victory_road | 8. Video

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8. Video

[Newt is sitting at a desk when the gear clicks on. There's a Munna sleeping on a small pile of books off to the side.]

So....I've been here two years now. I guess that means I'm nine. If I'm here for another year, I'll be as old as they kept trying to say I was when I first showed up. I wonder if that means they'll think I'm thirteen.

[No, Newt doesn't hold grudges, why do you ask?]

But. I wanted to say thank you to everyone whose still here. This place is a lot nicer then I thought it would be when I first got here. And even giant alien invasions don't kill everyone ....or anyone at all. That's good. I hope we don't get another one soon though.

[She is done with alien invasions. But still! She sits up straighter and looks more serious. Even as she starts to talk faster.]

Oh, I also hatched two eggs. They were surprises from Christmas and it took me a while to decide let them stay, but they didn't get hurt. I was okay, and I didn't watch them hatch....but I don't think I ever want to do that again. I'll just stick to catching pokemon.

[She is sorry for the people that makes no sense to at all. Meanwhile the Munna has been inching over and decides to start nudging Newt, drawing her attention away from the camera/the subject at hand. Her voice seems to go back to the normal pace at least.]

Oh that's it, I guess. I have to check on Sleepy. Thanks again.

[Have a quick nod to the camera and a...marine salute? Yup. Quick small girl version of a salute after she signs off.]

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Newt, that's great!

[On all counts. On her trying to hatch the eggs, and her being nine.]

And... happy anniversary. Slash birthday.

[He's so proud of you!]

Thanks!

[She's starting to do better. Especially since the first time she talked about her birthday she was positive she was never going to mention it again.]

I know it's not really my birthday but that got really confusing and I like this day better now.

Hey, if this is how you want to celebrate? Go for it.

I'm not here to judge. I'm just here to send cake.

You're sending cake?

[This is why you are the best pokedad, Shiro.]

You bet.

It's on its way.

Thank you!

What kind of cake is it? Is it a surprise?

It's definitely a surprise.

[But sooner than later, Newt will get a package. A package of cake!]

[Yay, future cake.]

How long have you been in this world?

That's... that's a good question.

I think I've honestly lost track.

Really?

That must be a really long time.

Yeah. Yeah, it has been.

But it's been good, too.

Yeah....

I still wish we could bring people here that we wanted to see. But it's good here. If I could bring my mom here I'd be okay with never going back.

[Sorry Hicks and Bishop. It's just that if she had to choose one....]

Yeah... there's a few people I'd like to see again, too.

But, they can always still turn up. Same with your mother.

Maybe.

I still don't really want to hope too much.

Yeah... yeah, I get that, Newt.

I really do. It's okay to feel like that.

Yeah.

That's okay though. I like almost all the people I meet here.

[It's really not. But if she says it is...that works right?]

Well, I'm glad to hear that. I was worried you didn't like me for a minute.

[No, he wasn't.]

I like you. You're one of my best friends.

[Space dad, how cruel. :P]

Hey, hey. I'm teasing, Newt. I'm teasing.

I know.

Oh.

Okay. As long as you know.

I know, Newt. I promise.

It was just a joke.

Right...sorry.

[She missed the joke. Time to change the subject.]

Have you beat any of the gyms here?

It's okay, Newt. Really.

Yeah, I have. I've just got Kanto left to take care of.

Me too.

I should probably start taking on the elite teams if I want to beat the ones at the very end.

Oh yeah? I guess that makes us rivals.

[There's a beat.]

That's another joke, Newt. I'm proud of you.

I'm glad you have this place.

[His heart hurts a little to hear that, though. She's had two years of rest and it's all in a fantasy world.]

How does it feel to be nine-twelve?

[He'll just focus on how fuckin' funny and weird time is here.]

[And if Ripley were here she would never want to go back. That last bit gets a smile.]

I don't think it feels really different. But I like saying I'm nine for sure now.

And you can argue what number of candles you want on your cake when your birthday rolls around. I think you can get away with a few extra.

[He hopes that Ripley shows up one day. Newt's such a good kid and she deserves her mom, way more than he can do some long-distance passive dadding. She needs someone there.]

Oh I'm just celebrating it today. I think I like today better then my real birthday now anyway.

[Still it's a really good thing she has people like Hank and Shiro around. They keep her from becoming an even more feral child then she would have if they weren't here.]

....I just decided that though so I'm not really celebrating it much. Maybe next year.

Well I'm on the road, so if I see anything I think you'd particularly like I'll send it your way, alright?

A celebration is a celebration, little or big.

Okay!

[Yay, presents.]

Where are you going?

Right now I'm just dipping into Kanto. Haven't made it very far. Used the Magnet Train to go into Saffron. [He's on the move though, and probably won't stay there long. It's better to clear his head.]

Are you still looking for lost pokemon?

[She's pretty sure that's like his job here. Or he made it his job.]

Yeah! I actually took a bunch of the wanted ads with me. Hopefully I can find some.

Are there a lot of missing pokemon here?

[Yeah there's a lot in that that makes zero sense to Penny, but that little salute is absolutely adorable.]

It does seem like there's more alien invasions here than are probably normal, doesn't it.

[That at least she can grok.]

Though I guess I don't really know what normal is, back home we didn't have any. ...At least not any I heard about.

[She learnt it from watching marines!]

I think if it was normal here, the people who have been here for a really long time would have warned us about them.

We had one back home I know about, but I don't think there were any others. The ones here were better too. No one died.

I- oh.

[Yeah, she manages to catch that implication at the end there. That sounds like a real rabbit hole of terrible.]

I'm sorry.

[Such a deep rabbit hole of terrible.]

That's okay. Things are better here.

[She hasn't had to watch a single person die yet.]

I hope we don't have another one for a really long time though. Or maybe ever.

No, me too, those were pretty bad.

[Even if no one died, low a bar as that is.]

Uh- two years though? Does that make it your birthday?

[Is this a less terrible topic for Newt, please.]

I decided to make it my new birthday. I couldn't figure out if I had two birthdays the first year I showed up because I'd turned 7 at home a few months before but then here I also had a birthday a few months later. So I think it's easier if I just go by when I came here.

[Also her real birthday comes with memories of her family and that is a terrible topic for Newt. Also, also she was seven and math is hard?]

So now I'm nine.

I can definitely see how that would be confusing, back home I didn't really- I mean, it's easier to just use the dates here, too.

[Hashtag just android things.]

So- happy birthday, I guess!

Thanks!

Did you pick a new birthday too?

Oh, no, not yet. I guess I hadn't really thought about it that much. Guess I probably should!

[That's a normal human thing to do right?]

Only if you want to. I kind of just ignored it for two years.

[What is normal?]

And I just picked the day I arrived here.

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8. Video

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Belated as fuck tag in.

yay!

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