Aaaaand they're back!
As usual, it's a good idea to read Shepherds and Second Watch, and also as usual I regret absolutely nothing I have written in this tale.
Beetles reunion tour” and "actually reading Le Miserables".
Beetles
Le Miserables
Djoric.
I am disappoint.
I am not responsible for my characters' taste or lack thereof in anything.
e: eh, changing that to Led Zeppelin. Fits more.
No, I mean… It's Beatles, and Les Miserable.
Neither of these are excusable, especially considering there is a Les Miserable movie coming out.
I like to imagine that Mary-Ann owns a copy of Le Mis, but it's been lying around for years because, and no matter how many recommendations she gets, she can never bring herself to actually sit down and read it. She's been repeating the first five pages forever.
e: it has been changed to reflect this better.
Bloody hell you could have said that earlier.
Fixed on both accounts.
Fantastic. I am sincerely enjoying this new GoI, and the small snapshots of the people behind it. It gives this place a little…humanity.
Keep up the excellent (typos excused) work!! +1
Even if you didn't intend it to be, this is an excellent response to my challenge for a GOI-themed holiday. "Completely Secular Winter Celebration" :-P
Also, I'm somewhat surprised by the inclusion of Pastafarianism, considering that they're (theoretically) a parody of religion propogated by Internet AtheistsTM. I'm not sure where FSM fits into the Abrahamic framework, but I'm amused that apparently it does.
Giving bearhugs to the unsuspecting since 1872.
The way I have it in my head, Rigatoni Carbonara IV (First of His Name) is the one Pastafarian who really believes. He knows exactly who he is, what he believes, and his place in the world, and has generally managed to not be an asshole about it. Though granted, he might be a bit off in the head.
That, and I like to think that he was recruited by the Initiative because he can comprehend tongues, but only those of tomatoes and tomato-based products. Because divine humor rolls that way.
It's pronounced "Iv" if you're American or Canadian, or "Eye-Vee" if you're British/Austrailian.
One of the best tales iv'e read in a while.
You managed a shameless butt-ghost reference that didn't ruin the feel of the story.
I leik. I think that this works well enough on its own, and doesn't necessarily need to be read with the other HI tales. I really, really like the expansion of their characters.
However, the real reason I upvoted was the Butt Ghost. Butt Ghost is the source of all anomalies.
Technically, it wasn’t a Christmas party. It was the “Completely Secular and Non-Denominational Winter Celebration of Fellowship and Goodwill towards Mankind (Please Check Your Attitude and Weapons at the Door)” party.
As a devout Australian, I find this name deeply offensive.
Not sure if joking or serious, so I'll address both.
If joking: The party for the Australian Church of Australia was held elsewhere, because there was not enough room to store the beer and the fisticuffs ring. Also the Australian Church of Australia is now definitely a thing in this universe.
If serious: The year before, people ended up in the hospital because arguments over Jesus' divinity broke out before dinner even started. We are dealing with a group made up of factions who have been fighting with each other since their inception: getting them to agree on where to go to lunch is a difficulty. You can guarantee that there's a good chunk of Initiative leadership that frowns on these sort of parties just because of prior fiascoes and the trouble they cause.
As Mary-Ann commented, the name was tongue in cheek, and you can guarantee that everyone else was in on it. You can kinda tell with the "(Check Your Attitude and Weapons at the Door)" part. Or the part where the name is completely and totally overwrought to the point of ridiculousness.
I'm pretty sure it's a joke, and I'll share a quote from an American visiting Australia for Christmas why:
Man, it sure is hot down here during the winter. I'd hate to be here during July.
… I may or may not have said something similar, mutatis mutandis, while in northern Europe for the summer once.
And I'm delighted my crack inspired a whole new faith. (The holiest days are the last Saturday in September and first Sunday in October—when the footy finals take place—and the anniversary of the day we last won back or lost the Ashes. All are days of wine Bundy beer celebration, except an anniversary of losing the Ashes, which is a day of beer Bundy wine mourning.)