58.2 - Popcorn (Alycia & Summer)

General Roll20
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41

Alycia has a poleaxed look to her, staring back at Summer, in mid-pace in the living room. “I – no, I’m not – I --” She stops, closes her jaw with a snap. Turns her head, holding up one index finger. After a moment, she mutters, “Hyper-genius, cogitate thyself.” Then, after another long moment, a succinct, "Sali kutti … rrrg …" She sags slightly, then smirks, “But I’m being a hubristic messiah for a good cause, so that makes it all better, right?”

She plops back down on the sofa, loose-limbed. “Well, fuck.” She’s still for a moment, then, “Thank you. I’m … glad I asked. I need to think this through. My initial reaction is still that I was right, but – I need to consider it some more. Maybe test it.” She shakes her head slightly, then throws another thin grin at her. “See? Nani. The smart older sister who asks her younger sister if she’s making good decisions.”

author: *** Dave H.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/6935172

42

Summer has been tense, ever since she opened her mouth. Would Alycia listen? Am I saying the right thing? Am I going too far? Am I the one who’s wrong here? And even if I was right, would she reject me for her own reasons?

She exhales in relief at this reaction, and smiles.

“Re-think, test, question. That’s what a scientist would do. That’s good. And… being willing to concede you could be wrong is something every person should be prepared to do. I could be wrong. I’d like to be wrong - I want to think you could do it. But… Yeah.”

She rubs her hands together, still apprehensive. “Whatever you decide, after you think about it, I’ll support you - if I can. If you’ll let me. I mean, maybe one of them will react badly to something, and you need someone around who can’t be shot or slugged.”

author: Bill G.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/6935199

43

Alycia smirks. “As if I would let them shoot or slug me.” She chuckles, then says, “Thanks. I – grew up very, ah, self-contained. Talking with you – I can actually talk. That --” She shrugs. “It means a lot.”

author: *** Dave H.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/6935508

44

“I need friends too,” admits Summer with a wry smile. “Smart, kind, caring friends. It means a lot to me too. You mean a lot.”

It sounds like Alycia has a lot of work and/or thought ahead of her - we covered a lot of ground, but this feels like it propels her forward. Summer got a little more open about her relationship woes and other concerns, and the ohana callback is, I think, my most favorite in the entire game.

author: Bill G.
url: Community Forums: 58.2 - Popcorn (Alycia & Summer) | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop

45

[Great scene – densely packed, but I knew it would be going in because I wanted to get some outstanding items on the table while the chance was there. And we did, in fact, hit all but one specific item (and that one I’m fine leaving where it is). There was also an item (the future of the name “Doctor Chin”) that Summer raised that Alycia was going to comment on, but there was too much else going on in the scene, so put a tack in that.

Notes

  1. The Forged in Fire TV show is one of our household favorites. I got a kick about working it in as a framing device (and, sometimes,metaphor).
  2. I enjoyed that Alycia picked the wrong contestant at each challenge.
  3. The Jian, for anyone who does have an interest.
  4. Where I took the bad-Chinese-engraving from, though, as Summer connected, the article’s about bad-Chinese-tattoos.
  5. Alycia’s t-shirt. [UPDATE: I stand corrected – she was wearing that shirt here.]
  6. I actually started the Jason and Alycia start watching Disney movies thread intentionally to circle back to Lilo & Stitch, since, in rewatching the movie I was bashed in the face by when Jumba essentially tells Stitch that he was created to be a weapon and that’s all he can ever be, and I knew I had to get Alycia’s reaction to it. It turned out to be a lot easier (writing-wise) for her to talk about it with Summer than to actually have the scene with her and Jason. That Pneuma had previously raised the ohana stuff a (loooooong) while back makes it even sweeter. (As was Jason’s summary of the movie: “Science Adventure, right? Explosions, secret missions, aliens, creepy government agents, creepy alien government agents, misunderstood monsters … And surfing. And crazy music.” Dammit, Jason …).
  7. Also, _“This is my family. I found it, all on my own. It’s little, and broken, but still good. Yeah. Still good.” _
  8. I really liked that Summer had a different take on the Alycia’s Lost Lambs, Alycia’s tactics, and Alycia’s attitude toward the situation. I teed that up a little bit without knowing the results, and Summer more than came through. I have more to write on them, obviously.
  9. I’m really glad Alycia got to do a bit to (I hope) help Summer, rather than just being the needy like she so often is.
  10. Also, a hug.

