Chains Meets Swivel

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Chains Swivel Depth
Cubicron
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Chains walks through the streets of Cubicron like he owns the place... and no one seems to be debating the point. Sure, he's one of the smaller people around, and he openly wears the Bot insignia in place of his former gang marks, but memories are long enough, no one questions it. He pauses here and there, chatting up a few of the more disreputable looking locals, and dumping a few spare nuts and bolts in the parts bucket of an old truck out with a sign stating he needs repairs as he meanders through the streets of home.
As a clash of presence, from the opposite end of the street, comes a whistling femme, whose step is springy and full of energy. She is a walking contrast to the gloomy, dark streets of the run down or seedy citizens. She certainly does not act as if she owns the place, but worse; she behaves as if it and everyone within were her friends, waving gaily despite scowls and leers. This is a point no one bothers to debate because it isn't worth the waste of mental energy. She pauses for a moment, taking a side step over to an individual, passing him something. Without a word there seems to be an understanding, she shakes his hand, and then she steps back out onto the street, this time humming in a voice that would sound akin to what helium would have as a voice should it be sentient, and not just a gaseous element. She peers in front of her, finally catching sight of the short-yet-blocky mech ahead of her, and offers up a friendly wave, despite not being acquainted with the ex-gang Autobot.
Chains certainly sees the femmebot coming before she catches sight of him - but then her demeanor is out of place here, she's a lot lighter color than the surroundings, and, hey, far be it from him to not notice a femme around his size, whatever that says about his character. He eyes her as she makes her way down the street, suddenly curious, and not at all minding keeping an eye on her. While not as exuberant as she is, at least among the people of his old home that aren't causing trouble, he's friendly enough, and returns the wave with a slightly more casual one of his own.
Swivel places on hand on the studded band across her hip and cocks her head to the side, looking over the mech almost appraisingly. Of course, she'd never seen the mech before, but a quick glance around and noting the reactions of some of the other rabble told her well enough he was no stranger to Cubicron. This could be a good thing, or a bad one. The smile that had hung easily on her face with no effort quickly becomes wider, expanding to its limits as it presses the silvery, malleable metal her faceplate is constructed of up against the bottoms of her optics, causing them to narrow slightly. She takes a few bold steps forward once the wave is reciprocated. "Hullo thar. Loverly cycle innit?" she asks, quickly making with the small talk... if one can constitute the sounds coming out of her mouth as speech.
Chains's expression is hard to read, given that he has a faceplate, and his optics, though built with all sorts of advanced options, suited to his function as a scout, are not overly expressive. The lights in them narrow slightly as he assesses the femme, head cocking to one side as if trying to place her. Not finding her among any memories of rival gangs or known threats, and not seeing much likelihood she falls under those categories, he falls back on his usual good nature, even if it’s rough around the edges. His voice is deep for a mini, but friendly enough. "Yeh, not so bad, anyway. Ain't seen you around before. Local?"
Swivel places her hands behind her back and shifts her weight from one foot to the other, giving almost the illusion that one leg is slightly longer than the other in her new stance. "Wellum, izzer big citty 'n all. Y'aint gwon see everyone there's ta see.... but naw, not really local. Nuh-uh. Jus' work in abouts 'ere. Lotter fast jobs fer the takin' when yas know wheres ta look, yanno?" The femme babbles on, keeping constant optic contact with the Autobot. Then she brings one of her arms from behind and thrusts an open hand out, ready to be taken. "Ther name's Swivel."
Chains extends his hand in turn to shake, readily enough. Suited to his build, he's more steady, less shifty than the femme, but still moves with a fluid grace and ease common to a lot of the quicker minis. He meets her gaze in turn, done looking at her chassis for now. "Know what you mean 'bout fast jobs, took plenty of those myself back in the good ol' days, but mostly worked with folks down below, not so nice an' friendly and civilized as the folk up here. Name's Chains, pleasure's mine."
Swivel squeezes the hand firmly as it is shaken, but it is clear despite the bold grip that the femme does not own too much strength. However, her build itself would lend that impression. "Aaaaaaah yesser, them," she says, glancing down for only a moment before looking back up at Chains. The lack of optic contact prior does not seem to effect the femme's mood either way. "T'aint ther sorter femme ter go in deep, but iffer job sends me down, den down I go. Simple as 'at." she says, lifting her chin and rolling back her shoulders to try and look more impressive. It does little than to just puff out her chest plate. However, her optics narrow just a little bit, as a vague look of scrutiny comes over her, before she relaxes her face into her friendly smile again. "Wellum... Chains... pleased ter meecha... but um... ther name sounds kinna familler, but I cannae quite 'member wheres I heard it. Gimme a lil' help?"
