Joe

by JMDARE

Chapter 30

“I can’t believe you bought me this.”

“It goes with your dress, and your name.”

Rainbow Dash looked at Joe with a mixture of puzzlement, pleasure, and annoyance. So far their trip to Canterlot had been very pleasant. Rarity had warned them about the problems and advantages of an outside cafe table. The advantage was to see and be seen and perhaps have someone ask where they had got their clothes, the disadvantage was that you might be approached by snobs. They’d taken the risk and had enjoyed drinking their cups of coffee flavoured foam with a small amount of actual coffee in the bottom of them and eating pastries that were so flaky and light as to almost vanish into dust when touched.

While there and drawing eyes that Joe assumed were admiring the ladies, and the other three suspected were more wondering what that was sitting with them, they had talked about having a meal while they were here. There would be refreshments at the event but Rarity warned them that eating their way through the buffet would not be polite, before she winced and mentioned how everypony else at the infamous garden party had been taking discreet slivers of cake and then Pinkie Pie had stuck her face in it.

Spike solved the problem by suggesting they filled up with doughnuts, though he reluctantly agreed that would be better done between the event and the train home. Rarity would not have any trouble due to the complex patterns of her dress and her ladylike skill at eating without mess, but the other three were wearing darker clothes that sprinkles and sugar would show up more against and were, perhaps, a little more inclined to produce crumbs. Joe’s only real comment was that if the doughnut maker was called Pony Joe then he was glad they’d not decided to call him Not-Pony Joe.

They still had a short time before the event, or so Rarity said when she actually meant they still had a short time before enough Ponies would be there to make an adequate audience for them to make an entrance. Walking and promenading seemed a fine way to her to spend that time and the other three raised no objections. Joe did like exploring, Spike liked the chance to show off his knowledge of the layout of Canterlot, and Rainbow Dash just knew there was no arguing with Rarity.

As they passed along a street of shops and boutiques and did a little window shopping Joe had suddenly asked them to wait though. There was a slight eek of surprise from within as Joe quickly popped inside and the Pony shopkeeper had to deal with a human customer. Joe had returned with a relatively small but long velvet-looking box and, holding it out towards her, had opened the lid to Rainbow Dash’s surprise. The shop was a jewellers and inside the box, nestled on some white cloth, was a crystal sphere on a long silver chain.

“With her name?” Spike asked, making Rainbow Dash blink rather than stare.

Joe shut the box. “Let’s find a quieter spot,” he suggested, turning back the way they’d come and starting to walk. Rarity and Rainbow Dash exchanged looks as they followed and Spike trotted a little to catch up and give Joe an enquiring look. Glancing down Joe explained. “Unless things are different here raindrops are actually spherical from the surface tension of the water.”

“Right,” Spike nodded, “and?”

“And…” said Joe, not continuing for a few moments as he turned into the small public gardens they had passed before. “And this,” he said, opening the box again and taking the crystal sphere out. He fiddled for a few minutes trying to get the angles right but eventually a band of colours appeared on the white cloth inside the box. “Rainbows are formed when light bounces off the back of raindrops and gets refracted.”

Rainbow Dash and Rarity exchange looks again. The former had grown up in Cloudsdale and had shown the latter and the rest of their friends around the factory where Rainbows were made. They were not going to object and spoil the moment though, it did seem a lovely if mistaken gift.

“Yeah, if it was that simple then why would they be curved?” Spike objected. “And not over the whole sky?”

“Because it only happens at the right angle between the sun, the rain, and the eye. It’s like the rainbow is the round end of a cone and you’re at the point.”

Rarity caught Spikes eye and as their gazes locked she gave him an eloquent, though non verbal, message to shut up. Spike nodded very slightly in return and didn’t argue with her message or what Joe had said.

“Now…” Joe continued as he turned, “hold still Dash, let’s see how it looks.”

“Joe…”

“Glad you didn’t tailor these trousers too tight, Rarity,” Joe smiled with a brief smile to her as he crouched.

“You could have asked her to hover, despite my warnings.”

Joe fastened the chain around Rainbow Dash’s neck, trying to not linger over the task or her. “Hmm,” he mused as he leaned back a little, “dangling a little low… aha.”

“What?” Rainbow Dash asked.

