[ You know who did completely forget about the "Spaghetti" incident? Lalo. He makes a noise of mild confusion on the other end of the walkie, unsure why he's being called "Burrito" or what Squalo is getting at...?
But he does remember Squalo was nice to him, or nice-ish, when he had a freakout in the drone prison, and that is more important to him than whatever this "Burrito" thing is about. ]
I'll do my best, Squalo.
Tell you what. I can be your wingman! For the smiley face girl, eh?
[ Wow, good for him! It's not a stain on his reputation! ...at least the shit on the walkies seems to delete itself after a while, but, uh. The damage is done. ]
[ At least it seems that Squalo has said all he wanted in regards to that topic, since he's willing to let it go. ]
Good to hear. [ And then -- ]
[ Shit. ]
[ He's damn glad these things don't have a video option because he's definitely just a little flustered. How embarrassing. Was his fanboying that obvious... ]
--I don't know what you're talking about.
[ Definitely said too quickly to be non-suspicious, though. ]
[ Okay, on one hand, he's been itching to share this with somebody who might be interested in teaming up and hunting those things down, and so far, "Ben" has been the only one to express something like that. ]
[ On the other hand, he's a sleazy old cop who made Viking Girl call him Spaghetti. Hm. ]
[ And, of course, there's the fact that he doesn't know how private these communications really are. But, well. If it was indeed their enemies tracking them, then they're aware of it already. It's not like he'll be sharing something they don't know! ]
[ Yeah, not an assassin, but... close enough, he gets it. ]
Glowing eyes... like a cat?
[ His thought immediately jumps to whoever lives in the cabin, who Lalo is beginning to suspect is not entirely human. No, not "beginning to suspect". Has suspected.
A nocturnal creature, who growls, who hunts at least partly by smell, Lalo imagines. ]
Yeah. I get it. What'd you do? How long did they follow you?
[ That sends Lalo's mind to a screeching halt. The person he knows, the person in the cabin, does not run away. It's the right area for it. And glowing eyes would make sense with someone who growls.
But... to run away? That can't be right. They would've sent an arrow straight for his arm, or worse.
He considers the possibility that Squalo having a companion scared him, but... No. The person who lives in the cabin fears nothing and no one. They would never "run away." Unless they were simply biding their time. ]
Sounds like you've got quite the admirer. What makes you think your lepardo knows who we are?
Well I don't know for sure but they disappeared and I didn't see them again after that
[ So yeah, he's gonna believe that his big bad self scared them off. K had been ready to shoot it if it murdered Squalo in retaliation and everything. ]
[ Watching one person with purpose does sound like something someone in the cabin might do. And Lalo recalls what Squalo said, about Lalo's death sounding like an invitation. He reconsiders the possibility that perhaps it was the person in the cabin after all, and feels the painful sting of intense jealousy.
But... no. He dismisses that. The person in the cabin wouldn't run. This is something new. Something, or someone, different.
Lalo feels a familiar tingle of excitement and curiosity. ]
Thank you, Squalo. You've been an excellent help. I have a few more questions for you, if you don't mind? I promise to make it worth your while.
[ That's pretty much the main thing he's interested in as far as trade goes right now. But... it's not a no? And he didn't put a deadline on it. ]
[ Truth is, he's kind of bored, and also sick of The Middle Aged Lesbians looking at him like he's about to murder them, dear god did they never hear about keeping watch for enemies or what. Why is this becoming a whole thing. ]
[ If this were in person, he might be able to hear Lalo's warm, good-natured laugh, but he's deprived of such a joy. Alas. ]
Yeah, man. Sure. I can get you some booze. If I were you, though, I might start charging steeper prices. You hold out longer, I might have something way, way for you.
Here's one on the house: might wanna ring DN999R. He likes to wheel and deal, too. Maybe you'll get further than I did. Worth a shot, eh?
And swords don't grow on trees, but hey, if you find one, I'll take it
[ he's a simple guy, honestly ]
[ that and he doesn't see how the amount of information he provided could be useful for anything. booze would be a pretty good deal as far as he's concerned. ]
[ whatever is this information? job request? that he gets in return though, is just confusing. ]
What if I could tell you how to make booze? You have access to the right equipment. I can tell you how to make moonshine. Think about it.
[ he has to laugh silently to himself. oh, squalo! sweet simple squalo. ]
Sure. A sword. If I find one, I'll give it to you. But you have to promise not to use it on Chloe, eh?
