The Perk, Thursday Afternoon

[future_sandworm]

Apparently he visited this place often enough for the barista to be able to guess his preferred choice of coffee. Either that or there were too few Fandom customers for her to keep track of. Or he was predictable. Or he should stop flirting with her.

Anyway, Leto had stopped by for a brief visit in Fandom, and since having a coffee at The Perk was what he usually did when he was here, that was what he was doing now. Sitting at a table by the window with a good view of passers-by. That too had become a habit.

[I have no reason for Leto being in Fandom. I'm just around and I'm sad that I missed random icons yesterday. And I'm missing having a character on island. Open, I'm happy to have Leto talk to anyone.]

Comments

[puppy_fair]

The weird peach-ness of the walls and all the extra space at home was getting to Zack. He was trying really hard not to let it get to him, but something that he'd been starting to settle into had changed, and there were weird flashes of white out of the corners of his vision, and so he'd decided to just go outside and avoid all of... that.

That it meant that he was stepping into the Perk for some kind of cold sweet drink thing was mostly just serendipity. But serendipity meant that he happened to be stepping into the place with time to notice--

"Leto? Is that you?"

A FAMILIAR FACE. YES.

[future_sandworm]

Leto had been looking out the window, but when he heard his name spoken he turned his head.

"Zack?"

Was he the same Zack Leto had once known? The same as in from the universe, of course. Time changed most people.

[puppy_fair]

"The one and only," Zack said, striking a little pose. And then pausing and getting a weird look on his face before relenting, "I mean, the only me that's me. I'm not going to start speculating about other realities, that stuff still hurts my head."

Yeah, it was the same Zack.

[future_sandworm]

Leto smiled. "And I'm not going to speculate whether you are the you I knew at school. I wouldn't say it would hurt my head, but I'd prefer to talk to you instead. If you would like to join me, that is."

He gestured towards the chair opposite his own.

[puppy_fair]

Zack smiled faintly and nodded, holding up a finger and taking a moment to order something sugary-fruity before making his way back, leaning his sword against the wall, and depositing himself in the seat across from Leto.

"I've always got time for an old friend," he said, grinning a little. "It's been far too long."

[future_sandworm]

"It has," Leto agreed. "So, you are back in Fandom. What brought you back? Or was it the island itself?"

[puppy_fair]

Zack blinked, and then broke into a bit of a wry laugh.

"Man oh man," he breathed, "you just asked a question with a really complicated answer. It wasn't the island, for what it's worth. It's more that things got ugly back home, and my options were either come here, or..."

He kind of let that hang, there.

"A lot has changed about this place, though. It's good to see a familiar face, there aren't many of those left here."

[future_sandworm]

And Leto would let Zack pick up that story when he felt he wanted to.

"I know," he said. "That is true for me as well. Is there anyone still here that you know?"

[puppy_fair]

"Ino came back with me," Zack offered. "But I guess she kind of doesn't count. And I think Skywalker is still teaching? But I haven't gotten out enough to really be sure who else there is."

He wasn't going to add that that fact was kind of pathetic, considering he'd been back here for months.

[future_sandworm]

"My sister still teaches, although not this term," Leto offered. "I'm not sure if you ever met. Are you in touch with any old friends not on the island?"

[puppy_fair]

"Oh, I bumped into Karla, once!" That fact made him sound all too excited, at least for a moment. "I missed an entire war, there. I would've helped. We all knew it was coming. I wanted to help."

He kind of hadn't been able to. Oops.

[future_sandworm]

"Karla and I keep in touch," Leto replied, smiling. That excitement sounded very much like the Zack he remembered. "She is a good friend. We are closer than we were at school, I think. Perhaps having similar positions in our respective worlds made that happen. Or our both having young children."

[puppy_fair]

"Well, am I ever the odd one out, here," Zack laughed, shaking his head. "You both have kids? I mean, me not being royalty is nothing new, but I didn't know I was so far behind on everything else, too."

[future_sandworm]

"And you didn't get to compensate during that weekend?" Leto asked with a grin. "But yes, Alice and I have a daughter, Hania. She is 8 years old now."

[puppy_fair]

"Hey, the weekends are fine enough," Zack said, smiling wryly. "But they're not really the same thing."

And he didn't get a child this time around, which had stung in ways he hadn't anticipated.

"... Eight whole years, huh? Man, I have missed a lot."

[future_sandworm]

"Time passes in unexpected ways here, as you know," Leto said, leaving the topic of children.

He took a sip of his coffee. "What keeps you busy in Fandom now?"

[puppy_fair]

Trauma and denial, mostly!

"... Would you believe I'm running the animal shelter? If you have any desperate need for chickens, I can totally hook you up."

There were so. Many. Chickens.

[future_sandworm]

Leto found the animal shelter an unexpected choice, but then he knew this island by now.

"Chickens? They wouldn't live long on Arrakis. But thank you for the offer." He added, with a laugh: "And I'm glad my daughter isn't here to contradict me."

[puppy_fair]

"She's the kind of kid who would come home with anything small enough to catch and carry if she could get away with it, is she?"

Zack had been that kind of kid.

In his world, that had translated to a lot of time spent as a frog in his youth. Gaia was weird.

[future_sandworm]

"She is curious," Leto said, taking a sip of his coffee. "And she has never seen chicken."

She would also enjoy turning into a frog.

[puppy_fair]

If that wasn't literally the most dangerous place for Zack in his entire world, he'd totally consider taking her to Gongaga to meet the frogs of his world and spend some time hopping around the jungle.

"Well, if you ever bring her along for a visit to the island, bring her by the shelter. I'll just say they aren't up for adoption just yet, so you won't have to worry about her bringing a half dozen of them home."

All bets were off with the dogs and cats, though.

[future_sandworm]

Leto would let her have that rock.

"I will," he said, smiling. "But tell me, how did you end up running the animal shelter? Did you just obey the island's whims?"

[puppy_fair]

The rock would do great under Hania's loving care!

"It wasn't the island, no," Zack said, after a pause. "One of the Turks set it up. Probably Tseng. I needed to get off of Gaia, and fast, and I think he figured... I don't know, maybe I needed the distraction or something."

He had to admit, he liked the puppies, but he was terribly out of his element. He was made to be a fighter. Literally.

[future_sandworm]

Leto wasn't going to ask why Zack needed to leave Gaia unless he volunteered to tell him.

"I suppose animals can be distracting. What more animals do you have, apart from chicken?"

The rock would flourish on Arrakis.

[puppy_fair]

"There was a horse," Zack offered. "I mean, briefly. I think we redirected that one to the stables. We aren't really equipped for large livestock. And then there are dogs and cats, mostly. Some fish, a few birds besides the chickens I've already mentioned, rabbits, and a rock."

It was hard to forget the rock.