open.

[mercykills]

Who: Nicholas D. Wolfwood + you
Where: various places
When: all through October
What: catch-all for open and closed prompts

Warnings: general swearing and sometimes aggressive behaviour, maybe violence

Comments

[OPEN] panorama - the pavilion.

[mercykills]

a. "sunglasses" shopping
[There comes a point early on where Wolfwood can't put it off any longer - he needs new clothes. His usual suit is so torn up with bullet holes by now that keeping it is just out of the question. It hadn't been that important after waking up and somehow dragging himself into the city, but now that he's on relatively solid ground? It has to change.

The clothes turned out to be the easy part. Jeans, a shirt and a sweater were gotten quickly enough. Instead, it's finding decent sunglasses that's proving to be difficult. This world doesn't have two suns constantly boring down on them all, glaring off white-hot sand, where going without sunglasses was just asking for headaches and eventual eye damage. There's still one sun though so Wolfwood had assumed it would be simple to get something.

As it turns out, not so much.

In one particular store, Wolfwood's going through the assorted scattering of eye-wear with increasing irritation. Until he stops, and pulls out something that's more akin to two giant orange cartoon suns stuck together by frames. He holds it up between his pinched fingers, incredulous, before turning to the other customer nearby and commenting.]

Would anyone be caught dead wearing these?

b. ammo shopping
[Listen, he knows Jolly Roger Munitions is further up the road. He knows that's the better place to go. Wolfwood's still willing enough to scope out the competition to see if it has anything cheaper or something with more firepower under the counter. What he's after right now is just ammunition for his handgun, but eventually he might need a heavier duty weapon. It's what he's most used to, after all.

Wolfwood's not hard to find on this occasion, since he's arguing with the shopkeeper out front of the hole-in-the-wall dealer. He's got a single box of bullets in his hand which he's using to gesture wildly up the street, as he harangues the man trying to score a deal off him.]

You're out of your goddamned mind! Do you just sell to idiots or what? For that price I could go buy a whole gun and beat you to death with it!

[Ah, haggling, truly a gentleman's pursuit.]

sunglasses shopping!

[ofgoldenthread]

( empathic telepathy warning if you need an opt out at all! )

[ Aglaea had no need for sunglasses, given her unworking eyes. But always she finds herself curious about the things about this city that seem so outlandishly different than her own. In truth, glasses themselves were actually quite strange entirely to her, yet she swears she saw as many with them as without as she noted the population. Some rather fashionable – and it’s that which peaks her interest!

So, Wolfwood and she find themselves quietly browsing the same arrangement of glasses, although she’s doing her best to avoid whatever intention he may have – even without her golden threads, she can assume he is much more interested in physically owning any single pair of these glasses than she might be. Her head turns slightly as Wolfwood suddenly addresses her, eyes unfocused, but still looking at the glasses. Sunglasses. This is a motif she knows. A small laugh tickles her voice. ]

I’m sure someone would.

May I? [ While she preferred a more beautiful look, there’s a wonderful whimsy here she finds addictive-- taking the glasses, she dons them. ]

They rather match my hair, don’t you think? [ She fluffs her golden hair briefly, beautiful even as she humors the kitsch. Tribbie would be proud of her for not making morbid jokes for once. ]

[mercykills]

[Of course the first person he asks turns out to be someone who would, in fact, like to try them. The way she glances over at the gaudy pair of glasses in his hand, he's not sure she's truly looking at them - but they'd probably stand out from orbit, so a glance is probably more than enough.

He simply shrugs when Aglaea takes the shades out of his hands. He's not going to miss them.]

Knock yourself out.

[Turning to lean his hand on the table, he watches as she puts on the glasses with raised eyebrows. True enough, they do suit her far more than they'd ever suit him. Not that this would be hard to do, given his far shabbier appearance and much darker hair.]

Well, [Wolfwood sighs, raising one hand in defeat] I guess they found their proper market. They're not bad on you. I just don't know if they'd even do anything besides look like -- that.

[ofgoldenthread]

[ Aglaea is probably carrying a lot of the weight of the cheap plastic sitting on the bridge of her nose. If it weren't for the color coordination, she's not sure that she'd have bothered. ]

I suspect they're not made for art but for amusement. At best, a child's toy. [ She doesn't take them off, despite her harsh criticism, head turning toward the array of other glasses and smoothing a hand over them. She's sure she saw something a moment ago that would fit his darker complexion. ]

Perhaps these are more to your taste? [ They are not, and Aglaea is full aware of it as she offers them. In her hand, a pair of star-shaped glasses with thick, blue rims, no less gaudy than what he had inadvertently offered her. ]

[mercykills]

Y'know, that'd make more sense. [Putting one hand on his hip, he gives the plastic-y bright lenses another once over.] Even if they're not really kid-sized.

