Stark Industries, Monday

[endsthegame]

Ender was very good at pretending to be in a good mood, in a good place. Actually being so - at least to a point - was different. While he was hardly going to work humming or anything silly like that, a little bit of the weight was off his shoulders today.

His sister was back. He could think of little that pleased him as much in the world.

And so it was that, upon coming into Stark Industries today, one might almost catch Ender working on some small gadget with a tiny smile on his face.

[[ open! ]]

Comments

[stupid-metroid.livejournal.com]

Now that everything was settled with the transfer of the other job to new management, Samus was finally able to turn her attentions onto the new job that actually made sense for her and didn't...you know...kind of suck. So she came in to check up on the shop today and try to get a read on the young man working there today.

"Ender Wiggin?" she asked, while her scanner ran over him to get the basics, like sex and species and height and weight or anything else it might note as interesting.

[endsthegame]

Ender, the baseline human with a few scattered scars here and there, offered the large robot-suit a pleasant smile that looked like it should really be aimed at someone a bit more... humanly... proportioned, or at least less armored to the teeth.

"That would be me," he agreed.

[stupid-metroid.livejournal.com]

"Samus Aran," she offered her own name back, as well as a hand in greeting...the one not encased in a large laser gun. "I'm your new boss."

[endsthegame]

He appreciated her not pointing the laser gun at him. He really did. "Nice to meet you," Ender said politely, shaking that hand. "I heard something down the grapevine about that; are you finding everything all right?"

[stupid-metroid.livejournal.com]

Samus briefly wondered how anyone could have difficulty finding anything on a tiny little island like this, but she kept the commentary to herself as usual. In getting everything switched over with the other shop and getting the older Wiggin set up with a place to live, over a lot of handwavey beer and pizza, she'd heard a little bit about some of her current employees, including Valentine's brother, she was a little intrigued, but typically reserved.

"I settle in quickly," she assured him. "You've been working here for a decent amount of time, correct?"

[endsthegame]

It was a figure of speech, Samus, fairly innocent in its presumptions.

But since she was keeping her commentary to herself, he would... not even think of his. "For a little over... three years or so, I've had this Monday shift," Ender agreed. "Boring as that must make me seem."

He just liked his routine.

[stupid-metroid.livejournal.com]

Samus shrugged. "Some people would kill for that kind of job security."

[endsthegame]

"I've certainly never wanted for pocket money," Ender said dryly.

[dollpocalypse]

"I have a question," Topher announced, waltzing into the store.

Topher, normal people said hello first. And maybe just asked the question instead of announcing it.

[endsthegame]

Fortunately for Topher, Ender had met him before. "I can't promise you I'll have an answer," he said, shutting his laptop immediately.

[dollpocalypse]

"Do you," said Topher, then paused for a good long while, sorry Jeff, "happen to know Valentine's email address?"

[endsthegame]

"Yes," Ender said, blinking. "But if you want to talk to her, you could just go down to Turtle & Canary."

[dollpocalypse]

"Oh, I don't wanna talk to her," Topher said quickly. She was a tiny bit scary. "I just... need her email address. For a thing."

[endsthegame]

A thing--?

There were only two reasons Ender could think of why Topher might need her address - to ask her questions about Peter, or to send it to Peter.

(Or to send her viruses, but that seemed exceptionally silly.)

"This is about Peter," he said, guessing, but not sounding like he was.

[dollpocalypse]

"...there is a... possible possibility that Peter may have... some degree of involvement."

[endsthegame]

"What did he want?" Ender asked.

[dollpocalypse]

"To... follow up on a thing," said Topher. "That she said."

Somehow it hadn't occured to him that Ender would ask these things.

[momslilassassin]

"Ho, kreetle," Ben said, walking in with lunch. "You look happy."

[endsthegame]

"Maybe I'm just glad to see lunch," Ender replied.

[momslilassassin]

"You don't even know what I brought," Ben said. "It could be gross."

[endsthegame]

"On the ocean of edibles, you've never steered me wrong," Ender answered, glancing at the lunch in question.

Though possibly because he had no real standards.

[momslilassassin]

"That's because, my favorite of all Andrews, you have very low standards on food," Ben said.

[endsthegame]

Ender smiled at him. "I didn't know there were other Andrews in the picture," he said.

[momslilassassin]

"Not yet, but I'm fairly comfortable in preemptively declaring you my favorite," Ben said, smiling back.

[endsthegame]

"Now that's a relief," Ender teased. "I won't have to worry about that anymore. And thank you for lunch, only Ben I know."