RP: Cirrus Station [Episode 6] Sunny Side Up

"You still sure you don't want an extra hand to help clean you up...?"

Claire's mirthful voice echoed in the small bathroom as she stood outside the shower stall. She had taken advantage of the noise and steam from the shower to sneak her way in. She wasn't intruding into Keziah's space yet... "Hee... sorry sweetheart, I couldn't resist coming back in to check on you. I take it from the lack of pieces on the sink, you're finished with putting yourself back together...?" She was one of those who usually had dual motives. She was, of course, in there to tease Keziah. But also to make sure she was doing alright after they had just had their 'talk'.

Of course, Claire herself was taking special care to stay juuuust out of sight in case Keziah decided to poke her head out. Why? Well... She's Claire.

"Yep, all in one piece again." She hadn't yet touched the expensive-looking array of soaps, shampoos, and conditioners. So her arms were just wet when she stuck them out of the shower, waving both hands at Claire through the steam. "Good as new!"

The hands retreated, and she dialed down the heat somewhat, waiting for a few moments as the steam cleared just a tiny bit. "But, um..." Keziah bit her lip, blushing and being thankful that the shower curtain was mostly opaque. Her eyes were slightly wide at the meaning of Claire's words, and she wasn't sure if...

"Noit'sokayI'mgood!" Keziah suddenly blurted, then held her breath, as if being quiet would help at all right now.

MoonMan said:

As Lenny continued barreling towards the shore, condensation and fallen rain spewing from his snorkel tip like a steam-spitting train, George apparently was having a much harder time finding an opportunity to detach himself from the runaway ID-SOL. A few meters from the sea-dampened sand, the short Nepleslian finally found the courage to leap from his perch, tucking and rolling for a few feet as he collided ungracefully with the wet sand, finally coming to a rest face-down in the salty grit.

As the waves barely began touching Lenny's feet, the ID-SOL turned his sprint into a hulking, rather impressive leap into the air towards the wave. While the jump itself was near awe-inspiring, the splash was the one to steal the show as the darkened waters exploded into a skyward flurry when Lenny finally hit the water.

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"Who would have thought that he would be the graceful one?" Tweak watched Lenny's water romp as she walked over to George. Sure, the Id-Sol had made a big splash in the non-pun, literal meaning of the phrase, but it was likely because of the giant's glee at finding a body that even made someone like him feel small. Of water, that is. And, even with those ridiculous flippers on, he had shown remarkable coordination in his run.

The rain-soaked Freespacer neko stopped a couple feet away from George, standing off to one side. Fortunately for her, the large black t-shirt she wore was doing an admirable job of retaining her modesty, its color and the low ambient light of a monsoon day obscuring much even as the rainwater plastered the shirt to her. "Are you okay?" she asked with a small smile as she crossed her arms over her chest. Her voice was barely audible over the crashing waves in addition to the downpour. "Wet sand isn't as nice to land on as you might think, is it?"

Keziah would hear a giggle come from Claire when she gave her blurted response. Whatever she was up to, Keziah's reactions were amusing her greatly.

Claire figured she was just being shy though. And she could understand that, honestly. But still... If it's worth trying once... "Oh? Ok then, would you mind if I joined you there? Don't have to waste as much water if we both clean up at the same time..." Keziah wouldn't see it, but Claire was grinning in mischevious glee. To be honest, she wasn't trying to make a game out of it or anything. She was just used to behaving that way.

"Well? May I?"

"I..."

What? her mind screamed. What the hell's going on? We just made up and now she wants to shower together? Keziah just stared at the shower's water controls, not really sure at all what to do. Tell her to go away! that part of her mind gently informed her. Tell her to screw off!

"I... if you want."

There was a small pause there, Claire being silent for several moments. "Keziah." Another short pause, "I'll be forward, I'd like to express my feelings for you. And here's about the best place to do so. If you'd rather not, however... I won't bother you about it. I'll... go away." She had noted the hesitation in Keziah's tone, and was reminded that while Claire was happy to move on from that fight, Keziah might still have lingering feelings from that. And thus...

"Your call, dear."

Never! her mind screamed. She'll just hurt you again.

Keziah grit her teeth, squelching that part of her brain. It was her protective part--dedicated to her self-preservation. It was what got her through the tough times, and was back now, as suddenly as it always came.

