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  1. [8/7/2017 2:37:52 PM] *** Benny Fulmer joined. ***
  2. [8/7/2017 2:37:53 PM] *** Benny Fulmer has renamed this conversation to "daddy pop" ***
  3. [8/7/2017 2:37:53 PM] *** Benny Fulmer added Spades Slick ***
  4. [8/7/2017 2:46:52 PM] Benny Fulmer: [Knockknockknockknock. Pretty. Fast, almost frantic knocks.]
  5. [8/7/2017 2:53:36 PM] Spades Slick: [You open it kinda slowly, then see the cart and open it a little quicker.]
  6. [8/7/2017 2:53:42 PM] Spades Slick: -Need help?
  7. [8/7/2017 2:55:24 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You. Okay, you're a hypocrite and a liar about the whole looks thing, because he. Wow. Large. It takes you a second to blink and get past that.]
  8. [8/7/2017 2:55:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: U-um-
  9. [8/7/2017 2:55:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: Fuck, yeah, I do.
  10. [8/7/2017 2:55:58 PM] Benny Fulmer: I'm not the assassin I used to be.
  11. [8/7/2017 2:56:12 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You look like you were never an assassin at All.]
  12. [8/7/2017 2:56:49 PM] Spades Slick: [You pick the book up out of the cart.]
  13. [8/7/2017 2:57:11 PM] Spades Slick: That's alright.
  14. [8/7/2017 2:57:24 PM] Benny Fulmer: Thanks.
  15. [8/7/2017 2:57:46 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You just. Leave the cart to the side of the doorway. You don't need it anymore.]
  16. [8/7/2017 2:57:50 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...It's, uh.
  17. [8/7/2017 2:57:55 PM] Benny Fulmer: Not heavy at all?
  18. [8/7/2017 2:58:07 PM] Spades Slick: Not really.
  19. [8/7/2017 2:58:14 PM] Spades Slick: You wanna come inside?
  20. [8/7/2017 2:58:59 PM] Spades Slick: [You step to the side.]
  21. [8/7/2017 3:01:25 PM] Benny Fulmer: Yeah, thanks.
  22. [8/7/2017 3:01:29 PM] Benny Fulmer: Being outdoors doesn't suit me.
  23. [8/7/2017 3:01:38 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You step in.]
  24. [8/7/2017 3:02:31 PM] Spades Slick: [You set the book down on the table.]
  25. [8/7/2017 3:04:20 PM] Benny Fulmer: It's the biggest book I had on undersea life.
  26. [8/7/2017 3:04:31 PM] Benny Fulmer: Specifically deepsea life.
  27. [8/7/2017 3:04:54 PM] Benny Fulmer: Obviously its fucking huge size renders it a little unwieldy for someone like me, so I figured you'd get better use out of it.
  28. [8/7/2017 3:05:26 PM] Spades Slick: [You grin and laugh a little.]
  29. [8/7/2017 3:05:38 PM] Spades Slick: I definitely will.
  30. [8/7/2017 3:06:16 PM] Spades Slick: Maybe I can compare the pictures to what I remember.
  31. [8/7/2017 3:08:12 PM | Edited 3:08:39 PM] Benny Fulmer: Yeah. The ones starting before the Renaissance will probably be at least a little off, though, given that science was kind of unpopular before then, generally speaking. But there are lots of full-page, full-color photographs near the end.
  32. [8/7/2017 3:09:18 PM] Spades Slick: [You open the book to leaf through the pages a little.]
  33. [8/7/2017 3:09:24 PM] Benny Fulmer: Honestly, it's not much of an encyclopedia for the creatures themselves, it's more about cataloguing their depictions and records throughout written history.
  34. [8/7/2017 3:09:37 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You lean against the wall.]
  35. [8/7/2017 3:10:42 PM] Benny Fulmer: The old drawings have little caption boxes that religiously list every single biological inaccuracy, and there are page numbers for the actual photographs of each one. I got most of my mileage from flipping back and f-IS THAT A SHARK?
  36. [8/7/2017 3:11:07 PM | Edited 3:11:12 PM] Benny Fulmer: [It seems you've finally noticed The Ocean.]
  37. [8/7/2017 3:28:22 PM] Spades Slick: [You were going back to what he was talking about, but then look up.]
  38. [8/7/2017 3:28:25 PM] Spades Slick: Oh, yeah.
  39. [8/7/2017 3:30:31 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You run over to it.]
  40. [8/7/2017 3:30:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: Holy fuck.
  41. [8/7/2017 3:30:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: This glass is reinforced, right?
  42. [8/7/2017 3:32:13 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah. A couple inches thick, too.
  43. [8/7/2017 3:36:04 PM] Benny Fulmer: Good.
  44. [8/7/2017 3:36:11 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You stare at the shark.]
  45. [8/7/2017 3:36:28 PM] Benny Fulmer: You get sharks like this a lot?
  46. [8/7/2017 3:36:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: Or am I lucky?
  47. [8/7/2017 3:36:54 PM] Benny Fulmer: I mean, not lucky in general. I am definitely not...that.
  48. [8/7/2017 3:37:02 PM] Benny Fulmer: Just lucky in this instance.
  49. [8/7/2017 3:53:47 PM] Spades Slick: Not a lot, but they aren't sparse, either.
  50. [8/7/2017 3:54:22 PM] Benny Fulmer: So like...uncommon?
  51. [8/7/2017 3:54:33 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  52. [8/7/2017 3:54:42 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You wiggle your finger at the shark. Maybe it'll be interested by it.]
  53. [8/7/2017 3:54:52 PM] Benny Fulmer: That's still really cool.
  54. [8/7/2017 3:55:08 PM] Spades Slick: [It stops to look at it for a moment, before swimming past.]
  55. [8/7/2017 3:55:25 PM] Benny Fulmer: -Aw, my finger just wasn't tasty enough for you, was it?
  56. [8/7/2017 3:55:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: See how that attitude treats you in life!!!
  57. [8/7/2017 3:58:26 PM] Spades Slick: [You laugh quietly.]
  58. [8/7/2017 3:59:04 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You walk back over to him, Defeated.]
  59. [8/7/2017 3:59:22 PM] Benny Fulmer: Tell me if you see anything else neat, so I can have my heart broken again when it doesn't find me interesting.
  60. [8/7/2017 4:00:09 PM] Spades Slick: [You pat his back.]
  61. [8/7/2017 4:01:12 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You sit at the chair opposite him, at the table. It's. A lot bigger than you. Makes you feel like a little kid again, kinda.]
  62. [8/7/2017 4:01:30 PM] Benny Fulmer: -The book's a, uh.
  63. [8/7/2017 4:01:39 PM] Benny Fulmer: Thank you, for when you offered to help me, by the way.
  64. [8/7/2017 4:01:50 PM] Benny Fulmer: I didn't. Say that, I think.
  65. [8/7/2017 4:02:01 PM] Spades Slick: Oh, you didn't have to do that.
  66. [8/7/2017 4:02:19 PM] Benny Fulmer: You wanted to sing me a lullaby.
  67. [8/7/2017 4:02:30 PM] Benny Fulmer: No one's ever been that sweet to me.
  68. [8/7/2017 4:02:36 PM] Spades Slick: You were t-
  69. [8/7/2017 4:02:37 PM] Benny Fulmer: And I like, just got here.
  70. [8/7/2017 4:02:45 PM] Spades Slick: [You blink at that.]
  71. [8/7/2017 4:03:00 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...I mean, like, the-
  72. [8/7/2017 4:03:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: When I was tired? I'd- just gotten to.
  73. [8/7/2017 4:03:09 PM] Benny Fulmer: You know.
  74. [8/7/2017 4:03:10 PM] Benny Fulmer: The.
  75. [8/7/2017 4:03:12 PM] Benny Fulmer: The here.
  76. [8/7/2017 4:03:31 PM] Spades Slick: No, I know, but.
  77. [8/7/2017 4:03:44 PM] Spades Slick: Your comment. Before that.
  78. [8/7/2017 4:03:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: Oh.
  79. [8/7/2017 4:03:55 PM] Benny Fulmer: What?
  80. [8/7/2017 4:04:21 PM] Spades Slick: That no one's ever been that sweet to you, all I wanted to do was.
  81. [8/7/2017 4:04:24 PM] Spades Slick: Help you sleep.
  82. [8/7/2017 4:04:51 PM] Benny Fulmer: Buddy, when my parents wanted me to sleep, they either gave me, like, cough medicine, or just told me to shut up and close my eyes.
  83. [8/7/2017 4:04:57 PM] Spades Slick: ...
  84. [8/7/2017 4:05:25 PM] Benny Fulmer: I mean, I guess in college, my roommates were better about it, usually. They at least didn't get mad when I couldn't sleep.
  85. [8/7/2017 4:05:31 PM] Benny Fulmer: As long as I didn't have the light on.
  86. [8/7/2017 4:05:35 PM] Spades Slick: ...
  87. [8/7/2017 4:05:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You're kinda lost in rambling, now.]
  88. [8/7/2017 4:06:01 PM] Benny Fulmer: Which is reasonable, I mean. Not their fault that they didn't have insomnia.
  89. [8/7/2017 4:06:15 PM] Spades Slick: [You just. Walk around the table and hug him.]
  90. [8/7/2017 4:06:37 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You. Blink a little bit. You're Very caught off guard.]
  91. [8/7/2017 4:06:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...You, uh.
  92. [8/7/2017 4:06:55 PM] Benny Fulmer: Like to- hug people you meet?
  93. [8/7/2017 4:07:05 PM] Spades Slick: You need this one.
  94. [8/7/2017 4:07:20 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...
  95. [8/7/2017 4:07:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You're clearly confused as to why he thinks that, but you guess it's because you look tired or something. You kinda. Pat his back.]
  96. [8/7/2017 4:08:00 PM] Benny Fulmer: I guess I do look kinda rough around the edges right now.
  97. [8/7/2017 4:08:04 PM] Benny Fulmer: Should've cut my hair.
  98. [8/7/2017 4:08:08 PM] Spades Slick: No, no, not that.
  99. [8/7/2017 4:08:20 PM] Spades Slick: [You pull back, but still hold him.]
  100. [8/7/2017 4:08:27 PM] Spades Slick: That... Parents aren't supposed to be like that.
  101. [8/7/2017 4:08:52 PM] Spades Slick: You don't drug your kid because you don't know how to help them sleep.
  102. [8/7/2017 4:09:24 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...I don't...I mean, what else were they gonna do? They needed to sleep, too.
  103. [8/7/2017 4:09:45 PM] Spades Slick: They needed to learn how to help their child.
  104. [8/7/2017 4:09:51 PM] Benny Fulmer: Sure, they weren't...I mean, psychologically speaking, they weren't great parents, but they tried. At least.
  105. [8/7/2017 4:10:00 PM] Spades Slick: No. No they didn't.
  106. [8/7/2017 4:10:12 PM] Spades Slick: Giving your kid cough medicine or just saying 'shut up' isn't trying.
  107. [8/7/2017 4:11:17 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...They were always really busy. I don't know that they had it in them to do much more than that.
  108. [8/7/2017 4:11:38 PM] Spades Slick: You realize you probably have insomnia because your body is now so dependent on cough medicine to sleep?
  109. [8/7/2017 4:11:57 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...
  110. [8/7/2017 4:12:05 PM] Benny Fulmer: I mean, I graduated to alcohol?
  111. [8/7/2017 4:12:19 PM] Spades Slick: Cough syrup has alcohol in it, too.
  112. [8/7/2017 4:12:27 PM] Spades Slick: (Or it used to, at least.)
  113. [8/7/2017 4:12:43 PM] Benny Fulmer: Well, I think mine didn't.
  114. [8/7/2017 4:12:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: Not sure, but. I think.
  115. [8/7/2017 4:13:59 PM] Spades Slick: You realize it's not normal for parents to give their children cough medicine and call it a night, right?
  116. [8/7/2017 4:14:35 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...I mean, I figured out that most of my friends had parents that didn't do that, yeah, but I always felt like things were just different for us?
  117. [8/7/2017 4:15:12 PM] Benny Fulmer: My mom always talked about how no one appreciated everything she did for me - I mean, they really...pushed me to do a lot of things I wouldn't have otherwise.
  118. [8/7/2017 4:15:18 PM] Benny Fulmer: I feel like it. Cancels out?
  119. [8/7/2017 4:16:05 PM] Spades Slick: You also could've been hurt because of it.
  120. [8/7/2017 4:16:55 PM] Spades Slick: Long term effects of having cough syrup that often, especially as a child.
  121. [8/7/2017 4:17:27 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...I mean, I think I'm doing okay. Top of my class all four years at college. Clearly they were doing something right.
  122. [8/7/2017 4:17:56 PM] Spades Slick: And did you feel better after getting out of that house?
  123. [8/7/2017 4:18:50 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...For a few weeks, and...
  124. [8/7/2017 4:19:03 PM] Benny Fulmer: Then...
  125. [8/7/2017 4:20:13 PM] Benny Fulmer: Well, uh.
  126. [8/7/2017 4:20:21 PM] Benny Fulmer: Thank fuck for extra credit.
  127. [8/7/2017 4:21:42 PM] Spades Slick: Got overwhelmed?
  128. [8/7/2017 4:22:06 PM] Spades Slick: [You pull a chair over to sit next to him.]
  129. [8/7/2017 4:22:51 PM] Benny Fulmer: I mean, the schoolwork was fine.
  130. [8/7/2017 4:23:10 PM] Spades Slick: No, I mean emotionally.
  131. [8/7/2017 4:23:16 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Oh.
  132. [8/7/2017 4:23:20 PM] Benny Fulmer: Yeah, that.
  133. [8/7/2017 4:23:23 PM] Benny Fulmer: That was the problem.
  134. [8/7/2017 4:23:38 PM] Spades Slick: ... The same thing happened to me when I got out of my house, too.
  135. [8/7/2017 4:23:50 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Yeah?
  136. [8/7/2017 4:24:10 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  137. [8/7/2017 4:24:55 PM] Spades Slick: ... My dad was an alcoholic. Could barely hold a job, and got mad whenever my mom and I spoke Irish.
  138. [8/7/2017 4:25:28 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You tense up and freeze a little bit.]
  139. [8/7/2017 4:25:36 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Y-yeah.
  140. [8/7/2017 4:26:01 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod just barely, and rub his back.]
  141. [8/7/2017 4:26:28 PM] Spades Slick: (You aren't like him just because you drink.)
  142. [8/7/2017 4:26:50 PM] Benny Fulmer: [...You nod a little bit. Your breathing's getting a little heavier.]
  143. [8/7/2017 4:27:02 PM] Benny Fulmer: K. Keep going, sorry.
  144. [8/7/2017 4:27:57 PM] Spades Slick: [Another small nod.]
  145. [8/7/2017 4:28:11 PM] Spades Slick: As soon as I got out of that house, I felt better.
  146. [8/7/2017 4:28:26 PM] Spades Slick: I could do and say things I couldn't while I was there.
  147. [8/7/2017 4:29:13 PM] Spades Slick: I could even just laugh and not get a "what's so funny huh?"
  148. [8/7/2017 4:29:39 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...Yeah.)
  149. [8/7/2017 4:29:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You grab your own arm a little tightly.]
  150. [8/7/2017 4:30:14 PM] Spades Slick: [You keep rubbing his back.]
  151. [8/7/2017 4:30:31 PM] Spades Slick: And then I started talking with people and found out, no, that's not normal, parents don't do that.
  152. [8/7/2017 4:30:58 PM] Spades Slick: I always had a feeling it wasn't ok, but you never know until you compare with someone else.
  153. [8/7/2017 4:31:19 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Yeah.)
  154. [8/7/2017 4:31:27 PM] Benny Fulmer: [Your voice is getting. Softer.]
  155. [8/7/2017 4:32:59 PM] Spades Slick: (... So then you try finding love and approval from other people.)
  156. [8/7/2017 4:33:57 PM] Spades Slick: (And that doesn't always work out well.)
  157. [8/7/2017 4:34:18 PM] Benny Fulmer: (N. No, it doesn't.)
  158. [8/7/2017 4:34:53 PM] Benny Fulmer: [Your grip on your own arm gets tighter.]
  159. [8/7/2017 4:35:20 PM] Spades Slick: (... You hungry?)
  160. [8/7/2017 4:36:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You. Shake your head, just barely.]
  161. [8/7/2017 4:37:02 PM] Spades Slick: (Thirsty?)
  162. [8/7/2017 4:37:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You know he doesn't mean it that way, but given where your mind is currently Reliving Your Trauma, you wince a little at that word. But you nod, slightly.]
  163. [8/7/2017 4:39:06 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod, get up, and get him some water.]
  164. [8/7/2017 4:40:31 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You don't really. Move while he's gone. You're staring at your knees, but kinda. Past. Them.]
  165. [8/7/2017 4:44:16 PM] Spades Slick: [You come back, and set the glass down in front of him, and rub his back again. You hope it'll help ground him.]
  166. [8/7/2017 4:48:37 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You lift your head a little once he rubs your back, and you carefully take the glass of water and sip- ah. Never mind. You're going to chug the whole thing. You Needed This.]
  167. [8/7/2017 4:52:11 PM] Spades Slick: [You imagine up another glass for him.]
  168. [8/7/2017 4:52:22 PM] Spades Slick: (Easy. Don't drink too fast, you'll upset your stomach.)
  169. [8/7/2017 4:53:30 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You Try to slow down. You're fairly successful. After a few more moments, you set the empty cup down. You take a few deep breaths.]
  170. [8/7/2017 4:53:33 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...Right.)
  171. [8/7/2017 4:53:53 PM] Benny Fulmer: [Slowly. Pick up the next one.]
  172. [8/7/2017 4:54:33 PM] Spades Slick: [You keep rubbing his back.]
  173. [8/7/2017 4:55:53 PM] Benny Fulmer: [And you drink this one, too. Slower than the last one. It's still pretty obvious that it's taking a lot of Restraint for you to do that, though. After 20 seconds or so, you're done with that one, too.]
