11592/Fair Trade - Comics for Stories

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Fair Trade - Comics for Stories
Date of Scene: 14 June 2022
Location: Empire State University
Synopsis: No description
Cast of Characters: Peter Parker, Kitty Pryde




Peter Parker has posed:
It has been two days since the great comic tug-of-war of 2022. Peter Parker has stared at the number more than once since then, and a few times even picked up the phone and started dialing. But he forced himself to wait. Why? Because that's what idiots do.

Deciding not to waste too much time, he finally picks up his phone and decides to hedge his bets and shoot a text. You know, because she is a pretty girl and cool and has awesome interests and probably has way better things going on so why would she answer the phone if he called. This way, she just can respond when she has time, and you know maybe it'll work out.

Text> Hey. It's Peter, from the comic shop. I found a cool photo I'd taken of Wonder Woman that I thought maybe you might like to see, it's kind of a funny one. I can bring some others by if you want. Let me know. :)

He sighs and drops the phone on the table. "Way to play it cool, Petey."

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Kitty lies on her back, with Lockheed lying atop her. Both of them are phased so they can float in mid-air a foot above her bed. Not because they need to. Because she can. Sometimes you just gotta live.

She hears her phone chime and glances over at it. Kitty slowly drops them to the bed, briefly phasing those last few molecules that were literally floating on air to hold them up, until dropping the last couple of inches. Gentle enough Lockheed barely stirs.

An arm reaches over the phone and reels it in. As she checks the message, a grin breaks out on Kitty's face as she looks over towards where the vintage Wonder Woman comic is safely contained in a plastic container. She taps a message back.

> Hey Peter from the comic shop. Yeah? I'd love to see it. Where were you thinking about meeting up?

Kitty hits send on it and sets her phone back down. "Wonder if he's going to realize, I could have just asked him to text me the picture if all I wanted was to see it," she says to the dozing Lockheed.

Peter Parker has posed:
Before Peter has much of a chance to go back and forth on his own logic and phrasing, the phone pings and there is a response. "Whoa!" he says, with surprise, as if he had not just sent an invitation. Then he thinks to himself. Where could I...

He taps back quickly, as he considers. Play it cool, Petey. Play it cool.

> I don't want to subject Wonder Woman to any danger. What do you think of the library over at ESU? They've got some study rooms we could use. I can even hook up to a bigger screen so you can see the photos clearly.

He hits send, and then frowns. "Crap, what if she thinks I'm just into the comic? I mean, I don't want to seem too eager, but I also don't want her to think it's just..." He rapidly types again.

> I mean you don't have to bring the comic.

He smiles at himself - and only then realizes that he just wiped out the entire pretense of the meeting. "Oops, now I've..." He starts typing again, so the little dots appear on Kitty's end, but he keeps backspacing and then eventually he just gives this up.

"Why can't my spider-sense stop me from saying stupid things? Ugh!"

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Kitty Pryde relaxes with her head on the pillow. This is actually softer than having her head resting on air. Just doesn't look as cool. She reaches down to brush her fingers over her best friend's head as he dozes.

*Ding* Her phone chimes and Kitty picks it back up to check the text message. "Library huh," she says, pausing and trying to work out exactly what to make of that.

The text alert goes off again and Kitty watches the next text show up. Then dots. And more dots. Dot dot dots.

Finally they stop and one of Kitty's slender eyebrows goes up. She starts chuckling softly, imagining him in her mind's eye typing away but never sending whatever it was. She taps back a reply, which she does send.

> Library at ESU sounds great. There's an Italian spot outside campus I love to hit when I'm in the area, so extra worth the trip. See you at 6?

She sets down her phone again and then gently lifts Lockheed to set him on the purple pillow Rogue got for him. "Ok Peter, I gave you the hint with the restaurant, rest is up to you," she says as she gets up to go over to her closet to pick out something to wear. "Age of the geek, baby," she says to the mirror as she looks in it.

Peter Parker has posed:
Staring at the phone, Peter takes a deep breath as the response comes. "Ok, perfect segue point." He picks up the phone and starts typing in a message.

> I love Italian! Leave the comic, take the cannolis.

> I mean, if you want, let's just meet at the restaurant. I can bring my tablet to show you the photos.

> What's the name of the restaurant?

PPeter frowns at himself. "Come on, man. Focus." He glances over in the mirror, and reaches up to run his fingers through his hair. "No mask hair this time!"

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Kitty Pryde hrms and pulls out some brown pants with a cut that highlights her slenderness and her legs, and a white blouse. She changes into them, and pulls her hair out of a ponytail and brushes it out. Ponders the curling iron but leaves it in place.

*Ding* She goes to check her phone and grins. "Good job, Parker," she says, tapping back a quick reply.

> Delmonte's. Just outside the east gate and down half a block. See you there at 6.

She pockets her phone and checks herself out in the mirror. "Ok Lockheed, back later," she tells him, and turns and leaves, shutting the door behind her.

Only to return about 30 seconds later to find Lockheed sitting on the bed, holding the comic in his mouth waiting for her. "Thanks buddy," she tells him, taking the forgotten comic and heading back out.

