We grow old because we stop playing

[Basil Benson]

Basil Benson was going to the bar to have himself a drink, probably one of the last in the XUB. Soon, it would be responsibility and graduation and home life.

Before he made it there however, he spied Jezabelle Sherlock in one of her usual, introverted spots alone.

Moving quietly and bodily invisible, he made his way over to her and spoke quietly.

"Hey. What're you up to there Detective?"

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

Jez was in maximum socially-acceptable-in-public comfort mode - an oversized hoodie, comfy sneakers and jeans, and three different devices on the table amongst the food wrappers and a couple of cans of White Claw, one of which was already drained. She jumped just slightly as Basil approached, removing the one earbud she had on that was enough to mask his approach from her.

"Oh, hey Basil. I'm just trying to take a little staycation with the extension time the school gave us on our papers. Did you lose any of your work to those nanite things?"

[Basil Benson]

"Habit of my trade: I keep ridiculous back ups." Basil admitted. " So not really no.

Soon it will be smooth sailing into graduation. Goodbye Shane's grow lamp, hello private apartment with Madame Rosenhof.

Should I leave you alone?"

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

"Smart boy. Save it to the cloud and so long as you don't have amnesia, you'll never lose it." It seems she'd lucked out as well, as she didn't appear nearly as stressed as some of the other students. Unless she was stress eating and drinking.

"Oh no, please, have a seat if you'd like. So you and Colette are really taking the next big step huh? Do you have a place picked out?"

[Basil Benson]

Basil shouted out his order to the bartender, and flicked his credit card in their direction, then did as instructed.

"Not yet. The whole 'being teeny tiny' thing has delayed progress on that front.

We're going to go look this weekend. I think I've found a winner though."

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

"Well, I'll have to start looking for a housewarming gift. If I'm still here when you two move in."

[Basil Benson]

"What do you mean by still here?"

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

"Well, I'll probably be going home for the summer. I mean, it's not like I can catch a train for a day trip to go visit my dad like some of the other students here can for their parents."

[Basil Benson]

"Ahh. I think that's a pretty exclusive club, but I guess I see your point." He joked.

"Perhaps you can come around when you return. Bring your highness, if that's working out?" He followed up out of his own curiosity.

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

Jezabelle's cheeks flushed at Basil's suggestion, the girl taking a sip of her 'claw before replying. "It's working out so far. Though I'm not looking forward to the long distance phone tag we'll be playing over the summer. Knowing that at least one government is going to intercept and read anything I send to her is a little daunting."

[Basil Benson]

"Devise a code." Basil suggested casually as his beer arrived.

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

"Or... I could just not send nudes."

[Basil Benson]

"Lewds are better than nudes anyways.

But then again, look at who you're talking to. Listening to my advice is probably a bad idea." He laughed.

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

"I concur! A nice pinup takes time and planning, and shows you put more thought into it than just dropping trou." Mature conversation between mature adults.

"What makes you say that? You seem to be pretty content with yourself lately. More so than when I first met you at least. So you must be doing something right."

[Basil Benson]

"Well.... different strokes and all that." He replied in a manner that would seem vague to the casual listener but would definitely mean more to Jezabelle.

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

"True enough. But still, things are going well for you, and in the long run, things are okay for me, soI think we're both allowed to dish out a little advice."

[Basil Benson]

"Not sure what advice I could offer.

Want to fill me in?"

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

Jez thought for a moment, reaching down to rub her leg.

"Well, you know anything that's good for causing short-term memory loss?"

[Basil Benson]

"A concussion." He answered.

"Baring that, substance abuse, seizures, and heart attacks. And the obvious like long term conditions.

Why?"

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

Jez let out a sigh and rubbed her forehead. "I'm having nightmares and stuff about what happened. With the shrinking and all. I thought that taking time to relax might help me destress and forget things, but I'm still having phantom pains in my legs and... ugh, bugs...."

[Basil Benson]

"I've become complacent towards the weird shit that happens around here. It seemed like the only rational response."

