Dinner And A Show

Participants:

abby_icon.gif cardinal_icon.gif deckard_icon.gif jase_icon.gif kaylee_icon.gif

Scene Title Dinner And A Show
Synopsis Cardinal arrives at a drop point at the helm of a soup van with Abby and Kaylee in tow to help distribute the goods. Deckard and Jase just happen to be passing through until they exchange words and suddenly they're having a cripple fight instead. Restoring sanity is a TEAM EFFORT. Then Card and Kaylee get back to business.
Date June 05, 2009

Staten Island


A big red and white van rumbles along through the streets of Staten Island, keeping away from the fringes of the Rookery - things there too messed up for any sort of deliveries to be safely made, at least for the time being. As it nears one of the usual checkpoints that the urban residents have started to grow used to for the free delivery of soup and bread, the vehicle slows down a bit. It's still daylight, although that's fleeing soon, and Cardinal's settled into the front in the passenger's seat with his shades down, the visor down, and a generally unpleasant expression on his face. "Fuckin' sun," he mutters under his breath.

"Language" Abigail grouses from the just behind him, sticking her ball capp'd ponytailed red head up to look out the front window. She'd been doing that a lot. More out of need to assure herself of ol' Green eyes not being anywhere near. Or any of the others that she might recognize. her elbow resting on the shoulder of the seat, she's perky, thanks in part to the pills, and to being near folks she knows, trusts.

Jase scowls as he watches the crowd of people waiting for a hand out from a bit of a distance. He's leaning with one shoulder against a wall, hands stuffed in his pockets in a classic youthful and disaffected pose of idleness and wearing the matching expression of distrust and distaste that have gone with it for generations. He shakes his head, muttering something fairly colorful under his breath about losers. And then his stomach growls. Again. He just frowns harder and watches the crowd waiting.

Hunkered down in her seat with cellphone in hand, turned sideways her thumbs moving over the screen, Kaylee gives Abigail's comment an amused smile. Shaking her head she finishes a message and sends it out. "Some people just can't take no.. I swear.. There is an end of the year party." She glances down at the screen of her cellphone as it buzzes and rolls her eyes. "Please.. watching drunk people is not more important then soup.. Sheesh. I can't drink anyhow."

It's colder than it's been, with a blustery breeze kicking salty air up off the beach to mingle with the crisper stuff further inland. Deckard is looking scroogier than usual on a pair of crutches about as dubious-looking and corroded as he is, black overcoat tattered around the edges and blown out over the back of one shoulder as if by a bullet. He's thin too, gaunt and hollow about the length of his face when he slows out of his swinging gimp enough to squint at the van and the crowd gathered around him in anticipation of its arrival. The hell.

"Sorry," Cardinal instinctively responds to Abigail's correction, waving vaguely at the sky as he points out, "You know me and the sun, though. It's too damn bright before nightfall… gives me a damn migraine." He shifts in the seat, then, twisting to look back curiously, "You can't drink?"

The van itself pulls up along the side of the road, not far from the crowd, and the driver - Steve - glances back with a dry expression, "Time to feed the animals."

"Think she's like me, not quite old enough to. legally" But Abigails had more than a tipple before thanks to the guy with the crutches in the distance. Not that She's paying attention now. She's itching to get done, start ladling out stuff. "End of the year for some, start of the school year for others. "Sorry Richard, about the migraine." He knows why she's sorry. She'd taken it for granted, before. A touch here, and he wouldn't have it anymore. So little exertion, so great an ease to many. "I can rub your temples for you? I hear that works."

Jase straightens up when the van arrives. In faded and weathered jeans, battered work boots and an old t-shirt under a loose and unbuttoned flannel, he is distinguished from some of the crowd only in that he seems to be very clean and obviously fit, though a bit rangy at the moment. After the van pulls over, he starts walking towards it, slowly and reluctantly working his way to the back edge of the crowd. The guy on crutches gets a second, prolonged look. Even these days, bullet holes are a bit of avant garde fashion statement. He's not particularly subtle in the scrutiny.

Takes a moment for Kaylee to relize she's being addressed. "What? Oh! No, I can't" She tucks the cellphone away, time to serve soup anyway. A glance to Abigail. "I'm 22.. It makes my head all wierd.. and No.. Not in the drunk way, I do know what that is like.. I'm allergic or something. Probably from that bender I did when I was in what was it… it was in high school. I haven't been able to since.. I mean geeze I woke up in a hospital." She says it all like its just an everyday thing. I was a teenage delinquent, no big deal.

