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 Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 5:21 pm
One impatient Gucci-knock off tapped loudly outside of the entrance of Best Buy as Ursula glanced down at her watch for the twentieth time in the five minute span she'd been standing there for. God, she already was missing her real Gucci shoes... ********, this had better be worth it.
After days of waiting, impatient phone calls, and one teleport mishap (like Nealite had wanted to run into a half-naked Audrey, seriously), Audrey had finally called to (begrudgingly) let Ursula know that enough money had been raised to afford her present for the General-King. Excited (and slightly nervous due to the fact Christmas was less than a week away), the older girl had forced an arranged meeting on the pinkette. Like hell she knew what kind of computer was most appropriate, and she wasn't about to blow the money earned by sacrificing shoes on the wrong thing. Therefore, it was only necessary that her Ebay helper also be her shopping assistant.
One hand dug into her purse, pulling out a sleek cell phone. She flipped open the top, staring at the clock on her phone, and her fingers toyed with the Contact list. If that little twit didn't show up soon, she was going to get yet another phone call from one annoyed Ursula Johnson.
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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 5:39 pm
Perhaps the problem was that Nealite was looking for a shock of bright pink hair instead of the rich ocean blue that was the teen's natural color! Jovially, Audrey bounced down the street, all but skipping in time to the dance hit blaring through her bright lemon yellow Skullcandy headphones. Evacuaaate the dance flooooor~
In lieu of her normal bow, she'd piled her hair up into a perky ponytail, curls swinging in the winter air. The rest of her outfit, save the casual blue jeans and royal blue jacket was so violently neon and clashed so horribly that there was no doubt she'd spent most of her allowance lately shopping with Pavel. It was fairly horrifying, but Audrey wasn't about to try and look good next to Ursula. It was basically impossible anyway!
Stopping in front of the impatient woman, she beamed and tossed her ponytail for effect, shoving her iPod deep into her bag. "Late, my bad. Mom wouldn't let me out without drying my hair. Can we even get pneumonia? Oh well, doubt she'd buy my excuses." Eyes looked up at the massive gold tag sporting the name of the store, on a backdrop that nearly perfectly matched the color of her jacket.
"So, ready to knuckle down? I've been peering around online within your budget, but the choice in the end is yours."
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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 6:56 pm
It was true, she had not expected to see a peppy little blue-head, so as Audrey planted her slightly shorter self in front of Ursula, the older woman paused to stare. Well, that and process Audrey's horrid outfit in her mind. Was she like... trying to make Ursula look bad, forcing her to be seen with such a fashion atrocity?
Her attitude quickly souring, she huffed something akin to Everytime We Touch being a better song choice, but before Audrey could comment back, high heels had pivoted and directed her into the large foreign store.
Everything was daunting to the inexperienced electronics shopper, and Ursula could only stare at the shelves upon shelves of televisions, DVD players, computers, and sound systems. Sure, she'd visit now and then to 'pick' up a CD or two, but all of this mp3 business and such was so confusing.
"Where to?" She demanded, glancing behind towards the bluenette. The knowledge that Audrey held her money was a sickening thought, but she was determined to get in, get out, and go home to wrap up the Best Present Ever before she simply keeled over with the frustration caused by this situation. If this wasn't a sign of devotion and true love, ******** all if she knew what was.
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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 7:09 pm
Gently, gingerly, Audrey grabbed Ursula's wrist and guided her towards the largest back corner of the store, where dozens of monitors flashed advertisements for their manufacturers. It wasn't quite the glorious playground that the build from the ground up computer stores were, but nonetheless, it was a playground for this girl.
Quick sun-colored eyes darted around, and without releasing her partner, she waded into the crowd gathering around the various displays. It was the last weekend to get your gifts all bought, which meant almost everyone was still shopping. Holding out for a bargain, when really, they should've been here on Black Friday! With abandon, she passed entirely the Apple products. That interface would be entirely too complex, and it'd break when they looked at it funny.
Down past the high-end products, right into the center, where the most variety was found. "Aha!" Homing in, she all but pushed people out of the way, her petite frame shouldering like a linebacker to get in and stroke the displays lovingly. "These are generally want you want, Ursula. I don't think the gen..er, Mr. Killingworth needs anything bigger than this type of screen, but if you think so we can keep looking. You have a bit of wiggle room, but don't really go over eight hundred, because tax and stuff make things tight."
In all honesty, the girl couldn't even imagine what the head of the Negaverse would do with a high-end laptop anyway, should he ever get one. It's not like he was playing WoW after all! And for once, just once, it was nice to see that bewildered, overwhelmed look in her enemy's eyes. The girl had considered taking the woman to one of her favorite technological haunts. Honestly! But after that incredibly embarassing (for whom, she was not sure) teleportation accident, Audrey was absolutely furious, and determined to spend every cent of that designer cash!
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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 8:27 pm
Forced further into unknown territory, Ursula could all but stare at her surroundings, taking in the different devices, plugs, cords and electronic paraphernalia that decorated the gigantic room.