To New York! She eventually arrives at the restaurant, walking up to the front of it.

Peter Parker has posed:
One advantage, of many, to being Spider-man is that when you want to celebrate with a back flip, you can celebrate with a back flip.

"Ok, so..." Peter looks around for a moment, frowning in thought. "I need to find a way to look impressive. But not impressive. Like, casual impressive." He goes into his closet and starts flipping through things. "What would Mr. Stark do?" He frowns. "Ok, that's a pretty dumb question. Uh." He selects a nice white button down shirt and a pair of brown pants, and quickly tries them on. Looking in the mirror he sees the telltale red and blues of his costume under the shirt. For a moment, he considers going sans costume, but one never knows, so he swaps out the white for a dark blue shirt, and then swaps out the brown pants for black, because clearly you don't wear a blue shirt with brown pants. And then, he looks in the mirror, and nods. "Ok. Got it."

With a bit of light parkour to get to the trade, Peter manages to arrive at the restaurant a few minutes before 6, without matting of hair or anything else amiss. And he even remembered to bring the tablet! He lingers just inside, waiting for Kitty to arrive. A brief bit of general Parker anxiety at play before she actually arrives.

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Kitty Pryde walks up along the sidewalk, with a purse over her shoulder that is large enough to have the comic in it. As she spots the familiar face, she smiles and walks over to Peter Parker. "There you are," she says with a smile to him. "So do you go to ESU, or just... occurred to you for some other reason?" she asks.

The young woman motions towards the restaurant, as if to indicate should they go in. She'll give Peter a few moments to get the door, but get it herself if he doesn't make a move for it. Either way she heads inside.

It's a nice interior. Not expensive, yet cozy. Even trending towards romantic. There are a good number of people already dining, giving the place a quiet buzz, but not so loud to drown out the soft music playing. The hostess is there to get them seated.

Peter Parker has posed:
"I do, yeah. I'm in engineering." Peter offers it up before realizing that she probably already assumed that given that he is a comic book reader. But one never knows. "And, uh, I was just thinking of someplace safe for the comic, but..." He considers for a moment. "Honestly, I was more interested in seeing you again than the comic." He swallows for a moment, assuming that there is some risk in making that venture.

As she heads towards the door he moves quickly to intercept, pulling the door open for her and waving her in first. Someone taught the boy proper manners. He follows her in and looks around for a moment. He does a bit of mental math, but then decides to just forget about it and go with the flow. He'll shoot a few extra photos and manage things just fine. "I haven't been here before," he admits, as he nods to the hostess. "But it smells amazing."

Kitty Pryde has posed:
The comment got Peter a small smile from the brunette. "Ulterior motives. Wonder Woman is going to be so disappointed if she finds out," Kitty says with a couple of little tsk sounds. Though she's smiling and seems pleased enough with Peter's comment.

The hostess seats them at a table and fills their water glasses, then returns to the front. Kitty sets her purse down on the floor at her feet. "Well maybe we should eat first so we can clear the table at the end before taking it out? Though I have it in a hard plastic cover, still better to not have food and drink around it," she says.

Kitty takes a few moments to look Peter over. "Combed your hair," she teases, eyes twinkling. "So what type of engineering are you studying?" she asks. The waiter comes by to take their drink orders, and to give them menus.

Peter Parker has posed:
"I think her ego can handle it," replies Peter, flashing a bit of a grin. "She's not really my type, anyway."

As he settles into his seat, he raises an eyebrow. "Oh, you actually did bring it?" Peter smiles. "I, uh." He nods to her. "I wouldn't want anything bad to happen to it, that makes a lot of sense." His attention is rather thoroughly on Kitty now as he adjusts his posture - clearly having been reminded at least once or twice by family to not slouch.

He laughs at the tease. "I told you, my hair was just kind of matted from my mas-" *Cough* "Massachusetts Institute of Technology hat." A slight flush. "I mean, yeah, I go to ESU, but..." The question sends him a lifeline. "Biochemistry." He looks at Kitty, and smiles. "What do you do with your days, other than fiendishly snatch comic books from the hands of deserving fans?" He grins.

Kitty Pryde has posed:
"Ooo, I know someone you'd probably enjoy talking with someday," she says after hearing he works in biochemistry. Kitty orders an iced tea, and makes a comment to Peter, "Another month and week or two and I'll finally be 21. So depressing not able to have a glass of wine in your own country," she says with a sigh.

She rests her hands in her lap and says, "Well, at the moment I'm working as a guidance counselor at a preparatory school up in Westchester. Though I'm sort of taking a break in doing that. I was working contract IT, at Fisk International and at JVD Fashion, last year. But decided to take a break," she tells Peter.

"So ESU, really good school. I considered them," she tells him. "So do you have a big family? Parker, is that English, or does your family hail from somewhere else?" she asks.

