5323/Just a day at the beach... With Gaige

Just a day at the beach... With Gaige
Date of Scene:	20 June 2017
Location:	Beach City <BC>
Synopsis:	Gaige and Ferham go to beach city and meet Steven Universe! Things get OFF THE HOOK! And Gaige causes more property damage, which Josuke fixes.
Cast of Characters:	1112, 516, 1023, 1119

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Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige had the biggest grin on her face, panting with exertion as she laid on top of the building by the beach. The flaming wreckage of the speed boat she'd stol-- borrowed in pieces. And on fire. Hence the flaming part. Scattered across the beach. She was wearing a one piece, tanning lotion besides her, resting on the building.

Ferham was probably getting yelled at by the mayor by now. Cause like... if they were smart, they WEREN'T yelling at Gaige.

Ferham (516) has posed:
     15 minutes ago.

     Ferham had laid down on the beach with Gaige in a red swimsuit, with beach towels laid out, a cooler full of water, juice and soda and had brought along amenities like suntan lotion, aloe vera, the works--and had laid down to have a bit of a siesta during this (rare) quiet outing with Gaige.

     The next thing she knew, Gaige was yelling and screaming at folks after stealing a speedboat she'd stolen after heading out into the beach herself, and she'd shot awake. But it was like... a dream for humans, where they have to throw a punch at something, but their arms and legs turn to jell-o, and everything begins to happen in slow motion and all you could do... was watch.

     "GAAAAAIGE!"

     She had packed up everything satchel style in the two beachtowels, and was now /running down the beach after the speedboat, since clearly they were not going to be left alone after /this/.

Steven Universe (1023) has posed:
&r&rSteven Universe appears running along the beach from behind a bluff face near the water, a small fire extinguisher in hand. About halfway between the bluff and the flaming wreck, he trips over his own flipflop and almost faceplants on the ground before a pink forcefield springs up around him, rolling a few more feet before coming to a stop. The field then pops like soap bubble, and he runs the rest of the way, panting.&r&r

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige glanced up and then smiled. "HEY! Ferham, what took you so long!" she yelled, grinning wide and waving. Ohhh, she had a crowd. Oh, some of them looked piiiiissed. "Oh, don't worry, they probably had insurance or something," she yelled, waving a hand and... "This has been another BAD ASS stunt by GAIGE! The Mechromancer, the most BAD ASS vault hunter in all the multiverse!" She lifted an index finger to the sky as fire works went off behind her.

WHEN DID SHE HAVE TIME TO SET THAT UP?!

Ferham (516) has posed:
     Ferham, in mid run is able to 'flash' her undersuit and armor back on--now appearing in her usual state. She does this only as her wings flare out and she ascends into the air--flying toward the flaming wreckage even as she focuses a cone of super-cooled air and water directly down onto it--trying to hose off the fire with ice and cold. She seemed like she was there to help--which was likely good for the poor people and the marine life on the beach. She would freeze the area around it so engine oil or fuel couldn't leak out into the water or catch fire, as well.

     "There... I think it's okay now," she still held the sack of beachtowels and supplies over her shoulder--her eyes wide as she quickly turns her head to GLARE at Gaige's direction!

Steven Universe (1023) has posed:
    Steven stops as the girl who was also running summons power armor, turns into a jet and freezes the burning wreckage...? Stunned for a moment, he drops the fire extinguisher and stares, then starts clapping!

    "That's amazing!"

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige glanced over and... "Dude, Gaige! That was awesome! Should I start some mroe fires so you can put them-- oh. Eep." That was a biiiiig glare. She kinda huddled down behind the edge of the roof.

"I, err... eh heh... I'm sorry I woke you up?" she tried, giving a nervous chuckle. Oh, that was a reallllly pissed off looking Ferham. And hey, even if Gaige was a brat, she didn't like pissing off her friends.

Ferham (516) has posed:
     Ferham took extra special care to douse the fire and make sure there would be no danger to either the people or the animals around the wreckage--before she turned her attention toward Gaige. She began at first to admonish her--but then realized something... she could make this a bit easier if she handled it a bit more subtly. Flying over to the roof, Ferham would more or less grab Gaige by the scruff of her clothes and begin to lower her down off the top of the building, planting her on the ground for now, like she was there to 'apprehend her'.

     "So, what do you have to say for yourself?"

Steven Universe (1023) has posed:
    "So, umm, hi! Is everyone okay?" He looks far more concerned than one might expect, and not at all angry.

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige squeaked and then stared up at Ferham. She grumbled out of the corner of her mouth. "I put on the stupid dress and drank the dirty water..." she grumbled. There were still fragments of the dress on her body. "I just, you know. I guess I'm... sorry?" she said, with a shrug. And yeah, everyone's fine. I didn't HIT anyone with it, none of these people are like, bandits or shit." Such a potty mouth.

Ferham (516) has posed:
     "We're fine, I was just putting out the fire and making sure no one was hurt--and making sure this one didn't run off," she glared down at Gaige still, but turned to Steven as he put her down.

     "I'm sorry for the mess, nobody seems to have been hurt, so things seem to be alright... except for the poor person who owned that boat," she looked back at Gaige.

     "This isn't Pandora, you can't do things like that, you realize," she gave Gaige a nudge. Either way, she had let Gaige down and didn't seem to have a desire to let authorities take her.

