4557/A Looming Shadow!

A Looming Shadow!
Date of Scene:	31 December 2020
Location:	The Park
Synopsis:	Tabs and Ben get away from some kidnappers.
Cast of Characters:	Tabitha Smith, Ben Reilly

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Tabitha Smith has posed:
Tabitha Smith is wearing her yoga pants and her furry coat because it's damn cold out this morning, and she's trying to get her little job in quickly before her busy schedule. She's jogged off the beaten path to a small park nearby and huffs and puffs in the cold air, her focus apparent.

Although there aren't many people out, Tabitha doesn't really notice two men on the park bench because they were already there when she got to the park, so they're okay right? She keeps going round the pathways and these two Eastern European troublemakers sit there the whole time. One of them is bald and smokes a stinky European short cigarette and the other looks cold, sitting there with his arms crossed. They don't mind watching this Tabitha character closely as she jogs by, doing another pass along the line of benches.

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben is looking a little rougher then he did the day before. Homelessness has a way of really dragging down someone's look. It could has been worse though. He found a way to stay warm last night in a crawl space at the apartment complex. He's wearing the same clothes as yesterday, just a little more wrinkled. The weather being cool, this isn't particularly gross or unexpected in a teen, but it's noticeable.

He currently occupies a bench and is working on a cup of coffee and a breakfast sandwich procured by the meager tip and wage he gained yesterday. His eyes narrow. He quietly plots the downfall of cheapskates everywhere. Actually, not everywhere. Right here, sitting across from him on a bench. Mentally he chants, 'Give me a reason' as he slurps his coffee.

Then arrives Tabitha, Ben's gaze follows the gaze of the troublemakers. He blinks when he notices the girl from yesterday. Squinting, he makes a 'pssst' sound and waves her over. "Yo, Tabitha. It's me.. the guy from yesterday."

Tabitha Smith has posed:
The two men on the bench seem to be waiting for something, but they do like watching Tabitha jog for some reason. One of them says something quietly in a foreign language to the other.

Tabitha brightens up and stops in front of Ben, "Oh hey pizza guy!" she grins, "Hi," she adds, stretching out her arm over her head, "What are you doing here?" she wonders, noting the state of his appearance. Maybe she's concerned.
The two jokers say a few more things to each other in a foreign language and seem to be stirring with more activity.

Ben Reilly has posed:
"It's Ben. Sorry for not giving my name yesterday." He replies, mirroring her grin. He shakes his fast food bag. "I was just grabbing a bite to eat before I got back to the hustle."

He leans forward and shields his mouth with the back of his hand, "So.. not to alarm you, but those two guys on the other side are totally ogling you. Weirder, I think one of them is the guy from the delivery yesterday. I never forget a bad tipper."

He leans further to the side and stares daggers briefly at the man, but once he almost makes eye-contact he quickly averts his gaze. "Uh, maybe I should jog with you. In case they decide they want to... uh.. get weirder."

Tabitha Smith has posed:
Tabitha sorta turns sidelong to check back on this creepy guys but she doesn't look directly at them, "They've been here. I mean, before me. Not sure what they're waiting for," she explains with a shrug and then frowns, "Yesterday? Really?" she says in a whisper, trying out her spy voice.

"Okay great!" Tabitha says in her regular voice, "Come on then, let's go. I was just going around the trail thingie."

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben hops up to his feet, chugs down the rest of his coffee, and makes a note of using the nearby trash and recycling bin. He tugs his hood up over his head and nods to Tabitha. "Alright then. Trail thingie it is."

He jogs along beside her and does his best to ignore the two goons though they do eventually rise up off the bench and begin to follow. Ben jogs a little further ahead and begins to job backwards. "So, you run around here often? This a good place to run into you? Don't really know anyone this side of New York."

Tabitha Smith has posed:
The two shady men are walking behind Ben and Tabitha, picking up the pace as they circle the trail, who knows why. "I run all over, I like the trails, but this place usually isn't crowded because it's small," Tabitha tells Ben as she jobs along.

Tabitha glances behind her and the two strange men seem to have disappeared, "Hey, I think they're gone," she advises Ben with a smile, but she's spoken too soon. When they make their way back around, the two men are there WAITING for them with guns, "Okay, hold it," the bald man says, pointing his gun at them.

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben continues to jog along beside, listening to her reply. He nods looking at his surroundings and wondering how much it takes to get an apartment around here. He stops when he notices the two men and instinctively, heroically, and maybe slightly chauvinistically, extends an arm in front of Tabitha protectively. "Whoa whoa... man. Look, we aren't looking for any trouble. We are both just kids with delivery jobs. Not like we've got a bunch of cash on us!"