  174. [8/7/2017 4:58:15 PM] Spades Slick: (Want more water?)
  175. [8/7/2017 5:02:52 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...I, uh.)
  176. [8/7/2017 5:03:00 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You clear your throat a little bit.]
  177. [8/7/2017 5:03:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: (If you think it won't be.)
  178. [8/7/2017 5:03:13 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Too much. At once.)
  179. [8/7/2017 5:08:08 PM] Spades Slick: (If you continue to drink slowly, you should be fine.)
  180. [8/7/2017 5:11:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...Then. Yeah. Fuck. Please.)
  181. [8/7/2017 5:12:17 PM] Spades Slick: [You imagine up another glass.]
  182. [8/7/2017 5:13:23 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You take this one and drink it the same as the last one. It looks like it's Helping A Lot. You're not clinging to your own arm nearly as hard.]
  183. [8/7/2017 5:15:31 PM] Spades Slick: [You keep rubbing his back, gently. Good.]
  184. [8/7/2017 5:17:30 PM] Benny Fulmer: [Okay. Done. You think you're good for now.]
  185. [8/7/2017 5:17:42 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...I think that's. It. For now.)
  186. [8/7/2017 5:17:50 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Thank you.)
  187. [8/7/2017 5:23:01 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod again.]
  188. [8/7/2017 5:23:06 PM] Spades Slick: (No problem.)
  189. [8/7/2017 5:24:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You set the glass back down.]
  190. [8/7/2017 5:24:46 PM] Benny Fulmer: (So, uh-)
  191. [8/7/2017 5:24:53 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You clear your throat again.]
  192. [8/7/2017 5:24:58 PM] Benny Fulmer: Where. Were we?
  193. [8/7/2017 5:25:56 PM] Spades Slick: ... After getting away from parents and you look for acceptance from other people.
  194. [8/7/2017 5:26:24 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Right.
  195. [8/7/2017 5:26:27 PM] Benny Fulmer: That.
  196. [8/7/2017 5:26:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: And how it.
  197. [8/7/2017 5:26:46 PM] Benny Fulmer: Doesn't.
  198. [8/7/2017 5:26:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: Work.
  199. [8/7/2017 5:27:31 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  200. [8/7/2017 5:29:49 PM] Spades Slick: So you end up either ignoring it and focusing on other things, or searching harder.
  201. [8/7/2017 5:30:35 PM] Benny Fulmer: Or do the second one until it.
  202. [8/7/2017 5:30:37 PM] Benny Fulmer: Runs out.
  203. [8/7/2017 5:36:45 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  204. [8/7/2017 5:37:32 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...And then?
  205. [8/7/2017 5:37:48 PM | Edited 5:38:03 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You know what happens for you, obviously, but. You want to hear what happened with him. If it's any different.]
  206. [8/7/2017 5:41:56 PM] Spades Slick: ... I ended up enlisting.
  207. [8/7/2017 5:41:59 PM] Spades Slick: For both reasons.
  208. [8/7/2017 5:42:07 PM] Spades Slick: ... And others, but.
  209. [8/7/2017 5:42:20 PM] Spades Slick: Those were definite factors.
  210. [8/7/2017 5:44:31 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You nod, a little.]
  211. [8/7/2017 5:44:42 PM] Benny Fulmer: I went in.
  212. [8/7/2017 5:44:45 PM] Benny Fulmer: A couple.
  213. [8/7/2017 5:44:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: Contradictory directions.
  214. [8/7/2017 5:46:06 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  215. [8/7/2017 5:48:02 PM] Benny Fulmer: Threw myself into academics by day, and, uh, by night...
  216. [8/7/2017 5:48:21 PM] Benny Fulmer: Started.
  217. [8/7/2017 5:48:41 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...A...a lot...I...
  218. [8/7/2017 5:49:04 PM] Spades Slick: [You shush him and pull him into a hug.]
  219. [8/7/2017 5:49:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: [It takes you a second, but you actually hug him back.]
  220. [8/7/2017 5:49:57 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I don't- I-I wasn't- trying to- to be bad.)
  221. [8/7/2017 5:50:08 PM] Spades Slick: (I know.)
  222. [8/7/2017 5:50:15 PM] Spades Slick: (You aren't bad for doing that.)
  223. [8/7/2017 5:50:35 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I just- I stopped- I stopped feeling and I didn't- I didn't know why.)
  224. [8/7/2017 5:50:53 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  225. [8/7/2017 5:51:07 PM] Spades Slick: (Your mind trying to distance yourself from everything.)
  226. [8/7/2017 5:51:27 PM] Benny Fulmer: (And I- I tried any- anything that'd- that'd maybe. Bring me back.)
  227. [8/7/2017 5:53:06 PM] Spades Slick: [Another nod.]
  228. [8/7/2017 5:53:23 PM] Spades Slick: (Yeah.)
  229. [8/7/2017 5:56:15 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I...I. I stopped. Almost. Everything, after. I got caught.)
  230. [8/7/2017 5:56:22 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You voice gets. Really quiet.]
  231. [8/7/2017 5:56:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I-I don't- want t-to know what- what would've h-happened if...they e-ever...)
  232. [8/7/2017 5:57:13 PM] Spades Slick: [You shush him, gently.]
  233. [8/7/2017 5:57:20 PM] Spades Slick: (Then let's not dwell on it.)
  234. [8/7/2017 5:58:32 PM | Edited 5:59:32 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You try to shake yourself out of it. Literally, by. Shaking your head, like there's water in your ears you're trying to get out. It's not very successful, and you end up just pressing your face into his shoulder. He can probably feel that your cheeks are wet.]
  235. [8/7/2017 6:06:16 PM] Spades Slick: [You hug him a little tighter, and hum. You hope it'll help calm him down.]
  236. [8/7/2017 6:08:18 PM] Benny Fulmer: [It does, partially because you're not quite There enough to question it. But it brings you back, slowly, and your hold on him loosens incrementally as you start realizing that no, your parents aren't here, and they'll never find out about what happened. Your breathing doesn't even out completely, but it gets less fast and shuddery.]
  237. [8/7/2017 6:09:45 PM] Spades Slick: [You're glad it's helping, and you continue your efforts for a bit longer.]
  238. [8/7/2017 6:12:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You finally come out of it completely. You squeeze him a little bit, for half a second, just to ground yourself again.]
  239. [8/7/2017 6:12:39 PM | Edited 6:12:48 PM] Benny Fulmer: (S-s-sorry.)
  240. [8/7/2017 6:13:08 PM] Spades Slick: (No, it's okay.)
  241. [8/7/2017 6:16:30 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Do you.)
  242. [8/7/2017 6:16:35 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Do you think we should.)
  243. [8/7/2017 6:16:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Keep. Going?)
  244. [8/7/2017 6:17:07 PM] Spades Slick: (Do you want to?)
  245. [8/7/2017 6:17:15 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...)
  246. [8/7/2017 6:17:26 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...I...)
  247. [8/7/2017 6:17:37 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I hope I don't sound like. A dick, but. I.)
  248. [8/7/2017 6:17:42 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I kinda want to.)
  249. [8/7/2017 6:17:48 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Hear. Yours. More.)
  250. [8/7/2017 6:17:54 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  251. [8/7/2017 6:17:58 PM] Spades Slick: (That's ok.)
  252. [8/7/2017 6:18:22 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...Th. Thanks.)
  253. [8/7/2017 6:18:28 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You sound a little relieved.]
  254. [8/7/2017 6:20:29 PM] Spades Slick: (No problem.)
  255. [8/7/2017 6:21:47 PM] Spades Slick: Like I said, I ended up enlisting.
  256. [8/7/2017 6:21:57 PM] Spades Slick: Which worked, for awhile, but... Brought on a lot of problems.
  257. [8/7/2017 6:24:33 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...I can imagine.
  258. [8/7/2017 6:25:23 PM] Spades Slick: But. It at least had money.
  259. [8/7/2017 6:27:25 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Yeah.
  260. [8/7/2017 6:38:32 PM] Spades Slick: Boy, though, it.
  261. [8/7/2017 6:38:37 PM] Spades Slick: Wasn't fun coming back.
  262. [8/7/2017 6:38:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...
  263. [8/7/2017 6:38:56 PM] Benny Fulmer: You should probably talk about that.
  264. [8/7/2017 6:39:04 PM] Spades Slick: ... Yeah.
  265. [8/7/2017 6:39:06 PM] Spades Slick: I should.
  266. [8/7/2017 6:39:22 PM] Benny Fulmer: Like, uh.
  267. [8/7/2017 6:39:23 PM] Benny Fulmer: Now.
  268. [8/7/2017 6:39:24 PM] Benny Fulmer: If.
  269. [8/7/2017 6:39:26 PM] Benny Fulmer: You want to.
  270. [8/7/2017 6:40:13 PM] Spades Slick: ... You okay with.
  271. [8/7/2017 6:40:15 PM] Spades Slick: Hearing it?
  272. [8/7/2017 6:42:42 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Yeah.
  273. [8/7/2017 6:44:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: Might actually be easier, since it's.
  274. [8/7/2017 6:44:11 PM] Benny Fulmer: Not much like what I...
  275. [8/7/2017 6:44:17 PM] Benny Fulmer: Did.
  276. [8/7/2017 6:44:39 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  277. [8/7/2017 7:01:12 PM] Spades Slick: Well...
  278. [8/7/2017 7:01:29 PM] Spades Slick: There were quite a lot of nightmares when I first got back, obviously.
  279. [8/7/2017 7:04:00 PM] Benny Fulmer: [...You nod a little, too.]
  280. [8/7/2017 7:04:04 PM] Benny Fulmer: Makes sense.
  281. [8/7/2017 7:04:27 PM] Benny Fulmer: Did you, uh.
  282. [8/7/2017 7:05:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: Try to deal with it. Somehow?
  283. [8/7/2017 7:05:53 PM] Spades Slick: I tried to.
  284. [8/7/2017 7:06:06 PM] Spades Slick: I tried a lot of things, and eventually ended up with diving, since.
  285. [8/7/2017 7:06:11 PM] Spades Slick: It's very quiet under the water.
  286. [8/7/2017 7:11:24 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...
  287. [8/7/2017 7:11:28 PM] Benny Fulmer: It is quiet in here.
  288. [8/7/2017 7:12:02 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  289. [8/7/2017 7:12:04 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  290. [8/7/2017 7:13:41 PM] Benny Fulmer: So, uh...
  291. [8/7/2017 7:13:45 PM] Benny Fulmer: How'd that go for you?
  292. [8/7/2017 7:16:23 PM] Spades Slick: ... The first few trips were good.
  293. [8/7/2017 7:17:03 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Well, uh.
  294. [8/7/2017 7:17:09 PM] Benny Fulmer: Count your blessings. I guess.
  295. [8/7/2017 7:19:59 PM] Spades Slick: ... Yeah.
  296. [8/7/2017 7:20:54 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...But after that?
  297. [8/7/2017 7:21:24 PM] Spades Slick: ... Well.
  298. [8/7/2017 7:21:31 PM] Spades Slick: That's a whole other bucket of worms.
  299. [8/7/2017 7:22:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: Oh.
  300. [8/7/2017 7:22:22 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Maybe talk about...
  301. [8/7/2017 7:22:32 PM] Benny Fulmer: Whatever you've gotten to talk about least?
  302. [8/7/2017 7:26:11 PM] Spades Slick: ... I've never really talked about what my plans were after what ended up to be my last diving trip.
  303. [8/7/2017 7:26:29 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Maybe that, then.
  304. [8/7/2017 7:41:55 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  305. [8/7/2017 7:42:03 PM] Spades Slick: Because. I had fully accepted that.
  306. [8/7/2017 7:42:31 PM] Spades Slick: I'd marry a lesbian. So we could cover each others backs.
  307. [8/7/2017 7:43:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: Right, yeah, a beard.
  308. [8/7/2017 7:43:23 PM] Benny Fulmer: I, uh.
  309. [8/7/2017 7:43:28 PM] Benny Fulmer: I actually. Considered that.
  310. [8/7/2017 7:43:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: To get my parents off my back.
  311. [8/7/2017 7:43:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: About. That.
  312. [8/7/2017 7:45:50 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  313. [8/7/2017 7:46:23 PM] Spades Slick: I'm glad neither of us had to do that.
  314. [8/7/2017 7:46:31 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Yeah.
  315. [8/7/2017 7:46:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: Didn't help that I felt like I was.
  316. [8/7/2017 7:46:54 PM] Benny Fulmer: Missing...someone.
  317. [8/7/2017 7:46:58 PM] Benny Fulmer: On top of that.
  318. [8/7/2017 7:47:03 PM] Benny Fulmer: Even though I had no idea why.
  319. [8/7/2017 7:47:06 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  320. [8/7/2017 7:48:04 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Did La Volpe tell you about that?
  321. [8/7/2017 7:48:15 PM] Spades Slick: A bit.
  322. [8/7/2017 8:01:59 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...I'll. Tell you more about it once you're done.
  323. [8/7/2017 8:02:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: What else were you planning?
  324. [8/7/2017 8:06:59 PM] Spades Slick: I was planning on becoming a boxer.
  325. [8/7/2017 8:08:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Well.
  326. [8/7/2017 8:08:23 PM] Benny Fulmer: You'd be a force to be reckoned with.
  327. [8/7/2017 8:09:20 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  328. [8/7/2017 8:09:42 PM] Spades Slick: I wonder what titles I would've won, if any.
  329. [8/7/2017 8:09:56 PM] Benny Fulmer: A lot. Probably.
  330. [8/7/2017 8:13:26 PM] Spades Slick: Probably, yeah.
  331. [8/7/2017 8:13:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: World championship, I'm guessing.
  332. [8/7/2017 8:13:42 PM] Benny Fulmer: That's a thing, right?
  333. [8/7/2017 8:13:57 PM] Benny Fulmer: The only sport I've really been into is horse racing.
  334. [8/7/2017 8:14:39 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah, that's a thing.
  335. [8/7/2017 8:16:54 PM] Benny Fulmer: Yeah, then that.
  336. [8/7/2017 8:20:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...What else?
  337. [8/7/2017 8:20:44 PM] Spades Slick: Beyond that... Just. Try to keep the people around me safe.
  338. [8/7/2017 8:21:38 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...
  339. [8/7/2017 8:21:50 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You kinda slump against him.]
  340. [8/7/2017 8:22:05 PM] Benny Fulmer: Yeah.
  341. [8/7/2017 8:26:30 PM] Spades Slick: [You rub his back.]
  342. [8/7/2017 8:38:11 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...What else have you not gotten to say?
  343. [8/7/2017 8:41:25 PM] Spades Slick: ... That I'm genuinely scared this is temporary.
  344. [8/7/2017 8:44:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Well, if it is, doesn't it make what we do here all that more special and important?
  345. [8/7/2017 8:45:47 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah, but that just makes me worried I'm not doing enough to make it worth it.
  346. [8/7/2017 8:46:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: Didn't you get married?
  347. [8/7/2017 8:46:47 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  348. [8/7/2017 8:47:00 PM] Benny Fulmer: Dude, that's already more than enough.
  349. [8/7/2017 8:47:17 PM] Spades Slick: [You bite the inside of your lip.]
  350. [8/7/2017 8:47:45 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...But I mean, let's unpack that, also.
  351. [8/7/2017 8:48:02 PM] Benny Fulmer: What makes you afraid it's temporary?
  352. [8/7/2017 8:49:20 PM] Spades Slick: Well, I mean.
  353. [8/7/2017 8:49:29 PM] Spades Slick: I died once. And that wasn't temporary.
  354. [8/7/2017 8:49:50 PM] Spades Slick: And who's to say I'm not still in Rapture, and my brain is making this up to keep me from loosing it?
  355. [8/7/2017 8:50:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...How long have you been here, again?
  356. [8/7/2017 8:50:26 PM] Spades Slick: A year, maybe?
  357. [8/7/2017 8:50:53 PM] Benny Fulmer: That seems like a lot of time for a brain to be making something so elaborate.
  358. [8/7/2017 8:51:06 PM] Spades Slick: But dreams are always like that.
  359. [8/7/2017 8:51:25 PM] Benny Fulmer: Well, if this a dream, you won't be able to count your fingers.
  360. [8/7/2017 8:51:29 PM] Benny Fulmer: Or even read words.
  361. [8/7/2017 8:51:49 PM | Edited 8:52:00 PM] Benny Fulmer: Your brain can't process those things while you're asleep.
  362. [8/7/2017 8:52:05 PM] Spades Slick: ...
  363. [8/7/2017 8:52:12 PM] Spades Slick: [You look down at your hands.]
  364. [8/7/2017 8:52:38 PM] Benny Fulmer: Ten, right?
  365. [8/7/2017 8:52:54 PM] Benny Fulmer: Also, when you dream, your brain can't come up with new faces.
  366. [8/7/2017 8:53:09 PM] Benny Fulmer: And my face isn't one you've seen before, is it?
  367. [8/7/2017 8:54:18 PM | Edited 8:57:22 PM] Spades Slick: No.
  368. [8/7/2017 8:54:22 PM | Edited 8:57:26 PM] Spades Slick: It isn't.
  369. [8/7/2017 9:02:08 PM | Edited 9:02:16 PM] Benny Fulmer: Then I'd say all of that is pretty damning evidence this isn't a dream.
  370. [8/7/2017 9:02:38 PM] Spades Slick: [You swallow hard, and nod.]
  371. [8/7/2017 9:02:45 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...
  372. [8/7/2017 9:02:52 PM] Benny Fulmer: What else would help convince you this is real?
  373. [8/7/2017 9:03:55 PM] Spades Slick: [You sigh.]
  374. [8/7/2017 9:03:58 PM] Spades Slick: I don't know.
  375. [8/7/2017 9:04:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...What are things you think can't happen in dreams?
  376. [8/7/2017 9:08:41 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...No, that's not an easy question to answer.
  377. [8/7/2017 9:09:00 PM] Benny Fulmer: Oh!
