of leader and more of a man in a business suit going to work in some high towering building in the sections of town that he rarely had to go in.

Except it didn't really matter where it was, and what it was joined to. Where the roads led and the express travel routes. ]

So your office was in a popular part of town. That's just a breakfast menu, isn't it? [ Avocado and fish... what did that taste like? Hmm. Tidus wonders. ] What's the big deal with avocado? It tastes like a food I know, [ which he clarifies which a small glance to the food, ] but I don't know what crime it committed back home.

Are they rare or somethin'?

[ Why else would it be so high-priced? They didn't look bigger than the lemons. ]

[ He finally has enough energy to bite into more toast, though its cloying sweetness now makes him down all of his coffee in one go. ]

No, they're fairly common in the east coast. Even moreso in the west, with all the beaches. [ Roland's finally done with his avocado war flashbacks, craning his head in conversation. What kind of world was Tidus's home like if he could hop on this train of thought so easily, without the gaps of knowledge, somehow knowing quite enough for it to be familiar? He wonders... ]

But it's a fad. That's why its expensive. Gah. Just eat regular toast, I say. Or bagels. [ Boy if there ever was a time to sound like a grumpy adult, now would be it. He digresses! ]

Maybe one month of this stuff will solve my problem with it? Heh. Only the void can tell. [ Is that a sigh? No, definitely not. He's just realistic, that's all! And won't complain about food when they're being rationed and supplied with it for free. Nope. ]

[ Talk more about coasts like Tidus gets it. Is that the same city? The west and east coasts? That's what it sounds like to Tidus anyway, alright. ]

You sound just like the old moms 'round the ports who complain 'bout the things the kids are into these back in Zanarkand. [ Which he says with absolutely affectionate, a grin on his face even as he bites into his toast mess. Chewing, swallowing just before he speaks. ]

It's charming. No, really! You got anything else you've been holding back in there? Oh, how about the way people dress?

[ Please, carry on. Tidus will continue to eat away here, waiting like Roland's nitpicking is solid morning entertainment. ]

Old...moms? All right, I'll take it. Glad to know us old folk are complaining about the youth, universally. Heh.

[ That's certainly new. But it's a vivid picture he paints for Roland regardless. Besides, being called a mom is a compliment even when it's not! He chuckles under his breath, pushing the toast around with his fork for now, waiting for another chance to bite into its final vestiges.

And he just had to talk shop about dress. Roland clings on to such a thing far easier than most people might assume of him, of the way he carries himself and how he treats things. Though of course the undertone of jest is evident too. ]

Didn't you come here to invite me to spar? Not how I think we need a better stylist for uniforms? [ His hands fly to his own clothes, the purple of his top, though thick in material. ] We can't all pull off casual college hoodies anymore, y'know. It's unprofessional too! We need to keep mission uniforms in our wardrobes!

[ Someone's been wanting a full seasonal attire, it seems. Take that vanity for what it is, Tidus. ]

Why don't you be the one to complain to the train about it, huh? Get us some proper uniforms. Aren't you still keep up your exchange between you and the feedback post?

[ Heh. It's been forever since he's been able to make reference to that. And he was about to go back to this whole sparring point, which he hasn't forgot, except- ]

Hey, what if the train talked to everyone because you asked it to? Didn't you do that a few times?

[ Ask for it to communicate? Not that Tidus remembers most of what he's spoken to the train about, let alone other people... ]

[ His toast is halfway towards the bite when Roland pauses. The said food item is then, set back down on his plate. What a way to engage his thought process so immediately! ]

Hm. I haven't been doing it recently, actually. But I...doubt such an effort led to the train finally allowing us some questions.

[ Which is to say, who knows who else left comments on the terminal after his disappeared into the wind? But then something else occurs to him, something that draws a look of mild irritation on a face that begets none of the stress that should come with a twenty-year-old shell of a body. Roland comes in for the kill, eating his toast in one bite, swallowing just as fast while his hands dust off crumbs in claps. ]

Besides. If the train really was listening to me, then it'd reveal the metrics of its points system. Did you hear what it said about how we got points? Utterly useless. Of course you award people points for working for you, but to what extent will we receive a particular amount for the work done?

