shiratorijun

A sharp nosed person might decide that the funny smell in Jun's garage is reminiscent of a forest fire. Two months ago, according to the investigation, a common chemical accident involving a low-volume gasoline generator, a small store of lumber, and improperly stored etchants had occured, resulting in an explosion. Two motorcycles were under covers. A third motorcycle awaits tinkering. It's a deep blue. A rampant swan decorates its front.

Jun eyes her guest's sensitive hands. She purses her lips with something like disgust. She inhales carefully. Sometimes, I'm really stupid, she thinks. She exhales hard. "...Working on any engine is dangerous. Maybe we'd be better off if you just handed me things afterall. Even I wear gloves and safety-glasses when working on these. I'd prefer it if you wore a helmet, but, I don't think our heads are the same size and...I'm not sure your hair would put up with it. Would it?"

Please remember that players can see this, but characters cannot. In other words, please respect the fourth wall.

The explosion that destroyed Jun's garage took two of her favorite bikes out of commission for a while. She'd been making time to repair them even though she'd had her hands busy with ISO affairs, the J's, and keeping up with her friends.

Driving from her J to Jinpei's meant contending with city traffic. It wasn't until she set off from Ken, her bike carrying two saddle-bags full of food prepared by Jinpei's hands, did her satisfaction with the kit bike wane. She wore a small frown for most of the trip out to Ken's airfield. Try as she might, she had not been able to get the engine to cycle right in higher gears.

For once, in a long while, Jun manages to wake up before Derek. She stands beside their sleeping place and regards him with a small smile. Life is difficult -- it nearly always is. But this one thing -- this sharing she and Derek have. It's easy. She says goodbye to him in her silent hopeful way.

She doesn't know what the day will bring. That's all. She's never had.

Before light comes, she's dressed, mounted a dirt bike, and is on her way. It's thirty minutes hard travel over one side of a mountain, around a doubled-lake, and down another mountain before she reaches her destination. Another rocky lake. The nose of a Godphoenix, the second, protrudes from the still water. It looks like it's emerging from a slit in the sky. Anchored beside it is a boat. A powerfully built, wild-haired man stands at the prow. He's holding a fishing line.

"Morning, Jun," says Ryu. "Breakfast?"

Grinning hugely, she parks the bike. "Sure. If we haven't scared off all the fish." She divests herself of jacket, gloves of helmet and dives into the water.

Ryu laughs.

It looks like Jinpei and I see less of the beauty of the world now than we did during the wars. The closest I'd been to nature and its beauty was when Ken and I almost became shark dinner. No, that's not entirely true, it was when I went for that night swim out-island after fighting with Joe.

I've been feeling restless. I've wanted to go on a road trip. Joe gave me a wonderful bike and Dr. Totenkopf gave me one of his watch traveling devices and that should be enough. I wanted to take the bike out and see how he compared with other rides. I also wanted to explore other worlds. I asked the people at sages_of_chaos for road trip suggestions. Most of the routes suggested are Earth based (Mr. Wilson sure gives me the giggles. He's so rude but I can't find it in me to be offended). I'm planning to start my tour of the worlds with the Masamichi Overpass in Metatokyo 2061. foxitrix wants to race and I'll be glad to. I missed her hail last night but maybe we can do it tonight if I have time.

I woke up this morning intending on getting the new bike more road worthy (Joe knocked himself out on it) but as usual, things got in the way. I was up at crack of to let the new cook in. The cook insisted that we stock some things immediately, so we had to go to market. Then, because I promised, I stopped by Jinpei's to give him a hand. People tend not to listen to people that look like kids -- and he needed me to throw my weight around with the contractors. When I got back to the J, I found out that Katse had succeeded in a creating a mechanizer ray shield (and generic birdstyles). Katse's timing was very good as Granpa sent me a breakdown on what knocked Ken's craft out of the sky over Kowloon Bay overnight.

So much for getting my bikes roadworthy and going to track day. Maybe Ken will take his bike. Maybe I can talk Ken into taking mine. But I paid for three track days (since there was a deal) and riding from 7 to 5 is all kinds of fun and Jinpei had agreed to cover for me Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Even if I trust someone else to ride them for me, I still won't have time to prep the bikes -- not with going over Katse's information, Granpa's reports, beating on the Nambu AI, open mic night. If I'm good, I can squeeze in a race with Trixie. Which means, I need to get off lj stat.

I will probably lose my money.

Riding the Masamichi Overpass is probably good prep. It's been a while since I've traveled in a battle zone.

Going by the the midrange grunt, my new friend is a boy.

I took it offroad this evening to see how he'd do. Not too much trouble. I also tracked down my loan blockage. I waved my ISO credentials around and we finally got what we were looking for but I'm still kind of stuck with cash that I don't want to be on record as having.

Also, there's a djinn at Sages. Her name is Jeannie and she has been abandoned by her master. Her master appears to be her beloved too.

I want to help her.

I have the badge Ms. Sonel passed me on the day she was murdered. On the back of it I can still make out the numbers that appeared when Ryu and I went outverse to retrieve Joe. I also have the watch Dr. Totenkopf was generous enough to give me.

I really want to help Jeannie.

Even Mr. Wilson's better nature momentarily escaped him in regards to her.

( private entry )

ETA 29 Mar removing private entry because Ken posted here to get my attention anyway. He's adrift. Joe and I are reeling him in.

That's a picture of the antique Duc that'd been sitting under a torn cover in my garage. I wasn't in any mood to deal with customers and staff yesterday, so I handed the reins over to one of the more senior waiters and put on my favorite gearhead clothes... Joji (the ex's, not the brother's) jeans and a wife-beater. I tied my hair up with a bandana, got out some tools and made it run pretty as well as look pretty.

Nothing, I mean nothing, beats the sensation of something big and growling between my legs.

There's good news. Joe's cybernetics are leaving his body. Maybe that means that the damage he sustained, and the butchery he endured to get back to functional are being reversed. That's change for the better. He'll be able to taste and see and smell and (most of all) touch without hurting people.

But maybe that means his memory is returning.