[OPEN] in the distance i can see a huge holographic ronald mcdonald walking

[manolia]

Who: manolia and you!
When: 6/22-6/25
Where: shopping district, gardens, via text, anywhere
What: catch-all for the double event!
Rating/Warning: ER, for Embarrassing Robot (eta: mentions of robot threesomes, also)

---

a. 6/22; and i'd send myself to stalk the landscape and scare everybody
[Shopping for clothing for your robot: it's harder than you think.]

[Mini-Chibi - though it is hard to say the clone is 'mini,' given that it has Chibi's stature - is following along cheerfully behind actual-Chibi, wearing mostly his clothes save the hat. (The robot's head is sporting a black beanie instead; it's inherited Chibi's insistence on head-coverings, but there are no wings above its ears to be hidden yet.) Chibi's trying to pick out something different from what he usually wears for the robot, but it seems it has other ideas; it's striking off on its own and taking longing looks at everything dark-colored. Great, he has a clone.]

[People of age might get a happy little robotic visitor with a wolfish grin, who sidles in close and says:]

May I take a moment of your time to ask-- [Its organic double appears behind it and flicks it on the back of the head, then speaks in his Very Disapproving Parent tone.] Vida. You do not hit on people in clothing shops.

[Cowed, the robot pouts and slinks off to look lovingly at capes. Chibi pinches the bridge of his nose and sighs.] Sorry about that; he is growing to be something of a flirt.

b. 6/23; you see i've got this sort of field behind me
[Stook now refuses to talk to the robot or call it by name, claiming it 'creeps him out,' which should be the first indicator that something is wrong. Stook is the sort of AI who will talk anyone's ear off.]

[They are in the gardens right now, Chibi with a notebook in his lap and the robot off to get him a drink. There's another robotic voice, though one a bit lighter in tone, coming from inside Chibi's hat??] That thing has some funny business going on. Are you sure it's not going to poison you and take your place or something? It came from those CERES people, you know. Sssssketchy. Yes, but it is not his fault he is their tool. Besides, I had to know-- Uh, no, you didn't have to throw yourself under the parade. Come on, Stook, I am not throwing myself under the parade.

[--And he notices there's someone else there and looks up from where he's taking the entire bench.] Ah, were you going to sit here? [Scooooot.]

c. 6/24-25; because i go between the zones even when i'm not supposed to
[This damned robot has been stealing his belongings and placing them in bizarre locations for the past twelve hours. It put the roomba in the fridge; the poor thing was letting out distressed chirps and knocking over bottles for an hour before Chibi figured out where it was. And the Goddess-damned minute he tries to take a shower--]

[If you have an appointment with him, or if you're cool enough that he texts you sometimes, you might get this text:]

Cannot leave apartment; Vida stole my hat off the bathroom door and left. Crafty little bastard. :( [But then, who's at the door?? --Or ask why he can't leave without his hat, at your own peril.]

d. wildcard
[any and all shenanigans are welcomed, or hit me on plurk walkingsportsgym for plotting!]

Comments

c

[unionjackoff]

[you know who has been avoiding these robots? England has been avoiding these robots. he never activated his, neither did his roommate, so they are living in a robot-free apartment. the moment England heard that Chibi had activated his own robot, he'd kind of noped off for a few days.

but he can't avoid Chibi forever. they are dating, and it is important to stay in contact with the person you're dating, right? so he makes plans to come visit that evening, especially after he gets the text from Chibi that tells him his robot is gone. okay, this isn't good. just where had that robot gotten off to?

he starts his walk to Chibi's apartment, continuing to check for texts from his boyfriend in case plans have changed]

[manolia]

[Cold, England, cold. Chibi'd at least made sure to explain why he activated the robot - it might get him closer to CERES, it might get him one more piece of the puzzle - but still, he understands why England doesn't want to get involved. It was a relief, at least, to make plans with him tonight.]

[And then the damned robot took his hat. His hat!! How can you humiliate an Eliatrope more than that? (Though he'll probably laugh about it in a week, he knows.)]

He's smart, I'll give him that! I want to get into his code and see how he learns so quickly.

[But at the same time, not-Chibi (but very much looking like Chibi, and wearing his hat) will intercept him on his walk with a cheery yell.] Over here, over here!

[unionjackoff]

[England hears the sound that alerts him he's received a new text. but before he can even read it, he hears Chibi's voice. oh, there he is, actually out of the house]

You got your hat back, eh? [England approaches not-Chibi, none the wiser. because he wasn't expecting the robot to actually look so much like him. surely a robot would have bolts, or wires, or something sticking out of them]

[manolia]

[[the double's speech will be purple, for ease of reading!]]

That I did - had to use some advanced tactics to get it back, though. [He tugs on the end of the hat in that way real-Chibi sometimes does. At this point, he really does look like Chibi - everything but the wings, which you can't see with the hat on. It's a bit creepy, Chibi thinks.]

[The robot, if its thoughts could be accurately translated, might be thinking it can pass the real Chibi off as the double...]

[He offers his hand and a grin.] Shall we, then?

b!

