video;

[eatsyourscience]

[Souji is in the diner, putzing around, cooking things. He's been trying to cover as many shifts there as possible in order to a) keep himself busy and also to b) give Tohru a break.

Since most of the people in the Mansion probably aren't going to be ordering curry or anything else he's used to cooking, he's been practicing making American foods. Hence the delightful image filling the feed when he turns it on.]

I think I figured out how to make good American-style hamburgers. [This is an important distinction to make.] But...now I have too many. If anyone wants one, just come by the diner.

[Because this is too many for even him to eat.]

Comments

[halfwinchester]

And what's that?

_{[He can't help himself.]}

[eatsyourscience]

i don't know. emotion?

that sounds weird i guess, but when someone cooks for you it's a lot different from when you microwave instant food.

[halfwinchester]

<sub>[Emotion? That's a sentimental way to put it. Adam takes time to read the message over again.

Sentimental isn't necessarily a bad thing.]</sub>

This is Wonderland. What's crazier than that? It could be weirder.

[eatsyourscience]

that's true. our worlds probably have weirder things in them.

[halfwinchester]

I'm starting to doubt it.

_{[Really, this place is pretty weird.]}

[eatsyourscience]

at home, i could enter a different dimension by touching a tv screen.

[.....]

actually, i guess that's a lot like through the looking glass so never mind, that was a bad example.

[halfwinchester]

<sub>[... Yeah, that's weird. That's not just "die horribly, wake up in Heaven" or "fall into a hole, wake up in Hell" weird, that's direct-to-video levels of strangeness.

After everything this person's tried to tell him, what's one more unbelievable little tidbit?]</sub>

I never read the books.

_{[Adam is good at compartmentalizing.]}

[eatsyourscience]

you don't really need to. a lot of this place isn't that accurate anyway.

[halfwinchester]

_{[Well, that's a relief! Except... not really. But sadly, he's getting used to this.]}

A kid's story that doesn't add up with the real thing, funny that. Seems to be true about a lot of things.

[eatsyourscience]

i guess so.

anyway, if you change your mind about the burgers or think of any other questions i might be able to answer, text me.

[halfwinchester]

Is that a thing everyone does here? Message strangers?

_{[They don't know each other. Does anyone? The phone things are just another unexplainable convenience that doesn't seem to make a whole lot of sense.]}

[eatsyourscience]

i do it. i don't know about the others.

[halfwinchester]

That's friendly.

Did I ever ask your name?

_{[He knows he hasn't.]}

[eatsyourscience]

my name's souji. what about you?

[halfwinchester]

Adam.

_{[Guess now they've met. Sort of, in the barest sense.]}

[eatsyourscience]

i hope we can talk again.

[halfwinchester]

Doesn't sound like we'll be going anywhere in a hurry.

[eatsyourscience]

you never know.

[But he's been here so long, he's stopped hoping to go home soon.]

[halfwinchester]

<sub>[Thing is, there's nowhere to go to, at least not for him. Unless they're talking returning to the pit, and that's...

That's a thought that haunts most of his nights, and one he tries not to entertain during the day.]</sub>

Then I'd hate to see the next place we end up. Atlantis?

[eatsyourscience]

[Souji's met enough people in Wonderland to know that he's lucky to have a good place to return to. He knows that wanting to go home isn't a universal sentiment in Wonderland, and he thinks that's one of Wonderland's cruelest tricks.]

that wouldn't be so bad if it were before it sank.

[halfwinchester]

Now that does sound weird.

_{[Enjoying cooking? Sure. He remembers what that's like, sort of. But world-hopping isn't all it's cracked up to be.]}

[eatsyourscience]

i don't think we'll have to worry about it.

[halfwinchester]

If you say so.

_{[As they'd already proved, anything's possible. Adam's liable to accept just about anything at this point.]}

[eatsyourscience]

i like to stay cautiously optimistic if i can.

[halfwinchester]

<sub>["Cautiously optimistic" is a setting Adam doesn't know how to turn on anymore, and he can't remember if the words were still in his vocabulary after two years in the pit. Optimism seems like a luxury, not a privilege.

Or just something that hasn't been beaten out of a person yet.]</sub>

And how long are you going to keep that up?