OPEN | we run away, but we don't know why.

[evite]

who: skye & you, hopefully.
what: an open search for new accommodations + closed starters in comments.
when: late july & august.
where: city-wide!
warnings: none yet.

☇ step one: find your bliss

( it's not that the community housing is bad. it's clean, comfortable, roomy even. it's nicer than anywhere skye's ever been allowed to rest her head; her assigned apartment is bigger than anything she's ever been allowed to claim for herself before. but that's just it: skye's never had a room to truly call her own before, and the thought of breaking that tradition in riverview of all places just doesn't sit well with her.

before she'd been summoned here, she'd been with shield, a cooperating asset assigned to a bunk in the bus; before that, she'd been on her own, moving from temp job to temp job while racking up hacktivist community points with the rising tide while commuting in her van. the same van that was currently lost in some shield civil forfeiture lot, probably already raided and ransacked by nerd squads looking for dirt on her anonymous brethren.

suffice it to say, skye sure as hell wished she had said van. but she didn't. at least, not yet. she was going to change that, starting with an outing to an important destination: a used car lot, one where skye begins to spend most of her free afternoons wandering up and down the aisles, ignoring the sensible four-door sedans and fuel-friendly mopeds for big square hunks of metal that might, with enough tender love and care, turn into something suitable.

should she spot someone else crossing her path, she might mistake them for an employee... or just somebody who knows something about cars. why else would they be here? )

So, if somebody wanted to hypothetically rip out all the interior shit on this and start from scratch, could they?

( if it's a bus? maybe? if it's a moon equivalent to a toyota camry? well, try not to laugh too hard in her face. )

☇ step two: make your bliss work for you

( eventually, she picks something. it's going to need work, and while skye has experience living in a van, she doesn't exactly have a ton of experience getting a van to move-in-ready status. thus, her decision to bring it — by tow truck — to the closest mechanic's bay, where she'll be spending the next few weeks hovering, offering vaguely helpful suggestions, and attempting to do her best to help (and thus, keep labor costs down where at all possible).

when she's not at the mechanic's shop, skye can be found in various retail shops, scouring for everything from electronic components to car parts to home decor, trying to slowly but surely put together the pieces of the puzzle. for those that don't interrupt her with their own concerns, and to anyone who gets roped into helping her at any stage of this project (whether it be mechanic, retail employee, or just some random passerby in the road), she'll ask a million questions, because that's just the kind of annoying person that she is. )

... so what do you think about this?

( what is "this"? depending on what she's seeking out that day, her arms might be full of anything from tacky beaded curtains to a blender that operates on the van's 12-volt port to a truly absurd pile of metal squares that look suspiciously like solar panels. none of it is technically necessary, but try telling that to skye. )

☇ step three: share your bliss with everyone else

( the van will be a project that takes up the better part of her life, but that doesn't mean she won't have time to be a human being who does other things. at least, not technically. thus: a wildcard option — if there's something you want, come holler at your girl. just don't be disappointed if conversation swerves wildly... just like her driving... )

Comments

[alfa]

[ He's adaptable, is all. He doesn't feel as strongly as she does about living in such close quarters with other people, but then that also might have to do with the fact that he was in the Navy. Practically no notion of personal space in shared barracks. (Which also makes him appreciate having his own space and privacy all the more. Works both ways.) ]

Ouch. Not that I was actually suggesting that, for the record, but I'd make a great neighbor, just so you know.

[ Also he's definitely not haggling for her, wow. You're a big girl, Skye, you don't need a big man doing stuff for you. Well maybe some stuff. Y'know. ]

Besides, your cute little van wouldn't make it out in the wild. And that's where I wanna go.

[evite]

Uh huh. ( not entirely convinced. not entirely mad about it, either. ) Maybe I'm just being selfish. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, right?

