BBQ [Open]

"Maybe," Holeman responded to Mitsukai while she began to fix herself something to eat "A moron from Kouten's past is after her. Rumor has it he's around here somewhere... and horse is nasty. Tastes something like rubber..."

Konran looked surprised when Holeman gave him some of the poison too, to which Holeman replied with a nod and a grin. The family, aunts, uncles, cousins and siblings, had all came out to fix plates. Most looked at the newcomers with strange and curious stares. Pyra must have gotten the strangest of stares.

"Hey, be sure to save some for Alec," Holeman said after swallowing a mouthful. "Gotta make sure he eats. He's the captain of a ship and all. No telling how long the trip to the next village will take, so don't be greedy hogs, yeah?"

Holeman started to become somewhat weary on letting Kouten leave here alone, even with his ability to follow her every move through eyes of chakra. He had no idea who this guy was or what he was capable of. Holeman also couldn't count on her brother to be there to have her back should the shit hit the fan either. He just wasn't acting too much like a brother should have. He started to wonder about how she would feel about just crashing around here for a few days, just until this whole thing blew over.

"Oh, well if I see him I'll be sure to introduce him to my scythe." she said simply: she wasn't going to go into detail of what she really would do to the man if he happened to show up since everyone was eating. No, no point to bring up that she was going to carve him up like a turkey for Thanksgiving dinner.

Mitsukai then lifted her head, more focused on what Holeman said next than the plate of food in front of her. "Alec's here too? With a ship? Wow, I really was sleeping like the dead." She picked up her fork and got to work eating once more, simply focusing on her food while waiting to see if Alec would come down for something to eat.

While she ate in silence she allowed her mind to wonder about what she knew about Kouten: the girl had a brother who wasn't here, and she had some weirdo after her who had caused her a great deal of harm in the past. It was all making Mitsukai a bit unhappy: she knew what family trouble was like, and knew it never ended well. It made Mitsukai want to do something to keep the girl safe...

After another few short moments Pyra simply sat down next to Kouten and decided to relax completely: he had no reason really to worry about anyone around so there was no point in him standing guard when he could relax for a while. Pyra didn't mind the stares, he was far too used to them after all since his appearance caused him to stand out rather well. No, the only thing he was worried about was Kouten who was at the moment still sitting and eating.

As Kouten sat there she thought about the questions that everyone had asked her; everyone wanted to know where her brother was, and why he wasn't coming around - both of which were questions she couldn't answer at the moment. Some of the other things that had been said had struck a cord within her too, but she wasn't sad about them instead she was simply thoughtful. She knew she had bigger things to worry about considering that the man from her past was still wandering around and looking for her, and yet given everyone that was around she couldn't bring herself to feel exactly scared, just a bit nervous.

She glanced over to the seated Pyra and reached out to poke him lightly on the nose before taking another bite of food. Pyra simply stared cross eyed at his nose for a moment before poking Kouten on her ear and sticking his tongue out at her like a small child would which caused Kouten to start laughing: something that was Pyra's apparent goal as he grinned.

Bits and pieces of conversation came to his ears while he slept in the upstairs air conditioned room. There was a girl named Kouten who had a twin brother. Both of them had pasts that weren't very bright and happy from what he'd managed to pick up on. Kouten's brother had tried to get between Holeman and Mitsukai; a dumb move on his part. Because he wasn't successful, he ran off. Holeman had wanted to be friends with the guy, but his mind was elsewhere. He was soon seen in the company of another visitor to the desert from the water country.

To top that off, there was someone in the desert from Kouten's past looking for her, and her brother was nowhere to be found. Mother Holeman and some of his other siblings weren't happy with this, and freely spoke their minds, whereas Holeman himself didn't really seem to care, although seeming somewhat troubled. Alec himself was left to simply shake his head, since he'd seen situations similar to this in the past; siblings and family members that just didn't seem to care, and only came around when it was convenient to them.

Alec didn't know the girl, and as he had business of his own to take care of, didn't plan on getting involved. Should anything happen, he was confident that Holeman would be able to handle it. The kid was strong and seasoned in battle since he was only 5 years old. After waking and getting himself together, Alec came downstairs and to the back door, following the smell of cooked food. He stepped out back to many faces, some familiar, some not.