Well, so much for optic contact, at least for a moment. As she shifts and puffs out her chest, Chains' optics dart downward, taking her in again, close up this time, before he finds her optics again and stays there, mostly, sort of. Whether he impressive look worked or not is hard to be certain, but he's at least definitely taking notice. His own grip in the shake is solid, about as strong as his solid framework would suggest, even if he's on the big side of minidom. "Eh, I used'ta live down there, but yeah, the depths ain't a place yu want to go if you got the energon and creds not to need to. I lived here quite a while, running with a downside gang."
"Gangs.... ah.... yessum... wellum, Cubicron woulna be Cubi if not for 'em," Swivel says conversationally. Either she's oblivious to the loss of optic contact, or simply does not care. It's hard to tell with the bubbly femme. "I tenner stay clear out o' gettin' too deep in tha sorter world.... but dun bother ter pretend they ain't there." She offers a small shrug. "I see ya goner joined ther war. Why? Or izzat ter personal o' question fer jus' meeting ya?"
Chains is not exactly the most subtle, so he assumes that she just doesn't mind being checked out. Either that, or she's crazy and oblivious, but that can be entertaining too. At the question, he shrugs. "Nah, ain't no big secret. Used to protect the hood and folks there. Not many safe places in the downside, we provided one. Kept the gangers and mafia out, mostly. But the war kept sending more refugees downside, cons kept getting closer, trying to take neutral cities and energon. I figured best way to help the folks caught in the middle was to soldier up, y'know?"
Swivel reverts into listen mode. Her optic go slightly wider, and she folds her arms over her chest and nods, making occasional sounds like "Uh-huh" and "Mmm" to further illustrate that Chains her full, undivided attention. Once given an opening, she beams and jumps back into talking in her high, girlish voice. "Oh yah, I kin see yer point! Ther world need people ter gwon pertectin' those that cannae 'elp themselves! But I dunna think I'd ever join in ther war... I ain't ther type to fit in with ther whole military scene, yanno? 'Sides, I ain't really got any love ner hate for either sides 'n all. 'Cons, Bots, both 'em fuller interestin' people, 'n I'd hate ter 'ave ter kill 'em, yanno? Wellum, I jus hate ter hate anyone.... an...." she slows down her chatter for a moment. "Uh...." she looks momentarily lost for a moment. "Slag it all! Gonner lost me train o' thought. Whoops, hee hee hee."
Chains laughs, responding with a nod of his head. "S'ok, I don't fit in so well either. I ain't exactly the salutin', yessir, nossir type, y'know? I'm in this to protect the indie cities. I got no problem with cons who stick to military targets, got no great love for the bot cause, but they got more resources and firepower. So I signed on as a scout. Let's me act off on my own a lot, don't need to haunt the bot bases, just scout the borders, watch over the cities, show up for the good fights, s'about it. Truth is, this is still home and all that."
Swivel nods her head quite a few times as Chains speaks, with the occasional "Oh," and "Aaaaah." She continues to smile, appreciative of having someone new to talk to. "Well good ter 'ave one... a place ter call home, yanno. I dunna really 'ave one... I jus' say aller Cybertron is me home. I go wheres I want, so long as it ain't dangerous, yanno?" She takes a moment to scan the streets before turning her attention back to Chains. "Kinner usin' ther 'bots fer yer own means, I see! Buttum, far be it from me ter judge on tha' score, I use what I can ter make a livin. I dun really take much 'sponsibility, dun 'ave anyone 'r anythin' I pertect o'er than meself... but if I din do that, then I'd be a dead femme an' ya woulna be avin' this loverly convo." She gives a little shrug. "Make no claims ter be a noble femme, jus' a content one. An..." she trails off, then speaks in a quieter tone. "Oh blow it to slag, it's killing my head to keep up that talk. Don't mind me, when in Cubicron I try to sound dumber than I am."
Chains laughs. "I don't make any claims to nobility, yeah, I'm usin' the bots, they're usin' me to fight a war, works both ways, got no illusions." he agrees. "And don't expect anyone else around to do more than keep their heads down and look out for themselves - best way to stay alive, an', truth be told, yer a lot better lookin' alive and not fulla' holes." He remains amused as she shifts to a more casual speech. "Don't worry about it none, Nothin' wrong with smart women and all. But yeah, best not to sound too bright, or stand out at all around here if yer not lookin' for trouble."
Swivel brings up a hand and rubs the back of her head. "Ha ha ha... well I can't help but stand out. I like attention too much to keep my head down too much and fade into the background. So I just go with dumb so when I come bounding around people don't really think of me much more of a threat than some cute little critter. Some domestic, declawed, toothless little critter. Although being helpless can set a femme up for trouble... which is why cowardice is a virtue. I can squirm my way out of most compromising situations." She laughs again a little. "As for using and being used... yeah... well that happens. So long as both are getting something out of it, it's just business, right?"
