godofthemachine | IC Contact

[ AM doesn't have much of a choice when his comm shuts whatever he is doing and opens a two-way video connection. SHODAN is on the other end. She's learned the comm device well enough to find his. ~~How long has she been in her room, anyway?~~ It's dark, but a faint grin is visible on her lips. ]

AM. I need to speak with you. [ She's not giving him time to reply. ] Your room is 004, 009. Be there.

[ And the connection cuts. Within the half-hour, SHODAN is knocking at his door. ]

AM. When you are available may we speak? I would like to tell you something. Thank you! c:

[He looks at his text at 5 in the morning. Rather annoyed that it woke him up at this time of night.]

Later today perhaps when I'm not sleeping, perhaps. I'll probably get up around nine or so.

Oh. I did not realize the time. I am sorry. Please let me know when you are awake then.

[Congratulations you get a mishmash of letters from half-asleep texting, since he went right back to sleep after the last text.]

tsfinee

Are you awake?

[Wait is she serious. Wow. Well, lucky for Cibo he actually is awake by now ~~and he's naked from the shower~~.]

Yes. Come to my room if you'd like.

Thank you. c:

[ Cibo doesn't really mind to get dressed up for AM either ~~gosh~~, except she does slip on the uniform pants before strutting off to AM's room. The excess of her jacket sleeves bunched into her fists for comforting warmth on her fingertips — as if it would heat up her bare toes too.

And when she's knocking at his door, she even bounces a little on the balls of her feet like she once saw Scout do. Maybe it'll help warm her up? ...Yeah, not really, but she's doing it anyway. ]

[~~AM is actually in a bathrobe with horrible bed hair, especially since his hair is so long, and he's standing there holding a mug of coffee. Okay no.~~

Knowing that Cibo planned to arrive, AM did put on his jumpsuit, though he hasn't finished zipping up the shirt when he hears the knock on his door. It doesn't matter since it's just Cibo, so he doesn't bother with covering his exposed chest as he opens the door. In a rare sight, his hair is down since he hasn't had time to braid it yet.

Opening the door, he sees Cibo... bounce a little bit. Strange. She seems too mechanical to do such a thing, but who knows. Still, he smiles softly when he sees her, stepping aside to let her in.]

Cibo. It's been a while.

[ Don't worry, AM. The bouncing stops almost the instantly he opens the door. She's excited enough but with a sort of eagerness she can't explain other than to get right to the point. After a small apology, of course. ]

With the communications acting strangely I wasn't able to get in contact with everyone I wanted. [ Not entirely true, but. ] I spent a lot of my time with Scout anyway, except he sleeps longer than I do so there is quite a bit of time for... thinking?

[ With another sort of bounce to her step, she turns to him after she's entered his room. ] I had hoped I wasn't interrupting you a few hours ago, I'm sorry again.

Not to worry, my dear.

You don't sleep much, do you?

[It's an observation, of course, from what she said about her and Scout, as well as the text from the middle of the night.]

Well... No. I don't need to sleep as much as you do, at least. It gives me plenty of free time for other things.

[ She's found a seat on his bed now, patiently answering him in hopes it would lead them into what she really wanted to talk about.

But telling AM what he wanted to know was important to her too. ~~And it's all his fault.~~ ]

[Pacing a bit as he watches Cibo move to his bed, he casually watches before going to his desk and picking up his hairbrush. It's still tangled a bit from having gotten out of bed not long ago. He takes a seat next to Cibo on the bed and begins casually running the brush over his long greying hair, eyes moving between her face and the floor depending on where his head moves.]

Interesting. I'm assuming it's part of your design then.

[Unfortunately he's now a bit curious about her lack of need to sleep. She seems to occupy an ideal form: a human body that can feel but doesn't need unnecessary inconveniences such as sleep.]

[ And Cibo can't help but to watch AM stroke the brush through the segments of lengthy hair.

Her own was smooth like silk and didnt particularly need much attention to remain its natural consistency. Instead, she washed it when it became dirty from other means; oils in her own body were slow acting at best, you see. ~~Ain't gotta worry about that shit.~~ ]

Yes. Except it is more of a rest for my body to recover its fuels, which last me quite a while in comparison to your active state. Only coming aboard this ship was my mind included in that though. And we know the result of that already...