She dialed the water heat down to normal levels, letting some more of the steam disperse. Her steam-bath finished, she bent down to partake of the expensive soap, lathering herself as she consciously let Claire stew in the silence. It wasn't that she was being cruel, she was just trying to find her voice again.

"I'd like that, but not right now." She tried to inject a smile into her words. "Later, but I just need to think by myself for a bit."

There was a short 'hm' when Keziah finished speaking, followed by Claire pushing herself off of the wall she was leaning against. "Alright. I suppose you deserve some time alone." Whether or not Claire was bothered by the silent stretch of time between her question and Keziah's answer, was impossible to tell.

"I'll have my datapad on me if you decide you want anything from me." Claire tapped the electronic device on the doorway slightly for emphasis. "Don't tear the place up too much, I don't want Cassie getting upset with me because my room was messed up and she got in trouble for it." There was another pause. "Speaking of whom..."

Keziah would hear Claire's footsteps as she exited the bathroom, and then nothing else beyond the shower.

-Later-
((Note: Claire and Keziah's RP isn't over because of this part, It'll go for as long as you like, Liam. But I also wanted to get in some time with other characters, so think of this as happening after those two are done, whenever that may be.))

The resort was fairly large, but finding someone like Cassefin was not a terribly hard thing to do if one asked around. (She was hard to miss.) As such Claire came upon the 'guiltless grill' that she had oh-so-strongly suggested everyone follow her to. And sadly enough, Claire came to find her the only one there aside from staff. She gave a short expression of pity before sauntering on over to her.

"There you are! I've been wondering where you wandered off to. Cassie, my dear, what are you doing sulking around here all by yourself? There's plenty of fun to be had around here and you're missing out!" Claire stopped behind her boss and off to her right a little, her arms crossed in her usual manner.

Unfortunately, there seemed to be a definitive lack of bodies outside for Deacon to converse with save for the mysteriously quiet Cyril and the lady bartender. If Deacon looked hard enough through the mist, he could make out Tweak and George's shapes across closer to the rushing waves, as well as a massive dark body floating out in the water.

The woman behind the counter fumbled with a glass for a moment before reacting to Deacon's order. "White wine and strawberry juice huh...alright, coming right up."

----

Cipher said:

Noboru moved first, a lightning-fast finger jab to the man's throat, causing his victim to hack and reel backwards, tripping and falling very near the planter where his mate had just bought the farm.

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While the husky Nepleslian reeled backwards from Noboru's point-point strike, his buddy took to opportunity to come in from the side, swinging a heavy-handed punch towards Noboru's jaw.

Meanwhile, Stovaa's massive uppercut grazed his ID-SOL opponents chin, the massive foe pulling back quickly before ducking low and attempting to tackle Stovaa to the ground, hauling his weight into Stovaa's stomach with a heady grunt.

----

As Lenny surfaced from his impressive dive, the spout of his snorkel expelled another cloud of salty vapor as he began paddling too and fro in the dark water. With a face obscured by ridiculously-sized snorkeling equipment it was hard to tell if the ID-SOL was really enjoying himself, but it seemed clear enough that he, at the very least, found the water appealing enough to stay in.

"Are you okay?" she asked with a small smile as she crossed her arms over her chest. Her voice was barely audible over the crashing waves in addition to the downpour. "Wet sand isn't as nice to land on as you might think, is it?"

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"Oh, I dunno," George said dryly, lifting his head from the sand and laying it sideways against the ground. He glanced up at Tweak hopefully from the ground; he even had his fingers crossed for maybe a little more from the rain combined with the Freespacer's clothing. Alas, Tweak's particular style of dress made it rather difficult to really make out anything he had not already seen previously, much to George's disappointment.

The Nepleslian sighed and hoisted himself up into a sitting position, his upper body leaning backwards as his palms dug into the sands to prop himself up. George let his eyes wander out to the ocean, big rolling waves far off the shore as the torrential downpour went on. He looked...content.

"Well...Lenny seems to be enjoying himself," George said, his head motioning to the ID-SOLs bobbing profile amongst the ocean waves. "What do you think? For your first time really seein' a beach, I mean."

