[ May 15, 2091. For the first time ever, Human society is celebrating the "Lost Days"... a week-long holiday of reflection and introspection thanks to the six month long gap in collective memory known as the 'Brain Flu'. For a week, people think back to what they've lost and try to appreciate what they've gained. Today, May 16th, is the last day: Clarity Day, a feasting day to be with family. ] [ It makes perfect sense, then, that one of Red New York City's more famous bars, Laser-Momo's, isn't quite as packed as it might otherwise be. Apparently, even eternal Martian club kids have families they want to spend time with. Val has even taken the night off, leaving only Harty to guard the door. Inside, the holograms are also taking most of the night off, too; blue light prevails, to be a little soothing, perhaps. ] (Do we has an occ channel to do random ooc chatter?) (OOC channels make my brain hurt.) (Having it in line is tradition!) (I thought OOC chatter was traditionally done in here. ;P) (Okay, peanut gallery is in-house then. :D) (I really prefer it inline. It has added a lot to the ATCverse over the years.) [ The DJ is playing a combo of old Earth jazz tunes and new Martian jazz. It's Bizarro!Momo's right now, but maybe that's for the best. Momo herself is still practicing the flamboyant Pink Russian style, but perhaps the bottles fly a little lower and spin a little less, tonight of all nights. ] [ For some people, however, this is a week to remember things OTHER than just a lost 6 months. What are those people doing, right now? As we return to their stories, we are about to find out. ] (I have been DICKISHLY reminded that technically it's the 15th.) (*punches Mecha*) (You may now position yourselves relative to Laser-Momo's as you prefer.) (You know it's Mecha! He's a dick!) (HOT!) (DICKINGS!) (Ard, Mecha: 4th floor booth?) (Something with a broody watchy angle appeals to Kat, yes.) (Dude, have we even met up with her yet?) (No, but I'm thinking ahead!) (Up to you!) (Haha, right. Okay, I'm going over to talk to Momo and probably dragging Zak along.) (aight, you pose first) (oh god does momo have a crazy accent or anything? did roch have a nickname? i've never been in an atc game before!) (She was played without accent or even much slang. I don't think Roch had a nickname.) (Agreement.) (On the first part, anyway.) * Rochelle walks into Laser Momo's, looking around. She looks like... well, like Rochelle. Her clothes are nicer than they were a year ago, but they're about the same, and she has a totebag now, but the hair, eyes, and generally bored/passive expression is all there. Her nails are painted pink, if that matters. (People called Rochelle "Roch" in ATC2 and Zak calls her "sis", but I think that's all she's got. ;P) (Does "Miss Rochelle" count?) (SEXY CAT-EYED SCHOOLMARM.) * Rochelle also hasn't picked up a tan. Surprising. (Haha, okay. That one, too. Thanks. XP) * Zak follows Roch in, looking around with quite a bit of interest. Shockingly, he's dressed in a pair of khaki slacks and a blue button-down shirt. His hair hasn't changed at all, and is still covered with frost. Just to prove he's not a pod person, however, he has his hands shoved in his pockets nonchalantly. [ Momo, everyone's favorite pink-haired, multiarmed bartender, is currently combining salting glasses for margartias with glasses at various stages of fullness so that each sweep of the finger over the rim with salt produces a chiming tone, apparently the song 'Brick House'. She's mighty mighty. She espies the approaching Rochelle and instantly brightens, one of the mechanical arms waving her over. ] * Rochelle spots the Momo (it's hard to miss) and waves back, walking over. [ "Never thought I'd see the likes'a you again, sweetheart! Gimmie a sec." She then pours all the margarita glass contents into a hurricane glass and pings the side of it with her finger. The contents promptly turn purple and a burst of flame explodes out the top of the glass. She slides it to a morose-looking guy with lots of piercings. "One purple phoenix. Happy whatever the hell this day is called now." ] * Zak follows along, leaning over to whisper over in Rochelle's ear. "Cripes, sis, you got a knack for makin' some kind of friends..." (Zak's kind of friends. Friends that bring the booze.) * Rochelle smiles a little and leans against the counter as she waits for Momo to be done. She turns to whisper back, "Kat's doing. She got me the job here." * Zak shakes his head and takes in a good view of the insane multi-level bar. He sneaks more than a few glances at Momo. [ Having tended the bar (it's her job title), Momo turns and leans forward, grinning at Rochelle and folding her 'real' arms on the bar, chin in hand; the mechanical ones start washing glasses under the bar. "Wow, look at you. Still halfway transparent." Her gaze strays to Zak for a moment, then back to Roch, who gets The Eyebrow. Hey, it's