4355/Time Square Trip

Time Square Trip
Date of Scene:	09 December 2020
Location:	Times Square
Synopsis:	Ellie, Ruth and Noriko run into Conner. Noriko's Noriko, then she's worse, then finally everyone gets to eat. Then Ruth is Ruth. Naturally, Ellie is still in love with her phone the entire time. Rumor is they're engaged. Poor Conner.
Cast of Characters:	Negasonic, Ruth Aldine, Conner Kent, Noriko Ashida

---

Negasonic has posed:
So some of Xavier's students got the chance to visit NYC during the day as part of a class trip kind of thing. Different groups got to choose places in the city to visit and then write a report about. For Negasonic it was simple, she wanted to go see Times Square, and she wound up in a group with Noriko and Ruth. As they get out of the subway station, Ellie is already craning her neck at all the beautiful billboards, quipping at Ruth, "so it's kind of a bummer for you, huh? Can't even see any of this..."

Ruth Aldine has posed:
Talk about going where the wind blows. Invisible as she usually was, she was half expected to be alone in a trip to wander the streets with her little can tip-tapping away at the heels of peoples shoes. But instead, being paired with Nori and Ellie seemed to work out best, as she was naturally agreeable to most things.

As long as she saw that it benefitted her future self.. that is.

This instance was one of them. She had money for the field trip, enough that her Aunt could spare, ready to take on the Times Square's vast options of potential street vendors or windowed restaurants for her to pay, snatch, and grab.

Even though Ellie's words could have stung a normal person, Ruth takes it at face value. She never really disclosed anything about herself to make her think any different.

"Yes. I can see just fine. Thank you." Her response, not snappy in the slightest, was even, tone deaf, with a sprinkle of 'matter-of-fact'.

Conner Kent has posed:
Conner is in Times Square merely because he has been hanging out with classmates for lunch. But that is over. Still, most have classes in the afternoon means they had to return, not so Conner. He has a mission, though. A tough one.

Superman gave him a Kryptonian name and a place in 'the House of El' which sounds awesome. But also means he has two brand new super-relatives he needs to find Christmas presents. Oops. As if finding presents for Robin and Wonder Girl's wasn't hard enough.

So, maybe he is a little distracted and almost runs on Ellie. He stops on time and blinks. "Oh, it is you," he blurts. Except last time he was Superboy, with the outfit and all. Right now he is just regular Conner, the only thing in common is the leather jacket. And... he should have kept his mouth close.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
For Noriko's part, she just picked two arbitrary places and flipped a coin.  She knew every place would be, ultimately, boring, given her past familiarity with the streets and locales, and also given the fact that she always piles on at dinner and takes off to the city nearly every night.  Perk of being 18 is that keeping her from leaving would be a form of false imprisonment.  Plus Nori hasn't been arrested yet, so it's a wash supervision wise.  It's not like there aren't authority figures who can't pick her brain either.

One more thing Nori knew was that she'd be starving till their break, so she came prepared.  Noriko was /not/ happy to ride the subway, or any public transportation for that matter.  The more packed things become, the more tension pulls her mouth into an unaware, sour expression.  Once they emerge though, it softens a little.

"What the hell?"  A few people nearby start pushing buttons on their phones as they outright flicker, but not without power enough to power down.  Nori ignores it.  Lights and other electrical things just suffer around her as evident to anyone at the school who has seen her walking down a hallway.

Noriko doesn't seem to notice that Ellie's comment could be taken any other way than Ellie's brand of commiseration.  It's what she would say if she felt less restricted, less bombarded by all of the sources of charge.  The girl has a new set of gauntlets finally, but they look more cobbled together than the last ones.

Nori sees Conner coming and frowns, "Watch where you're going man."

Negasonic has posed:
"You can...? So the blindfold is just for show?" Ellie wonders, never having quite figured out Ruth. The girl was just so weird!

But Ellie doesn't have long to ponder how in the heck Ruth can see with the blindfold, because she almost gets knocked into by Conner, who stops himself just in time, but also confuses her with his own words. "Oh, it's you right back at you," she snaps, clearly showing little to no familiarity with Conner. Apparently she's not looking for any tell tale signs, so she assumes anyone could walk around with a leather jacket.

