Participants:
| Scene Title | To Catch A Predator |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Mallory makes an unlikely friend, Adam recruits Lita for the Evil League of Evil, and Amy scores a free iPod. |
| Date | April 27, 2009 |
The central branch of the Brooklyn Public Library was designed to resemble an open book, two wings stretching out along the bordering streets, with the main entrance located at their hinge. Inside is the heart of one of the nation's largest public library systems; the Central Library alone contains over 1.5 million books, magazines, and other materials. It also contains the Brooklyn Collection, an assortment of references and ephemera that chronicle the history of the borough, and a Multilingual Center for non-English speakers and linguistic scholars. A cafe on the first floor sells coffee and snacks, while a restaurant on the third floor (open weekdays only) sells cafeteria-style meals. Internet access is freely available throughout the building.
Early afternoon, and the streets are bustling. But this is New York, the streets are always busy. Heavy, grey clouds skitter across the sky, breaking up what blue sky shows between the towering buildings, blotting out the sun, and generally threatening to open up on the city below. Because more rain is exactly what this city needs.
Outside the public library central branch, a little punk girl sits on the ground, knees drawn up, back pressed against the front of the building. She has an old polaroid camera in one hand and a Camel Wide in the other, taking photos of people passing her on the sidewalk and occasionally blowing puffs of smoke at them, ineffectually, when they take offense at her photography. One man, in particular, takes special exception to having his picture taken without permission.
"Hey, you wanna ask first, bitch?" He takes a step towards her, halting his progress towards whatever destination he was headed. Lita responds by flipping him off and raising her camera to take another photo, this time of a bag lady.
"Hey, cunt, I'm fuckin' talkin' to you," he persists, stalking towards her now.
Mallory emerges from the library, squinting at the sudden abrasiveness of the outdoors. She likes computers. Outside is icky. Shouldering her battered backpack, she wrinkles her nose at the asshat harrassing Lita. "Fuck off," she offers. It's not her business, but it's a good reason to swear.
In the act of rising to her feet as the other young girl pitches her two cents into the little confrontation, Lita smirks. "You heard the girl, dicksmear. Get lost." She takes one last drag from the smouldering butt of her cigarette, then flicks it at the man's feet. His face had begun to redden in anger before Mallory came into it, and now he's positively apoplectic. Some people just have issues.
"You got a fuckin' problem you little shit?" he demands, towering over Lita. He's close enough to be nose to nose with her, except for the fact that he's almost a whole foot taller than she is. "I oughta knock that attitude right outta you, bitch."
"Yeah, I got a problem," Lita yells back at the man, apparently unafraid of his much much larger stature as she straightens her posture to gain as much height as she can. "I think your ugly shit face is gonna break my damn camera. Last fuckin' time I take your damn photo. Seriously, dude, they got medication for that shit now." She adjusts the strap of her shoulder bag and thumbs her nose, defiant. David and Goliath.
Mallory scowls back at the man, shoving her messy hair out of her eyes and reaching into her bag to produce a cell phone; she flips it open and points the camera at the guy. "You do that, I'm recording it," she calls toward the cranky guy. "You don't want to be the next naked wizard, do you?"
"Oh, you fuckin'—" the man starts, raising a hand as if to strike Lita, but he hesitates when Mallory produces a camera and warns him of its presence. "Maybe I oughta start with you," he threatens, turning to her. "What the fuck business is it of yours, anyway, huh? Fuck off, you little shit."
And it's this lack of focus that is his undoing. While he's looking away from her, thoroughly distracted for just a moment, Lita takes it upon herself to scream "Rape!" as loud as she can. This is followed by a swift knee to his groin, and as he crumples forwards, she pushes him away and takes off running. "C'mon!" she demands of Mallory, as she grabs the girl's wrist and drags her along whether or not she wants to go along, a wicked smile blooming on her lips.
"Yeah, this is recording alr—-" Mallory snits back at the man, but then there is kicking. And that startles her enough that she goes still, lurching into motion only when Lita grabs her wrist, sneakers slapping against the pavement and messy hair streaming behind her. It's a few moments before she gets it together enough to protest, "Hey!"
Adam ambles along the pavement heading towards the library. His hands are in his trouser pockets in a rather casual and relaxed manner. He appears to be on the lookout for something or someone. And then, he hears about a rape happening. He looks up with an arched brow and then sees two teen girls running, including the one he's looking for. He lets out a sigh and walks along to the entrance to follow them in.
