Bluegrass and Clover [Closed] - Printable Version
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RE: Bluegrass and Clover [Closed] - Tindome - 02-08-2016
"Really? Attractive?" One scarred brow tilted upward in vague disbelief. "Puns?" He shook his head. "That might be a little too kinky." He regretted it as soon as he said it, and he shrugged his shoulders to hide his discomfort.
"You'll be the first to know," he murmured, trying and failing not to look self-conscious. She was never awkward the way he was, and he had no idea how she managed to look so cute all the time. He didn't think the other Calrathiions he'd met had been so cute. Or cute at all. Maybe she was just better at it.
"I can see how that would be… a problem." Which was putting it mildly. Kreska always won. If not always, than usually. She was very insistent that she did not cheat, but even Ix didn't believe her.
But his mind had already moved on to the woman in his arms, the one who liked being touched almost as much as he liked touching her, the one who smiled like the moon with eyes like stars.
Or was it her eyes that were like the moon?
This metaphor would need workshopping before it was ready for wider use. In the meantime: she was pretty. And she'd gotten very good at nuzzling his hand without getting her face stuck. It was depressing that it was necessary, but flattering that she thought it was worth it.
His gaze fixed on her as she breathed his name, frozen in place as if to break the stillness would break whatever magic made her look at him like that. Something inside him constricted at the beginning of the phrase, fell to pieces as she pivoted to say something that he was sure was entirely different.
It was different, wasn't it? It was something else that she'd been about to say? Or else he was imagining things, flattering himself, hearing what he wanted instead of what she said.
"I… you're welcome. It's nothing. I mean. It's not nothing. But it's not. A thing. A difficult thing. For me."
Why did he say words.
He stared in bafflement down at the downed dragon, trying to process… anything. If he wasn't himself, he might accuse him of cheating.
Was this what it felt like to be Kreska?
"I think," he said slowly, "that I am so bad at this game that I've become good. Or so it seems. I've looped." He was not convinced that this was actually possible, but it was the best explanation he could come up with.
"You'll be the first to know," he murmured, trying and failing not to look self-conscious. She was never awkward the way he was, and he had no idea how she managed to look so cute all the time. He didn't think the other Calrathiions he'd met had been so cute. Or cute at all. Maybe she was just better at it.
"I can see how that would be… a problem." Which was putting it mildly. Kreska always won. If not always, than usually. She was very insistent that she did not cheat, but even Ix didn't believe her.
But his mind had already moved on to the woman in his arms, the one who liked being touched almost as much as he liked touching her, the one who smiled like the moon with eyes like stars.
Or was it her eyes that were like the moon?
This metaphor would need workshopping before it was ready for wider use. In the meantime: she was pretty. And she'd gotten very good at nuzzling his hand without getting her face stuck. It was depressing that it was necessary, but flattering that she thought it was worth it.
His gaze fixed on her as she breathed his name, frozen in place as if to break the stillness would break whatever magic made her look at him like that. Something inside him constricted at the beginning of the phrase, fell to pieces as she pivoted to say something that he was sure was entirely different.
It was different, wasn't it? It was something else that she'd been about to say? Or else he was imagining things, flattering himself, hearing what he wanted instead of what she said.
"I… you're welcome. It's nothing. I mean. It's not nothing. But it's not. A thing. A difficult thing. For me."
Why did he say words.
He stared in bafflement down at the downed dragon, trying to process… anything. If he wasn't himself, he might accuse him of cheating.
Was this what it felt like to be Kreska?
"I think," he said slowly, "that I am so bad at this game that I've become good. Or so it seems. I've looped." He was not convinced that this was actually possible, but it was the best explanation he could come up with.
RE: Bluegrass and Clover [Closed] - megs - 07-04-2016
Nova only chuckled, one shoulder pressed against her cheek, coy as her tentacles curled around her jaw like she hadn't been the one to move the conversation this way. She wouldn't admit that she liked the way he looked when he was a little uncomfortable. She didn't think he'd caught on to her yet.
They both knew she hadn't said what she was thinking. She wondered what he thought it could have been. Was he disappointed? She forced a smile, she was good at it, not too wide, just enough teeth. She didn't like to use it with him. "Thanks," she said, quietly, smaller tentacles brushed against the hand still pressed to her face, her eyes falling away from him. "You're the best," she continued, cheerfully, instantly brightening.
She needed to get out of her own head, focus more on her wonderful boyfriend who had taken her to mini-golf so they could have a nice night together. She would know the right time and place for what she wanted to say; no need to stress.
