Jun 30 08:34:58 105 PA
From Chronicles
Weather at Tue Jun 30 08:34:58 105 PA (25.78C, 78.40F):
Kid has come again today to get in a little practice. Though while she has her keyboard in her bag, it isn't the instrument that gets the work out today. In a somewhat spare section of the park, Kid is hard at work and the evidence of that can be heard at a considerable distance. She has her whip out and uncoiled, the black leather tool/weapon swung about her petite frame with a steady hand. In the midst of a little 'kata' she made up herself, weaving the whip in a 'cage' of angrily snapping leather. She has her lower lip lightly clutched between her teeth as she goes through her 'workout'.
Caliopa enters the park, hair tied back out of her face, dressed in the old work coveralls that are worn enough to cling to her curves. She isn't here to run, she walks slowly, thoughtfully. The sound of snapping leather draws her attention and her face softens, as she turns her steps towards Kid. "Kid!" She calls, from a safe enough distance.
Kid glances towards Cali as she hears the woman's voice, a slight smirk rising, though she keeps the majority of her focus on the whip itself. Keeping the consecutive pops of the cracker flowing a few moments more until she's satisfied with her session. The whip flicked back, rolling out along the ground behind her in a resting ready posture. "Hey Cali girl," Kid replies to her before she draws the handle forward and starts to carefully coil it in a loose manner. "What's up?"
Caliopa shoves her hands into her pockets, walking slowly over, her face thoughtful, with the smile. "Not much. Spoke to that bloke who punched the guy in the cafe..." She leans against a tree, her shoulders hunching a little. "Kid, you reckon I'm stupid for helpin' folks out?" There is a vulnerability in those words, echoed in her face. "He reckoned folks wouldn't get better for bein' helped."
Kid blinks at the topic, eyeing Cali for a moment. "Huh.. dunno." She gives her shoulders a casual roll. "Some people talk about adversity and growing stronger and shit like that, but lots of people say a lot of stupid things. Personally, I never really cared about stuff like that. Most of my life I've done stuff for myself. I guess it made me who I am." If that be a point for or against such thinking is a personal judgment. "But you should think about you when it comes to helping people.. Heck, that armored guy could have been a real lunatic. Go helping people and whoever is messing with them could mess with you. Could get you into a lot of trouble you don't need." Punctuating that with a little wave of the coiled whip in Cali's direction.
She nods slowly, chewing on her lower lip, thoughtfully. "I wasn't in no danger, not from him." She shrugs lightly, dropping her gaze to the ground. "Still don't think he is right. It ain't a bad thing to put a hand out to lift someone else up, it really ain't. It is a bit of what makes us different to the animals, makes us a bit of civilised." She lets herself slide to the floor, sitting crosslegged beneath the tree, near Kid, out of range of the whip. Caliopa gives her a small smile, dimples at half mast.
Kid snorts faintly at that. "Hell, Cali, most people are still like animals. After all, there wasn't a thing civilized about punching some old guy in the face," she points out. "Everyone's got some animal in them. Me, even you. Yours might be a bit deeper buried, but its in there. Try and cover it up if you want, but it won't go away."
"It ain't about coverin' it up, it is about it bein' in us to control the way we behave." She rests her elbows on her knees, leaning her chin in her hands, fingers framing her face. "It weren't a civilised way to act, but he reckoned that he gotta demand things from life else you don't get it." She shakes her head, obviously troubled by the thought.
Kid snorts again and shakes her head, looking down to start carefully inspecting the whip for dirt and the like. Casually passing her fingers along it to brush away any lingering bits. She's standing in a section of the park with Cali sitting nearby, the two talking. Nearby Kid is her bag, always within her field of view. "That boy sounds like he's on the path to pissing off the wrong person. Which means a quick death once you do it. Figure you gotta snatch what you want and eventually you snatch out of the wrong hands."
"I guess. I mean, takin' what ain't yours by earnin', that ain't right." She sighs, shaking her head, dismissing him, turning her comments to the thing that holds the worry in her eyes, and the smile from her lips. "Kid, I can't read nothing from Kalvin's stuff, nothing to tell me where he is, nothing at all." Caliopa gives Kid a look that actually does hold tears, shining in brown eyes. "Ain't a thing I can do to find him."
