Всё хорошо в меру.

(( Group exclusive roleplaying blog for Dr. Cossack of the Mega Man Classic series. ))

[acid-eater]

A Different Breed by ~imbisibol

[acid-eater]

コサック帽 by 鳩豆

[siberianroboticist]

Mikhail had fallen asleep on his desk, right on top of his notes too. He usually took better care of himself, but with Kalinka off studying in university, he found himself slacking a little.

[siberianroboticist]

(( REBOOT ))

[siberianroboticist]

And here is Mikhail asleep at his desk with some paper stuck to his face.

[whistlingtheblues]

“I don’t… know,” Blues admitted slowly, frowning. “It’s not something I’ve thought about for a long time. It’s’s… just been there.” At first, it was the fear of being changed into someone else, of losing himself that had kept Blues away. Then the fear and anger that he had replaced him. And even now, there was still a lingering, mixed feeling that made the idea of going near the man who created him absolutely terrifying.

“I’m not sure how to counter it when I’m not sure there’s anything real left to cause it. It’s all… old things, I guess.” Things he shouldn’t be afraid of or hurt by any more. Things he… couldn’t shake off entirely, no matter how much he tried.

[siberianroboticist]

This was difficult. At this point, Mikhail wasn't sure how much advice there was to give. This was going to be a long, tedious process, and Blues had only started it. Mikhail removed his arms from behind his head and leaned forward in his chair, looking down for a few moments.

"Old things?" he asked, looking at Blues again. "What's keeping you from letting go of them?"

[whistlingtheblues]

Sighing, Blues slipped his shades off and folded them into his had, staring down at them almost absently before looking up and meeting Mikhail’s eyes with his own, rarely-seen optics. They had been a gift from Dr. Light - the very first gift he had ever gotten, and despite how distant he was from the roboticist now, he had never forgotten that fact.

“…I don’t trust him,” he admitted, the words wrenching themselves out of his mouth with more emotion than he would have ever wanted them to hold. “I want to get past this. Everything that happened was a long time ago, but when I think about going near him again…”

All the fear came back. The sense of betrayal. The anger, fortunately, was mostly dissipated by now, even if he still had to fight down a wave of jealousy now and then at how easy it was for the man to love somebody else - several somebodies. 

“I’m not sure I ever can - and how can I get near someone I can’t trust, no matter how much either of us wants it?” His hand tightened around his shades, and he squeezed his eyes closed. “…But I don’t want this to hang over us until one or both of us die, either.”

Because humans didn’t live that long, really, and Blues? He was well aware of how fragile he had been before, when he was slowly dying - and how fragile he still was, in some ways. He’d already died with this still hanging over him once - he didn’t care to repeat the experience.

[siberianroboticist]

Mikhail knew how badly distrust could affect a relationship, and based off of what he knew, Blues didn't trust Thomas a whole lot, not after what happened. He thought about it a little, reminding himself that he was speaking to a stubborn twelve year old. He wasn't sure if Blues would take his advice, even though he clearly wanted to overcome this. Well, he could at least try.

"What would make you more comfortable around him?" Mikhail asked. "I understand you don't want to be near him, but you can't repair damaged trust if you do everything you can to avoid him. What's making you afraid of going near him, and is there anything that can be done to counter it, whether on your part or his?"

[studyinginrobotics]

Kalinka takes another look at the flowers and an odd feeling she can’t really identify swirls in her gut. True the bouquet was messy and hastily put together but just the thought that Wily had done this just because her mom was nice to him years ago was nice. It’s not enough to get a smile out of her but she somehow doesn’t feel as sad as before.

At hearing what her dad said she tries to ignore the sick taste she got in her mouth at the idea of Wily hurting her mom like he did Dr. Light. She gave a little nod and stands up.

“Is there anything you wanted to say before we left?”

[siberianroboticist]

Mikhail went silent for a few minutes, though that easily felt like hours to him. It wasn't that he hadn't heard Kalinka's question, as he had, but rather he was thinking of what to say. He felt bad for spending so little time at Isabelle's grave, as though he were saying 'I have no time for you anymore.' Unfortunately, it was difficult to find comfort in a gravestone.