Propping her elbow up on the railing, she pressed her chin against it. Free hand seeking one of his, she watched with almost childish amusement as the dragon continued to flail. "I don't think that's what happened," she continued to tease, unrelenting and confirming his doubts.
"I think I should get to skip this one," she almost sang, voice lilting like someone trying to get their way. "And that I should get a hole-in-one." She grinned up at him.
RE: Bluegrass and Clover [Closed] - Tindome - 11-07-2016
Something in his ribcage plummeted at the sight of that smile. Too symmetrical, too perfect, too careful. It was a customer service smile. There had been a moment, the beginnings of what could have been a moment. He didn't know how he'd broken it, but he was sure that he had. She'd been hesitant, and instead of saying the right thing, he'd… been himself.
When he pulled away it was gently, carefully, trying not to make it obvious how much it had affected him to have her look at him that way.
Like a customer. Like someone it was her job to keep mollified.
"I. Uh." He wrung his hands, twisting them around the handle of his golf club. Even his deliberate attempt to lose was failing. Maybe he was being punished for his attempt to reverse-cheat. Punished by… the universe.
"Can you do that?" he asked with a frown. He realized too late that she was not describing some actual rule. "Oh! You – yes. That's. That seems fair." That did not actually seem fair. But he was willing to agree to anything she wanted, at that point. Especially when she was grinning at him, none of that horrible smile from before. Two hands on the railing and another on his putter, he used the fourth to fumble with his phone. He opened up the local app, the one he'd used to order his fries. Which still hadn't arrived, he noted.
There was a note beside his order apologizing for a kitchen delay. What was happening in the kitchen that would delay frying potatoes?
"I'll just. Put in an override." He tapped around the screen with his thumb, and in a moment a drone had gone to retrieve his ball, carefully navigating around the downed dragon. Nova's yellow golf ball lit up with a 3, and played the cheerful victory tone.
When he pulled away it was gently, carefully, trying not to make it obvious how much it had affected him to have her look at him that way.
Like a customer. Like someone it was her job to keep mollified.
"I. Uh." He wrung his hands, twisting them around the handle of his golf club. Even his deliberate attempt to lose was failing. Maybe he was being punished for his attempt to reverse-cheat. Punished by… the universe.
"Can you do that?" he asked with a frown. He realized too late that she was not describing some actual rule. "Oh! You – yes. That's. That seems fair." That did not actually seem fair. But he was willing to agree to anything she wanted, at that point. Especially when she was grinning at him, none of that horrible smile from before. Two hands on the railing and another on his putter, he used the fourth to fumble with his phone. He opened up the local app, the one he'd used to order his fries. Which still hadn't arrived, he noted.
There was a note beside his order apologizing for a kitchen delay. What was happening in the kitchen that would delay frying potatoes?
"I'll just. Put in an override." He tapped around the screen with his thumb, and in a moment a drone had gone to retrieve his ball, carefully navigating around the downed dragon. Nova's yellow golf ball lit up with a 3, and played the cheerful victory tone.
RE: Bluegrass and Clover [Closed] - megs - 05-05-2017
Nova laughed as realization crossed his features. When he gathered that she was just messing with him regarding the rules of the game. Her foremost tentacles curled near her jaw and she was still winning when he reached for his phone. Nova moved closer to Ixaaliot, holding the putter behind her back and out of the way so she could lean against him and peer at the screen. She giggled again, when her score was adjusted, most unfairly. She liked winning. It didn’t always have to be fairly. Kreska was rubbing off on her, it seemed. That jaunty victory tone had her grinning all over again.
The bounce had reappeared in her step as they moved along to the next hole. Tentacles flared in rhythm with the sway of her hips. She was trying to ignore that he was acquiescing to her so easily, because she’d ruined a moment and they’d suffered through a brief tension. That was not to say, he was not normally lenient of her, but this time it had been paired with more frowning.
Nova waited for him on the platform that would take them to the next hole. Her tentacles spilled over her shoulders as her hands fiddled with the putter; fiddling with the rubber handle and swinging it back and forth.
“I think the windmill is next.” Her tone was joking, but her eyes narrowed suspiciously. A sly curl appeared at the corner of her mouth. “But I’m gonna get it this time.” Tentacles pooled and twisted against her chest as she stepped off the platform and sashayed to the hole.