[He supposes some adults out there would like them. If it was just for show, not for functionality. Vash's own glasses were a bit on the weird side, as far as being suitable to wear all the time goes.

When Aglaea fishes out the second pair of glasses, he leans in to get a closer look - and ends up snorting in amusement. He reaches out to pluck them out of her hand regardless, holding them up in front of his face to really take them in. Garish, totally useless for intimidation, and most likely hopeless at blocking the sun too.]

You're right. Just what I'm looking for.

[He is decidedly not putting them on his face though.]

[ofgoldenthread]

[ He seems less irritated than he was before, and it's all she could ask. Aglaea smirks lightly as well before bowing her head to pull the glasses off. She shakes her head and hair back into place before putting the “sun”glasses back into the pile. ]

Stars are quite fitting on a dark canvas. [ Although it has been many years since she’s seen stars. She takes his sarcasm with undue grace. ]

You’ve been picking through these for some time. I take you have something more elegant in mind?

[mercykills]

I'll take your word for it. Never had much of an eye for art myself.

[And Wolfwood himself is no masterpiece. He folds the arms of the glasses back down and gives them another exasperated look, shaking his head slightly. The sheer level of frivolity in them is really something else.

Dropping the glasses back into the tray with far less care than Aglaea did with her own, Wolfwood's eyebrows go up and he sighs, put upon.]

Nothing like that, no. I just wanted functional ones. Most of these are too showy for me.

[ofgoldenthread]

[ A simple question, possibly a balking one: ]

What sort of function could they provide? Is your eyesight poor? It seems these would obstruct your vision more than anything.

[ Disregarding the odd, obstructive shape of some of these, the tinted lenses on all of them seem only stylish to her. ]

[mercykills]

[Oh, huh. That's surprising, that someone might not actually know what these are for. Wolfwood gives her a closer, more appraising look. Not someone who's ever had to worry about this kind of thing, perhaps.

His tone is more settled when he replies, his earlier irritation all gone.]

Uh, no, my eye're fine. These help keep them that way. Proper sunglasses block out some of the sun so you don't get sunglare. Too much sun and it'll damage your eyes.

[Picking up a more normal, but still lurid purple pair of glasses, Wolfwood unfolds the arms and peers at them closely.]

It's not so bad on this planet, since there's only one sun. But my home has two, and it's a bad idea going outside without 'em. You'll just fry your eyes eventually.

[ofgoldenthread]

[ If Wolfwood is looking closer, he’ll notice Aglaea has cloudy, green pupils, and throughout the conversation, her gaze has been unfocused, never really looking at him. Rather, through him, or just in his general direction. It’s performative, her motions, it might seem; yet she seems to have known the glasses were the same color as her hair and of Wolfwood’s darker complexion.

If she knows she’s being appraised, there’s no real indication. She’s waiting for his answer, attention seemingly rapt on him. ]

Interesting. I see now why you were so discontented in the “sunglasses” before. They’re rather a mockery of what efforts you’re putting forth now.

I take you’ve simply grown used to the tinted lenses, then? That seems as good a reason to want glasses, two suns or none.

[mercykills]

[On closer inspection ... yeah. The lack of focused gaze and the appearance of her eyes is hard to miss. So, she's blind then, or at least can't see well at all. He's had his own brief experience with going blind, though he doesn't know what that looked like from the outside. She must have had some lucky guesses with the colours she picked out.

With a considering glance at Aglaea, he folds up the glasses in his hands again.]

These're more for show, yeah. I might just be in the wrong kind of store.

[He'd just zeroed in on the first stall of glasses he'd spotted, without much thought about whether the rest of the place was more of a fashion house than a practical store.]

Well, the sun can still be bright, even if it's just one of them. And you never know when something else might flare up that makes having them a good idea.

[Explosions, for one thing. Overly bright artificial lights. He puts the glasses back into the display with an air of disgruntlement.]