Kid laughs lightly. "I didn't say that," Kid notes, moving towards her bag, which is near where Cali sits. "Taking is what people do, after all. Everyone does it to some level. Some just more than others." She drops down then too, a more comfortable posture from which to continue inspecting her whip. Then Cali changes the subject suddenly and Kid looks at her with a carefully set expression. Not really sympathy, but.. something vaguely parallel to it. "Well.. do your reading powers always work?" A carefully chosen question.
Caliopa shakes her head slowly, giving Kid a sidelong look, "Not always. Not when I'm tryin' to see the now, and it ain't like he is a regular person neither." She sighs, shifting to hug her knees, her chin resting on them. "I tried a few times, but nothing shows, and I ain't got an idea where to go from now." Her expression is woebegone, the corners of her mouth turned down.
With weather as pleasant as it is currently, it was only a matter of time before Kingsdale's resident dog-monster returned to his adopted home. Arms folded behind his back, head tilted almost all the way back as he avidly peers at the sky, Hund is lazily tracing a path across walkways and grass alike. He makes no specific note of any individual, but the fact that he's not running into obstacles - living and nonliving both - implies attentiveness of some sort.
"Maybe you should just let it go, Cali-girl," Kid suggests. Not unkindly so, the lean of her tone more pragmatic. "After all, we've pretty much run the scent in the ground as it stands. Obviously this Sev character carted him off.. somewhere. And long enough ago that the trail is cold. Something might come up, but worrying over something that's more or less done and over with ain't gunna do you no good." Her shoulder roll and she resumes inspecting her whip again. "Not to be a downer, but you gotta face facts, girl. People disappear. Sometimes they don't get found." Her attention shifts to the side slightly when Hund draws nearish. Glancing as she would at most walkers, though for Hund, her eyes fix, casually eyeing the dog man.
"No." A flat reply, her lips tightening. "I don't let friends go missin', not when I got a piece of life in me." She shakes her head again, her eyes taking in Hund automatically, "I ain't gonna do that, Kid." She scrambles to her feet, still shaking her head. "I'm gonna go, talk to Atti, see if he got some idea where else we can look for him." She shoves her hands into her pockets, walking swiftly towards the park's exit, head bent.
The mutant continues drifting, Hund tiring of gazing into space for the moment. Head lowered, a krik working audibly from the vertebrae of his neck, he instead peers at the ground for a split second - perhaps simply to fix his position in his mind. Head sweeping to the right, then the left, he takes in his surroundings before finding a pleasantly tall and jagged rock aside one of the Crater Lakes. Clambering atop it with a few practiced but still clumsy motions, he sets down, peering into the dark waters below. One almost gets the impression that, had he the tools for such, he'd start fishing.
Quietly, as often this odd pair is, the small Inuit woman and the great white bear enter into the park. They spend a lot of time here, so coming here is no strange thing. Monique pauses not far within, taking a moment to look over the park itself, and Tornaq gives a soft rumble before reaching out to lightly touch her with his nose. The two of them start to walk, then, heading further into the park with no particular part of it being their destination. Tornaq remains his over-protective self, his attention wandering to keep an eye on the surrounding area.
Kid frowns slightly at that. "There's a difference between letting things happen and fighting against the truth, Cali-girl. Don't go all psycho obsessive on me!" Her voice lifted on that note. A low sigh breathed out as she taps her thumb against the coiled up whip in her hands. "Fuckin.." Muttered low before whatever choice words she had descend into barely whispered mutterings. She glances back towards the dog man casually then. With the inspection of her whip ended, she rises up to a knee and hooks it to her bag once more, before the duffle is snapped up. Only takes a moment for her to decide to approach the canine, casually walking over to where he's decided to take up residence.
Hund remains intensely focused on the waters below his perch, at least for a moment, although with Kid's approach his head lifts. Ears twitching, one might almost gather the general sense of a hunting dog scenting at the air, before he peeks back over one plated shoulder to peer at the casually approaching human. Perhaps he smelled her? Position shifting, his piecemeal riot gear scrapes against mostly smooth stone as he goes from seated to crouched, weight rested on his toes and gauntleted hands to face Kid properly.
