[OPEN] Well, that's a problem

[matchbreaker]

WHO: Elda Marker and YOU
WHERE: Garden Gate Farmer's Market, in and around the Marker manor, Towers (and most of Tisse by extension), the residential streets at night?
WHEN: Mid-June, as she gets a special gift
WHAT: Elda's received a new pair of eyes from Retrospec, and that's incredibly disturbing. Her various adventures in trying to get used to this and deal with the result of having red night-vision eyes.
WARNINGS: None worth noting, I think? Cranky 40 year old?

A) The Curious Incident of the Farmers Marker in the Morning

[ Our story begins one fateful day when, like any proper person who doesn't currently have a non-volunteer job but excess money, Elda Marker goes to the Farmers Market bright and early. Picking up a lot of fruits, some vegetables, hot peppers, and what else she can find (and what she can discern what with the lack of green here, it's kind of fucked up and she might be looking for some insights on that). She actually is getting a few flowers too! With two bags under her arms, the woman is humming a little as she's making her way back to the car to get back to the manor-

Until it happens.

Elda blinks, and once she opens her eyes again her previously dark brown eyes are now red. The burgandy orbs look widely around the area for a moment until - she shuts them as fast as possible and screams in pain. The light hurts? It's blinding, actually! The morning sun is- She drops all of her bags, and there's no way she's going to be able to drive. She's making a scene right now, her hands clutched over her face to try to block out the light - it's hurting even through her eyelids, causing her to tear up. ]

Arrgh... What the devil- Agh.

B) Home Is Where The ... Cats Are. Or something.

[ Somehow, someway, Elda will make it home even if she needed to walk there. It wasn't that far from the Farmers Marker to the manor. Once at her house, Elda... turns off all the lights. It's a bright summer day, and people who have known the woman knows that she lights to be outside on days like this but it's scaring her right now how much it hurts her eyes. Her house guests/son or anyone visiting the house will notice that the woman has turned off all the lights in the house and closed many of the curtains. The light even of the bulbs hurts her eyes a little... Man.

That said, later in the day you might find her outside of her house, on the front lawn. She is defiantly sunbathing in a light dress and wearing sunglasses and not a swimsuit (this is the front lawn, she's not a barbarian) but rather a loose summer dress. Her brown hair's tied back as well.

... Ugh, she should have gone on a run. This sucks, she feels so lazy. It's even hard to read. ]

C) Operation Classy Glassy

[ ... Also her only sunglasses are okay, but if they are going to be a regular fashion thing for her, as seems to be the case, she needs better ones. Or at least - no, actually definitely more than one pair. Still not trusting herself to drive on a Summers Day even with the sunglasses on, the woman instead calls a cab and takes it over to Tisse, where she's going to a variety of places to shop, but mostly focuses on the accessory section of Towers. Here, she's trying on all hella style. She's doing this and examining herself in the mirror, sometimes taking them off to lower the distortion, but wincing every time her new red eyes catch the light of the store. You know what, eventually she resorts to- ]

You there! I need some insight, come on over!

[ Conscripting outside help. ]

D) Gotta keep up the exercise somehow or another!

[ Something else Elda soon enough notices: ... She can see in the dark now. She has no idea how (it must be the eyes... did Retrospec give her night vision eyes or something?) and she has a great visual range than before, she's pretty sure. And you know what that means?

... It means that if she can't get her morning runs in, she's going to give herself some night runs.

Hopefully no one will find it strange to see a small 5' 40 year old woman jogging in the middle of the night, her red eyes wide to look around her. ... Hopefully none of you catch the moonlight or a street light reflecting off those eyes, it might look like the glow of a predator. But either way, she's sure.

Doing that. It's okay, she's learned a lot of self-defense. ]

[ Also if any of you want to do something else or a weirder prompt / have questions / just want to add me I guess feel free to talk to me at bigdamnhero. Yep! ]

Comments

[vitis]

[ john misconstrues the groan to be at him rather than the light. when he catches on, though... ]

Honestly, ma'am, none of 'em are gonna look bad on you...

[ seriously, some people just pull off sunglasses well. john glances from the one she places back on her face to the selection. he pulls the one on the bottom right from its holder as he is stupidly biased for flower life. ]

Try this one—? Maybe.

[matchbreaker]

Well, of course. [ She said, as arrogant as anyone might expect her to be! But she brushes back her brown hair and closes her eyes as she reaches out to take the floral pattern from him. She makes a careful move to get them on her face, winging a little...

and once they're on-

She opens her eyes. ]

But I want to try to pick out the best, and it's hard to see the right colors.

[vitis]

Aw, that's true.

[ the deliberateness of the gestures have him curious, eliciting a raise of an eyebrow from him. but then she supplies a potential explanation, and... rip blue and green, after all. ]

Anyway, those are nice, but not the best, y'know? Try these! [ as while he likes that one, they're also kind of ostentatious. thus, selecting another pair for her to try, he'll hold out his hand for the floral pattern one to be replaced.

it can't look bad on her, after all?! ]

[matchbreaker]

[ Rip green and blue, it's true. Not to mention that colors are different when looking through sunglasses, especially through a mirror. That said, when he offers that...

She narrows her eyes under the floral ones and: ]

... What do you take me for? Those look absurd!

[vitis]

[ ah, here he was hopeful she might give them a shot. her reaction gets a laugh out of him (not nearly as loud of a laugh if she'd tried them). ] Not a fan of reindeer? Though, if there's anyone that could, thought you might be able to pull 'em off.

[ he taps its frame with a nail. ]

See? They even got minimal greens and blues— probably.

