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Who: Nelkeila Tarid and YOU
Broadcast: Video, Fleetwide
Action: Casino station
When: Middle of the month somewhere

[sometime in the evening, shortly after dinner, a grinning elven face (with brand new crazy bluish hair) appears over the network. the camera is unsteady, bouncing all over as he shuffles his grip on it.]

Guys! Hey, guys... did you know that there is a tattoo place here? And it's, like... right next door to this bar where everything looks like it's covered in gold? And... there's a place to dance...

[and--ah--he finally gets the communicator turned all the way from his face, so it can swing around to show clumsy shots of all the places he's mentioning. lots of light and sound, it looks like a party.

and eventually, the camera jostles around to show his face again, and he looks so excited.]

--Hey! We should totally all get tattoos! It'll be awesome!

[and anyone who heads down to meet him, or just happens to be walking through this section of the station, can find Nel either bopping around the waiting area of the tattoo parlor, or hanging out in the bar next door, looking over a free handout of tattoo designs.

anyone is welcome, whether interested in a tattoo or not. join in, observe the chaos, shake your head-- whatever!

also, feel free to start your own threads and treat this as a mingle, if you'd like!]

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[Okay, he should have know the voice of reason wasn't going to work. Maybe chaperoning is called for.]

Sure, I'll join you. Where's this party going down?

It's on the big station, on the main floor. The tattoo place is kind of by a dancefloor, but there's also a bar right next door that looks all gold. It pretty much glows. You can't miss it.

[and he'll be hanging around the bar, of course, because what else are you going to do while you wait to put big permanent marks on your skin.]

Yeah, sounds like it. [he turns off the communicator at this point, because it'll only serve to distract him. He likes the sound of a dancefloor: maybe he can distract the kid with a few spins around the dancefloor, put him in a shuttle and take him back home.

This is more or less the plan when he touches down on the station. He spots Nel immediately and walks up.]

Hey. How's it going?

[and by the way the elf is dressed like a perfect club kid, he'd probably love some time on the dancefloor.

though, the bar currently has his attention. tattoo pamphlet in one hand and a drink in the other, he swivels his seat around when he hears the voice in his direction, and his new friend gets a big smile.]

Oh, hey! You're here!

[He grins a little at the enthusiasm-- man, he remembers being that young and excited about a lot of things.]

Sure am. It's nice to meet you-- Ray Kowalski.

[if there is anyone who can manufacture a bounty of enthusiasm for nearly anything, it's Nel. and the drink he's holding is at least one factor helping this phenomenon along.]

Ray! Nice to meet you too-- I'm Nel.

[and he holds out the pamphlet] Want to look at the designs? There are some crazy ones in here.

[He decides to sit down-- keep the kid seated longer, maybe get him even drunker, he won't have the energy to object to not getting a tattoo anymore.]

Sure, lemme see 'em. [He takes the pamphlet and snorts when he sees some of the designs.]

It has gotta be illegal to have that on your body. Hey, I got a little tattoo of my own, wanna see?

[well, he certainly isn't going to object to getting drunker--especially if someone else is buying. he's already sizing up his new friend to try and guess at his chances of being able to mooch off him a little bit. so, maybe the plan has a chance.]

Oh, yeah! Where's it at?

Just here. [He twists on his stool after signalling the barman for another round, then bunches up his right t-shirt sleeve. There's a tattoo there of a Champion Spark Plug, faded but still bold enough.]

Whoa... [he pauses, but wisely decides to not guess out loud at what that could be.]

That's pretty cool. When did you get it?

[It's very easy to stroke Ray's ego, and with all the flack he'd caught about this tattoo (from his parents, from his ex-wife, from some guys on the force) it's always nice to hear some praise. He grins a little before rolling his sleeve back down]

Long time ago. Me and my buddy Ted Kozlowski, we wanted to wrap up our high school days with a bang. [Since his grades certainly wouldn't deliver that bang] So we swiped a couple beers from his folks' fridge, got a little buzz goin', and headed over to this shady tattoo place. I guess I got this because my and my old man worked on cars together, maybe- that's the only time we really got along, y'know? [He shakes his head, shrugs]

Dumb fuckin' thing to do, but I'm stuck with it now, right? [Listen to his old-man wisdom, Nel.]

I think it's cool! It tells a good story.

[pfft, he doesn't need that 'wisdom' crap. this is only encouraging him.]

That's the best--getting tattoos and stuff when you and your friends all get drunk and go out. [--and he lifts his nearly-empty glass in a little mock toast.]

It mostly tells that I'm old, and that I'm into cars. [He grins through the disappointment- he should've known that story wouldn't have worked. He signals for another round, his own beer still half-full.]

Yeah? Why d'you think that?

Because. It makes good stories, for one.

[and to some people, those are very valuable things.]

It's like a little-- [and he makes a motion like he's sticking an invisible sticker on his forearm, near the inside of his elbow] --memory stamp, or something.

Only not alla those memories are gonna look as good in hindsight as you thought they would. [He resettles on his bar chair, rakes a hand through his hair.]

Me, I used to want a tattoo with someone's name in it. I loved that person more'n anything, so I figured the whole world should see it, right? Only then she divorced me, and that would've been a pretty shitty reminder to have to look at every day, right?

I guess. [and he rubs at his arm--the little fidgeting motion the only real sign that there might be something behind what he's saying besides simple tipsy cheer.]

But then you can just cover it up with something else, or change it. Stuff changes. No big deal.

[Ray's met enough scene kids to know, beforehand, that something lay below the surface. He notices the fidget and it's more of a confirmation than anything else.]

You'll always know it's there, though. That tattoo's for you, you don't want it covering up some kinda bad memory.

Sure you do.

[and he casually drains the last of his glass. and whatever number drink that was is probably the only reason that he's feeling brave and bouncy enough to argue his point.]

You cover up bad things with good things. Otherwise you'll just have bad memories hanging around all the time.

Think maybe that tattoo's gonna cover somethin' up, Nel? [He doesn't sound harsh- his eyes are gentle but piercing, demanding honesty.]

[oop, too insightful. Nel avoids that honest gaze like oil against water, though his smile doesn't flinch. and he leans up in his seat so he can try to flag down the bartender.]

I'm getting another drink. You want anything?

[That's avoidance, and that's enough evidence for Ray. He nods, figures liquor might still be the answer to stay out of the tattoo parlor. He should've looked at the opening times, shit.]

Sure, hit me with another one.

[and he points at Ray and orders "another one of those," regardless of whether he can actually pay for it or not. he's long practiced at ordering drinks, but having to spend money for them is still a relatively new concept. the bill at the end may end up being a surprise.

and once they're served up, Nel makes sure not to rush back to the topic of tattoos just yet.

as he slides Ray's new drink in his direction--] Have you done much exploring yet?

[Ray's been pretty entertaining lately, so he can pay for it if Nel can't-- or else they can just hightail it outta here. He won't bring up the tattoos again either, in some sort of hope that Nel will just forget about it.]

Around here? You bet. You?

Oh yeah! The dance floors here are awesome. ...I mean, not as good as home, but better than I've seen since I left.

And I don't gamble, but the rest is pretty cool too.

Hey, now that's more like it-- [He grins and points at Nel] The dance floors. They ain't bad, right? Music's kinda funky, but once you get into it... [He does a little move on his stool to illustrate.]

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