[OPEN] BABES IN TOYLAND

[speakveryclearly]

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.

Comments

[unmasking]

[That makes Peter pause. How many times has he really "called the shots" on his own life? He looks a little dubious and it's too late to hide it. Of course, he can play it off as some kind of teenager thing, can't he? Even though the disappointment is there.]

I think I'm a little too young for that. [There, that's how he's going to save Doug from thinking he's some screwed up kid.]

[mallarkey]

[ That's right -- Peter is just a teenager. Presumably not one that was raised by bandits. Figuring out their lives is what most people use high school and college for. ]

Well -- not saying you need to be in any hurry. Just for later down the road, last thing you want is to get out in the world and not know who you are. Know what I mean?

[ Maybe it only makes sense to him. ]

[unmasking]

Yeah, you've got a point. I'm hoping to be a pretty famous scientist by then. One of those top geniuses. [It's living the dream, and it's not far from what Peter was hoping. He knows there's a decent chance of it, too, and it's ... normal. It's how he's presenting himself. Just another teen genius.]

[mallarkey]

[ He smirks a little. It's not a dream he relates to specifically, but he can relate to the sentiment. Greatness, who doesn't want that? ]

Shouldn't be much trouble for someone as smart as you. Seems like you could probably do almost anything you wanted.

[unmasking]

Let's just see if I get into college first. [Of course, given JJ's willingness to pay for his college education, he might have a smoother ride than most. And that's even with Peter denying him that opportunity.]

[mallarkey]

Can't be that hard, right? [ He's distracted for a moment, glancing at a passerby's elaborate jewelry before he catches himself and focuses his gaze forward. ] Uh-- as long as you can pay for it.

[unmasking]

[He follows Doug's gaze and mutters "bling" to himself.

It's a deep moment.]

I've got a job at a newspaper back home. The editor's really fond of me.

[mallarkey]

What do you do -- are you a reporter?

[ Reporters aren't cops, but it's habit to be wary of either; he takes comfort in the fact Peter is a teenager and that there's nothing to investigate. ]

That's pretty good. I can't even talk my son into getting a paper route.

[unmasking]

I kind of accidentally happened into it after I took a bunch of bad pictures. [Having seen JJ reuse those pictures a few times, Peter is still pretty embarrassed by them, because they were awful.

Good thing he's not a photographer, right?]

But when I went in, I got a job working their website.

[mallarkey]

[ He smirks a little at that. ]

Ah. One of those kinds of jobs. I kind of accidentally happened into a few myself over the-- when I was younger. Might be a teenager thing. [ Smooth recovery. A little quickly, he continues: ] So, are you buying presents? Not that I'd blame you just for sightseeing.

[unmasking]

Unlike almost everyone, I didn't exactly come here with a lot of money. [The fact is disappointing. Though given what led to that, Peter can't say he's willing to openly gripe about it or anything. He'll just keep it to himself.] What I've got is probably gonna go to Starbucks. I'm not even much of a fan, it's just ... [Warm, and a weird commodity, and he doesn't even have enough to grab a full meal.

Because New York City is only cheap when it's dollar pizza.]

[mallarkey]

Kind of makes it difficult, yeah. No credit cards.

[ He could steal one, but there's really no way to justify having a working credit card. He tries to remember if he brought any of his petty cash along, or at least his wallet -- he might not have had as much as he came in with, but a few hundred dollars was enough. No sense in pulling out bills to count right out on the street, but he pats his coat pocket in confirmation. ]

But thank God for cash. Anything you need? Call it a gift -- don't have much else to spend it on.

[unmasking]

Wait, are you serious?

[There is a very big part of Peter that wants to say no to money, but he knows he can't. Not right now.]

Because if you are—I'll owe you. I don't like just ... taking. I wasn't raised that way, and I can already hear my Aunt May in my head disapproving of the very idea of it. But, y'know, a pay it back later thing. I can do that. Just ask.

[mallarkey]

[ Doug raises his eyebrows and nods slowly, though he still leaves the money in his pocket until they get somewhere it can either be spent or safely offered without someone walking by and deciding to rob them both right then and there. ]

Wouldn't offer if I couldn't afford it. It's Chr-- it's the holidays, gotta live a little. It'd end up as presents for someone no matter where I was. [ It's actually odd, thinking about how he can't do anything for his kids this year. Not that they'll know the difference. ] Isn't anything more than that, promise.

[unmasking]

Still, ask. [Even with all of that, Peter feels the need to press that issue. It comes naturally and he doesn't think twice about it. The last thing he wants to do is take something and be ungrateful.] All right?

[mallarkey]

[ Doug exhales, putting his hands against his sides before he nods his head. This is all very familiar to him, honestly, though not so much with someone Peter's age while Doug himself was an adult. ]

All right, I'll ask. Never know when I might need a favor. [ Even if he isn't counting on it. ] All I need right now is a present for my wife. An' maybe a burger.

[unmasking]

Well ... I can help with that. Maybe. [Peter very much doubts he can help, but he might be able to give some guidance. Like: Aunt May would hate that guidance.] Two minds are better than one.

[mallarkey]

Maybe you can.

[ Doug mostly knows what's worth a lot rather than what looks good. ]

I was thinking... jewelry, but-- what do you think? Like earrings, too much or too little? You're a teenager, might all be the same to you.

[unmasking]

That doesn't sound ... very meaningful. Does she like meaningful stuff? Or is she a "it's the thought that counts" type?

[To Peter, there's a definite difference between the two.]

[mallarkey]

[ Good point -- he frowns. It's hard to know where to start. ]

She likes meaningful. But I don't know where you find that in a city like this. You might have memories here, but she doesn't.

[unmasking]

[As a boy who had a hard time with making his dates and not messing up his relationships, he has very little experience with buying gifts.

He suddenly realizes that now.

What do people do in the movies? Here goes:] How'd you two meet again?

[mallarkey]

Well...

[ He stalls, tilting his head contemplatively to mime nostalgia while he invents a story. Something simple seems appropriate. ]

Y'know... high school sweethearts. Class of-- [ ... ] '83. But she, uh, she didn't graduate, so I don't know if-- anyway, we need to look forward and not back, right?

[unmasking]

Hey, no judging. I met the girl I'm gonna marry in high school, too. [Okay, he isn't going to marry her because he died, but Peter tells this lie really well at this point. Which is a little unsettling, actually.] I was just hoping there might be something to take you both back to that.

[mallarkey]

[ That merits a smile, even if there's really no sincere basis of similarity. It makes for a good story, though, the more relatable the better. ]

Sometimes you know early on. You see her and think that's it. She's the one. There's your future. Good kind of certainty. But-- [ He doesn't have any answers. A ring? Dahlia would like anything expensive, he's sure, but that's maybe too easy. He pauses. ] What's she like?

[unmasking]

She's—um, she's actually smarter than me. [Wow, talking about MJ. It's a little surreal, and he actually pauses after saying that. Peter doesn't know if he'll get through this part of faking it. He doesn't know, but he's going to try.

His stomach twists. He counts to ten.]

Sorry, I just miss her. [And I wish I was telling you the truth.] But yeah, she's smarter than me. Red-headed. We grew up as best friends, and that finally happened. [When Harry left.

Ah, all of that's complicated. Peter pretends ... a lot that it never happened in the first place.]