Roman Picnic

Summary:
July 05, 2014: After the heroics that took place in Nova Imperialism, Bobby, Luna and Nancy decide to have a picnic.

Nova Roma

An ancient Roman society hidden deep in the Amazon rainforest, populated by the mingled descendants of ancient Romans and native Incans.


Characters

NPCs
*None


Mood Music:
[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jV0oA3YUiw8]


By the time the soldiers are finished toasting them, hoisting them up, celebrating and what not… and they get back to the… sort of villa like place where they were staying, it's well past lunch time. Bobby is fiddling with strappy kinds of sandals - yes he knows they're called caligulae, but really, sandals - and mulling what, exactly to do next. He's also quietly keeping an eye on Nancy and looking curiously at Lunair.

*

"I'm, um, going to guess the guns of strange are… somehow related to your 'power'?" He says. He'd not really had a chance to ask her what she does.

*

Nancy seems happy enough to be back in the villa. She sits down on one of the window seats, looking out at the splendor that is Nova Roma. It means she gets a good view and keeps her away from people enough that her power doesn't interfere. She seems to be getting better at holding it back though. It's been at her halfway point all day.

*

Lunair made friends! Roman friends! She is quite happy. She's enjoying the place. The sandals are curious to her, too. She seems to be planning to explore, although - she so needs a translator and has a Latin textbook at hand. And a snack. She looks to Bobby, since she's been hanging out. When not actively concentrating on emoting, she wears a blank, neutral expression. Then a faint smile.

"Yeah. You - um, with the ice?" She asks quietly. She looks to Nancy. "How are you?"

Lunair explains, "I create weapons. I'm not sure what else. Maybe just weapons."

*

Bobby finally stand up, strappy sandals adequately laced now. "That certainly sounds… uh, handy in some situations." Really, every power is situational. Does creating ice do you any good in Antarctica? Generally no, it doesn't.

"Well I'm kinda starving and I don't really want to bother the uh… servants? Staff? Maybe we should go scare up some food. Creating hailstorms from a safe distance is hungry work.

He winks, his humor a bit self deprecating at the moment. Though seriously, food.

*

Nancy turns her head to look at Lunair when spoken to. Oddly enough, like Lunair, she has been wearing a blank, neutral expression for most of the day, and she's not bothering to concentrate on emoting. "I'm okay, thanks. You?" The comment of looking for food gets her to stand up. "I think I saw the kitchens were this way," she informs them as she heads down a hall.

*

Lunair looks over to Bobby. "I think so. Sometimes it feels - I don't know, I guess it defines what I do very much," She remarks. When life gives you weapons… well. She has to be mindful not to end up a Punisher knock off. At the mention of food, she nods. "That actually sounds pretty good," She admits. She pauses at Nancy's reply. "That's good. I'm fine. I want to explore a bit. But I need more Latin," More Latin! MORE! She grins at Bobby. "I thought your hail was awesome," She remarks.

Lunair looks over and will follow Nancy. "… what do Romans use to cook anyway?"

*

"Bread. Hearth bread, really, and meat. Which is good really because…"

He follows Nancy down into the kitchen and roots around until he finds some recently cooked meat and some bread. Refrigeration not being a thing cuts down on your food options, however where there is meet, bread and cheese there are sandwiches. After a few moments of digging he finds a knife and starts to slice. "You two want one? It's um…" He tastes the meat. "Lamb, I think."

He chuckles at Lunair and flashes her a smile. "Thanks. Though really I think everyone else had it handled well enough without me." Another glance back to Nancy. "Hungry there, Nance?"

*

"Fire in one form or another, I would imagine. I'm sure we can find vegetables, salamis and cheese though. No need to cook." She walks down the hall, looking through the open doorways when she passes till she finds what she is looking for. "I have an idea," she says before grabbing a basket and starting to load it up with items. Knife, corkscrew, bottle of wine, bread, salami, hunk of cheese, fruit, a jar of olives, veggies. "Picnic in the park. Or park-ish. This place has more trees then pavement, so it's not really a city, when you think about it." Well, isn't that a typical New Yorker point of view. Pave paradise and put in a parking lot. "Bring the lamb too?" There is a distinct lack of sweeter things in the basket. There is fruit, but considering Nancy's sweet tooth, the lack of a ooey gooey desserty item that is dripping in honey is surprising.

