Forums » Fantasy Roleplay » Corath Beach (Permanently Closed)

Vee stared at ZG as they spoke, a soft smile curling across their face as she spoke of friendship. The conversation turned at the end, however, and Vee came to a sudden realization.

"This why they say monster," they said, reaching up with their hand to touch ZG's face where to flesh had seemingly dissolved away. "This not make monster," they said, their smile growing. Their vae wings fluttered quickly, intermittently flapping about in apparent joy.

As they looked at Z, they noticed a strange alien in the background. They pointed to the individual dancing about the beach, singing about the USA as they strutted about wildly with a strange wooden box strapped to their back. Vee's hand left Zombie Girls face as they stared at the person, pointing with the same hand in the strange aliens direction as they face planted on the ground.

Z stiffened a little at Vee touching her face. Touching people's faces was a little...taboo to some people? Thankfully Z was beginning to figure Vee was not used to how humans did thing.

"Yeah, but humans judge by eyes a lot, not by heart. Is kinda dumb." In that regards, Z felt kinda good about not being human anymore. Only kinda. Just a tiny bit.

She blinked up at Abelle, smiling. "See? That is what burger is. Meat! Meat good! Want meat! Not meat that talks though! No no no! That bad!" She nods, smiling and sitting with Vee.

She then sniffs, sensing something...off. A sort of tingle in the back of her head. Turning, she peers at the man carrying a coffin, narrowing her eyes at it and him, disliking both almost instantly.

Saoirse felt like metal rods were being shoved through the muscles on her neck, going straight through to above and on her right eye. Man, what a headache...Hopefully she can adjust it, maybe with a little acupressure. Resisting the urge to rub it, she held onto Tyrelle's hand, snuggling closer to her side before tears sprung up. She looked down, hiding her face behind her hair for now, until the waves of pain slowed.

Tyrelle watched with interest as Vee offered, then ate, a little bee. Interesting. A plant that eats bugs...I really hope I can get that extension and continue studying them. Holding Saoirse close, she started walking toward Abelle, guiding her carefully and attempting not to jostle her too much. A strange man with green hair was dancing nearby. With eyebrows knit together in confusion, she watched him topple over with a coffin squishing him into the sand.

"I'm not entirely sure I want to help him... There's something off about 'im I'm not comfortable with," Tyrelle said, watching the scene carefully. "I'm hungry. Let's get going. Saoirse, do you want your cover-up?"

Saoirse nodded slowly. "Yes, please"

Tyrelle took her to their stuff left abandoned on the sand near the water. Bending down, she dug through their bag and pulled out an emerald green cover-up. Wrapping Saoirse in it, the girls quickly went back to join the others.

After a moment, Abelle realized how weird it was to offer her help to someone with a coffin. On their back. Pausing and pursing her lips, she thought about it for several seconds before sliding away slowly, the lure of burgers causing her to say, "Actually I may not be the best help, I don't think I can lift... that..." Eyeballing that coffin with a weird glance, she shuffles away, as if belatedly weirded out by it, and scuttles off to join the girls in burger grabbing time.

Opting to not say a word about the peculiar person who had been dancing, she just sort of shows up next to Saoirse and Tyrelle, smiling in her carefree way. "You'll like Mike's burgers, and if you don't, well.. don't tell him, he might blame me for messing with them again." There's an impish sort of smile in her grin as she walks on the beach, and she looks over her shoulder at some point, staring pointedly at the coves for a moment, one eyebrow arching, before she looks at the two ladies. Opening her mouth to say something, she stops when she hears Z talk.

Calling out to the green gal and person, she waves them over. "Well come on, the burgers aren't going to wait around for us all day!"

Hearing Abelle shout over towards them, Vee snapped their head over. They stood up excitedly, in the Hope's this time, they would really see what a real burger was.

Turning to their new friend Zombie Girl, Vee reached down and grabbed them by the arm. "Burger!" they shouted, yanking her arm in an attempt to pull her to her feet.

The vae wings took turns buzzing with excitement, now forgetting about the crushed man under the coffin. With Zombie Girl on their feet, they would go with the group to discover what a circular cow flesh between buns sometimes with sesame seeds really was. Even if Zombie girl decided not to go, a truly unlikely event, Vee themselves would attend Mike's bar with the girls calling out to them.

Z smiled, letting Vee pull her along. "Burger! Burger! Burger!" She chanted, smiling and laughing.

"Want to see Mike! Eat Mike's burgers!" All in all, despite the very odd scary day she was having, the excitement of doing this...going to some bar or restaurant to get food? It felt good, felt normal.

