ArchivedLogs:Not a Bad Word

Not a Bad Word
Dramatis Personae Alice, Blink, Gwen	2016-03-04 '
Location <NYC> Tompkins Square Park - East Village
Small but popular, this tree-lined park is a perfect centerpiece to the eclectic neighborhood it resides in. Home to a number of playgrounds and courts from handball to basketball, it also houses a dog park and chess tables, providing excellent space for people watching -- especially during its frequent and often eccentric festivals, from Wigstock to its yearly Allen Ginsberg tribute Howl festival. The park is crowded, in that peak hour when the kids are home from school and adults are home from work and both are looking to unwind. Still, its a bit chilly which keeps it from becoming too busy. One of those wandering around the path, keeping to herself is a shorter woman, bundled in baggy sweater and scarf wrapped multiple times around her neck. Black hair hangs long and free down her back, picked up gently by the wind. Her hands are shoved into her pockets as she casually walks down the path, keeping mostly to herself though her eyes do look around, taking in all those present and just idly watching the going-ons around her. There are two young women striding down the path side by side. One of them is dressed in a long black cloak with purple trim, her face not easily seen in the shadow of the hood. The other one is taller, black, with a curly mane of hair blowing in the wind, wearing a bright red jacket and tight black jeans. "So, you know," she's saying, "that guy's /way/ into me, and this morning after class he runs and catches up with me and is like..." She runs a couple of steps ahead and walks backwards so she can face her companion, lowering her voice half an octave and assuming a very serious expression. "'Alice. I'm going to the improv show. Maybe if you also go, we can kick it.' And I was--" This is about where she walks right into Gwen, who she doesn't see. The hooded woman tries to pull her back, but too late. Gwen's face goes through a myriad of emotions. First, the natural startle one experiences when litereally running into someone. Then, a brief moment of panic, as if afraid she had done something terribly wrong or hurt the other woman even though it really wasn't much of a running into. This quickly fades into a look of embarassment and more reasonable concern for the other's well-being. "Oh! I'm so, so, sorry! Are you alright?" she says quickly. She pulls her gloved hands out of her pockets though she still keeps them to herself. "Alice!" Blink reaches out and steadies her companion who had been walking backwards. Both of them flinch at Gwen's apology, exchanging a glance. "Oh, oops!" says Alice as she stumbles back against Blink, blushing. "That is completely my bad, I wasn't watching where I walk. I'm cool though." She looks Gwen up and down. "You alright?" Gwen nods, a thin smile appearing though she tries to hide the look of relief across her face. "Yeah, I'm...fine. Sorry, I wasn't paying attention myself. Obviously." She pulls gently on the edges of her yellow gloves, pulling them tighter against her hands as she speaks. "You sure you guys are alright?" "I'm fine, anyways." Blink shrugs. No one had even touched her. "This is New York City, you can't go around walking backwards and expect to not run into anyone. Alice grins. "I used to play rugby, I got hit harder than that for fun. Not, that I walked into you for fun or anything, that was a total accident." Gwen grins, finally relaxing a bit, the smile becoming a tad more genuine. "No, of course not. I just...have a habit..." What that habit it goes unexplained and she looks towards Alice. "Rugby? That sounds fun. And violent." "Do you reflexively judo people or something?" Alice asks. She doesn't seem to be joking, exactly. "If so I'm glad you didn't do it to me. Sort of. Violent is fun, in small doses, but I was hoping to go dancing tonight." "Rugby is pretty violent," Blink confirms. She finally lifts her head enough to look at Gwen directly. Her irises are bright green and huge, and very little white shows around around them. "It's a little bit like American football, but with less safety equipment and more hitting." "Maybe I should give it a chance. Never got into football but rugby sounds worth a shot," Gwen says, before noticing Blinks eyes. Unfortnately, it takes her a couple seconds before she realizes she's staring and she quickly looks away, turning back to Alice. "Do I what? No, I...it's complicated," she attempts to explain, without acually