good morning everyone

[warmfeelings]

Chelsa has just finished the morning announcements. She loves doing the morning announcements; it's like piping hot coffee, the rise in the world's warmth. Most of it is for Aelise, of course, but Chelsa gets her own share, and of course she's not selfish, everyone loves their neighbors too. Everyone gets along so well.

She is on her way from the broadcasting studio where she does her announcements to the living quarters where she keeps her dearest friends. She makes sure to pay them plenty of attention. They watch the announcements - everyone does, unless they are doing some sort of emergency work right at that moment, and then they're caught up as soon as possible with the next installment - but they're kept closer and need more fine detail work to stay happy with her. It is terribly important that they be happy with her.

Comments

[pythbox]

Harley is also very distinctly crying.

"I don't want to settle in!" he sobs. "I want to die, and I can't—" His breath hitches; he wails incoherently.

[warmfeelings]

"Well, since you can't, you should really try to be comfortable here," says Chelsa reasonably.

[pythbox]

"Fuck you!" yells Harley. "Fuck you, fuck you, fuck - aaaaaaaaaah," and he's back to the crying again.

[warmfeelings]

"I don't understand why he's so upset," Chelsa sighs, looking at Corona.

[pythbox]

"I know you don't," says Corona tiredly. "And you don't understand how I feel about you, either. And you probably never will."

[warmfeelings]

"I don't have anything else I can do for him. Does he miss whoever he used to live with, is that it?" She's holding her hands out palms-forward, now, not working, just inspecting.

[pythbox]

"He doesn't want you to touch him," says Corona. "The more you mess with him, the worse he's going to feel about it."

Harley does, in fact, miss a lot of people. He has an intense love for several people who aren't anywhere nearby.

[warmfeelings]

"How is missing all these people going to help?" wonders Chelsa.

[pythbox]

"If you stop him missing them, it will hurt," says Corona. (Harley whimpers and burrows under the blanket.) "Having our own feelings is better than having somebody else come along and change them even if they're not feelings we like."

[warmfeelings]

"But you're happier than he is and you don't miss anyone from home," Chelsa says.

[pythbox]

"Look, if you want to know how to make Harley happy, I'm telling you," says Corona. "The answer is leave him alone."

[warmfeelings]

"And that will make him happy?" Chelsa asks skeptically.

[pythbox]

"Happier than he'll be if you do anything else to him," says Corona. "I think maybe he's just never going to be happy ever again."

[warmfeelings]

Chelsa hmmmms. "Well, we can try it that way and see what happens," she sighs.

[pythbox]

"Thank you," says Corona, cuddling Harley.

[warmfeelings]

"You're welcome. I love you, you know," she says to Corona. "My warm sun."

[pythbox]

"I love you too," Corona sighs. Because it'll make her happy, and it's not false. It's just not - the whole story.

[warmfeelings]

Chelsa beams at him, doesn't kiss him because Harley is in the way and would probably bite her, and goes off to pay attention to her other friends.

[alicornucopia]

Tima's back late that evening. "How is he?" she asks Corona, nibbling on something chocolatey.

[pythbox]

"Pretty bad," says Corona.

[alicornucopia]

"Can I do anything?" she asks.

[pythbox]

"You can come snuggle with us," he suggests.

[alicornucopia]

Tima joins the snuggle.

[pythbox]

Harley cuddles up to her willingly enough.

"How can you not hate her," he sniffles.

[alicornucopia]

"I don't see how anyone would," says Tima. "I understand that you do, just not - how."