[Drabble Dump] Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger
I've been doing prompt drabbles all day on tumblr (add me at raggirare.tumblr.com and feel free to spam me with prompts either here or there) and these are the results so far.
Prompt: Loneliness
Word Count: 208
Characters: Sid/Barizorg
The great thing about being a cyborg is that no one can read your mind. At the same time, that’s what makes it so much more difficult, because you can’t speak it, either. Everyone thinks that a cyborg is nothing but programming, but there’s so much more to it.
We can see. We can hear. We can feel. We can live. And that’s what makes it so hard, especially when one used to be human.
Can you hear me, Joe? I wish you could hear me. I’m still alive. I’m nothing but the hardware for a computer now, trapped in a driver system that only accesses the one part of me useful to the Zangyack, but I’m still here. It’s lonely in here but I don’t mind. I can still see you. I can still watch you doing what you were born to do and doing the right thing. And I know that if anyone can find a way to get me out of here, it’s you, Joe.
Maybe it’s better that you don’t know I’m alive. Better for only one of us to suffer in loneliness surrounded by hundreds, rather than both of us.
Prompt: The best day of your life that has yet to happen
Word Count: 338
Characters: Marvelous, Joe, Luka, Ahim, Don, Gai
Marvelous smirked from his seat in his captain’s chair. It was a quiet day aboard the GokaiGalleon. For once, there hadn’t been any alarms of the Zangyack arriving on Earth to cause more trouble, and the captain had just enjoyed a most delicious meal thanks to Don. He was still picked slivers of beef from between his teeth.
Ahim was seated at the table, sipping tea from her pink teacup and Don was tapping away at the main console of the ship out of boredom, learning more about the Earth in an attempt to find the greatest treasure in the universe. Gai was next to him, helping him with his research and telling him all about everything and anything. Luka was watching them both with mild fascination, particularly when such items as the treasures of the Aztecs and the great tombs of the Egyptian Pharaohs were mentioned.
And then there was Joe. Off to the side, sitting by himself, playing a game of cards. Just Joe being regular, old Joe. Though Marvelous couldn’t help but watch him. Joe had been with him the longest of anyone since he had inherited the GokaiGalleon and he had been there to watch him change. But ever since that run-in with Barizorg, Joe had changed more than he had ever before.
He seemed lighter, more open, and it made Marvelous smile.
As though he could feel his captain’s gaze on him, Joe’s eyes lifted from the cards laid out in front of him and met Marvelous’s. There was a moment’s pause, before he, too, let a smile pull at his lips. It only lasted a second before Joe’s attention was on his game again and Marvelous was watching Don and Gai and Luka, but the smile stayed on the captain’s lips.
What were they going to do after they found the greatest treasure in the universe? Well, if it was him and Joe, it was sure to be showy.
He couldn’t wait.
Prompt: Protection
Word Count: 251
Characters: Joe, Marvelous, Luka, Ahim, Don, Gai
Oi, Joe. Watch my back.
Joe swallowed. Hard. His hands clenched into fists at his side, so tight his knuckles went white. Messily chopped hair brushed at his cheekbones, angled strands brushed his shoulders where the ponytail had been lopped off. His clothes were covered in blood.
His blood.
His enemy’s blood.
Marvelous’s blood.
He swallowed again. He’d failed. He’d failed again. Don and Gai were preparing medical equipment and Ahim was tending to the large wounds littering their captain’s bare chest and arms and Luka was standing right next to him, a shaking hand resting on his arm.
Joe couldn’t take it.
He pulled away from the hand and headed up the stairs to the crows nest. He couldn’t be in that room. He couldn’t stand to look at what he had caused. He had made one wrong split-second decision and it had ended like this.
He pulled the red coat around his shoulders closed over his chest, fingers digging into the material. Why did Marvelous have to give it to him? Marvelous never let anyone wear his jacket. It was the captain’s jacket. Only the captain could wear it.
Joe fell back against the mast and slid down it until he was sitting. Silent sobs choked in his throat and he squeezed his eyes shut to try and fight off threatening tears. But he lost. Drawing his knees up to his chest, he buried his face in them and swore.
