Toothpaste portal into a weekend

 The day after a big patch of new comers came to the city was also a busy one, although not to the extend of the previous day.

' That was a good workout.' Is what karaza thought after a whole day of carrying boxes around. It would have been another regular day, except for the magazines and catalogs Momo gave her.

"It's training programs, school scholar ships, and apprentices roles. There is a lot to choose from, surly something will caught your interest." Momo encouraged at the clocking out time.

What certain someone said was true pursuing something here was almost a must, an unspoken rule as they say. Many new comers in the warehouse and kitchen have started going on their own paths, even people who came here after her.

Walking with the bag of catalogs, she checked her pipe, having one refill left.

'I can't go through all that paper without smoke.'

She stopped before turning to the ally where the vending machine was. After hearing some sobs and a familiar male voice saying some comforting phrases.

She sat on the bench, waiting patiently to buy her refills in peace.

'Why there is a smoke vending machine near a hospital though?' She tried to thing of something else before opening a catalog hesitantly like it's a deadly weapon before reading some of the offers in there.

'Yeah, Imma need the whole vending machine stoke to get through these.' She pinched the bridge of her nose.

She turns her head to him handing her the two refills.

"Thanks." She said awkwardly, taking them. Receiving was not a familiar action for her.

He sat down and she noticed another person wearing scrubs walking back to the hospital. She looked at her companion, the usual kiseru was not here today. A pack of cigarettes was subsisting toady.

"Rough night huh?" She asked while he opened the pack.

"Yeah, these times are though for the rookies. You're not having a great time either." He looks at the bag of catalogs. Then realizing he doesn't have a lighter.

She reached her hand, lighter ignited. He reaches his head, flame meets the cigarette.

"Thanks."

"Smoking a real flavor for a change?"

"It's lighter than a pipe." He says before taking a deep inhale. She looks at his hand, fingers shaking. She wanted to tease him about it, but quickly realized it's a different shaking than the one that comes with missing smoke.

"You good?"

"Yeah, it'll go away soon." He said, forgetting that she's not a co worker for a second, until she double checks the shaking arm.

"Then happen when you hold magnetic devices for too long."

"Oh."

A woman with curly hair and scrubs headed towards them, holding a big cigar.

"Even you ditched me." Core said while standing in front of them, searching her pockets.

" I'm out of order." He replied, showing his arm.

"Oh crap. Do a hand over and go home."

Karaza reached her arm with the lighter again, and she reached her head in the same gesture.

"Thanks sweetie." She sat in the empty space between the two. Between the smell of the cigarettes and cigars Karaza was able to focus on a catalog. She lets a pleased sigh because of the passive smoking, and for some reason that made the other two chuckle, releasing their tension.

In the quite night and empty apartment she couldn't focus, all the words read the same in her brain, not having any meaning.

'This remind me of missions reports for the duke.' She sighed, leaving the paper on the floor, looking at moon pieces and the floating Saturn shaped objects, stars behind the cloudy night.

'Is normal life this uneventful? and filled with too much choices.' She falls asleep on the floor on that thought leaving the bed empty.

The next day was a weekend, She wore a yellow dress with plenty of sunflowers on it, not bothering with her hair. She walked aimlessly in the streets.

'Have to enjoy the weekend like the civilized. ' She think while eating a savory chicken crape on a bench in the crowded down town area, trying not to look at the bag of catalogs she brought with her.

Familiar voices brought her back to the present.

"Roxy no! Don't do it." Ryu said in a distressed voice.

"I'm sorry comrade, I have to do it." She says in an unusually serious voice, closing her eyes like she's contemplating a hard choice. Turning her back on him she goes to the restroom.

"No!" He says dramatically as she slips away. Extending his arms, unable to reach her.

She's came out quickly, with cut hair. looking at her micro bangs in a hand mirror.

"You were right, it doesn't suit me." She says while the guy is wheezing, holding the bench for support and trying to catch a breath.

"You could have checked in the bathroom mirror." Karaza said, slightly judging and holding a laugh.

They check out each others outfits.

"Ridiculous as always huh?" Roxy starts.

"That's my line." She raised an eyebrow at the witchy stars patterned boots and overalls.

The two of them sat on the bench, she was between them as they ate a hamburger and a pastry. She looked at the creatures seemingly enjoy their weekend.

"So what you civilians do for fun around here?" She decided to ask someone with experience, and other creatures were less judgmental than humans in her experience. 

"I bought my first high heel today."

"I laughed until my stomach hurt."

Roxy popped in his face, leaning on Karaza who sat between them, causing another laughing fit.

After washing their hands Roxy looked at them with mischief in her eyes.

"Wanna have some real fun?"

" It gonna be stupid." Ryu commented.

"And I might lose some blood." Karaza added.

"I'm in." Ryu said.

"And I'm not a cowered."

Roxy giggled like a little evil goblin.

They walked further away from the city center, in a neighborhood where the houses are blue, Moroccan restaurants here and there as well as leather tanning workshops.