[ Lalo would shrug emoji if he understood anything about emojis. ]
To be honest? No idea. They might have nothing. But they say they're on the other island, they say you have to cross a "trench" to get to them. They tried to to get me to come to them and then jump me, so be careful, but... who knows. They might have info about why we're here. Maybe you'll have better luck than I did.
[ And probably make Senku do it... come to think of it, Senku probably knows, so if Ben decides to play coy, it's no skin off Squalo's nose, but it would still be nice to have that information. ]
[ That humorous tidbit has him scowling, though. Why would he ever -- oh. ]
Yeah? The fuck did she tell ya? I'm bloody Mother Theresa here putting up with all her temper tantrums. Maybe if she stops screaming about killing me like a lunatic for five fucking minutes I'll entertain that exception.
[ Here's from the other side of the barricades-- ]
[ Okay, "the trench" does interest him though. ]
A trench, huh? And they told you they were just dying to experience your delightful company firsthand, is that it?
Bien! :) If you can find the stuff to do it, I can tell you how to make moonshine. Just be careful.
It'll knock you on your ass. Hoo! That shit's not joke, man, I'm telling you.
You wanted to knock her out, Mother Teresa! I was there. Just a little bit of fatherly advice, eh? The ladies don't like it so much when you talk about how you want to knock them unconscious. Kinda kills the mood, you know?
[ His protectiveness of Chloe is automatic, almost knee-jerk, so much that he doesn't even realize that's what he's doing; Lalo knows how he would react if he was injured and somebody was talking about knocking him unconscious, and next to his hypothetical behavior, Chloe's almost assuredly does look like the actual Mother Teresa. ]
You know what? Changed my mind. No sword for you. But if I find any good liquor, it's yours. And here:
[ instructions for how to make home-brewed alcohol go here because I'm lazy; lmk if you want me to dig something up lol, also he prob gives a few different examples but at least one uses agave bc lalo! ]
Or, if you wanna live real dangerously, just do it how they do it in prison: get some water, get some fruit, some sugar - but you gotta find it, let it sit in a bag in the sun for a few days, the fruit'll ferment and turn into wine. [ It'll fuck you up AND give you botulism! Nice! ]
That's right! Wouldn't you be? Who wouldn't want to see my charming face up close?
Yeah 'cause she wouldn't agree to let us carry her like a reasonable person. How special does she think her tits are that she can't let them touch a guy's back lmao
Forced my hand, doesn't count
[ He squints at the transceiver suspiciously. ]
Ok it's cute you wanna be her big strong savior or whatever but let me just clear up something quick
If I wanted to kill her she'd be dead
I don't need a weapon for that
So the only thing you're accomplishing here is pissing me off
[ He sure is acting like there's an actual sword he's being denied rather than a hypothetical situation-- ]
[ Oops, this is maybe... a bit closer to admitting he's a professional assassin than he would normally let himself get, but. Something tells him this Benlo person doesn't particularly care about the law anyway. ]
[ And he can always deny it later. ]
[ Well, at least he's getting several booze recipes so it's not all for nothing. ]
Isn't it just gonna go bad?
[ And everything! >:( ]
Yeah no if you're trying to get me to run your errands I'm gonna need more information than that. You got something they want?
[ A few things click immediately into place for Lalo with this response. He doesn't have Squalo pegged as an assassin specifically, but a subconscious suspicion crystalizes. This entire missive, and the attitudes strewn throughout it, basically say, "I am absolutely some variety of criminal, and probably in bed with organized crime" - and since Squalo is notoriously Italian, the mob feels like a safe bet.
And, let's face it. Getting angry someone hypothetically told him he couldn't have a hypothetical sword, as if he had been denied an actual sword? Tuco behavior.
So, then. Lalo has to try to walk a delicate line of respectful, but not overly submissive. Appearing weak might be disastrous, but an escalating war of threats to kick each other's asses seems equally counterproductive. ]
Easy, man, easy. I don't have a sword. [ Since Squalo apparently needs the reminder. ]
And hell yeah it goes bad! That's the fun part. We call it Botulism Roulette. ^_~ [ Where did he learn anime smileys now? We just don't know. ] But there's a sweet spot, eh? Where it can get you tipsy without making you sick. You just gotta get lucky.
[ He contemplates what to say next. ] Whoa, whoa, whoa! Amigo! You've got it all wrong. You're not doing my errands. I'm giving you this information as a tribute. As a way to say, thanks for your help. You may do with it whatever you wish.
DN999R, he likes technology. But he's open to bartering other things too. He says this "friend" who knows things. Me, I'm not sure if I believe him, but hey! Now you know what he's saying too.