Peter Parker has posed:
There is an initial look of satisfaction - talking about meeting other folks is always a good sign - and then Peter seems surprised when Kitty mentions her age. "Wow, I thought you were..." He seems to realize immediately that he has ventured too close to a minefield, and he just stops short of it. "I mean, you're my age, I didn't think that." A smile. "I turn 21 in February."

Peter nods along as she mentions the guidance counselor role. "That sounds like it's more fulfilling than IT anyway. Helping young folks discover what they want to be. That's got to be rewarding, right?"

"Yeah, it's a good school, I guess. What were you going to study, IT or computer science?" He smiles, seeming to be genuinely interested in the answer. "Uh. Honestly, I don't really know a lot. My parents died when I was very young, and so my aunt and uncle raised me, until..." He sighs deeply. "It's just my aunt now. And, uh. Yeah. So, not a big family, no." He manages a smile. "You?"

Kitty Pryde has posed:
The waiter returns with their drinks and is ready to take their orders. Kitty orders a fettucine alfredo, with sundried tomatoes and mushrooms, but tells them she'll pass on the garlic bread.

She looks back to Peter then giving him a grin. "Hey, I'm still at an age that unless you think I'm 16 you're not going to offend me. Well, or 42," she say, giving a warm little chuckle.

She takes a sip of her iced tea, then adds a tiny bit more sugar to it. "Well, I mean, yes. Or it should be. I do enjoy helping the kids, don't get me wrong. But I'm a hacker at heart."

She leans back in her chair again, sipping her iced tea. "Dual major, computer science and English literature," she tells Peter. "I went to school in the UK instead," she tells him.

Kitty's expression softens quite a bit. "Sorry for the loss of your uncle," she tells him. "I had a fairly large family, though most of my great aunts and uncles are starting to pass or of an age... it happens," she says, sighing. "From Poland originally. Family got out after World War II. Some of my relatives were in the concentration camps," she comments. Kitty reaches up to pull a necklace out from her shirt to where Peter can see the Star of David hanging from it. It has a Tree of Life in the middle of it, adorned with a bunch of small gems.

Peter Parker has posed:
After a brief glance at the menu, Peter orders chicken piccata. "Yeah, I suppose that's true. You just seemed way more confident and worldly than most of the girls my age, I guess." He pauses, realizing that that may not be considered a compliment as he intends it to be.

"A hacker, huh?" Peter grins. "My friend Ned's my guy in a chair, and he may not be great at it, but he makes up for it in enthusiasm." He picks up a piece of bread and dips it in the olive oil, taking a bit as he listens. He nods at her mention of the UK. "I've been there, nice place. And that sounds like an interesting mix. I always felt like we had to study more humanities." He shrugs. "But, you know, I just don't have the time really to do much beyond what I need to study."

He nods at the talk of his uncle. "Thank you, it was very hard for me, but I think, in the end, uh, he'd appreciate what I learned from it, and he'd forgive me." The words kind of spill out without Peter thinking about them, and he hopes that Kitty moves on quickly. Although Nazis are not exactly a better turn of conversation either. "I'm so sorry," he says, listening at first and then spying the Star of David. He nods at that. "I have some Jewish roots, but I'm an atheist, personally." He is quick to add, "I respect how people can adhere to a faith. It just..." He shrugs. "It isn't for me, personally."

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Kitty Pryde stows the necklace back away again. "It's not easy sometimes, that's for certain," she tells Peter. And didn't show any kind of negative reaction when he mentioned religions weren't for him.

Their food comes out, smelling delicious, and tasting so as well when they get around to it. Kitty inhales the scent and smiles. "Been awhile since I had it," she tells Peter.

"So I've been debating where else I might like to find something. Considering applying at Stark, or at Wayne Tech. I haven't quite made up my mind though," she tells him. "So what else do you do besides school. And patrolling comic stores for comics of beautiful women in skimpy outfits?"

Peter Parker has posed:
A slow nod from Peter. "Still, it shouldn't be that hard to just...be." He sighs, clearly deeply empathetic about it. "I see it just too much, too many people hated for too many different reasons." He picks up a piece of bread again. "Now it's the mutants. People trying to rally up anger there, and it's like...they are just people, too, just like you and me." He pauses. "Only a little bit, you know, special." He frowns, putting the piece of bread into his mouth.

He nods in agreement as he smells, and then samples the food. "Great call. Way better than hanging out in a dusty library. Although I do want to show you some pictures, if you were interested." He seems to slowly be getting the idea that maybe it wasn't the pictures after all.

"Mr. Stark is really generous," he offers, as if from his tone it is someone he personally knows. "And he really is into some truly cutting edge stuff. If you have the chance to work with him, I highly recommend it." He laughs softly at her question. "Well, you know, I go to school, I work trying to pay the bills, and that takes up a lot of my time." He pauses, circling back to her question. "It's not about the outfits, at least, not for me. Wonder Woman represents hope, the sort of hope that isn't just for us, or our people, but for a planet, and then beyond." He sighs deeply. "I was just struck by her heart, and yes, I realize that the comic is not _really_ Wonder Woman, but I guess..." He shrugs. "I don't really know, honestly. It's ... complicated, for me."