[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]

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.]

[mallarkey]

[ Doug looks at Peter curiously, but it's mostly out of respectful interest than suspicion. Liars usually know their own, but Doug gets a better read on adults and his own kids. ]

So long as you don't hold that against her. [ His wife holds his education against him all the time. Granted, not always unfairly. ] Well, you always want your wife to be your best friend, so you're off to a good start. Don't do anything I wouldn't do.

[ Whatever that means. ]

You could get her something here. Y'know, in case she shows up.

[unmasking]

... If I said I'm just as bad at gifts, would you judge me?

[Plus, Peter has resigned himself to never seeing anyone again. It's not a happy thing, or even a good thing, but he knows that it's unlikely. Of course, there is the other part: he wouldn't want MJ caught up in this. Given how badly she handled things after the run in with Osborn on the bridge, Peter knows that he would never wish that upon her.

He doesn't say that, though. He just adds:]

But ... maybe I can find something ... [Like a nice journal or something for her to write in when she gets there. If she gets there.

That'd be nice.]

[mallarkey]

Nah. Maybe it's just a guy thing. Meaningful... how do you put your finger on something meaningful? Actions speak louder. I think.

[ Though he shrugs, because what does he know? Actions speak loud, yes, but he also finds that cash speaks pretty well for itself too. Not a very romantic sentiment, though. ]

I also think it never hurts to be prepared. She'll appreciate the thought. Guaranteed.

[unmasking]

And hey, maybe I can just bring it home. [The words are a little strained, but he gets them out. Peter swallows and is sure he's back to normal, or trying to feign it as best as he can, and he adds to that by starting to move.]

Come on, there's a store nearby. They have all kinds of stuff.

[mallarkey]

[ That earns Peter double raised eyebrows, but Doug can't really contest the point; he doesn't know what happens, when people go home. He's heard about it, but he won't accept it as truth until he can confirm it himself.

Which is of course a little paradoxical, but there you have it. ]

Exactly. We can-- well, might as well look around. See what grabs us, bound to be something, right? Otherwise... still the thought the counts.

[unmasking]

Skip the "I Love New York" T-shirts. They're tacky. Make you stand out a little much. [Plus, they don't really give off the impression of "it's the thought that counts." They don't include a whole lot of thought, and Peter's seen enough of those shirts in his life to know that New Yorkers judge people who wear them.

A staple or not, that's just kind of how it is.]

Which I guess counts as advice.

[mallarkey]

I'd sooner get diamonds before I got one of those. If I know anything it's how not to look like an asshole tourist.

[ Which there is truth to, shockingly. He adjusts his jacket, his watch, checking out the people they pass and other potential patrons as they go. It's mostly habit, but part of him still registers those with loose purse clasps as "plan B." Jewelry is probably too far out of reach.

Though, that is an idea. ]

What about purses? It can still be romantic if it's practical, right?

[unmasking]

I don't know. What if she doesn't like it? And then she has to use it even if she doesn't. Aren't girls picky about that?

[Not that Peter knows. MJ's usual gear is a backpack, and while she uses a purse from time to time, it's not her usual wardrobe choice. But he can imagine Gwen strongly disliking it, as if it's some cardinal sin.]

Unless you see one that looks just like one she had before.

[That's a solution, right?]

[mallarkey]

I don't know -- are they?

[ This is what happens when your family's priorities are more about the inside of a purse than the outside. He should know this. Rather: a lawyer should, one with a wife. ]

Shoes. A coat? Still jewelry. Romantic dinner. Clothes. Uh-- mm... shit. A card that says "sorry." [ Being thoughtful is hard. ] No wonder everyone gets depressed around the holidays.

[unmasking]

That's the stereotype, anyway ... [Again with the not knowing. The two of them are a real pair, aren't they, with all their not-knowing and being incredibly bad at picking out hypothetical presents.]

I miss gift cards. I wish we could do gift cards. [It's a statement with some finality.

That would solve all their problems.]

[mallarkey]

[ Prizes, both of them. Their significant others are surely luckier for knowing them. (Er.) ]

Me too. Or cash. Everyone likes getting cash, why isn't it okay as a present? I'd appreciate it. [ He shrugs in frustration, but gestures wildly with his arm. ] Well, maybe we'll get lucky and just find something. Can't hurt. New York's supposed to have everything, right?

[unmasking]

It has everything, but we don't have more than a day. [He considers that for a moment. They could always just come back, couldn't they? A trip that wasn't as focused on everyone taking this kind of trip.

Then again, Peter wants to avoid taking jumps unless they need them.]

We barely have a day. So if the clock runs out, we can just ... grab the first thing we see that's not a hot dog.

[Really, they are winners.]