She dropped her ball to the fake grass and stopped it from bouncing with the toe of her ballet flat. Convinced that the ball would stay in place she placed the putter in place, and leaned slightly into position. For a few moments, so only watched the windmill spin circles. There was an intensity in her gaze, that suggested she was calculating something. Tentacle still as she tapped the ball with just enough force to send it rolling along towards the windmill. Nova stood upright, excited, because for a moment it seemed her ball was wheeling right into the windmill, but it hit one of the shutters and bounced to the left. Defeated.
Nova’s expression fell and all of her tentacles curled up at once. Tight wheels at the base of neck and along her jaw. “That shouldn’t have happened.” Her tentacles wound impossibly tighter. “That shouldn’t have happened,” she repeated, with largely more emphases, she picked up her putter and clutched it with both of her hands.
She exhaled sharply from her nose, before she stomped down the aisle and towards the windmill without care or concern that she was close to throwing a tantrum in a public venue. Towering over the windmill, she stuck a foot out and stopped the shutters from revolving with her foot. She didn’t flinch despite the smacking noise that indicated that it should have hurt. She stared down at the decoration. Her tentacles fell all at once.
“It’s rigged,” she complained, one lip pushed forward in a pout as she turned and faced Ixaaliot again. The windmill struggled against her foot and was started to make concerning mechanical noises. Nova removed the blockade and it resumed spinning. “I’m going to talk to someone about this.”
RE: Bluegrass and Clover [Closed] - Tindome - 05-07-2017
The majority of his anxiety was forgotten in the face of low-gravity bouncing, tentacular and otherwise. He was easily distracted by the sway of her hips – he could be distracted from most things by the mere presence of her hips. Her hips were a weapon of psychological warfare. Maybe she was swaying them like that to distract him deliberately, for competitive reasons.
He was completely okay with that.
He smiled, but his anxiety returned at her mention of the windmill. The windmill. He had only ever known two people who could successfully manage the windmill on their first try, and one of them was Kreska, who did not count, because she was Kreska.
As she got into position, he watched her with almost as much intensity as she was watching the windmill. Two hands wrung together while the other two twisted on the putter in a mirror of what she'd done before.
It was fine. This was fine. She'd get the windmill. Right?
It didn't even matter. Even if she didn't get the windmill, she'd recognize that this was a totally normal thing, and she would accept it.
But that also didn't matter because she would definitely get the windmill.
She didn't get the windmill. He froze in faint but obvious horror. Her tentacles did that thing they did when she was upset, and his mind raced with possibilities for what dumb goddamn thing he would end up doing to fix this. Because he was always finding new, dumber things to do when she was upset. Someday they would find the floor of dumbness, but it hadn't happened yet.
… she was heading for the windmill.
She was going full Quixote.
He responded on a delay, because it took him too long to process what exactly was happening so that he could follow after her. "Honey?" he called, clearly concerned. Which he felt was reasonable. She was holding a putter, and she knew how to use it. His concern did not abate when she used her foot to stop the shutter. "That's–"
It was definitely not supposed to make that noise. "It has to be," he agreed, willing to agree that the skybox should have been pink if that was what she wanted it to be. His relief when she let the windmill resume spinning was palpable. "How about I go talk to them?" he suggested. That seemed like it would be safer. For everyone. Not that she would ever hurt anyone. Obviously. She just seemed like she might be a little too… not rational. About the situation. "I was a lawyer," he reminded her, trying to strengthen his argument for not yelling at mini golf employees.
"I'll just–" He turned, and discovered to his horror that a droid was already floating toward them. The kind of droid that was generally sent out when patrons were getting too rowdy, as a precursor to security. "Oh. Well. I guess they're. Coming to us."
"Step away from the windmill," the droid announced, sounding very authoritative for something as small as it was.
"We're stepping away," Ix assured it.
"Guests are not permitted to touch the obstacles."
"We were just looking."
"Guests who attempt to break the obstacles will be banned."
"She was just – we're just looking."
He was completely okay with that.
He smiled, but his anxiety returned at her mention of the windmill. The windmill. He had only ever known two people who could successfully manage the windmill on their first try, and one of them was Kreska, who did not count, because she was Kreska.
As she got into position, he watched her with almost as much intensity as she was watching the windmill. Two hands wrung together while the other two twisted on the putter in a mirror of what she'd done before.
It was fine. This was fine. She'd get the windmill. Right?
It didn't even matter. Even if she didn't get the windmill, she'd recognize that this was a totally normal thing, and she would accept it.
But that also didn't matter because she would definitely get the windmill.
She didn't get the windmill. He froze in faint but obvious horror. Her tentacles did that thing they did when she was upset, and his mind raced with possibilities for what dumb goddamn thing he would end up doing to fix this. Because he was always finding new, dumber things to do when she was upset. Someday they would find the floor of dumbness, but it hadn't happened yet.