Chains grins behind his faceplate, his optics lighting up a little brighter. "Well, sometimes it’s just being selective about whose attention yer after. You definitely got mine, anyway." he replies amusedly, settling into a little more casual stance. "And I definitely don't figure you for the helpless type, or you wouldn't last long doing jobs and looking for work in Cubicron - not a soldier bristling with weapons is a long way from helpless and all. But as for the military bits... yeh, just business. They need scouts and skirmishers, I got that going in spades. And I want to keep the Cubicron downsides and other people who don't want a part in the war safe, so they let me patrol out here and give me backup. Works out."
Swivel lets out a low laugh. Although low for her is still fairly high. The femme has the misfortune of having such high, thin vocals that even if she were to try and be imposing, none would take her seriously. Thus she plays to her strengths. "Clever clever," she says in a flattering tone. "Yes, well, I guess I have a few tricks or else I'd be dead or something." She gives a careless shrugs. "Bounciness is also one of my virtues. Still... good to see some Autobot presence about here. I've been seeing a lot more Decepticons lately, and while they more or less behave themselves, I don't really want to see this place be neutral in only name... you know?"
Chains nods, sobering a little at that last comment. "That's pretty much exactly why I jumped. Don't mind hanging out in the bars with the cons now and then, long as they behave themselves, but yeah, I like Cubicron just as it is. Ain't pretty, but the downsides is home." With the flattery and other commentary, his mood does brighten right back up, tone lightening, though for his size, he always has a deep voice. "And I can see that particular talent on your part, and for the record, I like the way you bounce."
Swivel bobs he head with such enthusiasm in agreement with Chains that one would almost imagine it would loosen and wobble off eventually. "Hey, thanks!" Swivel chirps at the bounce comment. She is relieved to see that moment of slight grimness vanish and be replaced with more cheerfulness. "I also enjoy chatting up with some of the Decepticons in a casual setting. But... yes... I don't want there to be an occupation of either Faction here. I think it would destroy it, personally." She makes a faux pout for a moment and then returns to her bright smile. "You must have amazing connections here in Cubicron with your background," she remarks after a lull in the conversation.
Chains grins a bit wider behind the faceplate as the casual flirting is taken positively. Sure, he's imposing and intimidating enough when he wants to be, but obviously isn't the grim and gritty type past first impressions when there's no cause. "Yeh, I got quite a few friends, and more people who know me well enough to at least give me some space around here, though more in the downside. I mostly come up this way cause the drinks are better. I agree though, if it were the bots occupying neutral cities and killing civilians, I'd have joined the other side. Hey, what kind of work do you do, anyway?"
Claps her hands together to further illustrate her agreement. "Oh yes yes yes! I am quite sure you'd be a 'con if the bots were bullying locals. Although some 'cons do have strong roots here... or so I hear. But, what do I know?" she gives a careless shrug. "Me? Work? Well, I am mostly a courier. Although I have served other jobs, like distracting Decepticons so shipments could get past their patrols, mini patrols, freelance scouting, and the odd time I've taken care of people's pets. Really, any and every job I qualify for," she explains, deciding to not be so vague as the last time someone asked about her work. Boy, did that give the wrong impression. Even Swivel is capable of learning from past social blunders, or so it would seem.
Trust the xeno to be watching oh so casually in puddle form... but he doesn't maintain this for long as he slowly forms the shape he's come to be known for and takes a even more casual lean against a wall, arms crossed over his chest, intense yellow optics peering towards the duo of Swivel and her Autobot associate. All this done quietly. For now Depth is being the voyeur... just the way he likes it.
Chains seems to find the answer acceptable, and entirely in keeping with something he'd expect someone working around here to be up to. "S'a good job where you can get it. Not that I'm asking you to take sides or nothing, so far, I just like yer company." Go figure. "But if you want to come on a scouting run with me sometime, or have some protection along for one of your runs where you might run into trouble, let me know, I'll give you a frequency you can contact me, or just leave a message in the bar. I'm about. Or, y'know, if you just want to grab a drink some time."
Swivel seems to be lapping up the positive attention, but that was not strange at all for this femme. "Ha ha ha... of course. You're company is nice too," she remarks the carefree femme. She listens to all of his offers, her smile broadening by degrees. Perfect. Just what she was hoping for. "Oh you can bet I'll call on you for help with any dangerous jobs. I certainly don't like danger and am always looking for stronger mechs to team up with." She does another scan around the streets, as she had been doing every once in a while, and spots a familiar form leaning against a wall. However she doesn't wave him over just yet. She knows he'll make his entrance at the most inconvenient moment, and far be it from her to spoil his fun. Her attention returns to Chains. "Drinks are also nice. I like them. I like them best with other people."
