Participants:
| Scene Title | Cally Meets Her Nemesis |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | By Chance, Kameron runs into (not literally) Cally just outside of the apartment complex. She immediately makes use of the opportunity to get to know the girl, and buy her lunch. Cally and Prince do not get on well. |
| Date | February 14, 2009 |
| Alt. Log Titles | Kameron fer Prethident, and The Evil Formerly Known as Prince |
Weather:
Currently in New York, it is a cloudy day. The temperature is 38 degrees Farenheit (3 degrees Celsius). The wind is currently coming in from the west at 9 mph. The wind chill index puts the temperature to 31 degrees Farenheit (0 degrees Celsius.) The barometric pressure reading is 29.93 and falling, and the relative humidity is 34 percent. The dewpoint is 12 degrees Farenheit (-11 degrees Celsius.)
Lower East Side isn't that far from Chinatown, and the apartment building that Kameron currently has a place rented. This would be the same apartment that Brian and Joe were staying, since they were having ..housing problems at the time, and she couldn't put them out in the street, or let them sit in an expensive hotel or anything. Not if she had room to help out.
And she had an abundance of this. Today, Kameron was taking Prince on his daily walk, a custom violin case slung over her back like a backpack. The collie was scolded, and he's aware that he did something wrong, but the poor puppy hasn't the faintest clue what. As far as he's concerned, he did everything right! Humans. Still, the dog continues to prance at her side, tail wagging as they take a slightly different path from the usual route, cane tapping lightly against the ground.
Chinatown is actually the direction that a certain tall, blonde street urchin is coming from. Across one shoulder is Cally's usual large, patched satchel, full of something or other. And in her hands? Well, one hand is holding a large box of what appears to be fried pork and vegetables, while the other hand skillfully wields a pair of chopsticks. As she walks, she feeds herself with the chopsticks, stuffing her face with as much food as possible before even attempting to chew and swallow. Consequently… she's not really paying attention to where she is going, or who may be headed her way.
Prince notices Cally before Kammy does, and the collie comes to an abrupt start, ears perking forward with a quiet growl. Kameron stops when he does, head turning down towards the growl, and then up again, opening her eyes to see a skeleton approaching with - god she hates X-Ray vision. She shuts her eyes again, backing away a few steps, mind awhirl. What to do? She knows Brian wanted to help the girl, and if she's a runaway, he probably had the idea of bringing her to the Lighthouse … so um.. first things first. Kameron kneels by the growling down and puts two fingers to the top of his muzzle. "No." is a firm, quiet command that startles the collie, giving the technically blind girl a look of are you CRAZY?
… well, if collies could give looks that expressive anyway. And if someone could read his mind.
Did we mention how Cally isn't paying attention right now? She probably should. She should probably even notice the little growly noise. She doesn't, though, not until she's nearly ontop of the kneeling girl and her dog. Only then does Cally notice, and only a split second. She comes to an abrupt halt… and is jostled by a jogger that was just coming up behind her.
"OW GODAMNIT!" Cally lands on her butt, exclaiming much in the same way the skateboarder from the other day did. The jogger ignores her, and Cally let's fly a string of further curses… And then she notices her food, turned upside down, spilled on the sidewalk. And then she recognizes the dog. Her eyes widen, sending a blame-casting, hate filled gaze it's way. "YOU!" Yes, she's talking to the dog, not the owner.
HA! EAT KARMA! *koff* The aforementioned dog would laugh if he could. He does recognize hostility in the tone of that YOU! and responds in kind, growling and barking at the girl. Kameron, once she's recovered from the startling chain of events that started with abrupt stop to jogger jostling to spilled food (again), and then an irate YOU!
Kameron naturally thinks Cally is talking to her. "Prince, stop it!" Kameron instructs again, "Steady." This command gets the dog to look at Kameron, consider disobeying in favor of growling at this stranger, but ultimately, he barks once more and moves behind Kameron, pressing against her leg with hackles up and glaring and everything.
"I-I'm sorry," Kameron stammers, opening her eyes to judge where people are - dog at her side, Cally on the ground with hot stuff rapidly cooling - still ruined though. "Here, let me help you up." She offers a hesitant hand to the other girl, "I apologize for Prince. He's a little overzealous around people he considers a potential threat. You're the girl that was in the park right?" She always was pretty good with voices.
"Y-you… you scruffy little hate-filled FURBALL!" Cally hisses, eyes narrowed at the Evil formerly known as Prince.
