(no subject)

[gone_byebye]

[OOC: On his way to meet the representatives of the Great Lemurian Empire, Ray stops in Boise, Idaho for the night. There's more to Idaho than potatoes, though.

There's potentially haunted strip clubs, too.]

The door opens on a classically bedraggled Ray. He did try to dress respectably this morning, with a suit and a button-down shirt and all, but there are issues with looking respectable when you are actively covered in slime by the long-dead spirits of extremely irritated Methodist missionaries. Also when you have a small wiggly five-armed alien on your shoulder. "Bar," he says, "I'm going to need a glass of the green stuff and a bottle of Dr. Bronner's Peppermint Soap, please. And a pile of kiwifruits the size of my head, if you don't mind."

Bar obliges.

"Thank you," Ray says, and heads for a table.


[tinytag: Long-Reach the Jotok]

Comments

[facile-fivefold.livejournal.com]

"Holy cats," says Jhalak, somewhat mournfully. After the initial excitement wore off, the joys of ectoplasm turned out... less than invigorating. "Soap." "Soap." "Kiwifruits." "Soap." "Kiwifruits." "Soap."

Apparently it has deduced with its usual linguistic perceptiveness that the word stands for some form of cleaning product.

[gone_byebye]

Ray was about to peel one of the fruits, but at the repetition of 'soap' he instead unscrews the top on the Dr. Bronner's bottle. There is an overwhelming smell of peppermint. "This is the only soap I know that'll wash this stuff off," he says. "We'll probably have to dilute it with water. Does it smell safe to you?"

[facile-fivefold.livejournal.com]

Jhalak makes use of its olfactory equipment; wherever it keeps the goods, apparently the prognosis is clear, because it opens its hands and waggles them affirmatively. (Twenty-five thumbs up, as it were.)

"Smell safe to Jhalak," it asserts. "Soap wash this stuff off?" That last is a bit plaintive.

[gone_byebye]

Ray waves down one of the rats. "Can I get a clean washcloth and two bowls of water, please?" he says. When it arrives he thanks the rat and starts adding the peppermint stuff to one bowl- and giving an explanation of the chemical action and composition of soap, while he's at it. Hey, you never know what's going to be understood."

[facile-fivefold.livejournal.com]

If 'repeating back four words in five' counts as 'listening attentively'-- and this is Jhalak; that's pretty much a given-- the lesson is well received.

"Soap wash this stuff off," it repeats firmly during a lull, staring three-eyed at the mixing process.

[gone_byebye]

"Yep," Ray says, dipping the cloth into the peppermint-soapy water. "Okay. Now hold still."

Hopefully Jhalak won't mind being washed clean with a facecloth, because otherwise Ray's going to have to dunk the Jotok in the bowl bodily, and nobody wants that. The other bowl's going to be used for rinsing off.

[facile-fivefold.livejournal.com]

Jhalak holds still with patient obedience for this process, being quite understandably glad of the desliming.

[gone_byebye]

Once it's all done Ray gets one more cloth from the rats- this one for drying Jhalak off- and then starts peeling kiwifruits again. He can wash himself off once he's sure Jhalak's doing all right.

[facile-fivefold.livejournal.com]

"Thank you," enunciates Jhalak with feeling. It focuses two eyes on the fruit, two on Ray, and leaves one to keep watch over the Bar at large.

[gone_byebye]

"You're welcome," Ray says with a small smile. "You were very good today, Jhalak. Thank you for that. Here, these are for you."

Hey, they peel fast when you're motivated by the chance of getting slime out of your face.

[facile-fivefold.livejournal.com]

"Thank you thank you." "Kiwifruits!" "You're welcome." "Thank you." "Kiwifruits!"

Enthusiastically, it tucks a few fruits under its mouth.

Om nom.

[gone_byebye]

"You're welcome," Ray says again, and then falls to washing in earnest. He'll clean up his hair later.

... possibly after a burger, since all of a sudden he's hungry too.

[facile-fivefold.livejournal.com]

Jhalak munches its way through several more fruits and then pauses for a moment to watch Ray wash, in an oh-so-that's-how-you-do-it attentive manner.

[grumpyseer.livejournal.com]

"Ray!" Dominic waves cheerfully at the Ghostbuster from his seat at the next table. "Good to see you! Who's your little friend?"

[gone_byebye]

Ray looks up and waves. "Oh, hey. Hi, Dominic! This is Jhalak. I'm not sure what species she is, but I'm teaching her to speak English. Jhalak, this is my friend Dominic."

[facile-fivefold.livejournal.com]

"Hi Dominic!" "Oh hey." "Jhalak."

Jhalak waves cheerfully with one five-thumbed hand, focusing two of its five eyes on Dominic.

[grumpyseer.livejournal.com]

"Clever little creature, isn't she?" says Dominic, with a smile far wider than that warranted by his usual intellectual curiosity. "Where did you pick her up?"

[gone_byebye]

"Right here in the Bar, a few days ago," Ray says. "The 'she' thing is a matter of convenience. I don't even know if her species has gender. Jhalak's a female name in one of the nations of my world- we went through a book of names and I read them off until we found one she liked."

[facile-fivefold.livejournal.com]

"Jhalak," it says, enthusiastically. "It means 'a spark, a glimpse, a sudden motion'." "Clever little creature." "The 'she' thing is a matter of convenience."

[grumpyseer.livejournal.com]

"Aww, isn't that sweet?" coos Dominic. He reaches out to tickle what he presumes is the Jotok's underbelly. "Coochy coochy coo..."

[facile-fivefold.livejournal.com]

Jhalak scuttles away with remarkable speed, ending up clinging to Ray's knee under the table almost before the conclusion of the final 'coo'.

[gone_byebye]

"Bad idea," Ray says. "There's a mouth down there. The top's safer, and even then not without her permission."

He's apologetic about it, though.

[grumpyseer.livejournal.com]

"Oh, that's all right." Dominic turns his attention to Ray. "How about you? Chased any fun ghosts lately?"

[facile-fivefold.livejournal.com]

One limb pokes suspiciously out around the edge of the table so that the accompanying eye might stare up at Dominic.

Suspiciously.

[gone_byebye]

"We just ran into the ghosts of a couple of missionaries in a strip club," Ray says. "Apparently they were pretty unhappy about what'd become of the site they got stuck at when they died. Jhalak, are you all right?"