"Nori, what was your deal on the subway, you claustrophobic or something?" Ellie asks, curiously for once, before grinning as she turns to Conner, "she's right though, you got eyes, use'em."

Ruth Aldine has posed:
Somewhere, there was a conversation. But that conversation played out in another life and another world. That conversation wasn't interrupted by a young man who nearly crashes into the ringleader, which causes Ruth to give pause. Both times. Wait.. which one was this again?

The question goes unanswered for now as Nori and Ellie make their sentiments. Ruth hangs back just a touch, chin tilted in a way so that she can 'appear' to use her sense of hearing as a prominent way to dissect the situation. Would this turn bad?

We'll see!

Conner Kent has posed:
"Yeah, I never forget a girl that manages to talk me to be her free cab," replies Conner with a smirk. And it is also Times Square at noon. People running into each other will happen.

Still, the young man inches away from Ellie's path. Giving Nori and Ruth a brief glance. He loses his smirk at Ruth, since the blindfold makes him think she could be recovering from some kind of eye surgery.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Every once in awhile, Noriko's English vocabulary fails her.  "What does that mean?  I'm, just not used to it," which is an utter lie, but then it doesn't take telepathy to determine that.  It's also a lot harder for the girl to keep from zapping people, like someone holding their breath through a slow motion sequence.  It's like feeling well fueled, but being steadily syphoned to a state of another kind of exhaustion.  And the girl always seems tortured by having to be still when she perceives nothing going on.

There's a splash of unintended vulnerability when Noriko looks over to Ellie.  What she wanted to project was not here, not now.

Needless to say, Conner's distraction is a welcomed.  "Because she outsmarted you?  Didn't know there were guys who like to feel dumb."  She shrugs, nonchalant and nonjudgmental, strangely at odds with her razor edged words.

Negasonic has posed:
"A free cab...?" Ellie muses, looking Conner over again, "...you sure that was you...?" He was in his Superboy costume, and there's something a costume does to one's looks. It's just a bit different without one. "So...what's my name?" Ellie quizzes Conner, before adding, "and what's yours for that matter?" She then does the job of introducing Nori and Ruth by pointing at each in turn, "that's Noriko, she's fast, and that's Ruth, she's weird. Like professionally weird."

"Hey," Ellie quips at Nori, "you make it sound like I took advantage of him, and that's not true, I took advantage of the situation, that's totally different."

Ruth Aldine has posed:
In that moment of introductions, it would have been cool to offer up a card. Ruth Aldine, Professor of Weird, and the tiny byline would read, "Not a proffessor though, fight me!" at the bottom. That little thought -nearly- gets her to smile, though instead of it touching her lips, it causes the little crinkles that one gets int he corner of her eyes. Less pronounced and hidden.

"Hi. Thank you." She says to Conner, deliberately not questioning Nori on her discomfort. She was no empath, but her reaction feels a tiny bit tense. "Nori, yes. I have pizza money." She wasn't asking her to go get it to give her a break.. buuutt.. "Would you like pizza too?"

Conner Kent has posed:
"You never told me your name," points out Conner. "Even after I took you all the way to Salem Center," which seems a long way, but it was less than ten minutes for him. But, see? It was completely unfair.

"I am Conner, anyway," he offers. And then Ruth pipes in, in a vaguely confusing way, distracting him. "Pizza? Uh, sure?" What he is not sure is if the question was for him. "We should get out of the way, in any case."

Noriko Ashida has posed:
"How can you take advantage of him if he consented and liked it?"  With all this charge that's been mounting on the trip out here, the girl's behavior has shifted somewhat.  She started off the day with everyone extremely languorous as if she stumbled out of bed half-sleepwalking, but she's already wired and impulsive, something probably patently obvious to her traveling companions by now, especially given their smattering of interactions over the last school year.

"I also zap things and..."  Noriko's eye shoot over to a persistently flickering sign that is now being examined from the street.