Prompt: Storm
Word Count: 580
Characters: Marvelous, Joe, Ahim, Gai
“Eh? Where’s Joe-san?” Really, Ahim should be used to Joe constantly disappearing off on his own, but she couldn’t help but worry. The crew was her family and if no one was going to worry over them constantly, then they’d all end up losing track of each other and getting hurt. At least, that was what she told herself.
“He’s gone to train,” As always, Marvelous wasn’t worried. He trusted Joe with every part of him. He didn’t doubt that if required, he’d trust Joe with his life. It was them they were talking about after all.
“But Marvelous-san… there’s a large storm coming.”
“A typhoon!” Gai interrupted Ahim with a worried expression. “It’s more than just a storm! And if he’s out in the forest where he normally trains then something bad might happen. Like a… a… a mudslide! Or a flood or something!”
The captain rolled his eyes and smirked. “He’ll be fine,” he said before standing. “But if you’re all so worried, let’s land the GokaiGalleon and I’ll go look for him.”
Marvelous was glad that he had conceded. By the time he had found Joe, the rain was relentless and thick and his jacket was thick and heavy with the rain it had soaked up. He could barely get his feet through the mud and he kept slipping on more open patches. He didn’t care, though. His goal was Joe.
The other pirate was face down in the mud, drenched to the bone. He had been trying to get back up but every attempt ended with him slipping again. There were cuts and slices through his clothing, revealing open wounds in his skin and Marvelous knew what he had been training and just how it had gone wrong.
“Come on, Joe,” he grunted out as he attempted to haul the man to his feet only to fall and join him in the mud. “Dammit. You’re a stubborn one, y’know?”
“I needed to be alone.” Joe open an eye, the only piece of human left visible on his face beneath the mud mask he had ended up wearing. “Why did you come?”
Marvelous smirked, still himself despite the fact he was covered in mud and soaked through and still struggling to get them both to their feet. “Needed to land the GokaiGalleon,” he explained. “You just happened to be close by.”
Eventually, the captain succeeded long enough to get them to the shelter of a larger tree. Marvelous sat beneath it and Joe promptly collapsed to sit beside him, panting from either the energy lost in training and trying to get through the mud or the pain from his wounds that he wouldn’t admit to. Marvelous figured it was a mixture of both and leaned forward enough to pull his jacket off. It was wool and wool always stayed warm even when drenched through.
He lay it over his friend before sliding an arm around the man’s waist to pull him close. The rain wasn’t about to let up any time soon, so he figured the best they could do was wait it out and try and keep each other warm so they didn’t get sick.
Joe didn’t have any objections. Either that, or he didn’t get a chance to voice them before he promptly passed out, his head on his captain’s shoulder.
Prompt: Duty
Word Count: 293
Characters: Sid, Joe, Mark (OC)
“You lose again. Pay up.”
“Che. You’re such a brat.”
“And you’re a sore loser, Mark.”
“Shut it, Sid. Have you ever beaten him?”
“Of course,” A smirk pulled at Sid’s lips and he turned a page in the book he was reading. “I taught him how to play.” He shifted his legs, recrossing his ankles where his feet were propped up on the table in front of that the other two were using to play cards.
Joe just matched his teacher’s smirk and collected up his winnings from the other man. “Care to play again?” He offered, shuffling the deck.
Mark stood. “Would love to stay but I’ve got to go round up some Gormin for a mission,” he ran a hand through light strands before fixing his eye piece in place. “Those things are annoying. I’ll play you later, though. And I’ll kick your ass next time!”
Sid gave him a half wave in farewell before returning his attention to his book, turning another page, while Joe set up another game on the table.
“Hey, Sid-senpai?” Sid glanced over the top of his book and cocked an eyebrow in response. “We’ll get to do missions together, right?”
The older man smiled and gave a nod. “Of course. Once we finish training, we’ll get to do missions together all the time. We’ll work together better than other partners. We’ll become the best swordsman in the Zangyack!” As he spoke, his tone got more and more excited and his smiled pulled into a grin.
Joe grinned, though not as wide, and gave a nod. “You’re right, senpai,” he said. “Now play me. It’s your turn to get your ass kicked.”
Prompt: The hardest choice you've ever had to make
Word Count: 365
Characters: Marvelous, Basco, Joe, Sari
“Come on, Marvelous. You and I both know how this is going to end. I’ve got the greatest treasure in the universe now, and the Zangyack are going to destroy this planet. Simple. Now, can we get going? I’d rather not be here when this place gets razed.”