"Looks like i'm just in time, huh?" Alec asked with a grin, sliding his Blind Fury stick into the back of his belt. "...Sounds like there's some sort of situation going on too. I didn't plan on involving myself, but if you need some assistance i'd be more than happy to offer it."

Konran ate his fill of the delicious food. He washed it down with more of the cold drink that Holeman's mother brought out. When Mitsukai asked if anyone needed beat up Holeman responded with maybe, informing her that a guy was after Kouten, and saying that horse tasted like rubber.

Mitsukai said that she'd introduce him to a scythe if she saw him. Konran looked confused because he didn't know what a scythe was. She looked surprised to know that Alec was here, indicating that she must have known him and been old friends with him similar to she and Holeman.

Alec himself came out next, saying that he was right on time for the food. He offered to help with the guy were he to show his face. With all of these strong people offering to help her, Kouten would have nothing to worry about. Konran hadn't seen what Holeman could do, but he'd seen Alec in action first hand. There was no telling what else he could do too...

10,033

Neo continued to be her happy yet quiet self as she continued eating the food on her plate: it was too delicious to really allow her to focus on anything else for the moment. She really didn't have anything to do with the situation revolving around Kouten; though she would keep her eye out for the jerk wandering about and keep an eye on things in case he tried to turn his attention onto either herself or someone else. Otherwise, she was just going to see how things played out.

When she finished with her plate, and her plate was taken care of, she rubbed her stomach before yawning. "I suppose I should get back to my hotel room. I'm exhausted. Thanks for the food, it was delicious. I'll be around again probably tomorrow or something - I don't plan on heading back to my village for quite a while." With that said Neo would give a wave, pick up her umbrella which she promptly used to shield herself from the bright sun, before skipping her way out of the backyard while humming.

[Exit]

Holeman Waved to Neo after she was done eating. "Sure thing. If you get hurt, come back here to see us, we'll take care of you. Enjoy Sabaku..." he said to her.

He was about to answer Mitsukai until Alec himself came out. Bart and Joy came over to wave and speak to Alec. Holeman jumped down from his cloud, it disappearing shortly afterwards, to fix Alec a plate and hand it to him.

"Sleep well, Alec?" asked Nona with a certain girly tone and look on her face. Holeman had began to notice through the years that his sister had become more and more taken with Alec and the whole Dark/Villain thing he had going, even with the fact that she was practically married and pregnant. Holeman simply shook his head with sort of a smirk.

"With all the snoring I heard up there i'm pretty sure he slept just fine, Nona. Now don't talk with your mouth full, bad manners," Holeman said, handing the plate of food towards Alec. Nona just giggled and continued eating. "You gotta long trip a head of you, you have to keep your strength up. Word has it that there's pirates on the water, and they're all along the route you have to travel. They hijack ships out there all the time. Chances are you're gonna have a couple of fights on your hands..."

"Pirates, arrrr matey, shiver me timpers," said Bart.

"It's timbers, butt breath," Joy said.

"I know that, cootey head."

"...Oh, and don't worry about this Kouten situation Alec, it's a Sabaku thing. I'll take care of it. If this guy comes along, I got a few new techniques I been waiting to try out on someone. You have enough ahead of you to be concerned with."

Food. It was what Mitsukai was most focused on at the moment; at least until Alec arrived which made her pause in her eating and give a wave of greeting since her mouth was currently stuffed with food. She kept quiet for a moment and simply listened: noticing that Nona got a certain tone when speaking to Alec that she didn't get with everyone else, something that made her grin and giggle a bit despite eating. She watched then as Neo left, saying that she needed to get back to her hotel room. With her gone she turned her attention back onto Holeman as he began to explain about the pirates along the route that Alec planned on taking, which made Mitsukai look a bit thoughtful.

She hadn't had to deal with pirates or anything really since she had chosen to fly the whole way here on her storm cloud, but a run in with pirates sure sounded fun. Of course, she had no intentions of leaving to go find some. In fact, she didn't have any intentions of leaving the desert, period, unless someone she cared about needed her elsewhere. "Huh... maybe I should have taken a boat here instead of flying on my cloud. Running into some pirates sounds like it might have been kind of fun. Ah well. I'm sure some baddie will show up sooner or later I can beat up.", she commented thoughtfully.

