Upon Vestia: Chapter Thirteen

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"Probably," Asher said. "That's the consolation prize."

Luka burst into laughter "Well there you go James, you get to go first anyway."

James rolled the die and moved his mouse forward. "I'm in the lead already! Ha!"

"has he always been this enthusiastic about plastic mice?" Luka asked Asher with a smile.

"He's never had a plastic mouse before," Asher said with a straight face, although his eyes twinkled with amusement.

"That's why I'm so maladjusted," James told Luka, "If Asher had bought me a plastic mouse for my birthday, I would have grown up better."

"If only I'd known, things would have been so different..." Asher said sagely. "I suppose it's too late now."

"Do you guys actually celebrate birthdays?" Luka asked seriously, she had no idea and was as always, insatiably curious. "Can you even call them that? uh.. turned on days? that sounds so wrong." She snorted. "sorry."

"He and Lark don't like having their birthdays celebrated because they're boring people," James said, indicating Asher with a wave of his hand. "I do though. It's an excuse to have fun!" He laughed, "Yeah, uh, 'birthday' is the safest thing to call it. You can see why."

Luka nodded. "Definitely. " She shrugged. "We tend not to do much for ours, just a little acknowledgement, a nice meal or something. People are supposed to be nice to you for the day." She laughed. "Unless it's an important milestone, like when we reach the age of maturity and that sort of thing, that's a big deal. I guess.. you guys don't really have to think about that kind of thing. Some of the more rural communities like to record things like the lunar phases at a child's birth, some belief about luck. It's a bit old fashioned in the city." She glanced to Moone. "Do your people celebrate birthdays?"

James laughed. "Kinda hard to have birthday milestones when you don't really grow or anything. Like, I guess you can celebrate decades of something, but that's kind of dumb. Living ten years isn't that big a deal," he looked at Moone, "No offense intended to any ten year olds in the room."

Asher nodded at Luka's description of Imperium birthdays. "It's nice that your people don't make a big deal out of it like some Terrans do. Sometimes I think the entire purpose of birthday celebrations is to embarrass the person whose birthday it is, which is silly."

"Well I can only speak for what happens on Burag, the other colonies might have different traditions, the hexenfolke have a whole load of weird superstitions. What do the terrans do?" Luka asked, bemused.

"Terran kids have huge parties where they invite tons of kids, and eat way too much pizza and scream a lot," James said, wrinkling his nose. "They also open a ton of presents."

"I'm pretty sure there are more quiet birthday celebrations too, but those are the ones you encounter on a space station." Asher chuckled.

"Thankfully grown up birthday parties are more tame," James said. "More booze and likelihood that someone will need to drag them home, but less screaming and presents."

"And most restaurants like embarrassing everyone by having their waitstaff sing to the birthday person," Asher added. "Occasionally you see a quiet, pleasant celebration, but it's rare."

"I mean ours were quiet and pleasant," James pointed out, "I never got a green plastic mouse though so I guess they must secretly have been awful."

Luka nodded and burst into laughter at James' final comment. "We'll have to get you a green plastic mouse for your next one then."

Kay and Matt wandered back in.

"Drinking and being dragged home? Man, that sounds like any night for me." Matt grinned.

Kay rolled his eyes. [Yes, yes it does.]
He pulled up a chair. [This looks complicated.] He remarked, pointing to all the plastic pieces in the box.

"What's this about presents?" Matt asked.

"We were talking about birthday celebrations." Luka told him. "Apparently Terrans eat a lot and get gifts."

Matt snickered. "Man, that sounds awesome."

James nodded happily. "If I get a green plastic mouse, it'll be the best birthday ever." He looked at Matt, "I'd say there's a special place in hell for people who need to be dragged home all the time because they drank too much, but I like you. So you're the exception."

Asher looked amused. "Drunk people aren't so bad. Some of them are funny." Like mirror Matthew. That guy had been an adorable drunk.
He smiled at Kay, "It is complicated. We have no clue what we're doing, but we like the plastic mice."

Kay examined the mouse bemusedly.

"Terran games are strangely awesome." Matt nodded and grinned roguishly at James. "Oh my brothers don't drag me home, Kay just kicks me in the ribs and leaves me in a ditch. he's a jerk."

Kay nodded, trying to keep a straight face.

"one time, he and Web abandoned me in a space station and then laughed at me when I got arrested."

[If I recall, you were arrested for public indecency. We decided to leave when you decided to go for a swim in the fountain.]

"See? jerks!" Matt laughed.

[At least we paid your bail.]

"yeah, I can always rely on you to pay my bail."

[Some day i'll invoice you for all the money you owe me.]

"Oh... oh little brother.. you wound me!" Matt chuckled and went to go find that Operation game.

Kay shook his head and rolled his eyes again.

Luka smiled softly, well at least they seemed to have resolved their disagreement.

James stuck out his tongue at Kay. "Leaving more work for the poor robots and cops who have to drag drunk people home. Humph." Not that Kay looked strong enough to drag someone as tall as Matt very far, but still! It was the philosophy of leaving drunk people that he objected to.

Asher smiled teasingly. "I think you still owe Vestia some money for that time I bailed you out too, Matt." He conveniently 'forgot' that he had been bailed out too the next day.

"Pretty sure she's docking my pay" Matt shrugged, he didn't seem to care much.