"I still owe you ranchy chicken tenders."  Noriko doesn't always make a show of her moral character, but there are times where her conscience certainly seems to gnaw on her.  "I'll buy your pizza."  As everyone seems to be leaning toward pizza, Noriko just starts to walk in the direction she knows that is closest.  The less slow walking she has to do, the better.  Yeah, she's totally used to being alone.  She even forgot to do Ruth the basic courtesy of signaling her in some way.

Negasonic has posed:
Ellie doesn't know about Ruth's thoughts, so she can't demand royalties for the Professor of Weird idea, which is pretty cool. Instead, she snickers as Ruth offers pizza money, "is that because he's about to offer us pizza, Ruth?" Ellie asks curiously, before turning to Conner and explain, "Ruth can see the future, so pizza then?" She grins when he remarks how she never shared her name, "must make me clever, huh? Ellie," she introduces herself, finally.

When Noriko also settles on pizza, Ellie shrugs, "looks like Ruth was right, pizza it is, let's go!"

Conner Kent has posed:
"I didn't say it was unfair," protests Conner, shrugging. "It just happened, and it was unusual. And I remember... Ellie," cool. Apparently he was also invited to have pizza. Or maybe he was just invited to pay for the pizza. In any case, he follows.

Ruth Aldine has posed:
It was a wait really, waiting to get everyone to respond, the cane brought up to stand straight up as she leans a cheek against it with both hands at the neck. Standing still was a bit exhausting if you're used to sitting/laying down, and she was already on the verge of yawning to declare her boredome.

Thankfully, Nori was already explaining her gifts and on the move, and Ellie explaining a bit of Ruth's. Less talking for her, since pizza was on her merry little brain along with the prospect of chicken tenders bathed in ranch dressing. Ooo.. maybe blue cheese this time..

"Yes. Pizza."

Nori didn't need to point, for Ruth automatically turns and smacks the ball end of the cane against the ground to swish left and right to clear anyone out of the small groups path. "Conner will offer to pay, Noriko. Thank you."

Noriko Ashida has posed:
"Of course he will.  He's a guy," Noriko is just full of lovely narrow-minded assumptions.  They're just expedient shortcuts to get people to shut up or fight, both being more interesting outcomes than continuing a conversation.  But this isn't one of those times.  This is just her impulsive racing mind following the racetrack already carved out by habit.

"But he doesn't owe you.  I do, and this gives him a reason to chill with you again," Noriko says without any regard for her volume, not that she's extra loud.  She's either oblivious, testing Ruth's sense of hearing, or just doesn't care.  Still, she slows down to rejoin the girl by her side, her brain finally catching up with itself.

The students were all briefed on laying low when it came to their powers.  The faculty is prepared.  Old hat.  But Noriko's made an effort not to zip around, even if nothing's hiding those weird gauntlets.

Eventually they come to some place squeezed between two other eateries and Noriko weaves through to the door, looking through the glass for a moment before slipping in and holding the door open with her heel as a last second thing.  It's only about a foot open though.

Ruth Aldine has posed:
"With Ellie?" Ruth comments. "I cannot see. Does he like her? Yes?" She asks of Nori, while Conner follows along and Ellie lost in her phone, the conversation was quiet enough to not get Ruth placed on a T-Shirt or in someones RIP Twitter mentions.

"I do not understand men." Ruth admits along their walk. "I do often try to, yes. But peeking into the minds of men seem angry. Scattered. And full of breasts. Yes." Ruth nods at that, she was convinced that men were just angry boob grabbers who really had nothing to offer unless they were in the classroom. But that she wouldn't say outloud, that she herself was a dirty cheater..

As they approach the eatery, Ruth reaches out with her hand to grip the door, pulling it open wider for the two behind them to enter. Instead of looking at the menu, Ruth tips her way to the booth in the back, planting herself into the booth that holds up the wall (or the other way around) to keep an "eye" out for who comes and goes.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
"Probably."  Noriko shrugs to Ruth.  "I mean he took her 'all the way' to Salem Center."  Course it's just a hop skip away for her.  "What's wrong with breasts?"  Course then she thinks about looking at breasts through other people's perception and it makes her hair stand on end...or maybe that's just other phenomena in effect.