She gives Steve a smirk. "I do believe Bloodhound Gang made a song about it. 'You and me baby ain't nothing but mammals.'" Kaylee starts to sing softly as she moves to scoot out of the van. With a little hop, she surveys the crowd. "Alright, lets do this thing."

"Ah, alcohol poisoning," Cardinal's head bobs in an understanding nod, "Can do that. And nah, Abigail, thanks - it wouldn't work, it's just my hemeralopia. Everything's too bright." The side door's pushed open, and he hops out to the ground, adjusting the set of his Chicago Air jacket and grimacing at the light.

"Hey, if you wanna explore the rest of that song later, baby…" Steve calls after Kaylee with a grin, before pushing into the back himself. He doubles as the cook as well as the driver, shrugging on an apron and stepping over to fire up the stove in the back that the soup pots are sitting on.

Scruffy, greying hair turned up into a wiry mess, cigarette drooping bent from the corner of his mouth, Deckard pegs a few crutch-lengths deeper into the crowd to crane a harder look at the van and the occupants. He looks like he belongs here, suit tatty, narrow jaw sunken in and stubble collection in dire need of some maintenance. It doesn't take him long to pick up on the fact that he's being studied, either — the chill blue of his glare flickers sideways enough to give Jase the stink eye through a noxious furl of smoke.

Deckards not gonna get a look at Abigail yet. She's in behind everyone else, going for incognito as best she can. The orange baseball cap meant to dumb down the color of her hair "Oh, that's why" To Cardinal before she's setting in, out of immediate view, There's buns to get out, don't you know. ANd someone has to help ladle the soup and pass it over tot he folks actually dishing out the bowls to the people who are waiting.

Jase returns that look from Deckard with an amused smirk and a glance down at the crutches, followed by raised eyebrows, as if to say 'What are you going to do?' He looks back towards the van. His smirk sours a bit and he looks back up the street and then towards the van again. His voice is low but audible for a few feet as he mutters to himself, "This is a crap idea." He shakes his head but continues to wait, for the moment.

"'Kay.. yeah sure that works. We'll go with that." Kaylee says, a bit distracted, in response to Cardinal's poisoning comment. She pulls her hair up in a ponytail, holding it in place with a scrunchies. Turns back to arch a brow as Steve, she gives him a rather amused look. "I don't think so, sweetie, your just not my type… You can explore the rest of that song all by your lonesome." She clap her hands together and rubs them. "Okay.. Unloadin'" She moves to help where ever it's needed.

"Burned, Steve," Cardinal drawls out, "Burned."

The door's closed, and he moves to walk around to the other side, waving a hand at the crowd and lifting his voice, "Alright, people, just form a nice, orderly line and we'll get everyone fed. Nobody cause any trouble and there won't be any trouble, and we can keep doin' these runs, capische?"

…Something. That's what, says the return look from Deckard, nose rankled when he turns his head to peer more pointedly back to the van. He's unconvincing in the non-specific nature of his unspoken threat, shoulders hunch bonily in, huddled like vulture wings against the cold air and whoever else might have cause to stare while they shuffle into a disorganized line. He stays right where he is, four-legged and disheveled and — is that Richard-fucking-Cardinal?

"…What the hell?" is hoarsely audible above the din of muttering conversation about the hungry. His voice is about as difficult to mistake as his mug.

Jase goes back to something more comfortable than remembering where he is, which is playing tough guy poker with somebody. Even a broken-down looking guy on crutches. He drifts a little closer to Deckard, perhaps misinterpreting the man's expression and says, "What's wrong? Don't have the steak plate today?" And if moving in to needle this guy just happens to put him, more or less, at the back of the line, well, he isn't exactly in it, right?

"So whatcha want me to do?" Kaylee asks glancing over at Cardinal, since he is in charge. Her phone buzzes again and she pulls it out and gives it a glance. She rolls her eyes and hits the off button before shoving it back in her pocket. "Can't take a 'No'.. Probably, cuase I said I'd go earilier.. but this seemed a better use of my time." As if he really cares.. but still, Cardinal gets to hear it. The raised voice makes her glance over at the crowd again, with an lifted brow.

"Make the sun go down faster," Cardinal replies to the question, tongue firmly in cheek, before looking over with a wry expression and suggesting, "You take care of the bread, Abigail can do the soup… Steve'll cook. I'll shoot anyone who pulls a weapon." That last one gets a few wary looks from the gathering lines, but then again, this is Staten. That goes hand in hand with living here.