There was also the fact Z had a sneaking suspicion that if she ate something, she'd heal. She ate all that beach food earlier, and her eye came back. She hoped it would work for the rest of her face as well.

That being said, she was worried if Abelle had enough money. Z honestly felt as if she could eat a few metric tons of burgers right now, not that she'd mention that, not wanting to scare her new companions even further.

The offer of help had actually confused him. Enough to the point he stopped moving. Then he sensed it, the zombie. However it wasn't until her heard the female that offered him help skittering away, that he lifted the coffin up. Rubbing the back of his head. He looked around a bit, two he couldn't feel any life force from, the living girl, another alien, then the green skinned zombie. She was being pulled by the plant alien.

He cleared his throat, and picked his coffin back up. "Sorry about not answering your offer for help." He paused and seemed fixed on the zombie girl. Almost as if puzzled by something. " I am not used to such shows of kindness. No one wants to help the weirdo with a coffin on his back." He smiled at this. And patted his coffin. Before he could explain though, he scratched his chin.

"Miss. Zombie it is a pleasure to meet one like myself. You see, I am a ne- an undead like you." His smiled waved just a bit, from almost revealing what he was. "Do you know who resurrected you?"

"Come on, let's head down to the shops." Tyrelle grasped Saoirse's hand, giving it a gentle squeeze.

Saoirse went back to get their things from the sand, quickly rejoining her best friend. Her headache still pounded harshly, so she put on a pair of Wayfarers and rolled up the sleeves of her cover-up. Her lavender ring sparkled in the sunlight. Pressing her fist gently to her chin, she cracked her neck, feeling instant relief from the headache, though the soreness was still there.

Up on the sun-bleached boardwalk, shops dotted the area. Bailey's General store was at the head, furthest back from the beach. Atop the golden horse with a pink mane, a little girl squealed in delight as it lurched back and forth. "Again, again!" she said excitedly, and her father dug for two quarters deep in his pockets, the glistening coin slot below the front hoof waiting patiently to start the ride anew. Bailey's was a relatively smaller local shop that sold organic food.

Mrs. Iverson could be seen every Monday afternoon with her macaw perched on the cart's handle, strolling through the store. "A little to the left, a little to the right!" the bird would crow. "Careful, careful you stupid fool!" That macaw sure turned many heads, but Mrs. Iverson never seemed to mind.

To the right of Bailey's, the Matthews Shell Museum glittered with gorgeous finds from the small beaches around, including Corath. Curious trinkets have also been discovered in addition to the myriad of shells and other natural beach occurrences. Just opposite the way, Finnimore's Cycle shop displayed bikes and paddleboards, among other things, for beach-goers to enjoy. Mike's bar was just beside Finnimore's, and Tyrelle steered the group toward that direction.

Z followed Tyrelle for the most part, being something of an obvious newcomer in these parts. She stuck with Vee primarily, and quickly moved her hair about to hide her damaged face. It was bad enough that she was green, but with Vee around (who she still thought was a girl!), who was also green, it wasn't so awkward for the poor undead girl.

She stopped, one lavender eye glaring at Mac. There was something off about him, not quite a smell but a sense, that she didn't like. She had no idea why, and that annoyed her. The last thing she wanted to do was hate some one for no freaking reason. "Who you?" She asks, slowly moving to follow the group, expecting Mac to also follow. "Resurrect? No Resurrect. Vomit on beach." She actually had no idea what he was talking about.

Her undead super human situation also probably had nothing to do with whatever Mac was talking about either.

Watching everyone start to head down to the shops, she went and followed along behind them. She'd be like their guide, if they needed it, to help point them in the direction of whatever they were looking for. She nodded at the salt water taffy seller, peering at the odd assortment of people that had gathered around her today. What else is new, though, she thought with a wry smile, and for a brief moment Abelle almost looked... sad. Forlorn. In the next instant she looked peevish and annoyed, kicking a small pebble away from her and trying to not grit her teeth.

After a few moments she calmed down and looked over at Mike's. There was food there, but on the beach there was food everywhere, from barbecue's to tail gating, novelty shops and more. That woman with the annoying bird was probably lurking around somewhere, and while she was polite, she got the feeling the woman didn't care for her much, although for the life of her the beach bum couldn't figure out why.

