Weiss Kreuz/Saiyuki, shopping
Hurrhurr guess who bought ABBA's Greatest Hits off iTunes this morning. :D This bit ever-so-slightly dedicated to the lovely melediana, because. I CAN.
Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4.
If they were going to get anywhere, they needed to prepare. Schuldig had planned to use his natural charm, dazzling good looks, and mind control in lieu of payment, but no sooner had he started his usual routine on the old man running a fruit stall than the dragon began kyu-ing at him furiously and produced from somewhere a golden credit card in the name of "Sanbutsushin." That was fine too.
Food was no problem, even without any technology resembling a portable cooler around; Schuldig preferred his beer warm anyway, and if the snacks were a little unusual they seemed to be along the same lines as the Japanese chips and crackers Nagi liked. Crawford insisted on apples for a pretense of healthy eating, and as for real meals, they had gotten a map at the inn which showed towns along the road regularly spaced about two days' walk apart, or a day's drive by jeep, so there were no real worries there.
Other supplies were a little more - problematic.
"You have no pistol ammunition at all?"
"I'm sorry, sir," the curvy woman behind the counter said, sweating a little under Crawford's glare, "but we don't get much call for it - we used to keep some on hand, but it's been long sold. Pistols just aren't common around here, I haven't seen one in a dog's age."
"Ridiculous," Crawford said. "It is from this world, isn't it?"
"Kyu!"
"Well, where did the other guy get his bullets, then?" Schuldig demanded of the dragon, which shrugged its wings.
"There's a mining town west and south of here, a week or so away," said the woman. "They had factories - you might be able to find ammunition there. If it's still going, anyway... We haven't heard from them in a long while, and there were a lot of youkai working in the mines."
Crawford leaned against the counter and thought it over.
"We do have plenty of rifle and shotgun ammunition, though," she offered. "And seeing how you saved my sweetheart, I can give you a good discount on a gun..."
Crawford left the store with both a short-barrelled shotgun and a rifle as long as his arm slung over one shoulder. Schuldig said, "You overcompensate."
"And you hit on lesbians. Your point?"
"... you're an asshole."
They were supposed to meet Nagi and Farfarello at the local tailor when they were done; upon entering they were greeted by the unexpected sight of Farfarello in lavender.
"I found a new straitjacket," he said. "Needs some buckles, though."
Schuldig sighed. "Let me see the sleeves - Farf, that's a ladies' jacket, you just put it on backwards."
"But it fits, see? An' the sleeves're long enough..."
"They've also got lace on the cuffs. Besides, it's silk, it'll never hold up -"
"I'm not wearing that," Brad told Nagi, who was holding out a flowing, long-sleeved shirt and pair of loose pants.
"But it's a fortune-teller's outfit, and you're a precog. And they don't have any suits..."
"I'm not wearing that."
"Lighten up, mein Herr," said Schuldig, browsing through jackets for something in his favorite green. "Shouldn't we be trying to blend in? When in Rome - or fantasyland..."
"I really need a straitjacket."
"We might have to go to a different tailor for that."
Crawford ended up in the fortune-teller's clothes after all; there was nothing else that would fit. He drew the line, however, at the matching hat Schuldig found. Slightly more casual outfits for the rest of them were simple enough, as were new shoes from the cobbler next door (the dress shoes were still wearable, but hardly practical for the long haul); straitjackets, on the other hand, appeared to be unheard of. Schuldig had to wonder what the people here did with their violent crazies, because it defied belief that they could all be perfectly sane.
He didn't want to be the one to say what most of Schwarz was thinking, but the day was wearing on and the truth of it was that they couldn't go anywhere for much longer without some form of restraints for Farfarello. It wasn't anything personal, Farfarello liked them as much as he liked anyone, but if he got in a mood it didn't matter whether he liked you or not, it mattered whether he had a pitcher of acid handy.
-Maybe if we got some ropes,- Nagi suggested. -Just until we get to a bigger town...-
-No good,- said Crawford. -Too easy to cut. Nagi, go back to that apothecary we passed and see what sort of sleeping medicine they have.-
-Hey, hey, hey,- Schuldig said. -That's a bit much, isn't it? I thought we agreed, no drugs we don't all know about...-
-We don't have many options,- Crawford snapped, and though they'd been keeping their thoughts strictly three-way, enough leaked that Farfarello looked up from the display in the blacksmith's shop. Crawford modulated his tone. -Do you have a better idea, Schuldig? Because if you don't, this is the safest solution I can think of for all of us. Unless you're willing to risk our ride or Nagi or your own skin...-
That bastard really got on his nerves sometimes. "Brat, you're looking like a starving orphan child again," Schuldig said, and flipped the credit card over to Nagi. "Go get some dumplings or something." -Get the stuff - then meet us back at the first tailor's.- "Farfarello, come with me, I just thought of something."
