got a fever of 103

He can tell this one is of his kind. He remains silent, however. Perhaps he can feel the heat emanating from his body even from the distance.

"Another one of you kids? Today's been full of surprises."

He can sort of sense that this boy isn't just an ordinary pillar man. He was kind of like Kars, even. Either way, it made his horns tingle.

The forest is very quiet when he helps himself back up and Kars’ mischief is only getting stronger along with the spell. He may give him somewhat of a real challenge this time. Or at least, one that might bring back memories for him. 

Now there's a familiar sound! He was about to start on the third apple, but he puts it away somewhere for now. This reminded him of the time they had traveled far north from their original homeland and encountered bears and the like.

Just as he expected, good. He would have been disappointed if any of them hit him. It would have been a waste of good apples. He covers his mouth to try and keep himself from making a sound or at least muffle any possible laughter that might slip.

It isn’t laughter that slips, but instead a few stray chirps. He is sure that even if birds are common here, ACDC is not going to dismiss that. 

He's so distracted by the chirp that he walks straight into the pit and falls into it with a loud yelp.

Spikes? Really?

He rises out of the pit a moment later, using his veins to climb out in combination with his natural agility. It's no effort to scale the pit's wall, as deep as it is.

Nope. Not coming out.

It’s true he isn’t far, only far enough out of range that ACDC’s horns shouldn’t detect him. At least the small traps he set up along the way should keep him busy. He didn’t intend to actually trap him, as he knew only humans could fall for something so absurd. It was only to bide some time.

ACDC starts walking in the direction that Kars seems to be, but once he nears a tree, something falls down. Startled, ACDC's first instinct is to attack, but the scent of fruit stops him.

Ooh, apples!

Did Kars leave these here for him? How nice! ACDC takes off his hat and scoops them all up, being sure to leave three out. Once they're all in his hat, it's a simple matter to put it back over his hair.

"Quite true, It has been some time since I delved into the pleasures with my own kind… I tend to prefer a warm body. But, looking at your face, my friend…. I can suppose that you are indeed quite ‘hot’."

"Yes, I have met Kars, a wonderful creature he is."

He muses to himself, to see another creature with hair rivaling his own in sheer volume was a rare sight.

That's strange, didn't he just feel Kars was around here?

Oh well, he was probably off hiding in some tree or something. It didn't matter, his Kars Sense was always pretty accurate.

The world just might implode.

Thankfully, it doesn’t, and Vanilla returns the pose with one of his own, one hand on his hip, the other popped to the side, his head tilted in amusement.

And hearing these kinds of words coming from ACDC, of all people, just makes it all the more surreal. That definitely isn’t quelling the blush that lights up her face, though.

He chuckles as he gets onto his feet, dusting himself off. The bullet holes are gone now, as are the imprints from her shoes.

"Oh? And that's a reaction I never thought I'd get from you." He laughs, but then suddenly stops and frowns. "Jojo, you are missing my point."

"You should never want to hear me say those words again to you, outside of this conversation, because then I'd be treating you like every other woman I've met, and not as the warrior that  you are." He isn't sure if he should continue, if he should explain this. It wasn't as if they were friends, but she was an alternate of the only human capable of killing him.

"Is it so? There were very few ripple users capable of standing up to myself for so long, your male counterpart among them. It stands to reason you would do just as well."

"I have no interest in the warrior's honor that Wham unfortunately came to value, but even I can recognize when a human is worth more than the others. It just so happens I am also interested in seeing you squirm, though I wouldn't mind actually having you in my bed, either."

"Perhaps you'd prefer more 'traditional' compliments, hm? The drivel I use for women? Shall I sing praises for the curves of your body or for the fine slope of your bosom? Would you like me to proclaim how the twinkle of your eyes matches the stars that adorn the firmament, how your hair is a wild tangle of glory that surely matches your fiery spirit? Maybe you'd like to hear a poem about all the ways I'll worship you and adore you as I have never worshipped and adored a woman before in all the thousands of years of my life?"

Hearing that definitely doesn’t make her feel any better. In fact, it definitely makes her feel worse.

She’s at least satisfied with how he’s knocked over. That doesn’t stop her from riddling him with bullets until the gun runs out of ammo. After which, she throws the emptied rifle onto him.

Oof! A rifle, hm? He'll just reach up to hold onto it.

"Very worth it!"