Ryu looked at the leather shoes, Karaza at the wallets.

'Already brining other costumers huh?' The seller said to Roxy.

After a nice quick shopping they walked further into the back streets.

"I feel like that wasn't the main fun part." Karaza said.

"Correct, there it is." Roxy said as they stood upon an abandoned house in an empty area.

"This's what hunting for good shoes get ya." She said proudly, lightly slapping the door, which falls immediately. She pretended nothing happened while they gave her a look. 

"Spooky." Ryu said, deadpan.

"Wait a minute, we can't risk damaging the new goods." Karaza pointed.

"I agree." With a snap of a finger a treasure box appeared, she put the bag of new shoes there, and the followed her lead.

" Also prepare a weapon in case." She said, A knife flew up from the box to her hand. Karaza's axe appeared out of thin air.

They walked inside, noon's light enters from the broken roof and smashed windows, shining on the dusty furniture and the silky thin spider webs. Ryu looked around with his narrow pupils.

'This is probably gonna be a mental control your feeling kind of practice. Since the volcano thing she only gave me physical training in the summer vocation.'

He snapped out of his thoughts when the two stopped. Many pictures on the wall, and a sofa under them.

"So what do you think this is?" Roxy asked him.

"..Some ancient civilization weapon, teleport you to a painting maybe?" He said, after scanning the sofa and the paintings with his eyes, not touching anything before he's sure of it.

"Bingo! Well then, dibs on this one!" She touches a painting, disappears in an explosion of smoke. Ryu looks at the framed text under the painting of grass.

-The Great Piece of Turf 1503-

Except now it has a girl with overalls making the peace sign inside the painting.

'They all look uneventful.' Karaza thinks before her eyes land on a another uneventful painting of cityscape across a body of water, some light flicker in her eyes.

"What's the worse that could happen?" She says, touching it and disappearing like the one before.

He looks at the text again.

-Zitch Op Delft 1659-

He scans the remaining paintings, not as ancient weapons but as pieces of art.

'Yeah, paintings aren't my calling after all.'

He thinks, touching one anyway.

-Starry night over the Rhone 1888-

He opened his eyes, standing on the dark ground he looked at the river and light of the stars reflected on it. A small boats sits on the riverbank, swaying lightly with the water as the sound of light ripples. Everything has a sway to it, like it looked in the painting.

He walked around somberly in the land, trying to go to the other side of the river, and the painting.

'Someone from ten or twenty millenniums, he died penniless and with a part of his ear cut. Or that's what they say.'

He couldn't reach the other side of the painting.

He stopped walking, looking up to the starry stars, when he sat down the grass felt like brushes filled with dried paint. Some waves of sadness washed over him.

The river water felt like wet paint when he tried to scoop some in his hands, only to see any residue disappearing quickly.

He rode the boat, taking a slow trip in the river. Looking at the wiggly sky.

'He really poured his heart in here.' A single tear ran from his right eye, of witnessing something.

'Whatever he couldn't say, he poured it all.'

In the dusty abandoned room an explosion of smoke appeared, an he was back.

Roxy walked in the beige land for not so long, before being in front of a giant piece of turf, she was miniature compared to it.

"You can walk kid?" A voice talked in her head, which she attributed to the piece of grass.

"Oh, yello! Yes I can." Her tone albeit friendly, had some respect in it.

"Do we all can do that now?"

"No, it's just me. And I'm not originally a plant too."

"But you prospered."

"I'm honored you see that in me."

"How are we doing?"

"We survived, pretty much."

"That's all to it." The tone has proudness in it.

Something shiny glowed near Roxy, She stabbed it with her knife.

Another comical explosion teleported Roxy back. After standing up and dusting herself off she looked at Ryu, not noticing that she's back he stared at one blue painting, immense respect and inspiration in his eyes and a little redness too.

"You're sitting on a lot of debris." She noted causally.

He landed down from his thoughts, slowly.

"Ew." He dusted himself off.

They looked at the other painting.

"She's not done huh?" Ryu said.

"What did you get?" Roxy asked, excited.

"Hm?"

She pulled out her knife, letting go of it, it turned into one strand of a grassy plant, flying in the air randomly until she make a signal, it turns back to a knife.

"Control still shaky though." She said, unnecessarily proud.

" A flying disguised knife huh? Please don't get any stronger."

"You got nothing?"

He looks at the painting and give a somber smile.

"I liked what I got."

On the side of the water, Karaza didn't know if it was a river or sea but it didn't matter that much. She sat there looking at the boats and ships and the blue and red roof buildings under the cloudy sky. She remembered the day of her last mission, it has big clouds covering the sky.

'Maybe I should go back to work, this calm life isn't for me.'

She laid down, covering her eyes with her arm.

'Nah, even work was too much in its last days.'

She rode the boat on the shore, heading toward the houses.

'But this land is quite, and I don't like when I have too much time to think."

