THE CITY INBOX.

[fossick]

USERNAME: FOSSICK WEIR DREDGER ORIGINAL CHARACTER TEXT • AUDIO • VIDEO • ACTION • OVERFLOW

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Comments

[nerine]

I do worry for myself
But it doesn't manifest in a way that's familiar to people.
Or to you for that matter.

[fossick]

We can agree on that, at least. You give off the opposite impression.

[But he won't argue this point further. Not today. Seems like a waste of effort for these slow-typing fingers, help.]

[nerine]

What are you
My dad?

[Thank you for worrying about her Dad I mean]

I kid, I kid.
Let me know when you want to meet up and I'll help you record some videos.

[fossick]

[NOT YOUR DAD!! HE IS PEAK ANTI-PARENTAL UNIT

Thusly, ignoring that.]

Are you free and able now?

[nerine]

Yes!
Come on over to the coffee shop.
I'll send you directions.
You'll get to learn and have a bit of coffee to drink!
Aren't you excited?
😊😊😊

[fossick]

Full to bursting with it.

[The irreverence might as well be dripping from those texted words.]

Send me the path I ought to take and I'll be there soon.

-> action

[nerine]

[And with no other zingers to inflict Weir with, directions are sent to him detailing the steps to get to the corner coffee shop.

When he arrives, through the window, he can see Mont resting her head in her arms behind the counter, staring at some coffee dripping from a filter into a cup. She's obviously lost in thought to the point she doesn't even pay attention to when the door opens.]

[fossick]

[He’s always been good with directions, and he takes to the instructions well enough that he memorizes them before heading out. No dallying. For him, this is more practicality than social call.

He arrives a handful of minutes later. He must be in the right place; the air hangs heavy with the scent of coffee.

And there she is.]

Bored already?

[nerine]

Hm? Oh!

[She lifts up her head, blinking at Weir. Then he gets a little wave.]

Hey there. And well... [Monts shrugs and points to the coffee.]

I wasn't bored. I like looking at coffee being filtered. It's relaxing.

[fossick]

To some, that may as well be the same as saying you like watching water come to a boil.

[But to each their own. Weir supposes there is comfort in repetition of sound and sight, though it would not be his visual of choice.]

I see business is booming.

[Sarcasm again.]

[nerine]

[It's the small and mundane rhythms and sensations that help keep her grounded. Her senses are rather limited after all.]

Thank you! Your encouragement is welcome as always!

[Rubber and glue...]

This drink is just about done. Would you like to have it?

[fossick]

[He resists rolling his eyes and manages, somehow, to be successful this time.]

And what is it?

[He eases himself into a stool near the counter. He can't imagine she's just going to serve him black coffee today.]

[nerine]

It's a slow-filter type of coffee as you may have noticed. It's a style specific to a country in my world.

[She points to the cup. Beneath the dark coffee is a shallow layer of white.]

That's condensed milk! That's what will sweeten the coffee. Do you want it iced or keep it hot?

[fossick]

[Guess he's going to be learning about coffee today when he's far more interested in the functions of his phone, but fine. Weir knows that this girl is going to take some humoring to a small degree before they ever get to the point of... anything, really. He's blunt and thoughtless with his words, but he has patience when he knows what he's getting into.]

How sweet, exactly? And hot is fine.

[nerine]

This style is usually very sweet to contrast with the very bitter. But I've lowered the usual amount of condensed milk since you don't seem like a sweet guy to me.

[Intentional? Not? You decide!]

If the weather was hotter, I'd recommend iced since that's the popular way to drink it. But anyway it should be done filtering now. I'll just mix it up and serve it to you as is.

[The filter is removed and she takes a long spoon to stir in rapid but controlled circles. The black coffee mixes with the milk until it's smooth and creamy and the steam emits a sweet scent.

With the coffee done, she pushes the cup towards Weir and gestures for him to take a sip.]

[fossick]

[Of course he doesn't pick it up and sip it right away. He isn't the sort. Instead, Weir takes the cup and lifts it up, looking down to examine the liquid inside.

And he gives it a sniff, too.]

Is this a common drink?

[nerine]

[The aroma is warm and inviting and the scent of condensed milk comes through too.]

Yup. There are distinctive coffee drinks from different places. This is common to the region it originates from.

It's gonna get cold the longer you stare at it. Unless you're changing your mind about the ice.

[fossick]

[...He raises the mug, bringing it to his lips, and giving her a Look over the rim of his drink.

But he does take a sip.

And it's... not bad. Sweet, but not too sweet. Goes down smoothly enough.]

It isn't terrible. I'll give you that.

[nerine]

That's the best you're gonna give me isn't it? I'll take it!

[She beams at Weir.]

Let me know if you'd like another later!

[fossick]

[Mm-hm, he says, as non-comitally as he can manage. Though he does take another protracted sip of the coffee, so that counts for something, right.]

In the meanwhile... the phone.

[nerine]

Yes, our little tech workshop can begin now. More coffee or tea later.

[She takes out her phone and gestures to Weir to do the same for his.]

If you need me to slow down let me know.

[A beat.]

But politely if you please.

[fossick]

[He's unearthing his phone, too, and putting it down on the counter next to his coffee.]

Just assume you will have to move slowly. I've been teaching myself, but many of the functions still... elude me.

[nerine]

[Monts nods; she can do that. Weir is lucky she's teaching him with patience because she has two grandparents and everyone knows that one of life's biggest challenges is teaching the elderly how to use their phone.

He should pick up faster than them.]

Okay so let's just get to it starting with video. Think about all the buttons you're pushing as symbols. A lot of them are common across technology from my world and...

[She spends the next hour explaining, demonstrating, and stepping back for Weir to experiment with the video function. Monts also helpfully shows Weir where to delete their practice footage because in her own words, "Make it easy for yourself to look through what you've made. Everything is dated but it starts to get unwieldy when you have too much."]

[fossick]

[He does learn quickly. Weir might have the disadvantage of being a Ye Olde, but he's adaptive, and quick-witted, and intelligent. Something to make up for his terrible people skills. He was the one who taught himself, mostly, how to read -- memorizing all of his letters in his younger days. Just like he was the one who taught himself how to pluck out a melody on a string instrument's hollow body.

He can adapt to this device, to the technologies rife in this city. He just needs time.

And a little bit of instruction now and again. That's what Monts is for.

They manage to get through more than a few demonstrations, to the point where Weir is currently sorting through some very badly-taken selfies. Yeah, he's gonna delete these.]

These are terrible.

[Flatly. At least his criticism doesn't apply just to other people.]

[nerine]

[Monts is deleting pictures off of her own phone while Weir assesses his.]

Well, you don't need to be a photographer with your phone to get by at least. Just remember that it can automatically focus as long as your hands are still.