  378. [8/7/2017 9:09:23 PM] Benny Fulmer: You know how if you fall in a dream, sometimes your whole body jolts and you wake up?
  379. [8/7/2017 9:09:35 PM] Benny Fulmer: What are things that make you wake up from a dream?
  380. [8/7/2017 9:09:43 PM] Benny Fulmer: If we try them, and they don't work, that could prove it.
  381. [8/7/2017 9:10:01 PM] Spades Slick: ... Water dripping onto my face.
  382. [8/7/2017 9:10:04 PM] Spades Slick: Always wakes me up.
  383. [8/7/2017 9:11:46 PM] Benny Fulmer: [...You pick up one of the empty glasses and hold it up to him.]
  384. [8/7/2017 9:11:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: Fill this up, then.
  385. [8/7/2017 9:12:06 PM] Spades Slick: [You take it, and imagine it full of water.]
  386. [8/7/2017 9:13:12 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You dip your fingers in it.]
  387. [8/7/2017 9:13:35 PM] Benny Fulmer: It's like a baptism, but without the religious part of it.
  388. [8/7/2017 9:14:13 PM] Benny Fulmer: And this water is probably now the furthest thing from holy it could be, now that I've touched it.
  389. [8/7/2017 9:14:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: Oops.
  390. [8/7/2017 9:18:12 PM] Spades Slick: [You snrk a little.]
  391. [8/7/2017 9:23:33 PM] Benny Fulmer: Anyway.
  392. [8/7/2017 9:23:46 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You dangle your fingers above his forehead, now. Should drip any second...]
  393. [8/7/2017 9:26:26 PM] Spades Slick: [You watch his finger. You look Nervous.]
  394. [8/7/2017 9:28:01 PM] Benny Fulmer: [Drip-drop. Two little drops, one right after the other.]
  395. [8/7/2017 9:28:52 PM] Spades Slick: [You flinch when they hit your forehead, but...]
  396. [8/7/2017 9:28:55 PM] Spades Slick: [Nothing happens.]
  397. [8/7/2017 9:31:25 PM] Spades Slick: [You look so fucking relieved.]
  398. [8/7/2017 9:31:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Yep, I didn't disappear, so I'd say that experiment's a success.
  399. [8/7/2017 9:32:01 PM] Benny Fulmer: Maybe you should just keep a cup of water around.
  400. [8/7/2017 9:33:33 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  401. [8/7/2017 9:34:34 PM] Spades Slick: [You rub your hand through your hair.]
  402. [8/7/2017 9:34:36 PM] Spades Slick: (Cac.)
  403. [8/7/2017 9:34:50 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You tilt your head.]
  404. [8/7/2017 9:34:56 PM] Benny Fulmer: That the Irish?
  405. [8/7/2017 9:35:10 PM] Benny Fulmer: Or- Gaelic, rather.
  406. [8/7/2017 9:37:55 PM] Spades Slick: Y-Yeah.
  407. [8/7/2017 9:39:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You remember what he said about his father not letting him speak it.]
  408. [8/7/2017 9:39:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...It's nice.
  409. [8/7/2017 9:42:28 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah, it...
  410. [8/7/2017 9:42:33 PM | Edited 9:43:05 PM] Spades Slick: I like how it sounds.
  411. [8/7/2017 9:43:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You nod.]
  412. [8/7/2017 9:43:19 PM] Benny Fulmer: English is a clunky language, honestly.
  413. [8/7/2017 9:43:24 PM] Benny Fulmer: It's just got-
  414. [8/7/2017 9:43:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: You know how some languages "borrow" words or grammar from other languages?
  415. [8/7/2017 9:44:22 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  416. [8/7/2017 9:52:26 PM] Benny Fulmer: English leads other languages into dark alleys, then mugs them and goes through their pockets for loose nouns and spare conjugations.
  417. [8/7/2017 9:59:58 PM] Spades Slick: [You snrrk.]
  418. [8/7/2017 10:00:55 PM] Benny Fulmer: Linguistically, it's.
  419. [8/7/2017 10:00:58 PM] Benny Fulmer: A disaster.
  420. [8/7/2017 10:01:18 PM] Benny Fulmer: Pronunciations and spellings aren't internally consistent whatsoever.
  421. [8/7/2017 10:06:52 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah, they're... Unusual, to say the least.
  422. [8/7/2017 10:07:03 PM] Benny Fulmer: They're ridiculous.
  423. [8/7/2017 10:24:18 PM] Spades Slick: I'm glad I grew up learning it.
  424. [8/7/2017 10:30:55 PM] Benny Fulmer: Me too. I feel awful for folks learning it as a second language.
  425. [8/7/2017 10:31:20 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...We're getting off track, though, if you wanna keep.
  426. [8/7/2017 10:31:26 PM | Edited 10:31:30 PM] Benny Fulmer: Trying to talk about.
  427. [8/7/2017 10:31:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: Things.
  428. [8/7/2017 10:37:05 PM] Spades Slick: Right, right, uh.
  429. [8/7/2017 10:37:27 PM] Spades Slick: I mean. After the diving trip, what happened is... Pretty well documented already.
  430. [8/7/2017 10:38:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: Yeah, you're from a video game, right?
  431. [8/7/2017 10:40:30 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  432. [8/7/2017 10:54:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: I...I kind of am too, I guess?
  433. [8/7/2017 10:54:51 PM] Benny Fulmer: I...was?
  434. [8/7/2017 10:55:00 PM] Benny Fulmer: How much do you know about my.
  435. [8/7/2017 10:55:05 PM] Benny Fulmer: Whole deal.
  436. [8/7/2017 10:58:18 PM] Spades Slick: La Volpe's filled me in on it, a bit.
  437. [8/7/2017 10:59:10 PM] Benny Fulmer: How much has he filled you in on?
  438. [8/7/2017 11:00:48 PM] Spades Slick: You're Machiavelli.
  439. [8/7/2017 11:00:52 PM] Spades Slick: Or. Were?
  440. [8/7/2017 11:01:26 PM] Benny Fulmer: Kind of both.
  441. [8/7/2017 11:01:31 PM] Benny Fulmer: Reincarnation.
  442. [8/7/2017 11:01:59 PM] Benny Fulmer: Which is.
  443. [8/7/2017 11:02:15 PM] Benny Fulmer: Ironic, because I actually fucking hated him.
  444. [8/7/2017 11:05:03 PM] Spades Slick: [You snrk.]
  445. [8/7/2017 11:05:39 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Actually, it's less "ironic" and more "evidence", given my memories, but.
  446. [8/7/2017 11:05:50 PM] Benny Fulmer: Yeah. That's me. Unfortunately.
  447. [8/7/2017 11:10:12 PM] Spades Slick: I don't know if I've read much of his work, unfortunately.
  448. [8/7/2017 11:10:32 PM] Benny Fulmer: Don't bother. I didn't know what the fuck I was doing.
  449. [8/7/2017 11:10:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: I was just really, really good at bullshitting.
  450. [8/7/2017 11:11:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: You know what "The Prince" was?
  451. [8/7/2017 11:17:24 PM] Spades Slick: I've heard of it.
  452. [8/7/2017 11:19:03 PM] Benny Fulmer: It was me trying to fill as many pages as possible with shit people would want to read.
  453. [8/7/2017 11:20:05 PM] Benny Fulmer: Scholars - like myself, formerly - are still trying to see if they can pry some cohesive meaning from its unwilling pages.
  454. [8/7/2017 11:20:13 PM] Benny Fulmer: And it's a Sisyphean task.
  455. [8/7/2017 11:20:17 PM] Benny Fulmer: You know why?
  456. [8/7/2017 11:23:18 PM] Spades Slick: Because it's just that?
  457. [8/7/2017 11:23:23 PM] Spades Slick: Shit?
  458. [8/7/2017 11:24:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: Exactly!
  459. [8/7/2017 11:24:59 PM] Benny Fulmer: There's no meaning to find because I didn't put any in there.
  460. [8/7/2017 11:25:15 PM] Benny Fulmer: I figured out a use for it after the fact, though.
  461. [8/7/2017 11:29:37 PM] Spades Slick: Did you?
  462. [8/7/2017 11:29:43 PM] Benny Fulmer: Yep.
  463. [8/7/2017 11:30:00 PM] Benny Fulmer: It's a simple test to find out if someone's an asshole.
  464. [8/7/2017 11:30:11 PM] Benny Fulmer: If someone who reads it agrees with it-
  465. [8/7/2017 11:30:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: They're an asshole!
  466. [8/7/2017 11:33:47 PM] Spades Slick: [You snrk again.]
  467. [8/7/2017 11:33:59 PM] Benny Fulmer: I'm dead serious.
  468. [8/7/2017 11:34:35 PM] Benny Fulmer: The takeaway from "The Prince" is "a militaristic ruler is the only kind who can achieve lasting peace and sometimes, killing innocent people is good, actually."
  469. [8/7/2017 11:40:55 PM] Spades Slick: ...
  470. [8/7/2017 11:41:05 PM] Spades Slick: Wow, yeah, that is shit.
  471. [8/7/2017 11:42:13 PM] Benny Fulmer: I know.
  472. [8/7/2017 11:42:19 PM] Benny Fulmer: I know.
  473. [8/7/2017 11:42:32 PM] Benny Fulmer: You see, now, why I hated myself.
  474. [8/7/2017 11:42:38 PM] Benny Fulmer: And still do, actually.
  475. [8/7/2017 11:46:34 PM] Spades Slick: [You rub his back again.]
  476. [8/7/2017 11:49:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Anyway.
  477. [8/7/2017 11:49:21 PM] Benny Fulmer: What else did Volpe tell you?
  478. [8/7/2017 11:57:15 PM] Spades Slick: He's spoken about Assassins, I know.
  479. [8/7/2017 11:57:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: Yeah, we were both Assassins. Or. Still are, in his case.
  480. [8/7/2017 11:57:57 PM] Benny Fulmer: He taught me everything I know.
  481. [8/7/2017 11:58:10 PM] Benny Fulmer: Well, almost everything. I patented a couple techniques for myself.
  482. [8/7/2017 11:59:41 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  483. [8/8/2017 12:00:45 AM] Benny Fulmer: Obviously, he was always better at it than me, for the same reason.
  484. [8/8/2017 12:00:52 AM] Benny Fulmer: I feel like being part God is cheating, though.
  485. [8/8/2017 12:03:02 AM] Spades Slick: I'd have to agree with you on that, yeah.
  486. [8/8/2017 12:04:04 AM] Benny Fulmer: ...What else did he tell you?
  487. [8/8/2017 12:04:15 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You sound like you're. Anxious to know.]
  488. [8/8/2017 12:06:56 AM] Spades Slick: Well, uh, he...
  489. [8/8/2017 12:07:08 AM] Spades Slick: Gets a little... Off-topic, we'll say?
  490. [8/8/2017 12:07:22 AM] Benny Fulmer: Oh, Jesus Christ, I'm sorry.
  491. [8/8/2017 12:07:34 AM] Benny Fulmer: If you were anyone else I'd-
  492. [8/8/2017 12:07:35 AM] Benny Fulmer: Just.
  493. [8/8/2017 12:07:38 AM] Benny Fulmer: Just forget about that.
  494. [8/8/2017 12:09:16 AM] Spades Slick: [You just. Grab the rest of his water and drink it.]
  495. [8/8/2017 12:10:01 AM] Benny Fulmer: ...Someone around here can probably invent something that makes you forget it, actually.
  496. [8/8/2017 12:11:29 AM] Benny Fulmer: Or-
  497. [8/8/2017 12:11:33 AM] Benny Fulmer: Or Gaster. He can do that.
  498. [8/8/2017 12:11:39 AM] Spades Slick: ... Probably, yeah.
  499. [8/8/2017 12:11:47 AM] Benny Fulmer: Ask him.
  500. [8/8/2017 12:11:50 AM] Benny Fulmer: Uhhhhhhhh.
  501. [8/8/2017 12:12:15 AM] Benny Fulmer: In the meantime.
  502. [8/8/2017 12:12:20 AM] Benny Fulmer: Literally anything else.
  503. [8/8/2017 12:12:30 AM] Benny Fulmer: 'Cause, uh, we kinda did a lot.
  504. [8/8/2017 12:16:00 AM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  505. [8/8/2017 12:16:27 AM] Spades Slick: Oh, he. Likes to talk about races a lot.
  506. [8/8/2017 12:16:51 AM] Benny Fulmer: In retrospect, I'm sure he let me beat him in all the races I won.
  507. [8/8/2017 12:17:25 AM] Benny Fulmer: But...they were fun, either way, I'll say.
  508. [8/8/2017 12:22:54 AM] Spades Slick: Yeah... He's offered to race me, but.
  509. [8/8/2017 12:23:02 AM] Spades Slick: I'm no good with speed.
  510. [8/8/2017 12:23:20 AM] Benny Fulmer: ...Maybe challenge him to something you're evenly matched at.
  511. [8/8/2017 12:23:41 AM] Spades Slick: ... Healthy coping mechanisms?
  512. [8/8/2017 12:24:16 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You splutter a little, like you're doing a spittake.]
  513. [8/8/2017 12:24:26 AM] Benny Fulmer: -Fuck, man, we're all evenly matched there.
  514. [8/8/2017 12:25:25 AM] Spades Slick: I think the only person here with good coping mechanisms is-
  515. [8/8/2017 12:25:34 AM] Spades Slick: Wait nevermind.
  516. [8/8/2017 12:28:01 AM] Benny Fulmer: Yeah.
  517. [8/8/2017 12:28:11 AM] Benny Fulmer: I'm kind of drawing a blank, too.
  518. [8/8/2017 12:28:28 AM] Spades Slick: ... Jeez.
  519. [8/8/2017 12:29:05 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You let your head donk against his shoulder.]
  520. [8/8/2017 12:29:27 AM] Benny Fulmer: Doesn't help that my immediate response to thinking about that is "I wonder where the alcohol is", does it.
  521. [8/8/2017 12:33:06 AM] Spades Slick: Not exactly.
  522. [8/8/2017 7:39:42 PM] Benny Fulmer: [Little sigh.]
  523. [8/8/2017 7:40:08 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Volpe tell you anything else about our history?
  524. [8/8/2017 7:42:39 PM] Spades Slick: ... Not much that I can recall.
  525. [8/8/2017 7:43:21 PM] Benny Fulmer: Welp.
  526. [8/8/2017 7:43:35 PM] Benny Fulmer: Guess it's up to me to fill you in on the less romantic parts, then.
  527. [8/8/2017 7:43:51 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You shift position so your back is against his chest.]
  528. [8/8/2017 7:45:02 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  529. [8/8/2017 7:45:15 PM] Benny Fulmer: So.
  530. [8/8/2017 7:45:24 PM] Benny Fulmer: We were Assassins, as you know.
  531. [8/8/2017 7:45:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: And Volpe taught me everything, also as you know.
  532. [8/8/2017 7:46:13 PM] Spades Slick: Right.
  533. [8/8/2017 7:46:27 PM] Benny Fulmer: What you don't know -
  534. [8/8/2017 7:46:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: but conceivably might have guessed -
  535. [8/8/2017 7:46:52 PM] Benny Fulmer: is that there's a certain amount of paranoia that comes with the business, when one's an Assassin.
  536. [8/8/2017 7:48:05 PM] Spades Slick: [Another nod.]
  537. [8/8/2017 7:48:30 PM] Spades Slick: Understandably so.
  538. [8/8/2017 7:48:37 PM] Benny Fulmer: Right. Yeah.
  539. [8/8/2017 7:48:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: Problem is.
  540. [8/8/2017 7:48:51 PM] Benny Fulmer: Dear, sweet Volpe was a bit paranoid already.
  541. [8/8/2017 7:50:31 PM] Spades Slick: [Yet another nod.]
  542. [8/8/2017 7:51:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: Probably didn't help that he was, A, dating me, future namesake of the word "Machiavellian", meaning brutally deceptive and violent, and B, also terrified of people figuring out his immortal status.
  543. [8/8/2017 7:51:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: So...
  544. [8/8/2017 7:52:09 PM] Benny Fulmer: You can imagine what his reaction was when he found out there was, essentially, a mole within our ranks.
  545. [8/8/2017 7:52:35 PM] Spades Slick: Oh dear.
  546. [8/8/2017 7:52:41 PM] Benny Fulmer: Yeah.
  547. [8/8/2017 7:52:45 PM] Benny Fulmer: Bad enough already, right?
  548. [8/8/2017 7:52:54 PM] Benny Fulmer: Good thing he had me!
  549. [8/8/2017 7:52:59 PM] Benny Fulmer: His sole confidant.
  550. [8/8/2017 7:53:09 PM] Spades Slick: [You can hear the bitterness in his voice.]
  551. [8/8/2017 7:53:20 PM] Spades Slick: ... No.
  552. [8/8/2017 7:53:27 PM] Benny Fulmer: Ding ding ding!
  553. [8/8/2017 7:53:30 PM] Benny Fulmer: Correctamundo!
  554. [8/8/2017 7:53:51 PM] Benny Fulmer: He was oh-so-kindly tipped off that it was me.
  555. [8/8/2017 7:54:17 PM] Benny Fulmer: Which it wasn't, of course, but you know, when you're all panicky and wired, you'll take anything as an explanation.
  556. [8/8/2017 7:54:59 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You're certainly speaking from experience, with that last line.]
  557. [8/8/2017 7:55:20 PM] Spades Slick: [You lean back.]
  558. [8/8/2017 7:55:32 PM] Spades Slick: (D'fhéadfadh liom a mharú i ndáiríre duine éigin i fola fuar.)
  559. [8/8/2017 7:56:50 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You stop, mid-rant.]
  560. [8/8/2017 7:56:56 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...
  561. [8/8/2017 7:57:01 PM] Benny Fulmer: You okay back there, big guy?
  562. [8/8/2017 7:57:14 PM] Spades Slick: [You blink a few times.]
  563. [8/8/2017 7:57:20 PM] Spades Slick: -Yeah, yeah. Sorry.
  564. [8/8/2017 7:57:29 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Okay.
