asipofbride | IC INBOX [kaisou]

Yeah, sure. I never used one back on Noman's Land, but Bossman'll dock my pay if you don't use them in his car.

[ stupid Vergil. like a little car crash would kill Wolfwood.

still, he clicks the belt into place and fiddles with the seat a bit until he's comfortable, turning the car to life and bringing the radio with it--it growled out something with a lot of guitars and drums, probably a testament to having gone driving with Dante at some nearby point, and Wolfwood himself seems uninterested in fiddling with it as he begins to back out of the dirt strip that counted for a driveway. ]

[maybe not, but it'd sure upset vash and dante. especially if kni is sitting in the front seat with him.

kni twitches at the radio's sudden chatter of rock music cut right in the middle of what was probably a climatic riff. with wolfwood busy driving, kni makes the executive decision to reach over and start shuffling through the preset stations. the drive into the city is long enough that he'd like to at least listen to something that won't give him a headache.

the station he stops on is one playing old holiday music, not that kni immediately recognizes it as holiday themed. however, the song currently playing and the ones that follow are pleasantly nice, fitting for the chilly weather that passes by them outside as they drive. kni leans back into his seat and turns his head to watch the snow covered fields and distant scenery.]

[ look, Kni's small and aerodynamic. he'd probably be fine--tuck and roll into the footwell or something.

... but regardless, seatbelts are clicked into place and Wolfwood puts two hands on the wheel, only glancing over when Kni plays with the dial. he seems. surprised? that Kni would stop on something with vocals, but he doesn't mind the music coming from the radio--he has no attachment to it, but it's nice sounding mush about snow and the Season and what have you, so he lets it filter like white noise as he takes most of his mind up with driving duty.

they go through snow-covered fields and white-dappled trees, and eventually, grass gives way to concrete, to steel and stone, and there's lights and decorations wrapped around lights and public things and what have you. the driving is slow going, but... it's nice. quiet. Wolfwood doesn't need to fill the air to be comfortable, letting the radio croon between them as he turns and twists until he finds his way to the carpark in front of the mall, more than half full in all its technicolor glory. ]

As a heads up, succulent two--you need to remember where we park cause the car might not look like this when we come out.

[the changing of the seasons is a wonder to behold for someone who has only ever known the carefully controlled climates aboard a home that was long gone now. not for the first time, he wondered how long any of this would last and if he would still be able to experience these wonders even a year from now. it was pointless to worry about something so beyond his control, but such things were never easy when all he had now was time to think and wonder.

kni hops out of the car and snow crunches under his boots. breath fogs around his face as he glances around the carpark filled with vehicles, all with some varying states of snow coverage.]

What?

[never mind the second nickname (if he were any kind of plant, it certainly wouldn't be a succulent--), kni looks up to wolfwood with some concern.]

How long are we going to be here?

[he says that while looking around again, trying to find some notable landmarks to commit to memory. just in case.]

[ he's going to be any number of plants until Wolfwood runs out of plants, or runs out of nice-sounding plants at the minimum. Wolfwood slips the keys into his pocket and takes a quick look around--also trying to remember the location of the car for their eventual getaway, hands tucking into his pockets to avoid the cold as he hunkers into his scarf with a little huff. ]

Ideally, not too long. I'm tryin' for a quick smash and grab, as it were.

[ if one could 'smash' by using Vergil's credit card to pay for stuff on the man's shopping list. he starts off for the big door of the mall, keeping his pace even for the short-legged beast that walks in his wake, tugging the door open for his little rafflesia bastard and like four people behind him, and then he's trotting to catch up with Kni and take in the Mall.

there are so many people. it almost reminds him of--market days, steamer car lines, bodies tucked together and moving in rivulets as they stream from area to area. it feels like too much humanity gathered in one space. Wolfwood huffs out a breath. ]

I want to smoke.

[with the door held open, kni hurries inside ready to shuffle off to the side and wait for wolfwood, but his steps slow as he stops to stare. the bustling crowds of holiday shoppers is intimidating and joined by distant speakers cracking out some pop trash song about santa claus, kni is unknowingly feeling very similar to wolfwood right now.]

You always want to smoke.

[even if he's noticed wolfwood smoking just a little less around him, the smell of nicotine is tricky to shake. kni moves to stand closer to wolfwood when they start walking.]

Why is that?

[ Wolfwood makes his way over to a helpful map kiosk--comparing the things on his list with the places on the map, picking out his order of attack and storing a few extra places away for his own personal perusal. it's a bit of a circuitous movement, but... as long as they flow with the river of bodies, it should be fine, right.

Wolfwood points out their stops--Kni's a genius, and if he can do 'don't get shot' math like Vash can in his head, he can probably do location math just as easy, and then it's time to walk and get asked invasive questions. ]

It's a habit I've had since I was a scrap of a kid, I guess. Used to smoke bug stingers 'cause it dulled the crap of the day, and then when I got older, there was a lot more crap to dull.

[ and hey, maybe getting to erode his body on his own terms is a weird, masochistic way of taking a little power back. Win win. ]

[wolfwood shows him the map and all the noted destinations are committed to memory easily. he's surprised to see just how big this mall is, and even more so at the number of shops crammed inside of it. between looking over the map and raising his head to take in all the glittering decorations in theme with the season. tinsel and garlands wrapped with slowly blinking lights that move in time with the music playing overhead.]

Bug stingers? Aren't those usually poisonous?

[he never had a chance to learn more about the native inhabitants of noman's land, so he's left to wonder.]

Yep. If you eat the stinger it has a knockout effect--so smoking the stinger just diluted that feeling.

[ he says, casually, as if that's a normal child activity as he begins to vanguard their charge--or perhaps it's more of a surly saunter--into the belly of the beast, beginning to scan around for the first of the stores. his eyes linger a little, on the bright lights, the decorations, and the... general commotion that seems to be happening deeper into the mall. people sure are congregating. ]

I wonder if there's anything like that here that would have a similar effect.

[maybe he's curious enough to try. or watch someone else try first.

and yeah, there is definitely something going on here. more people flocking towards what kni recognizes as the general center of the mall. the atmosphere is jovial and energized and when a small gaggle of kids only a scant few inches taller than kni rush by, kni steps closer to wolfwood. his hand moving out to grab the edge of his jacket as he watches the other kids weave around other mall-goers, their voices fading in with everyone else's chattering noise.]

I can see why Vergil didn't want to come here.

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