Homesick
by UbermenschBodhisattva

CHAPTER FIVE

>John: Hesitantly answer while looking for a way to escape.

John: *while john's not ready to escape just yet, this clown guy is definitely an affront to the senses.

John: *the big guy is kind of pungent with an earthy herbal smell that john isn't familiar with, and makes his nose scrunch; and while john's hardly a man of class and refinement, the cussing is a bit much - he hardly knows this guy.*

John: *he decides to play it cool though.*

John: oh uh... it's going ok i guess.

John: *he takes a second to back up so the two of them aren't inside each others' personal space bubbles, and takes a second to size the huge clown up.*

John: wow... are you the guy who planted this note card on me?

John: *slowly, john feels less offended and more impressed as he thinks about that. his face softens a little, and his eyebrows go up*

John: you're a big guy, how'd you manage to sneak by me like that? i don't think i even saw you when i was here the other day.

Gamzee: A nInJa GoTs To Be KeEpIn HiS oWn SeCrEtS lIl BrOtHeR. :o)

Gamzee: SpIlL tOo MuCh AnD tHe MiRaClEs AlL jUsT rUnS oUt OnTo ThE fLoOr, Ya DiG?

John: oh... i think i got it.

John: *john taps the side of his nose, still a little wary of the clown, but doing his best to find some common ground.*

John: so... you're saying secret clown stuff you can't tell me. kind of like how a good magician never reveals his secret, right?

Gamzee: ShIt YeAh, I tHiNk I kNoW wHaT yOu'Re GeTtIn Up At, AnD tHaT nOiSe Is ExAcTlY tHe SoUnD i'M mAkIn'.

Gamzee: PrEtTy QuIcK oN tHe UpTaKe, My DuDe.

Gamzee: AnYwAy, YoU pRoBaBlY wAs NoT cOmIn' HeRe, ExPeCtInG aLl To TrAdE iN tHe SeCrEtS oF pErFoRmAnCe, BuT i AiN't CoMpLaInIn' AbOuT fInDiN' aNoThEr MoThErFuCkEr WhO fAnCiEs ThE wIcKeD aNd SuBtLe ArTs WhAt'S fOr MaKiN' bRoThErS aNd SiStErS gEt ThEiR cHuCkLe On.

John: sooo... if you didn't call me here to talk about clown stuff or induct me into the circus or something... why did you go to all the trouble of reverse pickpocketing me?

Gamzee: JuSt CoUlDn'T hElP bUt NoTiCe, WhEn YoU dRoPpEd By FoR a CoUpLe TiCkS

Gamzee: YoUr MoSt UnPlEaSaNt SiTuAtIoN, wHiCh I wAs HoPiNg I mIgHt HeLp A bRoThEr OuT wItH.

Gamzee: ThAt'S a PrEtTy NaStY wHaMmY yOu GoT tHeRe, BrOtHeR.

John: *john's eyebrows shoot right up, arching a little bit, and he gets ready to jump down the abyssal stairs if he feels like his cover is blown or... something like that!*

John: oh man! are you talking about the ghosty thing?

John: you're not going to tell the devas about it or something, are you?

Gamzee: HoNk HoNk HoNk HoNk... :oD... HoOoOoOnK.

Gamzee: *He HoNkS oUt A bIg BrAsHrAuCoUs LaUgH wHaT cOmEs OuT lIkE a ClOwN's HoNkS iF tHeY wAs MaDe WiTh LuNgS iNsTeAd Of HoNk HoRnS.*

Gamzee: NaAaAh, DaWg, NaAaAh. My RiGhTeOuS bRoThEr, WhAt HaS tHe CaRnIvAl Of MoCkErS gOtS tO dO wItH aLl GrIm AnD mIrThLeSs StAr GoDs?

Gamzee: NoT a MoThAfUcKiN' tHiNg Is WhAt!

Gamzee: We CoOl WiTh YoU, lIl BiTcH :o)

John: *john is thrown by the sudden bellowing belly laugh, looking around to see that no one in the crowd seems at all bothered by his new acquaintance's rowdiness, but is starting to relax. the big guy's good humor is kind of infectious, even if it is a little hard to ignore the weird way that he seems deadset on saying things.