"Kid, keep it up and I'll ram one of this crutches far enough up your asshole that you'll be ready to hit the spit next." Bristled irritation serves as warning to keep away — again without real weight. Deckard is underweight, middle-aged and on crutches with one hand bandaged and the other bony enough that it'd probably feel like getting popped in the face with a set of fossilized claws if he did bother to swing. Another dirty look later, he hobbles a few cranky steps away, face turned down while he advances down the line's length for Cardinal and company.

'Coup it is!" Abigail answers, grabbing the bowls that they use and with Steve, begins to ladle the soup up to the appropriate height, pass it over to be taken down and served by Kaylee and Cardinal. The tenth bowl, Abigail turns to slide the bowl up adn spots the crutch bearing man. "Richard" She points. "Flint"

Jase gives Deckard an appraising look. "Nice. You kiss your pimp with that mouth, grandma?" His lips quirk up in a predatory smirk and he shakes his head. The tone is a sort of half-hearted version of 'let's fight'. More the warning growl of a distracted stray. "Whatever. I don't beat on cripples." A pause. "Other than tourists." He looks back towards the van and the line of people getting fed and again, his stomach growls.

"Sadly," Kaylee says apologetically to Cardinal. "There are many things I can do, but that is not one of them." She pulls out the rolls in preparation, sticking one of those crappy plastic glove things on her hands. As Abigail hands her a bowl, she adds a roll and offers it to the next person in line. 'Hi' 'How are you?' 'Watch out it's hot' Are just some of the things that the young woman says to each person.

"Okay, keep it even and move stead— " Wait, what was that? At the simple two words from Abigail, Cardinal turns a bit, squinting through his shades down the line, a frown twitching to his lips. "Deckard?" A questioning call through the noises of the crowd.

Yes, 'Deckard.' Except now instead of the familiar lines and angles of his face on the advance, the familiar disorder of the back of his scruffy head and shoulders faces Cardinal through the mill of those still angling for cutsies along the line's shabby length. Something Jase said prompted a turn out of him. Whether it was grandma or cripple or some other well-chosen noun, God only knows, but some teeth grinding later, he's on his way back, one deliberate, sweeping swing of metal crutches ahead of boot-shod feet at a time. All the way up until he's nearly back to Jase, and one of the aforementioned rusty crutches swings abruptly up in a severe arc aimed right at the younger man's head. Do crutches count as drawn weapons?

Oh shit! The bowl of soup is shoved hastily out towards Kaylee and Abigail's heading out of the van as Decakrd does what he does so best, be a grump. Well, truth be told she couldn't hear what Jase was saying, but that doesn't stop the aproned red head from hopping off the steps of the van and plunging into waiting group so she can make her way to flint. "Richard! Stop him!"That familiar voice screeching at the top of her lungs. It //is/ in her best interest to keep the man alive after all and who knows on this island what might happen.

Jase takes a step back in surprise, bringing up his arm in front of him in an instinctive block of the crutch. There is a meaty 'thwack' as metal meets flesh and bone and the young man doesn't wince, but his eyes narrow and his jaw sets. "Alright, old man. Let's go for wheelchair." That comes out in a growling and pained tone and he tries to reach out to grab the offending crutch, apparently with every intent of beating its owner with it. Rather than anger, the ritual of threat, violence and response seems to trigger something methodical and even workmanlike, as though he were just somebody about to punch the clock for a day at work.

Kaylee almost doesn't grab the bowl in time, hopping back a bit bowl held out as it sloshes a bit. "What the…?" She frowns a bit and leans over to look down the line. She quickly adds a roll and hands the bowl to the next person and moves to hop out as well, when fights start they always escalate. "Hey.. Hey Guys!" She shouts, hurrying past people moving as fast as she can to get near them.. If she can just get near them…

Pushing her way through a group, Kaylee stumbles out near the two men. As soon as she can lock her eyes on one of them… in this case Jase. "You /don't/ want to do that. " She snaps out the words. There is weight to the words.. Something about them.. he'll feel a very heavy compusion to do what she says. Her eyes flick to Deckard. "You /REALLY/ don't want to fight right now." There is that same compulsion to her words, she makes sense.. Shouldn't fight right now. To everyone else it looks like she is trying to calm things.

You know, a week without any serious incidents… it figures that of all people, Flint would start one. Sigh. Fucking Deckard.

Cardinal exhales an exasperated sigh, reaching under the jacket and pulling the pistol holstered there under his arm; bringing it up towards the sky and pulling the trigger once. Lead breaks the sound barrier with a crack like a whip - but so much louder, the glass in the van's windows vibrating briefly from the noise. A good portion of the crowd duck, sharply, out of ingrained instinct. A few hit the pavement.