It took negotiation and a little mental persuasion, but under their watchful eyes the tailor and his neighboring cobbler turned one of the regular long-sleeved jackets into a quick but fair approximation of a straitjacket, with proper buckles and the cloth reinforced with shoe leather. There were some loose seams and overlarge stitches, and it had a general patched-together look, but it fit and didn't give anywhere when Farfarello tried it on and wasn't purple, so Schuldig counted it a net success.
When Farfarello wasn't looking Crawford caught Schuldig's eye and flashed a white packet with the apothecary's seal on it. Schuldig said, -It's not going to come to that. And if it does I'm telling him first. We just worked for Eszett, we're not them.-
Brad's eyes narrowed at that, but all he said was, -Better safe than sorry.-
As they packed up their purchases in the transformed jeep, Nagi said, "I wonder what happened to the original Sanzo party... I hope they're all right, wherever they are."
---
At roughly the same time, in a world far, far away:
"Tell me there's a Spring of Drowned Monk."
"Are you sure, blondie? I think the breasts are a big improvement - don't you guys think so?"
"Oook ook!"
"Buuhii?"
Thwack. "Get your hands off me, you perverted cockroach, or I'll kill you!"
"Hey, hey, watch the fan! Don't hate me 'cuz I have a natural resistance to cursed water..."
"Oh, that's the least of the reasons I hate you."
"Oook?"
"Shut up, stupid monkey."
Note: Sanbutsushin = Three Aspects of Buddha, also known in Saiyuki as Sanzo's bosses and credit line. Even not counting this interlude, they're going to have quite a lot to say to him if he ever makes it back East alive. :D
For the curious, imagine Brad in an outfit similar to this one. :D (Maybe with a shorter shirt, though.)
Weiss Kreuz, Schwarz, and all characters/situations thereof © creators. Saiyuki, its characters, situations, etc. also © creators. Any other anime, manga, novels, and etc. mentioned or quoted © their creators as well. Basically, NOT MY CHARACTERS, just playing with others' for fun and no profit.
Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4.
If they were going to get anywhere, they needed to prepare. Schuldig had planned to use his natural charm, dazzling good looks, and mind control in lieu of payment, but no sooner had he started his usual routine on the old man running a fruit stall than the dragon began kyu-ing at him furiously and produced from somewhere a golden credit card in the name of "Sanbutsushin." That was fine too.
Food was no problem, even without any technology resembling a portable cooler around; Schuldig preferred his beer warm anyway, and if the snacks were a little unusual they seemed to be along the same lines as the Japanese chips and crackers Nagi liked. Crawford insisted on apples for a pretense of healthy eating, and as for real meals, they had gotten a map at the inn which showed towns along the road regularly spaced about two days' walk apart, or a day's drive by jeep, so there were no real worries there.
Other supplies were a little more - problematic.
"You have no pistol ammunition at all?"
"I'm sorry, sir," the curvy woman behind the counter said, sweating a little under Crawford's glare, "but we don't get much call for it - we used to keep some on hand, but it's been long sold. Pistols just aren't common around here, I haven't seen one in a dog's age."
"Ridiculous," Crawford said. "It is from this world, isn't it?"
"Kyu!"
"Well, where did the other guy get his bullets, then?" Schuldig demanded of the dragon, which shrugged its wings.
"There's a mining town west and south of here, a week or so away," said the woman. "They had factories - you might be able to find ammunition there. If it's still going, anyway... We haven't heard from them in a long while, and there were a lot of youkai working in the mines."
Crawford leaned against the counter and thought it over.
"We do have plenty of rifle and shotgun ammunition, though," she offered. "And seeing how you saved my sweetheart, I can give you a good discount on a gun..."
Crawford left the store with both a short-barrelled shotgun and a rifle as long as his arm slung over one shoulder. Schuldig said, "You overcompensate."
"And you hit on lesbians. Your point?"
"... you're an asshole."
They were supposed to meet Nagi and Farfarello at the local tailor when they were done; upon entering they were greeted by the unexpected sight of Farfarello in lavender.
"I found a new straitjacket," he said. "Needs some buckles, though."
