World Tree MUSH

After their trip to the bar the other day, Krystal decides to bring Marin along to the beach for some fun and relaxation. From what she knew about the mouse, he likely didn't get the chance for such things often where he comes from. Krystal is dressed in a soft pink bikini with a skirt bottom and sky blue trim and straps. She is also wearing a pair of sunglasses, and carrying a medium sized zip up bag. She smiles over at Martin as they begin walking past a few sand dunes toward the ocean. "How are you feeling today?"

     Martin had to buy a pair of swim trunks (probably with Krystal's help) before heading to the beach, because apparently skinnydipping is frowned upon in this world. He seems slightly awkward in them, fidgeting and picking at them every few seconds, but Krystal breaks the ice. "Oh, I'm... adjusting." he says, trying not to stare at her. "These are strange clothes to wear for swimming. I don't quite understand it..."

Krystal laughs lightly at Martin's commentary on the oddity of swimwear. "Clothing can be odd in general sometimes. For swim clothes, I guess it's just for the sake of modesty, and wearing less means you aren't covered in a bunch of wet clothes when you get out of the water, so you can dry off a little faster." She explains her thoughts on the subject as she finds a quiet spot on the beach and sets down her bag, unzipping it and pulling out a large towel that was big enough for two people to lay on and spreading it out over the spot. She then sits down on the towel and looks around a bit. "Done much swimming back on your world?"

Martin nods at her explanation. "I guess that makes sense. Something else I'll have to get used to." he says, following Krystal and settling down on the towel next to her. "I used to live in some caves overlooking a beach as a child. I can't say swimming was ever my favorite activity, but I'm familiar with the water, yes. I remember playing with my friends back then, splashing around and pretending to fight pirates." He lets out a small, wistful sigh. "Times were much simpler then."

     The general sounds of the Cornerian beach include the boisterous sound of beach-goers, but one sampling of such seem to be a group of around eight young ladies of varying species gathered around a central figure. The talking between them is giddy and nonstop even as they travel across the sand toward a a kiosk that sells cold treats like gelato and iced cream. The young Academy student working the stand smiles, but he can tell he'll have his work cut out for him soon. 

     "I can't believe it, can you? Can you believe it? I can't. Like, wow!" 

     "Did you see the way he smiled? I've never seen a smile like that before." 

     "Isn't he dreamy?" 

     "There's nothing quite like having ice cream on a day like this." 

     "Ladies, my dears, please feel free to make your personal selection and the gentleman will be happy to serve it to you. Anything at all, anything you'd like; I insist. It's on me." 

     A gaggle of cheers arise from the gathering in a way that makes a few others turn their heads to look. The swim-wear dressed throng migrates to the kiosk counter and each begin to go over options and make orders and the young dog behind the counter does his best to keep up. The movement of all the young ladies away from the central figure reveals the charming figure of a black panther in an indigo bikini with a red rose planted upon the print covering one half of his backside. Matching indigo shades rest on his face suitable for his facial build. A long visible scar rests vertically on his right cheek. Despite being fuzzy, his toned physique makes for obvious beach-time eye candy. He's not the only one around to have such an appearance, but the noisy young women sure do make it quite apparent.

Krystal nods and smiles a bit. "Sounds like fun. So you did have the chance to have some fun when you were younger. From what you told me of your world, I wondered if there was much allowance for that..." She trails off as she's distracted by the gaggle of beach goers a bit further up the beach, and first spots the frozen treat kiosk and grins. "Hey Martin, want to try some ice cream? It's a sweet desert made from frozen milk and cream, with other flavors. Nice to have on a hot day." She asks as she stands and turns toward the Kiosk, now noticing Panther, and inwardly chuckling, wondering how Martin will react to him.

Martin nods as well, unable to help smiling in return. "Yes. Though brief, they were good years, the best of my life." he says, though his smile starts to waver a bit until Krystal directs his attention toward the ice cream stand. "Ice cream? But how do they keep it cold out here, under the hot sun?" he asks, bewildered, but following her nonetheless... and staring a bit at the panther, who is... a /bit/ distracting. Sweet Mother Nature, some of the people on this world just have no sense of decency...