Steven Universe (1023) has posed:
    "No, I mean, I think that's my dad's boat, and there was a crash or a fire, and I was worried that... Never mind. Ummm, hi, I'm Steven. It's nice to meet you!"

    Steven offers a hand to shake, seemingly unfazed by the damaged boat.

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige sighed, shrugging. "Ugh. Fine! I'm sorry, okay? Won't happen again! But seriously, it had the keys in it! How was I supposed to ignore that?"

Then glanced down to Steven and... reached out a fist. "Hey there lil guy. Name's Gaige, most bad ass Vault Hunter in the multiverse. I'm sure you've heard of me. That's your dads boat? Totally a sick ride. I got like, ten feet of air on that thing. Was totally OFF! THE! HOOK!" Then urked and glanced to Ferham. "Which was bad and I will not do it again. R-right?" she said nervously.

Ferham (516) has posed:
     "I'm Ferham, from Giga City--I don't have a family name, and yes, this is my friend... Gaige, are you sure you're not going to call the authorities on us? I didn't expect my friend here would cause such... chaos and destruction," she reached over and shook Gaige a little by the shoulders, gently.

     "Next time you want to ride a speedboat, ask me about helping rent one--and no crashing it and nearly getting people hurt, you understand? Other worlds have different laws and customs than Pandora's," she looked back to Steven.

     "She has some difficulty understanding the customs of other worlds, you see," she sighed.

Steven Universe (1023) has posed:
    Steven chuckles mirthfully. "Oh no, the people here are used to some wackiness, but try not to break the city or hurt anyone. They still talk about the redeye that broke a buncha stuff. But I mean, that wasn't our fault and everyone knows that. Anyway... Did you just turn into a giant robot then a jet? Because that is so cool!"

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige nods. "Oh yeah, Ferham is awesome like that! I'll try not to break anything. OR borrow any more boats, I guess," she muttered grudgingly. She then held out a hand. "Oh? You like her, well, you'll -love- this." And then summoned death trap.

PEOPLE RAN!

Ferham (516) has posed:
     "Least not here, anyway--if you wanted to screw around and steal things and blow them up there are probably better places for that--better places than a peaceful and relatively safe world with civilians and innocent creatures around," She shook Gaige again a bit. "I don't like seeing people hurt," and then, Deathtrap came out.

     "Damnit--Gaige, was it really necessary to summon him?!" she turned aside to Steven. "Again, I apologize for my friend, she's... exciteable," she sighed again, shoulders slumping. She looked up to Steven again.

     "I have wings--on my armor, what I did was flash my armor on, since I was not in it when this whole thing started," she explained.

Steven Universe (1023) has posed:
    Steven looks up and up at the mecha, actual stars in his eyes. "Maaan, that's as cool as when Pearl and Peridot made giant robots and got into this big fight, but yours looks... more dangerous. Why is the world so cruel that giant robots have to fight?"
    The melodrama is strong with this one! He looks genuinely anguished for a few seconds, watery eyes and everything, but then recovers. "So, you make machines?"

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige blinked a few times. "Y-yeah. Giant... robots have to fight. Eh... heh heh." And patted him on the head. Then shrugged, and picked him up, hug time! "Aw, screw it! You know what? You're adorable you lil tiny squishy buddy!" she said with a big grin, giving him big squeeze and hug, then chuckled. "Yeah, world sucks sometimes, but what can you do? So, I think might be best if we uhhh, canceled the whole visit to my world, kiddo." Yeahhhhh. She didn't think he could handle watching bandits getting pulped.

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
That seems like a good place to start, Josuke realizes. People are running away, so whatever is happening that they're running away from is probably the source of the problem. And it's pretty hard to miss the giant legless robot supporting itself with hands on long arms instead of legs. So instead of running AWAY, he runs in that general direction!

It'll eventually take him to the boardwalk, where the conversation is going on. He pauses, as Gaige apparently hugs someone? Blinks. "Uh... was there a broken boat around here?" It's the young fella's voice from the radio, who offered to fix the boat. He sounds like a teenager, and looks (mostly) Japanese. But he's built pretty big, particularly in the upper body. And his hair's done up in a smart-looking pompadour! He's wearing a dark-colored school uniform with loose pants. The lapels are open and pinned with large gold pins.

Ferham (516) has posed:
     Ferham looks down at the ground for a moment with a sigh.

     "I don't know, humans make robots, and then sometimes we fight, I can't tell you," clearly Steven has accidentally stumbled on a bit of a sore spot for Ferham, not that she seems angry or upset at him about it, just melancholy for a moment.

     She folded her arms in front of her as she watched Gaige hug Steven, if she was trying to be cute to butter Fer up, well--she wasn't going to admit if it was working or not.

     "Hello there, stranger," she'd say to Josuke, looking up at him up and down, before offering a gloved, bird-like clawed hand to him for a shake.

     "I'm Ferham, and this is my... partner Gaige," she motioned towards the redhead.

Steven Universe (1023) has posed:
    Steven looks for a moment like he recognized something important in what Ferham said and empathizes, but is easily distracted by new people. He turns and waves hello with a smile.

    "Hey there!" He offers a hand to shake as well, very adult. "I'm Steven, and you look so! Awesome!"

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
Josuke isn't going to comment on the tail end of a conversation he wasn't privy to the beginning of. That would be rude. He does however, offer a reassuring smile to Ferham when she seems upset about something. And he returns the handshake. He has big hands for a kid his age, and his handshake is firm. Nowhere near enough to hurt Ferham, though. "Good to meet you!" he offers. "My name's Josuke Higashikata!" The smile is broad and friendly.