… she was heading for the windmill.
She was going full Quixote.
He responded on a delay, because it took him too long to process what exactly was happening so that he could follow after her. "Honey?" he called, clearly concerned. Which he felt was reasonable. She was holding a putter, and she knew how to use it. His concern did not abate when she used her foot to stop the shutter. "That's–"
It was definitely not supposed to make that noise. "It has to be," he agreed, willing to agree that the skybox should have been pink if that was what she wanted it to be. His relief when she let the windmill resume spinning was palpable. "How about I go talk to them?" he suggested. That seemed like it would be safer. For everyone. Not that she would ever hurt anyone. Obviously. She just seemed like she might be a little too… not rational. About the situation. "I was a lawyer," he reminded her, trying to strengthen his argument for not yelling at mini golf employees.
"I'll just–" He turned, and discovered to his horror that a droid was already floating toward them. The kind of droid that was generally sent out when patrons were getting too rowdy, as a precursor to security. "Oh. Well. I guess they're. Coming to us."
"Step away from the windmill," the droid announced, sounding very authoritative for something as small as it was.
"We're stepping away," Ix assured it.
"Guests are not permitted to touch the obstacles."
"We were just looking."
"Guests who attempt to break the obstacles will be banned."
"She was just – we're just looking."
RE: Bluegrass and Clover [Closed] - megs - 01-15-2018
Nova was vaguely aware of the way Ixaaliot was trying to placate her, but she didn't want to be pacified. The smaller tentacles near her face curled upwards again.She was still staring down at the offending obstacle when they were approached by the droid. As it went through the motions of advising her away from the windmill, the tentacles that had yet to coil flared outwards, before twisting together, rope-like, down her back. “We’re just looking,” Nova repeated. The words echoed in her ears as if they were being said by someone else. Her gaze traveled from the windmill to the droid before returning to the windmill.
Nova didn’t know why she was so disproportionately upset about the windmill. Perhaps, it was knowing that it was rigged, and having lost to it so many times. Perhaps it was the encounter she had had at the gym that morning with an over familiar stranger. It could have been an emotional cocktail full of worry caused by knowing that Kreska knew about her ship, or an anxiety over her inability to tell her boyfriend she loved him.
Everything, unfortunately, coalesced on this singular moment. The putter fell from her hands and landed noiselessly on the artificial green and Nova leaned forward and stopped the windmill again. This time with her hands. Gripping two of the blades, she pulled until she had separated the two pieces. She took a few steps backwards to accommodate for the sudden way the piece she held was freed with an unpleasant mechanical whine.
Something about holding a - now destroyed- windmill instantly dissipated her anger. It was almost cathartic to dismantle an object that had thwarted her for so long. She exhaled sharply through her nose.
“I would like to talk to someone about this.”
RE: Bluegrass and Clover [Closed] - Tindome - 02-08-2019
Time froze in a manner entirely too dramatic for the absurd situation at hand. Everything had gone very sideways very quickly, and Ix was having trouble adapting.
Even though 'very sideways very quickly' was how most things in his life seemed to go. He should have been used to it, by now.
The small droid let out a sing-song alarm, not intended to be recognized as an alarm by anyone not involved in the current situation. Ix recognized it immediately. "This isn't what it looks like," he said helplessly to the droid.
"Your information has been saved," the droid played from its pre-determined set of responses. "The authorities have already been contacted."
That had skipped at least three different levels of escalation. "That – that won't be necessary," trying to talk down the droid with all four arms as if it were sentient rather than a dummy droid. "We just need to speak with management."
"Refrain from further acts of violence, or countermeasures will be taken."
"There haven't been any – it broke." One of his hands gestured to Nova. "Did you hear her say it was defective?"
"What's going on over here?" came a shout, and Ix froze again.
The Terran who'd been stomping over from the diner froze as soon as he saw Ix.
He, however, was the first to recover. He pointed accusingly at Ix. "What the fuck are you doing here?" he demanded.
Ix sputtered, then pointed back. "You! You're – you're off-duty! No uniform! No authority! Fuck off!"
The human searched each of his pants and then coat pockets in rapid succession, before finding his badge and slamming it against his chest. "Uniform! Authority! You're under arrest!"
"Fuck off!" Ix's voice had gone deeper, if such a thing were possible, gesticulating wildly with all four arms. "On what grounds, dipshit!"
