{Kimberly} Kim Desrin....
{Kim} I know! Kim Jenkins. *grin*
{Kimberly} Nice to what?
* Kim grins more. "Kimberly Tanya Jenkins, to hit the full."
* Kimberly looks at her Carefully.
* Kim poses!
* Colt wanders in, then peers over Kimberly's shoulder, trying to figure out what she's looking at.
* Colt winks at them both, then places a flower on Kim and Kim's heads and wanders through... Clara's.
* Kim grins, tucking her flower behind her ear, continuing to pose.
{Kimberly} Okay, you're notDad and Terri's. Somehow. {grins, adjusting hers, leaving it in hair}
* Kim nods, grinning. "They had a dream, I refused to leave, they pulled me out."
* Kimberly nods slowly.
{Kim} Since then, it's become my life's mission to weird out friends and family. *grin*
* Mari flies in, looking about quickly.
{Kim} Hi Mari!
* Noa walks in after Mari.
* Kimberly waves to her! "Hi th--"
* Kimberly stares at Mari.
{Mari} Hi! Noa, Kim, Kim, Noa, my sister. And I think that's... er hi?
* Mari blinks wondering what gave Kim the elder a whiplash mildly.
{Noa} Hey all! *she sighs at Mari* What'd you do to her?
{Mari} Got me?
{Kim} You broke my aunt. That's *my* job.
* Kimberly shakes her head quickly. "Sorry.... and hi! Kimberly Desrin."
{Kim} And hi Noa!
{Noa} Kim! Kim! It's the kim party! Who could ask for more?
{Mari} I could! But not _too_ much....
{Kim} Oooh, a party. You know what this party needs? Root beer floats.
{Kimberly} I can get those!
{Mari} No thanks here, really. *wry smile*
{Noa} Just think some happy thoughts and she'll be all the float she needs.
* Kimberly grins. "I can see that.... you, Noa?"
{Noa} Me Noa. You Kim. You get float and provide for tribe.
{Kimberly} Something like that! {walks over to the replicator}
{Noa} Shake good. Good. Cold. Make headache.
{Mari} But good headache. Not like trig test headache.
{Noa} Aaaaaggggghhh, *MARI*.
* Mari looks not innocent at the least.
* Kim giggles.
* Noa whips an aerosol relabelled 'Ghost Spray' from her pocket and spritzes Mari.
* Mari goes 'pale' and falls over....
* Noa whirls the can and rolls it down one arm... over her shoulders... then catches it on the other hand.
* Mari slowly goes more 'silver again and creeps slowly...
* Kimberly walks back over with the floats, calmly.
* Kim grins. "Can you do that with a basketball, Noa?"
{Noa} Not a *chance*. But with a can...
* Noa grins at Kimberly.
* Kimberly hands Noa the float. "With a can, you are a goddess."
* Kimberly hands Kim the other float.
* Noa takes it. "With a can, I have the will of DESTINY!"
* Kim accepts with a grin. "Destiny in a can?"
* Noa spritzes Kim with it. It smells of Obsession.
{Mari} Whew. Sure that wasn't the Ghost-be-gone, sis?
{Noa} If it was, think it would bug her?
{Mari} Well, there is that...
* Kimberly sniffs, wrinkling her nose.
* Noa grins and tosses the can towards Kimberly. "Strong enough for a ghost, but made for a corporeal!"
{Kimberly} Intangible. By Pretention.
{Kim} But... you've used it on an ethereal!
{Mari} Whoops, she's right. Or well, kinda.
{Noa} Ahhh! She's doomed! All because I didn't... read... the directions!
{Kim} I don't seem to be melting...
{Noa} Maybe I'm just not using enough?
{Kim} Well, don't use anymore, I'll smell like I belong in a cathouse. *grin*
{Kimberly} Maybe it needs another substance to catalyze it. Obviously not root beer.
{Mari} Do we WANT it to go boom?
{Noa} Does it matter? This is a boom!
{Mari} Riiiight. You get to tell mom.
* Noa grins at Kimberly. "Show me!!!"
{Kim} Please not to blow things up on me...
{Kimberly} I don't *know!* Except that it isn't root beer. Or ice cream.
* Noa grrrrs... and sprtizes Kimberly.
* Kimberly coughcoughs.