He also nods to Gaige. "Hi there again!" he offers. So it seems that they've met, apparently. "<Great> to see you again. Wish it'd have been under better circumstances though. But I'm glad you're okay, anyway."

Steven's handshake is also returned, with the same parameters as Ferham's was -- big hands, firm handshake but not enough to be painful. The compliment gets a broad grin, and a slightly sheepish chuckle. "Heh... thank you," he offers humbly, bowing his be-pompadour'd head slightly. "Good to meet you, Steven." He figures Steven probably heard his name. Probably rather needlessly, he offers, "I was the one who offered to fix the boat." He doesn't seem to have brought any tools with him, though...

Ferham (516) has posed:
     Ferham returns the handshake to Josuke, smiling a little and nodding her head in return to his smile and greeting. "A Gentleman, huh? I don't meed a lot of those out here," Ferham is not doing this to mess with Gaige and make her jealous of this new friend of hers... probably.

     "So what are you two boys doing out here this late in the evening?" she asks with casual curiosity, apparently having relaxed a bit more now that she's sent Gaige off to see about the wreckage with her torso-bot, there.

Steven Universe (1023) has posed:
    "Well, I was watching the ocean and playing on my guitar before I saw the fire. My house is just over that way, around the hill." He points at the bluff, which from this angle one can just see a big stone hand palm up in the air with a washer and dryer resting on it, about 30 feet in the air.

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
Josuke smiles at the mention of him being a gentleman. "Well... honestly, if Mom heard I acted like a delinquent, she'd MURDER me," he notes. "So I guess you'd say she raised me right." As for what he's doing out here? "I was listening to the radio and heard that uh, someone broke a boat and caused some trouble." He's trying to be polite. "I can fix things, so when I heard that it belonged to someone that was listening, I offered to come and fix it."

He also turns to look as Steven points in the direction of his... 'house'? Josuke blinks. "That's... a house?" he asks. "It looks like a hand from a statue or something." He doesn't sound condescending or rude, just curious and more than a little confused.

Ferham (516) has posed:
     "It's true, my friend has a strange concept of personal property laws," Ferham shook her head, meaning Gaige, as she looked back down the beach at her--responding to Josuke. Her attention is drawn to Steven's strangely shaped house, as well. "Likely some kind of architectural avant-garde style," she didn't seem to be too concerned about it. She'd seen weirder things that creatures lived in, after all.

     "I take it this made quite a mess, I wasn't intending on making such a scene when I came here with her, I was just trying to have a quiet afternoon, relaxing--trying to show her how human culture works from other worlds," she sighs. "I think my efforts might need some... escalation, I'm afraid."

Steven Universe (1023) has posed:
"Oh, no, that's part of the temple. The house is in front of the temple, the Gems built it there when Dad agreed to let them help raise me." He seems so bright and happy talking about his family.

    "Dad's boat is over there." He points to where Gaige is just finished collecting the broken parts to the scorched main hull.

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige sighed and rolled her eyes. "Ughhhhh. Ferham, I swear. It's like your my mom or something. Between you and Mad Moxxie it's like you guys don't want me to have any fun. 'Gaige, don't play with grenades', 'Gaige, don't eat stuff off the floor', 'gaige, wear a pretty sun dress', 'Gaige, don't pick your nose'. I mean, come on. It's like you want my life to be BORING. You know what? I did the boring thing. You know what it got me? Living on Pandora!" she snapped.

Then glanced to the kid and... "Oh, that reminds me. Steven, I got you a gift for when I came to your world!" And then... gave him a gun. A pistol. It had blue shiny, sparkly bits. "It shoots acid!" she said proudly.

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
Josuke pouts a little bit, as Ferham notes Gaige's... eccentricities. "I've been to her world. It's... not friendly," he says. "Not to make excuses for her, but when the locals' idea of a 'greeting' is to turn you into Swiss cheese and then pick through the remains, I can kind of understand how people there would be... different." As for 'escalation'? Josuke chews his lip slightly, thinking about that. "You'd have to be careful... forcing things on her would make her resent you. She likes action, right? There must be some sort of relatively safe activity that thrill seekers would like doing that also doesn't allow for so much collateral damage.

At the explanation from Steven, Josuke looks back to the floating hand, this time down on the ground where Steven said the house was. "Oh, okay! I see now!" He doesn't, not completely -- this whole 'Gems' business he's not too familiar wish aside from having heard some chatter on the radio.

Gaige gets a sympathetic look. "That's what I mean," he says. "When just crossing a street can mean you end up with a couple hundred new vent-holes, typical things that people find 'relaxing' just won't do it. Like when you get addicted to pain pills -- you keep needing to take more and more to make the pain go away." However, he winces at the gift. To Steven, he cautions, "You uh. Might want to not point that at people too much."

Though there is the problem of that broken boat! He heads over to the shattered sea craft, and starts looking it over thoughtfully.

Ferham (516) has posed:
     "This area is quiet and easy going, located on the seaside here--that's why I thought it might be good for Gaige to get some exposure to a world that's different than her own, and not as dangerous, or hostile," Ferham nodded, gesturing to the surroundings of Beach City. "It's not that I don't want her to have fun, I knew of this place from before the sundering--I came here a few times with Peach," she apparently enjoyed their time here, too. Course, Fer had never been here on confed business either, she doesn't recall--not that she was one for a lot of bloodshed or property damage, as she'd said.