On reflection, honestly, it would have been better had she just given Audrey permission to go shopping for the laptop on her own, Ursula's input virtually worthless. RAM? Disk space? Drivers? Eyes gazed over the boxes at their feet and at the tags listed next to each computer on the counter. She had no earthly idea what any of these terms meant; they may as well have been written in Spanish or Latin or one of those boring languages she'd failed to take during her time in high school.
She examined the computer presented to her as if she knew what she was staring at. Despite her temptation to ask if bigger wasn't better, the idea of dropping anything more than eight hundred dollars was a pretty terrifying thought. Well worth it, of course, but eight hundred on something that couldn't even be worn? Not even her shoes neared that price range, but a little piece of metal could fetch a small fortune?
"Just as long as he can... do stuff on it." She managed to get out, her eyes studying and boggling over the price tag of this particular laptop. What any of this babble actually meant towards the computer, she hadn't the foggiest, but as long as she got her money's worth, she would deal. "He won't know how to use it any more than I would, I'm sure, but he's a quick learner. As long as he can use it for whatever he needs, just... pick one out, okay?"
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 12:11 pm
Chewing on her bottom lip, Audrey unwound her scarf and worked at the buttons of her jacket as eager eyes darted from machine to machine. Durability would be key, as Ursula was some sort of technological Medusa, turning it into a brick with nothing more than a single glance towards the screen. Looking over at the pumpkin-haired woman the teen couldn't help but grin just more than a bit. She was a Gorgon alright! "Probably in black huh? No fancy colors for him, right? I mean, you know him best. Except for maybe Khal. I dunno, they have a weird relationship." Twisting the scarf almost viciously between her hands, it was the only sign of nerves the girl could show. Any mention of her strange boyfriend made her fidget in her sneakers and all but shred whatever made its way into her unfortunate hands. More lip biting, some hemming, some hawing. Finding the perfect computer for the right price was an art, and it was why Audrey was here with her rival to begin with!
Finally, she made a decision, and went into overdrive. Shoving her bag and coat at the overwhelmed secretary, the petite seventeen year old bent down beneath the displays where the products were kept and rummaged through boxes tenderly. And then, after a small moment of panic that every single one of that model had been carried off to grace someone else's Christmas Day surprises, it was there. Right in the back, piled under a cheap offbrand that nobody had wanted to buy. The last one!! With a cry of victory, and a more than secure hold on the aforementioned technology, Audrey's ponytail bounced with jubilation. "I got it Ursula! This one is going to be perfect! And you'll even have enough money to replace one pair of those shoes, and maybe a manicure or something." The thrill of finding the best toy, for the best price, outweighed who it was really for. After all, she wasn't built to be a b***h all the time!
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 12:12 pm
"Black is fine," she said bluntly, her mind refusing to give into temptation and request something ridiculous. Like purple. Which would match his hair. And the couch. And Beryl's outfi- "Yeah, go with black, black is good."
One eyebrow rose as she watched the younger girl mention Charonite's young ward. Ursula knew Audrey was unaware of the true relationship the two men shared (and wasn't about to expose the father-son like relationship), so it was intriguing to hear that she had not been the only one to notice the difference between the two, even when Ursula herself had been in the dark about their true connection. It delighted her to consider things were working out horribly for Khaldun and Audrey, but she held her tongue. The bluenette still held her money and the knowledge of computers, and Ursula wasn't dumb enough to shoot herself in the foot just yet.
As the bag and jacket were thrust into her arms, she gave the girl a dumbfounded look (hey, she wasn't some kind of coathanger!) and watched as Audrey got down on her knees and began rummaging through the shelves. It reminded her far too much of her own shoe-hunting history; sometimes the boxes were like hidden treasure, tucked and hidden away among boxes upon boxes of worthless trash. It didn't take long for the other girl to pull out a large box and begin shrieking... had she really found the one?
At the news of not only finding the perfect computer but apparently finding one at a low enough cost that didn't break purse strings, Ursula herself gave a little leap of excitement, the happiness of the discovery infectious among the pair of them.
She'd found it, she'd found it! Alright, so Audrey had really found it, but Ursula now had the perfect gift to give Charonite - and just in the knick of time!
"Alright then!" She beamed, so proud of herself that she didn't even bother attempting to force the coat and bag back at the student, "Let's get this sucker and get the hell out of here!"
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 12:14 pm
Carefully, so as not to lose the box to some greedy grasper in the crowd, Audrey took back her bag with a slightly sheepish expression. It wasn't going to be an apology, because she'd needed Audrey's help for this whole venture. Having to hold a coat was the least of her dignity problems, the girl thought rightfully. Like an mother, or perhaps an inexperienced shoplifter, the perky geek wound her way through the crowd, her vivid neon red top like a beacon, should the other woman lose her. She all but vibrated with excitement in the line, and when it came time to pay, she slapped down the cash with an almost challenging movement. This whole venture had been somewhat of an Olympic challenge for the girl, and not something she did often. Apparently, Audrey had a few minor problems with competitive shopping!
