The Perk, Monday afternoon

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

Dinah had left several phone messages for people who she hadn't managed to track down last night. It was one thing to be pretty sure someone was alive, or mostly okay, another to see them. Plus, she owed people, too, from that other 'verse.

So she was here, drinking the biggest cocoa with whipped cream and eating the biggest chocolate chip muffin she could get her hands on.

[ooc: open, and if you think you got a phone call, you did.]

Comments

[trigons_child]

Raven had gotten Dinah's message, but she still couldn't bring herself to show her face in public. Hiding was easier.

But she did text Dinah back. I cannot come. I am sorry.

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

Dinah would be lying if she didn't say that was a relief. But a very guilty one.

She knew Raven had to be feeling terrible, and didn't want to make it worse. Time would help her to cope. Then... How are you dealing? I'm not mad.

[trigons_child]

With the exception of her visit to reassure herself Anakin was all right, dealing was hiding out on Selkie Peak, far from the emotions of the island.

I am keeping my distance from everyone. I think it is better that way.

Then another message.

I am not certain that I should go to Gotham University now.

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

I get that. And if Dinah were having trouble with enclosed spaces, and wanting to hit everything in sight... well, hopefully she'd have that handled before Raven would have to feel anything she felt.

No! Don't think like that!

It was Dinah's first impulse. So she was going to assume it was the true one. She couldn't explain it to herself yet, though.

[trigons_child]

I have hurt the people I love far too much, too many times. I am not safe for them. I am not safe for you.

There was too much darkness in her, this past week had proven that.

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

You *just* got back to normal. You're in no shape to make decisions. That part, Dinah was very sure of. Then, to return the honesty: Neither am I. I'm jumpy and angry and you shouldn't be around me and have to feel this. I'm not okay to make decisions either, I know that much. But I don't want you to go.

[trigons_child]

She was right about that. Raven was raw and consumed by guilt and definitely not thinking rationally. At least she'd managed to resist the instinct to flee complete.

I hurt you all so much. That is never going to go away.

[lovemykilt]

After scheduling a portal back to Santa Cruz for the evening -- the earliest he could grab, though he was torn on whether he wished it was sooner or later -- Priestly had gone out to do a little "see? It all looks fine and normal" walking tour of Fandom.

The Perk he'd saved for last. Other him had spent a lot of time drinking tea, here, and he'd been in this general area when The Thing He Wasn't Thinking About happened. He refused to feel weird about shops in what he considered his second home, though, so he went right in when he got there and ordered the largest, most ridiculous coffee drink they had.

He actually hadn't noticed Dinah was there yet. He was very focused on his task of replacing emo tea memories with happy coffee ones.

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

"Priestly," Dinah called, holding up her muffin. "C'mere and help me finish this thing."

[lovemykilt]

Priestly totally didn't startle. Not even a little. (Except for that little bit where he kind of did.)

He made up for it with a smile, at least, as he picked up his giant coffee. "I'm not the only one with eyes too big for my mouth today, huh?"

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

Dinah saw that, and scooted over so he could join her in the booth. "Yeeeeah. I mean, it's delicious, but this might take a while. It's nearly as big as my head." She grinned and wrapped an arm around him. "You run into anyone else today?"

[lovemykilt]

"Nah," Priestly said. "Just been reminding myself what Fandom is supposed to look like. How about you? Have you found everyone you needed to, yet?"

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

"Need to find Jono, and Jack, and Sam, and oh, that little brunette who helped me out in the other world," Dinah said, listing them off. "I talked to Kennedy on the phone last night; she says 'hey'. And she's glad you're not dead." Another squeeze, and then Dinah broke off a piece of muffin. "Just got done texting Raven. She's... very not okay."

[likethegun]

Sam was probably looking a lot better than he had last week, and he gave Dinah a small, awkward smile when he came into the Perk. "Hey there. Is it just me, or does real food taste amazing right now?"

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

Yeah, Dinah was having none of that. Accept the hug, Sam.

"It takes incredible. Jeez, what the heck were we eating last week?"

[likethegun]

"I don't know. I'm trying not to think about it," Sam said, hugging back. "I called Peter. He said nothing weird happened at home last week. Lucky guy."

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

"Whew." Dinah had been sure that would be the case, but it was good to hear anyway. "Thank you. For a lot of stuff last week."

[likethegun]

"Thank you too," Sam said with a grateful smile. "It's nice to know that no matter how crazy things get, odds are, I'll have you to count on."

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

Dinah grinned up at him, then sat down, tugging on his hand. "Are you-- do you remember being all confused, and, um. Hallucinating?" She gave him a sideways look of ruefulness. "And me having a giant crush?"

[leavingthenest.livejournal.com]

A month ago, Rapunzel would have responded to a week like the one she'd just had with stress baking. Lots, and lots of stress baking. And while that option wasn't entirely off the table, talking with Jono there at the very end had made her think.

She was still doing that thinking. Trying to figure out exactly what she was going to do with the experience.

So: thinking. And since she wasn't stress baking, that meant she needed to get baked goods and hot chocolate from somewhere. So she walked into the Perk, looking a bit distant, and stared at the menu on the wall.

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

Dinah noticed the girl come in after Priestly left, and frowned, trying to place her. She looked-- well, you couldn't miss all that hair, so maybe she hadn't met her, but she still looked familiar.

So she was staring with a frown on her face, eyebrows drawn down, as she nibbled on her muffin.

[leavingthenest.livejournal.com]

While the menu was engrossing, and Rapunzel wasn't usually good at noticing attention even when she wasn't distracted by her own thoughts. But even so, she eventually took a look around the place and spotted Dinah.

Her eyes narrowed and she leaned forward slightly in concentration. The blond looked familiar... Not as dangerously thin, face not racked with pain or exhaustion, no bullet wound, but...

"Dinah?" she asked hesitantly.

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

When she heard the girl's voice, Dinahs's face lit up. "It is you. Rapunzel. I wasn't sure--" Oh wow, no wonder she'd missed her hair. "I was hoping I'd see you!"

[leavingthenest.livejournal.com]

"You look amazing!" Rapunzel exclaimed with a grin. "Like really, really good."

She ducked her head slightly, and her voice got softer. "I'm glad."

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

Dinah reached out to squeeze her hand. "Thank you so, so much, for helping me when I got hurt." She grinned. "You look-- a lot happier, hunh?" And saner, not nearly as hopeless or shattered.