Reeve
Junior Member
Toe-to-toe, friend or foe? It's all that I know...
Posts: 92
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E=mc2?
Nov 9, 2008 20:53:16 GMT -5
Post by Reeve on Nov 9, 2008 20:53:16 GMT -5
"You have a point," Reeve nodded, the cigarette bobbing in his lips and spilling its smoked-down ash as he spoke. "But maybe it would make your job easier if you... I don't know. Understood some things a little better." He looked Xander over, eyes lingering on the white hair and red eyes. "One thing's for sure, though. You definitely stand out in a crowd. You're unique."
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Xander
New Member
"...why?"
Posts: 23
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E=mc2?
Nov 9, 2008 20:56:36 GMT -5
Post by Xander on Nov 9, 2008 20:56:36 GMT -5
"I agree." Xander said softly, looking ahead of him briefly before returning his gaze to watch Reeve. This man seemed to understand him...his being artificial didn't seem to bother him either, which was rather nice. He didn't have to pretend to be human with him. "I will need assistance, learning human behaviors." He blinked slowly, unnaturally for a human. It was mostly because of the loss of circuitry in his arm. "...Is that why they call me albino?" he asked.
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Reeve
Junior Member
Toe-to-toe, friend or foe? It's all that I know...
Posts: 92
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E=mc2?
Nov 9, 2008 21:21:05 GMT -5
Post by Reeve on Nov 9, 2008 21:21:05 GMT -5
"Um, yeah. It's a term used for a person or animal lacking...pigmentation." He'd watched his words there, dropping the 'normal' he wanted to add. "Most have whitish-blonde or white hair and blue eyes that look reddish. It's fairly uncommon." Noting the slow motion of his companion's eyes, Reeve worried a bit. "Did someone say something like that when you were in during the mission?" Nothing to worry about there, since Xander had finished the lot of them off.
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Xander
New Member
"...why?"
Posts: 23
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E=mc2?
Nov 9, 2008 21:31:33 GMT -5
Post by Xander on Nov 9, 2008 21:31:33 GMT -5
"No, before I left for the mission...people I passed, even children pointed me out as...'weird'." Xander frowned very softly, looking up at him uncertainly. "Am I...weird?" He asked, not really knowing what the term meant really. But...for some reason it bothered him, very much. He had not known that his appearance was...odd. But if he thought about it, he was the only white haired, red eyed pale humanoid he knew.
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Reeve
Junior Member
Toe-to-toe, friend or foe? It's all that I know...
Posts: 92
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E=mc2?
Nov 9, 2008 22:08:45 GMT -5
Post by Reeve on Nov 9, 2008 22:08:45 GMT -5
Reeve had to choose his words carefully, trying to figure out the best way to say what was on his mind. The quickest, simplest (and worst) answer would be to simply say 'Yes', but he didn't want to offend Xander. Even if he was an AI, he was still human...ish. Right?
"Well... um... Weird is a... pretty strong word. You're not weird, Xander. You're different, 's all." His shoulders rolled again, a little uncomfortably, and he spat his smoked-down filter to the side, watching it bounce and drop red sparks on the ground.
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Xander
New Member
"...why?"
Posts: 23
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E=mc2?
Nov 9, 2008 22:40:22 GMT -5
Post by Xander on Nov 9, 2008 22:40:22 GMT -5
Xander stopped walking blinking softly. The hesitation in the others words. So...his eyes drifted up to him again. "Different enough...that I stick out." He murmured..."This must be why...the scientists...why they change my mainframe...why I cannot remember certain days...it is because...I am not learning sufficiently...to fit in." It made sense...and his eyebrows scrunched in a frown as he looked at his detached arm.
"...are you...scared of me?" He asked then, his eyes on his arm still, uncertain what he was feeling at the moment. "Does my presence...am I not..." He wasn't able to find the words he wanted to use. "Am I too strange...too 'different'...do I make you...uncertain?"
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Reeve
Junior Member
Toe-to-toe, friend or foe? It's all that I know...
Posts: 92
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E=mc2?
Nov 9, 2008 23:21:38 GMT -5
Post by Reeve on Nov 9, 2008 23:21:38 GMT -5
Reeve listened, frowning a little himself as Xander pondered out loud. When the red-eyed man asked his question in that halting way, it took him a moment to respond. "I'm not scared of you, Xander... But uncertain? Yeah, a little. You're just...well...I've never dealt with anyone like you before. I'm not always sure what to say or do or anything. And I'm not Mr. Smooth to begin with," he chuckled softly, nervously, watching Xander watch his arm. "But I wanted to be sent with you, to observe. I'm... glad I came. And... I hope I haven't pissed you off or anything, you know?" Kicking a loose pebble, he listened to the soft clicking it made as it rolled across the pavement, eyes still on the AI.
