Shenanigans!

[phaselocknroll]

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[phaselocknroll]

[ Maya had made Pandora sound like a shithole, yes, but it was the most amazing shithole ever. Truly beautiful sometimes, with the lush green of the Highlands, the cold beauty of the Southern Shelf, and the near constant aurora borealis hanging in the night sky. It was a planet built on the backs of criminals and capitalism, used and abandoned, but it was a planet that had learned to not give a fuck about the rest of the universe. To Maya, it had been her freedom. In the short time she was there, it was more of a home to her than the abbey had ever been.

And it was nice to see familiar faces. When Maya and the rest of the Guardians took the Fast Travel into Sanctuary, she was greeted with a sea of smiles and hugs. Lilith had given her a significant look, quirking a brow at Peter. Maya just gave a small nod, cheeks coloring slightly.

Gaige had been a little more direct, giving her a thumbs-up and a drawn out Niiiice.

But she had been spared further embarrassment when Rocket had taken interest in Gaige's mechanical arm and somehow managed to trigger Deathtrap's digistruct sequence. After a bit of robot-related chaos, Vault Hunters and Guardians dispersed in groups of twos and threes, settling in to talk shop or grab a drink at Moxxi's, where no doubt they would run across the town Bounty Board or people with things that needed doing. They would stay occupied and probably turn a nice profit in the meantime.

Maya and Peter made their way to Zed's clinic, where they explained to the doctor (the doctor without a medical license, but it was probably fine) what had happened. He lamented that by and large, Sirens were still a mystery, but he'd do his best to make sure there wasn't any lasting damage.

All in all, she was given a clean bill of health, aside from learning that she might be prone to nosebleeds when using her powers for a few days.

That left she and Peter to wander Sanctuary for a bit, arm in arm ]

You know, it almost feels like I never left.

[nostalgiabomb]

[ After meeting all of Maya's companions, Peter had been in kind of a daze. Truth be told, when he was told he would be meeting her friends, Peter went through the same sort of nervous breakdown a boyfriend might when he has to finally meet the parents.

It wasn't so bad after all, though, and he was so, so glad when Rocket brought attention to himself and pulled it off of Peter.

Pandora wasn't nearly as bad as he had imagined it to be. It was about as bad as any other planet he had been on, but he had to admit some of the views were nice. If it weren't for the rampant murder, he could see himself living here at some point. ]

It's like coming home, right?

[phaselocknroll]

A little.

[ They've reached the literal edge of the city, the broken edges of concrete giving way to the long drop to the Highlands, out in front of Scooter's shop. ]

Are you doing okay? I know that was probably a little overwhelming for you.

[nostalgiabomb]

No, it was fine. [ And he shoots her a smile. ] You've got some interesting friends. They seem nice.

[phaselocknroll]

They're quite the group of characters. But they mean well.

... I was wondering how you felt about staying here for a few? I'd like to catch up, maybe pick up some jobs, show you around a little.

[nostalgiabomb]

[ What he wants to say is, "Whatever you need." What he actually says is, ] Should be fine, as long as we can turn a bit of a profit.

By the way? This place isn't as bad as I thought it'd be. I think I had a mental image of it being constantly on fire and littered with corpses.

[phaselocknroll]

I guess I did kind of paint an interesting picture, didn't I? [ she laughs a little. There were some areas that were as he described, but, well, no place is perfect. ]

There's no shortage of things that try to kill you around here, but people manage to make a living all the same. It's kind of inspiring, really.

[nostalgiabomb]

[ That coaxes a small smile from him. ] I can see why you like it here, then. It's pretty.

... Shame about the Psychos, though.

[phaselocknroll]

They don't really bother you if you don't bother them, so at least there's that.

... And they're not all bad. Krieg saved my life once. [ He had growled something menacing and incomprehensible at Peter- probably his own Psycho way of saying "If you hurt her, I will wear your intestines as a hat" ] Sorry about him especially, by the way.

[nostalgiabomb]

[ Oh right, that guy. The guy who had pretty much gotten in Peter's face. Peter's always been good at reading people, and as crazy as Krieg had been, the body language was pretty clear. ]

-- It's cool. He didn't bother me. He, uh. [ And here he tries to choose his words carefully. ] ... Seems especially interesting.

[phaselocknroll]

That's the nice way to put it. [ she gets it, really. Krieg is scary as shit and bugfuck crazy. But she's never seen him hurt someone who didn't deserve it, so she trusts him to do what's right. ]

Really, I'm more worried about Rocket and Gaige being in the same room together for too long.

[nostalgiabomb]

... Fair point. [ and the thought makes him cringe. ]

On the one hand, we may have an awesome bazooka by the time our layover is through.

Ooooon the other, they may blow up the planet. It's a toss-up. Hopefully Groot will keep them in line.

[phaselocknroll]

As long as no one gets Mister Torgue involved, I think the planet is safe. Can't say much for the fate of Sanctuary though.

[nostalgiabomb]

-- Mister Torgue? I didn't meet him already, did I?

[phaselocknroll]

No. He runs one of the weapons manufacturers that do business here on Pandora. All Torgue weapons fire explosive ammunition- it's kind of their schtick.

He's... very enthusiastic, but I think you might actually like him.

[nostalgiabomb]

Enthusiastic. Gun manufacturer. Stuff about explosives.

... What I'm basically hearing is keep Rocket the hell away from him. Got it.

[phaselocknroll]

Just don't let him go to the Badass Crater of Badassitude and we'll be good.

[nostalgiabomb]

Badass Crater-- [ He pauses. ] You're messing with me, right? There's no way that's a real thing.

[phaselocknroll]

Oh, it's a real thing. He held some kind of televised competition there. That was a good time.

[nostalgiabomb]

... You know the best people.

[phaselocknroll]

I know, right? [ she laughs again ]

Well, then, how would you like to spend the rest of the evening?

[nostalgiabomb]

[ He doesn't miss a beat-- ] In a bed with you, mapping out your tattoos with my tongue.

[ He pauses again, then has the decency to at least pretend to look abashed. ] Sorry, did I say that out loud?

[phaselocknroll]

[ In that moment, Maya's thought processes suddenly go alkjdkjghsigd ]

... Yes, you did.

[nostalgiabomb]

[ His answering shrug is sheepish, as if to say, "Eh, what can you do?" ]

Whoops.

[phaselocknroll]

Do you say things like that to fluster me on purpose?