[ Well. He's got all of that right, not that Squalo's making it very hard. ]
For now.
[ There might be a sword later, dammit! ]
[ He stares at the smiley and shudders. ]
Think I'd rather drink disinfectant.
[ That may or may not be a joke. ]
Did he offer anything in particular? Kinda weird to just message someone and be like "Yo bring me five cellphones and a gameboy and I'm gonna give you fuck-all that I pull outta my ass", ya know?
[ He definitely won't do that, but Tuco usually forgets about this shit after a while, even when he gets huffy about it in the moment. Here's hoping Squalo is the same... although Squalo does seem smarter than Tuco, Lalo is forced to reluctantly admit to himself, so who knows. ]
Yeah. About that. Nothing important. I was just curious about who this callsign belonged to, so I asked him. He said he knew, but wouldn't tell me how.
Between you and me, eh? I'm a little more interested in how he'd know something like that than who a callsign belongs to.
[ Squalo is pretty smart, but he's also pretty manic and temperamental. It's entirely possible he will forget, or at least not have it at the forefront of his mind until he actually sees a sword in someone's hands and gets mad that it's not in his. ]
Probably spying on us, piece of shit. Didn't that guy Martin talked to say something about another group of people being here? If they've got that kind of tech, though, I wonder what he'd want with the scraps of it we've got.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
sharktrash) wrote2023-05-08 06:19 pm
text | morning 008 | DI481O
¡Hola! You're heading to the airfield, right? So am I. I'd love to meet you in person when we get there! We should talk.
voice; SH442K
PS, try to be less insufferable face to face, Burrito. If ya don't want another hole in your skull, that is.
[ He did not forget about the "Spaghetti" incident. :) Viking girl thinks it's his name now, damn it! Burn in hell, Ben. ]
[ Unless you actually have something interesting to propose. He just might bury that hatchet for a time then. ]
voice | DI481O
But he does remember Squalo was nice to him, or nice-ish, when he had a freakout in the drone prison, and that is more important to him than whatever this "Burrito" thing is about. ]
I'll do my best, Squalo.
Tell you what. I can be your wingman! For the smiley face girl, eh?
no subject
[ At least it seems that Squalo has said all he wanted in regards to that topic, since he's willing to let it go. ]
Good to hear. [ And then -- ]
[ Shit. ]
[ He's damn glad these things don't have a video option because he's definitely just a little flustered. How embarrassing. Was his fanboying that obvious... ]
--I don't know what you're talking about.
[ Definitely said too quickly to be non-suspicious, though. ]
no subject
Yes, Squalo, it's that obvious. ]
Eeehhhhhhhhhhh?? Oh, no?
C'mon, it's the viking girl. You're sweet on her, eh? Don't be shy! It's cute! Let me help you out!
no subject
Yeah you "helped" enough. Mind your own business.
[ She thinks he's an idiot and it's -- well, not Lalo's fault entirely, but he definitely contributed to it! ]
no subject
[ Still confused! It didn't negatively impact him, after all, so why would he retain any knowledge that it happened? ]
Hey, think of it this way — if whatever I did made her not like you, I can do shit to make her like you too! It's foolproof, eh?
no subject
[ But... the man does present a reasonable point. Clearly, if he ruined something, fixing it should also be his responsibility. Right? ]
I'll think about it.
[ It's not a no! ]
no subject
He laughs. ]
Yeah, just let me know. Talk to you later.
[ ;-) ]
no subject
[ He hopes he doesn't need to employ the help of the world's most closeted wingman, but, well. Beggars can't be choosers and all that. ]
backdated to day 21, right after the storm
no subject
At least we're not stuck in puke jail anymore
What do you want
no subject
Just checking on you. Heard somebody was watching you. What was that about?
no subject
[ Okay, on one hand, he's been itching to share this with somebody who might be interested in teaming up and hunting those things down, and so far, "Ben" has been the only one to express something like that. ]
[ On the other hand, he's a sleazy old cop who made Viking Girl call him Spaghetti. Hm. ]
[ And, of course, there's the fact that he doesn't know how private these communications really are. But, well. If it was indeed their enemies tracking them, then they're aware of it already. It's not like he'll be sharing something they don't know! ]
[ So it's probably fine. But first. ]
Heard how exactly?
no subject
Just thought maybe if I scratch your back, you could scratch mine.
voice-to-text; 1/2
text
no subject
voice-to-text; 2/2
Somebody was watching us. Following us in fact
K saw it too
Eyes reflecting light, from up in the mountain
Creepy shit
Didn't look human but idunno it definitely has to be sentient somehow
Just got that feeling in my gut you know?
