10489/Shopping, Complete with Shoplifting

Shopping, Complete with Shoplifting
Date of Scene:	19 December 2019
Location:	Midtown, Manhattan
Synopsis:	Beast Boy and Nemean meet up to look into some Christmas shopping. Of course, there's an interruption.
Cast of Characters:	Beast Boy, Nemean

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Beast Boy has posed:
It's shopping season! More the season for getting and giving gifts, that is, but that means a whole lot of shopping everywhere. It can be more fun with a shopping buddy, and a few of the Titans were occupied with some other things.

Through happenstance, Beast Boy and Nemean had some free time on their hands, and it led to a rather unexpected pairing in Midtown. Gar wasn't hiding what he was - doing so was pretty much impossible anyway with the green skin and, well, green everything - and he was dressed for the weather in a red overcoat and jeans. He was just waiting to see how Cody would show up looking.

Nemean has posed:
Nemean almost always seemed to have some free time on his hands these days. And unlike Gar, he was hiding what he was as best he could, a heavy jacket on with a hood pulled up, and a face covering. Still hard to hide the scarred face under the hood. His tail was kept as tightly to him under the jacket as he could manage it.

Spotting Gar, it wasn't hard to see the emerald hero, the Lion moved up behind him, stealthfully as ever, and put one paw on his shoulder, "Found you. Guess that makes you it."

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy happened to be looking off in the other direction, squinting. "Hmm, what if I..?" He hadn't attempted much in the way of partial shifts. Would it work to just sharpen up the eyesight like a hawk's, while keeping the rest of him looking normal? He might have to put some more time into trying.

The thought is interrupted as he jumps slightly in place at the hand or paw or whatever against his shoulder. "Wha?!" He turns rapidly and begins to say, "If you want an autograph, I..oh, hey dude. What's mew with you?" Does that work for a lion-type?

Nemean has posed:
It gets a chuckle out of him. Nemean, or Cody, depending on who you ask, has decidedly relaxed a bit in the months since his transformation. Enough that he doesn't mind jokes and the like, clearly, "You know lions can't purr, I hope." He says, as he takes his hand back and then hmms faintly as he looks around, "So you looking for anything in particular, or just kinda in general?"

Beast Boy has posed:
"Yeah, it's harder to tell when you're actually happy or not, but at least you can say so," Gar notes, running a hand through his mop of green hair, currently on the messier side than usual. "I was going to pick up a few things for the crew, but I thought it'd be fun to try to chill for a little bit and get some food, too."

Sizing up the bigger, taller mutant, Gar supposes, "I'm seeing a scratching post for you, but the heavy-duty industrial size. Or maybe some catnip. Or a giant box."

Nemean has posed:
"Giant box would be nice." Nemean replies, as he hmms, "I was gonna see about picking up something for the folks I'm staying with. They do a lot for me and never really ask for much besides some help with keeping the place clean." He has no idea what would be best. Well other than pizza for Mikey. That's a given.

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy brightens up at this. "Oh yeah? What kinds of things are they into?" he wonders. "I could help you out with bringing them a little holiday cheer. I've been working on a little surprise for Vorpal. I think I can pull a few strings to get us into something cool, but I don't want to say too much more until I know for sure. For you, I can definitely see a nice big refrigerator box. You know there are videos out there of the big cats getting into stuff like that too, right?"

There's a large-scale department store nearby, with a few smaller ones surrounding it. Most people pass by, some of them giving the pair various glances of differing interest. "Why yes, I /was/ Tork in Space Trek: 2422. Thanks for asking!" he grins at a passer-by who wasn't even looking at him. He puts a hand up to his mouth, as if to share a secret, "Some fans are shy around a big star."

Nemean has posed:
Nemean puts a hand over his muzzle, "Gasp. I thought you looked familiar." He says, before laughing, a bit louder this time, "So they're uh, very into martial arts. And rooftop brooding." He says, "I realize after saying it that in New York that REALLY doesn't narrow things down."

Beast Boy has posed:
"Have you seen it? What was your favorite scene?" Gar asks, his face brightening. Even a lie toward the positive probably wouldn't matter to him. A few other people continue along without even acknowledging the pair. Many have their faces buried in their phones. "If you ever stop to count, you'd probably find like 90% of the people out here aren't even paying attention to what's around them, but somehow they don't walk into other people or things. I have a working theory that the more dependent we've become on our phones, the more we've developed a sort of localized echolocation as a form of compensation. Evolution is real."

He waits to see how that idea is received, but a look of interest shows as well. "Some of my best thinking comes from hanging out on rooftops with nothing to do. So they like martial arts and stuff? Maybe I could help you find some movie posters for them. What's your budget like?"

Nemean has posed:
"You know that one episode, where the crew was trapped on that jungle planet, and your character was able to save them by turning into one of the local wildlife and communicating with them because it turned out they were sentient just non-anthro? Yeah, I liked that episode."

