10985/Midtown Shopping Spree!

Midtown Shopping Spree!
Date of Scene:	04 February 2020
Location:	GoodWill store, Midtown Manhattan
Synopsis:	Mary meets someone and they delve into the hidden treasures of people's GoodWill.
Cast of Characters:	Mary Marvel, Petra Emreis

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Mary Marvel has posed:
It's a LOT more trouble wearing a costume when you can't just make it by calling out the name of a wizard.
But...the idea of cosplay entranced Mary. It was a way to be someone else and not have to worry about weird stuff...well, the kind of weird stuff Mary MARVEL has to face.
The Goodwills in Brooklyn didn't exactly have what she needed. And she could just BUY a costume, but those are EXPENSIVE. It was much cheaper to make your own.
So, she was heading for the Midtown branch of Goodwill. Fabric was easier to get if it was part of clothing already. She had a few ideas to work with (and no, none of them were superheroine costumes...the bloom had come off THAT rose not too long ago).
Mary Batson stepped out of the subway station and saw the storefront. She stopped at the crosswalk, dutifully waiting for the lights to change.

Petra Emreis has posed:
Magic was...a weird thing, in some ways it was like genetics. while there were similarities between 'species' it could always be a little different for the next person. Petra was a sorceress, but she had no costume for her own 'abnormal activities. Her hunting 'gear' was just that, equipment rather than a disguise. She wasn't one for bright spandex after all.

Still, a lack of costume had one other problem, you tended to wreck your 'normal' stuff faster! With that in mind the white-haired girl was currently making her way through the doorway of the goodwill with a frown on her face. Something cheap that she didn't have to worry about getting ripped up or splattered in the blood of some horror was what she needed. How some heroines managed not to cost themselves a fortune replacing those tailored leather outfits she'd never know!

Mary Marvel has posed:
Mary crossed the street and stepped into the store about ten feet behind Petra. She has her backpack with all the pictures printed out, because a flip-phone doesn't have good pictures and smartphones aren't ten dollars yet. She knows. She checked.

The lady in front of her has white hair. Kinda grey, but really white. She doesn't look old, so it must be a bleach job. Mary idly wondered who she could cosplay as. Maybe as that mercenary she read about last month, the Nazi Hunter. Hey, maybe this is her...

Petra Emreis has posed:
The ashen locks were kinda striking, but using a glamour to hide her appearence was tiring...and stiffled her other magics far too much to be comfortable. These days, it wasn't nearly as 'odd' looking as it had been a century ago anyway.

Making her way through the store past cheap kettles and ill-fitting hoodies, Petra turns to look over one of the shelves and notices Mary properly. Eye contact born from being stared at, but at least she flashes a smile politely.

"Quite a bit here, isn't there?"

Mary Marvel has posed:
Mary blinked. Fatrat. She's been spotted.
The high-schooler in the clothing that all looks worn except for the t-shirt with Captain America's shield emblazoned on it smiles sheepishly. "Uhm, yes. Sorry...you look like someone famous." She steps forward, extending her hand for a handshake. "Hi. I'm Mary. Sorry if I was gawking or something. That's a very interesting shade of gray."

Petra Emreis has posed:
"I'm told it's just -really- light blonde," Petra chuckles, shrugging her shoulders. "At least if I ever go grey properly, noone will every notice? Right?" A shrug, Petra grins and lifts a shirt about two sizes too big for her emblazoned with the emblem of Superman.

"Petra," she offers in her own introduction, reaching out for the handshake. "Someone famous? Hopefully that's a good thing!"

Mary Marvel has posed:
Mary chuckles. "I saw her in the Daily Mail website. Her name's Silver Sabli...Sab-li-no-va. She hunts Nazis and criminals. You'd think we'd be all outta Nazis by now, but I guess not." She shakes Petra's hand, then says, "I have enough clothes, but there's a comic book convention coming up. New York Comic Con. I won a couple of tickets in a radio contest, and I'm looking for stuff for a good costume. I want to make my own. I can sew, and I've never done it before, so I'm wondering who to go as."

Petra Emreis has posed:
"You would think so," Petra muses, shaking her head. Truth be told, in her long life Petra had indeed come up against some of the Nazi sort during the height of their rise, although her attentions had been more on their occult actions, but she was hardly Silver Sable.