[ And you don't live as long as an assassin if your "feeling" isn't reliable. So, yeah. For him it's as good as confirmed. ]
text | DI481O
Glowing eyes... like a cat?
[ His thought immediately jumps to whoever lives in the cabin, who Lalo is beginning to suspect is not entirely human. No, not "beginning to suspect". Has suspected.
A nocturnal creature, who growls, who hunts at least partly by smell, Lalo imagines. ]
Yeah. I get it. What'd you do? How long did they follow you?
no subject
Mountain lion that knows who we are maybe
[ He's getting itches just thinking about it. ]
About a day or a bit over, while we were close to the mountain
I cussed them out and flipped them off and they ran away
no subject
[ That sends Lalo's mind to a screeching halt. The person he knows, the person in the cabin, does not run away. It's the right area for it. And glowing eyes would make sense with someone who growls.
But... to run away? That can't be right. They would've sent an arrow straight for his arm, or worse.
He considers the possibility that Squalo having a companion scared him, but... No. The person who lives in the cabin fears nothing and no one. They would never "run away." Unless they were simply biding their time. ]
Sounds like you've got quite the admirer. What makes you think your lepardo knows who we are?
no subject
[ So yeah, he's gonna believe that his big bad self scared them off. K had been ready to shoot it if it murdered Squalo in retaliation and everything. ]
Okay don't laugh but
It didn't just watch us
It watched me
And it felt
Idk
Purposeful?
no subject
[ Watching one person with purpose does sound like something someone in the cabin might do. And Lalo recalls what Squalo said, about Lalo's death sounding like an invitation. He reconsiders the possibility that perhaps it was the person in the cabin after all, and feels the painful sting of intense jealousy.
But... no. He dismisses that. The person in the cabin wouldn't run. This is something new. Something, or someone, different.
Lalo feels a familiar tingle of excitement and curiosity. ]
Thank you, Squalo. You've been an excellent help. I have a few more questions for you, if you don't mind? I promise to make it worth your while.
no subject
[ That's pretty much the main thing he's interested in as far as trade goes right now. But... it's not a no? And he didn't put a deadline on it. ]
[ Truth is, he's kind of bored, and also sick of The Middle Aged Lesbians looking at him like he's about to murder them, dear god did they never hear about keeping watch for enemies or what. Why is this becoming a whole thing. ]
no subject
[ If this were in person, he might be able to hear Lalo's warm, good-natured laugh, but he's deprived of such a joy. Alas. ]
Yeah, man. Sure. I can get you some booze. If I were you, though, I might start charging steeper prices. You hold out longer, I might have something way, way for you.
Here's one on the house: might wanna ring DN999R. He likes to wheel and deal, too. Maybe you'll get further than I did. Worth a shot, eh?
no subject
And swords don't grow on trees, but hey, if you find one, I'll take it
[ he's a simple guy, honestly ]
[ that and he doesn't see how the amount of information he provided could be useful for anything. booze would be a pretty good deal as far as he's concerned. ]
[ whatever is this information? job request? that he gets in return though, is just confusing. ]
To what end, exactly? They got anything useful?
no subject
[ he has to laugh silently to himself. oh, squalo! sweet simple squalo. ]
Sure. A sword. If I find one, I'll give it to you. But you have to promise not to use it on Chloe, eh?
[ Lalo would shrug emoji if he understood anything about emojis. ]
To be honest? No idea. They might have nothing. But they say they're on the other island, they say you have to cross a "trench" to get to them. They tried to to get me to come to them and then jump me, so be careful, but... who knows. They might have info about why we're here. Maybe you'll have better luck than I did.
no subject
[ And probably make Senku do it... come to think of it, Senku probably knows, so if Ben decides to play coy, it's no skin off Squalo's nose, but it would still be nice to have that information. ]
[ That humorous tidbit has him scowling, though. Why would he ever -- oh. ]
Yeah? The fuck did she tell ya? I'm bloody Mother Theresa here putting up with all her temper tantrums. Maybe if she stops screaming about killing me like a lunatic for five fucking minutes I'll entertain that exception.
[ Here's from the other side of the barricades-- ]
[ Okay, "the trench" does interest him though. ]
A trench, huh? And they told you they were just dying to experience your delightful company firsthand, is that it?
[ You're leaving something out, Lalo. :) ]
no subject
It'll knock you on your ass. Hoo! That shit's not joke, man, I'm telling you.