"Wait you can look into people's minds?"  Noriko stops on their way to the counter.  "What else can you do?"  But they've already split ways, which Nori sees when she turns.  "Oh."

Conner Kent has posed:
"That... doesn't work like that," is Conner major commentary to Nori's 'he's a guy' associated to 'pay the pizza'. Oh, to have Cassie here hearing that. Then again, maybe they better don't, for the sake of pizza. "You are also a speedster," he points out. He recognizes the signs.

Then Ruth is babbly and he is trying not to laugh. "That sounds about right, at least for our age frame. Not that you women are any less scattered or... you know." Beat, "maybe we should talk about pizza instead."

Ruth Aldine has posed:
Nothing, Ruth said nothing. She admits to nothing and she continues with the fact that.. there was nothing to talk about. Innocent. Silent. Waiting the others to join her at the booth after they've ordered pizza and chicken strips.

"Extra cheese.." Ruth calls out, her voice sounded a bit unsure. "..please!" Yes. Politeness goes a long way.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
"I said probably.  Not definitely."  Noriko shrugs, as if it were all a misunderstanding, and it is, her own misunderstanding of things flying over her head and her misunderstanding of the world, one she's flattened out the dimensions of to deal with it.  Her brow furrows at Conner's observation.  "Yeah.  Pretty sure it was said," but she gathers he probably didn't hear it based on the way he said it.  "Does that matter?"

"Wait, can you read minds too?  Like a fucking minefield," Noriko mumbles the last part.  She orders the pizzas after gathering people's preferences.  Then she leaves a little more than half of the tab in cash on the table and walks away from the counter before anyone can stop her at normal speed.

Eventually, she ends up sitting across from Ruth.  "You didn't answer me."

Conner Kent has posed:
Extra cheese means Ruth has good taste. Conner is an expert in pizza, of course, so he confirms that is what he wants too, then adds. "Well, Ellie said you were fast," which can be easily misunderstood, because Nori also said she 'zaps things'. And she has quickly gone for the pizza. Okay.

On his side Conner has not even blinking at knowing they have superpowers. Although knowing Ruth is a telepath does make him a little wary. After all he knows some secrets that are not even his to tell. "So, err... what can Ellie do?" He asks.

Ruth Aldine has posed:
"We are narrow." Ruth would admit once everyone joins her at the chosen spot. The thoughts of women are sometimes singular and focused, unless it comes to multitasking. Then it's an organized mess only their own kind can figure out. And it's wonderful!

As Nori settles in across from her, her lips form into a thin line. It wasn't as if she were to go prying (she would) right at this second (she probably did) to tell everyones secret (she may), no. She just only nods her head. And to make things even more weird..

"I see you."

Could have been directed at both! As for Conner's question, Ruth considers this for a moment. Then she answers, not with a smile, but cheerily enough. "She can send you to God's spam folder marked for deletion." Which, doesn't really answer. But judging at how she left that room...

Noriko Ashida has posed:
"Oh yeah," she remarks absently to Conner. "Thanks," she realizes that he clarified for her. Noriko's own mind is strange, fluctuating with her charge as it has its own life and goes by its own tune in her mind.  Her biochemical processes seem like a backseat driver, or at times like a puppet.  At high levels of charge, the electrical jumps are something odder than scattered, though they mimic it.  Though her approach to clarity suggests her equilibrium is indeed much faster than most, unsurprisingly.

Those three little words jerk Noriko into some kind of intense haze of fear and anger, like Ruth pulled a trigger.  As if Ruth had no say in the matter.  Noriko tenses up and then scoots further into the corner of the booth to try and hide some light indication of embarrassment that she surely thinks is much more obvious than it is.

Finally, when Ellie doesn't answer, as expected, Nori says, "She blows stuff up.  Goes nuclear."

Conner Kent has posed:
Conner's mind is actually pretty normal (and scattered). Although his current thoughts are not in boobs but in Christmas Presents. It would take a bit of exploration, or luck, to notice how much of his brain is used to process sensorial information. His main senses are vastly enhanced and he has to deal with a lot of feedback.

