Thick As Thieves (Zoe)

[somerandomhippie4]

"I don't think karma has anything to do with that," Zoe teased, poking Sam again. He was so poke-able. "Either that, or you'd have to take some extensive psychiatric testing. Just in case. You never know with those chefs."

"Stop that!" she squeaked, curling up and shaking like a leaf. She should have known better than to initiate a tickle, she was much more ticklish that he was. "It's hard to go back to ordinary food, too," she commented, still giggling. "It all seems so bland, and horrible." Reaching at arms' length for the tray, she pouted, "You meanie!", nearly falling off the couch. It was a little harder sitting cross-legged.

With a grin, she added, "And a camera, don't forget the camera." She had actually liked Spiderman, despite the whole radiation thing being total nonsense. "Well, I suppose it requires actual cutlery," she shrugged. "Scalpels and stethoscopes would probably have a whole different feel altogether. You might end up whacking yourself, and then we'd be out a chef." That was a horror not worth imagining. "I'm sure you were, Miss Samantha."

"Random senses of humor are amazing," she defended. "They make life better. And you better introduce these lady friends to me for initiation. I have to show them the embarrassing photos sometime, you know." They were barely even embarrassing-- just hilarious.

[Sam O'Connor]

Through narrowed eyes he said, "are you trying to say that I'm clumsy?" He raised an eyebrow slightly, fixing her with a stare, "hmmmmmmmmmmm? Because if you are, you know that a tickle attack is in order." He was so very aware of how ticklish she was, it was her weakness and his best asset in quarrels. As soon as the tickling began, she gave in to just about anything. That, and the height advantage helped too.

"You should know better than to taunt me then," he stuck his tongue out at her. She wobbled precariously and he reached out with his hand to catch her, forgetting about the tray for a moment. There was no crash though, the tray now hovering a couple of feet from the ground. "Phew." Picking the tray up, he set it safely back on the table. "Guess I don't have powers for nothing," he grinned.

"Of course!" Sam slapped his hand to his head, "how could I forget the camera?" He snorted when she called him Miss Samantha. "Sounds like a stage name for a transvestite," he laughed, rubbing his eyes slightly. "Oh well, if I ever decide to give up the life of a chef and pursue a different career, then I already have my next one planned out for me."

"Duh," he said, poking her, "you're amazing, enough said." He put on an mock aghast face when she said they would have to be initiated. "Oh no, not the embarrassing photos!! I'll be shamed into hiding in my bedroom for the rest of eternity!"

[somerandomhippie4]

Throwing her hands up in the air, Zoe's eyes widened. "Me? Say you're clumsy? Initiate a tickle war?! What do you think I am?" As fast as she would lose if they started, it was usually worth it. Their tickle wars were so much fun, plus good cardio.

With a sigh, she gripped onto his arm, managing to snatch a snack as she balanced herself on the couch again. "I'm sorry, O Gracious One Of Mighty Powers," she teased, a cheek puffed out like a squirrel. "I should know better than to taunt you and your extra-amazing chef skills. Forgive me?" Batting her eyes goofily, she almost snorted. That was so stupid. "Of course, we couldn't have the snack crashing to the floor. That would be a disaster." She tried to reach over, but missed and sat back again.

"You'll have to run around the ship, snapping random pictures of people, writing about them, and publishing them in a concise archive of history... Hmmm.... You could make a fortune off of an idea like that." She actually did snort at the transvestite quip. "Yeah, you'd make a very pretty girl," she drawled. "You can raid my closet, if you like. Or we could just go shopping." Not that she wanted to be responsible for that, but it would be hilarious.

Sticking her tongue out, she grinned. "Aww, you tease," she cooed, turning to flop across his lap. She snuggled her head onto a cushion comfortably, and grabbed another snack. She was going to have to miss supper. "Hey, at least you know if they come back after the embarrassing pictures, then they're good friends," she pointed out. "If not, we could always install a little kitchen in there for you. Transport all the food by pulley or something."

[Sam O'Connor]

Sam snickered, saying, "do you really want me to answer that question?" and then he initiated the tickling war anyway, distracting her by running a finger down the back of her neck before going for her ribs. It didn't matter how it started, he always won. Although, maybe she would surprise him this time?

