|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2009 11:35 am
The strength that allowed Jude to get up in the morning was replenished by nothing more than sleeping at night. For once. His "adventures" with Aries had left him tired, but the incident with Leo had rendered him no less than exhausted. Mentally, he still was. He and Aries had done things he feared she was regretting, and Leo had said things that he was regretting.
You didn't say that to another man. Ever. For any reason. It didn't matter if he'd saved his brother or his entire family.
You did not. say that. to Jude Lawson.
Physically, he was feeling better. Top notch, actually, and he needed desperately to be moving or risk having his thoughts drowned by that face. Red hair. Green eyes. Even after his encounter with Hero--loving, truly--and Grayson's alarming slip up (it had to be a slip up; no way did he mean it), it was all about Obsidian.
Have to find that guy.
Have to beat that guy.
Have to get revenge on that guy.
He not only raced his own impatience, but Aries as well. He knew she would not waver on her kill-on-sight policy, and so drastic measures had to be taken.
Drastic measures known as Jude drawing a horrible likelihood of his image and going around asking random people if they'd seen him. If he knew the mind of a criminal, and he thought he did, going out in broad daylight was not a good move. There were too many people everywhere. This disadvantage to his enemy he used as an advantage to him. Someone had to know something.
But no one did.
His dedication led him to the arcade, one of many scattered around Destiny City, and he wasn't sure why he bothered with the stupid game again. Maybe it was some sense of familiarity beyond the Zodiac he needed. Maybe he just needed to move more. He didn't know why and try to reason it, because all he thought about was Him.
Even after Hero, Grayson, and as the arrows flew by and the words flashed on the screen, drawing a small crowd of amused onlookers he didn't notice at first.
Gotta find that guy.
Gotta kill that guy.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2009 11:54 am
It would seem that both Jude and Barnaby shared the same reason for coming to the arcade: it was something to do.
He'd skipped out of afternoon classes since he knew he had a free period after lunch and he wasn't going to come back to school just for history class. It wasn't like his teacher would miss him anyways, though some might argue it was hard not to miss a head of spiky orange hair. Regardless, the teacher rarely took attendance, and since he was almost certain there wasn't a test today he saw no reason to go. Not when the arcade was offering student discounts.
Having spent the majority of his tokens on the racing games, the teen had been checking out some of the other games when a small gathering crowd caught his eye. Had it been in any other section but the one with the DDR machines, the redhead would have passed it by without a second thought. He'd seen enough crowds around the shuffle puck tables to know that just because people were there didn't mean there was something interesting going on. But things were different for the DDR machines. If someone was good enough to draw a crowd, well….
It was time for a dance off.
Barnaby hopped up onto the neighbouring platform when the song was finished, pushing two of his coins in the slot to open up the player two option. He lifted his hands above his head to stretch, before flashing Jude a grin.
Biker Barnaby wants to battle!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2009 12:12 pm
He'd heard the game called out-of-date, out-of-style. Actions never failed to speak louder than words. In 2009, nearly 2010, you could still get a good tally of audience members just by throwing two guys on a DDR machine and letting them have a field day. Most of the onlookers were college students still on break, sprinkled with assorted faces that were outside that clique, but had nothing better to do.
Some looked bored while their friends looked entertained, pestering them to move on to something else. A few people looked interested, envious almost, because the game got faster and faster and neither faltered. Jude would be pleased to know, later, there were a few girls making eyes at one or both of them.
The initial reaction to Barny had been nothing more than a sidelong glance and somewhat of a sneer. Some kid who wanted the spotlight, thought he was hot s**t, he figured. Wrong.
Barny was good. Really good. Once he almost lost, and suddenly he felt more determined. Competition he could give or take under normal circumstances.
Looking for your murderer were not normal circumstances. He'd have argued the necessity for oxygen just for the sake of picking a fight, venting.
Good job!
Perfect!
100%!
The words flashed across the screen, and by time two minutes had become thirty, Jude was grinning like a fool and had the luxury of a mind not distracted by thought of blood on his hands. When the dance ended, so would his peace. For now, though, his relentless energy was being drained and with it all the negativity that had brought him here to begin with.