not like she saw Rochelle leave work hand in hand with men, resemblence or no. ] * Rochelle keeps up with the sort of grin. "Yeah, well... I moved back to Twilight, remember?" She points with her thumb at the guy who caused The Eyebrow. "This's Zak, he's my brother. Zak, Momo." [ A TVNet set over the bar drones on in the background; topics include local sports scores, heartwarming human interest stuff about the Lost Days, and a short piece on a young girl who went missing in Red South Africa last week. ] * Zak pulls a hand out of his pocket and waves. It happens to be the hand with the Resistance tattoo on it, but he doesn't seem to notice since he's taken the opportunity to ogle Momo a little. Typical Zak. [ If she seems to give a damn about being ogled, Momo doesn't show it. Instead she shakes her head and, at the raise of a hand from someone down the bar, slides a frosty bottle of Particle Accelerator pilsner down to him (you can tell from the lead-reinforced bottle). "Good to meet ya, then. Surprised you came up here from Twilight, I heard it's fucking Carnivale down there right now." She pauses, then shrugs. "Sounds a lot better than Existe (Existe) "Sounds a lot better than Existential Angst week here." ] (h8 u, charlimit.) (srsly, as the kids say.) (MotM has ruined me, my typical MotM pose is, like, 8x the size of that.) (That's one thing I do like about XChat... it'll just break into a new post) (That sounds nice.) Is that what's goin' on? I just kinda wanted to get out of Twilight for it and maybe show my brother around. (I can imagine it now. But there are boobies everywhere! We're going to TC. But... ;_;) (You mean RNYC? :D) (Yeah, that.) (Dick!) (Also where the fuck is Kat.) She wouldn'ta had to argue so hard if I knew there were schway joints like this here. * Zak grins. (She died in the gutter outside.) (Upstairs like Cham suggested!) (WHY ARE YOU NOT SAYING THAT.) (Because we're focusing on them!) (And they'll get there!) (*vibrate*) * Rochelle looks to Zak. "See, you should trust me more." Because he should. Everyone should trust Rochelle. (It makes the sudden and inevitable betrayal all the sweeter. XD) Tell you what. She can make me a Frosty Tall and Denim Floorknocker, we stay here all night. Dealieo? * Rochelle snickers. "Okay." Hard cruise. * Zak looks up at Momo. (MAKE SENSE.) (I CAN'T RESPOND IF YOU DON'T MAKE SENSE also my brain is rushing to make these drinks up.) (The really hard part of playing a bartender.( [ One eyebrow goes up, but she grins at that. It's a compliment, after all. "Well, thanks. Any family of the kid's is welcome here." Is that a CHALLENGE, Zachary? I believe it is. "Alright. One Frosty Tall, coming up." Momo's four arms duck under the bar and come up with a trio of bottles, two filled with something clear, a third with something powder blue, and a fourth with a portable tank of liquid nitrogen. ] * Rochelle watches this. It's always awesome. (I'd tell you what "hard cruise" meant if I knew.) [ Producing a shaker, Momo gets to work mixing the three alcohols, giving off a strong smell of peppermint. Behind the Krogstads, two figures walk in: a primly-dressed businesswoman with long, pure silver hair, and a tall, lanky man dressed somewhat unkemptly. The former looks like she owns the place; the latter looks like he'd rather be someplace else. ] [ They converse briefly, before heading up the iron staircase. ] * Rochelle pays no attention. Busy watching alcohol. [ Momo, meanwhile, opens the shaker and unexpectedly *slams* it onto the bar, causing the liquid to splash up into the air... just as she sprays the liquid nitrogen into the shaker, causing the drink to flash-freeze into a kind of ice-blue pillar. ] * Zak casts a glance backward, but quickly looks back to the show. (Now that's Pink Russian.) [ She then retrives that, puts it in a higball glass, and reaches under the bar. Producing a tuning fork, she strikes the frozen drink with a *TING!* noise. It expectedly shatters and lands as crushed ice in the glass, into which Momo pours more of the bluish alcohol before handing it to Zak with an expectant look. ] * Rochelle applauds, because that's what you *do* when watching Pink Russian bartending. [ Momo, meanwhile, looks at the fork. "Oh, fuck. I used G-sharp. Supposed to use C for hard cruise." ] (SUCK IT, CHAM.) (And the mystery is solved!) * Zak grins widely and claps before taking the drink, from which he takes a nice long gulp. Nitrogen-cold notwithstanding. "Whoo! Now, that's definitely tres schway." I don't think he really cares, Momo. [ "I got my pride," she responds airily. There's a pause... nay, an UNCOMFORTABLE pause, before the bartender glances at Roch inquisitively. "You, uh... seen Kat since you came into town?" ] Hey, are you trying to understate my *drink* appreciation of the *drink* bartendi- * Zak freezes mid-sentence. * Zegon has quit IRC (Ping timeout) * Rochelle