* The Door to North opens. After a second, a petite, pretty young woman of Asian, or perhaps Polynesian descent, enters through. She's wearing cutoff sweats, has slightly past shoulder-length long straight black hair in a ponytail, and warm brown almond eyes.
* Correction, Knight.
* Noa grins at her. "New... victims..."
{Kim} Watch out! Mad spritzer!
* Noa yaaaahs and leaps at her with a can!
* Girl blinks. A good deal. "Oh boy. Damn, it's college all over again. Hey, watchit!"
{Mari} Too late!
{Kimberly} She's got designer perfume! Or a really great imitation!
* Girl backs away, eeping! And diiiives!
{Girl} ...Can I hide underneath the couch where it's safe?
* Noa sprays Obsession! Or at least the cheap imitation knock-off, Preoccupied.
{Girl} Eww! That's not....ooog! {slides under a random couch, staring}
{Kimberly} And hi. Kim Desrin.
{Girl} {underneath the couch} Tina Manoa-Perez. I'd come out and say hi except I currently stink like a French cathouse.
{Noa} Hi, Tina! This is how we say hello in Cat societies!
{Mari} I thought that was touching noses.
{Kim} Hi Tina! Kim Tanya Jenkins, and I think we all smell that way now, 'cept Mari!
* Tina pokes her head out and blinks at Mari. Then stares at Mari, quite a lot. "...Okay, why?"
{Tina} And hi, Kim and Kim and their sister Darralyina.
{Mari} Not solid, well, in that sense!
{Tina} ...Okay, gonna take your word for it. {small grin} {ponders, then squirms out from underneath the couch.}
* Noa puts away the can.
{Tina} Is it safe yet?
{Mari} Good! Much easier that way. And no, I'm not an angel, I was born this way. *beat* If you're taking my word for it too.
{Tina} ...I will! Love the wings though.
* Kimberly nodnods in enthusiastic agreement.
* Tina gets to her feet.
{Kimberly} So, root beer float? They're popular tonight.
* Tina ponders. "Root beer float. I can deal with a root beer float. It's a happy thing, and I could use some happy tonight."
{Noa} Then you shall have it! Just for the record, what's your idea of happy? Does it involve any part of the body parting company with any other part of the body?
{Kim} She makes good ones!
{Tina} No, not at all!
{Tina} Okay, good floats good.
{Tina} I don't like amputation as a rule.
* Kimberly hands Tina a float.
* Noa takes a very, very, very long bendy straw from her pocket; and from about a meter away, dips it into Tina's float...
{Tina} Oooo. Float....very nice large flooaa....hey, get that out of my root beer!
* Tina plucks the straw out of the float with great dignity.
* Kimberly hands Noa a float.
{Kimberly} And root beer floats are good for happy. What's making happy-needs tonight?
* Noa turns the straw to the one Kimberly's holding...
{Tina} Oh, just the fact I have a bunch of friends quite a long distance away, a bunch of friends plus a boyfriend where I currently am, my internship's end is coming up soon, and I don't think the twain are ever going to meet. {wry grin, snorks some float} Mmmmmmmm.....flooaaat.
{Kimberly} Pulled between two worlds?
{Tina} Yup. And maybe more.
* Tina indulges in Ice Cream.
{Kimberly} I hate when that happens. Do you have a way of getting from one to the other? Or at least keeping in touch?
* Kim smiles faintly with a hint of sadness, quickly hidden by sipping.
{Tina} Internet. That's about it. It's a bit of a ways to shout though.
* Tina blinkies over at the other Kim a second, maybe catching, maybe not.
{Mari} Well, you could maybe visit? Is it commutable?
{Kimberly} How far? {glances over at Kim, hiding worried look quickly}
* Mari glances at Kim, mildly curious.
* Noa sneaks up behind Kim, drawn... irresistably... taking a feather duster from a pocket... and using it to tickle her belly...
{Tina} Um....not really. Unless you fancy oh, being in hibernation a month plus. Which, in my considered opinion, sucks.
{Kimberly} Ugh.... sublight only, and slow sublight at that, I'm guessing? How long's the delay on your net link?
{Tina} Whee. And not quite so long there. Managed to screw with things enough that we've actually got radio and internet that can get above light, but matter...nope.
