trans_9 | Higher Learning

Current Mood: studious
Current Location: Stacy: The Sensoriums
Current Music: "White and Nerdy" ~ Weird Al

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Higher Learning - [ Open ]

Title: Higher Learning
Location: Stacy; The Sensoriums

Renne had been sick of his horrid English skill for a long, long time by now. What he'd done about it over the last four years had been of some help but he had known he could only go so far by himself.

Yet English isn't his only concern.

Sitting in a Sensorium chamber, the living anomaly surrounds himself with books filled with the printed word. English, mathematics, sciences, histories, medicine. He hadn't wanted to forego anything that might be useful.

Ironically, they're all books he can't use.

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For the first time in a week, Billy had an hours' break between scheduled activities that he didn't need to use for food. It would be spent on socializing and self care, and that began in the Sensoriums.

He entered, preparing to calm himself down and unwind, but instead he found a certain brother of his seated among books. He looks lost in the middle of them. Almost instantly, Billy is kneeling beside him.

"You don't look like you're having much luck with studying."

Squeak.

Up go the ears. Despite being surrounded by books on almost anything one could desire to read about, there's little, if anything, that can stop the creature from doing what he does. At the sound of Billy's voice?

He twists a bit. Springs. Pounces. And squeaks. There's always in him, that flood of "happy-happy-joy-joy" when Billy's nearby.

And yes. It will be called Happy-Happy-Joy-Joy. So there.

"Beeee!"

"Hi Renne," he whispers with his usual smile. "I see that you've been busy."

With what, Bee can only guess.

"Eeee! Rrrr-enne trrry leahrrrrn. Rrrr-enne wahnt big brrrrayn li-ke Bee."

Squeak. A moment of nuzzling, then the Renne backs up a bit. Both ears perk up and forward in the prelude to a very probable Renneified mama-hen sniffdown.

"I see. I can whip up something that will read them for you if you like."

Already, his brain is imagining the pieces that will allow Renne to absorb all the information sitting around him. They'll be shifted into reality the second Renne gives the word.

It's then that he notices Renne's posture. It's different, indicating...protectiveness?

"What's going on?"

"Eeee. Rrrr-enne trrry leahrrrn. Do good-errr In-guh-lish, do num-burrrr, do smahrrrrt thin-gs. Rrrr-enne miss Bee. Bee noh hurrr-ted?"

He's blushing already -- Education, knowledge. It's a high priority on his list but one thing trumps that and he's sitting right there in front of the oddity.

"Oh, I can definitely understand that. Here, do you want to read the books?"

A second later, the book-reader is installed and sitting in front of them. All Renne has to do is place a book down, open on the first page, and it will begin reading. It can be commanded to skip chapters, pause, go more quickly or slowly, and repeat sections. Fairly involved---the sort of thing that would take days to invent outside.

At the other words, though, Billy frowns guiltily. "Have I been ignoring you over everything? I'm so sorry. Things that I need to know have been harder to remember lately. I'm not hurt, just...very busy."

Of course, those two things mean the same thing.

Harder to remember...

That worries him more than anything. Squeaking quietly, the Renne immediately begins a sniff-down of the Human. He's searching out anything, tell-tale signs, slowed response. Literally anything to indicate physical, emotional or mental strain.

When he finds said book-reader he'll most likely blush and do his equivalent of bashful melting. Right now though, his concern is quite fully on Billy Cranston alone.

...Once again, Renne has fixated on Billy's problems. He knew enough by now to know that this wasn't going away until the imp perceived them as solved, so he reluctantly stayed put. Renne would find physical and mental strain loud and clear.

By way of explanation, he says: "It's a rough time for all of us. We're preparing to fight the Ohm at any time, and everyone needs my best work as soon as possible."

That's got one thing coming to it. All right, two things.

Firstly, he asks the Sensorium to quite carefully slide the bookpile and the newly formed reading device to a safe nook to prevent damage. Secondly? Secondly, he creates a hopefully calm but whimsical, utterly illogical locale.

Mellow blue skies, the sound of a gently lapping ocean and the ground/floor becomes a swath of fluffy cloud....fluff. It's a take inspired by that orange sky and cloud-seat thing Billy himself had imagined some time back.

"Haow Bee do good-est if Bee too slee-pee do it?"

In other words, How do you expect your finest work if you work yourself to death?

The changing scenery spelled tranquility. It also spelled the end of work time for a little while.

And that was a hard-hitting question, making the boy flinch guiltily. "I'm trying to strike a balance between sleeping enough to avoid letting everyone down with the work I turn in and avoiding letting everyone down by completing what I need to do on time. I guess I've fallen out of balance again."

"Eee. Rrrr-enne do leahrrrrn fohrrr Rrrr-enne ahn-d Bee too. Rrrr-enne get big brrrrayn, Rrrr-enne hell-p Bee."