Another individual arrived, but Kouten was far too used to the people around to be bothered - if he was someone bad then surely the Holeman's wouldn't be friends with him. So, there was no need for her to over-react. Given that she stayed calm, Pyra stayed calm. The human-looking creature simply remained seated beside her and continued to look around between throwing glances at Kouten as she finished the rest of her plate.

As Kouten ate she listened to the conversation about pirates, glad that she had never met any. She had heard stories that they were very nasty, particularly towards females, and had absolutely no intention of wanting to find out first hand if that was true or not. So, she was quite glad that she'd be keeping her feet firmly on dry, unmoving land.

"Hm. I'd imagine it would have to be pretty interesting to try and fight someone on a boat that's bobbing up and down in the water."

The unfamiliar female left. "I was really snoring? I musta been more tired than I thought," Alec responded to Holeman. He took the plate of food that Holeman handed to him and began eating. It was delicious, and Alec suddenly couldn't remember the last time he'd eaten anything. Holeman's sister Nona spoke to him, and nodding his head in response to her question he couldn't help but to feel like maybe she was attracted to him some...

Holeman spoke of pirates and hijackings along the waterway they were going to take to the next village. Alec's expression didn't change any. A couple of fights? That was fine with him. Perhaps he would do some hijackings of his own if they got attacked. "I think we'll manage. Thanks for the heads-up though."

Holeman told him not to worry about the situation with the girl that had the piercings. He said he'd handle it himself, and Alec had no doubt that he would. Alec wanted to see these new techniques that Holeman had devised, but there probably wouldn't be any time for that.

Alec nodded his head. "We'll be out of your way here in a sec, Holeman. You ready to set out, Konran? Had your fill?"

Konran was finishing up his plate, feeling full. He'd never felt completely full like this before. He put the plate back onto the table listening to Holeman and Alec talk about pirates and attacks on the water. Getting into a fight actually sounded like fun, especially if it was against bad guys.

"Yeah," said Konran as he stood up and stretched. "...I mean, I wouldn't mind staying a while longer, but... if you're ready to go, i'm ready too..."

He dusted sand off of his pants and held the Shift Blade's scabbard in his left hand. Konran wondered if Artemis and Jynx were already on the ship...

10,145

"No bother at all Alec, but if ya gotta go, ya gotta go. We'll always be right here if you need us. Here, take these with you." Holeman put a couple vials of Crank into one of Alec's front pockets on his cloak. "It's a special poison of mine. Don't let it get in your skin, because there's no cure. Be careful with it, yeah?"

Holeman began to clean up the dishes. "Come back to see us again, ok Alec?" asked Bart.

"Yeah! Don't make us wait too long either!" added Joy.

"Next time, stay longer, alright?" saked Nona with one of her looks and a smile. Holeman just shook his head again.

Alec seemed about ready to head out and Mitsukai felt herself wondering if some bad guy was actually going to bother showing up or not around the desert. She was quite interested in the idea of getting into a fight; more specifically finding this bad guy after Kouten and giving him a dose of his own nasty medicine. It would definitely be interesting, given she figured the guy had to be pretty strong to be able to control someone with shinobi training.

Another few bites and Mitsukai was finished with her plate of food. She leaned back on her cloud for a moment, patting her stomach and feeling nice and full. "Mmm. That definitely hit the spot."

She heard Holeman's younger siblings speak up about Alec coming back to visit them and Mitsukai found herself nodding her head in agreement with them. "Yeah, make sure you come back to visit. Else I'll come over and harass you in your village.", she said before sticking her tongue out playfully. "And have fun whooping some pirate booty."

Kouten finished her food, too, feeling properly full and a bit tired. Pyra glanced at her empty plate and then offered a smile: clearly he was quite happy her plate was empty. Kouten simply glanced at Pyra and rolled her eyes with a soft laugh before poking her guardian on his arm. "You're worse than a mom when it comes to me eating." Pyra simply smiled and shrugged without actually saying anything: it was his job to protect her after all so he figured it was all part of a days work.

Kouten then focused her attention onto Alec and Konran, both of whom seemed ready to leave and go off on an adventure. "It was nice meeting you guys.", Kouten said, which caused Pyra to nod his head in agreement.

Alec wolfed down the plate of food. Konran said he was ready to go, even though he wouldn't have minded staying longer. Holeman said that they'd always be here when they needed them, and then put 2 vials of a poison he made into his cloak pocket, warning him not to let it get in his skin since there was no cure. It must have been highly potent. "I'll remember that, old friend. Thanks alot."

