The Perk, Thursday Noon

[lockestheway]

As Ender left the Perk, Peter sank back in his seat. He still wasn't sure what to make of these weekly tête-à-têtes: Ender did not seem to want to impress any particular thing on him, nor did he seem to want anything from Peter. Any idle remarks on Peter's end about Ender pitching in and getting some power were batted aside; any attempts Peter made to drag something out of the conversation that could work in his benefit were efficiently stonewalled.

And still he kept showing up, and so did Ender.

It left Peter feeling a little unsettled, especially in a week like this, where every single thing seemed to go wrong.

Well, whatever. He needed to get it together. He'd gotten too distracted with all of this high school melodrama, and he'd reacted too strongly to Valentine's departure: it was obvious he'd been carrying them for the past few years anyway.

He took another sip of his large coffee and stared off towards the Perk's doors, running his current battery of problems through his head. He was going to figure out every contingency and prepare for it, dammit. Even if it meant wasting most of this month's income on caffeine.

[[ open! ]]

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[dollpocalypse]

Not long after Ender left, in came Topher, looking harried. He slumped into a seat next to Peter, oblivious to his friend's problems.

"Dude, my baby will not shut up," he complained. "I made these headphones that should've blocked it out, but it bit the wire and I kinda just left it there."

Brink parenting was right up there with Wiggin parenting, apparently.

[lockestheway]

Ah, Topher. With his special powers of future-prediction, Peter could already make out how the flow of this conversation was going to go: several minutes of whining about the kid, some confusion when Peter pointed out that drowning out the demonic brat obviously wouldn't work, and then possibly a fifteen-minute soliloquy about the arch of Tony's eyebrow or something.

"And good afternoon to you too, porn fiend," he said. Some days, you just had to toss a rock into that flow and see what happened.

[dollpocalypse]

And here Topher thought he was so subtle with his predictability. But when you threw something like that at him...

He flailed, nearly overturning Peter's coffee in the process. Because that was what happened when you disrupted the flow, Peter. "Can we not?" he pleaded. "Why would she tell you something like that?! Why?!"

Because it was funny, Topher.

[lockestheway]

Peter snagged his coffee off the table in time to avoid becoming suddenly caffeine-bereaved, and took a sip from it.

At least he was physically rolling with the punches today. That was something. "Probably," he ventured, "because she thought it was funny."

[dollpocalypse]

"I didn't want you guys to seeeeee," he whined. "And then Karla had to go and tell everyone and that dumb girl on the radio talked about it and now his girlfriend knows and it sucks."

Or more accurately, he had proceeded to misinterpret everything Stephanie had said due to paranoia and shame. Same thing.

[lockestheway]

Sigh. Well, at least they'd skipped right ahead to the chapter on Tony. That was something. He guessed.

He sent another mental prayer up to a nonexistent god about striking him down with lightning or something equally impressive if he ever wound up like Topher was right now.

"Let me guess," Peter said, "You posted it with your name on."

[dollpocalypse]

It was Peter's own fault for bringing up the porn!

"No," Topher said, crossing his arms over his chest. "I used a pseudonym. Duh."

Yes, Topher. The name Chris Strink was sure to fool everyone like it had totally failed to fool Karla.

[lockestheway]

Peter eyed him. "Huh," he said. "I didn't think Kenzi was that close with Karla..."

Yeah, he had a feeling.

[dollpocalypse]

Topher took a moment to digest the sheer horror of that hypothetical.

"Dude," he said. "Imagine if they were."

Nightmare duo, man.

[unburnt-queen.livejournal.com]

Dany was highly unused to the colder weather, and so it was in a long cloak and one of her gowns from the Free Cities that she wandered into the Perk, shivering.

It took her a moment of ordering her tea and warming her hands before she noticed Peter and recognized him, though she did meander over. "You look remarkably thoughtful. At least, in comparison to most of the students on this island."

[dollpocalypse]

"He's a thinker," Topher supplied helpfully from the front counter, where he was loading up on pastries.

Yes, Topher. Thank you for that critical assessment of Peter's nature.

[unburnt-queen.livejournal.com]

"Thank you," Dany said, turning to eye the boy who'd spoken. "I'm sure he appreciates your assessment."

[dollpocalypse]

"I hope so," Topher agreed. "I'm a genius. Very trustworthy."

They were playing two truths and a lie, apparently.

[unburnt-queen.livejournal.com]

"It shows," she said dryly. That was mostly a comment on his supposed genius.

[dollpocalypse]

"Thanks!"

Sarcasm was pretty hit-or-miss with him. Mostly miss.

"Soooooooo. I'm Topher."

Yes. That was how to maintain a conversation.

[unburnt-queen.livejournal.com]

"Daenerys," she replied. And she would have shortened it for him, to make it more pronounceable, if he wasn't irritating.

Sorry, Topher.

"It's a pleasure."

[dollpocalypse]

"If you say so," he said dubiously, and popped half a blueberry muffin into his mouth.

Sorry, Dany.

[unburnt-queen.livejournal.com]

"I only say so to be polite," she said, now staring at him with open, incredulous contempt. "Have you some sort of problem?"

[lockestheway]

Peter looked up, and was almost surprised to recognise her. "I can't blame them," he offered. "The island's curriculum doesn't exactly encourage deep thought."

[unburnt-queen.livejournal.com]

"Occasionally, I've found it does," Dany said, tilting her head, "but more often it seems we go to the school of 'hit things with sticks.'"

[lockestheway]

Peter's mouth quirked. "Are you finding that helpful at all?" he asked. "I'm not much of a 'hit things with sticks' man myself."

[unburnt-queen.livejournal.com]

"Most of the men I know at home are," she said, thinking about it. "My husband was. But no, I'm more of a 'stand back and tell the stick-holders what to do' woman."

[lockestheway]

"Well, you are a woman of state," Peter pointed out. "And while all power is built on the threat of being struck by sticks or an analogue thereof, exercising that power wisely tends to require more knowledge of where sticks should - and shouldn't - be applied."

Beat.

"Though I hope that hasn't killed the metaphor stone dead."

[unburnt-queen.livejournal.com]

She tilted her head in thought, smiling slightly. "No, you're absolutely right. If you constantly use your sticks, you'll break them, and be far less threatening. Sparing use of violence, rather than all-out warmongering, tends to be a bit more strategic. Though my khalasar would disagree, I think."

[lockestheway]

"Well, they're the stick," Peter half-joked, half-said. "It would be strange if they didn't have an opinion about it."