He paused to down some of his beer and then sighed in refreshment, the bottom of his mug tapping the surface of the table soundly.

"Go on then, get all 'edgy backwards chair sitting' and Basil will see what he can do.

Provided he has consent to touch of course."

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

Jez lifted her head up and raised an eyebrow, curious as to what Basil had planned. She shrugged softly before she got up and scooted her chair around, crossing her arms over the back of it and resting her chin on them.

"Like this?"

[Basil Benson]

"Mmmhmm.

You're going to feel my hands on your neck in a moment. Tell me to stop if you want me to."

After a second, Basil's gangly fingers would indeed be on her neck. If she didn't stop him, he'd rub her neck and shoulders for her in hopes of relieving physical tension.

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

Jez gave a little start at first, because even being told about it, the fact that she could see her clothing moving on it's own from Basil's invisible touch still triggered a little primal reaction, but she quickly relaxed into it.

"Mm, I wish you could massage my brain..." She said softly, closing her eyes and letting the master do his work. She had a lot more tension than his girlfriend had, that was certain.

[Basil Benson]

He wasn't fantastic, but he was pretty damn good for a college aged, non-professional rich bloke.

"I was going to suggest your girlfriend rub your legs for you, I can't imagine she'd be OK with me rubbing your brain." He laughed.

"I could get your scalp I suppose, if it's helping."

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

"Mm, my legs aren't actually sore, not really. It's all phantom pains. When one of my copies gets seriously injured or... you know. Well it's hard for my mind to forget it. One of them broke both legs jumping from a chair during the - is it right to call it an invasion?"

[Basil Benson]

"Seems a fitting enough description." Basil replied.

"Forgive me. My hope was your girlfriend stroking your thighs would distract you from any traumatizing emotions a fake injury might cause. At least, burying my face into Madame tends to temporarily distract me from my traumas.

Maybe she's not doing it right..." With the statement, Basil became visible, betraying the teasing, boyish grin on his face.

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

Jez hid her flushing by burying her face in her arms, though it was clear that Basil's good-natured teasing was having an effect on her. "Honestly, burying my face into my girlfriend sounds like a better and better idea every minute." Came her muffled reply before she lifted her head back up. "Sharing a bed with someone again would probably help with...." She trailed off and cleared her throat.

"Have you ever given any consideration to becoming a psychiatrist? 'cause you're not half bad at this."

[Basil Benson]

Basil picked up what she was laying down, but he didn't seem to run with it.

"Pretty sure shrinks aren't supposed to touch the patients or advise them that they should indulge in their vices as a proper form of therapy.

I mean, if they are then I need to start back with mine." He joked.

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

"Well, they have fusion restaurants... why not a combination therapist and masseuse? Relax your body and your mind. Physical and mental therapy all in one room."

Jez let out a soft groan, her shoulders relaxing. "It's a wonder your little Starburst isn't spoiled rotten Basil."

[Basil Benson]

"Expectation is key." Basil replied dragging his chair closer so he could get his use his elbows as leverage.

"A person becomes 'spoiled rotten' not by good treatment, but by the expectation they deserve such treatment purely because they are alive.

Hence my distaste for princesses. They have done nothing to earn what they're given. They are spoiled purely because of expectations."

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

"Is that part of why you're so smitten? Because of her upbringing she'll always be appreciative of all you do for her?" Jez didn't mean to make it sound so cold, or like an accusation, but she just happened to phrase it that way.

[Basil Benson]

Basil pulled away from Jezabelle, patting her back as he did.

He picked up his pint and took a guzzle.

He didn't reply.

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

Jez noticed Basil's not-quite sudden absence and turned her head around to look at him before she pursed her lips.

"Ooh, I, like, said that in the worst way possible, didn't I?"

[Basil Benson]

Basil looked absolutely crushed when she turned around, gulping down the beer in his mouth.

"I don't know how that statement is to be said in any other way. " He replied in a small voice.