blinks, then shakes her head. (KAT KILLED KEVIN.) * Katherine , while Roch and Zak get acquainted, or reacquainted, with Momo, sits way upstairs on the 4th floor, in a booth. She's sitting facing outward, along the bench, legs extended. She's wearing blue jeans and a black halter under a leather jacket, and her hair's braided as per normal. There's a dark red backpack on the table, next to a barely touched glass of brown and pink something. She's staring out idly, drumming her claws on the table. [ "Well, if you don't WANT to, don't go up to the fourth floor," Momo adds, putting the tuning fork away. "She looks like she came to forget, or so her bar tab is makin' me think." ] Oh. * Zak gets wide-eyed. "She's HERE?" ( FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT'S HOLY WE GOTTA GET OUT OF HERE, SIS.) [ That gets a raised eyebrow from Momo. "She LIVES here." A beat. "Well, in NYC." ] And here. She's in the building?! Sis, we gotta fly! We gotta rent some exos, get sleeked quick, and make it to Venus! If she's here she can fuckin' SMELL us! [ Kat, meanwhile, has visitors. Who? The primly-dressed woman and her companion, in fact, who stand next to her booth. At close range, the woman has a coldly efficient smile, devoid of joy, and the man looks like he'd like to bolt at any second. "Happy Clarity Day," the woman says after clearing her throat. "May we?" ] (*snerk* "DON'T MOVE ROCH, SHE SMELLS FEAR.") * Zak waves his hands, the drink forgotten... almost. He seems to know how not to spill it. [ Momo just turns her head to Rochelle. You can practically see the ? appear over her head. ] * Rochelle looks at Zak like he's stupid. "No she can't. And she didn't kill you last time." She was tuppin' busy! Now she's busy getting drunk, like Momo said. Just don't go upstairs. * Katherine 's nose twitches, along with her ears, then she focuses her eyes up at the two visitors a bit blearily. It takes her a moment, then she asks, "What'yawant." * Rochelle says to Momo, by the way of explanation, "They broke up." Pause. "Years ago, like it matters." ( Kat? Breaking up with people? Say it ain't so.) [ The woman continues to smile. "Just to talk. I have a... hmm, well. I'd rather have a seat first, if that's alright?" She *starts* to sit down on the opposite side unless Kat lunges or draws a sidearm, however. ] [ Indeed, Momo just stares at Roch for a moment, before smirking. "Do tell." A beat. "Drink's on the house, then. I usually give first-timers the one after." ] (Someday, she will bill Kat for the sum total, bankrupting her instantly.) * Katherine grabs the backpack and pulls it down to her lap, letting her sit down. She glances up to the nervous guy, then back to her. "They ain't my seats. Want a drink?" She taps her glass with a claw. (It'll be AWESOME.) (She'll have to go back to her sugar momma.) 's a long story. Oh hey, before I forget. * Zak finishes the drink. Fast. Then he drops the glass on the counter and looks up at Momo. "My true bad. I sidebricked her, she almost had my huevos over easy. Can I get a Sleythin Slider?" (CUT IT OUT T_T) (Are you kidding? This is awesome.) * Rochelle is cut off by her brother, but eh, he's all bummed out 'cause Kat's in the same country as him. (SHE MAILED ME MY DOG. I DIDN'T EVEN OWN ONE. SHE BOUGHT ME A PUPPY AND SENT IT 'SOME ASSEMBLY REQUIRED') [ "Thank you, no," she replies. The nervous man sits down next to her and definitely does not seem to want a drink, or even to speak. "Thanks all the same. Actually, Ms. Hunter, I've come with a... business proposal for you." ] [ Even Bartendress Momo seems daunted by the string of TC slang, but helplessly chuckles. "A Slider? God, you ARE drinking to forget. HEY MARTA," she yells up to the second floor. "GIMMIE A SLIDER." You MAY hear the distant return shout of acknowledgment as Momo puts an empty glass on the bar. ] (God I love Momo's.) * Rochelle lets Momo do that, then asks, "Wouldja mind writing a letter of recommendation for me to the Pink Bartending school?" * Katherine picks up the glass with her left hand and swirls it around, saying idly, "I'm not drunk 'nough to not hear th'pause. What d'you really mean." (+Russian) (I have no idea how that dropped.) (I WANT FOOD.) (Kat and Zak are both going to be smashed by the time they run into each other.) [ Shortly after, directly above the empty glass, a caramel-like drizzle of a marbled green-orange-light brown liquid starts descending into the glass. As it does so, Momo pulls spray bottles from under the bar and starts spritzing the liquid with various substances. One is marked with a Mr. Yuk sticker. ] (Good times.) [ The silver-haired woman laughs, but like her smile, it's a mirthless sound... pro forma, even, as if she knows laughter is required but doesn't really feel like doing it. "A simple job that would earn you a considerable sum and may be the easiest thing you ever do for money." She hands over a