{Tina} Actually virtually instantly, for the radio, but matter doesn't have that little feature.
* Kim giggles at Noa.
* Noa grins at her and places the duster on Kim's head.
{Kimberly} Ugh.... is it actually close to a light-month away?
{Tina} No, a month by sublight. It's the *radio* that's instantaneous. Quantum setup. It's ships and people that have to toddle around by sublight. Yippy skippy.
* Kim shifts the duster to a cocky angle.
{Noa} Did someone say Quantum?
* Noa applauds Kim's choice.
{Tina} Quantum quantum quantum.
{Noa} I'm *such* an uncertain girl.
* Kimberly nodnodnods. "Right, but I mean is your drive actually getting close to C?"
{Tina} Um....not quite. Earth to Saturn takes a month.
* Mari proves to be vulnerable to Time as she's duffied.
{Kim} That's better than walking speed...
{Tina} Yeah, but imagine a month-long case of morning mouth.
{Kim} Ew.
{Kimberly} But still slow enough.... yeah, that sucks.
{Kim} Scope is popular in space, I'm guessing.
* Noa sings under her breath... "Destination Venus/ more than darkness lies between us/ twenty millino miles of weakness/ human weakness..."
{Tina} Water is. It seems to be the number one request after people wake up.
{Tina} It sure was mine!
{Kim} That's what you ask for, but what do the medics actually give you? *wink* They're the ones that have to deal with it more!
{Kimberly} But wouldn't you be able to tell?
{Tina} Water. And antidotes to the druuuuuuugs.
{Tina} What, water?
{Kimberly} The difference between water and Scope!
{Tina} Oh, yeah. I could. But that wasn't the first thing on my groggy little mind. It was, "My god, my mouth's been widdled in" and then, "Waaaater...."
{Tina} Oh wait, that was the second thing on my mind. The first was, "get me the HELL out of this can!"
{Kimberly} What kind of stasis is it? {curious, grinning a bit}
* Kim ews. "Tell me the can has windows. Even if you have to lie, tell me this thing I ask of you."
{Noa} Does it have windows?
{Tina} Well, there's a window. You're just not aware for it for most of the time. And it's chemical and metabolic slowdown. Temp goes down too, but not true cryogenic.
* Noa ughs...
{Tina} See? SEE?
* Tina grins a bit, then mmmms some more as root beer is ingested.
{Noa} That's pretty much the most horrible thing I can imagine in this second in time.
{Kimberly} Not liking the idea of getting slowed down?
{Tina} Try being strapped down and confined. The concept sucks big time.
{Noa} That's pretty much it. *wry grin*
{Tina} You too?
{Noa} Me too!
{Tina} Thank you, I'm not alone. Huh, I should take a poll on how much coldsleep sucks.
{Tina} I don't think my friend Val much enjoyed it either, for different reasons.
{Kim} Sounds no fun, no. I can see why you don't commute between friend groups that much.
{Noa} Need a form? And val?
{Kimberly} It *doesn't* sound fun, no. {thinks} For me it probably wouldn't even work right and that'd just get unpleasant.
{Tina} Yeah, Valerie Ellison. Works as a secretary where I work.
{Tina} Ooog, howso?
{Kimberly} Bizarre metabolism! Which reminds me, I'm hungry. Anyone want anything that's *not* ice cream?
{Tina} Um.... Um. Oh, god, I shouldn't... {whimpers}
{Kimberly} Why not? The replicator makes pretty much anything reasonably well...
{Tina} What's there to be had?
{Tina} And how much does it cost? {sorts through a pocket for any money} Erm, even, what currency does it take?
{Kim} What *isn't*? *grin*
{Kimberly} Anything. We haven't found any kind of currency it won't accept.
{Tina} Okay...how much does a nice steak with potato cost? And a milkshake? It's not cheap out where I is.
{Kim} Oh, are you going to be in heaven.
{Noa} Or at least the Happy Meaty Grounds.
{Tina} ....Yeah?
{Kim} And about a dollar, depending on the currency system.
{Tina} .....
{Tina} You're high.
* Kim shakes her head. "Am not..." She drifts up to the ceiling. "Now I am!"
{Kimberly} Nope. True as anything.
* Noa grins. "Night folks..."