She then closes her eyes, letting out a breath. This time, at least, she's not letting her power erupt. Better to vent anger via words at a dog then accidentally melting it. Even if that might be fun. She then blinks, really noticing Kameron for the first time. Surprise shows on her face, quickly replaced by an evasive look which is again quickly replaced by a casual smile, even as she registers that this girl seems to be blind. She accepts the hand, scrabbling onto her feet.
"Oh, who me? Umm. Maybe, I guess? I dunno, I go to the park now and then. You might have see… er, heard me there?" Cally shrugs, willing herself not to look at her spilled food. "You should really put that -thing- to sleep or something though. He's a menace." Glare glare glare at Prince.
Prince isn't hate filled! And she would be crushed - CRUSHED! - if Cally melted her dog on the spot. Such sadness would know no bounds. "Yesterday," Kameron confirms, firmly assisting Cally to her feet when the girl takes the offered hand. There's a brief twitch of her lips at the 'friendly suggestion', though she isn't the sort of person to say anything negative. Ever. So far at least. "I'm sorry about all of this. Yesterday, and then today I mean. He's not normally like that. He's usually a lot more well behaved, but he's .. he's still a puppy and ..well." Okay, he's probably more of a teenager than a puppy but she's not going to split hairs. "Can I make it up to you?" Without killing her guide dog. "Why don't I buy you lunch?" She offers. "It isn't much, but it's a start at least. May I?"
Prince meanwhile, glares at the girl. Why is his owner fraternizing with the enemy??
It's probably a good thing Kameron is blind. The expression on Cally's face right now is a clear indicator that she is seriously considering taking up the elite sport of Puppy Kicking.
Cal does, however, turn away from the staring contest with her furry arch nemesis at the mention of her two favorite words. Free Food. "Oh, hmm… well, ok, that'd be nice." She's all bright smiles to the blind woman, at least. "I'm Cally, by the way. Nice ta meetcha."
And Prince is equally considering taking up the spot of ankle biting. The tension between girl and dog is so thick you could cut it with a butter knife. As Cally introduces herself, Kameron offers her hand, "Nice to meet you, Cally. I'm Kameron." That's right. Cally, meet Kammy. A. Laugh. Riot! "I think there's a deli along this block somewhere," Kameron comments, pleased that Cally was willing to take her up on her offer. She's got a foot in the door at least.
"Or…Oh! I know, my place isn't far from here," she points over her shoulder, "I can make you a proper meal there too." While they talk. It's free either way, but Kameron is a little hesitant in making that offer, if only because she worries that the runaway might think it a trap or something. It's not! But if Brian happens to coincidentally arrive home while she was still there..well.. two birds with one stone and all that.
And Cally does give Kameron a thoughtful, slightly suspicious look, before shaking her head. "Hmm… think a deli sounds fine. No offense, you seem nice and all, but…" She doesn't continue, it's obvious anyways. Strangers and all that. She does add, however, under her breath and with a glance to Prince, "Besides, I don't trust the furball on his own turf."
Clearing her throat, the runaway looks back over to Kameron, and says the requisite, "But thanks for offering. Nice to meet you too, Kammy."
Oh well, she still has a foot in the door. She didn't think Cally would take her up on the offer to have a meal at the apartment. Maybe next time though. The smile doesn't waver, as the brunette nods to acknowledge the decision, "It's quite all right, we did only just meet." And not everyone is as trusting as Kameron is. Quite the opposite, really.
She keeps a firm grasp of the leash when Cally mentions the dog, who growls every time Cally even looks at him wrong. Nemesis established, he's probably going to be doing this for a while. "Okay, then.. how about Piccoli's? It's a nice little deli, and if I recall, it's not that far.." She trails off, trying to recall her route, "Unless you have a preference for somewhere else?" She could probably afford one of the more expensive places, if Cally were incined to take advantage of someone's blind (pun intended) good nature.
"Fine with me," Cally says, sniffing and turning her nose up at the dog, in a superior mannerism. "I haven't been to alot of deli's around here, so I'll trust your judgement." Not a huge surprise there, given that she probably hasn't had alot of access to a large ammount of money since arriving in New York.
It's a little funny, this newly established relationship between Cally and Dog. One of distrust and hate from both ends. Although it's more distrust from Prince, and hate from Cally. "I've been there pretty regularly," Kameron notes to her companion, "Guide." is a command issued to the dog again, spurring him to turn his attention from Cally to Kameron, starting to walk forward per her instructions. He knew her routine pretty well, although this one was slightly different. He knew the usual haunts.
"I usually get groceries there, and their deli sandwiches are really delicious." Yet she so hates the pastrami. Ugh. Belatedly she congratulates herself for successfully remembering the correct name for the deli for a change. On arriving, she pulls the door open to let Cally enter first. "Do you know what you'd like?" She asks curiously.