"I should probably ask, but is there anything anyone here doesn't eat? Mike doesn't really do special gluten free compost burgers or anything." Shoving her hands deep into her pockets, Abelle grins wryly and quirks a brow at her own joke. Clever in her own head, she taps her sandal lightly on the ground, peering at Z and realizing she was probably talking to someone behind them on the beach. Someone Abelle had scurried away from because the weirdness levels were off the charts for today alone, it was a miracle her heart hadn't exploded out of her chest from how nerve-wracking today had already been, and she still hadn't done her surfing competition yet!

It's a lovely place to go and hang out, if a customer doesn't have particularly high standards. Finnmore's Cycle Shop was leagues above Mike's in presentation, but with the regular customers sitting around the bar or hanging out on the beachside patio, the faded paint job and the driftwood signs displaying everything from hours of operation to menu items that never changed, Mike's had character.

The bar itself is of an average size for the location, seating about twenty people at tables all together, ten at the very most at the bar, although it's usually only got three or four of the bums hanging around. The patio off to the side can host another fifteen, and there are benches around the front door for people to sit or wait at. Picnic tables are close by that look like they too are somehow made from driftwood, or became that way from lack of upkeep but an amazing craftsman. Pale sandstone paint has long since faded away and chipped off the actual building, but the forest green roof has withstood the test of time. The windows look a bit grimy from the outside, but nothing unbearable, and they are two feet off the ground and stretch up to almost the ten foot high ceilings, bringing in an abundance of light.

Inside of Mike's, the rafters host a great many things, from lights to netting, dried starfish, shark jaws, and several surfboards, all donated from local champions who retired and left the beach for one reason or another. The floor boards are all wood and creak lightly, but offer no hint of too much strain, even when the bar is packed. Behind the long counter is a grizzled old man, with a short white beard, scars along his neck and shoulder, and a tank top that may have, at one point, been white, but had long since turned a peculiar shade of yellowish grey. He looks to be about seventy or eighty, stands over six feet tall, and although solid, is muscular. He's as tanned as any other bum and can usually be found telling the group of old men at the bar to pipe down, pay their tabs, or to go cool their heads in the ocean. He is Mike, and he owns the bar. Behind him is a television screen hanging for people to watch, but he mostly plays the local news or sports. To ask him to change it will earn that person a glare and dead silence.

Several young people mill about, waiting on tables or refilling drinks. Blonde hair, bright neon highlights, shorts with bikini tops and flips flops, or just sandals and swim trunks seem to be the uniform of the waiters. Behind the bar, in the back, more tank tops and breathable pants with steel-toed sneakers for the cooks. Hairnets aren't really a thing, but everyone wears a hat of some sort back there.

The tables that make up the bar are four sided with rounded corners, high chairs with rungs to hook one's feet in, and many have names, initials, dates, or things like "Kilroy was here" with a drawing carved under it cover every available surface. Three booths are on the street facing wall, while most of the tables themselves are near the patio doors that open up to get the sea breeze when it comes rolling in.

In one small corner is a roped off section, with a wide variety of odds and ends. Beachside jewelry, old photos that have long since turned greyish yellow from age, keychains, letters, shells... It's a shrine to the surfers who never made it out alive, the swimmers who drowned or were killed by a shark, and children who were never found, said to be spirited away by merfolk. Many candles that have long since spent their wicks make up small mountains at the bottom of the shrine, more placed on top to add to the remorse. Mike doesn't talk about it much, but asking one of the bums is often a good way to learn just why he's got a little corner like that in his bar...

Since the front doors, side door, and patio doors are all open, the smells can be detected by local tourists from the beach all the way down the street. Onion rings, fries, burgers, wings... if Mike has it available, he'll cook it up and figure out a price that is reasonable for what the person is asking. The drinks are always icy, the food comes out hot, and if he's feeling generous, he'll even crinkle up the corners of his stormy blue eyes and force his mouth's corners up into a smile, accenting every single wrinkle and divet in his face.

Mike's is a home, a place for friends to gather, an Important Location. Should anything threaten that home, the whole Family will come out to defend it.

It had been an entirely unexpected contest that ultimately brought Oscar to Corath Beach. It wasn't even one he'd entered! His best friend and his band's singer, Matteo, had come across it on some social media feed and entered on a lark, because it had only required two clicks and absolutely all of the data that site had ever collected on him. What a chance!

Long story short, with said best friend still asleep at the house they were staying at as part of the prize, Oscar got to hit the beach early. It wasn't the kind of beach he'd grown up with exactly, but it remained close enough to sing out to him, for the waves and smells to beckon him to its sandy shores. He had on black slide-on athletic sandals, light blue swim trunks patterned with small mangoes, and a plain black t-shirt, given that he was a little insecure.