His tone contains only his logic and that neverending adoration for the Human that has wormed his way into Renne's existence. True, Renne idolizes Billy but even he's not so naive as to think either of them are immune to exhaustion.

Cloud-fluff, check. Calming, soft sound? Check. Pleasant, light smell somewhere between a distant ocean and perhaps a wildflower? Check.

Now he's got his Pampering Face, Billy.

"All right, I guess I can't say no to that."

Taking in the serene atmosphere around him, Billy slowly sinks into a comfortable sitting position. He breathes deeply, trying to settle down. That face makes him wonder a little, though.

"What does helping entail?"

"Eee. Wha-t Bee wahn-t hell-p in?" Chirp.

That's a simple enough question in his mind. Gently nosing the Human in hopes to try and get him to relax a little, the Renne goes quiet a minute.

He's thinking up one of his calming tea-broth recipes.

"There's so much that I'll need some time to extract something you can do."

Billy sighed and reacted to the soft nose by loosening his posture as best he could, sinking further into the fluff supporting his weight. It shaped to support his back properly, which was a relief.

"Eee. Rrr-enne noh wahn-t Bee si-ck."

One last nosing nudge. Good. There. Now, once he's found a nice tea-broth? He thinks it into existence. This one happens to be served in a shallow bowl-like thing closed off with a lid. The lid has a single hole to let the steam come out.

Finally, Renne turns to do something else. He watches curiously, catching a glimpse of something vaguely oval-shaped in the blue paws. Its scent fills the air too, something that makes him slowly start to release those troubling stressful thoughts.

"I think I'll be okay. Just give me some time." A concession that he needed the time here.

"Eee."

At which point, he offers said bowl to the Human. He does adjust the lid though, so that one might be able to drink from the hole rather than simply breathe in any scent.

"Rrrr-enne hell-p Bee ge-t noh si-ck, ahn-d Rrrr-enne hell-p Bee in do worrrrk."

And yes, exhaustion does count as "sick" to him.

"Thank you."

He smiles softly, takes it, and after a moment begins to drink very slowly. It feels quite pleasant in his stomach.

"Okay. There are definitely things to be moved and stored in the lab that you can help with, no problem." He nods slowly. Yes, that makes sense. "If I think of anything else I'll tell you, okay?"

For now, he's just quietly trying to sort himself out from the inside. So many jumbled thoughts and feelings.

Chirp.

He can agree to that. Nodding, the Renne for now keeps to a position that has him almost in front of Billy. Occasionally, his skin gives off thin, striped flashes of colour.

He doesn't have the desire to be invasive but...well. Animal-honed instincts and all.

As he sips, he thinks, well aware that someone is curious.

"I guess I should tell you about what happened, huh? It's reminded me of a few things."

Truths that are not at all comfortable to look at, but someone has to do it.

"If Bee wahn-t."

He won't force it unless it's immediately life-threatening. Of course, if it is life-threatening, after any danger's out of the way, a good haranguing is bound to follow.

But for now, Renne simply remains quiet. Some things need to go their own pace. Either way, he's here regardless of how long or briefly needed.

"All right."

Deep breath. It's confession time again.

"I think I told you part of this already, so please forgive me if I repeat myself. Down on that planet, I started to feel an intense fear when the Ohm attacked. Not just that I would fail again and let everyone die, but that something would happen to the people I'd forged new bonds with. To you. Every second, I tried to look for you---but the funny thing is that I believe I was injured more than you were."

Which wasn't funny at all. Just an opportunity to berate himself into training more. "Despite what we did, we failed. Some people were saved, but some of the escape shuttles were taken out. Others died. That entire planet was destroyed around us. I guess it hammered in how serious all of this is."

He ran a hand through his hair, slumping backward. "So I've been reacting by putting in more hours. My worst fear used to be losing control of myself, but now it's the consequences of failure to protect all of you. Especially you. So I've been working and working, trying my best to fill my roles. And get better at filling those roles every day."

Sigh. "But no matter what I do, it's not enough. Someone or something is always there to indicate that I fell short."

Billy, you get two things.

First, a little attempt at a shake. Then a sharp chirp and a pair of swirling eyes blinking.

"Bee noh fail! Bee do goo-d but...Bee, Bee noh hurrr-t Bee self? Eey-ess, it be ba-d bu-t wha-t be bad-derrr, is if we rrrrun."

His voice softens then as he squelches down a brief, shadowy thought. It'll be examined, postulated later but right now, it's put on the back burner.

Billy's eyes snap open from where they had been shut, clearly startled into listening. Had he really implied he was such a coward?

"No, you're right. We can't run. We have to keep trying, even if we die doing it. And...I guess one of the worst things about me is that I'm always looking for ways to innovate. Wanting to do better comes with my territory. But I'm being extreme about it, aren't I?"

He hangs his head in shame.

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