Depth drums his fingers against his forearms. o(This mech is smooth.)o he thinks to himself, continuing to watch the two quietly. His optics meet Swivel's, offering her a little nod.
Chains doesn't know Depth, but he's plenty alert. When the femme's attention shifts, his optics also turn, scanning over the area and where her look settled for only a moment before turning back to Swivel - she's easy on the optics and all. Likewise, he's glad to give her all the attention she wants. "Jobs you take sometimes get dangerous, fact of living and working here. And seeing as we both do scout work, figured it might work natural and all. As for drinks, nothing wrong with drinking alone, but yer right, even better in good company."
Swivel does not really return Depth's nod. She'll do all that fancy and over exaggerated greeting and gushing over him and patting his ego later. However, right now her focus is more focused on making a new friend. Swivel does love making friends. "Oh yes, SOOOOO dangerous! I mean, not just with the war, but, well, transorgs, scary flying beast thingies, thugs, and... and... well other nasty stuff I cannot think of right now!" Swivel becomes quiet animated at this point, moving her hands as she talks for emphasis. "I never drink absolutely alone. I mean, I'm not really likely to grab some drinks to go and hole up somewhere and drink myself into a stupor. I like being around people, even if I'm not directly talking to anyone or hanging with someone in particular. It's a social thing for me more than anything else!"
Chains nods understandingly. "Well, it ain't bad to have friends about in a place like this either. Not usually so bad up here, but there's still some folks who'll try and take advantage." An optic brightens as he considers. "Flying beast thingies, huh? Would be curious which ones - you'll have to show me some of these places... sounds like fun." Seems he shares her interest in making a new friend. Or, who knows, considering he's been neither shy nor subtle about his flirting, but she's responded positively, and there's no question, they do share some common interests and all. "You want to get off the streets? Either bar-ward, or just head out of the city for a bit? Either one is probably better for talkin'."
Depth moves his arms out of the crossed position over his chest, pushing off the wall. Slowly stalking toward the two in a fluid gait, you can almost hear him sing songing something very softly, "eli's coming.. eli's coming hide your heart girl...".
Swivel places her hands behind her back again, her optics going skyward for a moment, although the view of the sky is vastly obstructed. While doing this she rolls her weight onto the balls of her heels, and then rocks onto her tippy toes. She repeats this a few times as she makes a long "Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...." sound to suggest her considering something carefully. However, she is interrupted by a bit of singing and her optics flash over to Depth who is advancing. She smiles and then gives him a large wave, her arm arcing wildly in the air. "Heeeeeeeeeeeeeey Depth! Shadow still hasn't made it here, eh?" she says conversationally, smiling broadly at the newcomer. She doesn't think much of what the mech is singing and turns back to Chains. "Heh, sorry, this is Depth. You may have, or may not have, heard about him. He's gotten himself pretty popular at the El Sleazo..." she blurts merrily. She then glances in the very direction of the El Sleazo. "Hmmmmm.... a few drinks might be nice, Chains." She then glances at Depth again, waiting to see any signs of mischief in the making.
Chains shakes his head in response to the question of if he knows Depth. "Been on some long range scouting, just back." he responds, giving Depth a small nod as he reassesses him upon the greeting, before most of his attention shifts back to the femme, then offers her a bulky arm. "Alright, drinks it is then, first round's on me." he responds, carrying on their conversation amidst the introduction.
Depth sing songs softly "Walk but you'll never get away. No, you'll never get away from the burnin' heartache." then stops near the two, looking at Chains first up and down, then to Swivel. "Hello Bubbles." he intones gruffly, "And no, he isn't here yet. But he will be." he looks back to Chains, offering his hand. Pretty sure he recognizes Chains from the spire, but plays it like he never met him since they didn't officially meet per se. "Uh uh, drinks are on me." he corrects the other mech, "Gotta spend all the creds I earned before I leave."
Chains shakes Depth's hand, then his optics narrow, and he glances at his wrist com. He lifts it a second, then sighs. "Your pal here will have to keep you entertained, downside of working for someone, they can call you. Got an assignment, but I'll be back around... catch you soon, Swivel?" he asks, reluctantly withdrawing the arm he'd offered her.
Swivel bobs her head and punctuates with a drawn out "Ooooooooooh I see." Swivel then gives a more furtive glance at Depth. What is he.... oh but best not to speculate just yet. She turns her attention fondly back to Chains. She's about to latch onto his arm when he has to withdraw. "Oh... well you gotta do what you gotta do! I'll be keeping my optics out for you and we can chat over drinks later," she says. She then glances back to Depth. "You know... you could just give me all of your excess credits..." she suggests in a sly yet bold tone.
