Scenario Entitled: Frankly Scarlett...Characters:
Ailic, new healer with the Tolkeen Medical Center, and unaware of current events.
Rooke, politically significant figure leaving Tolkeen, and making the Good-bye rounds.
Alexi, child-like Militia Dogboy pal, with his own brand of cluelessness.
Ky, Psi-Stalker, also oblivious but for entirely different reasons.
Grumble, (NPC) a street contact who wouldn't care either way.
Location: Freedom Plaza, The Market Place and The Park
Date: Norand 19th, 109 P.A.
Ailic sits and is once agains at his favorite pastime. People watching.
Ky wanders into the plaza from the south. Never the greatest fan of the grey city and its towering walls, he looks recently traveled. Dust, dirt and bits of stubborn foliage cling to his boots and tunic.
A red highwayman motorbike putters into the plaza parking area, pulling into a space that another vehicle is just exiting on the other side. The rider is helmetless.. fool. A fool named Rooke. She powers the machine down, struts poking out on both sides to prop the bike up on its lonesome.
Ky makes his way towards a seat, appearing to favor one near the greenery off the plaza itself. A bit more colorful than the ferrocrete and stone, despite his own, personal, lack of vibrant hues.
Ailic 's head turns toward the noise of the bike and the woman that rides it. He smiles abit and nods to himself.
Rooke probably doesn't look quite like Ailic would last recall. After keying in a short security code, she hauls her leg over the seat, pulling up a small shoulder-pack that sat between her thighs during the ride. Slinging that over her right arm, she ambles quickly into the Plaza proper, wandering, for now, between the park and the open-air marketplace.
Ailic's eyes move on and to a vender selling food.
Ky settles himself upon a wooden bench, perhaps joining Ailic in his hobby as he looks over the square.
At this time of day, the area is getting pretty crowded. Rooke loses herself easily in the masses. Sort of. Once in a while, random strangers will point in her direction while talking amongst themselves. If she notices them, she gives no indication.. she's pretty wrapped up in her own hunger, it seems, hunting the stalls for a quick pseudo-tasty meal. Finally, she wanders away into the park, holding some sort of hot tamale-type thing, half-wrapped in paper.
Ailic stand up and heads over to the cart. He looks over the different foods for a long moment before picking one out and paying for it. He returns to his seat humming badly and abit off key.
Ky's gaze drifts across the crowds, lingering as it reaches the tamale-toting one. Everyone's having breakfast it seems, but him. Of course, he is a rather hard sell for the various fastfood vendors here.
Rooke finds herself walking alongside Ailic at one point. She glances over at him cursorily, looks back intently at her meal (which turns out to be not so much a hot tamale.. as a mild burrito.. tsk), then double-takes nicely, to examine the man's jacket badge. It's not too often that one sees a cadeucus staff, after all. She looks at Ailic more closely, even as her path brings her closer to his previous seat. Oh geez, no.. not a seat-stealer, too!
Ailic is about to bite into a pizza-looking thing when he notes Rooke's double take. He pauses mouth wide, looking at her looking at him. He withdraws the food from his face and gives it the once over before looking back to Rooke. "Does it look spoiled or is it me?"
She blinks, a bit startled at his addressing her.. had she been staring? Oh yeah. Her gaze drops to the pizza-thing, confused, but she does venture with a rather quick grin, "It's the special tomatoes they use.. the seeds are naturally green." Yep, she's a botanist, a farmer, an advertising exec, and a chef, all rolled into one. Her gaze flickers up to the 'snake' staff, and she decides to take the space beside Ailic on his bench. "Are those.. official.. new doctor badges or something?"
Ailic looks at his jacket and ohs softly. "No. This was a gift from my teacher when I left his instruction." He adds, "Wait..Haven't we met before? Yes..at a street soccer game."
Ky's attentions shift briefly to the man as he converses with Rooke. Interesting mix of clothing. It then drifts back to the fiery-headed woman for a moment, being one of the more recently familiar faces.