"I'll figure something out!" His eyes left Ix, and he noticed for the first time Nova standing with the windmill blades in her hands. His hands went to his hair in dismay. "My windmill!"
Ix looked back at Nova, and remembered the situation at hand, which he had managed to forget entirely. He sidled sideways to put himself between them. "It's not what it looks like," he said, suddenly calmer.
"Did she break my fucking windmill?!" he demanded.
"It's not–"
His eyes widened. "Is she – is she with you?" he asked, trying to point around Ix at Nova.
"That's not–"
"Are you on a fucking date?"
"You don't–"
"Did you bring your fucking date to my date spot?"
Two of Ix's hands went to his cephalic tentacles, another two covering the bottom half of his face, his eyes wide. "Oh, fuck me."
"You forgot," he hissed. "You didn't even remember that I'm the one who–"
"Look, if you would just calm down–"
"You're under arrest."
"For fuck's sake."
Even though 'very sideways very quickly' was how most things in his life seemed to go. He should have been used to it, by now.
The small droid let out a sing-song alarm, not intended to be recognized as an alarm by anyone not involved in the current situation. Ix recognized it immediately. "This isn't what it looks like," he said helplessly to the droid.
"Your information has been saved," the droid played from its pre-determined set of responses. "The authorities have already been contacted."
That had skipped at least three different levels of escalation. "That – that won't be necessary," trying to talk down the droid with all four arms as if it were sentient rather than a dummy droid. "We just need to speak with management."
"Refrain from further acts of violence, or countermeasures will be taken."
"There haven't been any – it broke." One of his hands gestured to Nova. "Did you hear her say it was defective?"
"What's going on over here?" came a shout, and Ix froze again.
The Terran who'd been stomping over from the diner froze as soon as he saw Ix.
He, however, was the first to recover. He pointed accusingly at Ix. "What the fuck are you doing here?" he demanded.
Ix sputtered, then pointed back. "You! You're – you're off-duty! No uniform! No authority! Fuck off!"
The human searched each of his pants and then coat pockets in rapid succession, before finding his badge and slamming it against his chest. "Uniform! Authority! You're under arrest!"
"Fuck off!" Ix's voice had gone deeper, if such a thing were possible, gesticulating wildly with all four arms. "On what grounds, dipshit!"
"I'll figure something out!" His eyes left Ix, and he noticed for the first time Nova standing with the windmill blades in her hands. His hands went to his hair in dismay. "My windmill!"
Ix looked back at Nova, and remembered the situation at hand, which he had managed to forget entirely. He sidled sideways to put himself between them. "It's not what it looks like," he said, suddenly calmer.
"Did she break my fucking windmill?!" he demanded.
"It's not–"
His eyes widened. "Is she – is she with you?" he asked, trying to point around Ix at Nova.
"That's not–"
"Are you on a fucking date?"
"You don't–"
"Did you bring your fucking date to my date spot?"
Two of Ix's hands went to his cephalic tentacles, another two covering the bottom half of his face, his eyes wide. "Oh, fuck me."
"You forgot," he hissed. "You didn't even remember that I'm the one who–"
"Look, if you would just calm down–"
"You're under arrest."
"For fuck's sake."
RE: Bluegrass and Clover [Closed] - megs - 03-17-2019
Nova, more than aware of what she had done, stood silently with the evidence of the destroyed windmill still clutched firmly in her hand. Her gaze flickered from Ixaaliot and the droid he was trying to appease to no avail. "This thing called the cops on me," she complained, loudly. Only releasing the windmill with one hand to gesture accusingly at the floating mechanical annoyance. She gasped, as if offended, as it continued to play through it's recorded script. "Violence!" Her voice pitched higher. Her tentacles curled closer to her face. "Oh, I'll show this thing violence." Nova didn't appear to care about how cliché. she sounded, or how ridiculous she looked brandishing the blades of a toy windmill that a baseball bat on a mini-golf course in an attempt to knock down a robot, but here she was.
Shouting distracted her from her current task. Nova dropped her batter's stance to look over at the oncoming Terran.
The shouting continued for longer than she anticipated, and after a few heartbeats Nova felt as if she had been mostly forgotten. Ix moved in front of her and she could no longer see the man, but it wasn't difficult to determine there was a history there.
Her grudge against the windmill had completely deflated, and now she felt mostly foolish. Which was a strange thing to feel given her current situation. Admittedly, she had no idea which one of them was actually under arrest. The Terran seemed more offended that Ixaaliot was...dating.