Schuldig sighed. "Let me see the sleeves - Farf, that's a ladies' jacket, you just put it on backwards."
"But it fits, see? An' the sleeves're long enough..."
"They've also got lace on the cuffs. Besides, it's silk, it'll never hold up -"
"I'm not wearing that," Brad told Nagi, who was holding out a flowing, long-sleeved shirt and pair of loose pants.
"But it's a fortune-teller's outfit, and you're a precog. And they don't have any suits..."
"I'm not wearing that."
"Lighten up, mein Herr," said Schuldig, browsing through jackets for something in his favorite green. "Shouldn't we be trying to blend in? When in Rome - or fantasyland..."
"I really need a straitjacket."
"We might have to go to a different tailor for that."
Crawford ended up in the fortune-teller's clothes after all; there was nothing else that would fit. He drew the line, however, at the matching hat Schuldig found. Slightly more casual outfits for the rest of them were simple enough, as were new shoes from the cobbler next door (the dress shoes were still wearable, but hardly practical for the long haul); straitjackets, on the other hand, appeared to be unheard of. Schuldig had to wonder what the people here did with their violent crazies, because it defied belief that they could all be perfectly sane.
He didn't want to be the one to say what most of Schwarz was thinking, but the day was wearing on and the truth of it was that they couldn't go anywhere for much longer without some form of restraints for Farfarello. It wasn't anything personal, Farfarello liked them as much as he liked anyone, but if he got in a mood it didn't matter whether he liked you or not, it mattered whether he had a pitcher of acid handy.
-Maybe if we got some ropes,- Nagi suggested. -Just until we get to a bigger town...-
-No good,- said Crawford. -Too easy to cut. Nagi, go back to that apothecary we passed and see what sort of sleeping medicine they have.-
-Hey, hey, hey,- Schuldig said. -That's a bit much, isn't it? I thought we agreed, no drugs we don't all know about...-
-We don't have many options,- Crawford snapped, and though they'd been keeping their thoughts strictly three-way, enough leaked that Farfarello looked up from the display in the blacksmith's shop. Crawford modulated his tone. -Do you have a better idea, Schuldig? Because if you don't, this is the safest solution I can think of for all of us. Unless you're willing to risk our ride or Nagi or your own skin...-
That bastard really got on his nerves sometimes. "Brat, you're looking like a starving orphan child again," Schuldig said, and flipped the credit card over to Nagi. "Go get some dumplings or something." -Get the stuff - then meet us back at the first tailor's.- "Farfarello, come with me, I just thought of something."
It took negotiation and a little mental persuasion, but under their watchful eyes the tailor and his neighboring cobbler turned one of the regular long-sleeved jackets into a quick but fair approximation of a straitjacket, with proper buckles and the cloth reinforced with shoe leather. There were some loose seams and overlarge stitches, and it had a general patched-together look, but it fit and didn't give anywhere when Farfarello tried it on and wasn't purple, so Schuldig counted it a net success.
When Farfarello wasn't looking Crawford caught Schuldig's eye and flashed a white packet with the apothecary's seal on it. Schuldig said, -It's not going to come to that. And if it does I'm telling him first. We just worked for Eszett, we're not them.-
Brad's eyes narrowed at that, but all he said was, -Better safe than sorry.-
As they packed up their purchases in the transformed jeep, Nagi said, "I wonder what happened to the original Sanzo party... I hope they're all right, wherever they are."
---
At roughly the same time, in a world far, far away:
"Tell me there's a Spring of Drowned Monk."
"Are you sure, blondie? I think the breasts are a big improvement - don't you guys think so?"
"Oook ook!"
"Buuhii?"
Thwack. "Get your hands off me, you perverted cockroach, or I'll kill you!"
"Hey, hey, watch the fan! Don't hate me 'cuz I have a natural resistance to cursed water..."
"Oh, that's the least of the reasons I hate you."
"Oook?"
"Shut up, stupid monkey."
Note: Sanbutsushin = Three Aspects of Buddha, also known in Saiyuki as Sanzo's bosses and credit line. Even not counting this interlude, they're going to have quite a lot to say to him if he ever makes it back East alive. :D
For the curious, imagine Brad in an outfit similar to this one. :D (Maybe with a shorter shirt, though.)
Weiss Kreuz, Schwarz, and all characters/situations thereof © creators. Saiyuki, its characters, situations, etc. also © creators. Any other anime, manga, novels, and etc. mentioned or quoted © their creators as well. Basically, NOT MY CHARACTERS, just playing with others' for fun and no profit.