Rooke continues to unabashedly study Ailic's coat, stuffing the burrito systematically into her mouth. "Mmmf?" is her query through slightly pouched cheeks. "Mmmmhmmh." She's agreeing with him after a moment, adding a few head bobs in to translate. Chewing slowly, she furrows her brow to think it over. Presently, she chuckles, nodding her not-very-fiery head more confidently now. "Yes.. I remember. The kids.. and that ridiculous bell-shaped guy who kept sitting on the ball!" She lifts a fist, pounding lightly at her chest. Chuckle, or swallow. Not both. Lesson for the day.
Ailic raises a brow with abit of concern, "You ok? take your time. I can wait for an answer."
Ky sits quietly at the gazebo, idly watching over the pair conversing around mouthfuls of breakfast. At least his ..unique metabolism saves him from hefty grocery bills. Though some are not especially fond of it.
She refuses to be heimliched in the middle of the Plaza by some pizza-eating doc. Rooke grunts a little, swallowing her greedy mouthfuls slowly, and clearing her throat experimentally. All the while with a waving I'm-okay-I'm-okay hand gesture that choking victims often use. Just before they die from asphixiation, the dumbasses!
Ailic's raise brow of concern becomes a disbelieving brow of yeah right. "Are you sure? Perhaps just a strong pat on the back might help? I'd hate to have to take you to the hospital."
Alexi pads along from the east, entering the park area along the sidewalk. His head turns left and right as he stands up to full height. His curious eyes scan the surrounding area, aided by the fact that he's just that tall. Not that he seems to have a specific sight in mind just yet.
"Urk. S'okay," she croaks, and clears her throat again. Lifting a finger to drag the tears from the corners of her eyes, Rooke smiles apologetically at her bench-companion. "..sorry about that. I think a mushroom went down the wrong pipe." Sitting back, she blinks bemusedly at the sky.
Ailic grins and then lets a small chuckle come out. "I'm sorry. I've forgotten your name Miss." He takes a bite of the pizza thing and is rewarded with sauce on his chin.
Ky parts his gaze from the duo to sweep absently over the milling crowd. At the large, furred, speedbump in the sea of heads, it pauses again.
Alexi blinks a few times, his head pointing in a few choice directions. Lots of sights and scents to pick up in the park area. He lowers himself to wander a little more through the park. After a few moments, he lifts himself up again, this time in a bit clearer area of the park. He twitches an ear as he catches sight of... something? Whatever could it be?
At least the sauce didn't squirt out the other end. Rooke might start laughing again, and this time, succeed in killing herself. "Rooke," she says, still smiling. "Don't apologize, I don't know who the hell you are, either." Alexi's not the only species capable of pointing.. random strangers seem to do enough of that, gesturing to the benched two in the park, as they discuss some-agitation-or-other amongst themselves.
Ailic says "Rooke. Yes..I'm Ailic. Last time I saw you you weren't so..cut and bruised?"
Well, that does make for perhaps fewer similar gestures, concerned looks, and mumblings concerning the chromatically- and folicly-challenged lone figure at the gazebo. Everyone's popular these days, it seems.
Ailic starts to finally see all the folks looking his way and begins to get that hunted look to his eye. He turns the the lady next to him. "Is it me or are there people staring at us more than in passing?"
Alexi is a creature of instinct after all. And even if no one else was paying attention, the pair of familiar faces would be enough to draw his attention. Unlike other people in the crowd though, he doesn't have such limits on his decorum... or any respect of personal space. He bends down to pad his way towards the bench, looking about as friendly as a hulking beast can look.
The ol' lightbulb seems to go on over Rooke's noggin. "Ah! Ailic, that name does ring a chime," she agrees. "It's a spiff name." She said that before, too, didn't she? At least she's consistently forgetful. Her gaze slides from side to side briefly, and she shrugs a little. "Are they? Maybe they think you're about to work a miracle healing. But really," she lowers her voice as if there was something to possibly be mysterious about, "..I spar a lot." Well, there you go. And here comes the funny doggie. Give Rooke a moment. She'll notice him, really. And then she'll start choking again.
Ailic turns as he takes another bite of pizza and blinks, coming somewhat face to face with Alexi..or face to hulking body of fur. He looks up until he finds a face and grins in recognition. "Ah! Alexi."
Sidle. Sidle-sidle-sidle. Some people have the art of suspicious sidling down pat, and Grumble is one of them. Still, there're lots of people in the Plaza, so it wouldn't be too hard to miss the gill'd fellow as he makes his way into the crowds.
