Put On Display

[Erika Conner (Bellefonte)]

It felt as if it was due time for the two of them to do something out of the box - safe for getting hitched, anyways. Something simple - something normal, and something they'd normally stray far away from doing. As such, Erika had dragged Drew to the mall without as much as offering him the chance to say no. So, here they were then. At the less than impressive mall of Kalispell. Now, the mall didn't have everything proper malls should have and it wasn't designed to outdo every other mall in town. Now, that didn't mean that it wasn't a pretty or useful place, but that was hardly why the couple had come here to begin with.

Now, for once, Erika wanted the two of them to let loose and act like one of those obnoxiously in love teenagers you saw running the mill, doing stupid things and simply being teenagers - which most of their life wouldn't allow them to do.

After arriving, the two had walked around for a bit, simply window shopping. After that, Erika had practically dragged Drew into one of the costume shops and she now stood leaned against one of the larger mirrors, arms crossed over her chest as she tried her best to still the bubbling laughter at the sight of Drew wearing one of those god awful purple feather boas with glitter, a pink cowboy hat and a pair of neon green sunglasses.

"I think you look cute," she said, head tilting as she puckered her lips. "It suits you."

Drew Conner

[Drew Conner]

The things the normally reserved and stoic Conner twin did for his wife. Although it was hardly taking a bullet or cleaning up a major facet of his allegedly professional life, allowing himself to be dragged along through some campy costume shop by the hand was a gesture of some relevance. Drew rarely cared about holidays such as Halloween. It always seemed the Conner family was always out of the country during the middle of Autumn and the twins had scarcely any other opportunity to dress up as outrageous characters. The idea just felt ludicrous and juvenile. At least it did when Drew couldn't see the way Erika's eyes lit up and she struggled to stifle the laugh at the farcical display.

"I was, at one point, allegedly a pimp." He pointed out, plucking a 'rhinestone' encrusted cane topped by a massive, purple 'jewel' from a nearby rack and striking a pose with both hands resting atop the cane in front of him. "It's only fitting to dress the part." He should have felt uncomfortable and awkward taking part in such antics and, in a way, it was obvious he wasn't a natural at tomfoolery. There was a reason he was commonly mistaken for being much older than he was and letting himself fall into childish games was certainly not part of it.

Regardless, everything was different around Erika. Even from behind the garish sunglasses that Elton John would find overly flamboyant, Drew's eyes shone brightly. While there's was hardly a case of one needing to learn to slow down while the other find the benefits of letting loose on occasion, there was a certain dynamic between them. Yes, Drew was known for being calculating even in his socializing and Erika's reputation as the 'Party Bellefonte' wasn't wholly without merit, but those were hardly their respective defining characteristics. None the less, it did take times like these for Erika to get Drew to see he wouldn't begin to melt if he allowed himself to not be so tightly wound 24 hours a day.

"You know..." He said, turning just enough to peer at himself in a nearby wall mirror. "I just might dress up for Halloween this year."

[Erika Conner (Bellefonte)]

Rolling her eyes, Erika issued a chuckle. Her head shook so that the curls danced around her face before she turned towards the rack, filled with various items. She ran the tips of her fingers through them. "That's true," she said in simple agreement, her lips pursing in amusement. She was glad he at the very least played along. Sure, this wasn't at all the kind of thing she'd ever imagine him doing, but it was nice to know that he could at the very least go along with it - if even just for the time being.

Her head lifted as he continued, eyebrows furrowing slightly. "oh?" she asked as she peered at him over the rack of costumes and items. She couldn't quite picture Drew having anything to do with Halloween, but she had to admit that it was something she'd look forward to. Now, she had never been one for Halloween herself - at least not once she'd manifested. It hadn't really been her thing and she'd never had much of a sweet tooth. "Drew Conner, wearing something that isn't a suit," she said in mock astonishment.

[Drew Conner]

Drew often found himself in the harrowing position of drifting between still being a kid and holding onto the decidedly adult, mature lessons that had been forced into his mind seemingly since birth. It wasn't in his nature to give in to such urges as playing around in costume or even attending the usual, off the wall parties that tended to define a holiday like Halloween. There was, however, that tiny inkling of doubt that lingered in the back of his mind that kept warning him he'd regret his later years if he didn't allow himself to enjoy his time largely free of adult burdens.