*

Lunair huhs, and nods. She's learning SO MUCH here. But sandwiches sound completely awesome. She follows along, peering. "Sure, I'll try one," Beam. "Want some help?" She smiles back at Bobby. "I think we all felt that way," She admits. "Umm… In my latin textbook, it seems like Romans loved their equivalent of fast food joints and pastry places. So I guess if we want something sweet, that'd be the way," She remarks. "Unless they were pulling my leg." In which case, the textbook factory might burn down.

"I thought it was a city if it had so many people in it?" She asks. She seems confused. Lunair has the advantage and disadvantage of being a near blank slate in a lot of ways. "I like it," She admits. "But cities with lots of cement are alright, too." She shrugs and will help out either carrying or cutting things up.

*

Bobby quickly switches plans and starts packing everything in. At the mentions of sweets… "Yeah, maybe a few. I think I've got a pocket full of Dennarii that Amara gave us. We can pick up something on the way if anything catches your guys' eyes. Picnic sounds quite nice." In a few moments he's helped load up another basket and, after a few moment's thought, grabbed a set of water skins and collected some water from the plumbing. At least in this case the Nova Romans are smart enough to not use lead.

*

Nancy doesn't seem to really talk unless spoken to, but she does pack up and walk out the door with the food. She doesn't wait to see if she's being followed. Picnic for one, or more then one if they come along. She lets Bobby and Lunair share most of the conversation, just looking for a suitable place to have this picnic in the idyllic paradise that is Nova Roma.

*

Lunair seems to have bursts of speech and quiet. She looks to Bobby, and nods. "We'll see, and want any help?" She offers. She looks to Nancy, tilting her head. She seems to be at a loss as to what to do. Press for info? Accept it? Does not compute. She looks baffled. She shrugs it off for now. "Dennarii, got it." She will follow along then.

*

Bobby stretches and smiles a bit as they step out onto the road and head for parts more scenic. Well, more scenic here is relative, it's all pretty damn scenic. As they pass through a market, he slows to examine the various carts and street food for possible additions to the picnic. "So are you two enjoying your stay here?" He still looks vaguely concerned but he's decided he's not getting anywhere right at the moment fretting. If something seems truly wrong, he'll go looking for Amara. Daughter of the First Senator shouldn't be too hard to track down right?

*

Taking a deep breath, Nancy nods. "It's wonderful here. With the small exception of not having my cello, I could spend all summer here." By the market, there is a little park. This place is veritably dotted with small parks. Just enough for a few people to have an intimate picnic for three. Nancy sits herself down and starts reaching into the basket. "What about you?" she asks, though there isn't any spark in the question. She's just gathering information rather then asking out of interest.

*

By contrast, Lunair seems to embrace life with zeal, clinging to it tenaciously. She seems to have a child, puppy-like zest for whatever she might be doing. Even if she's bad at showing it. She smiles back to Bobby. There's a peer. "What's that?" One of many honey based dishes. "And yeah, it's really cool." Legionnaires! Stuff! "Though, I wonder if women get to do many jobs?" They do seem to have an odd social strata compared to what Lunair knows. She looks to Nancy. "Yeah, it's neat. I wonder if they have fountains and stuff. Did you mention the baths earlier?" That's to both of them. She seems concerned, but she can't quite - express it.

*

At Lunair's mention of the baths, Nancy can't help but smile a little. "Yeah, but the baths aren't nearly as much fun when they keep the genders separate. Though, I'm sure Cal doesn't object to seeing all the guys naked." She grows thoughtful then, nibbling at olives as she goes off into her imagination.

*

"Want a couple?" Bobby adds three honey cakes to the basket. He knows Nancy's been cutting back on sugars but A) Honey isn't as sweet as refined sugar, and B) if they're gonna get them, there might as well be enough to go around.

He sits back admiring the place. "In Ancient Rome they did some jobs, I think… not super up on my classics though. Yes, there are baths… uh, both in the villa and publicly, I think Amara said. I was still recovering from being yanked onto the plane at the time." Bobby gives Nan a small smile.

