riverviewlogs | [ open ] where I end, we'll begin

[It had taken a little while to get this right, along with a fair bit of help from Beverly and Lup, since Taako has about zero skill or interest in programming. But eventually they managed it, and after a couple days of testing, he'd decided to invite Cisco in for an adventure.

He's chilling in the waiting room when Cisco shows up, absolutely just dressed in brightly patterned board shorts (though he has clothes stashed away magically for going home). Taako grins when he sees Cisco, gesturing for him to come in.]

What's up, my man, are you ready for this?

[whatever 'this' might be]

Not gonna lie, I was a little worried about what 'this' was gonna be before I got here, but I feel like I got a pretty good idea, now.

[ He comes in, shrugging off his jacket and draping it over his arm and looking around them. It's going to be some kind of holosuite program, and probably a warm one. It's actually a kind of neat idea. Cisco wouldn't have thought to use it that way - to carve out a little slice of summer (even if it's fake summer) to fight off the dark and gloom. ]

I'm ready for anything.

[ Overstatement? Maybe. But he's honestly curious to see what Taako has put together, and to explore it with him. ]

Dangerous words, but luckily we're having a chill kinda day.

[Taako opens up the doors to the holosuite and the warmth is fairly immediate, as is the smell of salt water and the sound of birds in the distance. Honestly, Taako has no idea how the fuck any of this works, but he wanders in and closes the door behind them.]

Welcome to our beach vacation planet. We never like, named it? But it was a pretty rad place, it's where I learned to surf.

[And there are two surfboards sticking out of the sand, not too far from the water's edge.]

Edited (icon no!!!) 2018-01-10 01:49 (UTC)

[ The smell of the seawater is the first thing that really hits him. Cisco breathes in deeply, then huffs a laugh that is quiet, and a little surprised. It's so salty, so distinctive. There are some shores of the river, in this place, which are like an ocean beach, but they definitely did not have that smell.

And sure, he knows that that sky isn't really a sky, that the crashing water is only a photonic trick. But damn, if the illusion isn't convincing.

Taako's words sink in a moment later: this is modeled after a real place. Somewhere that he and the rest of them had visited, while they were fleeing from the Hunger. But Taako's voice doesn't sound the way it sometimes does, when he's talking about the worlds they'd seen - a little too glossy, a little too flippant. ]

Beach Vacation Planet is a pretty dope name honestly...

[ Then Cisco spots the surfboards, sticking out from the sand, too conspicuous to just be decoration, and he gasps with unadulterated delight. ]

Oh. My god. Oh my god. Are we Point Breaking right now? Is that what this is?

[It's probably sappy to admit, even to himself in the privacy of his own thoughts, but he's always a little bit pleased with himself when he manages to pull of something that gets a reaction like that out of Cisco. The way he gets so excited about shit without any kind of hesitation is nice.]

You're gonna have to explain that reference to me at some other point but if you're asking whether I'm getting your ass out on that surfboard, that's a hell yes.

[ Cisco half-jogs across the sand to the surfboards, reaching up to touch one of them, beaming. Then, he realizes somewhat belatedly he's still wearing all of his regular clothes, and starts pulling off his shoes and jacket etcetera as he explains: ]

Okay, we're definitely watching that movie tonight, 'cause it's a fucking classic. Your basic "FBI agent goes undercover with a gang of bank-robbing surfers, only to be seduced by their way of life and their charismatic leader and then start to question his mission and where his loyalties truly lie" story. Deeply cheesy, deeply homoerotic. You'll love it.

[ The nice thing about it being a fake beach inside a holosuite is that he doesn't feel as self-conscious as he otherwise might about just chillaxing in just his rather amazing board shorts. He puts on his killer shades and looks out over the water. It's beautiful - cloudless, the sky a slightly different hue than he's used to, and big, lazy waves crashing against the shore. ]

This is freakin' awesome. You spent a whole year here?

[ He walks a few paces towards the waves, just far enough that the water rushes over his feet. It's warmer than he expected, but he still gives a little start and laugh at how it splashes him. ]

I'm not gonna lie, though - never would've pegged you for the surfing type.

Homoerotic is just code for no one actually fucking kisses, isn't it?

