daemonized | RECOLLE IC CONTACT.

i'm glad they didn't hurt you. but i'd think the subway would be full of rocks, darkness, and apparently spiders.

[sure, it was a little strange, but if it was being worked on, it was something she barely had paid attention to.]

what was down there to see?

I wasn't alone. My safety was nigh guaranteed, thanks to the combined efforts of Togusa and Dante. I should make it a point to thank them again.

[A moment between that text and the following:]

What you would expect: darkness, inactivity. And what you wouldn't: no signs of construction, and even more puzzling, small QR codes lining the ground. We attempted to scan them. They came up with nothing.

[privately, she thinks Dante and Togusa have her gratitude as well.]

codes? that's odd. if there was construction, there'd be the possibility of it being some strange prank or someone trying to make a statement. but i can't imagine a good reason for some useless codes to be there.

why there'd be no building makes even less sense. unless they never planned to build in the first place, and we all got lied to. because of course we need to distrust the local government on top of everything else.

If it's a statement to be made, it's a strange one. As you said, what's the point of codes that purvey no message at all? Merely a waste of time and effort. Though Dante did make a point to photograph a few, in case there's any need to reference them in the future. Still... all that effort to unravel a mystery, only to be presented with more questions. The theme continues.

But in any case, now that things have been sized back to normal, life will continue as such. (As much as "normal" applies to us, these days.) Let's talk about something more mundane, and yet exciting in its own right.

Your birthday is soon, isn't it? According to the calendar on my phone.

[what if she doesn't want to talk about the mundane, what if she wants to see these pictures!! (then she'll contact Dante, and figure out a way to get someone she's only met once to show her their mystery photos.) the mysteries that she'd found had been ones that hadn't involved deviating too badly from her normal routine.

but she knows when to press an issue and when to let it rest, and thinking too hard on this and getting slightly paranoid and doubting everything is going to wind her up further into full dramatics and then she'll never sleep. fine. let logic prevail for once.]

it is, but i'd hardly call that exciting. it's not as if it's some traditional milestone age to be celebrated, i'll confess.

[No, because then she'd see the photos of the gigantic spider that decided to chill in their RC car and then attempt to eat the lot of them. Unsuccessfully, thankfully. It was ridiculous, and while Ardyn relishes all things ridiculous, it wasn't a shining example of foresight either.

And so of course, right now, tired as he is, Ardyn would rather talk about birthdays. Her birthday.]

You're wrong. Every birthday is a milestone meant to be celebrated. I hope you don't intend to escape this upcoming one without indulging yourself in a bit of fun.

[She has no choice in the matter now!]

[it's hardly escape when it's her birthday and thus she's the one that gets to make the final call on things. but also, if it means no obnoxious jokes about getting old, she'll escape from her apartment the day after her birthday and dodge it that way.]

that sounds almost ominous. somewhat like if i did have plans for it to be quiet and to pass into the new year without fuss, my plans would be dashed to pieces.

[she's planned absolutely nothing other than taking the day off and sleeping in, truth be told.]

[It is an escape when you know people who will not let you hear the end of it. Especially if you go without even the smallest modicum of a celebration. At the very least, a happy, enthusiastic acknowledgment of the day is required.]

"Ominous" is far too dramatic of a word. [Look at Ardyn, calling someone out on being dramatic when it suits him.] Implying that it's a portent of ill things to come, when certainly that's not the case?

Give at least those who care about you an opportunity to wish you a happy birthday, if nothing else.

[...there's some merit to that. for a moment, the message sits there, and she looks at it. Ardyn can't hear her sighing in frustration the way she does when someone admits a point that there's no real argument against and she wants to argue back regardless.]

that i don't have issue with, but this year it'll remain small. reserved for a close circle. with cake, of course, that was never in question.

[Her acceptance of his point is a good thing, then. He'd never force her hand to do something she didn't want to, of course, but he's not against making an effort to convince her. And while Ardyn can't hear the sigh of frustration, Grell can't see his vaguely satisfied grin.]

A small, intimate celebration is still a celebration. And of course, cake is practically required. What sort is your favorite?

that's an incredibly difficult question. different cakes have different merits.

[and people bake them differently! there's a lot of thought that has to go into this, the way one would for a favorite poet.

about two minutes later:]

i'm going to say marble cake, at least currently.

Important decisions are often paired with difficult questions. In this case, it's quite necessary that you decide.

[You know, so that someone can buy her a cake. What kind of birthday is it if she has to purchase her own, after all?]

And marble cake will be duly noted.

why does it need to be noted? i'm going to be the host of this gathering, it's only proper that i provide what's to be there.

[that's etiquette, Ardyn. even if it means buying your own birthday cake.]

The one celebrating their birthday should not have to buy the means of celebration. What sense does that make?

[Let's logic our way through this.]

none, but customs of being a host rarely make sense.

[if you apply logic to it, it falls apart instantly. they both know that.]

[It was worth a try, even as the attempt dies before it can barely take root.]

And if you happen to know someone who's willing to buy the cake for you, regardless of your obligations?

then i suppose if it was framed in the context of the day itself, being a birthday, then there would be no more obligation to stand as an imposition.

[at this point if he doesn't get her a cake she'll be mad]

[Grell, just look at all this verbal roundabout. How is he not going to buy you a cake at this rate?]

So I'll take that as having your blessing?

Oh, and do I get to stick an array of candles in it, too?

[That last part is (maybe) a joke.]

if you could figure out a way to do it tastefully, i would approve. but i doubt you could put that many on there and light it without someone getting their hand burned.

[she could care less about the candles. the cake is the important part.]

Come now, no need to over-exaggerate searing flame that such an amount of candles would produce.

[Besides, he takes that as a challenge. He's sure one can manage tastefully arranging candles on a cake -- even 30+ of them.]

You'll make me self-conscious for when my birthday arrives.

somehow i doubt that. whatever it would take to make you self-conscious, candles are a far cry from it.

[and she'll exaggerate as much as she likes.]

[Ardyn would exaggerate as well, but come now. He's not so cruel to poke fun at her age, because isn't that a subject that shouldn't be trodden upon? Especially if you're dating said person.

Besides, he's older than her by a handful of years, so it's not as if he can really jest.]

Candles on their own, certainly not. But the fear of you casting your judgment upon me for growing a year older? That would be enough for it.

you think i would be in any position to cast judgement for that? certainly not. that's a level of heartlessness i don't reach for. my thoughts on growing a year older are all directed at myself alone.

when it's /your/ birthday, you can fall into as much despair as you like, and i will be there to encourage you to celebrate it regardless. fair is fair.

Edited 2017-05-15 00:46 (UTC)

And I'll heed your advice, regardless of my indeterminable despair. As you said, fair's fair.

But that's a ways off yet. November isn't exactly around the corner, and so self-pitying misery on the cusp of a midlife crisis will just have to wait.

[Somehow, all this talk of birthdays reminds him of a conversation he had with Prompto a while back. So, sort of apropos of nothing:]

So, a May 18th birthday makes you a... Taurus, correct?

it does, last i checked. why the interest?

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