robinastrea

[robinastrea]

The new navigator suddenly looked away from him and cleared her throat, so evidently he’d hit somewhat of a sore subject already. Good going, Robin. “We do have fun a lot,” he said to her, keen on pushing past that slight hiccup as well. “A-and there is a little bit of messing around, yes. I think when all’s said and done, the thing I’m proudest about us as a ship is we know pretty well when it’s time to have fun and when it’s time for things to be serious. But overall, we’re kind of tightknit as well. I’ve got a few family members aboard, even."

"Drama" would be an understatement for what she experienced on her last ship. Lix would take "drama" over a broken arm and a concussion or a mutiny to get Cal off the ship. She kept all of that to herself though, because the first mate didn't need to know just how volatile the Israx was. She wasn't sure what he meant by "weird," though. It was a big galaxy, so there were plenty of weird beings and weird places, so that could mean anything for the Prosperity. When Robin asked about her old crew, she averted her gaze to her feet and cleared her throat awkwardly. Touchy subject. "Some were," she replied vaguely, like Kivessin. It still hurt to think about him, so she pushed him from her mind from now. "From the sounds of things, they weren't as fun as your crew is. They didn't mess around too much."

[robinastrea]

"I didn't think so, but yeah, no problem," Robin said, returning the smile. She seemed reserved, but he wouldn't hold judgment on that until later. It was literally her first day; new place and all that. This was also a sort of common question, and it made sense to ask, people wanted to know what the crew was like, and he was a good person to ask about it. "Mmm. In general, I'd say we do a good job of getting along. There is some drama that happens, but you probably know all about how that goes. Close quarters and all that. We're also a bit weird, and I do unfortunately count myself in that. You'll probably see what I mean when you look at our ship group chat." He laughed, somewhat hesitantly. "Were the members of your old crew easy to get along with? I know on the outside your ship has a more...um, ruthless reputation, but maybe everyone inside were tightknit to make up for that...?"

Lixiss never thought she'd see the day where she'd work with Alisz Astrea's sons. She didn't know the smuggler well, but she was notorious with her old crew. It was surprising the woman even had children, especially one that seemed so...friendly. Lix hadn't met the other one yet, but Robin seemed surprisingly nice. She nodded along quietly as the first mate gave her a tour of the navigation room, mentally comparing it to the old one. It would take a while for the Prosperity's to feel like home, but that couldn't be helped. She glanced down at the communication device when Robin mentioned it and turned it around in her hands. It was so fancy. "I won't need any training, but thanks for showing around," she said, offering the erkuss a small smile. "Is there anything I should know? About the crew in general, I mean." Her last one was so volatile that she was almost expecting one of these crewmates to try and assassinate Daphne.

[robinastrea]

closed starter for @lixisselcyne

"Well, here’s the navigation room. A few of us had to pick up the slack in the past, the times we've been without a navigator, so if you don't know where something is, feel free to give me or Skylar or Hero a shout. Maybe not a literal shout, just...through your new comm. I mean, unless you really want to.” Robin fought the feeling of wanting to put his foot in his mouth. “You can also just ask questions about whatever you want, but I don't think we'll have to do much navigation training for you...?” The circumstances of the new crew coming directly from the Israx were one big question mark to him, but he didn’t doubt that they knew their shit.

[robinastrea]

“No yeah, that’s a good idea,” Robin said. “And I mean--If you don’t find anything while you’re out, you’re welcome to look through what I’ve got. I have…uh, probably too many accessories that’s taking up closet space, and yet, I still buy more things whenever we stop,” he admitted.

"Yeah, I'd mostly decided on that, but I was thinking - even if I don't get an entirely new outfit, it might be nice if I spruced it up a bit. Not the end of the world if I can't find anything, but I reckoned it'd be worth a shot to see if I could find any accessories that would match well before we depart." His outfit he'd worn to the KBW last time had been nice enough, but it had been sorely lacking in accessories. He had a few other errands as well, but none he preferred to get into with Robin just now.

[robinastrea]

“Mmhmm! Yeah, I’m fine,” Robin answered him.  And it was true as anything: all was well in his world. He was busy as always with work, but he liked being busy. “What kinds of errands? Do you already have your outfit picked out for the wedding?” He thought he remembered hearing he would be wearing an outfit he already had.