     "Gaige," she remarks in a scolding tone when she starts waving her 'toys' around a bit too much. "You might scare someone, come now."

Steven Universe (1023) has posed:
Steven accepts the gift with a serious expression. "Thank you, Gaige! I will take good care of it."

    He makes a point to keep it pointed in a safe direction at all times. "And yeah, Beach city is great for relaxing, there's lots of fun things to do. And if any corrupted gems show up, you can help poof them if you like!

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige blinked a few times. Then a wide grin. "Wait, we can fight crap here? I'm TOTALLY in! Ferham, why didn't you say we could-- err... I mean... eh heh..."

She adorably chewed on one of her finger tips. "I mean, err. Can we pleeeeeeease fight some of these corrupted thingies and blow them up? Or, well, shoot them a lot? since I'm not allowed to use explosives this week... ugh. such a drag..." she grumbled, kicking the sand.

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
"Sundering?" Josuke's world unified after the Multiverse threw up on itself and everything got rearranged to get out of the path of the bile, so he's not privy to what happened to make the current Multiverse the way it is. He also notes, "Yeah, I can understand. But her idea of 'fun' is different from... a lot of other people's, so..."

He does snicker a bit at Gaige's grumbling. It reminds him of when his mother grounds him. Which is... kind of funny, but also kind of perspective-shifting! But yes. BOAT!

"<Crazy Diamond!>" he calls out, and a purple aura springs to life around him. And then a similarly colored purple 'splash' rises from his chest, backwards over his shoulders, coalescing into a pink figure with blue armor that has a definite heart motif. The figure floats a few inches above the ground rather than standing.

And as soon as it appears, the figure... seems to start punching the broken fragments of boat, with a loud, ascending, "DORARARARA!" But rather than destroying the pieces further, an orange-gold aura surrounds the pieces, they start to float... and then knit back together! Standing people beware -- pieces of the boat that haven't been gathered will also fly from wherever they landed, to join to the whole.

And if all goes as planned? In a few short moments, the boat will be in one piece again!

Steven Universe (1023) has posed:
    "If any show up, yeah we can fight them. Just don't break the actual gems." He pulls up his shirt to expose a rosy pink quartz gem where one might expect a navel.

    "Like mine. Their bodies poof if they get hurt enough, but if you break their gems I might not be able to heal them, and I really think I can. They're people, just... confused.

Ferham (516) has posed:
     "If anyone was attacking it like that, he means--and a corrupted gem... I've not run into the like before with my experience with Gems," Ferham shrugs a little. She noticed the nail chewing and batted a gloved hand at her at that. "Gaige, that's very poor manners," she huffed, sounding like she was a little exasperated.

     "And oh, alright--if any corrupted gems show up, you can help bubble them," she relents after a bit. Though it seems to take her a bit. It's like she's trying to figure out if Gaige has been 'good' enough lately to be using explosives.

     "The sundering, it's the term most commonly used to describe the reformation of the multiverse--it might have been before you arrived, however. When Diamond appeared, she blinked a little, leaning back before regaining her footing.

     "Ah, a stand user, I've met them before," she blinks, after tilting her head this way and that. She was impressed when the motorboat reformed, however.

     "Thank you, that should help with any repercussions that we might have caused here, I appreciate it," she smiled, putting a hand on Josuke's shoulder and leaning closer while he was distracted--Mwah~ Yes, she just gave him a peck on the cheek for that. The allusions to Birds with her armor probably makes this even more amusing.

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige blinked and then shrugged. Before glancing to the boat. "Hey, let's go for another ride, now that it's--" And then, likely prompted by a look from Ferham, shut her yap. "Sooo. Gems. Right. Don't break the gems, healable. Gotcha. I'll see what I can do, kiddo. Ferham, let's go get some tacos, okay?"

Then... "OH MY GOSH!! Ferham, are you crushing on JOSUKE?! That's so cute!" OH MY GOSH GAIGE YOU CAN'T JUST SAY THAT! "Dude, she must really like you, I mean, she never even kisses ME on the cheek. Well, okay, not often at least."

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
    Once Josuke is satisfied with his repair job, Crazy Diamond's figure seems to blur into energy again, and that energy is absorbed back into Josuke. His purple aura disappears, and he nods once, firmly. "There. Looks like it's fixed."

He turns to look at Ferham as she explains the 'sundering'. He probably did show up after it, he figures. But then she says 'Stand-user'... and his eyes go wide. "Really?!" He sounds either excited or afraid, it's hard to tell. Maybe both! "Who? When?" Whatever the reason, it seems SUPER-IMPORTANT!

Oh but then he ends up with a kiss on the cheek! Predictably he blushes, raising a hand to rub at the back of his head with a patently quite silly grin. "Ahaha... well, I didn't want his dad to have to buy a new boat, right? These things are super-expensive where I'm from." And he lives in a port town!

He blinks at Gaige's mention of Ferham and her selective kisses on the cheek. "Really?" he asks. Aaaaand that just makes the blush get darker. Though he's still grinning that silly grin. He's a teenager, of course he's going to blush and silly-grin when a pretty lady kisses him on the cheek!