"Pastrami!" Cally announces, with relish, as she marches into the deli, glancing around with supressed glee. "Grilled pastrami, with melted cheese on top… and mustard!" God, she missed mustard. It's amazing the food products that you can miss. "And… can I have a soda too?" she asks, her eyes gleaming as she notices that they have **Dr.Pepper* on tap!! She momentarily forgets her hatred of the dog as she stares at that maroon sign advertising the best beverage in the world.
Eww. She liks pastrami? … well Kameron can excuse that poor taste in her amusement at how delighted Cally is at the thought of grilled pastrami with mustard and Dr. Pepper. She doesn't have to see, to be able to tell that the girl is happy. How long had it been since she's last had a decent meal? Okay granted, the last two meals being ruined were kind of her fault, indirectly. "Okay so grilled pastrami with cheese and mustard - do you want to grab a table? The lines are usually long here. Although.." Her head tilts a bit, "It doesn't sound TOO busy." Maybe five people on line ahead of her, tops. Prince, naturally, comes in with them, sniffing at the floor curiously. He usually get a bowl of water when they come in the deli; occasionally the server will toss him a scrap on the sly too.
Cally briefly glances at Prince, as if she's going to suggest that they tie him up outside. Perhaps forever. But she quickly gets a waft of food and forgets his evil. For now. "Hmm… yeah, there's a table by the window I can get us… but there are a few empty ones, so we should be ok," she tells Kameron, apparently unaware of how disgusting her desire for pastrami is, as she rocks back on her heels, practically bubbly with anticipation. "And, really, thank you. This is very nice of you."
"Okay, can you grab us the table by the window?" Pause, "Even though I can't really see, I've always liked window tables." Indicating that the blindness wasn't from birth. "And it's nothing. I mean, it was my dog that made you drop what you were carrying, so it's kind of my fault. I owe you at least two meals." She grins, moving to get on line. Despite the glare Cally passes him, Prince is focused on Kameron for the moment, moving forward when the line advances.
It's another five or six minutes before Kameron reaches the counter to order the food, and perhaps three minutes more before it's ready. Before long, Kameron makes her way back, weaving around tables, chairs and people with a practiced ease. If one didn't know better, they might not even realize she was blind. "I can't believe I had considered getting a job here as a waitress." She announces with a soft chuckle when Prince leads her over towards the other girl.
Cally gladly grabs the table, sitting down and busying herself by digging around in her satchel while she waits for Kameron. She eventually pulls out a note pad bearing a large smiley face sticker on it, and a pencil. She then keeps herself occupied for the next several minutes scribbling in it, her tongue sticking out between her teeth as she concentrates.
The notebook and pencil are quickly stuffed away as Kameron arrives back… bearing the smell of PASTRAMI! The pastrami sandwich and Dr. Pepper are quickly freed from Kameron's hands, more out of eagerness then in helping the blind girl out. "I'd vote for you!" she exclaims, showing how little attention she was paying the bearer of all that is wonderful and good. Hey, at least if Kameron runs for President, she knows that she has Cally's vote! Assuming Cally is even a registered voter, which seems unlikely.
Kameron startles just slightly when the food is snatched (practically) out of her hands, and smiles at the obvious eagerness. Finding a chair and seating herself comes next, dropping the leash onto the floor and placing her foot on it. Prince, meanwhile, pads under the table and from the sound of it, flops down with a heavy sigh. But he's now close to ankles. He might strike at any minute. Of course if Cally were to lean over and look, he's just laying quietly, nose pointed out towards the room so he doesn't have to back up to get out from under the table. There is the expected growl if he catches her lookin at him though, right before Kameron shifts to put her legs over the dog's side, sort of as a way of keeping an eye on where he is and how he moves.
"You'd vote for me?" She echoes, a moment later, her own sandwich turkey with melted cheese and a slight touch of lettuce and mayonaiise. "Vote for me for what?"
Cally, for once, doesn't appear to notice that Prince exists. And if she did, she probably wouldn't be worried about sneak attacks. She's just as capable of kicking him. And, besides, the minute he comes into contact with her skin, he's done for. Even if he doesn't realize it. Puppy goo!
Nope, for her part, all Cally is focused on is her meal. She really does eat prison style. And drink, too. It's a toss up as to what she wants to ingest more, and there for is in a rush to do both, stuffing her face and practically drowning herself with Dr. Pepper. Needless to say, she attracts more then a few looks, but seems wholly oblivious.