When Holeman started cleaning up the mess, his little brother and sister came over and asked him to come back, and not to make them wait too long. Alec kneeled to give the little Holeman's hugs. Nona spoke up again in that same tone, with a certain look on her face and a smile. "...Sure thing," he responded, looking sort of confused. "The next time we come visit, we'll make a vacation out of it."

Mitsukai said she'd come harass Kuraiyamigakure if he didn't come back. "I'm pretty sure you're going to do that either way it goes, but i'll keep that in mind, Mits," Alec said to her.

Alec stood up again and motioned for Konran to follow him, as it was time to set out, and possibly get into it with pirates. "Tell your mom I said bye, alright? Keep your eyes open, i'll do the same. If you even need anything, send me a signal somehow. I'll see it..."

Alec touched the top of Holeman's head while walking out of the backyard. "Nice to meet you too, Kouten. Take care of yourself." With one final wave, Alec walked from the backyard of the Holeman Clinic and began to head up the street towards the docks.

/Exit/

Konran stood up. He watched Alec say good bye to everyone, noticing how close they all were. He was left to wonder if he would have friendships like this one day, and couldn't help but to feel a tad jealous. The kids made Alec promise to come back soon, and from the looks of things, the pregnant girl Nona seemed to be attracted to Alec, who looked confused.

Alec made a motion for him to follow. While walking with him towards the exit to the backyard Konran waved to Holeman and to Kouten. "Uh... it was nice meeting you both," he said. "Thanks again for the help, Kouten... and thanks for the food and the Crank, Holeman. I'll come back and visit you soon too..."

Konran walked out of the backyard and went along with Alec towards the Mossberg.

[Exit]


10,287

The kids both cheered when Alec said he'd vacation here the nest time he came, and hugged hum back when he kneeled to hug them. Nona just had a look of content on her face. Mitsukai said shed go harass Kurayami of he ddidn't come back, and Alec said that she'd probably end up doing that either way.

Being one not to miss very much as he could see through eyes of chakra in all directions at any given time, he noticed that Konran seemed a little sad or perhaps jealous. Holeman was left to think that he had no friends or family to speak of. Konran thanked him for the food and poison, and said that he'd come back soon too.

"Awesome! We'll look for you, ok?" Holeman responded with a wide grin. Perhaps Kouten's brother didn't want to be friends, but it seemed that he'd made one in Konran.

Holeman, Bart, Joy and Nona all waved at them one last time as they left.

Mitsukai waved goodbye to Alec and Konran as they left, grinning a bit. It was true that she'd likely end up visiting their village sooner or later even if they did come back to visit: Mitsukai was kind of curious to see if the village of darkness in these lands was similar to the last one after all. "Hurry back soon, guys!", she called out after them.

When Alec and Konran were out of sight Mitsukai made the cloud she had been seated upon disappear and stood fully. She yawned softly and then stretched skyward until she was standing on the tips of her toes with her fingertips reaching skyward. She held the pose for several minutes before relaxing and looking around. "Man, I'm stuffed.", Mitsukai commented quite contently.

Mitsukai then shifted her attention onto Kouten and Pyra. "So, uh.. I'm curious. And please don't take offense to this; but what exactly is Pyra? I mean, he looks human, but I can even tell he's not.", Mitsukai asked curiously while hoping that she didn't actually offend Kouten by asking.

Kouten waved goodbye to Alec and Konran as well, grinning and nodding to Konran's thanks. "No prob, anytime! Hope to see you guys around, again.", she responded. Pyra likewise waved goodbye, though he didn't comment or say anything - the ever silent guardian as he always seemed to be. Kouten shifted her attention onto Mitsukai as she got off of the cloud she had been sitting on and stretched; she was still curious as to how a cloud could exactly hold someone, but figured it had something to do with Mitsukai herself actually creating it, instead of it being a cloud like the kind floating above them in the sky.

At Mitsukai's question a thoughtful look fell upon Kouten's face. "Well, to be honest he's like... a demon, I guess. That's what his lore says, anyway. He doesn't act like one though, nor look like one as you said. I think he might look human because of the way the whole guardianship works. See; Pyra was once a human being who had a guardian who looked like him. When Pyra died he replaced his guardian, continuing the chain. When I die I will replace Pyra and become a guardian to someone else in my family." Kouten paused, hoping that that made some sort of sense: it did tend to be a bit complicated. "It's why my clan's guardians never actually die out; we just replace them and strengthen them when we pass. It's like a way to ensure our clan can never be fully destroyed."

