A Music Venue in Brooklyn, Sunday Evening

[suitably_heroic]

Yes, Jack believed all the Force users in the multiverse could use a few lessons in doing normal people things more often. He had frequently coerced, wheedled, and poked several of them into it over the years. But this? Making Lana Beniko, ex-Sith spymaster, man the merch booth?

Had to be his greatest achievement.

It maybe gave a little extra oomph to his performance that evening.

It was also when, after they were done, one of the first things he did was haul his sweaty ass back to the merch stand. "Sooo," he said, grinning. "How are we doing?"

[[ for a lana ]]

Comments

[suitably_heroic]

"I'm just saying, I respect you for more than your cheekbones and your sizable constellation of moons, but I appreciate you using your assets to our advantage," Jack said, putting a couple of t-shirts into a box himself.

Huh. There really weren't many.

[unusual_sith]

"You're very welcome." Lana bowed as she sealed up the rest of the pins into their bag and set it in the box.

She rolled her eyes, though. "'Sizeable constellations'? I've got the standard human number."

[suitably_heroic]

Jack shrugged merrily as he dropped the stickers on top of the shirts and closed up the box. "Your huge orbital space lasers?" he said. "Your bountiful battle droids?"

It was late and the energy drain had him feeling a little ridiculous, so sue him.

[unusual_sith]

Lana gave him a clearly unamused look. "They're not cybernetic, either. Give it up, Rand."

She took a last look around to make sure they had it all. "You promised me food for this."

[suitably_heroic]

"Oh, come on, find a sense of humor," Jack sighed.

He stacked one box onto the other. "But fine, fine. Now, post-show is usually greasy comfort food time, but if you want something fancier, we can do that."

[unusual_sith]

"I think I'm doing quite well with my humor," Lana said. "I haven't even threatened to disembowel you! Yet."

She shrugged. "Greasy comfort food is fine. I'd prefer it without the health code violations, but as long as it won't give me food poisoning, I'm game."

[suitably_heroic]

Jack nodded Very Sincerely. "Shawarma it is."

[unusual_sith]

"Are we waiting for the rest of the band?" Lana asked.

[suitably_heroic]

Jack shook his head. "Trent has an afterparty somewhere, Jill's brothers are here to visit, and Dane was saying something about an early night," he said. "I was thinking I could go say goodbye to him real quick and then we'll head out?"

[unusual_sith]

Lana nodded. "I'll wait outside. Give them my congratulations."

[suitably_heroic]

Jack snorted, but all he said was a, "Will do," before he vanished back through the door.

He came back about five minutes later, now wearing his jacket, a bag slung over his shoulder. "You can leave the boxes," he said. "Dane'll pick 'em up on the way out."

[unusual_sith]

"If you're sure." Lana was skeptical, but Jack knew this area better than she did.

"Which way to the shawarma?"

[suitably_heroic]

"Out the door," Jack said, amused. "Then take a left."

He was already moving.

[unusual_sith]

Lana followed. "So what kind of food is shawarma? Where is it from?" Earth had entirely too many cultures for such a tiny planet.

[suitably_heroic]

Yeah, and Jack kind of loved it for that. Not that he'd admit to being a nerd about it unless pressured.

"It's from the Middle East," he said, as he passed through the door and into the night. "Shaved meat, usually served in a wrap with salad and sauces."

[unusual_sith]

"Sounds good," Lana said. "Spicy?"

[suitably_heroic]

"As spicy as you want to make it," Jack said. Amused, he added: "What, scared?"

[unusual_sith]

"Just curious," Lana said. "I enjoy spicy food; I'm not a heathen."

[suitably_heroic]

"They have spicy sauces and not so spicy sauces," Jack clarified. "You know, in case you get more adventurous as you go along."

[unusual_sith]

"Or I burn my mouth on the first one and have to ramp down," Lana said. "Either way, it sounds good."

She was silent for a moment as they walked.

"I admit I see the appeal of this city," she said after a minute. "Earth is like an entire galaxy of cultures on one planet, and New York is a microcosm of it. A concentrated dose."

[suitably_heroic]

"Exactly."

Jack's mouth formed into a smile against his will. It showed up in that one word, too.

He shook his head, as if trying to dispell it. Failing. He sighed. "Cade kept dumping on it," he said. "Kept calling it a mid-sized town on a backwards mudball."

Had he been working on an angry song about it? Maybe.