8905/Bargain Basement Prices

Bargain Basement Prices
Date of Scene:	02 December 2021
Location:	Garment District
Synopsis:	Toni runs into Nico, they go shopping for clothes and find themselves becoming fast friends! It's a Christmas miracle that will warm your heart!
Cast of Characters:	Nico Minoru, Toni Monetti

---

Nico Minoru has posed:
    Nico Minoru is rolling in the green. Like, actual paper money green! It may have required spinning a sign by an appliance store going out of business, and she might have taken half her pay in a microwave oven, but that other half? That's cold hard cash! Sure, it's not the kind of cash that lets you buy designer goods. Well, not legitimate ones. But it sure lets you buy the more fashionably late styles. Or knockoffs. Good old knockoffs. If it's good enough for a socialite's handbag to go clubbing, it's more than enough for the friendly neighborhood goth witch.

    Which is why Nico's so far outside her neighbourhood, all the way down in the garment district, making her way through the less fashionable side streets and alleys. She's not going to be getting anything from a glitzy, glamorous storefront. But for a few bucks, it's amazing just how far off the back of a truck a dress can fall.

    Nico's got a bit of a frown though, because the one caveat to bargain basement knockoff shopping is that you never know what season's in your price range, except for 'not this one'. But that's half the fun of it. The other half of the fun is meeting interesting people. And buying sketchy 'surplus product' off them.

    And then Nico spies it, the classic sign of a gathering of just such people, a warehouse fire exit propped open by a half-broken cinder block. Nico's boots thud softly on the ground as she picks up the pace and darts towards the sanctuary of cheap fashion and a working furnace. Winter is definitely coming.

Toni Monetti has posed:
Toni Monetti doesn't have to be here. But she's come to places like this with her mom in the past, and it's a positive habit. Also, she can go into the city on her own and enjoy herself without making her dad complain so much as her mom visits people out west. (Dad, of course, is in Washington, but shush.)

Toni is wearing a black sweater and a charcoal pencil skirt with the extremely flattering black pantyhose common out here in the big city, and she is near enough to the entrance to say "close the DOOR plz" as it is left open one micro-second too long.

She looks up then, and grins. (She looks slightly odd. She's still wearing blue lipstick in winter? Or is she some kind of snow spirit?) "Hey," she says, "sorry I yelled, reflex. Here, come down," the few steps to the actual 'basement.' "I love your BOOTS, my God, those look CUSTOM. And your - arm? Wow." (Damn, Toni thinks. Should I not have mentioned? I never asked Victor about this, he's always too busy. In fact I'm not sure we ever talked. Gotta fix that, Toni resolves.)

Nico Minoru has posed:
Nico swings one of those heavy-soled boots back to boot the cinder block and let the door swing shut behind her on reflex at that yell... sure, that might mean anyone else looking for this place is outta luck, but that's not _her_ problem, she's totes on the inside.

There's a brief little flinch from the witch as she realizes she forgot to cover her arm up, wiggling her fingers in a little wave/demonstration of just how nimble that metallic arm is. Lips are, of course, painted a glossy black that contrast a flash of ivory as she grins, "Oh, yeah, they're totally cool. The boots, I mean. I wished for 'em, you know?" She shrugs lightly and rolls that left wrist, "Ah, yeah... y'know how they tell you not to stick your arm outta the school bus? Good advice!"

She almost skids down the stairs, eyebrows perking, "And c'mon, you? That lipstick is _amazing_! And you're totally rocking that skirt. I usually go for like... y'know, more volume? Can't let people see I'm secretly a walking beanpole!" She nods solemnly... sure, it's not entirely true. Nico has hips. They're just sleek. Svelte. Aerodynamic.

If only her magical flight cared about aerodynamics she could consider it a _pro_!

Toni Monetti has posed:
Thank God, Toni thinks, she's not offended. She laughs at the arm joke, a little too loud, and then says, "Oh thanks - yeah, I know, I am TERMINALLY winter." It does kind of match. "So I'm glad to meet you, I'm Toni, and -"

"Hm," she says.

She considers something, and then, despite having just met Nico, moves to put an arm over her shoulder. (A purse bumps around on Toni's other side.) "Listen," she says, "I know we just met but I wanna ask you for your opinion because you're kind of in my age bracket," significantly lower than the average here, "and I don't wanna stereotype but you look like you absolutely aren't gonna be offended by my Christmas puzzle here."

Nico Minoru has posed:
Nico handles that sudden invasion of personal space pretty well. Which is to say her eyes narrow a little but when it's clear Toni's not trying to stab her or something, she does that classic, youthful 'Yeah sure whatever' half shrug and just sort of leans into the arm as her eyes sweep around, just scoping out the fashion on sale... sure, whatever she buys she can stitch and cut and rework until it meets her needs, but it's important to have good fundamentals.