"Ah, I was just on my way into town - I still have a few errands to run yet, before we leave. And you? All's well, I hope?" This was probably the part where he typically would have checked with Robin to make sure he wasn't bothering him, but, well - Robin didn't seem bothered? So it was probably fine.

[robinastrea]

Robin really liked when their ship stayed on Kor'Sel'Koo. There was a lot to do, and the scenery was really cool. There were plenty of memories made here. They were about to disembark to the KBW, which had a lot less scenery, but was about to be no less interesting, he feared. He had a mental list of things he needed to do on top of the typical ship things to prepare for them, and he was running over that mental list in his head when he passed Daniel in the corridor. "Hey, mate. What are you up to?"

Date: Spring 2025 Location: The Prosperity, docked on Kor'Sel'Koo Open Starter

It had been rather nice staying on Kor'Sel'Koo, Daniel thought -- even nicer than he'd expected, really. He'd managed to settle in rather well, to the point that he was sort of disappointed by the fact that the crew of The Prosperity would soon be taking off for the next destination, even if the KBW was no longer terrifying to him in the way that it had been when he'd first landed there to join the crew over two years ago now. It was quite the opposite now, even - save for the leaving Kor'Sel'Koo bit, he was actually looking forward to visiting the waystation. For a wedding... had Zuytri been seeing someone all that seriously before? He didn't recall, but then from the group chat it had sort of sounded like perhaps that wasn't quite a mandatory criteria for Zuytri to meet prior to marrying someone.

In any case, going to a wedding meant getting ready to leave. Daniel still had a few things he wanted to get done before leaving Kor'Sel'Koo, so he reckoned he'd better get on with those sooner rather than later if he was to do them at all. With the garden tended to for the time being, he made his way down the corridor, off to complete one such task. He did stop short, however, upon seeing someone else. "Oh - hello there!"

[robinastrea]

CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGE 8: WHAT IF

What-If Scenario #2: What if Robin and Ian smooched. actually don’t perceive this one

March 1, 2023, Nighttime KBW

It had been a long day. Three new recruits in a single day, one of them his ex-boyfriend. Landing on the brand-new-to-him station. The imminent gala, that he still hadn’t locked down his outfit for. He just knew that it needed to be something good. By the time the evening rolled around, he’d set on ducking into his hotel room and sleeping for a solid twelve--no, thirteen hours.

He crossed the fancy lobby, the click of his shoes reverberating off the tiles of the floor as he headed towards the elevators. When the doors slid open, Robin relaxed his shoulders and laid his head against the wall. Being the only one in the elevator, he had no one to act like the second-in-command of a reputable ship around, and he could just be…himself. For the first time all day.

That was short-lived, though, as when the doors began to slide shut, he heard a “Wait!” and the sound of sneakers running in his direction. Robin could be an asshole, he could press that button, right there, that slid the doors close. The guy would live, and Robin would get his precious elevator to himself. But instead he made himself straighten up and quickly darted his hand to keep the metal doors from closing. He’d effectively sandwiched his hand before they jumped apart, revealing Ian Solko, new entertainment recruit. His light brown hair looked windblown from sprinting, and his breath quickly heaved in and out. Ian’s large eyes met Robin’s, and he could have sworn he saw the man swallow before he moved into the elevator and clicked the button to his floor.

“Robin the first mate, right?” Ian asked shakily, in between breaths. They’d formally met earlier that day, but Robin understood. There were quite a few names to remember.

“Just Robin,” he replied. “Have you been settling into the ship okay?”

“Oh, yeah!” Ian brightened. “It’s been a whirlwind of a day. But everyone’s been so sweet to me so far! I’ve talked to so many people. And they’re all okay with me bringing a grumpy cat aboard, not the grumpy cat from the memes, but a grumpy cat. Beverly is her name, apologies in advance if she doesn’t like you, she’s kind of just like that--” The entertainer wildly gestured with his arms as he rambled on about his cat. Robin would like to say that he picked up on every single thing he said, but his brain was tired. Ian officially told him too many things. His mind went to his appearance instead: his oversized t-shirt and cargo pants and scuffed sneakers, his dyed brown hair framing a rounded face with big cheeks that stretched when he gave a wide smile.

