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Summary: When Insanity meets slightly more sane but no less creative. Blythe gets a great idea in her head from Kevin, that cartoon bandaids are the best decoration for scars and cuts new and old.
Date: May 15, 2009
TMNT Bandaids
Rating: PG.
Central Park Zoo
Another day, another injury, another hangover and another box of popcorn. Such is the life of Blythe. The woman stands against the glass of the Otter tank as though she were watching the otters swim dive and dip through the water. There is only one problem with this; she can't actually see through the solid surface of the glass. Nose and forehead pressed against the glass, the woman shoves a handful of popcorn in her mouth and munches away.
Pretending to be a free puppy didn't work out quite how Kevin planned. He has come to grips with being homeless and jobless now, though, and has found other ways to occupy his time. Ways,like sneaking into the zoo and pretending he's just another tourist that's paid his time to be here. Things have gotten warmer so he's appropriately appearing to wear a maroon t-shirt and bluejeans with sneakers. He rubs his chin thoughtfully while staring at the otters, looking quite serious in his observation.
"Otter otter, do you want some popcorn… I think you doo," the woman states. She drums her fingers on the 5 inch thick tank glass and smiles. After a moment the woman straightens up and lets out a sigh. She reaches up to sweep her blue hued hair out of her face.
It is very warm today, a fact which Blythe is thankful for, and takes full advantage of. The odd woman wears a halter top in plain black and a pair of leather motorcycle pants that have seen better days. Her bare back makes clear that she has seen hard times. There are tons of scarred nicks and cuts peppering her arms and back and one really distinctly large scar across her right shoulder.
After a time Kevin finally breaks the silence of his thoughtfulness. "Archibald," he mutters and nods. "That's a good name for an Otter. Or Clam Nibbler. Doesn't quite have the distinguished ring, though." He then starts making authentic otter noises at the glass, attracting the attention of a few lazy swimmers and some random people passing by.
One such person is Blythe who seeing that the vibrations of his otter sound are completely accurate; watches the fellow curiously with the black holes she calls eyes.
"Archibald's, nice,” she says, “Clam nibbler sounds like some weird euphamism for something that a woman doesnt want a man to do."
Kevin stares doe-eyed at Blythe, initially taking in the obvious abnormality of her eyes. Then he smiles and wafts a hand like nothing's out of the ordinary here.
"Well I was thinking more along the lines of them literally being clam nibblers, but you know. Wherever your mind's at." He grins and returns his gaze to the otters' swimming patterns. "I tell ya, if I was an otter, though, Archibald would be my first pick for names. Or maybe…" He makes a short, low otter grumble. "I'm sure that sounds distinguished in their native tongue."
"Native… toungue…" the woman questions, cocking her head to the side and pondering. After a moment she holds out her bag of popcorn toward Kevin, "and I thought I was out there; popcorn?" Her knuckles are freshly scrapped and as of yet not scabbed over as though she were in a recent fist fight.
Kevin eyes the popcorn as if he has two flavors to choose from. "Don't mind if I do," he finally states and takes a few handfuls to his mouth. "So what's with all the miles of bad road on your skin," he asks casually despite having a mouth full of popcorn.
Blythe looks briefly confused, "'Kay, they're from this and that…. Maybe I should wear this shirt less; had someone ask me that last night, too. Are the scars that bad?" she asks because she's unable to tell on her own.
Kevin shrugs and reaches for another handful of popcorn. This time he takes the kernels one at a time and pops them in his mouth. "Eh, I've seen worse. But usually there's some sort've awesome story to go with decorations like that." He squints. "What are you, a pit fighter?"
The woman's lips twist in a grin, "When I feel like it." she says cryptically. "The short is that I had a runin with a plateglass window."
She steps closer so as not to be at full arms length from kevin any longer, and what seemed at distance to be a sudden change to the humidity of the day, and a chill from proximity to the otter tank becomes notably something else entirely. The air gets heavy, pressured breathing becoming more uncomfotable with the temperature dropping several more degrees in short order.
"Yeah, I guess that'd do it," Kevin comments before stuffing the rest of his popcorn into his mouth. This is actually the most he's eaten in a recent span of time, so he may very well finish off that bag of Blythe's. When the air changes around him, his eyebrows rise and fall seperately while he looks thoughtful about the situation. "Hmm. Must've been hungrier than I thought if I can feel it all over like that," he decides, then smiles at Blythe. "Well, guess I better go get some grub. I'll give ya a tip, though: Ninja Turtle Bandaids make everything look better. Even week-old scars."