[He's starting to learn, just based on like half the classic Earth movies they watch and which ones Cisco describes as homoerotic, that these very rarely involve any dudes actually making out, which is kind of a tragedy? But he'll watch it anyway.]

And fuck yeah we did, that's kinda how the whole thing worked, pumpkin. [He's teasing, he knows that Cisco likely meant whether or not they stuck to the beach or explored other areas.] Why is me surfing so hard to believe?

[he likes water..........

It's the fact it involves serious physical effort, isn't it?]

Tragically, you are correct. But there's a lot of really longing gazes.

[ Look he'd grown up taking what he could get, thanks very much.

But that's enough talking about Johnny Utah: Cisco is ready to become him. He chooses one of the surfboards (the one with the little lightning bolt decal, because he's gotta stay on brand) and pulls it out of the sand, testing out holding it under his arm. It's heavier than he'd expected, and a little unwieldy, but he's obviously pumped to try the thing out. ]

I don't know, I guess it's got some cultural connotations. Like, I guess some surfers are super pretentious in a granola-y, one with the earth kind of way. But the rest are, like, super macho, super obnoxious thrill-seekers with a total death wish who are dumb as bricks.

[ Taako might not be a scientist, but he's far from dumb, and Cisco's always respected the fact that Taako has a healthy sense of self-preservation. After saying all that, though, he shrugs, and admits: ]

That's just in movies and stuff, though. Not like I've ever known an actual surf-head. Don't really live anywhere near to an ocean.

[ It's a bit embarrassing to admit (and particularly to Taako, who has lived so long and travelled so widely). But if Taako's going to teach him to surf, he should probably mention it. Cisco rubs at the back of his neck as he says: ]

Actually I think I've probably only been to the beach... five times? Like ever? And that was all in one trip about, uh, fifteen years ago, so...

Edited 2018-01-13 17:39 (UTC)

Are you saying I'm not an obnoxious thrill-seeker?

[Good joke, Taako.

But since surfing wasn't really a thing that he was aware of until he rolled really high and made it up, so he's lacking all those particular cultural connotations. Except where it was funny to make slightly meta references because some people just can't help themselves.]

That's rough, my dude. [He's not really going to judge, though, it's not like he spent a lot of time at the beach back in Feaurn, or even before that. He likes the beach, sure, it just sort of drops to the bottom of his to do list, most of the time.]

Okay, uh, fair warning I've never taught anyone this shit, but it can't be that hard. You wanna just start with getting out there and getting comfortable in the water?

[Rather than worrying about the whole standing up and balancing process.]

[ Cisco merely rolls his eyes at Taako's joke, affectionately. He's not sure he entirely agrees with Taako, about it not being that hard, but he's in way too good a mood to be pessimistic right now. Besides, if he has issues learning, it'll be his own clumsiness to blame, rather than Taako being a bad teacher.

When Taako suggests getting out and getting a feel for the water, he says: ]

Hell yeah, let's do this!

[ He adjusts his grip on the surfboard, shoots Taako an excited grin, and then rushes across the sand and into the water. Cisco's exuberance is only somewhat hampered by him not knowing quite what to do with the surfboard, once the water is at waist-level. He sets it on top of the water, but keeps a grip on it as he wades in further. The water is warmer than he'd expected, and when a wave splashes into his chest, he laughs. ]

Y'know the other good thing about this being a holo-beach is I'm 100% sure I'm not about to get eaten by a shark.

[ Then, a moment later, suddenly skeptical: ]

You didn't program in sharks, did you?

[Cisco.... please...

Taako picks up one of the smaller, slimmer boards and follows after Cisco at a slightly more sedate pace, though he'll likely overtake him once they're actually in the water, since Taako gets himself on his board long before the water reaches his waist.

When he does catch up to Cisco, he immediately shakes his head at him.]

I did not program sharks but I'm kinda wishing I had now, if you're gonna rush ahead and make your life more difficult.

[So next time: sharks as punishment]

[ Cisco scoffs at that comment, but his mock offense quickly evaporates when he tries to mimic Taako and get onto his board, only to discover it is much more difficult, as deep in the water as he is. He tries a few times, but the thing keeps slipping out from under him, and the whole process is rather undignified. So, chagrined, he walks a little further back towards the shore, climbs on the same way he'd seen Taako to, and then awkwardly paddles out to where his friend is waiting for him. ]

Guess I kinda pulled a Magnus there, huh?

