Let's get the party started!

[poor_unlucky_girl]

Who: Everyone including YOU
What: Pride month celebration!
Where: Mess hall
When: First weekend of June, after the brain quest.
Warnings/Notes: Probably alcohol, language, might lead to sexy stuff

Ah yes, Jennifer is in pure delight. Back in her day, this wasn't a thing and now not only she, who will romanticize everything, gets to celebrate love, she gets to witness people be happy as they celebrate with her. She waves happily at whoever enters and nods towards all the available material.

There is indeed lots of booze, which one wouldn't expect from Jennifer but hey, Price helped. There's rainbow cake, and biscuits with the flags on it. Before everyone arrives she innocently asks one of the staff members in the kitchen if she can eat a lesbian one. There's a box with pins and facepaints. Some people are sporting funny or sexy costumes. She is wears her usual hairdo, but decorates it with a rose, paired with a simple white dress. She drinks her tea and is happy, and just a little bit too clueless of what can happen during these kinds of celebrations...

Comments

[myagents]

"Greetings." Price walks up to Loken, a plate with a freshly cut slice of rainbow cake in his hands. He extends it to him. "Here, have some cake."

Yes, he remembers perfectly well that he lasered Loken for no reason some time ago. He was just looking for a fight, and maybe he still is. He also wants to make up and have some friend to manipulate be a human being with manipulate. He just wants the thrill, and while he might not seek it in a stereotypical way he sure has been indulging in risk taking behaviour.

"We hope you are enjoying this celebration." he announces, slipping into his professional persona. Who is we? Jorgmund? He and Jennifer? He is tempted to use it all the time, honestly, like it's a royal we, because he's just one with Project Freelancer to that extent. So he likes to think. If it has to come with disadvantages, it might as well come with the feeling of home. He likes to be someone whose contribution is important, for better or worse. And, once again, he tells himself in his head that the Director absolutely loved and appreciated him although he refused to show it. Yes, he's doing great, he really likes holding onto the Counselor persona, and so he keeps acting accordingly.

"There are pride flag pins, cookies, and make up, if you are interested. I also made sure there was enough alcohol to boost the morale of our troops. Jennifer was very excited to organize this event, and I'm glad I could help. How can I be of assistance?"

[greyerrant]

Loken remembers the lasering too, and seems to have decided on a certain reserved politeness. "It would take a lot of alcohol to get me drunk, even with my oolitic kidney nonfunctional." He looks over the cookies, pins, and the make up.

"I appreciate a celebration of survival, though." He nods towards Greg. "Our fellow inmate over there explained the situation. I approve."

He will take and eat the cake, and says, "I am uncertain I need assistance, except maybe in understanding what all the flags mean. There are so many."

there's a million flags more, I know, but ain't nobody got time for that

[myagents]

"The one in shades of pink is the lesbian flag, some people also use one in shades of blue for gay men or the rainbow flag, which is the most common and encompasses all identities."

Price points at the bi and pan flags.

"These are the flags for bisexual and pansexual, for attraction towards more than one gender. There might be some overlap, but many interpret the similarities and differences between those two identities in a different way: bi means two and was used to indicate attraction to both genders, but since there are more gender identities nowadays the term bisexual doesn't necessarily stick to a binary perception of gender. The one with black, grey, white and purple stripes is for asexuality, which is the lack of sexual attraction towards any gender. For lack of romantic attraction we use the term aromantic, its flag has five stripes in dark green, light green, white, grey and black."

He likes explaining this kind of stuff, he values the celebration of queer identities too, and as much as he finds the act of using it as a bait to spot fraternization funny, he values it genuinely. Then he points to the remaining flags.

"Those are the flags for transgender, nonbinary, and genderfluid respectively. They are for gender identity and have nothing to do with attraction. Transgender is when someone identifies as the opposite gender, nonbinary when they don't identify neither as a man nor as a woman, and genderfluid is someone's gender identity fluctuates. As you may have noticed, there are many flags, and pronouns aren't always an indication of gender identity, so you don't have to wear one if you haven't figured out yourself yet.

A person who doesn't choose a specific label but feels like their gender identity or orientation might be one of this community can simply refer to themselves as queer. The word queer used to be a slur but it was reclaimed by the community, so most people are fine with the term but be mindful about referring to someone else as queer as there are some people who have negative feelings about it."

He thinks over it for a second.

"I think that is all, for now."