When Claire had stumbled upon the Guiltless Grill cafe, the apparent lack of business was perhaps the most noticeable thing about the establishment. There were two very bored waitresses, both of whom were sitting at the alcove connecting the dining area and the kitchen chatting with two cooks through a large open window. Neither of them really noticed Claire entering; apparently the four of them were in a rather spicy debate that required all attention.

Nestled at one of the rear tables stood a single lonesome figure in a familiar yellow sundress. She had her head firmly planted into the table, her forehead resting on her right arm while her other hand occasionally tapped a tall clear glass of brackish orange-colored fluid. Although her face was obscured from view, the big straw hat she had been wearing earlier had been removed and placed at the other end of the table, her vibrant red hair clearly giving Cassefin Montreal's identity to Claire as she approached.

Apparently no one had taken her up on her earlier offer, as well, seeing as she was the sole customer of the restaurant.

Dragonnova said:

"There you are! I've been wondering where you wandered off to. Cassie, my dear, what are you doing sulking around here all by yourself? There's plenty of fun to be had around here and you're missing out!" Claire stopped behind her boss and off to her right a little, her arms crossed in her usual manner.

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There was no reply for a moment. In truth, Cassefin just wasn't really listening to anything outside of her own little personal space bubble that she had erected. There was a grunt of recognition, the Head Administrator's shoulders twitching for a moment as she realized someone was talking to her.

"As you can see," Cassefin's voice permeated through the crevices between her head, the arm it was resting upon and the plastic table. The Head Administrator did not bother lifting her head as she gave a reply. "My glass of carrot juice is quite full, so I will not be needing a refill, thank you," Cassefin continued on drolly, shaking the glass slightly to signify that it was, indeed, still very much full. It would appear that Miss Montreal had mistaken Claire for one of the waitresses.

"Could ask for better weather," the green-haired girl said, bobbing her shoulders once as she looked out at the water. Getting to see the ocean and beach at all was about the only thing good about this trip so far. The rain was already filling her boots, the salt in the air was stinging her eyes, and she hoped she didn't get any sand on herself because it was sticking to George in a way that she didn't even want to think about what would happen if it got on her clothes.

Especially her hat. What a nightmare that'd be.

And, with her TacOpSys already delivering an analysis of the sea water, Tweak really didn't think that swimming would be a good idea either. The salt would irritate her vents, clog her connection ports, and leech moisture from her body that she'd probably have to pay those vending machines to regain.

"But at least I'm seeing it instead of staying inside." she added after a moment or two, her voice trailing off. It kinda was pretty, even with the storm. If she closed her eyes, her mind could draw a picture of not only the topological features of the sea but also sense what she realized was only an insignificant fraction of its volume from the tremors made by the waves traveling over the sea bed and the sand, as well as the sounds of the heavy downpour hitting the surface. It wasn't the best picture, but it had its own beauty. The rain itself was rather soothing, even if it did become uncomfortable standing in it more than a few minutes. Like a really large shower...

Noboru successfully blocked the inbound punch...

With his face.

Unable to get his left arm up in time to block the brawler's fist, his best betwas to turn his whole body in its direction in hopes that one of his arms would flop out in front of his face and catch the blow instead. They didn't, and as a penalty he was floored. He was hit so hard, in fact, that the Yamataian was lifted off the floor a good six inches before flying back and smashing into the floor.

"Okay, oww..." Noboru grunted to himself, pushing back to his feet as the other guy advanced again. The soldier found a piece of smashed, sharp pottery nearby and held it like a shiv, point out, aimed right at the guy's gut. Predictably the drunk attempted to go for a straight attack, allowing Noboru to dance out of the way and slice the guy's chest, leaving a nice long red mark across his chest.

Claire smirked at Cassefin's half-awake response and decided to burst that little space bubble that she wasn't paying attention to.

She moved behind Montreal and leaned forward, placing her hands on Cassefin's wrists, pinning them down momentarily while she basically got as close as she could to her without actually touching while whispering in her ear in the most sultry voice she could muster, "I'm not here to fill your glass, sweetie. Though I suppose I could arrange for that, hm?"

Claire let go of her and backed away, just out of her reach with a wide and mischevious grin.