Leaning forward again Joe unfastened the chain and then the necklace of interwoven strands. He held the crystal sphere against the bottom of the curve of this and began winding one end of the chain around and up it, looking satisfied as he judged it right so the two clasp-ends would be together. Then he did the other end of the chain up the other side of the necklace and managed to get it right, with minor adjustment, so he now had two pairs of clasp-ends. Leaning back in to the watching Rainbow Dash he fastened both clasps around her neck before he stood and stepped back. It seemed to him the silver chain blended well with the silver and obsidian strands, but he looked to the fashion guru who had also watched with interest.

“I think that looks okay…” nodded Joe. “But, Rarity?”

“Very nice,” agreed and slightly corrected Rarity, “I’d not join them permanently as that crystal on a chain would go better alone with some things and I think the necklace as it was went better with her dress. But the combination is nice and might work better than the necklace alone when we add the extra to the dress to meet the ‘fussy’ standards of the event.”

The bag Joe was carrying twitched and a mirror floated out and across so Rainbow Dash could see herself. Joe nodded to Spike at this revelation of part of the contents. “I said it was lady stuff.”

“And I said I can’t believe you bought me this,” Rainbow Dash reminded him, taking her eyes from the mirror to give him a serious look. “Rarity was talking about how exclusive those jewellers were, so it must have been expensive.”

“Don’t worry about it,” said Joe, he’d hoped for more delight but she’d seemed happy enough before the surprise wore off.

“How can I not?”

“Because the compensation payment I got for being brought here was generous, and if that was expensive then the compensation must have been very generous.” Joe paused and nodded and added. “And I’ve been being overcharged for things in Ponyville.”

“My prices have been fair,” Rarity reassured him.

“There you go then,” nodded Joe. “Not cheap but not expensive.”

“Okay,” Rainbow Dash conceded, “but seriously, as much as I like this please don’t again. At least not for a while. Even if you can afford it this still feels… too much for now, for it not being a birthday or holiday or something.”

“I know…” said Joe with a rueful smile, “and the author of a book on etiquette would not be pleased with my whim. Especially since I looked at it for exactly the question of what, if any, presents would be appropriate.”

“And that would have not been,” Spike pointed out.

“So Spike has the better manners than me.”

“Of course I do.”

Rainbow Dash managed to smile at the byplay while Rarity looked around. “Hmm, I think here is private enough,” Rarity decided. “Leave the bag and depart, both of you… please.”

Joe nodded and left the bag and they departed and waited just outside the small public gardens for a minute or two. As Rarity had mentioned privacy Joe was ready to apologise and ask any Pony wanting to enter to wait a little, but although it looked like a few had that intent it seemed he was mistaken. Or perhaps it was the unspoken message of a human and a dragon standing right in front of the entrance, the former having unthinkingly crossed his arms over his chest and that body language seeming to work on Ponies, and those approaching deciding to change their minds.

The ladies emerged and unfolding his arms from his unintentionally intimidating stance Joe turned with a smile that broadened as he saw the results. A longer skirt and extra jewellery had been added to the ensemble, the skirt draping like a cape from just behind Rainbow Dash’s neck and made of sections of very sheer fabric connected by multicoloured lace bands. Her lower dress had shaded from dark to slightly lighter blue but these fabric panels faded from deep shades of red to orange, green to blue, and indigo to violet. Short strings of gems of different colours dangled from the lower edges of the lace bands, like her mane and tail forming rainbows and shifting as she moved to glitter against the fabric behind them. More lace bands with more short strings of gems looped around her front over the ‘shirt’ and others without gems wrapped down around her upper forelegs to cuffs and form loose multi-stranded ‘sleeves’ that mirrored the tighter and more solid single-coloured bands coming up from her sandals.

“Fabulous,” Joe murmured.

“Not too much?” asked Rainbow Dash.

“It suits you in a different way, it still allows your grace to come through but shows how smooth and flowing your movements are rather than how energetic and agile. Somepony who couldn’t move as smoothly would make things tangle or go askew or clatter together.”

That seemed a good enough argument to Rainbow Dash and the time it had taken to get her fully dressed and have a little girl-chat about her new jewellery seemed enough time to Rarity that they could proceed to the gallery. Floating the bag to Joe and ignoring his slight ‘hrm’ when he noticed it had been folded smaller and this had revealed that was another of her bags with a, different, floral design she had begun to lead the way. The Ponies of Canterlot were generally well dressed but as they neared their destination the elaborateness of the styles of clothing and of manes increased sharply. To Rarity’s pleasure they were still causing a stir and despite how strange… unique… Joe looked a great portion of that stir was admiration of her work.

