Fandom High Welcome Picnic, Front Lawn of the School, All Day: Part II

[momslilassassin]

There were plenty of tables and chairs scattered around the lawn for anyone who wanted to sit down once they'd had their fill of the buffet, or to recover from starting to find out what this place was all about. No one would judge the need to take a mental breather.

Some of the tables were out in the open, for those who weren't allergic to the sun, and some of the tables were in the shade, or far from the rest of the crowd for those who needed a little more space to process. Wherever people decided to rest, there was space enough for everyone.

[OOC: This is part two of the picnic, separated in an effort to save our browsers for as long as possible. Part one, to run into siblings, roommates and teachers, is over here, though teachers are also welcome in this post, of course. Because the picnic is outside, it is open to all students, teachers and townies.]

Comments

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[arsenicmauls]

Gert might not have noticed the upset-looking asari if Old Lace hadn't sniffed in her direction like she was trying to investigate whether that patty was vegetarian or something she wanted, but now she had and she was coming over, looking unsure. Old Lace followed, but didn't seen interested in the patty anymore. (Sigh.)

"Hey," Gert said, "are you okay?"

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[fewer_explosions]

"I..." That jolted Liara right out of her sulk. "...I will be fine. Hello, Gert."

Perhaps she should tell her.

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[arsenicmauls]

"I don't want to be rude or anything, but 'will be' doesn't mean 'am,'" she said, a hint of her usual wryness lingering in what was otherwise a very gentle tone. For Gert, anyway. "You know you can leave if the crowd and the heat are bumming you out, right?"

Old Lace took a step or two forward, tilting her head at Liara inquisitively.

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[fewer_explosions]

"I know," Liara said. "And I am grateful for your concern. I simply do not wish to bother you with my own problems. I am a relative stranger, after all."

... Sigh, Liara.

"I should however tell you that Karolina will not be making it back to school for the forseeable future."

There. That wasn't worrying at all.

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[arsenicmauls]

"I'm apparently Fandom's junior therapist these days," Gert said -- which was possibly an exaggeration, but not much of one. "Don't worry about me."

As Old Lace sniffed gingerly at Liara's hand, Gert added, "Anyway, I don't think you're telling me you killed her and buried her body in a ditch, but I still could use a little more explanation than that."

Hopefully the jokeyness of that statement would register.

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[fewer_explosions]

Liara was not entirely sure how much to tell. Karolina had not given her any Gert-specific instructions, after all. "She has left to... settle some issues with regards to her homeworld," she offered eventually. "She is not sure when she will be back."

If at all.

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[arsenicmauls]

"Majesdane, huh?" If it was a matter of settling something, then it sounded like Kar had been backed into a corner -- though there was always the chance that she had gone along with it as some kind of Karolina-esque sacrifice for everyone else.

But she did have a hunch about why Liara was so upset, besides the obvious Karolina-being-gone situation. "Any chance this has to do with the new space girlfriend Victor told me about?"

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[fewer_explosions]

"...Space girlfriend?"

You'd have to explain that one.

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[arsenicmauls]

Gert didn't know much more than that, but she shrugged one shoulder, looking apologetic. "Vic said his version of Karolina took a trip back to her parents' neck of the woods for a bit and some kind of girlfriend from space was involved," she clarified. "He didn't say a ton--" because the focus of the conversation had been about Gert dying more than Karolina's love life-- "but he mentioned a girlfriend. I actually thought that was going to be you, but..."

First off, Gert, Liara wasn't exactly a girl.

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[fewer_explosions]

Liara sighed. "I am not technically female, as my species is mono-sexed," she said patiently. "As for the being that Karolina left with, I believe both gender and sex are malleable for their species. Also, I believe they were raised on a planet's surface. Finally, I have seen no indications that Karolina intends to date this individual. Calling them a 'space girlfriend' would be highly inaccurate."

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[arsenicmauls]

Gert nodded through all of that, then put up both hands when Liara was done. "Wow, that's, like, four apologies I owe you at once," she decided. "Sorry. Times four. I don't really know the details about any of this. It's still at least a few months into my future."

She pursed her lips to one side for a moment, then added, "Good that she's not dating... them, though. Vic didn't seem to be their biggest fan."

And of course there was another reason, too.

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[fewer_explosions]

"Neither am I," Liara said.

Then paused.

Then said, "Sorry, that was rude."

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[arsenicmauls]

Gert waved that off. "If two intelligent people don't like them, I'm guessing the rudeness is well-deserved," she said. "Which makes it fine, in my book." Gert's etiquette was not everyone else's etiquette. "What happened?"

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[fewer_explosions]

"They attacked us," Liara said, as mildly as she could. "We fended them-- I believe their name is Xavin-- off. But Xavin gave Karolina a proposal she could not refuse, and so she left."

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[arsenicmauls]

"Wow, off to a great start in the friendship department," Gert remarked, very unimpressed. You could tell from how her eyebrows were going sky-high at the moment. "Some say it with flowers, others sway it with... that."

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[fewer_explosions]

"Xavin was not terribly polite," Liara said, understating it severely. "It was Karolina's decision, but... I do not believe it was wise."

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[arsenicmauls]

"Because obviously the person she went with is a dangerous ass," Gert summed up, crossing her arms over her chest. "Well, if it helps, Victor would have told me if she wasn't coming back."

Actually, Victor had flat-out said that she did come back.

"It'd still be better if she could check in or something, but let me guess, this other planet doesn't exactly get Earth cell reception?"

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[fewer_explosions]

"That was not the impression I had," Liara agreed.

She rewound the conversation a few words for a moment. "Did you say-- what did Victor say?"

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[arsenicmauls]

"Just that she took this little trip," Gert clarified, uncrossing her arms and recrossing them again, feeling a little awkward. "'Cause K's his friend in his universe too." Which Liara almost certainly already knew, but she was adding it just in case. "But she comes back in time for... other stuff to happen. He didn't exactly give me an exact timeline, though."

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[fewer_explosions]

Liara audibly let go of a breath. "So there is a chance she will return."

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[arsenicmauls]

"Yeah, I'd say it's a pretty good chance," Gert agreed, feeling a little relieved to have been able to lift Liara's spirits a little. "I mean, did you see Vic back in Kar's universe? If he didn't look, like, way younger than the version here, there's probably going to be a pretty quick turnaround, yeah?"

Gert had never thought she'd find herself doing math to figure out differences in timelines, but here she was.

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[fewer_explosions]

Liara looked... extraordinarily embarrassed.

"I still have some difficulty... identifying... markers on human beings."

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[arsenicmauls]

"Oh, right. Don't worry about it," Gert dismissed, waving a hand. "The point is I think she'll be back in no time. So... don't worry."

She moved to pat Liara's shoulder gently, but was fully ready to draw her hand back if it looked like it wouldn't be well-received.

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[fewer_explosions]

Liara was an awkward stick-in-the-mud at the worst of times, but she was hardly one to argue with... patting. "I will try not to," she said honestly, "But I fear I might not be completely successful."

Re: Lurk! [Summer 2013 - II]

[arsenicmauls]

"I might not be either," Gert admitted. "But in all seriousness, if she's gonna be home, Majesdane might even be safer than our normal planet. So there's that."