Insert Hamburger to Continue Game: Your Donation is Greatly Appreciated - Apple Kid Invention Spree!

[notstevejobs]

Who: Apple Kid and You
What: Apple Kid has a booth set up in the quad and he's trading inventions for food
Where: The Quad
When: Tuesday, April 9th
Warnings: Inventions

Apple Kid had a little booth set up in the quad, and a bag and a series of boxes behind him. There was a sign up front that read "Will trade food for inventions. One trade per person. Put your hand in the bag, and get an invention at random. Mystery! Excitement! Bartering!"

His mouse sat next to him. They drank glasses of fruit punch as they waited for the customers to roll in.

Comments

[gentlesaint]

Rhys chanced by their stall. He was struck by curiosity, but mostly by the notions of 'Mystery!' and 'Excitement!' Hopefully it wasn't the kind of mystery and excitement no one wanted to experience, but Apple Kid wouldn't pull anything mischievous, would he?

"This looks like fun," he mused. "I feel like giving it a try! What kind of food are you hoping to receive in exchange?"

[notstevejobs]

Apple Kid looked up at the poor, sickly man.

"Oh, anything," said Apple Kid. "I'm impartial. Of course, I'd prefer nicer things, but I'll take any sort of food in exchange."

He accepts packets of salt and ketchup.

[gentlesaint]

Rhys was not so miserly as to give him a condiment packet instead of a meal! In fact, there was something about what Apple Kid said that made the entire food offering situation seem rather pitiful, like Apple Kid was a beggar on the streets pawning off his inventions to achieve basic needs. This made Rhys's brow crease in worry, though he knew Apple Kid was probably not starving, considering there was a cafeteria with a lunch bear, where he could get access to food.

"How interesting... Is this some kind of food drive?"

[notstevejobs]

"No, I'm just collecting snacks," said Apple Kid. "I like snacks."

He likes snacks.

[gentlesaint]

"Oh. I see." That's all there really was to say on the matter. Rhys paused to consider whether he had anything on his person that was consumable.

"I have an orange and some lollipops," he assessed.

[notstevejobs]

"That seems like a snack to me," said Apples Child. "Would you like to trade it for an invention?"

[gentlesaint]

"Yes! It's a trade." He fished around in his bags for the citrus fruit and a bouquet of small suckers, then placed them on the table. He was excited to encounter his fate.

[notstevejobs]

Apple Kid held the bag out for Rhys to reach into.

And the bag held a wonderful treasure for Rhys, surely.

[gentlesaint]

Rhys read what was scrawled on the scrap of paper. Then, not quite sure he read that sentence correctly the first time, held it up even closer and reread it.

"Tasteful neckties? But if it's a water pistol... shouldn't it shoot water?"

Rhys was pretty sure he knew what a water pistol was, anyway. More than that, he was baffled by the oddly specific quality of this invention. When would it ever come in handy?

[notstevejobs]

"It used to shoot water," said Apple Kid simply, "but now it shoots tasteful neckties. It's very handy for when someone forgot their tie, or for when someone wears the wrong tie with an outfit."

Yup, everything's peaches and cream, as Apple Kid walks to the boxes in the back to get you your brand new necktie-shooting water pistol.

[gentlesaint]

When Rhys takes it, he holds it awkwardly, as he is wont to do with weaponry of any sort that does not have pages and a spine. He stared at it for a bit and silently processed this novel gadget.

"Well... I can see where it would come in handy, then," accepted Rhys, as evenly as though hearing an unusual but altogether sensible opinion for the first time. "It's just such a specific and uncommon situation to prepare for. Can you imagine how dismayed I should be if a colleague forgot his necktie and I didn't have this pistol on me? I would think, 'Why should it happen now, of all times!' Oh, I'd feel so bad."

[notstevejobs]

"Then you should carry it with you always," replied Apple Kid.

[sicklypriest]

"Especially at formal events," added Rhys with a soft giggle. "Thank you for the pistol! Oh, may I try it on you?" There was a childish sort of glee dancing in his eyes as he clutched the weapon close to him.

[notstevejobs]

"I suppose so," said Apple Kid. "If you would like to give my invention a test run."

[gentlesaint]

"All right, then. Here goes!"

He aimed the pistol and pulled the trigger. With a whizzing sound that can be described as an onomatopoeic shwoop, a tasteful necktie came shooting out of the muzzle and onto Apple Kid's person.

[notstevejobs]

And so, dear reader, Apple Kid was wearing a tasteful necktie.

"This looks at least 87.5% tasteful to me," said Apple Kid. "I'll call it a rousing success."

[gentlesaint]

"Yay! I think the colors do match quite nicely, if you want my opinion. Ooh, that was kind of fun. Thank you for letting me trade with you, Apple Kid," thanked Rhys.

[notstevejobs]

"You're welcome. At Apple Kid Industries, we aim to please."

His mouse shook his head 'yes' in agreement.