[adornmental]

[WELL HE WAS, BUT NOW HE'S CONCERNED... And while he'd normally be equally concerned about social presentation, dealing with robots takes precedence this time!]

...Is your hat a robot too or something?

[Does that mean he's speaking to a Chibibot right now?? It's getting harder and harder to tell that he's just been thrown into a near-constant state of Paranoia™. Thanks CERES, what a fun experience.]

[manolia]

[LAUGHS...] Goddess, no. Hey, Chibi, let me out.

Alright then, Kashuu, meet my good friend from home. [Chibi reaches into his hat, fumbles a little, and yanks out... A glowing blue cube, a little smaller than his palm on all faces. It pulses happily and speaks:] Ooh, your wakfu signature is a little weird... Cool. Anyway, I'm Stook! My body may not be very handsome anymore, but I'm an AI Chibi crafted before this place was a thought in anyone's mind. These robots, though... They seriously creep me out.

[adornmental]

[!! Well, he's always game for meeting friendly... pieces of tech?? HE'S NOT SURE. He's heard AI before, but he can't exactly remember what it entails. Still, his expression is bright when he says:]

Ooh! So you must be really, really old, huh? [RUDE.] But it's nice to meet you! My name's Kashuu Kiyomitsu. I'm a spirit, so maybe that's why the wakfu thingy is weird? [He remembers Chibi talking about that, too! Aw yeah, he's on a roll today.

Though his expression falls into something sour as the topic loops back around to robots.]

Ugh, same. There's something really gross about a robot starting out all robot-like and then looking more and more like you every day, yeah?

[manolia]

Oooh, that explains it. A spirit... You know, there's all sorts of weird things here I would have never thought existed! Spirits, aliens... The e͏͏̲̤̝̠̬̜n̢͉̤̪͉̪͘d̶̢̤̥̜͕̰̗̖̖̳ ̝̩͠o͚͜f̶͕͙̟̥̟͚̩ ̷҉͖̲ţ̵̭̬h͕̣̠̜̲͟e̳̥̦̥̘̦͠ ͏̭͕͙w͏͈̜o̧̩̯r͔̭͍̥̬̲̝̘l̗̝͓͍̬d̤̱̹͓̬̭͓̦͞ sort of changed my worldview on all of that, you know? Neat stuff.

[But Chibi wants to talk about robots more, not any of that! The horns on his hat slump a little when he says:] It is creepy, to be sure, but I also feel a bit bad for them. They didn't choose to be CERES' tools; they just want to learn. Perhaps if they had more opportunities for freedom, instead of bonding to one person...

6/23

[zerotohiro]

[Hiro for the most part kind of looks like he just ran about 10 miles. Probably because he did. Keeping up with a robot version of himself is torture, no wonder Baymax always talks about how he's not fast. So he nods, flopping less-than-gracefully on the bench.

...and then he tunes into something.]

Does the whole "keep calm and don't explode" thing mean you have to talk to yourself?

[manolia]

[At the same time, Chibi and the voice from his hat pipe up:] Rude. Rude. [There's no real offense behind either of the voices, though, and Chibi happily shifts to give Hiro a side of the bench.]

I am speaking with... Well, I had a few AIs of my own design back home, but I was able to get one along with another ViViD request of mine. Hold on just a-- [He reaches into his hat and pulls out a wakfu-blue cube, glowing and pulsing with each word it speaks.] Geez, Chibi, you didn't tell me you had so many friends. Hi, I'm Stook! A robot of few words, [that's a dirty lie] and feeling kind of holed up in this Eliacube, but hey, things happen.

[zerotohiro]

[He jumps slightly at the sound of a second voice. Okay. So. Not talking to himself. Good to know! He gives Chibi's hat a suspicious stare before he suddenly understands.]

That's a lot better than what I thought. You can get some pretty sweet stuff out of ViViD. [And when he reveals the cube, Hiro suddenly leans over to get a closer look.] ...whoa. Hey...Stook. [He's a cube. He's a cube and though he's impressed because he's Hiro and why wouldn't he be, he can't help but still give Stook an incredulous look.] Are...you always a cube? Or is that because of Cerealia? [A pause before he glances at Chibi again.] Or maybe I should be asking you that.

[manolia]

[Since Hiro didn't bother introducing himself, Chibi turns to the cube a moment and says:] Stook, this is Hiro Hamada. He's a smart kid; I think you'll like him.

[Then he turns back to Hiro, still holding the cube in his hand.] This is a personal Eliacube; it works as a wakfu battery, and back on my homeworld, a friend - well, my brother - linked them all up through flowers to work as communication devices. Stook was one, when I first brought him life, but he decided he wanted arms instead. I miss moving things around. That was fun. Yeah.

a please save him from this robot

[mysophobic]

[ Shigeru is also looking for things for his own robot. Many something to differentiate it wouldn't be a bad idea, so he's definitely opting for a wardrobe change at least. He'll jump a little at the sudden intrusion of that robot. He didn't even know that it was going to hit on, but having been told that his face is totally red. Let him just...type something out quickly. ]

It's okay! I...I wouldn't have even known if you hadn't said anything.