     It takes a while for all of the cold treats to be put together according to order and served. This allows the feline time to lift up his shades and enjoy his present company on a visual level, too, but it is not a hungry gaze. It more resembles that of an art critic enjoying the general composition as a whole. Appreciative, not demeaning. 

     "Altogether, that brings the total to..." 

     The panther carefully works his way through the beach babes who now all seem to be a bit more quiet now that they have some not-that-inexpensive cream ice to enjoy. He opens up a pouch on his wrist and a digital payment is processed. Turning about, the small group slowly walk along the sand. 

     "Yes," agrees the black-furred cat. "I was surprised they had that flavor, too. What good luck you have today." 

     Conversational levels have dropped even further, but talk still exists. Surprisingly, very little is directed toward the one that just bought the food. He responds here and there, but the ladies exist on their own level; the feline is disconnected, yet present. If anything, he seems to be quite happy simply bringing positivity and happiness into their day. 

     Incidentally, their slow path away from the kiosk intersects with a familiar fox and her unfamiliar friend. This gets a calm gaze and a small smile from him and he nearly misses the opportunity to make a save, for one of the girls trips on some of the sand in her bounciness and nearly faceplants. The panther is quick enough to react and catch her in his arms, but not before part of her ice cream is lost from her small bowl. 

     "Great going, Stacey," chides one of the other girls playfully and they have a good laugh. 

     "Here, Stace, you can have half of mine." 

     The cat-person steadies the dear on her feet, some ice cream is swapped between friends, and all seems well. A glance is given back toward the direction of a more familiar face, though, and there is the wonder of -which- Krystal it could be that he now knows.

Krystal grins at the question of how they keep it cold out here in the hot sun while they both walk over toward the ice cream stand. "Technology can do wonders." She offers warmly as she takes note of all the women around, noticing that Panther seems to have bought them all ice cream and even offers to share some of his own when a girl stumbles and drops some of hers into the sand. Seems the feline was enjoying himself by bringing a sweet treat to a bunch of ladies today. "Hello Panther, it's been a while. Staying out of trouble?" She offers in greeting. "This is Martin, an off worlder that I've been showing around a bit." She continues, introducing the mouse.

Martin hms. "It seems there's no end to what your technology can do." he notes, then glances between Krystal and Panther as it seems they actually know each other. "Is he a friend of yours?" he asks, but a moment later extends a paw for Panther to shake. "Sorry, that was rude, wasn't it? As she said, my name's Martin, though some call me Martin the Warrior."

     "Ah, Krystal, what a wonderful surprise," says the feline as if this were somewhat unexpected. His eyes fall upon Martin as he lifts his sunglasses once more to have a good look over before extending his own hand to meet that in a firm shake. "Welcome to Planet Corneria, Mister Martin the Warrior. I can see you are being kept in good company." 

     "Allow me to introduce my lovely friends," rumbles the black panther with some introductory gestures and gentle pointing. "This is Janice, Veronica, Sam, Stacey, Chafina, Marlene, and the twins...Melonie and Melody." Despite being dressed exactly the same, this feline is able to identify and distinguish each of the twin dogs with a displayed ease. This doesn't go without expressions of appreciation. 

     "I am Panther Caluroso, the Rose of Lylat." The sound of a Spanish-styled guitar strumming and beginning to play is pure and total coincidence coming from down the beach with a very different group of beach-goers having fun. "My dear friends here are on their way to surfing lessons and I wanted to wish them a bit of good luck." 

     "Oh, the class!" interjects Samantha. 

     Janice follows up, "I totally forgot. We aren't late, are we?" 

     "My dears, you have nothing to worry about. You have plenty of time to make your way there," assures this Caluroso fellow. "Why don't you head that way and I'll drop by in a few minutes to see how you are all doing, mm?" This seems to be enough. The girls each give Krystal and Martin greetings and farewells and a few compliments each (they're quite in a good mood) as they head away.

Krystal grins at Panther a bit and almost chuckles at his introduction of all of his canine lady friends, it would be a lie to deny she was impressed he could tell them apart. "You really do have a way with the ladies Panther, and surfing actually sounds fun now that you mention it, but for now, I wonder if you might have any more ice cream for my friend and I? It is nice to see you though. Maybe sometime we can meet again for some casual fun, perhaps you can show me the nicer parts of Corneria."