Lita drags Mallory at a sort of stumbling run through the front doors of the library, and in far enough that they're in easy view of plenty of witnesses before she stops and releases the other girl, giggling maliciously. "Oh man, did you see his face? He was totally about to try and deck me right there in the middle of the sidewalk. Your timing is fuckin' awesome." She takes a moment to stuff her camera into the shoulder bag, making sure the buckles are secure, then adjusts the strap across her shoulder again. "I figured it would take longer for someone to make a scene, shit. I been out there for almost an hour."
Mallory examines her phone, pressing a few buttons and looking at the viewscreen instead of Lita; she flaps her arm as it's being let go of. "I think I have it. His face." Now she glances over, raising a dubious eyebrow for some reason or another.
Adam steps into the library, completely bypassing any of the manic happenings on the sidewalk in front. Once he discovers the two girls giggling or what not indoors, he pauses. He reaches up and rubs his chin for a moment before he walks forward and says, to Lita, "Ms. Waynright?"
When the phone is produced, Lita walks around beside Mallory to peer at the screen in hopes of seeing what evidence of the little scuffle was captured. However, when her last name is spoken, she snaps around to glare at Adam, her posture clearly describing that she's ready to run at a moment's notice. She scowls at Adam, studying him for a moment under furrowed brows.
"I don't know any fuckin' Ms. Waynright. Who the fuck are you and what the fuck do you want?" Apparently someone has pushed the wrong button.
Mallory blinks over at Adam, then back at Lita. "Do you always get this much attention? Maybe it's the pants." She thumbs some buttons on the phone, turning the camera on Adam. "I hope this isn't another episode of Pedophiles Are Us."
Seated rather unsuspiciously at a table, by her lonesome, Amy scribbles patiently in a notebook. She seems very much absorbed with whatever it is she is writing, although she does look up from the book to glance around every so often, either due to piqued curiosity or being alarmed by sounds. This time, she does look up, her gaze falling upon Adam, Lita and Mallory, since they are causing a bit of a scene for someone that might be sensitive to such. By the notebook she has a half-empty glass of water, which she moves her hand to after setting down her pen.
Adam glances sidelong at Mallory, then ignores her, turning to Lita, "Alright then. If you would like to be called something else, then just tell me." he pauses, "I need people of morally grey character and a penchant for violence. Your name came up, so I came along to attempt to hire you."
The pitch makes Lita raise an eyebrow, taken entirely by surprise and unsure how to react. She glances around the cafe, perhaps to see if anyone else is listening, perhaps to plot a possible escape route, and once again adjusts the strap of her bag. "You gotta call me somethin', you call me Lita. And I dunno what the christ you're on about. If you're a Fed or someshit, you can just turn the fuck around right now 'cause I ain't down with that noise. I thought y'all had Marines for shit like that."
Mallory keeps holding her camera phone up. "Just say no to specialty porn films," she advises Lita with a sidelong tilt of her head. "What the fuck, guy?"
Adam lets out a bit of a sigh, "Would you rather the indirect route? Where I try and proposition you alone while you and your companion snarkily go on about old men and young girls?" he shakes his head, "I don't work for any government. If I did, I don't think I'd be much of a recruiter, rather more of a capturer. I'm here because someone recommended you. I'm starting to feel that perhaps they were mistaken in their assessment." he pauses, glancing at Mallory, "If you're uncomfortable because your girlfriend is here, we can go elsewhere, but I was under the impression you preferred to skip the small talk."
Amy might be looking on at the group a little longer than she should be, an eyebrow being raised to show her curiosity, although what she can hear is at best small snippets of conversation as she is not all too closely seated to the group. She does seem to catch herself and soon averts her gaze, once again writing in her notebook, even though she tries to listen in on the conversation as best as she can from where she sits, without looking that way.
"Recomm- Who the f-" Okay, this is getting kinda weird. "You been stalking me, dude? What the hell do you know about me?" She straightens up a bit, looking less like she's about to make a break for the door, but no less tense, arms folded under her very modest bosom. "And maybe I'd be a little less antagonistic if you weren't so fuckin' cryptic. This ain't the fuckin' Lord of the Rings, you don't have to keep your hood up and speak in riddles. Dig? So you tell me what you want with me, and I'll tell you whether or not you should go get fucked."