Pyra nodded in agreement with her and then suddenly froze. His head tilted to the left and a very low and dangerous growl escaped him as he sniffed the air. His attention then turned to the north as he clearly was sensing something he didn't like. Kouten herself froze too at his reaction, a look of fear overcoming her face. "It's him, isn't it?" Pyra nodded in response and stood, arming himself with his usual butcher knife. Kouten got to her feet too; the man who had harmed her was close by, searching for her several buildings away on the roof tops - wearing the familiar white mask and black robes.

It had been good to see an old friend again, even if he was once considered a villain. Alec wasn't so bad to Holeman. When he visited Alec's homeland, Holeman was treated just like family. So Holeman would treat him and his just the same.

Mitsukai asked about Kouten's silent guardian Pyra. She said Pyra could be considered a Demon, but he didn't act like one. Kouten went on to explain that Pyra was once alive, and had a guardian of his own. When he died, he became a guardian himself, and when Kouten passed on, the same would happen to her. Holeman scratched his head, trying to imagine Kouten as a pale and silent bodyguard to someone. He couldn't wrap his head around that one.

Holeman was about to comment on how her clan sounded sort of tragic, until Pyra looked to the left and growled, which made Bart and Joy scamper over near Holeman quickly. Nona began to look nervous as well as Kouten, especially with Pyra picking up his weapon. "...Uh... Holeman?... What...?" she said. Bart and Joy got behind Holeman and grabbed onto him.

Holeman himself concentrated his radar and began to have a look around. Someone unfamiliar was a few city blocks over, on the rooftops. Holeman had never seen him before. He wore robes and a strange white mask. Was this the guy who'd put those scars and bruises on Kouten, and the one responsible for her nearly having to lose her legs?

Holeman looked serious, something that was very rare of him. "There someone coming this way," he said, his hands balling into fists. "He looks pretty strong. Nona, take Bart and Joy and go inside the clinic. Tell everybody what's going on and lock the doors."

"But Holeman--" Joy started to say.

"Go! In the clinic, now! No discussion!" His siblings quickly went into the back door and closed it. Holeman popped the knuckles on both of his hands and moved his head back and fourth, producing more popping sounds. "This something you up for, Kouten? I take it this is the guy who did all that damage to you. How convenient it is that that brother of yours is nowhere to be found either, probably chasing after some girl... If you don't want to face him again, I can understand. Leave him to us..."

Everything seemed to go from calm and relaxed and collected to tense in less time then it took Mitsukai to finish stretching. Pyra was on his feet growling at something that Mitsukai couldn't see; though the appearance of his knife made her think it was likely a threat of some kind. Kouten asked him if it was 'him' to which Pyra nodded, further leading Mitsukai to assume that the guy who had harmed her was nearby and Pyra had picked up on it somehow. Bart and Joy and Nona responded to the way that Pyra was acting, and Holeman explained that there was someone strong nearby before telling his family to get inside.

Mitsukai simply reached to the clip at her waist and opened it calmly, freeing her scythe. A flick of her wrist and a minute burst of chakra caused her scythe to unfold to its full size: she wasn't going to bother playing around with this guy if he was strong enough to hold a trained shinobi hostage - it could potentially lead to someone getting hurt if she did. She twirled her scythe skillfully and carefully until the tip of the curved blade ended up in-bedded in the dirt; resting there until she planned on actually using it while her hand remained on the shaft of the scythe.

"Yeah, if you don't want to fight this dude you don't have to Kouten. We've got no intentions of allowing him to walk away from this, so you have nothing to worry about.", she assured the other female. She didn't want Kouten to feel like she was obligated to face this guy if she didn't want too; sometimes it was just best to stand down and let someone else handle it. Plus, Mitsukai was a bit worried that the other female might end up freezing up if she got too panicked or scared - of course, Mitsukai could be wrong, and therefore she was going to give Kouten the chance to make that decision herself instead of trying to make it for her. Plus, there was always Pyra, and Mitsukai was a bit curious to see what he was capable of.

