Voice with possible action. (kinda forward-dated a little maybe?) username: ilikehorses

[shoplifter]

[Well, look. Whenever she gets invited to Alphonse's future birthday, she's got a lot to think about.

She must consider this: there will be cake, that is a certainty. Cake sitting on a table, like in Transigen... in front of a deceptive cartoon painting on the wall; ways to trick outsiders into thinking the place is kind to its patients... She's learned at that facility that cake is a staple of birthdays, or rather, from the nurses. Birthdays involve singing, and they all learned the words for Delilah. All for Delilah. But they weren't allowed to have those parties, not after the first and last time; she never bothered asking about them again, because... she knew there would be nothing beyond the question. It wasn't difficult to tell what blowing out the candles and leading them away meant.

She had whispered happy birthday to Delilah on the way out, though.

Really, she's not sure just how normal those birthday choices even were. Outside of the walls of Transigen, what is a birthday like? Is there still cake? Still the concept of presents, or singing? Did the nurses want to try and do something nice but ultimately fantasy? Like Logan had said, ice-cream for bedwetters. She's curious to learn, though. So again, she uses the network for her own gain: this time, birthday information, instead of school.

(I'm sensing a pattern.)

Her voice is casual, but interested. She's not about to ruin the surprise, but she does need to know what she's getting herself into, here.]

What sort of presents are you supposed to give people, for their birthday?

... Toys, no?

[What the hell do adults like to get, for presents? A long pause, and she's not terribly sure of herself.]

Are there fireworks at birthday parties, too?

[Another thoughtful pause, yet again.]

... How do you tell what day you were born? Is it on a special paper?

[Okay, okay, last question there. She bites back more questions. Easy, Laura, easy.]


[ ADDITIONAL ACTION.]

[If you would like to find her out and about, she is wandering the shops for things that might be nice to give to the birthday boy, especially the department stores. Laura also puts on a cool hat and goes to leave without paying for it, of course, so she can be found getting approached by a very unhappy security guard there who is calling out something about a shoplifter. Look ma, it's my username!

... What? Just because she's getting better at being in the real world doesn't mean she's learned the virtue of paying for things.

Her dad stole cigars. She totally saw him do it. Cigars and a phone charger. 

Or maybe you'll find her violently shaking one of those coin-eating candy machines. Stupid thieving machine - she tried to be nice about this and use real money, and see where it got her? Never fear, she pops claws from her knuckles, long and adamantium-silver, and she slices the top of the candy machine clean off, so she can reach inside and take handfuls for her pocket. Man, living the dream over here. Don't bother asking where Linda is, we all know there's a repeating pattern of juking her.]

Comments

[shoplifter]

... Christmas...

Is Christmas a type of party?

[winscenario]

It's more than just a party. It's close to the end of the year and there are lights and decoration hanging all over the place, and people get Christmas trees and hang blinking lights and cute things on them, like sparkling balls and reindeer and snowmen dolls. There are Christmas carols too, and you get people gifts to celebrate the holiday. If you're lucky enough, it snows and you can go outside and have snow fights and build snowmen.

Not everyone celebrates it where I come from, not anymore. It used to be this huge holiday, nowadays some people don't really pay it much mind. Back when I was a kid, though, my mom would decorate the whole house from top to bottom, and if she had the time, we'd cook Christmas treats and sing Christmas songs.

[ Things got depressing fast after that, particularly when January came round, and the day of his birth and his father's death approached. But that's neither here nor there. Jim remembers Christmas as being the time of the year when he and his mom spent the most time together and when she looked happiest (probably for his sake), so it holds a special place in his memories. ]

[shoplifter]

[She really is absorbing as much as she can, honest. She puts away every word meticulously, ready to use them if need, but there's a little issue - she's not remotely familiar with most of them. She's had a few little tales told to her; she knows what puppets are, because Gabriela had once told her in private the tale of Pinocchio. She knows What houses are, what they look like. She can guess what the blinking lights look like (Las Vegas?).

But she can't imagine a Christmas tree. Not accurately, anyway.

Reindeer and snowmen? Carols?

She's not sure where to start.]

Are reindeer a special kind of deer? Why are they important to christmas?

