A Gift for Anyone Who Asks - 5/11

[true_noir]

Chloe Bouchard shared a photo. 5/11 near Enchanted Blossoms, Tisse

Now that everything is back to normal, Retrospec has seen fit to send me a little gift, a pocketwatch that doesn't work. How very nice of them. Well, I have a gift for any of you who see this and want to stop by Enchanted Blossoms in the next week, anytime from about 9 to 5 during the week. Don't bother asking what it is before you come by, it's a surprise, no?

(OOC: Action tags are invited, and if you'd prefer to handwave stopping by, feel free to do so. Chloe's gift is a plastic version of a decoder ring that she ordered in bulk. She'll have enough to give anyone that stops by one of them and tell them how to use it, suggesting that people use them to code messages on paper notes to each other that they don't want Retrospec to see.)

Comments

[divine_braid]

Donald Maxwell Gift? Like what?

[true_noir]

Chloe Bouchard It's nothing too special, just something I got when I was thinking of everyone on the app.
Chloe Bouchard I think you'd like it, but it would ruin the surprise to tell.
Chloe Bouchard But it's small, could fit in your pocket.

[divine_braid]

Duo Maxwell Sounds intriguing. Enchanted Blossoms, right? I'll head down. I go past there pretty often delivering pizzas.

[true_noir]

Chloe Bouchard That should be perfect.
Chloe Bouchard Donald, was it? I will keep an eye out for you when you arrive.
Chloe Bouchard You are looking for the girl with purple hair.

[divine_braid]

Donald Maxwell Yup. That's me.
Donald Maxwell I'm on shift for the next few nights, and we've got a regular in your area.
Donald Maxwell I'll probably have a delivery through there soon.
Donald Maxwell See you then.

=====

[And, sure enough, the next night, he was dropping by the shop.]

Hi... I'm looking for Chloe?

[true_noir]

[She was at the front desk when he came by and smiled over at him, holding up a finger. When the customer she was helping was finished, she glanced around to make sure there was nothing else that needed tending before turning to him.]

Yes, I am Chloe. You are... Donald, yes? I recognize you from your user id. Pity about what that does to our private lives sometimes, no?

[divine_braid]

Yeah. Those weird stalker-esque type pictures of us from the back were pretty weird. Unsettling.

[He frowned.]

Downright creepy. I mean, social media is one thing, but I feel like particular app is just... yeah.

[Too weird.]

[true_noir]

It's a disturbing and dangerous thing that's been crammed into our lives, yes. Ah, but that brings us to the gift, does it not?

[She reached into her pocket and drew out a decoder ring, offering it to him with an almost impish smile. It's plastic, so definitely want to be a little gentle with it, but it works.]

A decoder ring. Jim did say we were doing a poor job of making secret groups, so why not attempt something a bit more real? It was the only good advice he's ever given us. You can use it to send and receive a coded message, say perhaps with physical notes so that they're not on your phone.

[divine_braid]

[Duo tilted his head a little and rotated the small ring in his hand a few times.]

Heh. That's cool, though. I mean, especially if they're definitely calling us on stuff. This particular app is just weird about stuff. At least the other ones aren't as in your face about spying on your shit.

[He grinned.]

Thanks!

[true_noir]

You're quite welcome. I'm hoping that things like this help us plan, without them knowing what we're up to. As you said, they're very... invasive at the best of occasions. And sometimes, it is just to the point of insanity, isn't it?

[She let him fiddle with it a little before nodding at it.]

You know how to use it, yes?

[divine_braid]

Oh, definitely.

Did you get sent a creepy stalker pic from behind, too?

[He nodded, rotating it to a setting.]

Yup. It's pretty simple, actually. And definitely awesome. Funny how you can fight high tech with low tech so easily.

[true_noir]

A few, but I was more upset to see that my friends had gotten them. They've already hidden things in my house, so it was... less surprising than I would have liked. [A frown.]

Sometimes, low tech is the best tool you have. What was it, but a sling that took down a giant once?

[divine_braid]

I've had some weird stuff happen, but nothing major, yet. Guess I've been lucky.

[He shrugged a little, and then nodded.]

I wouldn't consider a giant high tech, but I get the analogy. [He chuckled.]

What kind of story is that?

[true_noir]

You've been fortunate, but you're not the only one. It can be difficult to predict what's going to happen, from what I've seen. [She smiled.] Oh, and it's a biblical story, though Jack and the Bean Stalk was a little bit similar in its own way.

[divine_braid]

A biblical story, huh?

[Thus seemed to intrigue Duo a lot.]

I know Jack and the Beanstalk. What's the biblical one?

[true_noir]

David and Goliath? David was a young shepherd before he became a king, and by the power of his faith, he defeated a giant named Goliath with a slingshot when all of his fellows had lost their courage. [She smiled a little. She didn't actually get to tell religious stories very often, but David and Goliath was kind of a fun one to share.]

I believe that they have done it as a Veggie Tale if you wish to laugh at the oddity of it.

[divine_braid]

[Duo quirked an eyebrow.]

Those Veggies really get around, huh?

[He laughed a little.]

Are you a religious scholar or something?

[true_noir]

[She laughed right back. David and Goliath was just regular Catholic kid's stuff, so she was a bit surprised.]

No, no, it was just a favorite story when I was growing up. I think many Christians know it, though I'm sure not all.

[divine_braid]

Do you know a lot of other biblical stories? Or just that one?

[true_noir]

I know a few of the most well known ones, but I've never actually read the whole bible. People say you should, but I always get bogged down in Leviticus. It's really boring.

[Not to mention uncomfortable for women in her opinion. Oh, right, and the whole 'I'm gay' thing.]

[divine_braid]

I'll keep that in mind if I decide to give it a try.

[He shrugged.]

Though, I'm curious. Do you actually believe any of it?

[true_noir]

Some of it. I'm not quite so simple as to just take it all at face value. I am catholic, but I think of myself as still searching for something, a little. Still, it's what my mother raised me with.

[divine_braid]

[Duo smirked a little, almost chuckling.]

Have you ever considered the God of Death?

[He had no idea where that came from. He frowned a bit suddenly. Talking about the Bible, and Catholicism, and belief, and... images passed through his mind for a second. That had definitely been him as a kid, but... he didn't remember any of that ever having happened.

He put a hand up to his forehead.]

Woah... What the hell?

[true_noir]

Surely you jest. I don't need to worship Hades or the like.

[She giggled a little, some of her classical education coming out there before she noticed that he was briefly discomforted. That caused her to lean in closer and reach a hand for his forehead as her head cocked.]

Is everything quite alright, Donald?

[divine_braid]

Uh... yeah. I think?

[He frowned a bit.]

You know how people are talking about seeing memories they don't actually remember?

I think I just had one of those moments...