Copacabana Palace, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Friday - Evening

[nookiepowered]

The night is for terrible things, not the day, silly narrative revelers. Especially when the night is clear, warm, and filled with the sizzling sounds of sssssamba! It might be Lent now, but it's still Rio, and it's still Friday. Time for dancing on the sand, in the clubs, and if you think there's no dancing in the streets anymore, you must be walking down the wrong street. Turn left by the man with the saxophone; drop a tip in his hat and he'll tell you where to go from there.

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[OCD: Rooms / Cipriani Restaurant / Pool / Bar do Copa / Platforma Samba / Restaurants and Clubs / Elsewhere / Daytime / OOC / My mom ]

Comments

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[momslilassassin]

"You really don't want to hear this," Ben warned quietly.

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[dollpocalypse]

Topher looked a little uncomfortable for a moment, and wondered if he might've made a bad call, but then steadied. "No, 's okay," he said. "Go ahead."

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[momslilassassin]

Ben took a deep breath. "This is just between us, okay? Not Tony or Ender or Peter or Billy or anyone else."

With Topher, Ben had learned it was best to clarify.

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[dollpocalypse]

Topher was just starting to rattle off that list in his head before Ben added the last part, at which point he just nodded. "Yeah, okay," he promised.

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[momslilassassin]

"The last trip home was rough," Ben admitted. "I got outfought by a couple of Sith and ended up in a Force net."

He paused, trying to figure out how to describe it. "Think of it like fencing, but made of energy. They caught me in it and started squeezing."

Which explained the scars that used to be on his face.

"Ender hit the guy with a speeder--" and now it dawned on Ben that to do that, Ender would have had to see into the building, and shitshitshit, but none of that showed in his face or tone, "--so I was fine, just a little cut up."

He shrugged. "All in all, I prefer Rio."

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[dollpocalypse]

It took Topher a moment to process what that net must have been like, and then he started looking just a little sick.

"They were going to... dice you."

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[momslilassassin]

"Sith are generally considered evil," Ben said, nodding.

And, glancing at Topher's face, founding himself very glad he hadn't started with the story about how his cousin had tortured him for a few days, or what Tahiri had done after giving him the scar on his back.

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[dollpocalypse]

Topher hesitated. "Is that what your dad is? Ender said -- it was 'cause of him."

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[momslilassassin]

"Dad's not a Sith," Ben said vehemently. "He's just a little...focused on the endgame."

Whatever that would be.

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[dollpocalypse]

"So he let you get hurt?"

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[momslilassassin]

"It wasn't really a 'let'," Ben said, frowning hard. "He'd been beaten up too--knee injury, throat problems, someone'd tried to set him on fire--"

Ben's galaxy was so much fun.

"He would have helped if he could."

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[dollpocalypse]

"Oh," Topher said, nodding a little. "Um. Sorry. I didn't mean... sorry."

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[momslilassassin]

"It's okay," Ben said. "You didn't know."

And Ben would only allow criticism of his father from one person.

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[dollpocalypse]

"But. Um. You always... go, Ender said. Even though you get hurt a lot?" Topher bit his lip. "That's a Jedi thing. Right?"

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[momslilassassin]

"He's not just my dad," Ben said. "He's also the boss."

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[dollpocalypse]

"But... it's like with Tony," Topher said. "With the... almost getting killed and stuff. Sucks."

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[momslilassassin]

Ben shrugged. "I'm not afraid of dying," he said, absolutely sincere, "as long as it's for a good reason."

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[dollpocalypse]

Topher frowned. "Yeah, but... I mean. You're cool. So."

Eloquent, Topher.

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[momslilassassin]

"Thank you?" Ben said, looking a little confused.

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[dollpocalypse]

Topher wrung his hands a little, uncomfortable. "I mean. So. Don't, um, die."

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[momslilassassin]

"I'm not planning on it," Ben said with a quick smile.

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[dollpocalypse]

"Good," Topher said, looking more than a little relieved. "Because -- yeah. Friends. And."

Not a sentence.

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[momslilassassin]

"I'm not going home after graduation," Ben said. "I'm going with Ender."

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[dollpocalypse]

"Oh."

Topher looked... well, a little surprised, but not a lot. He'd barely ever known Ben and Ender before they'd started dating, and even before that, he'd never known them to be especially separable. So.

"That's okay, then," he decided, totally seriously. "So -- is that, like, space?"

Re: Room 328 [evening]

[momslilassassin]

"Really slow space," Ben said. "It takes his galaxy years to get anywhere."

And conversation successful turned, maybe?