Re: there's a million flags more, I know, but ain't nobody got time for that

[greyerrant]

"That was most helpful, think you."

He pauses, then says. "I don't think someone like an Astartes would have any flag at all, come to think of it. Such things are not of import to us."

[myagents]

"I believe that is a positive thing."

He doesn't have to continue, but does it anyway out of nostalgia.

"When I worked on the Mother Of Invention during Project Freelancer we did not have separate locker rooms for men and women, and it turned out to be beneficial. The Director did not believe in strict rules regarding gender."

Or rules in general. What a man. What a piece of shit.

[greyerrant]

"I fought in a warrior brotherhood, so aside from occasional remembrancers or support staff, or ship commanders or ratings, we did not see many people that were not men like ourselves."

He considers a co-ed locker room. That doesn't seem to faze him, but he used to walk around naked in front of his remembrancer who definitely noticed his ah, assets, not that he was aware of it.

[myagents]

"I see."

He ponders for a moment.

"Did you have rules against fraternizaton? I know we did."

He's glad for the rules against fraternization, honestly, because it only makes the eventual instances of romance more fun. Watching the agents awkwardly trying to hide their silly relationships was utterly delightful.

[greyerrant]

"Rules? No. But it never happened."

He doesn't elaborate, but they were all chem-gelded and psycho-conditioned out of horniness entirely.

"So this is all very strange to me."

[myagents]

"Interesting."

He comments, but he is already wondering how and why. Trying to get information is dangerous and probably a waste of effort, anyway, so he'll just wonder silently.

He looks over to the pins. He's been so detached from his identity in the last decade, and he feels it is mostly positive because no one in Project Freelancer thought of him as an actual human being that would want a partner out of attraction or affection and that made him known for his skills. It wasn't always fun once he took off the mask at the end of each day, though: he was some kind of alien mascot that was perceived as creepy at worst and as endearing because 'look at it, they put a suit on him like it's a person' at best.

Very reluctantly, he reaches for a pin with the nonbinary flag. Doesn't wear it, just takes it. If Dan, Tucker, or an agent - or anyone, really - gets closer he'll put it right back...

[greyerrant]

"Is that for you?" Loken notices price took a pin, and asks him directly about it, his deep-set eyes giving him a somewhat forbidding appearance as he looks directly at the smaller man, like some kind of craggy statue given life and asking uncomfortable questions.

[myagents]

"I just...Really like the colours of this one." he looks at it longingly as he slowly puts it back "They are nice to look at."

Why would he feel like a man or a woman? He feels barely human. He just presents as male because that's the easiest thing to pair with his voice, and even then he just kind of freaks people out.

[greyerrant]

"They are. A bit more... demonstratively colorful than the honor-badges many of my brothers wear. They end to be more... sombre colors, Emperor's children and their deep purple aside."

He shrugs, "It would seem there are a lot of them, I doubt anyone would begrudge you taking one."

[myagents]

"Right."

It's strange, he can't bring himself to do it. He knows, on a rational level, that it's perfectly fine to pick pins and that he might even not get shit for it if only because people want to avoid him, but it's hard. Between the perfect monster who only has tasks and the flawed human being who has an identity, he'll always choose to be the former.
He fetches a drink to shift the focus somewhere else.

[greyerrant]

Loken also gets a drink, quietly emulating Price. He doesn't pick up a pin because he doesn't feel like claiming any sort of identity beyond the one he has already. Beyond that, he has spent the last few years shedding all heraldry, then putting it on just once as an act of defiance to spit in the eye of his traitorous father and brothers.

"Not the most raucous party I've been to, though that probably has to do with how long I have lived."

[myagents]

"Jennifer wanted to make sure to create a tranquil atmosphere." Price shrugs "We are already tense enough, here."

[greyerrant]

"After the recent unfortunate demise of planker, yes."

I mean, not that Garviel feels bad. He punched the guy so hard once he nearly broke his jaw. Fuck planker, and not in the way Dan went for either.

[myagents]

"Indeed."

Price is not quite sure how to keep the conversation going, but he's glad they've been able to keep it civilized so far.

[greyerrant]

"I see... someone I need to have a few words with." His eyes alight on confused-looking Kerrigan, and he says, "If you'll excuse me then?"

[myagents]

"Of course." Price is thankful this is over without anything happening. See? He is capable of being nice and not arguing, unlike the agents. "See you around."