going to achtenberg

[rosebow]

Woow, I've never had this many icons! It must've taken some time to get them all ready, ehe... I appreciate it.

But, um, it might be a better idea to work on that application, too. And your own schoolwork.

Comments

[runawayhatetrain]

Yeah, you'd be the first. Everybody else thinks it's a waste of time. Which is funny, considering that, when they need some kind of guidance through the twisted labyrinth that is troll romance, everyone ends up coming to me with questions anyway.

[rosebow]

Then they probably don't think it's a waste of time at all, deep inside. And it means that they trust you enough to depend on you for problems like that, right?

[runawayhatetrain]

Yeah, well, it would be really great if they could stop being such bulgesucking nookbadgers about it the rest of the time.

[rosebow]

I... suppose so. Sometimes even my closest friends don't listen to me, either. But there's nothing else to do but be there for them.

literally no other human has calmed him down this much. I'm legit amazed.

[runawayhatetrain]

... yeah. I guess so.

So, what no-doubt mortifying hellhole is your mun trying to force you into, anyway?

GIVE PEAS A CHANCE...

[rosebow]

I don't know about mortifying...! But it seems to be a boarding school game, and it sounds pretty fun.

LOL WHOOPS THIS IS LATE

[runawayhatetrain]

What's a boarding school. Is this some weird human thing, again?

IT'S COOL

[rosebow]

Ah--trolls don't have school? It must be nice...

It's a place where people go to get an education and learn about the world to... prepare them for adult life, I think! With boarding schools, you live on campus instead of at home.

[runawayhatetrain]

Wow, that sounds incredibly boring. No, we don't have school. We learn everything we need to know about the world either by ourselves or from our lusus. Which is apparently a lot like your human parental guardians, but with way less baby talk and coddling.

[rosebow]

You don't have parents, either? Somehow, that sounds rather sad... but what exactly is a lusus like?

[runawayhatetrain]

I'll never understand why humans think it's such a horrible tragedy that we never meet our parents. It's literally impossible for us to, so it's not like any of us are missing out or anything. I mean, I guess some of us do look this shit up, but I don't see why it even matters.

My lusus was a crab. Like, literally, the animals that you humans call crabs are basically exactly what he was, except he was way bigger and better in pretty much every possible way.

[rosebow]

That might be true, but it's just hard for me to imagine. And... being raised by giant crabs seems like it would be scary, though! You'd get pinched all the time!

[runawayhatetrain]

God, you don't even know, okay. He was a huge pain to deal with.

[he hesitates for a second, folding his arms, and his gaze drops to the floor. he mumbles:]

I kinda miss him, though.

[rosebow]

... Did something happen to him?

[ okay, maybe it was a dumb question, but Mr Karkat just looked really... well, she didn't like that face very much. ]

[runawayhatetrain]

[his head snaps back up to shoot a glare at her. NO, DO YOU THINK?]

Yeah, something happened. Way to rub it in the orphan kid's face.

[rosebow]

[ WOW OKAY MAJOR FAILURE. ]

S-sorry. I didn't know... and I didn't mean to... um...

[runawayhatetrain]

[SIGHHHGHHGHGHHHHHHHHH he rubs his temples.]

It was a long time ago, anyway, it just... ugh, nevermind, goddammit. I can't go one conversation without flooding it with some kind of pity party "my life sucks" bullshit. Just. Nevermind.

[rosebow]

... I'm still sorry for bringing it up, though.

[ I MEAN REALLY... ]

[runawayhatetrain]

Whatever, it's not like you knew. Let's just... drop it, okay?

[rosebow]

... Okay.

[runawayhatetrain]

So what's your world like, anyway? You're from earth, like the other humans, right?

[rosebow]

I am! Earth is the only place where there are humans, right? Ehe...

[ awkward giggles~ ]

But I think I lead a pretty ordinary life, even for us.

[runawayhatetrain]

I guess. I mean, I've never even been to your universe, so I have no fucking clue.

[rosebow]

When you say something like that, it sounds as if you've traveled to a lot of universes, though!

[runawayhatetrain]

I don't even know how to keep track of all the paradox space interuniversal fuckery I've been through. I think I've only been to maybe... one and a half? Is that how this shit works? I have no clue. I was in one, and then it got blown to hell and back by a bunch of bullshit I don't feel like going into right now, and then I guess we were in no universe at all, and now we're headed to one apparently inhabited by some humans that the humans I know are related to or something. It's all really fucking confusing.