"ALRIGHT! Quit the fighting, you two - fuck - get your ass over here, old man, what the hell do you think you're doing?"

Recoil twangs up through the stiff lock of Deckard's elbow like a snap from an electric fence, and still he's trying to wrest the crutch back into his control, albeit with a moment's clear-eyed, off-balance hesitation when Jase doesn't even falter. …Crap. People are moving quickly now, familiar (and unfamiliar) voices shouting at his back until the crack of the pistol sends him flinching back half an awkward, limping step. All his weight hunched over into his remaining crutch, he leaves the remaining blunt instrument to Jase, still breathing hard when his head whips around wild-eyed to take in Kaylee on top of everything.

His brows tilt up, puzzled over the ragged pass of air through his teeth. If he doesn't want to fight, why did he just try to take a guy's head of with a rusty crutch? The fact that he even has spare brains to wonder as much is evidence that the will to get his ass kicked again duke it out has drained out of him though, and back he goes another step, and another with intent to skulk off the rest of his temper alone, maybe.

The crack of the gun going off sends Abigail latching onto Deckard as she flinces from the sound, to try and pull him away from Jase with a glare for the other man. "Flint!" He knows that tone. He knows that face and he knows that expression. "You!" A finger pointed to Jase. "You get in line if you want some soup and behave like the gentleman i'm sure you momma raised you to be!" all in that spitfire southern belle accent. Then to Flint she switches "You! You and I are having a talk" And bum leg or not, he's being dragged away to behind the van.

Jase glances aside at Kaylee, obviously starting to say something less than friendly and then he stops, his expression going from methodically set to mildly confused. And then alarmed when the gunshot goes off. He flinches and lets go of the crutch, rubbing his arm which already shows a nice bar shaped line that will undoubtedly grow into a lovely bruise. He actually looks a bit shame-faced at that lecturing and mutters, "You know what? Screw this. Losers. I'll take care of myself." With that, he turns and starts to walk away.

Kaylee is smart enough to drop when the gun goes off. Giving Cardinal a wide eyed look. "Oh my god… Give me a heart attack." Ears rubbed from the loud bang she glares at Jase. "Hey.. I'm not the loser…. Loser." She flinches a bit and fingers go from rubbing ears to rubbing her temple as she pads back to the van, mutter some rather unlady-like things.

"Sorry," Cardinal says in unapologetic tones, holstering the pistol once more with a slow shake of his head at Kaylee, "Just wanted to put an end to that shit before it got any worse. Christ…" He watches with slightly narrowed eyes as Deckard's dragged off for a lecture, and snorts, waving a hand at everyone, "Alright, people, alright, it's all over, get back up and in line…"

Waving off the apology, Kaylee moves back to her place. "No no.. you were right to do it." She glances after Abby and Deckard. "She seemed really scared that he might die." Kaylee says rather offhanded as she takes up Abby's job as well as her own. "She all into him?" There is a knowing smile. She knows why.. but if she says it out loud that might be a bit weird. "Seems kinda old for her." With her ladling soup and adding the bread it slows down a bit, but she can deal with it.

At the question, Cardinal slants a look over - his brow furrowing as he moves over to lend a bit of a hand, though mostly he's still keeping an eye on the crowd. The sun's lower in the sky, now, so it's easier on his eyes, whatever his problem might be with that. "What? No — no, she's got a guy she's dating, they've just…" A vague gesture, "…got history."

A quick glance in the pairs direction, Kaylee seems to consider something. "Ahh.. Huh.." Taking a step to the side, out of his way, she leaves Cardinal bun duty. "So how long you all gonna do all this?" She asks conversationally as she hands him another bowl. "It's pretty damn cool. Really. I come out here often enough to know that it's a pretty crappy place."

"You think it's bad here, go a few blocks closer to the Rookery…" A shake of Cardinal's head as he gathers up some buns and steps back out to hand over the small loaves to those in line, "Here you go, here y'go… eh. Probably until the government gets its head out of its ass and steps back in? Not sure."

"Actually.. I have. I got to that little bar kinda place there." Another bowl is handed over, Kaylee doesn't seem all that concerned. "Well, somehow I think it'll be a cold day in hell before the government gets their collective heads out of their asses. But… Maybe someone will knock sense into someone." A little scuffle in front of them, Kaylee snap her fingers to get the instigators attention and shakes her head. "Calm down. You all will get yours." There a touch of a grimance as she says 'Calm down' to the other one. The effect is immediate, they calm down and shuffle down for thier bowls. Kaylee glances at Cardinal again. "If it's alright, I'd like to keep helping out til y'all are needed anymore.

