zerotohiro | Some Legends Are Told, Some Turn To Dust Or To Gold [CEREALIA INBOX]

[He's starting to notice that, yeah, and after the third or fourth line he'll just take a quick look at the rest of the text before giving up. So basically they have nothing except "Ceres is being an asshole again". Great.]

I know I'm not, but how are you working differently, kiddo? [Nope, he doesn't know that, so he arches an eyebrow at Hiro, completely forgetting about his lack of power control. There go the trails of frost on the table.] I don't know if the pair with the robonurse is allowed to speak of a pattern. [Teasing, teasing!] Do you really think there's a pattern and it isn't just... sickness?

[There's a short pause.] Don't exactly mean me, Jack. [And that's all he says for now. He's not sure how to proceed with the "dead brother" bomb especially considering the fact that Jack's a spirit. He watches the frost spread over his desk, index finger swirling a pattern in the ice.]

We're still scientists, you know. We're supposed to study patterns and yeah, I think there is one. It's way too sudden and it seems random but it's still a lot of people. I can't just believe it's a coincidence.

[Blink. Blink. Frown.] Hiro? What's the problem, buddy?

[He isn't a social expert but that was weird, even for his standards. At Hiro's explanation, Jack looks at the papers again... but yeah, still nothing.]

I don't think it's contagious, if that helps for anything. Would a pattern help find a cure? I'd have thought your marshmallow friend would already know what's going on.

[He shakes his head. He doesn't want to give a verbal response because he knows Jack will know he's bullshitting him. Science is easier to talk about.]

That's the problem. Baymax is picking up on people's symptoms but not a fever. He's reading everybody's body temperature as the same. At least if we knew why certain people were getting sick and others weren't we could figure out some kind of cure. Maybe something from the people who aren't sick or something. There're too many possibilities.

[Squinting his eyes at you, buddy. How dare you to ignore his question! He's so onto you now! But it's not like he's a social expert either, so he has to think and come up with a way to make Hiro talk.]

Yeeeeeah, still gonna blame Ceres for this one. A glitch, was it? We are all different species from different universes. I wish him good luck with my body temperature.

[Good luck buddy. Hiro just makes a face.]

Everything could be explained as a glitch, but that almost seems too easy for this one. Do you even have a body temperature when you can make frost?

I do have a body temperature - it's ice cube fahrenheit. Wanna give it a try?

[He likes messing with scanners, though he feels he shouldn't tell Hiro that.]

[Don'tfallforitdon'tfallforit...]

Yeah. Yeah, I do. I don't think Baymax has ever really scanned you before, has he? I wanna see what he comes up with.

Then have at it. [A shrug. Someone isn't thinking this through.] Computers at home never were lucky, but he's more advanced, right?

Of course he's more advanced. Tadashi and I made him. Come on, stand up and stand still so he can look. [It's only when Jack's in the right position that Baymax will scan, trying to pick up a reading on the winter spirit.]

You mean he made it and you taught him karate, right?

[Just some teasing, don't mind him. -jack jumps off the desk and stands in front of Baymax, extending his arms and everything but never letting go of the staff. The reading will be... interesting, to say the least. Because a person is definitely there, but there is no breathing, or pulse, or any vital sign at all. Does blinking count? His body temperature is, like Jack said, ice-cube. There is also the blueish tone of some parts of his skin. For anyone (or anything, in this case) with medical knowledge, he pretty much reads like a frozen corpse! Haha... haha... ha...]

[He ignores that quip. He ignores all of that as he stares at the reading Baymax is projecting on Jack and his eyes go back and forth between the spirit and the robot as he takes it all in.]

...I thought you were a spirit. [Spirits shouldn't have readings like these unless they were somehow specially created.] Jack...what happened to you?

[All the staring and eyes going back and forth are getting on his nerves, so when he answers, he's a bit snappy without meaning to.] I am. What--

[...oh. Well. Baymax is definitely advanced, there is the proof. This was a terrible idea. Jack looks away and sighs.]

I was a human boy, like you. Then I became a spirit. Can you connect the dots? You're smart enough.

Edited 2016-02-14 23:20 (UTC)

...why didn't you tell me this before?

Would you really go around announcing out of nowhere that you died to everyone you know?

Well no but...[There's really no excuse. He's quiet again, frowning at Jack as he scrambles for a response.]

Sorry. I'm just surprised, okay? They keep bringing dead people here and I don't know what their game is. ["And it's not fair to those people."]

[Jack sighs, knowing about that little bit, and rubs the back of his head. This is a depressing topic of conversation to have while having Easter eggs. Easter is about life, Bunny said.]

I'm not-- I'm not the same as them, Hiro. I was brought back in my world. I died but... I'm not a dead person? I'm a spirit. What Ceres does to the others, the ones that... moved on... [A pause as he thinks, frowning at some memories only he knows of.] I don't know. They look and act alright, I guess.

They're perfectly fine. [That was oddly firm, but he doesn't like the idea that something may be wrong with the dead revived here.]

Do you remember everything about your old life, Jack? [Life. Life is important.]

[Oddly firm indeed. Jack squints his eyes at Hiro, but he's distracted by that question. Oh boy. With a shake of his head, he goes back to sitting on the edge of the desk.]

Only some stuff. I didn't know anything about it until-- I don't know, a couple of weeks before coming here, give it or take? All my life, I've lived it as a spirit.

How'd you finally remember some of the stuff? [There's...a very specific reason he's asking, and judging by the fact he's not really looking at Jack while he's asking that's evident. It's a very calculated conversation.] Did it bother you to really learn everything after all that? Three hundred years is a pretty long time to be a spirit.

[SQUINTING INTENSIFIES.]

My teeth. The Tooth Fairy collects everyone's teeth because they keep your most important memories, so she helps you remember when you need it. [He raises his eyebrows.] Are you kidding me, not knowing where I came from almost drove me crazy. That brown haired guy called Jack still feels a bit disconnected from me, but I know who I am now. And I'd die again if that means saving my little sister.

[There you go, Hiro, you don't have enough older brothers with lessons in your life.]

Where are all these questions coming from?

[He lifts an eyebrow.] That's. Really weird. I never thought baby teeth were actually that important. [He's not even going to say he doesn't believe in the Tooth Fairy considering Jack is sitting right here. Pretty much everything he ever knew is a little bit of a lie, in this case.

But he frowns again. Right. So he's not as sneaky as he thinks...but--]

You had a little sister? [How's that for avoiding the question?]

Everything about childhood is important. Easter too. [He throws a chocolate egg at Hiro, hopefully sweets will help with the mood.

Also the chocolate rabbit's ears get eaten. He needs sugar too, ok.] Dunno if I should answer that when you didn't answer mine.

[He catches that egg, not at all minding that Jack's taking a bite of the bunny. In fact he's just unwrapping the egg to munch on while he regards him carefully.]

...what about the bad parts of childhood? Those important, too? [He lifts both eyebrows briefly.] I'll answer yours if you answer mine first.

[Oh boy, this doesn't sound like something sweets will help with. Wtf, Hiro, don't worry Jack like this.]

Yes, I had a little sister. And... children shouldn't have bad parts in their childhood. But I can't stop them all so. [It's very obvious how much it hurts him to admit it.] --so yeah, they're important too.

[They changed the kids when they happen. Jack can't overlook them, no matter how much he'd like to.]

...your turn.

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