Ky follows the canid's progress with mild curiosity. Probably not the most stealthy of actions, given the crowd...but one would imagine he'd have little trouble moving through it.
Alexi slows to a stop short of actually ending up directly in Ailic's face. He does have some sense of respecting space... sometimes. His eyes light up with enthusiasm as he stares at the man. "You are remembering Alexi!" As if he were forgettable. He lets his face shift towards Rooke before asking in his accent. "You are knowing Alexi's friend also? She is being good friend of Alexi..."
Rooke remains seated next to Ailic in the park, taking another bite of her burrito, and not looking over at first at the name. Then.. oh, Alex-i-.. that's different. The speaking-voice of the mutant canine helps clear things up, too. She turns mid-chew to look past Ailic to the DogBoy, smiling and not choking. Sorry, all you heimlich-enthusiasts out there. After a hasty swallow, she pipes up, smiling big: "Alexi, hey!" Then she's stretching away from the bench, arm extending, to offer the big critter some headpats.
Ailic chuckles and nods, "I do..but mostly in passing." He takes another bite, then stands.
Surprisingly (or not) enough, despite all those crowds, Grumble manages to draw up alongside Ky without too much difficulty. He simply walks alongside the albino for a little bit at first, hands shoved deep in his pockets. After some time doing that, he shambles ahead some so he can put out a foot, right in front of Ky's next step.
With a hop, skip and a step, Grumble moves out of the crowds right in front of Ky. Hands shoved deep in his pockets, he just stares up at the albino, face wrinkled up in lines of consideration. Finally he speaks up, "You look fer'millar, buddyboy." There's all sorts of condemnation in the words.
Ky blinks slightly as his field of vision is suddenly interrupted by a stout living wall with gills. His eyes lift to the man's face, a brow-ridge arching in query. Of course he's familiar, what with all the...experiences the white mutant, the gill-neck, and the latter's compatriots have had in the past.
Alexi happily accepts the head pats, the action resulting in lifting his mood even more. He bows his head down a to get the full effect, propping it back up to note the quickly departing doctor type. He lifts his hand a little to make a wave with it as he says, "All right. I am seeing you some other time, yes?" His eyes light onto Rooke's face for a moment or two before he asks quietly, "I am wondering, are they messing up your poodling?"
Rooke watches Ailic wander off in the direction of the Medical Center. Suppose he's either gotten a sudden emergency call, or that green-seed pizza really was rancid. After withdrawing her hand, she takes another bite from her rapidly diminishing meal, and examines Alexi's eye direction for a moment. Nope, that doesn't tell her anything. "Poodling, Alexi?"
"How long," Grumble demands upwards of Ky, "Have you been good 'nuff t'walk 'round without /callin'/, buddyboy." A spindly finger reaches out to poke at the seated figure's leg. "You /owe/ somethin', but you ain' tried t'gettin touch t'take care've that. And /she/ ain' happy 'bout't 'tall."
Ky rolls his shoulders lightly, "If I was needed, /she/ knew where I could be found." True, there may be a debt, but it does not mean that he has to be pleased about the arrangements.
Alexi nods lightly. "Yes, with poodling. Alexi was having friend, Jono. He was needing to be poodled all the time, because if he wasn't he was getting all distracted and running into things." He pauses to think for a moment, then adds, "But I am thinking that it is not being the same for humans. They are being smarter." Well, that was more than helpful.
"Poodling." Rooke stands up from the bench, tossing the greasy paper wrapper into the trash receptacle nearby. "You mean.. with a leash?" Now, how does a leash relate to her? She wipes her hands carelessly off on the legs of her pants. "Or, do you mean.. getting a really bad haircut," she muses, then shakes her head. "How does a haircut help you not run into-.. heh." She looks up, raising her eyebrows. That must be it, indeed. Still, strange word.
Grumble just /stares/ at Ky for a long moment before informing him with a shrug, "Got yerself a death wish, whatever, it's yer life. Jest don' bring nobody else into't with ya', cuz' she's a real bitch when someone gets'n her way." A scrap of paper is drawn out of his pocket and thrust up to the seated form. "Call this number t'morrow so you can git yer pickup time'n place."
Ky takes the paper, still regarding the pleasantly sociable man. "It is mine, yes." Small wonder she needs other employees, given the apparent skills of the current ones.
