Participants:
| Scene Title | Present for Baby Barter |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Melissa returns with gifts to buy back her young ward from affectionate wardens. |
| Date | January 17, 2010 |
The Village Renaissance Building - Elaine and Quinn's Apartment
Junie was supposed to be picked up last night, but a quick phone call delayed that for a day. But eventually Melissa does want her baby back, and she doesn't show up alone. No, she's got Perry in tow, to help with the carrying of a couple of bags full of who only knows what. They're not transparent, so it's impossible to tell. But there's plenty of whatever in them.
She shows up at Quinn's door, bundled up moreso than usual. New York is cold after Hawaii! But it doesn't stop her from rapping on the door. "It's Mel!" she calls out, leaning against the door frame while she waits.
A shy man by nature, Perry can't but look just a little furtive as he follows Melissa to the door of someone he's met- once. While looking for Melissa. Were his hands not taken up by their attendant bags, he'd be fiddling with glasses that are not there any longer. Phantom limb fidget. He hands behind Melissa, letting her take social point. No icebreaker, he.
Elaine is reading one of the many books Quinn got her for Christmas. Okay, well, she was reading. Now, instead, she's curled up on the end of the couch, resting her eyes for just a second. Then, of course, she'll get back to her reading. She's not tired, really. The knock with its acompanying knock stirs the redhead and she lifts her head to peer towards the door. "Quinn, get it! It's Mel, come to take our little companion. Should we pretend not to be here?" She calls loudly.
It's only been a bit since Delilah left with Walter in tow, Quinn having since taken her time getting Junko's stuff together. She knew that Melissa was coming sometime today, she just had no idea when. She has the baby in her arms, in her room listening to music quietly when she hears Elaine call out to her, causing Quinnn to look up from her stereo with a froen on her face. "Tell her to go away!" Quinn yells back witha grin, even as she gets up from the edge of her bed.
Witht he baby held close, she moves to the door, opening it just a bit - and then kicking it the rest of the way open. Her eyes center on Melissa, having not registered Perry yet, "Go away. She's ours now, Elaine an' I are totally going t' raise her as a little indie rocker." And she sticks her tongue out at Melissa, before finally looking up and over towards Perry, blinking. "Oh! Perry, right? Melissa said she was goin' t' Hawaii with you. Nice t' meet you again!"
"Nuh uh. She's my little goth baby," Melissa says, setting down her bags, just inside the door, and reaching for Junie and getting a smile. "Yes she is, she's my gothling! She likes black and purple and loves getting dressed up in them, doesn't she?" She tosses a grin at Quinn. "Besides, I brought presents, but only if I get my baby back!"
Then she looks back to Perry, giving him a smile Quinn's never seen her give to anyone before. "Yeah, this is Perry. Perry, this is Quinn, and over there is Elaine," she says, tilting her head in the bookworm's direction.
Perry watches Melissa with the baby, looking a little amazed. This is not an aspect of Melissa he'd imagined he'd see. His brow arches fractionally. "B- be careful. Frills await," he warns, with a touch of a smile, one that lingers, if just barely, when he sees Melissa smile back at him. He steps forward and sets down one of the bags, coming back up to offer Quinn his hand. "A- uh- a pleasure, Quinn."
He looks over as Elaine is indicated and- oh no. That can't be.
"Uh- uh-" Perry stammers, clearly taken aback, visibly startled. But he covers it up as best he can, stepping forward to offer his hand to her as well. "P- p- Pericles Jones," he says. Meeting her again for the first time as well. Small world.
"Aw, tough call with giving the baby up for presents. But it makes me just want kids, now. Mel, you have all the luck," Elaine says, turning towards the door a bit as she offers a wave to the two of them. And then she sees who her companion is. She looks surprised, climbing off the couch to take the hand. "Elaine Darrow. I like the name. You know it means 'surrounded by glory' in Greek, right?" There's a tiny smile.
"Presents or Baby? Hard feckin' choice, Melissa!" QUinn frowns, shakes Perry's hand- and then steps back, attempting the shut door. And it only gets about halfway before just bursting into a giggle, Junko following suit just a fraction of a moment later. The door reopens just as quickly, and Quinn steps further int' the apartment. "Come on in, you two. No need t' stand outside, right?" Once a few steps in, still holding Junko, she turns back to face Perry with a smile. "We met at Tartarus over the summer. I remembered because a' your name, I admit. Don't meet many guys named Pericles. Still a cool name too. But I was the lesbian at the bar," she offers with a wink and a smile, before finally holding Junko out to melissa.
