ArchivedLogs:A Bonding Experience

A Bonding Experience
Dramatis Personae Gunner, Paige
In Absentia	2016-11-28 "Been makin' swords and the like for as long as I can remember."
Location <NYC> Central Park North
Central Park North is slightly quieter than its southern counterpart, being further uptown and slightly out of the bustle of the City - insofar as one can escape the bustle of the City even here, in the acres of green and blue that make up Central Park. The reservoir is in the northern half, providing miles of jogging and biking trails along the clear water, as well as benches for people to sit and rest. Believe it or not, it /is/ possible to escape the tourists in Central Park, as long as you don't mind getting off the beaten path. After some careful consideration, Gunner found himself at the base of a waterfall, swinging around what appears to be a replica of Dante's Rebellion from the Devil May Cry series. What at first appears to be the playing of a man-child quickly reveals itself to be actual combat drills. Block, parry, swipe. This clearly isn't his first rodeo. Paige stumbles through the undergrowth, her attention focused on the map she holds. "Stupid fucking map," she grumbles in annoyance at the piece of paper. Cursing to herself, she reaches into her pocket to pull out a small phone. As she pokes at the screen, the horned woman glances upwards and catches sight of the waterfall. "Whoa," she breathes. "Oh." This is in reaction to the young man. She starts to head his way before realizing that he's weilding a wicked-looking sword. Paige silently watches him for a minute before asking, "Where did you even learn to use a sword like that?" Gunner looks up at Paige when she speaks, and after a moment of being genuine dumbstruck, he heads over to sheath the blade. "Been makin' swords and the like for as long as I can remember. Figured it was only right to learn how ta use them. So.. Here I am." "Oh," he heads over to offer Paige a calloused hand, "I'm Gunner by the way. Good to meet ya." "Uh, Paige," the young woman replies. "Nice to meet you, too." She reaches out and takes Gunner's hand, shaking it. "You -make- swords? That's freaking awesome," Paige says, awed, as she puts the small phone into her sweatshirt pocket. "That's like some really awesome shit, but what are you doing out here in the middle of Central Park, swinging a sword around?" The question is asked with an amused tone as a wry smile plays on her face. Gunner chuckles a little, brushing the wet hair away from his face. "Yes ma'am. Got ah few different suits." He heads over to what appears to be a pile of his things, more specifically to a cooler. "You want ah water?" A cold bottle is produced and shook, to indicate that is, in fact, what he's talking about. "And yeah. Made my armor, a handful of axes, farm tools, and I even made ah replica of Captain America's shield." "No, no, I'm good. Thanks though," Paige responds as she waves a hand at the offered water bottle. "That's...amazing. His shield is pretty cool," she says, nodding. "I've never made anything, really. I mean certainly nothing like that. Is this...Do you do this for a living? Or is it some sort of hobby? Where'd you learn how to make weapons?" "My dad learned from my grandpa, and he learned from his dad. Somethin' we've been doing for a while." Gunner opens the water, taking a swig. "Well, I could always show you some time. Be ah bondin' experience." A playful wink is shot at Paige as the man turns to take a seat on the cooler. Paige's face reddens visibly at the comment. "I, uh...bonding?" Her voice cracks upwards as she is caught off-guard. "I, uh, I mean..." The horned woman trails off and seems at a loss for words. A few moments pass before she tries again, but fails. "I mean I'm totally, uh, interested in learning about swords and...But, uh, what?" Gunner actually laughs now. It's a deep belly laugh that almost brings a tear to his eye, "Ooh, whew. Shit. I'm just fuckin' with you. Yeah, I don't mind teachin' you what I know. Long as you don't mind gettin' burnt and cut a lil'." A hand comes up to push more curls away from his face, "Always been ah goal of mine to make ah pretty woman lose her words. Think I can check that off my bucket list now." Still blushing, Paige breathes out a sigh of relief. "I...I could be up for learning. Actually, I could probably do with something to do other than moping all day." She shrugs, approaching the cooler where the young man sits. "Cuts will only leave scars at the worst and I'll just be careful not to get burned. As for pretty," here she smiles wryly again. "You're not bad yourself. Not...coming on to you - just saying." "I wouldn't mind if you were." Gunner lifts his shoulders in a slight shrug, leaving it at that. "Well, if you're interested in learning, we should probably trade information. That way when we leave here we won't have ta hope luck puts us back together." Paige's excitement returns quickly as her eyebrows raise and her eyes widen. "You mean it? Fuck, really? You'll...teach me?" After fumbling around in her sweatshirt pocket, one hand pulls out a pen while the other retrieves the map. "Not using this anyways, so..." The young woman tears off a corner of the paper and scrawls a phone number on it before handing it to Gunner. "Here's my number. I, uh, live at Harbor Commons." "Awesome, it's a date then." Gunner teases Paige once more, taking the number with a slight nod. "Then I'll be in touch. I just so happen to know ah guy in Rochester." With that out of the way he's back on his feet, offering the woman a warm smile. "Was nice meeting you." Paige returns the man's nod. "I don't know how to thank you enough. I mean, I'll probably be useless, but I can learn. Really nice meeting you, Gunner," she replies, smiling in turn. "You're really freaking awesome." She trades the map for the phone from her pocket, opening up the Google Maps app. "Take care."