"... No," Mikhail finally said, turning away. "Let's go, if you're ready to leave."

Mikhail didn't look at what Kalinka had left for her mother, and he probably knew what it was anyway. All he had left behind was a bouquet with his own note, which had the words 'I love you and I miss you. I hope we'll see each other again someday.' in French.

There wasn't much else to say.

[studyinginrobotics]

Kalinka’s eyes went wide at hearing who the flowers were from and she nearly drops the card as if it burned her. She might not out right hate the man the way her father did but it was impossible not to have some distaste for someone who’d done what Wily did.

The bit of shock passes and she looks back to the flowers in confusion. True she heard about how her parents along with Dr. Light and Wily all went to the same college, but trying to wrap her head around the idea that Wily and her mom were friends was hard.

“Dr. Wily? I didn’t think he’d do something like this, even if they were friends.”

[siberianroboticist]

Mikhail hadn't expected it either, but at the same time, he wasn't surprised. With Isabelle having been one of the few people who had given him a chance, even though he knew she was wasting her time, this display of appreciation wasn't somsthing that he'd think of as out of character for him. It was fitting too - poorly put together with a shoddy note, Mikhail could even hear Isabelle's voice calling it a part of his 'charm'.

If only she were here to actually say that.

"Well... I hadn't expected it myself. Usually he's too... preoccupied for that sort of thing. Usually with himself or with his schemes, but..." He looked at the bouquet Albert had left, wondering exactly how many seconds the mad scientist stopped thinking about himself and decided to go grab some flowers for this. It was messy, sure, but all things considered...

"It's not all that important, anyway. I doubt they would have retained any sort of friendship. You know what he did to Dr. Light, I have no doubt he'd do the same to her."

[studyinginrobotics]

At seeing the other bouquet laying near the grave Kalinka looked to her dad in confusion. Not in all the time she’d come here had she ever seen anyone other than them leave flowers for her mom. Nor did she know anyone who would.

She watched quietly as Mikhail went over and picked up the bouquet and read the card. She waited for him to say something but all he did was place the flowers down and put their own next to them. Kalinka tilted her head in confusion, not understanding why he didn’t say anything.

She went over and turned the card over to see what it said. At reading it her frown only became more troubled and she looked up to her dad in confusion.

“Papa? I don’t understand, who would leave Mama flowers on Mother’s Day other than us?”

[siberianroboticist]

Mikhail had told Kalinka bits and pieces about his life as most parents would, but there were always details he either left out or never got around to explaining. One of these details was Isabelle’s attempts to be Albert’s friend, which he probably help sabotage. Well, Kalinka was a young lady now, and it probably wouldn’t hurt for her to know, would it?

That is, if he could stand to talk about it.

“A friend, of course,” Mikhail said, sighing. “Well, more a friend of hers than a friend of mine. She tried to get along with him, and I don’t think I made things easy for them.” He laughed a bit, though there wasn’t any levity in it. He might as well get to the point, since Kalinka wasn’t going to be interested in playing games. Clearing his throat, he continued.

“Your mother was a lovely, friendly woman. She got along with a lot more people than I did, and she got along with them more easily. You know that I don’t get along with Dr. Wily, but she did... Sort of. I think I made things tense between them, but they were almost friends, I think. She got along with the man far better than I did, anyway. Based on the handwriting, I’d say Dr. Wily left that here for her. It’s just a thank you - no more, no less.”

[studyinginrobotics]

Kalinka sat quietly in the car as they drove up the all too familiar road. She couldn’t bring herself to look up as the cemetery came into view. No matter how many times they had come here it still hurt as much as the first time.

She still remembered it, everyone dressed in black all standing around the casket as it had been placed into the ground. She let go of the flowers in her hands as to not crush them and went to grip her arms at the memory.

She may have only known her mom for a short time but those few years had been so happy. When she died it felt like she took some of that happiness with her.

When the car stopped Kalinka looked up to her father and held up the flowers to answer his question. She couldn’t quite find her voice to speak at the moment.