John: *and even if his weird macabre clown paint and darkly colored get up make him kind of threatening.*

John: *okay, it's probably going to be a little hard to ever relax completely around this guy, but like Rose was saying about her new realm lord friend, they can probably use all the help they can get!*

John: okay, cool. glad to hear you're a friend then, big guy.

John: and uh, it's nice to meet you!

John: what's your name, anyway?

Gamzee: I'lL gIvE yOu MiNe, If YoU tElL mE wHaT's YoUrS :o)

John: fair enough.

John: i'm john.

Gamzee: YoU cAn CaLl Me GaMzEe

Gamzee: NeW fRiEnD :o)

Gamzee: *He OfFeRs HiS fIsT fOr A bRo BuMp.*

John: *still unfamiliar with all the customs of this strange new world, he takes a second to bump back.* it is nice to meet you then, gamzee.

John: hehe. you're a pretty crazy guy so far.

Gamzee: LeT's Go FoR a WaLk, JoHn, My DuDe.

>Gamzee: Crack into the wicked elixir.

Gamzee and John walk through the little tent town, through what John now guesses are more properly Carnies rather than Circus Folk, what with Gamzee referring to the collection of garish tents and their various inhabitants as a Carnival rather than a Circus. John is not entirely sure what the difference is between the two actually, having been only recently introduced to either term - jugglers, bards, and entertainers are a thing back home, but not big troupes like these. He's not even sure he'd really be able to tell the difference even if he had it explained to him.

The atmosphere of the Carnival here during the morning, while there's no performance going on, and not even all of the performance artists are practicing their crafts, becomes a little more relaxing. Maybe not relaxing, but there's at least no sense of genuine imminent danger as he has begun to become inured to the menace of the makeup they wear, and their relaxed and playful manner is almost bohemian - even if the modifier bohemian has no meaning either to John, or to anyone else on the world-island. But it is meaningful to us.

Why do they wear that stuff even while the show isn't on, he wonders? Maybe a question for another time. He doesn't want to get too distracted from the matter at hand, even though he's not really sure what the matter at hand is. The big clown leads him toward a collection of trailers - some clearly meant for habitation, others for storage and transportation - and reaches down into his pants pocket, rummaging around with what sounds like a ludicrous amount of junk for several long seconds before producing a key ring. He flips through them, jingling them as he looks for the right one, and unlocks the trailer, stepping inside. John follows him in.

Gamzee: *GaMzEe HeAdS iN, mEaNdErInG tHrOuGh ThE cLuTtErEd InTeRiOr Of ThE tRaIlEr, WhIcH iS dImLy LiT aNd SmElLs EvEn SpIcIeR tHaN tHe BiG cLoWn DoEs FoR tHe SaMe GoOd HeRb.*

Gamzee: *He WaNdErS hIs GoOd SeLf OvEr To ThE cHeSt Of WhImSy, WhAt PlEbS cAlLs A rEfRiDgErAtOr, AnD cOmEs BaCk OuT wItH tWo BoTtLeS oF tHe RuDe ElIxIr In ToW.*

Gamzee: *WiTh A qUiCk FlIcK oF hIs WrIsT hE sNaPs InTo BoTh BoTtLeS aNd PaSsEs OnE tO jOhN, fLoPpInG dOwN iN a BiG fLoOr PoOf, AnD mAkEs A hAnD mOtIoN fOr JoHn To Do ThE sAmE.*

John: *john regards the beverage skeptically. it's a really bright color, and though he hasn't been here long, he's still savvy enough to be able to tell that this is cheap. still he's not about to jilt this clown's way rude hospitality by refusing the drink!*

John: *he takes a sip and...*

John: whew! *John shivers, surprised by how sweet and flavorful it is. It pops and crackles in his mouth, a little like beer, but nowhere near as bitter. one thing that is never going to get old about this place is how much food and drink there is practically everywhere, and how good it is. after getting accustomed to the intense sweetness of the drink, he takes another swig.*

John: what is this stuff?