Ferham (516) has posed:
     Ferham leans back from Joesuke's cheek and blinks, giving him his personal space back as well. She had really just seemed like she wanted to thank him for his help, but now Gaige was making a scene out of it. Well, when /didn't/ Gaige make a scene out of something was a better question. Ferham felt pretty silly having had to dwell a few moments on that question, before leaning back and rolling her eyes a bit.

     "Gaaaige," she said, as if chastising her a bit, but didn't seem to stop her tirade, either. She stared a bit blanky ahead for a moment, as if she was stressed or frazzled, then looked back at Gaige and Josuke, nodding.

     "Correct, I knew Linne K. Park, she was able to use that same power," she sits and sighs a little bit when Josuke reacts to Gaige talking about how often Fer kisses either of them, her arms crossed.

     "I keep forgetting Gaige has no social filter..." she puts her head into her hand for a moment, the black gloved hand covering most of it, embarrassed.

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige blinked and then chuckled. "Well, can't say I blame her. You're pretty cute, aside from like, the hair. But eh, the confidence with itt and stuff makes the hair kinda cool, so I don't know. Like a hammer, I guess. But yeah, you get her tiger. Like, totally. If you had a few bad ass robot parts, I'd probably be all over you myself."

She gave him a wink, before... "You know what? i want tacos." AND THEN RAN OFF TOWARDS THE TACO STAND! BY THE BEACH! FERHAM STOP HER!

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
On the bright side, Josuke doesn't seem to mind Gaige's bluntness. He doesn't look uncomfortable. Just sort of goofy. Though Ferham's giving her a name of a Stand user! He makes a note of it; Jotaro would probably want to know about her. He nods. "A lot of Stand-users have started popping up in Morioh lately, Jo... er, my nephew said." He doesn't mention that his nephew is almost thirty, though!

Gaige's statement is so confusing! Is it a compliment? An insult? Josuke isn't quite sure, and he blinks at her, confused. He doesn't have time to get insulted though; suddenly she's sprinting away! "H-hey wai..." And then she's gone. He looks at Ferham. "Um... should we go after her...?"

Ferham (516) has posed:
     "I believe they call it a pompadour," Ferham mentions casually in an aside to Gaige's comment about Josuke's hair. It was rather... well, fetching. "You'll have to excuse my friend here, she's a bit tactless and well, a bit of a robosexual," she folded her arms with a smirk as she looked at Gaige and Jo to watch their reactions.

     And then Gaige runs off. Ferham doesn't immediately react or give chase, but she does look back at Josuke.

     "We probably should, least before she hurts herself, I can tell you more on the way," she nodded.

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige was just over there, by the stand and... Okay, INSIDE the stand, making it. "Yeah yeah. Relax, I'll pay!" THIS WAS NOT A MAKE YOUR OWN TACO STAND! But, um, crazy lady. With a nearby hovering death robot. Theyweregonnalethermakehertaco.

Soon, she had a MEGA taco, sitting on the edge of the card, chewing on it. "Oh man this is so raaaad. Wait, is this real meat? Duuuuuude. I think this is ACTUAL meat! Like, not made of a human or skag or nothing! Actual meat! This place is AWESOME! Ferham, you got this, right?"

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
Josuke raises an eyebrow. "Robo...sexual?" He looks horribly confused. "Is that... even a thing?" he asks. Quickly he adds, raising his hands, "I mean! N-not that I'm judging. Just... I've never heard that before." But yes, going after Gaige is probably a good idea. So he heads over to the taco stand, likely following Ferham.

Once they get over there, he does feel the need to apologize to the taco stand worker(s). "Ah... sorry about this," he offers. And to Ferham, when Gaige makes the mega taco, "I can contribute, if that's a lot. Though uh... It's all Japanese money..."

Ferham (516) has posed:
     Ferham is walking more or less calmly toward the taco stand along with Josuke as he balks at that, Ferham just sorta smiles and says nothing, shrugging.

     "She wouldn't be the only one, to be fair," Ferham nodded, then looked toward what Gaige was doing.

     "I don't think this one is self-service, Gaige," she said, matter of factly, though she did nothing to interfere for the moment, shaking her head and gesturing that it was okay to Josuke.

     "No, I can help her handle it, I've been here before, the form of currency is familiar to me," she seemed to be glad that Gaige was enjoying it.

     "Yes Gaige, real organic meat, from a bovine, if I'm not mistaken--not human or carrion, or mutant--these are the sorts of things you can have all the time as long as you don't steal things or cause too much violence," she pointed out. She'd assist Gaige with paying for and carrying the thing, too.

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige shrugged, taking another bite, then belching. She wipes her mouth, puts it down and... "It just means I find robots and machine parts sexy, dunderhead," she teased. Before reaching out and gripping Ferham by the chin, pinching it slightly. Moving in reallllllly close. "Like adorable little Ferham here. All the cool, moving parts. The power core inside. The lasers. The weapons. The processing power. It's." Leaned in a little closer. "So." A littttttle closer. "Hot." Then... lets her go. "So, you should get a taco! They're awesome here!" she said proudly, before taking another bite of her mega taco.