Kay smiled placidly back at James. [He usually gets himself arrested within about 5 minutes and spends the night in the drunk tank where he belongs. Sadly the experience never seems to have profound effect on him, but ignoring his idiocy seems to make him less inclined to indulge in it. I never go far, but he's blind as a bat so you don't have to be that far out of his line of sight for him to believe you've ditched him] He shrugged.

"Are you gossiping about me?" Matt asked from the other side of the room. "AHAH!" He pulled out a yellow box from the pile.

James snorted. "Whatever works for you, I guess." To Matt he called, "We love you, man, it's okay!"
He looked at Luka, "Do you drink? I don't think I've ever seen you drinking." He recalled her mentioning people in Fleet getting drunk, but he didn't know what her policy was these days.

Luka shrugged. "I drink, sometimes. But i'm not stupid, getting so drunk you pass out or do something humiliating? Not worth it. " She looked like she spoke from experience there.

[What happened?] Kay asked curiously.

Luka sighed. "Well, let's just say it was embarrassing and there were photographs. " She chuckled, it couldn't be THAT bad then. "There's ALWAYS photographs. Besides, I don't really feel like I have to keep up with the guys these days."

Kay nodded [sounds wise. ]

"Love you too!" Matt blew a kiss and came back with the box. "I found it." He told Kay.

James looked amused. "Good for you. Competitive drinking is highly overrated anyway. Right, Tala?" He called.

Tala swished her tail happily. "Alcohol should be consumed in excess only by those who can handle its effects, such as myself. Others need not do so."

"Yeah. That." James nodded. He looked proud, "No embarrassing drunk pictures of me anywhere, so a hundred percent less blackmail to use!"

"Not that we don't have blackmail material for you anyway," Asher pointed out innocently.

"Not that you'd ever use it, you're too nice," James retorted.

Luka looked amused. "Just don't annoy him too much, just in case." She warned james jokingly.

"Let's play Operation!" Matt found a table and set up the game.

Kay nodded to the group and want to join his brother playing whatever this insane thing was.

James laughed. "Naaah, he'd never blackmail me!"

"Yes well, now I have to be Bad Cop when I'm acting as a medic, so I have to practice being mean. And you're perfect to practice on, James!"
Asher looked over at Matt and Kay and their strange game. It was nice to see them acting more normal around each other again.

James snorted.

Asher moved his mouse forward a few spaces so he had to build something. "Oh ye of little faith, I'm going to be brilliant at it. AND I'll blackmail you if you provoke me enough." He was totally joking though.

"It's said it's always the nice ones you gotta be wary of too." Luka laughed and took her turn.

Kay stared at the board. [This guy's funny bone is the least of his problem.] He remarked.

Matt laughed. "Yeah so.. you gotta use these teeny tweasers to pull all the weird shit out. "

[And then leave him to bleed out from a gaping unsutured wound?]

"Yep!" Matt grinned. "And... if the buzzer goes off and his nose lights up you failed and it's the other person's turn."

[This is stupid.] Kay remarked.

"Awww lighten up, i'll even let you go first!" Matt handed him the tweazers.

Asher smiled at Luka. "At last, someone gives me a vote of confidence!"
He turned in his chair to watch and see whether Kay could save this patient.

Kay wasn't a surgeon, he was a surgical nurse, and these tweazers had pathetic grip. He tried hard, but inevitably, the thing buzzed and Matt laughed.

Kay huffed. This game was stupid.

Matt tried and was even less successful, he could barely see what he was doing so he pretty much rammed the tweazers straight into the edge of one of the holes.

Kay tried to cover his smirk.

Matt handed the tweazers back. "Okay... looks like I can't play this blind." He reached into his pockets and pulled out a pair of glasses and a small contact lens case and set about taking his lenses out.

Kay watched this, bemused. [Who's glasses are those?] They sure as heck weren't Matt's.

Matt grinned and put them on, blinking at how much clearer things were with the correct perscription. "My mirror duplicate's" He chuckled. "I figured he wouldn't need em."

Kay shook his head, amused.

"How do I look?" Matt grinned at the other table as well.

[Like Web got into a fight with a hedge trimmer.] Kay told him.

Matt smirked. "I WON the fight though HAH."

"You look beautiful, don't let anyone tell you otherwise," James said, trying to not laugh. Matt in glasses was seriously strange.

Matt snorted. "Man, this is weird. "

[I take it they're a more recent perscription?]

"Yeah man, like.. I can see people's FACES.. this is so messed up! You're not all just vuage peachy blurs!" He grinned at them all.

"Your eyesight can't be that bad." Luka told him.

"Oh it is... it really is. My mother's whole side had really awful eyesight, and Dad was, like all Kevali, seriously myopic." He glanced at Kay. "Yes I know big words. and colour blind too, whoo. "

Kay looked innocent.

"We were so doomed right from the start in terms of being able to see properly." Matt shrugged. "I haven't worn glasses in... years."

"Why not?" Luka asked.

"I get punched in the face a lot." Matt told her seriously.

Kay's shoulders shook with silent laughter at that.

"So uh, is being able to see us in detail an improvement, or a step back in the quality of your life?" James asked.

Matt laughed. "I dunno, it's novel." He grinned at James. "You're cuter with an actual face."

Kay shook his head and tried once more to extract a comical piece from the dead guy. They should rename this autopsy.
This time he actually succeeded.

"Whoo! You didn't kill him!" Matt cheered.

[I think he's already dead.] Kay told him, setting the buzzer off again with his next attempt. Bah.