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Xander
New Member
"...why?"
Posts: 23
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E=mc2?
Nov 9, 2008 23:39:24 GMT -5
Post by Xander on Nov 9, 2008 23:39:24 GMT -5
"Pissed me off?" The terminology confused him, but he figured it meant something near anger. He shook his head slightly. "No, not pissed off. I....just have trouble understanding...Humanoid's...their thoughts, and emotions, are very...hard to read. I do not understand them very well." He wished that could be rectified easily...but reading about emotions didn't help really..."Just...be normal?" He said softly, looking to him finally. "It will be easier yes?"
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Reeve
Junior Member
Toe-to-toe, friend or foe? It's all that I know...
Posts: 92
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E=mc2?
Nov 10, 2008 0:08:54 GMT -5
Post by Reeve on Nov 10, 2008 0:08:54 GMT -5
"You sure? I'm the poster boy for foot-in-mouth disease," Reeve grinned sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head with his fingertips. "If y'want, I'm willing to try to help you understand people, at least a little bit. The scientists would probably hate it, but, well, you gotta learn somehow, right?" He lifted a hand to his mouth, nibbling on the skin around his nails nervously, stopping when he realized how he must look. "Sorry."
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Xander
New Member
"...why?"
Posts: 23
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E=mc2?
Nov 10, 2008 0:16:58 GMT -5
Post by Xander on Nov 10, 2008 0:16:58 GMT -5
For a moment a soft smile made its way to Xander's face. "It would be kind of you, to help me, SP-311." Since he did not know the man's name, only his number. That was what he would call him for now. His red eyes actually seemed happy...whether he meant them to or not. Perhaps subconsciously his human emotions were developing, and it was only his computer logic blocking him.
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Reeve
Junior Member
Toe-to-toe, friend or foe? It's all that I know...
Posts: 92
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E=mc2?
Nov 10, 2008 0:51:05 GMT -5
Post by Reeve on Nov 10, 2008 0:51:05 GMT -5
Reeve's smile widened. "You can call me Reeve," he offered quietly. "Calling agents by their numbers is a little formal... makes people feel a little uneasy." He hadn't been called by his number by anyone who was face-to-face with him since training. It made him feel like he was going to be called on the carpet for some misdeed. "Or Anderson, if using my first name is too casual right now."
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Xander
New Member
"...why?"
Posts: 23
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E=mc2?
Nov 10, 2008 20:35:12 GMT -5
Post by Xander on Nov 10, 2008 20:35:12 GMT -5
"Reeve. I will keep that in mind." He said, nodding faintly. It made the humans uneasy to be called by their assigned numbers. Interesting. He answered to his number, or the shortened form of it at least. But perhaps that was another human quirk he had to monitor. "I am sorry, if I made you uneasy." Came his reply, red eyes looking back to Reeve. "I did not mean to."
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Reeve
Junior Member
Toe-to-toe, friend or foe? It's all that I know...
Posts: 92
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E=mc2?
Nov 10, 2008 20:45:09 GMT -5
Post by Reeve on Nov 10, 2008 20:45:09 GMT -5
"Don't sweat it." Reeve smiled widely, his cheeks a little red. "It happens." He blew upwards, dislodging a strand of hair from his forehead. "Humans have a tendency to make other humans feel a little uncomfortable at times... we kind of just go along as best we can." He met those red eyes with his own, seeing the tiniest hint of something that might have been emotion in them. "It's life."
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Xander
New Member
"...why?"
Posts: 23
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E=mc2?
Nov 10, 2008 21:29:15 GMT -5
Post by Xander on Nov 10, 2008 21:29:15 GMT -5
"So...it is alright then?" He asked, tilting his head to one side to consider this new piece of information. it was alright to make a human uncertain? It was normal even? mmm...this really was complicated. "Perhaps I will understand...by watching more." He needed to be out among normal humans, to observe...but he was forbidden to leave the premises without an agent to control him.
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Reeve
Junior Member
Toe-to-toe, friend or foe? It's all that I know...
Posts: 92
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E=mc2?
Nov 10, 2008 21:42:42 GMT -5
Post by Reeve on Nov 10, 2008 21:42:42 GMT -5
"I'm sure if you wanted, we could work together more. It would give you an excuse to be out of the building to observe, and I could always say it was 'a test of your efficiency'," Reeve nodded, talking to himself as much as Xander. He liked being around the guy. It never felt like he was a puppy loping along at his master's heels, unlike working with some of the older agents. "You think?"
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