[ He was excited, okay! Gosh! But he's definitely learned his lesson, and is going to wait for Taako before he does anything else, no matter how small. ]

And don't even joke about that, dude. I saw Jaws when I was way too young, that shit haunts me.

[Taako could help, but watching Cisco struggle with it is a hell of a lot funnier, so he's just gonna sit and watch until finally Cisco gives up and goes back to shallower waters.

Once they're reunited, he does a decent job of stifling his laughter.]

Okay, okay, no sharks. But I might've put in a kraken or two, just to spice shit up, you know?

[Is he joking? Maybe.]

[ Cisco makes his way back to Taako's side with as much pointed dignity as he can. He's too excited to stay embarrassed, however. And he's learned his lesson, too: don't do anything unless Taako does it first. It takes a certain degree of trust (because Taako could definitely fuck with him, right now - add ridiculous extra steps, silly unnecessary nonsense), but he really does want to learn to surf. ]

You know, I'd make a comment about you and your obsession with tentacle magic, but I know it'd only escalate, so let's not even start.

[ He pushes his long hair from his face, perching himself on the surfboard in exactly the same way Taako is, mimicking him without question. ]

What next, Bodhi?

[Taako winks with a threatening little wiggle of his fingers at Cisco, as if somehow the tentacle magic obsession is going to come up despite Cisco knowing better than to comment on it, but - no, he can be good.]

What's next is the real hard part.

[After explaining the basics to Cisco, he gets into actual demonstrations, taking them out further so they can catch waves back in, repeating the process several times before he even broaches the topic of standing up. It's clear that Taako isn't exactly an expert; he falls off the board once or twice, or messes up when going under a wave to end up with messed up hair and the board a few feet away, but he's comfortable in the water.

And for all his dramatics, he can be patient when he needs to be, and teaching is one of those situations. He might tease Cisco a little but he never puts him down for not getting something quick enough, and when he finally manages to get up and ride a wave most of the way back to the shore, Taako throws his hands up in celebration.]

Fuck yeah, my man! I knew you'd figure this shit out!

[ When it came to academics, Cisco had always had an easy time picking things up. He had a head for memorization, for innovation, for making connections, and he was willing to do the hard work on anything he didn't immediately grasp. He doesn't really go in for terms like 'genius', but he knows that there are a lot of things which make sense to him much quicker than they do for others.

The opposite is true, however, when it comes to physical, coordination-based stuff. Sure, his hand-eye coordination isn't bad, thanks to many years of video games, but this is very different to that. He's not week, not a total disaster. It all just comes to him a bit slower. He watches Taako carefully, understands the principles easy enough, but it's another matter getting his legs and muscles and balance to agree to work together. He appreciates Taako's patience and his teasing equally, and gradually, he starts not falling quite so quickly.

When he finally manages to surf an actual wave, Cisco is jubilant. He throws his arms into the air, too, laughing helplessly, shaky-legged but so happy. ]

That! Was! So! Freakin! Awesome!

[ His hair is dripping and he's gotten more than a bit of seawater in his mouth and eyes (though not really? but he can still feel it? this simulation is so insanely detailed), but Cisco is triumphant and radiating happiness. ]

I think I better take a break though, my legs are turning into jello.

[ Cisco makes his way up the beach, hair dripping, finding his way to his towel before he collapses onto it, basking happily in the hot sunlight. ]

Man. This is the life. I mean - I know I was making all those jokes earlier, but, like. I get it. I seriously get it now, how people can get so into this.

Edited 2018-01-31 22:12 (UTC)

[When Cisco announces that he's heading in, Taako waits a few seconds for him to properly clear out before catching the next wave in, keeping it simple rather than trying for anything fancy, since the goal is 'get to shore' not 'do wet stunts' and the latter ends in him beefing it at least half the time, if not more.

He leaves the surfboard to drift lazily in the water as he joins Cisco on the sand, realizing that his arms are tired and his legs a little sore. He's way more unfit than he thought, life is way too easy here.]

It's a pretty sweet deal if you can make it work. I mean, it was just us in this world and we found the light real early, all we had was time to kill.

[But life doesn't usually work that way, unfortunately. Most of the time there are responsibilities and boring things like that.]

[ open ] where I end, we'll begin

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