KARKAT: SO YOU ACTUALLY UNDERSTOOD WHAT SHE WAS SAYING WITH THAT EARSPLITTING MALARKEY?
KANAYA: Yes
KARKAT: WOW.
KARKAT: I GUESS WE REALLY DID SEND THE RIGHT PERSON THEN.
KARKAT: PLUS ONE USELESS TAG-ALONG, I GUESS TO BEAR WITNESS OR SOMETHING?
KARKAT: AND PROBABLY RECORD THE LEGENDARY CONVERSATION LIKE A SCRIBE, WITH HIS BENCHWARMER'S PEN INTO THE HALLOWED SCROLL OF THE SECOND BANANA.
KANAYA: What
KARKAT: EXCEPT I DIDN'T BRING MY PEN OR SCROLL, AND I DON'T SPEAK MONSTER SCREAMING.
KARKAT: SO MY TRANSCRIPT WOULD READ LIKE...
KARKAT: "MORE SHRILL NOISES, LIKE GOD PLAYING THE EDGE OF A GLASS INSIDE YOUR THINK PAN"
KARKAT: "MARYAM CONTINUES TO NOD ALONG"
KANAYA: We Talked About You
KARKAT: WHAT???
KARKAT: YOU DID
KARKAT: WHAT DID SHE SAY?
KANAYA: It Was A Short Conversation
KANAYA: The Entire Exchange Was Quite Brief And Straightforward Actually
KARKAT: NO, I KINDA GOT THAT.
KARKAT: EVEN THOUGH I DON'T HAVE A KEEN EAR FOR BEAST TWADDLE, I CAN STILL DETECT WHEN A CONVERSATION DOESN'T LAST FOR MUCH TIME.
KARKAT: I MEAN, DID SHE SAY WHAT SHE WANTED WITH ME?
KARKAT: OR WHAT SHE WANTS ME TO DO??
KANAYA: You Dont Have To Do Anything
KANAYA: And She Didnt Want Anything With You In Particular
KANAYA: She Just Wanted You Here
KARKAT: OK???
KARKAT: WELL, HERE I AM, QUEEN SNAKE!!!
KARKAT: SATISFIED?!
KANAYA: Yes
KANAYA: She Is Apparently
KARKAT: THEN WHAT DID YOU TALK ABOUT WHEN MY NAME CAME UP!
KANAYA: Now Is Probably Not The Right Time To Get Too Deep Into The Subject
KANAYA: But It Was Nothing Bad
KANAYA: To The Contrary Really
KARKAT: OK...
KARKAT: THEN WHAT ABOUT YOU?
KARKAT: WHY DID SHE WANT TO SEE YOU, KANAYA... CAN YOU AT LEAST TELL ME *SOMETHING* ABOUT THIS MADDENING EXCHANGE?
KANAYA: The Bottom Line Is The Meeting Has Served Its Purpose And Echidna Is Satisfied
KANAYA: She Will Release The Frog When The Time Comes
KANAYA: I Think Vriska Was Basically Right
KANAYA: She Wanted To Get A Look At Us
KANAYA: To Assess Our Worthiness
KANAYA: Before She Would Agree To Authorize The Conception Of Another Universe
KANAYA: It Would Seem That We Measured Up
KANAYA: Once Her Questions Were Answered
KARKAT: WHAT QUESTIONS?
KANAYA: Those Pertaining To How Her Universe Would Be Treated Once Occupied
KANAYA: And Whether We Intended To Take That Responsibility Seriously
KANAYA: By Following Through With The Duties We Have Fundamentally Tasked Ourselves With By Our Natural Inclinations
KANAYA: I Mean Us Specifically
KANAYA: You And I
KARKAT: DUTIES?
KARKAT: NATURAL INCLINATIONS?
KARKAT: WHAT THE FUCK IS SHE TALKING ABOUT.
KANAYA: Natural Inclinations I Think Just Means
KANAYA: Some Idea That Is Important To Us That Has Threaded Its Way Through Every Moment And Decision Of Our Lives
KANAYA: Even When Not Apparent
KANAYA: The Refrain Of Our Being Maybe You Could Call It
KANAYA: A Thing That Attracts And Inspires Us And Simultaneously Weighs On Us So Heavily We Are Never Sure What To Do
KANAYA: For Me It Is Procreation I Believe
KANAYA: And So Does She
KANAYA: Fighting For The Persistence Of Our People
KANAYA: I Guess You Could Say
KANAYA: Motherhood?
KARKAT: WHAT ABOUT ME THEN?
KANAYA: I Think
KANAYA: That Is For You To Say
KARKAT: I'M NOT SURE IT IS, REALLY.
KARKAT: IF I'M HEARING YOU RIGHT, WORTHINESS OF INHERITING THIS UNIVERSE HINGES ON WHETHER I CAN LIVE UP TO WHAT MY SHIT IS ABOUT, SO TO SPEAK.
KARKAT: BUT I DON'T KNOW WHAT MY SHIT IS ABOUT.
KARKAT: I'D REALLY LIKE TO KNOW, ACTUALLY!
KARKAT: CONSIDERING IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU TOUCHED ON THAT SUBJECT WITH HER, EVEN IF ONLY BRIEFLY, THEN IT SOUNDS LIKE A CONVERSATION I WOULD HAVE BENEFITED FROM UNDERSTANDING.
KARKAT: REALLY, IF THERE WAS ONLY *ONE* CLANGOROUS CREATURE-SCREED I'D LIKED TO HAVE BEEN ABLE TO PARSE OVER MY LIFETIME, THIS WAS PROBABLY IT!!!