9474/A moment of Peace at the End

A moment of Peace at the End
Date of Scene:	05 January 2022
Location:	Garment District
Synopsis:	Ben and Phoebe, maskless, look over a somewhat abandoned Manhattan and talk about what might happen if they come out on the other side of this Earth-ending event. Apparently, it's Pizza.
Cast of Characters:	Phoebe Beacon, Ben Reilly

---

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    The Garment District was adjacent to where Phoebe would normally be working in a bar where everyone was mostly well behaved, somewhat because the tender was big and scary. The City that Never Sleeps was quieter than usual. Sure, there were some who elected not to abandon the city around them and were battening down the hatches, as it were.

    Here, the automatic lights were lit up in the imitation of life. They lit Phoebe's face from below as she sat at the edge of a building, one leg dangling off.

    The other was supporting her chin and her arms as she looked over the city, her hair hidden behind a watch cap.

Ben Reilly has posed:
"Hey, stranger," Ben calls from on high, clasping a web-line to swing him down towards the rooftop, "It's dangerous here."

There's an unspoken 'shouldn't you go home to Gotham?' in his words as he lands gracefully alongside her, landing in a crouch before stretching his legs out to dangle off the top of the building as well.

"How're you doing?"

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe listens to the slinging of the web as someone swings up onto the building. She gives a little smile as he lands, and she looks out over the city as she gives a shrug.

    "It's dangerous everywhere. I'll have to be here tomorrow." she replies gently, and she turns up to Ben. She's not wearing her costume tonight, it's just Her.

    "Nervous, actually. Really, really nervous."

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben pauses for a moment, regarding Balm in her civilian gear. He contemplates something internally for a moment and then, out of nowhere, reaches up and pulls his mask off with one hand. Underneath is a shaggy mop of bleach-blonde hair, and a young man's face with a mess of scruff about the jaw.

"You have to be here? Why?" He pauses. "I mean, I know why. Because you're a hero. Those people who have to be here when trouble comes around."

He leaves another gap and then extends a hand to her, satisfied with his decision: "I'm Ben, by the way. I figure if the world's about to end, there's not much point protecting my secret identity."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe looks over as Ben takes off his mask, and she straightens a moment. Oh. He's *adorable*. Her dark eyes go wide a moment, and her jaw works, though lips refused to part, and then she shakes her head. "It... goes deeper than that. I figured if you work with the Titans, you'd get to find out about me anyway. I occasionally come over to help with recovery." she gives a smile -- and then very hesitantly she reaches up and clasps his hand.

    "Phoebe." she introduces herself with her real name.

    "... they have my adopted dad. The angels, I mean. He started this whole mess in a way, gave them an excuse. So... I want to make sure my little sister gets him back. Responsibilities, you know."

Ben Reilly has posed:
"Yeah?"

Ben looks wide-eyed up to the sky, taking a seat close alongside Phoebe as he does so. He tucks his mask into his belt, leaving it off for the time being.

"It's all so weird. I got my aunt out of town, but when we went up there and saw all of them? There were so many ... "

A sigh: "I hope you stay safe. You're ... you're one of the most interesting people I've met up here. And I've fought a guy who was made of sand."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe gives a wry smile. "I don't exactly do 'safe'. I'm from Gotham, remember? You gotta be some kinda crazy to do what I do. You can even ask Terry, we're all mad here."

    "More interesting than a guy made of sand, says the guy who can choose when to cling to surfaces, shoots web from his hands, swings at high velocity over city streets and is crazy mad good with the gymnastics." she gives a grin.

Ben Reilly has posed:
"I don't shoot web from my hands," Ben retorts, giving Phoebe a 'that's crazy' look before leaning in close and holding out a wrist, "Here, I'll show you."

On his wrist is a strange, homemade-looking device. There's a little lever in the center of his palm that looks like it can be pushed down, and a small nozzle mounted on top of his wrist. A number of silvery storage containers seem to be affixed to each wrist (ammunition maybe?).

"Push down on that lever."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe does so, pushing down on the lever very lightly before the webing launches, and she gives a cry of both alarm and fascination.

    "Oh! Oh that is *cool*. So what, there's a bunch of chambers in there that mix together? or does it super-expand when it's introduced to air?" she questions, and then she looks at Ben's 'that's crazy look' a bit belatedly and goes:

    "I fight minor demons who errupt from laundry machines on a surprisingly regular basis. Shooting webbing from your hands would *not* be the weirdest thing."

Ben Reilly has posed:
"It expands when it's introduced to air," Ben explains, "There's different formulas, they do different things. I've been playing around with it for a while. Like - okay, so watch this."