He poked the puffed out cheek, mock scowling at the fact that she'd still managed to get a snack off the plate despite his best efforts. "And so you should be," he said with an authoratative nod, "I don't if I can forgive you. SNIFF." He looked away from her, pretending to be hurt for a few moments, before the silent laughter made him begin to shake, and he had to let up, and started giggling. He mussed up her hair, "fine, fine, we both know I can't hold a grudge anyway. Not with you."

Sam chuckled a little, "it's not a bad idea actually," he said, "not exactly the concise archive of history, but I could take pictures of everyone and stick them up in the mess hall somewhere, I'm sure the Captain wouldn't protest too much." Zoe was better at photography than he was, but if he was just taking goofy snaps of the crew, nothing could go too wrong. "I'd have to start with you, of course," he said, "then work my way around my lady friends," he poked his tongue out at her teasingly. Snorting loudly, he said, "you know what happened last time you took me shopping. I was chased from the department store, leaving a trail of fallen hat stands in my wake."

"I was being completely honest," he said sincerely as she collapsed into his lap, he gently tweaked her nose, "you should know how much I love you by now," he grinned. He chuckled a little at what she said, "I suppose that's true. Who says I'd have enough time to cook inbetween sitting in the corner and crying with shame, and wallowing in my own self pity?"

((For some reason, unbeknowst to me, I was writing this post and listening to a song from the Lion King, and I immediately thought of these two as: these two. Pfffft xD I think it's probably because Carey's so cute, and Kiara was pretty.))

[somerandomhippie4]

Zoe scrinched up her face, and was just about to say 'nah', when he sent a finger down her spine. "Teee, that tickle-- Aah!" she squealed, recoiling. Already planning a counter-attack, she tried to get back, but only managed to poke him a couple times before dissolving into hysterics. Oh, man. She hadn't laughed this hard in ages.

"That was a loud sniff," she pointed out, mock-worried. "Are you coming down with something?" She felt his forehead, looked in his ear, and attempted to wrench his jaw open (to no success). Giggling and mussing up his hair in return, she beamed, "And you're just too dang sugary to not be forgiven."

She was tempted to make a crack about the 'concise archive of history' idea, but her mind had other ideas. "Hmm... Like, a scrapbook? Only not actually a scrapbook, just a bunch of pictures. Send 'em into UGAP, I'm sure they'd be impressed." With a snicker, she made another snatch for his tongue. "Do your lady friends first, you have enough of me already. I'm sure they'd be delighted to model for you." Throwing her hands up, she defended, "Hey, I for one didn't know they were Jungarians. If I had, I would have warned you about the hats."

She reached up, poking the end of his nose gently. "I kinda guessed," she chuckled, batting his nose with a finger. Sam was the sweetest man ever. "Oh, you'd get bored with that soon enough, and you know it. You can't stand more than an hour without snacks. I'm surprised you're not totally overweight." She patted his stomach, snickering a little at the hollow sound.

((That is actually a good point, I must admit. Now I have a sudden urge to listen to the Little Mermaid soundtrack. I don't know how I made that connection. xD))

[Sam O'Connor]

Zoe's attempts at getting him back were feeble, and he snorted in the middle of his laughter as his ribs lurched away from her fingers. He continued on mercilessly, cackling as evilly as he could despite his fits of hysterical laughter. "I am the tickling Master! AH-HA-HA-HA-HAAAAA!!" Hopefully no one would walk in to the insane asylum that was the common room, that would be interesting to explain.

Sam nodded at her, making his brown eyes swell so that they were at their fullest puppy dog effect, "It's called Zoe-itis, it happens when you have an overdose of Zoe after being sober for so long." He tried to say it in the cutest voice possible, which was hard when his accent tried to make words indiscernable. He squirmed a little when she tried to open his jaw, failing completely, his hands kung-fuing hers away from his hair, "back away from the hair," he warned her, making a 'wahhhh' noise, as he continued to pretend to do moves with his hands.

"A scrapbook without words..." he stroked his chin thoughtfully, trying not to smirk, "oh yes, a photo album." He poked her gently, "it could be my portfolio. A day in the life of the Venia crew, as photographed by Sam 'Crazy Chef' O'Connor." That made him break out into laughter again. "Model for me," he snorted, "mmmmhmmmm, I'm sure." Hollie would play along, he wasn't so sure about Eva. He'd have to get her laughing first, and that wasn't that hard. "Jung-a-what-ians?" he stared at her like she had two heads, then added with his best English accent, "'splainy for the commoner please Miss."