Alexi scrinches his nose lightly. "Jono was having a big banger on his head. Was being from his breeding. I am figuring it was getting into eyes. But he was being pretty okay dogboy once he was being poodled." One of those guesses must have been the right one. He tilts his head up to regard her moving form as he asks casually, "So, Rooke has been staying out of trouble, yes? I am not having been seeing you in..." He stops for a second to count the fingers on one of his hands and then continue, "Many, many days."
Rooke decides after a moment of meditative debate, that Alexi will be better off not being informed that he'd just basically stated that his friend Jono was the rude type who wore large sausages over his brow. "..ye-e-s-s... right." She nods her head, and gestures to the promenade before them, meaning they might do some walking now. "Pretty much out of trouble, Alexi. How's your photography hobby going?"
The expression given to Ky is all disgusted grimace. "Fug off, cave-crawler." Grumble jerks a thumb to indicate the scrap, "Don' ferget t'call. If y'do, yer not gonna getta chance t'heal th'next knee." And with that, the diminutive 'gentleman' is turning to disappear into the crowds again, soon lost to sight.
Ky's eyes follow the man as he departs, staying on until it disappears amongst the crowd. The paper is then inserted into a secure spot in the tunic without even a glance. Ah, the joys of city life... perhaps he would be much more enjoyable still hunting the bold spellcarvers who like to leave the guidance of the roads.
Alexi lets his head tilt and hang down to one side, his voice lowering a little as he answers, "Alexi was not winning contest. There were being rulings I was not understanding completely..." His head perks up slightly as he adds, "But Alexi was getting to keep camera as momenting of contest. Perhaps he will be taking more pictures some other time." Indeed, that does sound like a hobby.
Rooke treads along the path, smiling quietly at his words and glancing to the side at him occasionally. Her shoulderbag bumps rhythmically against her hip, on her other side. "That sounds like a good deal," she remarks idly, lowering her gaze as she engages in some quick decision-making. "Anyway, Alexi. I'm glad I found you.. er, or, that you've found me. I've got some news."
Ky finally rises from his seat, the quiet mood of rest and idle observation now quiet shattered. He steps rather briskly through the crowd, moving south across the plaza. Stalking off, perhaps, akin to his crude moniker, the milling crowd parting either of its own volition or through the less tactful momentum of the mutant.
Alexi shifts his position a little, then decides to stand up despite the obvious size difference involved. "You are having news for Alexi? Alexi is liking to be hearing news." He pauses in a thought, then treads a bit closer and crouches back down as his voice takes on a stage whisper, "Or... is this being secret news? Alexi is liking to play secret game, too? Remember other secret? Alexi is not telling anyone." It's a childlike kind of fascination almost worthy of making one wonder just how much realization he has of the true nature of the activity of keeping secrets.
She seems a bit bewildered. "That's.. good," she falters, looking as if she hasn't been keeping track of her alleged secrets. "Alexi.. don't worry about the other stuff. That's all.. past.. doesn't matter." She pauses, thinking, and reaches up absently to pat his neck gently. "I'm leaving, Alexi. Heading out of the territory, for a long time, I think."
Alexi accepts the neckpatting, seeming fairly pleased with it for the moment its given. The words he takes a few seconds to process, his eyes shutting halfway as he tries to make sure that he's gotten the point of it all. He turns his head to face hers, his nose scrunching up as he asks curiously, "You are... having mission?"
Rooke smiles oddly, and shakes her head, hand slipping back down to poke into her jacket's pocket. "Nope.. no mission. Leaving just 'cause." She squint-winks a little as she turns back, Alexi not being quite able to block out all the sun's rays. "I've lived here for just about all of five years, kid. Time to move on." She speaks with easy jocularity, as if trying to impress upon the impressionable that this kind of thing is only natural and expected. Migratory imperative, or some such.
Alexi lets his eyes open up to their normal shiny selves, still trying to come to some kind of full understanding. His tongue hangs a little from the corner of his mouth, which doesn't help matters of perception much. He finally snaps to, blinking once and then speaking, "Oh, you are going /away/." There must be some special significance to the word, because he seems to mull over it for a few moments. After a pause he finally notes, "Well, is being odd for you to be knowing when, but Alexi is hearing of things like that before." His ear twitches a little before he asks in an entirely upbeat manner, "When you have gone away, can Alexi be having your stereo?"