  565. [8/8/2017 7:59:43 PM | Edited 8:00:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: I admit I didn't catch what you said, but.
  566. [8/8/2017 7:59:56 PM | Edited 7:59:59 PM] Benny Fulmer: I guessed from tone that you're a little tense.
  567. [8/8/2017 8:01:21 PM] Spades Slick: ... Yeah.
  568. [8/8/2017 8:01:30 PM] Benny Fulmer: I can...
  569. [8/8/2017 8:01:33 PM] Benny Fulmer: I can stop, if you want.
  570. [8/8/2017 8:01:41 PM] Spades Slick: No, no, it's.
  571. [8/8/2017 8:01:54 PM] Spades Slick: Remnants of something else causing this.
  572. [8/8/2017 8:01:56 PM] Spades Slick: Continue.
  573. [8/8/2017 8:02:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: [...You nod a little bit.]
  574. [8/8/2017 8:02:10 PM] Benny Fulmer: Okay.
  575. [8/8/2017 8:02:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: You, uh.
  576. [8/8/2017 8:02:23 PM] Benny Fulmer: You let me know if you need to take a breather again, though.
  577. [8/8/2017 8:04:47 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  578. [8/8/2017 8:04:50 PM] Spades Slick: I will.
  579. [8/8/2017 8:07:02 PM] Benny Fulmer: Alright.
  580. [8/8/2017 8:07:10 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You settle back in a little.]
  581. [8/8/2017 8:07:48 PM] Benny Fulmer: So...
  582. [8/8/2017 8:07:58 PM] Benny Fulmer: We were Assassins.
  583. [8/8/2017 8:07:59 PM] Benny Fulmer: Yeah?
  584. [8/8/2017 8:08:11 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  585. [8/8/2017 8:08:22 PM] Benny Fulmer: And, uh, what you do with a traitor...
  586. [8/8/2017 8:08:30 PM] Benny Fulmer: Kiiiiiinda in the name of the job.
  587. [8/8/2017 8:08:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: But, obviously, Volpe didn't want to do that.
  588. [8/8/2017 8:09:04 PM] Benny Fulmer: So!
  589. [8/8/2017 8:09:39 PM] Benny Fulmer: He tried to move the responsibility of carrying that out over to our mutual best friend.
  590. [8/8/2017 8:10:00 PM] Spades Slick: [This story just keeps gettng worse.]
  591. [8/8/2017 8:10:36 PM] Benny Fulmer: The good news was, our best friend wouldn't do it!
  592. [8/8/2017 8:10:46 PM] Benny Fulmer: He didn't buy Volpe's evidence. Thought I was a good egg.
  593. [8/8/2017 8:11:17 PM] Benny Fulmer: Which, honestly. I have no idea what the hell would make him believe something like that so fervently, because as I went over before, I was, um, an ass.
  594. [8/8/2017 8:16:29 PM] Spades Slick: Thank Dia he did.
  595. [8/8/2017 8:16:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: But.
  596. [8/8/2017 8:16:51 PM] Benny Fulmer: Bad news.
  597. [8/8/2017 8:17:13 PM] Benny Fulmer: Volpe's response was essentially "well, fine, then I will do it myself."
  598. [8/8/2017 8:17:24 PM] Spades Slick: [You tense up again.]
  599. [8/8/2017 8:17:32 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You can Feel it.]
  600. [8/8/2017 8:17:35 PM] Benny Fulmer: -Easy. Easy.
  601. [8/8/2017 8:17:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: The story has a happy ending.
  602. [8/8/2017 8:18:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: It's just a little rocky getting there.
  603. [8/8/2017 8:18:45 PM] Spades Slick: [Small nod.]
  604. [8/8/2017 8:22:43 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...You need another break?
  605. [8/8/2017 8:26:57 PM] Benny Fulmer: I'm, uh, I'm okay, if.
  606. [8/8/2017 8:27:00 PM] Benny Fulmer: That's what you need.
  607. [8/8/2017 8:31:05 PM] Spades Slick: Just, uh.
  608. [8/8/2017 8:31:11 PM] Spades Slick: If it's going to get worse, just.
  609. [8/8/2017 8:31:15 PM] Spades Slick: No sense in delaying it.
  610. [8/8/2017 8:31:26 PM] Benny Fulmer: [...You nod a little.]
  611. [8/8/2017 8:31:27 PM] Benny Fulmer: Okay.
  612. [8/8/2017 8:31:42 PM] Benny Fulmer: I promise I'm, uh.
  613. [8/8/2017 8:31:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: Alright. With all of this.
  614. [8/8/2017 8:31:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: Too.
  615. [8/8/2017 8:32:00 PM] Spades Slick: ... Ok.
  616. [8/8/2017 8:32:08 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...So...
  617. [8/8/2017 9:01:36 PM] Benny Fulmer: La Volpe set off, for where I was.
  618. [8/8/2017 9:01:57 PM] Benny Fulmer: Ready to...
  619. [8/8/2017 9:02:01 PM] Benny Fulmer: "Do what had to be done".
  620. [8/8/2017 9:02:16 PM] Spades Slick: [You. Take a drink of his water.]
  621. [8/8/2017 9:02:37 PM] Benny Fulmer: Ezio followed him.
  622. [8/8/2017 9:02:54 PM | Edited 9:02:59 PM] Spades Slick: [Your shoulders visibly relax.]
  623. [8/8/2017 9:03:13 PM] Benny Fulmer: And, surprise surprise, he found news that, oh yeah, the traitor wasn't me.
  624. [8/8/2017 9:03:38 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...But Volpe was practically half a city away, rapidly closing in on me.
  625. [8/8/2017 9:04:51 PM] Benny Fulmer: So as soon as he had word of the news...
  626. [8/8/2017 9:05:03 PM] Benny Fulmer: He set off on a mad dash.
  627. [8/8/2017 9:05:30 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  628. [8/8/2017 9:06:52 PM] Benny Fulmer: And half a city away, on a balcony, enjoying the nighttime air...
  629. [8/8/2017 9:06:59 PM] Benny Fulmer: I was completely unaware of all this.
  630. [8/8/2017 9:07:34 PM] Spades Slick: [This is making you feel almost sick.]
  631. [8/8/2017 9:08:01 PM] Benny Fulmer: By the time Ezio caught up, practically wheezing from being out of breath -
  632. [8/8/2017 9:08:12 PM] Benny Fulmer: La Volpe was...
  633. [8/8/2017 9:08:25 PM] Benny Fulmer: I'd say about five feet from me.
  634. [8/8/2017 9:08:32 PM] Benny Fulmer: Dagger drawn and at the ready.
  635. [8/8/2017 9:08:50 PM] Spades Slick: [You tense up again.]
  636. [8/8/2017 9:09:48 PM] Benny Fulmer: But as soon as Ezio was within a couple feet of him, I heard him.
  637. [8/8/2017 9:10:08 PM] Benny Fulmer: "I found the actual traitor, you stubborn idiot."
  638. [8/8/2017 9:10:45 PM] Spades Slick: [Slight Relief]
  639. [8/8/2017 9:11:01 PM] Benny Fulmer: I whirled around at the sudden noise, and...
  640. [8/8/2017 9:11:32 PM] Benny Fulmer: There was my boyfriend, scarcely four feet from me, with a blade pointed at what had been my back.
  641. [8/8/2017 9:11:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: And Ezio, practically clinging to his arm.
  642. [8/8/2017 9:13:42 PM] Spades Slick: [You get angry at that description. You take another drink.]
  643. [8/8/2017 9:14:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You breathe in, and it's...a little shaky.]
  644. [8/8/2017 9:15:27 PM] Spades Slick: [It's gone like that, and you relax again and rub his hand with your thumb, shushing him.]
  645. [8/8/2017 9:16:41 PM] Benny Fulmer: I...ran over, asking them- asking Ezio, really, but looking at G- Volpe...
  646. [8/8/2017 9:16:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: "What do you mean, the actual traitor?"
  647. [8/8/2017 9:18:19 PM] Spades Slick: [You heard that stutter and sort of. Lean over him a little bit.]
  648. [8/8/2017 9:19:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...And Volpe bit his lip, but Ezio looked at him, and I...I didn't understand what that look meant then, but now I know it was...
  649. [8/8/2017 9:19:16 PM] Benny Fulmer: "Tell him the truth", basically.
  650. [8/8/2017 9:19:25 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You gulp a little.]
  651. [8/8/2017 9:19:34 PM] Spades Slick: [That'd make you furious, if you weren't so fucking worried about Mac right now.]
  652. [8/8/2017 9:22:16 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...And he did.
  653. [8/8/2017 9:22:27 PM] Benny Fulmer: I...I stood there, dumfounded, and...
  654. [8/8/2017 9:22:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: And he told me.
  655. [8/8/2017 9:23:18 PM] Benny Fulmer: How he'd...he'd been tricked, and misled, and untrustworthy, and...
  656. [8/8/2017 9:23:35 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You sniff.]
  657. [8/8/2017 9:23:46 PM] Spades Slick: [You shush him again.]
  658. [8/8/2017 9:23:53 PM] Spades Slick: (If you need to take a break, that's ok.)
  659. [8/8/2017 9:24:00 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You shake your head.]
  660. [8/8/2017 9:24:15 PM] Benny Fulmer: (If I stop now, I'll- I'll never finish.)
  661. [8/8/2017 9:26:28 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod, and kiss the top of his head very gently.]
  662. [8/8/2017 9:26:31 PM] Spades Slick: (Ok.)
  663. [8/8/2017 9:27:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You tear up More at that, but you wipe your eyes and try to power through.]
  664. [8/8/2017 9:27:59 PM] Benny Fulmer: And...how he'd come to...do what he thought...had to be done.
  665. [8/8/2017 9:30:02 PM] Benny Fulmer: And that he knew he.
  666. [8/8/2017 9:30:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: He was wrong.
  667. [8/8/2017 9:30:15 PM] Benny Fulmer: And was.
  668. [8/8/2017 9:30:18 PM] Benny Fulmer: Sorry.
  669. [8/8/2017 9:30:40 PM] Spades Slick: [That Doesn't Cut It, you think.]
  670. [8/8/2017 9:31:35 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...At least, he started to apologize, but I.
  671. [8/8/2017 9:31:43 PM] Benny Fulmer: I punched him before he could finish.
  672. [8/8/2017 9:33:01 PM] Spades Slick: [Relief. Your shoulders loosen up again.]
  673. [8/8/2017 9:35:43 PM | Edited 9:35:53 PM] Benny Fulmer: I looked over at Ezio, who started to open his mouth, and- and I punched him too.
  674. [8/8/2017 9:36:37 PM] Benny Fulmer: For letting it get this far and not telling me.
  675. [8/8/2017 9:37:07 PM] Spades Slick: Right.
  676. [8/8/2017 9:37:33 PM] Benny Fulmer: He told me he hadn't thought Volpe would...
  677. [8/8/2017 9:38:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: Would kill me, until it was too late, and he'd.
  678. [8/8/2017 9:38:08 PM] Benny Fulmer: Decided.
  679. [8/8/2017 9:44:05 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  680. [8/8/2017 9:44:28 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...So I.
  681. [8/8/2017 9:44:36 PM] Benny Fulmer: Turned back to Volpe.
  682. [8/8/2017 9:45:43 PM] Benny Fulmer: I pulled him up by his- his collar, and I. Sh-shook him. By the shoulders.
  683. [8/8/2017 9:46:20 PM] Benny Fulmer: And asked him if- if everything I'd done for him- w-with him-
  684. [8/8/2017 9:46:25 PM] Benny Fulmer: Had.
  685. [8/8/2017 9:46:31 PM | Edited 9:46:43 PM] Benny Fulmer: Meant s-so little.
  686. [8/8/2017 9:49:45 PM] Spades Slick: [You rub his hand again.]
  687. [8/8/2017 9:52:03 PM] Benny Fulmer: If- if every day- every night-
  688. [8/8/2017 9:52:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: [Your voice breaks a little at that.]
  689. [8/8/2017 9:52:32 PM] Benny Fulmer: -I'd spent by his side...
  690. [8/8/2017 9:53:03 PM] Benny Fulmer: If he'd ever e-ev(en trusted me at all.)
  691. [8/8/2017 9:54:43 PM] Spades Slick: [You wrap your arms around him and hug him against your chest, and lean over him again. You begin shushing him gently.]
  692. [8/8/2017 10:11:35 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You curl up. You're definitely crying, now, but you still continue.]
  693. [8/8/2017 10:12:29 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I was h-his pupil. His co- confidant.)
  694. [8/8/2017 10:13:24 PM] Benny Fulmer: (His- lover.)
  695. [8/8/2017 10:13:45 PM] Spades Slick: [You lean back slightly to pet his hair gently.]
  696. [8/8/2017 10:14:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I-I- I screamed a-at him- )
  697. [8/8/2017 10:15:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: ("You kn-know my own- my own mind b-better than I do.")
  698. [8/8/2017 10:16:10 PM] Spades Slick: [You hum quietly, in the hopes it will help him calm down a bit.]
  699. [8/8/2017 10:19:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: [It...sort of...does. A little. Only a little, but. A little. You manage to take a deep breath.]
  700. [8/8/2017 10:19:13 PM] Benny Fulmer: I...
  701. [8/8/2017 10:19:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: I s-stormed off.
  702. [8/8/2017 10:21:22 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  703. [8/8/2017 10:24:18 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Volpe told me, at- at that point, he...
  704. [8/8/2017 10:24:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: He wished he'd died before it could come to all this.
  705. [8/8/2017 10:25:19 PM] Spades Slick: [You feel bad about being mad now.]
  706. [8/8/2017 10:28:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...He went into hiding.
  707. [8/8/2017 10:28:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: I...I said it was good.
  708. [8/8/2017 10:29:05 PM] Benny Fulmer: Unsurprising.
  709. [8/8/2017 10:29:18 PM] Benny Fulmer: Called him a coward, more than once.
  710. [8/8/2017 10:37:50 PM] Spades Slick: [Another nod.]
  711. [8/8/2017 10:37:53 PM] Spades Slick: I would've too.
  712. [8/8/2017 10:41:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: It took...
  713. [8/8/2017 10:41:09 PM] Benny Fulmer: Time.
  714. [8/8/2017 10:41:13 PM] Benny Fulmer: After he returned.
  715. [8/8/2017 10:41:30 PM] Benny Fulmer: For me to even speak with him, save when strictly necessary.
  716. [8/8/2017 10:42:37 PM] Benny Fulmer: And even then, for...
  717. [8/8/2017 10:42:43 PM] Benny Fulmer: A month, two.
  718. [8/8/2017 10:42:54 PM] Benny Fulmer: I wouldn't even let him start to apologize.
  719. [8/8/2017 10:45:28 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  720. [8/8/2017 10:47:37 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...It wasn't until Ezio told me that...
  721. [8/8/2017 10:47:51 PM] Benny Fulmer: Seeing Volpe so miserable was almost unbearable for him, too.
  722. [8/8/2017 10:48:01 PM] Benny Fulmer: Not to guilt me into it.
  723. [8/8/2017 10:48:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: But as an honest confession.
  724. [8/8/2017 10:53:07 PM] Spades Slick: Right, yeah.
  725. [8/8/2017 10:53:18 PM] Spades Slick: He... It must've hurt seeing a friend like that.
  726. [8/8/2017 10:53:32 PM] Benny Fulmer: Ezio was always...
  727. [8/8/2017 10:53:41 PM] Benny Fulmer: Unspeakably empathetic.
  728. [8/8/2017 10:53:53 PM | Edited 10:54:08 PM] Benny Fulmer: He damn well might've felt worse.
  729. [8/8/2017 10:57:01 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod again.]
  730. [8/8/2017 10:57:22 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...So I heard him out.
  731. [8/8/2017 10:57:29 PM] Benny Fulmer: And I spoke to him...
  732. [8/8/2017 10:57:33 PM] Benny Fulmer: More, after that.
  733. [8/8/2017 10:57:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: We rebuilt the bond between us brick by brick.
  734. [8/8/2017 10:58:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: And to his credit, Volpe nearly went out of his way to provide opportunities for me to regain his trust in him.
  735. [8/8/2017 11:05:43 PM] Spades Slick: I'm glad to hear he made an effort.
  736. [8/8/2017 11:07:57 PM] Benny Fulmer: He...
  737. [8/8/2017 11:08:00 PM] Benny Fulmer: He really did.
  738. [8/8/2017 11:08:58 PM | Removed 11:09:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: This message has been removed.
  739. [8/8/2017 11:10:03 PM] Benny Fulmer: Which is why, after the thousandth time he told me he wanted to make things right, he trusted me with his life, and he loved me...
  740. [8/8/2017 11:10:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: I...
  741. [8/8/2017 11:10:13 PM] Benny Fulmer: Took him at his word.
  742. [8/8/2017 11:24:07 PM] Spades Slick: ... You took him back?
  743. [8/8/2017 11:24:41 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...I did.
  744. [8/8/2017 11:24:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: It...
  745. [8/8/2017 11:25:03 PM] Benny Fulmer: It felt like I was missing a part of my soul, when...
  746. [8/8/2017 11:25:12 PM] Benny Fulmer: When we were apart.
  747. [8/8/2017 11:25:30 PM] Benny Fulmer: My bed...was...
  748. [8/8/2017 11:25:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: So empty.
  749. [8/8/2017 11:26:42 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod, very gently.]
  750. [8/8/2017 11:26:51 PM] Spades Slick: I... Understand that feeling.
  751. [8/8/2017 11:27:42 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Yeah.
  752. [8/8/2017 11:27:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: So, uh.
  753. [8/8/2017 11:27:56 PM] Benny Fulmer: Try not to scream when I say this, but.
  754. [8/8/2017 11:28:09 PM] Benny Fulmer: Thus ends the first terrible thing I have forgiven La Volpe for.
  755. [8/8/2017 11:28:29 PM] Spades Slick: ...
  756. [8/8/2017 11:28:57 PM] Spades Slick: It... Can't be as bad as almost killing you, right?