“You have great skin,” Robin commented. He hoped he hadn’t interrupted something important. Ian seemed surprised at the sudden shift in topic, but he seemed to take it in stride.

“Thanks, Just Robin! It’s kind of a species trait. I was a vanneer a couple weeks ago, so my skin hasn’t been able to get exposed to the elements quite yet. But if I’m a human for a long time, I do get acne and all that…” Right, Robin had been briefed on Ian’s species. Same as Stella’s. He wondered how that was going to play out on the ship.

“--But your skin is great, too! You must work really hard to keep it so glassy,” Ian went on, a bit mystified.

Robin did smile at that, a quick, tired one upturning his lips. “I do work hard on it, thank you.”

“Is it--would it be weird if I touched it?”

“‘It?’”

“Your cheek?”

Oh. “Yes, it would,” Robin confirmed. Ian sagged and laughed hesitantly. Uncomfortably.

“Sorr--”

“You can, though. If you want to,” Robin continued, cutting them off. Sure, why not? He wasn’t hurting anything.

“O-oh. Okay!” The doors to Robin’s floor dinged open and they stepped out into the hallway. Robin ducked around a corner, effectively keeping elevator traffic from interrupting them. He leaned his face down so Ian could feel his cheek. And yes, this was weird. Why was he letting Ian do this? And worse, why was Ian tracing his finger along his cheek very slowly and softly?

“Very nice,” Ian whispered. Robin caught his eyes flickering briefly towards his lips, then back to his eyes again.

Well. Entertainers were not off-limits, Robin had already made sure of that. For no reason, of course. Why would he have a reason? Ahem. But Ali was their boss now, not him.

“I don’t know how I didn’t realize your eyes are two different colors,” Ian breathed, continuing to stare at them. “I’m a big fan of the color purple, though I think yellow is my favorite--” Robin interrupted the entertainer by capturing his lips in a kiss and pressing him against the wall.

He heard Ian squeak with surprise under him, his large eyes wide as saucers, but he very quickly got over his shock and leaned into Robin’s lips, meeting him with an intensity he hadn’t expected. His hands reached up to Robin’s chest, thumbs tracing over his suit jacket and brushing along the fabric over his collarbones. Robin’s arms braced on either side of Ian’s small frame, effectively surrounding the entertainer. He hoped Ian didn’t feel trapped, but by the way they were slotting their lips forcefully against his, their tongue tracing his bottom lip, Robin felt certain that Ian enjoyed every moment of this.

Their kisses grew slow and languid, the exhaustion settling into the first mate. When they finally parted, Robin brought his hand to Ian’s chin, cupping his kiss-swollen face in his hand. “You’re very pretty, and this was fun, but…”

“No, yeah--” Ian nodded into his palm. “I mean, fuck. You’re gorgeous. But we don’t need to take this further tonight. If you wanted to kiss some more, though, maybe? Sometime? I wouldn’t be opposed.”

“Get some sleep, Ian,” Robin told them gently, sleepily, leaning down to softly press his lips against their forehead. He didn’t miss the new entertainer’s blush on their cheeks as he turned to head to his room.

[robinastrea]

“That’s an interesting range of numbers you’ve got there,” Robin noted. Something told him his brother didn’t actually keep track. “Have I…” Robin had to lay there and think for a moment what a beanbag like that could possibly look like. “No, I haven’t. Isn’t a mobius strip a math concept? How does that translate to a beanbag?” He absentmindedly circled his finger in a loop motion as if it would help him visualize.

Sky gave a curt nod of approval at Robin's bow, pleased his nonsense was being treated with the seriousness it obviously required. "Top ten," he confirmed when Robin asked. "It's very impressive, thank you for realizing. Especially since I've sat on at least twelve beanbag chairs in my lifetime. Somewhere between that and five hundred." This range was not remotely helpful, he was sure. "Beanbags filled with beans, plastic, foam, water, air, gas - which you would think would feel the same as one filled with air, but it isn't. Different shapes, too. Have you ever sat in a mobius strip beanbag?"