"Bahhh, that's true," he admitted, "after cooking 14 hours a day for so long, I don't know what I'd do with myself if I ever had nothing to do. To be honest, it was a wonder he hadn't faded away completely, rather than got fat. "Actually, it's more surprising that you're not fat yet," he tickled her stomach a little, "I didn't know talking kept you in such great shape."

((Me either xD I keep listening to the bits of soundtracks I have posted on my tumblr; The Lion King, Doctor Who, The Social Network, Never Let Me Go. Such a random bunch!))

[somerandomhippie4]

Zoe couldn't help but laugh as Sam started to cackle maniacally, even if it sounded more like a shriek. After a minute, she finally batted at his heads, managing to get out, "Breathe-- Need to breathe--" before collapsing back into hearty laughter. Oh, if she had missed anything, it had been this randomness. Her ribs hadn't hurt like this in weeks.

"Oh, you cute mumbly thing," she cooed, pouting like she'd seen people do with babies, or a pet. "Don't worry, you'll be all better soon." She waved her hands fruitlessly as he made flashy karate moves, and went 'pfft'. "Ooh, so we're moving on to karate, are we? Is the fencing getting boring?" She danced around, trying to land a poke.

Zoe stroked her imaginary beard, then snorted. "Yes, you could send it into Reader's Digest. I'm sure they'd love such an authentic, heart-warming story like that." Hmm... Actually, that wasn't a bad idea. "Or post it online. Everyone would see it then, crush their dreams that the Venia's actually saving the galaxy instead of snacking at government expenses." Snickering, she explained, "I talked to them after. Apparently putting on a hat in that culture is symbolic of donning a war helmet. Basically, they thought you wanted fisticuffs." Still, it had been amusing watching him dash around the department store with hats flying around him.

"You'd just cook more." She poked his stomach teasingly, commenting, "You do need to put on the weight. You're just a twig, it's a wonder you've got any muscle at all." She snorted. "Your fault for feeding me all these high-class snacks," she pointed out, shoving him lightly. "And I think it's the laughing, actually, so you're pardoned. For now."

[Sam O'Connor]

"Fine, fine," Sam let up, chuckling as he sat back, letting Zoe go free instead of pursuing her with his tickling fingers. "That'll teach you," he said with a nod, "after all, being tickled and laughing hysterically is a torturous exercise," he snickered, easing back into the sofa. He loved her laugh, even when it was mixed up with the hysterics over being tickled. Why else would he initiate tickle attacks in the first place?

Sam continued to look cute, "I hope so, befwore my snwiffles get any worse," he jutted out his bottom lip, hunching over, his eyes shining. Wow, he was really playing this one up. "Is there a cure?" He kept his hands raised as she asked him if he was bored with his old trademark skills, and said, "not at all, I figured you use karate to such effect that I should try it too," he fended off her attempts to poke him, protecting his ribs.

Smoothing his hair over, he smirked, "sure, sure, it could be more like an insider expose. Undercover from the kitchen," he chuckled, "maybe it'll win me a pulitzer." He let out an 'ahhhhhhhh' as she explained what on earth she'd meant, and shook his head slightly. "If only I'd know that earlier, I would have tried to put the hat somewhere less conspicuous, like on my foot, or my arse." He poked his tongue out at her playfully, remembering that day all too well. He'd run straight out of the shop, and slammed into the side of a cab, much to the surprise of a disgruntled cab driver, who promptly directed a rude gesture at Sam's face which was flat against the window. Good times.

"Put on weight?!" he said, "I thought it was attractive for men to stay svelt and slender, not bloat like a beach ball. If anything, I need to put on muscle. Which you know is impossible for me, cursed metabolism." Despite being quite skinny, Sam thought he wasn't actually in bad shape. You could tell he had biceps, and his stomach was hard, if flat. That was a start, right? "Mmmhmmm, blame me, don't take any responsibility for yourself," he shook his head disapprovingly.

((I tried saying snwiffles with an Northern Irish accent to see if was possible and almost killed myself laughing/coughing xD))

[somerandomhippie4]

Gasping for breath, Zoe comtinued to chuckle on Sam's shoulder. "Well, it is an exercise, if anything." Her ribs were sore now, but it was the best laugh attack she'd had in months. Come to think of it, the only laugh attack she'd had in months. "Probably wore off all those snacks now."