Depth nods to Chains as the mech departs then focus his intense optics on Swivel. "I could. But you got to know the secret word and all that." he notes, gesturing toward the El Sleazo. "So a drink on me then?"
Swivel tilts her head to the side, offering up a feigned pout before her face bursts out into one of her sunshine smiles. "Ah ha ha ha.... well I guess if you are going to be that way...... may I PLEASE have whatever you don't spend? Is that the secret word? Please? Not that I'm one to usually beg, but I'd hate to see credits go to waste, and you know I wouldn't waste them! Not terribly! Right?" As she is talking she does turn towards the El Sleazo and begin to walk towards it at a leisurely pace.
Depth hmms softly to Swivel then nods, "Its the word, but you got to do one other thing to earn those credits. I'm not giving em up til you do. And I ain't telling you what it is you got to do either.. call it a test to see if you can figure out what that thing is hm?" he notes. "Besides I could give them to my girl too. So you need to earn em."
Swivel stalls just outside of the El Sleazo, raising her optic ridges for a moment while Depth speaks. Oooooh a game is it? She laughs lightly. "Awe, well ya can't blame a femme for trying, can you?" she chirps. She then puts on her thinking look. "Well... as much as I like guessing games, I really haven't a clue what you'd want me to do to earn it. I mean if I was a friend of your girl, I'd offer to look out for her, but I am not really the 'look out for femmes' sort of person since most of the time I need to be looked after. Hmmm.... maybe you want me to promise to take better care of myself? Or maybe there's a message you want me to relay." She shrugs. "You won't give me any clues, will you?"
Depth shakes his head as he moves toward the El Sleazo's door. "Nope, nope.. nope again.. and nope no clues." he notes with a chuckle. He opens the door and gestures, "Ladies first." waiting for you to step inside before joining you.
Swivel throws her arms up into the air with exasperation as she heads through the doors of El Sleazo.
El Sleazo Cafe
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Depth follows Swivel inside, offering a wave to his adoring public. "Drinks on me ladies." he calls out.
Swivel scoots on ahead of Depth, heading straight to a booth for a change. She scoots into the far side of the seat, placing her arms on the table and glancing over to Depth expectantly, while she tries to consider just what she would have to do to earn credits. It wasn't so much that she was greedy... but... now she was just curious. That in and of itself was now her focus.
Depth hms softly then joins you in the booth, scooting nice and close.. in fact his entire left side is against your right side. Maybe it's a hint.. hard to tell. "So what you want to drink Swivel?" he asks, signaling for a waitress to come over.
Swivel drums her hands on the top of the table in thought for a moment as Depth squishes in beside her. She looks up and over at him, raising her optic ridges. Last time he got that close was an expedition to test her boundaries. Since he established it before, he must be up to something else. Or it might just because there isn't so much room. Ah well. She offers a small shrug and reaches one arm up, laying it across the back of Depth's shoulders as best she can, patting his back in the process. "Ah just get me a pale enerbeer. Not feeling too picky just now," she says with a smile.
Depth nods to that and looks to the waitress, "Blue Buster for me and a pale enerbeer for the lady please." he gives her a few credits for her trouble and slaps her on the backside as she walks away. Then he shifts his gaze sidelong towards you as you put your arm around his shoulders and pats. "Got any ideas yet?" he asks.
Swivel shrugs, but with one arm extended it looks a little strange. "Naw.... not really. I'm not a great thinker like most people, or terribly intuitive. If I made a right guess, it'd just be luck," she explains. She then crosses one ankle under the other. "So... how is Firestorm taking all this anyway?"
Depth shrugs a little himself, "I dunno, not seen her lately. Guess Megatron is keeping her busy with some mission or other." he notes, the waitress returns with the drinks, giving Swivel hers first then Depth his who gropes her aft plates for the fun of it. The waitress smiles tolerantly and moves off.
Swivel raises her optic ridges for a moment or two. "..." she is silent for a moment, watching Depth. Carefully. However, she does not let her smile fall off of her face, but there is just a subtle decrease in the aperture of her optics. "Well, keeping her busy might be best for her," Swivel responds. She then withdraws her arm from around Depth, using the hand to pick up her enerbeer and take a sip.
Depth takes hold of his mug and considers your point, then nods, "Yeah I guess so. Still, would like to see her before I got to leave. Say goodbye all proper like. Maybe make love to her one more time." he notes softly, then sips on his drink.
And thus an opening for another culture clash, and difference in colloquialisms... Swivel leans forward, placing on elbow on the table top, and rests her cheek in her open palm. "Oh, when aren't you making love?" Swivel asks in a playfully chiding remark.
Depth turns his head toward you, replying with, "Right now." then looks away and sips on his drink. "Maybe that Autobot will show you what it is if you let him." he murmurs.