"Shooters? Yeah, that's where I drink," Cardinal admits with an easy bob of his head, "And if they don't want to get in shape, well, hell. Someone's got to run things around here." A hint of iron to the last, though whatever he might have meant is derailed as there's a brief scuffle. He reaches for his jacket, starting to say something, and then she calms them down rather quickly. "Huh. You've got a way with people, babe… and, hell, no argument here."

There is a dismissive shrug from Kaylee giving him a grin. "Just one of those thing.. People just always have responded well." She takes a deep breath and sighs a bit, her brows furrowing for a moment. "There a first aid kit in the truck?" HEr tone casual. "But yeah. Shooters. Some of the guys from the University convinced me to go with them. Seemed good enough place. I don't drink, but I watch." A corner of her mouth twitch up. "Some of them get amusing when they get smashed."

"Yeah, we've got some medical supplies… why, you cut yourself?" A step over, Cardinal's head tilting to check and see if she's injured, brow furrowing just a bit as he takes time off from handing out rolls. Hey, their people come first.

"Usually they have aspirin… Motrin or something?" Kaylee asks as she ladles another bowl and hands it over. "It feels like I'm on the edge of one hell of a migraine." She runs the back of her wrist across her forehead with a slight grimace. "Hopefully, people will get the hint." Murmurs the words, she glances out over the crowd that for the moment seems okay.

"Oh, yeah, I got… lemme see," Cardinal pats down his jacket's pockets, coming up with a bottle of 'Excedrin Extra-Strength' and offering it over, brows leaping up a bit over the edge of his shades, "This do? The sun always tries to break my damn skull open, so, I know the feeling…"

"Oh.. perfect. You are.. my hero." Kaylee says with relief. "I left my backpack at basecamp since you know… it's got my life in it." Meaning her laptop. She pops the bottle open and shakes out three of those tiny pills, before handing it back "Thank you.. I didn't think to get my asprin." She holds up a finger to the person in front of her, tilts her head back and tosses them in. Her head drops down again as she swallows. "Ug.. yuck. You'd think they'd improve the taste with all the technology we have." Taking up the ladle again, she gives Cardinal a mischievous grin and teases. "Speaking of technology.. you on Facebook yet?"

"I have better things to do," Cardinal rolls his eyes, "Than mess with a computer all day, babe." Another case of rolls is passed to him out of the van, and he holds it out to the folk in line - the crowd mostly dispersed, now, just a few stragglers, "Just two each, folks…"

Chuckling, Kaylee fills a final bowl and holds it out to him. "I didn't figure so, but I figured I'd ask." She gives him a once over as if evaluating him. "You just don't seem the type.. a dark and broody.. more at home in the dark then in daylight. Don't seem the kind to sit at home hunched of a laptop googling porn sites." She pulls the crappy plastic gloves off her hand and watches the people spreading out. "I always feel better after doing something nice for someone who needs the help."

You paged Cardinal with 'I think I probably have a little over an hour before I have to whisk off again for the pickup run. I can pose back in or maybe just catch you for another scene when I get back, orrr later this weekend or whatever I am flexible!'

"If I want some porn, I can get it in person," Cardinal replies with a low chuckle, handing over the last of the free food… and then leaning back against the truck's side, brushing some crumbs of bread off his hands and looking over with a wry expression, "And daylight gives me migraines. Can't see a damn thing either."

"True.. Always plenty of that." Amused, Kaylee moves to lean on the truck as well. "Seriously?" She asks curiously, eyes narrowing slightly at him. "That has got to suck… Hardcore sucks. I get migraines often.. dunno why." Not exactly true, but she's not gonna tell him the real reason. "I try to keep the asprin with me when I go out like this. So yeah.. Thanks for being prepared."

"Hemeralopia," Cardinal says with a tight shake of his head, "Day blindness. Genetic or something, s'why I keep a night schedule." Also not quite true, but nor does he tend to give people the real answer. A grin's flashed, "No problem. I know the feeling… c'mon, let's get in this van and get back movin' before someone tries to mug us."

"Pfft. Let em' try." Kaylee says making sure she sounds really cocky about it. "Between your badass-ness and my people skills.. " She doesn't finish the sentence as she does push away from the side of the truck to help clean up and prepare to move on.

Fade.


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