[Accidental Audio][Forward-dated to the 29th/post-event]

[brotimaeus]

[[ooc: Because things are fucked up enough for him without his little bro being a sword]]

---

[He's not running, but his footsteps are quick, breathing heavy and not panicked, not panicked, because Bro Strider doesn't panic, not even when he wakes up in a hospital bed with the last memories he has still fresh in his mind being told by someone who sounds too calm that he's fictional. Or was.

Under his breath, he's talking to himself.]

Okay, okay, just. Calm down. Take it easy, Bro. This ain't the most fucked up thing you ever got yourself into, just.. Okay. Priorities. One. Find out where the fuck I am and what the hell is really goin' on here 'cause I ain't down with all this 'you ain't real' bullshit.

Two. Two.. find a fuckin' bar.

[His footsteps pause, then resume. The audio cuts off.]

Comments

1/2

[callbacks]

[Yeah, for anyone staring at the kid who stopped dead in the middle of the street, Dave Strider just BSOD'd mid-pizza delivery.]

[kantstoppfantstopp]

_{[Gilbert isn't one to assume usually, but he's going to guess that this guy wants to be here about as much as he does.]}

I'm down for a bar too. I could go for a few litres of beer and a Schnaps chaser.

[Text] - An hour later. For him. Not for you. Time powers.

[callbacks]

hey




where are you

[Text]

[brotimaeus]

[Oh. Oh no.]

dave?
what the fuck is going on
im near

shit i dont fucking know it looks like a school



are you ok

[Action]

[callbacks]

[And, without further ado, there's the hurried scrape of a sneaker behind Bro. Time powers. Gotta love 'em.

Dave halts a couple yards away, though, face impassive not with apathy but with the blankness of a boy just a week shy of fifteen who doesn't know what to feel first. He doesn't even take his hand off the strap of his pizza bag--his fingers have practically gone numb from the way he's clutching it for dear life.

He looks Bro up and down behind his shades, mouth too dry to say a word.]

[Action]

[brotimaeus]

[Dave isn't the only one who doesn't know what to do. Bro turns at the sound behind him, and the peak of his cap can only do so much to hide the expression on his face, his shades made conspicuous by their absence.

He stares. Blatantly. Dave's.. older. He's grown up. When.. when did that happen? How long has it been? There's so much he wants to ask, and he just.. can't. His voice cracks when he finally dares speak.]

... Hey, little man.

[callbacks]

[He knew people came back from the dead around here, he knew the island was complete bullshit, but he wasn't ready. Not for this. No amount of hangtime with Dirk could have prepared Dave to see Bro again. He just keeps staring.

He has to clear his throat before he can answer.]

'Sup.

[He shifts his weight like he's going to take a step, but hesitates again, cancels the motion mid-way.]

[brotimaeus]

[A soft sound escapes him. A sigh, a low noise of relief on an exhaled breath and he closes his eyes for a moment, pushing his hand over his face. If Dave's older, he reasons, that means he got into the game. He's doing it. What Bro had done hadn't been for nothing.]

Kid, I'm about to do somethin', and if you even think to fuckin' judge me for it, I..

[He aborts that sentence, the threat hanging there regardless, and lets his hand drop to his side.]

Get over here, you little shit.

[callbacks]

[He's complying before he even has time to think about it, starting at a brisk walk that's practically a run (not quite, though, never quite that) on the last step, and whatever Bro thought Dave might judge him for is made completely moot by how Dave kind of just lets the crown of his head thump into Bro's chest.

He's real. He's here. He's real and here.

Dave's choked into silence with nameless emotion and the wafting scent of cheese and oregano.]

[brotimaeus]

[The kid's too big for Bro to pick him up, now.. but not too big that he can't wrap both arms tight around Dave's shoulders and press his face against his hair, gripping him so hard it's as if he fears he might disappear.

His chest feels tight and he snaps his eyes shut to keep the heat behind them.]

Missed me, did ya?

[brotimaeus]

[Whoa, who's this now? German, from the sounds of it, but fuck, that just means he knows good beer when he sees it and Bro can't say no to that.]

You're on. Got a name to go with that offer?

[thneed]

It's a magical island that kidnaps people. You're not really going to get a better explanation than that. And nobody believes the fictional thing ...usually.

If you're still at the hospital, what you need to do is go down the street for about two blocks then take a left and keep going that way until you see the corner with the ice-cream place, you go right from there, cut straight through the park, turn right and look for The Nancing Phony. And that's the bar!
It's run by a vampire.

audio;

[alwaysimpure]

Looks like you already got most of the info.

I recommend the bottled beer.

[Action] fuck it why not

[encore_dueling]

[Jake's usually out and about whenever he can, and he knows Dirk on sight. So, imagine his surprise when he sees what looks like an older version of his best friend.

Sure, he cognitively knows that the whole universe guardian-kid swapping thing happens, but to see it in front of his eyes? It's pretty high on the weirdness scale!

Still, the kid's able to get over his shock pretty quickly.]

'Scuse me, sir? Are you okay?

[kantstoppfantstopp]

_{[Don't worry, Gilbert comes installed with a beerdar. He can tell you at first glance if the beer's worth drinking.]}

Beilschmidt. What's yours?

_{[He's working on the finding a bar thing.]}

[callbacks]

[It's Bro's shirt that's muffling Dave's voice, not like. Feelings. Or anything.]

No. That was a headbutt. I just tripped.

[He turns his head a little bit to breathe and keep the bill of his uniform cap from digging in, and finds his ear pressed against Bro's chest. Listens for a heartbeat. In the meantime, his arms come up automatically to circle around his brother, to assure him yes, he's real, solid, he's not going to just disappear.]

Way to miss the fucking party, dude.

[callbacks]

hey sorry about this pizza
ill pay for it
can you redo that order in like half an hour i promise itll get to whoever ordered it on time

[thneed]

Yeah, sure. Don't worry about it.
Everything okay?

[callbacks]

yeah
some
family stuff came up i guess

[thneed]

Do you want to talk about it?

[callbacks]

nah its ok let me just get my bro situated
hes a delicate creature

[thneed]

Bro-
Is this another Dave?

[callbacks]

nope this is another bro
the oldschool version as opposed to the ds lite

[thneed]

Like Dirk? Does his name start with a D too?
I don't know what that is.

[callbacks]

you dont know what a ds is?