milliways_bar | Someday she'll listen to Davan.

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Someday she'll listen to Davan.

PeeJee is fresh from GoblinCon. She probably won't be willing to do more than hiss about gamers tonight, but she is In The Bar, and that is what's important. She drops enough cash on the bar to make a significant dent in her tab-- and before she can look around for a bartender, it vanishes into the bar's surface.

Cool.

She smiles weakly. "Could you give me a beer if Kitt's around tonight, or a whole mess o' tequila if he's not?"

A very cold beer appears. "That already makes me feel better." She glances around to see if he's in the bar-- nope, so he must be outside with Karr. Well, beer first, and then she will consider peeking outside to see if their brotherly time can stand a girlfriend or not.

But really, beer first.

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After having a long talk and visit with Karr, Kitt returned to the indoors. He unpeeled the red scarf enough to just hang around his neck, removed his gloves and tucked them into his pocket - but he thought that perhaps it would be better for him to return those to his room. Who knew what scarves and gloves ended up translating to as a car? And he didn't want to overheat in New Mexico.

So he approached the bar, asking quietly for hot chocolate and forking over that piece of plastic again. And then he caught a glimpse of familiar purple hair.

And he smiled a little.

Once armed with hot chocolate, he started over, and he perched on the stool beside hers.

PeeJee no longer looked quite as worse for the wear as she did when she came in. Still just a little tired... but that faded as she smiled over at Kitt.

"Hey, you."

"It's a bit of a temperature shock," he said quietly. "The temperature at headquarters was... similar. But it's very warm in New Mexico." But he still had that little smile. He felt better for having helped his brother, even if it was so small a help as brushing off the snow and scraping off the ice. When he could come here, it would be one of the first things he did. "How are you?"

"I'm doing okay. It's not this cold in Boston, but it's close. I'm glad to be done with Goblincon for the day." And she pulled a face... then shook her head. "So, since you were outside, I'm guessing you and Karr were hanging out?"

Kitt nodded. "I bought a snow-brush from the Bar. I cleaned his shell off and scraped the ice from the glass. I think he appreciated it."

His smile grew a little when he remembered Karr's hugs to him. "I would have, in his place. I told him that if he came in, he wouldn't have to worry about the snow."

"I told him that, too... didn't think of buying a brush, though." She shrugged. "He said he liked the space and that the cold doesn't bother him.

"And that he hates chairs," she added with more of a smile. "I'm not sure... I think he's not really... either he's not comfortable indoors or he isn't really sure of his welcome. Or it's something else I haven't thought of yet."

"He told me he hates chairs as well," Kitt confirmed, nodding - and he could almost chuckle. Almost. "I wouldn't be comfortable indoors if I were in my true body, either. I can't blame him for staying outdoors in that case. But he does have an option now."

Sipping at the hot chocolate, Kitt shrugged. "And I don't blame him for not taking it yet."

"I think he mentioned that. No, I'm sure he mentioned that. In a lot of ways, it's easier to be what you know you are.

"I'm glad, however, you have other faces to wear. You're beautiful as a car-- I've seen the photo and I've seen your brother. But cars don't smile. Or blush." Though she was picking up on how to read Karr, at least.

"Not being able to blush is one trait that I'm rather glad I have as a car," Kitt informed her with a momentary smirk, attention soon turning to the cocoa he drank. "I'm still learning about a great many things. Karr and I spoke about that, too."

"I happen to find it adorable, but it's one item on a long list." Sip of beer, tilt of the head. "You two talked about blushing? Or things cars can't do?"

"The differences, mostly, in being a vehicle and being humanoid. I told him how shoes are more complicated for me to tie than a Windsor knot." A little shrug. "The smaller things were what gave me trouble, though now I seem to have mastered them quite well."

"I can see why you wouldn't want to tie your shoes in a Windsor knot. But yeah, you seem to have most of the basics down-- besides eating solid food, but hey."

Yet again, Kitt made that nauseated face. "I know it's mostly necessary, but just the process..."

She poked his side, playfully. "How different is it from gasoline to exhaust? And better for the environment, too."

"Thank you, but I am nearly one-hundred percent fuel efficient." At being poked, he twitched aside, rubbing a hand to the offended spot. "In any form. But putting anything solid into your system... I simply cannot imagine relishing it, even though Michael most obviously does. Often."

"Sorry. No poking, huh? As for Michael, maybe he likes the taste of whatever he's eating?"

"It surprised me," Kitt protested, and lightly rubbed his side again, curiously moving his jacket, tugging up his shirt to see what, if anything, it'd done, before smoothing it back down again.

"You should see some of the things he eats, though. It's not natural."

"Somebody's getting over his shy," PeeJee said, amused. "And it wasn't hard enough to bruise."

Though now there was a little more color in her cheeks-- that had been a nice little stretch of white skin.

"Doesn't mean it still doesn't taste good. People will eat all kinds of things."

Extremely white skin. MBS didn't tan, after all. And Michael had once suggested that he get some sun, but upholstery tended to bleach out with light.

"I'd not been poked before," he explained, and rubbed at his side a little. But then, he just shrugged. "Devon once said Michael was definitely a carnivore. Personally, after having analyzed his preference for ketchup-laden hamburgers, chili, pizza sauce, sloppy joes, salsa and other Mexican foods, I've come to the conclusion that Michael is closer to a vegetarian - specifically with a bias toward tomatoes."

