Scene #7959: Onion Rings Help Everything

Owner	Pose
Kale Hearthward	This bar doesn't have a name. Kale referred to it in his exploration notes as 'The good bar', as in the bar that has the onion rings and drinks that he likes and that delivers them consistently fresh, so the name's stuck as "The Good Bar" in Arthur's tactical readout. It's slow. Practically empty, really, aside from the dwarven proprietor and Kale himself - the latter taking over a large table which has his handdrawn map spread out on it. It's covered in scribbles, eraser marks, additions via post-it notes, pinned photos, and grease stains - and the whole thing looks like a spaghetti mess because Secundus's warpgate topology seems to follow none of the conventional rules that Sector Zero's warpgates do. Also notably, there's three fresh red X's on the map. Kale goes to grab another onion ring, and glares at the map, as if glaring at it enough would change what's being shown there somehow. He doesn't seem to be in a good mood.
Kukuru	The smell of food is unmistakable. Even if it's not necessarily high quality food, Kukuru's not a stickler for any of that. Her stomach is her guide today, and it guides her towards this unnamed bar out in who knows where. Her entrance, too, is unmistakable. "He-llo there~ What's that smell?" She doesn't quite yell it out, but she's definitely not quiet about announcing her presence and her desire for food. It's a pleasant voice, at least, and she looks... Actually, she probably looks like she might blend right in what with the stained apron that she's still wearing over her usual white and green-brown dress. The onion rings, of course, end up getting her attention. She follows that right over to Kale, and he gets a wide wave in greeting (followed by Kukuru holding her hand over an open-mouthed yawn). "Oh! Kaaale. I didn't know you were here. It's good to see you~"
Kale Hearthward	Kale looks a little bit tense as he sees who it is, but when she doesn't open up with an attack he relaxes (somewhat). "Kukuru..." He goes to push aside the map and offers her the basket of onion rings. "C'mon, sit. I could use the company, and I've got a tab open." "I'm more curious about why you're here - this is fairly far afield from Concord-held territory, isn't it?" He glances across the table at the spaghetti-fied map again. "At least, I think it's far from the border," he says, a bit less confidently.
Kukuru	Smiling a little brighter now, Kukuru drops right into a seat next to Kale (instead of literally any other seat that might give him more personal space) and doesn't waste any time in snagging a ring to munch on. A few seconds later, she grabs two more to really take her time with. "Is it? I just started walking 'cause I needed some fresh air from all that sand." She explains, not quite realizing that she's just traded sandy wasteland air for bar air. "I've been hearing lots of chatter about that, but it's all kind of..." She doesn't elaborate, but it's clear from the scrunching of her face that it's way over her head. She even glances at that map for a moment before eyes start glazing over, and then she instead settles on making direct eye contact with Kale. "... Are you okay? Do you need to lie down?" Kukuru asks with evident concern in her tone now, even going as far to reach over and give him a gentle rub on the back. "You've been working really hard. It's fine to rest, too."
Kale Hearthward	> KALE: Self-examine and assess VOLITION RATING and condition of DEEP-DIGGING GAUGE No, no profoundBadness-style prompts here, please. Kale takes a few moments to consider his answer, though. He accepts the pat on the back, and waves over some more onion rings. (They're delivered via a kobold that seemingly wasn't there a moment ago.) "I'm... not nearly done, though, so I can't really take a break," he says. "It started out being just, trying the expedition thing out here, but since then I've gotten something that I need to prove..." "... And stopping now, that feels sort of like admitting defeat." "I'm fine, really. I got onion rings, after all. Onion rings help with everything." He eats another. "Kukuru, are you an ambitious person?" he asks.
Kukuru	More onion rings will sate Kukuru's hunger well. It's even distracting her from the fact that she hasn't eaten any meat for over an hour now. "Mm... No, that's no good. Even if you still have stuff to do, you gotta take breaks every now and then." She states firmly, giving Kale another long stare as if trying to pressure him with nothing more than her existing there. "Otherwise, you'll start messing up even with the easy stuff that you could normally do in your sleep." Beat. "... That you're not getting. Are you sleeping enough, at least?" Another three or four onion rings later, and she finally considers Kale's own question to her... For about two seconds. "Nope. I mean, I really want everyone to be happy and together, you know? It'd be great if I could become really smart and be able to come up with big ideas on how to do stuff like you and everyone else, right?" She hails down a server to order some drinks, and she pays for them ahead of time. "But... That didn't pan out. I can still do a lot of other stuff, though, so it's easier if I help everyone else's ideas. Then they can get everyone closer together." Crunchy. "What about you? Who... Do you want to prove something to?"
