Sime/Gen Roleplaying: Two Roads Diverged Scenario
Episode #47: Smelling Error (7/27/98)
Eliza is now seriously hungry.
Eliza: Shen, I wish I were Sime!
Eliza considers her options.
Passerby, walking past Eliza and zlinning her despite himself, wishes he weren't a Sime.
Eliza: Well, I can't go back to that Tecton center, not after yesterday!
Passerby hurries on his way.
Eliza wonders what following a rich looking Sime, while feeling deliberately hungry at them, would do.
Bum Bum flies out of a brothel, unintentionally.
Bum Bum: Aargh!!
Bouncer: And stay out!!
Bum Bum manages to land on his feet, by augmenting and doing a sidewinding somersault through the air.
Bum Bum: I'll thank you to keep your hands... [slam! the door closes]... to yourself, you ape!
Bum Bum mutters to himself and turns away, brushing himself off and trying to look a bit more dignified.
Eliza tries to put food from her mind and concentrate on finding Snake and/or Tanzarra.
Eliza: Where would I be if I were Snake?
Eliza has no idea.
Bum Bum disappears into a side street.
Eliza: Why didn't I stay with them?
Good Angel: Now Eliza, remember not to act impulsively.
Eliza whirls around to her right.
Good Angel: It's acting impulsively that got you into this in the first place... maybe this happened for a reason!
Eliza: Who said that!?
Good Angel: Maybe you were meant to do something great, and good, and that is why your path was turned.
Eliza: Who are you?
Eliza: Where are you?
Bad Angel: Don't listen to her, Eliza. She isn't real. All that's real is that you're hungry and you miss your friends. Let's go pickpocket somebody and then shoplift some fruit from the vendor.
Eliza: I can't do that. I don't know how. I'm not quick enough.
Good Angel: And you're too good, Eliza. You are better than that. Let's go to the homeless shelter and volunteer to help them in exchange for a meal.
Bad Angel: Bah! Boring. You're made for more exciting things than that. How about slamming a rich Sime with your nager and then taking his belt?
Eliza: There is a homeless shelter?
Bad Angel: You could be well away before anybody realizes what happened.
Good Angel: There are always shelters, because there are always homeless.
Good Angel: Do what you know is right, Eliza. Do what you know is good.
Eliza: I don't want to hurt anyone - really.
Good Angel beams self-righteously at Bad Angel.
Eliza wonders if she shouldn't start making long term plans.
Eliza: Maybe I could find some work or something.
Bad Angel: Bah!! [vanishes in a puff of black smoke]
Eliza sees what she thinks is a familiar figure in the distance.
Good Angel vanishes also, probably too soon.
Bum Bum is walking along the street, checking his pockets to see if he has enough left for a good restaurant or if he has to go somewhere scummy (again).
Eliza blinks, could that be???
Eliza: Bumanuel!
Bum Bum thinks he hears something familiar.
Eliza: Ooops! [ducks into a doorway]
Bum Bum turns and tries to zlin through the crowd in the street, but zlins and sees nobody familiar.
Eliza: Oh shen! What do I do now?
Bum Bum: Huh. [surprised]
Bum Bum shakes off a spinetingling feeling, and slowly turns and starts walking again.
Eliza peeks out to see if he heard her or not.
Eliza: ~ relief ~
Bum Bum counts his change, is pleased to note he has barely enough for a decent lunch, and puts it back in his pocket.
Bum Bum reverses directions and starts toward a restaurant he knows.
Eliza: EEEk!
Bum Bum once again thinks he hears a familiar voice.
Bum Bum, who is not overly tall, tries to see and zlin over everybody else's heads.
Eliza ducks into a shop, unfortunately a perfumery.
Bum Bum once again can zlin nobody familiar.
Eliza picks up the nearest bottle and pretends to examine it.
Eliza: "Jungle Passion" How much!!!!!?
Bum Bum's neck hair stands up and he feels a shadow pass over his soul.
Bum Bum starts looking in all directions in a paranoid fashion, and continues cautiously down the road.
Eliza carefully puts the small bottle back down for fear of breaking it.
Clerk looks at Eliza.
Clerk: That will be 90p, dearie.