"Explosions, cool," is Conner comment. He looks a bit curious at Nori's reaction to... what? His words? No, Ruth's. Interesting. Then back to Ruth. "And see the future too, so you could kind of pick up thoughts from the future? That might be a bit complicated."

Ruth Aldine has posed:
See? Nori had it right. Ellie could turn someone into a hashtag at a moments notice.

Though Noriko's reaction was concerning to Ruth, she decides to try her best to not to pay attention to it. Focusing upon someones insecurities would cause the wrong reaction, and Ruth was on the way to appear to be making friend. Maybe a little crew, perhaps.

"Noriko, pizza."

And as if it were on cue, the food, which was piping hot, was settled in between the four, the New York style Pizza ladened with goodness creating a steam effect in the middle of the table. This tray was slightly pushed aside for chicken strips, and two small saucers of ranch for dipping.

And it wasn't enough.

"More, please." Ruth quickly announces to the waitstaff, who gives her an odd look. "More ranch." To clarify, and off they go to retrieve the items for her use.

"Read thoughts. See future. Not thoughts from the future, but actions. The doing. The future, present, yes, and past. Pardon. What could have happened, what would have happened.." She waves her hand to brush aside the explanation, settling for her slice of the prize. And quickly biting into it.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Right now Nori's mind is racing.  Images and thoughts splash through her head like some acrobatic routine.  Some looping, some with brutally powerful landings that clear out activity for a moment like a little EMP shockwave.  Images going so fast they might as well be subliminal.  Some of them memories, some of them memories flashing back into the present, woven into other things.  The insides of cages, a wave of scent, dried blood in dark places, the face of that new guest, Emma Frost, and maybe there are parts of her that aren't so unlike a male's brain, at which point Noriko mumbles right after Ruth gives her a heads up on the pizza.

"I have to go to the bathroom!"  No she doesn't.  Noriko curses in her head.  This time she all but disappears to those who cannot track her.  She hops up on the spine of the booth and hops over to the floor, sprinting off to the bathroom to hole up in a stall as she deals with the crackle of electricity that's rippling across her skin, her gauntleted hands tightening.  'God I hope they leave me alone,' she thinks to herself with her back against the stall door.

Conner Kent has posed:
Conner gets a slice of pizza as Nori zooms. "Hrm, is she upset about something we said?" The question has no clear target, but Ruth is the telepathic seer. It means she must have all the answers, right? It is only logical!

"Maybe you should go talk with her," he also offers. "I will keep the pizza warm," that is clearly what laser eyes are for.

Ruth Aldine has posed:
Ruth nonchalantly chewed upon her pizza, even as Nori decidedly takes her leave in a.. well, Ruth had to admit, that was pretty graceful. Conner's suggestion though? It nearly drew her still, but she had that final crust of the pizza to finish which was shoved right into her mouth, greasy hands soon wiped down the front of her jacket.

"Okay."

This wasn't going to turn out well.. not at all..

As she slips out of the booth, the cane that remained upon the side of it was grabbed and not used, held as if she were going out back to swipe at a rodent who decided today was the day to dumpster dive.

And right into the bathroom she goes, the door closing behind her which thankfully masks her heavy sigh. A heavy sigh that.. was only born from the way the heavy pizza was starting to comfort her stomach.

"Noriko Ashida." Ruth says, not in a commanding tone. "Are you pooping?"

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Nori doesn't hear the door opening or closing.  It isn't till she hears the smear of her name that she snaps into Ruth's speed as if jolted, hearing only the question.  "It's an electrical shitstorm up in here."  Whatever /that/ means.  In any case, it's typically defensive, a layer of armor.

Then a tidal wave of embarrassment floods the girl and she exits the stall with her eyes down, head slightly bowed as she goes to wash her hands, then splash her face.  The water /really/ wakes her up as tiny veins of electricity crackle between the droplets like her own jellyfish aftershave.

"Sorry.  Let's go eat."  Let's pretend like this didn't happen.

Noriko waits this time, as if the declaration might have actually been a question, asking Ruth if they can.

