Shop smart: shop S-Mart! [open]

[hates_deadites]

Click click click click."There." Ash was rather proud of his menial little accomplishment as he stood with one metal hand on his hip and the other clutching a price labler gun, surveying his store

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[changelingdude]

There was something oddly soothing about walking through a store like this. Beastboy had been crashing people's Sensorium sessions for fun and found this peculiar little fantasy world finding it peaceful and relaxing. Somehow even more so then the sensorium he had just left full of fluffy clouds.

Stretching his arms out over his head he sighed and tucked his hands behind his head casually roaming the aisles. Yep, nothing to see here, just a point eared green goblin looking kid examining the imaginary comic books on the spinner rack in the magazine department.

[hates_deadites]

The magazine department, while not Ash's department, was one he frequented and loitered around in when he wanted to look like he was busy being busy. Those habits died hard, though he found he was not alone here.

Wh...

A green kid. A green kid with pointy ears. A green kid with pointy ears checking out the comics he kind of wanted to look at. He admittedly looked kind of familiar but couldn't pinpoint it exactly.

"You need help with something, kid?"

[changelingdude]

Beastboy jumped startled from his reading and fumbled the comic book barely managing to catch it and grinning sheepishly set it back on the rack carefully.

"Uh...sup dude? This your store?" A silly question but it was the first thing that came to mind.

[hates_deadites]

Jumpy kid. Maybe he was thinking of swiping it.

"Yeah. You're in S-Mart. And, no offense pal, but you look like you belong more in one of these," Ash leaned over and adjusted the comic he so carefully put back--call it store clerk OCD. "...than in a store. What's your name?"

He wasn't a huge comic book nerd--He was more a college kid TV, beer and football guy, but he knew the basics.

Please don't say Green Goblin.

[governorkang]

As if Kang hadn't been pissed off enough about a goddamn bronze dragon being on the ship, it had to get worse with Howard's exaggerations and assumptions, and other crewmembers not even bothering to listen when they were told there was absolutely nothing for them to worry about. Bronzes were creatures of Good.

If Crucible had any plans to kill anyone on Stacy, his only targets would be himself and his daughter. He was beginning to doubt that, too, after both the incident with Kali during Lirath and his own run-in, and as much as he liked not being killed, he didn't like the dragon's interest in his family, either.

Visits to the Sensoriums to blow off steam had become more frequent for the bozak in the past weeks. Every now and then he'd enter one to find it occupied, and leave immediately, but this one made him curious.

Who the hell would imagine up a supermarket?

[hates_deadites]

Ash would, thank you very much, but he doubted he would imagine dragons in his supermarket, much less half-dragon half-man creatures that looked an awful lot like Drunken Dragon Tavern Owner/Councillor whatshisname ...

Oh crap.

He couldn't figure it out. Had he imagined him in here or was he really in here? Ash stared (and obviously so) at the behemoth seven-foot or so tall draconian until he could figure it out.

[governorkang]

That had to be the owner. And judging from the staring, he was relatively new. Kang quirked an eyebrow ridge and glanced around at the shelves briefly, "I'm going to venture a guess that this was your job before you got brought here."

[hates_deadites]

Not the owner, technically, but it was his job.

"That's right." That kind of implied lizard lips was no a figment of his imagination, but Ash proceeded with caution.

"Worked in Housewares, just living a simple life before all the stuff in the cabin happened... and then I guess all space alien stuff that brought me here, happened."

[i_sell_drugs]

"This is the most boring Sensoriums visit I've ever seen." And yet, Howard's a little bit fascinated. Not just that the guy with the nametag would create such a dull fantasy, although that's certainly intriguing in its own right, but also the sheer quantity of items for sale. It's been well over a year, maybe two, since Howard's seen a fully-stocked department store.

He sort of wants to steal something from under Ash's nose, just to see if he can. Not like anything from the Sensoriums will last once he leaves the room anyway.

"So what do they pay you here, like, two over minimum?"

[hates_deadites]

Howard would very probably get away with it. Ash was a clerk, not security, after all. Though, he would unarguably fit the security bill much better now given all his zombie fighting experiences.