But it also means she can barely pay attention to the browsing and grin brightly, "Thanks! Y'know, for recognizing I'm not like, some aged mummy or something"

Eyebrows lift and eyes narrow, "Christmas Puzzle, huh? You're not considering a part time job as like, an elf for a mall Santa are you? I've heard that's the worst."

Toni Monetti has posed:
Toni laughs. "No," she says, then with a slight shake of her head, "no" again.

"Not since that one with the gun," Toni says, but she moves on before this can be clarified. "So I am here because I'm shopping FOR somebody who is really kind of hard to shop for and like I can't figure out, WHAT she would like super well. And it sucks because she's the kind of person where like I could give her fourteen pounds of pasta sauce and she'd be like 'oh thank you so much Toni' and I'd be like 'oh that is so awesome' and then she'd secretly be like 'I am SUPER allergic to tomatoes' to herself."

"So I thought I'd get her an outfit," Toni concludes, "and I want your guidance. And in exchange, my dear-- gimme a name here, it can be fake btw if you're like who is this weird chick-- I will get you A THING OF YOUR CHOICE, no questions asked. We don't even have to roll here if you don't mind hanging or like, I can just get it off the phone if you wanna give Luthor money or whatever."

"I must sound like I"m tweaking but I really just had two coffees on the way over," Toni says with a slightly too-wide smile. "And I'm just like this normally."

Nico Minoru has posed:
Nico pauses for a moment... she _did_ forget to introduce herself! And then her eyes widen a little, because 'fake name' is hiding from your parents' former murder cult 101, but like, this gal totally called her out so she can't do that! "Oh, Oh... uhh... I'm Nico! It's uhh... okay, yeah, I get it, she's like, one of those friends who'll just accept the gift 'cause they like you, even if it's a total wank of a gift?"

She nods solemnly, "Yeah, I had a friend like that. The best but the worst, right?" She snorts and shakes her head, "No no! No need for a gift or anything, I'll do it as a public service."

Lips twist thoughtfully and her eyebrows perk, "So tell me about this friend. What's she like? Like, not pasta wise, but fashion? She perky? Bouncy? Dour? Gotta like... get a baseline read here so we know what to _aim_ for, right?" She snorts and nods her head, "Yeah, I get that, you're at the caffeine level I was at around lunch time. Makes sense!"

Toni Monetti has posed:
"Nico, I love it," says Toni.

"That is EXACTLY it except it's a she so no wanking," Toni says. "Wanking is," she makes the gesture just... in the air, like that, like she was raised in a barn. "This, right?" Toni Monetti is popular at parties! She then drifts towards the racks, continuing confidentally. "She tends to be like all American and kind of midwest and I would say she is.. my height, a little more, but she's like *ripped*? Like, just, definition. She is... I'd say she's between perky and bouncy here, like, she's extremely a summer. I can show you a picture on my phone if you want?"

Nico Minoru has posed:
Nico's eyes roll, "I know, I was using wank as like... an adjective for a bad gift! Not... I mean, like, you can totally buy things for a friend to ah... _appreciate_ for their function, but that's totally uhhh... god, like, is that a Christmas appropriate gift? Also is it the kind of gift you ask a stranger for advice on?! I dunno if I can really recommend..."

And then thinks are moving on and Nico's happy enough to just _shut up_ and hope that her line of thought is dropped.

Eyes begin to sweep the racks as she catalogues those descriptors and then nods her head quickly, "Heck yes! A picture'd be great. Maybe a jacket? Jackets are pretty good 'cause you can use them with multiple outfits, _and_ they're usually a pricier part of the outfits, so like, they show you care?"

Toni Monetti has posed:
"Oh, right," Toni answers, with a laugh.

"I'm gonna pass on that question," Toni continues.

"Anyway, uh, so yeah, I'm just trying to get her a new outfit? Because like I said she's really preppy and sport esque but she kind of had a jock upbringing and hangs out with a lot of classics nerds and other jocks, so: I want to get her something nice."

"A jacket could work. That's kind of all purpose... maybe a blazer? I wasn't even thinking of that. I did think of like jewelry but A. kind of intense and B. you know, TOO intimate?"

Nico Minoru has posed:
Nico chews her lower lip thoughtfully, "Yeah, I mean, once you're out of grade school, a bracelet or a necklace or whatever sends a whole new message."

She chews her lower lip contemplatively and begins to pick up her pace as she roams the racks, beginning to look for jackets, "Hm... a blazer could work, or like... leather? Something stylish for a night out? Y'know, does she hit the clubs with these jocks and nerds?"

She taps her chin thoughtfully and mumbles, "God, the two most common jackets _I_ see are like, a stage coat with tails and a ratty old trenchcoat. My coworkers need some street style updates... maybe _I_ should do some shopping..."