[winscenario]

[ He'll be glad to answer any questions she has. It's clear that wherever she comes from, she hasn't had a lot of access to things Jim would consider pretty normal in a kid's life, but so long as she's curious, then he'll do his best to help explain. ]

It's a species of deer. They usually live in very cold places, and that's why they're associated with Christmas, which happens during the winter, when it's cold and snowing. [ In the northern hemisphere at least, but Jim will skip on that. Too much information and he'll just confuse her even more. ]

Anyway, reindeer were domesticated, and they used to pull sleds and carry people across the snow. Because of this, there's a belief that Santa Claus's flying sled is pulled by reindeers. Oh, Santa's the man who goes around the world during Christmas delivering gifts to kids who were good. That's why reindeer are so popular during Christmas.

[shoplifter]

... Is this... 'Santa Claus' a mutant?

[Because seriously, Kirk, what the unholy hell.]

[winscenario]

[ Jim's eyebrow raises quizzically, a both amused and confused look flickering across his face. ]

No, I... don't think so? I couldn't tell you. Depends on what a mutant is, to you.

[shoplifter]

[Her brow wrinkles.]

Los mutantes. Homo superior. It is a -- special gene.

Mutants have powers. Santa can fly and travel quickly, yes?

[winscenario]

I've never heard of them.

[ It's not a lie, exactly. He's heard of something similar enough, in his world. She doesn't get overly descriptive but those few words remind him of something almost instantly: Augments. ]

Well— that's his sled, actually. No one can say what it really looks like or why it can do what it does. Maybe it's a space ship of some sort. [ SHRUG. Why the hell not. ]

[shoplifter]

Maybe that's why you don't know Santa is a mutant. You don't know what they are.

... It must be why he never visited; it was too dangerous for him to come to us where we were.

[winscenario]

It doesn't matter what he is, anyway. He's just a happy old man who likes giving presents and spreading cheer around the world.

[ How can that possibly ever be a bad thing? ]

Is it dangerous for mutants? Where you were.

[shoplifter]

[Most of the old men she knew well were awful doctors, a bald guy who accidentally killed people with psychic seizures, and a grade-A butthole with claws. So. You know. She's trying her best to imagine a normal and happy old dude.]

Sí, es muy peligroso. There aren't many left.

... People didn't like them. They wanted them all gone.

[winscenario]

Why is that? Were they dangerous, or are people just afraid because they don't understand?

[ Jim's learned that's usually how it goes. With the Augments... well, it was a little more complicated than that. He's not entirely sure if mutants are in any way similar to them yet. ]

[shoplifter]

...Maybe all of it. I'm not sure. I was born when most of them were gone.

... I think.

[She's not sure of a lot, being cut off from the outside world.]

[winscenario]

I see. [ He nods. ]

Well, in any case, no one is scared of Santa Claus, whether or not he's a mutant. At worst he won't give any presents to the kids on his naughty list, but he's a very nice and cheerful guy otherwise.

[ Also, you know. Not real. But she's a kid and kids should believe in Santa, even if only for a little while. ]

[shoplifter]

[Her eyes widen just slightly.]

A naughty list?

How do you get on the list?

[winscenario]

Well, that's for kids who misbehave. Like, if they disobey their parents, if they do mean things to other people, if they don't eat their vegetables or do their homework.

[ He purses his lips and shrugs at the camera. ]

I don't think it matters all that much, though. I mean, I was pretty terrible as a kid and I disobeyed my mom all the time, I definitely didn't do my homework and I misbehaved a lot, but I still got a few gifts every year.

[shoplifter]

[..... She seems mildly eased.]

I eat my vegetables.

[Homework on the other hand...]

It's good, that bad kids get some gifts. Not all of them can help being -- bad.

[winscenario]

[ Homework is easy, vegetables are gross though. ]

Kids aren't really bad. They're just kids, and they all deserve at least one Christmas gift. Even if they skip on homework a few times, or don't always clean up their room when their moms tell them to.

[shoplifter]

... Good.

I hope they get good gifts.

[Like you said. They all deserve one Christmas gift.]

[winscenario]

I hope you get good gifts, too.

[ She is also a kid, after all. And even if she weren't... well, everyone deserves gifts, Christmas or no. ]

You can make a Christmas list, if you want. Some kids do, where I come from. You make a list of gifts you'd like to get for Christmas, and then send it to Santa Claus.

[shoplifter]

... I'll think about it.

Writing a list.

[Tentative as ever, because her trust is a bit screwed up. And she's not sure she'll actually get anything, despite his comforting words.]

[winscenario]

Good. [ He nods, smiling. ] Let me know if you do. I'm not sure if there's a Santa Claus here, but if there is, I'll find a way to get the letter to him.

[ Jim Kirk you are so full of bullshit. ]