(Untitled)

[bass_line_blues]

Preston ambles into the Wasteland and slings his backpack onto his seat

Comments

[cheng_hu]

"What," Daniel says, trying hopefully to dry himself off with an already wet shirt, "is that on your face."

[bass_line_blues]

"Hair," says Preston, grinning, "I'm pretty sure. Ninety-eight percent, at least."

[cheng_hu]

"Are you sure? It might be some kind of new secondary mutation. Nothing to do with werewolves."

But his grin is telling. "How are you?" He claps Preston on the back, going against the hug for now. Preston is slightly drier than him.

[bass_line_blues]

"Even if next step was yeti, man, it'd still be hair."

Preston throws caution and manliness to the winds and goes in for the quick hug regardless!

[cheng_hu]

Daniel is touched! Preston is...probably wetter than he was. "We've missed you here."

And then he punches Preston in the shoulder. "That's for leaving me alone with Salah."

[bass_line_blues]

"Thanks," says Preston, and then ducks, not quick enough.

"Ow. What, the rest of the city fall through a black hole or something? I am not the last line of Salah-defense."

[cheng_hu]

"Yeah, well. He seems to think I need livening up. You were a handy line of defense. He calls me Little D. I can't guarantee his safety for much longer."

[bass_line_blues]

Preston looks at Daniel and his extra inch or so of height, and tries his very best not to let the faintest signs of smugness creep over his features. Really.

"I need to start putting up the nonviolence posters again?"

[cheng_hu]

"Gandhi may not be able to stop me," Daniel says, deadpan. "You might have to resort to...I don't know. What's more nonviolent than Gandhi? Buddha? Kittens?"

[bass_line_blues]

"Kittens have claws. And teeth. Real tiny ones, but still."

Preston thinks about this for a moment. "What about Gandhi holding a baby? Hella nonviolent."

[cheng_hu]

"That might do it. Now, if you can just find someone with a running computer and Photoshop, you might have something. But you'd probably have to do a number on Gwen before she'd put it up."

[bass_line_blues]

"To stop you and Salah starting a brawl, Gwen might -"

Preston stops himself, and shakes his head.

"Actually, scratch that, Gwen might just as easily think it was funny. Now, if there was a risk to the booze . . ."

[cheng_hu]

"You missed it. Someone has apparently given wine a try. I'm a little afraid to ask what they made it out of. They might answer me.

"Besides, I'd win."

[bass_line_blues]

"Could be," says Preston, "but Salah's wily. I don't know, I wouldn't want to place bets."

Besides, his loyalties would be torn!

". . . if it's not actually made out of something that comes out of the ground, can you call it wine? Are you and Anna still in charge of most of the things coming out of the ground?"

[cheng_hu]

"I don't think you can make wine out of tomatoes, and the apples aren't ready yet. I have no part in the wine. Unless Anna has been selling produce I didn't know we had behind my back..."

Canned fruit, maybe? They can hope.

[bass_line_blues]

"Skeezy black market commercial dealings?"

Preston breaks into a sudden smirk. "I like it. Signs of civilization, man!"