Marvelous scowled. Oh, how he wanted to just punch that smirk right off of Basco’s face. And rip Sari’s head off. God, that monkey annoyed him so much. Not as much as Basco did, but damn, it was close. He’d take that ape’s cymbals then throw them like frisbees and cut off both Sari and Basco’s heads. Yeah. That’d do nicely.
It really was an obvious choice for Marvelous to make. Of course he was going to chase down Basco. The bastard had betrayed him and AkaRed, after all. And what sort of pirate would he be if he let the greatest treasure in the universe get away so easily. Not a very good one, that’s what. But he was a pirate captain, and a captain was nothing without his crew’s loyalty.
Slowly, he pulled his gaze from his old ally to his friends standing behind him. They were lined up, mobirates in hand. They were worn out, battered and bruised, and Marvelous knew that the best thing for them all was to jump onto the GokaiGalleon and take off in a space race, rather than continue to physically fight.
“Marvelous.” The captain’s eyes shifted to Joe at the sound of his name. His friend’s tone and face were calm and clear, but his eyes betrayed the emotions he was keeping in check. The others weren’t so well practiced but he knew they were all with him, even without it being said. But still… “We’re with you. No matter what you choose.”
The captain smirked. He turned back to face Basco, and pulled his own mobirates out. “You’re wrong, Basco,” he said confidently, clicking open a ranger key. “You don’t have the greatest treasure. It’s still here on earth. And it’s not leaving until we’re ready to leave.”
Prompt: Bad Romance
Word Count: 581
Characters: Marvelous, Joe, Ahim, Luka, Gai, Don
It was possibly the most awkward meal they’d ever had together as a crew. Marvelous and Joe were sitting at opposite ends of the table to each other, and neither had said a word since coming down to eat. Lack of talking wasn’t unusual during eating time, but Joe was silent, and Marvelous hadn’t made a single appreciative comment on the taste. To make matters worse, both seemed to be making a point of ignoring the other, Joe not looking up from his plate at all and Marvelous looking at everyone but his second-in-command.
Gai and Don decided it would be a good idea to not say anything and concentrate on eating as fast as possible, while Luka and Ahim were a bit more worried. They didn’t say anything, though, not wanting to upset the meal. Not yet at least…
Joe was the first to finish. He mumbled a thanks to Don for the food before standing and heading over to the couch where his deck of cards sat. He picked it up, shuffled then began to deal a game. A solo game. He didn’t want to be disturbed. Ahim finished next and collected her own and Joe’s plates and returned them to the kitchen, before deciding to sit down beside the blue ranger. She didn’t miss the annoyed glance sent her way, but the lack of voiced annoyance made her feel less uncomfortable about sitting with him.
Marvelous finished with a loud belch and stood. “Alright! Don and Ahim, you’re going grocery shopping. Gai, Luka and I are coming along to help.” He announced.
Luka blinked. “Eh? What about Joe?”
“He’s decided he’s not joining us today.” The words were almost bit out and finally, the captain cast a look in Joe’s direction, met with a harsh glare of his own.
Joe sneered a little and looked back at his game. “Or, rather, he’s decided I’m not joining you today.”
“I warned you.”
“You provoked me.”
“How did I provoke you? I was just stating a fact!”
“While conveniently ignoring one that I had just pointed out.”
“So you’re admitting you started it?”
“I didn’t start anything! You’re the one who brought Sid-senpai up even after I’ve specifically told you not to!”
Joe was standing by now, fists curled at his side. His glare was met by Marvelous’s, the captain standing with his arms folded across his chest. The rest of the crew were silent, watching, not wanting to risk getting involved. Well, most of them.
“Marvelous-san…. Joe-san…” Ahim stepped forward and placed a hand on each of the men’s arms. “Why are you fighting…? Don’t we fight enough with Zangyack? We don’t need to fight amongst us. Aren’t we comrades?” For a long tense moment, there was silence.
Joe pulled away from Ahim’s touch and shoved past Marvelous without looking at him. He was going to go and train. Alone. It was the best way to clear his head.
“Marvelous. Is this just like one of those stupid little lover’s spats where you and Joe are too stubborn to just apologize?” Luka frowned and folded her arms across her chest. “Geez, you two. You’re as bad as an old married couple fighting about old flames.”
