Groovy Tunes, Tuesday

[tigerundercover]

After Saturday, Raven still wasn't much in the mood for music. But she was making an effort — a really enormous effort — not to turn into a literal couch potato, so she came into work anyway.

The stereo at least seemed to know what was up, as it stuck to purely instrumental pieces most of the day. So at least Raven didn't have to worry about weirdly appropriate lyrics to her situation specifically. Some of it was even weirdly soothing.

Of course, then it would sometimes launch unexpectedly into the 1812 Overture. Because the stereo was kind of a jerk.

[Open!]

Comments

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"Hold that thought," Hardison said. "An' look around for some bow resin?"

He ducked out of the music shop and jogged to the diner. One argument with the busboy later, and he was back with a fistful of spoons to offer her. "Those are yours," he said. "Count 'em up. You need to know how many you got."

[tigerundercover]

Raven blinked at the spoons, startled. "O-okay." She passed him the bow resin and scooped up the spoons to start counting.

[geniuswithasmartphone]

Raven would find twelve in her hand and when she was done, Hardison said, "A'ight, so now these represent the amount of cope you got for your day. When you're outta spoons, you're outta cope an' pretty much can't do anythin' more than sleep or veg out in front of the TV. Not be involved with the show or nothin', not follow a plot or cheer for characters. Just kinda sit there an' passively take it all in. Got that?"

Literally worst game ever.

[tigerundercover]

"That's . . . kind of been my last month. So sure."

[geniuswithasmartphone]

Hardison just nodded, expecting about that. "A'ight, now tell me about your day. A normal day, back when you were a student, maybe, or a day that you'd like to have."

[tigerundercover]

Raven fussed with the spoons a little and shrugged. "So not one where I spend it all on the couch." She gave him a half hearted grin. "Alright. Um. Well, when I was a student, if I had class, I usually started with that."

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"No you didn't," Hardison said. "Your day started before that, when you woke up. Right?"

[tigerundercover]

Raven frowned. "Well -- yeah. Everyone's day starts with waking up."

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"But it was easier to wake up then, wasn't it?" Hardison asked. "You could just pop right up, rush out, do what you had to. What's it like wakin' up now?"

[tigerundercover]

Raven was quiet for a moment too long before tossing out a flippant: "Well, most days I'm only going so far as the couch, so that's easier."

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"So, I'mma go with yes," Hardison said, not buying that for a second. Who you trying to con, Raven? "You're tired, cause you didn't sleep well. Bed's still weird feelin' under you. Island's too noisy or too quiet or ain't the right kinda noise. Still got nightmares an' whatever Kathy's up to in the other room ain't helpin' neither." He eyed her. "Am I close?"

[tigerundercover]

Raven actually could hide herself behind 12 spoons if she really wanted to -- hell, she could become a 13th spoon. But she was trying to be good, so she just ducked her face behind them instead.

"Sometimes I sleep in the closet," she admitted in a low mumble. "Or -- not at all."

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"That's about what I thought," Hardison said, and then plucked one of the spoons out of her hands. "What's next? You eat breakfast?"

[tigerundercover]

Raven frowned when he took one of the spoons and opened her mouth to protest, then just sighed. "Yeah, mostly." Sometimes breakfast was a pain in the ass and she didn't bother. "Back in school I'd pick my look for the day, first."

It had been one of her favorite things to do. She didn't much bother with it anymore, though.

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"What's breakfast like?" he asked. "What makes you decide to eat it some days and some day not?"

If she'd already acknowledged that some days breakfast was too much of a chore, then she really couldn't be surprised when he ended up taking a spoon for it, right?

[tigerundercover]

Sure she could! Just, you know. Not super rationally.

"Sometimes Kathy and I do it together," she said. "Which is good because then it's easier to order something from downstairs or cook something up because it's both of us -- but it also means I have to at least pretend to put pants on." She was pretty sure Kathy wouldn't care if she was just blue all over the place, but it still felt rude. "If she's not around there's usually, like, poptarts. Or cereal. Did you know there's all these cereal stashes all over the apartment? In weird places." She shook her head, that wasn't the point. "Sometimes I just don't feel like it, though, you know?"

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"Oh, those are probably from Parker," Hardison said, chuckling quietly. "Knew we didn't find 'em all, sorry."

He was still taking a spoon, though. "A'ight, so you've gotten up an' eaten breakfast, an either mimicked pants up an' made small talk, or had to scrounge somethin' up. You mentioned you used to pick your look for the day--that include showerin' an' stuff? Or...?"

He was trying to walk the fine line between getting her to understand and not prying too closely into his TA's personal bathroom habits.

[tigerundercover]

"I take showers," Raven assured him. Not nearly as often as she used to, having lost the habit during the trek across the country, but standing under a stream of hot water was still monumentally comforting. "Oo, does a shower get me a spoon back?"

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"Hey, I wasn't gonna judge," Hardison assure her. "But, nah, no spoons back for showerin'. But you mostly just stand there an' soap up, I won't take one. Anythin' more aggressive than that--shavin', washin' your hair, whatever--that's another spoon."

[tigerundercover]

Raven snorted. "I don't need to shave."

The only actual hair she had without trying was the stuff on her head, and she wasn't looking to be bald, thank you.

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"A'ight, so you get to keep a spoon for that," Hardison said, because he was benevolent that way. "Down to ten spoons an' you're almost ready to leave the house. You just gotta choose the rest of your look. How did that go?"

[tigerundercover]

Raven stared down at the spoons, then looked at her mimicked outfit. She'd kept it simple, just faking jeans and a t-shirt, none of the fancy patterned dresses she used to do, but even then there'd been things like color to think about, and v-neck or crew-neck? How long were the sleeves? Skinny jeans? Boot cut?

She sighed and handed Hardison a spoon. Then after a moment, handed him another one. "If I'm going out I have to maintain the look. It's not a lot of effort, but it's always there. That takes another spoon, right?"

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"Now you're gettin' it," Hardison said, taking both spoons. He didn't sound excited that she was understanding the point of this, though. He wished she didn't have to. "Then onto class. Or work. Or wherever you're going."

He held his hand out.

[tigerundercover]

"Class was shorter," Raven noted. "But work is quieter. Half the time no one shows up at all." She shuffled her spoons back and forth a couple times. "So an eight hour shift would be, like . . . four?"

She was lowballing that. But she wanted some spoons left after.

[geniuswithasmartphone]

He let her have the four. But kept his hands out anyway. "One for the walk here an' back," he reminded. "An' what do you do for lunch?"

Well, you tried, Raven.