  757. [8/8/2017 11:29:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...
  758. [8/8/2017 11:29:22 PM] Spades Slick: ... Right?
  759. [8/8/2017 11:29:33 PM] Benny Fulmer: Well, I...
  760. [8/8/2017 11:29:35 PM] Benny Fulmer: I mean...
  761. [8/8/2017 11:30:04 PM] Benny Fulmer: I guess. Maybe. You could.
  762. [8/8/2017 11:30:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: Consider it.
  763. [8/8/2017 11:30:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: That.
  764. [8/8/2017 11:30:10 PM] Benny Fulmer: If you wanted.
  765. [8/8/2017 11:30:15 PM] Spades Slick: ...
  766. [8/8/2017 11:30:21 PM] Spades Slick: What did he do.
  767. [8/8/2017 11:30:28 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...We can, uh.
  768. [8/8/2017 11:30:30 PM] Benny Fulmer: We can break.
  769. [8/8/2017 11:30:32 PM] Benny Fulmer: For intermission.
  770. [8/8/2017 11:30:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: If you want.
  771. [8/8/2017 11:31:14 PM] Spades Slick: ... That'd.
  772. [8/8/2017 11:31:23 PM] Spades Slick: Probably be a good idea, yeah.
  773. [8/8/2017 11:31:34 PM] Spades Slick: Just for a couple minutes.
  774. [8/8/2017 11:31:38 PM] Benny Fulmer: Yeah.
  775. [8/8/2017 11:31:46 PM] Benny Fulmer: Get some, uh. Snacks. Refreshments. Maybe.
  776. [8/8/2017 11:32:07 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  777. [8/8/2017 11:32:17 PM] Spades Slick: I could use a. Stiff drink, honestly.
  778. [8/8/2017 11:32:23 PM] Spades Slick: If that's okay with you.
  779. [8/8/2017 11:32:41 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...I mean, I could, too, but...
  780. [8/8/2017 11:33:42 PM] Spades Slick: ... Only if you're sure, and only if you eat first.
  781. [8/8/2017 11:33:57 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...
  782. [8/8/2017 11:34:00 PM] Benny Fulmer: Fffffine.
  783. [8/8/2017 11:34:09 PM] Benny Fulmer: Curse your insistence upon my physical wellbeing.
  784. [8/8/2017 11:34:18 PM] Spades Slick: [You grin a little.]
  785. [8/8/2017 11:34:56 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You like. Noodge him with your shoulder, playfully, and then scoot back to your own chair.]
  786. [8/8/2017 11:35:16 PM] Spades Slick: [You get up, and gesture to the little fridge.]
  787. [8/8/2017 11:35:24 PM] Spades Slick: There's stuff in there, but, uh.
  788. [8/8/2017 11:35:33 PM] Spades Slick: I'll warn you, it's. It's all Irish food.
  789. [8/8/2017 11:35:52 PM] Spades Slick: Like. Aggressively Irish.
  790. [8/8/2017 11:36:46 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...D'you mean, like.
  791. [8/8/2017 11:36:48 PM] Benny Fulmer: Potatoes.
  792. [8/8/2017 11:36:56 PM] Benny Fulmer: 'Cause I can do potatoes.
  793. [8/8/2017 11:37:11 PM] Spades Slick: There isn't a single thing in there that doesn't have potatoes.
  794. [8/8/2017 11:38:23 PM] Benny Fulmer: I survived off a diet consisting of 90% potato chips for a month, so I think I can manage.
  795. [8/8/2017 11:38:59 PM] Spades Slick: Oh, don't tell Mark that, he'll scream.
  796. [8/8/2017 11:39:46 PM] Benny Fulmer: That's the guy who lived off of potatoes on Mars, right?
  797. [8/8/2017 11:39:51 PM] Benny Fulmer: He told me to say hi to his...double?
  798. [8/8/2017 11:39:55 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  799. [8/8/2017 11:40:05 PM] Spades Slick: There's two of them, around here.
  800. [8/8/2017 11:40:26 PM] Benny Fulmer: Oh, geez.
  801. [8/8/2017 11:40:36 PM] Benny Fulmer: And here I thought having two Leonardos was trouble enough.
  802. [8/8/2017 11:41:15 PM] Spades Slick: ... There's a lot of doubles here.
  803. [8/8/2017 11:42:13 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Well.
  804. [8/8/2017 11:42:33 PM] Benny Fulmer: Uh...
  805. [8/8/2017 11:43:06 PM] Spades Slick: ... Anyway, you pick something out, and I'll heat it up for you.
  806. [8/8/2017 11:43:32 PM] Benny Fulmer: -Right. Yeah. Yeah.
  807. [8/8/2017 11:43:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: Will do.
  808. [8/8/2017 11:43:39 PM] Benny Fulmer: I mean, if you-
  809. [8/8/2017 11:43:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: You're sure you won't eat it?
  810. [8/8/2017 11:43:45 PM] Benny Fulmer: Need it?
  811. [8/8/2017 11:44:04 PM] Spades Slick: Nah. Any portion small enough for you won't do any good for me.
  812. [8/8/2017 11:44:13 PM] Spades Slick: [You open up your secret room.]
  813. [8/8/2017 11:44:19 PM | Edited 11:44:24 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Guess you're ri-
  814. [8/8/2017 11:44:29 PM | Edited 11:44:46 PM] Benny Fulmer: HOOOOOOOOLY FUCK THAT'S SICK.
  815. [8/8/2017 11:44:45 PM] Spades Slick: [Snrk.]
  816. [8/8/2017 11:44:57 PM] Spades Slick: It's where I keep stuff I don't want the kids to get into.
  817. [8/8/2017 11:45:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: Ah, yes.
  818. [8/8/2017 11:45:30 PM] Benny Fulmer: Darn kids these days and their grabby hands and their tech-nology.
  819. [8/8/2017 11:45:52 PM | Edited 11:46:42 PM] Spades Slick: [You glance at the suit in the room.]
  820. [8/8/2017 11:45:55 PM] Spades Slick: Right.
  821. [8/8/2017 11:46:44 PM | Edited 11:47:05 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You, fortunately, don't notice, because you're making a beeline for the minifridge. You're rubbing your hands together like a nasty little fly.]
  822. [8/8/2017 11:47:10 PM] Spades Slick: [You go get some easy alcohol.]
  823. [8/8/2017 11:47:17 PM] Benny Fulmer: Alright, what do we have in here for papa...
  824. [8/8/2017 11:47:30 PM] Benny Fulmer: [Open- jesus christ he wasn't kidding about the potatoes.]
  825. [8/8/2017 11:52:35 PM | Edited 11:54:51 PM] Spades Slick: [You end up grabbing some schnapps. It's the lowest percent alcohol you have.]
  826. [8/8/2017 11:56:28 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You pull out a loaded baked potato. You're a goddamn sucker for anything with cheese and bacon. You quietly sing an angelic "AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH" as you pull it out.]
  827. [8/8/2017 11:56:41 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Oh, you are just the most beautiful thing I have ever seen.)
  828. [8/8/2017 11:57:35 PM] Spades Slick: [You return with glasses and schnapps.]
  829. [8/8/2017 11:59:01 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You shuffle back over to the table.]
  830. [8/8/2017 11:59:09 PM] Benny Fulmer: -Ooh, you weren't kidding about stiff drinks.
  831. [8/8/2017 11:59:19 PM] Benny Fulmer: Granted, I guess for me, this is more medium-range-
  832. [8/8/2017 11:59:40 PM] Spades Slick: ... This is the weakest stuff I have.
  833. [8/9/2017 12:03:11 AM] Benny Fulmer: ...
  834. [8/9/2017 12:03:17 AM] Benny Fulmer: Well.
  835. [8/9/2017 12:03:22 AM] Benny Fulmer: I'm not complaining.
  836. [8/9/2017 12:05:47 AM] Benny Fulmer: Oh, also, uh-
  837. [8/9/2017 12:05:52 AM] Benny Fulmer: Didn't see a microwave?
  838. [8/9/2017 12:05:59 AM] Spades Slick: [You set them down and then freeze.]
  839. [8/9/2017 12:06:17 AM] Benny Fulmer: ...Do you have like.
  840. [8/9/2017 12:06:19 AM] Benny Fulmer: An old.
  841. [8/9/2017 12:06:23 AM] Benny Fulmer: Granny-style microwave.
  842. [8/9/2017 12:07:35 AM] Spades Slick: ... Uhm.
  843. [8/9/2017 12:07:54 AM] Spades Slick: Y. Yeah! Yeah, I do, it's.
  844. [8/9/2017 12:08:00 AM] Spades Slick: In the other room!
  845. [8/9/2017 12:08:08 AM] Benny Fulmer: Oh!
  846. [8/9/2017 12:08:17 AM] Benny Fulmer: That makes sense, I guess.
  847. [8/9/2017 12:08:29 AM] Benny Fulmer: You should probably put your fridge in the same room, though.
  848. [8/9/2017 12:08:34 AM] Benny Fulmer: I imagine it's really inconvenient.
  849. [8/9/2017 12:08:40 AM] Spades Slick: ... Yeah.
  850. [8/9/2017 12:10:52 AM] Benny Fulmer: Um-
  851. [8/9/2017 12:10:57 AM] Benny Fulmer: I can pour us drinks while you do that?
  852. [8/9/2017 12:14:40 AM] Spades Slick: Yeah! Yeah, that'll work fine.
  853. [8/9/2017 12:14:50 AM] Spades Slick: [You grab his potato. P h ew.]
  854. [8/9/2017 12:16:35 AM] Spades Slick: It shouldn't take too long.
  855. [8/9/2017 12:16:40 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You nod.]
  856. [8/9/2017 12:16:46 AM] Benny Fulmer: I'll kick back and relax in the meantime.
  857. [8/9/2017 12:18:20 AM] Spades Slick: [You nod, and walk into the other room and let out a quiet, but massive, sigh of relief.]
  858. [8/9/2017 12:18:57 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You pour your drinks, taking your glass and leeeeeeaning way back in your chair. Sssssiiiiiip.]
  859. [8/9/2017 12:19:21 AM] Spades Slick: [You activate Incinerate! as quietly as you can and. Heat up the potato.]
  860. [8/9/2017 12:21:54 AM] Benny Fulmer: [Oh. Oh shit, this is good.]
  861. [8/9/2017 12:21:59 AM] Benny Fulmer: HEY, UH-
  862. [8/9/2017 12:22:01 AM] Benny Fulmer: [...]
  863. [8/9/2017 12:22:03 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You.]
  864. [8/9/2017 12:22:09 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You don't know this man's name.]
  865. [8/9/2017 12:22:21 AM] Benny Fulmer: [And you've cried in his lap. Like.]
  866. [8/9/2017 12:22:26 AM] Benny Fulmer: [Three times already.]
  867. [8/9/2017 12:22:58 AM] Spades Slick: [You are trying So Hard not to burn this potato.]
  868. [8/9/2017 12:23:24 AM] Benny Fulmer: -BIG. DUDE!
  869. [8/9/2017 12:23:27 AM] Benny Fulmer: THIS!
  870. [8/9/2017 12:23:30 AM] Benny Fulmer: TASTES GOOD!
  871. [8/9/2017 12:23:41 AM] Benny Fulmer: [Somehow you feel even worse?]
  872. [8/9/2017 12:23:43 AM] Spades Slick: U-UH-
  873. [8/9/2017 12:23:46 AM] Spades Slick: THANKS?
  874. [8/9/2017 12:24:18 AM] Spades Slick: [You nearly scorch it then. Fuck. Hopefully it's not still cold in the middle.]
  875. [8/9/2017 12:25:03 AM] Spades Slick: IT'S ALMOST DONE.
  876. [8/9/2017 12:25:11 AM] Benny Fulmer: OKAY!!! TAKE YOUR TIME!!!
  877. [8/9/2017 12:25:15 AM] Spades Slick: [You shake your hand to try and put it out.]
  878. [8/9/2017 12:25:40 AM] Benny Fulmer: [...Loooooooooong sip. You're gonna be half done with your glass by the time he comes in. So much for eating first.]
  879. [8/9/2017 12:26:45 AM] Spades Slick: [You bring the potato back out.]
  880. [8/9/2017 12:26:52 AM] Spades Slick: -Hey, food first.
  881. [8/9/2017 12:27:00 AM] Benny Fulmer: ...Sorry.
  882. [8/9/2017 12:27:13 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You guiltily put your glass back on the table.]
  883. [8/9/2017 12:27:27 AM] Spades Slick: [You set the plate down in front of him.]
  884. [8/9/2017 12:27:36 AM] Spades Slick: I just. Don't want you getting sick.
  885. [8/9/2017 12:28:03 AM] Benny Fulmer: I...I've got a tough stomach, I'll be fine.
  886. [8/9/2017 12:28:05 AM] Benny Fulmer: I just.
  887. [8/9/2017 12:28:09 AM] Benny Fulmer: Felt bad because I...
  888. [8/9/2017 12:28:15 AM] Benny Fulmer: Didn't, uh...
  889. [8/9/2017 12:28:16 AM] Benny Fulmer: I.
  890. [8/9/2017 12:28:20 AM] Spades Slick: [You bite the inside of your lip.]
  891. [8/9/2017 12:28:22 AM] Benny Fulmer: I forgot to ask your name.
  892. [8/9/2017 12:28:35 AM] Spades Slick: ... Oh, right.
  893. [8/9/2017 12:29:12 AM] Spades Slick: Uh. I'm Jack Kelly, but. You can call me Delta, if you want.
  894. [8/9/2017 12:29:15 AM] Spades Slick: Most people do.
  895. [8/9/2017 12:29:22 AM] Spades Slick: [You hold out your hand.]
  896. [8/9/2017 12:30:10 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You shake it, embarrassedly. He...does have a nice warm hand. You assume it's somehow because of his warm personality.]
  897. [8/9/2017 12:30:23 AM] Benny Fulmer: ...Sorry for.
  898. [8/9/2017 12:30:25 AM] Benny Fulmer: Botching that.
  899. [8/9/2017 12:30:31 AM] Spades Slick: Nah, it's okay.
  900. [8/9/2017 12:30:40 AM] Spades Slick: We both got distracted.
  901. [8/9/2017 12:30:47 AM] Spades Slick: [You take a seat.]
  902. [8/9/2017 12:32:19 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You look at the potaTHOLY SHIT IT LOOKS EVEN MORE APPETIZING. You get star-eyes and your mouth waters.]
  903. [8/9/2017 12:32:23 AM] Benny Fulmer: ...Fork.
  904. [8/9/2017 12:32:24 AM] Benny Fulmer: Fork.
  905. [8/9/2017 12:32:27 AM] Benny Fulmer: Please.
  906. [8/9/2017 12:34:46 AM] Spades Slick: Right!
  907. [8/9/2017 12:34:55 AM] Spades Slick: [You jump up, and grab one for him.]
  908. [8/9/2017 12:35:03 AM] Spades Slick: I knew I was fork-getting something.
  909. [8/9/2017 12:35:24 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You freeze at that, and then.
  910.  
  911. Put your head in your hands.]
  912. [8/9/2017 12:35:31 AM] Benny Fulmer: Oh my fucking god.
  913. [8/9/2017 12:36:13 AM] Spades Slick: [You laugh at your own joke as you set the fork down next to his plate.]
  914. [8/9/2017 12:36:20 AM] Benny Fulmer: That was.
  915. [8/9/2017 12:36:23 AM] Benny Fulmer: That was horrible.
  916. [8/9/2017 12:36:27 AM] Benny Fulmer: That was absolutely awful.
  917. [8/9/2017 12:36:40 AM] Benny Fulmer: [Your tone doesn't sound like that's what you think.]
  918. [8/9/2017 12:36:44 AM] Spades Slick: I'm a dad making up for lost time.
  919. [8/9/2017 12:37:13 AM] Benny Fulmer: ...Lost time?
  920. [8/9/2017 12:37:21 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You lift your head from your hands.]
  921. [8/9/2017 12:37:24 AM] Spades Slick: ...
  922. [8/9/2017 12:37:33 AM] Spades Slick: That's, uh.
  923. [8/9/2017 12:37:45 AM] Spades Slick: A loaded question unfortunately.
  924. [8/9/2017 12:37:55 AM] Spades Slick: That we can talk about later.
  925. [8/9/2017 12:38:01 AM] Benny Fulmer: ...I gotta be at least a level 5 friend to unlock that tragic backstory, huh.
  926. [8/9/2017 12:38:29 AM] Spades Slick: No, I just. Don't want to interrupt your venting beyond what we already have.
  927. [8/9/2017 12:38:40 AM] Benny Fulmer: Well, I mean-
  928. [8/9/2017 12:38:51 AM] Benny Fulmer: I've gotten to vent a lot, so I get it if you want to.
  929. [8/9/2017 12:39:09 AM] Spades Slick: ... It's... Going to be a lot.
  930. [8/9/2017 12:39:28 AM] Spades Slick: And I think you should finish up first, anyway.
  931. [8/9/2017 12:39:35 AM] Spades Slick: [You take a drink.]
  932. [8/9/2017 12:39:51 AM] Benny Fulmer: ...Yeah, okay, logistically, it's probably best for me to finish.
  933. [8/9/2017 12:39:53 AM] Benny Fulmer: But.
  934. [8/9/2017 12:40:05 AM] Benny Fulmer: You gotta promise me you won't put yourself on the backburner, alright?
  935. [8/9/2017 12:40:16 AM] Benny Fulmer: Soon as I'm done, provided I'm not bawling again-
  936. [8/9/2017 12:40:18 AM] Benny Fulmer: It's your turn.
  937. [8/9/2017 12:40:25 AM] Spades Slick: Promise.
  938. [8/9/2017 12:40:30 AM] Benny Fulmer: Cool.
  939. [8/9/2017 12:40:53 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You pick up the fork and OH RIGHT FOOD you fucking Dig In like you haven't eaten in a week.]
  940. [8/9/2017 12:44:19 AM] Spades Slick: [You smile a little, and take another sip.]