"Seriously, real meeeeeeat. But like, it's not like I'm into robots or nothing. Well, at least not non-sentient ones. The reploids seem pretty hot, though. I'd totally turn one of them into a love slave. Sentient robots and stuff? totally the coolest." It was probably for the best that Steven was gone. "But like, to be honest? You gotta be really careful with that kinda stuff, you know? Love ain't somethin' yah can just mess with. Like, there's TOTALLY this super hot guy I really like. Wouldn't work, though. He's gay. Sucks for me, but he's totally going to make some guy the happiest like, evaaaaa! I mean, he's got a robot leg, a robot arm and a robot EYE! And he hunts dangerous monsters! Maybe I should scoop out one of my eyes and put a robot one in, what do you think, Ferham? Think a robot eye would make me even MORE bad ass? Or trying too hard?"

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
Josuke seems relieved when Ferham offers to cover the bill. Not because he's not wanting to help, but because converting from yen would be difficult here, he figures. At least the taco is handled, so there's that. And he confirms, "That's usually what they put in tacos, right? Beef? Unless it's like a chicken <quesadilla>." Butchered word, there. Josuke's English is pretty bad, his pseudo-Spanish is even worse!

Gaige getting 'up close and personal' with Ferham? That gets a blush too! Though he watches the two of them, with wide eyes. Yes, he is the typical teenager, and realizing that a girl is attracted to another girl is... yeah, he thinks it's pretty hot, too. He is, however, polite enough not to actually say that. Also that is totally not a trace of a nosebleed...

Instead he asks about something else. "Is real meat rare where you're from?" he asks. And then she's talking about the friend of hers. "That's a shame," he notes. Meaning, of course, that the guy isn't interested in Gaige. Though now he's a little confused, because she was being all lovey at Ferham, and Ferham's a girl, but now Gaige is talking about a man she likes...

...Gaige is very confusing!

Ferham (516) has posed:
     Ferham stopped moving entirely when Gaige pulled her in like that--her green eyes wide, even as she was pulled closer and closer--and then let go. She seemed a little frazzled by it afterward, as if she wasn't sure how to take that, or the mighty icequeen had been put on edge, somehow!

     "W-Well," she straightened herself out and seemed to take a second to recompose herself. "I think a taco would be a good--" she was then silenced as Gaige went on, somehow she had reversed the teasing and toying that Fer had made an attempt to do and totally turned the tables on them.

     "I... uh," she sorta stood there slack-jawed for a moment, staring, especially after hearing that last bit she said about what she'd turn a Reploid into. It was... distracting, to say the least.

     "I... uhh... err," it would appear the cat has gotten her tongue... or was it the mechromancer?! she's still sorta catatonic over there. She just sorta peers over at Josuke who now has a nosebleed, blinking her green eyes a little.

     "Err... Josuke, you're leaking."

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige glanced over to him. "Hmmmm?" And then held out a napkin. "Here, hon, think yah hit your nose. Where I'm from? Oh yeah. uness you're like, some rich guy you don't get real meat. It's either ground up people if you wanna get fancy, or the fake stuff. sometimes skagg meat. Honestly, never touched the people stuff. I mean, honestly? The whole thing is just creepy if you ask me. Ick."

She then took another bite of her taco. "The whole 'Lil Stan's burgers' was the worst. 'There's a lil stan in ALL of us now!'" She shuddered. "Freaking cree-py." SEE?! This is why Ferham kept trying to drag her OUT of that world! "Ferham, you okay? You kinda look like you need a reboot. Oh, right, here!" And then back in the kitchen, to make more tacos! Yeah, they were gonna be awesome, but expensive. She smirked and held out the plates. "I made them with love! And meat. And other stuff. This white stuff? AWESOME!"

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
It takes Josuke a moment to register Ferham's words. Leaking? What? And then it dawns on him. He claps a hand over his nose, blushing. He accepts the napkin from Gaige. "Thank you," he says sheepishly, and sets to work clearing that up. How embarassing! "Sorry," he offers. Not going to explain that one; he's smart enough to realize that the attempt would just end up with his foot in his mouth.

Though then plates are being held out and Josuke blinks, balling up the napkin and throwing it away. He's OK now! "Well, I've heard that the key to great tacos is to load them with stuff." Pause. "Which stuff do you mean?" he asks.

Ferham (516) has posed:
     Ferham it seemed to would have to deal with the huge food bill that Gaige was gradually accruing over there, she was still sorta comatose looking after all that. She was completely out of her depth, it seemed, when Gaige was able to take her completely off-guard like that! She'd take the plate either way, slowly and mechanically reaching down to begin noshing on that food at that, but she still seemed like she was in need of a 'reboot' or the like.

     "Maybe we should take the tacos... to go," she intoned weakly, likely the bill piling up and Fer and Josuke still stunned there, it was probably the best decision. She didn't even seem to notice Josuke throwing away the napkin which was now more or less crimson.

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige nodded. "sure, got my tacos, let's go!" she said as she walked, chewing on it, letting Ferham pay. She then glanced back. "So, Josuke, right? Thanks for fixing the boat. Like, Ferham gets soooo up tight about that stuff, you know? I mean, it's just stuff! Like, who cares? They probably had insurance andd stuff. Not like I hurt anybody."

She rolls her eyes. "Today has just been soooo stressful, you know? We woke up, she made me drink dirty water! Well, she called it tea. But that's what tea is! Then she made me wear a SUNDRESS! can you believe it?" Then smirked at him. Then... sashayed. "I look far, far better in this, don't I?" she asked seductively. Well, she was in a one piece bathing suit. It covered her at least, even if it was tight. Cause, you know... bathing suit.