Toni Monetti has posed:
"I feel like leather is too butch," Toni says.

"But like a blazer could work since it's flexible, you can do it over a dress and it'd look great. She's really blonde, though, like POWER blonde. Are you from Cali? You kinda sound like it. Anyway she would be extremely California."

A second passes. "That sounds very... Goth? I never got, into Goth stuff, really. But when you say a stage coat with tails did you mean like, Western stuff? Like a cowboy?"

Nico Minoru has posed:
Nico's head shakes quickly, "Oh! I uhh... get that a lot. The California thing. I lived there but I guess it never really leaves, right?" Her lips twist thoughtfully and she hums, "Yeah... I mean, I knew a blonde, but she was more... y'know, floral and pastels and kinda... bohemian?"

Teeth tug on her lower lip thoughtfully as she hums out, "Oh, no! Like a... stage magician kinda?" Kinda _entirely_, but she's not letting that slip, "The cowboy coat's this other guy. I guess it might be more like... detective-y than cowboy-y. Or just like.. scruffy lowlife with a long coat, honestly."

She huffs out a little sigh and hums, "Okay... blazer... blazer could be good. Maybe like, a dark red? What kind of colours does this friend wear?"

Toni Monetti has posed:
"Yeah, she's not like that," Toni says.

"... What, like pulling rabbits out of his hat? That's pretty nuts. Is that goth? Like is stage magic goth? I literally don't know, and I'm gonana guess you do."

"Dark red works," Toni continues. "Usually she's kind of just whatever. Bold stuff. She has a lot of like, red blue gold so I think red's gonna be easy for her to work into things."

Nico Minoru has posed:
Nico sighs out, "No no, the stage magician is one person, the guy with the trenchcoat is someone else. He's not nearly as charming as the stage magician. He's always gloomy and grumpy and all 'Don't do this, pay attention to that, blah blah wanker blah git blah I'm so fookin' British'. ....And I don't think the magician's goth? I mean, she wears a lot of black, but like, it's... classy tuxedo black, not... goth black. There's a _difference_."

Nico nods solemnly, for this is surely true. She knows it in her bones. Top hat black is not goth black.

But she _does_ spy a shoulder of red, springing over to pluck out a blazer in a deep red, not quite crimson, a touch darker, without the purple hue of maroon, "What about this?"

Toni Monetti has posed:
"Does he really talk like that? Are you sure he's actually British?" Toni asks. "Like I guess they do kind of talk like that but like... Never mind."

A goth magician, Toni thinks. Sounds fake.

But she follows! And sees the blazer. "Oh, that is like NEARLY perfect. Let's see if we can find a second one just to like, compare?" A pause. "I think it's a little big, but, better too big than too small, am I right?"

Nico Minoru has posed:
Nico's shoulders rise and fall helplessly, "He says he is, and I've never been there so like, who am I to judge?"

And then she does well on her clothes picking! And hands over the blazer, before she practically disappears into the rack, lifting up option after option in rapid succession, because Nico's helpful! "That... depends entirely on intended effect! For like, day to day wear and stuff? Definitely. Clubbing? Ehhhh, that's a slippery slope one way or the other! You can go for too small, but like... y'gotta _consider_ it.

Toni Monetti has posed:
"Daywear," Toni says. "I don't want to like, decide for her or get her something too tarty because I've already had one really awkward mixed message moment and I like, almost died? Right there, on the frigging Ferris wheel?"

"Get that one out," she says on #3. "What's the discount on this rack?"

Nico Minoru has posed:
Nico emerges with the chosen blazer, and also a grimace of sympathy, "Oh god! On a Ferris wheel? But... there's nowhere to go then! Oh my god I've had that nightmare!"

She shudders and shakes her head swiftly, "Uhhh... looks like 400 0 Not bad at all!"

Toni Monetti has posed:
"Well in that case I can get both of them," Toni says thoughtfully. "Thanks, Nico! This is like, perfect. I would have just circled around in here til my butt fell off!"

"Are you doing Christmas shopping or something too? I can absolutely return the favor here, if you want," Toni continues.

Nico Minoru has posed:
Nico grins and shakes her head quickly, "Oh, no problem! I was just stopping in after a job, figured I'd see what I'd see. Didn't figure I'd meet anyone _cool_, so it's been pretty great!"

She offers her right fist out for a fistbump... because she's not _entirely_ sure her left wouldn't take it as a signal to unleash magical super strength.

Eyebrows perk and she shrugs lightly, "Oh! I wasn't really looking for gifts for anyone but myself, but like, there's tons of shops around here if y'wanna mingle and see what we can see?"

Because nothing says friendship like browsing the sheer variety of things for sale in New York! Well, fighting demons probably does, but Nico's been doing too much of that lately and life needs balance.