[open] ring the bells that still can ring

[pipers_son]

Who: Joker and you
What: All's fun and games, but the Performers still need to work. Joker occupies himself with that, and maybe a few other things. Like cooking. Or sunbathing.
Where: The Big Tent, the cookhouse, trailers, and eventually the lake
When: Days 145 - 152
Warnings: Potential talk of trauma? But nothing more than that

A - Time to Work

[It's over the Performance Department's channel on the radio that Joker's voice buzzes through.]

While it's all well and good ta take a break, this is a reminder for folks ta get practice in. We won't be doin' real impressive shows for a while, probably, but that just means it's more important ta keep practicin' for when we move on from the Summerlands.

Any problems or questions, come find me in the Big Top. Oh, and we got some new folk in, in case ya haven't seen yet.

[Sure enough, Joker can be found in the ring, bouncing around making sure people are doing fine, practicing some tricks himself... All sorts. He'll come over the second he sees someone enter.]

B - Wiggle Wiggle Wiggle

[In the cookhouse today? Well, you'll find Joker getting to work, apparently mashing up all sorts of fruits, getting their juices.... Of course, with the one arm problem, sometimes this means needing to get inventive.... Are his feet shoeless? Don't worry about it.]

[Later on, Joker is bouncing from trailer to trailer, leaving jars of jelly and jam for everyone. Why? Well, you'll have to stop him to find out.]

C - Lost in Thought

[Joker knows a lot of people in the Summerlands, what, with the carnival already having visited it once before and Joker being... himself. So it's of no surprise that throughout the carnival's stay, he's often gone into the city, chatted with just about everyone, and acted as if he's perfectly fine.]

[On occasion, however....]

[Those who go to the carnival's lake will find him trying to push what looks like a.... blow-up rubber floating thing out onto the lake's surface with his feet, Feathers the Dartix trying to help him along. Joker is notably not wearing any actual swimwear... besides, like, his usual atrocious mash up of 'modern' fashion.]

[Later on, if no one interrupts him on shore, Joker is out in the water proper, but not... really messing around. He's just sprawled along the pool float stomach-first, his wings stretched out completely and partially in the water. Occasionally the water carries him a little closer to shore- perfectly within talking distance.]

Comments

[amusicaladventure]

Yeah, I heard you got all sparkly in the daylight. [She hadn't heard any such things.]

[pipers_son]

I mean, if that's what we call catchin' on fire, then sure.

[Same thing, right?]

Anyway, I have ta say that the diet for them is repetitive, ta say it nicely. But I guess that whole excursion, uh, cured that mess? Soooo....

[amusicaladventure]

Ohhh, so that's why you were in such a hurry to cook as soon as we got back. And now you're on a food-making kick?

[That makes sense. Kind of weird, but makes sense. Honestly though, what isn't 'kind of weird' here in the carnival every day?]

[pipers_son]

Yeah. And not just anythin', either! I can't really care for meat lately soooo....

[He holds up the jam.]

Sweet stuff. And then I realized I'd gone and made too bleedin' much.

[amusicaladventure]

Right. Mmhmm.

[Ash smiles at him with infinite fondness and warm disbelief.]

You just happened to make too much. No ulterior motives. Just never failed to occur to you that hey, maybe you were going overboard. Nope, none of that.

[pipers_son]

[Innocently- absolutely too much so- he bats his eyes at her.]

Now what ulterior motives could an innocent guy like me have?

[amusicaladventure]

Well, nothing sinister. But just coincidentally being a nice guy and lading down the people here who are pretty much your family at this point with nice things?

[Not to put too fine a point on her subtle psychological deduction. Though it is honestly about as subtle as Ash ever really gets.]

[pipers_son]

[To be fair- Joker is also not particularly subtle at times.]

Funny how coincidence works, huh~?

[amusicaladventure]

Yuh-huh.

[Ash might be pushing a boundary here, but she's pretty sure she's not? So she steps forward to tug him into a gentle hug.]