Mallory backs away a few steps; she shakes her head. "Don't go with the strange man. Even if he has candy."
Adam tilts his head curiously at Lita for a few moments. He glances at Mallory, apparently her presence doesn't bother Lita, so why should it bother him? He turns to Lita, "I need an enforcer. Someone who would be willing to steal and hurt other people for me." he pauses at Mallory's words, "I suppose if you have this side business your girlfriend keeps referring to, you can keep it, but I'm sure I pay better than porn directors."
Too wary to approach the group and too curious to just ignore them, Amy is stuck with trying to listen in on the scant few words she is able to overhear. As she is way too focused on that to write properly, she once more sets her pencil down and takes a few sips of water, apparently enjoying the drink. Before long, however, she stands up and heads over to the counter itself, her steps being perhaps a little swifter than normal. Once there, she orders one of the snacks on the menu and begins searching her pocket while the clerk takes out said snack. Soon enough, Amy does produce a wallet and promptly pays.
It's a somewhat uncomfortable coincidence that Mallory and Adam have latched onto this running porn joke, given the ways that Lita does occasionally make money when she feels the need. She considers Adam's offer for a long moment, chewing her lip and still watching him warily through narrowed eyes. "How about this. You buy me and my 'girlfriend' lunch, and I'll listen to what you got to say, 'cause I'm gonna need more information than that before I make a decision. I ain't some thug for hire, and I don't kneel to The Man, so there's gotta be some kinda cause here you're workin' towards. Aight? And I don't have directors," she adds as an afterthought. "I'm self-employed."
Mallory raises her eyebrows, closing her phone up and tucking it back in her bag. "Usually when people imply I'm a lesbian I don't get lunch out of it." She's still tense; it's in the way she's holding herself and also the baleful glances she's giving Adam.
Adam looks between the two girls for some moments. He shrugs, "Lunch, fine." he pauses, "Here? Or are you taking me elsewhere?" he questions. He gives a half glance to Amy, but she doesn't appear to merit any special consideration yet.
Amy returns with her snack, seating herself back in her previous position. She takes a bite or two, and then looks bashfully at the glass of water, a hand moving to cover it from view. She leans her head onto her other hand, a finger gently lulling to and from near her cheek, while her gaze remains on the glass, only occasionally moving to the group.
The little punkster jerks a thumb over her shoulder towards the door to the street, expression even. "Burger joint around the corner. I feel a need to feast on the flesh of the fallen." Without waiting for an answer from the mysterious stranger, she turns and heads for the door, waving for Mallory to follow her. "Come along, Patsy. Adventure awaits."
"…Patsy?" Mallory echoes, scowling darkly. "I don't think so. I'm in it for the lunch." Also to not leave the other girl alone with the strange guy!
Adam rolls his eyes as he glances at the ceiling. Who knew world domination required dealing with teenage girls. He shakes his head a moment but follows the other two girls out to their 'burger joint'.
Curiosity be damned, Amy finishes her glass of water and the snack, and waits a little, glancing at the group. She does notice something interesting hanging around Mallory's neck; an iPod of some version or another. Her eyes light up a little, while she pockets her pencil and grabs her notebook with her left hand. She, too, begins heading towards the door, hoping to perhaps see an opening in Mallory's - as well as the entire group's - mannerisms. Either that, or it appears she's leaving the library without any spoils to speak of, except a somewhat more full stomach.
Out the door, Lita leads Mallory and Adam, down to the end of the block, across the street and just a few doors past the corner. It's here that there's a restaurant which turns out to be considerably more than what the title of "burger joint" would summon to mind, more of a steak house. "They got the best damn burgers here," she assures, smiling. She plans to milk this guy for whatever he's got if he really wants her to be his… what'd he say, enforcer? Sounds like some kinda mobster thing.
Mallory's eyebrows go up; she looks from Lita to Adam and back, shaking her head a little to murmur something to the other girl. Real quiet-likes. "Maybe we should just, you know… go. Instead of milking this. He could get pissed off."
Adam travels along, more annoyed at the whole affair than whether he'll be paying for burgers or steaks. He keeps his hands in his pockets and just follows along.
Amy finds herself out of the door soon enough herself, her eyes focused on the other group. Getting an idea, she shouts, loud enough for the group to hear her properly. "Excuse me, you dropped something!" With that, she begins jogging up to the group, holding her notebook to her chest as if it might be whatever item any of the three could have dropped.