He looked like a wounded puppy when he pulled that pout. "Awww, don't worry, we'll get you awwwwwwl better," she assured him, sounding like a five year old in the process. Patting his head, she cooed, "What you need is a nice, good.... Tickle attack!" She lunged for his ribs. Laughing, she replied, "That's my trademark, dummy. But I guess you can use it."

"Ooh, so we are going all Peter Parker now." Hopefully, her grin looked mischievous, and not just creepy. "Sammy O'Conner, aka Spiderman, discovers the truth lurking in the kitchens. What will he find? Mystery? Betrayal? His long-lost sugar, which he's been depriving himself of lately?" She rolled her eyes. "Pfft. Thanks, that really scarred my brain. I hope you never try to put a hat on your arse, or else you might have a few others after you. Like the SWAT team."

"Yes, put on weight. Where's your hearing aids?" She shoved him lightly, and continued, "Well, it'll do you no good to look like a stick man, either. And maybe if you got some more protein in your system, you could work on those pecs, Goofy." He looked comfortable, though-- if anything, his gangly frame fit his personality. "You know I'm a lazy, do-no-good bum." She stuck her tongue out.

[Sam O'Connor]

"Weeallllllllllyyy???" he sucked in his lip and looked hopeful, only to fall prey to a tickle attack of Zoe's. He instantly rolled back, trying to get away from her hands while he chuckled, but she kept going, seizing her opportunity while she could. His chuckling dissolved into actual laughter, and he tried to get her hands away with little effect. "Noooooo," he giggled, finally managing to seize her hands, "I give up! I give in! I'll do anything, let me goooo!"

"Oooooh, mysterious!" he agreed, "maybe my Mary Jane could help me discover what terrible things lurk in the bowels of the kitchen? We could dye your hair red, you could borrow my notepad, and you'd be away!" With a snort, he said, "who on earth would send a SWAT team after me for putting a hat on my arse?" And snickered, adding, "other than you, obviously, the all-powerful Zoe," he bowed low, rolling out his hand as a gesture of his respect for her awesomeness.

Sam poked her back, "I'm sorry, what was that?" He poked his tongue out at her teasingly, "I'm deaf you see, can't hear a thing." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close, "awww, come on, you know you love the stick man style, I work it so well," he grinned, flexing his free arm, the muscles there tensing. Doing the Goofy laugh, he ended up choking, patting his own chest and dissolving into laughter, "oops." He snickered when she called herself a lazy, do-no-good bum, "don't do yourself down, I wouldn't call you lazy."

[somerandomhippie4]

She laughed in triumph as Sam started chuckling from the tickles, only to have her wrists seized. "Hmmm..." she giggled, "Well, snacks will be in order. We'll go from there." It wasn't often she got to give an ultimatum- usually, he was the one tickling her, whist she begged for mercy- so this was a fresh change of pace.

She snickered, and gave him a cheery wink. "Spidey and his trusty lady sidekick. I wonder how my hair would look red?" She tried to look up at her bangs, but failed miserably. "Well, I guess if it doesn't work, I'll be Gwen Stacy. But either way, we'll crack this mystery in no time, Sherlock!" Shoving at his bowed forehead, she insisted, "Quit that. I like to keep my supreme powers under wraps, thank you very much."

With a grin, she cupped her hands around his closest ear, saying, "Where are your hearing aids?" He was an absolute goof. "Yes, less damage if you trip, and easier for young admirers to try and draw you," she scoffed. She laughed as he tried to do a Goofy impression, whacking him in the stomach a little to help out his cough. "That's because you're a suck-up, you sweetheart," she snickered. "Now, where did those snacks go?"

[Sam O'Connor]

"Yes ma'am," he saluted her, "you're going pretty easy on me there, and I am very appreciative," he tickled the back of her neck, "so very appreciative," he snickered. "I bet your hair would look amazing red, all fiery like you when you're attacking me," he laughed, defending himself from another potential attack after that comment. "Certainly, Watson! The crime solving duo solves yet another mystery! Huzzah!" He took the shove, then brushed his hair against her arm, tickling it.