business card as she says this. Nervous Guy continues to fidget. ] [ Eventually the slider, uh... slides fully into the glass, having become considerably more liquid on the way down, to the consistency of a milkshake. Momo slams in a green plastic spoon with a cartoon sleythin on the end of the handle and gives it to Zak. "Whoa, you really want to go whole hog? Sure, I'll recommend ya... just promise me you won't waste it slinging BudMiller to drug-addled losers who can't appreciate it." ] * Katherine puts the drink down, or rather just kinda lets it hit the table, then grabs the card. She looks at it a moment, then says, "Easiest? Don't have much to compete with." She looks across the table at the two as she lets the card fall to the table, then taps her claws on the table. "Keep talkin'." * Rochelle blinks. "Then what's the point of going? I can do that now." [ Momo laughs. "That's my point. Learn the real stuff, come back here and work! Everybody misses ya." ] * Zak does a few cursory golf claps and snags the drink when Momo's done with it. Even so, he only lightly sips. His head still reels back and his eyes squint shut, and he coughs a few times. Silently, he makes the OK handsign at Momo. * Rochelle grins a little. "Dunno about everybody. Was hardly here to miss." She glances at Zak to make sure he didn't die or something. [ The Sleythin Slider is unlikely to outright kill anyone. Apparently Momo trusts you enough that he didn't have to sign the waiver. ] (She even, jesus.) (no wait.) (ARGH I HATE YOU IN TWO DIFFERENT PLACES PRONOUNS AKIMBO) [ Seemingly satisfied, the woman indicates her companion with one hand. "This man's name is Xavier Aurin. He works in one of our research facilities, and I'd like you to simply... escort him to a particular location. You'll be in no danger, and once he gets there and back, we'll despoit a very generous sum for you." ] * Zak looks to Roch once the toxin reflex has waned. "Goin' through with Big Plan Unofirst, huh?" * Katherine drags her claw on the table, making a scraping noise. After a moment she mutters, "Ya keep lookin' for words. Where you want me to drag him, and whyd'you need me." * Rochelle shrugs. "Yeah... need somethin' to do." She eyes his drink. "You're so gonna be smashed by the time we leave." (Table vandalism is added to Kat's tab.) [ Momo waves a hand (or three) dismissively. "You make an impression, believe it or not." Slinging a towel over her shoulder (it's mandatory), she waves. "I got some stuff to take care of... drinks are on the house, I'll send the letter on for ya." With that she heads into the back and Nameless Momotender #44 appears, wiping the bar. ] * Zak ogles the retreating Momo, then seems to catch himself, then shrugs and watches anyhow. As he does this, he says, "Sure you don't wanna stick around, help me run the place? Bro and sis, schway team alpha!" * Rochelle nods. "Arright, thanks." She elbows Zak. [ "I don't need you," the woman says calmly. "But you came recommended, so I wanted to ask you first. As for searching for words, you must admit... you're not exactly easy to talk to at the moment. Am I interrupting a reunion, perhaps?" She nudges her head toward the open area below. "I believe I saw a friend of yours on the way in." ] * Katherine frowns at her. "I'm plenny easy to talk to. N'I got lots 'f friends." * Katherine picks up the drink again and takes a sip, glancing at Xavier, then back to the woman. "Why's he need escortin'." * Zak looks at Roch. "What? Has to happen to her all the time, right? Posterior plus PLUS." (Zak likes 'em older.) [ An eyebrow goes up; she doesn't buy it, and neither should you! "Indeed." At Kat's question she can't help but laugh, and rather than sounding forced, this one sounds outright *mean* in a way. "Ms. Hunter, look at him. This is merely a bar, and yet..." She shrugs. Xavier simply looks more embarassed than he already does. ] (-older) You're ogling my boss. [ Somewhat unexpectedly, the next song in the DJ's playlist appears to be Perry Como's "Papa Loves Mambo". Huh. ] * Katherine squints a bit at him. "So he's nervous. So what." She takes another sip and mutters, "He's not the first." * Rochelle grabs Zak's drink and has a tiny sip, goes into shock, and then goes out of shock when that comes on. She shoves it back into Zak's hand and looks around. * Katherine then visibly flinches and glares down through the floor at the DJ. * Zak blinks as the drink goes away, and blinks as it comes back. "... sis? What's downtown flowing?" * Rochelle stops looking and her eyes glaze over for a few seconds before she shakes her head. "'s nothing." [ Clearing her throat, the woman continues. "Because where he needs to go is Twilight City, and I have my doubts about his long-term prospects there on his own." ] * Zak fixes a stern eye - or what passes for one for Zak - on Roch. "No fib?" Nah. Kinda... reminded me of the guy like me, y'know? He's