At the gallery entrance a Pony that reminded Joe of the worst sort of maitre de gazed at them for a moment. He had a little podium he was leaning on so that he could remain on his hind legs and look down on the guests as well as the guest list on the top of this. Unfortunately for him it was only a ‘little’ podium and he’d not thought he’d need to be that upright so, by drawing himself up, Joe was tall enough to make the Pony have to look slightly up rather than down. The bag twitched again and the invitation floated across to intervene between the Pony’s attempt to continue to look snooty and Joe’s placid ignoring of this.

“Oh, er…” the Pony said as he saw the name on the invitation. “Fancy Pants, of course…”

The Pony gestured frantically and another fractionally shrugged before his horn glowed to unhook the silk rope across the entrance. Rarity smiled sweetly to them both as the invitation floated back into the bag and then led the way inside. As the quartet entered the Pony tried to regain his sneer as he peered down over the edge of his podium at the next party and hoped for no more surprises that night.

“He seemed a little shocked,” Joe commented as they looked around at the ornate and fairly empty hall.

“I can’t imagine why,” twinkled Rarity. “Not as if there is anything surprising about you.”

“He seemed a little shocked when you showed him your invitation,” Joe amplified.

“Oh, that…” said Rarity with a smile, stalling before she revealed her punchline. “Not like most of those attending were invited through the gallery rather than as personal guests of the head of the friends of the gallery association.”

“He thought we were riff-raff?”

“Hardly riff-raff, darling,” Rarity chided. “But shall we say only more middling?”

“Comparative riff-raff.”

“Oh, all right.”

As they got deeper into the gallery the number of artworks and of Ponies ignoring them in favour of each other increased. Fortunately for Joe even if the eye level of some of the stallions was about as high as his he could still see over their backs and admire the art. Unfortunately for Spike his eye level was a lot lower and he began to wish Joe’s wasn’t about the only pair of trousers around. He didn’t mind normally, or even notice, but with how crowded things were he was getting a close view of a lot of unclad stallion rears. Especially when one was actually bothering to look at a painting and in backing away from it almost gave Spike a very close view.

Thankfully a side room was more sparsely populated and Spike managed to regain some composure. “These artworks,” he explained, “are ones that are normally on display, so the Ponies that are interested in art will be back in the larger hall…”

“And the Ponies who are only interested in being seen at the event,” Rarity interjected, “will be there as that is where more people will pass through.” She sniffed and looked at the other three. “I must say that I do have a desire to maintain or improve my social standing, but seeing them I do understand why Twilight would be so frustrated with their lack of interest in anything else.”

“I’m not sure her social standing can improve anyway,” commented Joe. “When a Princess is your tutor and another is your sister-in-law and former foalsitter…”

“I mentioned how Shining Armour and Princess Cadance met,” Rainbow Dash nodded.

“It’s not something to worry about, not that I think she would anyway,” continued Joe, then he chuckled. “Though preserve us if she ever did focus her brilliance on this sort of thing, if she started to analyse social interactions with as much precision as she does other things.”

“Hmm,” Rarity mused, “I’ll agree, but only so far. I can imagine Twilight doing better and having absolutely perfect manners by the standards of the manuals of etiquette, but I can also imagine her when other Ponies don’t follow those same manuals.”

“Yeah, Twi isn’t so good at improvisation,” nodded Rainbow Dash.

“She dooooeesss like her checklists,” Spike agreed.

Joe nodded. “Fair point,” he conceded, “science and math you get the same result from the same situation, people are more random even when they aren’t Pinkie Pie random.” He looked around the room for something else to say and then blinked at a pedestal. “Is that a Grecian Urn?”

“No,” Spike replied, accidentally setting up an old joke with his next words, “what’s a Grecian Urn?”

“Depends on the Grecian’s job,” smiled Joe, utterly unable to resist, “but that aside do you remember Dash teasing me about Gymnasiums?”

“That you think it means place of naked exercise?” Rarity asked.

“Used to mean,” nodded Rainbow Dash, “in the language of the same people as the source of the human version of the Equestria Games.”

“Wait,” Spike frowned, “he said something about two-thousand years ago, theirs is still going after that long?”