PeeJee giggled. "Landed with a junk food junkie, huh?"

But something... seemed different. "You seem a little off. Are you okay? Is Karr?"

"Oh yes, we're both fine," assured Kitt with a nod. "I've not got much time left for tonight, though. Michael and I are in the middle of a mission. Tomorrow will likely be the close of it all."

"I guess I should kiss you quick before your Michael Alarm goes off." She meant it in fun. Mostly. Or at least in a very specific sort of teasing. "I hope this one's gone better than the last?"

Kitt gave her a small smile at the suggestion of her kissing him quickly. But then he shrugged. "This mission is nothing out of the ordinary. I've helped keep a tractor - the front half of a tractor-trailer - on the road... A pair of men tried to damage me with baseball bats. I was forced to back into one of them."

Then he paused.

"I didn't know teeth were removable."

"Baseball bats don't do anything to you back home, right?" Oooh, dangerous PeeJee.

"Teeth can come out. Getting them back in is harder. Why?"

"One of the men that decided to try to fight Michael removed his teeth and handed them to the other before throwing the first punch. The second was the man I backed into." A faint shrug. "He was going to try to hurt Michael."

"Oh, like dentures?" PeeJee considered telling Kitt about her couple of turns as an aide at the retirement home... and then decided against it. "Should I be concerned for the guy you hit, or for you?"

"Dentures." He paused to research the term - just a moment, really - and then he nodded. "Yes, dentures, I suppose. It would make sense."

Then, he just shrugged once more, sipping at the hot chocolate. He was getting addicted to those things, he realised. "Feel sorry for neither of us - he wasn't injured. It was just enough to knock him off his feet, and for him to complain to the sheriff about."

And there was a small hand on his arm. "Still sounds like a long day."

"Part of it is that I miss Bonnie," he answered, and shrugged once more. "She's there... but it isn't the same. I don't feel like I can fully trust her yet, but she isn't... happy like she was."

But part of the issue was that he was sidestepping part of the issue. The issue he'd spoken of with Karr.

"She can probably tell things aren't what they were," PeeJee offered. "Time is probably the best help for it... It tends to help, with settling emotions down." Alas, PeeJee was not a mind-reader, but she gave Kitt's shoulder a squeeze anyway. "It might take effort and patience from both of you... and that's if you want it back the way it was."

"I don't think she realises that I do. She's just not ... not even tried. I hardly even saw her this mission. First she and Devon went to Chicago, and now it's just... cursory, the way she's upgraded me. Speaks to me as if I'm not really there."

"Oh, honey." She slid off her stool, wrapped her arms around Kitt's waist. She tried to think of something to say that would help-- maybe Bonnie had a bad experience in Chicago-- but nothing came to mind. "Want me to yell at her?" Her tone said clearly she suspected the answer was no.

Her suspicions were right. "No," Kitt murmured, even though he hugged PeeJee in return, closing his eyes and lightly resting his forehead against her hair. "She's Bonnie. She helped design me. She helped program me. I didn't forget that. She won't either."

"Then this is the best I can do." And she rubbed at his back. "Sometimes things just get a little strained between friends. Or a lot strained." Sometimes all you could do was offer what comfort you knew how and hope it was enough.

With her rubbing at his back, he did loosen up a bit. It was a nice feeling. One of those that just didn't quite equate to one in car-form. Though when Michael leaned against the side, it was close. "It's the first time things have been strained with any of us... Except between Michael and I."

"You're young yet," she told him, a little sadly. "This is one of those things I wish I could protect you from, but... No dice, it looks like."

"It's not as bad as it first was with Michael. With a bit of... of cajoling, I'm sure something will work out," Kitt nodded, but he hugged her tightly all the same, soaking in the reassurnce.

"Of course it will, if you want it to. Talk to her." PeeJee smiled, tilting her head up at Kitt. "Who could fail to be charmed by somebody so sweet, hm? You'll get through this, both of you."

"But there is a mission to finish. And it's early morning. Michael will be getting up soon."

Very, very lightly, he leaned in to kiss her. One of his typical, gentle and chaste kisses. "I need to go."

She did not push for a more involved kiss, but leaving off the contact not high on PeeJee's list of favorite actions.

She wanted more, but he didn't have time just now.

"Be careful out there?" Far less than the I love you or the come back to me that she wanted to offer, but...

"You choose the most difficult day of a mission to say that," he softly teased, then nodded. "Yes, I'll be careful, but I'll be fine. I'm invulnerable out there, after all."

Sliding from his stool, he gently kissed her forehead, like he used to, and then gave her a smile. "I'll be back once everything's quiet again."

"I'll be here whenever I'm free." Deep breath, and she worked on untangling. "And I'll miss you."

"Don't miss me too much. I do tend to get occupied. And this time, I have one very important programmer to convince." Another little smile and he gently draws back, finishing his hot chocolate and thanking the bar before looking back to her.

"Good morning, I suppose."

And with just a bit of humour in his eyes, he walked out toward the door... then stopped in mid-stride. "Before I go..." He pulled his gloves from his pocket, lightly placing them in one of her hands, the scarf gently looped around her neck. "It's warm in New Mexico."

And then he went out the door, into a dark world that seemed to brighten when he came near.

She toyed with the scarf for a moment, puzzled.

Why did she suddenly feel like crying?

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Someday she'll listen to Davan.

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