not here. * Rochelle rubs at her nail. * Katherine 's eyes snap back to the woman and she says, slowly, "TC, huh?" She chuckles to herself, then says, "Not if he dresses like that. S'changed, but not that much." * Zak winces. "Good thing too, he's a definite bad news bear." Yeah. (You're going to be out of slang by tuesday.) * Rochelle gets another look at Zak, then says, "Maybe we should see Kat." [ A smirk. "Exactly my point. Let me be frank, Ms. Hunter. I'm prepared to offer you a half million credits to escort one man to a location in Twilight City who is, other than the typical dangers of the locale, otherwise not in any peril. But there are plenty of others who would leap at the offer, if you've no interest." ] * Katherine is silent a moment, then, "You being straight with me, Fortescue?" (You're implying I'm not out of slang right now and making things up as I go along.) * Zak looks at Roch. "You think so, huh." He takes a liberal sip of the drink, and after the reflex has passed he sighs. "Aight." [ That gets another one of those fake-sounding laughs. "I have no reason to lie. And please, feel free to call me Platina." She turns to Xavier, then back. "Mr. Aurin here is a critical asset... if I were to be 'pulling your leg', as it were, he'd be in as much danger." ] * Rochelle nods. She pulls away from the bar and heads for the stairs. (You see, he's holding the original KFC recepie) (There's 11 herbs and spices, but 10 of them are salt.) (chicken flavored salt! celery flavored salt!) (And the last is MSG) * Katherine frowns a bit as she looks down at her glass, then murmurs, "Got friends. Got enemies too." She looks back to Platina. "'lright, Platina. I'll spare some time for your assets." * Zak follows Roch. He's got the look of a doomed man. [ Platina Fortescue could not look more pleased. Well, she could, in fact; the woman has ice queen written all over her face. "Marvelous. I'll leave Mr. Aurin in your capable hands, then; he knows all the details. Should you need me I'll be returning to Red Stockholm tomorrow... feel free to contact me." ] [ Xavier is getting up to let her out just as Zak and Rochelle round the bend at the top of the stairs. ] * Zak espies Kat, and lets out what has to be an involuntary "eep!" * Rochelle doesn't seem to mind, as she heads straight over to her. Company and all. (Could someone invite the dicebot in here quick?) * Katherine is still looking across the table as she replies, "Don't do nothin' stupid. If I come recommended, you know what that means." * Diceroshi has joined #atc [ The silver-haired woman gives Rochelle the briefest of appraising looks, before turning back to Kat with a tight-lipped grin. "Oh, I do. Happy Clarity Day... excuse me," she adds, brushing past the Krogstads and heading down the stairs. ] 2d6+2 * Diceroshi throws the bones for Zak (2d6+2) and gets a natural 4 for a result of 6. * Rochelle eyes the woman right back, then looks to Kat. "Who's your friend?" * Zak looks quizzically at the guy for a second, then shakes his head and then appears to remember that Kat is IN THE ROOM. He tenses up again. [ Xavier also gives Zak a ._.a look for a moment, before slamming himself into a corner of the booth like he wants to disappear. He occasionally shoots nervous glances between all three of you. ] (He's the most spazzy guy ever.) (He has reasons! Spazzy reasons!) * Katherine rubs her forehead and mutters, "Later," as she glances over after her walking, then to Roch with clear surprise on her face. "Roch?" She then smirks a bit and says, "Nobody. Money." Her eyes scan over to Zak a moment, then she looks back to the drink. "Guess you don't go nowhere without him now, huh?" (Don't need Zak's powers to feel the frost!) (Thank you, thank you. Try the veal.) * Zak winces. [ Surprisingly, Xavier turns to Rochelle and decides now is a great time to have a spine. "I'm, uh... Xavier. Xavier Aurin. I work for Dunno..." ] He's my brother. And I meant your other friend. That one. (Oh, there, swap those!) (We can invert those!) * Rochelle blinks at Xavier, and she looks almost sort of... puzzled? "Hi. I'm Rochelle. A friend of Kat's, sort of. I don't work right now." * Katherine sighs a bit and says, "I know he's your brother." She pushes the drink away and squeezes her eyes shut. "Don't worry 'bout him. He and I are going on a trip tomorrow." She reopens her eyes and looks over at the two of them. "Happy fucking lie day, huh? Have a seat." Swear, if I hear Clarity day one more time, I'm gonna tear into somethin'. * Rochelle smiles a little, probably grateful Kat's not killing them. "Thanks." And she does have a seat, across from Kat and so probably next to Aurin. (Which leaves Zak to sit next to Kat YAY.) (Yep.) * Zak pulls over a chair and sits in it. (nyah). He looks between Xavier (quizically) and Kat (fearfully). [ That gets a strange look from Katherine from Xavier, who is making room for