{Tina} Dowh! {yes, watches Kim's defiance of gravity a bit boogledly}
{Kimberly} Night Noa! And I'd better do the same.... big day tomorrow.
{Tina} ....Wow. Um.....okay. How do I get the stuff?
{Kim} Night Noa, Mari, Auntie K! I'll show you. *grin*
* Kimberly pauses. "Wait. I still haven't talked to you nearly enough yet." {to Kim}
* Kimberly starts to say something to Tina, then spores.
{Noa} Bye!
* Noa drags out Mari.
{Tina} ...well, crap.
* Kim drops back down, sighs at the spores, and heads to the replicator. "I hate when that happens."
{Tina} Me too. {wanders over where Kim is wandering}
{Tina} ....And uh, is she okay? I saw her attacked by fungus....
{Kim} Yeah, she'll be fine but annoyed.
{Tina} ...Okay. Now, that was a very weird thing. Amongst many weird things I've seen in less than the space of a couple hours.
{Kim} What else have you seen? *grin*
{Tina} Well, the silver angel, the really cheap food, people with crazed metabolisms, drive by cologne...
* Kim grins. "Yeah, Mari's great, isn't she? And, cheap food." She starts showing Tina the secrets of replicator useage.
* Tina absorbs the Mighty Secrets. Carefully. Very very carefully.
* And forked to another night, where we find out how well Tina's learned how to use....THE REPLICATOR! {duuuuun}
[===============]
{Kim} ...and then you put your money in here. Or, if you're here a lot, you can set up an account.
{Tina} Oo... Don't know when I might get the chance to return soon, but heck, may as well. {ponders, takes out a card of debit style although more advanced than late 2020's vintage, and sees if the bugger will swipe.}
* And, gosh darn it, it will!
* Tina whistles, and happily orders.
{Kimberly} Works every {cough} time!
{Kim} Yay, short release time!
* Tina turns around and blinkies at Kim. "You all right?"
{Kimberly} Yeah, just {cough}.... be right back.
{Tina} ...Okay!
{Kim} I'll have some lemonade here for you!
{Tina} Yay, lemon.....ooooh, steaaaak.
* Tina tries not to drool. And how, as the smell of beef hits her nose like an oncoming semi.
{Tina} ...Excuse me.
* Tina heads for a table. She puts the plate down.
* Tina starts to inhale the blessed, lovely, heavenly steak like no tomorrow.
* Kim nods understandingly, getting herself a matching, if smaller, meal.
* Kimberly returns with tea.
* Kim looks at Kimberly. "Or you could bring your own drink!" *grin*
* Kim takes a seat near Tina. "Wow. It *has* been awhile, hasn't it?"
* Tina blinks at the incoming Kim with red hair, waving.
{Tina} Oh heck yeah. {comes up for breath} This is freaking heavenly after so long.
{Kim} I could tell!
* Tina nodnodnods, beaming innocently.
{Kim} Mmmm... eight point two.
* Tina comes up for air again. "Hmmmm?"
{Kim} Your look!
{Tina} How so? I no speak Eengleesh senorita.
{Kimberly} The innocent look! We score 'em. Tea, anyone?
* Kim snickers. "It's a rating system for innocent looks. She's the champ," she says, nodding to Kimberly, then nodding to Kimberly!
{Kimberly} Gillian does better than I do on average, actually....
{Tina} Ahhhh *ha*! Okay, that made marginally more sense. {dives into the potato, humming the Ode to Joy}
{Kim} She does *not*. She does sad looks better, though.
{Tina} I don't know *half* these peopl--
* Tina pauses, her wandering glance having fixed on Arisa's door, where she stares widely for a couple seconds.
* Kim looks at Tina, then where she's looking, then back at Tina. "But you know Arisa?"
* Tina blinks again. "Uh....no.....Just the door was...interesting."
{Kim} Yeah. It's made of that wood stuff that's all the rage these days.
{Tina} And that wacky gold inlay.
{Kim} Can't forget the gold inlay. *she grins a little* Used to have a pendant like that.
* Tina blinks. "Yeah? Really?"
* Kim nodnods. "Left it in a universe that doesn't exist, or I'd show you!"
{Tina} ...Oh, yeah? Mind you, I'm just sticking with the pendant for now and will ask all the incriminating questions about nonexistent universae later so my brain doesn't explode! Was it a good thing, this pendant?
