boomtown thread continuation: julian and charlie/karaoke night

[that_cost]

[ continued from here. ]

"Okay," Charlie replies, tucking the silver into her backpack before standing and stepping to the side, waiting for Julian.

"I appreciate it. Being walked home, I mean." It was actually really nice to have company. "And I promise, I'm not that far."

Comments

[magicink]

"Three domes is my limit. If it's beyond that, you just might need ta call a cab," he joked. As he understood it everyone lived in this one dome and there were no taxis. It was all an attempt to get her to smile.

[that_cost]

It works. There's a small smile. A tired one, but at least it's there.

"Well, damn. I guess this is your stop. I have a hut outside the dome."

She's teasing in return.

[magicink]

He laughed. "Damn, defeated before I even get started. Isn't that the way shit always goes?" If she was looking for someone who knew how to be a gentleman, he wasn't it. He didn't hurry ahead to get the door for her.

"You need anythin'? From what I've heard pregnant chicks don't have a lot of energy. I could do an errand or something' for you tomorrow."

[that_cost]

She wouldn't know how to handle having a gentleman, anyway. That's decidedly new territory. Stiles was as close as she ever got. Pyro was more relaxing for her to be around, given that Charlie is super prone to enjoying her independence. So she doesn't think anything of Julian not getting the door for her.

"Uh...not that I can think of? I have a grocery run to make, but it's not really for anything heavy. Just some spices from the one vendor in the merchant dome, and some cookies from another vendor that looks like Santa."

He probably is Santa.

[magicink]

"Wait, what? Some dude looks like Santa 'round here?" Julian latched on to that idea with a big grin. This place was turning out to be a lot more interesting than he'd expected. He was very glad about that too.

"Want some company? I'm obviously not doin' anythin'."

[that_cost]

"He looks exactly like Santa. Giant belly. Rosy cheeks. The beard. He really favors red, too."

Charlie thinks it's pretty awesome. "And he makes the best cookies."

She's very partial to them. At Julians offer, she considers it for a moment before smiling and nodding some.

"Sure. That sounds like a plan."

[magicink]

Julian laughed. "I really have to see this guy then," he replied. "I have very rarely met a cookie I didn't like.. well except raisin. Why do people ruin cookies with healthy shit?"

"Cool," he answered to her agreeing to let him help.

[that_cost]

"Raisins are an abomination. They pretend to be chocolate chips," Charlie replies, smirking some. She really doesn't care for raisins. "I don't particularly like chocolate either, but if I look at a cookie I'm about to eat and expect chocolate and get some gross, dehydrated grape? I'm going to be disappointed and feel lied to."

Oh, look. It's Charlie's house. It's two stories, has a garden on the side along with a home made firepit and tandoor oven.

She leads the way to her front door, turning to look at Julian.

"If you want to hang out and play The Last of Us, you're more than welcome. My roommates out. It's just me, the two cats, the dog, a Pokemon and a Japanese Rooster Spirit thing."

She's not kidding.

[magicink]

Charlie's opinion on raisin cookies has him really amused. The comment about chocolate had him curious, but some people had weird tastes in things.

"Sure, that- wait what?" A Pokemon and a Spirit thing? "What the hell is a Japanese Rooster Spirit thing? How'd you get a Pokemon?"

[that_cost]

"It's called a Basan. It comes up to my waist and breathes cold fire. It eats embers, ash and lit coals and serves as a sort of bodyguard." She sounds only a little bit okay with this thing being in her life. The story behind it is long, convoluted and not one she's willing to talk about at this time.

Stepping into the house, Charlie's greeted by a black cat and a fuzzy as hell grey one. The dog, Max, is a very round English bulldog who decides to stay on the couch, short tail wagging. The Pokemon is nowhere to be found and the Basan is in the kitchen, standing near the island and staring at Charlie.

"I got the Pokemon from someone who was here ages ago. It's a Cyndaquil."

[magicink]

"Really? That's fuckin' awesome," Julian replied. He noted her expression but wasn't totally sure what was going on there. The fact she had a 'guard dog' of sorts gave him a clue, but to him it just sounded like a smart thing to have. Ryan had tried to get him to buy a dog for a while, but he never listened.

He saw the dog and grinned, but his attention was caught by the Basan. "Whoa.. that thing is really fuckin' cool." Now that was the kind of pet he could consider having. Though the fuzzy dog was really cute. "How does it manage cold fire?"

He was itching to examine it with his magic, but he just wasn't there yet. This place was still too new and too foreign for him to out himself. There had been just too many stories of getting tricked and killed back home for him to do that here.

[that_cost]

"I dunno. It just does," Charlie replies, heading to the open kitchen and grabbing one of the ginger ales off the counter. She heads back to Julian, watching him with her pets.

"Max, there, is from a world where giant lizard monsters come from the sea and try to destroy everything. They're fought by people piloting giant robots called Jagers. I don't know much about them, just that it takes two people connected through some kind of neuro-transmitter."

[magicink]

He didn't have any experience being around animals so, he was a bit awkward with them. He didn't dislike them, but knowing how to just reach out and pet one wasn't automatic to him either. Looking back at her, he raised an eyebrow. "How did you manage that? That must be a hell of a adoption process."

[that_cost]

"Sorta. He was brought by a friend of mine when they arrived. They fluxed out and left Max behind so I took him in."

Why wouldn't she?

[magicink]

"Ahh, now that makes a whole lot more sense," Julian replied. "Is he friendly?" He's hesitant about reaching his hand out to an animal he doesn't know. He's not a vampire so they shouldn't react negatively to him.. at least more so than any other human but why risk his hand?

[that_cost]

It's Max that answers his question, rolling onto his feet and walking across the couch to stare at Julian, tail wagging fiercely.

"I think he likes you," Charlie replies with a grin as she heads over to her dog, scratching him behind his ears. Max leans into her hand, eyes closing and clearly enjoying the contact.

"He doesn't bite. It's the basan that's the guard dog. You really gotta watch what you do around him. He doesn't like it if it looks like I'm in danger."

[magicink]

"Aw," Julian said with a grin as he watched the dog. Okay, it was pretty cute. He mimicked her motion to pet the dog and decided this fella was alright with him. "I'd never try to hurt ya, so we should get along okay."