"Bite your tongue or I'll do it for you," Melissa mutters to Perry at mention of frills, sticking a foot out to try to catch the door, then she takes Junie and smiles, pulling her close. "Hey there, baby. Did you miss me? You better, 'cause I missed you!" she says, delivering a bunch of tiny, loud kisses, just to make the baby giggle and smile.
Her bag is picked up and she moves further in with presents and baby, finding a place to sit. "Sorry that they're not wrapped or anything, but I hope you guys like what I picked. But first…how was my baby? Did she behave and all that? Didn't drive you guys nuts, I'm guessing, since you don't wanna let her go," she says, grinning at both the other women.
"A- uh- astute translation," Perry says, shaking Elaine's hand, "good to know your Greek. Hei- uh- Heidegger said it was the language- uh- language closest to thought. Knowing Greek is a necessity for wisdom."
He returns to offer assistance with the bags. "Bearing gifts. I think- uh- I think Melissa knew she'd have to- uh- barter for the baby." Perry is getting use to people. It helps when people are nice.
"Junie's a dear. Makes me wish I had a family. You're very lucky." Elaine glances between Melissa and Quinn. "Quinn's the one you should be thanking. She did most of the babysitting. She's surprisingly quite adept." The redhead's eyes flicker back to Perry and she smiles warmly. ."Yes, I've heard that before. Someone pretty wise told me about that once." Then she looks intently back at Mel. "Alright, what've you got to offer!"
Quinn pays little mind to Peery and Elaine's conversation. All in all it's a lot of shit she doesn't know, and while she thinks that Language abilities are both fascinating and fun. But not they're talking about translations and some guy who's name she's not sure how to pronounce, so she turns her way over to Melissa, offering just a nod to Elaine, an agreement to her previous statement.
"I loved havin' Junko around Melissa. I've… never really taken care of a baby for an extende dperiod a' time, but when you don't have t' pop the thing out yourself, it's rather nice. I'd love t' babysit her again, if you ever want. It's kinda nice gettin' t' feel motherly for a bit." She smiles warmly, before looking back at Elaine. "Oh no, trust me. I bumbled a bit at first. I've babysat before, but never really a- nine month old?" As if trying to confirm Delilah's suspicion earlier.
"I am. Though I feel bad for her. I have no idea who her father is, and her mother's dead, so…" Melissa shrugs and cuddles the baby closer. "And yeah, no pregnancy was nice. And I'll totally let you guys know if I need a babysitter. You'll have to fight with Nadira and Alexander, but it's totally possible. And yeah, nine months. Well, nine and a half now. But yes, presents."
She reaches into the bag, pulling out a book, which she offers over to Elaine. It's a book about the Hawaiian language. Nothing but the language. Another dip into her bag has her pulling out…a CD, of traditional Hawaiian music, which gets offered to Quinn. No way that's all that was in those bags. Plural. But rather than dip into them again, she smiles at Perry and pats the spot next to her.
Perry takes a seat next to Melissa, lightly placing his arm behind her and peering at the baby. "So- uh- so this is the lady herself," he says, this being the first actual first meeting of the evening, "your- uh- your reputation precedes you." He offers a finger to shake.
"Hope you learned some of this Hawaiian yourself, Melissa, or I won't have anyone to speak with," Elaine grins at the book, flipping through it lightly. "It's wonderful… thank you." Her gaze shifts to Perry and Junko, and she giggles. Perry's introduction is probably one of the most adorable things ever.
"Nadira's unavailable," Quinn says quietly, looking off to the side a bit. "I'll tell you about it later." Which, as she speaks, has her taking the CD and setting in on the counter behind her, even as she moves to the coffee table, pulling up a piece of paper and a pen, and begins writing sometthing down. "Thanks, by the way," she says as she looks back to Melissa with a smile. "I'll have t' get a ukelele an' learn t' play it for you, so you always feel like you're in Hawaii!" A look is given over to Perry, and she laughs. A kind of hollow laugh, having it confirmed for her that Junko's mother is dead. A sad fact to learn, even if she'd already figured it so.
The note is finished quickly, and handed over to Melissa, reading "Don't read aloud. Nadira with Griffin, with teh Ferry. Magnes mentioned knowing Ferry people on TV, worried about being listened to."
