( open )

[akron]

Who: Roxy Morton (akron) & you.
What: Roxy visits Flona Cove.
When: first week of may
Where: flona cove
Warning(s): n/a



ONE: BONFIRES & TREATS

( there's a celebratory mood in the air and while roxy doesn't quite trust that it will last — that the armistice will last — she certainly enjoys it. she also enjoys the salt in the air and the rush of the waves against the shore. there are many lines of poetry about the sea, about salt and sand and water. roxy understands the appeal.

one stand claims to sell drinks that make one capable of breathing underwater and roxy stops near it, considering. )

Has anyone tested that claim yet?

TWO: FIGHT CLUB

( roxy ends up visiting the fight club. it's not that she's incapable of not following up on whispered rumours and hints, that she can't let a mystery go, it's that she's disinclined to. so here she is — a young woman in a pretty sundress and a straw hat, not particularly tall or strong-looking — watching the fight that's on-going.

she winces, now and again — but while it is in all the right places to make someone believe that she's unused to the sight of violence, that it isn't it at all. it's that the people fighting look like bloody amateurs. )

This is undignified. ( she complains after a moment, though only quietly. )

THREE: WILDCARD

( ooc: want to catch roxy talking a stroll along the beach, having a cocktail in a beachside bar or sitting in a beach chair under an umbrella? come at me! hmu @ abiosis if you want a more personalised starter or w/e!! )

Comments

TWO

[beatupgrass]

[From somewhere slightly to her right, a loud voice pops up.] You're tellin' me.

[Followed by, a much louder, and directed at the fighters:] YOU CALL THAT A PUNCH, YOU IDIOT? I can punch harder than that and my fists are as thick as your left pinky. Unbelievable. Did your grandma teach you that move?

[Come for the fighting, stay for the heckling raccoonoid standing on the bench beside her so he can see over the crowds. He seems to have mostly worked his way there in the last ten minutes or so. These places are never accommodating to the short.]

one.

[pebblestone]

[ Ah. Another unsuspecting passersby, about to get reeled in without warning. Quickly, before the cheerful merchant can down some of her concoction down the poor young woman's throat: ]

I would be cautious if I were you, miss. I had the unfortunate experience of buying a drink from that vendor not three stalls up the road, and it turned my skin the most uncomplimentary shade of green.

[ Frederick sighs, long-suffering. Clearly someone here is a member of the #Nofunallowed club. ]

Perhaps you might be able to breathe underwater, but I daresay the ability would come with a matching set of gills.

[ The merchant pulls back, sputtering in offense. ]

[akron]

( roxy has done her research. she's aware of the existence of rocket, of his history on this planet. at least as far as that history has been available on the network, roxy knows it. there'd been a lot of reading in her first two weeks after waking up (again, apparently). )

Do you really think you would last against one of them? ( she asks after a moment, head tipped to the side. it's considering, though she widens her eyes enough to make it seem like she's surprised. naive, perhaps. )

[akron]

( roxy is hardly poor or unsuspecting, for all that she is a young woman and trying to seem largely unsuspecting and harmless. so she widens her eyes a little and turns to frederick. )

Green, really?

( in all honesty, that is strange. not unheard of, for someone who's read through the kingsman archives, but strange. especially that it's being sold this freely. )

Did it do anything else?

[pebblestone]

Leaf green.

[ In case she needed that extra bit of confirmation. He's feeling particularly cross about it, in any case, and is more than happy to bemoan his fate to whoever might listen. ]

It may have given my skin a faint scaling pattern, though it was difficult to notice anything but the green. Certainly others gawked and stared.

[ Perhaps if he'd drank more of it, it might have turned him into a full-on lizard. ]

[akron]

Not a good colour for skin. ( roxy comments after a beat, mustering like she's trying to imagine it. which she is, of course. as far as his overall colour scheme is concerned, green is probably not the worst colour for him.

she's sure he wouldn't want to hear that. )

And how long did it last? You're not green anymore. ( pointing out the obvious there. )

[beatupgrass]

[Rocket tilts his head up to look at her, expression incredulous and a little bit insulted.] Are you kidding? I've beat up dudes twice that size. They're all dumb muscle- no brains to speak of. You just gotta out-maneuver 'em and they're goners.

[akron]

( it's fascinating how expressive his features are. she didn't think racoon's could do that. )

Yeah? Sounds sensible.

( it is sensible, she knows that. it's how she has to work, too, by necessity of not having the same physical strength as most of her opponents. she wonders who'd win in a spar between rocket and her, but that's not the kind of thought she'll voice out loud to anyone but eggsy. )

So you're a good fighter?

two.

[beknight]

And yet, here you are.