Not far from the entrance of the park is the pairing of small Inuit woman and large bear, and neither of them are moving very quickly. Wandering, really, with no particular destination in mind. The great white bear stops, taking a look around, then lifts one of his front paws to chew a little at the pad of that paw, giving a sort of grumble as he does. Monique stops as well, her brow furrowing slightly as she comes about to stand in front of the bear, studying her companion for a moment before she steps closer to be able to lightly push the bear's nose out of the way so that she can take a look at the paw herself. As she does, she speaks very quietly to the animal in her native Inuit tongue.
"Still watching the fish?" Oh, Kid remembers the simple spoken canine. The casual amusement she dips into her words betraying that much. "Haven't seen you around for a while." The girl pauses near by the rock Hund's clambered up on to near the artificial lake, her head lifted slightly to eye him. "Where you been? Getting in trouble?"
Hund shifts his position, weight leaning forward as the mutant's head is lowered to peer closer at Kid's face. Perhaps poised eight or so inches from her, he snuffles loudly, head tilted to one side to lock a single eye on her. This careful examination continues for some ten - perhaps twelve - seconds before he abruptly flops back into a seated position atop the stone. "Rr? No trruble." ...his throat clears, before he continues with slightly improved gutteral speech. "Ess Kid, yes?"
OOC Note: After this Hund gets customer attacked and gabbed at for 2 hours, unable to continue with the scene.
The gentleman known as Dr. Kelley come walking jauntily into the Plaza Park. He's clearly very happy, whistling, with a bounce in his step. His brown eyes scan the park itself, the benches, the lake, the ducks. His satchel appears to be full of stale bread, probably for throwing to the ducks. Looking at the horizon and the sunlight streaming over, he smiles once more. Who could ask for such a beautiful day after such a beautiful night? His hood is down around his shoulders, his pistol in its shoulder holster, his pick and neural mace swinging from his hips. Spotting the small Inuit woman and the great bear, he quickly angles in their direction, though he's too far to call to them. The sight of the woman makes him grin even wider and he begins to clap his hands against his hips, then together in front of he chest, then repeats the process. Apparently he doesn't care that he looks ridiculous.
Tornaq gives another soft grumble, whuffing air, then shifting his weight on his paws, turning his head to still be watchful of the surroundings, his attention coming to settle on the pairing of Kid and Hund for a brief moment. It would seem that he deems there to be no harm imminent from that pair, as his attention shifts further, looking back over his shoulder. Lifting his nose, he scents the air, giving a rumble for Monique's benefit before otherwise remaining fairly still and simply... waiting, it would seem. The small Inuit shaman, meanwhile, softly lowers to her knees in front of the great white bear, wanting a better vantage point for examining that large paw. Taking a moment, Monique looks up at the bear, speaking quietly to him once again in her native tongue, and then she returns her attention to the paw she holds now in her lap. Yet perhaps something in the bear's rumbling caught her attention, since she only looks down at the paw for a brief moment before lifting her dark-eyed gaze to spy Kelley approaching. Her attention perks, her dark eyes gaining a sparkle to them, and she lifts a hand to wave to him, a warm smile brightening her expression.
Kid arches a brow slightly as Hund leans in to inspect her. Still for those few moments it takes before he finally speaks. "So you say.. and yeah, that's me. Don't think you ever did tell me your name." He might have, but she doesn't recall it. Thus she gives that observation an edge of casual prompt, leaning forward just slightly to give a subtle augmentation to it. THe lean causes her bag to shift, slipping o her shoulder a bit. This distracts her for a moment, the girl quick to grab it before it hits the ground and damages the keyboard that pokes its end out of the drawstring top. "stupid.." Muttered lowly as she secures it again, the strap slung over her head to have the bag lay firm against her back. She fusses with it a few moments before she's satisfied, looking back up toward Hund.
"Hi, Kid, Hund," Kelley recalls from their brief meeting so many weeks ago. However, he continues on his way toward the Inuit woman. Then, "Monique! Tornaq! How are you today?" His eyes lock onto Monique's, probing their depths, searching - and finding. He can't help but grin. Having watched Tornaq in apparent pain, or at least, problem, he asks, "Is everything okay, Tornaq? Want me to take a look at your paw, or does Monique have it taken care of?" Naturally, he assumes that the shaman can take care of her own Spirit Bear, but it can't help but to ask. As he approaches and eventually finds his way next to Monique, he will get down one on knee and give her a big hug, from behind, if need be.