Hero would never let him touch her again if she were to witness the disgrace that was two grown men--both conditioned eighteen years--doing step-dancing to "I'm Walking On Sunshine" and loving every minute of it.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2009 12:33 pm
The reaction to his sudden appearance only made the redhead grin wider. So it was going to be like that huh. Johnny Steps was about to- wait never mind.
While Barnaby Price certainly wasn't the best DDR duellist out there, what he lacked in Asian-ness he made up for in sheer perseverance. He was a firm believer of the ideology that men did better on their feet, which was what had drawn him to the game in the first place. Not only did it not involve actual dancing – which the redhead wasn't very good at, especially the slow kind – it was fast paced and he never had to stop moving. If his one true love hadn't already been claimed by car racing he might have let DDR fill that void. As it currently stood, it was a very close second.
Somewhere in the middle of the fifth song, he realized that he had maybe underestimated his blue-haired, pink-eyed opponent. He had originally thought that Jude was just a bit of a show off, and as such would run out of breath if they kept going into some of the faster stuff. As it stood, the teen seemed to be on par with him, matching him foot for foot. He hadn't had this kind of competition in ages and the thought made him positively glow.
The game continued to spout words like "great!" and "yowza!" as they progressed, going through what felt like all the songs the machine had offer. Barnaby let out a breathy laugh when the next track in line was "I'm Walking On Sunshine", using the song selection pause to thread his fingers through his spikes in a vain attempt to get them to stand back up.
On the final chorus, the redhead couldn't help but hum along to the tune. Indeed, if any of his current acquaintances were here to witness this travesty he might find himself friendless for a very long time. As it stood, Barnaby was enjoying himself far too much to care.
Let them laugh. This was the dance off of the century.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2009 12:58 pm
Logic didn't support the accusation, but Jude sometimes swore if he ignored it, the scar across his chest started hurting. As if reminding him of a cause greater than any other, the dull ache attacked the second he let his guard down.
Find him, it said. Kill him.
A silly notion, completely ridiculous. He had to be imagining things.
The weight of the world crashing back on his shoulders, combined the less dramatic fact he had more muscle to move around than Barny, had his steps finally falling out of stride. The machine warned him and encouraged him, but he stared at the arrows, tried to follow them and tried not to remember how much being near this guy suddenly reminded him of Marcel.
Marcel his best friend. His dead best friend.
To Leo he'd said: "I'm so sorry."
When he was alone, drinking too much, thinking too much, he said it to Marcel, too. To Heaven. To his spirit. Part of him reminded himself he was with God now, and ultimately better off. But most of him would forever be a hypocrite and nothing more than a mortal man with mortal fears who wanted his only real friend back. Like a haunting chant, every night, over and over:
I'm so sorry.
At the end of the day, Jude was painfully aware he couldn't even avoid his own problems right.
Failure, the voice reminded him.
I know, he answered. Again.
The game was over and Barnaby had come out victorious in the end. Some people left before they even had the chance to turn around--others, girl others--were dead set on getting closer.
"What's your name, kid?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2009 1:10 pm
Any other time Barnaby might have done a victory dance after such a spectacular finish, but he reserved that kind of arm waving and booty shaking for another time. It had been a hard won victory, and one that may only have been sheer dumb luck. His partner had been good, and he owed it to the other teen not to flaunt it in his face. With any luck he might get a chance to challenge him some other time for round two. In Barnaby's mind, he had won the battle, but the outcome of the war was yet to come.
Chuckling to himself, he shook his now very flat bangs out of his eyes as he turned to face his opponent. Of course, now that they'd danced together for thirty minutes it would probably be a good time for introductions.
"Price. Barnaby Price. Yours?"
He was still grinning as he leaned against the back rail, head tipped a little to side as he waited for the name of his challenger.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2009 1:25 pm
Last name first? Careful, Barnaby, he might fall in love with you after all.
Hostility for his fellow Zodiac was in endless supply. He kept telling him Sagittarius and Jude were two different people, and it was okay to act differently as each of them. There was nothing wrong with Sagittarius being distant and Jude getting attached easily. And he did. Woefully easily, at times.
Thank God for the Three Second Rule. Without it, he would have kept staring at him with such appreciation one would suspect had Barny announced his loyalty as a Colts fan, Jude might have shouted his henshin and brought forth the jungle for another improper abuse of power.
"Lawson. Jude Lawson."