Rochelle. When he speaks, he sort of mumbles. "Reminds me of that drug, Clarity. I don't like it." ] (Hehehehe.) * Rochelle blinks at Xavier, then looks to Zak, just waiting... * Katherine smirks a bit to herself, but decides not to twist that knife yet. Instead, she picks up her drink and says, "So, when'd you find out I was here?" Momo told us a while ago, but Zak spazzed out so I waited 'til he had s'more alcohol. * Zak ... weaves. Just slightly. Then he takes a large hit of his Slider. (SLIDER. YOU JERK.) * Zak manages to spit out, through the reflex... "H-h-hi, Kat. Been a while." (SLIDER, right, I was channeling Calc.) * Katherine murmurs, "That was the first clue? Huh." She takes a sip and then looks over at Zak. "Zak. You don't look dead." They've tried a few times. Real ultrawhack Thudniks and stuff. * Rochelle shrugs. She might've known earlier, but seriously, like she's going to talk about phenomenal precognative powers with random fitzy guy here. [ Even if he WERE inclined to talk to people -- and he's not -- Xavier doesn't interrupt nostalgia time. At the mention of the Thudniks, however, he visibly suppresses a flinch at the mention of the Thudniks. ] * Katherine rubs her temple. "I know." A beat, then, "Six and a half months ago, was my sniper shot. Neko and I were in the area. Say thanks." * Rochelle catches that. She studies the guy for a little while before watching Zak and Kat talk again. (Wait, before I respond to that, undrunk the line.) (We'd established that Kat might help with the TC crap, she was saying she did. Made up an example.) (Haha, Xavier flinches as the thudniks are mentioned, especially when someone mentions the thudniks, during the thudnik mention.) (I can't parse the _grammar_. The clause about the sniper shot is weird) (afk one sec) (She sniped someone trying to kill Zak six and a half months ago.) ('Six and a half months ago in , that was my sniper shot.') ('That helped/saved/whatever.') 2d6-2 * Diceroshi throws the bones for Rochelle (2d6-2) and gets a natural 7 for a result of 5. (Man, 2d6-X. SO WEIRD.) * Zak ... blinks. "Thanks." You... you comin' back soon? Could use a schway hunter like you on the streets. (Sorry for the delay, had to comb Kitty's hair) * Rochelle listens. Or... er, doesn't really, because she's kind of zoning out with her chin on one hand. But she's not-really-looking in Kat and Zak's direction! * Katherine takes a sip and says, "Don't mistake me. Didn't feel like a funeral." She is silent a moment, then pushes her drink away. "Kinda tired of 'em, now that I'm only half-crazy." She looks over at Zak. "S'a funny story. Probably gonna visit TC in the next couple days." [ Xavier's listening to all this, looking at Kat's responses in particular. His expression clearly says: what kind of woman was I just left in the care of?! Especially when she says 'half-crazy.'] * Zak sips at his drink. "Just a visit, huh? [ "I'm sorry," Xavier says, to Kat. "I don't really want to go there either, but I'm told it's, uh... important." ] * Katherine looks back to Xavier and waves her hand. "S'fine." She closes her eyes a moment. "Suppose I shoulda gone today, but I guess one day won't kill me." * Zak pauses midsip. "Wait, you're takin' this feeb?" * Katherine glances over at Zak. "For a half-mil Cs?" [ A visible wince at 'feeb', which... probably just proves Zak's point. ] * Rochelle snaps out of it. "Yeah, he needs all the help he can get." She looks to the dude. "No offense." [ "None taken," Xavier mumbles under his breath. ] With TC on an all-out citywide hangover? Tche! Creds are creds, but you're gonna earn 'em this way." * Rochelle asks the Xavier guy, "What do ya need ta go to Twilight for, anyhow?" [ Blinking at the sudden interest, Xavier glances at Rochelle... and then turns to Kat, both eyebrows up and clearly asking for her permission to share whatever it is he's just been asked to divulge. ] * Katherine mutters, "Yeah, didn't really buy Platina's crap." She catches Xavier's look and says, "It's your secret. She's not gonna pull out swords n'kill ya." A sideglance to Roch. "Didn't go ninja when I wasn't looking, right?" (*sthunk* as Kat pulls a shuriken out of herface. Roch: "No.") (Amusingly, that would be the only time she would go ninja.) (Because she wouldn't be ninjay if she became a ninja when Kat was looking.) * Rochelle starts rubbing at a fingernail. "No. Not unless I'm a cat. A real one, I mean." (DUN DUN DUNNNNNNN.) (Quick, TRANSFORM!) [ A blank stare for a second, and then Xavier turns back to Rochelle. "I need to go to City Hall," he says. "Ms. Fortescue says what I need to do will be obvious when I get there." It is obvious that despite his nervousness and deference to Platina before, he doesn't really buy her story either. ] * Katherine half-smiles to herself, then says, slowly, "Wait... City Hall?" * Zak looks at Xavier. "... man, WHAT?" [ He visibly cringes backwards in his