Foreston - Factory Town

[Gen Blue]

[ Mayor's house ]

~Eeep!~ After this one tiny squeak, Janus froze in place. Inside, he was trying to retreat to his safe haven and let Nick explain but, the man wasn't going to let that happen.
~What do I do? I don't want to scare her again.~ He glanced up once only to see the two women staring at him.
You relax and stop fidgeting. Stand up straight and look at Laura, Nick thought firmly, Give her a minute then, very quietly, introduce yourself.
~Can't you do that?~
No. The man was adamant. No one here is going to shoot you if you talk.
Skeptical but willing to trust his host, Janus slowly lifted his head and looked at the women. He tried to smile, unsure of the effect it would have.

[Jynjyr]

[ Mayor's house ]

Goodwin laid a hand on her chest and took a couple of deep breathes. It's like walking into a room and seeing a rat run across the floor. Now that she was really looking at the man, she could tell it wasn't him. The Mayor had seen the General in a lot of different moods but never this unsure of himself. His eyes flickered around nervously as he raised his head. The tentative smile is what did her in.
Laura looked to Cal and quirked a resigned grin. "Damn the man," she muttered as she moved a few steps closer.
"It's OK. You didn't do anything wrong."

Callista looked up to the sky and mouthed a quick prayer of thanks. Goodwin on their side would make life easier. From behind Laura's back, she made a 'speed it up' gesture to Janus.

[aintright]

<<Outdoors>>

Zack's stomach gave him a little poke for a reminder. The quiet rumble within was followed by a more audible growl that made him give a sideways glance at Sarah to see if she had noticed. "I just realized that we haven't had lunch yet. Not sure how I let that happen but it appears I actually snoozed through it." He shook his head in disbelief to the fact that he had allowed himself to miss a meal. Pulling back the sleeve of his hoody to reaveal his watch he noticed the time and gave a little shrug. "A little late for lunch but a bit of pie may do the trick to tie me over til we get to Jack's for dinner. Lets see if it is in the same place." They moved through the stands and shops in search of the place that had that incredible pie he remembered. The thoughts that surfaced caused his mouth to water and his stomach to grumble even louder. He laughed out loud and positioned his hand over his belly. "Seems my stomach just made a statement of the scrumptious flavor these pies will afford you." He grinned at Sarah as he located what he had been looking for.










((ok ... just made myself hungry ... time to go eat!!))

[Gen Blue]

[ Mayor's house ]

Spoiler:

Goodwin laid a hand on her chest and took a couple of deep breathes. It's like walking into a room and seeing a rat run across the floor. Now that she was really looking at the man, she could tell it wasn't him. The Mayor had seen the General in a lot of different moods but never this unsure of himself. His eyes flickered around nervously as he raised his head. The tentative smile is what did her in.
Laura looked to Cal and quirked a resigned grin. "Damn the man," she muttered as she moved a few steps closer.
"It's OK. You didn't do anything wrong."

Callista looked up to the sky and mouthed a quick prayer of thanks. Goodwin on their side would make life easier. From behind Laura's back, she made a 'speed it up' gesture to Janus.

[ Mayor's house ]

~I'm sorry,~ Janus barely whispered.
She can't hear you. Speak up. See, Cal is telling you to get on with it.
~I'm sorry.~ This time the words were audible even though soft. ~I didn't mean to startle you, Laura.~
Janus pulled his hands out of his trouser pockets and let them hang loosely. ~I'm Janus of the Tok'ra and Nikolai Blue is my host. It's nice to meet you, Mayor Goodwin.~
There you go. Nick's approval was obvious in his mental tone. See, it's not that difficult.

[Jynjyr]

[ Mayor's house ]

Laura was put in mind of the times when Archie was a boy and had to be coerced into meeting adults of her acquaintance. He really is the Tok'ra equivalent of a child. She noticed that he very carefully didn't offer to shake her hand. He's not a contagious disease, Laura. He's an intelligent being with decidedly odd living arrangements.
Giving herself a mental boot in the rear, Goodwin took the few steps to close the distance between her and Nick. No, it's Janus right now.
Holding out her hand, she smiled and said, "Although it came as quite a surprise, I am pleased to meet you too, Janus."

