"Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Stop it!"
Tao was holding Peridot up by her pointy hair ready to tear off her head, while Steven and Connie were dangling by his arm trying to get him to stop.
"Now what did you say about my outfit?"
"Mr Tao please let her go!"
"Yeah she didn't mean it, it looks great!"
Tao began to squeeze her hair harder, Peridot felt that it was about to be torn out of her scalp.
"I could toss you across the country if I was so inclined."
Steven tried to pry Tao's arm off as tears formed in his eyes.
"Please Tao! Peridot must be mistaken! I don't want my new friends to fight!"
Tao looked into Steven's pleading eyes, something about the sheer incounce in them that while annoying was compelling to the immortal assassin. The boy honestly thought he wasn't a killer.
Tao dropped the gem flat on her butt.
"Can you two please get off of me now?"
"Oh yeah, sorry…"
Steven and Connie dropped down from Tao's arm, but Steven fell on his head and faced everyone upside down.
"So what brings you here, Dot?
Peridot repositioned her hair.
"*sigh* I told you not to call me that…. Ahem. Steven, Pearl requested that I am to bring you back to the barn at once."
"Aw really… That's like a five mile walk back! I thought she said I didn't have to work today."
"Well Pearl requested that you were to return immediately."
"Well I guess we should get going then. Bye Connie! Bye Tao! Sorry that Peridot thought you were a crazy killer!"
Steven waved as he began to walk with Peridot back to the barn but Tao had other plans.
"Wait!"
"What is it Tao?"
Tao walked up to Peridot.
"Peri was it?"
"No it's Peridot actually... Uh Mr Tao."
No wonder Pearl was so scared of this man he could kill her on a dime for nothing more than a comment on his wardrobe.
"I grievously apologize for my previous actions, I went a little overboard."
Peridot began to scream in her mind.
"A little overboard!? Implication of murder is a little overboard!?"
"Um it's fine…"
"No its not, allow me to make it up to you two, the least I could do is give you a ride back to your home."
Before Peridot could say anything Steven jumped in front of her.
"We'd love a ride!"
Peridot didn't even try to argue with Steven, she may not of known him long but she knew that he would stop at nothing to become an ally to a new arrival, or as Steven would say "become friends".
"Fine where is your vehicle of transportation?"
"Hm…"
Tao looked around for a brief moment until a large thick pine tree caught his attention.
"Both of you come here."
They followed Tao to the large tree confused of his motive.
"Here we go…"
Tao gave a light tap with his foot against the stump and to Stevens and Peridots surprise Tao lifted it from the ground like it was a piece of styrofoam.
"What direction did you say the barn was?"
"Um five miles South…"
"Let's see five miles south, no wind resistance…"
Tao began to calculate the level of force he needed to apply.
"Now!"
Tao threw the tree and it took of like a missile.
"Now what?"
Tao grabbed Steven and Peridot placing one on each shoulder he jumped on top of the flying tree.
"Hold on!"
Peridot was screaming in fear while Steven was screaming in a mixture of exhilaration, bewilderment, and the feeling that he might pee his pants.
…...
At the barn Greg was finishing up the touches on the roof of the barn.
"There we go, finally finished!"
Greg began to give a little dance of celebration but it was cut short by a tree soaring towards the barn with the speed of a missile.
"What the…."
It zoomed right past Greg's hair with the recoil of the wind pushing him back.
"Aw Gezz!"
Greg began to roll down the roof and was holding onto the edge of the roof with only a few fingers to support his weight.
"Man now I'm really regretting not going on that diet!"
On the ground Tao walked off the tree with a bewildered Steven and a shaking Peridot still gripping onto to Tao's shoulders.
"Were on the ground now you two."
The two had very different reaction, Steven jumped off with stars in his eyes.
"That was awesome! We were flying! And you threw the tree with one arm and it came here like you said and-"
Peridot fell off of Tao's shoulder shaking like a small dog.
"That was single handedly the most terrifying moment of my life."
"I hope we get to do that again sometime!"
"If I ever do that again it'll be too soon."
Both Stevens and Peridots rambling were interrupted when a single flipflop fell on Steven's head.
"What?"
Steven looked up a saw his father dangling by a few fingers.
"Um Steven a little help?"
The edge began to bend.
"No, no, no, NO!"
Greg began to fall as he screamed closing his eyes.
"AAAHHHHHHhhhh- Huh?"
Greg opened his eyes seeing a pony-tailed man holding him up by his collar a few feet from the ground.
"Was the screaming really necessary?"
Tao dropped Greg from his collar, the former rock-star's face connected to the hard ground, at least it was better than it would of initially been.
"Man can't I have one day of work without falling off the roof?"
Before Greg could fully pull himself up Steven decided to introduce his father to Tao.
"Dad this is Mr Tao Pai Pai, he's new in town so I decided to show him around."
"It's nice to meet you sir, and thanks for the save."
"It was nothing."
Greg didn't want to make a bad impression on the man who just saved him.
"Do you want to come in for a bite?"
"Oh no, it fine I don't want to intrude."
"Nonsense! My family has an old saying "if someone saves your life you could at least invite them in for something to eat!"
Tao raised a confused eyebrow.
"That's an old saying?"
"My family was never very good with words…"
Tao looked around him Greg had a warm smile, Steven was still giddy, and Peridot was still shaking.
These people were actually being kind to him, this may be the new start he wanted.
"What do you have?"
Greg set up a small picnic table and him and Steven began to prepare food for their guest.
A solid half hour has passed between talking and eating, everyone was getting alone even Peridot began to warm up to Tao.
Things were going great until a scream was heard.
"I GOT YOU NOW, YOU MONSTER!"
A spear was thrown at Tao at super speeds and began approaching his head.