fandomtownies | Luke's Diner, Thursday

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Luke's Diner, Thursday

There were teddy bears at Luke's today. Not as decorations, which Hardison could have blamed on the staff, but diners. Just a table full of teddy bears having tea. High tea, it looked like. They were all neatly dressed, sharing crumpets and cakes and tiny finger sandwiches, and the busboy was walking around the table, making polite conversation as he refilled tea cups and fetched more lemon wedges and sugar cubes.

Honestly, at this point, a teddy bear tea party didn't even make Hardison's top ten weirdest things, so after a long look to make sure that, yes, he was seeing what he thought he was seeing, he just grabbed a booth for himself, took out a laptop, and made the busboy fetch him a plate of scones too.

What? He was here for lemon curd and clotted cream, okay?

Today's Specials
Cucumber Sandwiches
Crumpets
Fruit Scones
Battenberg Cakes

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No stealing his crumpets, though.

Eliot had planned to do this much sooner, but he'd ended up dealing with several portal delays on his way back to town from visiting his sister. He'd headed out pretty much directly after the island's last weirdness, heading out to go ~~pout~~ ~~hide~~ give his on-island family space to figure out how they wanted to process what they'd learned about him.

Finding Hardison at the diner hanging out with a bunch of teddy bears was not really the homecoming he'd expected, but hey, he'd take it.

"They're all payin', right?"

Hey now! Hardison was in his own booth!

Mostly because it would be rude to intrude on what was clearly some kind of party without an invitation. And because he could get the same food at his booth, too.

"Nah," Hardison said because hello to you too, Eliot. "They were complainin' about plush-born pathogens in the food, so Cookie comp'd 'em their meals."

"Plush-born --" Eliot cut himself off and rubbed his head. "It's a good thing we're independently wealthy."

"An' also that I'm messin' with you," Hardison said. "They're bein' perfectly respectful customers, I'm pretty sure they're gonna pay. The Sunday Church Hat group did."

Look, with Fandom things like plush-born pathogens was always a possibility. And Cookie was a fool.

"Actual hats?"

"Would it be anything but?" Hardison asked.

Eliot sighed and sat down. "I miss inanimate objects being inanimate."

"Also we need new salt an' pepper shakers," Hardison said. "The ones we had were a little too...face-havin'. So we ditched those."

It had seemed to be the thing to do.

"An' been usin' packets ever since."

Eliot nodded and grunted an affirmative, arranging himself so he could keep an eye on the rest of the diner. He'd managed to relax a bit at his sister's place, but having all these damn teddy-bears around was making him tense right back up.

Stupid bears.

"I miss much while I was gone?"

"Been quiet," Hardison said with a shrug. "I went into DC with Steve. Planned Kitty's baby shower with Tony. Explained to Miguel that we were thieves. Apparently, he'd missed that memo. School ended, and I ain't seen either of the girls lately."

Eliot nodded again. He'd be checking in with Kathy shortly too, at least by text. He'd been a little more sure of Hardison and Parker eventually forgiving him than her.

He'd done what he'd done in the warehouse to protect Nate and take down Moreau. What the bear had shown Kathy . . . that he had no excuse for.

"You volunteer me to cater the baby shower? 'Cause Tony's parties have a tendency to be . . . different."

Full of de-aged people, for instance.

"Nah," Hardison said. "Wasn't sure you'd be home. Or in the mood to cater."

Beat.

"We're havin' it at the spa, so caterin' is a good idea."

Edited 2018-08-23 19:20 (UTC)

Eliot walked right into that, didn't he.

"Spa's a good spot for a shower. When's it happening?"

Yyyyyup.

"Waitin' for Kitty to get back to us with dates an' numbers," Hardison said. "Probably middle of September?"

Eliot paused in the midst of pouring himself a cup of coffee.

"You weren't sure I'd be back by the middle of September?"

Shit. He'd fucked this up.

"Wasn't gonna assume nothin'," Hardison said quietly. "You were in a big hurry to go an' it's not like we talked much before you went."

Eliot finished pouring his coffee and took a sip, buying himself a moment.

"I figured you two'd want me scarce for a bit."

And he'd needed time to wrap his head around them knowing all that.

"Hell, I'da been back sooner, but I got stuck awhile waitin' on a portal."

"Yeah, you decide stuff for us a lot, I notice," Hardison said with deceptive mildness.

Eliot's expression shut down.

"I decide the stuff that's in my wheelhouse," he said. "Same as you and Parker do for yours."

"Sure," said Hardison. "It's the decidin' we didn't deserve to know afterwards that we got a problem with." He sipped his tea. "I know you killed folks, Eliot. I know you'd do it again if someone was comin' after your people."

I'm a way he might not if they were just coming for him.

"That ain't the part that bothers me. Parker neither."

Thank you, random icon button, for inspiring this post.

ngl I am SO SAD Alluka isn't on the island for this post! <3

YO FAIR.

Maybe they will come back!

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Talk to Hardison

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Mod Your Diner

OOC

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