"Eh, I don't know." Drew said, his eyes still looking over his reflection in the mirror. "I could easily add a tie to this and make a suit out of it." He was speaking mostly to himself at this point. While, yes, he had been considering trying that whole 'relaxing' thing once in a while, he wasn't quite ready to abandon his natural inclinations. "Anyway, I'll never apologize for not giving in to the lure of unwashed jeans and stained t-shirts." His nose wrinkled in distaste. It was no secret he wasn't fond of 'teenage' fashion as it were. "I don't see how anyone could possibly think they'd be taken seriously dressing like that." He mused idly while turning to get a profile look at his ridiculous getup. "It needs a coat..." He muttered with a faint nod. "One of those huge, fur deals."

[Erika Conner (Bellefonte)]

Rolling her eyes at that, Erika shook her head. "Of course you could." Though, even Erika had to admit that she couldn't quite picture Drew wearing anything but a suit, even if she'd seen him do just that on several occasions. It always struck her as strange and completely out of character. Besides, what girl didn't love a guy in a suit? Rounding the corner of the various hangers and clothing, Erika put a hand on Drew's shoulder and leaned in. "I wear casual clothing all the time and everyone still take me seriously," she said, lips pursing in amusement. "Then again, I'm hot too, so that's probably why," she added with an almost wicked grin.

Quickly, she leaned in to kiss his cheek before pulling away. "No, it really doesn't," she laughed. "No fur coat," she added with a shake of her head. She ran her fingers through the costumes once more and shrugged her shoulders. She was glad it seemed as if he was relaxed in this kind of silly environment, though she suspected that if it had been anyone else, he wouldn't have gone along with it quite as easily.

[Drew Conner]

"Well, let's be honest." Leave it to Drew to take a bit of playful banter and turn it into a semi-serious discussion. He was still getting used to relaxing and not being so tightly wound. Erika had brought him a long way in that, though he was still a work in progress. "Your last name carries weight." He chuckled a little. "People know there's a Bellefonte in their midst and they're usually on their best behavior, right?"

Drew cast a sideways glance toward his wife and smiled when she leaned in to kiss his cheek. "Alright, alright." No fur coat. He quickly settled into a more laid back demeanor. Erika always had that affect on him in spite of his nature. His mouth had opened to say something else, though his eyes settled upon something that made the words catch before they could escape. Stepping to the side, around Erika, he moved to a shelf just behind her and lifted a gaudy, terribly fake looking crown that was probably more suited for a cartoon character than an actual monarch. Not being able to resist, Drew placed it atop his head and turned to face Erika. "I have no idea what we're doing here but, come on." He gestured toward the crown with both hands. It was just another random piece, to go along with the sunglasses and ridiculous boa, added to his bizarre wardrobe. "It works and you know it."

[Erika Conner (Bellefonte)]

Quirking her brow, Erika smiled as she leaned slightly forward. "That depends," she began, chewing on the inside of her lips. "My last name-- or rather, previous last name--" she smiled slightly at that. "-only carries weight among the mutant community, and if we're going to be completely honest, most mutants outside the school communities are rather scattered. It's not like there's huge towns of mutants spread across the world." At least, not in that sense. There was various campus spread about, but that wasn't the same thing.

Erika turned her head to look at him as he placed the crown on top of his head. She immediately made a face and grimaced, head shaking lightly. "No, it really doesn't," she laughed. "You should probably go for one of those mafia hats instead," she added with a smirk, moving further down the aisle of various costumes and items. "Seems more like your thing," she said, trying to hide the amusement in her voice, but failing horribly.

[Drew Conner]

"See?" Drew cast his wife a short glance, the smirk on his face coming out in full force now even as his eyes gleamed the moment they caught sight of the smiling brunette. "There you go bringing logic and reason into an argument that has neither." Yes, even Drew would admit there was a discussion to be had here given the trials and tribulations each of them knew came with having a certain last name, though this was hardly the time or the place. Drew shook his head, a little embarrassed Erika's name change had slipped his mind. It all still hadn't fully sunk in. "At least now you only have to worry about people who have seen Terminator one too many times." He chuckled.

"Mafia-" The word tumbled from Drew's lips before he couldn't help a laugh from escaping. "That's a low blow." He mused, though he still went to follow along looking for just such a hat. He may not have wanted to admit it given his dubious history, but Erika was right. "As long as you don't try and get me to dress in full drag we're okay." He said, turning to sort through a rack of outlandish hats while most definitely not looking for something befitting a mafia boss.