Funny how, when he got down toward the water, he wound up exploring. Perhaps his thick glasses, carved with silver-painted nüshu script, were showing him a glimpse of something at once familiar and foreign. Perhaps some other energy beckoned him. But, all at once, he was running into those shadowed shallows, recognizing the flash of Tique's scales. "Dios mío, is it really you!?" he asked, kicking sand all through his sandals in his haste to get to her. When he stopped, he hopped on one foot to slide the sandal off and sweep the sand out, before putting it back on and repeating the process with the other. "Hhooohhh wow, wha--who is this!?" he went on as he properly registered Lothan's presence, at once gawking and grinning, a brightly sunny expression. "I never expected to find you here!"

Currently in the middle of arguing with Lothan, a bit louder than normal, about how what she took from humans was simple payment, not a bribe like a spoiled lap pet who had done something good, the mermaid paused when she realized there was a human splashing towards the two of them. A sneer on her lips spoke of her immediate thoughts, but when she realized just which human had clumsily approached them, the olive skinned mermaid paled considerably and shrank back a little, looking almost... embarrassed?

"Ah... ah, you! Oh... What.. what are you doing here?" At first pale, but suddenly turning dark shades of pink, Tique stares at Oscar with wide eyes and a flabbergasted look on her face.

"Oho... what's this, Tique? For someone who hates humans so much, you certainly aren't berating this one... Seems like you know him, even.." Lothan looked quite pleased as he shifted a little, unceremoniously dumping the mermaid into the water. With a little laughter, he sank further into the water so that his coiling body could be kept as wet as he liked, but his head and a few feet remained quite visible.

Letting out a yelp as she was suddenly dropped from the sea serpent into the water, Tique slices through the water quickly, pulling herself over several small mountains of sea serpent flesh and scales to get into the shallows near Oscar. She moves as quickly and gracefully as she always has, although the sports gear on her chest was rather new. Laying on her side so that she doesn't strain her back, Tique leaves most of her tail in the water, her spiny fins visible only some of the time. "What are you even doing here, Oscar? I didn't think you had much time to play in the water, what with your music and friend." Her expression was so complex that it probably came off as rude, glaring, or annoyed, but she used his name, Tique remembered him, evidently.

Turning a real glare onto the sea serpent in the water, she says in a relatively annoyed, yet somehow still pleasant way, "That clumsy oaf of a sea serpent is Lothan. He lives around here and I stop in to see him when I pass through on jobs, or on my own way home." Clearing her throat, the mermaid does offer him the tiniest of smiles, hoping that her irksome friend would not see.

Of course he saw. More chuckling from the sea serpent occurs, and he grins so broadly that most of his mismatched-length'd teeth show. Flicking a pointed, unsplit tongue out briefly, the creature simply watches the two of them with obvious interest in their conversation and how, well, excited the clumsy human was to see that dour mermaid.

Oscar had put these particular sandals on because water wouldn't damage them but, as he waded in, he became afraid that they'd fall off his feet and get swept out into the sea. He might be glad to see Tique, they might have a history, but he was pretty sure she wouldn't swim out and hunt for his sandals, even if they had been thirty dollars and that was entirely too much to pay for such casual things, in his mind. Again he reached down, taking them off and glancing around until he saw a patch of grass struggling through the sand. With that as a mark, he turned and pitched them like he was throwing knives or something, sticking them among the scant greenery so he'd know where to look for them.

Toes free, he kept beaming at Tique and, especially, at Lothan, who was entirely too cool for words, in his estimation. He wanted to ask all kinds of childish questions, but held his tongue for dignity's sake, at least for now. (Yes, he believed dignity was possible while wearing swim trunks with mangoes on them.) Wiggling his toes in the damp sand, he told her, "Teo won a trip on the internet and took me with him!" She'd met him before, probably, if briefly. He didn't think they had the same kind of relationship, but it was clear that having any involvement with him meant tolerating his troll of a best friend.

He turned his attention to Lothan and nodded eagerly. "Yeah! I guess I'm a lot more patient than most people!" Probably his mostly-veganism and general environmental respect had something to do with it, too. He wouldn't bring up any other possibilities in unfamiliar company. "Oh! All in!" Oscar giggled as Tique plunked into the water, wading a little further. He wasn't the strongest swimmer, but so long as all he had to do was stay afloat, he was capable enough.