"I've heard of her! But regrettably, I don't really have much in the way of helicoptors and catsuits...and fortunes of some kind."

Talk of Comic Con and costumes has her blinking a little, tilting her head to the side as she looks the girl up and down. "I suppose it can be a little overwhelming to come up with an idea. Can't say I've tried it before..."

Mary Marvel has posed:
Mary smiles impishly. "Oh, it's great fun to be someone else, even for a little while. Video game characters, anime characters, TV show characters...even superheroes." She smirks a little at that, then takes out her notebook and opens it to show Petra a few pictures. One is of Zelda, the princess from the Legend of Zelda games. Another is Raphthali, the racoon girl from the anime Rise of the Shield Hero. There is another of a redhead in a plugsuit, identified as "Asuka" from Neon Genesis Evangelion. It is important that it's the lowest one in the small stack.

Petra Emreis has posed:
Significance of order is probably lost on Petra, but the nature of the outfits wasn't. The 'Princess' one brings a smile to her lips, the racoon one? It earns a little chuckle and mention of 'Cute', but the figure-hugging red 'plug suit'? It bring a raise of her eyebrows and a tilt of her head.

"That one looks...revealing, if not slightly uncomfortable."

Mary Marvel has posed:
Mary purses her lips. "Yeah...I was planning to make a cloth version, though. I've been reading about latex. It is expensive, revealing, you have to use about a POUND of talcum powder just to get INTO it, and...BRUH...you sweat, it goes NOWHERE. That's my Plan Y."
She does have a Plan Z but she REALLY doesn't want to use it. That's why it's Plan Z.
"Anyway, I like the others more. So, I'm trying to find stuff that looks like outfits for either of them. I can modify anything that looks close, or cannibalize fabric from one to use in the costume."

Petra Emreis has posed:
Petra actually chuckles a little, biting her bottom lip. "I would not imagine you'll have much luck finding 'latex' costumes here. Trying to create something like that is probably going to require something 'creative'."

A pause, it's only now that she noticed it, that faint 'electric' tingle in the air around Mary. Huh.

"Unless you could conjure it out of thin air, you'd probably have to go to another kind of shop."

Mary Marvel has posed:
Mary raises an eyebrow. Does she...? Nahhh, she couldn't know.
"Well...that seems like kind of a cop-out if I could. No effort, no talent? Just wriggle your nose like Barbara Eden? That's worse than buying a costume from the Internet and passing it off as your own." She shakes her head. Did she kinda admit to something? No, it's cool.
"Anyway, i kinda like the second one. I know someone who can make me raccoon ears and a tail. I just need to make the outfit."

Petra Emreis has posed:
A chuckle. Figures the Sorceress would have watched Bewitched! Still, the white-haired woman gives a little shrug of her shoulders. "You're probably right too. Satisfaction in doing something with your hands, making it your own. Not that I've ever really been one for sewing but..." A shrug, the woman leans back to regard the oversized shirt again. Maybe sleepwear, but otherwise it wasn't much use for her.

Back to costumes, she nods her head. "Go for it! Cute is probably better than worrying if you're going to sweat up a storm, or how you're going to manage going to the bathroom."

Mary Marvel has posed:
Mary giggled. She certainly never was Mary Marvel long enough to have to worry about that. Did she even have to? How does Spider-Man find bathrooms while he's swinging around? Eww, a topic for another time.

"What are you looking for? I have spent so much time at Goodwill, I can find nearly ANYTHING."

Petra Emreis has posed:
"Kinda...rough clothing..." Petra explains, considering for a moment how to phrase it. "Stuff you can go...rock climbing in, or gardening, or other stuff where you can get messy without ruining a favorite outfit."

Mary Marvel has posed:
Mary smirks. "Outdoor wear! Follow me." She looks around to get her bearings, and then she goes down the left aisle, passing the row of denim jeans. A girl on a mission, and no need to futz with the electricals by accident. "Follow me!"