Junie gives a smile to Perry, waving tiny fists around before one closes on his finger, gripping tightly. The exchange has Melissa beaming like, well, a proud mama. "Sorry, all I know is aloha. And I'm still working on learning Mandarin, so no hope of teaching me something new right now. And I've actually used Mandarin. When would I use Hawaiian?"
But then Quinn is mentioning ukeleles and she's grinning brightly, not immediately reading the note. "Funny you should mention that…" And out comes a ukelele, which is offered towards the musician. Only then does she pick up the note, jaw tightening as she reads it, then shows it to Perry.
Perry reaches out to take the note in two fingers, his brow gently furrowed in expectation. He flicks the paper open, reads, then dips his head in tacit understanding. He crumples the note up and deposits in his pocket. "Thank you for the- uh- hospitality. To- uh- to all of us." He smiles at the ukelele's appearance. He was there when it was bought. Nice to see it's bound for such a fine home.
"Well, if you need to work on your Mandarin, Melissa… I've got plenty of practice with it. You'll never find a more eager teacher, either." Elaine points out with a happy grin. "And the useful thing about knowing a language not a lot of other people know is just that… not a lot of other people know it. It has uses."
"She likes t' spy," Quinn offers with a grin as she takes the ukelele, looking down at it with a smile. "Holy shit, Melissa! This is fantastic, thank you! God, I have too many instruments t' learn how t' play now. I've only been able t' spend a bit a' time with the harp Elaine got me." Her smile widens, and she strums to. "Paul McCartney loves this, you know!" she adds, before looking to Perry. "No problem at all. You or Melissa can feel free t' come by any time you want. An' Melissa, she's right. She's been helping me expand my Gaelic beyond what I learned in school back home."
"Point," Melissa allows with a nod to Elaine. "And I'd appreciate my help. I've got that Rosetta Stone thing, but haven't had anyone to speak it with in a while." Then she's beaming at Quinn. "I thought you might like it. But I'm not done yet!" She reaches into another bag, pulling out two leis, offering one to each of them. "And…" More rummaging, and a brown box is offered to Elaine. Inside is a hand-crafted wooden tiki. Quinn gets a brown box as well, but hers has one of those dashboard Hula girls in it.
"Hawaii brought to you," Perry says, gesturing at the gifts, "and no- uh- no long plane ride. For you at least." Humor? Yes? He's trying his best. He glances at Quinn as she strums the instrument. "Do- uh- do you know anything to play on it?" he inquires, "give- uh- give it a test spin. E- uh- evoke the ocean breeze."
"Good. Practice on your own with the program and anytime I see you I'll try to say something or another to you in Mandarin." Elaine blinks, however, as more presents are brought out. She grins at the tiki, as well as the lei. "I would make some bad joke about getting lei'd, but…" She's not feeling much in the spirit of that joke.
"You could always use Hawaiian when you go back,"Quinn offers with a grin, loking up at Melissa. Standing up and holding the ukelele close, Quinn's head tilts. "I've never actually played one before, but I can try an' wing it as best as I can. Yeah, I think I'll do that…" The lei is disregarded. Like Elaine, she's not much in the mood for jokes. "I don't have a car," the Irishwoman notes as she looks at the hula girls, "but those are adorable and I fill find somewhere for them. I love it all, thank you so much Melissa."
An then she awkwardly positions her fingers across small strings and frets, mostly trying to play what guitar cords as best as she can fit, and otherwise just winging it. When she plays, it doesn't sound terrible, but it's certinaly not evoking any ocean breezes.
The lei'd joke has Melissa grinning impishly. "I got lei'd. So did Perry." And she gives Perry a look before she settles in lightly against him, Junie settled on her lap, bouncing lightly and occasionally getting tickled by the pain manipulator. "And that sounds great, Elaine. I'm sorta comfortable with it, but not fluent. I can make myself understand and understand some of what I hear, but that's it."
She smiles at Quinn. "Who cares if you've got a car? I just saw it and thought of you. Glad you like it though. I tried to get the best presents I could, though I've got some of the cheapy gifts too. Magnets, keychains…and shot glasses, of course. " And when Quinn starts to play, her head tilts, resting against Perry's shoulder while she listens.