Martin blushes at the compliments from the rather scantily-clad maidens, mumbling a farewell to them in return as they head off to surfing class. "Erm... Yes. You have quite the way with the ladies." he echoes Krystal, struggling to think of anything else to say. "Ice cream sounds nice. What exactly is surfing, though? Something to do with waves, I assume. Is it anything like sailing?"

     Left alone before the mouse and fox after making sure to see his companions off, the dark-furred feline is able to regard each with a less distracted form of attention. "Yes," agrees Panther in the matter of having 'a way' with his female friends. "That is what they say, ha ha, and I'm inclined to believe it. On the way to the vendor for frozen goods, as well, and you require an escort?" With a one two-three stomp, a partial spin to about face, and a snapping of fingers in the air above his head in flamenco pose, Caluroso seems to enjoy a moment of dramatic emphasis. 

     "I shall be the one to guide you two to meet your chilly destinies." He glances over his shoulder to wink and a red rose is gripped between his teeth. Wait- A rose? Like the one matching his bikini? Where did it come from? Could it be sleight of hand? Surely he was holding it the entire time. He claps those hands above his head twice before dropping the pose altogether. Content to make a graceful scene, Panther starts walking back toward the kiosk. 

     "It's a lot like sailing, only down the side of a cresting wave so your fall lasts as long as possible, Mister Martin the Warrior. Perhaps Krystal might take you to learn sometime. Know her, she's likely quite masterful at it. Takes good balance." Caluroso speaks after removing the flower from between his teeth of which he now simply holds in his hand by the stem.

Krystal tries really hard to hold in any giggling as Panther goes through all that flamboyant posing. Where indeed does he keep that rose, that it remains fresh and perfect down to every last delicate petal. The galaxy may never know, but Krystal's grin finally breaks into a happy chuckle as it was hard to be around this feline without succumbing to his charms. "Ah, I see, so you are only the guide to the frozen treats, not the provider. Well in that case, lead the way, my graceful panther friend."

Martin chuckles a bit as well at the flamboyant performance. "You could give Gonff a run for his money with theatrics like that." he remarks, following behind the panther and sticking close to Krystal. "Speaking of, I hope you have enough. I hate to keep making you pay for everything for me."

     "Now, now. It wouldn't do to have the lovely Krystal welcome her friend to the magnificent Cornerian beaches without a taste of the local treasures," argues the cat as he nonetheless retraces his steps toward the kiosk where the solitary youth manning the register and service looks bored...up until he notices Panther coming back with more potential customers. 

     "They've a number of fruit-flavored mixes along with the standard confectionery selection and many toppings to choose from. I'm sure there's something to your liking." As before, Caluroso stands just off to the side out of the way so that the menus are all visible. "Would you like to have the honor of helping your esteemed friend choose something, Krystal?" 

     A side-glance is given the young fellow behind the counter when he speaks. "Wow, mister, you really know how to make friends fast."

Krystal follows after Panther as well and greets the ice cream vendor with a smile before taking a moment to look over the flavors available. She chuckles at the man behind the counter as he comments about Panther being good at making fast friends. "Well, I won't deny the truth of that, but we've met before, and Martin is a friend of mine. As for choosing a flavor, hmm, I was thinking of chocolate peanut-butter swirl. But what do you think Martin, would you like something fruity, or a bit more exotic like chocolate or coffee?"

Martin looks over the menu as Panther steps out of the way, though there are a lot of things that just look... unfamiliar. As Krystal brings up a couple choices, he gives her a quizzical look and asks, "I'm sorry, what are those? I've never even heard of them." However, his eyes fixate on one flavor: Strawberry. It takes a monumental force of will not to salivate at the thought of it. "I think I've had enough new experiences for now. I'd very much like a strawberry, please. It's... somewhat of a luxury where I'm from, I guess you could say."

     "I shall be paying for these two, as well," notes Panther, just so the youth understands as much. The ice cream is, by default, served in cups, but the cups are made from a hardened sugar. One -can- eat them, but it's not all that necessary. Rather, when one is done eating their treat, the cup can easily dissolve in water. It also prevents unnecessary litter from cluttering the beaches. People are actually pretty responsible about that kind of thing. The society is very pollution conscious. 