Sailing on the other side she walked on the main street, buildings doors didn't open and other streets were a mere line that can't be stepped on. Not having much to do she looked at the body of water.

'Can I swim in this?'

The water was colder than it look, but it felt like normal water as she swam her way, in a big dress nonetheless.

In the middle of the body of water she got an idea, taking a huge breath before diving in, she plunged aiming for the bottom on the lake, her foot touched the ground.

Two pair of inhuman pupils moved from one painting to another, as she disappeared from one and appeared in another.

-Apple tree with red fruit 1902-

Her arm pierced the ground, spawning from the underground like a zombie.

She looked at the surroundings, one big tree and golden skies, grass and shrubs varied in colors from pale green to oranges and reds. She didn't bother with any exploring, just laying down under the shadow of the tree.

'Well, it's all gonna end. The whole world. I'm just gonna relax in my last days or months or whatever. '

"We all looked like clowns when it evaporated."

Those words ring in her head.

'Dying is scary.' She looks at the apples hanging from the leafless branches, one of them is about to fall, stem about to tear.

'And I don't know how to live properly.'

She lets a small sigh, closing her eyes.

'I'm scared.' 

After a good while she almost drifts to sleep. The stem tears and the apple falls on her head.

"OW!"

The apple splits in half, she grabs one half, it has purple seeds and a golden peel, she recognized what it was.

'This.. this is a reusable portal, to anywhere!"

A third smoke explosion brought her to reality, with the half apple, interrupting Roxy and Ryu tic tac toe game.

"Took you long enough." They said.

"A -welcome back - would've been nice you jerks."

"What do you get?" Roxy asked with childish curiosity.

"Not telling you." She replied, equally childish.

"So what we gonna do with this sofa? It has a radioactive thing within it." Ryu asked.

"It's inactive though right?" Karaza questioned.

"Imma handle it." Roxy said, stretching her legs.

"Please don't kick it." They plead in union.

Ryu morphed into his other form, a blob with wings. Ready to escape the building.

Roxy jumped on the sofa, lifting the cushions to see an old squashed dusty tube of toothpaste. The feeling hits them Ryu flies to another room, Karaza jumps too, from a safe distance she summons her axe, holding it above her head. A dome of sound waves covers her.

"Sound against radioactivity? For real?" Ryu questions.

"How do you think I survived this far?"

"Fair enough."

'Although it only works from a specific distance.' She reminds herself.

The toothpaste rose in the air, an oval colorful portal opened. The entangled colors were pieces of paintings melting together while the toothpaste was in the center, looking like a tube of color paint, that all could be realized for those how are fool or scared enough to stand and stare.

A suction in the air was sucking everything into the portal. Ryu hid behind a half broken wall while Karaza made her dome thicker. Roxy just stood there in front of it, heels digging into the ground, rapidly healing the burn marks on her skin.

" Y'all might wanna stay further, it's trying to trap us into a painting." Roxy shouted.

'At this point I won't get any stronger, think!' He thought to himself.

With a piece of broken glass Roxy saw him spawning a tendril, and an eye forming on it. Assessing the situation without risking getting sucked.

"Do you want a hint Ryuyu?"

"If I didn't figure it out in a minute tell me."

' The toothpaste is the battery of the sofa, So it's all about destroying it.' Ryu analyzed quickly. Searching in his surroundings.

'That much is clear though.' Karaza squinted, adding more protection.

'So Ryuyu, how are you gonna destroy something you or most thing can't touch?'

His eyes landed on the hanged paintings. Realizing something he shot a tendril in their direction, touching starry night under the Rhône. Another tendril shot directly at the toothpaste, less than a meter from Roxy's head.

He saw the Rhône with stars reflection on the walls of the abandoned house, the sky on the floor, and for a moment he saw the boat move. To the other side of the painting.

The tendril that touched the painting teleported from it to the inside of the portal, squeezing the toothpaste for good while melting and burning at the same time.

The portal disappears in a smoke explosion. He cuts the length of both tendril, and cutting any radioactive injures with it.

"Touché, although you didn't need the second one." Roxy congratulated.

"I didn't knew the right move exactly." He says with a voice of someone dizzy.

After it's all said and done they regroup in another room.

"And that's how you spend a weekend!" Roxy said to Karaza, getting all the shopping bags out of her treasure box.

"Yeah, that was.. refreshing." She admits, not knowing why she feels that.

They look at Ryu, who was taking the painting out of the wall.

"I will hand those to the neighborhood sheriff." He holds them with respect, wiping the dust with his cardigan sleeve. Also the touch conformed the expiration of the teleporting effect.

"Then I gotta dash, can't be caught hanging out with teenagers in an abandoned building on my weekend." Karaza says.

"I'm literally a decade older than you." Ryu jabs back.

"I'm a century!"

"Say that to the adults, you sure you will not get scolded?"

"We'll make cute sad faces and get away with it." Roxy says and Ryu nods.

"Well, Thank you for the good time." She walks away, waving to them, a little giddy for some reason.