Tabitha Smith has posed:
"Yeah, we knows what yous are," the bald man tells them with a typical smirk. Tabitha looks at Ben strangely as he plays The Protective Guy, and she smirks too, "Yeah, no cash but he'll kick your ass," she notes amusedly, thumbing to Ben.

"We don't want cash," the bald man replies, "We're gonna go somewhere nice to talk," he replies, and the way this guy talks, he could be a mafia pro for sure. Tabitha frowns cautiously.

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben can't help but offer a cocky grin, but he immediately grows concerned again at the ominous declaration about going 'elsewhere'. He frowns and side glances toward Tabitha. He knows he can dodge bullets, but... it's always tricky to dodge bullets for other people. He nods to the two men. "Fine... sure we can talk this out."

Ben keeps himself in the direct line of fire between Tabitha and the two goons in hopes his spider-sense will give him a warning if they get itchy trigger fingers. He holds up both of his hands. "Sure the last thing you want is to waste a bullet and get the attention of the police, yea?"

Tabitha Smith has posed:
"Good, you get in van and we go talk. Someplace nice," the bald man says with a sly smile now, and points them back toward the front of the park. He tucks his gun inside his leather jacket.

"We're not talking about /shit/," Tabitha says and frowns, "Just get the Hell outta here!" she lets out. She balls up her fists, not yet prepared to blow them completely up. But things would sorta get outta hand if that happened. And her aim better be good.

"Start walkin," the bald man smirks, "Last chance," he says, and can be heard cocking his gun.

Ben Reilly has posed:
"Oh god. I'm going to be sick." Ben complains abruptly, feigning terror from the cocking gun. He trusts the men would prefer not to shoot anyone as he turns and runs to a nearby trashcan. He pretends to hurl, couching into the receptacle. The man with the cocked gun rolls his eyes and looks to his partner saying something disparaging in their shared language.

That's about when... in an impressive display of strength... Ben grabs the trash, turns, and throws. As if well-practiced, he beans the guy. The trash can practically explodes in a confetti of discarded wrappers and other litter. The man goes flying back a couple of feet and lands with a heavy 'oof' momentarily stunned. "Like the lady said, I'm going to kick your ass!"

Tabitha Smith has posed:
Looking surprised that he's The Hulk, Tabitha watches as Ben clobbers one of the men and topples him over. The other raises his gun and points it at Tabitha, so she squints, probably not liking revealing her superpowers to Ben but she chucks a BOMB back at him. Now that guy is the one surprised. He ducks and the baseball sized bomb explodes the park bench, which is a bigger explosion than he expected. It topples him FORWARD and he sommersaults on the ground, landing conveniently in front of Ben's feet.

Tabitha grins with appreciation, "Totally planned it."

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben gives the guy at his feet a firm kick across the jaw then walks over to the one he 'trashed'. He gets a 'love tap' at the temple to make sure his lights are properly out. The teenager then fishes into his jacket, retrieves the gun, empties the chamber, slips on the safety and deposits it, along with the man's wallet into a pocket in his hoodie.

He turns and offers Tabitha a squint, as he returns to the other man and repeats the same series of steps. "Well, here I thought I was going to play hero... and then BOOM." He looks at the remains of the park bench. "I think I ended up saving 'their' lives. I'm going to kick their asses? Really?"

He laughs then nudges down the trail, "We better make ourselves scarce before the police show up."

Tabitha Smith has posed:
Tabitha Smith holds her hands out as if to say, "What?! COME ON!" but she doesn't say it, only smiles knowingly, "My bad," she states finally, "Thanks for trying to be a guy," she offers.

Tabitha then glances past Ben as he gives his warning, "Um, yeah let's uhhh...get out of here please, I think I'd be arrested. Cause...I'm kind of a mutant...yeah I know..." she admits to him but then heads up the trail again, taking the path back toward the parking lot.

Ben Reilly has posed:
He offers a grin of machismo and flexes. In truth, he's got some really impressive muscle definition for a teenager, one of the reasons he wears baggy clothes. There's a little hint of it even underneath the heavy fabric of the hoodie sleeve. "You are welcome."

Ben then nods with concern, "Yea, my relationship with the authorities isn't great either. That's a real long story, but hey... it's a hint of a secret since I just learned one of yours." He doesn't seem disturbed that she's a mutant. Either he's really open minded, or he has something going on himself. He follows her down the path.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
Tabitha Smith looks back over her shoulder and lets Ben catch up as she jogs toward the parking lot. She seems in a better mood as she sees he hasn't run off to tell others there is a mutant nearby, "I think everyone's getting excited. I see people running this way," she explains as she finally reaches the parking lot. "What do you think we should do?" she wonders.