The James Bond-esque introductions out of the way (honestly, they were both huge losers for all this), the girls started in. The majority found them more hilarious than charming, but for five of them--three who gave numbers to Barny, two who gave them to Jude--this was the standard of the American Woman.
Sad. Very sad.
Jude, mind you, was not sad about having one less potential booty call than his all too worthy opponent. The blonde's number he handed off to Barny without a thought, while the redhead's was shoved in his pocket. If he could stop thinking of himself as like that with Hero when they weren't--were they?--he'd use it.
Lordy, Lordy did he love redheads.
"Let me buy you a drink, man."
Wasting his money was stupid. Jude proved time and again to be irresponsible with it. Banks shouldn't even trust him to walk through the door he was so loose with his wallet.
This time he had a good reason.
The gears were turning and he saw potential here.
But for what?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2009 1:48 pm
While losing your virginity in a forest on a DDR platform was certainly new and different, it wasn't the kind of story that you could boast about to your friends later on. Especially if the person you lost your virginity to had blue hair and pink eyes. There were some things better left to fanfiction.
"Jude Lawson then."
Very smooth. He had made a good decision then to hop up and challenge Mr. Lawson to a dance off. Rolling his shoulders back to stretch them out, he used the motion to cast casual glances at his former opponent. Guys don't just check out other guys after all (which Barnaby wasn't, he was totally just sizing him up okay). They had to do it all sneaky like, as though they really weren't interested. Any look longer than three seconds might give the wrong impression, and Barnaby was not interested in doing that, thank you very much.
The gaggle of girls came as some what of a surprise – the redhead hadn't been paying attention to the crowd once they'd gotten into it – but he accepted the attention in the same way that one might accept free samples at a grocery store. You hadn't asked for them, but you might as well enjoy them while you could.
Never one to decline free anything – though food would have been preferable – Barnaby nodded to Jude and let him lead the way while he studied the phone numbers he'd been given.
"Man, I think she wrote this one in crayon," he said as he tried to make out the writing on one piece of crumpled up paper. "Ten bucks one of these is to Larry's Pizza." Speaking of which. "You want something to eat or anything?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2009 2:17 pm
Since Jude had other intentions than just rewarding him for a job well done, a drink worked fine. All he needed was Barnaby to stay there, keep talking, and answer questions. --No, just one question was all he needed, then he could decide.
"You owe me ten bucks, then, because there's no way someone who goes out of their way to give you a number is going to give you the wrong one." The girls were like the attention. Free samples. Didn't ask for them, but you took them and were thankful then came back four times to get more. (Was it just him that did that? No way it was just him.)
"Larry's Pizza, ugh. Don't remind me of that place. I just got a job there." One he'd start tomorrow. Living a storage garage only worked until you got caught. Lady Luck hated him like no other woman. "And, no, not hungry." He stepped up and leaned forward on the counter, observing this possibility in human form multiple times--all within those sacred three seconds.
He didn't want anyone to think things.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2009 2:30 pm
Barnaby laughed as he pocketed Crumpled Phone Number One and pulled out Crumpled Phone Number Two. "I don't know what planet you're from, but girls don't get serious with DDR boys unless they're Asian. Hate to break it to you, but that's just not how it goes. My bet is a couple of those were done on dares." Because really, what girls thought they stood a chance of hooking up with two guys who were that epic at DDR? That easily increased the likelihood that they were gay by ten percent.
The redhead looked surprised when Jude brought up his current employment, and couldn't help but grin wider. "No kidding! I started working there when I was sixteen. Better eat all the pizza you can before you start really working. That place kills any joy you may have received from eating cheesy delights, let me tell you." Crumpled Phone Number Two joined CPHO as they arrived at the service counter.
"You're sure you don't want anything? This place has decent hot dogs, you know." Maybe the bluenette was on a diet. He should probably keep his mouth shut.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2009 4:07 pm
Jude didn't even know his mouth had opened until he heard his own voice: "Jupiter," it said informatively, with a twist of smugness that suggested pride. He had witnessed a voice speak from Hero who was not Hero. He denied over and over again it was possible, indeed so skilled and practiced in the art of avoidance that he could deny the idea of having someone else in his mind even in a city where magical girls ran around fighting giant monsters, and he himself was sometimes berated by words he never told himself to think.