“Myths and stories survived and the Olympics were revived much more recently,” replied Joe, peering at the Urn, “but one way to know about the ancient Olympics is to look at the vases with scenes depicting them. Grecian Urns, which look rather like this.” He leaned back from it a little. “This is weird, I so expect to see naked or nearly naked men on this,” he admitted, smiling to the others, “they made them naked even when they were doing things they’d have actually worn clothes for…”

Joe stepped back and looked to Spike, who took his cue. “Well, this isn’t Grecian,” Spike nodded, “and has Ponies who are at least dressed in their fur, but…”

Spike continued his explanation and spoke about the other items as they moved around the room while Joe tried to ask intelligent questions without harping on about parallels and human cultures. They moved back through the large hall and into another side room, the former as crowded as before and the latter as uncrowded as the other side room had been as this was more of the normally displayed artworks. Even if these could be seen during a normal gallery opening they were still worth seeing now and it was a disappointment when they reached a third side room and found this crowded. Fortunately the Ponies were all clustered on one side of the room so not all the art was being obscured by them.

“Funny,” Spike commented quietly, “these are also ones that are normally here, at least that one is, I remember Twilight blushing…”

Joe nodded, even if those involved were Ponies he could recognise the eroticism of the piece and imagine Twilight Sparkle having to explain it to an inquisitive small Dragon. “At least we can see the art in this half of the room.”

“Getting any ideas Joe?” Rainbow Dash teased, nodding towards the art in question.

“I wonder…” mused Rarity.

“You wonder if he is getting any ideas?” Rainbow Dash asked, in mock surprise.

“No. I wonder if…”

There was a stir and the clump of Ponies broke up as a tall Pony with a monocle and what looked like a moustache broke free. “Ah! I thought I recognised that voice,” he declared, smiling and approaching. “Rarity! A true pleasure to see you again. So glad you could make it.”

“Fancy Pants, hello.”

“Are you going to introduce me to your friends?” asked Fancy Pants, giving Rainbow Dash a smile. “Though of course I remember Rainbow Dash, fastest Pony in Equestria, even if she wasn’t actually the Wonderbolts’ trainer.” He twinkled at Rarity who blushed. “And I think I can guess who these fine fellows are.”

“We are a moderately distinctive pair, it seems,” Joe replied, his elocution improving at the challenge. Though part of him was wondering about reincarnation and if this was the next life of a very famous actor who had the same style, on screen and off, of effortless breezy gentlemanly charm.

“Indeed,” said Fancy Pants with another smile, while his hangers on whispered and chattered and pretended to be looking at art rather than shamelessly eavesdropping, “though proprieties must be observed.”

“Of course,” Joe nodded.

“Erm, well,” said Rarity, “Fancy Pants… this is Spike.”

“Caused quite the stir when Twilight Sparkle managed to hatch you,” Fancy Pants said, looking down, “I hope you and she continue well?”

“We do,” said Spike, feeling a little intimidated by just how tall and charming as well as well-connected Fancy Pants was.

“And,” Rarity continued, once she was sure Spike wasn’t going to say anything else, “this is Joe.”

“Not quite as much of a stir,” nodded Fancy Pants, looking up a little, “though I confess there was some gossip.”

“I am surprised there was any,” Joe replied politely, “given how blasé your immigration officials seemed about the problem they had been given.”

“It was more about how fortunate we were that the accident had not brought something dangerous to Canterlot.”

“I found it hard, then,” Joe said, giving Rainbow Dash a quick smile of reassurance, “to feel it quite as fortunate that something or someone else had not been brought, but the welcome was a pleasant one.”

“Glad to hear it,” nodded Fancy Pants to Joe before looking across to the source of a mutter, “though what was that Miss Dash?”

“I said Joe intimidated a Diamond Dog by threatening to geld him, so he’s at least that dangerous.”

“How the…” Joe began, wincing at the sudden flurry of gossipy noises from behind Fancy Pants. He looked down. “Spike!”

“I had to tell Twilight… and I guess she told the others.”

“And it does sound like a tale worth telling!” Fancy Pants said, then he made a eloquent expression as he twitched his head towards the other Ponies. “Though another time perhaps?”

“Perhaps,” replied Joe, getting the message of ‘when not so many ears’.

“I’ll look forward to it,” Fancy Pants nodded, moving off and drawing the rest of ‘his’ group with him like iron filings to a magnet.

