exsiliumlogs | [OPEN] BABES IN TOYLAND

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[OPEN] BABES IN TOYLAND

Date & Time: December 20th, 2013
Location: New York City!!!
Characters: HOLIDAY SHOPPERS. Please note that with mod approval, any character is allowed to have joined the mob in front of the transporter, regardless of whether they responded to the network post advertising this event.
Summary: In a bid to conserve energy, over a dozen transports do all of their Christmas shopping at once. I hope you brought money!
Warnings: None for now!

All the transports are dropped into New York at 6:00, simultaneously but scattered. Coding the drop points for this mission was hell.

It turns out that the weather is actually fairly mild on this date; there is snow neither in the air nor in the ground. That isn't to say there's nothing of visual interest: All the lights of the city are on at this hour.

The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree was lit back on December 4th.

Shop until you drop, Transports.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Jaime probably shouldn't even be in the same area as Steph is while she's trying on dresses, but to be fair, he doesn't actually know where he is. At all. He knew he was in the right area for a little while, because he got a bunch of his shopping done, but he made a wrong turn somewhere down the line.

But he's got a tiny cup of tea from a place giving out free samples - it tastes moderately of flowers and he doesn't actually look like he's enjoying it all that much but hey, free - and he's happy enough to just be walking on an actual street. When he sees Steph through the window, he can't help but poke his head in to say hello.]

Hey, Steph! [he says, waving at her.] The dress looks nice!

[Is it actually a nice dress? He has no idea. He does not possess the skill of discerning taste. It is a dress, and it is on a pretty girl, therefore it is a nice dress.]

[Steph turns at the sound of her name, smiling when she sees Jaime.]

Thanks, Jaime. [She does a little twirl, as if to show off the dress, but her expression is playful. She doesn't expect a teenage boy to care much about dresses.] What're you doing in this part of town?

[She doubts he's buying expensive clothes for anyone for Christmas.]

I have no idea, [is his honest answer, though he doesn't look any less cheerful for it. Once the person at the counter starts giving him the evil eye for letting the draft in, he hurriedly steps in all the way and shuts the door behind him, offering her a hasty apology.]

What're you trying on dresses for anyway?

[As much as anyone in Exsilium may like nice clothing, it's not exactly the weather for anything beyond bulky winter jackets and boots.]

Got lost, huh?

[She's not surprised, Steph had to ask another shopper for directions not that long ago, because she doesn't have a whole lot of experience in New York.

As for his question:]

Vanozza Borgia is having a Christmas party, I don't think "jeans and a t-shirt" are gonna be acceptable.

[Even her normal style of dresses probably aren't acceptable.]

Yup. I got most of my presents anyway, so I mean. [He waves one hand in an exaggerated motions of panic.] Oh no, I'm lost in New York at Christmas time.

[He honestly wouldn't mind being lost here for a couple more days, but there are enough Transports falling on this place like a pack of hungry sharks as it is. His only plan remaining is to raid some of the obnoxiously fancy hotels' washrooms for those little portable containers of toiletries, and he can call it a day.]

You really think they're gonna care all that much about the dress code?

[That makes her laugh]

Truly a fate worse than death.

[Steph wouldnt mind a few more days either; the idea of a vacation is a tempting one, but there's things to do in Exsilim, unfortuantely.]

They're the old fashioned type, I'm pretty sure I'll get in trouble if I don't curtsey to the right people.

[nobles, ugh.

(also she does kind of just like wearing nice dresses but that's a secret)]

[That elicits a snort from him, mainly because he's having a hard time imagining anyone clinging onto such old social graces during a war of all things. Sure, he still calls people Mister or Miss, but he honestly doesn't expect anyone to get offended about leaving it off.]

Maybe you should curtsy to everyone. [He leans back against the wall, crossing his arms against his chest even though he's got a few bags hanging from them already.] Better be careful, or else they'll take away your title and you'll be a plebe like the rest of us.

[And of course, she curtsys to him, even if the effect is lost when she's wearing jeans rather than a skirt and has her hands full of bags.]

I don't think I could be any more of a plebe if I tried, so that's not much of a threat.