If it was true he didn't believe in the Zodiac, in their princess, in himself, he did believe in one thing: fate. Believed it, but hated it.
Until now.
The same force of nature that had kicked him over and over was now stretching out a hand to help up the boy to whom it had sent an unaware savior.
It was just too coincidental.
He ordered two of the most "real" juices they had available, which turned out to be cartons of orange juice. The act looked to be out of some cheap attempt to get out spending too much until he tossed the drink to Barny. "Drink this. It's better for you than anything else here. And anyway, you don't need to eat all that pizza."
No, he needed to be healthy as he could.
"Let me ask you something. What do you think about these senshi?"
Jude told himself his decision depended on the answer, but it didn't. Barny could have answered him by reciting the alphabet and he'd have found a way to justify his choice.
Barnaby Price was his new candidate to take the place of Sagittarius.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2009 4:19 pm
Barnaby couldn't help but make an amused noise at the choice of planets, but he said nothing on the subject. There was something about the way in which it had been said that made him keep his mouth shut and not delve deeper into the subject. Truth be told he had been half expecting Jude to respond with "Uranus", if he had thought the other teen would respond at all. There were some things that you couldn't help but set yourself up for.
"Of course you don't need to eat it. But if you eat it now, you can enjoy it. It's no fun anymore when it's all you've seen all night."
The redhead caught the carton and spent a good ten minutes trying to convince it to open. Apparently it was one of the defunct ones that glued the front tabs together so tightly that trying to pry them apart was like trying to pull apart a pair of long lost lovers. In the end he was forced to violently separate them, and wasted no time chugging the entire carton. Aaaah, nothing tasted quite like orange juice that had sat in a box all morning and then a refrigerator for five minutes.
He gave a sort of half-hearted shrug at the mention of Senshi, not sure what the other teen was looking for. "I don’t really think anything about them. They get a lot of publicity. My mother likes them… I think. I don't know if she was just being romantic about the whole situation or what." Barnaby shrugged again.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2009 4:37 pm
His mother liked them?
What was this guy, Senshi Jesus?
Price was a perfect candidate for a lot of reasons. Many of the things you could see in Jude, you could also see in him just as quickly. When--if. If he died reaping his vengeance against Obsidian, and this was who replaced him, it would be like Jude had never left. (It was if, not when. Hero was wrong. This was not a suicide mission.)
An upgrade is what he started thinking of it as. Price would be the new Sagittarius with no emotional baggage, problems and the perk of a mother who considered them heroes. He, unlike Jude, could live up to that kind of title.
No one had ever told him directly star seeds could just transfer from one body to another, but he believed as much as he denied other things. He had to keep telling himself there had to be a way, because then he could leave and stay gone.
Sleep. Finally.
"Yeah? You know you like kind of familiar to me, now that I think about it. You ever been to any boxing rings or anything like that?"
He was trying very hard to not make this seem like an interview.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2009 4:51 pm
Had he still been drinking, Barnaby may have snorted orange juice out of his nose. As it stood, Jude was incredibly lucky that he hadn't been. He might have ruined a perfectly good shirt. The redhead managed a kind of amused snort, and gave Jude his best "are you serious?" look. Barnaby actually taking enough classes of something to go pro? Please. He was lucky he still hadn't lost his baseball mitts.
Still, he knew better than to make comments about other people's hobbies. Just because he didn't do something didn't mean it wasn't worth doing. Or something like that, anyways. And he liked Jude, as well as a guy could like someone they'd known for less than an hour but men make fast friends. It was with that in mind that he tried to sound both approving of Jude's hobby choice and nonchalant about the fact that he'd never really boxed.
"Naw. I mean I've been to some of those free intro classes but never any further. Your hobby, though, I'm guessing?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2009 5:42 pm
Hobby, psh. Try necessity. If a day came where he was one of those Senshi who had one shot to take with a tiara, then had to turn and run, he'd get that gun and blast his brains out on principle. Be reborn as something more fit for such a disgrace. He was worth more than that, which was saying something.
"Pretty much." Look at Price. Look away. Look at Price.
He should probably stop lazing around. Battles to be won and all.
"Alright, I have stuff to do, but I'll see you at work, I guess?"
Given he didn't die first.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