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

Jez turned around in her seat and patted the cushion of the chair next to her. "Sit, and give me a moment to think."

And think she did, taking some time.

"What I meant was... growing up, you probably had a circle of friends who had similar home lives to your own, right? With parents who were well off. And sometimes, those kind of friends suffer from rich kid syndrome. I don't need to explain that one, do I? You don't have that, bytheway, but I think that's pretty obvious. In boys, it's obnoxious. And in girls it's pretty obnoxious too, but it isn't always 'cause their parents are rich. Some act the same way because of their looks. Whether it's because they got everything they wanted their whole life, or because the media tells them they deserve everything they want through their looks, they become those princesses you mentioned before. And those princesses like to flock to the boys with the nice cars and wads of cash. I'm betting that even though you weren't looking for them, because of your social circle, those were the kind of girls who found you... feel free to step in and tell me I'm wrong about any of this.

"So you come to this place and, during whatever happenstance occured, you meet Colette. A girl quite unlike any you've met before, physically at least. And she reacts differently to your kindness and your gifts. She appreciates every little gesture, and is overwhelmed by the big ones. When some stuck up princess might've overlooked your generosity and complained that something wasn't the right colour or brand, she instead was ecstatic and at a loss over it. She appreciates the thought and emotion that goes into these gifts as much as, if not more so than the gifts themselves, while the others cared only for the object itself and assigned no emotional significance to it whatsoever.

"...Isn't being appreciated by someone an attractive trait for them to have? Is that a bad thing? I don't think it is...."

[Basil Benson]

Basil sat as requested, and allowed her to think. He figured since the girl in the past had expressed interest in helping, he owed it to her to give her a chance to explain herself.

He would take a moment to formulate a response himself, Jezabelle being treated with the contemplative expression of a quiet Basil that she could only now associate to the long pauses in conversation he sometimes had.

"Well, you are partially right.

Believe it or not, I went to a state school. One of the most prestigious in London no doubt, alumni including people like Angelica Houston... But there was a fair number of upper middle class students there as well. State schools are the same as what you Americans call 'public schools '.

Anyways, my point is I wasn't raised entirely around the elite, though admittedly bourgeoisie attitudes were prevalent and yes, that does lead into my distaste for 'princesses'. My use of the word isn't literal, I've only ever met one." Jez knew of whom he referred of course.

"And you are correct that Colette is extremely appreciative of the things i do for her... But that isn't what attracted me to Colette. It's certainly not a bad thing to have an appreciative partner, but it's quite full of one's self to cite a reason they were attracted to their partner was their partner's ability to stroke their ego for them.

I don't feel the need to be gushed upon for my generosity. In truth, it makes me highly uncomfortable for her to make a big deal about me treating her as she deserves." He replied, leaving the actual reason an ongoing mystery.

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

"Ah, partially right, that's where feelings get hurt." Jez said as she listened.

"I'm sorry if I implied that Colette's appreciation for what you have to offer her is what attracted you to her. It certainly wasn't what I meant, in a serious manner at least. But you do consider it a positive feature of their's, no? Like... if you found her accent attractive. It might not be what caused you to become attracted to her in the first place, or something you would cite as a reason you're together, but you'd be lying if you said it didn't make you happy in some way, right?"

She gave Basil's knee a little pat. "Again, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you upset, or insult you, or imply anything."

[Basil Benson]

"It's..... fine. " It wasn't.

"But if I am being honest, the answer is no, it doesn't.

She makes a big deal out of me doing the most basic things. It's embarrassing."

[Jezabelle Sherlock]

"Well, maybe because to her, those basic things aren't so basic. From what she's told me, she led a life of very limited social interaction and... property. I doubt she ever fantasized about winning the lottery, she probably daydreamed about being able to walk the city streets and live in a cozy little apartment without having to worry about if she'd be able to afford both the power bill and food for that month. So to her, they are big deals. I'm sure she'll get used to it in time, though even if she doesn't react like she used to they'll probably never stop feeling as special to her."