Don't Eat Yellow Snow

[thepurpleone]

WHO: Donnie and yooou
WHERE: Not-Hoth
WHAT: Baby it's cold outside
WHEN: During Nothmas
WARNINGS: N/A
NOTES: Will match tag format/preferences


I. Observation
While Donnie has his qualms about the sturdiness of the structures they've been provided with as shelter for their winter exile, there doesn't look to be much by way of options. By default he chooses the one with the most purple decorating the outside (shh! No one saw him licking the building), perhaps low-key pleased that there's purple on the inside as well, even if it isn't completely to his aesthetics, but at least the color's not bad. He takes one look at the clothes in the dressers and figures it's probably some previous inhabitant's, thinking no more on that matter.

It's still strange to finally be in the same breathing space as the Agrii. Donnie wanders the weird village in his snow gear to observe their alien abductors. Take some selfies in front of the fabulous tree. Surreptitiously throw a snowball at a hapless Agrii or two and see if he can instigate snowball fights between them. For science.


II. Gift Gremlin
The barn is a curiosity, more so the big questionable robots that seem to be standing guard. Donnie watches from...the roof because that's what ninja do, right? as Agrii drop off gifts. Huh?

Presents are something he hadn't really expected. An Agrii gift exchange? Someone coax this feral boy from the roof so he can get his presents.


III. Second Childhood
a. One day Donnie's communicator is activated, but something's off about the transmission. Since when does Donnie wear glasses? They're quite huge, square-framed, and yes, that is tape over the bridge keeping it in place and string tied around the temples. He peers very closely at the screen as he plays around with it for a bit, having to stop to find his hands now and then because he's all but swimming in a big purple hoodie too many times his size. Eventually he gets tired of this game so he puts the communicator down to go investigate the drawers. Maybe there's him-sized clothes that's put away!

It takes some doing but he finally tugs one open, and perhaps that's when one can really get a sense of just how small the turtle tot is, maybe about two feet high. He starts pulling out sweaters and jackets, more to his size, frowning thoughtfully. Red? Headshake. Blue? No. Orange, that's Mikey's. He makes sure to fold each one up as nicely as he can while he sets them on the floor before looking in the drawer, but he eventually reaches the bottom and finds none for him. Oh.

This is what happens when your dad color codes you.


b. A little lost child in the snow! At least he's bundled up, and by now he doesn't care too much that the jacket he found isn't his color because it's warm and better than nothing. But winter clothes makes it hard to move, the snow, harder still, especially when it comes up past your knees.

He has no idea where he's going and he can't find the cabin he found himself in. It's a bit scary since everything outside is so big and new, not at all familiar like the sewers, not that he's gone very far in them without any of his brothers or his dad. The thought makes him sniffle as he hugs his action figure close. Donnie's not sure where it came from either but he knows Jupiter Jim anywhere! The space hero's poofy plastic afro is fitted in a fishbowl helmet, and he even has karate-chop action! Maybe it's one of his brothers, but right now, it's his emotional support.

Comments

[thepurpleone]

Donnie smirks.

"Well, the easiest way is to show you. Hey parental guardian, wanna help out?" he asks, waving over at the Agrii Te Mi's been looking to. He walks over to find a nice spot of snow to start trying to gather up.

[agrii]

The older Agrii approaches a little and there's a quick, strange conversation between Te Mi and the Agrii. A whole other language. Then she nods to Donnie and takes Te Mi's hand. Together they walk to follow Donnie.

"Does that make hands cold?"

[thepurpleone]

Is that what their language sounds like? Fascinating. He has no idea what they said or how to even pronounce any of that but whatever.

"Yeah, I guess gloves would be ideal," he notes, looking at his three-fingered hands before shrugging as he packs snow into a ball and rolls it around on the ground to build it up. "Ugh, this is easier with a hill," he mutters. Come to think of it, he's never built a snowman on his own before.

"Hey, help me pack some snow onto this. Basically we're making a big ball for the base of the body."

[agrii]

Well, at least the kid knows what a ball is. He moves to start gathering handfuls of snow. Four handfuls. There are some advantages to being Agrii. He does have to stop working regularly because his skin seems more sensitive to the cold. But soon his mother is starting to help to, gathering up snow and trying to pat it onto the ball that Donnie is forming.

"Why make this? Is tree die shun?"

Okay, so maybe there were some ways that Te Mi wasn't the best at the language yet, but he was sure better than some.

[thepurpleone]

Even Donnie has to take a break rubbing his hands together to warm them up. He grins as Te Mi and his mom help out. Ah, the joy of extra limbs. How he misses his Spider Shell.

