Field Trip: Chicago

[Vahnyu]

Serge groaned at this display. While they were jumping on conclusions, those guards were just doing their jobs. It couldn't be helped, and he'd rather not have to hurt anyone where it could be avoided. Lifting his hands as high in the air as he could, and making sure he kept them wide open, he stepped in front of mister Landis, and spoke. "We understand completely. We will comply with all your requests." As he said that, he kneeled, making sure that his knees touched the ground, as a further sign of compliance, and that he wasn't planning on running away. All the while, he tried keeping calm about the situation. Addressing the others, he said, "It's alright, everyone. We've got nothing to hide, and no reason not to follow their orders. The sooner we do, the sooner we'll get to resume our night, no harm, no fuss." He hoped that the others would be receptive to that idea. He also hoped that mister Landis wouldn't chastisize or punish him later for taking the lead.

[Thunder King]

Mali would have done exactly as Serge did. These were not criminals, these were not hurting anyone. Furthermore, she did not want to see what kind of reprisals would come from her parents, the law, and the school should she start attacking museum guards. None of them attacked her.

 

So she raised her hands up and did her best to comply with their requests. There was nothing to be done. Hell, Sam had just been bragging about the thefts. She wouldn't be much of a superhero if she made exceptions for her friends.

[TheAbsurdist]

"I..."  Elias stopped, drawing in a deep breath as he closed his eyes.  He tried to rein in his immediate panic as the anxiety in the room ramped up.  Trying to parcel out his emotions from the press of everyone else's.  Taking a step to the side, his hands up, and moving deliberately, as he slowly knelt to the ground.  Though his expression was his normal sullen reserved manner.  He chafed under certain kinds of authority, this was one of them.  Lacing his fingers together on the back of his head, then slowly lowered himself forward and onto his belly on the ground, not that he needed to 'see'.

[Blue Rose]

Sam places a hand on Tona's elbow, trying to get her to back down. Fighting won't help right about now, and it's thoroughly unnecessary. The rent-a-cops aren't even a real threat.

But that doesn't mean she's about to kowtow to their whims. Instead, she dons her most saccharine-sweet smile and takes a step forward like nobody's even pointing a weapon at her.

"I haven't seen you before, sir. You must be new around here. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Samantha Vance, known around here as Kit, apprentice to the legendary Phantom Fox, though we have since parted ways, and left that particular form of employment. I was once a frequent visitor of the Field Museum until about a year ago, though I must say, customer service has taken something of a decline. I assure you, this visit is entirely on the level, and I have a full pardon for my prior visits. The paperwork is right here if you would like to see it."

The master thief reaches into her pocket and pulls out a copy of her pardon, which of course she keeps in her purse for just such an occasion and offers it to the new guard, then sets to catching up with the rest of the gang. "Ms. Browning, it has been too long. I see you have been doing well. How is Walter? I must say, I was surprised last time; I had never made someone faint before. I must apologize for overdoing it that time. I believe Fox's donation was sufficient to cover psychological expenses, yes?" An anonymous donation, of course, but those can be fun to reveal.

Then, she looks to the other guards, seeing some familiar faces. "Mr. Tull, it's good to see your back has gotten better. Ms. Weiss, I love what you've done with your hair; blonde works for you. Mr. Lancaster, I do hope Brandon is still dancing; he's so talented."

Ah, so many memories.

[Raveled]

Tona gritted her teeth. Everyone was accepting the orders so passively! ... Which made sense, if you considered the guards as cops, but it still rankled her to give up so quickly. Still, if Mali and Elias weren't going to fight, that made things much harder. The young archer forced herself to drop out of her combat stance, doing her best to look docile and nonthreatening. The attempt was undercut somewhat by the death-glare she was giving at the nearest guard pointing a weapon at Sam.

[TheAbsurdist]

GM

 

Mr. Landis looked concerned.  To put it mildly, he had to reign in his temper a bit, because that tended to caught problems.  Hands still up he moved slowly, deliberately, using the back of his hand pressed to Serge's shoulder to urge the boy back.  While making sure to shoot Sam a look that was clearly annoyed at her antics.  Which would only rile people up, even if he agreed with her.  What were they going to do, taze a bunch of schoolkids?

 

Clearing his throat as he made sure he was front and center, and interposed between the kids and the guards, hands still up, and he addressed the head guard then.  "This is a misunderstanding.  Really it is.  So we will go to some office, or somewhere, out of public.  An office, or something, we'll behave."  And he looked pointedly at Sam then, before looking back to the head guard, "That way, if someone does get an itchy trigger finger, they don't taze a bunch of school kinds."  Waiting a beat before he finished the thought.  "In public."  At that even Ms. Browning blanched and seemed to realize that the scene had been made in full view of people who were likely recording them on phones and other things.

