10313/It's not really a big deal!

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It's not really a big deal!
Date of Scene: 28 February 2022
Location: Chelsea Piers
Synopsis: June gets caught shoplifting by John and uses all of her bravado to act snarky, only to have mercy turn out to be her achilles heel.
Cast of Characters: June Connor, John Stewart




June Connor has posed:
    June has her hands stuffed in her pockets as she strolls the peirs. It makes her look less suspicious. Of course, the loud fire-engine red hair, the shredded jeans and black denim jacket don't do much to make her look innocent. The peirs are a great place usually to pick up some wallets, or some food. A white air pod is in her right ear, giving the impression more that she is not engaged with the world around her. But her eyes are watching. A life as both predator and prey is hers, on the lookout for those who have her number, as well as people that she can make a mark on. It's cold and clear, which does account for a lower crowd as she makes her ways between the shops, her head bouncing with whatever tune is playing inside her ear.

John Stewart has posed:
Sometimes, John gets out and about in civilian garb while he's handling business. You don't pay attention to a random black man in jeans going along a pier, and while he is a public Green Lantern, he doesn't do his job for glory or being famous: He's a Green Lantern because it's a dangerous universe out there, and someone has to protect the civilized star nations from the very real boogeymen in the darkness.

Today, John in on duty, and as such has been doing monday patrols. Wearing his Green Lantern uniform, he walks among the crowd as he works on ordering some pretzels from a stand in a pit stop for snacks.

There's no mistaking that uniform, or the glowing green eyes of John Power Ring being active.

June Connor has posed:
    June's green eyes shift in the direction of John's green uniform, and she gives him a stink-eye. Not everybody appreciates the work he does. She's among those unappreciative ones. She lets out a huff, and continues to glance around. Should she keep it up? She doesn't have any illusions that she could fight someone like that, or escape someone with a level of power like John's. But then there's spite. Spite says do it anyway. If she can get away with it? Then whoever she steals from might end up also pissed at him for not being a better hero. So she doesn't back down. She shifts her course, and instead of just stealing from someone around? She gets cocky. She's no universal threat. She's no megolamaniac in spandex. She's just a street punk. Far below his pay grade. She walks right past him, not even backing down from any eye contact as she walks straight past him to a snack vendor. After she passes him, her hand comds out, deftly snagging the closest snack, which happens to be a small bag of trail mix, and just keeps walking.

John Stewart has posed:
For his part, John ignores Junes passage altogether. Just another passerby on the pier, right?

Instead, his focus is on the Pretzels he was just given, and he bites into one. Yummy.

Of course, once the snack is stolen, a mental voice rings in his ear <<Status Report: 95 percent chance of successful theft, 8 O clock, 7 Meters>>

A frown comes to his face, and he casually aims his ring in that direction, "Ring, active scan, confirm."

A green bean of soft light passes over the general area June is in...

June Connor has posed:
    To a regular human, June's ability to avoid detection is uncanny. She doesn't give any tells, and the bag is slid straight up into her jacket's sleeve with her fingertips on a casual stride. She's done this a lot. Fooling the galaxy's most advanced weapon system though? That's a level of skill that she certainly doesn't possess. She doesn't turn around, continuing to walk casually away from John, none the wiser, head still bouncing to the music in her ear.

John Stewart has posed:
<<Addemdum: Confirmed. Human female wearing damaged jeans and jacket, red hair. Further details available.>> Once again in his head.

A random shoplift? They can see him, so it's a test. Can you be stealthy around an actively patrolling Green Lantern? You can, but the AI in the Power Ring is usually kept on a low level standby passively scanning for him on the ground... and while this is far below his paygrade, it's only a few seconds out of his day.

Putting his snacks in a pouch on his uniform, John starts to match June's speed as he follows her. Time to find the nest for a chat...

June Connor has posed:
    June doesn't turn around at all. She just keeps walking, four about fifty yards before turning a corner. Never look, it's how people get caught. After she rounds the corner, she reaches across to pull the trail mix from her sleeve with a grin, "Shithead so awesome and can't even stop that," she mutters to herself, preparing to open the bag as she walks.

John Stewart has posed:
Once she's about to go for the bag... "Hey there." John casually greets, "if you return the bag, I won't report it." He doesn't mention that she gives the vibe of someone who's done this before with how calm she is... but he doesn't comment on that. Yet. "I don't like ruining lives over stupid shit."

June Connor has posed:
    She hears the voice behind her. Seriously? No way he saw that. She pauses, and looks over her shoulder, the bag between both hands. Pop. It opens. "Report what?" she asks. Her eyes give him a once over as if she's sizing him up. Like anyone needs to know how that would turn out. "Nice spandex." She digs her hands into the bag, pulling out a few pieces, and pops them into her mouth, chewing without politely closing her mouth.