"It's..." He squints as he parses that out. "Oh. Tradition. Not....really? I mean, I guess it is kind of a traditional thing to do in the snow though. Okay, I think that's a good enough start. Now, we make a slightly smaller sphere for the middle."

[agrii]

"Why smaller?"

Already Te Mi's mom is trying to start another ball. Because she should make another. Te Mi starts talking to her to explain, and then he's content to talk to Donnie once more.

"This happen much in He Row world?"

[thepurpleone]

"If it's too big then it'll be harder to put on top of the base, and it won't be very stable," Donnie explains. He smiles at Te Mi's mom, moving to help pack some snow on the ball she's starting.

"Oh yeah. It's one of the things kids do all the time when it snows enough. There's sledding too. Not sure you guys have sleds though. Hm. Maybe we can improvise..." he considers. "Well, we can figure that out later."

[agrii]

"What sled?"

Yes, he really cares about all of this, about the learning. Te Mi considers and starts to help his mom on a smaller ball. The good news is that with all of their hands, it's probably going to be easier to lift onto the base.

[thepurpleone]

Donnie shakes his hands out, rubbing them together again. "Well, it's mostly flat, so it can slide on the snow easily. Usually done down slopes." He stoops down in the snow to try tracing out a general picture with his finger. "There's different kinds, but the simplest is basically narrow but wide and long enough for a person to sit on."

He turns to look at the snowball progress before stepping back towards it. "Okay, I think that's big enough. Help me get this up on there?"

[agrii]

Te Mi listens, but it's clear from the look on his face that he does not understand. But he does talk to his mother. The tall Agrii woman wraps all four hands under the new ball to lift it and carry it. She places it on the previous ball and Te Mi uses his hands to try and stabilize it.

"Like this?"

[thepurpleone]

Maybe he'll have to demonstrate. Which will require slapping together a sled. Well, he'll think of something.

Donnie reaches out to help get the snowball set in place, nodding. "Yes, nicely done, team," he says, giving both of them a thumbs-up. "Okay, now one last ball, a little smaller than this one," he says, patting the one they'd just placed. "It's going to be the head."

[agrii]

Thumbs up. Te Mi does his best to mimic it. Four thumbs up man!

"It seems short," Te Mi notes. Three is just so small to the Agrii child.

[thepurpleone]

Four thumbs-up! Even better! Donnie lets out a laugh at that.

"Short? Oh. Well...it's definitely not to scale. This one's just practice. You can make bigger ones if you want to try, later, but I can only pile so much snow without my brothers here to help."

[agrii]

Practice, huh? Well, he can be okay with that. He smiles wide again.

"Will make more. Very tall," he says brightly, very excited.

[thepurpleone]

"Awesome. I look forward to seeing them," Donnie grins. An entire horde of Agrii-snowmen. Horrifying.

[agrii]

Yes, but the child will make them anyway. Because a He Row encouraged it.

"How big head make?"

[thepurpleone]

Make him proud, little guy.

"As big or small as you want! Remember, it doesn't have to be accurate. These are just for fun," Donnie says.

[agrii]

"What 'actor ate?"

Because of course he doesn't know that word at all.

[thepurpleone]

"Accurate, or accuracy, is basically a focus on details to make sure that everything matches up correctly. Clearly this snowman is by no means accurate when compared to an actual Agrii. ...or most organic beings for that matter," Donnie explains. "So this is an inaccurate model."

[agrii]

Te Mi listens very patiently and then nods vigorously. Yes, that makes sense.

"Agrii have word like this. But not know He Row Speak word. Thank you for teach."

[thepurpleone]

"You're quite welcome. What's the Agrii word for it? Can you teach me your language?" Donnie asks.

[agrii]

Te Mi frowns at that. Why would He Row want to learn Agrii Speak?

"But He Row already speak. Not need other speak."

[thepurpleone]

"Untrue. Look, you only learned how to speak...whatever language you think we're speaking, because that's the only way you've been able to talk to us. But even where I'm from, people learn different languages all the time, to speak with each other. And I'll admit, sometimes it's hard trying to figure out what you guys are saying when you're trying to speak to us, and there's a lot of words you may not know or that I won't know how to really describe well."

[agrii]

Well, now that is a real point. But Te Mi doesn't look like he knows what to do with it.

"But I do not know how teach."

[thepurpleone]

Donnie thinks about this a moment.

"It's difficult without direction, true. And since it's something you've been doing your whole life you wouldn't know where to start. But let's see... The easiest way is to start with a phrase or a word. Since you have a good grasp of our language, you should be able to match up your words with something that means relatively the same thing as I'd be saying."

He brightens. "Okay. How about with introductions? How would you say 'What's your name?' and then answer the same question in your language?"