     While not a very hard iced cream, it is neither a soft serve; the homemade style is very rich with a heavy creamy flavor, which might explain why the proportions are smaller than 'average'. "I'm sure you'll find it quite enjoyable. Perhaps you can try something new the next time you visit, mm?" Toying with that rose idly, smiling softly as he watches the two make a selection and be served, Caluroso readies to pay once more. Off to the side, a few children run down the more moistened sand laughing and playing chase. Down the beach a ways more, figures can be seen floating out toward the incoming waves on boards about as long as people stand tall.

"Well thank you Panther!" Krystal offers with a smile as the feline offers to pay for the ice cream. She has to admit strawberry sounded pretty good, and if it was something Martin enjoyed back home he surely would like it, but still, she decides to make him an offer. "If you'd like a tiny taste of a new experience, you can try a bite of mine." Having said that, she accepts the bowl of ice cream from the gentleman behind the counter and looks it over, it certainly looked delicious, much higher quality ice cream than she expected to find at a beach stand.

Martin nods to Panther, graciously accepting his ice cream. Sugar bowls, huh? That's another thing he never thought he'd see. "Thank you very much, Mr. Caluroso." he says, then glances toward Krystal's ice cream as she makes her offer. "Well... In that case, I'll trade you a bite of mine as well. It's only fair, after all." he says, scooping a small spoonful from Krystal's bowl as he holds out his own for her to do the same.

     Panther steps in to deal with the transaction once more using digital payment. It's all a very uniform experience on his end. It would impossible to count how many things he has bought in such a way. After all, if you can afford to pay for the nicer things in life, he believes you should. Otherwise, to what other point is there in having such money? It's no surprise that the quality of frozen treats served at this kiosk is high. Especially so if he's taking friends there. 
     This gives Krystal and Martin some time to compare and trade and have a moment to be social amongst themselves. Panther prefers to play the gentleman card and it wouldn't be polite to completely overshadow any aspect of their beach vacation just because they bumped into him. 

     "Oh, that reminds me, Krystal," comments Caluroso as he finally turns away from the counter. "I have a lead on that matter of security and access to wanted information. I have to dig a bit deeper, but I shall let you know if anything pans out. A discussion for a later time." Panther interrupts himself with, "And that offer still stands concerning the apartment, whether made for one." A playful gaze is passed over Martin without actually being -too- obvious in his ribbing. "Or two, rrrr. Heh heh."

Krystal grins and nods to Martin, taking her first bite of ice cream from Martin's bowl before eventually starting to eat her own. "Mmm, that is very good strawberry ice cream. Good choice Martin." She comments before taking a few moments to savor her own ice cream one slow bite at a time. When Panther finally speaks up she turns back to him for the moment. "Oh, well that is good news. Maybe we can look for an apartment and talk about the other thing. Got any openings in your schedule coming up?"

Martin is a bit hesitant at first, but he bravely sticks that spoon in his mouth... and it's not too bad, huh. "Wow, this is... actually pretty good. I can taste the nuts, but there's also a... sweet flavor I'm not used to. Uh... hm. That must be the chocolate, I guess?" he says, smiling up at Krystal. "Thanks for that. Thanks for all of this, actually. I'd say my day has been thoroughly brightened, haha!"

As the conversation shifts, though, he says, "An apartment? Some sort of living space?" He doesn't pry into the rest of it though, knowing when to respect privacy. He does, however, blush just a little at Panther's remark.

     "For a lovely lady such as yourself, you only need to call and I shall /make/ the time." 

     This is said rather matter-of-factly on Panther's behalf. This might be mistaken for flirting despite being a very genuine sentiment, but the feline of the three is unafraid to speak his thoughts. 

     Addressing Martin in explanation, Panther now has the experience of other Worlds and understands that not everything is the same across all that might be taken for granted. This aspect of accepting such questions without strange looks or criticism may or may not be overlooked. "Yes. Krystal here is in need of..." With a pause to phrase things politely, he continues, "Newer accommodations to update with her new work environment. Perhaps something here on Corneria." 

     With a turn, the cat gestures off far down the beach to one of the high-rises overlooking the ocean. "I hear the condominiums of Gloria Fortuna hold very high ratings." That's- That's a very expensive place to purchase to live. They are also condos and not apartments.