The small Inuit woman watches the scientist approach, and she smiles warmly at him as he reaches her. "We are well enough," she says softly, her tone thoughtful in nature. "How are you today?" she asks warmly, looking up at him as she awaits the answer, her dark eyes sparkling as her gaze meets his own, holding it for a moment. "There is a stone, among the pads of his paw. It is bothering him," Monique says softly, her tone thoughtful, a little worried. She lightly brushes her fingers over the large paw pad, and Tornaq lowers his nose to touch first her shoulder, and then Kelley's, giving a soft rumble. As Kelley comes up behind her for the delivering of a hug, the small woman leans back against him, half closing her eyes as she does. "He will be all right, once it has been removed," she says softly, a smile turning at the corners of her lips. Her attention goes back to the paw, though, and she carefully spreads apart the toe pads to be able to not only see the stone partially imbedded beneath the larger pad but also to be able to remove it.
Kid glances to the side slightly, Kelley answering one question for her. She gives the man a sidelong glance as he passes, by that noting Monique and her big bear. She just looks after Kelley idly, the passing greeting gone unreturned. Though her eyes do linger, studying he and Monique idly. Her expression schooled and cool. Vaguely thoughtful, but without a true tell of what rolls behind her two toned eyes.
Kelley stands back to allow the shaman to attend to her Spirit Bear, certain that she needs no assistance, as the connection between her and her Spirit Bear is probably deeper than he could ever experience. "I am doing fine. I had another meeting at NewTech this morning - always exciting. I'm getting really tired of looking at robot schematics. Ah... a drawing of the inside of the robot," he explains, just in case. "They're all beginning to look alike. I mean, really, how many times can you look at one robot and find something new? At least, something significantly new? Goodness, give us a pause between meetings, summarize a few things at once instead of calling a meeting for every little new discovery." He shakes his head and runs his fingers through his hair. Then, changing tacks, he asks, "How long has Tornaq been hurt?"
It takes her a moment, but she does extract the stone from amongst the paw pads, and she takes a moment to look it over before setting it on the ground. Gently, she runs her fingers over the mildly bruised pad of Tornaq's paw, then looks up at the great white bear for a moment. The bear lowers his nose to her and whuffs softly, nudging at her shoulder briefly before looking to Kelley. "Why do they make so many drawings of the inside?" Monique asks softly, her tone thoughtful in nature. She had been listening, even if she had not been understanding all of what he had said. Shifting her position slightly, she gently rubs a little at the paw pad, easing some of the discomfort that had come there in response to the rock. "I do not know... he did not tell me of it until only a moment before we stopped. I do not think it was there for very long... there was no blood to it," she say softly. Taking a moment just to look over the pad and reassure herself that the great bear is well, she releases the paw before turning to face Kelley, her dark eyes sparkling as her gaze meets his. Tornaq's attention, for the time being, comes to settle on Kid, watching her and studying her.
"Well, that's good. I'm glad that you're better, Tornaq," Kelley says, reaching out to tentatively pat the bear on the shoulder. "Hmm, why do they make so many drawings? That's a good question, Monique, one that I have been asking myself for many a week now. Every day, they find something new, but at this point, it is only something small and insignificant.. that is to say, not important... that they keep finding. Thus, I am wishing that they would wait and only make a drawing of the robot - a schematic - every week or so, so that the changes may be observed - seen - all at once, instead of one small piece at a time. Does that make sense?" the scientist asks his Inuit beau. "Huh, that's the first time that I've used that word with her. I like it!" He thinks to himself. He like it so much in fact, that he asks Monique, "Do you mind if I call you my beau?" with a wide, warm, loving smile and a twinkle in his brown eyes.
Kid eyes distractible Hund for a moment before she turns her immediate attention to her bag. Though even as she starts to pick through the pockets along the side, casually in search of something, the lionshare of her attention is fixed on her special ear. Casually listening to what is said nearby without an obvious tell save, perhaps, for her continued presence nearby. It takes her just a few moments to find what she wants, extracting a battered silver lighter from one of the pockets. She smiles lightly to herself as she shifts her bag back to rest against her back, casually flipping the dully shiny object, snatching it out of the air on decent. Only then does she casually flip the top open, plucking out a slender object from a small compartment within.