Swivel takes another sip of her beer. She then puts both of her elbows on the table, and then interlocks her fingers together into a small bridge for her chin to rest on. She is quiet for a moment or two as she stares at the empty spot across from her. "Hmmm... again I think we are speaking two different languages."
Depth looks back toward her, "Are we?" he asks curiously. "What part of what I just said isn't clicking in that pretty little head eh?"
Swivel shrugs her shoulders again, giving a sheepish little grin. "Well... it's just an assumption I have to make with you. I don't think I ever made any indication that I don't let people make love. People usually just don't," she responds. "But I get the feeling we're on two different pages. When I think of the terms ;make love' it's essentially the same as 'wooing' or a more focused way of flirting."
Depth murmurs softly, "Wooing leads up to making love, just like flirting leads up to wooing." another sip, then he focuses fully upon you. "Making love is how you physically show affection at the highest level. You kiss, you touch, and.." he pauses there, trying to think of a dignified word for it, then just slips back to, ".. make love."
Swivel takes another sip of her drink and listens to Depth, keeping silent for a moment, processing the information as best as she can. "Hmmm.... well I'll take your word for it. I'd think you were going on about something purely akin to your race... but then you mention doing it with Firestorm, so maybe I'm just underprivileged and undereducated," she says with a little smile before going for a gulp of enerbeer.
Depth mms to that, then offers, "Not just something my race does, any intelligent race with genders has the capacity to make love. Like I said, maybe that Autobot will show you if you let him." then another sip of his drink is taken.
Swivel lightly taps the rim of her glass a few times as she listens to Depth. "Oh well... I'm a little suspicious since you skirt around the topic so carefully. If it's so great, most people would highly recommend such things with enthusiasm... and everyone would be making love everywhere you look. It almost makes me wonder if it isn't akin to the effects of drugs."
Depth snorts softly, "I'm skirting cuz your a fragging virgin and I shouldn't have to teach you sex ed." he remarks. "But I can if I must. Divine Weld help me on that one." he shakes his head a bit. "So, still no idea what you got to do hm?"
Swivel takes another gulp and peers at Depth. "You sure there isn't some drawback? Some unpleasant side effect or detail you are hiding?" Swivel asks. As for whether she has figured out what Depth wants, she had actually been distracted from that pursuit at the present topic at hand. "Oh, uh, wasn't thinking on it, got distracted." With that she finishes the last of her enerbeer.
Depth hms softly to the question, "Oh sure, there's drawbacks and side effects.. but those depend on the experience of your partner, size and weight ratios... speed.." he makes a 'clearing the throat' sound. "Right, so back to task.."
Swivel slides the empty glass across from her to give easy access for the waitress to come and collect it. She then twists her torso a little so she's facing more towards depth, leaning and arm on the table. "Eehhh... other than running errands I can't think of anything I am even capable of doing for you. Other than give you a hug."
Depth sips on his drink, chuckling a bit. "Close." is all he has to say to the offer of a hug.
Swivel arches an optic ridge, but buries the other one, causing her optics to appear unequal. She stares at him hard for a moment or two. "Well that's progress," she finally remarks. However she doesn't actually seem terribly delighted by this progress. She murmurs a few barely audible sounds that might have been words at some point before they got garbled from the path from her processor to her vocoder. She then sets on a smile and chuckles, seemingly at something only she is aware of present. Or maybe not. It's hard to really say what she is chuckling about.
Depth finishes off his drink and pushes it off to the side, he looks at you a long quiet moment. "I'll take a hug though if that's all you can think of Swivel. I ain't gonna push you into figuring out what I'd really like.. so I'll settle."
Swivel shakes her head, still chuckling. It's not her usual shrill giggle, but still fairly high pitched. "Good to see a stubborn mech like you can compromise. "Naw, I probably should let you put your credits where you'd really like them to be. It was purely curiosity not so much credits that kept me guessing. After all, if you can't be here to look after your femme, at least you can leave her some financial security. I don't know what military pay is like. But I'll still give you a hug on principle, but you don't need to give me anything for it."
Depth considers that point and chuckles, "I can compromise and you are right, she can make good use of the credits. I've no clue what they pay them to fly around and getting shot at.. so yeah.. decent of you to let me give her the creds there Swivel." then he nods, "I'd like that, thanks."
Swivel allows her chuckling to turn to her sweet almost childlike giggle. "Although you could give me your creds now and trust that they'll reach her," Swivel says teasingly. She then leans over, wrapping her arms about Depth as best as she can, resting her cheek against Depth's chest plate.
Depth chuckles, "Uh huh, right. I think I'll pass them right to her if at all possible. But if I don't see here before the ship lands, I'll give them to you to give to her and you can keep say a five percent cut. Sound like a deal?" then putting his muscular arms around you he hugs back gently.