Ben Reilly has posed:
"Well..." He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a credit card. "If you got a car or can get us an uber, we could go somewhere and go on a shopping spree on those assholes' bill." He waggles his eyebrows. "My ride is a bicycle.. so not exactly the greatest for passengers, unless you want to stand on the rear peg."

Shrugging sheepishly, he looks hopeful she might have a solution to their transportation problems. After all, she got here somehow. "Whatever we do, let's just not do it here!"

Tabitha Smith has posed:
Tabitha Smith squints her eyes at him as he holds up the credit card, "That's a bingo I think," she states. She tugs his elbow and encourages to keep moving, "But uhh, well I jogged here," she explains, "Okay okay! Don't worry, Mister Man!" she lets out. She rolls her eyes as she pulls her cellphone from inside her furry jacket and dials a number, "I totally know somebody at Dial-A-Ride---let's go!" she says. She says a few things over the phone and gives them their location.

She takes the long way around the parking lot and makes a beeline for the street.

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben keeps up easily enough and seems delighted that she's totally in on his proposal to get some free swag on a stolen credit card. Why? Because they are bad tippers. Well, they also held them at gun point, but some crimes are worse then others. He grins, "Dial-A-Ride it is.. You secure wheels, and I'll pretend to... 'Have very weird accent'" He does his best to sound Eastern European, it's clearly not one of his talents.

He keeps his head on a swivel, wincing a little bit as he hears sirens in the distance. He hops from foot to foot, impatiently waiting for their ride to show up.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
Tabitha Smith points at her phone, "Ugh okay, I told her Sergei and me need a ride," she explains to Ben. So act like a...Sergei!!!" she tells him and laughs.

She walks up the sidewalk and pauses a moment as she thinks over his plan, "This is not a good plan," she states amusedly, "But...you need a new sweatshirt, Ben. I mean, no offense," she tells him awkwardly.

She waves to the ride as it approaches and quickly opens the door as it pulls up. She gets in first.

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben nods to her, "I am Sergei." He then gazes down at his hoodie and then shrugs at her, "I've got another in my stash... err... place, but yes, I could use a few new ones and some other things. I'm also grabbing a hotel and getting a bunch of room service. I left their passports, and I'm betting that when the police pick them up, they'll be busy for awhile. Hopefully too busy to notice their stolen credits. I bet I can get at least one night off this bad boy before someone gets wiser."

He flicks the plastic in victory. When the ride arrives, he slides in after her and closes the door. In his bogus accent, he asks, "Nearest mall please."

Tabitha Smith has posed:
"Uhh, I don't think they're dead, uhhh...Sergei," Tabitha reminds him, "Maybe you should buy some gift cards and call it a day," she suggests. She shrugs, "Then again, one of my friends wants to totally swipe booze for herself, so," she tells him.

The ride cruises down the street for a few minutes and pulls up to the local mall.

Ben Reilly has posed:
"Oh gift cards. That's a really good idea." He muses that one over for a second and hums, "Well, I'm not twenty-one, so credit cards or not.. I think that's going to be a bit of a trick, huh?" He whispers conspiratorially and then hops out of the car to wait for her. "First thing is first, some new clothes."

He makes for the entrance of the mall and tugs his hoodie up and over his head, folding it over an arm. This puts his pizza t-shirt on display. "Maybe something slightly nicer then just hoodies and tees."

Tabitha Smith has posed:
Tabitha Smith motions to herself, "That's right, it is a good idea. I've practiced being in trouble," she tells him, and follows him inside, "Gift cards, not credit cards, big diff. Anybody can track a credit card, even dumb idiots like those guys," she explains as she shakes her head. She unzips her furry coat and points to the men's section, "I hear the satelite tracking us right now," she tells him amusedly.

Ben Reilly has posed:
"These days I'm sure there is always a satellite watching these days. Big brother and all." He glances toward the men's section then glances toward the nearby cash register. He quickly reads the name on his ill-gotten credit card and walks over. After a quick exchange and an excuse of 'I need gift cards quick as belated holiday gifts', he buys himself a few cards with fifty and hundred on them.

Soon enough, he returns to Tabitha, "I'll stop back on the way out... with a different cashier. Though we can certainly look around and see what's good." He eyes a nearby dark blue raincoat and hums, checking the size.