six_word_stories | (no subject)

~Is that moss?~

She whistled, calling the blob back as if it were a dog, and it heeded like one, just leaning against her ankle when it returned, "Yep. Dunno what kind, grown in a vat."

Much like Lex herself, though she didn't say as much.

~Huh.~

[He peers down at it.]

~Does it understand people?~

Bob, for his part, just extended a vine-like tendril from the top of his mass, curling and uncurling the end of it briefly in what amounted to a wave.

Lex smiled, "Yeah, he does. About as smart as a parrot, I figure."

~Well look at that.~

[He waves back.]

~Pretty cool.~

"He's Bob, I'm Lex. I would say we're new around here but it's only mostly-new." There were a handful that were newer, it was just that the two of them tended to keep to themselves.

~Jonathon Starsmore.~ [He certainly doesn't recognize either her or her... Pet?] ~You've not been 'ere long, then?~

She usually referred to Bob as a service animal, she even had a vest for him that someone had made a long time back as a joke.

"Yeah, not the most recent batch of arrivals, but the one before."

~You settling in alright!~

"Oh yeah, Bob and me we're used to the nomad life." Which made both settling in and being ready to move at a moment's notice something they were good at.

~Where you two from?~

"Out west a ways. Been kind of a long strange trip."

She shrugged, "But hey, keeps life interesting, right?"

~That's nice and vague. It's alright, though. Not going to pry."

That got a soft, almost surprised laugh from Lex, and an equally amused burble from Bob.

"People here pick up on a non-answer way faster than anywhere else." Either that or they were just more direct about it, "Montana. Right up near the border. Actually ended up trucking through Canada before we wound up here."

It wasn't that she hadn't been going to answer, it was just that she wasn't really used to being able to.

A burbling moss ball. That was a new one, even for a veteran X person.

~Oh yeah? That is a bit of a detour.~

Truthfully Lex wasn't sure what else had been patched into the moss base, but she didn't care, Bob was Bob and had helped her out of more than one tough situation.

And gave her someone to take care of when she wasn't up to taking care of herself.

"Yeah, that's the way the rig was going, though, so that's the way we went."

~Makes sense.~

[He puts his hands in his pockets.]

~Glad you made it okay.~

"So am I. Honestly kind of always thought this place was like Shangri-la or El Dorado, one of those places that didn't actually exist."

She shrugged, "But here we are."

[His eyes crinkle up at the corners.]

~Well. It's not that, I can promise. More like a boarding school with more explosions.~

"Hey, me and Bobbo are okay with explosions." She mock-winced then, "Dangit."

Bob turned as if to look up at her, warbling a question and she pinched the bridge of her nose as if staving off a headache, "I said 'explosions' where he can hear it."

A small smile, shaking her head as she explained, "He's kind of a firebug. Plant. Whatever, he's the kid who plays with matches."

There was an indignant chirp then, that vine extending again to poke her in the shin, "Right, sorry, this one's a 'diabolical arsonist'." She used finger-quotes and tried her hardest not to smile, obviously humoring the plant.

Jono looks at Bob. ~Oi, no arson, mate. I mean it.~

Lex was still trying not to smile and only mostly managing, especially when Bob visibly drooped, making a sound almost exactly like a sad R2-D2 which was when Lex finally laughed, shaking her head and stooping so that she cold pick Bob up, lifting him to her shoulder, "Hey now, you knew there were going to be rules."

She poked him gently, "Next time we do a cookout you can be in charge of the grill, sound fair?" There was another watery warble, something that was obviously a not-entirely mollified agreement.

To Jono she added: "It's not going to be an issue, really." She reached up then as if to cover Bob's ears, not that he had any visible as she explained, "He helped me out of a jam with a string of firecrackers once, thinks that makes him some kind of, well, diabolical arsonist."

~He's a good friend, clearly.~

Jono nods at Bob. ~But you don't need to worry quite so much 'ere.

You get into a lot of jams?~

"Not recently." It was the truest answer she could give, all things considered, "But we had our share back when we were on the road."

A small smile flitted across her face just briefly, "Though since we got out of them, I figure that means they were scrapes more than jams."

~That's a good way to think of it.

Suppose they answered all yer questions when you got the tour when you first got 'ere.