So it was with the Final Fantasy VII victory fanfare that not twenty minutes later she and Ursula Johnson were standing outside the store, bundled up once again, and she was gingerly handing over the product like it was some kind of contraband. "Now, just be careful when he goes to open it, ok? You jerk wrong, and he's strong enough to probably accidentally break the thing somehow. Laptops are pretty delicate things these days, so you just gotta go slow." And then, once again, the teen took on a fidget. It was an idea that had been tooling through her head since this whole partnership had started, when she'd looked at the pile of womanly adornments and not known really what any of them were good for, or why designer anything was needed.
Pulling her off to the side, away from the crowd, the ponytailed teen wrung her gloves in her hands, and stared meticulously at her tennis shoes. "Now, you gotta help me out ok? You probably noticed, but I go more for girly than feminine. I don't really know anything about high heels, or makeup, or really anything. I only have this for jewelry." Pathetically, glowing with embarrassment, she held up the Thor's Hammer and potion bottle she'd gotten for her birthday more than a month before. "I mean, I don't even have my ears pierced. I'm thinking that might be what Khal wants, you know? And I want to be a decent girlfriend. You have to help me." It all came out in a rush, and all she could do was dart glances from the ground, back up to Ursula's face.
This was so damn wrong. But she had to do it!
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 12:14 pm
She stared blankly at the other girl, one hand moving to pull her jacket together in attempts to protect herself from the chilly December weather. Her.... help Audrey? This was like the ******** Twilight Zone. Bizarro World. Candid ******** Camera.
Her other hand shifted, clutching tightly to her new prize and the cause of her elated mood. But even with a brighter attitude and a more cheerful disposition than she'd had only hours prior, she continued to stare suspiciously at Audrey. It was one thing to have received Audrey's help when it came to searching for computers... but to help her with her appearance, in exchange? A better appearance that would no doubt woo Khaldun further into this harpy's clutches, when Ursula had been so desperately attempting to plant the seed of doubt into his head?
She gave the girl a disdainful look and opened her mouth to tell her just how she felt about the suggestion, when orange eyes fell upon the necklaces the girl extended out to show her. Ursula remained silent, seemingly focused on the charms, but saying nothing.
It was an awkward minute of silence between the two girls, but at long last, Ursula's head slowly began to nod.
"Alright.... I'll help you. After Christmas."
The older girl paused, as if still mulling, then opened her mouth again, "... in exchange for helping Char--Gunn and I, helping us learn about this stupid thing."
She shook the box gently to her side, emphasizing the electronic mystery she'd just purchased. Neither adult had a clue as to how this marvel worked, so it went without saying that somehow they would have to learn.
"Quid pro quo and all."
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 12:25 pm
She watched in horror as the box was shaken from side to side. Gentle Ursula might have been, but this was akin to shaking a crying baby! You just didn't do it! Audrey's eyes widened somewhat, and she dropped her charms back into her jacket, eyes a bit wide. For once, the girl actually bit her tongue, and as her mantra of 'Behave, behave, goddamn it BEHAVE!' ran through her mind, she caught the affirmative message from the elegant woman. Yes? Yes?! Yes!! Once again visibly excited, the girl beamed gratefully at Ursula. "Oh totally, I wouldn't really want to leave you guys alone with the thing to figure it out. I'm going back to Meadowview after the winter break is up, but I have unlimited time until then, you know?" She hadn't had to really beg, which was absolutely fabulous. Ursula must have really wanted that computer!
"Oh! And man, I nearly forgot. That would've sucked a lot." Reaching back into her heavy bag, Audrey withdrew the slim white banking envelope that she'd hauled out to pay for the laptop. "Here's the remainder, in full. We sold everything, which was pretty amazing. I guess those shoes and things were better than I thought? Some things went pretty high, there should be about two hundred, two fifty in there easy." Business done, future deals wrangled, she was somewhat at a loss. They'd been enemies for a very long time, so to be somewhat amiably standing around in public was more than awkward. "Well uhm...I guess I'll see you around? Merry Christmas, Ursula." With those final words, she ducked into the crowd, moving away as fast as she could.
It would do some good to get away before either of them could mess up the good moment.
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 12:26 pm
"Merry Christmas, Ursula."
The words echoed in her ears as the woman stood there, now alone, computer in one hand and hundreds of dollars in the other. She watched the younger woman run off, her mind still buzzing with the realization that she agreed to help Audrey Collins look beautiful.
True, she was getting something in exchange for her generosity, but... damn. Sometimes Ursula even stunned herself.
Continuing to shake her head, she tucked the money in her jacket pocket and pressed the box tightly against her as she lost herself in the sea of people around her, continuing the hustle and bustle of last minute Christmas shopping. She'd have just enough time to get home and get the blasted thing wrapped up before Charonite got off from work, not that he'd pay any attention to what she was doing anyhow. But, finally, God, at long last, she'd managed to purchase the one thing she was determined to buy him for Christmas, and it hadn't even cost her further humilation at the hands of Audrey.
Perhaps there were such things as Christmas miracles, after all.
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