  941. [8/9/2017 12:44:32 AM] Spades Slick: Go a little slower, if you can. Don't wanna get hiccups.
  942. [8/9/2017 12:44:59 AM] Benny Fulmer: [...You reluctantly do so.]
  943. [8/9/2017 12:48:07 AM] Spades Slick: [Another sip.]
  944. [8/9/2017 12:50:41 AM] Benny Fulmer: [After about a third of the potato is gone, you hold up your glass to him, like, "Can I drink this now?"]
  945. [8/9/2017 12:53:13 AM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  946. [8/9/2017 12:53:21 AM] Spades Slick: Go ahead.
  947. [8/9/2017 12:57:03 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You down your remaining half-glass, and pause for a moment (so you don't get chastised), and then...go right back to eating.]
  948. [8/9/2017 12:59:37 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You look. Really happy.]
  949. [8/9/2017 1:00:52 AM] Spades Slick: [You smile a little at how happy he looks. It's warm and genuine.]
  950. [8/9/2017 1:03:12 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You finally stop at. Half a potato, and lean back a little bit.]
  951. [8/9/2017 1:03:19 AM] Benny Fulmer: Oooooooooooooooooooh my fuck.
  952. [8/9/2017 1:03:31 AM] Benny Fulmer: If it hadn't been for Volpe's cooking, that...
  953. [8/9/2017 1:03:43 AM | Edited 1:03:47 AM] Benny Fulmer: That would've been the best thing I've ever eaten. Probably.
  954. [8/9/2017 1:08:15 AM | Edited 1:08:19 AM] Spades Slick: [You grin a little.]
  955. [8/9/2017 1:08:30 AM] Spades Slick: Yeah, he's pretty spectacular at that.
  956. [8/9/2017 1:09:57 AM] Benny Fulmer: He really is.
  957. [8/9/2017 1:10:19 AM] Benny Fulmer: It's...
  958. [8/9/2017 1:10:25 AM] Benny Fulmer: I don't know, nostalgic?
  959. [8/9/2017 1:10:33 AM] Benny Fulmer: -Sentimental, that's it.
  960. [8/9/2017 1:10:41 AM] Benny Fulmer: His food is...sentimental. To me.
  961. [8/9/2017 1:11:12 AM] Benny Fulmer: [...That was sappy. You pour yourself some more schnapps.]
  962. [8/9/2017 1:12:01 AM] Spades Slick: [You nod. That makes sense.]
  963. [8/9/2017 1:14:00 AM] Benny Fulmer: [Siiiiiiip. And then. Back to potato.]
  964. [8/9/2017 1:14:08 AM] Benny Fulmer: [God, you love this potato.]
  965. [8/9/2017 1:17:52 AM] Spades Slick: [You finally finish off your drink, and pour another.]
  966. [8/9/2017 1:19:37 AM] Benny Fulmer: ...Did you, uh.
  967. [8/9/2017 1:19:39 AM] Benny Fulmer: Make this.
  968. [8/9/2017 1:19:40 AM] Benny Fulmer: Potato?
  969. [8/9/2017 1:19:50 AM] Spades Slick: Oh, uh.
  970. [8/9/2017 1:19:52 AM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  971. [8/9/2017 1:20:23 AM] Spades Slick: I've been. Making more food for myself, ever since my husband got me some tools I could actually hold.
  972. [8/9/2017 1:21:32 AM] Benny Fulmer: ...Yeah, I can see how that'd be a problem you'd run into.
  973. [8/9/2017 1:21:57 AM] Benny Fulmer: Your husband's Sinclair, right?
  974. [8/9/2017 1:23:54 AM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  975. [8/9/2017 1:24:51 AM] Spades Slick: [You seem a little Dreamy when you say that.]
  976. [8/9/2017 1:26:31 AM] Benny Fulmer: He called me a whippersnapper and told me to be careful not to start a firecracker under my own ass.
  977. [8/9/2017 1:26:38 AM] Benny Fulmer: [Monch monch monch.]
  978. [8/9/2017 1:26:51 AM] Spades Slick: [You snrk loudly.]
  979. [8/9/2017 1:27:47 AM] Benny Fulmer: Also that I reminded him a little bit of himself, if he had "no filter" and "a tumblr account".
  980. [8/9/2017 1:28:12 AM | Edited 1:28:22 AM] Spades Slick: ... He's right, yeah.
  981. [8/9/2017 1:32:13 AM] Benny Fulmer: I feel kinda bad for him, then, because ouch.
  982. [8/9/2017 1:32:26 AM] Benny Fulmer: I've had exactly 43 callouts on Tumblr Dot Com.
  983. [8/9/2017 1:35:56 AM] Spades Slick: Why so many?
  984. [8/9/2017 1:37:12 AM] Benny Fulmer: The Discourse.
  985. [8/9/2017 1:39:01 AM] Spades Slick: [You take another sip of your drink.]
  986. [8/9/2017 1:39:15 AM] Spades Slick: Right.
  987. [8/9/2017 1:39:30 AM] Benny Fulmer: Not really, though.
  988. [8/9/2017 1:39:42 AM] Benny Fulmer: It's mostly just that I create a deliberately hateable persona because it's fun.
  989. [8/9/2017 1:39:56 AM] Benny Fulmer: Also because it gains a lot of ad revenue that I use to buy weed.
  990. [8/9/2017 1:40:42 AM] Spades Slick: [You snrk loudly.]
  991. [8/9/2017 1:42:01 AM | Edited 1:42:10 AM] Benny Fulmer: So many anti-sjw's get mad if you respond to their multi-paragraph-long spiel with "piss?"
  992. [8/9/2017 1:42:28 AM] Benny Fulmer: Or the exact same thing they typed, but with random words bolded.
  993. [8/9/2017 1:42:58 AM] Benny Fulmer: Or a video of yourself performing obscene acts to a banana.
  994. [8/9/2017 1:43:11 AM] Spades Slick: [Your grin just grows.]
  995. [8/9/2017 1:44:32 AM] Benny Fulmer: The key is to actually give thought-out responses just often enough that they don't write you off.
  996. [8/9/2017 1:44:52 AM] Spades Slick: Right.
  997. [8/9/2017 1:44:55 AM] Benny Fulmer: If you give them enough bait, they're damn near Pavlovian.
  998. [8/9/2017 1:45:12 AM] Benny Fulmer: Every single time you make a new post, ring-a-ding-ding, here they come!
  999. [8/9/2017 1:47:35 AM] Benny Fulmer: To get their asses slam dunked in the garbage where they belong!
  1000. [8/9/2017 1:49:22 AM] Spades Slick: [Hell yeah. You lift your glass in a small toast, and take a drink.]
  1001. [8/9/2017 1:49:40 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You clink your glass against his before you take a drink, too.]
  1002. [8/9/2017 1:50:33 AM] Benny Fulmer: Good times.
  1003. [8/9/2017 1:50:50 AM | Edited 1:53:09 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You set to finishing the rest of your potato, now.]
  1004. [8/9/2017 1:51:40 AM] Spades Slick: [You refill your glass. You went through that one a lot quicker than you would've liked, but oh well.]
  1005. [8/9/2017 1:54:08 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You're almost done with your own glass, but you're saving the last of it for when you finish your potato. Which you do, in one Giant scoop, because honestly...your anxiousness to continue the conversation is gnawing at your brain.
  1006.  
  1007. Sip.]
  1008. [8/9/2017 1:54:54 AM | Edited 1:55:12 AM] Benny Fulmer: Now, if only having 69,000 followers could cure my depression...
  1009. [8/9/2017 1:55:56 AM] Spades Slick: You should talk to Zenyatta for help about that.
  1010. [8/9/2017 1:58:02 AM] Benny Fulmer: ...Maybe.
  1011. [8/9/2017 1:58:12 AM] Benny Fulmer: I tried therapy, and it...didn't really work out.
  1012. [8/9/2017 1:58:24 AM] Benny Fulmer: Granted, self-medicating...heavily, is.
  1013. [8/9/2017 1:58:30 AM] Benny Fulmer: Not working so great either.
  1014. [8/9/2017 3:24:02 PM] Spades Slick: You'd do well to talk to Zenyatta.
  1015. [8/9/2017 3:24:16 PM] Spades Slick: He's a monk.
  1016. [8/9/2017 3:26:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...He's not, like.
  1017. [8/9/2017 3:26:10 PM] Benny Fulmer: Preachy about it, is he?
  1018. [8/9/2017 3:30:37 PM] Spades Slick: Not at all! Very down to earth.
  1019. [8/9/2017 3:30:50 PM] Spades Slick: He also likes to cook.
  1020. [8/9/2017 3:32:53 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Huh.
  1021. [8/9/2017 3:33:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: Is it acceptable if I visit solely for the food. At least in theory.
  1022. [8/9/2017 3:33:55 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah. He can't really eat it anyway.
  1023. [8/9/2017 3:35:11 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...He can't?
  1024. [8/9/2017 3:38:30 PM] Spades Slick: He's a robot.
  1025. [8/9/2017 3:40:53 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...I really need to meet him now.
  1026. [8/9/2017 3:42:11 PM] Spades Slick: He's... 20?
  1027. [8/9/2017 3:42:30 PM] Spades Slick: He can't even legally drink and it baffles me just how knowledgable he is.
  1028. [8/9/2017 3:45:42 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...Mildly intimidating, but also fascinating.
  1029. [8/9/2017 3:46:52 PM | Edited 3:47:03 PM] Benny Fulmer: Partially because he's apparently younger than me, and. Already a monk.
  1030. [8/9/2017 3:46:52 PM | Edited 3:48:00 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah, it's pretty amazing.
  1031. [8/9/2017 3:51:13 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...I'll go talk to him sometime, then.
  1032. [8/9/2017 3:51:33 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You sip the last bit of your schnapps.]
  1033. [8/9/2017 3:58:37 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod, and take a drink.]
  1034. [8/9/2017 4:00:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: [Your potato and your drink are both gone. You pause for a second.]
  1035. [8/9/2017 4:00:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...You, uh.
  1036. [8/9/2017 4:00:53 PM] Benny Fulmer: You ready to.
  1037. [8/9/2017 4:00:55 PM] Benny Fulmer: Go back?
  1038. [8/9/2017 4:01:34 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  1039. [8/9/2017 4:04:26 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You nod a little, and.
  1040.  
  1041. Decide pouring yourself one last glass wouldn't hurt.]
  1042. [8/9/2017 4:04:42 PM] Spades Slick: [Small nod.]
  1043. [8/9/2017 4:06:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: Well, uh.
  1044. [8/9/2017 4:07:04 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You pick up your glass, and lean back in your chair.]
  1045. [8/9/2017 4:07:10 PM] Benny Fulmer: The good news is, this one is a lot simpler.
  1046. [8/9/2017 4:07:29 PM] Spades Slick: Alright.
  1047. [8/9/2017 4:08:58 PM] Benny Fulmer: Basically, uh...
  1048. [8/9/2017 4:08:59 PM] Benny Fulmer: So.
  1049. [8/9/2017 4:09:04 PM] Benny Fulmer: This was years-
  1050. [8/9/2017 4:09:05 PM] Benny Fulmer: A long time.
  1051. [8/9/2017 4:09:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: Later.
  1052. [8/9/2017 4:10:41 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  1053. [8/9/2017 4:11:51 PM] Benny Fulmer: It was actually, uh...
  1054. [8/9/2017 4:11:57 PM] Benny Fulmer: Less than ten years before I died.
  1055. [8/9/2017 4:12:24 PM] Benny Fulmer: And it...at the time, didn't look like it had.
  1056. [8/9/2017 4:12:28 PM] Benny Fulmer: Anything leading up to it.
  1057. [8/9/2017 4:17:00 PM] Spades Slick: ...
  1058. [8/9/2017 4:17:16 PM] Spades Slick: [You don't like where this is going.]
  1059. [8/9/2017 4:19:29 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...
  1060. [8/9/2017 4:19:37 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You bite your lip.]
  1061. [8/9/2017 4:19:39 PM] Benny Fulmer: It's...
  1062. [8/9/2017 4:19:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: It's probably easiest to just.
  1063. [8/9/2017 4:19:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: Say all at once.
  1064. [8/9/2017 4:19:54 PM] Benny Fulmer: If.
  1065. [8/9/2017 4:19:56 PM] Benny Fulmer: That's okay with you.
  1066. [8/9/2017 4:20:54 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  1067. [8/9/2017 4:20:57 PM] Spades Slick: Go ahead.
  1068. [8/9/2017 4:21:10 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...
  1069. [8/9/2017 4:21:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: He.
  1070. [8/9/2017 4:21:28 PM] Benny Fulmer: In the. Dead of night.
  1071. [8/9/2017 4:21:35 PM] Benny Fulmer: Left me, Leonardo, and Ezio without a word.
  1072. [8/9/2017 4:21:39 PM] Benny Fulmer: And never came back.
  1073. [8/9/2017 4:23:58 PM] Spades Slick: ...
  1074. [8/9/2017 4:24:11 PM] Spades Slick: [You down the rest of your glass.]
  1075. [8/9/2017 4:24:19 PM] Benny Fulmer: [Fuck, you down half of yours.]
  1076. [8/9/2017 4:24:38 PM] Benny Fulmer: Not even when either of us died.
  1077. [8/9/2017 4:26:19 PM] Spades Slick: [You start to refill your glass, but stop. Your hand is shaking slightly. You don't want to break any of the glass here.]
  1078. [8/9/2017 4:27:28 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You see that, and. Put your glass down, before gently placing your hand on one of his.]
  1079. [8/9/2017 4:28:55 PM] Spades Slick: [You stop shaking just like that.]
  1080. [8/9/2017 4:28:58 PM] Spades Slick: (Sorry.)
  1081. [8/9/2017 4:29:11 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...It's okay.)
  1082. [8/9/2017 4:29:17 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Should I...stop?)
  1083. [8/9/2017 4:30:22 PM] Spades Slick: (No, no, it's okay.)
  1084. [8/9/2017 4:30:36 PM] Spades Slick: (It'd... Be best if you continued, anyway.)
  1085. [8/9/2017 4:30:45 PM] Benny Fulmer: [...You nod a little.]
  1086. [8/9/2017 4:30:59 PM] Benny Fulmer: It...was...
  1087. [8/9/2017 4:31:05 PM] Benny Fulmer: It was.
  1088. [8/9/2017 4:31:11 PM] Benny Fulmer: Harder for me to forgive.
  1089. [8/9/2017 4:31:17 PM] Benny Fulmer: Than him trying to kill me.
  1090. [8/9/2017 4:31:37 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  1091. [8/9/2017 4:32:04 PM] Benny Fulmer: Because...
  1092. [8/9/2017 4:32:11 PM] Benny Fulmer: Well, for, one thing, I.
  1093. [8/9/2017 4:32:25 PM] Benny Fulmer: I had no one in front of me...to forgive.
  1094. [8/9/2017 4:33:07 PM] Spades Slick: [Another nod.]
  1095. [8/9/2017 4:36:19 PM] Benny Fulmer: But, for another, I...
  1096. [8/9/2017 4:36:29 PM] Benny Fulmer: Well, when he almost killed me, I.
  1097. [8/9/2017 4:36:33 PM] Benny Fulmer: At least.
  1098. [8/9/2017 4:36:38 PM] Benny Fulmer: I kind of wanted to.
  1099. [8/9/2017 4:36:43 PM] Benny Fulmer: Die already, but.
  1100. [8/9/2017 4:36:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: I never...
  1101. [8/9/2017 4:36:58 PM] Benny Fulmer: The last thing, I. I could've wanted, was-
  1102. [8/9/2017 4:37:04 PM] Benny Fulmer: Him. Leaving me.
  1103. [8/9/2017 4:38:40 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  1104. [8/9/2017 4:39:20 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You're starting to tear up again. You pick up your glass again and take another sip.]
  1105. [8/9/2017 4:39:34 PM] Spades Slick: [You rub his hand with your thumb.]
  1106. [8/9/2017 4:40:44 PM] Benny Fulmer: I went through every stage of grief, and then I went through them again, and I kept- wallowing through them, back and forth.
  1107. [8/9/2017 4:41:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: I hated him. I needed him. I couldn't understand him. I cursed him. I cried for him. I longed for him.
  1108. [8/9/2017 4:42:27 PM] Benny Fulmer: I wrote to him, I tore up my letters, I screamed at the sky, I locked myself away, I deprived myself, I indulged myself, I wept.
  1109. [8/9/2017 4:43:32 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod gently, and keep rubbing his hand gently.]
  1110. [8/9/2017 4:44:22 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You're crying, but it's less the...hiccuping and sobbing kind, and more the...there are hitches in your breath and tears rolling down your face kind.]
  1111. [8/9/2017 4:44:54 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I don't know whether it's wrong or right that I never stopped loving him.)
  1112. [8/9/2017 4:45:23 PM] Spades Slick: (Well... That depends, I guess.)
  1113. [8/9/2017 4:45:33 PM] Spades Slick: (Why... Why'd he do it?)
  1114. [8/9/2017 4:45:56 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...Before I died, I forgave him, not knowing why.)
  1115. [8/9/2017 4:46:11 PM] Benny Fulmer: (It was...incomplete, but as complete as it could be, nonetheless.)
  1116. [8/9/2017 4:46:17 PM] Benny Fulmer: (But now I know.)
  1117. [8/9/2017 4:46:23 PM] Benny Fulmer: (And now that I know, I.)
  1118. [8/9/2017 4:46:31 PM] Benny Fulmer: (For all my curses, I cannot blame him.)
  1119. [8/9/2017 4:46:37 PM] Benny Fulmer: (He was terrified.)
  1120. [8/9/2017 4:46:52 PM] Spades Slick: (Of what?)
  1121. [8/9/2017 4:48:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: (None of us knew...)
  1122. [8/9/2017 4:48:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: (None of us knew what he really was.)
  1123. [8/9/2017 4:48:35 PM] Benny Fulmer: (That he was immortal.)
  1124. [8/9/2017 4:48:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Divine.)