[ Too much to say it's curiosity entirely? Bruce has been placing a few careful bets — always nice to get one's money's worth after the end of the day. He's not in the mood to bleed them dry, regardless of whether they're one of those that could use the comeuppance or not. ]

[akron]

( and yet, here she is. )

Someone has to bear witness. ( she offers a shrug, unconcerned with his comment. ) Besides, I couldn't have known, could I?

( there goes the illusion that violence makes her wince. of course, her story involves the army because the best stories are based on truth, so that illusion was never one she wanted to maintain. )

[beatupgrass]

I'm good at everything. [Except social niceties and not having a giant ego, but that's neither here nor there.] But I can hold my own- I even competed in here a few times until they only let me punch at my weight class, 'cause I was embarrassing the other fighters.

[also he became a fugitive in Olympia and never bothered much with the fight clubs in Wyver but that's neither here nor there.]

But it was just a way to make some quick silver. I'd rather just shoot somebody in the face and be done with it.

[pebblestone]

[ It might be obvious, but the thought of no longer being green fills him with relief and he answers her question readily. ]

About an hour, give or take some minutes. I haven't a watch on me, and thus was unable to record the time exactly.

[ What an oddly specific question and it makes him wonder, eyes opening as he squints suspiciously down at her. ]

Why? You're not thinking of drinking the concoction yourself, are you?

[ Though green would probably be more flattering on her than it was on him.]

[akron]

( for a moment, there's something sharp in her gaze, a tension in her shoulders — then it slips away as quickly as it had come. )

I don't think I'm interested in fighting one way or another. ( a shrug. ) What other ways are there to make silver?

[akron]

Just curious.

( though maybe she's thinking of drinking the breathe-underwater concoction still.

green does suit her, though she generally goes for blue or brown tones. grey, sometimes. ) I haven't really seen many people in interesting colours around here.

[beatupgrass]

[He scratches at his neck idly.] A couple of dudes put out jobs every so often that pay pretty well. Then there's Highwind's group- that's more mercenary stuff. And if you really wanna kiss ass to the higher-ups, the bigwigs in both cities'll ask you for favors.

It's easy, but it's also a lot of running crap errands people don't wanna do themselves.

[beknight]

No, probably not.

[ No one — even the most prepared or empathetic — knows before they experience something, do they. He rolls a shoulder and glances to the side. ]

Found anyone to bet on, yet?

[akron]

And in terms of steady income?

( she's done some research, of course, but it pays to hear the perspective of someone who's been living on the surface for a while now, who knows the situation or at least has a different perspective on things than she might. )

[akron]

I'm not sure yet that I will.

( but she has been observing, of course. watching and assessing. after a moment, she points at someone she thinks is good, but not the best in the room. )

What about him?

[beatupgrass]

[Rocket barks a laugh.] You can sell out completely to one of the schmucks in either city if you want something like that. There's a few places run by our people, but they're few and far between.

[beknight]

Him?

[ He gives the appearance of some consideration. The truth is: Bruce knows the measure of every fighter here. ]

Hmm. What about him?

[ Indicating with his chin someone more roughed up, bloodied, but with the flash of an iron will in his eyes. He's been climbing the board slowly today — quite typical to set up an underdog and then have them lose the last match. ]

[akron]

What makes you consider it selling out?

( her tone is crisp and precise — but not challenging so much as curious. )

[akron]

Think he's smart enough to win against someone much bigger?

( he has the will, but in the absence of strength, will alone isn't enough. )

[pebblestone]

[ Well if she drinks the accursed thing and grows gills, he won't say I told you so but he might give a very tired and exasperated look.

For now, he settles for looking just tired but not exasperated. ]

I can't say I've met many who were any color other than flesh-colored. Are strange colors common where you come from?

[ She seems so fascinated by it. ]

[beatupgrass]

Eh, I don't do loyalty to any kind of government, especially ones as screwed up as these guys. You get committed to one, and you might as well be stuck.

[Said the raccoonoid with maxed out Wyver REP, but that's almost entirely because he works for Cree...]

[akron]

( if she drinks it and grows gills, he's very much entitled to tell her i told you so and she wouldn't hold it against him in any way. she isn't drinking it just yet, though. she might wait until after he's left just to avoid the exasperated look. )

No, I can't say that there are. Maybe that's why the idea seems intriguing.

[pebblestone]

[ He supposes there are people that delight in the new and unknown, even if it's a thing that very much doesn't sit well with his own ye olde traditional beliefs.

Well, far be it from him to stop her on this path, if it's one she really wants to take. ]

If you really insist on changing your skin color, the cart over there [ with a wave in the right direction ] was the one that caused my former predicament. Perhaps they'll even let you choose a color of your choice.