"Pff, we've got him outnumbered," Lita whispers to Mallory as she makes for the door of the restaurant. "What's he gonna do, leave?" Big deal. She opens the door and motions for her compatriots to enter ahead of her, then looks up at the girl that calls out to them from down the sidewalk. Fairly certain she didn't drop anything, she puts a hand into her bag just to double-check that her camera is still safe. Assured that it's right where she put it, she shrugs. Nothing else she carries with her is all that important.
Mallory blinks at Amy, unshouldering her bag and squinting at the item in Amy's hands. "No, that's not…" she starts to say before frowning and digging around in her bag. Lita's shot a baleful look all for herself. "Yeah, I think I'm tapping out now."
Adam frowns a moment at the call. He reaches in his jacket and around to make sure of his possessions. Wallet, check. Taser, check. Knife, check. Gun, check. Water Pistol, check. He shrugs, not his stuff. He crosses his arms and leans against the entrance of the restaurant as he waits for Amy to reveal what it was that was lost.
Amy stops in front of Mallory, very close in fact, and holds the notebook in front of the other girl without really offering it to her. "Are you sure?" she asks, her voice just a little strained, as if she was a little stressed over something or another. The hesitation only lasts a moment, though, as she does not even give Mallory a chance to answer her. Instead, she just swiftly dives forward, trying to grab the iPod and whatever it might be hanging on to Mallory with and, if at all successful, trying to swipe it from her even if that means having to pull the thing over Mallory's head, reaching high up to do so. Well, she has to give it a try, doesn't she?
Mallory is a computer geek. She has poor reflexes unless she's prepared via game loading screens. The iPod is yanked, which makes her stagger forward; the cord snaps and Amy can pull it off the other girl. The headphones snag, though, being slung around the back of her neck by the band. "HEY!"
Adam could have done tons of things there. Grabbed Amy's wrist. Tripped her. Tackled her. Some other stuff that's like from an action movie, but apparently he is disdainful of Lita's girlfriend and just stands there, "Damn shame." he says, "Damn shame. I could help, but, I'm sure you wouldn't be interested from a specialty pron director."
Victory, it seems, is within Amy's grasp! Amy hastily pulls the iPod with her, ignoring headphones and cord as she holds both her notebook and now also the stolen loot. Pale-faced and obviously frightened, she turns and begins trying to run, as fast as her legs will take her. While no athlete, Amy is definitely not a slow runner either.
Mallory grasps her headphones and straightens up, glaring daggers at Amy's back. "Shut the fuck up," she tells Adam. And from there she hikes her backpack back on and goes tearing after Amy with all her gym class cutting speed. Which is to say, not much.
Adam watches the exchange go on and shakes his head again, "Damn shame." he says, "The crime in this city. But, seeing as Mallory didn't ask for his help, he sees no reason to help her. Instead, he just waits for them to disappear before waiting to join Lita.
Amy is, however, apparently faster than Mallory. Before long, the girl is out of sight, safely away with the spoils of war. Of course, now she only needs to find someone to sell it to and she'll be all set, one might believe. That will secure her food for a few days! She snickers to herself, although, her face is still pale, and her smile does turn to a slight frown soon enough. Ah well. Away she goes!
Adam follows Lita into the restaurant. He informs her, "Your girlfriend had to go. Apparently she had words with the other girl, so it's just you and me." he steps up towards the hostess or what not, "Table for two please." and waits to be seated.
Lita casts a glance over her shoulder, back towards the door, then shrugs. If they weren't in such a public place, she might be worried about Adam having done something untoward to the girl, but surely he wouldn't have tried anythign right out on the street like that. Guess she's missing out on the free lunch, then. "She's not my girlfriend, for the record," she offers as they follow the waitress to an open table. It's not exactly peak hours right now, so they've got plenty of room. "I don't even know her name."
Upon reaching the table, she sits, orders a coke, and doesn't even bother to look at the menu. Apparently she already knows what she wants, but she'll give Mysterio here a chance to make a decision. "So what kind of operation are you running?"
Adam shrugs one shoulder and says, "That makes two of fus." he sits down at the table and leans back. He just orders a water, apparently not so much interested in lunch. He studies the girl across from him for a few moments and he says, "Well." he says, "I'm not sure what you could call my operation. I don't suppose you've heard of the Company. This would make things much easier."
