Saturday, 12 October 2024

COMMUTATION 1.2

"You're a furry? What are you, some sort of lususfucker? Disgusting, get away from me you freak!"

- Overheard between three 8-sweep-old teens.

So, Bonnie, who awaits you next? Why, it's those loveable scamps, and by loveable you mean a midblood pain in the butt. You're going to have to grit your teeth a bit and get through it, because it's for the cause. It's for the cause, Bonnie. You can do it.

The pair you're talking about are ARSONN DELETE, a recently chosen name after a change of heart and the decision to be better, and KIARIG GONDII, a name chosen far longer ago and nearing a level of infamy on the internet that approaches that of the heiress.

ARSONN is a good sort but definitely hasn't undone all of the propaganda associated with being a teal formerly in the legislacademy, and is a little too eager to do things like "blow up drones" and "firebomb the legislacadademy". Good sort, like you said, but she's just... a little too violent, you know? You're worried that if you were to fuck up, the person to commit the vigilante killing that would surely precede the drone strike would be them. You're not sure they wouldn't relish in it.

KIARIG... well. KIARIG is ARSONN's matesprit. They got together a while before ARSONN's change of heart, and she's surprisingly not been a menace about their newfound warm solidarity. As previously stated, KIARIG is approaching a level of notoriety on the internet that is only rivalled by the fish-in-waiting herself. This is in no small part due to the fact she is ceaselessly incapable of not picking a fight—you've never met a more combative oliveblood—but also because she's both openly a furry and works as a receptionist at Troll Lockheed-Martin. You've been trying to recommend she quits but she isn't listening so you've just sort of given up. A real "fuck you, got mine" kind of girl, she is.

Together, they're trouble. Kiarig picks fights, and Arsonn will white-knight about it, and then people will call Arsonn a cop and Kiarig a war criminal, and before you know it Chittr is distracted from Sphyra's failures and is dooming itself to argue about the worker in the least impactful position at Troll Lockheed-Martin instead of going after anyone who actually fucking matters.

So, as per usual, you knock on the door, after having walked a little ways from the poor part of the subgrub into the slightly nicer lower middle class part that mostly sells itself on "not being the poor part of town".

BONNIE: knock knock!
BONNIE: i've come to talk about your scuttlebuggy insurance
BONNIE: can i have a moment of your time?

The tealblood opens the door, trying her best to look unamused and failing. You can't really see past her into the living room, but presumably Ms. Gondii is in there waiting, or in the kitchen prepping tea and biscuits that somehow never seem to be for you.

Arsonn's got their punk jacket on, patches slowly accumulating over time, simple blue jeans and some Docs with teal laces. You spy a couple new additions to her "war jacket". Her straight, pointed, 45-degree angle horns are sharp as ever, so you make sure to keep a little bit of distance as she turns around. There's gouges in the walls of the hallway.

BONNIE: you've cut your hair recently?

ARSONN: I DECIDED I/ WAS /IME FOR A CHANGE
ARSONN: YOU KNOW HOW I/ IS

Ow. Loud.

BONNIE: haha yeah
BONNIE: looks good!

It does not.

BONNIE: did you cut it.. yourself?

ARSONN: HOW COU/D YOU /E//?

BONNIE: oh i just know from experience!
BONNIE: sometimes you can't afford a haircut haha, you know how it is

ARSONN: NO I DON'/

...

BONNIE: yeah
BONNIE: anyway!
BONNIE: uh, what, inspired you to choose this look?

You enter the living room. You can hear rummaging sounds from the kitchen, so you're spared the olive's attentions for now. Arsonn slicks a hand through the short top of her cut, and you're once again reminded that the texture of her buzzed sides would be oh so nice... but you don't like Arsonn enough to be tempted.

ARSONN: OH, YOU KNOW
ARSONN: JUS/ /IKED /HE S/Y/E

You have the sneaking suspicion that Arsonn chose it because she thought it looked "cool" and "punk" and then accidentally ended up looking like some posh violet. You're saved from trying to avoid relaying this revelation by the entrance of the other half of this riveting duo.

Kiarig enters, and the way she looks hasn't changed at all: pristine, shoulder length wavy hair, plain, short horns, impressively waxed and oiled, and pearl earrings. She wears secretary-style clothes even at home, and you wonder if that's because she likes it or because trying to maintain two different styles of fashion would somehow tear her identity apart. In her hands she carries a tray with tea (that you don't like, because she somehow always serves it lukewarm and with just sugar) and cookies (with coconut, which you also don't like).

She places this cookie tray on her side of the coffee table. With visible reluctance, she silently proffers a cup of tea, and you wordlessly reject the tea by waving your hands in front of you, with a smile you make sure reaches your eyes on account of your mask. This is the ritual you two have maintained ever since you choked down the first cup on the first visit, whereby she feigns that she's a polite troll and you feign that you could ever want that swill. She doesn't offer you a cookie.

BONNIE: kiarig!

KIARIG: Bonniiie.

BONNIE: nice to see you, how's it going?
BONNIE: has the latest thing died down a bit, are they leaving you alone?