Joe paused and waited for the room to empty of all but the four of them and then looked to the others. “I like him,” he said, sounding puzzled.

“I told you that you would,” Rarity smiled.

“Yes… he knew I might not want to talk about something in front of all those other Ponies,” said Joe, giving Rainbow Dash a mock glower.

“Oops?”

“Forgiven, not like they’d believe it,” smiled Joe, “though what was that about Dash and being the Wonderbolts trainer?”

“The first event Fancy Pants invited me to was the Wonderbolts Derby,” Rarity began to explain.

Joe wondered if this was more like a horse race or an air race, and that second thought reminded him of another anecdote from the test pilot’s book. Leaving that story for another time he just nodded and said “Right?”

“When I picked the right winner I quoted Rainbow Dash’s opinion,” Rarity continued, “then when they asked me who she was I panicked and said she was the Wonderbolts’ trainer.”

“So that’s where that came from…” said Rainbow Dash.

“Why though?” Joe asked. “I mean, no offence to the Wonderbolts, but it would seem the truth is far more impressive…”

“Joe,” protested Rainbow Dash.

“Oh no,” Rarity smiled, “he’s quite right. I don’t know why I didn’t say the truth, maybe I was worried it would be too impressive. If they’d not believe you about Joe and a Diamond Dog then imagine how they’d react if I’d told them the half of what you’ve done.”

“Or the quarter,” muttered Joe to himself, worrying Rainbow Dash. Awesome was good, too awesome to kiss was… not awesome.

“So, Spike,” Rainbow Dash said, deciding to shift the topic, “what did poor Twilight have to say when you asked her about that?”

With a slight look of apology to Joe, and one of embarrassment to Rarity, Spike launched into a rather stumbling explanation, claiming when teased mildly that he was just trying to reproduce the style in which it had been given to him. The other artworks in the room were soon also discussed and Rainbow Dash was pleased to see Joe taking some enthusiasm in talking about colour and form, as much with Rarity and her designer’s eye as with Spike and his knowledge. The latter did seem a little suspicious so as they moved out into the main hall again Rainbow Dash decided to ask.

“Spike?”

“Yeah Rainbow?”

“Why do you know so much about this?”

“Rainbow!” Rarity chided. “What reason does he need to appreciate fine arts?”

“Pretty girls to impress?” suggested Joe.

“Joe…” Rarity began to reproach him.

“And well worth knowing for its own sake,” smiled Joe, as Rarity rose to the bait.

Thankfully the main hall was a lot emptier than before so they could see the sculpture in the centre of it, an abstract affair of intertwining flames reaching up towards the ceiling. They stopped and craned their necks to follow the form of it upwards and Joe tried to decide if it was paint or lighting that caused the colour shift as it tapered.

“Though Joe was more motivated by the first reason he gave,” Spike added after they had looked a while.

“He was?” asked Rarity.

“Don’t want to seem too stupid,” Joe shrugged, “and I do have a disadvantage compared with Spike…”

“Only one?” teased Rainbow Dash. “I am sure Spike could think of a few more.”

“I don’t knock my head on doorframes,” Spike added.

“But you do get to be called ‘short arse’ until you do,” nodded Joe.

“Bah.”

They moved across to a large canvas and Joe decided that was as good an example as any. “This is my disadvantage,” he said, waving at it. “I want to say it looks like it’s by Salvador Dali, because he was the human surrealist painter who did melting clocks and the like.”

“But I know who it is really by,” nodded Spike, “because even if Joe learned as well as I did, which I doubt…”

“Careful there,” Joe smiled, “I’ll say Twilight did a fine job, but a fine line between that and suggesting my parents didn’t.”

“Or that you’re too stupid to learn as well as him?” asked Rainbow Dash, appearing as if butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth.

“Or that,” Joe admitted to her, before looking to Spike. “So, tell us.”

Spike obliged and they worked their way around some of the other artworks and towards the far end, noticing things were getting more crowded again both with there being more Ponies already there and that more were re-entering the gallery. It was not too bad yet so they continued to walk and talk and admire and chat until Spike stopped and looked at them.

“I do seem to be doing most of the talking,” Spike complained mildly.

“And we are impressed, aren’t we Rainbow?” smiled Rarity.

“Yeah,” Rainbow Dash agreed.

