Z'verse 3. Zoe's Room . Second Day of Shopping.

[swindle-blitz.livejournal.com]

Ghosts don't really need to recharge.

Swindle was still getting used to that fact when he turned the emitter back on with the first rays of light. Being 'awake' didn't bother him so much, he had plans and ideas to keep his mind occupied.

"Odd I recharge in the Dream, but not here," he said to himself, as he glanced over from where he sat, watching Zoe and Silver still snoozing away.

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There's a soft scraping sound from above as Ariel walks over to look at him. But with the light from the shaft there isn't really much need for her light. The old spider's just curious. In the light of day Zoe's place is revealed to be a rough cellar with a hewn stone ceiling. It's nearly empty except for the niche and the table beside it, the bin full of softly glimmering rocks, and another table that holds a small stack of what look like rough magazines made from heavy parchment. Next to that table a bit cushion made of thick leather sits on the floor.

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Swindle looks up at the spider. Spiders don't really bother him, he'd deal with them just like any other creature if need be, and this one seemed friendly enough. Rather ingenious of them using something with a natural source of light.

Webs, on the other hand...He twitches at the memory.

Well, there wasn't much to do now except wait, and somehow Swindle didn't think that Zoe would appreciate him staring at her when she awakened. Not that he was, he told himself. Nope, not in the slightest...oh, look, something to read...

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She tilts her head as she gives Ariel a last pat, then walks over to him. "Would you like to look at my language files?"

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"I would love to," Swindle said with the slightest of smirks, "There can't be that many, can there?"

If Swindle only knew...

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"Ratchet didn't write that down?" She blinks. "He said it's a hundred yards, which is... uh...." Quick calculation and she gives the distance in Cybertronian units, then smiles. "And you're welcome. Do you want to have a look at those files?"

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"Oh, I'm sure he did..yes, I did read the manual. I just...well, wanted to test it out to be sure," Swindle aid with a faint smirk, "Easier to tell with looking 'Oh, it's that far'...and I would, thanks."

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"Oh." She reaches a hand toward him. "I had my firewalls down and was sharing. It was supposed to be easy, Swindle."

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A wave of relief almost made Swindle's holoform waver. "I think this whole ghost thing's gonna take awhile to get used to," Swindle says.

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She's confused for a moment as the light in his optics change, but then she sees the things appearing and goes to get two bags that are hanging on the back wall.

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The stuff's mostly shiny and probably useless stuff--stuff Swindle had picked up to, at the time, try to sell to Random. There's a few workable items that aren't that high tech, and...a doll.

"I have NO clue where that came from," Swindle says as he takes control of the hologram again, pointing to the doll, "Unless those humans left it in me and it somehow transferred to my subspace when I transformed..."

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"I say so too," murmurs Zoe as she stands and settles the two knapsacks onto her back. Then she adds in a more normal tone, "Are you ready to go?"

-Silver with Swindle <3 ^_^-

[swindle-blitz.livejournal.com]

"I am," Swindle says, snuggling Silver close, "But I'm not sure I've got anyplace for you to ride.."

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"You'll see those all over the market today." She grins and starts toward the alley mouth. "It's a stall tent, adapted to fit me."

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"Stall tent," Swindle gives himself a looks-over, then smirks a bit as he heads in the direction Zoe's going.

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A heavy-set woman in a long full skirt and a simple sleeveless top nods to the man as he comes back, her fingers never ceasing their flying as she knits. Then she looks up at Zoe and Swindle with the same frank curiosity as the three little children sitting by her feet and the baby on her back are giving them. The oldest of the children, a boy in a shirt like ones stacked on the stall counter, is busy making another doll like the one that Zoe's now holding, and there are a few more of those dolls in a basket on the counter along with bundles of fluffy stuff, baby bags, knitted rattle balls, and blankets of all sizes and descriptions. There are knitted blankets and woven ones in both natural colours and vegetable dyes, and also a couple that are made from the pale blue woolly hide of some juvenile sea mammal.

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Well, they've already got a doll, and none of them wear clothing--at least of that sort--so Swindle just nods and looks over the blankets, making sure Silver's got a good view. "Anything you like, Silver?" Swindle asks.

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The merchant moves a blanket stand over as a place where Swindle can put the plant if he wants. "Weave it?"

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"Yes, once the plant matures, the stem is used to make a type of cloth," Swindle says as he finally gets the plant off his arm and places it on the cleared space, "I can't say it's warm, but it's highly durable and flexible." He also says something to the effect of them thought to be extinct, though not loud enough where he thinks he's heard.

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"I'm pretty sure he was worried. He sounded upset." She looks around, then chuckles and thinks loving thoughts as she feels a little poke in her processor.

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"Blitzwing. Worried. About me?" Swindle scoffed at that, "Upset I can imagine, I probably had something to do that's holding us up...not that I don't, but the ship can wait. He knows that by now..."

He then held up what looked to be a Swiss army knife--a normal sized one. Which made it really tiny for him. "I think this thing has some moving parts..."

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The thin man smiles back. "I'm Jon Weaver. Malachi said you had something I might be interested in trading for?"

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"Oh, the Yikudian Runeflux?" Swindle says, showing the plant that's now almost as tall as he is now. He also shows the seeds--making sure not to get them wet and telling why--and pretty much repeating what he knew about the things.

Except for ticking off offlined arms dealers...he decided that didn't need repeating.

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"I think I can get it. Where do you want me to bring it and go to pick up the plant?"

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"We..were going back to Dalla's..." Swindle started. Drat, he'd have to carry that thing with him. And probably cut the shopping short...

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"Ahh." She looks up and looks around. "Something pretty for Shadowwraithe?"

Aaaand Silver has the hiccups, and is sharing them.

[swindle-blitz.livejournal.com]

"Welll, I was thinking more for them, you know..." Swindle says, "For upsetting him." And to hopefully keep Blitzwing from beating him into slag dust once they got home..

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Silver's reply is a happy peep and a little tongue poking out through the hole in her pack.

Zoe blinks at that and then laughs.

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Swindle nods, and lets the Nroo lead him to the firework-makers stall.

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"Wait... you misunderstand me." She holds up a tentacle. "Those didn't look like the usual trade goods, and I'm getting an old tech reading from some of it."

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Swindle stops, then pulls a couple of the items back out for the Nroo to examine if she so choose. "Old tech?" he asks, going through pricing and what dek to earth dollars may be, from Zoe's information. He'd downloaded enough information on that, at least, when he was on Earth, though he never used the actual numbers...

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"In about six hours." She looks up at the low hanging clouds and their drizzle. "It might even be clear by then."

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"That sounds perfect," Swindle says, then returns, "What can you have done by nightfall?"

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She puts a hand on his shoulder, her face thoughtful. "Do you think Icy might like one of my books? He seems to be curious about a lot of things."

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"Oh, he would, but..." Swindle said, "Those are yours.." Swindle then smirked, "Unless you were planning on selling me one.."

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"Yelling won't hurt me." His hand gets a gentle squeeze as she looks up herself and grins. "There's something about the spaces between them, isn't there?"

[swindle-blitz.livejournal.com]

Swindle chuckles a bit, and nods, "Yes...yes there is."