The great white bear keeps his attention on Kid, perhaps curious in his own fashion as to what she's rummaging for. Taking his paw from out of Monique's lap, he brings it to rest upon the ground again, applying some of his weight and finding it to be much improved. He gives a soft rumble, then noses his little shaman briefly before giving Kelley similar treatment to his shoulder, and then he brings his attention back to Kid, watching as that slender object is withdrawn. Monique's attention remains on Kelley, though, now that she's been satisfied that her Spirit Bear is well. Tilting her head slightly to one side, she listens to him, taking a moment to piece together what he's said before she gives a small nod. "Yes, it makes sense," she says softly, smiling warmly at him. It helps that he makes the little add-in words after ones he suspects that she doesn't understand. "Mmm... is beau like saying asik?" she asks softly, wanting to understand the word first, and her dark eyes show a warm sparkle in them.
"I think that it translates fairly well - not exactly, and not enough, but fairly well - to asik. I believe that asik is probably a stronger word, from what you've told me, but beau is a pretty word, too, and one that we may both enjoy - along with asik. They can be interchangable," Kelley says with a smile, down on one knee near the shorter shaman. "How long have you two been out?" he asks, looking between his asik Monique and his friend Tornaq. "You were still in when I had to leave. I hope that I didn't wake you?" He sentence ends on an uptick.
Whether the bear can truly understand just what Kid is up to depends on the level of his intellect and awareness of objects and actions. For your average person, it becomes obvious she's about to light up a smoke. The slender, hand rolled object, to those more savvy with intoxicating substances, is a joint. She casually slips one end between her lips and lifts her hands. Flicking the lighter with one, the other raised to shield the flame, despite the lack of wind. Repetition at work. Two light draws taken before she lowers her hands, flicking the lighter closed with a snap of one wrist. Casually holding it as a third, longer draw is taken. Her eyes half lid as her free hand lifts to casually pluck the joint from her lips, eyes opening as she holds the smoke briefly before letting it drift from her lips lazily. "Mmmn.." Softly hummed. Still listening casually, though she doesn't look towards the others as tendrils of smoke waft lazily about her head.
Monique raises an eyebrow slightly as she listens attentively, and then she gives a small nod, her dark eyes sparkling. Learning that the two words are interchangeable gives her another word to be able to use as well, and she likes having more words. "Then, I do not mind you calling me your beau... and it means that I can call you the same," she says brightly, a smile curling at the corners of her lips. Tornaq continues to study Kid's actions, finding them familiar to something that he's seen before, and that she lights a cigarette is enough to make him give a rumble. The sound is enough to distract Monique's attention from Kelley, to instead have her look in the direction that the great bear is watching, and she lifts a hand to lightly pat his front leg nearest her. The bear doesn't seem to approve, but he nderstands that everyone is free to make their own choices. The small Inuit woman brings her attention back to Kelley, and she smiles warmly at him before lightly shaking her head. "You did not wake me, do not worry. Though I did wake shortly after you had left," she admits, then adds, "We have not been out for very long. A short time." She hasn't come to understand the concept of hours and minutes, yet. Something else that Kelley will likely teach her, in time.
Kelley catches a whiff of Kid's joint on the wind, having previously been paying the woman no attention - not a snub, mind you, just more interest over here. Though he feels a certain amount of displeasure at Kid, he doesn't show it, his face remaining happily stoic. "There's a reason why they call them coffin nails, Monique. You should never ever smoke one. Especially one like that, which sends your brain into a bit of la-la land. Not a harsh la-la land, mind you, but certain other drugs can do terrible things to you. If anyone ever asks you to try something, and you don't know what it is - and it just doens't feel right - don't take it. Though I hardly have to tell you that, you're a grown woman, but still, since the city can be a much different place, and I don't want you to be hurt, I'll say it anyway." He smiles, hoping that he hasn't insulted.
Kid glances towards the bear at its rumble, She eyeing the big, white beast a moment before she asks, voice raised just so, "What's his problem?" More flippant in tone than a true acknowledgment of the beast's awareness of things beyond that of normal critters. She shifts her attention towards Kelly as he takes the moment to badmouth her nasty habit, the girl seeming more amused than bothered by it. "Don't let the square put you off a little fun, girl." Addressing Monique casually. "Been smoking these for years. You know how to take it in moderation, it ain't no problem," she states. "Same thing with a little drink too." Casually eyeing Kelley before she looks to Monique and grins. "You ever want a hit, you let me know. True enough you should be careful what you get. Some punks like to cut bad shit into em, but I got connections. I only deal with the reliable businessmen."
