Unsurprisingly, Barrett hadn’t been paying much attention. He fumbled for the ball again, scowling at the fact that he had fallen for such an elementary bluff. With a sneer, he leaned back in his seat, tossing the ball back and forth.
“Yeah, okay,” he huffed, “Throw me the cutesy date question. Great. Awesome. Just what I wanted to answer.” He fiddled with the edge of his cap, obviously trying to think of something to say. “I mean, there’s not anythin’ wrong with just… poppin’ in some games an- WAIT.”
He froze, his eyes gleaming with a freshly-hatched idea. “Forget what I just said. I know
exactly the kind of place to take a date on: the Octo Valley surface.”
Grinning at his own (debatable) brilliance, he sat forward, a trademark warning that he was about to launch into a long tirade. “I’m gonna guess that you’ve all heard of Octo Valley before,” he continued, “but if ya don’t, here’s the sweet version: it’s a whole mess of caverns deep underground, made up of the ruins left by the guys that used to live around here. All the ancient buildings are in bits and pieces – juttin’ out of the rocks and stuff – turnin’ the whole thing into this teetering trash pile.
But-” – and he motioned his pause with the ball – “that picture? It’s only true if you go way into the valley, deep-deep down. The surface is a whole ‘nother story.”
He picked at a loose rubber band in half-thought, his arms resting on his knees. “Now, the surface of the valley ain’t a cavern. Yeah, there’s still some metal ruins, and the rocks are all sorts of weird, but the ground is solid. What’s crazy about the place is the views; they go on for miles, over clear skies and mountains galore. I’ll be honest, tryin’ to describe ‘em would take the rest of class, so you all’ll have to take my word for it that they are, legit,
breathtaking.”
His epic finally finished, he leaned back in seat, crossing his arms behind him as he did so. “Anyway, long story short: Octo Valley Surface. Ruins to explore, amazing views to take in. Heck, I’d be pretty impressed if someone took me over there. But maybe that’s just me.”
He scanned the group for a new victim. “Let’s see… how about you, DJ? Haven’t heard from you in a bit.” He tossed the ball in Vinyl’s direction. “Oh, and by the way, I’m changin’ the question. How about…‘What’s the worst scuffle you’ve been in?"
He chuckled at his own question. “Seems like some good stories could come outta that one.”
((OOC:
@Robikku Squid: the ball is headed your way.))