He lifts a hand, twisting his wrist in a precise way that a ball of webbing flies from the launcher rather than a strand. It hits a billboard across the way before exploding into a big burst of web upon impact, half-covering the sign.

He laughs.

"Yeah, you're probably right. The gymnastics is all me, though."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    She watches as he twists his wrist, and her head tilts as the ball of webbing flies out, and then strikes at the billboard. Someone's shoes are now webbed entirely.

    "Neat! How long does it take to switch out cartriges? Are they refillable or one-time only use?" she questions curiously, and she refrains from poking at them in her curiosity.

    "Good to know you're spry. I've got twelve years of Aikido under my belt, nice to know there's people who can keep up with me." she jokes, and then she blinks "Not that, you know, I'm not expecting -- and not that way -- and you're not -- oh my god."

Ben Reilly has posed:
"About a second," Ben explains, holding out his wrist still, "I've gotten pretty good at it. I was going to try and automate it but that required some money and electronics I just don't have. Maybe one day if we don't get blown up by angels."

The joke that immediately flusters her prompts him to grin, though it's a nervous grin. He's not exactly the most outwardly confident and charming guy, it would seem.

"Ha! Heh ... no, no I get it. Heh. I get what you meant."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe's face is in her hands. She's wearing red leather, fingerless gloves tonight. "Oh good, because I would hate for you to think that I'm hitting on you at a possible end of the world. That can't be good for the self-esteem." she mumbles out loud, and then she drops her hands, shaking her head.

    "So, your aunt's out of the city and safe? That's good. She end up going to one of the places in Gotham, or Metropolis or just upstate?"

Ben Reilly has posed:
"You're not hitting on me?"

Ben listens to her reasoning before shrugging his shoulders: "I mean, there's a lot of people out there at the end of the world. I could take it as a compliment. I can think of plenty worse ways to spend World's End Eve."

He gracefully goes along with her change of subject, nodding his head.

"My, uh ... friend's boss flew her down to Florida. She's enjoying the warm."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "... to be honest, I have no idea how to flirt. Twelve years of Aikido sounds cool until you learn I was also on the chess team, the juggling club, and wanted to be a Sunday School teacher at one point. When I'm not being a super cool vigilante or fighting demons I'm really the world's lamest work-a-holic." Phoebe admits with a slight grin over to Ben. "I'm glad she's safe. The city'll come out on top. I know it. I have hope.

    And she looks out over the city.

    "I can think of plenty of worse ways to spend it too. It's nice not spending it alone."

Ben Reilly has posed:
"Neither do I. Before all this happened, I was, as I've been described, a dork. Things are obviously a bit different, but some things don't disappear easy, I guess."

Ben pauses for a moment, looking out over the city. Before long, his gaze shifts to Phoebe and he's looking at her in profile. He opens his mouth to speak, but ultimately thinks better of it and shuts his yap. After a moment he looks down, reaching out to clasp her hand in his. He turns his gaze out towards the city skyline as well.

" ... yeah. I like it."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    She's still looking out over the emptying city, her red-gloved hands coming down to rest at her sides. She doesn't see him open his mouth, and she gives a slight jump, nervous, as he grasps her hand.

    She looks to her hand, and then looks over to Ben with her dark eyes wide a moment, and then... she smiles.

    "Yeah." she replies quietly.

    "What would you be doing right now if it wasn't so quiet in the city?"

Ben Reilly has posed:
"Probably working," Ben answers, smiling back at her, "Lots of pizza needs delivering in New York, and I work at one of the few places that doesn't use Uber or PostMates or anything. Any shift is a good shift."

He keeps his hand on hers, pondering the cityscape.

"What about you? Probably practicing your bat-techniques, huh? Learning how to unlock a window with a sharp look?"

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "It's... Wednesday. Wednesday is library night. So I'd be in the library studying." she explains. And she gives a grin "Only The Batman can open a window with a sharp look. He's scary like that. The rest of us work it open the regular way." she gives a wry smile.

    "I used to be a barrista at MoonSense Coffee. You get all the angry customers who flip out because they ordered pepperoni and got pepperoni when what they really wanted was veggie?"

Ben Reilly has posed:
"Yeah, that's them. Or they opt to pay you in cash and then realise they don't have any cash. And it's not at all like the movies - "

A pause, his eyes widen, and he shakes his head.

"I imagine. I've just heard about those movies. So, a barrista? You used to hang out making coffee while people wrote screenplays on laptops and didn't buy anything, huh?"