{Kim} Oh, very. *small smile* It was a birthday present from my favorite sitter.
{Tina} Ah. {tiny grin} I'm sorry you lost it...
{Kim} Yeah, well... I'll just have to prove myself worthy of another.
{Tina} I bet you can, really. You seem like a good person.
* Kimberly nodnodnods.
{Tina} And....well, what did you mean by nonezistent universes?
{Kim} Oh, I'm a figment of my folks' imagination. *grin* Just a very persistant one. When their dream ended, I didn't, so they brought me into what we call for lack of a better term the real world.
{Tina} ....Okay, that's a new way of getting born. Score yet another for my rapidly crumbling worldview. And...well, you remember things that didn't actually happen?
{Kim} Yeah. My mind's this fount of information that's probably not accurate, but it's mine.
{Kimberly} I'm *still* trying to wrap my brain around that. I just want you to know that.
{Tina} Oh, yeah, I can hear that. I'm an utter flake, but dammit, I'm a flake I've made.
* Kim gives Kimberly a small grin. "So am I. That's why I keep telling everyone I meet, because I figure that if I say it often enough I'll get used to the idea."
* Kimberly grins. "Clever. And you'll get everyone else used to it too. Maybe set up a chorus...."
* Tina finishes her meal, and settles back looking a bit more content, though then she burps and looks embarassed.
{Kim} Say.... *grin*
* Kim grins at Tina. "You need dessert."
* Tina whimpers happily. "Dessert? God, I'm a pig." {grin}
{Kim} May I suggest the apple pie a la mode, with a side of brownie?
{Tina} ...Browniiiie. Yes. And thus, I'm going to waddle back into my home, and all my friends are going to wonder where I got the grub.
{Kim} Going to tell them? *grin*
{Tina} Um.....not all. It might not be Safe. But a couple. Like my boyfriend {blush, grin} . And Val.
{Kim} Val being the friend that is not your boyfriend? *grin*
{Kimberly} Aw, what's wrong with making an interdimensional nexus with radically variant technological levels publicly known?
{Tina} Yeeees.
{Kim} You know, it's a good thing I also lost my sarcasm detector....
{Tina} Um....well.....for one, it would cause a massive brouhaha, for another oh, well, the rich bastards would co-opt it, for another, there's just simply not some....very nice people on the station. I don't think you'd want to much meet those.
{Kim} Maybe they're nice people that've gone stir crazy because they're stuck on a space station?
{Kimberly} How not nice are we talknig?
* Tina ponders how to put this.
{Tina} These are People That Suck. Hard.
{Kim} Vampires?
{Tina} May as well just be. These are people that would happily sell their mothers if it meant they'd get another rung up the ladder, and who would really take exception to random yahoos from outside the universe wandering in. And who probably would do something about it we really wouldn't like.
{Kim} Wow. Sound like the types that should be introduced to the wonders of space without a suit.
* Tina smiles sweetly. "You too?"
{Kimberly} Or at least the inside of a prison cell.
{Tina} Unfortunately, they're in management, so I can't space them well without comment.
{Kim} Bummer.
{Kimberly} How did they get into management?
{Tina} Probably by selling their mothers, knowing them.
{Kimberly} They seem to be obsessed with this parental marketing thing.
{Kim} You can't do that too often.
{Kim} Unless you're someone like Angela and have four mothers, but that's reasonably rare.
{Tina} Nope, but it's metaphorical mother selling.
{Tina} ....Uh. Wow. Four mothers? I thought genetics didn't allow for that. Unless they have very weird living arrangements here...
{Kim} Some folks do. The short version is "Magic does wonky things."
{Tina} ....Magic. Okay, that's a new one. Okay, that probably covers a lot of bases, right there.
* Kim grins. "Not something you have up your way?"
{Tina} Nuh-uh. We have to deal with the boring normalcy of scientific laws over here. {small grin}
{Kim} Scientific laws are very useful until they get in the way of people's fun. *wink*
{Tina} Oh, I dunno, you can do some funky stuff with it. Look at quantum radio. That didn't exist seventy years ago where I am. {grin}
{Kim} Well, you have a point. That's pretty remarkable stuff, that quantum radio. {she nods sagely}
{Tina} {big drawl} Oh, yuh. Newfangled stuff.