*

Lunair smiles faintly. "I thought some were mixed? I guess they changed it over the years," She considers. "And sure! Thank you," She owes Bobby one. "I will get the next time," She offers. Lunair goes quiet as Bobby talks, looking up. "Me either," She admits. Then she looks between the two. Confused. "Oh. You get airsick?" WHOOSH. Go Lunair. She's intelligent and perceptive, she just lacks any sort of context. "Well. I guess- I dunno. Public bathing … wouldn't you need to be brave?"

*

"I would." Bobby laughs. "But I'm not used to it and these people are. I guess it's sort of a step up from going to a public pool? Only with hot water and… I assume they have soap right? Soap should be a thing."

He starts to eat, munching quietly on the lamb and fruit and cheese and sandwiches and paying attention to how much in particular Nancy is eating. Lunair… she doesn't seem to have any problems with her appetite.

*

Nancy shrugs a shoulder at Bobby. "I wanted company of someone I know likes to be around me. You didn't have to come along if you really didn't want to." She arches a brow blandly at the mention of mixed baths. "If you can find one, I'll go. It's not like women have to worry about their ogling being obvious."

*

"Me too," Lunair admits, smiling as Bobby laughs. "I think so? I'm not sure," She admits. She will quietly settle in to eat. Over half a lifetime of eating hospital or lab food has left Lunair appreciative of - well, real food. Also she totally is convincing herself she needs a curvier figure or she'll die alone or something. Maybe. Nevertheless, she looks to Nancy, confused. "But lots of people like you." Baffled, Lunair is.

Then a pause. Ogling. Obvious? Confusion! Lunair is confused! Lunair attempts to use COMPREHEND! Lunair has hurt herself in confusion! Well, not visibly but it is apparent she has - some - social short comings. But she's like a social beater car. There's charm in there. Kind of. Maybe. Did it burst into flames? "Well. We'll see what's around. I don't know if they are mirroring like, the early empire stuff or maybe later…? There's a LOT of Roman history."

*

"I'm just giving you a hard time Nancy." Bobby chuckles as he takes another bite. "You know I enjoy your company. Else why would we be having a Roman picnic?" Well, Neo Roman picnic but let's not quibble here. "Yeah. Well, we can look around after lunch if you guys like. Not like I couldn't use some cleaning after playing in the dirt with the Legionnaries." He chuckles. Hygene standards are a bit different here, but he could use a decent cleaning. For now, he's content to enjoy the food and the company, both of which are very good.

*

Nancy's appetite hasn't gone away. She is still more then happy to eat, she's just staying away from sweets. And so the black haired girl with the grey eyes nibbles at cheese, salami, bread, cherry tomatoes, olives. She drinks from the water skin rather then the wine. "No, Lunair. Lots of people don't like me. A few people *tolerate* me. The people that genuinely seem to like me I can count on one hand. Maybe two now. And frankly, I'm not so sure that all of those people are being honest." She watches as Lunair gets all confused about her meaning and rolls over to sit up and whisper exactly what she means in Lunair's ear, complete with hand gestures. *Shwing!*

*

Lunair listens and smiles. But yes. She tilts her head. "Sure." She seems content to look for one, afterwards. Then a blink. "I wonder if that's true?" She doesn't seem to think so. "I have no way of knowing," She admits. But she seems to believe in Nancy well enough. "You're like, the zip tie fairy." Although, one has to question the value of having Lunair believe in you sometimes.

Then she listens intently. Oh. Oh my. Her expression goes from intent to huh? to Oh. to OH. to OH THAT IS WHAT THAT MEANS. Enlightenment is both terrible and wonderful. "… I see. On one hand, oh my! On the other, Nancy DID take the time to explain. "Um. Thank you. That's - handy to know." Yes.

*

After having 'enlightened' Lunair, Nancy lays back down, her head in Bobby's lap. "Peel me a grape."

"What are we now, Empress?" He grins down at her as he peels it. Okay, so maybe she's a bit off but clearly she's still kind of herself. Ish. It's almost refreshing and for the moment not enough to make him do something like… turn the peeled grape into an ice cube. Down it goes, dropped from a few inches above.

*

Lunair looks amused by Nancy and Bobby's grape exchange. "Neat!" But then, she's distracted enough for now that they can chat between themselves. As if that was terribly hard.

*

"I prefer the term Goddess, thank you." She lays with her mouth open, catching the grape and munching on it with a grin. She sighs happily, enjoying the soft breeze through the cypress trees. "Shame we couldn't bring our instruments. No music. No sweets. No… electricity."

