Tornadoes and skeletons and nacho dogs, oh my

[phantomrider]

[So this is how he gets away with it, then. Cruz, a skeleton, with a skeleton horse, lives in a skeleton of a house with a skeletal barn attached - and he remains unseen, his home apparently abandoned, all the way on the outskirts of this thing that's barely a town.

Well, you do what you gotta do, and Johnnie won't turn down a kind offer of a safe place to stay the night. He can't help but grin at Chrissy having such a good time riding that bony horse as he pulls the bike in through the barn door and parks it to the side, then hops off.]

Hey man, we owe ya for this. Here.

[See, this is yet another reason it's good to stock up on alcohol. He finds their most recent stolen bottle of tequila and pulls it out as he saunters over to their host and offers it in an outstretched hand.]

On us. Uh, if you drink, that is. You do drink, right?

[Normally that would be a dumb question to ask but the guy appears to be actual bones. But, bones that can smoke, without lungs, so he can probably drink without a mouth, right?

That earns a laugh from Cruz.]

I sure do, fella. You don't have to, though. I'm not looking for any kind of repayment, just helping out a couple folks in need.

[Johnnie shakes his head and waves that attempt off.]

Nah, it's all yours. Or if you really insist, we can all split it tomorrow, the three of us an' the rest of your crew. Can't wait to meet 'em. They all skeletons too?

Comments

[phantomrider]

[His hand in her hair slows and eventually falls still. There's a sense of calm, of hope, at finally being so near home again. It was the right move to leave for a while, and it's been a hell of an adventure, but goddamn he just wants to be back where the streets are his own. Tomorrow, things will be as they should be, for the first time in weeks.

He's out hard, once he falls asleep. So he's sleeping on the ground out in the hills near Tucson, it hardly matters - this might be the best sleep he's had in days, maybe longer. When he finally wakes up, it's due to the heat, not that it's unbearable out, but he's still in his jacket and the black leather isn't exactly a cool material. Even so, he's reluctant to actually open his eyes. He can handle being a little too warm for another few minutes -

Nope. No, the sooner he's up, the sooner they can get going, and that immediately banishes any possible thoughts about sleeping in. He stretches and smiles broadly at the sky, at the tree, at nothing at all, really. Time to get up, which means extracting himself from Chrissy in case she's still asleep. She can have a few more minutes, won't hurt anything.]

[cheerleader]

[She's in a deep enough sleep that he's able to pull free and let her lay on the blanket. Rather than curling up on herself, she sprawls out and take up the entire space, legs and arms outstretched. Eventually she picks up on the fact that he's not there beside her, and she blinks awake so she can sit up and look around.

He's already getting ready to head out.]

You must be excited.

[She lightly teases, yawning and stretching as she gets up and on her feet. The blanket needs to be folded and put away, and she's pretty sure she looks like she just slept outside. She's at least gotten good at pulling her hair up into ponytails without a mirror, so that just leaves her makeup to worry about later when they stop.

All that done, she approaches him to wrap her arms around him and greet him properly with a kiss.]

Can we stop for lunch after we've been on the road a few hours?

[phantomrider]

Morning, babe.

[He flashes her that same big grin and lets her go about getting her things ready while he digs through the bags for any spare snacks that may have gone overlooked before. Aha, yes, there's the stuff he grabbed from that gas station stop most recently - a Snickers for breakfast it is, then.

He gulps it down and pulls her in for that kiss.]

Sure. We're not far from Phoenix, I bet we can find somethin' good there. Or if you're hungrier, Tucson is just right down the road. Start our day with a real meal, if you want.

[He can just call the candy bar an appetizer, in that case. Actually, he'd like something that isn't so full of sugar, now that he's had it. Hm. Should've gone for the jar of peanuts.

The wind will mess up his hair but even so, he combs it back, then shakes dust off his jacket and pulls that back on.]

Ready when you are.

[cheerleader]

Let's stop in Tucson, actually? That way we can drive further before we have to stop again.

[And surprisingly, her stomach is growling a little. All this eating real meals thing has made her body used to getting food put in it. But he seems open to getting something to eat sooner rather than later, so she rubs at her stomach to tell it to shut up and admires the sight of him all ready for the day. He really is incredibly attractive, and something about the way the light of day is hitting him just makes her fall a little more for him.]

You taste like chocolate, by the way. In case you were wondering.

[She has to swoop in close to smack at his butt, but she does it with a laugh before making a mad dash to hop on the back of the bike.]

[phantomrider]

You like it?

[He snickers and playfully retaliates by chasing after her. She beats him to the bike, but he throws his arms around her and pulls her in for a kiss.]

I gotta pull this thing back up to the road, babe, we aren't drivin' up that riverbed.

[They have a routine though, that's for sure, and she's settled into it. Makes him happy, even if it's going to be the last day of that routine for a while.

It takes some huffing and puffing to get the motorcycle back to the little dirt track, then up onto the highway. The thing's no dirt bike, even if it handles offroad conditions pretty well most of the time. But there, that long stretch of pavement with Tucson ahead, and California farther still, is a welcome sight. Time to get back on the road.]