{Kim} At a guess... faster than light communication?
{Tina} Yup. And internet. Helps to make communication in the solar system actually, gasp, feasible, even though traveling's still sublight.
{Kimberly} Any delay there?
{Tina} Traveling or the communication?
{Kimberly} The communication.
{Tina} Nearly instantaneous or so close it makes no difference, yeah. The joys of quantum mechanics, brought to you!
{Kim} "And the people that'll bring it to you?"
{Kimberly} So is anyone doing anything about the sucky people?
{Tina} A few of us are. Quietly. If one of them gets too big for their britches someone gonna put the smack down. Which is why my BF is keeping an eye out in security for anything odd.
{Kim} Like Doors that shouldn't exist?
{Tina} Oh, yeah, and making sure that people that suck don't find 'em. And other stuff. There's been some nasty stuff going on there that we're trying to find the bottom of.
* Kimberly frowns. "How bad?"
* Tina looks rather quiet, sipping her drink. "There was some months ago a thing where someone's legs got crushed...he been two feet one way he'd be dead. Boyfriend saw it. He thinks another security guard is at fault."
* Kim winces slightly. "But no proof?"
* Kimberly winces hard.
{Tina} Not utterly. I'm gettin' it though. The joys of hacking.
{Kimberly} Mmmmm, hacking.... {grins}
{Kim} Oh dear, kindred spirits. Here's where I get to smile and nod while you guys geek... *grin*
{Tina} And then there's this recent shit with oh, the library blowing up and then this Door appearing. People died, more were injured, and we're *damn* lucky we didn't get a hull breach.
* Tina blinkies at Kimberly, then blinkies innocently. Then starts grinning madly.
{Kimberly} Oh, lord.... what happened there?
{Tina} {sigh} Some prick researcher was doing some research on the sly, in the library. It happened to be on something that blew up real good. He got deported offstation for it.
{Kimberly} Not that I can say much about blowing labs up real good, but you try to do that where people know it's likely to *happen*....
{Kim} Not to mention someplace where you aren't likely to steal the atmosphere from everyone...
{Tina} Yes, but not there it didn't. Think it caused something weirdlike and that's why the door thingie is there.
{Kim} Maybe. Doors follow their own logic, and are not subject to mortal understanding.
* Kimberly pauses. "You think it caused the formation of a Door?"
{Tina} Duuuuun. And maybe. I think the two events were linked somehow. It beat having a hull breach anyway.
{Kimberly} The idea of something being able to influence the appearance of a Door is *extremely* interesting. And disturbing. Like she said, nobody that I know of knows of any way to.
{Tina} Well, yeah. It was probably dumb luck as much as anything....
{Kim} Well, there's they legendary Owners, but they're legendary.
{Tina} Owners, she said ignorantly?
{Kim} Owners. Going from the theory that *someone* had to build all of this and set it in motion.
{Kimberly} Owners. The gods slash aliens slash intellects vast and cool and unsympathetic slash Q slash whatever that created and run the Complex.
* Kim reaches over and high-fives Kimberly.
{Tina} Oooo. {pause} I liked Kim the redhead's description.
* Kimberly high-fives Kim then bows, grinning.
{Tina} Either God is more creative than just one world or He was snorting something good, prolly. As I've never met Him, I can't vouch. {grin}
{Kimberly} For some reason, I don't think He did this directly. It's a little less.... basic than most universes.
{Kim} I did once, when I was little. He let me ride on his back.
{Tina} Okay, some of his subcontractees went and had some real goo....what?
* Kimberly grins there.
* Tina blinks, a lot.
* Kim grins a bit. "Sorry. I'm *such* a namedropper. I was... oh, four, heard some noise downstairs and snuck out of bed to see what was going on, because voices downstairs *always* meant something interesting was up. In this case, Daddy was talking with a lion, *just* low enough that I couldn't make out what about. Probably something big if he was actually manifesting and all. And of course, as well hidden as I was, Aslan still knew I was there, so I got to meet him. Wonderfully soft mane."
{Tina} ....Oh my.
{Tina} So you mean....He....uh, actually drops in a bit?
{Kimberly} {q} For her family, yes. {small grin}
{Tina} {q} Wow.