Gamzee: JuSt SoMe WiCkEd GoOd SoDa PoP wE kEeP sToCkEd Up ArOuNd ThE pLaCe BrOtHeR. iT's ThE fInE eLiXiR, wHaT gEtS a GoOd BuZz On. ThOuGhT iT bE nIcE tO sHoW a MoThErFuCkEr SoMe HoSpItAlItY bEfOrE aNd AfTeR bEiNg AlL a MyStErIoUs AnD rAsCaLlY cLoWn, Ya FeEl Me?

Gamzee: GoT tO mAkE a BrOtHeR fEeL wElCoMe In ThE hOuSe Of ThE fInE aBsUrDiTy.

Gamzee: AnD sPeAkIn' Of AfTeR, oNcE i FiNiSh OfF tHiS eLiXiR, i GoTtA bE rIgHt BaCk. ThE rInGmAsTeR wHaT kEePs AlL tHeSe RoWdY mOtHaFuCkAs In ShApE tO bE cAvOrTiN' aRoUnD aFtEr DaRk Is ThE oNe YoU wAnT tO sPeAk To, AnD i'Ll Go LeT hIm KnOw YoU'rE aRoUnD wHeNeVeR hE's ReAdY tO gEt HiS pOwWoW oN.

John: *john pulls his mouth into a polite expression of forbearance, slowly starting to get the feeling that he might have stumbled into something weirder than just a plain old carnival that just happens to be full of spooky clowns.*

>Roxy: Search for locations in the city that radiate Dave-like energy.

Meanwhile, Roxy is back on the rooftops, not far from the mysterious bridge cave he discovered minutes ago, thinking about Dave and the outdoors, the smells of the cave having sparked fond childhood memories. Dave's not exactly what one would call an adept outdoorsman - actually he kind of sucked at it until he more or less had to bone up in order to help make ends meet a few?... years ago? Three? Five? For some reason neither of those figures seems right, but Roxy can't quite place his finger on why (it's not four, either.) He shakes his head and tries not to lose track of the Dave energies he's trying to focus on.

Roxy: *roxy sits on some old roof - a flat 1 thats probably for one of the apartment/tenement buildings instead of like a regular house or smn*

Roxy: *kinda lets the rain fall through him.*

Roxy: *instead of splishin n splashin on him, they just kinda fall through the roof.*

Roxy: holy fuck!

Roxy: this sucks. why cant i stop feeling weirdly sad?!

Roxy: *roxy shakes his face around, flapping his lips all playfully and making a noise that goes kinda like this:*

Roxy: wububububububu

Roxy: somn about today just feels weird and bad, i gotta snap outta it.

Roxy: *roxy thinks dave thoughts, trying to think about what kinda shenanigans dave would be up to in the city.*

Roxy: *he suddenly has a sneaky idea.*

Roxy: *daves super smart, and if hes doing anything right now in the city, its probably not goofing off and making graffiti for nothin.*

Roxy: *daves probably rakin in phat loot running some kind of grift like a shell game or somn.*

Roxy: *thinkin davethink, roxy rolls forward off the roof and plummets down some more stairs.*

>Roxy: Catch a lucky break.

Thump! Is the noise Roxy makes as he appears out of thin air with a raucous bang a lot like a balloon suddenly being inflated to capacity and then exploding. The racket startles the occupant of the nicely-lit, cramped little room that Roxy appears in, causing him to literally jump a foot in the air off the bed he's currently lounging on as though he is made of springs, and then fall to the floor along with a pile of books and papers.

Dave: fuck

Dave: ow

Dave: *dave scrambles to his feet out of the book pile in the blink of an eye, and somehow grabs a shitty looking sword. or well its kind of awesome by the standards of a bunch of hicks from eszett but its pretty objectively shitty.*

Dave: whore you

Dave: wait.

Dave: roxy is that you
Roxy: :)

Dave: what the fuck youre a dude

Roxy: oh

Roxy: rly?


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