Coming to stand in front of Tique, he swept his eyes here and there, deciding not to comment on her clothing choice; it hardly seemed the place! "Oh, we get breaks here and there! Teo's still asleep at the rental house. He's - you know, either he's sleeping or he isn't?" he put forth, furrowing his brow. That was most people; what did that possibly clear up? "I mean, um, there's no waking him up for special occasions unless it's, like, a band thing." He turned and booted up his grin at the serpent again. "Hola, I'm Oscar!" he repeated, just to be friendly, pronouncing his name as he might have where he was born. "You look really cool, Lothan, don't let her bring you down!"

Watching how eager Oscar was to be in the water with her and seeing how he hurled those knives away, Tique did let out a tiny, tiny laugh. He was amusing for a human, and that was what probably drew her close to him. Almost whimsical and fae-like, in a way, with his innocence and carefree style. It almost reminded her of the sea serpent when he was younger.

"Ah, the Internet, that thing." Tique's tone totally said she knew what the Internet was, and not just in the haughty "tell me I don't know what it is and I'll break your nose" sort of way. Of course she's bluffing, she only knows the minor details about the Internet itself and computers in a vague way. Both annoy her because they took a lot of her business away, and that's all she really needed to be aware of. "Still, what a place to run into you. This is a nice one to be near, very sunny, usually warm, and the corals beyond the drop off are amazing." Talking about the ocean itself is one of the ways that Tique perks up, and it shows in her expression. Those eyebrows that are so often drawn down smooth a bit, the corners of her mouth lift, and she looks happy. She is quite glad he did not bring up the fact she was wearing clothing, because it'd lead to an embarrassing story...

Lothan watches the two of them curiously for a few moments, listening to the conversation, and kind of nodding along, until he's addressed. Shaking his head slightly and flexing the fins on the sides of his head, wiggling the spines a little to show off a bit more of how cool he is. It was rare for anyone over the age of twelve to say such a thing, most might call him majestic, elegant, amazing...

"Oscar, is it? Tique's little secret.." The ever-present grin on the sea serpent's face grew a little bigger and he wiggled the tip of his tail, causing tiny waves to add to the already small crests that broke on the beach. "I am Lothan, the sea serpent of Corath beach. Although I only come here to find what this feisty lady has thrown away this time. She has an awful temper when I have nicer things than her..." His playfully mocking tone brings him great delight, which is displayed through his headfins, as they start to wiggle back and forth sightly.

The sea serpent isn't much more knowledgeable about humans and their technology than the mermaid, so he listens politely to Oscar talk about a band, the Internet, contests... Eyeing his mermaid companion, he says casually, trying to make sure she can't suddenly get angry, "Speaking of contests, I have been looking for something Tique tossed up here a hundred years or so ago... Perhaps you'd like to search for it? Maybe you can convince our spirited lady to join you?" Was he trying to get rid of Tique and get her alone with Oscar to spend time together?

Maybe he just needed a break from her sour attitude.

"Now listen here Lothan, I threw that stupid bauble away because you pined over the human who gave it to you! Pined! You know humans are the filth that will ruin our whole world!" Tique lacked any ability to look embarassed or sheepish by her words, and she slapped her tail firmly against the ocean's surface. For a few brief moments she disappears under the water, circling around Oscar while he floats there and coming back up under him, letting him drape his legs over the thicker part of her tail as she floats on her back, staring up at the gorgeous blue sky.

"..If you want, you can look for Lothan's bauble. I can show you some of the coral reefs if you get one of those masks to help you breathe under water, since someone won't give me that particular bauble..." Glaring up at the sea serpent, Tique knows Lothan has a trinket that will do exactly that, allow a human to breathe under water. She had been trying to lure it from him since she invited Oscar to join her at her island for that getaway, but the creature held it in the highest regard and refused to give it to anyone just yet, even his longest frenemy.

Using her arms to slowly pull the two of them around in the ocean, her tail lazily moves to the left and back to the right, steering them around in a lazy circle near Lothan so that Oscar can get a better look at his features, if he'd like.

Upon Lothan's snout are many scars and lines, several scales not growing back on his face, and one deep gouge just under his bottom lip, the flesh that had grown back causing a small valley from the missing flesh that would never return. His glassy eyes have three sets of eyelids, two clear and the one that is skin, and if the human looks closely enough, he'll see the one lid that moves sideways make its way across to the other side for a brief moment before retreating. "It is up to you if you wish to help, but I offer great rewards for anyone who can find a belonging of mine."