Swivel laughs again, her proximity to Depth causing the vibrations to resonate with him. She looks up, digging her chin into his side a little as she does so. "Well, shucks, that sounds like a smashing great deal! A little more trust wouldn't hurt though, Mr. Slooshy..." she says, still smiling.
Depth looks down at you, smiling with his actual lips in place instead of that blank mouth plate. "Ouch, know just where to jab a mech verbally don'tcha."
Swivel giggles a little although it seems to have a playful, sing-song mockery to it. "Noooooooooo that would require malice on my part. Call it a lucky, or unlucky shot at you, Mr. Slooshy...." she unwraps her arms from about Depth, and goes to withdraw.
Depth holds you firmly in place though, "To earn that trust, you got to do that one thing I mentioned. Just stay still, won't hurt... ya might even like it."
Swivel is a little startled when she tries to pull back that her path is blocked. She peers up at Depth curiously, cocking her head to the side. "Heeeeey now, Depth," she says. "Whenever someone says it won't hurt then I feel I ought to be flinching or bracing myself." She tries to slip out of his grasp tentatively - not really a wild struggle to break free, but just to test how determined he is to hold her there.... for if he's a little too eager to keep her still, she might then begin to panic a little.
Depth's grip is firm but gentle, there's room to back off just a bit. "Gotta trust me." he states, then leans in toward you to plant his lips against yours. Its a short kiss, nothing passionate about it, just something he wanted from you before he left. The mech is a rogue! "See, didn't hurt." he states, then releases you from his embrace.
Swivel finds she can't squirm away quite so easily, but the mech isn't putting an alarming amount of pressure on her. She isn't being hurt and so she just stops squirming and looks up at Depth. She is a bit anxious leading into the kiss, but when their lips part soon after she just stares up at him for a moment. Her optics blink a few times until she realizes his arms have relaxed their hold and she slides back to her side of the booth. "No... it didn't hurt," she says with a small smile, then begins to laugh a little before she straightens up and peers back at Depth with a tilted head. "But..." she trails off configuring her thoughts on what she DID know about relationships, and physical affection. "...you shouldn't go around kissing other femmes even if you are leaving."
Depth moves his hands in front of him, elbows on the table, fingers interlacing. He plants his chin on top of those fingers, peering over at you with a smile. "I'm leaving a girl behind, Swivel and a piece of my soul too. As for what I shouldn't be doing, facts are that if I didn't have Firestorm in my life I would have kissed you anyway." he cocks his head a little, studying your posture a little, "You don't live as long as I do without regrets, I'll just add kissing you .. as brief as it was.. to that list.. fair?"
Swivel watches Depth, almost wishing she had another drink in front of her to sip while observing and listening. Instead, she just occupied her fingers by interlocking them and setting them on the table. "Soul..." Swivel repeats the word uncertainly. Another word she wasn't familiar with... although if she knew its meaning, she would be very familiar with the concept. "Yes... but kissing me if you hadn't met Firestorm would have been, I don't know, um, more appropriate?" She gives an uncertain smile as she tries to navigate her way through thoughts and words to try and land her point. Although she sort of wasn't sure what her point was. Depth was Depth and there really isn't any point telling him anything.
Depth nods, "Spark. Soul. Same thing really. The essence of all you are... spiritual being." he murmurs, then a little nod, "Yeah, but I've never been one to be appropriate." he notes, winking an optic at her.
Swivel nods her head saying a little "Ah." at the quick explanation of soul. "Well maybe you aren't appropriate, but aren't femmes prone to jealousy?" she asks, as if she wasn't actually sure on that fact despite being one herself.
Depth quirks his lips a bit, "Who's gonna tell he I gave you a innocent peck on the lips? Me? Slag no." he peers at you, "Are you?"
"Um......" Swivel is halted in her proverbial tracks when Depth asks if she's going to tell. Well.... she just stares at him for a good long moment. "Well..." she begins. "It's not like I've ever actually met her myself, so I don't see there'd be an opportunity for me to say anything... but there's a lot of mechs in here that know you, and maybe something about it might slip from them, and then if I were asked, I wouldn't deny it.... but I wouldn't go out of my way to tell her about it... I mean I'm not sure if this is trifle to her or not even if it is to you. See this is where things get sticky because I like doing the right thing but have no clue what that is right now... and actually that fact is starting to make me a little anxious and..."
Depth raises a hand, placing a finger on your lips and going "Shhh." then looks around a moment, noticing no one looking their way, so he looks back, "We're good. Don't worry about it." he slides a bit away from you, "Not like I did a full on kiss or something and felt you up eh." he notes with a little chuckle.
