47 - Action

[ceasetoexist]

[Well, Pokey certainly hadn't been expecting to get anything in the mail today, especially since he hadn't gotten anything for the last event. So seeing the child-sized crate on his lawn took him slightly by surprise.

Which didn't stop him at all from opening it. And just staring, dully, at its contents.]

A. Action; Locked to 502 Ricardo Street

[Hey housemate(s?). Feel free to notice the fact that there's a child-sized, humanoid robot currently busy cleaning the kitchen. Exactly how much progress it's making is somewhat debatable, considering it's working on cleaning the dishes and has a 1-1 record on successfully cleaning a dish, and accidentally breaking on.]

B. On the front porch of 502 Ricardo Street

[Well, it's lunch time, and for most kids, that means sandwiches. So nothing odd to see here. It's just a blue-skinned boy and his robot, having some sandwiches.

Or, uh, the robot is. Pokey finished his and is currently staring at the bologna sandwich the robot seems to be eating. It isn't long before his hand goes for it, trying to take it away from the robot. The robot doesn't seem very eager to let him have it.]

Let go! You're a robot! You don't need it as much as I do!

C. Grocery Shopping

[If you're at the grocery today, feel free to notice the kid sitting in a shopping cart as it's being pushed by a robot. They can first be found just tearing around the parking lot, the kid standing up in the cart as the robot pushes it, laughing his ass off and demanding for the robot to go faster. Of course, this ends relatively quickly when the robot accidentally runs the cart into something, knocking Pokey back on his ass into the cart.

When they actually do go into the store, it doesn't go much better. Pokey's at least realized it's a good idea to be out of the cart by this point. Which was a smart move. Considering there's so much more to possibly ram into, the robot is having a harder time maneuvering the cart, and ends up ramming it into something, be it an aisle, or a display, or another cart, every few seconds. Pokey, of course, decides to help the robot the best way he knows how.]

Oh wow, amazing. Yeah. You can't even work a shopping cart right. I'm really glad I got you back.

Comments

[godisachild.livejournal.com]

[Well, when they're built by Pokey they do. Don't worry. It's just as bad with them as it is with everything else.]

It doesn't. I don't know why it does that. It just does. But whatever, I guess. It doesn't hurt it, so why not.

[He snorts a bit.]

I'm not taking care of it. I'm stuck with it, now that it's here.

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

Oh.

[Lucas pauses for a bit before continuing mildly.]

If you disliked it that much, though, you'd have dismantled it before you got here, wouldn't you?

[godisachild.livejournal.com]

Well. I mean.

It's still useful. And I didn't expect to see it again after it got turned off the first time.

[Sidestepping. Anything to keep from having to admit he's fond of even his stupid creations.]

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

[Lucas will accept this without further prodding, though a faint smile hovers around his lips. Hopefully Pokey is too far away to see.]

Well. I'm sure it appreciates being turned back on.

Did you want something else to eat now that you lost your sandwich?

[godisachild.livejournal.com]

[It's hard to tell if he does. He glares a bit more anyway, resting his chin in an open palm. He shakes his head.]

No. I can just make another one.

[He pauses a moment.]

You seen the posters lately?

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

...The ones about replacing Grady? Yeah. Why?

[godisachild.livejournal.com]

[He shrugs a bit, shaking his head.]

Just thinking.

Wondering how many people eligible are going to be stupid enough to actually go for it, and how they'll work it against us.

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

I'm a little concerned about the confessions part, but I don't think anyone's actually willing to confess anything. Maybe it's all just for fun this time...

[godisachild.livejournal.com]

....Do you really believe this place doesn't have an ulterior motive when it does something like this? And it's not just the confessions though, heh, those bother me pretty bad too.

[Especially if he somehow screws up and ends up getting put on one.]

[He shuffles around, uncomfortably for a moment. It's obvious there's something else he wants to say, but he stops himself. So he says something else that comes easier.]

...It could maybe help us having one of our own as the chief too. And that makes me wonder why they're doing this too.

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

[Lucas pauses before nodding.]

I know. Everything they ever do is to try and torture us. It's no good worrying about it before it starts to happen, though...

I don't think they'll appoint anyone as Chief. I really don't. There's another reason for it all; you're right.

[godisachild.livejournal.com]

I, uh, disagree, but whatever.

....I could think of a reason. It's not a great one, but I can think of it.

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

To lure us into trusting someone, maybe? I don't know. What's your idea?

[godisachild.livejournal.com]

Partially.

In order to not just get the recommendations, but the confessions, the person who gets in will either be someone really trusted or kind of a scumbag. Either way, what happens next is that the person who becomes chief is then told to apprehend the people he got the confessions from, or to keep marks on them, or lose their position. The person may be hesitant to do this, but in the end will probably go along with it in order to not lose the position they just won.

Time goes on, they fill the role more, yada yada yada. The town will also start asking more of the person whose become police chief. By some point, the police chief will feel obligated to do what they're asked, whether they mean to or not. Most likely, the town will eventually ask the police chief to do something that goes against the rest of us, and realizing it as part of his obligation, the chief'll do so, perhaps without realizing the consequences of what comes next.

At that point, if the chief did act against the wishes of the rest of us/clearly allied himself with the town? Just about everyone would turn on him. And he'd pretty much be stuck with the position and the town, fostering even more contempt for the town itself and then for us. He'll become sullen, bitter, and essentially dependent on the town since the town'll at least take him unlike the rest of us who'd reject him.

Its not necessarily major, but hey. It at least guarantees the town has a new Grady.

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

[There's such a thing as being pessimistic and another as being completely depressing. Lucas bites his lower lip a bit as he listens to Pokey's slippery slope of despair and hopeless corruption.]

You know, that depends on a lot of things going the way the town plans it to. Things that they don't have any control over. Things like... the morals of the person who gets the job, and the empathy of the people of the town. I think you're underestimating both, a little.

[godisachild.livejournal.com]

Maybe. Maybe not.




I wonder how they got him to do it.

[Aw crap he didn't mean to say that part.]

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

...I'm guessing it was as easy as convincing him that his friends couldn't possibly win.

[godisachild.livejournal.com]

[He thinks on that for a moment.]

Yeah.

It probably was.






You need something?

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

Just passing by.

[godisachild.livejournal.com]

Alright.




I should probably head in to make sure the stupid thing hasn't broken anything.

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

...Let me know if you need anything.

[A half-wave, and down the street he continues.]

[godisachild.livejournal.com]

[Pokey just watches the other boy go for a moment, as if he'd forgotten what he was about to do.

The crash from inside the house kind of reminds him, and he's gone through the door in a second to chastise his newest regain.]