Perry tries very very hard and with some small success to suppress a flush. Please, Melissa, the lad needs to take baby steps! A stoic background sticks around. He listens to the music Quinn plays, his expression intent in a way he wants to convey attention. It's a silly overextension of courtesy, but meant with the best of intentions.
"Well, some of us aren't so lucky," Elaine smiles, grimly, looking down at the lei for a moment before examining the tiki. She listens to Quinn, glancing back towards Melissa. "That's thoughtful, bringing back little souvenirs for people."
"They are really nice,' Quinn repeats, looking from Melissa to Elaine. "Can I get either a' you guys somethin' t' drink?" And with that, the ukelele is set aside as Quinn starts off towards the kitchen.
Melissa's smile shifts to Elaine. "I like giving presents to people. And you two totally deserved some anyway, for watching Junie so I could go in the first place. I really needed that vacation. It did me a hell of a lot of good." She does seem happier than the two have seen her in forever. If ever. "I'll take a coke, Quinn, thanks. And I think…Auntie Elaine needs some Junie lovings," she says, rising and moving over to Elaine, plopping the baby down in her lap.
"G- uh- ginger ale, if you have it," Perry requests, sounding almost hesitant. Not about the drink itself - that he wants - but about asking for it. Elaine gets a curious glance. There is a subtext here, even he can tell, but not one he gets the sense he can ask about. "So- uh- do you happen to know how- uh- Melissa and I met?" he inquires of Quinn. He knows Quinn is 'in the know' about the Ferry, but that doesn't mean she knows about Melissa's other clandestine connections.
"I hope it's an exciting and romantic tale involving danger of some sort," Elaine says, offering a small smile as she wraps her arms about Junko and nuzzles her nose in against the baby's neck playfully. "You two make a cute couple, by the way."
"Can't say she did," Quinn replies with a laugh. "No ginger ale, sorry. Sprite, bottle water, Coke, and milk. Oh, and Junko's bottle." Which is pulled out and set on the counter, still full of formula, for Melissa to take. A bottles opener is taken out, and four Cokes are opened, one for each of them. "Junko wanted some earlier. I told her no, she's a girl and caffine'll make her burp."
"Well, there was danger anyway. No romance though, not until Hawaii. Which is why I'm so happy now that you guys kept Junie for me," Melissa explains, moving back to sit down next to Perry. "And good! No burping for my adorable little gothy girl. She needs to learn to mope and dance, not burp!"
"A- uh- a story for another time," Perry says, smiling pleasantly enough, as if tricking cameras, though it's only bugs they're worried about. "Assuming you're- uh- interested." Assuming you want to know that kind of thing. "And- uh- Sprite then, I guess?" Trying to imagine if it will hit the spot or not.
"I don't mind hearing sometime. Though… I'm excited to hear you had such a nice trip. I bet Hawaii was romantic. Never gone to some exotic land with someone and had an experience like that…" Elaine says, perhaps a little dreamily. Really, it's mostly distracting her from vacations she had recently. Someone else's happy moments are nice.
"Oh! Well, no worries. Two drinks for me, then." One of the bottled cokes is set on teh counter, Quinn reching back into the fridge for a canned Sprite, grinning as she tosses it Perr's way. "I'd let that sit a second!" she warns with a bit of a laugh, before looking between him and Melissa, offering a drink to her, and then over towards Elanie. "Torid love affairs I don't need teh details of aside," Quinn asserts, leanign with her back against the sid eof the counter facing the commong toom, "I think I'd love t' hear that story someday."
The smile Melissa gets is a bit dopey, but she nods. "It was romantic. I didn't think I'd ever have a vacation like that, and I might never again, but it was totally worth it. Crossed a bunch of stuff off my bucket list too. Even got Perry to jump off a cliff! Okay, so a waterfall, but it was still cliff-like." She laughs and looks at Quinn. "Well the meeting wasn't a torrid love affair. But someday I'll tell you. And someday I'll tell you all the fun stuff we did while we were gone."
And someday seems to be tonight, at least partially. In the hour that follows some of their fun on the island is mentioned, such as wandering through caves and swimming with dolphins. All told by a bright, cheery Mel who's much different than the one Quinn spoke to just days before she left.
When it gets too close to curfew though, the new couple does take their leave, gathering up all of Junie's things and leaving behind the presents. Mel isn't in too much of a rush though, letting the babysitters say their goodbyes to the baby they've gotten to attached to, but in the end she does take the little girl. With promises of plenty of babysitting in the future.