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
    Josuke nods to Ferham's suggestion. "Probably a good idea," he seconds. At least he's getting a taco out of the deal, right? Though he'll probably end up helping Ferham out with the bill later, after currency conversion happens. For now, though, he heads away from the taco stand, apologizing once more to whoever's running it. "Sorry about that!"

Though the mention of insurance gets a frown. "Well, maybe," he notes. "But insurance doesn't work like that in this world, I bet. You know how you said those corporations are trying to kill you? Insurance companies sometimes don't cover damage from certain things. And paying claimants means they have to part with some of that money. And most insurance companies don't like to do that. So they run the claimant through years of paperwork just to get reimbursement. Most of the time the claimants have to threaten to sue. So it's not really as easy as 'got insurance, get paid'."

Josuke listens to the description of Gaige's day. "Depends on the tea, some is pretty good." A blink at the mention of a sundress. "That's a hard thing to picture," he admits. She doesn't seem like that type of girl. However, he cleverly avoids the question of where Gaige looked better. "I don't really have a basis for comparison, since I didn't see you in the dress," he points out.

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige shudders. "Ugh, and you never will. I swear, between her and Moxxie they're all trying to... woman-fy me. It's horrible! I like being bad ass, kicking butt, taking names, slamming skulls into walls! You know what happens to people on Pandora who wear sundresses? NOTHING! Because they're DEAD!"

She let out an exasperated groan. "Like, seriously! She's acting like -my mom-. Well, no. My mom was awesome. Before she... yeah. Other than that, like, she's soooo over dramatic. 'Gaige, oh my gosh you're bleeding everywhere!' Well, duh! I landed on a grenade made of spikes, of course there's a bit of blood! I swear!"

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
"I don't know... My mother's pretty 'woman...ified', and I heard my granfather say she slammed a guy's face into his own car door when he wouldn't leave her alone while she was walking home," Josuke muses. "He was all 'heeey, baybeee~' to Mom and she wasn't having it." He can't help but grin. "He wanted my grandfather to arrest her for it too, but he wouldn't. Totally deserved it."

Though he does wince at the mention of landing on a spike grenade. "Well... people do that when they care about you, they panic when you get hurt." His expression goes a little melancholy here as he remembers how upset he was when he found his grandfather...

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige rolled her eyes. "Ugh, I totally know what that's like! So like, just the other day this guy wouldn't take the hint. 'I WANNA WEAR YOUR NOSE AS A FIREWORK!' and stuff like that. So I made him swallow a grenade and BOOM! Went off like a fire work! Ah man, bandits are fun," she said with a laugh.

"Bahhhhh. They worry too much. I'm like, rad enough to take care of myself. I mean, I'm on the run from the most powerful corporations in the universe, living on a planet that is pretty much death incarnate. And I'm THRIVING. So why they gotta worry about silly things like getting maimed a little bit or getting stabbed through the chest. Or shot a few dozen times."

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
Josuke blinks, confused. "...'Wear your nose as a firework'? Is... is that a euphemism for something?" At his age, Josuke's vocabulary for such things is... understandably not very extensive. Add the whole 'different worlds' thing to the mix and it's a surefire recipe for misunderstanding. Or just plain NOT understanding.

But at the words of being rad enough to take care of herself, Josuke shakes his head. "Doesn't work like that," he explains. "It's... well, in my case it's not wanting to see someone in pain if I can do something about it. That's not just the people close to me, either."

He thinks a moment, and the next words are spoken slowly, as if he's thinking how to say what he wants to say. "Pain hurts... and most people don't like seeing the people they care about hurting. So when... when you purposely do things that get you hurt, or act like it's no big deal... it hurts THEM, because they don't want to see you hurting, but they're helpless to prevent it. You see?"

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige shakes her head. "Oh, no. Psychos, man. They're always spouting things like that. 'I want my midget!' 'I wanna wear owl thumbs!' 'There's a skag in my skull!'"

She then glanced over and then... to the side. "Yeah... well... if she didn't wanna see me in pain, she's a bit too late for that..." she muttered, before taking a bite of her taco. "She should just get lost if she can't handle it." Chew chew, crunch. Then...

"Wait, what's laser tag? OH SWEET! We can shoot people with LASERS?! I got a laser gun right here!" She pulled out a... that couldn't be a real laser-- OH GOSH IT JUST TOOK OUT A SIGN IT'S REAL!

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
Psychos? Josuke blinks. "That... sounds like some pretty psycho talk, yeah..." he agrees. Though he doesn't miss the looking away. Aha. That makes sense too. Then again, in a world like hers, it's hardly a surprise she's gone through something traumatic.

But just as he's about to explain something... aw, jeez, she's shooting things with lasers! Quickly Josuke dashes over to fix the sign, then comes back. "No, no, no... not lasers like that," he explains hastily. "It's just a 'tag'. Like, uh... have you seen those tiny lasers they use to point things out? One of those. You run around trying to avoid the sensors on your suit getting 'tagged'. It's pretty safe."

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige hummed, rubbing her chin. Then nodded. "Ohhhh. So it's like the beam you see before a sniper shoots you, right? I know allll about those! I get shot all the time by them! I freaking HATE them. Let's do somethign else, okay? I am not in the mood to get shot right now." She crossed her arms.

"I think if I got shot like, for real? Ferham would be mad. And I kinda promised her I'd at least TRY to behave." What? Just stealing a boat was behaving. For her.