I might just need to look around some more to find good ones.

ammo shopping

[kitetsu]

[ the pavilion had no shortage of weapons. zoro had been frequenting the various shops every few weeks since his arrival; had he been looking for firearms, he'd have been set several times over. or, he assumed so - not like he'd have been able to tell a decent gun from a cheap knockoff anyway.

quality steel, on the other hand, was proving a more difficult ask. quality steel that would also hold up under zoro's regular use-? that would have been a tall order even back home, where high grade swords were less rare. it had taken this long for him to procure one replacement - a second was pushing his luck.

jolly roger, despite its name, hadn't had much to offer him. again. most places hadn't, which was how he'd ended up searching the wares of one of the smaller, less frequented shops - and within earshot of the commotion out front. at that volume, half the street would've been in range.

nami may have been the haggler, but zoro felt he could safely say that this guy sucked at it. his talent for threats, on the other hand - well, that did manage to raise an eyebrow. points for creativity.

instinct would've been to keep out of it; it wasn't any of his business. yet, there was a part of him that couldn't fully tune it out, the question of violence too loud for him to ignore, regardless of who it was directed at. and, casting a sideways glance at the two, it was hard to say just how this was going to go. hard to judge, based only on words and how he carried himself.

zoro sighed, hand dropping to grip the pommel of one blade. damn it. ]

Theft's the shorter sentence.

[ having spent the afternoon in enforcer holding, he would not recommend it. ]

[mercykills]

[Truly, Wolfwood's more frustrated than actively pissed. It's bad enough he has to deal with just one small pistol when he's more used to having a machine gun's worth of ammunition with him at all times. To top it off, it's been a long day and he's tired. Being confronted with an absolute rip-off from this shopkeeper just sent him over the edge.

The interjection by some random stranger does pull Wolfwood up short, as he turns around to level an annoyed glare at Zoro. The shopkeeper, rather than seeming intimidated, appears more bored than anything. Wolfwood is not the kind of sucker that's his usual trade and he'd rather get out of the conversation than anything else.

Wolfwood's eyes flicker to where Zoro's hand rests on his sword and - oh, great. Swords. Why does it have to be someone with a sword. Letting out an explosive huff, Wolfwood lowers his hand and shoves the box of ammo back into the shopkeeper's hands.]

Yeah, and being a con-artist is free. I'm not going to bother with this.

[The shopkeeper snickers and books it back inside his store, slamming the door shut behind himself. Scrubbing a hand through his hair Wolfwood shoots another look at Zoro, less irritated than before.]

Didn't figure people got locked up around here for theft.

[OPEN] on the road.

[mercykills]

[It was a simple cargo run to the Scrapyard and back. Simple, not too taxing, just a few boxes loaded into his station wagon and hauled out. That part had gone well enough. Wolfwood's still getting overly tired with physical activity while he heals, but something like this is within his limits. He's not trying to overdo it - he'd actually have to explain himself to Livio and Vash if he did, and that's not something he wants to deal with right now.

It's on the way back to Panorama when Wolfwood pulls over on the side of the road that a problem presents itself.

He'd gotten out to open up the back hatch of the car, thinking he'd sit there for a while and watch the rainclouds rolling over the plains nearby. Only, the damned thing won't open. He yanks on the handle as hard as he can, but it's stuck. He steps back, frustrated, not sure if he'd slammed the thing shut too hard back in the Scrapyard. This is a problem. But what's the solution.

If you come across this car on the side of the road and pull over to see what's happening, you'll find out. Because for a moment it looks like no one's there, just an abandoned car with a rear passenger door left open. Soon enough though the car shakes with a thud, followed by a slam, and -- ah, there's someone in the back, kicking at the back door as hard as he can.

The back hatch slams open on the third try, and Wolfwood only partially slides out after it with the momentum. He just slumps back against the floor of the car, dragging his hands over his face.]

Useless fucking thing. [Sitting back upright, when he notices someone watching he pauses and waves a hand dismissively.] It's fine, I got it.

[OPEN] kolliery.

[mercykills]

[In the latter days of the month, Wolfwood comes out to this desolate town with Vash and Livio to work in the mining operations. It's a cold place, in more ways than one.

Wolfwood can be found working in the mines during the day, or removing rubble from the mining collapse once that disaster happens.

In the evenings, he loiters around the Dusk Rose or heads into the saloon to get a drink. He's not going to force himself into the cliques of the locals, but anyone who's a temporary visitor from Panorama he's more likely to talk to.]

closed - livio.

[mercykills]

[It turns out hauling rubble is hard work. Who knew?

Well, Wolfwood knew. He's had to do it before, when Vash's goody two-shoes attitude got him roped into cleaning up after the destruction left behind by Gauntlet and Midvalley. It was annoying then, but now it's just - work. And he's smart enough to know he needs the work, as well as find ways around how his energy flags far too easily still.