[ Probably because Shigeru is totally oblivious to that sort of thing, but also because the robot hadn't gotten to finish what it wanted to ask, which might be a blessing. ]

oh he'll be back in a second

[manolia]

[Ah, the mute from the festival! Chibi doesn't quite remember his name, but that is alright.]

You would have in a second. [laughs.....] He takes all the subtlety I did as a teenager; it is pretty funny to watch. And here I am, just trying to find some clothes for the poor guy.

oh lordy

[mysophobic]

[ He smiles sheepishly and nods, watching the robot wander off on its own. ]

You're doing that too? I wanted to try something to help differentiate us. But it's...getting harder to do by the day. It's kind of creepy.

[ He looks worriedly back over at Chibi's own robot. ]

I've never really seen anything like it before. I mean back home we have androids but you could sort of tell that they were. These are...really realistic.

[manolia]

[[double's speech is purple, for ease of reading!]]

Yes, exactly! It's really unlike anything I've ever seen, and that just makes me want to study him more. [Chibi starts to bounce a little bit on his heels, back and forth.] Now, why CERES gave them to us, I am not sure what they are angling at - but I cannot think it is their fault, certainly, and--

How is this? [The double is back, a hooded cloak looking a lot like Chibi's own draped around his shoulders; it spins around in it and shoots Shigeru a wink, as if to say changed your mind? Chibi just rolls his eyes.] Aaah, perhaps something a bit more colorful.

a!

[erythristic]

[outwardly, she's hardly concerned, examining a pair of grey gloves that are quite similar to the black ones she's already wearing, while inwardly she's puzzled at why Chibi's approaching her with that expression. until a second Chibi appears, and she takes a moment to sense which one is real. this whole doubled situation is concerning her, and while she's refraining from touching hers just yet, the resemblance...]

You say that and I admit I'm curious to see just what exactly he'd say.

[breezy, seemingly unbothered by a robot attempting to hit on her. now, was there a pair of these in a deep red?]

[manolia]

[--That's Grell. The robot, using his face, was hitting on Grell. Classy. (Even if she is, admittedly, pretty cute.)]

[He plays it off with an easy chuckle.] I fear my lover would be upset were I to repeat what I think he was going to say. [A look towards the robot, who's taken a dark wool cape and placed it around his shoulders. Were he a less reserved robot, the confident look on his face indicates he'd be making finger-guns at himself in the mirror.] Particularly as he walks around with my face... And seems to share my taste in clothing. Whatever CERES has given us, it is turning out to be pretty interesting.

[erythristic]

There has to be a way you can mark him for your own reference. Without telling him what's there. Or perhaps ask your lover to mark you, so they can tell the difference?

[she shrugs a little bit, finding a dark red in the bunch and holding her hand next to them. too small - not a problem, since black goes with so much, but she liked variety.]

Though I can't say I'm as enthused about this gift as you are. If there was a way to make them...not duplicates, then it might be easier to swallow. It's hard to accept having your new twin being your personal servant. What if they forget that they aren't alive?

b;

[adminproof]

[ He wasn't planning on sitting down and he literally just teleported here because park benches are the best places on which to sit on and observe people (like a stalker) from. Saiduq peers at his hat curiously. ]

Ah, do you also have a companion?

[ An artificial/designed one, he really means. ]

[manolia]

Yes! I requested him from ViViD; he is of my design from home. [He reaches into his hat and produces...]

[A cube. A bright, wakfu-blue, glowing cube. Saiduq's cubic kin has arrived! (Not really.)]

Stook, remember the implant we looked at? This is the friend who asked me to take care of it. You've got a regular pack of weirdos, don't you? Be nice. Hey, it's not a bad thing! Anyway, he has an AI companion, too?

[adminproof]

That is correct, also of my own design.

[ Not the weirdo part, the AI companion part. Ah, cubekin, the best kind of kin. Kind of.

With that, he fishes his own phone out of his pocket, and flips it open, showing off the two Ticos, both male and female. ]

Hiya!

Greetings.

[ Saiduq simply lets out a chuckle. ...They're like proud parents showing off their kids. God. ]

6/23; hello, hope a late tag is okay?!

[covenantal]

[ ... mildly: ] Is your hat always this talkative?

[ Smiles a little as he takes a seat beside his friend, his gaze moving questioningly to the hat in question before he actually meets Chibi's eyes. ]

a late tag is always okay :')

[manolia]

[Chibi opens his mouth to quip about all the secrets hiding in there, but Stook beats him to the punch:] All you rude young people! It's easier for Chibi to carry me around in here, is all. And I am not talkative, I am a wise AI of few words--

Yes, yes. [Chibi's tone is light, implying he doesn't believe a word of that 'AI of few words' talk.] He's more talkative with all the new robots about - if I gave him arms, he'd try to strangle the damned things.

WOO

[covenantal]

[ Blinks up at Chibi's hat again, his brows raised beneath the fringe of his hair. His mouth quirks before he can help it. \

He thinks they're trouble too, huh? [ Yu's smile turns wry. ] There's two of them in my apartment. I never activated mine, but my roommates did. They've been harmless so far, but you never know how long that will last with CERES.