Miguel O'Hara (AU) (s_man) wrote in spinningcompass, @ 2022-01-02 02:09:00 |
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Entry tags: | !closed, miguel o'hara, miguel o'hara (other) |
Who? Miguel and Miggy (and Mouse)
Where? Sarah and Miguel's lab
When? Backdated to just after this, December 17th
What? Miguel is talking to himself.
Open? To Sarah, if she wants?
As Mouse led him to where his younger self (Miggy, call him Miggy, he told himself. It would be easier in his head) was reading, the older Miguel O'Hara wondered if this was a good idea at all. He remembered how he'd felt around men as a little kid, never mind strange men, and he knew from careful scrutiny of his reflection in various mirrors and panes of glass that he looked stranger than most. Still too thin, always looking tired, hair that was a little bit too long and shaggy (at least he'd gotten into the habit of keeping his beard tidy), tinted glasses to hide (and protect) his eyes, and the fangs he couldn't hide. But Sarah thought Miggy could cope, and Mouse trusted him, so they were trying this thing. He ran a hand through his hair, careful to keep his talons folded flat so he didn't slice a chunk of hair off, and stopped when Mouse did. They were meeting in Sarah's lab, and Miguel was planning on getting a coffee as soon as possible, if only so that he'd have something to hold onto when he wasn't signing.
Miggy was sitting at one of the workbenches, feet swinging as he read because the stools were pretty tall compared to the little boy. He looked up from his book when Mouse huffed softly, and tilted his head to the side as he gave Miguel a really odd look, like he was trying to work out if he knew him or not. Miguel knew he looked a little bit like his uncle 'berto, and wondered if Miggy had picked up on that. Soon enough, he put a marker in the book (one of Sarah's, Miguel noted, about paleoanthropology), set it on the table and smiled, more than a little hesitantly. And then he spoke first! Not that Miguel had been planning on speaking much in the first place.
"Hi," he said, "I'm Miggy. Miguel, really, but everyone calls me Miggy."
And then Miguel watched as the little boy's smile widened when Lyla appeared, full-size and hard-light. "Lyla! Hi!"
"Hello, Miggy! How are you? Do you mind if we sit down?" Lyla asked, signing along as she spoke. She was projecting herself in the best position for Miguel to be able to see both Miggy and her at the same time, and Miguel relaxed a little bit. He could even see when Miggy worked out why Lyla was there, and then it was his turn to smile when the little boy clumsily signed "Hello. Yes sit," by himself. So he pulled out the stool across from Miggy and sat down, and Mouse sat down between them both. Lyla sat down as well, in her own stool.
"Hi, Miggy," he signed, and knew that Lyla would be interpreting for them both, telling Miggy what his signing meant and signing Miggy's replies since his lip-reading wasn't the best, "did Sarah tell you that we should meet up?"
"Yes sir."
"Did she tell you why?"
"No sir. Just that we should."
"You don't have to call me 'sir', you know," he pointed out, signing slower than he would if he'd been talking to Maria or Maryanne. He could see Miggy watching his hands as he signed, and making attempts to copy him sometimes, so he was trying to make it a bit easier to pick up.
"But I don't know your name," Miggy replied, obviously thinking that this weird man was being silly.
"My name's Miguel. Same as yours." Miguel took a deep breath at that point, even though he wasn't speaking out loud. Miggy had replied, he'd decided that them having the same name was pretty cool, but Miguel was working out how best to explain things so he didn't react for a few moments.
"Do you know how the station is a bit strange and likes to play tricks on people? Like how Sarah's brother Tommy is a girl at the moment?" he finally asked, and smiled when Miggy nodded very enthusiastically.
"Yes! Harri calls him Tia Tommy!"
"Exactly. Well, the station's playing a trick on me too, so I can't hear right now. I haven't been able to hear for four months now, and I don't like talking when I can't hear what I'm saying. Which is why I'm signing everything."
"...But you can still talk?"
"I can talk. But I bet it sounds weird," Miguel said, actually speaking for once so that Miggy would understand why he preferred to sign, "and I don't know if I'm too loud or too quiet."
The little boy listened to Miguel as he spoke, taking this part of their conversation quite seriously. "You're a bit loud, and all your words sound the same. Uhm. I mean, if you were singing, they would all be the same note, not that you're making the same sound over and over. I don't think I'd like that either."
Miguel nodded, his hair falling forward into his face a little as he did so, and then glanced over towards where he knew the coffee maker was, before looking back at Miggy. "Do you want a drink? I need a coffee," he asked, and pushed his hair back from his face as Lyla's own smile brightened.
"I have made crullers and croissants," the AI spoke, signing and talking at the same time, "and I will make coffee. Miggy, what would you like to drink? I have orange juice, apple juice and weird purple fruit juice."
The little boy picked apple juice and a croissant ("Mr Darcy said I should eat them, first time I was here, and they're good!") and soon enough, they had their drinks and pastries. Lyla had decided that Miguel needed a cruller and a croissant, but Miguel wasn't sure he could eat that much sweet stuff in one go so he had torn the croissant in two and put half onto Miggy's napkin. Then he drank some coffee, and took another deep breath.
"Do you know what else the station does that's strange?" he continued, clearly not prepared for Miggy's reply when it came.
"It grows weird plants and has lots of animals, that's strange. And it makes people act different sometimes. I read the network sometimes, Lyla shows me it, and I saw where it made a man called Dan be a different version of himself. And there's Mr Jake, he has two brothers who are really himself because they're him from different points on his timeline. We looked for parts in his docking bay one time, and he found me some tools too. He's nice, even though he acts grumpy. Mouse likes him. He's Sarah's uncle, all three Mr Jakes are." Miggy paused at that point, probably to take a breath, and Miguel jumped in rather quickly because Miggy had unknowingly created the perfect way for him to explain things.
"Even blue Mr Jake, right?"
Miggy nodded, even as Miguel continued to sign. "So how would you feel if I told you that we're like all the Jakes."
"Me and you?" Miggy was back to looking rather serious again, before he hopped down off of his stool and walked round the work bench. Miguel glanced at Lyla, who gestured for him to get down off his stool as well. So he did, crouching down so that the pair of them were at the same height. Lyla then projected herself a second time so that she could continue to interpret for the pair of them, coming from out of Miguel's watch and standing on Mouse's back.
Miggy was studying him again, but more intently this time. "So you're Miguel because you're Miguel O-"
"Miguel O'Hara. My little brother's called Gabri, we all live in Nueva York, and I'm a geneticist."
Obviously, this wasn't anywhere near enough proof for Miggy, although the mention of 'geneticist' caused a small smile to appear again. "¿Dónde vive mi abuela?" he asked, although Miguel only knew he'd slipped into Spanish because Lyla told him. And this seemed like another occasion where he should actually speak, no matter how loud or monotone his voice was.
"Mi abuela vive en Pachuca, en México, con mi tío 'berto. Mi abuela hace los mejores pambazos del mundo," he said, "y mi madre se llama Conchata, pero todos la llaman Connie." Miguel was very careful to talk about his abuela as if she were still alive, and of course, he made no mention of George O'Hara. Miggy nodded, and then surprised his older self completely by leaning in quickly and wrapping his arms around his neck and hugging tight for a few seconds. It was only Miguel's enhanced reflexes that meant that he didn't throw himself back at the unexpected touch, and he even managed a brief return hug before the little boy was pulling back.
"Is this going to be weird now?" Miguel asked him, signing once again, but Miggy just shook his head.
"No," he replied, "we're like all the Mr Jakes. I think that's good."
"Good."