"Hey, hey." Ash barked with a frown and a pointed finger once he realized this was not an imaginary customer making a wisecrack over his imaginary paycheck. "No ruining my pretendy fun time, kid. How the hell did you get in here anyway?"

Or maybe it was. Ash really had no way of telling who was a figment of his imagination and who wasn't in here. While he was sure his mind was not very creative, it certainly had a life of its own.

[i_sell_drugs]

"Through the door. Duh." Did this guy seriously use the phrase 'pretendy funtime'? Howard slides a pack of gum from near the cash register into his pocket. "How'd you get in here, bad life decisions?"

Howard's aware he's being a rude little pill. He just doesn't much care.

[hates_deadites]

"Well great, you can find the door and get out of here if all you're gonna' do is remark about my bad life decisions."

A pause.

"And, FYI, not all of which were made by me."

[mylittlelolny]

If Ash stopped to check the magazine rack, he'd see every periodical was now the latest issue of Pony Party Monthly. If he looked up, he'd see colorful streamers dangling from the ceiling. The banners now read "HAPPY BIRTHDAY", "CONGRATULATIONS", "FELIZ NAVIDAD" and other excited greetings.

As for the deadite customers? They were all wearing colorful party hats.

Pinkie Pie had arrived.

[hates_deadites]

Ash did indeed stop to check the magazine rack, as he so often did when he wanted to look like he was being busy. You know, reading those important articles and totally not just looking at the pictures of the scantily clad ponies of Swimsuit Illustrated.

Wait wait... ponies? Maybe it was MAD magazine in disguise and... no, upon closer inspection all the magazines were pony themed. You're loosing your marbles, Ash. He swiftly stalked out of that aisle in search of something to do and clear his head. Lo and behold, the next aisle was the party aisle. It seemed to stretch on infinitely long. That wasn't right.

He darted for the next aisle. That was... the party aisle too? His head had become a dark and twisted place, sure, but was extra kinds of bizarre.

It was around then he noticed the banners, streamers, and stray deadite customers that had infiltrated the paranoid recesses of his mind but they were just standing around minding their own business.

In colorful party hats.

"Somethin's not right here..."

[mylittlelolny]

"Ohmygosh, ohmygosh! A party store!!" Pinkie gasped with delight as she skipped from one aisle to the next. "All the supplies I'll ever need to throw the greatest parties EVER! It's like a dream come true!"

Her squealing grew louder and more high-pitched as she neared Ash, who, as far as she could tell, was the only worker in the store at the moment. "Excuse me! Can you tell me where I can find party poppers?"

Before giving him a chance to answer, she turned to a nearby deadite. "Ooh! I LOVE your hat!"

[hates_deadites]

Oh no. It was that crazy talking pink pony he saw when he first woke up. Why of all places was she here?

He stared. "Down the..." He was about to point her to the party aisle, but seeing as how they were all the party aisle, he stopped himself. Especially now noticing the party-prepped deadite.

"Hey! Get away from that thing!" Ash less-than-gently shoved Pinkie away. The deadite looked sad and felt a deep sadness inside his dead little heart.

Then Ash punched it in the face. It hit the floor and the party hat went flying. "I don't care how crazy you are, you stay away from those deadites. You got that?!"

[things_go_boom]

"What."

...well that summed it up nicely.

[hates_deadites]

"...What?"

A what that was more like what small furry animal crawled onto your head and died kind of what. Oh well, a customer in need is hopefully a paying customer in need.

"You need help with something sweetheart?"

[things_go_boom]

"No seriously, you can recreate anything your imagination desires and you recreate a shopping m---did you call me sweetheart?"

[hates_deadites]

"It's just a term of endearment, nothin' personal... Unless you wanted it to be personal." He shrugged and trailed off, glancing her up and down once. Lash didn't exactly have all the curves he tended to prefer in women. Looked kind of young, too. Possibly like a crotch-kicker.

"Besides, what's wrong with S-Mart? You never been in a store before?"