Nemean apparently has watched the show, it seems, "My budget is pretty big, but I don't wanna go crazy. I don't think they'd appreciate a gold plated katana or something." He says, grinning before he pats Gar on the back, "It might be evolution, or maybe some villain is mixing bat DNA into the water."

Beast Boy has posed:
"Yeah, that was a good one," Beast Boy grins, even if he might not remember all of the specifics of each episode. It was another time, another place, another Gar to an extent. "Are they the kinds of people who would appreciate something they can use, or maybe something for their rooms? What are they like?" he wonders, curiosity evident as he walks along past a couple shops.

The back-patting leads to him glancing toward Nemean again, and he wonders, "So..are you covering yourself up just so you don't draw a lot of attention, or is there another reason? I'm not judging. Most of us are, you know, used to the way we are."

Nemean has posed:
"They're pretty practical, but they're also basically all teens or young adults." Nemean replies, "I'm basically the old man of the group. Maybe something they can use around the lair.." He muses.

Though at the question of how he's dressed, he considers for a moment, "I'd say a little bit of both...While I know mutants and metas aren't SUPER uncommon...Folks like me, well, we're still not exactly the kinda thing you see every day."

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy hmmms. "Then they'd probably like things they can use, or watch, or play with. Movies, games, stuff like that. Let's see what we can find." He seems curious at the mention of a lair, but he doesn't press it. There are probably some secrets being kept, but that may be necessary.

Nodding further, he admits, "I get it. Some people need to be careful in public. I've sort of always been in the public eye, so it's different for me. There are some places where it's easier to be accepted than others, but--"

"STOP! THIEF!"

His words are interrupted by a shout coming from the larger store, a group of people in brightly-colored clothing racing outside with bags full of stuff. There are four of them, and they all appear to be..women?

Gar's eyes widen and he shares a quick look with Nemean. "Time to go play hero, yeah?"

Nemean has posed:
"Actually I bet they'd love an autographed copy of Space Trek: 2422." Nemean says, maybe hinting at something. Though any hints he's giving are interrupted by the sudden commotion. He frowns and pulls the neck gaiter down, "Yup. I think it's that time of day." He replies, as he watches, "You go high and I'll go low?"

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy will have to get back to that idea. It might even work! "Hold that thought," he says as he breaks away from Nemean. Around them, the shouts draw attention to the bold, brazen group, intent on getting out of there with their haul. "Better be gentle with them!" he calls back down, having already turned into a Eurasian black (well, green) vulture with about a 10-foot wingspan, weighing around 30 pounds.

"Incoming!" He divebombs one of the women, dressed in a garish pink coat and knit cap, pulling up a little as he slams into her. To his surprise, she turns after initially falling off-balance, swinging a bag off something heavy at him. It connects and drives him back enough to stagger him. "Oof! What the hell, lady?!" he 'squawks!'

Nemean has posed:
Well, clearly these ladies are willing to get violent. Nemean won't unsheath any of his weapons, and yes he did bring a few just in case, but he takes off after them. His hood comes down around his neck, revealing the full leonine head as he moves behind one of the other women.

This lady looks like she just strolled in from the 1980s with her neon green getup, "You know you're only supposed to riot on Black Friday." He says, as he catches up to her. Having seen the first one swing at Gar, he anticipates that this one will do the same, and his anticipation pays off as she swings at him and he grabs the bag.

Beast Boy has posed:
"The hell you supposed to be?" the one in pink blurts at the talking green vulture, who retorts, "The one who's about to put you behind bars, lady! My animal magnetism wasn't enough? No need to be so catty about it!" He rubs at the side of his 'face' with a wing, but then he stands before her a full tiger, leaping to tackle with a pounce.

Two others, one in red, one in blue, shove their way through the crowd in hope of getting away while the others are occupied. Fortunately, there are a few who grab at the women, thus slowing them down. Good Samaritans still exist!

Nemean has posed:
The one in bright green is surprised to find herself face to face with a lion, who snarls loudly, before twisting the bag around, wrenching her arm behind her and using it to tie her arms up. He forces her to the ground, and then figures she's subdued enough to go after one of the other two.

He reaches one hand into the pocket of his hoodie to grab something from inside there. Looks like there's too much of a crowd in the way, he needs to get above them. So he takes a leap, landing on top of one of the store signs above the walkway, and runs along it, until he gets close enough to pounce the one in red.

Landing on top of her, he pins her to the ground. The sight of the large lion man pinning her down gets a lot of the good samaritans to back off, "Whatever you're up to is over!"

Beast Boy has posed:
"Don't go anywhere. You can't get away from my friend and I," the tiger warns, and he gets up off of her to go after the one in blue next. Meanwhile, security comes out of the store and begins to converge on the pink and green ones, to get them subdued.

