.//INBOX

[ornithologist]

Comments

[ornithologist]

Yes, I thought not. At this age it mainly eats live insects. I'll locate an appropriate text and set it aside for you on the circulation desk.

Owlets are uniquely absurd, believe me. This wren check is just terrifyingly tiny. I just keep staring at it.

[levelshift]

Thanks. I don't have a lot of experience with animals, let alone wild ones.

Send me some pictures, I want to see this thing.

[ornithologist]

[ Harold doesn't respond with text, just a picture of his hand cradling the chick. ]

[levelshift]

[Wow, that is tiny.]

Shit, you could lose that thing so easily.

[ornithologist]

Thank you, I'm not sufficiently worried about it already...

[levelshift]

Well, you seem to have a good handle on bird knowledge, so I'm sure it'll be fine.

[Which begs the question....]

Why do you know so much about them, anyways?

[ornithologist]

[ Accelerator knows enough about him already that Harold permits a tiny personal detail. ]

Nothing nefarious. I've always liked birds.

[levelshift]

That's very normal of you.

[Congrats Harold, you are not normal.]

[ornithologist]

I'm sorry, am I not allowed to have normal interests?

Having hobbies is healthy.

[levelshift]

Well, with your kind of brain I'd expect any hobbies you had, if you had them, to be some really messed up shit. Not birds.

[ornithologist]

That says more about you than about me.

[levelshift]

Hey, fuck you

[And still --]

I'm probably going to have more questions that the books can't answer. Do you mind if I bother you again?

[ornithologist]

Please do. My other hobbies are collecting rare books, 180g vinyl, and Xerox Altos. Feel free to ask me questions about that as well.

[levelshift]

[............................]

What are those last two?

[Sorry Harold, he's young.]

[ornithologist]

Very disturbing interests. One might even say freaky.

I couldn't possibly explain to someone without a brain like mine.

[levelshift]

[You can practically hear the eyeroll.]

If you aren't going to fucking tell me I'll go look them up like I did phreaking.

[ornithologist]

Might be the wiser course.

[levelshift]

Fine. I will.