Clerk clearly doesn't think Eliza is good for the money.
Eliza nervously looks over her shoulder.
Eliza: Err what? Oh I wasn't thinking of buying it.
Eliza: I was just looking.
Bum Bum walks right past the door of the shop.
Clerk follows Eliza's glance, then gives a start of recognition.
Eliza ducks behind the clerk.
Clerk: Oh! Bumanuel Altavista? Sir? Sir! Your order is ready.
Eliza looks around for a back way out.
Eliza wonders where the "Staff Only" door goes.
Eliza heads towards the counter in front of the door.
Bum Bum goes into the store thinking this must have been the voice he'd heard earlier, then nearly has a stroke when he zlins Eliza.
Bum Bum: ~~~!!!!!!!!~~~
Bum Bum: Eliza!!
Eliza gives up.
Eliza: Oh, Bumanuel, fancy meeting you here. I was just leaving, I hope you have been well? Snake will have been sorry to have missed you.
Eliza: Well it was nice seeing you again, I'll tell Snake I saw you.
Bum Bum faints.
Bum Bum: [crash]
Clerk: Oh, I say. [twitters]
Eliza: Oh dear!
Clerk looks in dismay at the display rack which was flattened by the fallen channel.
Eliza runs over and kneels beside him.
Clerk's nose twitches at the powerful aroma that arises.
Clerk sighs and goes and fetches a broom to start sweeping up the broken bottles.
Bum Bum stirs, moaning.
Bum Bum appears to be in fairly good health, clean and well dressed, hair too long but well groomed.
Bum Bum: I had the most horrible dream... [woozily, eyes still closed]
Eliza: Bumanuel! Are you okay?
Eliza sneezes over him.
Bum Bum: I... ow!!
Eliza: Sorry! [wipes him down]
Bum Bum has managed to cut his arm on one of the pieces of glass on the floor.
Bum Bum's eyes fly open and he sees Eliza, then zlins her.
Bum Bum stares at her in shock.
Bum Bum: It was you!
Bum Bum: Is she here too?
Eliza: It wasn't!
Eliza denies everything.
Eliza: Who? Is who here too?
Eliza: Oh! You cut your arm!
Eliza picks up his arm and carefully removes a small shard of glass.
Eliza: ~ concern ~
Eliza applies slight pressure to the injury to stop it bleeding.
Eliza: I'm sorry I startled you.
Eliza sneezes again.
Bum Bum gradually becomes aware that he isn't going to be murdered in the next few minutes or anything.
Bum Bum looks and zlins around cautiously.
Bum Bum: Snake. Are you still with her?
Bum Bum tries to sit up.
Eliza: I don't know [sneeze] where she is.
Eliza: I lost track of her a few [sneeze] days ago. Boy that stuff smells!
Bum Bum zlins what he thinks might be truth in Eliza, and perks up.
Bum Bum: I have to go home and take a shower. [agrees]
Eliza realises that Bumanuel is drenched in it and that she has a fair amount of her as well.
Bum Bum notes that the clerk hasn't come back yet and gets to his feet, trailing broken glass.
Bum Bum: Ah... I'd rather leave before she comes back, if you don't mind?
Bum Bum does not have the means to pay for half the store.
Bad Angel: Go! Go!
Eliza wonders if Bumanuel will maybe feed her, for old time's sake.
Good Angel: No... it's wrong, you should pay what you owe and so should he.
Eliza: Sure, I'll come with you to make sure you don't, you know, faint again or anything.
Bum Bum hesitates, worried that this might be some deception, perhaps to lure him back to Snake's clutches.
Bum Bum's greed gets the better of him and he agrees.
Frick comes down the street having just been for his transfer at the Center and is feeling pretty damn good.
Bum Bum: All right. Thanks.
Bum Bum leaves the store and hurries down the street, making sure Eliza can keep up.
Eliza ignores the voices, figuring that Bumanuel would be less likely to feed her if she starts talking to "herself".
Eliza trots alongside.
Frick smells and sees what obviously is a pimp and a pro heading towards him rather quickly.
Eliza: Where are you staying? Is it far? [Does it have food?]