Wiping her eyes, despite knowing she’d only start crying again, she got out of the car and followed her dad to the grave.

[siberianroboticist]

Mikhail didn’t blame his daughter for not speaking, it wasn’t like he had much to say to her. Going to someone’s grave didn’t give you much to converse about, or at least not in this family.

Seeing Kalinka’s tears hurt, but there was nothing he could do. He couldn’t stop her pain any less than he could stop his. He got out of the car, hoping that maybe they’d be able to reflect on some happier times rather than dwell on the fact that Isabelle’s gone.

Mikhail approached the gravestone, some ways away from the car. Oddly enough, there was already a bouquet there, looking like it had been made last minute and thrown at the grave. He had to wonder who would have been there before them, and his curiosity got the best of him. He picked it up and inspected it, finding the note attached, and he immediately recognized the handwriting.

“Thanks again, Isabelle. Happy Mother’s Day”.

Well, at least one of the few things Mikhail and Albert could agree on was that Isabelle was really something. He didn’t say anything, he just gently placed the bouquet back on the ground by the gravestone, and placed his own nearby. As much as he despised Albert, he would rather set the hatchet aside for now. Isabelle had always wanted them to get along, and he almost wished for her sake that they had.

[siberianroboticist]

Mother’s Day. It used to be a mere Western holiday for him, a grossly simplified version of Women's Day tgat he never acknowledged until he had gotten married to Isabelle and had Kalinka. It was still important to his wife, so he was willing to partake in it with Kalinka when she was little. They had celebrated a grand total of once before she passed away.

Mikhail nearly dropped the holiday all together, as it still had little meaning to him, but it meant something to Isabelle, and now it meant something to Kalinka. If anything, it became more of a day to mourn than a day to celebrate, at least in his mind. There was nothing to do but buy a bouquet of ten flowers exactly and bring Kalinka to visit her mother's grave.

It was almost two decades now, but the passing of time didn't change the emptiness Mikhail felt whenever he approached Isabelle's grave. The only thing grounding him at this point was Kalinka, whose presence did a good job of keeping him from losing himself in what used to be. There was little to say as he stopped the car, shifted it into park, and switched the key to the off position. He looked to his daughter, his expression somber and even a bit lost.

"Do you have everything?" It wasn't like there was much to bring, but Mikhail just wanted to make sure Kalinka had what she needed before they stepped out of the car.

[whistlingtheblues]

Blues didn’t mind waiting while Dr. Cossack finished working on… whatever he was doing at the moment. In fact, he wouldn’t have minded the man had wanted to take his time doing so. Asking about this was going to be hard, and make him feel like a little kid, and many other unpleasant things. 

…But it was something he needed to do, and Blues wasn’t going to be a coward and avoid the topic, either. “Thanks,” he said first, and kept his face impassive as he watched the roboticist for any reaction he would have to his next words. 

“…I need… advice. On how to get past the… thing I have with Dr. Light.” He wasn’t going to call it a grudge - that made it sound simple and petty, neither of which were something that Blues saw the situation as. “…He’s getting older, and I’m not certain I… like what all it’s cost me, either.”

[siberianroboticist]

Parental issues. Mikhail reclined in his chair slightly, thinking about what little he knew of the issue. He wasn't sure what sort of advice to give, primarily because Blues didn't really ask any questions. All he did was imply that there was something preventing him from fully reconciling with his father, and he either wasn't stating what it was or didn't know for himself.

"What's keeping you from making amends?" Mikhail asked, wrapping his arms behind his head and leaning his head against them. This might take a while, so he might as well get comfortable. "I know your father, and I'm sure he doesn't like what this has cost him either, but he's respecting your decision to keep your distance. If you want to close the distance you have with him, then what's stopping you?"

[siberianroboticist]

"Dr. Cossack, can I talk with you about something?"

Mikhail didn’t answer for a few moments, instead opting to finish what he was doing. He had no reason to be alarmed, as Blues was welcome within his home at any time.

“Of course,” Mikhail said as he stopped what he was doing and turned to face Blues. “What did you wish to speak to me about?”

[shiro-rc]

Kalinkas.