5th Message - video

[justamessenger]

[Dulcie is seated by the window of her apartment, wing folded behind her, with a smallish mocking bird perched on her finger.]

Aren't they beautiful? I love seeing more birds around. Feathered beings unite and everything.

[The bird pecks a little at her finger, and then opens its beak and speaks in a perfect replica of Dulcie's voice.]

Everyone’s dying, Cameron. A little, every day. Make it count.

[Dulcie's face falls, quickly and dramatically, and she scrambles one-handed to end the feed,]

Comments

audio:

[pigtailsbutterflyknives]

[First? A squawk and the sound of Mindy going 'shh shh! no! shhhh!'

But it's to no avail because a second later, the bird goes 'You just contact the mayor's office. He has a special signal he shines in the sky; it's in the shape of a giant cock. ']

Your bird sounds smarter than mine.

audio:

[justamessenger]

I think I like yours better, though.

Re: audio:

[pigtailsbutterflyknives]

Yeah? Wanna trade?

You just contact the mayor's office. He has a special signal he shines in the sky; it's in the shape of a giant cock.

...do I have to explain?

audio:

[justamessenger]

If you think it will improve the story.

Re: audio:

[pigtailsbutterflyknives]

Maybe some day. It's just annoying right now.

audio;

[othersdie]

[Justin has been trying to think of an appropriate response. After coming to the conclusion that there isn't one...]

Are you okay?

audio;

[justamessenger]

You know me. I'm always good.

audio;

[othersdie]

You don't have to be.

audio;

[justamessenger]

It's hard not to be. Force of habit.

audio;

[othersdie]

That's terrible.

[He almost sounds like he could be joking. Maybe. Although being cheerful all the time would be its own kind of hell.]

[infernoandhearth]

[Luke knocks. At the door of her room, not her apartment, because he's never really managed to get the hang of the privacy thing, not properly.]

[justamessenger]

You can come in, Luke.

[She's curled into a ball on the chair in the corner.]

[infernoandhearth]

[He walks in, straight over to Dulcie in the chair and crouches -- carefully -- beside it. He rests his chin on his forearms, which he rests on the arm of it.]

Do you still have the bird? I thought we might roast it, you know.

[justamessenger]

That's a bit harsh. It's not the bird's fault.

voice;

[universaltranslator]

You're not wrong.

voice;

[justamessenger]

I wouldn't have said it otherwise.

voice;

[universaltranslator]

You seem kind of upset about it.

[She's a little tipsy right now. Not at her best.]

voice;

[justamessenger]

It's kind of a long story.

audio;

[intheblanks]

Beautiful and philosophical.

audio;

[justamessenger]

It sounds a bit trite when I hear it from this side.

audio;

[intheblanks]

But not inaccurate.

And the bird's all right, too.

audio;

[justamessenger]

You have to have a good store of inspirational one-liners in my line of work.

Yeah. I'm a fan of the birds.

video;

[brobeforehos]

The funnier birds are more bearable than the depressing ones.

video;

[justamessenger]

Seriously. And I've said some hilarious things in my day.

video;

[brobeforehos]

I want to believe it.