Letting out a small snort of air at the mermaid, he says quietly, "Maybe if you didn't throw my things away I'd let you have one of them..."

Following the group up to the boardwalk, Vee's eyes lit up as it all came into view. Shops, stalls, people and more people. Some on skateboards and rollerblades, some walking and talking, playfully pushing each other and laughing, or sitting on a bench with what seemed to be their loved ones.

Their jaw dropped and the vae wings fluttered as they walked, eventually the intermittent buzzing was filled in by two vae which took flight, flying just above and in front of Vee's shoulders also looking around at various spots.

As they walked an additional two vae, now totalling four flew up, and they all took flight in different directions.

One flew off in the direction of a family, the parents sitting, distractedly talking as their two kids, a boy and a girl at child age, sat next to them. The vae flew right up to the little girls face, who pressed her back to the bench.

"Mommy...." she said with wide eyes looking at the vae considering her.

"Not now dear," the mother waved off without actually looking at her daughter.

"Cool!" the boy said, and reached out, taking the vae in his hands. As it was considering the little girl, who was slowly beginning to make frightened noises, the vae was easily taken by the boy. Immediately it placed its hands on the boys wrapped fist and struggled to get free, and the child simply pulled it close to his face. Concerned about its safety, the vae opened a small barb on its wrist and stabbed at the boys hand, not causing any serious damage, only a small enough amount of pain for him to release the vae....and release it he did, with a shake of his he hand, the boy shouted and thrust himself backward, directly into his mother's arm which held a paper plate filled with potato salad and a burger which was promptly dumped into the biys fathers lap, seated directly on the other side of mom. Simultaneously, the little girl screamed when this happened and jumped up, the plate of hot dog and chips flying off her lap and onto the ground. The vae buzzed off quickly, and the parents turned to begin scolding their children.

Another vae was sauntering down the boardwalk and spotted a colorful station of make your own cotton candy. The colors were wild and it decided to head over to see what they might find there. As they approached, however, the vae ran unknowing into a group of teenage skaters, who payed little mind to the small creature save for one. The vae managed to narrowly dodge each of the helmeted heads, 4 in total, without so much as a skuff, but after they passed, and thinking they were home free, it happened.

"Wait up guys!" came the screech of one who had fallen behind, desperately moving as fast as they could. The vae didnt notice the boy, now fixated on the blend of pink and blue of the current bee hive of cotton candy the middle aged man was helping a little girl to make.

BLAM!!!! The helmet impacted the poor vae like a baseball thrown into a mailbox, and with a loud buzzing the poor thing fell once again onto the wooden walkway. As it stood up, disoriented and confused from the fall, it looked about as the giant feet came crashing down like pistons in an engine, some only inches away from them. They yelped, jumping back and forth at the foray of falling feet, trying to find an opportunity to take flight again. A hand eventually grabbed them, green and leafy Vee reclaimed its vae with a smile. Holding it in front of them with the vae facing them, they shook their finger at it as a parent would while disciplining a child, then smiled and tucked it away in their pod, where the first vae had already found itself

The last two worked as a pair, off to explore what had turned out to be a taffy stand. The bright pink color of the taffy was strange and exotic, nothing like the deep luscious green rainforests of Vee's homeworld, and as such it was attractive. They buzzed over towards it, only to see the man standing near them quickly and haphazardly swing in their direction with an open fist. Each vae went separate directions, and hung for a moment, watching the man as he turned and served the next kid in line. Coming at it again, the two vae spotted a piece of taffy they planned to bring back to Vee, but as they approached it, the man turned again, apparently hearing the buzzing, but not paying enough attention to what they were, and swung horizontally twice to scatter the vae. As they flew back, a plan was formed and this time a single vae flew in. Not at the taffy, but this time it got in line behind the kid, waiting for the surprise.

"Next!" he said, and the child moved off, leaving the vae alone in front of the man. He stood there looking at it, stunned at the realization that....this was no fly. The vae flew closer to his face, now in easy view of the man who only stared with a shocked and almost disgusted loon on his face. The Vee stuck its tongue out at the man, making a high pitched noise as they wiggled their tongue back in forth.

What the man didnt realize, was the second vae, by this time, had snuck up to the piece of taffy behind him, and wrapped its arms around it....desperately trying to life the heavy candy. The vae in front of the taffy man then turned around, bending its rear over theatrically at him and slapped its bottom twice before quickly flying over to the taffy to help its companion in need. The man stared at the vae as it did, and with the help of the second vae, the taffy was much easier to lift. The two of them hurriedly carted the taffy off with the man staring wide eyed as the left into the crowd.

