if i think i can figure things out, is that curiosity or arrogance?

Months. It had been months. Stuck out in space with no company other than that bloody Space Core - Wheatley was aware they were in space - he had, perhaps, started to go a bit mad. But madness was the father of invention, wasn't it? Or... was it the mother? Actually, if madness was one parent of invention, then who was the other one? Science? No, no, science is what happened after invention--

"INSPACE."

"Yes, I know, buddy, can we just..." Not? Could they not? "Not," he settled on, quite powerfully if you asked him. "Look, I have this idea to get us out of space--"

"Space!"

"Get us out of it, yes," Wheatley said. "We should... start orbiting one another, build up some centrifugal--"

That was about as far as he got.

"Did you feel that?" he asked. "It's this strange... feeling. I don't know how to describe it-- a tugging sensation! Yes, I'm feeling a strange tugging sensation in my... well, my everywhere. Can you feel that? Or is it just me? No, I'm definitely not imagining it. It's this strange, tugging, pulling... burning feeling... a rushing in my... sensors, I'm--"

Beat.

( ''I'm falling and on fire, aren't I?'' )

[[wheatley brought to you by the disturbingly hilarious endsthegame!]]

Upon finally returning to his room after a five-day vacation, item one on Topher's agenda was to stand on the inside of the door and just have a moment of dorkish glee. He'd been on a whole other planet! And it was awesome! And he'd gotten bitten by a weird giant bug thing and seen mostly-naked girls and half-naked Ben and Ender and almost crashed Ben's speeder, but it was all on another planet so it was awesome!

Once that was taken care of, he composed himself (though he still looked a little overenthusiastic) and started unpacking. He set Kenzi's present on the dresser, tossed his clothes and the stupid, stupid poncho into their rightful places on the floor, and then shoved his luggage under his bed.

And then his room was neatly in order (you know, if you were Topher), which left him to flop down on his bed and grab his laptop.

( After almost having gotten Peter into trouble this weekend, he felt like he should look at a few things... )

[[Door is cracked, post is open. Spybots and stuff under the cut NFB, and obviously done with the permission of the marvelous lockestheway.]]