ARSONN: NO /HEY HAVEN'/ REA//Y /E/ UP A/ A//

KIARIG: As my lovely matespriiite says, they've been rather iiintolerable.
KIARIG: Then agaiiin, III don't know what III expected.
KIARIG: IIIt's not liiike they are ever goiiing to leave mememe alone.

You internally wince a little and make a complicated face.

BONNIE: given any thought to locking yet?

KIARIG: Why should III lock when iiit's not mememe causiiing the problem?

Ah, well. It was a good attempt, Bonnie.

BONNIE: no, no, haha, you're right
BONNIE: unlucky that they're still on you though

ARSONN: I/'S VERY UNFOR/UNA/E
ARSONN: MY DAR/ING KIARIG DOESN'/ DESERVE /HIS

You think it's a very explicable series of events that is not unfortunate so much as it is predictable.

BONNIE: either way!
BONNIE: i take it both of you are all settled in now, right?
BONNIE: cozy as a pur-moobeast young!
BONNIE: all cozy in the hay and full of milk
BONNIE: right?

KIARIG: For the most part.
KIARIG: IIIn no small thanks to you, III must admiiit.
KIARIG: You've been very helpful iiin gettiiing us siiiituated after our move.
KIARIG: IIIt can be diiiffiiicult to make friiiends iiin a new ciiity.
KIARIG: III stiiill don't know how you do iiit.

BONNIE: oh, you know!
BONNIE: a combination of perseverance and being keyed into events!
BONNIE: showing up regularly to something is the core of friendship really
BONNIE: and you know me!
BONNIE: nothing but free time lately, haha
BONNIE: haha

Arsonn doesn't take the hint, and laughs heartily. Kiarig glares at them though and they shut up, chastised.

ARSONN: EI/HER WAY
ARSONN: YOU'VE DONE SOME/HING INCREDIB/E FOR US /WO
ARSONN: I WON'/ FORGE/ I/

She mulls over if she can do anything. Currently in a more stay-at-hive position, she can't bless you with any job-search nepotism, and you have the suspicion they don't actually know enough about you to suggest anything else. At least she has the awareness not to try recommend Kiarig gets you an in, which is a surprising development in her ability to be considerate.

ARSONN: I CAN'/ /HINK OF ANY/HING RIGH/ /HIS SECOND
ARSONN: BU/ ASSURE YOURSE/F /HA/ ARSONN DE/E/E IS ON /HE CASE
ARSONN: WA HA HA HA

She pauses, perhaps in consternation at her old vocabulary rearing its head. You know she's been struggling with that, trying to get rid of her bad habits...

ARSONN: SPEAKING OF CASES, BONNIE

KIARIG: Ugh, dear.
KIARIG: Can't you leave thiiis alone.

ARSONN: I AM /EAVING /HIS A/ONE
ARSONN: /HA/'S WHY I AM ASKING BONNIE
ARSONN: /HA/ WAY I KNOW I/'S IN GOOD HANDS
ARSONN: OR HOOVES AS /HE CASE MIGH/ BE!

She laughs again, as Kiarig pinches the bridge of her nose. The olive acquiesces eventually after they huddle up to briefly discuss this, having decided that if it gets the issue out of her hair, she's all too happy to trouble you yet again, even at the potential cost of having to see you yet again. Rejoice! More Kiarig in your future!

ARSONN: /HIS IS NO /AUGHING MA//ER /HOUGH REA//Y
ARSONN: ONE OF /HE /ROLLS WE ME/ A/ ONE OF /HE QUEER GROUPS YOU IN/RODUCED
ARSONN: I/'S GONE MISSING
ARSONN: AND FROM /HE /HINGS O/HERS ARE SAYING
ARSONN: I/ MIGH/ BE /HE SOR/ OF /HING WHERE A /EAL /OOKING ABOU/ MIGH/ NO/ BE APPRECIA/ED VERY MUCH
ARSONN: SOME SPECU/A/E /HERE'S CHURCH INVO/VEMEN/ /OO
ARSONN: /OCA/ ONE'S FINA//Y SHOWING I/'S CO/OURS HUH

This paints a surprising amount of visible anger on the ex-legislacerator-in-training's face. You didn't expect such a strong opinion on the matter of the brewing local schism, but scepticism about whether Honing's church will live up to its professed ideals has been a local hot topic. Well, you say 'local'. It's in the city proper and the nice part of it too, instead of the temperate-dominated subgrubs, positioning it on basically the other side of where you could reasonably hang out. Zhanne's the closest to you out of anyone you know, mostly because you're both poor as bones.

Arsonn mutters a little under her breath about "damned clowns" and other invectives, which shows she's at least heard of what the purples get up to doing to lower haemocastes, but finally finds it themself to continue. She composes herself, and with a genuine and apologetic look, one that pleads "I don't have another choice", she asks:

ARSONN: I'M REA//Y SORRY /O ASK YOU FOR YE/ ANO/HER FAVOUR BU/
ARSONN: COU/D YOU /RY FIND DIRACK VACUOO?