[akron]

( this is getting interesting. )

Screwed up? ( she lets her eyes widen a little. )

[akron]

I didn't say I was going to.

( but she considers it now, or at least pretends to. )

Was the drink good, at least?

[beatupgrass]

Were you here for the kidnapping crap? 'Cause that was pretty bad. And there's some people in power who ain't right in the head.

[pebblestone]

[ He's hesitant to answer positively, still miffed by the experience, but he's also not about to lie. Frowning, he replies stiffly: ]

It was. Quite refreshing on a warm day such as this one. I daresay it would have paired well with one of sandwiches also on sale, if you find yourself hungry.

[ Speaking of sandwiches—his stomach gives a particularly plaintive growl. ]

[akron]

( the grumble of his stomach gets a quirk of her lips from roxy, amused but warmly so. )

Want to find out if the sandwiches come with side effects, too?

[akron]

No, I wasn't.

( her lips press together. ) I woke up just after.

[beatupgrass]

Well there you go. [He snorts derisively.] We're supposed to be the Blessed of Thesa or some religious crap, but all I've gotten for my troubles is nothin' that makes me feel any kind of blessed.

[pebblestone]

[ Ah. He colors a little, then clears his throat as if to dispel away any awkwardness. ]

I sincerely hope they don't.

[ A man can only take so much excitement in one day. But he waves one hand towards the vendors hawking their wares. ]

After you, miss.

[akron]

( ah. that makes sense, she figures. it's another piece of a puzzle about this place, about the people in it, refugees and natives alike. his name's popped up way back on the network. )

Doesn't it come with any benefits?

[akron]

Well. Only one way to find out.

( she's still grinning when she starts moving toward the vendors, clearly more adventurous than he is. )

[beatupgrass]

There were some people kissing ass something fierce when y'all came down this last time. That's about the only benefit I've seen.

The only benefit we've really got [and this he says with an aggravated sigh] is the one thing we can't talk about around these losers.

[He lowers his voice so the other patrons can't hear.] That whole "we should all be dead with our universes thing, but thanks to the Natha we ain't" thing.

[pebblestone]

[ Maybe some of her adventuring ways will rub off on him. Or maybe he'll remain a stodgy old man until the end of his days.

Only time will tell.

The food vendors, always happy to see new faces, greet the two of them with cheery waves, and proceed to rattle off their specials for the day: delectable shrimp cocktails, roast fish, fries of all shapes and sizes, just to name a few.

And also, a strange berry jam that'll supposedly allow the consumer to walk on water for a whopping ten minutes. Needless to say, Frederick remains unimpressed. ]

You can't be serious.

[ Oh gods, it's starting already. ]

[akron]

Yes, that's quite something, isn't it.

( she's still not sure what to make of it. of her parents in stasis, of the dead galahad alive in stasis, of merlin — it's a lot. )

[akron]

Does it come with side effects?

( roxy asks the vendor about the berry jam, more to see frederick splutter than because she's really interested in walking on water. )

[pebblestone]

[ Must she be so cruel.

Frederick doesn't much care what the answer is because he is decidedly not going to eat it, but saves one vaguely worried ear for his new companion, lest she decide she wants to go ahead and follow her dreams.

Luckily for the both of them, there are no side effects! At least, nothing the vendor considers all too terrible. ]

Weeeeell, your hair might turn a shade of blue or purple, but that's half the fun, right? Both the ladies and gents will swoon over you even more! You'll have scores of people fawning over you.

[ It's obviously a win in his book. ]

So, how about it?

pls don't mind that journal change

[comportable]

( she absolutely must be so cruel. which is why she turns to frederick. )

What do you think? Would blue suit me?

not a problem!

[pebblestone]

[ The lady's cut runs so deep...!

But he'll be chivalrous and answer her first, eyes doing a critical scan over her person. He's no fashion guru, his wardrobe largely consisting of four pairs of the same shirt and vest, but surely he can at least give his opinion. ]

It would depend on the shade of blue, I think. A navy would be more flattering than periwinkle.

[ Is she satisfied now. ]

[comportable]

( he scans her and roxy does nothing so gauche as strike a pose, but her hip tips a little to one side, her head to the other, eyes more than her mouth showing her amusement. )

You're right. I do look good in navy.

[pebblestone]

[ At least one of them is having a good time. ]

Then by all means [ he says tiredly, with one way of his hand ] help yourself. If anything does go wrong, I shall be here to keep watch.

[ And possibly call a doctor, in the event there really is an emergency. ]

[comportable]

That's very kind of you.

( and still, roxy lingers for a moment over the different options. in the end, she shrugs. ) I'd actually much rather go into the water than stay above it. I don't suppose you have anything for that, too?

( like the gentleman at the other stall. )