The small Inuit woman looks up at Kelley, listening as he explains to her a few things which she had previously been rather uneducated about. It's not like such things tend to reach the North, after all. Blinking a little, she looks towards Kid briefly before bringing her attention back to the scientist near to her. "The city is a different place than the North... with more dangers," she says softly, her tone thoughtful. "There are many things I do not know, so being told of this, it does not bother me. I do not mind that you say it anyways," she adds, a warm smile touching her lips. Yet her attention turns back to Kid, and then she lightly shakes her head. "I am sorry, he means no offense. He just does not like the smoke, because it is... unfamiliar," she says, speaking with a bit more volume to ensure that her words will be heard by Kid. "Thank you, for offering... but no, thank you. I do not usually smoke," she adds, then chews a little on the inside of her lower lip. She does smoke, rarely -- but it's a different sort of thing, and typically for the purpose of ritual or ceremony and considered by her something to be done only during those times.
Kelley inclines his head toward Kid. "I apologize, I meant no disrespect. Just opinion," comes the tones in a low tenor. He had assumed that there were ritual, ceremonial smokings, but they hardly counted, and he doesn't ask Monique about such. "I want to do something special tonight, Monique. You showed me your version of a fancy meal - I'll show you mine - the kind that you eat in, at least, not out." He looks at the woman with a smile. "How does beef sound? Potatoes, carrots and corn - maize. A little salad to start things off, then a surprise dessert to finish the meal. How does that sound?" Kelley asks with a laugh in his eyes. "You are delightful, Monique..." and then he is at a loss. "Monique, do you have a last name? A clan name?"
"Up to you, but you know who to talk to if you want some quality," Kid replies to Monique with a casual little grin. "Good prices too." She then glances at Kelley and her grin shifts into a sly smirk. "Lots of people say they don't mean to offend. Sometimes I wonder if they really mean it, or if its something to say, to deflect someone getting pissed at what flies past their lips." She lifts the joint for a lighter, more casual draw, the smoke released with her next words. "If I asked you to be honest with me, Kelley, would you have the guts to do it?"
Monique tilts her head slightly to one side, taking a moment to study him as he makes an apology, and though she wonders why he does, she doesn't ask at the moment. Blinking a little with a moment of surprise, she shifts her position to be closer to him, and then she gives a small nod, and she giggles softly as he makes the distinction between eating in or eating out, finding some amusement there. "Whatever you wish to make, I will try it. I do not think I have had beef, much," she says softly, her tone thoughtful and eager as well, since to her ears, it sounds good. But then, any meat served here is different than anything she'd have had in the North, except for fish. "A clan name? Yes. It is Anuniaq," she offers, curious as to why he'd asked for it and thus giving him a bit of a puzzled look. Though at the last of Kid's words, her puzzled expression turns in that direction, as she's confused... again. "Why would someone not speak truly?" she asks softly, her brow furrowing a little.
Kelley's interest is piqued by Kid's remark. "As far as I know, I am always honest," he replies, "Except when decorum or necessary secrecy dictates otherwise. And if I was only trying to brush your feelings away, I probably would have done what the kids do today and say simply, 'I'm sorry your offended' not 'I'm sorry that I offended you.'" He frowns at Kid for a moment before turning back to Monique. "Ah, Monique Anuniaq, a pretty name for a pretty lady," he says, going to tweak her nose again. He considers all of the ramifications of a lie. "Some people don't speak truly - a lie - because it is convenient for them. It deflects what may be an ugly truth, or it may simply be for entertainment purposes. Some people lie because they are afraid of the truth, and what may become of them because of it. For instance, if a child breaks a window with a rock, and he is asked why he broke the window, he might lie, and say that he didn't do it, because he was afraid of the consequences - what might happen to him."
Kid looks to Monique with a sly little smile at her question. "Lots of reasons. Because the truth might upset for one. Hell, if I'm face to face with some ugly as sin bruiser, I'm not going to tell him to his face he's ugly so he can have a reason to beat me down. Or little white lies about things that don't matter cause they don't want to mess up a friendship. Or any number of other reasons." She shrugs slightly. "You ever lied before?" A casual question to Monique before she fixes on Kelley. "So what do you think about me, Kelley? What do you really think?" Her two toned eyes given a subtle narrow of challenge. "And give it to me straight, man.. no playful beating around the bush to make things more diplomatic and not so 'hurtful'. I'm a big girl, I've been insulted by some pretty tough customers. Not much you can say to bother me."