*

"Bit of a shame yes. Also a bit of a shame they don't have any comparable instruments… lots of flutes and harps." He pops a grape in his own mouth because these are really good grapes and then peels another and drops it for Nancy again. "Mercenary entanglements aside, though, some if it's pretty nice."

*

She crosses one leg over the other, waggling the one leg on the pivet point up and down over and over. She catches the new grape in her mouth. "I don't know how to play a harp. Luckily, Lunair was there so I had something I could use." She closes her eyes and smiles softly. "Nice and relaxing here, that's for sure."

*

It's been close to an hour. Bobby has not evinced a desire to move, at least not whilst Nan just wanted to lay back and eat grapes. He's not even found it particularly necessary to talk in a little while. For all that Nova Roma is a large city, this little park seems surprsingly quiet. Lunair is off… somewhere not too far and he's not seen any of the others since they came back from confronting the corporate folks.

*

Ah, but the Goddess that is Nancy doesn't just want grapes. Sometimes she asks for cheese, or a nibble of bread. She lays there with her head on Bobby's lap, just looking up as the clouds go by. Her gun holster is still on her thigh, but she keeps it covered. No need to freak out the natives, especially considering who their host is while they are here. She doesn't talk much in all this time. Not asking questions or being flirty and playful. Just sits and enjoys the quiet of the day.

*

Bobby has been watching the clouds himself for a good ten minutes or so, pausing to get himself or her another bite of something or other. "Mmmm. Nice here. Peaceful. I can see why Amara wanted to come back." It's not at all like he remembers his own home. Which is probably why he's never gone back there.

"Hey… are you feeling okay Nancy? I know you said earlier you didn't really like fighting."

*

Nancy shrugs a shoulder. "I don't. But I'm not as gifted as some of you. I don't really have offensive capabilities. So, sometimes I will need to be a little violent. I *prefer* not to fight, but that doesn't mean I can't or won't." She looks up at Bobby now, her head still in his lap. "Why?"

*

Now it's Bobby's turn to shrug. "No real reason, you just seemed a bit quiet. I was wondering if maybe it was bothering you." Granted she hasn't been withdrawn, precisely, just quiet. She'll talk, when someone talks to her, but she hasn't been quite herself and he's certainly noticed the progression. It's probably nothing. New place, lots to think about. He frequently overthinks things. It's a fault of his, certainly.

*

Shaking her head, Nancy starts to sit up. "That fight? Nah. We didn't kill anyone, and anyone who was seriously injured, it was mostly from their own bullets because of Illyana. Why would I be bothered about the fact that they essentially hurt themselves?" She looks around the village and sighs happily.
"This place is so… peaceful and nice. Mind you, I wouldn't want to have to be here if my roots start to show."

*

Bobby shifts and gives her a hand sitting up, chuckling a bit. "Some things about modern life are nice, Mmmmmm?" He looks around nodding. "Yeah, this place is pretty nice. I don't know that I'd want to live here… but I certainly don't mind the visit."

"Company helps with that though." He smiles. "Being alone here would probably be a little frightening."

He nods about the injuries and bullets. A few probably had some pretty nasty knocks from faux hail but no one died that he's aware of. "Just checkin'. Like I said, you've seemed quiet. Just wanted to make sure everything was okay."

*

Nancy shrugs again and then rests her head on Bobby's shoulder as she sits beside him. "I don't have anything to say. Didn't want to just talk about nothing at all. So, I just sit and think. About this place. About the music here. About the culture. About the clothes." She takes a deep breath and reaches over for a bit of bread. "So, why science."

*

Bobby scoots a bit closer and watches the crowd. An arm goes around her shoulders and he lets her lean.

"Why did I study it you mean? It was a reaction, I think, to discovering my abilities. I had originally thought, maybe, finance. I even considered music at one point, just 'cause I like it. But after my freshman year, after that whole ordeal, I wanted to forget about it but at the same time, I wanted to understand it. What makes things hot or cold and how does it happen and what does it do? Turns out a lot of it's kinda interesting if you're the right kind of nerd." He chuckles. "I guess I am."

He glances over at her from watching the market and the clouds. "So what do you think of… all this?" He feels a little silly in a tunica for sure. She looks pretty good in a stola though, he has to admit, speaking of clothes.


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