[ It's not that Root puts herself totally on autopilot. She still thinks of the ways things could go wrong, still considers obvious risks, looks out for anyone tailing them or hiding around a corner with an ambush.
But she puts aside the real groundless fears, the ones rooted in the unknown, and trusts in the Machine. She plans to go to her death with that faith.
So she's thought about an easy cover for them, but not too hard. ] I'm your aunt picking you up from an embarrassing overnight stay at the emergency department after someone thought you had alcohol intoxication, [ Root says helpfully, locking the car behind her with a shrill beep. ]
You were totally intellectually ready to go to college this early, but you really shouldn't be partying like that. It's not good for your brain development.
[While Accelerator isn't sure what to expect for an explanation, him getting drunk at a party certainly isn't it. It's enough that he pauses to stare at her, wrapping his brain around the explanation.]
[He knows about alcohol and its effects on the human brain, of course. It wouldn't be difficult for him to describe the changes in chemistry, that neural pathways get interrupted. But beyond the science of it he's woefully unfamiliar with... well. Everything else. He's never been drunk before, he's never even spoken to someone about what it's like.
Is this a good excuse? Since Root came up with he trusts that it would sound reasonable enough to an average person, so with a little reluctance he gives her a small nod.]
.... Fine.
[He turns and heads into the store, making it only a couple of steps before abruptly stopping to look around. This is the first real store he's ever been in, so he needs a moment to take it all in. Luckily, he's managing to bury his nervous feelings and keep a straight face.]
[ She'd deliberately picked something that was 1) plausible and 2) suited Accelerator's natural demeanor, so he wouldn't have to do much acting. Root knows from their therapy sessions that it would be a stretch to ask him to act too far outside his usual gruff complacency.
Root sweeps up behind him and past, then pauses shortly inside when he does to look back at him. The staid unremarkable landscape of a suburban department store stretches out ahead of them, the occasional employee or mid-day shopper ambling through the short rows of shelves of appliances and fully-made beds and questionably-tasteful clothing mannequins on display. ]
You want to watch me do mine first, or go off on your own?
[ She'll allow the latter if he wants to stretch some of his newfound freedom, but she's going to foist her phone on him if he does. The Machine can contact both of them that way, her through her implant, if necessary. Or if he'd rather tag along and see how she does it first to get acclimated, that's fine, too. ]
[It's a simple question and the answer shouldn't be a big deal, but Accelerator remains silent as he glances around, processing the new environment and working through both options. The cautious, safer option would be to stick near Root, but there's a desire in him to keep up this new independent streak and go wander off on his own.
He isn't a little kid, he should be able to handle it without any problems. All he needs to do is stay under the radar, observe the other customers, and mimic what they're doing. Even though this is a nerve-wracking, new experience for him, he thinks he can handle it. Maybe he's taking a simple decision like this way too seriously, but he does not want to go back to another lab. The stakes happen to be very high for him! That's why he gives her an incredibly serious look.]
Okay, [ she says easily, not questioning him or prying into the very noticeable delay in answering she had very much noticed. He's bound to have some difficulties adjusting, but babying isn't her style and isn't his, either.
Root just digs out her phone and offers it out to him. ]
Keep this on you. She'll let me know if you run into any trouble. [ Which is a comment she doesn't explain, though she figures Accelerator has put some things about the Machine together by now, based on their escape. ]
If anyone bothers you, remember: you don't want to talk about it.
[There's a beat as Accelerator blinks and looks down at the cell phone, but ultimately takes it. He knows what a cell phone is, and while he's never used one before he's seen some of the scientists use them, so he could probably manage if he needed to.
He does have questions, of course. Root is talking about her boss, right? She must have access to the phone, be tracking it or something.]
Fine.
[Keeping it clutched in his hand, he gives her a nod before turning and heading towards the sign indicating men's clothing. That seems like the easiest place to start.]
[ Hope he likes flannel and khakis, because there's plenty of that.
Root traipses off without another word and goes about what is, to her, now a standard process of shedding one skin and gaining another. She figures if there was anything specific the Machine wanted her to go for, she'd have told her somehow already, so she uses her judgment and goes for something comfortable enough to fight in but not too remarkable.
It's a Macy's, so how remarkable could it get?
She ends up with a Care Bears ringer T-shirt (Stay Salty!) she pilfered from the teen girl department, along with some jeans, which she layers under a suburban mom's idea of a leather jacket and a trucker's idea of boots. Her hair comes down from its rigid psychologist up-do and she brushes it out in the bathroom until it's giving mildly 1980s vibes in volume. None of these items were paid for; she just swanned through the place, brought it all into the bathroom, changed in a stall, and dumped her old clothes in the trash on her way out.