Callista grinned broadly and, still out of Goodwin's eyesight, gave Janus two thumbs up. She was proud of the little guy, even though she knew that Nick was behind him, forcing the encounter.

[TheXym]

[town] ((may be a slight timewarp, but since they're not going to actually see Blue and Calli, I think it'll work, if not I can edit, and I'm trying to move things along a bit timewise due to my not being on from District Band))

Lance chuckled slightly as they left the booth with the frogs, and tried to be nonchalant in the clothing stalls. He did notice a dress that he thought Kim would look absolutely sensational in, the shimmering color of it was such that when it caught the sunlight, the almost black green color had noticeable colorshift that matched her eye color perfectly. He'd definitely have to pick that up for her later as a surprise. In the booth at the end, he noticed a tapestry that was a very nice combination of blues and greens in a rather intricate pattern reminiscent of, but not exactly like, a celtic knot. He looked more closely at it, but decided that it wasn't for him.

Lance and Kim finished going through the marketplace and began to walk through Foreston, just looking at the buildings. As they walked past a rather nice house which seemed like it belonged to someone like the mayor or the factory owner, the smell of pork being barbecued wafted to Lance's nose. "Wow... that definitely smells good. Somebody back there can work a grill almost as well as my grandfather. You know, maybe we can find a way to coerce Swanson to do an all-out barbecue night in the mess hall." He snapped his fingers and turned to Kim. "Outdoor picnic, even better. But who's birthday is first, Blue's or Sharp's? That'd be the perfect surprise, and great for morale. Heck, maybe even do something and invite the people of Foreston, try to mend fences and help forge a better relationship." he forced himself to keep walking, though his curiosity was piqued over who was manning the grill, and if they'd care to trade barbecueing secrets.

After they got far enough away from the house that the smell of barbecued pork wasn't distracting Lance, he checked his watch. "It IS getting to be dinner time. Should we head over to Jack's or head elsewhere?"

[Gen Blue]

[ Mayor's house ]

Spoiler:

Laura was put in mind of the times when Archie was a boy and had to be coerced into meeting adults of her acquaintance. He really is the Tok'ra equivalent of a child. She noticed that he very carefully didn't offer to shake her hand. He's not a contagious disease, Laura. He's an intelligent being with decidedly odd living arrangements.
Giving herself a mental boot in the rear, Goodwin took the few steps to close the distance between her and Nick. No, it's Janus right now.
Holding out her hand, she smiled and said, "Although it came as quite a surprise, I am pleased to meet you too, Janus."

Callista grinned broadly and, still out of Goodwin's eyesight, gave Janus two thumbs up. She was proud of the little guy, even though she knew that Nick was behind him, forcing the encounter.

[ Mayor's house ]

Janus looked at the hand held out to him and, bowing slightly, shook it firmly. ~Thank you, Laura. I would like to talk to you later but, right now, I'll leave you and Callista and Nikolai to have your supper in peace.~
Very well done, Janus. We'll make a gentleman out of you yet.
The symbiote turned over control with a sigh, ~Together we'll make an officer and a gentleman, eh?~

Still holding Goodwin's hand, Nick brought it up and kissed her knuckles, "I'd like to thank you too, Laura. Your acceptance means a lot to me."
He walked over and put his arm around Cal's waist, "Almost as much as her's did."

[SilverRider]

Town Center – Market Place

She looked through some garments with her eyes and failed to notice the dress that had caught Lance’s eye. She had looked at few dress that were hanging but didn’t take any real interest in them as she never own many since in a long while.

As they had moved on to the tapestry stall, her eye caught a pretty designed one, “What about that one?" she asked as she directed his gaze to the chosen tapestry. Seeing him ponder over it, she tried not to snicker.

