UptownFunk

Hoomiku (7/16/2015 10:32:25 PM): On July 16th, 2015, the heat continues to bake the countryside. As the sun starts to sink, it's still close to 100 degrees and the parking lot of Warp Drive starts to fill with people. Normally, karaoke is on Wednesday, and the previous night had been packed with people. Today, though, the place is doing a bit more of it in honor of Apollo 11's launch. After a lovely dinner with her parents and Adam, and after a day spent horseback riding and relaxing from work, Sandra park her green Focus in the lot and grins. Her crew has, once again, invited her to karaoke... the previous evening apparently went okay. As she steps out and heads towards the building, the cars of the other astronauts are there, along with those for engineers, technicians and regular folks. As she wanders in, a huge 27 liter, 1930 Bentley pulls up to the bar and stops. The fox at the wheel grins as the car idles and a young hoomiku hops out and blinks. "Here?"
Ian laughs "Trust me, you'll love it! It'll freak you out, but you'll love it..."
Zach's ears dip. "...My freak out meter is being reset WAAAY higher these days..."
The fox smirks and shrugs. "Listen... I'll be back to pick you up later... don't get into too much trouble, huh kiddo? Your mom'll kill me if you do..." The hoomiku nods and wanders towards the bar as the massive car turns back onto McGregor Road. Ian honks the horn and waves to the cat before driving off, leaving the young hoomiku to follow the jackal in.

Jason Chilton: Inside, the club is already starting to show signs that tonight will be like the last in that it is packed and lively. With all the other amenities Warp Drive has to offer as well as karaoke, there is no shortage of activities as the jackal, then the hoomiku pass by an otter and a lion having a lively conversation. "So then he says to me, "If I didn't know any better, I'd have your ass sent to the brig." And stupid me, I look him dead in the eye, shrug my shoulders and say "Okay. . .whatever. Just know that if I didn't do what I did, then the majority of that squad would've came back home in bodybags." And that shut him right up..."
"Wow...that's amazing!"
"Not really...just me throwing something together and hoping it works."

Hoomiku: As soon as the jackal wanders into the room, a few whoops from the bar and pool tables ring out. Six people move over and clap her shoulders and shake her hands. A tabby cat behind the bar grins and leans over to a Great Dane manning the taps, whispering to him... and he nods before moving to the kitchen. Zach blinks and stares at the walls of the room... he's been told about it and seen images online, and seen a few memories from his girlfriend, but all the memorabilia on the walls makes him gawk a bit. Sandra finally notices him and blinks a few times, moving over after disengaging from her crew. "... Zach?"
The hoomiku mewls and looks at her, blinking. "Sandra?"
"... what the fu-... how-..." The hoomiku sighs and holds up a hand.
"Don't... you really don't wanna know."
Sandra closes her muzzle and chews on the thought a second, before sighing... loudly. "You know what? I really don't... welcome back to the land of the living, embodied people, I guess..."
"Yeah, no shit... what are you doing here, anyway?"
She grins broadly "Year older! My crew dragged me down for some karaoke. What about you, what's your excuse?"
"Happy birthday! Uh... well... Mom and Ian are going to some... charity thing in Lafayette and I seriously gotta get out of that house... it's awesome, but stir crazy? I am way over that..."

Jason Chilton: The otter finishes telling the story before walking up to the DJ table and having a word with him, while the lion - or rather, lioness - makes her way over to gaze in wonder at the mementos hung on the wall. She opens her mouth to say something, but nothing comes out right away before the otter comes back to her with a smile on his face. "Pretty neat, huh? Even though I come hang here a lot, some of this stuff still amazes me."
"I know--it's just. . .how did the owner come across all this stuff, given what it is?"
"Beats me...I've never really thought about it. . .so how 'bout a drink while I wait my turn?"

Hoomiku: Zach sticks close to the jackal as the two pass by the otter and the lioness. He blinks at a bunch of pictures of astronauts in EVA suits posing before their flights... all of them lunar... and he spots the jackal in one. "You?"
She grins and nods. "Yep... Phoenix 9."
"I still can't believe all this..."
"Oh-ho, just wait... it gets better... shoulda seen Lindsey when I told her what my mission was. Hey, come on, I'll introduce you to the gang..." She leads him over near where a few pool tables and shuffleboard tables... and the stage... are and gestures to a few folks sitting around the table. "Hey, guys, I wanna introduce y'all to a friend..."
Zach blushes a bit as the six turn to look at him... he's an awkward nerd being put on the spot... wonderful. Two of the figures are dressed in blue NASA style flight jackets... and they're the REAL ones, not the ones at the gift shop down the road. Sandra points to a veteran looking raccoon first "Commander Roger Mason..."
"Heya, kiddo." He nods and smiles warmly. Next to him is a maned wolf woman in the other blue jacket. "Sarah Engels, our pilot..."
"Hey, pleased to meet you." Next to her is a red panda laughing at a fennec wearing a leather jacket. "Yuma Tazuka and Ehud Shalom..."
The final two wave at the cat... a leopard and a Mexican wolf. "And that's Ricky Wilson and she's Sonya Alvarez."

Jason Chilton: The lioness nods and accepts the otter's proposal for a drink as she too is looking at the pictures of the astronauts in their EVA suits...and she turns and catches a glimpse of the jackal but doesn't say anything right away before going over to a table by the stage...where the otter happens to catch her and sits beside her. He says something to her but she seems to be tuned into another raccoon, who is doing a decent job on "I Like It, I Love It" by Tim McGraw as she crosses her feet. He then glances over at the crew, then back to her as she too glances, though hers lasts long enough to get a chuckle out of the otter. "If you're thinking what I think you are, I see her here a lot...the jackal. Haven't really gotten a chance to talk to her though..."