( the statement's said entirely too sweetly to be genuine, artificial saccharine dripping from each syllable; even though she makes an effort to try and keep a straight face, she doesn't quite manage it. no, that laughter repressed still crinkles the corners of her eyes, a dead giveaway every time. )

Don't be rude. Maybe I was planning on putting all-terrain tires and a killer stabilizing bar on the axles for some off-road adventures. It could happen.

( it's not going to, though. at least, it's probably not going to. )

[alfa]

Yes, I'm sure you've grown fonder of me with each passing moment since we last saw each other.

[ She's just being sarcastic, he can tell, but he doesn't seem to mind all that much. He's not so sensitive and unsure that he'd take something like that to heart, besides— they get along well enough, but they barely got to know each other. They had... other priorities. Very nice priorities. ]

Mmhm, maybe you were. You definitely look like an all-terrain kind of woman to me. [ He probably deserves a shove for that one, or maybe a slap with how wide he's grinning. ] Do remember to drop by if your cute van ever manages to make it past the wall.

[evite]

Oh, whatever. [ she could shove him, but that seems like work, so he'll have to settle for an effusive eye roll and groan combination at his bad joke. ] My cute van might just run your ass over if you're not careful.

[ it's a nice ass, though, so maybe not. ]

Not this one, though. [ the van, she means. ] I'm still on the hunt.

[alfa]

If it can even go past forty, sure. We'll see about that.

[ He likes to flirt with danger!!! Also cute girls it seems. But now he's just teasing her for the hell of it. ]

Oh, good. I'd have hated to be the one to break it to you and tell you— this one? [ He squints his face into a frown, making a thumbs down gesture. ]

How many have you looked at, so far?

[evite]

It'll go a hundred. [ no it won't. ] And I'm going to convince my mechanic friend to program the horn to play music just to antagonize you.

[ because he seems like the kind of guy to be annoyed by van horns playing mariachi music, obviously. as for this van, she knows it's ugly, so she's not offended by the gesture. she agrees. ]

This is number four today. I'm honestly kind of over looking, but I also don't have anything else to do today, so...

[alfa]

Oh my God. How much cheesier can you make it, seriously?

[ Neon lights? Colored rims? Tinted glass? Spray-on flames on the sides? Seriously she'll just make herself look like a douche. And also probably give him nightmares, but really. ]

Well, the good thing is that when you find the right one, you'll know right away. Kinda like a 'love at first sight' sort of thing. If none has clicked so far, then you're not there yet.

[ So no, he doesn't think she's overlooking. It's an important decision, he gets it. ] But maybe you could take a break for today.

[evite]

Oh, I could make it way cheesier. It could brie amazing... but I might have to gouda little crazy to do it.

[ RIMSHOT. ]

Are you suggesting I should play hooky from my own van search, sir? Because I am shocked, and also absolutely listening if you feel like cluing me in on your idea.

[alfa]

[ He groans and covers his face, trying to hide his grin and suppress a laugh. He's not entirely successful. Why is he laughing at dumb puns? Why does he think it's funny and cute?? You're a monster, Skye. ]

Well, I'd feel pretty lame suggesting drinks again, but we could do something else, if you want. Lunch? [ He shrugs. ] Or I could show you around the zoo. I got a job there, so— exclusive opportunity to get much closer to some of the animals there.

[evite]

[ because everyone loves dumb puns, that's why! you can't stop the beat bad jokes, owen, don't even try. ]

I mean, you did buy me a giant drink last time, I could probably take up the lunch tab for you this time around. [ see? she's so generous! ] If you promise to introduce me to some super cool animal friends.

[ #casualsuggestions... ]

It's basically my life goal to hang out with an elephant, you know.

[alfa]

That's not a bad trade, actually. I'll take you up on it. [ He'd have introduced her to some super cool animals either way, but he won't say no to getting a free lunch out of it. ]

Does a baby elephant count? Because we do have one of those. [ Well, an alien-ish elephant, but it's close enough. And safer than a wild adult elephant. ]