seat at Zak's response. ] * Katherine looks over at Zak. "Is there even nothing at the hall?" * Rochelle nods at those words, still peeling at that nail. "Yup, needs all the help he can get." (YOU CAN'T FIGHT CITY HALL!) It's empty, but it's empty for a REASON. Walkin' into the place sends a message like a Red Sweden strip joint - you'd do better off tellin' a Fummer his mother licks Sleythin! * Katherine shakes her head. "Doesn't make sense." [ The lanky man gives Zak a plain old-fashioned ._. ] [ After a pause, he sighs and hangs his head. "I don't want to go back to Twilight at all! But Dunno gave me a chance. Without them I'd still be... doing stuff I don't wanna do anymore. And Platina said the Director said this is important." ] * Zak thunks his drink on the table and looks levelly at Xavier. "Look, the only thing AT city hall right now is rubble. Only other thing to DO there is claim the hill again, and we're back to Square Numero Alpha. Back into a bad war." (Should probably flip those.) (Indeed.) ... Why were you in Twilight before? [ A wince. OH GOD, THEY KNOW?! HOW DO THEY KNOW?! ] * Katherine squints at him, then goes, "You sure's hell don't look the part." (Hahaha!) * Zak sips. Maybe he's got some sleek or slick he's 'flaging?" [ Caught, he grumbles and looks down at the table. "I'm from there. I used to be a... a Krazor. Made cybertech. Couldn't fight worth a dang so they kept me in a lab and I fixed up the people who could. When the... the 'purples' came and everyone went crazy I holed up with the sane folks at Stargazer until it blew over. Decided I wanted to get out of Twilight, moved to Red Sweden. Got a job doing tech stuff for Dunno." ] * Rochelle blinks, then makes an "oh" sound. That's why she kind of recognizes him. * Zak 's eyes widen. "Oh, man! Planet X, right?" * Katherine mutters, "Yeah, I was gonna check him for slick--whoa, whoa what?" She looks up at him. "You're fucking kidding me." [ Wince #9million for the evening, and a reluctant nod. You can tell he loved the name. "Krazors didn't like 'Xavier'." ] (At least he's not blinking.) (WHen he hits 100 winces, Kat explodes instead.) (Damn.) * Zak laughs. "I thought I grokked you from someplace. They never let you out much, did they?" [ "I don't really get along with people well," Xavier mumbles in response. "Machines I like a bit more." ] (Let's face it, if YOU dealt with Krazors on a daily basis, you'd be shy too.) Why the hell does Dunno want you back there? Wait, you dunno. * Zak pauses a second, and chuckles at his own wit. (...fired.) * Rochelle facepalms. * Katherine mutters, "Brilliant," then drags her nail on the table a moment, closing her eyes. "Great. It's only giving me crazier ideas." You never worked at the hall, did you? (Multiple halls. Be more specific.) (She means city, but if Xavier wants to be confused!) [[ He IS confused. "Just for the resistance, fixin' stuff so people could use it." ]] (ALSO I BUILT THE OLD ONE SUMMONING MACHINE HAHAHAHA) (As "Papa Loves Mambo" comes on again.) * Katherine shakes her head and murmurs, "I mean city hall, X." (NOOOOOOOOOOOO) (*shoots Anders*) [ "No," he says, relatively assured. "I needed a lab to work, I never left Krazortown." ] * Katherine shakes her head. "There's no damn reason... nnh." She rubs her temples. "Shouldn't have drank at all. Shoulda stayed in. Fuck it." She looks over at him. "You got someplace you're staying?" * Zak sips his drink, which is getting close to empty. "Man. Whacked-out antischway." * Rochelle gives Kat something that looks almost like a sympathetic smile. It's weird. [[ Xavier nods. "The Red and Gold." He actually smiles for a moment, and it's goofy and weird. "Dunno's paying for it." He then actually stands up. "I'd actually like to go get some sleep... here." He hands the hotel's card to her, with his room number helpfully on it. "Just let me know when you're ready." A beat. "Uh, nice meeting you all." ] (HAHA wiki mode.) (*hits the extra [ with a golf club*) (That's why I'm sticking with << for 3... I knew if I went with [ I'd be perenially confused) * Rochelle scoots out of the booth so Xavier can leave. "Sure." * Zak raises his glass to Planet X. "Stay schway, bra." * Katherine takes the card and says, "You sure you're not gonna get killed before tomorrow? There's space on the couch." [[ Another ._. Zak-ward, before he shakes his head at Katherine. "That's alright. I believe Platina when she says I'm not really in any danger until Twilight, and... everybody's in danger there, so." He steps out so Roch can sit back down. ] (JESUS FUCK.) (*golfswing*) * Rochelle does, in fact! Scoots right into the booth. (Mental note: Any idea of what the timezone difference is between RNYC and TC?) (Nope.) (Uh..... uh....uh.) (Like it seriously matters in TC?) (1-2?) (Daytime's what you decide it is.) (Yeah. "Tonight's forecast: dark. Continued mostly dark tomorrow.") (Yeah, it doesn't matter