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Who: The fine crew of the SS Red Fish!
Broadcast: Probably not so much...
Action: You betcha.
When: Barely forward-dated to Halloween!

---

[welcome to the Red Fish, the ship that always looks ready for Halloween anyway.

while today is a popular Earth holiday, it's also Zhas' birthday, and he has probably mentioned it to everyone on board in an unsubtle way over the last few weeks. there are a hilarious number of jack-o-lanterns around the ship, showing off skull-face carvings of... varying quality. thanks, Syeira!

what's in store on this spooky night? HILARITY, probably.]

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[ OPTION A → before anything really starts happening, Zhas can be found milling about the ship without any of his signature makeup on. he's wearing his normal-people clothes, too, and seems to be moving around with less tense, looming, antisocial gloom than usual.

could Zhas be... in a good mood? if you'd have to see it to believe it, well, now's your chance, because he's heading your way right now. crewmates are welcome to know it's his birthday today, because he's never been subtle about mentioning it.]

[ OPTION B → much later in the evening and several drinks later, Zhas' mood has elevated to "this is the best ship and I love everyone in this bar." sure, they're all just... hanging out in the kitchen, but Zhas has pulled everyone he's found in for a little impromptu mingling, and there is food (hey, dried pumpkin seeds!) and there is alcohol, and he's still totally down to talk to you. for once.

he's at his most sociable (at least compared to his usual, anyway) and just happy to have his one, traditional day off from being a scary vampire hunter. if you've ever wanted a good chat with him, get in on it now, because...]

[ OPTION C → ...eventually, there's probably too much drinking, and Zhas starts getting kind of incomprehensible. are you guys still hanging out in the kitchen? have you wandered off somewhere else? have you left the ship, only for Zhas to pop up and try to misguidedly talk to you again? YOU DECIDE.]

[ Carl's only been on the ship about a week, and he's done a pretty fantastic job of avoiding a good portion of the crew. It was really only going to be a matter of time before he met everyone, though he's still been trying to come to grips that this is reality. Sure, he's seen Zhas in passing, but they haven't really talked.

He's on his way to the kitchen from his room when he crosses paths with Zhas, and Carl looks at him a little curiously, because he looks kind of familiar?? But the face paint is gone, so he's not as easy to identify. ]

Uh..Hi? [ Smooth, Grimes. So convincing. ]

[and Zhas has definitely not gone out of his way to say hello before now. he's spotted him before, but mostly assumed that he was here to visit one of his more social crewmates, like Syeira or Asuka. this is the Red Fish, after all--not a place for kids.

...but this is exactly why today, he slows in passing him and looks over with a similar curiosity. a moment later he's stopped, tilting his head, saying nothing at first but clearly trying to piece something together in his head.

finally, he talks in that scary, gravelly voice of his:] Who're you.

[ Wow who are you calling a kid? He happens to be very mature for his age. It's not hard to spot the kid, particularly with that ever-present sheriff's hat that looks like it's seen some shit.

Zhas's voice is a lot lower than he was expecting, and it throws him off briefly. He straightens, shoulders squaring as he replies. Hey, he's got to assert that he does really belong here not like some visitor, right? ]

Carl Grimes. Who're you?

[if there's anyone who's going to recognize the traditional "take me seriously" shoulder-squaring and back-straightening, it's Zhas. his response is to slouch a little more and stuff his hands harmlessly into his pockets--because today he's not looking to be the toughest guy on the ship. rather, he seems to take Carl very seriously despite the obvious age difference.]

Zhas. Captain. [he still sounds like a rock tumbler, though. there's no helping that one.] Not just visiting, are you.

[ It's not the reaction he expects, in all honesty, but he's kind of relieved. Usually people don't take him as seriously as they would someone about a foot taller and ten years older.

Oh. Oh. This guy's one of the captains.. ]

No, I'm not visiting. I'm your maintenance guy, I guess.

[yeah, well. he was fifteen once.

so he shifts to hold out one of his hands, presumably for a handshake.]

Wh... [hrm, that noise goes nowhere. he tries again.] Welcome aboard. This thing's... stupid, but the crew's good.

Thanks.

[ Carl takes his hand and gives it a shake, offering a grateful nod. ]

What's stupid? The ship or the situation? I haven't met all of the crew, yet.

[ Not that he's been in a hurry, either.. ]

[it happens every single Halloween... and while Coil may have only known Zhas for a few years out of his life, those years have packed more than enough punch to seem like eons. and he feels like he's lived through this particular tradition enough times to make his hair turn grey.

once a year, the world turns on its head. today is Zhas' birthday, and all the rules of Coil's reality run backwards until it's over.

this means that it is also a rare day in which Coil doesn't have the option of hiding in his room or disappearing into the shadows of the planet... because he has some babysitting to do.

tonight, Coil is out in the open, camped out in the corner of whatever room Zhas happens to be in. and while his partner may currently have a naked, human face, Coil seems to have taken up the slack--for once, Coil is the one with a skull painted on his face. and because of the paint, it's hard to tell what he thinks about this whole thing, but by the way he's mostly ignoring the cup of something inappropriately strong in his hand, he doesn't seem to be particularly thrilled.]

[ Remembering dates hasn't been much of a concern for two years, so it's still odd to be able to have a calendar or a clock to be able to keep time. His dad had always worn a watch, but the battery had long since died.