"I would be more than amenable to just pay for the damages," she tried to speak up from behind Ix. She leaned the broken blades against the base. Which made it look kind of pathetic. "It was. An accident," she lied. "Mostly. But I think we can solve this. Without arresting anyone."
RE: Bluegrass and Clover [Closed] - Tindome - 10-19-2019
Ix tried to keep his focus on Nova—she was the most important part of this situation—but it was hard when 177 centimeters of too-familiar angry Terran was ready to explode in his face.
"It's not about the money," the officer snapped.
"It's the principle of the thing," Ix said dryly, unable to help himself, at the same time as the other man said it. The Terran started to flush an angry red. "She's right," Ix said. "There's no reason we can't just pay for this and go on with our day."
"That's not how the law works," he said. "Which you used to know."
"Oh, don't start that shit with me, Li Jie—"
"Officer Liao."
"Officer Liao," Ix repeated with a sneer. "We're on private property, we damaged private property, and we're entitled to sort this out with the owners. You have no power here unless they choose to press charges."
"I'm pressing charges."
"You don't get to do that."
"You're still a person of interest in last week's defenestration."
"Bullshit, you're reaching." Ix turned his head. "Nova, don't listen to a word he says, we're going to find the proprietor and get this worked out."
"You!" came yet another voice, and Ix dropped his head into the two hands not currently on his hips. A heavyset woman with broad shoulders and a scarf over her hair was trudging along the same route Liao had taken.
"There!" Liao said triumphantly, pointing at her. "Now that she's here, I'm going to—" He cupped his hands around his mouth. "Ma'am, do I have your permission to press charges?"
"You're the one that's been harassing my cooks," she said, her target now clearly Liao.
Liao deflated. "I'm—what?"
"This isn't the first time this has happened, either," she continued. "I recognize you, don't think I don't."
"Li Jie, what did you do?" Ix asked, clearly delighted.
"I didn't—this is a misunderstanding," Liao stammered.
"I'm—" The woman paused. "What happened to my windmill?"
"It's not about the money," the officer snapped.
"It's the principle of the thing," Ix said dryly, unable to help himself, at the same time as the other man said it. The Terran started to flush an angry red. "She's right," Ix said. "There's no reason we can't just pay for this and go on with our day."
"That's not how the law works," he said. "Which you used to know."
"Oh, don't start that shit with me, Li Jie—"
"Officer Liao."
"Officer Liao," Ix repeated with a sneer. "We're on private property, we damaged private property, and we're entitled to sort this out with the owners. You have no power here unless they choose to press charges."
"I'm pressing charges."
"You don't get to do that."
"You're still a person of interest in last week's defenestration."
"Bullshit, you're reaching." Ix turned his head. "Nova, don't listen to a word he says, we're going to find the proprietor and get this worked out."
"You!" came yet another voice, and Ix dropped his head into the two hands not currently on his hips. A heavyset woman with broad shoulders and a scarf over her hair was trudging along the same route Liao had taken.
"There!" Liao said triumphantly, pointing at her. "Now that she's here, I'm going to—" He cupped his hands around his mouth. "Ma'am, do I have your permission to press charges?"
"You're the one that's been harassing my cooks," she said, her target now clearly Liao.
Liao deflated. "I'm—what?"
"This isn't the first time this has happened, either," she continued. "I recognize you, don't think I don't."
"Li Jie, what did you do?" Ix asked, clearly delighted.
"I didn't—this is a misunderstanding," Liao stammered.
"I'm—" The woman paused. "What happened to my windmill?"
RE: Bluegrass and Clover [Closed] - megs - 10-19-2019
Admittedly, as the interaction continued Nova was less and less sure about which one of them was in trouble. Now, she felt more like a third wheel to a bickering couple. The smaller tentacles near her face, curled and flexed with a steady rhythm that was meant to display either annoyance or nervousness. Her blank expression gave no hint to which of these very different emotions she was feeling. Hint: it was somehow both.
A nervousness about how she had absolutely still vandalized private property and this Terran was apparently a cop. He would probably arrest her if he stopped arguing with Ixaaliot long enough. Which brought her full circle to the annoyance of this supposed ex totally crashing their date.
Nova's larger tentacles flared outwards when Ix turned to her, they fell flat again when his attention only lingered for a moment. "Defene-what?" There was just enough residual aggression from her altercation with the windmill that was pushing her towards petty. Was he not even going to introduce her to his ex? Where was the fun if she didn't even get to flaunt herself in front of an old flame?