Usually she relies on a combination of audacity and the fact that she never lingers anywhere long to see her through petty crime, but knowing the Machine is watching her back and erasing any possible evidence sends continuous low-level thrills up her spine.
She's so sweet.
First step accomplished, she spends some more time looking around before eventually deciding to just track down Accelerator.
Once she finds him, she greets him with: ] Did you know they don't sell Tasers in Macy's? We'll have to go to Cabela's. [ There's one next door, no doubt not a coincidence. (So sweet.) ]
[Accelerator is having a whole time once he enters the racks of clothing. It doesn't take him very long to realize that the men's section doesn't have much that fits his tastes. Not... not that he has developed tastes at this point, since he's been out of the laboratory for all of five minutes, but even he can tell that khakis and polo tees are horrifically basic.
There is also the matter of size. He isn't sure what size he's supposed to be, though thankfully eyeballing things makes it clear he's going to run a small. He picks out a couple of things, a black t-shirt with a skull on it and black jeans, before he starts wandering some more. When he reaches the teens sections he digs through the racks, having better luck than before. he's still having a tough time, but at least it's easier to find styles that aren't suburban dad.
There are several times he notices some other customer is staring at him. No one approaches, so he handles it by scowling and keeping to himself.
When Root approaches he still has pitifully few clothes picked out. At first he doesn't even recognize her, assuming she's some random customer, so when she speaks to him he does a doubletake and stares.]
What? [What the fuck, seriously. He's baffled.] What the hell are you talking about? You look completely different. How the fuck did you find new stuff so fast?
[ Amused at the incredulity, Root gives a wink and then moves right on. ]
Technically it's still illegal for minors to have Tasers, [ she says matter-of-factly, ] but I figure it'd go over better than a gun if anyone asked you about it. And you're really going to need some accessories to pull off that look.
[ No respectable black-on-black wearing goth would go without a spiky wristband in her estimation. ]
[ Root playfully nudges him aside to take over for him, partly to speed this up but partly so she can respond from close by in a lower intonation. ]
Killing gets attention, and killing like that especially. My boss and I will do everything we can to keep you out of the hands of people who would exploit you, but don't make it harder on us than it has to be, okay?
[ She sounds serious, even as her physical demeanor remains completely casual. Root can pull off the disparity as easily as breathing, utter sincerity exposed like eyes strikingly obvious from behind a mask. ]
Here, take this. [ She pulls back, claiming a few things. ] You go to a changing room and I'll get the accessories.
[He's quite happy to step aside and let her dig through the clothing rack. It didn't take very long for him to decide the activity is kind of exhausting when there's an overwhelming amount of options.]
Whatever.
[That's to both avoiding killing people and trying the clothes on. The former sounds like a challenge for him but he's up for it (especially when he's very serious about laying low), and the latter gets him away from the endless aisles of clothes, so he takes what she's offering and wanders in the direction of the large sign at the back of the store indicating changing rooms. He's going to get a weird look from the attendant but heads on in to start trying stuff on.]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
But she puts aside the real groundless fears, the ones rooted in the unknown, and trusts in the Machine. She plans to go to her death with that faith.
So she's thought about an easy cover for them, but not too hard. ] I'm your aunt picking you up from an embarrassing overnight stay at the emergency department after someone thought you had alcohol intoxication, [ Root says helpfully, locking the car behind her with a shrill beep. ]
You were totally intellectually ready to go to college this early, but you really shouldn't be partying like that. It's not good for your brain development.
[ She gives him wide, concerned, serious eyes. ]
You don't want to talk about it.
no subject
............................................................
[He knows about alcohol and its effects on the human brain, of course. It wouldn't be difficult for him to describe the changes in chemistry, that neural pathways get interrupted. But beyond the science of it he's woefully unfamiliar with... well. Everything else. He's never been drunk before, he's never even spoken to someone about what it's like.
Is this a good excuse? Since Root came up with he trusts that it would sound reasonable enough to an average person, so with a little reluctance he gives her a small nod.]
.... Fine.
[He turns and heads into the store, making it only a couple of steps before abruptly stopping to look around. This is the first real store he's ever been in, so he needs a moment to take it all in. Luckily, he's managing to bury his nervous feelings and keep a straight face.]
no subject
[ She'd deliberately picked something that was 1) plausible and 2) suited Accelerator's natural demeanor, so he wouldn't have to do much acting. Root knows from their therapy sessions that it would be a stretch to ask him to act too far outside his usual gruff complacency.
Root sweeps up behind him and past, then pauses shortly inside when he does to look back at him. The staid unremarkable landscape of a suburban department store stretches out ahead of them, the occasional employee or mid-day shopper ambling through the short rows of shelves of appliances and fully-made beds and questionably-tasteful clothing mannequins on display. ]
You want to watch me do mine first, or go off on your own?