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe turns and looks over at Ben with a 'reeaaally now' expression as he said it's not at all like the movies.

    "Smooth segue. Nah, I worked in a mall." she straightens up, but doesn't move her hand. "I got fired because one of my adopted dads showed up to fight demonic Karens and lobbed fireballs to try and clear the foodcourt."

Ben Reilly has posed:
"That seems ... not entirely your fault," Ben answers, brow furrowing, "But hey, now you're a student of Bat-do so it sounds like you only went from strength to strength."

A sigh escapes him, he gives her hand a slight squeeze and turns to face her properly.

"Do you kind of wish we'd met when there wasn't a giant army of angels about to attack the City? I feel like things would go so much differently."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "Eh. It was either 'abandon the till and close down the front door and get everyone out of a demon zone' or continue to make The Most Ridiculous Drinks for demon-influenced angry white ladies." she gives a wry smile, and she shrugs her shoulder "I'd... my Gotham work is..." she begins, and she looks down.

    "Probably wouldn't have met you without a mask on." Phoebe gives a small grin. "Definitely wouldn't have put my hands on your web-shootie-thingie." Her ears darken a little bit, but she's given a mischevious look to Ben.

Ben Reilly has posed:
"So," Ben tells her, bringing her hand up between them and giving it an affectionate squeeze, "Those angels aren't getting here for hours yet. Do you have stuff to do besides hang out on rooftops? Because I could take you web-swinging ... "

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "I don't shoot web, and I left my grapple in my other pants." Phoebe jokes, stretching her hands a moment as she looks out over the cold city... and her hand gives a little squeeze back. And it's tingly, just a little bit.

    "So how's it going to work if I can't sling?"

Ben Reilly has posed:
"Can you hang on?" Ben asks, bouncing up to his feet with the preternatural agility of his arachnid namesake.

"I mean, I'm not being presumptuous. But I'm pretty strong. I can hold onto you pretty easily provide you don't, like, kick and wriggle around. And it's the best ride you'll ever have."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "I'm honestly not sure if I could hold on for some of the turns." she explains, hopping to her feet with only a little less grace as she looks down over the streets below.

    "Promise you won't drop me?"

Ben Reilly has posed:
"I've never dropped anyone yet," Ben promises, holding out an arm and beckoning her closer, "And I've been doing this since I was fifteen. And I'll put you down as soon as you've had enough, I promise."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe goes to take a step forward, and then cracks a smile.

    "So, what, like... two years?" she asks, and she rubs the back of her head a moment.

    "... I... kinda have this thing about being touched. It's..." she winces, and her nose wrinkles. "... I got beat up pretty bad by a bad guy. Enough that even seeing him knocked me for a loop, you know?"

Ben Reilly has posed:
"Three," Ben answers back snappily, grinning wide, "And a little bit. Though ... well, that's complicated. A story for another time, I think."

The revelation prompts him to nod, slowly, lowering his arm a little to his side and running the fabric of the mask hanging from his belt through his fingers.

"I - well, I get it. But I've got you. I won't hurt you. I won't let you get hurt."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "... I've had a lot of people say that to me over the last year. I always end up..." Phoebe begins, and she breathes out, and then she holds her arm out. She curls her fingers upwards and whispers in a hushed breath of Liverpuddlian-stained Latin: "Sit odor meus sicut rosa et piper nigrum".

    A small breeze kicks up that does smell stranger of roses and black pepper, sweet and spicy. And she tucks her braids a little more tightly unto her hat, and takes a breath.

    "Okay. Okay. Let's... let's do this."

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben gives Phoebe a moment to collect herself. Mutter the things in Latin that he only partly understands. Something about roses and - oh. He sniffs the air, raising his eyebrows. That's impressive. Really impressive. He had no idea she could do things like that.

"It's going to be great, I promise," he tells her, taking a tentative step forward. He doesn't rush, instead reaching out an arm to clasp her to his side. His tone a little awkward.

"Just kind of wrap yourself - yeah, there. Okay. Alright. Ready? One, two, three ... "

And with that he leaps off the ledge, carrying the pair of them down towards the bottom of a canyon of concrete, steel, and glass. But then a web-line goes out and they're moving up, swinging on an upwards trajectory before he lets go and they fall. Then they're going back up. A wild, breakneck ride through the eerily quiet streets of Manhattan.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "... sorry, it's... been a day." she explains about the muttering in Latin, adn it might have been a prayer -- but now she smells of roses and pepper. "I'm going to take it you don't swing with girls often?" she asks as she wraps her arms around his neck. Common enough that she's had to hold onto someone when traveling other ways -- but then he takes off, and she gasps, the air pressing out of her chest as she squeezes against Ben, and then as they upswing she goes quietly 'eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee'!