Moving along to other stalls as they finished browsing, then casually walked through the town, going past one of the houses, Kim could smell the pork chops being cooked, gave her a reminder of that fact it was nearly dinner time. Trying not to think about food just yet, when Lance's voice stirred on few ideas, she gave a giggle, "Convincing Swanson shouldn't be hard, but I think trying get the idea past Blue would be a breeze too," she agreed.

As he spilled out ideas and questions Kim laughed, "One thing at a time," she spoke softly as she was trying to calm down Lance down in the same way she would if it was Davis, once the girl got few ideas in her head. "Idea of a barbecue sounds good. Why not have a picnic barbecue? As for who's birthday is coming up first I wouldn't know."

Unaware of Hunt's plans, "That may work," she agreed. "It would certainly help build a solid relation between the town and Base. A kick in the right direction is all we need to do."

Kim nodded, "I'm hungry," she admitted, "maybe go back to Jack's? I believe you wanted to try the stew." she grinned as they walked back to the inn. The cool evening breeze was a welcome. "but then again, it's a nice evening." She just couldn't decide. The idea of a this nice wind and sitting indoors didn't seem to suit.

"How about this: we go back to Jack's for dinner, stay there for a while then come back out for walk?" she asked. Overall it seemed fair.

[Hulabaloo]

[ Sarah Whitely - Foreston - Outdoors ]

Sarah glanced over to Zach when he looked at her guilty, and she attempted to hide a smile. At the mention of food Sarah realised that she was also hungry. She hadn't noticed and thus been able to continue on. Zach, however, never could ignore his stomach. She sighed and followed him. They seemed to arrive at a pie place and she glanced over at Zach who seemed to know this place. She shrugged and stood next to Zach running her eyes over its products.

[Jynjyr]

[ Mayor's house ]

Spoiler:

Janus looked at the hand held out to him and, bowing slightly, shook it firmly. ~Thank you, Laura. I would like to talk to you later but, right now, I'll leave you and Callista and Nikolai to have your supper in peace.~
Very well done, Janus. We'll make a gentleman out of you yet.
The symbiote turned over control with a sigh, ~Together we'll make an officer and a gentleman, eh?~

Still holding Goodwin's hand, Nick brought it up and kissed her knuckles, "I'd like to thank you too, Laura. Your acceptance means a lot to me."
He walked over and put his arm around Cal's waist, "Almost as much as her's did."

[ Mayor's house ]

Callista squirmed in embarrassment and bumped her hip against Nick's, "Like I would ever stop you from doing what you darn well pleased."
Still, his words made her feel all warm and fuzzy inside. A sharp pang cut through the 'w&f', bringing her back to more important things. She gave Nick a squeeze, moved over to the table and picked up the tray of meat. Holding it out, she told him jokingly, "Right now, if you want acceptance, get these cooking. I'm starving."

Laura laughed at their comfortable bantering, "You already sound like an old married couple." She patted Nick on the shoulder as she headed into the house, "At least you don't have a 'honey do' list, Niko."
After she came out and sat the dish of cheesy potatoes on the table, the two women finished laying the table and dressing the salad.

[Gen Blue]

[ Mayor's house ] (( Nick and Janus' conversations run along a stream of consciousness, I'm afraid. ))