Iaaliot didn't seem interested in calling their company officer. Her tentacles curled upwards all at once. A tight pinwheeled bob that framed her jaw. Nova crossed her arms over her chest and looked down at the windmill she had murdered. She scoffed at it, and knocked the blades she had set down so neatly over with her foot. Because clearly this whole situation was the windmills fault.
A woman- the owner, supposedly- made an appearance and was directing her ire towards Officer Liao. It still seemed like everyone was in trouble but her.
"It was an accident!" She said, automatically. Startling to attention when the new member of their little pow-wow asked about the windmill. She'd zoned out to ignore their bickering, just like they had sort of done with her as a whole. "I already offered to pay for it," she explained.
RE: Bluegrass and Clover [Closed] - Tindome - 10-19-2019
"A man was pushed out a window," Liao explained with a vague air of victory, pleased to have been given the opportunity to make Ix look bad.
"He jumped," Ix corrected, falsely.
"He was thrown," Liao insisted.
"I am physically incapable of throwing anyone out a window."
"But you know who did."
The owner of the mini-golf course looked Nova over, then looked at the windmill. "Yeah," she said, "alright." She reached into her back pocket and handed Nova a tablet so that she could make a payment. "500 credits, that's what he quoted me last time." She shrugged. "Thing was broken anyway."
Liao sagged so much his shoulders practically inverted. Ix grinned. "Thank you so much, Mz... Putt." He winced. Liao gave him a baffled look.
"Mz. Putt was my father," she said, much to Ix's surprise. "Call me Rose."
"Rose," Ix said, feeling quite pleased with himself.
"Of course, you're all going to have to leave," Rose said, taking the wind out of his sails. "Between the damages and everything else, I can't let you stay on this property."
"Ha!" Liao said.
"Especially you," Rose said. A red and yellow platform floated over. The platform of shame. Or so Ix assumed.
"I..." Liao's eyes darted nervously over Ixaaliot and Nova. "I need my own platform."
"No."
"He jumped," Ix corrected, falsely.
"He was thrown," Liao insisted.
"I am physically incapable of throwing anyone out a window."
"But you know who did."
The owner of the mini-golf course looked Nova over, then looked at the windmill. "Yeah," she said, "alright." She reached into her back pocket and handed Nova a tablet so that she could make a payment. "500 credits, that's what he quoted me last time." She shrugged. "Thing was broken anyway."
Liao sagged so much his shoulders practically inverted. Ix grinned. "Thank you so much, Mz... Putt." He winced. Liao gave him a baffled look.
"Mz. Putt was my father," she said, much to Ix's surprise. "Call me Rose."
"Rose," Ix said, feeling quite pleased with himself.
"Of course, you're all going to have to leave," Rose said, taking the wind out of his sails. "Between the damages and everything else, I can't let you stay on this property."
"Ha!" Liao said.
"Especially you," Rose said. A red and yellow platform floated over. The platform of shame. Or so Ix assumed.
"I..." Liao's eyes darted nervously over Ixaaliot and Nova. "I need my own platform."
"No."
RE: Bluegrass and Clover [Closed] - megs - 10-20-2019
Nova, admittedly, did not care that a man had been ejected from a window in some form. She did, however, think that the smug look Officer Liao got on his face was kind of endearing. He was trying so hard, bless him. He reminded her of...a puppy. Not a puppy like Onion, mind you. An Earth puppy. Like a Pomeranian. All small and noisy and fluffed up about it. "I told you," Nova hissed, when it was confirmed that the windmill had been broken. Her tentacles flared with a hint of conquest, even though she won absolutely nothing. She accepted the tablet from the woman with no complaint for the 500 credits that her pettiness was costing her.
One of her tentacles held the tablet while another pulled her credit chip from her pocket and inserted it into the device. Her arms were too busy being crossed, so she could continue to look entirely too self-satisfied about the situation.
Eventually, she remembered to say thank you to Rose for not letting the grumpy human haul her off to jail.
Her tentacle dropped her credit chip into her hand which pushed it into her pocket. Nova's mood had done a complete one-eighty. Or so it seemed. She was smiling and she was the first to step up on the platform. It exacerbated her significant height, making the way she stared down her nose at Officer Liao much more dramatic. "C'mon," she encouraged with a smirk. "I don't bite."
RE: Bluegrass and Clover [Closed] - Tindome - 10-20-2019
If Ixaaliot was less pleased than Nova, it was only because she was so pleased. Ix's satisfaction at Liao's mild humiliation just couldn't compare. His pleasure at seeing Nova look so triumphant and vindicated did come close.