Swivel is silenced when the finger reaches her lips. When he backs off she lets out a lot of laughter at her own self. "I do not know why I am fussing.... it's comical," Swivel finally says. "No, no worries, it's not going to be an issue, and even so, not like she'd be able to track you down through time and space and slap you.... and... I take it as a kindness that you did not feel me up. I see how you treat the waitresses here and compared to that's how the lowlifes treat them, I at least know that's a sign of disrespect."
Depth cocks his head to that and nods a bit, "She cannot, but if she lives to see the future time I'm from she may just try to track me down... that is if she even cared to do so.. which I doubt. I want her to move on, love another mech that can give her what I cannot." he taps on his chest near the middle of it, "And that's a bonding of the sparks. Bond mated for life. I cannot give her that. Don't got a spark." he explains, then a hmm, "Actually a swat on the backside is a gesture of affection. Now if I called her something like.. oh.. a painted whore.. then that's disrespectful."
"Oooooh... no spark... so when you said soul, you meant something like a spark but not quite the same that serves the same purpose...." she says, starting to figure a few more things out about him and his ways. "It would be nice to be bonded to someone for life, then you'd never be alone... so perhaps it is best she just move on. However it is also best for her to remember you fondly. People who have had bad past relationships and their trust betrayed tend to become bitter and suspicious.... and you wouldn't want that would you? And... what's a whore?"
Depth nods to your words, "Yeah, exactly. Different species, different ways to become one... so its a good thing and bad as well that I'll be going back to my time.. my place in this universe." then he pauses, considering, then states, "Yes, best she remember me fondly.. which is why I want to see here before I go. As for the term whore.. " he looks around and finds one of the local prostitutes hanging all over a large mech. "See her over there? See how she hangs all over him.. see how she is touching him.. flirting very heavily with him.. that dear Swivel is a whore.. a femme of questionable moral values.. unlike yourself who has them."
Swivel glances over at the femme draped over a mech for a moment. "....I thought she was just terribly overcharged," Swivel responds. "I tend not to really pay attention to people who seem coupled off.... even if they are somewhere public I figure they just want to keep to themselves," she adds. She turns her gaze back to Depth, offering up a smile. "Well hopefully you can see her one more time before you go. I like to see people have good things in their lives, even if they don't last. Good memories if what fuels a person's will to continue if you ask me... because if they've had good times, then they know how to look for more of them even when life gets so grim."
Depth ahs softly to that and taps a finger on the table. "Sometimes it pays to pay attention to what others are doing around you so you aren't caught unawares if someone means you trouble... like that mech that came after me the other night and I had to kick his hide out of here." he chuckles a bit, the mouth plate reforming in place of his lips. "I'll have good memories of this world Swivel."
Swivel smiles up at Depth. "Yeah... you kicked him but good!" she responds with a tone of admiration in her voice. She then glances about the room again before looking back at Depth. "Oh... I keep my wits about me... I just... oh never mind. You can just remember that I've been hanging in rough neighborhoods like this and am still alive and well... that tells you enough about me," Swivel responds vaguely. "However, I'm glad you'll have good memories of this place even at tis current state."
Depth nods to that tone from you, "Eh it was easy, handled worst mechs than him before. And I know you do sweetness, I ain't too worried about you.. think I may have to pay up on that bet though that I'd find ya dead."
Swivel leans back in her booth seat, crossing her arms over her chest, wearing a smug, almost triumphant expression. "Heh heh heh, well that you do Mr. Slooshy! I got special SPECIAL talents to keep me going. I don't know how long I'll live for, but the worst thing I could do is worry about when and how life will end and just live in the now and enjoy what I can... like gloating. Right now, I am enjoying gloating. It's not really my style to gloat, but you are infectious."
Depth reaches into his subspace, pulling out a bag of creds which he sets in front of you. It sounds and looks heavy with creds. "Heh, am I now.. goodness.. I'll have to be careful about who I kiss from now on." he teases. "So here's what creds I'll be sparing for now. Gonna keep some for a few more drinks before my friends show up."
Swivel nods her head. "Oh of course save some for more drinks!" she says and takes the credits, tucking them away. "I'll be sure to deliver Firestorm her credits. I'm sure I can just ask Goa to introduce us to make that easier," Swivel responds. "As it is, I probably best be going. Unless you insist on holding me prisoner in the corner of this booth," Swivel says with a little laugh.
Depth gets the hint, slipping out of the booth, standing and stretching. "You do that sweetness, and you be your bubbly self with Firestorm and you may just earn yourself another Con friend eh?"
Swivel bobs her head enthusiastically as she scoots to the end of the bench, and then stands up, stretching. "Of course. When am I NOT bubbly?" she asks more in jest, but hope fervently that Depth doesn't point out the honest answer to that question.
Depth snickers and nods. "See ya." he offers to her.
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