Ben Reilly has posed:
"Not too often, no!" Ben calls out over the rush of air as they swing, higher and higher over the city until they're freefalling between skyscrapers and swinging along the pavement with only a few feet to spare.

"Mostly I'm carrying them somewhere safe, and they don't have time to think of it! I've never really done it for a date ... "

He shuts his mouth suddenly, sending out another line to swing a wild corner around the Empire State Building as it looms before them.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "Oh!" Phoebe calls out over the wind. She holds tightly, her eyes wide as she watches buildings whiz by them as she's swung around, feeling her heart leap into her throat.

    "Yeah, people don't have time to process when they're in a panic state!" she calls out, though he might be able to feel her cheek get warmer. Yeah. She caught that.

    As they swing around the corner she holds tighter, bringing her eyes to watch in the distance as she tries to settle her throughts. Ben would probably not appreciate it if she suddenly tried to portal them someplace!

Ben Reilly has posed:
The impromptu flight is over before too long. They swing until they find themselves at the top of the Empire State Building - one of the best views in the city and not all that far from the Garment District. He dangles from the great, defunct airship mooring at the top of the building. One arm is wrapped about Phoebe to make sure she doesn't slip, although the small ledge would allow her to stand under her own power.

It's a good view of the city from up here. One of his favorites.

"Thought this might beat out the view from that rooftop you were on."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    She holds tighter as they ascend upwards, watching the floors pass by until they're at the mooring -- never was going to work. Not enough calm days on the sea to keep the dirigibles in place, though one boot touches against the ledge, her arm wrapped around Ben's neck as they look out over the city.

    And she gives a little grin. "Yeah... this... this definitely beats the view from the building I was on." she replies quietly.

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben takes a moment to look around them. He never seems worried about dropping her at any point, enhanced reactions and super strength more than enough to make sure Phoebe is as safe up here as she would be on the ground.

After a moment, he turns to face her with a smile.

"So ... "

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe's lit up by the cold, by the lights of the city, her eyes reflecting its everglowing and everpresent light pollution as she looks out, over the buildings, and then draws her attention back to Ben.

    She gives a small smile.

    "It's a beautiful city, but it seems almost... sad without the business."

Ben Reilly has posed:
"It does," Ben answers, looking out at all the lights that aren't flickering because the rooms are unoccupied, "But I guess that's good, right? Means people are finding safety. I figured being New Yorkers, most people were just going to stay here because they're too stubborn."

He clears his throat, glancing sidelong at Phoebe: "I just - look, I feel like the potential end of the world is as good a time to say this as anything. Do you - that is to say, do you think we - "

Stammering. He's not quite the 'cool version of Peter' he thought he was.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "Eh, inevitably some will stay." Because a good part of Gotham didn't leave either. Stubborn Bastards.

    She hears his throat clear, and she turns back to Ben, looking at him for a moment as he stammers.

    "... we'll... we'll probably survive tomorrow?" she trails off in a question, and she looks at his bleach blonde hair, his eyes, and cracks a little bit of a smile.

Ben Reilly has posed:
"Oh. Oh, yeah. Definitely."

Ben returns the slight smile, cutting off whatever he was going to suggest and letting it all lapse into silence instead. He takes a deep breath, closing his eyes and letting the brisk winter chill redden his nose, cheeks, and ears.

"We'll survive."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "So... uh... you want to get a pizza sometime?" Phoebe asks, and then she stiffens in his arm "... or maybe some Thai?"

    She purses her lips, and looks back out over the city. "Or if you want to, y'know, keep this a purely professional relationship, one friendly neighborhood vigilante to another, com/plete/ly understand."

Ben Reilly has posed:
"Yeah - yeah, I want to get pizza and Thai. Not together, of course. Unless that's your thing. I haven't tried it. I can't really judge. I - hmm."

Ben cuts himself off again, looking to Phoebe. One arm still holding her so she can easily keep her balance on the ledge, even if she doesn't really need his help.

"Do you ... need a lift somewhere?"

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "... well, either that or I'm going to have to pick the lock to get into the building." Phoebe replies back to Ben, looking down and realizing How High They Are.... and she arm goes a little tighter around Ben's neck.

    "... not going to let me fall, right?"

Ben Reilly has posed:
"Never."

And with that, he steps off the building. A web-line shoots out to catch them, propelling the pair off into the evening.

Maybe the world won't end after all.