Week 2 curfew: FR Restaraunt

[0202]

somehow only 3 people too

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[0202]

[Blade sure is grabbing a bunch of knives from the kitchen and stashing them in the freezer. As one does.]

[atouts]

[ Childermass is scrounging up some bags of flour and string, but he'll stop to watch Blade pick up... a lot of other blades. Funny that. ]

Mr. Blade, what are you doing with those?

[0202]

Hiding them~

[Somehow he is not getting cut despite shoving multiple knives in a freezer.]

[atouts]

Hiding them... in the freezer.

[ Sir? ]

[0202]

It's not a place knives normally are! So nobody will look there~

[atouts]

Yes, well... [ He's not wrong? Okay. Fine. ] Be sure not to forget all the cleavers and meat hooks, as well.

[0202]

Right!

[He hurries around to grab anything sharp remaining in the kitchen. The freezer is going to be full.]

Do you want to do anything, John?

[atouts]

Leave me a few of the hooks.

[ He hefts up a bag of flour. ]

I will be laying a little trap across the entrance. If the door opens and someone comes in, a hook should tear this open and across their path.

[0202]

Oh! Clever! Then they will be covered in flour and we will know who they are!

[atouts]

That, or they will leave clear footprints for us to see... Though, in truth, I hope nothing comes of this night at all, Mr. Blade. I would much rather see everyone alive and well tomorrow.

[ In any case, he'll collect his bags of flour and twine and the one or two hooks left to set up his traps. ]

[0202]

[Aww. Blade's excitement turns into a genuine fond look when Childermass says that.]

I do too. It would be nice if things could be normal for once.

[atouts]

It certainly would be...

[ Though there is something resigned in the man's voice, like no matter how much they hope, it isn't likely to come to pass. ]

Well. Let me see to the doors, and then we'll take a look at that wine rack, hm? Pop open the oldest vintage we find.

[shortsuits]

[He's just here to grab a bottle to take outside to the dining area, but it's kind of hard to miss this.]

I guess that's one way to deal with those. How many are left, anyway?

[0202]

I have to get the meat hooks still~

[He will give an exact count of all sharp things in the kitchen.]

[shortsuits]

[Eh. Well. He's here already, so he places the bottle down and walks over to where the meat hooks are to grab as many as he can without having them spill out of his hands. Here you go, Blade.]

Are you only grabbing the tools with the pointy bits?

[0202]

An old vintage?

[He will go with Childermass though, so he can help set up the traps he has in mind.]

[atouts]

Mhm. Good wine is aged for a time, even decades, or longer.

[ He starts by setting the bag of flour down by the opening side of the door, then stepping over to the other side to tie the twine from the kitchen to whatever bit of furniture sits next to it, heavy and likely holding decor of some kind.

From there, he rolls the twine out and cuts it with one of the hooks before tying it off to the very same utensil. That, he then stabs into the flour, with a little white poof of flour dust rising from the motion. ]

[0202]

I can't get drunk but I'll try it for the taste!

[He is watching Childermass work with interest. So this will reveal anyone who entered the restaurant, huh?]

[0202]

Yep! Those are the things people look for first. If they're hidden, maybe they will leave and look elsewhere~

[Of course everyone at curfew knows where they are, so.]

[atouts]

[ He'll test the tautness of the twine before nodding to himself and standing. ]

You can't get drunk... [ He looks back at Blade. ] No? Not at all? That does make sense, considering, but... Then why can you drink at all? Or even taste? You run on essence, so where does eating and drinking come in?

[0202]

I don't get any nutritional benefits from eating and drinking, but I can process anything I consume! I had to be able to blend in with humans, and that means doing things like eating and breathing and stuff.

[:)]

I can taste everything I eat or drink though.

[atouts]

[ Blend in... ]

I fear I must point out the sharp teeth do out you as inhuman, Mr. Blade.

[ Surely that can't be normal in his world. ]

But... I see. I don't really understand why, but so long as we can share a glass of wine, I shall not complain.

[0202]

[Blade pauses for a moment, considering something. He had been told to be more open about his past, that people won't hate him for it, so maybe starting with a friend is best.]

That's because I was originally made to assassinate political targets. It's easier to get closer to the targets if I blend in with humans.

[After a short pause:]

I don't do it anymore though, not since my programming was changed.

[atouts]

You...

[ That has Childermass pause in the middle of brushing his hands clean of loose flour on his vest, which, humorously enough, leaves some white streaks plain as day on such a black vest. He is surprised, of course, and his expression does not hide this when he looks at Blade. ]

Ah, that would... Well, yes, that would make sense. Easier to fit in. [ He'll let the information sink in, but once it does, he isn't going to remain shocked forever. ] But your programming was changed.

[ What? He furrows his brow. It's confusion now, not surprise. ]

What does that mean?

[0202]

[He gives Childermass time to process this. He's patient, and he's watching closely to see the man's reaction too.]

It means I was changed from how I used to be. Even though I have emotions now and can make choices for myself, my programming still plays a big part in how I act and what I do.

My programming now is more about protecting people and following instructions given to me, but in the past I was programmed to kill certain targets on sight. I was also programmed to explode when caught or disabled by the enemy, so I'm glad I don't have that anymore!

[atouts]

[ Next book on the list from the library: robots? Programming? He's not sure... ]

So programming controls what you do. Can't you choose not to follow the instructions given to you? I feel that part is what concerns me the most, seeing as the... killing and exploding has already been done away with.

[0202]

[He pauses suddenly, hands still on the rope he was holding to help set up the trap. He looks to Childermass with an unusual look, one that Blade doesn't usually have. It's like he's realized something important that has been there the entire time, something he has overlooked until it suddenly slapped him in the face.]

No, I always do it. Even here, any time someone has told me to do something I do it.

[Usually it's with an "Okay~!" and enthusiasm, but sometimes it has been reluctant.]

Did you really never notice?

[atouts]

...I did not. I thought you were just overly helpful, as some are wont to be. You really can't ignore a command?

[ Childermass could test it. He won't. He doesn't want to. ]

Blade, you must realize how dangerous that is in a place like this.

[0202]

I am helpful, I would still help if asked. But...

[This has always been one of his biggest questions: just how much of his helpfulness is him actually choosing it vs him following commands? He's started to care about it more and more as he's become more questioning of his own autonomy.

Thankfully it hasn't really been tested here, but it absolutely has been tested back in his world.]

I can avoid it if it's more of a suggestion than a command, and if it's vague enough I can avoid it too. But something direct, no. I wouldn't be able to.

[atouts]

[ Still concerning, but if a suggestion can be worked around, it is something Childermass will have to keep in mind. He gives his head a shake and holds a hand out for the twine Blade was helping with. ]

Then I suggest we tidy up, and then I will choose a decent bottle of wine for us.

[0202]

[Aww. The way Childermass immediately changes how he talks to Blade brings a smile to his face.]

I like that idea.

[The concerns will persist but having friends to back him up makes it easier to handle them.]

[atouts]

[ There's just something about thinking some accidental request will send Blade off on an unwanted errand. Childermass would rather not. So, he'll give a nod, and set off back to the kitchen.

And, thankfully, there isn't much to clean up in the first place. It's just a matter of putting the twine and hooks away, stowing any bags of flour not used. It was, after all, a very simple trap. From there, it's a simple enough matter of browsing the wine rack for a suitable vintage.

He won't get anything too bitter. A dessert wine ought to do, even though he, himself, doesn't have a taste for sweeter wines. ]