He lifted a single finger into the air and shouted after them...."That'll be $2.99.....please...." as he watched helplessly.

The taffy vae arrived as Vee and the group arrived at Mike's, and like a rewarded child, they placed both hands out palm up and gasped as the taffy was placed into their hands. The vae retreated into their pods as Vee stared happily at the taffy. They had no real idea what to do with it, so they turned to the group and extended their prize out to everyone of their new friend.

"Look!" they said...hoping someone would tell them what to do with it.

Zombie Girl followed closely to Vee, feeling the most comfortable around them, despite having terrified them only an hour or so ago. Unlike the sentient plant however, Z wasn't having as much fun.

Oh, people stared at Vee for sure. But it was an exotic stare, as one would to when finding a beautiful flower or brilliantly colored song bird. The eyes that fell on the sentient zombie....were more of disgust. Was she injured? Why was she walking around without footwear? Why did her limbs suddenly get stiff now and again?

Or so Z thought. Fact was, while people took notice of the two greenies, not one really payed them any head. Z was just being self conscious about her half-face, as any person would be with such a large injury.

Once Vee presented her taffy prize, Z blinked, tempted to just grab and eat it, but knowing better. "Where you get that? Not on floor, that icky. Where you get that Vee?" She asks, having noted that the Vae went off for a bit and came back, though as to what they did she had no idea.

Behaving this way was much more of a deliberate choice for him than it might seem. It was one of those revelations about life that he'd come across thanks to some chemical experimentation, writing pathways through his mind that he might not have traveled without that help. When he could perceive joy, when he could hold it in him, it was best expressed and indulged in, free of self-consciousness. He'd endeared many more people to him by being free than bottling up his feelings in crippling shyness. Of course, the fact that he'd taken his meds that day might have something to do with that freedom itself.

"Sí, sí, a necessary evil for us," he allowed of Tique's grumbling, giving his eyes a fond toss. Using social media in particular was something that musicians like them had to do, in the modern age, if they expected to amass any kind of following. If they didn't amass a following, their contract had no hope of renewal in the years to come. He didn't linger on all that, though. "Oh, the corals!? That sounds really nice, I might have to see if I can take a peek," he considered, dropping his hands into the water and sweeping his fingers back and forth through it. Its resistance against his skin was another delight of the beach!

"Secret?" he repeated, briefly confused, though quickly recalling her hatred of humans, he laughed openly. He'd always taken it less personally and more in a group sense, as he did with most demographic statements. The things she said of humanity as a whole weren't untrue, so he couldn't spit too much in his people's defense. He could only defend the individual, and he'd done that aptly enough, acknowledging that the perspective of someone so long-lived as Antique was bound to be different from his own, even if he thought he understood.

Something about Tique saying such distasteful things while encouraging him to relax on her made him giggle at length. Being an exception to one's hatred didn't feel so bad! He straddled her tail with easy looseness about the limbs, reaching down to stroke some wet hair from her cheek and gazing affectionately down into her face. There were ways he'd like to get closer, but this didn't seem to be the time or the place, so he just let his hands drop away. "That could be fun, but I don't know, I've never used an oxygen tank or anything. Isn't there a lot to learn?" he asked with a pout. He'd never gone on any kind of adventure like that, not since childhood. It sounded fun, but difficult to pull off at a satisfying speed.

As Tique might have assumed, Oscar examined the serpent with interest, frowning as he took note of scars and missing scales. "People have tried to kill someone like you?" he asked with a kind of disgusted marvel, shaking his head for the shame of it. "I hate when people don't appreciate the marvels of the world, don't. . .revere them, it's - they get envious, they hate anything obviously better than they are, so they try to destroy it. It's just the stupidest thing, there's so much more to gain from keeping things that are great, and. . ." He could probably go on for a while; his voice was beginning to pick up tempo.

Following behind the group as their shepherd, Abelle was sort of paying attention to them all and sort of not. What she noticed was Vee suddenly had a big piece of taffy in their hands and an eyebrow slowly raised. If that man realized... But no, when she looked at the taffy seller, he was quite off in his own befuddled world, not understanding what had just happened, but it involved something small and fluttery making rude gestures at him.

With a weak sigh, she rubs at the back of her neck, trying to relieve any stress. Any stress will prove to be detrimental later while surfing. Ushering them all into Mike's, she waved at the grumpy old man and kind of scooted the group towards one of the booths. Reluctantly, Abelle took a seat at the booth as well, scowling a little at first from being stuck in the seating for tourists. Her nasty title had been removed almost seven years ago when she bopped a shark on the nose who was going for a child. That was quite an odd day, honestly.