[robinastrea]

“Ah, well thank you, my good sir.” he dramatically bowed back, feeling like this was the appropriate thing to do in return. Robin squeezed it a couple more times, just to test it, then fit the stress ball in his pocket. It protruded from his pocket as a massive round lump, but he ignored this fact. He still kept the nougat in his other hand as he made his way over to the seating, watching Sky flop down onto a massive beanbag chair. “Wow. Top ten? That’s kind of impressive. Have you sat on many beanbag chairs in your days?” He himself hadn’t encountered as many as he would like to. He dragged over another beanbag chair and let himself fall onto it, sinking blissfully into the fabric. Maybe the rec room needed a few of these.

"Used, but not within an inch of its life. It's still got some stress killing left in it. I had two in different places for a while, but I don't need the second anymore. So I leave it to you." Sky made a show of bowing, doing a whole flourish with his hand to go along with it. Then he flopped down on the massive beanbag chair he'd been about to occupy when he'd seen Robin and opted to throw stuff at his brother instead. "This has to be one of the top ten beanbags I've sat on," he added. High praise. This den was pretty sick, as far as dens in strongholds on otherwise difficult-to-inhabit outpost planets went.

[robinastrea]

Yeah, Robin thought that might be the answer. His fingers found the edges of the wrapping and he peeled back the small package, at around the same time Sky told him what the contents were. He examined the stress ball a little closer than he did the nougat, only because he possibly hadn’t held one in years. He forgot what the texture of one felt like. “Thanks!” He fit the wrapping into his back pocket temporarily so that he could toss it quickly into the air and catch it again in one hand, then squeezed it as hard as he could until his veins were visible. “I think it’s a good guess that I’ll get tense at some point. Are these new? Have you been wearing out stress balls lately?” Robin looked to Sky. Or maybe he was getting one for being tense at some point as well. Or to help him with his mood lately. Either way, maybe it was good that Sky acknowledged to himself that he needed a stress reliever.

"Guess you'll have to open it and find out," Sky answered unhelpfully. He'd wrapped it up so that the objects would stay together, but also in part for the purpose of making Robin wonder what it was, so he wasn't going to ruin that now. "Maple almond nougat. Oh, and a stress ball. You seem tense -- or like you might be tense at some point, and I don't need two," he finally did answer with a grin, only after the thing was open and Robin could see inside. Robin didn't seem particularly tense at this exact moment, but his second stress ball still seemed like it would be better suited to being owned by Robin than him these days. He was strictly a one stress ball kind of person again.

[robinastrea]

Robin was decent at thinking fast. In a smooth motion, he caught the object. He then gave a skeptical, questioning look towards his older brother before glancing down at it and examining the wrapped...thing. "Um, what's this?" He asked, already moving to unwrap it.

( Open Starter )

"Think fast!" Beyond making sure the person he was talking to had seen and heard, Skylar gave no further warning before he chucked a small, wrapped object in their general direction. Not hard enough to hurt -- if anything, it would most likely fall short, unless the intended recipient was quick about leaning forward to catch it. Oh well, good thing it wasn't fragile.

[robinastrea]

CHA EUN-WOO Rented In Finland 「핀란드 셋방살이」 Ep. 4

[robinastrea]

“Nice. Go team,” Robin briefly held up a fist. Their new mission to find a tracksuit for Ellie was very serious and perilous, not many could do it. “Yeah, see, same thing, slow growers,” Robin joked. Their birth situations were not similar at all, but he knew that and Ali knew that--no need to point it out. “Sleeping doesn’t seem so bad, either.”

"Good deal. We have a goal now," Ali nodded, lips twitching from the urge to laugh. He still didn't know how exactly hybrids aged compared to humans and Erkuss, but Robin's explanation helped a little more. It was always hard to tell when Robin looked closer to a twenty-six year old human, while Ryder could pass for twenty. "Sick! I was still asleep when I was two, so I understand you."

[robinastrea]

“We’ll just have to look out for one, then,” Robin replied, just as serious. He was certain he’d never seen one before and would never see one, but there was no harm in keeping one’s eyes peeled. He’d also never seen Ali stick crayons up his nose like he was insinuating now, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t. “I don’t know what I thought was a good idea when I was two--we age a little slower than humans… Laying around and crying? You know what, yeah, I could get behind that,” he chuckled.

