(no subject)

[claudiometer]

So which half of Liminal was going to help with Shiro's replacement arm, again? Apparently it's time to get the ball rolling on that.

Comments

[helborn]

I'm not exactly fashionable myself, but it'd be nice if you could hav something... normal-looking? Like... whatever's normal for you is 'normal-looking'... but one you don't have to cover up to blend in might be nice.

[how_they_shine]

You mean something that looks like skin? Or something less "space" and more "20th century Earth"?

[helborn]

Skin, unless you don't want it to.

[how_they_shine]

I never really thought about it... I assumed that it would be metal. I guess that shows me.

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I wonder if we could do swappable skins. Like phone cases, only silicone or something.

[helborn]

I mean... depends how you feel about it. I just know it'd be nice if mine could blend in, so...

... Phone cases?

[ He is pre iPhone, Shiro. ]

[how_they_shine]

[Oh right.]

I can't remember... Do you guys have personal cellular phones?

[helborn]

Yeah? I mean... mine is pretty bad, but there's some nice ones with sliding keyboards and stuff...

[how_they_shine]

[He's not laughing, he's not laughing, he's not laughing...]

...Like a flip phone? You have a flip phone?

[helborn]

... Yeah? It's kind of shitty, but...

[There's suddenly a broadcast of Casper pulling out a very dinged up flip phone from his hammerspace, opening it up to reveal an equally dinged up interior, flipping it closed, and stuffing it back into hammerspace before the broadcast ends.]

[how_they_shine]

...Oh. Wow, okay. Huh. I've never seen one of those in person before. Well, uh, I guess a little bit into your future - you're getting close I would guess - there's going to be a revolution in cell phones. Touch screens and no actual buttons, and phone games, and internet access, and a lot different phone plans. But one of the things that comes in with "smart phones", as they're called, are protective skins. Part decoration, part protection against being dropped. Incredibly popular, being able to personalize your device.

[helborn]

... Huh. Yeah, something like that. Even if you could make it like a sleeve or... I don't know, can you get maybe a hologram projected on it that works with touch? I have no idea what tech level you're operating with, exactly.

[how_they_shine]

A hologram like that might work? But if we do wind up going back to Earth- [There's an odd note of unease there for a moment.] -then they won't have the level of technology to keep up with it if it breaks somehow. That's going to be true of pretty much anything we do, though.

...I admit, it would be nice to have something with high-grade sensors that could be switched on and off at will. Something that I could feel temperature and light pressure with, not just regular levels of touch as pressure in limited locations.

[helborn]

Yeah, I can't help with the tech job, I just...

[Aaaand Private.]

... You know. People will give you that Look. I don't want you to have to deal with that more than you really need to.

Private: Protection I

[how_they_shine]

Yeah, I know the one. You know, people are surprisingly good about that in liminal space. When I first came back the number one people said wasn't "What happened?" or avoiding me, it was "Whose ass do I have to kick?" It was kind of nice. And they were all pretty understanding when I said that I wanted to choose when to get another prosthetic.

...I'm really only concerned about if I ever go back to Earth. But at the same time... If they can't handle the fact that I have a prosthetic, do I really want to be friends with them? I don't know. We'll have to see how it goes, I guess. But I think you're right that it would be a good idea to have one that looks like skin. If it's made of silicone it probably could be designed to carry heat out as well. I think that would be the major concern. Hm. I'll have to talk it over with the design team.

I think it would really only come out on special occasions for me, though.

........Do you want to maybe see if we can get a skin for your leg?

[helborn]

... I don't know. It doesn't really matter, I wear jeans all the time anyway. It might hide the glow the runes do when they go off, I guess...

[It's just one more thing making him Weird.]

[how_they_shine]

[There's a pause. Then Shiro speaks again, more gently.]

Do you want to talk about it?

[helborn]

I'm okay, Shiro. Really.

[But this is the psychic network, and it's hard to hide the bitterness seeping into his mental tone.]

This is about you, not me.

[how_they_shine]

You know what I like not talking about? Myself. I like not doing that an awful lot. It is perhaps one of my least favorite things to do, talking about me.

Look. It's okay to not be okay about this stuff. And if the two of us can't talk about it together, I don't know who can. I'm pretty superfluous right now.

[helborn]

You're not. You're more important than that.

... Sorry. I just... not right now.

[how_they_shine]

[Startled pause.]

...All right, Casper. When you're ready and not before. I'm sorry for pushing.

[helborn]

... It's not your fault. Really, it's not. I promise.

[how_they_shine]

No. I'm pretty sure I know whose, but it's not yours.

[helborn]

[There's just the sense of tension before he stops paying attention to the network. He can't shut it off, but he's focusing on something else.]