hopscotch.

“...no,” he said, quiet as a mouse. he lowered his head, immediately regretting being there. “no, it’s not wrong, you can -- you can read, that’s okay,” he said quickly, pressing his lips at the insult. it wasn’t the worst thing he’d been called but he didn’t like the tone behind it.

aiwei immediately put his hands up as the flashlight was shone on him. “i come in peace,” he said, with a gulp. the boy was never sure if he could count jonathan as a friend; his general demeanour and the history with his father always made him wary. but he offered an awkward smile now, waving a little. “it’s, uh, aiwei. from back home. are you...” he arched an eyebrow, “reading?”

Aiwei’s jaw dropped. “Dude...” he sighed, shaking his head slowly with wide eyes. “You cannot joke about dropped brains with a dead person, man, it’s serious business. I know someone who got his brains stepped on once!”

“WHAT?” Aiwei froze on the spot, mid-walk. He balanced on one foot, just in case the brain was close by. “Dude, oh my god, pick up your BRAIN --”

“I’ve been good so far. Just, uh, normal. Average,” he shrugged. He put a hand on his chest subconsciously, feeling the staples and stitches. “And you? Anything interesting happen?”

“oh,” aiwei blinked, nodding. he hadn’t thought about that before. he’d wanted a heart before, long ago, but now he’d accepted he didn’t need it. didn’t want it. “why...shouldn’t people want to live without a heart? other than the obvious health reasons,” he said, curious now. aiwei put on a smile. “yeah! yeah, no worries, and hey, if you want any future help, just ask anyone around here -- we’re generally all friendly,” he assured him.

“It worked a little. Maybe next time we could say it in a room full of people and then watch everyone try to find where the dead bodies are!"

Aiwei hit some more buttons on his controller and his fighter threw Emmy’s fighter over his head. “Ha, beat that! RESPECT YOUR ELDERS.”

“Terra, we’re the dead people in here.”

“fate and destiny, huh? there’s a little of that in every sort of magic, i’d say. and, y’know, it’s been known that people can live without hearts. in a way,” he said, with a little knowing smile. “orion moon? you’ve got the most stellar name ever,” he grinned. and finally, he remembered to open the door, gesturing for orion to walk inside. “and here’s the astrology building!”

“yeah, we’ve got five star ratings on trivago,” he joked, laughing at his own quip. aiwei’s eyebrows rose at his explanation. “-- okay, i’ve heard of a man on the moon but i’ve never heard of someone getting their powers from the moon. that is cool --” he was about to say the boy’s name before he realised he never got it. they reached the entrance to the building and aiwei had one hand on the door-handle and the other reaching out for a shake. “oh, my god -- i’m sorry i didn’t introduce myself before -- i’m aiwei. gutknecht.”

“okay, maybe not an actual gift but a treat or something. everyone deserves a bit of a treat on their birthday,” he beamed. “like coffee! or hot cocoa or tea, or whatever you like to drink. one drink on me,” he said, pointing his thumb at himself proudly. aiwei nodded at her explanation about the lack of a party but was still curious -- “so...you still got a lot of presents, though. i estimate it’ll take you a few days to get through them,” he teased lightly. “have you opened some already?”