[He contorts his expression into one of exaggerated surprise. He's a terrible actor, but one of his many useless skills is to make spectacularly stupid looking faces.

Only most of the time, it's not on purpose.]

And here I was thinking I knew a princess. You've destroyed all my hopes and dreams.

[He has, in fact, met one princess but found himself not caring too much about people's titles one way or another unless they preferred to be referred to in a specific way. When it's not important, he's all about the path of least resistance.]

[She shakes her head, laughing.]

I could always just introduce you to Anne Boleyn.

[Will she ever get over how weird it is that she knows Anne Boleyn? Probably never.]

Anne Boleyn.

[Give him a second to think back to history classes of yore before his expression changes to one of enlightenment.] Oh!

[...and then he looks a little horrified as he remembers exactly what happens to her.] Oh. [Yikes.]

Wow. She's really here?

Yeahhhh.

[That sure is a thing that Steph isn't sure whether or not she should tell Anne about.]

She's really pretty.

[That.

Okay, Steph.]

That's... good?

[...Steph what are you on about he doesn't understand.]

[THE MOST SHEEPISH LOOK.]

She's also kind of a jerk, but I thought that might be a bit mean to say.

[Anne is not actually a jerk, Steph just gets a bit frustrated with the old-timey maners and the fact that Anne flirts with Saul.]

Yeah? [He raises his brows at that. It's so weird thinking of historical figures beyond staid figures in bland portraits on glossy pages, bored students scribbling unseemly facial hair or genitalia all over them. It's weird thinking of them as people.

Then again, Luke Skywalker had just been a heroic figure of his childhood, but here he's that guy who took part in that totally jerky mutiny thing, so he should be used to having his expectations upset by now.]

What'd she do?

She's just-- [Steph waves her hand vaguely, as if that will help.] Nobility, you know? I always get the feeling she's looking down on me.

[Or maybe that's just her own issues with upper class people.]

I have a feeling you've met more nobility than have, [he says, offering her a thin smile. He doesn't have a lot of contact with them, true enough, and the most upper class person he knows would be La Dama.

Who's a crime lord. So she probably doesn't count so much.]

I get what you mean, though.

I got dragged to a couple charity galas with my ex, it was kind of an experience.

[the downsides to dating Tim Drake.]

Your ex was a rich guy, huh? That sounds, um...

[He looks as if he's about to be polite - which he usually is - to say that it sounds nice, but by now he knows Steph well enough to strip that away. He interrupts himself with a brief laugh and says,] I'm sorry, if I'm being honest, going to those ritzy parties sounds awful.

[All gussied up, having to mind your very specific manners, being very specifically seen and heard... no thank you. He'll take barbecues and avoiding cameras whenever possible, thank you very much.]

Was, then wasn't, then was again.

[Since the Drakes were pretty damn well off, until they lost all their money, and then once Tim got adopted by Bruce...

Anyway, the comment makes her laugh.]

They're generally pretty awful, especially if the media's there. [Which isn't to say she's famous or anything, but... Tim Wayne was.] I went to a ball in Chicago a couple months ago, that wasn't too bad.

[Mostly because her and Saul gave zero fucks about anyone else and just had fun.]

Eugh, the media. [That distaste is, at least, one hundred percent genuine. Nice folks, sure, but he likes them a lot more when they're not actually doing their jobs.] You've actually had to deal with those guys?

Kinda.

[In a variety of ways.

She wavers, for a second, but... it wasn't entirely a secret that she was dating Tim, considering that media thing. So:]

You know Bruce Wayne, right?

Everyone knows Bruce Wayne.

[He has a terrible poker face, which means that he looks a bit guilty for a second considering they have spoken to each other before - only he ended up screwing the guy out of a ton of money by lying to him.

And then his company rebuilt his house after it exploded.

Oops.]

Why?

[She isn't sure what the guilty look is for, but she won't press it.]

I dated one of his sons.

[y u p.]

You what.

[Steph? His Steph? Batgirl Steph? Steph who gets seriously stressed out and looks after Robin and could probably beat his sorry ass with one hand tied behind her back?

He opens his mouth, then closes it again.]

Seriously? That's, like - that's beyond just plain old rich.

[That's rich as balls.]

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