~What's a honeydew list? Isn't honeydew a kind of melon? Why would you have a list on a melon?~
Standing at the grill, Nick broke into a big grin and laughed silently. Not honeydew but, honey do. It's a list of chores, usually for a husband from his wife. She'll say, "Honey, do this please." Helen used to have one for me every time I came home on leave.
~Oh.~ Janus could feel the mixed emotions that this memory brought up. ~Callista isn't Helen.~
Every women has a 'honey do' list for her man. Wait until we start off-base housing. She'll have one for me.
~That's not what I meant.~
I know what you meant. The man's tone said 'drop it'.
Janus decided to push the issue. ~Callista is willing to take me too. Helen only wanted the social rank and children that you could give her.~
Status was nothing, soldier boys in our community were a dime a dozen. She always wanted to be part of a big family and we gave her that. As for children, we both wanted them, at least half a dozen. Nick closed his eyes at the image of the tiny coffins that were his childrens' only cradles. We never found out whose fault it was.
~Neither of you killed them. It was no ones 'fault'.~
That's just it. We did kill them. One of us kept passing along fatal birth defects. I was exposed to more hazards and, frankly, I'm scared to death that the same thing will happen if ... when Callista decides to have children.
~Well. That's one area where I can set your mind at ease.~ Janus was pleased to contribute something positive to his host's relationship. ~As far as I can tell, you had healthy genetics. Except for a pre-dispostion to cerebral accidents, and that's been fixed.~
Nick's heart skipped a beat and he could hardly breath as he looked over to Cal. You mean?
~Yes. I'd really like to meet Ivan, and Khristos, and Lucas, and Konstantin, and Pavlos and Callidora, and Elizaveta, and Melena, and...~ The symbiote started laughing as the list ran on and on.
Happier than he'd been in years, Nick started humming bits and snippets of Broadway show tunes. I suspect that the list may get even longer. The prospect was a joyfull one.
Blue brought the hot platter to the table, "Ladies. Dinner is served. Nothing raw, nothing burnt."
They sat down and dug into the food, not speaking except to mumble noises about how good it tasted.

[TheXym]

[Town]

Lance smiled. "Picnic barbecue definitely. For the whole base would be nice, but I'd be perfectly happy for having one for say... just two people?" His eyes gleamed and his smile widened as he looked deep into her eyes for just a moment before continuing. "As far as the birthday question, I'm sure Sgt. Mykonos would know that answer.."

He pondered her comments about food and the walk. "Jack's sounds good. That stew was smelling good, though that barbecue is making me think more of a nice steak or a rack of ribs if they've got them. He stopped and looked into her eyes. "Definitely a walk afterwards. I heard there's a waterfall outside of town a bit. Does that CD player have fresh batteries?" When she nodded he smiled. "It'll add the right touch hopefully, and maybe discourage any guests so we can relax completely."

They turned the corner and walked down the road to Jack's. The smell of dinners being prepared was wafting from the chimney above the kitchen, and it was making Lance's mouth water. There was definitely some kind of steak being made. When they entered, a waitress asked them if they were there for dinner. McKinnon nodded and she took them to a table in the corner, where the candlelight was just right. He pulled out a chair for Kim, then sat across from her.

[SilverRider]

Town --> Jack's bar

Kim tilted her head to look at him, amused at his idea, "A picnic for two," she mused, as she pretended to think it over, after she noticed his eyes gleaming. Should be a interesting, she admitted to herself. "Are you sure we are ready for that?" Kim asked only half joking.

"You may have to ask Cal nicely," she smiled, then leaned over and told him about Blue being a Tok'ra host, just in case Sharp failed to mention it to Lance, "..so she may be a little overprotective of him, not that she hadn't been."

"I'm sure they would have it on the menu." she absently patted his shoulder with her free had as to other hand was interloped with his hand.

"Oh trust Davis to supply everything," she cracked a grin, "And I'll tell you now, keep me away from zatting her over the choices of CD's she given me," she heard Lance laugh. "Even though I have no idea what songs are in them."

She wasn't going to touch his last comment without derailing her thoughts. "Uh huh," she sounded her agreement.

She followed him to the table, noticed the angle and all, "I bet Jack had this ready," she whispered while they headed to the table. Sitting down after he had pulled the chair, Kim smiled at the waitress and placed a order for a white wine, as she head Lance placing a order for a beer.

The waitress jotted down their drink orders, then looked at them, "I hope you stay for a while after dinner, it's sing along tonight," with that she left them to get their drinks.