[ He tries for more coffee, but sees he's already emptied his mug...so he just shakes his head. ]

Maybe I will let this train hear it from me. Give it another piece of my mind. [ HMPH!!! Hoodies for work, please!!! ]

[ Whoa, look at Roland go! Tidus wasn't expecting to excite that kind of ire in the man with such a simple question. Maybe a little grumbling, but Roland looked - or sounded - ready to write a strongly-worded letter to the train's boss.

It's mildly impressive, but also a little funny too. The question session had been neither of those things, but this might be the first time he's been able to think about it less... annoyed. ]

I wonder if anyone asked it for another session? [ Would anyone want another session? Well... ] We didn't get a lot of time to think about our questions or know what everyone was saying. You hear about Nita's thing too?

[ There was quite a few things there to catch up on. Though, hopefully better heads than his were thinking about everything.

Oh man, what did he even know about what people asked, now that he's thinking about it? ]

That's true. We rarely get any warning for things happening on the train, really. It sure keeps us on our toes, but...I can't say I care much for it.

[ Since there's nothing else to nibble on his plate...he does the cheeky thing and casually pokes his fork at a tomato on Tidus's own idle pile and eats it promptly. This he does so smoothly, it might barely register that he's now eating off of someone else's plate. Nevermind that he made sure to take the tomato that's farthest away from the avocados as possible. ]

Remind me about it. I was a little preoccupied during the Q&A.

[ Sssh, he was actually trying to drown things out with a movie but that's not for Roland to disclose. ]

[ Compare, the two things they have on their plates: Roland's mostly visibly empty, and Tidus's with the scraps of pepper, egg, and avocado. But also, Tidus has been forgoing his wonderful chopping technique of a fork to just using his hand to hold up the toasted bread, which obscures some of the view below, that -

not only does it blind Tidus from really seeing what's being popped into Roland's mouth until it's there, but also - Would Roland seriously nick food off his plate?

No, of course not. He never would, or so Tidus assumes, so for the second his brow dips and thinks about that flash of red he saw... ]

She wanted to try making a better line to talking to the train. [ Tidus explains, instead of realising the crime that's been committed. ] Kind of like strengthening a signal? Since the train doesn't have a lot of power, apparently. Don't know how it went though - been meaning to ask her, but I figured she'd say something today about it.

[ Live with the shame, Roland. Nicking food from a guy's plate! ]

[ Live with the shame??? What shame??? Watch - or not - as he casually goes in for the second kill, his fork piercing through another wayside tomato...! Will Roland get caught this time around, no matter how nonchalant he is about stealing from Tidus's plate?! Stay tuned for the next episode - ]

Hm. I guess the train's no powerhouse if it's kidnapping 'heroes' [ Forgive the slight disdain that colors his voice. ] and using them as battery packs without their permission. But if she wants to talk to this...thing, or its conductor, then by all means. I'm not feeling too optimistic, though.

[ He leans on his elbows, looking ahead, straight-faced. ] If the train wanted to talk to us, it would do so when it felt the need. That much was obvious.

[ Though he is curious about what Nita would ask. And if she might allow others to speak too, if it ever succeeded. Alas. ]

--Hey!

[ SCREW THE REST OF THE TAG, YOU BET ROLAND'S ASS IS GETTING CAUGHT. Tidus's toast coming down and a swift glance taken between their two plates - the one without a speck of red, the one losing all of its! Except there's bits of egg rolling off from his toast with its abrupt drop. ]

Who nicks another guy's food?! Aren't you sixty? Act like it!

[ What he means is, act like the fancy schmancy politician you are, you dweeb! ]

[ SCREW TAG ORDER TOO, look at him staring at Tidus with a lift in his brow, though his face remains as neutral as ever. The fork remains in mid-air for a second, before the poor remains of the tomatoes he tried to eat are licked clean off of the utensil. ]

[ Blink blink blink!!!! ]

You don't wanna share?

[ You think being called the wrong age is gonna poke at him? Wrong again, he's so used to it that that's not even the issue anymore! ]

000 - voidtreckerexpress Universal Contact Post

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