Sam pretended to be bowled over by the sudden loud sound down his ear, pressing a finger to it, he wiggled it around a bit. "There musn't be anything inside this noggin of mine, because there is quite an echo in there." He let out a laugh, "I consist of four straight lines and a circle, no wonder I'm always bumping into stuff!" he snorted, "it'd be horrible if they forgot the hair though, can you imagine me bald?" he shuddered at the thought. His Grandparents gave up on trying to deal with his hair many moons ago, that was the last time he'd been anything close to bald.

"You're not wrong," he beamed, before searching around for the snacks, "I think you ate them all," he poked her gently, "you and that appetite of yours." He heaved an over-exaggerated sigh, "oh well." Hopping up onto his feet, he pulled Zoe onto his back, "come on girly friend, to the kitchen!" Making sure she was secure, he set off at a jog, heading towards the kitchen, nimbly dodging people left and right until they reached their intended destination. "Hmm, I wonder if it's possible to cook with someone on my back," he mused, pushing through the door.

[somerandomhippie4]

Rolling her eyes, she giggled. "That tickles." Swatting her arms vaguely behind her head, she spared one to send a light whack his way. "I'm pretty sure hair dye wasn't around in the Dark Ages, Sherlock." She snickered again at the hair-- it was so fluffy, and shaggy. He needed to get it trimmed.

Knocking a hand against his head, Zoe shook her head. "Sounds pretty hollow to me." With a snicker, she agreed, "The hair is the trademark. So, a stick man with hair. You'd look much better with hair." She couldn't imagine him without it.

Beaming, she looked around, before sighing at lack of food. "Hey, I've been the one working all day. You get to sit around and play with food." She didn't see the piggy-back coming, though. Laughing, she locked her arms around his shoulders. "Knock me off and you're dead, O'Connor," she warned with a chuckle. Grinning at the crew they passed (who seemed rather used to it, oddly enough), she hopped down as they walked through the doors. "I wouldn't try it."

This was a nice kitchen. Big, shiny, with what she could only imagine was state-of-the-art equipment... "No wonder you play around all day," she whistled. "This is some playground." Popping up on a gleaming counter, she danced back and forth. "What's the first-class chef making today, then?"

[Sam O'Connor]

"I'm pretty sure Sherlock wasn't alive in the Dark Ages, dearest," he patted the top of her head, "Sir Arthur Conan Doyle probably wasn't even a thought his parents' minds back then." He let out an 'oof' with each knock against his noggin, snickering, "a stick man with a near afro, yep, that sounds about right." He'd be sure to get it cut before Christmas, back to a manageable length so he at least looked smart for the holidays.

Sam laughed, "duely noted," he said, "no dropping, or my precious life is lost." Skidding into the kitchen, she hopped down so he didn't have to try out his theory, and he immediately went about finding ingredients. He had a taste on his tongue for something he'd been fancying for a while now, and was easy enough to make - plus, it always tasted great, so what was not to love? "My sand box is best on the whoolllleeee ship," he grinned, sliding over to the fridge.

He scooped up the appropriate ingredients from the fridge and cupboards, slipping them onto the counter: a filet of duck, asparagus, Port, butter, peanut oil, salt, pepper, and parsley, then he turned to Zoe, "a surprise," he grinned, "but you are allowed to know that there are brownies in the cupboard for dessert. If you can wait that long." Swirling a dial round, the over began to preheat, then he filled a pan with water and set it boiling as he fiddled with the asparagus, taking the tips off in order to cook them.

[somerandomhippie4]

With a roll of her eyes, Zoe drawled, "Sorry, Professor. I'll remember that for next time." Giggling, she licked her hands, and started pulling his hair up and everywhere. "It'll be an afro in a minute, dear, don't you worry." It was thick, so it kept wanting to flop back down, but it stayed well enough. "You look like you stuck your tongue in the toaster," she laughed.

"Yes, your precious chef life. I'm sure most of the crew quite values it." She'd tried to make a sandwich with the bio-synthesizer the other day. It tasted horrible. It could barely manage to get the bread right. "I know I do." Tilting over, she watched as he skipped over to the fridge. "You got the best toys ever, Sammy. You are one spoilt chef," she teased.

She watched in anticipation as he slid various foods onto the counter, her eyebrows going up at the Port. "So, you're planning to drink in your sandbox then, are you?" she snickered. "You must be a good chef." At the mention of brownies, she beamed. "No, I'll wait for you, dear buddy, and we can snack together. Or eat supper, I guess." She glanced at the clock on the wall; it was getting rather late.