explaining anything. "There's probably rugby leagues around here," Alice offers. "I meant to find one after I started school but...well...zombies happened. Sort of put the damper on sporting, you know. Anyway, you don't have to tell. No one got hurt, anyway, this time." She smiles again. "I'm Alice. The mysterious one here is my sister.." "Blink," Blink adds, waving with just the fingers of one hand. "Is my name." Instead of hiding her face now, she pushes the hood back just enough that her face shows in the fading light. She looks east asian (Chinese, to more discerning eyes) and has dark purple markings around her eyes and in the middle of her forehead. "Probably. New York has everything. Maybe I'll sneak into a game and watch." The mention of zombies earns a knowing nod from Gwen. "Right. That kind of...ruined everything for a bit. Little harder to find places to sleep without worrying whether a zombie would try to eat you while to slept." Blink's removal of her hood doesn't help Gwen's attempts to look casual. She's pretty opening gawking now, though she does try to keep it at least partially subtle. "Are you...is that natural?" she asks, waving a hand in front of her face, implying Blink's own. Apparently this is the most polite way she can come up with to ask. Blink's eyes dip low, and she pulls the hood back up a little, self-consciously. When she answers, her voice is small and quiet, "I was born this way, but..." Alice narrows her eyes at Gwen. "The fuck do you mean by 'natural'?" She doesn't sound all that angry, actually, but definitely guarded. Gwen suddenly turns her head to Alice, her eyes wide, nervous to be spoken to so harshly by the other woman. "I only meant if it was...makeup or contacts or something." Gwen quickly clears her throat, pushing a lock of her own hair behind her ear as she glances towards the ground. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset...anyone. I'm just not used to meeting a lot of people like you. Us. At least, not visible ones. At least, if you are what I think you are." Alice crosses her arms, looking slightly appeased but still kind of unimpressed. "'What' she is? Jesus, Mary, and Joseph..." She rubs the side of her head. "You know, I -" Blink lays a hand on her sister's arm. "I'm a mutant. It's not a bad word." She smiles shyly. "I'm pretty used to the gawking, honestly. And I know it's tough when you don't have other people around who understand." She pauses, looks Gwen up and down again. "Are you living on the street? You mentioned earlier..." Gwen slowly inches away from Alice, deciding she's not going to be able to explain herself out of trouble. Instead, she focuses her attention on the much more understanding Blink. "Mutant. Right. I just...spend so much time away from people in general, I don't run into other mutants very often. I did mean what I said though. You're-it's very pretty." The question about her living situation sobers her a bit and she glances past them, seemingly just to break eye contact for a moment. Her clothes do look a bit rough and have seen better days but as far as homeless goes, she looks exceptionally well put together. "Yeah, streets. I'm uh...well, I'm mutant, too. And it's just easier for me if I don't sit in one place too long." Alice subsides a little, her arms relaxing and dropping to her sides. "Just...you might want to think a little harder how you ask people. About being mutants." "Thank you," Blink says very quietly. "You stay away from people and you don't like to stay in one place... Are you afraid people are going to hurt you? Or afraid your powers might hurt people?" Gwen nods at Alice's advice, offering a thin smile. "Like I said...I don't spend a lot of time around people. My, uh, mutant etiquette is rusty." Judging by the hesitant glances, the stiffened posture, and the slipping of her hands in her pockets again, Blink's questioning seems to prod further than she'd like. But the least she can do is offer something of an answer. "Both, actually. My powers are...easy to take advantage of? And people have. It's better if people don't know I have them." "Only you can decide that," Blink says, nodding. "But...I hope you find people you trust, in time. It's tough being on your own." She sounds like she speaks from experience. "Take care, then..." "Not as tough as trusting people," Gwen says rather stiffly, in regards to being alone. "But thank you. Both of you. Take care and maybe I'll see you around again." She offers the others a brief smile before making her way down the path.