Petra Emreis has posed:
A blink, but she follows, giving a little laugh. Guided through the store by the 'goodwill pixie' like this was unexpected, but not unwelcome. Hell, it was kinda nice to have someone so 'keen' to just talk to now and then anyway. "So you're a local then Mary?" she questions as she follows. Petra's own accent, decidedly 'Queen's English' suggested the same couldn't be said for her. "You seem to know your way around."

Mary Marvel has posed:
Mary chuckles, not running, but not dawdling. "I live in Brooklyn, actually, but none of the Goodwills there had anything I could use." She looks back to Petra with a grin. "Foster kid. No allowance. I actually work a number of jobs. Babysitting, dog-walking, house-sitting. I actually kinda contribute to the family expenses, so it's kinda like reverse-allowance." Right at the umbrellas...right again at the lamps...a left at the computer aisle...she's getting close to outdoor wear.

Petra Emreis has posed:
"Oh," she murmers, nodding her head for a moment as she follows and crossing her arms at her chest while she follows. "I see, well It's good that you're able to do something to help out people you're close to." An akward subject it seems, though likely on Petra's part more than Mary's. She herself had been in some weird semblance of a foster family for most of her childhood after all, but one couldn't really compare medieval europe and orders of mystics to a foster house in Brooklyn...probably.

"Alright then, lets see if you can find something my size!"

Mary Marvel has posed:
Mary makes one more left and there they are. Flannel shirts and blouses, khakis, leather and denim jackets, heavier coats up to and including parkas for very cold weather, cargo pants, hiking boots, leather gloves, woolen mittens and thermal underwear, climbing socks designed to pull moisture away from the skin.
"I think we're here," Mary says triumphantly.

Petra Emreis has posed:
"Wow," Petra muses as she moves towards the racks, looking things over up and down. "People just donate all this? I wonder if there's any in my size...or at least close enough..." she muses before looking back to Mary. "But I've kinda pulled you away from your thing. At least let my buy you a coffee, donut or something some time. To make up for being my guide, y'know?"

The sorceress turns her gaze back to the clothing, scooping out and slinging over her shoulder a blouse and pants. Close enough, she could 'tinker' a little with magic to make them fit her properly. Clearly she wasn't above 'cheating' a little.

Mary Marvel has posed:
Mary chuckles. "I tell you what. You will meet someone who needs help with something. Large or small, it doesn't matter. You help them out...and we're square."
She spots a set of brown knee-high leather boots with wedge heels. "Yeah...this will work just fine. I can use the other material to extend these to mid-thigh..."

Petra Emreis has posed:
If only Mary knew! Still, the sorceress shrugs a little and nods. "Alright then...but I'll probably buy you a drink or muffin or something at -some- point anyway." Those boots? They earn a nod of approval...but then they're probably quite similar to ones that Petra herself had worn in the past. Pulling a dark colored skirt from the next shelf, there's a moment of consideration and weighing up of movement vs practicality. Skirts could snag after all...perhaps she'd leave that look to proper 'heroes' and stick with the practical.

Mary Marvel has posed:
Mary shrugged, but sprang on a set of thick leather gloves. No idea who used to have them, but...they could work. "Okay. I need some pads for shoulder pauldrons and a chest plate." She looked to Petra. "I already am making the dress underneath. And someone is going to loan me a sword. Sheathed and peace-bonded, of course."

Petra Emreis has posed:
'Peace bonded'? The look on Petra's face suggested she wasn't quite up to date with 'con' language and procedure. Instead, the woman just gives a little chuckle and folds her arms. "Clearly I'm going to have to check this thing out some time. Maybe I'll get to see the finished product!" Shifting her armload, the woman smiles and looks towards the register. "I should go but..." reaching into her pocket, there's a slight subtle tug at the air as the small spell is performed, the white-haired woman coming back with a business card devoid of anything other than the single word 'Petra' and a number beneath. "Give me a call sometime, or text me a picture of your costume when it's done. Hope to cross paths with you again Mary!"

Mary Marvel has posed:
Mary takes the card and nods. "It means the weapon is tied to the scabbard so it can't be drawn." She grins. "I'll be sure to do so. Thank you and I hope you have a great night!"

Mary turns back to her perusal at the clothing, but she helped someone, and didn't even have to lift a yacht to do it.

Sometimes, being a heroine means not needing superpowers at all...