You wanted to knock her out, Mother Teresa! I was there. Just a little bit of fatherly advice, eh? The ladies don't like it so much when you talk about how you want to knock them unconscious. Kinda kills the mood, you know?
[ His protectiveness of Chloe is automatic, almost knee-jerk, so much that he doesn't even realize that's what he's doing; Lalo knows how he would react if he was injured and somebody was talking about knocking him unconscious, and next to his hypothetical behavior, Chloe's almost assuredly does look like the actual Mother Teresa. ]
You know what? Changed my mind. No sword for you. But if I find any good liquor, it's yours. And here:
[ instructions for how to make home-brewed alcohol go here because I'm lazy; lmk if you want me to dig something up lol, also he prob gives a few different examples but at least one uses agave bc lalo! ]
Or, if you wanna live real dangerously, just do it how they do it in prison: get some water, get some fruit, some sugar - but you gotta find it, let it sit in a bag in the sun for a few days, the fruit'll ferment and turn into wine. [ It'll fuck you up AND give you botulism! Nice! ]
That's right! Wouldn't you be? Who wouldn't want to see my charming face up close?
[ And? :) ]
no subject
[ good LORD this wall of text-- ]
Yeah 'cause she wouldn't agree to let us carry her like a reasonable person. How special does she think her tits are that she can't let them touch a guy's back lmao
Forced my hand, doesn't count
[ He squints at the transceiver suspiciously. ]
Ok it's cute you wanna be her big strong savior or whatever but let me just clear up something quick
If I wanted to kill her she'd be dead
I don't need a weapon for that
So the only thing you're accomplishing here is pissing me off
[ He sure is acting like there's an actual sword he's being denied rather than a hypothetical situation-- ]
[ Oops, this is maybe... a bit closer to admitting he's a professional assassin than he would normally let himself get, but. Something tells him this Benlo person doesn't particularly care about the law anyway. ]
[ And he can always deny it later. ]
[ Well, at least he's getting several booze recipes so it's not all for nothing. ]
Isn't it just gonna go bad?
[ And everything! >:( ]
Yeah no if you're trying to get me to run your errands I'm gonna need more information than that. You got something they want?
no subject
And, let's face it. Getting angry someone hypothetically told him he couldn't have a hypothetical sword, as if he had been denied an actual sword? Tuco behavior.
So, then. Lalo has to try to walk a delicate line of respectful, but not overly submissive. Appearing weak might be disastrous, but an escalating war of threats to kick each other's asses seems equally counterproductive. ]
Easy, man, easy. I don't have a sword. [ Since Squalo apparently needs the reminder. ]
And hell yeah it goes bad! That's the fun part. We call it Botulism Roulette. ^_~ [ Where did he learn anime smileys now? We just don't know. ] But there's a sweet spot, eh? Where it can get you tipsy without making you sick. You just gotta get lucky.
[ He contemplates what to say next. ] Whoa, whoa, whoa! Amigo! You've got it all wrong. You're not doing my errands. I'm giving you this information as a tribute. As a way to say, thanks for your help. You may do with it whatever you wish.
DN999R, he likes technology. But he's open to bartering other things too. He says this "friend" who knows things. Me, I'm not sure if I believe him, but hey! Now you know what he's saying too.
no subject
For now.
[ There might be a sword later, dammit! ]
[ He stares at the smiley and shudders. ]
Think I'd rather drink disinfectant.
[ That may or may not be a joke. ]
Did he offer anything in particular? Kinda weird to just message someone and be like "Yo bring me five cellphones and a gameboy and I'm gonna give you fuck-all that I pull outta my ass", ya know?
no subject
[ He definitely won't do that, but Tuco usually forgets about this shit after a while, even when he gets huffy about it in the moment. Here's hoping Squalo is the same... although Squalo does seem smarter than Tuco, Lalo is forced to reluctantly admit to himself, so who knows. ]
Yeah. About that. Nothing important. I was just curious about who this callsign belonged to, so I asked him. He said he knew, but wouldn't tell me how.
Between you and me, eh? I'm a little more interested in how he'd know something like that than who a callsign belongs to.
no subject
[ Squalo is pretty smart, but he's also pretty manic and temperamental. It's entirely possible he will forget, or at least not have it at the forefront of his mind until he actually sees a sword in someone's hands and gets mad that it's not in his. ]
Probably spying on us, piece of shit. Didn't that guy Martin talked to say something about another group of people being here? If they've got that kind of tech, though, I wonder what he'd want with the scraps of it we've got.