  1125. [8/9/2017 4:49:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: (And...when he'd first gotten close with humans, and they'd grown old and died while he remained...)
  1126. [8/9/2017 4:49:25 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Unchanged.)
  1127. [8/9/2017 4:49:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: (They cursed him. They screamed at him.)
  1128. [8/9/2017 4:49:47 PM] Spades Slick: (...)
  1129. [8/9/2017 4:49:50 PM] Benny Fulmer: (They blamed him for their deaths, and their lives.)
  1130. [8/9/2017 4:50:16 PM] Benny Fulmer: (They called him a demon, and a devil, a spirit that was stealing their youth away for himself.)
  1131. [8/9/2017 4:50:26 PM] Spades Slick: (Buíochas le Dia.)
  1132. [8/9/2017 4:50:31 PM] Benny Fulmer: (They disowned him.)
  1133. [8/9/2017 4:50:39 PM] Benny Fulmer: (The only family that had taken him in.)
  1134. [8/9/2017 4:50:52 PM] Benny Fulmer: (And after that, he'd...)
  1135. [8/9/2017 4:51:02 PM] Benny Fulmer: (He'd made it a rule to.)
  1136. [8/9/2017 4:51:04 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Leave.)
  1137. [8/9/2017 4:51:10 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Before things could get that far.)
  1138. [8/9/2017 4:51:37 PM] Spades Slick: [You just look. Fucking heartbroken.]
  1139. [8/9/2017 4:51:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...I...)
  1140. [8/9/2017 4:51:54 PM] Benny Fulmer: (It's a miracle he.)
  1141. [8/9/2017 4:51:59 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Stayed as long as he did.)
  1142. [8/9/2017 4:52:23 PM] Spades Slick: (How long had he been there?)
  1143. [8/9/2017 4:52:37 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You look less...sad, now? Less emotional, and more just. Fucking miserable.]
  1144. [8/9/2017 4:52:56 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Decades.)
  1145. [8/9/2017 4:53:11 PM] Benny Fulmer: (You'd have to ask him for an exact number.)
  1146. [8/9/2017 4:53:44 PM] Spades Slick: [You... Refill both of your glasses.]
  1147. [8/9/2017 4:54:15 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I know that he was with me for.)
  1148. [8/9/2017 4:54:20 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Twenty-nine years.)
  1149. [8/9/2017 4:55:55 PM] Spades Slick: (Gnéas.)
  1150. [8/9/2017 4:57:19 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...You know, I...I thought if he'd leave me, he certainly would've left me for Leonardo.)
  1151. [8/9/2017 4:57:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: (So you can imagine my surprise when.)
  1152. [8/9/2017 4:57:39 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Leonardo told me.)
  1153. [8/9/2017 4:57:46 PM] Benny Fulmer: (He hadn't seen him either.)
  1154. [8/9/2017 4:58:31 PM] Spades Slick: (And... That was the last time either of you ever saw him?)
  1155. [8/9/2017 4:58:48 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You nod.]
  1156. [8/9/2017 4:58:55 PM] Benny Fulmer: (He didn't even leave a note.)
  1157. [8/9/2017 4:59:04 PM] Benny Fulmer: (He was just...)
  1158. [8/9/2017 4:59:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Gone.)
  1159. [8/9/2017 4:59:26 PM | Edited 4:59:43 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You listlessly take another sip. You look 100% Depressed.]
  1160. [8/9/2017 5:01:20 PM] Spades Slick: (... You don't have to say any more.)
  1161. [8/9/2017 5:02:08 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...Is it wrong that I forgave him?)
  1162. [8/9/2017 5:02:17 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I did before I died, but...)
  1163. [8/9/2017 5:02:31 PM] Benny Fulmer: (As soon as I learned...why he did it, here...)
  1164. [8/9/2017 5:02:57 PM] Benny Fulmer: (It only made me more...certain, that I.)
  1165. [8/9/2017 5:03:02 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Did the right thing.)
  1166. [8/9/2017 5:03:26 PM] Benny Fulmer: (But a part of me still doesn't know.)
  1167. [8/9/2017 5:05:02 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  1168. [8/9/2017 5:07:36 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...Do you think it's wrong.)
  1169. [8/9/2017 5:07:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: [It's a question, but. Your voice doesn't lift at the end.]
  1170. [8/9/2017 5:22:17 PM] Spades Slick: (... Wrong that you forgave him?)
  1171. [8/9/2017 5:22:32 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You nod.]
  1172. [8/9/2017 5:24:04 PM] Spades Slick: (... Well.)
  1173. [8/9/2017 5:24:41 PM] Spades Slick: (It's better to die at peace, then to die with regrets.)
  1174. [8/9/2017 5:25:01 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You nod.]
  1175. [8/9/2017 5:25:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I...did, for the most part.)
  1176. [8/9/2017 5:25:37 PM] Benny Fulmer: (But I admit, it's.)
  1177. [8/9/2017 5:25:45 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Jarring. To be back. After that.)
  1178. [8/9/2017 5:26:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I mean, I've...technically been back for 21 years, I guess, but I...)
  1179. [8/9/2017 5:26:09 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Didn't know.)
  1180. [8/9/2017 5:27:45 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  1181. [8/9/2017 5:32:17 PM] Spades Slick: (Yeah.)
  1182. [8/9/2017 5:42:00 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...It's.)
  1183. [8/9/2017 5:42:08 PM] Benny Fulmer: (It's hard, because. I.)
  1184. [8/9/2017 5:42:20 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I don't want him to feel any worse about it.)
  1185. [8/9/2017 5:42:27 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Than he already does.)
  1186. [8/9/2017 5:42:30 PM] Benny Fulmer: (And I...)
  1187. [8/9/2017 5:42:39 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I really...honestly have...forgiven him.)
  1188. [8/9/2017 5:42:43 PM] Benny Fulmer: (But it.)
  1189. [8/9/2017 5:42:57 PM] Benny Fulmer: (It. It gnaws at me.)
  1190. [8/9/2017 5:43:04 PM] Benny Fulmer: (And I can't...get it to stop.)
  1191. [8/9/2017 5:49:33 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod again.]
  1192. [8/9/2017 5:49:47 PM] Spades Slick: (It... Would be very good for you to speak with Zenyatta.)
  1193. [8/9/2017 5:50:10 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...Yeah.)
  1194. [8/9/2017 5:50:24 PM | Edited 5:50:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You just kinda. Sink into your seat. You have reached Peak Depression.]
  1195. [8/9/2017 5:54:32 PM] Spades Slick: (...)
  1196. [8/9/2017 5:54:52 PM] Spades Slick: (You need a hug?)
  1197. [8/9/2017 5:55:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You...would freeze up at that, if you had the energy to. As it stands, you just kinda. Stop for a second. Then finish off your alcohol.]
  1198. [8/9/2017 5:55:48 PM] Benny Fulmer: (If you wanna.)
  1199. [8/9/2017 5:56:59 PM] Spades Slick: [You scoot a bit closer and open your arms. It's up to him if he wants one.]
  1200. [8/9/2017 5:57:22 PM] Spades Slick: (I won't be upset if you say no.)
  1201. [8/9/2017 6:05:15 PM] Benny Fulmer: [The one good thing about being drunk is that normally, you'd come up with some bullshit excuse not to be hugged, but right now, you don't have that kind of creativity or energy. So you set your empty glass down, get out of your chair, and. Plop down in his lap. You don't quite have the energy to wrap your arms around him, so you just. Lean into him.]
  1202. [8/9/2017 6:05:48 PM] Spades Slick: [You wrap your arms around him gently, and rub his back.]
  1203. [8/9/2017 6:09:53 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You close your eyes, and...cry just a little harder.]
  1204. [8/9/2017 6:10:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I love him.)
  1205. [8/9/2017 6:10:52 PM] Spades Slick: (I know.)
  1206. [8/9/2017 6:13:42 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You curl up.]
  1207. [8/9/2017 6:14:02 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I wish we could both just be happy.)
  1208. [8/9/2017 6:25:10 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod gently, and exhale just barely.]
  1209. [8/9/2017 6:25:22 PM] Spades Slick: (You should both talk to Zenyatta, some time.)
  1210. [8/9/2017 6:31:12 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You press your face into his chest.]
  1211. [8/9/2017 6:31:28 PM] Benny Fulmer: (That just makes me feel like we're a dysfunctional married couple, but.)
  1212. [8/9/2017 6:31:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: (You're probably right.)
  1213. [8/9/2017 6:32:08 PM] Spades Slick: (Everyone needs help sorting through things, sometimes.)
  1214. [8/9/2017 6:32:56 PM] Spades Slick: (There's nothing wrong with that.)
  1215. [8/9/2017 6:33:19 PM] Spades Slick: (Even Sinclair and I need help from time to time.)
  1216. [8/9/2017 6:33:33 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...I'm not supposed to need help.)
  1217. [8/9/2017 6:34:06 PM] Spades Slick: (Everyone needs help.)
  1218. [8/9/2017 6:34:16 PM] Spades Slick: (I know you don't believe that, but it's true.)
  1219. [8/9/2017 6:35:50 PM] Benny Fulmer: [...You slump against him a little more.]
  1220. [8/9/2017 6:35:58 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I...I've...)
  1221. [8/9/2017 6:36:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I've failed, if I need help.)
  1222. [8/9/2017 6:36:13 PM] Spades Slick: (No you haven't.)
  1223. [8/9/2017 6:36:30 PM] Spades Slick: (We can't always do everything on our own.)
  1224. [8/9/2017 6:37:45 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I'm not- I can't- I have to, I.)
  1225. [8/9/2017 6:37:59 PM] Spades Slick: [You shush him gently.]
  1226. [8/9/2017 6:38:29 PM] Spades Slick: (If we were meant to do everyone on our own, with no help whatsoever...)
  1227. [8/9/2017 6:38:42 PM] Spades Slick: (Humans wouldn't be a social species.)
  1228. [8/9/2017 6:39:50 PM] Benny Fulmer: (But I'm-)
  1229. [8/9/2017 6:40:00 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I'm supposed to not- not be- like that, I.)
  1230. [8/9/2017 6:40:17 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I have to be better than that, I can't be- I can't-)
  1231. [8/9/2017 6:40:29 PM] Spades Slick: (Whatever your parents told you, or made you believe, they were wrong.)
  1232. [8/9/2017 6:40:59 PM] Spades Slick: (It's not weak to need help.)
  1233. [8/9/2017 6:41:13 PM] Spades Slick: (Everyone needs help, whether they realize it or not.)
  1234. [8/9/2017 6:41:17 PM] Spades Slick: (You do, too.)
  1235. [8/9/2017 6:41:23 PM] Spades Slick: (And you're not lesser because of it.)
  1236. [8/9/2017 6:53:53 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You curl up a little more, and cry a little harder, but this time it's not out of grief, it's...pretty clearly out of fear. You're Terrified of asking for help.]
  1237. [8/9/2017 6:54:14 PM] Spades Slick: [You hold him closely, and lean over him again.]
  1238. [8/9/2017 6:54:21 PM] Spades Slick: (I can go with you, if you want.)
  1239. [8/9/2017 6:54:58 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You just. Press your face into him. It's too much to think about.]
  1240. [8/9/2017 6:56:27 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod again, and begin humming gently. Calming him down is the main thing now.]
  1241. [8/9/2017 7:00:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You hold onto him when he starts humming, but. Not in a bad way. You just cling to him while you cry, weathering the storm, basically.]
  1242. [8/9/2017 7:12:10 PM] Spades Slick: [You keep it up as long as you need to, basically.]
  1243. [8/9/2017 7:22:05 PM] Benny Fulmer: [It takes...a while. Several minutes, probably. You stay curled up, but your breathing slowly starts to even out, and your shoulders go from "painfully tight" to "only a little tense". You also, bit by bit, shift so your face isn't firmly planted in his chest.]
  1244. [8/9/2017 7:23:38 PM] Spades Slick: [You begin to rock back and forth a little bit, hoping the movement helps. You're glad he's relaxing, though.]
  1245. [8/9/2017 7:59:55 PM] Benny Fulmer: [It does. You relax a little more quickly when he starts doing that, and after a couple more minutes, you're almost a little sleepy. You gently, lightly, almost unnoticeably rub your thumbs against his shirt, grounding yourself subconsciously.]
  1246. [8/9/2017 8:05:22 PM] Spades Slick: [You're relieved when he gets a little drowsy, and your humming gets a little quieter.]
  1247. [8/9/2017 8:25:12 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You start to kinda...come out of it, when the humming gets quieter. You stir just a little bit, not anxiously, but in a harmless, idle way.]
  1248. [8/9/2017 8:31:33 PM] Spades Slick: [You also shift a little bit when he does, but just to get more comfortable.]
  1249. [8/9/2017 8:33:52 PM] Benny Fulmer: [Your voice is the slightest bit hoarse when you speak.]
  1250. [8/9/2017 8:34:03 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...Sorry.)
  1251. [8/9/2017 8:34:10 PM] Benny Fulmer: (That I've been like this.)
  1252. [8/9/2017 8:34:22 PM] Spades Slick: (It's okay.)
  1253. [8/9/2017 8:34:27 PM] Spades Slick: (You don't need to apologize.)
  1254. [8/9/2017 8:38:03 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...I know it's. Not easy dealing with someone like me.)
  1255. [8/9/2017 8:38:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: (If you get tired, I don't...blame you.)
  1256. [8/9/2017 8:38:44 PM] Spades Slick: (Not at all. I don't mind doing this.)
  1257. [9/3/2017 7:54:55 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...If you're sure, then. Okay.)
  1258. [9/3/2017 7:55:28 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You slump a little bit against him.]
  1259. [9/3/2017 7:55:46 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Man, I've spent...most of this, just.)
  1260. [9/3/2017 7:55:54 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Whining about my problems.)
  1261. [9/3/2017 7:56:07 PM | Edited 7:57:11 PM] Benny Fulmer: (That can't be a good first impression.)
  1262. [9/3/2017 7:59:31 PM] Spades Slick: (The impression I'm getting is that you needed to get this all off your chest.)
  1263. [9/3/2017 8:01:39 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...I feel bad dumping it all on a guy I just met.)
  1264. [9/3/2017 8:01:51 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Who isn't a therapist, anyway.)
  1265. [9/3/2017 8:06:48 PM] Spades Slick: (I really don't mind.)
  1266. [9/3/2017 8:08:04 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...Okay.)
  1267. [9/3/2017 8:08:13 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I guess I won't look a gift horse in the mouth.)
  1268. [9/3/2017 8:15:01 PM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  1269. [9/3/2017 8:17:41 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...But, uh.
  1270. [9/3/2017 8:17:48 PM] Benny Fulmer: Well-
  1271. [9/3/2017 8:17:59 PM] Benny Fulmer: You promised you'd talk about, uh...
  1272. [9/3/2017 8:18:48 PM] Benny Fulmer: Ssssomething about.
  1273. [9/3/2017 8:18:51 PM] Benny Fulmer: Being...a dad.
  1274. [9/3/2017 8:24:46 PM] Spades Slick: Right, right.
  1275. [9/3/2017 8:24:55 PM] Spades Slick: What would you like to hear about it?
  1276. [9/3/2017 8:25:04 PM] Benny Fulmer: You said you were...
  1277. [9/3/2017 8:25:08 PM] Benny Fulmer: Making up for lost time?
  1278. [9/3/2017 8:25:20 PM] Benny Fulmer: Dad-wise?
  1279. [9/3/2017 8:25:32 PM] Benny Fulmer: Or maybe in general?
  1280. [9/3/2017 8:26:33 PM] Spades Slick: Right, right.
  1281. [9/3/2017 8:28:06 PM] Spades Slick: Well, I didn't actually get much time to be a dad, unfortunately.
  1282. [9/3/2017 8:28:36 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You frown at that.]
  1283. [9/3/2017 8:28:43 PM] Benny Fulmer: I figured, by your phrasing.
  1284. [9/3/2017 8:31:01 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  1285. [9/3/2017 8:31:12 PM] Spades Slick: I got about a year with my daughter.
  1286. [9/3/2017 8:31:33 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...
  1287. [9/3/2017 8:31:41 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You let out a slow, heavy breath.]
  1288. [9/3/2017 8:31:43 PM] Benny Fulmer: Damn.
  1289. [9/3/2017 8:33:00 PM] Spades Slick: ... I came back 10 years later, but then only got a day or two.
  1290. [9/3/2017 8:33:20 PM] Benny Fulmer: [A slower, heavier breath.]
  1291. [9/3/2017 8:33:23 PM] Benny Fulmer: Sssssshit.
  1292. [9/3/2017 8:37:03 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  1293. [9/3/2017 8:37:46 PM] Benny Fulmer: So, uh.
  1294. [9/3/2017 8:37:51 PM] Benny Fulmer: Trying to...
  1295. [9/3/2017 8:38:02 PM] Benny Fulmer: Make up for...that?
  1296. [9/3/2017 8:38:03 PM] Benny Fulmer: Somehow?
  1297. [9/3/2017 8:39:50 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  1298. [9/3/2017 8:42:28 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...D'you wanna talk about...that year and a day at all? Or...)
  1299. [9/3/2017 8:42:38 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Would you rather talk about what you're doing now?)
  1300. [9/3/2017 8:49:33 PM] Spades Slick: (... Probably that first. So we can lighten the mood later.)
  1301. [9/3/2017 8:50:38 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You nod.]
  1302. [9/3/2017 8:50:46 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Sounds like a good idea.)
  1303. [9/3/2017 8:53:05 PM] Spades Slick: [Little sigh.]
  1304. [9/3/2017 8:54:11 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Hey, chin up. If I can cry into your shoulder, you can cry into mine.)
  1305. [9/3/2017 8:57:21 PM] Spades Slick: (Yeah, just. Bit of a long story.]
  1306. [9/3/2017 8:58:36 PM] Benny Fulmer: (If you want to, you can abridge it, but.)
  1307. [9/3/2017 8:58:41 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I don't mind hearing the whole thing.)
  1308. [9/3/2017 8:58:50 PM] Benny Fulmer: (It's the least I can do, really.)
