Pick Your Poison, Wednesday

[myownface]

Well, it was back onto the usual Pick Your Poison Wednesday beat for Sparkle today, who had stumbled onto the island actually on time for once, a little more glitter in his hair than usual and a rubber duck shoved into his backpack, but otherwise relatively untraumatized.

Which was good, because he'd need that relative lack of trauma today to deal with all the teens who seemed to be wandering into the shop from town, asking if they sold actual poison.

Where the hell were all the teenagers even coming from? The school didn't have this many students.

He squinted as he stood by the window for a few minutes, and then he sighed.

Right-o. One of those days. He put up a sign announcing that there was a sale on body glitter and deodorant, and then called that a job well done and settled in behind the counter to keep an eye on the shop. Oh, Fandom.

[OOC: Open! Bonus points if someone gets Sparkle with paint to make up for his trauma-free commute today. :D]

Comments

[1000yearstoolate]

Seivarden was carrying a paintball gun, but she definitely wasn't wearing a jumpsuits. She also had a few rainbow-coloured splotches on her clothes.

"Good afternoon," she greeted. "Do you sell tea?"

She thought she had heard this shop was selling tea.

[myownface]

You know, they actually did? But Sparkle was a bit too busy looking at the kid who had come in here armed with a paintball gun in mild bemusement.

"We do," he agreed. "At least, I'm pretty sure Iris keeps a decent stock of it on hand in case anyone asks. Are you looking for a particular kind?"

[1000yearstoolate]

"Anything you have of good quality."

Seivarden assumed she could afford it. As if to explain her current look, she added:

"There's a game. We shoot paint at each other.

[myownface]

"Paintball," Sparkle supplied helpfully, going to rummage through the teas. So far as he could tell, they were all good quality, but he chose one that had some fruity, flowery undertones and then brought it over to the kid to inspect. "Go on and smell it, if you want. To see if it's to your taste?"

Look, he'd been in, like, one tea shop in his life, and that was how they did it. So.

[1000yearstoolate]

Seivarden leaned forward to smell it. She wrinkled her nose a little.

"I prefer unflavoured," she said. "Or less sweet."

She wasn't a child, Sparkle.

[myownface]

Sparkle shrugged a little, and then took the tea back, going to find a less floral, regular black tea.

"Better?"

It wasn't like he was going to try to sell somebody on something they didn't like. What good would that do?

[1000yearstoolate]

"This is better," Seivarden said, looking pleased. "Do you sell tea flasks too? I couldn't find one at home."

They probably didn't. It was a Radchaai thing.

[myownface]

"Tea... flasks." Sparkle tilted his head a little, and then shrugged. "Our main focus is soaps and fragrances, so I don't think we do, sorry. I can see if we can get something ordered in for you, but it might take a while to get here."

[1000yearstoolate]

Seivarden made a gesture with her hand. "Never mind. I see if I can find one somewhere else."

She paused.

"Body glitter? Is that fashionable here?"

[spin_kick_snap]

A very paint be-spattered girl ran into the building, diving behind a display so she couldn't be seen from the outside as a blonde with ponytail and a paintball gun stalked past.

In a minute she'd notice the shopkeeper and fall all over herself apologizing, but first she needed to make sure the scary blonde wasn't coming back.

[myownface]

Sparkle, meanwhile, was parked behind the counter, being amused by everything.

Look, after selling body glitter to Seivarden, his entire day was made. Period. So he was smirking as he watched the blonde stalk by, and then, because he was a little shit, he called out, "Coast is clear."

[spin_kick_snap]

"Thank you," Kathy said, crawling out from behind the shelving. "She's been on me since the store with the, err, big chicken in front of it."

She hadn't looked too closely at the store, not once she'd seen the display in the window.

"I think I need to lose the jumpsuit," she said, looking around the store and taking occasional peeks at the guy behind the counter. "I lost my paintball gun already, but as long as I'm in the jumpsuit, they're going to keep thinking I'm playing."

The jumpsuit was spattered with rainbow paint. The dress she wore under it wasn't much better. Much like the bangs.

...This was a dark time in Kathy's life, for all that her wardrobe was practically day-glo.

[myownface]

So help Sparkle, he remembered The Wardrobe, and there was really no question as to who this was, was there?

He gave Kathy a little grin and a shrug.

"I can always stash the outfit in the trash for you," he noted. "Why didn't you just tell 'em you didn't want to play before putting on the jumpsuit?"

[spin_kick_snap]

"I tried?" Kathy said, hanging her head. "But the guy who was organizing it looked--" mean "--busy, so it was easier if I just played, you know?"

[myownface]

Oh, Mouse. Sparkle was biting the inside of his cheek now to keep from looking too amused.

"You'd rather get shot at than interrupt someone?"

That was too fuckin' cute.

[spin_kick_snap]

"Ummm...."

That was Kathy for 'yes.'

"It was a school-related activity?"

So double yes.

[myownface]

Sorry, Kathy. Sparkle couldn't resist being a little mean.

"And it's not a school-related activity now?"

She was trying to duck out of it, after all.

[sharp_man]

Hannibal had seen this place earlier in the day and could make out the name, but didn’t get the colloquialism. So now he was stopping in to see if they really sold poison. He was dressed in nice slacks and a shirt that had been in his closet, but no tie or jacket, and looking around curiously.

[myownface]

EXCUSE SPARKLE WHILE HE DAMN NEAR CHOKED ON A MOUTHFUL OF COKE.

Not... not that he was going to ... you know... be obvious about it, beyond the wheezing he was doing. But there was no mistaking who that was, and if anyone needed Sparkle, he was going to be quietly dying behind the counter.

Hannibal's first casualty of Fandom Island.

[sharp_man]

Well, there had been that clone of Pinky's...

Hannibal just looked around, curious and a little disappointed at all the bath stuff. The smells were a little overwhelming, even if individually they were mostly nice.

[myownface]

"Uh, hey," Sparkle called from behind the counter.

And of course his voice broke a little. God. Why. He cleared his throat and tried again.

"Hey. Welcome to Pick Your Poison. Can I help you find anything today?"

[sharp_man]

Hannibal looked up, looked over the shop assistant, and nodded. "Hello. I am only looking."

His English still suffered from a heavier accent, more French than Danish Lithuanian, since he'd been speaking that for the last several years.

"You sell..." He paused for a moment, searching for the word. "toilettes?"

[myownface]

Hey, Sparkle knew that accent. He smiled faintly, and switched over to... well... it wasn't the best French in the world, since it wasn't like he had anybody to speak it with around here, and it was Canadian to boot. But it was definitely an effort.

"We do," he confirmed. "And some teas, and candles. The owner makes most of it herself."

[sharp_man]

It was probably no worse than Hannibal's English, so.

His face relaxed in a not-quite smile. "Mais pas de poison?"

[myownface]

"Pas de poison, non." Sparkle shrugged, and then added, "souvent."

Depended who was on shift, and who was asking.