"Oh, absolutely. I'd pay good money for a corgi tracksuit," Ali nodded very seriously. He didn't spend much of his paycheck since joining the crew, but that would absolutely be a worthy purchase. "Yes," Ali nodded again when Robin question his old man activities. "You'll understand when you're in your 80's, Robolo. The things you thought were a good idea when you were two, suddenly seem like a good idea again when you're old." Granted, Ali wasn't actually old as a Djayyar, but he spent a lot of time with the elderly and knew what they were about. Crayons up noses happened more than once.

[robinastrea]

“Yes,” Robin agreed a thousand-percent.  Could he picture Ali wearing a tracksuit?  No, not at all.  Did he even own one?  He’d never seen it, if so.  But was this all important for the bit?  Certainly.  “And Ellie needs a matching tracksuit to wear, while you’re at it,” he said.  Now that would be cute.  He couldn’t say he agreed it was more appealing now to stick crayons up his nose than it was when he was a kid and learning what fit up his nose and what didn’t…but maybe it was something about the years of experience he couldn’t understand.  “You were sticking crayons up your nose at a bingo hall?”  Robin raised an eyebrow.  He knew Ali didn’t mean at once, but he couldn’t help but combine them.

"Now I just need to bring Ellie and wear a tracksuit," Ali joked. Soccer moms always had little corgis. That wasn't his intention when he got her, but it worked out well. The tracksuits weren't as easily accessible. He didn't really wear those. He stuck to shorts and tee's on the ship, since he ran so warm. He barked out a loud laugh at at Robin's response to the crayons jibe. "I was at the bingo hall actually," Ali nodded sagely. "Also sticking crayons up my nose. It just feels more and more appealing the older you get too."

[robinastrea]

“Oh, a band mum who’s also a wine mum, even better,” Robin smiled.  It fit Ali, strangely.  He thought that Ali had exactly the temperament that those three needed in a band member--very easygoing, but was going to protect them if it ever came down to it.  That was just the sort of person Ali was, though.  He scoffed at Ali’s further teasing.  “How dare you insinuate I stuck crayons up my nose…I mean I probably did, but still.  How dare you,” he laughed.  “Meanwhile, you were probably hanging out at the bingo hall every day.”

Ali tried to picture any combination of those three getting into a fight and couldn't see it. His husband was extremely easygoing, Theo was quiet, and Ian just seemed happy to be included in just about anything. They made for a good band. "Nah. I don't think that's something we need to worry about," he laughed. "I don't mind being the band mom. I can bring them snacks during rehearsal and drink wine while listening in." It sounded like a pretty good gig to him. He nodded in agreement when Robin mentioned Sky's travel experience. "That's true. You were still sticking crayons up your nose when he was on a pirate ship." Ali didn't know if Robin ever stuck crayons up his nose, but he couldn't help teasing him a little.

[robinastrea]

Robin nodded, offering a smile at talking about soup of all things, and terrible scary movie protagonists.  “You would so survive a scary movie,” he decided immediately, downing the rest of his coffee.  Theo had the right no-bullshit attitude to make it to the end.  He was perfectly fine not talking about it--it wasn’t that he didn’t want to, not at all.  But it was Theo’s call, one hundred-percent, even if it wasn’t his birthday.  He was relieved and a little excited that he was down for a blanket tent.  “Me either,” he answered solemnly.  “Yeah--I’m ready,” he stood up from his seat, choosing to wrap his hand solidly around Theo’s.  “I can’t wait to be terrified all day,” he chuckled.

"Thanks," Theo murmured, giving Robin a half-smile as he stroked his hand. It was nice. He still felt weird for bringing it up, but hopefully they could just move on. "I'm good though. I only need to talk about soup and how stupid the main character is for following the noise in the scary movie," he added in an attempt to lighten the mood. "I'm down for a blanket tent. I can't remember the last time I made one of those." It was probably when he was still a kid. Thirty wasn't too old to still hang out in a blanket tent, he was pretty sure. Coziness was nice at all ages. Finishing up his coffee, he gave his boyfriend's hand a squeeze. "Ready?"