]

author: *** Dave H.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/6936326

46

Summer doesn’t talk about it, because she doesn’t want Alycia to feel like a “project”. But every time Alycia confides in her, trusts her, tries to help her, or otherwise treats her like a person, it’s validating her own feeling of both personhood and independence. So every such conversation is helpful in some way. “Get on the A/S/L ship with Leo and your sister” probably won’t pan out. :slight_smile: But other things she said were helpful in their own way too. At least Alycia didn’t drag her off for bra shopping. But I’m a fan of Daph too, so I’m looking forward to seeing that resume.

It’ll be super heartwarming if Alycia goes back to Jason and says “let’s watch it again”, which I’d love to tackle via comics if you liked it but lacked time for it. :slight_smile:

author: Bill G.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/6937216

47

Alycia would resent being a “project” (having been one for her father). But what you say makes perfect sense. Hopefully it’s of help that Alycia seems all-in on her personhood. Heck, though it may feel uncomfortable to Summer, Alycia basically said that she talks more about her feelings (certain a set of them) than she does with Jason – perhaps because their relationship started in such a twisted fashion, got further bonsaied, and is only now starting to grow. (While I said above I see Jason and Alycia eventually figuring it out, it remains a relationship that could easily fracture; one significant thing going for it is that their being able to engage in other, “normal” relationships is also a bit sketchy, something Alycia alludes to, if in an overly self-critical fashion (of course).)

Alycia’s support for the Leo-Aria-Summer thing is both a judgment that it would make Summer happy and the fact it appears to be an simple proposition (vs finding a different SO for Summer, which has challenges Summer acknowledges, parallel to Alycia’s own).

I did love Summer calling out (internally, at least) Alycia’s tendency to drop into Didactic Mode at certain times in conversations (esp. when it serves as a defense against intimate conversations). It was something I was semi-conscious of, but it’s always interesting to see the observation from others.

I did enjoy Daph’s enthusiasm over sports bras; she is a woman of deep passions. More is indeed coming with that thread.

Alycia does reference Summer in the bra shopping episode, related to “the most bizarre conversation (which is saying something) I ever had with Summer” – probably something involving, if nothing else, Summer’s lack of need for a bra, given her physical nature, but possibly extending into a discussion about sexy underwear that we probably do not need to cutscene. (Alycia’s discomfort is not so much any cultural taboo about the subject of personal underthings as much as discomfort over how to have any intimate discussions.)

In my head, I can’t see Alycia going back to Jason with an enthusiastic “let’s watch it again.” It would likely be a – heartened by what she’s shared here with Summer – a more serious I’m going to try to explain to you why this is so upsetting for me, but this time in a calm and even sharing fashion, and not with the ranting and raving and appalling amount of tears and the broken popcorn bowl (particularly impressive given the advanced weapons-grade carbon ceramic it was made of) sort of conversation. There is a finite chance that it will happen, or, more likely, show up as part of another Alycia/Jason dialog. But if you have something shorthand, or even humorous, that you want to do, I’d be (as always) happy to see it.

author: *** Dave H.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/6938307

48

It would be awkward for both Summer and I to involve her in any sort of lingerie shopping or discussion so yeah, things are better off where they are on that score. :slight_smile:

I’m interested in that thread to see Daph in action, how she works (apparently she’s got some healing jazz going on too? that’s neat), and how she interacts with the power. I’m also hoping that we’ll see Alycia reacting to that kind of supernatural power. Leo was pretty set in his ways on the subject of magic, Summer’s far more welcoming, but where does Alycia sit on that continuum? She seems distrustful of any power she can’t control or at least predict.

The tone you attached to “let’s watch it again” was what I had in mind, yeah - where Alycia can take things more calmly, and really try to convince Jason to understand, as well as grasping what’s good about it that he sees. Y’know, sharing and communication, like a healthy relationship. :slight_smile:

author: Bill G.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/6938332

49

Healthy relationship? Whaaaaaat …?

author: *** Dave H.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/6938431