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
Josuke nods. "Yeah. Though there's no bullet after it," he assures her. "The laser itself is the 'tag'. You pretend to shoot someone, but you don't really do it." He pauses, thinking about that last one. "Well... she'd be scared too. And worried about you," he notes. "Some people get angry when they get scared or sad, because they can't control those feelings. And because they feel helpless to prevent what caused them in the first place. So... yeah, she'd be mad. But she'd be more scared and worried, I think."

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige shrugged. "What-ever! If I get hurt, it's my business. If I wanted people to like, worry about me? I wouldn't live in my own lil shack on that planet. I don't need nothin' from nobody. And I definitely don't need her to worry about me. Only reason I keep her around is cause she's a good assistant. And she works for free."

She then glanced off again. "And she makes really good hot cocoa with the lil marshmallows I really like...."

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
Josuke frowns a bit at the words. "It's not really something people can help. If they care, they care." He pauses, thinking. And then smiles as Gaige mentions the hot chocolate. Maybe there's something there after all. Maybe she just doesn't want anyone to care? "Caring about other people isn't a bad thing," he says quietly. "Even if it's just a random stranger. That happened to me, you know. A random someone decided to help my mother. Without that guy, I... don't know if I'd be here now."

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige glanced over, then reached over. She grabbed him by the collar and yanked him in close. Her lips, mere centimeters from his. Her breath hot on his lips. "Do you know who I am?" she whispered. "I am Gaige."

"The bounty on my head is large enough to buy a planet with. A full planet. Every building, every person, everything. I have a dozen or so bounty hunters come and try to kill me every day. The two most powerful corporations in the universe want my head. I live on the most dangerous planet in the multiverse. I'm the only person AWESOME enough to survive all of this. Do you REALLY think I'm not going to get hurt once in a while?" Her lips almost pressed to his. "And there's nothing. Anyone. Can do about it. Least of all her. So yeah. Her worrying about me like that? It's a waste .It's just going to piss. Me. Off." Then a lean up, kiss on the forehead, and push back. "Ohhhh! They have ICE CREAM! Let's get some! Rocky road? Does it have real road in it? Let's find out!"

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
Josuke emits a surprised 'erk!' when he's pulled close to Gaige. "Wha...?" But he quiets down when she starts to talk. He actually listens over reacts to her being that close to him. But yes. He does understand that, whatever's between them, it's between THEM. He's probably not the right one to be sticking his nose into it.

However, he's then kissed on the forehead and pushed back. This gets a "Whoa...!", and he wobbles a bit before righting himself. He can't help but blush a little, but it's not too bad.

And then suddenly SHINY! Well, something sweet. He follows quickly, explaining. "No. Just chunks of chocolate, and walnuts, and marshmallows. There's a lot of different textures in it."

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige nodded and... " Iwant a massive scoop! No! TWO massive scoops! In a chocolate dipped cone! He's paying. Hm? Oh, yeah, we're like, totally on a date." NO THEY AREN'T! She's still screwing with him! Payback for his earlier things he said.

She happily licked her ice cream, eyes going wide. "It's like frozen happiness. In a cup," she squealed.

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
Josuke immediately blushes at the implication. "W-wh-wha-what?!" he sputters. Looks like, if they were on a date, that's the first Josuke knew about it. But, since he's sort of been 'volunteered' to pay for it... he pulls his wallet from a pocket, muttering, "...Geez, I hope I remembered to bring some US dollars..." A habit he'd started doing on and off since he realized there were so darn many USAs.

That said, the way she seems so happy with it? That's worth it. He nods. "Chocolate's got something in it that makes the brain produce chemicals that makes you feel better," he explains. "So people eat it a lot."

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige nodded. "Oh, yeah. Daddy used to give me a mug of cocoa with marshmallows whenever bad things happened. Like when that bitch stole my designs, or when mom... left us. Whenever I got a bad grade on a report card or the one time I almost got detention and felt really bad about it..." she mumbled.

"Chocolate is the best." Lick lick lick. "Oh, and don't worry. We're not really on a date. I just wanted to watch you freak out, cutie pie."

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
'Left us'. So much said in so few words. Josuke has a feeling that, given how violent Gaige's world is, that the 'leaving' was leaving the mortal coil entirely. But he's not going to say that, because he doesn't want to make her feel bad. That would be horrible.

The expression shifts to chagrin at the admission, though. Still, he chuckles a little, rubbing at the back of his neck. "Aha... I thought you might be," he replies. Chagrinned, but still good-naturedly.

Gaige (1112) has posed:
Gaige snickered and then... "Oh. Crap." Cop sirens. "I uhhh, I should probably go. There's alike, a forty-five percent chance that's my fault and they're coming for me. So uhhh, see you around. Okay? Okay. Bye!" she said before running off.

Leaving him alone. no they cops weren't after her! This time. But hey, neither of them knew that, yet!

Josuke Higashikata (1119) has posed:
Josuke's head turns quickly, in the direction of the sirens. And then suddenly Gaige is running off. "Heeey! Wait a minute!" he calls out, running in the general direction he saw her disappear in. He won't be able to catch her either, but he doesn't want to be around if cops are coming either. Despite his good nature, Josuke IS a delinquent. Gets into a lot of fights, a lot of property damage (though no one could prove anything, thanks to Crazy Diamond). Still! Cops! He's still leaving the area, even if he can't find her.