Monique studies first Kelley, and then Kid, each for a lingering moment as she considers what each of them has said. Frowning a little, but only as she's giving each person's words some thought before speaking herself. The tweaking of her nose by Kelley is successful, causing her to almost startle and to go cross-eyed, the former since she hadn't really been paying attention to where his hands were. She's conflicted with this notion of speaking false words. Though to the question asked her by Kid, she lightly shakes her head. "No, I have never spoken words that do not have the truth in them. There has never been a need," she says softly, her brow furrowing slightly. She finds it hard to imagine there being a need for her to do so. Better, she was taught, to not speak than to speak falsely. Only then does she recall Kelley having complimented her name, and she looks up at him through her lashes. "It is an old name, among my people... Anuniaq, that is," she says softly, shyness creeping into her words.
Without hesitation, Kelley says, "I find you brusque, annoying, childish and actually a little naïve. I think that you put on a tough front because you're afraid to admit that you're a little scared to be 'alone' - lack of a better word - in a dangerous city, dealing with dangerous people over dangerous things. I think that you actually want someone close, but you're too afraid to admit it to go out looking. I think that you have good qualities; you're industrious, useful, intelligent, trustworthy so far as our dealings have gone, caring to those you deem worthy, and perhaps a little playful, which is never a bad thing, unless it's done for bad purposes." The scientist quirks an eyebrow up and stares at Kid. "Is that honest enough for you?" Turning his attention to Monique, he says, "It is wonderful that you have never spoken falsely. Falsities only lead to mroe
Without hesitation, Kelley says, "I find you brusque, annoying, childish and actually a little naive. I think that you put on a tough front because you're afraid to admit that you're a little scared to be 'alone' - lack of a better word - in a dangerous city, dealing with dangerous people over dangerous things. I think that you actually want someone close, but you're too afraid to admit it to go out looking. I think that you have good qualities; you're industrious, useful, intelligent, trustworthy so far as our dealings have gone, caring to those you deem worthy, and perhaps a little playful, which is never a bad thing, unless it's done for bad purposes." The scientist quirks an eyebrow up and stares at Kid. "Is that honest enough for you?" Turning his attention to Monique, he says, "It is wonderful that you have never spoken falsely. Falsities only lead to more trouble. There are some occasions where, as Kid points out, a lie may be preferable to the truth, and we may speak of those later. It is different in this culture than in your culture or mine." He smiles a sad smile and then grins as he moves to playfully ruffle her hair.
Kid smirks as Kelley lays it all out. "Good enough, though you don't know me so well as you like to think. Of course, you never really try to, do you." Her brows rise. "Of course, even if you tried, why would I help you out with that? I don't particularly care for you and your condescending, high and mighty attitude either, man. Most who think they're better than other around them aren't, or so I've found. I bet you'd be a meddler." Her tone thoughtful on that last. She takes a casual draw off her joint, releasing it through her nose along with the breath taken in, in a soft rush. She glances at Monique. "Sweet off of him, huh?" Her brows lifted slightly at that. "I suppose there's someone for everyone." Her tone oblique enough to obfuscate the true intent behind those words.
Some things are far simpler in the North than here. Here, she's learning, there are rules to rules and exceptions to nearly everything, which makes it all the more complicated for her to try to learn how things are done. Blinking a little, she looks up as Kelley as he speaks so candidly about Kid, herself having had only limited experience with the other woman. And there are words there that she doesn't understand, which is frustrating for her. "This culture has many differences, it seems. Speaking falsely seems... a dangerous thing. What would happen, if the one you spoke something untrue to, if that person then learned the truth of things from another? I cannot imagine it being well," Monique says softly. As Kelley ruffles her hair, the motion draws a smile from her, her expression easing away from puzzlement. Tornaq rumbles softly, then lowers his nose to lightly touch Monique's shoulder, whuffing a bit of air at her, no doubt sensing the gradually building frustration within her. The large bear shifts his weight slightly, reasserting his protectiveness yet not seeming about to cause any harm to anyone. The confusion returns, with the speaking of more words that she doesn't understand. Sigh. "A... meddler?" she asks, puzzled, her voice reflecting that. "'Sweet off of him'? I do not understand," she says softly, lightly shaking her head. She understands the words, but... in this context, to her, it just doesn't make sense.