Marvelous glanced at her out the corner of his eye before giving a soft snort and following after Joe.
Prompt: Loneliness
Word Count: 208
Characters: Sid/Barizorg
The great thing about being a cyborg is that no one can read your mind. At the same time, that’s what makes it so much more difficult, because you can’t speak it, either. Everyone thinks that a cyborg is nothing but programming, but there’s so much more to it.
We can see. We can hear. We can feel. We can live. And that’s what makes it so hard, especially when one used to be human.
Can you hear me, Joe? I wish you could hear me. I’m still alive. I’m nothing but the hardware for a computer now, trapped in a driver system that only accesses the one part of me useful to the Zangyack, but I’m still here. It’s lonely in here but I don’t mind. I can still see you. I can still watch you doing what you were born to do and doing the right thing. And I know that if anyone can find a way to get me out of here, it’s you, Joe.
Maybe it’s better that you don’t know I’m alive. Better for only one of us to suffer in loneliness surrounded by hundreds, rather than both of us.
Prompt: The best day of your life that has yet to happen
Word Count: 338
Characters: Marvelous, Joe, Luka, Ahim, Don, Gai
Marvelous smirked from his seat in his captain’s chair. It was a quiet day aboard the GokaiGalleon. For once, there hadn’t been any alarms of the Zangyack arriving on Earth to cause more trouble, and the captain had just enjoyed a most delicious meal thanks to Don. He was still picked slivers of beef from between his teeth.
Ahim was seated at the table, sipping tea from her pink teacup and Don was tapping away at the main console of the ship out of boredom, learning more about the Earth in an attempt to find the greatest treasure in the universe. Gai was next to him, helping him with his research and telling him all about everything and anything. Luka was watching them both with mild fascination, particularly when such items as the treasures of the Aztecs and the great tombs of the Egyptian Pharaohs were mentioned.
And then there was Joe. Off to the side, sitting by himself, playing a game of cards. Just Joe being regular, old Joe. Though Marvelous couldn’t help but watch him. Joe had been with him the longest of anyone since he had inherited the GokaiGalleon and he had been there to watch him change. But ever since that run-in with Barizorg, Joe had changed more than he had ever before.
He seemed lighter, more open, and it made Marvelous smile.
As though he could feel his captain’s gaze on him, Joe’s eyes lifted from the cards laid out in front of him and met Marvelous’s. There was a moment’s pause, before he, too, let a smile pull at his lips. It only lasted a second before Joe’s attention was on his game again and Marvelous was watching Don and Gai and Luka, but the smile stayed on the captain’s lips.
What were they going to do after they found the greatest treasure in the universe? Well, if it was him and Joe, it was sure to be showy.
He couldn’t wait.
Prompt: Protection
Word Count: 251
Characters: Joe, Marvelous, Luka, Ahim, Don, Gai
Oi, Joe. Watch my back.
Joe swallowed. Hard. His hands clenched into fists at his side, so tight his knuckles went white. Messily chopped hair brushed at his cheekbones, angled strands brushed his shoulders where the ponytail had been lopped off. His clothes were covered in blood.
His blood.
His enemy’s blood.
Marvelous’s blood.
He swallowed again. He’d failed. He’d failed again. Don and Gai were preparing medical equipment and Ahim was tending to the large wounds littering their captain’s bare chest and arms and Luka was standing right next to him, a shaking hand resting on his arm.
Joe couldn’t take it.
He pulled away from the hand and headed up the stairs to the crows nest. He couldn’t be in that room. He couldn’t stand to look at what he had caused. He had made one wrong split-second decision and it had ended like this.
He pulled the red coat around his shoulders closed over his chest, fingers digging into the material. Why did Marvelous have to give it to him? Marvelous never let anyone wear his jacket. It was the captain’s jacket. Only the captain could wear it.
Joe fell back against the mast and slid down it until he was sitting. Silent sobs choked in his throat and he squeezed his eyes shut to try and fight off threatening tears. But he lost. Drawing his knees up to his chest, he buried his face in them and swore.
Prompt: Storm
Word Count: 580
Characters: Marvelous, Joe, Ahim, Gai
“Eh? Where’s Joe-san?” Really, Ahim should be used to Joe constantly disappearing off on his own, but she couldn’t help but worry. The crew was her family and if no one was going to worry over them constantly, then they’d all end up losing track of each other and getting hurt. At least, that was what she told herself.