Kale Hearthward	> KALE: Ponder SANDMAN VISITATION DIAL No, no, stop that. Kale rubs his eyes reflexively. "I'm getting enough sleep," he says. "Like, medically enough." > KALE: Summarize IMPRESSION MATRIX and measure PROSPECT PROSPECTI I said stop it. "... Who am I trying to prove something to... myself. A few specific people. One specific person. Everyone. I dunno." "It's complicated." He takes another onion ring as cover for not having to talk for a bit while he thinks.
Kukuru	"Are you sure?" Kukuru sounds skeptical of that, and she leans in close to get a better look at Kale's face, almost as though she's trying to do that pressuring thing again. "Medically is just a fancy word for... Technically?" She shrugs, and then she sits back up, popping another onion ring in. Raising an eyebrow at Kale's vagueness, Kukuru doesn't respond right away. Instead, she reaches into one of her pockets and starts rummaging around. It looks empty on the outside, but then she takes out a whole hairbrush from it. She starts trying to brush Kale's head gently, not quite knowing if that's how feathers work. It won't stop her from trying, though. "Does it have to be complicated? It's... I mean. If you try to catch every bird in a bush, then... Uh." She struggles with trying to get the right phrase out, then gives up halfway through to just keep brushing. "Maybe... What if you focus on just proving something to yourself first? Once you can do that, the rest should be way easier." Another onion ring goes in, and then she rests her head on the table (with the horn off the edge, not punching through it) while staring right at Kale. "What are you good at? What's your biggest talent? What's your... Dream?"
Kale Hearthward	> KALE: Consult DREAMSPECTUS No. Kale gives Kukuru's questions some thought as he's brushed out. He looks like he should object to the grooming, just out of principle, but he decides not to and then dang and blast it it's easier to just accept the nice soothing brushing instead of objecting, such a gosh dang shame. Totally out of Kale's hands. Darn. ... And then he realizes something. > KALE: Consult TACTICAL MAP ... Okay. Okay, fine, you can have one. Kale consults the tactical map. "My dream... It's always been to get into theater, you know?" He reaches over, careful to not disturb the brushing, and pulls the map closer, glancing at some of his notes. "... Which... hmm. You know..." Carefully, he makes a mark on it. "That... doesn't seem like a bad dream to pursue, for a bit?" >KALE: Play a card on ZONE 34459 to claim it. Okay, we can have one more prompt, but that's it.
Kukuru	Brush brush. Kukuru's actually quite good at keeping her movements gentle and consistent even though she's never brushed feathers before. She actually seems somewhat relieved that Kale's letting her do that, too, and his trust is rewarded. "Theater, huh? Ooh, like with the acting and the singing and really big window curtains in the middle of the room?" Kukuru audibly beams as she asks that, raising her head from the table and shimmying her own chair over a smidge so there's more room for the map. Also, so Kale can maneuver without having to stop brushing. "It sounds like a wonderful dream to go after, if that's something you really enjoy and feel passionate about. When you have a show, let me know. I'll be right there." Kukuru affirms with light pat on the back, and then... She actually grins. Not smile, but grins. Confidently, even. "I still sing, too, actually. Not all the time, but... Sometimes. You know, when someone's having trouble sleeping or relaxing?"
Kale Hearthward	"... I'll take you up on that." "Not - not right now. I'm doing fine. But - if I get the theater setup..." > KALE: Consider the fact that you are NOT DOING FINE since you keep hallucinating ARTHUR LOWELL STYLE PROMPTS Shut up. "... But thank you, regardless. And - you're good at that," he says, indicating the brushing.
Kukuru	"When." Kukuru insists with a light giggle, still keeping that brushing going for a fair bit longer. "Maybe it won't be today, but... I know you'll pull it off eventually. Don't give up, okay?" Finally, after devouring way too many onion rings, Kukuru gets up, and she slips that brush back into her pocket with a faintly ominous noise from her pocket. She peers at that map one more time, squinting at it for way longer than she has every other time she looked at it, and then she points at zone 23771. "Come visit some time, okay? There's always a bed and food ready for whoever visits." And with that, she heads for the door, humming lightly to herself and going way off-key the whole time.