[aintright]

Spoiler:

[ Sarah Whitely - Foreston - Outdoors ]

Sarah glanced over to Zach when he looked at her guilty, and she attempted to hide a smile. At the mention of food Sarah realised that she was also hungry. She hadn't noticed and thus been able to continue on. Zach, however, never could ignore his stomach. She sighed and followed him. They seemed to arrive at a pie place and she glanced over at Zach who seemed to know this place. She shrugged and stood next to Zach running her eyes over its products.

<<Foreston - Market Area>>

Zach looked over the items remaining. It was the end of the day and the normal variety had been picked over but there was still several wonderful choices. He licked his lips and shuffled about on his feet while he tried to narrow down his decision. "I would recommend something, but they are all as incredible as they look. So go with whatever flavor is striking your fancy at the moment." He smiled broadly at Sarah like a kid in the candy store. He hadn't even asked her if she was in the mood for pie. Knowing how great they were he just assumed that anyone standing there would want to indulge. Still doing the little dance of an impatient child. The growl of his stomach was now quite audible and it even made the clerk behind the counter snicker. Looking to her, "I guess I will take the choclate cream pie." His shifting now becoming an almost rocking. His tongue searching the inside of his mouth for the delicacy his eyes were pondering. He turned and waited for Sarah to place her order. He made a little face as he listened to her inquiry.

As the pie came over the counter the first piece seemed to be in his mouth almost before the clerk's hand had left the plate. He gave a little groan of satisfaction as his stomach rumbled as if on cue. His eyes popped wide as a thought came to mind. Noticing a whole pie sitting there, "What type of pie is that whole one?"

The clerk looked it over and replied "Rhubarb, a plant from your home planet I believe." she assumed he was of the Tauri and thus from earth.