* Tina seems honestly awed by this.
{Kim} Not *real* often, but Dad works for Him. *slight smile* More directly than most of us that try to do the right thing, anyway.
{Tina} ...Wow. I wouldn't mind meeting Him, but, well, you know.
{Kimberly} {q} I have.... once. Sort of. Not nearly that directly.
* Tina looks up. "Yeah?"
{Kimberly} {q} It's a *long* story.... the relevant part is that I was there when someone spoke His true Name. {pause} Interesting stuff happened.
{Tina} {q} ......... Gah.
{Kim} She said, understating about a magnitude of ten.
* Tina seems to look a bit wistful, hiding it well.
* Kim smiles a bit and reaches over to put her hand on Tina's. {q} "Hey, you'll get your chance eventually. All the good ones do."
* Tina blinks and squeezes back. {q} "Hope so. Sometimes, I wonder...."
{Kim} {q} Wonder what?
{Tina} {q} If He listens. Uh, I mean he does, just.....well, to me. {spreads hand over heart}
* Kimberly thinks and nods. {q} "Yes."
{Kim} {q} Absolutely.
{Tina} {q} Hope so.
* Kimberly smiles just a bit.
* Tina smiles a little bit too, some hope in her brown eyes.
* Kimberly grins a bit more. {q} "More ice cream before we get melancholy?"
* Tina perks up. "Ice cream. Ice cream a goooood thing."
* Kim hops up, floating over to the replicator. "Requests?" *grin*
{Tina} Chocolate. With magic shell topping.
{Kim} Butterscotch or other?
{Tina} Chocolate. Overkill is nice sometime. {eyes twinkle}
* Kim laughs a bit and gets just that. She gets herself chocolate with butterscotch topping.
{Tina} I've been out several AUs out of the reach of decent chocolate. Dang straight I'm going for broke. {grin}
{Kimberly} They don't have *chocolate* on the station?
{Kim} Oh, we're going to see a lot of you here....
{Tina} Oh, they do, but it's expensive as hell.
{Tina} It takes cacao trees to start it, you know, and then someplace to make it, so that rules out a lot of the stations for growing cacao or processing it. So it's got to be shipped. And there we are, right smack on the edge of the inhabited solar system. You figure it out.
{Kimberly} But.... but that's just *wrong.*
{Tina} Yes, but that's sublight shipping for you. {sad look}
* Kim gives Tina chocolate!
{Tina} Chocolate. Joy and happiness.
{Kim} The cradle of civilization. Chocolate, Kimberly?
{Kimberly} {immediately} Yesplease.
* Kim grins, getting her a bowlful.
* Kimberly accepts gratefully, digging into it.
* Tina attacks hers.
* Kim settles with hers. "So let's see. Have we covered the dangers of exploring yet?"
{Tina} No, but some of them are figured. BF says doors with Xs are Bad.
{Kimberly} That's a big one. Another is that not all Doors are stable.
{Tina} Okay, howso?
{Kimberly} Some Doors will be there one second and not the next, on the other side. Typically, what you do is open the Door, close it, wait a bit, open it again to make sure it's all still there, throw something through it, close it, wait a bit, and open it again to make sure the thing's still there. Then, you should send someone through the Door to check it out while you're right there, and *you* open it back up in about thirty seconds, to make sure everything went okay on the other side. And yes, this implies you should never, ever, ever explore alone.
* Tina makes veeery close mental notes of this, nodding often. "Right, right. So get buddies with the next time?"
{Kimberly} Uh huh. However, marked Doors are safe to travel through alone.
{Kimberly} It sounds like your Door's stable.
{Kim} Some people combine the opening and the tossing steps. Others have an hour long ritual that involves animal sacrifice. but that's the basics.
{Tina} Yeah. Well, if it's still opening here, that's probably a safe bet. If Brian can go through and I can go through, then it's safe to say the rest of us can. {pauses, and SNRKS at that} What kind of animals?
{Kim} Spores, mostly!
{Kim} Okay, that's fungus. But fungus shouldn't be mobile, so there.
{Tina} Spore...oh, yes. Spores. The durn things that got Other Kim?
{Kim} That's them. The hidden danger of the Complex. Here, they're just annoying. Outside the bar, they can hold you in place for whatever happens to come along.