At least, until Kameron speaks to her. She looks confused, thinking back. And, while she does, attempts to chew and swallow some of the food that has her cheeks puffed up like a chipmunk's. "Mmm, ngg," she says at first, then swallows again. It's still obvious her mouth has food in it, but her words are at least decipherable. "Fer… prethident… er what uth thaid."
No puppy goo! Sniff. Prince, however, is behaving, even if he is glowering balefully towards the girl across from his owner. Fraternizing. That's all it is. So unfair, now because they're establishing friendship, he's going to be In Trouble if he growls at the enemy. NEMESIS.
Kameron eats more sedately, if not much because it's a little distracting hearing Cally eating like a freaking animal across from her. She really must not have had a half way decent meal in two days! "Um. You … you don't have to rush. I can buy you another one if you're really hungry - It won't even count towards the second meal," she adds, a teasing lilt to her voice. "Slow down a little, you're going to make yourself sick."
Another pause follows, as she tries to comprehend what the -heck- that was supposed to be. "Uh … I…" PRESIDENT? Don't laugh. DO NOT LAUGH. "I-I don't think that position would suit me." What with the potential of being shot in the head and all. "Actually I was sayin that I couldn't believe I considered working here. Can you imagine a blind waitress?"
"Huh?" Blink blink. "Oh… ok." Cally at least has the decency to blush a little, and for her part, does try to slow down a bit. "Just… so good!" she exclaims, by way of explanation. She listens to Kameron, nodding thoughtfully as she chews another healthy mouthful, though less full then previously. She even finishes chewing and swallowing this time before speaking. "Oh, I see… well, I think you could do it! It's small enough I'm sure you could memorize the layout. And we could get you a specialized dog to show you around and stuff, too!" Because clearly, she does not feel that the Evil One is up to the task. That's right, Prince. You just got dissed.
"It's all right, I understand," Kameron grins lightly. She'll get another pastrami (ew) sandwich for Cally before they go. It's probably not a good idea to bring up the heat situation from yesterday so soon after meeting the girl - even though Kam is relatively harmless. "Well, that's true, that is why I had considered getting a job here in the first place. But that was before my friend offered a better job," which could give her a jump into possibly maybe approaching the subject of Evolved gifts. "A specialized…" Kameron trails off, not sure whether to be offended or laugh - she goes with a soft chuckle, "Well, um, that's what Prince is. He's my guide dog. … granted he's also a guard dog, and tends to act on his guard tendencies at bad times.." Like last night.
"That's my point. He's obviously faulty," Cally says, in a most grave and serious manner. As if she were talking about a malfunctioning toaster. "And with so many people around, you don't know who he may attack! Definately not someone you can trust. There's all kinds of reliable, good dogs at the shelter, I hear. I could help you pick one out!" See, helpful. "And I'm sure they'd find him a nice home." Sweet smile. Really, she only has everyone's best interests at heart.
"Faulty?" Kameron is a tiny bit offended by that - on part of her dog. "No no, he's not faulty," Kameron smiles, "He's just -.. he's .. well he's .." hrm. "He's a good dog," she knows that those mean words were said out of hate! "He's just enthusiastic. Especially where Joe is concerned," she adds, "He's really protective of him. Besides, my parents gave me Prince. I could never abandon him, even if I wanted to." Everyone's best interest at heart INDEED.
Cally nods, making a noise of non-commital, and goes back to eating. Hey, she tried. That's all she can do. If people don't want her to save her from Evil, well, that's not her fault. "So," she says, wiping her mouth with a napkin after licking the last bits of meat and mustard off. That's right, Sandwich #1 is consumed! "I should probably, y'know, be heading off and what not… don't wanna keep you," and your little dog too.
"Oh? Um.. you don't have to run off - do you want another," ew. "Pastrami sandwich?" Pause, "Where are you staying?" Not so much so she can find the girl again, but - well okay it is. After all, Cally is really nice even if she does hate Kameron's dog. "I really enjoyed talkin to you and everything, so it'd be nice if we could do it again sometime."
The offer of more food stalls Cally, and she looks thoughtful. "Well… I'm kind of full for now…" But she clearly knows she'll want it later. She glances to Kameron at the question of residence, and gives a nonchalant shoulder shrug, even if it's lost on the blind girl. "Oh, you know, I stay here and there… got a few friends and such. Don't think they'd want me to give out their addresses. But I'm usually around, not too hard to find." Just a little evasive.
"Then for later," Kameron smiles. At the evasive answer, Kameron sort of expected it, and so nods a little to herself. "Do you go to Central Park, or Roy Wilkins Park, often?" Considering what Mack told her, she knew darn well that the girl visited at least ONE park. "I play there pretty regularly," and rarely accepts the money. But it was so far the best opportunity she'd have to run ino the other girl.