Hoomiku: Sandra sits down at an open spot and Zach grabs a chair from another table and sits down. "... and you already know me. Guys, this is Zachary... Calliden, right?"
He nods and rubs the back of his neck. "Yeah, uh... just Zach's fine, though."
Sandra nods. "He's Ian and Fractal's kid."
"...wah? Oh!" Yuma blinks and notices the hoomiku. "I heard about him... Welcome to the Warp Drive... awesome, isn't it?!"
Mason rolls his eyes a bit and Shalom chuckles. "I love that she's our RMS specialist," mutters the fennec softy.
"Shocked she still has a job after the stunt she pulled a few years a-"
Tazuka frowns and blushes. "I thought we said we weren't gonna talk about that..."
"Hey, you're the one who did it..."
Engels snorts softly. "Damn right she did and JAXA was piiiiissed..."
"Oh, for Christ's sake..."
"Um... what happened?" Zach blinks and looks from the jackal to the panda.
"OH! So, get this-..."
Yuma growls softly. "Sandra, I swear to God..."

Jason Chilton: It is at about this time the otter perks his ears just as Sandra goes into the "So get this..." routine, and curiosity getting the better of him, he wanders over in their direction, feigning the appearance of looking for someone before the lioness approaches and lets him know that she is going to use the proverbial litter box. He turns to face the stage, though one ear is perked to the conversation to the right of him as the DJ speaks up. "All right, give it up for Jason!" There is a hearty round of applause for the raccoon as he exhales and leaves the stage. "Yeah. . .next up, we have Sarah--c'mon up here, Sarah!" A young white tigress takes to the stage and readies herself as the opening riff to Eye of the Tiger belts out through the speakers. The otter shakes his head, thinking that it is too stereotypical for one of her species to do that particular song, but he says nothing of it for the time.

Hoomiku: Engels nods in approval. "Oh, yeah!"
"This is cliche..." mutters the raccoon next to her.
"Maybe, but it's good."
Sandra, meanwhile, is wrapping the story up. "...and she and he went into the Astrotech module in the payload bay and got it on, man." Yuma blushes horribly and reaches for the bottle of Kirin Ichiban on the table, muttering something in Japanese under her breath. Zach goes wide eyed and Wilson whistles softly and shakes his head.
"Daaaaaamn, Yuma."
"Oh, shut up, Ricky..."
"Wow... I-... wow... um... doesn't that... kinda... I dunno... violate some rule?"
Sandra laughs. "Well, maybe, but-..."
Yuma covers her eyes and growls. "Okay, JAXA basically told me my career was done and GOD knows what Karri got told by ESA... so I apply for just a straight ISA gig and got it. I don't know how... I thought I'd ruined my career and was grounded forever. And he's gonna be the first European to MARS!" The panda shakes her head and Sandra shrugs as the hoomiku's ears perk way higher.
"Ian's weird like that, I guess," Sandra concludes.
"If I owe the guy my career? ...hell. Yours too, let's be honest? I'm not arguing."

Jason Chilton: The otter gasps, turning his attention from the tigress and her rendition of one of the 70's greatest hits; one of the guys in his platoon had told him a rumor about astronauts getting it on...for research purposes, of course...but he didn't think it really happened! So he gathered up every ounce of courage that he could muster and approached the crew, a little twitch of his rudder tail toward the end. "Hope you guys don't mind me pokin' my nose in here. . .but if what I heard actually happened, then I am in some deep, deep shit..."

Hoomiku: Yuma sighs and sinks a bit in her chair, glaring at the jackal. "See...? Chikushō..."
Sandra turns to the otter and nods. "Don't mind the wah, she's still-OW!
Sandra winces and Yuma puts on a smug smile of satisfaction. Wilson leans over to the jackal while she rubs her leg and snarls and mentions that he's signed Sandra up for karaoke while Yuma sips her beer and sighs, nodding at the otter. "... Yeah, me and Karri Litmanen... STS-6W... And it can't be any worse than what he and I got, trust me..."

Jason Chilton: The otter sighs as he turns to the panda, looking defeated already as he moves in closer. "Can't be as bad as what's gonna happen next time I see one of my old SEAL buddies...I bet him $200 that what you just told me happened did not..." He lets out another sigh before he gathers himself again. "Anyway...Troy Huxley, United States Navy..."

Hoomiku: Mason grins and laughs softly. "Sorry in advance, buddy, but you got three Air Force pilots and a guy who flew F-15's for Israel at this table."
The raccoon sips his beer as the maned wolf next to him rolls her eyes. "Stuff it "Rocket"..." Mason's ears flick a little in response.
Yuma smiles a bit at that and mumbles "soooorry"... but she grins and extends her hand. "Yuma..."
The maned wolf stands and extends her hand. "Sarah Engels, Air Force..."
"Roger Mason... also Air Force..."
The fennec next to Yuma stands and extends his hand, nodding politely. "Ehud Shalom, Israeli Air Force."
The leopard near him stands and extends his hand. "Ricky Wilson. I just pretend to fly stuff... my brother's in the Navy, though."
"Sonya Alvarez... Air Force..."
Sandra rubs her shin again and extends her hand. "Sandra Harris..." Zach stays out of the lineup, since he's not really important... he does order a Coke from the waitress, though, along with a burger and cheese sticks.