sciencelizard | « [IC Inbox- Hadriel]

[She nods. He's right, after all- it gives her time to emotionally prepare. Alphys isn't so fragile that she can't handle a single conversation, but it will absolutely make her feel better to know it's coming.]

It, uhm-- yeah. I'll keep it in mind.

[Besides, this gives her a chance to try and make a good first impression! Or something like that.]

Do you... do you like him? I mean, I know you said he was k-kind of mean, but. Have you known each other a long time?

I do. We have a complicated history together, but I will always think of him as a good friend, one I often want to strangle. 「He smirks at that.」 Often he struggles with his own choices but, in the end he does the right thing, reluctantly and followed with a few incredibly obnoxious remarks.

「Alphys, do not mind the little smile on his face as he talks about the worst jerk in the world, according to a few people. He makes the smallest of pauses to look at her.」

He's also one the best duelists I know. 「Thats a huge compliment in their geeky world, ok?」

I think he needs more friends, but he doesn't give his trust to anyone. Except his brother, who is here too by the way.

[It's a bit of a hard thing to understand, frankly. Not when her world is so, so different. But she tries, and latches on where she can.]

Oh, w-well, at least he's not alone! That's good. It always makes people feel better to see someone they know. So... maybe he'll make more friends here!

[At the very least, even if its not her, it'll be someone.]

Yeah... I hope he does.

「There is nothing else he'd want for Kaiba, to allow himself to be happy for a change.」

Anyway, enough about him, what have you been working on?

[She smiles, happy for the topic change.]

Well, uh, y-you know! The Door, and uh, some repairs for some friends...

[Like a certain Null she's keeping very very quiet about.]

Mostly just, uh, tasks for other people, really. What about you?

「Repairs...? He doesn't go as far as to think someone has a broken microwave oven, or a prosthetic limb. He idly wonders what kind of things Kaiba and her would do together if he allowed it. Something great, that might be for sure.

But then he gives a little shrug and munches on a sandwich.」

Not much... Same old. Waiting for the next thing to hit us, you know, the usual.

「There weren't exactly many projects around Hadriel for him, except keeping his friends safe in some way.」

[Don't think too hard about it, Atem. Null stuff is hush hush. But she nods, idly letting it slip by as she takes another bite of her sandwich.]

Do you have any like... h-hobbies, you do here? I feel like it'd be pretty boring just, uhm, waiting for time to pass.

I'm always try to keep myself busy; there is my part job at the Speakeasy, then I spend some hours training with a few folks. On free days I come up with dueling strategies.

「He's all but bored, really.」

Oh right, y-you're at the speakeasy.

[She pauses a moment, considering if she's opening a can of worms here, but then decides she really wants to know.]

By the way, uhm. What's dueling?

「What is dueling, she asks, and Atem's eyes seems to flare at that.」

Dueling, my friend, is the best game there is.

「He fishes out his deck from his duelist belt, and handles it to her.」

The idea is to defeat your opponent with these, monster, spell and trap cards; you have to build your deck using a strategy, ready it for anything the other can send at you.

[She takes the deck gingerly, sliding the cards over in her claws.]

Oh, it's-- it's a t-trading card game! I've heard of these.

[Heard of being the key word. No one would throw out stuff like this, so she never got it.]

I've never played, though. Just, uh, heard of them.

Would you like to learn?

「At this point, after trying to coerce a few friends into it without much success, he's not nearly as enthusiastic as he had been at the start.」

[She looks up from the deck, having been flipping through the cards.]

Oh! I mean, uhm. I don't want anything to be boring to you, I d-don't think I'd be very good, and uhm, I don't have my own cards...

[She kind of always wanted to do stuff like this, but she never had friends who would be interested or nearly enough opportunity. Though, now that she's on the surface, maybe it's time...]

Why would you be boring? You're anything but. I think you'd be good at it, you're good at analyzing things, and planning ahead. There is a lot of strategy involved in Duel Monsters.

「He does ponder for a moment, he doesn't have enough cards to make her a deck... But Kaiba does. But Kaiba is Kaiba.」

I will try to get you some.

[She blushes, ducking her snout a bit into the cards before she carefully restacks them.]

Well-- thank you. It's okay if you, uhm, c-can't though! But I'll keep my eyes out.

[Not that she knows how to recognize them. Her sandwich finished, she pulls herself to her feet.]

I should probably get back to my lab, but uhm, it was g-good seeing you!

「For the moment, Atem doesn't give her too much hope, but merely nods at that, it is something he really wants to do, there is so many people he'd like to play against, but it's really a matter of logistics.

Once he finishes, he doesn't stand, if only to keep himself at her eye level and waits for her to give him back his most precious possession. Yeah, his deck, of course.」

Likewise. Don't be a stranger, Alphys.

[She gives it back to him with both hands, careful as can be.]

Of course. Thanks for letting me know about your, uhm, f-friend.

[She seems like she considers shaking his hand, and instead gives him a little hug. She's very small so she probably hits his stomach or mid chest. It's cute. She won't let it linger though, and gives him a wave as she scampers away.]

See you!!

「Oh dear— so unused as he is to people doing this to him, Atem is taken by surprise and left with some fiery cheeks instead as he watches her leave.

Ahh... He does linger for a moment before putting his deck away and heading back home.」

« [IC Inbox- Hadriel]

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