Cally considers, instinctively shrugging again as she answers, "Sometimes." She falls silent, considering Kameron. And likely because she feels she owes Kameron at least a little for the food, she says, almost as a sigh, "I like Central Park… it kinda reminds me of the Bo… the one we had back home. Haven't been to the other one yet." It's probably obvious, given her accent, the park in question she was about to say. But she doesn't seem like one who just gives out keys to her past, when she can help it. "So who knows, may see you around there."
The Bo? It might be obvious to those who've actually been to Boston, not so much for those who've been rather sheltered for 90% of their life. She is careful not to press or push, and let Cally set the pace for their friendship - even if Kameron wanted to help her now now now. She knew that if she rushed anything, it would only chase her away. "Okay," she smiles broadly, clearly pleased at the chance. "Then I hope to run into you again soon. Oh," she gets to her feet, "I'll get that sandwich for you now. But if you hear violin playing in the park, that will be me, so I hope you'll come say hello." Even if the face of EVIL will be with her, and the collie will probably alert Kameron.
Which only shows that Kameron has a load more sense then God gave to Brian. Cally nods her head, continuing to use body motion as if Kammie can see, though she does immediately follow it with a verbal response as well. "Alright. M'sure I will," she says, even though it is in a mostly non-commital tone of voice. "And… thanks," she says, about the offer of food to go. "That'd be… nice." Clearly a little unused to all this generousity. But not about to say no to free food.
He only wanted to help! It's just - it would probably have worked for someone less skittish. Kameron smiles, giving Prince a nudge as she slides her legs out from under the table. "If you ever want to come by and visit," she adds, starting to the counter, "I live at Confucious Plaza, in apartment.." Pause to recall, "One… Oh Five." It's out there, Cally knows how her standard haunts and how to reach her - even though Kameron was still considering moving to the Lighthouse on Staten Island, she'll still keep the apartment. If nothing else, if Cally didn't want to go there, she could offer the apartment as a means of getting her off the street. And to keep an eye on things for her. But that will come later. Much later.
Nonetheless, it takes less time to get the second pastrami sandwich, and Prince leads Kameron back over to Cally. "Cally?" She just wants to be sure that the girl didn't run off. It wasn't likely that she had, with the promise of more food, but..
"Oh, um… ok, I'll remember that," Cally says. And though she does give it in the same non-commital tone as before, she takes out her notebook and scribbles something quick inside, when Kameron moves to collect the food. By the time Kammie has returned to the table, Cally has already placed it back in her satchel, and is in the (somewhat noisy) process of reorganizing everything, to fit the food inside. She has the same look of concentration, her tongue sticking out slightly between her teeth, that she did before. Not that Kammie will notice, but still. Glancing up at Kammie's words, she blinks slightly, looking confused, then rolls her eyes at herself. "Still here."
She can hear the rummaging about, and gives a faint sigh of relief. Good, she didn't run off. "Here, I've got the other sandwich for you." She smiles, sandwich properly wrapped to go. Naturally it's nice and warm, although cold food is probably not a problem for someone with an Evolved gift like Cally's. "Is there anything else I can do for you before you go?" And no, she's not getting rid of Prince.
That is true. One thing she has that likely no other street kid has is the ability to be her own microwave. Without the radiation, even. "Thanks," Cally replies, taking the sandwich and putting it into her satchel. Closing it up, she stands, and slings the bag over her shoulder. She stands there for a moment, studying Kameron, before giving a shake of her head. "No, I'm good. Anyways, I really should be going. But I'll see… er… you around, ok?" Cally really does seem to keep forgetting that Kammie is blind, for some reason.
That's okay, Lori does the same thing. And even Brian occasionally has the habit of using 'visual' verbs such as 'can you watch' or 'look'. It's honestly the funniest thing in the world to Kameron. She hates people tiptoeing around her 'disability', so if they trip over a word or two because they forget she's technically blind, that much better or her. It means she can pull off the 'I can see fine' image pretty well. "All right," pleased, Kameron nods, "I should finish my walk and get back home myself. I'll be playing in the park later tonight though." Before curfew.
Cally "mmhmms" in response to Kameron, before giving a final, "Alright, later," before skipping off. She even says farewell to Prince, in her own way. "Watch it, hairball." And then she's out the door, the bell hanging above it ringing as she slips outside, moving down the street, further into the Lower East Side neighborhood.
 February 14th: An Artsy Endeavor |
 February 14th: Everyday Heroes |