  1309. [9/3/2017 9:08:09 PM] Spades Slick: [Abridged...]
  1310. [9/3/2017 9:12:11 PM] Spades Slick: (Well... I found an underwater city.)
  1311. [9/3/2017 9:12:42 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Right. While you were out diving, I'm guessing?)
  1312. [9/3/2017 9:12:54 PM] Benny Fulmer: [Your memory, despite everything, can be Sharp.]
  1313. [9/3/2017 9:12:59 PM] Spades Slick: (Yeah. Trying to unwind.)
  1314. [9/3/2017 9:13:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You nod.]
  1315. [9/3/2017 9:13:09 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Continue.)
  1316. [9/3/2017 9:23:05 PM] Spades Slick: (And the guy who ran it was...)
  1317. [9/3/2017 9:25:19 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Let me guess: )
  1318. [9/3/2017 9:25:21 PM] Benny Fulmer: (A dick.)
  1319. [9/3/2017 9:25:38 PM] Spades Slick: (Yeah.)
  1320. [9/3/2017 9:26:08 PM] Spades Slick: (He's. Paranoid is an understatement.)
  1321. [9/3/2017 9:27:08 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Probably took some inspiration from me, then!)
  1322. [9/3/2017 9:28:29 PM] Spades Slick: (He was convinced I was a government agent sent to spy on the city.)
  1323. [9/3/2017 9:29:19 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Jesus.)
  1324. [9/3/2017 9:29:27 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Yeah, he definitely did, then,)
  1325. [9/3/2017 9:29:43 PM] Spades Slick: (Anyone who spoke out against him vanished, along with any friends of those people.)
  1326. [9/3/2017 9:29:49 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Jeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesus.)
  1327. [9/3/2017 9:30:31 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Did he have, like, a copy of "The Prince" instead of a Bible?)
  1328. [9/3/2017 9:31:04 PM] Spades Slick: (No idea.)
  1329. [9/3/2017 9:31:38 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I bet you he did.)
  1330. [9/3/2017 9:36:58 PM] Spades Slick: (I know the motto he had for his life was also for the city.)
  1331. [9/3/2017 9:37:09 PM] Spades Slick: ("No Gods or Kings, only Man.")
  1332. [9/3/2017 9:37:45 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Well, seeing as he was apparently a despotic tyrant, I'm gonna have to call bullshit.)
  1333. [9/3/2017 9:37:54 PM] Spades Slick: (It was such bullshit.)
  1334. [9/3/2017 9:39:56 PM] Spades Slick: (It was like...)
  1335. [9/3/2017 9:40:47 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Super Bullshit 64?)
  1336. [9/3/2017 9:43:19 PM] Spades Slick: (... That sounds about right.)
  1337. [9/3/2017 9:43:48 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You nod.]
  1338. [9/3/2017 9:44:00 PM] Benny Fulmer: (So what other Super Bullshit 64 did he pull?)
  1339. [9/3/2017 9:56:26 PM] Spades Slick: (Well, uh.)
  1340. [9/3/2017 9:56:35 PM] Spades Slick: (The people he kidnapped turned into genetic guinea pigs.)
  1341. [9/3/2017 9:57:05 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...)
  1342. [9/3/2017 9:57:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Well, at least.)
  1343. [9/3/2017 9:57:22 PM] Benny Fulmer: (That wasn't inspired by me.)
  1344. [9/3/2017 10:02:13 PM] Spades Slick: (Yeah.)
  1345. [9/3/2017 10:12:03 PM] Spades Slick: (It, uh.)
  1346. [9/3/2017 10:12:15 PM | Edited 10:23:32 PM] Spades Slick: (It's how I eventually... Met my daughter.)
  1347. [9/3/2017 10:15:41 PM | Edited 10:24:33 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...Please don't tell me she was also a subject.)
  1348. [9/3/2017 10:21:33 PM | Edited 10:25:11 PM] Spades Slick: [you are Silent.]
  1349. [9/3/2017 10:25:55 PM] Benny Fulmer: [Your voice gets even quieter, almost incredulous.]
  1350. [9/3/2017 10:26:11 PM] Benny Fulmer: ((...Oh, fuck.))
  1351. [9/3/2017 10:30:16 PM] Spades Slick: [You sorta just. Nod.]
  1352. [9/3/2017 10:30:20 PM] Spades Slick: (Yeah.)
  1353. [9/3/2017 10:30:40 PM] Benny Fulmer: [...You snuggle up to him more. Much more for his sake than your own.]
  1354. [9/3/2017 10:32:17 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Will it help you to. Talk about that?)
  1355. [9/3/2017 10:42:53 PM] Spades Slick: (Probably. But that's also a long story.)
  1356. [9/3/2017 10:43:58 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...I don't forsee myself going anywhere, so.)
  1357. [9/3/2017 10:44:54 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I'll leave it up to you to decide which particular aspects of your baggage need to be talked about most.)
  1358. [9/3/2017 10:55:50 PM] Spades Slick: (... Eleanor was... Kidnapped.)
  1359. [9/3/2017 10:59:50 PM | Edited 10:59:58 PM] Spades Slick: (It's. How I met her.)
  1360. [9/3/2017 11:00:29 PM] Benny Fulmer: (...Just. Taken off the street?)
  1361. [9/3/2017 11:02:11 PM] Spades Slick: (No, uh.)
  1362. [9/3/2017 11:03:09 PM] Spades Slick: (Her mother. Sofia. Was arrested for rallying people against Andrew Ryan. The ruler of the city.)
  1363. [9/3/2017 11:04:07 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You grimace.]
  1364. [9/3/2017 11:04:18 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Unsurprising, unfortunately.)
  1365. [9/3/2017 11:10:30 PM] Spades Slick: (And Sofia left Eleanor with her godmother, Grace Holloway.)
  1366. [9/3/2017 11:10:53 PM] Spades Slick: (I knew Grace before I was arrested. We worked together.)
  1367. [9/3/2017 11:11:12 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You nod.]
  1368. [9/3/2017 11:13:25 PM] Spades Slick: (Eleanor found out that a local writer was a spy for Ryan, and was the person who got Sofia arrested. He was also wasting all of her money on parties, in Sofia's free art gallery.)
  1369. [9/3/2017 11:14:19 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Geez.)
  1370. [9/3/2017 11:18:09 PM] Spades Slick: (So he. Kidnapped her, and sold her to an orphanage.)
  1371. [9/3/2017 11:18:54 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Fucking christ-)
  1372. [9/3/2017 11:19:10 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I'm amazed that didn't bite him in the ass somehow.)
  1373. [9/3/2017 11:19:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Did it??)
  1374. [9/3/2017 11:22:03 PM | Edited 11:24:51 PM] Spades Slick: (After about 10 years.)
  1375. [9/3/2017 11:23:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: (I'm amazed it took that long.)
  1376. [9/3/2017 11:36:44 PM] Spades Slick: (Well, the art gallery flooded.)
  1377. [9/3/2017 11:36:58 PM] Spades Slick: (He was trapped in there for atleast 8 years, in a ticketbooth.)
  1378. [9/3/2017 11:37:19 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Sounds like he deserved every minute of it.)
  1379. [9/3/2017 11:37:40 PM] Spades Slick: [Small nod.]
  1380. [9/3/2017 11:38:17 PM] Spades Slick: (He apparantly had some sort of... Celebrity crush on me.)
  1381. [9/3/2017 11:38:36 PM] Spades Slick: (But he was also the one who tipped Ryan off about me and my friends.)
  1382. [9/3/2017 11:38:41 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Ew.)
  1383. [9/3/2017 11:39:24 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Reminds me of some of the idiot college dudebros who have a huge boner for me- I mean, Machiavelli- even though they won't admit it.)
  1384. [9/3/2017 11:44:36 PM] Spades Slick: [Little smile, but. It looks like it makes you a little uncomfortable.]
  1385. [9/3/2017 11:44:55 PM] Spades Slick: (Yeah, well... I found one of his audio diaries basically admitting that but.)
  1386. [9/3/2017 11:45:06 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Oh, ew.)
  1387. [9/3/2017 11:45:10 PM] Spades Slick: (He's... Been dealt with.)
  1388. [9/3/2017 11:45:19 PM] Benny Fulmer: (Thank fuck. I'd go after him myself.)
  1389. [9/3/2017 11:45:37 PM] Spades Slick: (Anyway, uh.)
  1390. [9/3/2017 11:45:45 PM] Spades Slick: [You sigh, deeply.]
  1391. [9/3/2017 11:45:55 PM] Spades Slick: I need to show you this next part.
  1392. [9/3/2017 11:46:08 PM] Benny Fulmer: [...You nod.]
  1393. [9/3/2017 11:46:15 PM] Benny Fulmer: Like, uh...
  1394. [9/3/2017 11:46:34 PM] Benny Fulmer: What do you mean by that?
  1395. [9/3/2017 11:46:36 PM] *** Group call ***
  1396. [9/3/2017 11:46:39 PM] *** Missed group call. ***
  1397. [9/3/2017 11:46:48 PM] Spades Slick: Just...
  1398. [9/3/2017 11:47:12 PM] Spades Slick: After all the genetic testing, is when Eleanor and I met.
  1399. [9/3/2017 11:47:23 PM] Spades Slick: [You get up, and give him a hand.]
  1400. [9/3/2017 11:48:14 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You take it, rising to your feet as well.]
  1401. [9/3/2017 11:48:27 PM] Benny Fulmer: What on earth were they doing with such different test subjects?
  1402. [9/3/2017 11:48:59 PM] Spades Slick: ... We were collecting a type of stem cell, created by sea slugs. Called ADAM.
  1403. [9/3/2017 11:49:14 PM] Spades Slick: Eleanor was the Gatherer, and... I was the Protector.
  1404. [9/3/2017 11:49:28 PM] Spades Slick: A Little Sister and a Big Daddy.
  1405. [9/3/2017 11:49:41 PM] Spades Slick: [You start walking towards the false door.]
  1406. [9/3/2017 11:50:22 PM] Benny Fulmer: [Normally, you'd make some kind of shitty joke about "Big Daddy", but...you're just. Somber.]
  1407. [9/3/2017 11:50:40 PM] Spades Slick: And since it's an underwater city, you would sometimes need to collect the raw slugs outside, so... What better way to. Arm the Protector and give him that mobility than.
  1408. [9/3/2017 11:50:44 PM] Spades Slick: A diving suit.
  1409. [9/3/2017 11:51:05 PM] Spades Slick: [You step inside the room.]
  1410. [9/3/2017 11:53:58 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You follow him and- well. Fuck.]
  1411. [9/3/2017 11:54:11 PM] Benny Fulmer: ...That's a cruel fucking irony.
  1412. [9/3/2017 11:54:31 PM] Spades Slick: Yeah.
  1413. [9/3/2017 11:54:44 PM] Spades Slick: Especially since you're grafted into it.
  1414. [9/3/2017 11:58:52 PM] Benny Fulmer: [You actually. Cover your mouth.]
  1415. [9/3/2017 11:58:54 PM] Benny Fulmer: (No.)
  1416. [9/3/2017 11:59:37 PM] Spades Slick: Protecting your Charge was a 24/7 job. You can't rest unless she's back with the other Little Sisters.
  1417. [9/4/2017 12:00:36 AM] Spades Slick: And even then, it's a mindless drawl left waiting for her to come back.
  1418. [9/4/2017 12:00:50 AM] Spades Slick: (Pretty. Literally mindless.)
  1419. [9/4/2017 12:00:53 AM] Benny Fulmer: [Despite how, just...sad you sounded, your body language is Slowly shifting to...anger.]
  1420. [9/4/2017 12:01:04 AM] Benny Fulmer: (Your body wasn't enough?)
  1421. [9/4/2017 12:01:10 AM] Benny Fulmer: (They had to take your mind too?)
  1422. [9/4/2017 12:01:35 AM] Spades Slick: (My tongue, too. I only got it back when I got here.)
  1423. [9/4/2017 12:02:10 AM] Spades Slick: (They also alter your vocal chords. Protectors sound more like whales. They're easily to ping underwater that way.)
  1424. [9/4/2017 12:03:18 AM] Benny Fulmer: [Your hands go to the top of your head, and they grip tight to your hair as he's talking, and after he stops talking, they. Rip out tiny clumps of hair. You throw them to the ground and Scream.]
  1425. [9/4/2017 12:03:26 AM] Benny Fulmer: WHY THE FUCK ARE WE SO FUCKING AWFUL TO EACH OTHER?
  1426. [9/4/2017 12:03:37 AM] Spades Slick: -Whoa, hey-
  1427. [9/4/2017 12:03:53 AM] Spades Slick: [Your eyes follow the bits of hair. You rush over to him.]
  1428. [9/4/2017 12:04:02 AM] Spades Slick: Hey, hey, calm down. Don't do that.
  1429. [9/4/2017 12:04:24 AM] Benny Fulmer: THE ONLY THING HUMANS ARE GOOD FOR IS COMING UP WITH NEW AND TERRIBLE WAYS TO TORTURE EACH OTHER FOR OUR OWN SICK- REASONS!
  1430. [9/4/2017 12:04:38 AM] Spades Slick: [You grab his wrists, gently.]
  1431. [9/4/2017 12:05:19 AM] Benny Fulmer: AT EVERY- FUCKING OPPORTUNITY WE HAVE, WHEN IT BENEFITS US, WE TREAT EACH OTHER LIKE SHIT!
  1432. [9/4/2017 12:05:23 AM] Benny Fulmer: I HATE IT!
  1433. [9/4/2017 12:05:34 AM] Benny Fulmer: I WOULDN'T MIND IF WE ALL JUST FUCKING DIED!
  1434. [9/4/2017 12:05:36 AM] Spades Slick: [You shush him gently.]
  1435. [9/4/2017 12:05:55 AM] Spades Slick: (Hey. Hey. )
  1436. [9/4/2017 12:06:25 AM] Spades Slick: (Enough of that. I know humanity is awful.)
  1437. [9/4/2017 12:07:54 AM] Spades Slick: (I was in Nazi Germany long enough to know that. I've seen more than enough proof of it.)
  1438. [9/4/2017 12:08:38 AM] Spades Slick: (It's how I also know that despite that, you have to fight to bring even just a glimmer of light to hopeless situation.)
  1439. [9/4/2017 12:09:14 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You stop when you hear that, and it promptly shifts your gears from primarily anger to primarily upset. You start crying, too.]
  1440. [9/4/2017 12:09:27 AM] Benny Fulmer: What if you just can't fucking see it anymore?
  1441. [9/4/2017 12:12:50 AM] Spades Slick: You have to band up with other people. No one can do it all on their own, especially when the enemy is other human beings.
  1442. [9/4/2017 12:14:11 AM] Benny Fulmer: I don't want to go through any more shit just to see things end up worse. I don't want to live in the world I see, that isn't getting any fucking better, I don't care if it's cowardly or selfish I just fucking can't.
  1443. [9/4/2017 12:16:06 AM | Edited 12:16:31 AM] Spades Slick: Honestly? When you get to that point, you just have to keep going for someone else. Because you know they wouldn't make it without you.
  1444. [9/4/2017 12:18:37 AM] Spades Slick: Or even just... Out of spite.
  1445. [9/4/2017 12:18:47 AM] Spades Slick: I met a lot of people in my time who did that.
  1446. [9/4/2017 12:19:28 AM] Benny Fulmer: ...I feel like that's the only one I can do, and.
  1447. [9/4/2017 12:19:35 AM] Benny Fulmer: Even that feels. Impossible. Sometimes.
  1448. [9/4/2017 12:19:43 AM] Benny Fulmer: I just want to give in. I don't care anymore.
  1449. [9/4/2017 12:22:38 AM] Spades Slick: [You slowly pull him into a hug.]
  1450. [9/4/2017 12:22:44 AM] Spades Slick: (I know.)
  1451. [9/4/2017 12:24:11 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You cry harder, though it's hardly much of anything. You have barely any tears left.]
  1452. [9/4/2017 12:24:23 AM] Benny Fulmer: (Everyone wants me to keep going except for me.)
  1453. [9/4/2017 12:24:42 AM] Benny Fulmer: (I don't want to keep going. I want to rot and die.)
  1454. [9/4/2017 12:28:15 AM] Spades Slick: [You rub his back.]
  1455. [9/4/2017 12:28:36 AM] Spades Slick: [... And hum. It helped him earlier.]
  1456. [9/4/2017 12:29:19 AM] Benny Fulmer: [It does help, but this time you...you relax, sort of, but it's more just in the sense of you...going limp. Which is good and bad.]
  1457. [9/4/2017 12:30:16 AM] Spades Slick: [You very carefully sit down again, still holding him.]
  1458. [9/4/2017 12:32:50 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You just let the whole weight of your body rest against him. You don't know how he's still going, with everything he's been through.]
  1459. [9/4/2017 12:39:43 AM] Spades Slick: ... But. Please. Don't rip out your hair.
  1460. [9/4/2017 12:44:25 AM] Benny Fulmer: (...Why not? It grows back, doesn't it.)
  1461. [9/4/2017 12:44:39 AM] Benny Fulmer: [You're not being serious, just...]
  1462. [9/4/2017 12:44:55 AM] Benny Fulmer: [Depressedly flippant. Nihilistic, basically.]
  1463. [9/4/2017 12:45:10 AM] Spades Slick: [You gesture up at your (already sparse head) towards some uneven bald patches in what little hair you do have left.]
  1464. [9/4/2017 12:47:21 AM] Benny Fulmer: (...)
  1465. [9/4/2017 12:48:12 AM] Benny Fulmer: (I...can't make. Promises, but.)
  1466. [9/4/2017 12:49:11 AM] Benny Fulmer: (I'll. Try a little. At least.)
  1467. [9/4/2017 12:50:04 AM] Spades Slick: [You nod.]
  1468. [9/4/2017 12:50:12 AM] Spades Slick: (That's all I can do either.)
  1469. [9/4/2017 12:54:54 AM] Benny Fulmer: (...'S fair, then, I guess.)
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