"Which company?" That answers that question. "There are a hell of a lot of them out there. Think you could be a little more specific?" The waitress returns with their respective beverages only a short moment later, and asks if they're ready to order. Lita gestures defferentially at Adam, raising a brow in querry. "You know what you want, old chap? The fish and chips are smashing."
Adam twirls a finger at the waitress, indicating he won't be ordering anything, but allows Lita to do her whole lunch thing. He leans back and lays a hand on the chair. Once the waitress is gone and he mms, "Let's suppose there is an organization. An organization backed by the government who's entire purpose is to monitor and control Evolved. They bag them, tag them, kill them or imprison them as they see fit." he pauses, "My goal is to destroy it. And all related pieces. As you can imagine, it's a big job, hence why I'm hiring people."
When Adam indicates that he's not going to order, Lita goes right into hers. What she orders is a double-decker burger, rare, with steak sauce, bacon, two kinds of cheese, onion rings, and jalapenos, with chili cheese fries on the side. Being essentially homeless, you learn to eat as much as you can when you get the opportunity, because it could be a while before it happens again. Fortunately, she's gotten very good at looking out for herself, so starving isn't such a dire threat any more, but old habits die hard.
"Oh, shit, dude. Why didn't you say so before? Christ, stickin' it to the Man is what I do best. You wanna pay me to do that shit, fuck yeah, I'm your girl." She pauses to sip her coke. "So what exactly are you up against with these guys? Like, spooks and shit? Secret agents, armed soldiers, bunch'a nerds in labcoats? And how much you willin' to pay?"
Adam considers this question as to what he's up against it. He frowns and nods, "Yes," to all, apparently, "And more. An organization founded by old, powerful and influential men and women who pull the strings. And I have to take it apart piece by piece. So…the enemies are broad." he says, "And the mission important. As far as how much I'll pay. I'll pay well." I wouldn't know how to put it in IC monetary figures, but, "I'll get you an apartment and a stipend. I'll keep you comfortable." he says.
"Okay, so, not that I'm not flattered by this whole thing, but lemme see if I've got this straight." Lita leans back in her seat, laying both arms along the top of the booth. "You're going up against a secret government organization full of people with power and influence and money, that is strong enough to drag in a bunch of superpowered freaks against their will, and you want to hire a teenage girl with a can of spraypaint and a chip on her shoulder? Where's the logic in that, man? Sure, I'm all for blowin' up government installations and shit, but I'm just some punk. So why me?"
Adam tilts his head towards one side, "Well, not that I have any proof of it, but I believe you're Evolved. You likely wouldn't have shown up on my list if you weren't. Second.." he pauses, "You can't imagine you're the only person I've hired. Let's say I've put together a rather significant force, of which, I want you to be one…" he considers, "Now, some are more situational. One reason I like your prospects is because I think you would be willing to be in for the long term."
The girl's eyes narrow and she goes still for a moment. "You sure know a lot that you ought not to know. Where the fuck do you get all this information from?" She takes a moment to mentally go over a list of anyone that might possibly know who she is, what she is, and where to find her, and doesn't come up with much of anyone. So how the hell does this weirdo know so much?
"Long term, eh? What makes you say that, Mysterio? Maybe you know somethin' I don't? Shit, I ain't even in life for the long haul. I've only made it this far through sheer dumb luck."
Adam shrugs his shoulders, "Because you're broke. And because you like the idea of taking down a powerful organization." his head tilts to the side lightly, "And I suppose, you might be all 'live fast and leave a good corpse' would you rather die starving on the sidewalk or changing the world?"
Lita draws a deep breath, seeming like she's about to counterpoint his argument, but instead just shrugs and lets it out. "You've got a good point. A lot of 'em, actually. The whole extremist rebelion gig does sound pretty sweet. So I guess that means I'm in." She lifts herself up out of her seat enough to peer over the tops of the booths, looking for the approach of their waitress, and is vastly disappointed when she can't find her just yet. "Bitch best be bringin' my burger soon," she mutters.
Adam nods a bit and smiles, "Good." he says, "I'm glad you're aboard. I'll contact you soon. First we go to Japan." he pauses, "But I'm not really hungry, so I'll have to leave you to your own devices." he takes out a hundred dollar bill and lays it on the table, "I'm sure this will cover things. We'll get you set up soon."