The crowd scatters for the green tiger, who races down the remaining thief to get her to the ground similarly. "You girls didn't pick a very good time to do this, you know?" She tries to scratch and kick at him, but he deftly avoids it or it doesn't really get through his tougher skin. "Stop, that almost tickles!" Not enough to let her up, though.

Nemean has posed:
Nemean keeps the one he's on top of pinned down until security shows up. He can already hear the police sirens in the distance, "No surprise there's a quick police response in this part of town." He muses, finally getting up off of her once security has her under control.

"Honestly, stealing just before Christmas. What is the matter with you?" He runs one of his hands through his mane, trying to get it just right, while he realizes that there are several people taking pictures of him with their cell phones at this point. Well, so much for not getting spotted.

Beast Boy has posed:
Stoppng the thieves goes by swiftly, and they're soon in handcuffs waiting to be taken for processing. They certainly weren't expecting to encounter anyone like Beast Boy and Nemean!

"Talk about ruining the holiday spirit for someone," Gar says with a shake of the head once he's shifted back to normal. "Nice work, by the way." Then there are cameraphones out and he starts hamming it up for the people taking pictures, acting practically like a model might.

Nemean has posed:
Nemean knows a couple of folks that are not going to be happy when his face shows up on the news. But for now he just lets Beast Boy soak in the applause and praise, and pose for the cameras. He is, after all, a public figure. Nemean should have figured sooner or later he'd wind up on camera hanging out with a Hollywood star

Beast Boy has posed:
"Gotta give the people what they want," Gar remarks, flashing a wide smile, looking coyly over a shoulder, standing so some of his 'assets' are more notable. Quite the show for those paying attention, but soon he waves for Nemean to follow him out of the area. "Any more of a show, and I'd have to start charging a fee! Good work back there, though. That went about as smoothly as I could have hoped for."

Nemean has posed:
The big lion does keep an eye on Garfield as he gives his little performance, raising an eyebrow a bit. But when he gets motioned to follow, he pulls his hood back up and goes after him. At best folks may figure him for someone with similar powers to the shapeshifter star.

Beast Boy has posed:
Once off the beaten path, that is to say down a couple side streets, Beast Boy ducks into an alley and leans against the wall. "That was fun! What about you? Did you enjoy it, even if your feline face is probably going to be in the news?" He pauses and tilts his head at this. "Will that be a bad thing?"

Nemean has posed:
"Oh I am sure it'll be okay." He says, "I mean Shredder does already know what I look like so that's not unexpected..Plus we're not near the lair so if anything me showing up here might actually throw him off the scent." He replies, as he takes a moment to lean against the wall opposite of Beast Boy, "Didn't expect we'd have to do any crime fighting today."

Beast Boy has posed:
"Shredder, huh? I've heard of that guy," Gar says, looking thoughtful for a moment before shaking his head. "I totally get being protective and needing to keep secrets safe, so don't worry about me prying into your life or anything with your friends. I'm sure you're looking out for them." He reaches out, hood down over the lion's head or not, and seeks to scritch around where an ear would be. "Made a good team, though. Almost like teaming up with Vorpal, except completely different. He's much more unpredictable."

Nemean has posed:
"Hard to belive the guy who uses chaos magic is unpredictable." Nemean replies with a heavy dose of sarcasm, grinning, "I'm sure you two make a fine pair, though, even if I did enjoy teaming up with both of you."

Beast Boy has posed:
Beast Boy grins, drawing his hand back away. "I'm..lucky he's in my life, and lucky I wasn't so dumb that I wasted things before it was too late. All of that makes things exciting." He glances back toward the streets, adding, "If you still want that signed stuff, I could hook you up. If you think they'd really like it." Was that a moment of modesty?

Nemean has posed:
It's clear the lion liked the scritching, even if he tries to not openly admit it, because his tail is wagging, "I think they'd love it." He replies. Though he realizes now he needs to figure out what to get Beast Boy for Christmas. Whoops!

Beast Boy has posed:
Oh, Gar noticed the little details. After all, his life is about knowing animals and everything about them. "Want to come over by Titans Tower over the weekend and I can take care of you, or should I meet you somewhere else?" Just have to work /those/ details out, too.

Nemean has posed:
"I'll swing on by the tower, sure." Nemean replies, "I'm sure you've got somewhere we can meet up there, right?" He says, plus it can't be that weird for Beast Boy to have actual beasts over.

Beast Boy has posed:
"I can let the others know a friend will be coming by. It'll be cool," Gar says, giving a thumbs-up. "Besides, Vorpal can vouch for you too. Maybe we'll even make it into a movie night or something, give you a tour." He looks around, mostly out to the street again, then flashes Nemean a wink and a smile. "I'll text you later!" He even bows before stepping back out into the throng of people, last heard to say to someone with her face in her phone, oblivious to his existence, "Why yes, I /was/ in the Pete's Dragon remake..."