Out of Sync (Open)

[Katherine Haddock]

Katherine slid into the sleek black chair, inhaling a deep, cool breath. It was her first official day on board the Venia and she should have been nervous, except the fact that she wasn’t. Joining the crew hadn’t been her initial choice, but she needed something to keep her restless mind busy and the pay was more than decent. People however, were a different story all together. She didn’t get them, and they didn’t get her. Computers were silent…mostly, and they made since, which worked in perfect harmony. Popping her fingers and wrists, she adjusted herself into the chair and started her fingers dance upon the touch screen computer. She wasn’t quite used to the system program, but with a little adventuring and tweaking, she’d be able to figure it out in no time.

She cleared her throat and realized that she hadn’t even bothered to plug in her music yet. No wonder she couldn’t concentrate. With a slightly aggravated sigh, she plugged in her headphones and pressed play . The smooth dubstep cleared her mind and she was able to figure out the intricate code the computer had been beeping at her about. With a satisfied ‘hmmpph.” She leaned back in her chair, folding her hands behind her head as the system began to reboot its error. Katherine slunk further into her chair, completely spacing out.

[Sam O'Connor]

Sam inhaled deeply, the all too familiar smell of the ship making him feel comfortable, which was surprising considering what he'd been through when he was last here. It had been over a year since he'd stepped foot on the ship, and he found it hadn't changed much. There had been a shuffling round of the crew, lots of new faces. Eva was now taking on Anna's old role of Chief Tactical Officer, and he was back in the kitchen. Apparently they'd had a replacement chef for a while, but the guy couldn't hack it, so when Sam had tentatively asked if he could come back, they'd practically begged him to resume his role.

He'd heard that Hollie was going to be back on board soon after her operation, and wanted to be the first to thank her, again, for helping him find Eva, but to also look her in the eye for the first time. Knocking on the door to the office, he shouldered through it, only to find Hollie's chair empty. "And, I'm too early." That wasn't a big surprise. Oh well, he'd catch her la... there was a new face in the room, wearing possibly the brightest blue earphones he'd ever seen. He might as well introduce himself. With a swift wave of the hand, he tried to get her attention, she seemed out of it. "Hello there," his Irish lilt was ever present, "I'm Sam." He probably looked like a fish, opening and closing his mouth with no words as her music drowned him out.

[Katherine Haddock]

Katherine was too engrossed in her sound to notice the sound of anyone's entrance. She took a deep sigh, completely relaxing her nerves. She skipped a few more tracks, propping her feet up onto the other chair. She shouldn't have come so early, but at least she was alone. That was probably the best she could ask for right now.

It wasn't until she opened her eyes, that she learned that she was not alone. His mouth was moving, but no words were coming out. Was he mute? No...her headphones. With a heavy, almost irritated sigh she pulled her headphones down slowly and gave an almost blank stare up at the stranger. There wasn't much to him. He was skinny, with a Disney prince haircut and brown puppy dog eyes. Katherine was not quite impressed. "Katherine Haddock...Computer Specialist." she replied in a less than friendly tone.

[Sam O'Connor]

Ooh, frosty. Sam hadn't had such a cold greeting in a while. The unimpressed look on her face was probably to send people running, and he imagined it worked, the hairs on the back of his neck were prickling. So, the question was, did he proceed, or did he run a mile in the opposite direction. "Sorry, I was just looking for Hollie, but unless she's turned invisible and is playing a trick on me," he wafted his hand around in the area where the woman's head would have been if she were sitting in her chair, "then she's not here."

Yeah, maybe he should leave. He was about to do so when, in the silence, he heard the low hum of the music coming from her earphones. Pausing and pursing his lips, he smiled. "Deadmau5, right?" he said, pointing at her earphones, "my Grandpa has all sorts of old music CDs and files stored away in the attic, this was one of the better ones." There was an off chance that it might start a more friendly conversation. That, or the temperature of the room would drop further, and he'd escape.

[Katherine Haddock]

Katherine stared at him for a few hard seconds, trying to figure out her words. Why were people so difficult? "I have'nt met her." she replied in a bland tone, turning her attentions back to the computer. It was still loading. Of course it was still loading. There was no clear escape so she just had to suck it up and deal with him. This Hollie, must have been the other person she was supposed to hold post with. Hopefully she was quiet natured, silent, unlike this fellow who decided she would be the perfect person to hold conversation with.

His next word caught her slightly off guard. She turned a slow gaze up towards him, shocked if not confused, that someone actually listened to the same genre of music, even if it was old school. Katherine slid her headphones down onto her neck,, now slightly intrigued. "I have plenty of it actually. Brought a lot of it with me...mostly digital files though." She forced a soft smile, for once having something to talk about.

[Sam O'Connor]

There was a long pause, and the look that Katherine gave Sam made him feel like everything was going in slow motion. She seemed surprised that he would know the name of the band, let alone that music like that still existed. A lot of the sorts of stuff you got these days sounded like it had been chewed up and spit out by a machine several times, it could hardly be called music. He coveted his Grandpa's collection, and was pretty sure he would be the one who inherited when his Grandpa eventually passed. If he didn't, it'd be a crime.

"Oh yeah?" he said, his body heaving a sigh of relief as the forced smile, but a smile none the less, graced her features, "I pilfered some of the CDs when I last visited, got them stored away somewhere safe. Stuff like Basement Jaxx, Andy Hunter. I'm more partial to Kings of Leon, Arcade Fire, Two Door Cinema Club, but," he shrugged his shoulders, "I'll listen to just about anything. What else have you got on there?" he asked, trying his luck. He wasn't really one to shy away, if he could make a friend, or just have a conversation, then he would.

[Katherine Haddock]

Katherine swallowed and pulled down the other side of her phones. Maybe this...talking thing would be ok if this flowed so easily. Most people just didn't relate to her, her love for computers or the strange silent way she functioned. Sam seemed to want to talk to her, maybe he was just friendly, she couldn't figure it out. Figure him out.

"Yes." she replied plainly. "Most of what I have is dubsetp..electronica. Hybrid, Daft Punk, Crystal Method. I'm not a fan of most modern music..or music with defined lyrics. Instrumental and electronically fueled music is better for my work. helps me think." She smiled faintly up at him. Did she actually just try to smile up at him? Well that certainly never happened. he seemed nice, but friend? Well..she would probably scare him off eventually.

[Sam O'Connor]

Most people had a reason for being the way they were. He knew what it was like to be a bit of an outsider, he'd certainly felt like one when he was younger. If you were half alien with strong telekinetic powers, then you'd feel the same way. People had become more accepting of it, of him, more recently. He'd always been very understanding of people and the way they worked, unless they were unmittigated arseholes, that... yeah, he would never try to understand or accept them.

"Daft Punk," he grinned, generally agreeing with all that she'd just said, but choosing to highlight that band. "Their soundtrack for that film, Tron, was amazing." Slipping his communicator out of his pocket, he tapped the screen and scrolled down - it was like a mini computer - until he reached one of the Daft Punk songs on there. "This is a classic, but I've heard better."

Letting the song play, he put the communicator down on Hollie's desk, seating himself in her swivel chair, swinging gently from side to side.