Frick approves of the fact that he doesn't have to go looking, he wishes everything he wanted would come to him that way.
Frick tries to ignore the fact that the pimp smells like an explosion in a perfume factory.
Frick: Excuse me!
Bum Bum looks up at Frick.
Bum Bum: Yes?
Bum Bum: Can I help you?
Bum Bum has the sort of naturally mean-faced look that lends itself well to the role.
Bum Bum moves protectively closer to Eliza.
Frick: I was wondering if your friend there would be interested in helping me have a good time? ~ post transfer ~
Eliza wonders if it involves food.
Bum Bum zlins Eliza's interest and is surprised.
Frick smiles in what he considers to be a "friendly" fashion.
Bum Bum: So ah, [he's never actually done this before but he has been on the customer side often enough to know how it's done]
Bum Bum: What are ya interested in, your basic dinner-at-a-fancy-restaurant, then your place?
Eliza wonders if this is another case of "mistaken identity".
Frick was more interested in just the "then your place" bit.
Frick: Actually I wasn't thinking of anything that involved.
Eliza likes the sound of the "dinner-at-a-fancy-restaurant".
Bum Bum zlins that Eliza's interest has surged at the mention of simplicity.
Bum Bum: Oh.
Bum Bum: Well, are you game? [to Eliza]
Bum Bum realizes this isn't exactly true to form but hopes the guy is too post to think about it.
Eliza: I'm a bit hungry, sure.
Eliza is ravenous by now but has been practising her "control" and isn't showing it much.
Frick: I've got what you're hungry for, baby.
Eliza looks at him uncertainly. "Don't you have some food back at your apartment Bumanuel?"
Eliza is uncertain just why a complete stranger would want to feed her. She thought she was doing better at the control than that.
Bum Bum looks between Eliza and Frick and realizes Eliza has no clue what has just transpired.
Frick: Sure, back at his apartment is fine!
Bum Bum looks at Frick.
Frick is glad they have a place, his place is a mess.
Bum Bum: Sorry, she on a whole different level. She's used to being taken out in style.
Bum Bum: Try Fazaudian's Feather Parlor on 38th street.
Bum Bum takes Eliza by the elbow and carefully steers her past Frick.
Frick: ~ anger ~
Bum Bum tries to project ~~ loss of interest ~~
Frick: Who do you think you are? Smelling like a two bit whore. Telling me I'm not good enough for your tart here? [pulls a wad of notes out of his pocket]
Frick: I'll have you know I'm use to higher class whores myself!
Eliza: ~ understanding - and embarrassment ~
Bum Bum does a double take as he sees the money.
Frick shoves the money back in his pocket.
Bum Bum wishes Eliza were a little more loose, but can't really see any way to arrange it on such short notice.
Bum Bum: Sorry, we're not interested. Go to one of the quickie shops.
Bum Bum: ~~ disinterest ~~ hiding a core of ~~mournful regret~~
Frick: Ah [removed due to censorship]!
Eliza blushes. "Oh dear!"
Bum Bum hurries Eliza along faster.
Eliza cringes.
Eliza: I had no idea! I thought.....
Bum Bum: I know what you thought.
Bum Bum laughs unexpectedly.
Eliza isn't sure what she was thinking actually.
Bum Bum: You were thinking with your stomach. I should have guessed.
Bum Bum: You aren't really the type to sleep around for money, at least you weren't before.
Bum Bum: ~a shame~
Eliza: What's funny?
Bum Bum: What's funny? I thought you were interested, you kept peaking interest in your nager when he talked about going back to his place.
Bum Bum: I didn't realize it was just the food.
Bum Bum: Not until you said that about my place.
Bum Bum laughs again.
Eliza: Oh no!
Bum Bum of course wasn't the one put in an embarrassing position.
Eliza blushes furiously.
Bum Bum: Quite all right. Nobody who knows you saw it, and my lips are sealed.
Bum Bum at least can be counted upon to not tell anybody who knows Eliza, since he plans to stay outside of a 10 mile radius of all those people if at all possible.
Eliza: I did try to donate for money yesterday, but they thought I was someone else.
Bum Bum: Donate for money!!