The man who had harmed her was nearby, and to make matters worse he was looking for her. Kouten had no lack of imagination when it came to what he could and would do to her if he found her. The idea of facing off against him caused a chill to run up her spine. Kouten had no trouble when beating on bad guys, or doing missions, but this hit a spot in her that was too personal to ignore: she doubted she would be able to do more than freeze in the face of this horror from her past.

"I... think it's better I sit this one out.", Kouten answered, while thinking about what Holeman had said about her twin: she couldn't even sense him through their bond.

Pyra nodded in agreement and shifted around her, obviously using himself as an effective shield. Pyra could sense the direction the bastard was in after all and had no intentions of allowing him to get to her if he could help it.

Meanwhile, the masked individual was moving ever closer. He was following the gossip and whispers: all while searching for Kouten as well as searching for her brother so that he could kill him for taking Kouten from him nearly a year ago. "Where are you my pet? I will find you, and when I do I'll make sure your punishment is befitting of your crime.", he called out loud in a nearly sing-song sounding voice.

Marquetta wasn't your typical kage. Sure, she could have sent some underling to keep an eye on Kouten and to ensure that the man who harmed her didn't get a chance to do so again. But, that just wasn't Marquetta's style. She was hands on when it came to her people, and beastly protective to boot. So, she had been using her shinsai ability to keep an eye on Kouten; even if she was just hanging out with Holeman, his family, and a few other people.

Everything had been going fine until Pyra had responded in a bit of a violent manner, jumping to his feet and removing a weapon. Clearly something had spooked Kouten's gaurdian, and after a quick search Marquetta had located something, or rather someone, out of the ordinary. Someone who didn't belong. Someone whom she didn't know but who matched the description that Kouten had given when she had first been brought to the village. Marquetta knew this has to be the man who had harmed Kouten, and if she had anything to do with it he wasn't going to leave her village alive, nor was he going to have the chance to put his hands on Kouten.

Marquetta reacted quickly from the area she had been in in the market. She took to the roof tops in a single jump and moved in a curved path so as to come up behind the man without being detected. She had a plan in mind already, one that started with getting this man away from the districts that housed the civilian population and the market: if this man was capable of what Kouten said he was then this fight could turn nasty and violent and she didn't want anyone getting caught up in the cross hairs who didn't want to be. So, as she neared the individual she sent her foot out with a kick that, if it connected, would launch the male up into the air and send him flying right into the nearby training ground: where he would given the way he'd be moving land in a large man-made body of water. "Let's get you the hell away from my people you sick bastard..."

Kouten said she thought it a good idea if she sat this out. Holeman had to agree. This guy put her through it. Old memories may surface when confronted with him again, and that wasn't good on the battlefield. Holeman nodded his head.

"Alright, we'll handle this. Go in the house with the rest."

Holeman's sensitive hearing could pick up on what the man was saying. "Where are you my pet? I will find you, and when I do I'll make sure your punishment is befitting of your crime." The words made Holeman frown some. Perhaps today was the day where he'd get to try out some of his new techniques.

He then noticed as someone else powerful came onto the scene and performed a technique that sent the man flying, directly towards the training grounds. It was the Kage Marquetta, possibly having caught sight of the man herself and deciding to take action instead of leaving it to someone else. Holeman's opinion of her began to change; she was definitely nothing like Luca or Strafe.

Holeman jumped up onto the roof of the building next door after noticing Mitsukai pull out her trademark weapon responsible for the deaths of many in the past. Feeling somewhat nostalgic with his best friend at his side like many times past, Holeman quickly began to head in the direction of the training grounds, leaping from roof to roof.

Mitsukai nodded to Kouten's decision; she was quite glad that Kouten had decided to sit this one out as she didn't want to see her get hurt if she accidentally froze up or reacted badly when she finally laid eyes upon her abuser. Before Mitsukai started to move she noticed a body dressed in a black robe with a white mask go flying right over her head and straight towards where she knew a nearby training ground was located. Who had done that? She figured she would find out soon enough.

Therefore, as she freed her scythe blade tip from the ground she took off running after Holeman with the scythe trailing behind her while still securely in her hand. "Let's whoop some bad guy butt. Who kicked him like that anyway?", she was curious to know who else was strong enough in the village to do something like that, while caring enough to actually step in when someone evil was around.