"Yes.. yes, um.." she replies bemusedly, after her gaze has slid to the side for a moment or three, and if there were a camera pointed her way, she'd be looking straight at the viewers for one of those 'Zoinks, ain't he strange, just between you and me' glances. "You.. have room for a stereo.. I mean, sorry? You've been hearing of what.. of missions?"
Alexi shakes his head, "No no no. Alexi is hearing of people who are knowing when they are going away. Is being strange. Usually they are being afraid, and only dogboys are ones who are giving things away." His head bobs as he notes, "You are being very brave to be facing going away like dogboy. But..." his face scrunches at the top, "Alexi is being confused. You are not looking too sick."
Zing! Went right over her head, that did. Rooke just stares off into the distance for a long moment, not saying anything. Finally, her gaze seems to go semi-intelligent again, and she just nods. Maybe nodding is the right answer. Oh.. and.. "Yeah." There we are.
Alexi lets out a snort-sigh, then reaches over to pat Rooke's shoulder lightly. "Well, Alexi will be sad to be seeing you go away, but he is glad to be getting your stereo." Compassion, thy name is dogboy. "You are being good head scratcher." That thought seems to strike a sad chord in him. It must be a dying breed, the mighty head scratchers. He ponders aloud, "Perhaps we can be seeing each other again when Alexi is going away."
Rooke seems cheered by the compliment on her being able to move her fingers in a manner pleasing to dogs. It's an honour, really. "I guess so, Alexi. It's a big world, after all," she offers a smile up and to the side, again. "Hmm.. kinda catchy," she mumbles, and hums one higher note to tune up her voice. "Its.. a big world.. after-all.. It's.." That's as far as she gets... thank the gods. Shrugging slightly, she wonders, "Where do you want the stereo delivered?"
Alexi glances back from being momentarily distracted by a vendor of metal cutlery. Shiny, shiny spoons... He blinks a few times, then manages to recompose himself. "Hmm? Oh, yes. You can be delivering to Alexi's room at barracks. Trevor will not be biting delivery person if they are bringing stereo. Trevor... that is Alexi's roomate... he is liking music."
Rooke nods at that, smiling wryly. "All right. I've got a few spare minidiscs, too, if you want those. I'll see that you get them in a couple of days. I'll be leaving around then, after clearing the rest of the stuff out of my old place." Pausing, she glances towards the parking area, where her red motorbike awaits, and emits a short sigh. "Well, good luck with everything, Alexi.. if I don't happen to see you again. You're a good boy." Reaching up, she cups his jaw as well as she can in her palm, to draw his attention away from shiny objects in which they both might have been too interested otherwise, but also to administer a last, friendly touch. "You're a real good guy."
Alexi scrinches the front end of his snout up. Oh, if dogboys could blush... His eyes squinch halfway closed as one of his ears twitch in a little pattern. "It is being good to hear Alexi is good boy." That is the most important thing, after all. His eyes open up in a merrily wise gaze as he notes in a pleasant fashion, "And you... are being very nice bitch." Well, he has to mean that in a complimentary way... right?
Right... right. Even if it does take her a slight moment to see it that way. "Yeah.. thanks," Rooke accepts graciously, the humour of the sentence striking her then, and she has to press her hand against her mouth for a moment, glancing away. Hopefully Alexi hadn't been drooling at the time, or there might be even more mirth, choking, and stomach aches in Freedom Plaza today. Then she pulls ahead of him (yeah right), and angles away, across the green towards her bike. She raises her hands again in So Long, and then walks away without another look back.
<<OOC>> Rooke says, "Actually, only one hand is needed for a So Long. :)"
<<OOC>> Alexi says, "And only one finger for... well, anyway.. :)"
<<OOC>> Rooke says, "Right, but I'm saving that one for Ryan."
It's not hard to break away from Alexi, as he's managed to be aware of the fact that it's time for departing. Of course, just how much departing is something he might never grasp accurately. He waits for a few moments to catch the hand motion at the end, then turns and heads off to search out some other manner of oddity within the park. After all, the park's nothing but adventure for a dogboy. Maybe that could be a song, too...
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