Ruth Aldine has posed:
Ruth could take the hint. Though it was a little bit too bad that the electrical storm in the space of the bathroom didn't trigger greasy hair to rise. It did produce a little bit of a chill, one that has her scratching at her arm at the feel of something crawling on her.

But as Noriko exits and demands to eat, well, not demands.. Ruth has a better idea. At least for now.

"Pardon. Yes. May I ask you of a favor?"

She reaches into her pocket, retrieving a small baggie of doggie treats. The treats themselves smelled of meat and spices, clearly homemade. And! Wrapped in a bow!

"Can you go take this to MacTaggert? I believe we will not be home in time for his treats and he will get testy."

That was a plum lie, but it would get Noriko to spend some energy and thoughts. And.. hopefully Noriko will forget what happened in the booth so that Ruth could corner her about it later..

..cause she's intrusive..

Noriko Ashida has posed:
"Yeah."  Noriko answers before Ruth even starts saying what it is, thirsty for any kind of distraction.  "Probably won't," she agrees, as if she would disagree with anything that gives her a chance to break free for a few stolen moments.  Well, maybe a few more.

Noriko takes the baggie and looks inside, still curious in her strangely dampened mood, various electrical fields at odds with each other.  "I'll be right back," maybe she'll spend a little bit of time with MacTaggert though before she gets back, walking from the back into the pizza joint to sit back down with Conner as if she Eschered out...or into the building somehow.

"Hey.  Sorry.  Had to go run an errand for Ruth."  There's a level of composure that's returned, even if she isn't back to her biting self.  She glances toward Ellie.  Good.  Still absorbed with her phone.  Maybe she didn't notice.  Noriko piles a few slices onto her plate, stopping when she notices she's already taken two more than anyone else at the table.  She quickly makes them disappear into her mouth.  She grabbed at least one slice of the extra cheese, some of the extra pepperoni.  It's a good start.

Ruth Aldine has posed:
Ruth slipped out of the bathroom, and right back into the booth as if nothing had ever happened. She takes another slice of pizza before it could be devoured, then begins to chew. Even a chicken strip was had with the other hand, and dipped. To Conner, at least before Noriko returns (one hopes), Ruth offers. "She was pooping." And.. that was that.

Speaking those words would keep him from asking what it was all about.

"Sorry, what school do you go to." She asks Conner in between bites. With Ellie busy, it's up to them to make friends, and maybe get a ride home from him too!

Conner Kent has posed:
And weirdly enough the pizza slices are still hot. Conner, showing how much has grown up the last three years, didn't eat more than his share, despite the temptation. This likely means Ellie just lost a slice to Nori. Serves her right for being addicted to the phone.

"That's cool," replies Conner with a faint grin. "I can't get her to talk," he adds, gesturing vaguely to the gothy mutant. "If you are hungry, I could go for another medium-sized."

Ruth gets a nod of welcome too, "I heard you," which he certainly did. "Oh, I am first year in the ESU." It being one of the good colleges of New York.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Noriko's time with MacTaggert ensures that Ruth has enough time to get her explanation for Nori's absence out without detection.  "Mmm, still gooey," as if she'd ever say something like that unless she was hiding something.  Still, the mercurial teen seems aware of it and doesn't care.

"I bet she's talking.  Just not to us."  Noriko seems unbothered as she focuses on her food.  Apparently Ellie is just being Ellie to her.  "I'm always hungry."  Chomp-chomp-chomp-chomp.  Food is the center of her world right now, so naturally she thinks Conner is talking to her.

The girl doesn't know a thing about which colleges are good save for the ones that are internationally known.  It's not like she's been knocking down Kitty's door for a guidance counseling session, so she stays quiet and listens to the other two talk while she devours more sustenance.  Sweet, cheesy, sustenance.

Ruth Aldine has posed:
With everything still piping hot and Conner asking or.. wanting at least another pie, Ruth had no reason to deny that she wanted one. However, much like her presence, her departure is weird enough in which she just slips out the booth, and takes off.

Nary a word to offer, not even a goodbye. Chances are, she'll see them all again later on.

She's the gift that keeps on giving.