“He’s gone to train,” As always, Marvelous wasn’t worried. He trusted Joe with every part of him. He didn’t doubt that if required, he’d trust Joe with his life. It was them they were talking about after all.
“But Marvelous-san… there’s a large storm coming.”
“A typhoon!” Gai interrupted Ahim with a worried expression. “It’s more than just a storm! And if he’s out in the forest where he normally trains then something bad might happen. Like a… a… a mudslide! Or a flood or something!”
The captain rolled his eyes and smirked. “He’ll be fine,” he said before standing. “But if you’re all so worried, let’s land the GokaiGalleon and I’ll go look for him.”
Marvelous was glad that he had conceded. By the time he had found Joe, the rain was relentless and thick and his jacket was thick and heavy with the rain it had soaked up. He could barely get his feet through the mud and he kept slipping on more open patches. He didn’t care, though. His goal was Joe.
The other pirate was face down in the mud, drenched to the bone. He had been trying to get back up but every attempt ended with him slipping again. There were cuts and slices through his clothing, revealing open wounds in his skin and Marvelous knew what he had been training and just how it had gone wrong.
“Come on, Joe,” he grunted out as he attempted to haul the man to his feet only to fall and join him in the mud. “Dammit. You’re a stubborn one, y’know?”
“I needed to be alone.” Joe open an eye, the only piece of human left visible on his face beneath the mud mask he had ended up wearing. “Why did you come?”
Marvelous smirked, still himself despite the fact he was covered in mud and soaked through and still struggling to get them both to their feet. “Needed to land the GokaiGalleon,” he explained. “You just happened to be close by.”
Eventually, the captain succeeded long enough to get them to the shelter of a larger tree. Marvelous sat beneath it and Joe promptly collapsed to sit beside him, panting from either the energy lost in training and trying to get through the mud or the pain from his wounds that he wouldn’t admit to. Marvelous figured it was a mixture of both and leaned forward enough to pull his jacket off. It was wool and wool always stayed warm even when drenched through.
He lay it over his friend before sliding an arm around the man’s waist to pull him close. The rain wasn’t about to let up any time soon, so he figured the best they could do was wait it out and try and keep each other warm so they didn’t get sick.
Joe didn’t have any objections. Either that, or he didn’t get a chance to voice them before he promptly passed out, his head on his captain’s shoulder.
Prompt: Duty
Word Count: 293
Characters: Sid, Joe, Mark (OC)
“You lose again. Pay up.”
“Che. You’re such a brat.”
“And you’re a sore loser, Mark.”
“Shut it, Sid. Have you ever beaten him?”
“Of course,” A smirk pulled at Sid’s lips and he turned a page in the book he was reading. “I taught him how to play.” He shifted his legs, recrossing his ankles where his feet were propped up on the table in front of that the other two were using to play cards.
Joe just matched his teacher’s smirk and collected up his winnings from the other man. “Care to play again?” He offered, shuffling the deck.
Mark stood. “Would love to stay but I’ve got to go round up some Gormin for a mission,” he ran a hand through light strands before fixing his eye piece in place. “Those things are annoying. I’ll play you later, though. And I’ll kick your ass next time!”
Sid gave him a half wave in farewell before returning his attention to his book, turning another page, while Joe set up another game on the table.
“Hey, Sid-senpai?” Sid glanced over the top of his book and cocked an eyebrow in response. “We’ll get to do missions together, right?”
The older man smiled and gave a nod. “Of course. Once we finish training, we’ll get to do missions together all the time. We’ll work together better than other partners. We’ll become the best swordsman in the Zangyack!” As he spoke, his tone got more and more excited and his smiled pulled into a grin.
Joe grinned, though not as wide, and gave a nod. “You’re right, senpai,” he said. “Now play me. It’s your turn to get your ass kicked.”
Prompt: The hardest choice you've ever had to make
Word Count: 365
Characters: Marvelous, Basco, Joe, Sari
“Come on, Marvelous. You and I both know how this is going to end. I’ve got the greatest treasure in the universe now, and the Zangyack are going to destroy this planet. Simple. Now, can we get going? I’d rather not be here when this place gets razed.”