"Hey, Vinnie, come give us service when you get a minute," she says to one of the waiters, dressed in casual swim trunks and sandals. The tanned, buff, sandy blonde haired dude with the shark tooth necklace waved in acknowledgement before he went to go fill the drink orders at another booth, full of excited teenage girls that were drooling over his perfectly chiseled abs.

Turning a bit to look at her companions, Abelle smiles weakly and almost nervously. "So, this is Mike's. Food's on me, so get what you want. They make great fruity drinks if you ask nicely, burgers are best at medium-rare, and the onion rings are fantastic with the spicy dipping sauce." She'd let them all take in the whole look of the bar for themselves, depending on where everyone sat.

Carrying Oscar around on her stomach was not something most would consider proper, normal, or dignified for a mermaid, but Tique had a few very rude words and gestures for people who thought she cared how anyone perceived her. She is an immortal creature, above such things like being self conscious or worrying about others. This included most of the humans she engaged in business with, which is why about half the crews she helped did not all entirely make it to their destination. It wasn't her fault they couldn't breathe underwater...

Although not self conscious, Tique still has feelings, even if most of them are bitter and jaded. Still, when Oscar reaches down to brush some hair off of her cheek, the faint coloring of pink that stains them is visible, her eyes widening a midge in surprise, and that tiny smile shows for a brief moment. Yes, this particular mortal was dear to her, in a way that she refused to share with most, and so he had the honor of sitting on her tail while she floated in the ocean. "I am not sure if it is difficult to use, for I have gills. If I could somehow force you to grow a pair, I would." Tilting her head slightly, she ponders how much time, effort, and magic she'd have to use for that, because she can only think that Lothan would be able to help with a feat like that. How permanent the effects were, however... Well, it was something to consider.

"Wait.. No.. Oscar, don--" Too late, he had started to talk to Lothan about those nasty looking scars that he had. Knowing exactly where this was going, the mermaid just floated there so her human companion could listen to what will, inevitably, be a very long story from the lengthy sea serpent. Internally, she's screaming.

Listening to the two of them talk, Lothan doesn't have a lot of input on breathing under water, except to politely ignore Tique, since he has a charm that would do exactly as he wants. With a small flick of his tongue and a wiggle of it at the surly looking mermaid, he resumes his regal demeanor as he listens to Oscar. Puffing up a bit proudly, he realizes he may now have a captive audience and positively launches into a story he's probably told Tique a million times, leading to her deadpan face.

"A long time ago, much further back, way before steam was how people got around, Man was still discovering what laid at the other edge of an ocean. Many thought the world was only their continent, their piece of the puzzle, and that was it. But those brave fools who dared to go further, for whatever reason, discovered the other lands. Not the ones they had intended to find, of course, that one chap thinking the world was so small one quick trip would bring him to... Anyway.

"Pirates traversed the seas as often as sailors did, and legends have popped up regarding my kind ever since Man traveled out so far that he could see no land. In those deep crevices of the oceans we rest, stirring to play in the sun or go for a swim, maybe to look for shiny things among the shallows. Sometimes a scale or two pops off and a man gets a hold of it, makes it into something useful... They want more though, because Man is greedy, and they start hunting us down. Rumors form of course. There was one rumor that we keep all our treasure in our stomachs and that's why we're so long, we're just full of treasure, ripe for the taking, should we be carved open. I tell you right now that is entirely wrong, of course. It'd give such a stomach ache, and probably poke and prod at us all day." Letting out a small laugh, Lothan shook his head at the silly rumor before he continued.

"Well, the one thing that is true is that our scales are sharper, harder, and more deadly than the metals used at that time. So there were many reasons we were hunted. Scales, wrongfully thought medicinal properties of our organs, blood, and bones, trophies, and hidden treasures. While I personally have many hidden treasures, and some not so hidden," he glares at Tique while he says that bit, "None of them reside within me, honestly."

Looking mildly annoyed still, but content that Lothan didn't go on about that one subject, she flicks her tail a couple of times. "Yes yes, we get it Lothan, humans are horrible creatures that should leave well enough alone and go die trying to prove they're better than anyone else." Snorting softly, in that gently annoyed way she seems to always have about her, Tique looks up at Oscar. "You wanna hear him talk more, or do you want to see the corals?"