"I like Raphael!" The woman smiles, making her look unnerving, "Lets go to a store you can help me find them!" she shoves the popcorn into his hands, "If you help me find them I can get you some kebabs, or something maybe so booze… on me!" Funny when one jobless homeless person doesnt know another. Aside of her pants and shoes shes very clean for a homeless woman.
She's way too excited about this idea to boot.
Kevin blinks rapidly but his smile spreads at the woman's offer. When you're hungry, you almost never refuse food no matter who's offering. "Why not! 'Food and Bandaids' sounds like a restaurant I'd eat at." He grins. "So what may I call she who has offered to fill my belly? Call me Syd."
"Syd, well… I'll allow you to call me Blythe." Her voice is enthusiastic, overly so. "This is nice, see; I ran into someone here yesterday who said the 'air didn't like me'. I had to throw my popcorn at him; it was a waste. He was an ass. Good to see someone giving be decorative suggestions. I like that!" She moves closer, snagging the man's hand as she speaks. Her proximity making breathing notably more difficult.
Kevin, however,doesn't actually seem to be having a problem with this. Normally, he doesn't even have a nose, and when his mouth is closed it's a complete mystery how he takes in oxygen. But with the air becoming colder and thicker while he travels with Blythe, the man does have to wonder.
"That's me, Mister Helpful," he comments as he lets himself be dragged along. "Don't suppose you feel that odd, sinking feeling that I do, do ya? Almost like some kid's prepping you to be pushed through a playdough shaping device?"
This explanation seems to have a profound effect on the blue-haired asian as she stops where she stands and doubles over in laughter.
"Holy way with words batman! I've never heard it put that way!" After a moment she composes herself, regrabs his hand and starts walking again without further explaination.
Kevin blinks a few times. "Never heard it put that way," he repeats curiously. "What exactly is the 'it' you're talking about?"
"I'm me, thats me. Its why Mr. Elemental spirit of the air said that the air hated me or some shit. I don't know, its confusing."
She can say that again. That reply doesn't explain much but the two quickly approach a delicious smelling kebab kart.
"Ohhhhh." Kevin nods slowly, mainly just to be polite. His jolly smile goes full bloom when the kebab cart comes into view. "You know, this is a completely random thing to say, but sometimes I wonder if the zoo doesn't dispose of their less agreeable animals via the kebab cart." He gives a shifty-eyed glance to the cart vendor.
Blythe says, "Well as long as its tastey, does it matter? I never know what the meat I'm eating looks like, anyways. Whatever you want,buddy."
Blythe folds her arms and gives the cart owner a look, which clearly makes the fellow uncomfortably."
Kevin leans on the cart and states, "The usual, Frank! On the lady's tab." The cart vendor gives him a look that clearly states not only is his name not Frank, but he's never seen Kevin before in his life. After batting his eyelashes cutely at the working man, the omnimorph finally makes an actual order. "One kebab, and whatever she wants."
Clearly this fellow is a gentleman after her own heart. "Just one, here, too. So two." The woman shuffles in her pocket and pulls out adequate funds. The fellow returns her her change.
Kevin takes both sticks and hands one out to Blythe while already beginning on his own. "Well, elephant or buffalo, this meat is tasty." He's already got his halfway finished before anymore conversation can go on.
Blythe starts in on hers, "Hungry much," she murmers between bites stepping away from the cart. "Where's this store with the turtle stuff."
Kevin looks around. "Well, we're kinda in the zoo right now, so I'm guessing they wouldn't sell Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle stuff here." He finishes off the kabob and drops the stick in a nearby trashcan. "We'll probably have to go to a dollar store or something."
"Then we'll go there. Unless you're not done at the zoo then we can stay here; but we need to go there after we stay here and I need you because people dont like to help me find things like that. You should see when I ask what color shirts and pants are, I get weird looks all the time."
Cue one of those wierd looks from Kevin right now. "… You mean you don't know what color stuff is?" He rubs his chin. "Color blind, I take it? I once knew a guy that was and still wanted to be a painter! How he stayed in business I'll never know, but he had a house-painting operation for five years."
"Well wouldnt work for me, I can't read labels either. Just one of those things; so promise me you will find me the turtle ones, because if someone comes to me and mocks me for having teddy bears on my bandaids, I will be very angry; teddy bears aren't badass." Blythe munches at her kebab some more. She seems to opperate well, but it also seems as though she doesn't have eyeballs so something is definately not right here.
Kevin rubs his chin thoughtfully. He seems to do that a lot. "I see… Which is more than I can say for you?" Insert rimshot. "Well I've got nothing better to do, so let's head in that direction, shall we? Maybe pick up some sweaters as well. It's been feelin' a bit frosty." He continues to babble on as he moves for the zoo exit.