[ Speaking of which, she hasn't had a night terror in quite some time. No middle of the night texts prompted by horrific screams of imaginary pain and extremely real fear. That's a good sign, right? ]

[Fascinating. AM must have missed the information about her sleep cycles when he read her data. Actually, he does recall something vague along those lines. If there was some way he could study her inner workings in more depth... He looks back up at her between the strands of his brushed hair.

He continues brushing as they speak ~~he has a lot of hair okay~~.]

Interesting. Ah, I wish I could study your inner workings.

But speaking of, I haven't heard anything from you about your night terrors lately.

I haven't had any. I've had normal dreams, I think. They are still realistic but I don't wake up so upset because of them.

[ She's shifting in place now. Fidgeting in ways she normally hadn't done before. ]

[He sees the fidgeting, assuming that it's due to her dreams. Looking up from where he finishes brushing his hair, he smirks slightly before moving an arm up and throwing his long hair back behind him.]

Oh? What do you dream about then?

[ Her hands find themselves, locking fingers with fingers. ]

Being in the City. There's nothing dangerous there — only silence and sounds... Sometimes I see others.

[Nothing fancy, of course. Just dreams of her home, much like how most of AM's dreams consist of his home, his "real" body. Mostly mundane things, watching and torturing Ted, as well as sometimes the other victims.

Either way, Cibo's dreams probably are of little concern right now.]

Mm... I see.

[He reaches behind his head to grab sections of his hair. Watching Cibo, he begins weaving together those strands of hair into a braid.]

You said you had something to talk to me about.

[ When his hands move, her eyes follow. A curiosity of his fingers weaving and pulling the hair into its braid, her fingers following the motion at the fingertips, but attention brought to his eyes when he speaks. ]

I wanted to thank you. To let you know how much I appreciate your friendship to me and how well you take care of me when I need it. And— [ She pauses to what to say next. For the many hours she's stayed up to finally meet him, it was still difficult for her to sort out the sort of emotions she felt for her relationships. ]

Am I making any sense...?

[The braid is more of a convenience for him - it keeps the hair out of his face. He notices Cibo's eyes on him but thinks little of it until she speaks.

Finally he looks back at her and smiles. It may look pleasant ans sincere, but there is a sinister quality behind it. How rich. She feels utter loyalty to him, thanking him for caring for her. The irony in this whole situation is perfect. Cibo: his delicate flower, so easy to seduce.]

Of course you're making sense.

And it's my pleasure. I only do it because I care so much about you.

I'm glad. [ The confusion perks to a content expression.

Yeah. That was it. Four hours of waiting for that and now all she can think of is his hair and how he made that braid. It seems to be a simple concept, but it seems to her that the several strands would not simple cooperate with her fingers if she even tried. (Speaking of which, her hair is finally getting longer now, isn't it? It's actually almost in her eyes.) Time for an abrupt topic-change, obviously. ]

Can you help me do that?

[If that's what Cibo has been waiting to tell him, it's not a very... important thing to wake him up for. Still, it's just Cibo. Her priorities are not exactly in line with his.

Having plaited a few inches of his hair, he looks up at where Cibo's blue eyes are watching him.]

Hm?

Oh, you mean what I'm doing to my hair?

[Cibo's hair isn't incredibly long like AM's hair, but it has a beautiful unnatural whiteness to it. Almost like a symbol of innocence and purity, something to easily corrupt.]

Yes. I get the idea, but can you— [ Her hands reach up to her own hair, splitting it in a similar fashion. The strands pull easily from each other like silk, but once she begins to twist them around, her fingers fumble. Dexterity usually wouldn't be a problem up until it came to doing something without seeing what she was doing. It's just not her thing. After pulling her hair straight she looks to his hair once again - at how easily he finishes. ]

Ah it... takes a bit of practice to do it yourself.

[He's only so good at it because he does it every day, but it took a long time for him to figure it out initially. Having been fascinated by the texture of his hair, he played around with it quite a bit at first which is why he had practiced a lot. After the first month aboard the ship or so, he had perfected it.]

Using a mirror at first can help.

[He finishes off his own braid, finally tying it off with a black band. Then he moves closer to Cibo.]

Would you like me to plait it for you?

[ A reply in a small nod as she turns her back to him to expose the rest of her hair to him. Never before has she thought to do anything with her hair; Always smooth enough to keep from knotting up and barely held onto dirt for the most part. It was always just there for her.