The past few days on the Red Fish have been a little more active than the first few days of Carl's arrival, so it's been a bit more difficult to go unnoticed. He'd come out of his room for food and something to drink, and was met with a kitchen full of people. Well, better late than never to get acquainted.. Although with so many unfamiliar people, there's still that notion of unease at the back of his head.

He sees Zhas without his skull makeup and Coil with, and it doesn't seem right, though he's only seen both of them in passing. Though he had met Zhas earlier. Captain one of three. Carl sidles over to Coil to at least introduce himself. ]

Hey, I'm Carl. I was just assigned here.

Situation.

[manly handshake accomplished, he gives a very vague wave of his hand before shoving it back in his pocket.]

Being... kidnapped for a TV show. In space. ... It's stupid.

[right...? help him out, here.]

Yeah, it's... weird. Didn't appreciate bein' kidnapped, but who does?

[ Carl takes his hand back, crossing his arms. ]

Space is kinda crazy..

[he chuckles, in the most minimal, breathy sense of the word. he almost smirks at the comment.]

Kinda. But it gets... better.

[he tilts his head again, glancing up at that prominent hat. reminds him of a game he used to play with his brothers, back when they were alive. cowboys and indians.]

What'd you do before?

[for very certain reasons, Coil has recently been making it a point to ignore newcomers to the ship. it might have something to do with getting in trouble for throwing someone out, but whatever. since then, visitors have just not been his problem.

and this is why he doesn't even bother glancing out of the corner of his one good eye until the boy states that he's more than just a visitor.

Coil doesn't say anything, but Carl at least has his attention now. it's hard to tell with all that paint if his expression can really be called surprised, but his eyebrows do raise.]

I heard we go to planets and stuff, but just being in space doesn't feel real.

[ He's itching to actually get to a planet and explore. He can't even begin to imagine how different things will be. Carl considers the question and offers no more than a shrug. ]

Survive.

[maybe Coil had been hoping that Zhas would have forgotten the date... because when he runs into him and spots a distinct lack of paint on his face, something about his expression sinks.

he doesn't have to worry about Zhas seeing his disappointment, though. he knows from experience that nothing can make a dent in that good mood.]

[This is a perfect time to give him presents, right? Of course, it is! She's got a long parcel lightly wrapped in just a cloth. It's pretty obvious what it is. She's still not figured out the whole wrapping paper thing, but it's the thought that counts.]

Happy Birthday, Zhas!

[She's probably said it like six...teen times today, but what's one more!]

[the answer is fair enough. combined with his earlier demeanor, this kid's saying a lot with very little. he may ask questions another time, but not today. today, he shrugs his shoulders in return.]

Us too.

[between a vampire hunter, a ghost hunter, a god-spawn, a giant robot pilot, and a necromancer... there's got to be a spot for whatever this guy is somewhere.]

If you want to fly out sometime, I can take you. [he shrugs again.] I'm a pilot.

[HA HA... oh, Coil. prepare for a day.

Zhas walks right up to him, smacks him cheerily on the shoulder by way of manly greeting, and signs the equivalent to: 'why the long face?']

[This is so weird. Zhas is downright chill (downright drunk, honestly) and Coil's sitting in the corner sulking. Well, maybe that second part isn't too far off normal, except for the face paint. Why they've swapped for his birthday when they didn't, to her knowledge, do the same for Coil, she's not sure. Maybe it's because it's Halloween. Who knows?]

[Asuka hasn't been overly chatty, but that's nothing out of the ordinary. She hasn't been on her ship that much lately. She's not boiling over with rage toward Coil anymore, not since he sort of apologized, but she also hasn't really discussed anything substantial with him lately. So she sidles up to him on impulse, untouched drink in one hand, the basket that goes with her Red Riding Hood costume (still on) (red's her favorite color) in the other.]

You're not having fun.

[he doesn't flinch or even brace for it. his shoulder just sinks crookedly to the side when Zhas smacks it, and he doesn't answer his question. not directly, anyway.

'are you going out?']

[it may be the seventeenth "happy birthday" he's heard from her today, but he's no less happy to hear it. he turns towards her and smiles--like, genuinely, and out of his own free will--but that's before he actually looks down to see what she's holding.

...it's confusing. he tilts his head, signing 'what?' far more casually than normal.]

[Drinking, drinking, till the ship is sinking. By this point in the night, Asuka's half-Angelic metabolism be damned, she's had maybe two too many. It's not enough to make her insensible, but it is enough to wipe most of the scowl off her face and incite her to less than stellar feats of daring.]

[Right now, for example, she's showcasing her incomparable reflexes by tossing handfuls of dried pumpkin seeds in the air and catching them.]

[Right now, for example, she's catching more with her Red Riding Hood basket than with her hands.]

Hey, Zhas-- [Nobody's watching her at this point, which is profoundly annoying. She wrinkles her nose as she picks up some of the stray seeds.] I didn't give you a present yet.

[She nudges it at him, a universal sign of 'take it'.]

Go on. It's for you.

[the reasons behind to odd look he glances toward her with are twofold (or three, if you count the two seconds it takes to figure out why she's in a costume. it's easy to forget about the rest of this holiday while in space). firstly, he's a little caught off guard that she's approaching and talking to him of her own volition. and secondly, he's a little surprised at the suggestion of 'fun.' is that what he's supposed to be doing here?

'are you?' he signs, looking a little skeptical.]

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