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[Yes, the Once-ler had that dream too. No, he's not talking about it. It was just a dream, just a stupid, dumb, terrifying dream with a monster and the moon going out like a broken lightbulb and obviously none of it was real. Or at least, he doesn't want any of it to be real.

So, he's stress-knitting.

He's taken up one of the tea rooms for the day so that he has a little more space to work (plus it gets him out of his room, and that's probably a good thing). He's already got a colorful pile of completed things tossed on one of the chairs - scarfs, mittens, absolutely no thneeds. The Once-ler himself is sitting on the floor in front of one of the armchairs with his knees up, using the chair as a backrest as he knits. His piglet Boris is keeping him company, and he can be seen running around in a dark green pig-sized sweater.]

So, uh. Since I'm knitting anyway and winter's coming up...does anyone want anything?

[And wow, he sure is knitting. Even while he talks, even while wearing his trademark green gloves, his needles move incredibly fast. He shrugs though, like offering to make people stuff for free isn't an enormous step forward for him.]

I mean, it's just something to do, and it's not like I have anything else to do with them.

[That's all he really wanted to say, because he's definitely not acknowledging that Jabberwocky dream. He leans forward a bit and uses the end of one of his knitting needles to jab at his network device until it shuts off. If anyone would rather meet up with him in person, he's in one of the tea rooms on the tenth floor with a small mountain of yarn.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[He raises an eyebrow.]

Uh. No? I learned to knit by knitting.

[What.]

I would have learned to do it by reading about it. That's how I was learning martial arts, too.

[Well, that's how he was learning to do more than run away from his "teacher" anyway.]

Those aren't things you'd usually read about if you wanted to learn them but...reading makes me feel more confident, I guess.

That seems kinda hard to learn from a book. Don't you have to actually practice against someone?

[Not that he knows a ton about martial arts, but it seems pretty hard to learn if you're not actually defending yourself against anything, right?]

It helps, yeah. But reading about it makes me feel more...comfortable? I guess.

[The Once-ler shrugs.]

Well, if it works for you then go for it, I guess. I wouldn't know anything about it.

[He's pretty sure he would get his butt handed to him if he ever tried it.]

Ah well...that wasn't what I getting at. I just meant that we all do what makes us feel most at ease when we're anxious.

[Hmph. He sees what Kaneki's getting at now.]

Yeah, I guess. But knitting is something I would normally be doing anyway, so whatever.

[That's not entirely true, since the fall of his company, but it used to be true and that's what matters for the sake of argument.]

[Kaneki nods slowly. If the Once-ler wants to insist on that, then okay, he won't argue.]

I can definitely see you've got skill.

[There's a time when that would have completely inflated his ego, but the Once-ler is able to take it with a bit more modesty - he knows how he can be when he lets his pride get out of control.]

Thanks. I've had a ton of practice over the years.

What got you started knitting?

[It's a little hard for him to think back that far, for a whole slew of reasons.]

I needed something to do, I guess. My Aunt Grizelda had all this yarn she never used, so I took it and started trying to make stuff with it. My family picked on me for it, but I didn't care. It was the first thing I was ever kind of good at.

[Well. Maybe he did care a little, but only because it was his family, and he would have appreciated having more support than that, instead of getting belittled all the time for his girly hobby.]

[Kaneki can understand that. His hobby is less "girly" by nature, but it's still not exactly manly by any means.]

It's good that you stuck with it, even so.

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