John Stewart has posed:
He stares. It's the stare of a man who's dealt with the serious dangers of the galaxy, telling a street punk 'seriously? You're gonna pretend? You've got balls, but no'.

He doesn't speak. His force of presence simply makes it clear he's a 'no bullshit' sort of person.

After a few moment, John frowns though, a disappointed frown.

Playing games, this man does not.

June Connor has posed:
    Crunch. Crunch. She chews the nuts decisively, making the very simple action an act of defiance, and the show of his presence only seems to bolster her resolve to double down. One pierce brow arches. "You can't prove nothin," she challenges. "I coulda brought these from home."

John Stewart has posed:
"My ring took a passive scan of that bag when you took it. I can pull up the image." John sighs, and suddenly aims his ring at her. A concussive round can be heard through the air as an extremely localized pulse of kinetic energy is Willed into a small bullet and fired at the bag.

June Connor has posed:
    As John aims the ring at her, June backs up a little, the first break in her iron fascade. She isn't sure what to expect, but with a flinch at the concussive pulse she recoils, the bag being knocked from her hand. "Fuckin' hell," she cusses, looking at the contents as the spill about on the concrete around them. "What the fuck, man?" she contests. "I wasn't hurtin' you none," she defends herself. "Why you gotta be a snitch?"

John Stewart has posed:
"Don't give me that crap, I gave you a chance to come clean. You're not striking me as the 'desperate for food' sort. You do this because you can, or you wouldn't have do it in front of me." The ring is lowered.

"I have your face and your build in my database now. With one command, my ring can send it to the local PD. Do I have your attention?" John all but demands.

June Connor has posed:
    "My build, huh? She turns her mostly skinny body part way to slap her own ass. "That what you're after? Eighteen to play younger?" Yeah, definitely trying to impune him as a pedophile. Of course, a scan against the local PD would find her name in it. Maybe not a surprise that she has quite the list of minor infractions, along with some more substantial like aggravated assault.

    "Think cops are gonna give a shit over a bag of nuts? They just cite me and go on their way. They don't care. Hell they don't care when something /real/ happens. Why they gonna interrupt their donuts for me?" she asks. See, it's not just John, she hates anybody with authority. Nothing personal.

John Stewart has posed:
"Playing the victim when you're clearly not starving. I was born into poverty, I know the score for survival." John casually waves his right hand at June in a gesture, "This isn't survival, this is just doing something because you can."

Then, he brings up his ring in front of his face, pointed upwards, "Ring, project hologram map of local area, out to local PD. Plot best route."

On command, a soft light map of the city appears... zooms in... zooms in again, and a building flashes. Then a dot appears where the two are. A straight line goes over the city, "sounds like you need to file some complaints and get a better Captain for the locals brought in." John informs her.

"Got any evidence of your claims?"

June Connor has posed:
    "The response earns a smirk, and June puts her hands on her hips. "You gotta be kidding? That ship sailed a long time ago. Youse black, you supposed to know that," she says. Yeah, SHE just played the race card. "It ain't about who complains, like there's some magic tooth fairy gonna kick out the bad cops. They all bad, and the judges that'd hold them accountable? They're worse. Whatcha gonna do? Go wave your magic little ring at them and turn'm holy and shit? And what if it did? Think it'll not just be shit again in six months? Everybody gota price in this city. Just some are cheaper than others."

John Stewart has posed:
"I do my civic duty and kick them out of the system. If they're not doing their job, it'll be easy to record and prove it." John replies, simply. "Race has nothing to do with it. I know that situation far better than you do, and you don't get to tell me my story." John huffs, "If life is so bleak, why are you spreading that misery to others?" John starts to walk off in the direction of the stand she stole from then, turning his back on her.

"Be the example that makes things better. I don't hide behind my skin color. I embrace who I am and take that experience to improve lives." He pauses briefly just as he's about to turn the corner, "I'm telling the people you stole from to watch out for you, then I'm gonna head to the PD and get started with doing your job for you and dealing with the corrupt." A glance over his shoulder, "Good luck out there. You're gonna need it."

He disappears.

June Connor has posed:
    June keeps her hard-nosed stiff lower lip glare as John reprimands her. She almost wanted him to turn her in, grab her by the collar and drag her to make the report at the station. It'd justify her attitude in her mind. "Wait, where the hell you goin'?" she asks, getting the answer immediately. He's not going to turn her in? Just rat her to the vendor? Most might feel relieved. June? She looks around. It makes her uncomfortable. Mercy? She's not supposed to get mercy. Of course, a few people have been watching, after all, there was a Green Lantern giving someone a lecture. She glares at a couple of adolescent boys. "The fuck you lookin' at?" she challenges them, arms open to invite an attack. Naturally they don't, they just snicker and walk on their way. She looks back at the corner that John disappeared around.

    "Asshole," she accuses. Though she now feels the accusation has very little weight behind it, since...well, he wasn't.