Kelley purses his lips and shrugs. "I never claimed to know you, you just asked what I thought of you." Beyond that, he rebuts nothing, though he doesn't appear to agree with any of it, either. He looks to Monique. "Yes, it is always bad when a lie is discovered. That is why I find it best to tell the truth, even if it hurts. Some people think that 'little white lies' are okay, but I think that they're just as bad as full lies. I am a meddler, I admit. A meddler would be someone who puts himself into other people's business - into someone else's life - when it was not necessarily asked for. I meddle, because I try to help people. I do what I can to right what wrongs I see, in my view, my opinion." He smiles at Monique and says, "By sweet off of him, she just means that you love me." He pauses, sensing her frustration, quirking his head to one side and asking, "Does that make more sense?"
"Means you like him as a boyfriend, girl," Kid informs Monique. "'Sweet on him', that is. As to meddlers, they're people that like to poke their noses into someone's personal life and other such things, screwing around with things, thinking the person needs their help when all they usually end up doing is fouling things up worse than they were before. Had a few of those bouncing around in my own, but they've stopped and lo and behold, things are nice and smooth again. Keep that in mind, yeah? Don't let just anyone get their fingers into your life, cause you never know who will mess it up." She shifts her attention to Kelley then and smirks faintly. "You might want to stop meddling. Not everyone needs a 'hero' trying to fix up their personals. Just cause something seems wrong to you don't make it so. Better you keep yours to yours and leave others to theirs unless they come looking for you to dip your fingers in."
It's not the first time that she's been frustrated from being confused, and it unfortunately won't be the last time, either. Looking to Kelley, she gives a small nod when he addresses her question about a lie being discovered, and then she lifts a hand to brush aside a bit of her hair, smoothing it behind one of her ears. She's quiet for a lingering moment, but she does give a small nod. "It makes sense, yes... thank you," she says quietly, her tone sincere, and she takes a moment to look up at him, a bit of a smile touching her lips. "Helping others is not a bad thing to want to do," Monique says quietly, truly believing that. But then, in her culture -- helping is something to be expected and something that happens whether asked for or not. For not the first time, she thinks of her culture as being simpler than this one.
Kelley is clearly done with Kid's conversation. Moving to give her a hug, Kelley says, "I'm glad. I can try to explain more to you over dinner. For now, it looks to be approaching lunchtime. Would you care to see if Tornaq would allow is until the Silver Fork? Or at least, some more ice cream?" He wiggles his eyebrows at the woman, hoping that she'll remember the flavored snow from before. "Or perhaps just take a walk through the Merchant's Plaza and see which exotic wares are being bought and sold today?"
Kid continues to wear her casual smirk as she observes the two casually. "Keep in mind, girl, that 'helping' when someone doesn't ask for it is rarely a good thing. Path to ruin paved with good intentions and all that." She leaves off on Kelley then, casually observing the two of them as she takes another casual puff. "For example, some genius thought that lifting me into the air with his freaky mind powers would calm me down when I was upset once. Trust me, it made things worse." Her smirk firming a little as she looks back to that rather colorful moment in mind.
Monique tilts her head slightly to one side as she takes a moment to look up at him, and then she willingly moves into the hug that he offers. It's refreshing, really. And it helps to wash away the frustration that was building, to take that back into the background of emotions in her. It takes a lot of effort for her to try to understand the intricacies of the english language, and to try to get a grasp on all the different words and sayings held in it. The small woman draws a deep breath, then releases it softly, feeling a little better than she had been. At the mention of ice cream, she can't help but to perk her attention and look up at him, her dark eyes sparkling, a bit of a shine in them. "Ice cream... yes, please," Monique affirms, giving a small nod. "Then, maybe, a walk in the plaza," she adds, her tone thoughtful. Looking to Kid, she then gives a small nod, considering the last part of that. "I understand," she says quietly. Though it's likely something that she will given some considerable thought to later, as well.
OOC Note: Simple, abrupt scene ending.
Tags:caliopa, hund, kelley, kid, monique