Bum Bum: That would be a waste of your considerable talents.
Eliza: Do you know who Madrian is?
Bum Bum: Nope, can't say as I do, but I have only been in town for two or three weeks myself.
Bum Bum: How long have you been here?
Bum Bum stops in a doorway and fishes out some keys.
Eliza: Lets see, I think we arrived 5 days ago, then I lost them 4 days ago.
Eliza: About that.
Bum Bum: Snake isn't still trying to find me, is she?
Bum Bum unlocks the door and shows Eliza into a dark stairwell leading up.
Eliza: ~ hungry ~
Eliza: Well, you are going to be all right now?
Bum Bum: Yes, yes I am.
Eliza: I don't know what Snake is doing. ~ honestly ~
Bum Bum: Would you like to come up and wash up?
Bum Bum: I would love to buy you something to eat afterward.
Bum Bum winces almost imperceptibly as he realizes the offer parallels the previous encounter in an unfortunate manner.
Eliza: I guess I should get going.... ~ hungry~
Eliza: Oh! Well, that's very kind of you.
Eliza goes inside the dark stairwell.
Eliza sneezes as the smell of the spilt perfume fills the cavity.
Eliza: What have you been doing since we, err, left you Bumanuel?
Eliza climbs the first flight and stops on the small landing.
Bum Bum: I'm on the 2nd floor.
Bum Bum goes to his door and unlocks it, ushering her into a small, plain rental room.
Eliza looks around the bare apartment.
Bum Bum: It isn't much, but it's all I require at the moment. I'm not sure if I'm staying in town yet or not.
Bum Bum: [explains]
Bum Bum: The shower is in there... do you want the first one?
Eliza: I don't have a change of clothing ~ regretfully ~
Bum Bum: You could wash them in the sink... I have soap.
Bum Bum points to the kitchen sink where various washed socks are hanging in a row.
Eliza: What would I wear while they dried?
Bum Bum looks around.
Bum Bum: There's a nightshirt in the bathroom if you want to use that.
Eliza isn't surprised that Bumanuel has soap. Snake, now, that would have surprised her....
Eliza: Socks?
Eliza: Oh I see.
Eliza considers how long this would put food off for.
Eliza: [sigh] Well I guess so. Thank you very much for your help.
Eliza is starting to feel guilty about the way she left him back at the carnival.
Bum Bum goes to the sink and starts stripping off his perfume-soaked shirt.
Bum Bum examines the cut on his arm, which does not appear to be serious.
Eliza goes into the bathroom and has a quick shower and slips on the nightshirt. She has worn sackier things in her time.
Eliza comes out of the shower.
Eliza: Finished in the shower, thank you.
Eliza carries her clothing (well, Madrian Lortisone's clothing) over to the sink.
Bum Bum has already washed his clothes and is in the nude.
Bum Bum seems unselfconscious about it and simply goes into the shower.
Bum Bum is too busy plotting how to get his tentacles on Eliza again long-term to say much as they pass.
Eliza wonders if it's safe to open her eyes again and sighs with relief as she hears the shower door shut.
Eliza: He couldn't have known he was doing that. Could he?
Eliza starts to get seriously worries about the amount of "talking to herself" she is doing lately.
Eliza: At least if I'm aware of it and worried about it that must mean it's okay. Shouldn't it?
Eliza waits to see if anyone is going to answer, then, when no one does, starts to wash her clothing.
Eliza hangs them out and check out the apartment for food.
Eliza: Why don't Simes carry more food with them?
Bum Bum eventually emerges from the shower, with damp hair and wearing a clean set of nice clothes.
Eliza starts to wonder what Bumanuel has been doing for transfer as well.
Bum Bum comes back out into the room.
Bum Bum: Well, should I go out and find you something to eat?
Eliza: Oh that would be wonderful! ~ relieved ~
Eliza: I'll just wait here then shall I?
Bum Bum: All right. I'll be back soon.
Bum Bum thinks that the Railroad Salvage Market, the only place in town where a Gen's meal could be bought for the coins he had in his pocket, is only 6 blocks down.
Eliza sits on the bed and tries to think of ways to occupy herself until the food's return. Errr, Bumanuel's return.