"I'll take it." He watched her go to cut it. "No, no, the whole thing please!" She gave him a surprised yet pleased look and then began boxing it up for him. He contined shoveling in the pie on the plate before him watching Sarah for any hint of reaction to her own piece. "Great, huh?"


~~~~~ ((for the sake of moving things on and catching up since we seem to be behind))


With his stomach appearing to at least be under control Zach guided Sarah back to the main thrust of the market. "I've done this before and I really don't have a needs list so why don't you take the lead" He had what he wanted, pie in hand. They moved through the stalls looking over items. Many were starting to go through their process of closing down for the day. Most were polite and beckoned them in to look while they went through their formalities. Sarah seemed to have found a place of interest. Zach however could have moved on so he allowed his gaze to stray to another booth. Something there caught his eye "Hey Sarah, I will be just across over here okay?" She nodded and he made a bee line for the item in question. It was a very old book which he picked up and slowly ran his hand across the leather cover he found on it. The pace of his heart had quickened as he opened it. It was beautifully bound and in amazing condition for its age. He read the printing info on the inside and noticed something bleeding through the page. Slowly turning over to the other side he let out a slow and almost breathless whistle. The gleam in his eye began to dance and his palms had developed a slight sweat.

Spoiler:

My dear friend Nathaniel

May this works provoke in you the pleasure and frustration that creating it has for me. May its dedication bring honor to you.

Herman

Closing it slowly Zach gave a slight quake inside and searched out the owner. He took a deep breath to steady himself and started calculating how much script he had in his pocket and wondered what he could negotiate from Sarah if need be. He could always throw in the pie.

The owner walked over with a pleasant smile "Interested in the book sir?"

"That depends, how much do you want for it." Ready to haggle and beg if need be Zach was stunned with the response of the owner. "You do realize that this is a copy of the Melville mastepiece?" He wanted to smack himself. Whose side are you on anyways? he chastized himself. At least he hadn't added in the part of being autographed by the author.

The owner nodded "You do not think it is a fair price."

Shaking his head Zach responded, "Not hardly, back on Earth this is a valuable and treasured item. Of course there is the old supply and demand thing. I will give you double what you ask, not a penny less and that is still a true steal for me." He couldn't in all conscience offer less. It would be an insult to the author.

The owner beamed in delight and seemed very pleased. "I will not deny such an offer, can I wrap it up for you?" He thought this man was very strange to offer more. It had sat collecting dust, he was ready to start using it as a door stop. It was just an old used book. The Tauri placed their value in the strangest of places.

Zach shook his head to the offer to have it wrapped. Afraid the owner would change his mind. Now that he had it in his clutches he would never let it go. "No, that won't be necessary." In his excitemet he quickly paid the shopkeeper and turned to find Sarah. Realizing his rude departure, "Thank you sir!" Holding up his found treasure in his hand. "It was very nice doing business with you."

Catching up to Sarah he tried to remain calm while inside he was bouncing up and down. "Done? I don't know about you but I can't wait for dinner. Shall we head back to Jack's?" He couldn't wait to get back to his room out on the deck and into his found prize!








(all yours Hul ... kind of a two in one post ~~ I figure you can play off both however you want.))

[Jynjyr]

[ Mayor's house ]

Spoiler:

(( Nick and Janus' conversations run along a stream of consciousness, I'm afraid. ))

~What's a honeydew list? Isn't honeydew a kind of melon? Why would you have a list on a melon?~
Standing at the grill, Nick broke into a big grin and laughed silently. Not honeydew but, honey do. It's a list of chores, usually for a husband from his wife. She'll say, "Honey, do this please." Helen used to have one for me every time I came home on leave.
~Oh.~ Janus could feel the mixed emotions that this memory brought up. ~Callista isn't Helen.~
Every women has a 'honey do' list for her man. Wait until we start off-base housing. She'll have one for me.
~That's not what I meant.~
I know what you meant. The man's tone said 'drop it'.
Janus decided to push the issue. ~Callista is willing to take me too. Helen only wanted the social rank and children that you could give her.~
Status was nothing, soldier boys in our community were a dime a dozen. She always wanted to be part of a big family and we gave her that. As for children, we both wanted them, at least half a dozen. Nick closed his eyes at the image of the tiny coffins that were his childrens' only cradles. We never found out whose fault it was.
~Neither of you killed them. It was no ones 'fault'.~
That's just it. We did kill them. One of us kept passing along fatal birth defects. I was exposed to more hazards and, frankly, I'm scared to death that the same thing will happen if ... when Callista decides to have children.
~Well. That's one area where I can set your mind at ease.~ Janus was pleased to contribute something positive to his host's relationship. ~As far as I can tell, you had healthy genetics. Except for a pre-dispostion to cerebral accidents, and that's been fixed.~
Nick's heart skipped a beat and he could hardly breath as he looked over to Cal. You mean?
~Yes. I'd really like to meet Ivan, and Khristos, and Lucas, and Konstantin, and Pavlos and Callidora, and Elizaveta, and Melena, and...~ The symbiote started laughing as the list ran on and on.
Happier than he'd been in years, Nick started humming bits and snippets of Broadway show tunes. I suspect that the list may get even longer. The prospect was a joyfull one.
Blue brought the hot platter to the table, "Ladies. Dinner is served. Nothing raw, nothing burnt."
They sat down and dug into the food, not speaking except to mumble noises about how good it tasted.

[ Mayor's house ]

It was almost full dark by the time they finished. A chilly breeze kept creeping over the fence to swirl around the yard, robbing the patio of the heat from the brick fireplace / grill.
Goodwin shivered slightly as the cool air brushed the back of her neck. "We have three choices here. We could sit out here and freeze, we could go inside and sit in the parlor or, and I vote for this one, you two go off somewhere and spend some time together."

Callista brightened up at the last option. "We'll help you clean this up first, Laura."
She stood and started gathering dirty dishes and silverware, "I insist."

It only took a few minutes to move everything into the house. Once there, Goodwin put an arm around both Nick and Cal and walked them out of the kitchen. "There, you helped. It won't take me five minutes to put the leftovers away, rinse the dishes and stack them in the sink. Go on, get out of here. Jack's has sing-along tonight, if you're interested. Or you could go to the park if you'd rather be alone."
She gave them a gentle push and jokingly ordered, "Go on. Go have some fun."