Marvelous scowled. Oh, how he wanted to just punch that smirk right off of Basco’s face. And rip Sari’s head off. God, that monkey annoyed him so much. Not as much as Basco did, but damn, it was close. He’d take that ape’s cymbals then throw them like frisbees and cut off both Sari and Basco’s heads. Yeah. That’d do nicely.
It really was an obvious choice for Marvelous to make. Of course he was going to chase down Basco. The bastard had betrayed him and AkaRed, after all. And what sort of pirate would he be if he let the greatest treasure in the universe get away so easily. Not a very good one, that’s what. But he was a pirate captain, and a captain was nothing without his crew’s loyalty.
Slowly, he pulled his gaze from his old ally to his friends standing behind him. They were lined up, mobirates in hand. They were worn out, battered and bruised, and Marvelous knew that the best thing for them all was to jump onto the GokaiGalleon and take off in a space race, rather than continue to physically fight.
“Marvelous.” The captain’s eyes shifted to Joe at the sound of his name. His friend’s tone and face were calm and clear, but his eyes betrayed the emotions he was keeping in check. The others weren’t so well practiced but he knew they were all with him, even without it being said. But still… “We’re with you. No matter what you choose.”
The captain smirked. He turned back to face Basco, and pulled his own mobirates out. “You’re wrong, Basco,” he said confidently, clicking open a ranger key. “You don’t have the greatest treasure. It’s still here on earth. And it’s not leaving until we’re ready to leave.”
Prompt: Bad Romance
Word Count: 581
Characters: Marvelous, Joe, Ahim, Luka, Gai, Don
It was possibly the most awkward meal they’d ever had together as a crew. Marvelous and Joe were sitting at opposite ends of the table to each other, and neither had said a word since coming down to eat. Lack of talking wasn’t unusual during eating time, but Joe was silent, and Marvelous hadn’t made a single appreciative comment on the taste. To make matters worse, both seemed to be making a point of ignoring the other, Joe not looking up from his plate at all and Marvelous looking at everyone but his second-in-command.
Gai and Don decided it would be a good idea to not say anything and concentrate on eating as fast as possible, while Luka and Ahim were a bit more worried. They didn’t say anything, though, not wanting to upset the meal. Not yet at least…
Joe was the first to finish. He mumbled a thanks to Don for the food before standing and heading over to the couch where his deck of cards sat. He picked it up, shuffled then began to deal a game. A solo game. He didn’t want to be disturbed. Ahim finished next and collected her own and Joe’s plates and returned them to the kitchen, before deciding to sit down beside the blue ranger. She didn’t miss the annoyed glance sent her way, but the lack of voiced annoyance made her feel less uncomfortable about sitting with him.
Marvelous finished with a loud belch and stood. “Alright! Don and Ahim, you’re going grocery shopping. Gai, Luka and I are coming along to help.” He announced.
Luka blinked. “Eh? What about Joe?”
“He’s decided he’s not joining us today.” The words were almost bit out and finally, the captain cast a look in Joe’s direction, met with a harsh glare of his own.
Joe sneered a little and looked back at his game. “Or, rather, he’s decided I’m not joining you today.”
“I warned you.”
“You provoked me.”
“How did I provoke you? I was just stating a fact!”
“While conveniently ignoring one that I had just pointed out.”
“So you’re admitting you started it?”
“I didn’t start anything! You’re the one who brought Sid-senpai up even after I’ve specifically told you not to!”
Joe was standing by now, fists curled at his side. His glare was met by Marvelous’s, the captain standing with his arms folded across his chest. The rest of the crew were silent, watching, not wanting to risk getting involved. Well, most of them.
“Marvelous-san…. Joe-san…” Ahim stepped forward and placed a hand on each of the men’s arms. “Why are you fighting…? Don’t we fight enough with Zangyack? We don’t need to fight amongst us. Aren’t we comrades?” For a long tense moment, there was silence.
Joe pulled away from Ahim’s touch and shoved past Marvelous without looking at him. He was going to go and train. Alone. It was the best way to clear his head.
“Marvelous. Is this just like one of those stupid little lover’s spats where you and Joe are too stubborn to just apologize?” Luka frowned and folded her arms across her chest. “Geez, you two. You’re as bad as an old married couple fighting about old flames.”
Marvelous glanced at her out the corner of his eye before giving a soft snort and following after Joe.