[Joker's a really good guy. And she doesn't have very many tools to tell him so. (That he'd accept.)]

[pipers_son]

Whoa-

[He raises up his good hand, not entirely sure what to do with it while it's carting around a bunch of jam.... but after a second, he huffs out a quiet laugh.]

....Didn't think ya were such a fan of jam. I'll have ta remember that for yer birthday.

[Listen, he can't help it.]

[amusicaladventure]

[He doesn't need to do anything, except preferably not spill it on her tail. Jam is hell to get out of fur.]

Shut it, you. [She slaps him very lightly on the side as she withdraws.] You sure I can't talk you into a date some night? Not that I know much of what you like to do except for jam making apparently, but I'm flexible...

[pipers_son]

Who knows. [Able to balance his jam a little better, Joker laughs a bit.] I'm out of a casual friend, actually- did ya know that Ginko and Psi are together?

[Time for that hot goss- the true thing that keeps the carnival running.]

[amusicaladventure]

Oh wow. That's hard to believe -- like, it's mostly hard to believe that Psi could ever settle the hell down for like ten seconds.

[Ash is honestly WAY behind on her gossip, so this is all big news to her.]

[pipers_son]

Right? [Seriously, Joker knows the guy, this is amazing news to him too.] And I wasn't sure Ginko would ever go for it too, since he's, y'know-

[A bubble of issues that Joker has respectfully tried not to prod too much.]

-smart, and what not. Not ta mention Psi's... race? Species? Well, they have this right tricky view of romance...

But then, they've been gettin' pretty close lately, so maybe that's not so surprisin'.

[amusicaladventure]

Man, you can't complicate stuff like that. If you get a chance, like an actual real chance, you just go for it, you know? Life's way the hell too short to just dick around, especially when a lot of people never even get that shot to begin with!

[Ash has Opinions on Things, which she is not afraid to express with evocative enthusiasm. Mostly she's just delighted that they managed to work something out.]

[pipers_son]

Well, Ginko's a quiet sort so, y'know how it goes. [Definitely different from Psi and Joker, that's for sure. And Ash too.] Still, this is a nice step for 'em, huh?

[amusicaladventure]

Yeah, I sure hope it goes well for them. [Failure at real relationships as Ash might be, she knows well enough that one between those two is going to be challenging in many ways. And the carnival atmosphere makes it much easier to just shrug and not bother putting in the effort to make a relationship work, not when you can just say you'll be separating for sure in time.]

[Here's hoping for them.]

But man, if things are getting stable we need some new blood, don't we?

[pipers_son]

Well... Have ya seen the new magician around, Tyki?

[amusicaladventure]

Oh yeah, I've seen him. Dude got assigned to live with me.

[She wonders if the Ringmaster is casually trying to meddle in her sex life, honestly.]

[pipers_son]

Not yer type?

[C'mon, he shared the gossip, share in turn. Gotta keep that water wheel flowing.]

[amusicaladventure]

Man, I am working on that to the best of my ability. And I tell you what, I think my life would be a hell of a lot easier if I could just shove him up against a wall and let tactile sensation do its job.

[For someone who relies on people being attracted to her as a measure of her self-worth, she sure isn't aggressive about it -- one more case where she's highly sensitive to boundaries and permission.]

[pipers_son]

Want me ta help? I don't have any shame in meddlin' in my coworkers' sex lives. Could talk ya up, if ya like.

Some folks just need that extra nudge, y'know how it is.

[amusicaladventure]

Aah, I think I can manage it. [She waves a hand absently.] Guy's at least looking, which is more than I can say for a lot of folks here.

[And she hasn't even changed weirdly yet.]

[pipers_son]

That's the spirit~. I'll be cheerin' ya on from the sidelines!

[Get that ass, Ash]

[amusicaladventure]

Thanks. [Somewhere between sardonic and sincere, and not even she knows exactly where. On the one hand, support is nice; on the other, it's not like she's ever had any success here before...] At least I think he likes girls, so maybe I have a chance.