Claire said:

There was a short 'hm' when Keziah finished speaking, followed by Claire pushing herself off of the wall she was leaning against. "Alright. I suppose you deserve some time alone." Whether or not Claire was bothered by the silent stretch of time between her question and Keziah's answer, was impossible to tell.

"I'll have my datapad on me if you decide you want anything from me." Claire tapped the electronic device on the doorway slightly for emphasis. "Don't tear the place up too much, I don't want Cassie getting upset with me because my room was messed up and she got in trouble for it." There was another pause. "Speaking of whom..."

Keziah would hear Claire's footsteps as she exited the bathroom, and then nothing else beyond the shower.

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((Time inversion is go!))


Once she was certain Claire was gone, Keziah let out a soft groan and knocked her head against the shower wall. This was a marvelous turn of events, wasn't it? Not my fault, a part of her brain argued. After all, she's the one who's really, really flippant. No, that's not a nice way to put it. Sassy?

While her brain was busy with its literary acrobatics, she quickly finished washing herself and got out of the shower. The towels, at least, were amazingly soft and fluffy. Now she just needed to get her luggage...

Which, she realized with another, louder groan, was sitting right where she had left it--outside the ballroom. Wrapping the towel around herself, she poked her head out into the bedroom.

"Claire?"

"Hm...?"

Claire hadn't actually left yet, as evidenced by her rummaging through the remaning luggage which had just arrived. (Her own, not Keziah's.) Upon closer inspection, however, she was actually putting a black fingerless glove over her left hand, and yet, she didn't have one for her right hand.

She stood up as she finished with that, looking over her shoulder at Keziah. "Yes..? What is it?"

Stovaa tried to follow up his uppercut with a left handed blow, but his opponent ducked under it. For a random drunkard loser, this guy was pretty swift, Stovaa thought as his foe grappled at his stomach. As fast as he could, he wrapped his arms around his opponent's waist, hefted him into the air and hugged him tight to Stovaa's chest (him him him him D: ).

His assailant's head now hung, suspended by Stovaa's knees by the tombstone-ready lock he was in. With a bloodhungry grin, Stovaa kicked out his own legs (hard to describe this really, but this is the best way) and raised them so they were either side of his foe's cheeks, leaving the top of the troublemaker's head the lowest point of contact with the floor, which rose to meet him, the weight of two Id-Sol's powering down upon the poor man's crown.

"Um, could I borrow some clothes?"

Keziah was leaning against the doorway now, holding the towel closed from the front. Her hair was a crazed pile on top of her head, shooting out in a spike-ball all over the place. Clearly something in the ocean water had an odd reaction with her hair. She bit the side of her lower lip, and pointed at it. This was not something she had planned on.

"And maybe something to make my hair behave?"

Claire smiled weakly at Keziah, as if she'd rather not, but would anyway considering all that happened. "Sure, but mind you I don't have anything with me that's ah.... 'loose'. That a problem?" Of course, Claire would only have tight clothing in her luggage. She didn't mind lending clothes. After all, she had already offered once before.

As for the second thing... "Hm, yeah... I don't know if it'll tame hair that just got doused in seawater, but it's worth a shot, I suppose?" Claire fished out a couple of bottles that she used to maintain her own crimson colored hair and waited for Keziah to give a reply on the clothes issue. Suprisingly enough, she didn't say anything about Keziah only wearing a towel so far.

"Yeah, that'll be fine." Keziah nodded and stepped up to the luggage, slipping in next to Claire. Her own clothes--what little she brought with her--were more modest, and made for comfort. Still, she wasn't a stranger to tight clothes, and she didn't want to make more of a rift than there already was. She smiled broadly at Claire, and took one of the proffered bottles in her free hand.

"Hopefully this works," she said, her smile going lop-sided. "I left everything with my duffel, and I need to track it down. I doubt I'll enjoy myself if I do it naked."

Claire folded her arms again after Keziah took the offered bottle. "Really? Maybe you would enjoy yourself." Even for her, the jab was rather half-hearted. Her mood and usual flair seemed dampened quite a bit. She knelt down and pulled out her spare set of clothes which included slim jeans and a sleeveless shirt, handing it over.

"Want some help with your hair, dear? It's going to take some work to get all of that in order again." For once, Claire didn't have a suggestive tone in her voice. In fact, she sounded more like how she was before they arrived... except not angry.