Even if, really, he had trouble believing the windmill had actually or meaningfully been broken. He would take that secret to his grave.
Ix would have been the one to protest sharing a platform if Liao hadn't first. That gave Ix leave to pretend he didn't care out of spite. He stepped up to join Nova, draping one right arm over her shoulders and wrapping another around her waist. Sort of possessive. But in a casual way. He thought.
(Ix was never casual.)
"Don't make it weird," Ix said, and Liao scowled. He'd been trying to avoid looking at Nova, but his eyes lingered on Ix's arms around her before he looked away. He didn't make eye contact as he stepped onto the platform, and he crossed his arms as it started to carry them toward the door.
"… Mz. Putt," Liao muttered finally.
"It's her name."
"You didn't know that."
"I panicked."
Even if, really, he had trouble believing the windmill had actually or meaningfully been broken. He would take that secret to his grave.
Ix would have been the one to protest sharing a platform if Liao hadn't first. That gave Ix leave to pretend he didn't care out of spite. He stepped up to join Nova, draping one right arm over her shoulders and wrapping another around her waist. Sort of possessive. But in a casual way. He thought.
(Ix was never casual.)
"Don't make it weird," Ix said, and Liao scowled. He'd been trying to avoid looking at Nova, but his eyes lingered on Ix's arms around her before he looked away. He didn't make eye contact as he stepped onto the platform, and he crossed his arms as it started to carry them toward the door.
"… Mz. Putt," Liao muttered finally.
"It's her name."
"You didn't know that."
"I panicked."
RE: Bluegrass and Clover [Closed] - megs - 11-17-2019
Nova was doing a much better job of looking cool and casual than Ixalliot was. She didn't uncross her arms as Ix put two of his around her, but she did lean into him a bit. Her tentacles were loose and swaying slowly to and fro behind her back. She knew they made an attractive couple, and she didn't know why she trying to intimidate a police officer. Yes, she did. Officer Liao was not just a grumpy cop, he was her boyfriend's ex, and they were engaging in a snappy rapport that made her feel left out.
Nova was not above a bit of petty jealousy for time to time.
The platform was certainly big enough for the three of them. Especially with two standing so close together. Nova crowded Liao, anyway. She was just tall enough to lean over him. She was grinning down at him, but it was her customer service smile. Warm on her mouth, but cold in her eyes, which were unsettling enough with their black sclera and large pupils. Nova looked like a cat that had found something it wanted to toy with.
"So, you're a cop?" She said, pointing out the obvious as means to start a new line of conversation. One of her larger tentacles curled beneath Liao's chin, and a smaller one tugged at the badge he had affixed to his chest. Turning it this way and that, reflecting, the light as she read the name engraved upon it. "That's fun." She did not sound like she meant it.
She uncrossed her arms, but it did nothing to make her look more relaxed. Her tentacles released his badge, but not his face. "How do you know Ixaaliot?"
RE: Bluegrass and Clover [Closed] - Tindome - 12-03-2019
Ix had never seen this side of Nova before. He didn't know how he felt about it.
… it was kind of hot. That was how he felt about it. But he also thought he probably shouldn't feel that, so. He didn't know how he felt about it.
Liao knew exactly how he felt about being loomed over by some kind of sexy tentacle alien: unsettled. He flinched when her tentacles started touching him, and then pretended he hadn't flinched. He could feel his pulse against his sternum, and tried to ignore it.
"Yeah," he said, squaring his jaw. "Yeah, I'm a cop. And he used to be a lawyer. We used to work together."
"We dated," Ix said flatly.
Liao glowered at him, reddening. "We worked together," he repeated. "Until he decided he'd rather turn to a life of crime."
"Oh, please." Ix rolled his eyes. "I did no such thing. I retired."
"Bullshit, you did."
"He's jealous."
… it was kind of hot. That was how he felt about it. But he also thought he probably shouldn't feel that, so. He didn't know how he felt about it.
Liao knew exactly how he felt about being loomed over by some kind of sexy tentacle alien: unsettled. He flinched when her tentacles started touching him, and then pretended he hadn't flinched. He could feel his pulse against his sternum, and tried to ignore it.
"Yeah," he said, squaring his jaw. "Yeah, I'm a cop. And he used to be a lawyer. We used to work together."
"We dated," Ix said flatly.
Liao glowered at him, reddening. "We worked together," he repeated. "Until he decided he'd rather turn to a life of crime."
"Oh, please." Ix rolled his eyes. "I did no such thing. I retired."
"Bullshit, you did."
"He's jealous."