[ She'll allow the latter if he wants to stretch some of his newfound freedom, but she's going to foist her phone on him if he does. The Machine can contact both of them that way, her through her implant, if necessary. Or if he'd rather tag along and see how she does it first to get acclimated, that's fine, too. ]
no subject
He isn't a little kid, he should be able to handle it without any problems. All he needs to do is stay under the radar, observe the other customers, and mimic what they're doing. Even though this is a nerve-wracking, new experience for him, he thinks he can handle it. Maybe he's taking a simple decision like this way too seriously, but he does not want to go back to another lab. The stakes happen to be very high for him! That's why he gives her an incredibly serious look.]
I'm fine on my own.
no subject
Root just digs out her phone and offers it out to him. ]
Keep this on you. She'll let me know if you run into any trouble. [ Which is a comment she doesn't explain, though she figures Accelerator has put some things about the Machine together by now, based on their escape. ]
If anyone bothers you, remember: you don't want to talk about it.
no subject
He does have questions, of course. Root is talking about her boss, right? She must have access to the phone, be tracking it or something.]
Fine.
[Keeping it clutched in his hand, he gives her a nod before turning and heading towards the sign indicating men's clothing. That seems like the easiest place to start.]
no subject
Root traipses off without another word and goes about what is, to her, now a standard process of shedding one skin and gaining another. She figures if there was anything specific the Machine wanted her to go for, she'd have told her somehow already, so she uses her judgment and goes for something comfortable enough to fight in but not too remarkable.
It's a Macy's, so how remarkable could it get?
She ends up with a Care Bears ringer T-shirt (Stay Salty!) she pilfered from the teen girl department, along with some jeans, which she layers under a suburban mom's idea of a leather jacket and a trucker's idea of boots. Her hair comes down from its rigid psychologist up-do and she brushes it out in the bathroom until it's giving mildly 1980s vibes in volume. None of these items were paid for; she just swanned through the place, brought it all into the bathroom, changed in a stall, and dumped her old clothes in the trash on her way out.
Usually she relies on a combination of audacity and the fact that she never lingers anywhere long to see her through petty crime, but knowing the Machine is watching her back and erasing any possible evidence sends continuous low-level thrills up her spine.
She's so sweet.
First step accomplished, she spends some more time looking around before eventually deciding to just track down Accelerator.
Once she finds him, she greets him with: ] Did you know they don't sell Tasers in Macy's? We'll have to go to Cabela's. [ There's one next door, no doubt not a coincidence. (So sweet.) ]
no subject
There is also the matter of size. He isn't sure what size he's supposed to be, though thankfully eyeballing things makes it clear he's going to run a small. He picks out a couple of things, a black t-shirt with a skull on it and black jeans, before he starts wandering some more. When he reaches the teens sections he digs through the racks, having better luck than before. he's still having a tough time, but at least it's easier to find styles that aren't suburban dad.
There are several times he notices some other customer is staring at him. No one approaches, so he handles it by scowling and keeping to himself.
When Root approaches he still has pitifully few clothes picked out. At first he doesn't even recognize her, assuming she's some random customer, so when she speaks to him he does a doubletake and stares.]
What? [What the fuck, seriously. He's baffled.] What the hell are you talking about? You look completely different. How the fuck did you find new stuff so fast?
no subject
[ Amused at the incredulity, Root gives a wink and then moves right on. ]
Technically it's still illegal for minors to have Tasers, [ she says matter-of-factly, ] but I figure it'd go over better than a gun if anyone asked you about it. And you're really going to need some accessories to pull off that look.
[ No respectable black-on-black wearing goth would go without a spiky wristband in her estimation. ]
no subject
Frowning, he goes back to digging through the clothing rack. They can talk while he finds more stuff to try on.]
Why would I need a taser? I can kill someone just by touching them. [Just getting that out of the way before tackling the idea of accessories.]
no subject
Killing gets attention, and killing like that especially. My boss and I will do everything we can to keep you out of the hands of people who would exploit you, but don't make it harder on us than it has to be, okay?
[ She sounds serious, even as her physical demeanor remains completely casual. Root can pull off the disparity as easily as breathing, utter sincerity exposed like eyes strikingly obvious from behind a mask. ]
Here, take this. [ She pulls back, claiming a few things. ] You go to a changing room and I'll get the accessories.
no subject
Whatever.
[That's to both avoiding killing people and trying the clothes on. The former sounds like a challenge for him but he's up for it (especially when he's very serious about laying low), and the latter gets him away from the endless aisles of clothes, so he takes what she's offering and wanders in the direction of the large sign at the back of the store indicating changing rooms. He's going to get a weird look from the attendant but heads on in to start trying stuff on.]