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Ruby Bud
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"Well," you say. "Polyphema already knows about this. And it's kind of a mood ruiner. But."
You tell them the story.
As you tell it GG gently takes your hands out from her hair and holds you instead.
"And then I just kind of ran. And I never saw her again."
The story settles and everyone takes it in.
"For me it was my brother and my sister," GG says. "And two uncles."
"You had siblings?"
"Remember when I told you about the crossings? How if the portal closed in the middle you'd get shredded?"
"Oh god," Polyphema says.
"I was the youngest so I went with my parents," GG says. "They were supposed to come after us. Never did. Not the important parts of them. The uncles were just from the war. That's why my dad wanted us to go. He was the only one of his family left."
"I'm sorry," you say.
GG leans back from you. "Wanna know the saddest part?"
You nod.
"The saddest part," GG says, solemnly, "is that if my sister were here she'd actually know how to braid hair worth a shit."
She shakes out your good-natured attempt at styling her hair and the room's tension cracks into inappropriate laughter.
"You know what's weird?" Meg says.
"That entire emotional arc GG just subjected us to," Polyphema offers.
"It's weird being born after the war," Meg says. "Like I was never alive for it."
GG works out the kinks in her hair. "That is weird."
"It's like I'm in a megabeast graveyard," Meg says. "And I'm walking through its ribcage. And everything in my environment was put here by this big fucking death I've never even seen." She looks into her wine. "I've never even seen a megabeast. When you think about it. I just know what a dead one looks like from a dead woman's memories." She raises her glass as if to drink and then lowers it. "I'm the only one in here who hasn't lost anyone."
"Well darling," Polyphema says. "Have you ever had anyone to lose?"
"I guess not." Meg's eyes widen. "Shit. I guess I haven't."
"That's almost sadder, in a way," GG says.
"Now you have us." Polyphema puts an arm around Meg. "Well Zack, mainly, but us if I can get you drunk enough."
"What's the name of the thing?" Meg asks. "Dulabira?"
"Maybe if you're old like Poly," GG says. "I call us: The Bang Gang."
Several piercing questions and accompanying frzhigals later and everyone is drunk enough that they would have found that really funny.
Polyphema has at some point drawn an extra beauty mark on the other side of her face with mascara, "to make me symmetrical."
Meg is wearing GG's pants.
GG tried to wear Meg's pants and gave up.
"Easy!" you say. You gesticulate with your glass and spill a little wine on Polyphema's floor. "O sorry Poly."
"EYE forgive you," Polyphema says, because she's being forced to make cyclops puns whenever she can.
"Easy, tho:" you say. "My arms. I hate my arms."
"No!!" Meg rubs your bicep. "I love these arms. They're so---"
"Army," GG says.
"They're army!!" Meg hiccups. "GG you're leggy. These do not fit me, GG."
"You make them work," GG says.
"I wish I had real legs," Meg says. "And an ass. I wish I had an ass."
"I wish I had Polyphema's ass," GG says.
"ME TOO," Meg announces. "I'm going to steal Polyphema's ass. And then have to rebalance my flying again."
"What's it like to fly?" Polyphema asks. "Fl-eye."
"That was bad," GG says.
"It's like-- it's like--" Meg looks for the words. "I'm bad at talking. But it's like if there was a kind of breathing you only just remember you can do. And it's that easy. And it's like you had these lungs you'd forgotten. And it fills you up."
"Sounds like sex," GG says.
"Grightogot," Polyphema acknowledges.
"It IS kind of like sex," Meg says. "It actually is." This thought gets her rapidly fraying attention back on you. "Zack."
"Meg."
"It's your turn, my guy."
"What--" You blink. "To what?"
"To interrogate someone," Meg prompts.
"OH. Right."
1]] Meg:
2]] Polyphema:
3]] GG:
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