fandomtownies | The Arms Hotel Lobby, Saturday [3/8]

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The Arms Hotel Lobby, Saturday [3/8]

Mary was relaxed and content as she sat behind the front desk and watched a broom sweeping the floor on its own. The buffet table was being scrubbed from top to bottom with hot, soapy water. The carpet in the lobby seating areas was being vacuumed. The cushions were being fluffed. The tables and banquettes in the restaurant were being polished.

The only downside was that the unseen cleaning crew had chased Gunther out of the kitchen, so there was no food today. But there was gleaming stainless steel and spotless floors.

"I love you," Mary said to the hard-working broom. "Please tell me that you'll stay here with me?"

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There's no Gunther and no food today, but sit down, relax and watch the cleaning crew hard at work. That is, unless they won't let you sit on the newly-fluffed couch cushions.

Mary loves spring cleaning. She hasn't been this happy since the day she got engaged.

And there was a flustered Tom, running into the hotel lobby after Pizza Planet's broom and an army of Swiffer dusters. All of them had decided that, since they'd cleaned the store enough, well, they were going to find other things to clean, too!

He then looked up, realizing he had no idea where he was.

"Hi Tom! Welcome to the Arms Hotel," said Mary. "Is this wonderful? I love spring cleaning."

"Oh... hi, Mary," said Tom, brightening and walking up to her. "So all of your cleaning supplies are working by themselves, too? I was chasing after my broom and dusters. They helped get my store clean, then took off on their own. Odd things like that have been happening all week."

He had no idea, of course, that this was the norm for Fandom, more or less!

"It has been a kind of strange week, hasn't it?" said Mary. "I don't mind that the cleaning, though, especially since most of housekeeping called in sick after yesterday's dust bunny disaster. And any week that I don't turn into a cat is a good week."

"Yeah, the dust bunnies were horrible," said Tom. "And colorful. I seemed to attract orange-colored ones, and I looked like a giant cheese doodle by the end of the day." Ignoring, of course, that his bright orange work uniform had nearly the same effect. He then stopped for a moment to take in the last sentence. "...You've turned into a cat before?" he asked incredulously. OK, Ronan had warned him about Fandom weirdness, but...

"I did," said Mary. "I had this craving for milk, and the next thing I remember is scampering around the lobby as a little orange kitten. I spent about two weeks as a kitten before I changed back. It was kind of fun, except for being chased by Jeff's dog."

"Uh... huh," said Tom slowly, blinking. "I was about to think that's crazy. But after seeing miniature giraffes falling from the sky... oh, and Sky- the human Sky- as a little red ball of light, I can believe anything, I think."

"I was kind of prepared for it, I guess," said Mary. "I have an employee named River who turned into an owl once. She even showed up for her shift that week and perched somewhere over the front desk."

"Wow. That's a dedicated employee," said Tom, impressed. "Fortunately, nothing of the sort has happened to one of mine yet, but I have a feeling it's only a matter of time."

Meanwhile, having found that the hotel's cleaning supplies had everything well in hand, the broom and Swiffer dusters fell with a clatter at Tom's feet.

"My initiation into the weird started early. Right after I arrived, I found that time here didn't run in sync with time where I come from. I have a friend back home who's been pregnant for nearly a year now and she's still supposedly 2 months from her due date," said Mary. "And to top it off, the last time I talked to her, we got cut off and when I called back, I was told that she doesn't really exist."

"... Really?" Tom asked, aghast. OK, he was a little freaked out about that. "Wow. I... haven't noticed anything like that. Yet," he felt the need to put on the end.

"Have you been keeping in touch with people outside Fandom?" asked Mary.

Tom nodded.

"I live off the island, actually," he explained. "I just drive here from home every day."

"Oh, even better! That way you get to stay connected to the outside world," said Mary, grinning. "At least, it works until the island gets cut off from the mainland, like it did last fall."

"Yeah, staying connected is good," said Tom slowly. "Not being able to has got to be... strange. To say the least. And... well, I hope that doesn't happen again!" No, the poor man hadn't quite put together that Fandom was a whole entity unto itself yet. He was still trying to get over the giraffes and dust bunnies.

"It was really weird. It was some kind of curse on the island. You couldn't physically leave and even the phones and Internet couldn't get through, plus we all got sick. When it was all over, I got about 5 months worth of voicemails from people back home in Las Vegas," said Mary.

She wasn't purposely trying to scare Tom, but Fandom weirdness had really taken a toll on her.

Tom's jaw dropped as he leaned over to pick up his cleaning supplies.

"...Huh," was all he could think to say.

"But it all worked out in the end," said Mary, smiling. "My boyfriend spent the whole time taking care of me while I was sick, and it kind of brought us together. Now we're getting married in June."

"Well, congratulations!" said Tom, smiling back. "He sounds like a good catch if he'll take care of you like that."

"I tell myself every day how lucky I am to have him," said Mary, beaming. "You're married, aren't you? How long have you been married?"

Tom nodded. "For a little over 10 years," he replied. "My secret is... pretty much doing whatever Lynette tells me to do."

Mary giggled. "But it works, right? I need to tell George Michael that," she said.

"It does," Tom admitted grudgingly. "George Michael may not want to hear that, though," he added with a wink.

"That's true. He really likes being in charge," said Mary. "That doesn't mean I can't make suggestions, though."

Tom nodded. "And if you smile sweetly enough while you ask- or are, ah, persuasive enough- you can get him to do anything. ...Not like I'm that way or anything." He chuckled, a little embarrassed. "...I'd better get back to my store before I incriminate myself more."

"Oh, I can be very persuasive," said Mary with a grin. "Stop by anytime, Tom. It's been fun talking to you."

At that moment, the broom and dusters started escaping out the front door, and Tom had to give chase.

"You, too!" he called over his shoulder.

Wish I had these guys to clean my bathroom.

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OOC [3/8]