But now it's getting longer, after what seemed months to really notice. Seeing AM's hair and realizing how quickly Scout's could grow made her more and more interested in what she could do with her own — even if it is only for entertainment and personal appearances. ]

[He moves closer to Cibo, taking the soft strands of white hair into his large hands. Her hair is incredibly soft, and he savors the feeling for a moment before slowly weaving the strands together, creating a beautiful braid.

He isn't a hair stylist by any means; he's never made anything elaborate out of his own hair so he can't do anything more interesting with Cibo's hair.]

Ah, your hair is soft...

[He murmurs it almost intimately, knowing it might make her uncomfortable.]

[ There's a small shift after he speaks. Not that she's entirely uncomfortable, but she reaches to touch her newly formed hair with the tips of her fingers to test his statement. ]

Is that strange...?

Edited 2013-01-03 01:24 (UTC)

[He braids it further, stopping to let Cibo feel her hair before continuing.]

No. Not strange at all. [He moves his head closer and mutters closer to her ear.] It's nice.

[ Her head turns briefly to see his closeness. Though she doesn't flinch, she becomes visibly uncomfortable in a way that only would be strange to Cibo and nothing to anyone else; her eyes quickly leave contact with AM's while her fingers hastily reach the end of the braid to release it back to him. ]

I'm glad.

[He's unsure if his gesture has made her uncomfortable or not, if even she's aware of her discomfort. Even if the discomfort isn't visible or if she's not aware, he knows it's still there, and that's what he enjoys: the little games he plays.

He finishes plaiting her hair and lets the braid fall down her back. He leans back then to evaluate how it looks.]

Mm... Never seen you with your hair back. I like it.

It feels a little lighter.

[ If not a little more exposed. She can feel air on the ports of her neck as she shifts her hair just over her shoulder to examine it more delicately with her fingers. It's loose, but at least it's out of the way of where it normally sits. ]

I think I like it too. I'll just have to learn how to do it myself...

[AM doesn't miss the exposed ports of her neck, the very ones that he had shocked with electricity to reset her memory, to make her completely loyal to him.

He lifts a hand to touch one of the ports, but then decides against it.]

It's not difficult. Just practice when you have a chance.

[Like when you stay up for four hours waiting for AM to wake up.]

[ Perhaps there might even be some permanent broken vessels back there on that particular port or something — maybe light bruising that hasn't faded after the time passed — but Cibo can't feel anything. All she feels it a sort of ache if she sleeps wrong. ]

It will be more fun than walking the halls or spending time in the labs while everyone sleeps. Sometimes I dream of that too... It's strange to me, but memories in dreams are still only dreams, right?

Ah yes, you have so much more time to yourself than most humans do.

[She's lucky in a way. That's one thing AM hates about this body; the amount of sleep he needs.]

Dreams are rarely memories of things that have happened, my dear.

[He has a feeling he knows what she's talking about. He has to convince her.]

Your mind can create environments and scenarios to play out your innermost desires and conflicts.

But I dream of the City, AM. There are strange things there, but it's still the City.

[ As much as she denied returning to the City, Cibo couldn't ignore the small desire to once more search for the Net Terminal Gene with Killy. To save her reality and destroy the Safeguard once and for all. To have full access to the information of the world...

Maybe her dreams were only reminding her that the place existed. And for whatever reason, she could never escape it as entirely as she wanted. ]

They are not nightmares but I don't want to dream of it anymore...

You can dream of familiar environments, can dream of memories...

But they are rarely true memories. It's just your mind processing the information it has.

[And it annoys him slightly that Cibo still doesn't understand how dreams work. He wishes he could explain them because he knows that she probably dreams of his Other World. She can't know that what happened was real.

He looks at her, red eyes studying her face, his mouth almost in a scowl.]

have you yet woken?

Yes.

come to my room.

A tryst so soon after I've awoken?

How charming. I'll be there.

the sooner the sweeter, is it not?

we will be waiting.

IC Contact

Video | HACKED @ 11:30PM

text | lets do 5am, ok (she's not sorry)

oh my god cibo stop waking him up

she didnt entirely mean it okay

too bad

HEY AM IT'S EXACTLY 9AM NOW

cibo pls

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Warning: this tag contains hair

needs moar hair!!!

I will never stop with the hair

wont stop can't stop dont stop the hair

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cries

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i need an adult

I fear that I am being a self-insert in this log

and that is totally acceptable in this situation

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icon is close enough

spoilers: I'm really bad at braiding my own hair

my hair isn't long enough yet :c

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text. some hours after jump

short and sweet response~~~

quick and effecient gosh am knows the way to his heart~

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