“And I’ll add the ‘non pretty-girl’ vote to that,” nodded Joe. “Can get little things to replay a recorded voice, so you can walk around a gallery with that voice telling you about what you can see, and I think a Dragon is even better and just as knowledgeable.”

“So, Spike has been educated about art here,” Rainbow Dash asked, “and seems to have been studying?”

“I did do some since Rarity invited me,” admitted Spike.

“So, Spike took the time to try to impress Rarity…” Rainbow Dash continued.

“And, as I said, I am impressed,” agreed Rarity.

“…but either Joe hasn’t thought me worth the same effort,” Rainbow Dash smiled, hoping to see Joe squirm, “or he hasn’t been able to learn from his efforts.”

“A fine dilemma you pose him Miss Dash,” agreed Fancy Pants, surprising them with his interjection, “admit indolence or idiocy.”

“I thought it was getting more crowded again,” Joe commented, looking around at the suddenly increased number of Ponies.

“Hrm,” nodded Fancy Pants, not admitting or denying that he had noticed his presence drew Ponies to or from an area. “Though that does not answer the question you have been given.”

“Fortunately I have a third option,” Joe smiled to him, “and though I’d not say there was something more important than trying to impress Miss Dash…”

“I’d hope not,” agreed Fancy Pants.

“Better not,” Rainbow Dash muttered.

“Indeed,” nodded Rarity.

Spike remained silent as he knew what was coming.

“I did help three fillies with a flying model,” Joe continued, “as did Miss Dash, Miss Rarity, and Mister Spike…”

“How interesting,” said Fancy Pants, not seeing the connection for now.

“The other fillies and colts in their class thought so,” Joe nodded, “and so, while engaged in cultural study with Spike to our mutual benefit…”

“More yours than mine, I already knew most of it,” commented Spike, “and was while I was taking a break.”

“I was approached by Miss Cheerilee, their teacher,” Joe concluded, nodding again to acknowledge the second part of that correction, “to ask if I would speak to her class on the history of human flight. And thanks to her efforts and those of Twilight Sparkle I agreed to do that tomorrow morning.”

“Awfully short notice,” blinked Fancy Pants, or winked rather as a blink would risk his monocle. “If you were only studying after you’d confirmed with Miss Rarity that you and the others could attend.”

“Awfully insistent ladies,” Joe nodded, “an argument that if I was coming here I should not do what I would normally do in the morning, so I could give the talk at the school instead. I think I was fortunate that I managed to delay until tomorrow rather than them expecting me to do the talk earlier today.”

“So, that’s what Zecora meant about it being better to talk to youngsters,” whispered Rainbow Dash to Rarity, getting a nod in reply.

“Besides,” Joe smiled, “hardly want to learn enough to risk overshadowing Spike…” He leaned across into the light. “With knowledge I mean.”

“Watch it!” warned Spike. “Still. Growing.”

“I know, I know, one day I shall pay for that when your vast form rises above me and blots out the Sun… casting the whole of Canterlot, or maybe just Ponyville, into shadow… the only light the gleam from your eyes…”

“Er, Joe,” Rarity said, “that might not be that much exaggeration.”

“Really?”

“Really,” Rarity confirmed. “How big did you think Dragons got, from your mythology and stories?”

“Varies a lot, from ‘single brave hero can defeat’ to ‘did that just eat my entire army, and still have room for dessert?’ to…”

“I don’t think I’d have room for dessert,” Spike mused.

Joe nodded and decided to not mention the very biggest Dragon. “Then I shall shake in fear. Short arse.”

“Grr.”

“All right, no more of that, back to you overshadowing me.”

“With his towering knowledge?” Rainbow Dash suggested.

Joe sighed. “I resisted saying that.”

“And back to circulating for me,” Fancy Pants said, “until later.”

“Farewell.”

The hall almost emptied again as Ponies decided that basking in Fancy Pants’ aura was far more important than appreciating rare and beautiful art. Joe watched them go for a few minutes and then looked down to meet Spike’s eyes.

“Seriously though, my friend,” Joe said, “if I’ve taken the joke too far then I apologise.”

“I started it up by mentioning doorframes,” smiled Spike.

“True.”

Comments

[ExPostFauxPas]

Since the other guy gave up commenting on every chapter I'll speak here. Fun story, I imagine that Joe speaks in a dead pan voice most of the time. I like him.

[Seeking Dusk]

Joe and Spike's banter is amusing. They have a good dynamic.