After one particular shift, he and Livio are let out while Vash is still working deeper in the mine. They aren't always on the same rotation, after all. Stepping back out into the air, Wolfwood feels the cold air slap him in the face and winces. He'll never get used to this, the frigid temperatures in the middle of the day.

He throws his hardhat into the pile with the rest then taps Livio on the shoulder.]

You want to try that saloon they got in town? Don't really feel like going back to that room yet.

[crimebaby]

[ on the other hand, livio doesn't mind the work at all. it feels good to put his body and skills to good use, rather than for violence and killing people. as tiring as it is, he'll haul rubble all day if it means this good feeling persists. ]

[ and it feels nice to work with wolfwood, too. it's still strange- livio wonders if it's ever not going to feel strange, being side by side with wolfwood, but it's likewise a good feeling. they'd mostly worked in silence, but livio would take a quiet workday with wolfwood over anything else in the world. ]

[ he's dropping his hardhat into the pile as well when wolfwood taps him -- and he perks up a little bit. he's not usually one for drinking, it dulls his senses too much, but like hell is he ever going to turn down drinks with niconii ]

Yeah, sure, let's go!

[ whoops, that was probably a bit too enthusiastic ]

[mercykills]

[Definitely more chipper than Wolfwood was expecting. One eyebrow quirks up before he snorts with amusement, waving Livio along to follow.]

Don't get too excited. The locals give a pretty frosty reception whenever you go in there.

[Yeah, he's been in there once to check it out. It's not an unfamiliar feeling, really, to walk into a bar and have all the regulars look up with suspicion and sometimes hostility. Par for the course. It doesn't make it any more pleasant to deal with, but perhaps it won't matter so much now they've been here for a little while.]

Still. It's kind of rough out here, so maybe that's just how they are.

[crimebaby]

[ oh no it was definitely too enthusiastic. livio looks appropriately mortified as he follows wolfwood in step ]

They might like us better now since we've been around...

[ but it's true that they've been generally closed off and cold. not that livio especially minds, he's used to a more distant reception. ]

Seems like they've got a lot goin' on, not just the mine collapsing.

[ he agrees ]

[mercykills]

Hell might freeze over, too.

[Har har. But no, it is always possible. Wolfwood's just prepared for the worst as per usual. He scrapes a hand back through his sweaty hair and sighs out. He's not trying to be a downer, it just kind of happens.]

Yeah. I'm not surprised, really. It's hard work and it's pretty far from Panorama. You don't come all the way out here unless you really want to... or need to.

[crimebaby]

I don't think it's that unlikely....

[ calm down wolfwood. livio might not be a creature of optimism like vash is, but he's certainly nowhere near as pessimistic as wolfwood. he'd like to hope for the best in this scenario - in all scenarios, really. but this one especially ]

Don't think the people here are fluxdrifts like in Panorama, either. Maybe they're actual residents.

[ but he doesn't know one way or another ]

[mercykills]

Or they've been here long enough to feel like it.

[It makes sense, in a way. The recently arrived are drawn into Panorama like a moth to flame. Going further out wouldn't suit some people, the less adventurous or those more keen to put down roots in something familiar. Wolfwood tips his head back to look at the darkening sky.]

Kinda hard to imagine, deciding another world is just your home now.

[crimebaby]

.... Right.

[ livio wonders if they're going to reach that point. he and wolfwood. he's been here longer than wolfwood and vash both, but not by that much, relatively. two months is both an extremely long amount of time and nothing at all ]

I guess if ya live here for years it makes sense. But I don't know if I could imagine that.

[ could he call this place home, if he lived here for years? ]

[mercykills]

[The saloon is within sight now, not too far off ahead. Wolfwood shoves his hands in his pockets and shrugs.]

I can't. But maybe no one does, at first.

[It's not like Wolfwood could really imagine stopping anywhere and staying put. He's lived life on the run for so long now that even doing that at home was ... a far off fantasy. 'Home' was a concept left behind, for him. Somewhere else to keep safe, not somewhere for him to be.]

Wonder if it was like that for the first ones who crashed the ships.

[They probably couldn't imagine making No Man's Land home either. And yet.]

[crimebaby]

Ya think we'll be here for years?

[ will either of them even live long enough to call this planet their home? things livio doesn't voice out loud, but he's certainly thinking of them. livio can't really imagine settling down anywhere, either, even if he wasn't on the move as much as wolfwood was. the last place he could call home was master chapel's side, and, well, the eye of michael obviously isn't his home anymore. ]

[ even that was dubious, considering they were meant to be knives's dogs ]

... I guess, if you've got nowhere else ta go...

[ maybe it was like that for them, too ]