[matchbreaker]

If I were to pick an animal motif, I certainly wouldn't pick a reindeer. Aren't you just being a flatterer, now?

[ Imperiously, the 5' rich woman puts a hand on her hip. haughty tone and everything, ]

[vitis]

Flattery would imply I want somethin' from you, wouldn't it?

[ yeah, to try on the reindeer sunglasses!!!! at the show of imperiousness (damn, yes, he's presumed her to be the rich type— "haughty" is how the wealthy act in his book, okay), though, john inclines his head... he might be somewhat accepting of that accusation. ]

Didn't mean to come off that way, though.

[matchbreaker]

[ Huff ]

You do want me to wear it, don't you? [ but okay!! ] Very well, I'll humor you, at least.

[ "magnanimously," she goes to put those... on... ]

[vitis]

[ confirmed: those are, indeed, absurd. she did it. thankfully, he's not enough of a product of his generation to whip out his phone and snap a picture. john's smile twists as he tries to hold in his laughter—

no, he's failed. there's an undeniable snicker. ]

All right. You still want my opinion? Cuz—[ heh ]—Reckon I got one more.

[matchbreaker]

Oh, you may as well, now!

[ brat. She's going to shut her eyes closed and take the sunglasses off her head, throwing them towards his head. She'll then fumble around for one of the "maybes" as best she can.

With her eyes closed. ]

[vitis]

[ all right, he might have deserved the whack of sunglasses to the head. maybe. john picks up the fallen reindeer pair from the floor, straightening to return them— oh, she's struggling a lot (things are more clear, now).

it's his chance. hurrying, he'll slip one of these favorites beneath her hand. ]

[matchbreaker]

[ ah, there! She gets the gold one on, and opens her eyes slowly. Her eyes are red under them, and she - ]

There we go! Ugh, damned eyes.

[vitis]

[ he is beaming!! he'd like to compliment her again, but he is wary of being That flatter. he explains the glimpse of red eyes as a trick of the light and maybe a weirdness of shading... ]

The light botherin' you? [ a tilt of his head. ] You already been to a doc 'bout that, I'd hope?

[ he presumes she'd have the insurance for it, or something. ]

[matchbreaker]

I need to work out what doctors are on Retrospec.

[ she doesn't know if this man is on there either, but if he isn't? Well, he'll just think she's picky and crazy, and there's been worse things than that. Who cares. ]

After all, eyes don't change like that otherwise.

[ Exhale. ]

[vitis]

... A "gift" from Retrospec, huh?

[ "gift" used in the loosest, most sarcastic manner ever. he's not without his sympathies, though, a low whistle to follow. ]

Can't say I know any docs like that, either. [ a shrug; he tries to think of anything else that could help with sensitive eyesight. ] You a hat person? That could help a bit too, in the meanwhile.

[matchbreaker]

Have you seen my hair? [ she brushes back her light brown locks. Its only shoulder length, but she has a lot of pride in it. She tuts, ] I wouldn't want to get matted up by a hat, I'm much better off with just sunglasses.

[ . . . Maybe. Not really.

But either way- ]

... You're on Retrospec as well? Have you gotten any "gifts" like that?

[vitis]

Oh. [ right. ladies and their hair. he probably should've known better. lamely: ] ... Well, I'd keep it in mind, anyway?

[ at the follow-up question, there's a shake of his head. ]

Naw, nothin' like that. Just some of those weird hallucinations every once in a while.

[matchbreaker]

I've gotten two of those so far.

[ she puffs out her cheeks ]

I've only been on the app a month and they change around my eyes like this?!

[vitis]

They're pretty dumb, right?

[ in reference to the hallucinations. his tone, in this rare instance, implies he isn't open to disagreement on the subject.

but anyway, ]

Aw, sounds like Retrospec's mighty fond of you! [ or jim. or whoever. how lucky is she! ] If you had to take a shot at it, what'd you say they're gonna do to you next?

[matchbreaker]

How should I know?

[ She glares at nothing in particular from under the sunglasses. She notes his tone and also projects her own frustrations. The woman doesn't growl - that would be tacky - but does push up the sunglasses ]

They've harassed me and my son and give me some memory about bats and now messed up my eyes.

[vitis]

Harassed, in that you both get some annoying, weirdo gifts?

[ because all retrospec users eventually get the hallucinations? he thinks. in the same vein, he doesn't want to be too nosy, so he'll aim for keeping any questions of his on the vaguer side... that is, if he hasn't already been labeled as such.

but what do bats and light sensitivity have in common? well. ]

Tryin' to turn you nocturnal, it sounds like.

1/2

[matchbreaker]

No, I meant those photos from the other month...

[ . . . WAIT.

Wait- ]

[matchbreaker]

... You're right! That would make sense, that first one was even at night too!

[ what the hell. Nocturnal?! Who ever heard of a nocturnal person?! ]

[vitis]

[ oh, that sort of harassment. ... it had been a bit skeezy, he'll admit. ]

[ but yeah, who has... heard of a nocturnal person...! john's smile becomes a bit thin, somewhat bemused at the reaction. (it hadn't been that serious of a suggestion!!) ]

Well... Suppose so. If that's the one with bats, then yeah, bats usually come out at night... [ remarkable. that's all he's got rn, sorry. ]

[matchbreaker]

Bats, light-sensitive eyes, the memories at nights... Ugh, just what am I ever remembering...

[ She groans, and runs a hand up to run through her hair. she slides it down her face and ... she resists the urge to bite her nail. That's a bad habit. she shakes her head, and adjusts the floral sunglasses ]

Anyway, you think these look nice?