 

To his credit the guard nodded slowly, and gestured to two of the guards who moved around behind the kids then.  "I think waiting for the police behind closed door is a brilliant idea.  How about you all follow me."  Lowering his tazer he put it back in the holster, then folding them across his chest.  He was patently ignoring Serge and Sam, especially Sam.  He remembered her from last time, though mostly it was the fact that she was with these people, and he knew what she could do so... he wasn't entirely certain they could stop her.  Or her friends.

 

"Follow me, please."  And he turned from them, starting to lead them away to a hall that terminated into the staff area, he raised a hand towards Ms. Browning as she started to get ruffled again.  "I don't need this Marcia, we'll hold them and let the cops sort this out."

[Blue Rose]

Sam gives the teacher a look like he just grew seven heads out of his ear and they started singing polka.

She plants her feet, crosses her arms, and huffs. "You're just gonna cave like that? Really? They have nothing. I have a pardon for all the stuff I did do, and if I were doing something else, I wouldn't be waltzing in the front door without a care in the world! I ain't gonna go wait for the cops to stick me in a box just 'cuz everyone around's a bunch of sore losers. This is harassment!"

She takes Tona's hand and starts stomping away. "Come on, Tona, we're leaving."

[Raveled]

That idea suited Tona just fine. She really didn't care to be talked down to by a bunch of adults she had never met before, who assumed they were responsible for whatever they thought was going on, and were ready to hustle them all away out of sight. Tona really didn't like that last idea. If no one wanted them in the museum, that was more than fine by her, but she did not intend to be locked up in some back room somewhere.

She did pull Sam to a stop for a moment, walking up to Mali and Elias. "Are you really going to do this," she asked flatly. "Nobody did anything. We were just looking at the stuff. Why should you let them lock you up for nothing?"

Edited February 9, 2014 by Raveled

[TheAbsurdist]

Elias sighed then, lifting his head up enough off the ground so that his words weren't going directly into the floor.  Fortunately his sonorous voice carried anyway, "Guilty people run."  It was a simple sentiment, a sickening echo from his father, but then, who else taught him how people act, certainly not his mother.  "We wont be arrested.  The police will see the pardon, and we will be let go."

 

He was familiar with police state mentality, but then he knew they were in the right, assuming Sam wasn't lying, and that the police would only serve to exonerate them.  "Running now confirms their suspicions."  And then he smiled, wryly, "... And pointing stun guns at teenagers in the open looks really bad."

[Thunder King]

"I have done nothing illegal and my parents can afford a very good lawyer. So, I assume my parents will, knowing their child is a good person, hire a very good attorney and come fetch me." She smiled politely, clearly indicating to both her friends and everyone else that she didn't think they could do anything to her legally, and would pay dearly for anything illegal they might try to do. All without saying a word about it, of course. "He would also extend that legal protection to all of my friends, knowing they are innocent. Should I choose to run, they would then probably attempt to do even worse." She shrugged.

 

"So, all I plan to do is wait for this to be sorted out. If I did anything else, I might make the situation worse."

[Blue Rose]

Sam screws up her face, not liking the answer, but eventually lets go of Tona's hand, crosses her arms, and huffs.

 

She's really good at huffing.

 

"Fine.  But I'm not letting them take me to some back room!  They wanna assault a bunch of students, then they've earned their bad press."

 

She's not quite so confident of the outcome as her peers, though.  She never had very many friends among Chicago's finest, and those she did have, she can't afford to keep with Fox out of the picture.  She'll get out in the end, sure, but there are plenty who'll want to make her squirm first.

[Raveled]

Tona crossed her arms, looking away from the group and giving a random guard her best death-glare. Finally she looked back at Mr. Landis. "I don't understand any of this," she admitted. "If these things," she gestured to the jade pieces, "are so valuable, don't put them out. If they're supposed to be looked at, then don't be angry when people want to take them home. But... I won't try to fight my way out alone. I won't make trouble -- if we're all kept together."

She scanned the group of museum-goers who had gathered to watch the confrontation. "But first." She plunged past the guards, moving decisively and ducking under fire lanes. In a moment she was between them, and in another moment beyond them, her hand locked around the arm of the woman who had called out Sam. "Who are you, bête vieille femme?"