much in TC, but Kat's figuring the earlier, the more likely they're all passed out.) (Well, it depends on where the prime meridian is on Mars.) * Katherine nods slightly and murmurs, "Don't sleep in, X. Earlier we move, more likely they'll all be asleep." (If it's to the west RNYC is probably ahead rather than behind.) RNYC's ... to the east? I think? (+()) (In parens.) (I meant of the meridian, not of TC.) (It's definitely east of TC.) [ A very solemn nod, and a wave. Then the lanky guy is off down the stairs and out the door shortly after. Hopefully he will not be eaten by a grue. ] * Katherine shakes her head and then pushes her drink towards Roch. "Want the rest? Been givin' em away all night." (You may discuss to your heart's content and then we shall wrap this puppy up.) * Rochelle watches the guy go, then turns to take that drink. "Thanks." Pause. "Y'need help with this?" * Zak turns his now-empty glass over on the table. A little unsteadily. He looks up at Kat. ("No, I can still hold a drink, thanks." "...") * Katherine is silent a moment, then says, "Need? Nah. Would it hurt?" A small pause, then she finishes, "Not more than going there will." * Rochelle nods. Just askin', 'cause... * Rochelle gestures, taking in herself, Kat, and Zak. "We're gold." She nods to the door. "Him, too." * Katherine is silent a moment, then turns to face outward again, letting the bag come back up on the table with a thunk. "I remember red, blue, and purple, hon... not gold." * Zak does a doubletake after Kat's line. "... really? X?" Yeah. * Zak slumps in his chair. "Oh, man." * Katherine glances over at her. "Guessin' that's important." * Rochelle has a gulp of that drink Kat gave her, eyes it for a moment, and puts it down. "Well, stopped bein' blue after the whole thing a year ago." And then a shrug. "Started bein' gold when I got back to Twilight." * Katherine is silent a moment, then she mutters, a bit bitterly, "Hope that doesn't mean we're gonna be burying someone, huh Roch?" * Rochelle eyes Kat, then drinks some more. "Yeah, hope so." (As a shuriken embeds itself in Zak's forehead. Roch: "Nope.") ( :(((( ) (I hereby adopt the random shuriken thrown by ninja!Roch as our running gag.) * Katherine is silent a moment, looks over at Zak, then asks, "You gonna go 'long with your sister on this one, push pop?" (I endorse this!) ("I'm a shuriken thrown by Rochelle, and I approve this message.") * Zak points at the drink Roch put down. It tries to ice over, but it's so full of alcohol the best he can do is slush. "... you know tryin' to go against Roch's like tryin' to dry climb Olympus, Kat." (As opposed to... climbing with lube? You don't even make sense anymore.) (-anymore) (Ha ha ha.) (Probably climb without gear.) ("DEPLOY THE ASTROGLIDE! >_ (Yeah. climb without an exo.) (This seems a bad time to tune in) (*flips out and kills Oglesby*) * Katherine frowns a bit and says quietly, "No, I never bought that. 'bout either of them." Then she says more normally, "Neko and I had our thing last week, so you're probably safe to stay over if you're trying to save my ex.." she chuckles, "Other ex's money." * Zak shrugs. "I schlepped enough from the treasury for a hotel room, but it'd save explanation later if I get to just give it back." * Rochelle picks up her drink, decides the slush is too cold, and puts it down. "'kay, but I get the couch." (Lemme know when you want the closing narration.) * Katherine nods and says, "Works for me." She looks at her claws for a few moments, smirks as she looks to Zak, then pulls the bag onto her shoulder. "Think I'm done giving Momo enough money to make up for nobody coming in this week." We gotta at least stop and buy a blanket or something. * Zak stands up, and almost immediately falls over. "Ooph!" Careful, Zak. * Katherine stands up, not wobbling, and says, "Respect Momo's drinks, ya moron." She shakes her head. "S'why I gave most of 'em away. Wanted to be able to walk away tonight." (Looks like Momo shoulda used the C fork afterall.) (Haha.) * Zak climbs to his feet again. "She mush... must not cut that stuff at all." (YOU DRANK A SLEYTHIN SLIDER.) * Rochelle gets up and helps Zak not fall over again. "Yeah, she doesn't." (You only have yourself to blame.) (In TC that's like. A cosmo, given the amount of alcohol in it.) (+real alcohol) * Katherine murmurs, "You get what you pay for. S'why I came here back... before." She shakes her head and steps around the Krogstads. "I'll see you at my place. Don't wait up, we've got sleep to get." * Zak walks slowly downstairs, with Roch helping him! * Rochelle does, in fact. Time to get the doofus a blanket. (Sounds like ending narrationable to me.) (Ditto.) [ And so, friends(?) were reunited, and in one case flirted with alcohol poisoning. What's going to happen in Twilight City? What exactly is Platina not telling? And what does being gold mean? Find out... next time! ] [ SESSION END ]