{Tina} Kim and Other Kim. Sounds like an old episode from last century.
{Tina} Um. Yes, that Could Be Bad, says I.
{Kimberly} They're well beyond annoying.
{Tina} Is there *any* way of avoiding them?
{Kim} Not that's been discovered. And believe me, people have tried.
{Tina} ....Ugh. Not good.
{Tina} So that's another reason for traveling in groups?
{Kim} There are tons of good reasons, but that's one of the three biggest.
{Tina} Right. I understand, O Wise One.
{Kimberly} What's the third?
{Tina} Jehovah's Witnesses. Pushy little bastards, they are.
* Kim grins. "The other is, of course, Other Groups. Most are just folks, people who'd rather not cause trouble. But there's that minority..."
{Tina} Oh, yes. The ones that suck, and make it miserable for the rest. I do indeed see.
{Tina} Bugger, and I thought it was just universe specific.
{Kim} Creeps are multiversal. Thankfully, so are nice guys.
{Tina} And there was even more rejoicing at that. I'm amongst a few. {grin}
* Kim bows from her seat, grinning. "We try to be Those Who Do Not Suck Very Much." *wink*
{Tina} I'm happy with this, yes!
{Tina} You guys are cool.
{Kim} Well, yeah. *grin* We share good genes.
{Tina} Yeah?
{Kim} Hmmm... No, I've hurt your mind enough for one night. I need to let it heal before I can hurt it more....
{Tina} Oh, all right. {pause} Never mind my my mind is damaged to begin with, point taken.
{Kimberly} Oh go ahead. She's secretly enjoying it.
{Tina} {mock squeal} Ooo, whip me, beat me, make my neurons fry!
{Kim} Well... Okay! *pause* We're half-sisters by proxy because our fathers are altiversal counterparts, so even though they've lived different lives and have somewhat different personalities, their cores are similar and their genetics are identical!
{Kim} And no offense, but you're not my type. *wink*
* Tina ponders, trying to parse that, and pauses for a faceplant. {m} "Ditto. I prefer certain hunky security guys with great buns. No offense."
{Kim} None taken!
{Tina} .....Is there something wrong with me, or did that, in a weird, twisted sense or way, make sense?
{Kim} It means you're starting to adapt. *grin*
{Kimberly} You should be afraid now.
{Tina} Oh. Well, damn.
{Kim} And it's not weird. Well, not to me. But I've grown up with weird as an utterly steady diet.
{Tina} I'm too numb to be scared now.
{Tina} Just intermittent weirds here!
* Tina finishes her ice cream. "I probably should be waddling back before too long or else people are going to wonder where I am. Whee!"
{Kimberly} Are you going to be around here once in awhile? {grin}
{Tina} I sure hope so, when and as the window becomes available. {wg} Probably late nights.
* Kim grins a bit. "We'll probably run into each other again, then. I don't sleep that much, so it's my best window."
{Tina} Coooool. Oh, yeah. If a nice hunky security guy with long dark hair comes through, tell him he's got a great butt and I said so. {wink, eyes twinkle} The blush will be good.
* Kim griiins. "Okay, but if I steal him away from you, remember that you started it!"
{Kimberly} And I only sleep a few hours too, so I'm here late sometimes....
{Tina} Noooot likely, don't think. {grin}
* Tina gets up, stashing her dishes in the recycler.
* Kim grins, following suit. "What's his name?"
{Tina} Brian. {grin}
{Kim} Got it. I'll tease him mercilessly in your name. *wink*
{Tina} Mwahahahah. If you can't tease your SO, who can you? {grin} I expect he'll get revenge somehow.
{Kim} He'll probably kiss you with extreme prejudice.
{Kimberly} Or something equally horrible.
{Tina} Oh yes, utterly tragic, innit?
{Kim} Utterly. *grin* Was good meeting you, Tina.
{Tina} And you too, Kim. And other Kim.
* Kimberly nodnods. "Night, both've you!"
{Tina} Night you guys! It was a lot of fun.
* Tina grins a bit, gives one last wave, and heads on out.
* Kim grins and gives Kimberly a quick hug. {q} "Night, counter-sis."
* Kim returns the wave!
* Kimberly grins, hugging Kim quickly, as all three head out into fade.