fandomtownies | The C.I.C, Friday Afternoon-Evening

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The C.I.C, Friday Afternoon-Evening

So, there was some kind of... visitor... thing... going on around the island this weekend.

That was... nice? Vette supposed it was probably nice, if you were somebody who could contact any potential visitors in the first place so that they could visit, thanks. It was too much to hope that the gang on Nar Shaddaa would even know to show up, and her own family?

Vette sighed as she settled in behind the counter, the raven hopping over to take up its perch on her shoulder.

Yeah, it hopped up there mostly to admire her headpiece again, but she could at least appreciate the company as she idly poked at some silly 'throw everything into the fireplace' game that started to become really weird as she continued to play. Why were they burning all the things? And why was it strangely hard to stop even while the game was making her feel guilty about it?

"I don't think I like this game," she informed the raven as it nuzzled up against her earpiece. And then she threw a few more toy blocks and a stuffed animal into the fire, too.

[OOC: Open, no OCD!]

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Sometime in the afternoon, Simon wandered in, having seen the large gathering in the park and deciding that he wanted to be nowhere near that. He didn't have anyone coming -- he'd suggested it to his parents, a little hesitantly, but his father was working overtime on some corporate merger and his mother was chaperoning an overnight trip for Nora's class, and really, he was just as happy not to have to explain anything having to do with, "Oh, and by the way, there are aliens and stuff at my school, and one of my teachers is a half-orc."

So, yes, The C.I.C it was, having gotten a handwavy recommendation of it as a good place to kill some time. He smiled when he walked in and saw Vette behind the counter, offering her a small wave and a casual, kind of hesitant, "Hey."

"Hey," Vette replied, lifting her chin at Simon in a way that mostly didn't disturb the Raven, throwing a toy bus into her make-believe fireplace. She liked the toy bus. It exploded after a few moments of the little people inside flailing around desperately. "Hiding from the saccharine masses too?"

She was so glad to be at work today, don't think for a moment that she wasn't.

"And thanking pretty much whoever will listen that my parents aren't coming this weekend," he replied, nodding. "I mean, I'm still kind of adjusting to... having my worldview pretty rapidly expanded? I'm definitely not ready to explain yet, and I... really don't want to scare them into pulling me and taking me home."

Simon was happy here, in ways he hadn't really expected to be.

... His hands smelled a little bit like cherries, today. Just a little faintly, but it was there.

"They're the kind of family that really worries about you, huh?" Vette's mouth pulled into a small smile.

The bus exploded. She went into the catalog and bought a bank and a cob of corn. Burning things was wonderfully cathartic today.

"Sounds nice. I know I wouldn't want to be the weird thing that makes them freak and drag you off, though."

Simon made a face -- at himself, not at Vette. "Sorry, I didn't mean to imply..." He shook his head, took a breath and started again. "Anyway, yeah, they're pretty... like... Yeah. They worry."

He could get into a lot more detail, but he was pretty sure he and Vette weren't, like, there yet.

"What's that your playing?" he asked, eyeing the screen at the sound of explosions. Look, a convenient change of subject!

Vette answered his scramble for a reply with a small smile and a shrug of her shoulder. He didn't have to worry about it. She'd figured it out by now. She was weird.

Family was important.

"It's... some kind of fireplace sim," she said. "I think. A kid keeps sending me mail. I keep burning it."

Because that was the point of the game. Maybe.

Yes, well, people saw different and assumed weird, and Simon... really should know better than to make that leap. Plenty of people on his own Earth would dismiss him, and for much the same reasons, after all.

"... I'm intrigued," Simon said, after a moment. "I mean. It sounds like it might be kind of, like. Cathartic?"

"I mean, you'd think that," Vette replied, "but there are moments where it makes you feel... uneasy about it. I don't know. Weather reports and stuff, and all you can do is burn and burn and burn."

This didn't stop her from uploading an image from the computer's hard drive to throw into the fire, no.

"It's weird."

"Yeah, well, nothing wrong with weird?" Simon ventured.

"So, uh, it's my first time in..." he continued, "and I guess, like... how does it work? Do you rent time? Something like that?"

"You rent time," Vette agreed. "At an hourly rate, or you can buy day passes, week passes, month passes. Just so long as you take breaks now and again you can pretty much move in while we're open."

A pause.

"I mean, I'll haul you out of here myself if you try that and it leads to you not showering, though."

".. No, I'm pretty fond of showering," Simon promised her. "Any suggestions for games? I'm not looking for anything that, like. Takes a lot of brain."

"So, no puzzle games or anything?" Vette considered the handful of games she'd played since getting her job here, and offered, "There's one where you evolve a creature up right from a single-celled organism. That one's fun."

And cute. And fairly brainless, up to a point.

Simon considered that for a moment before clarifying, "I guess I mean more in terms of story? Like, puzzles are one thing but I don't want to have to think about things, thinking about things is fine."

That was about as clear as mud, Simon. Thank you for the clarification.

"... But that one sounds like fun."

Vette... was pretty sure she knew what he was going on about, anyway.

"It's cute," Vette added. "You get to design your creature as you go. Make it a carnivore or herbivore or omnivore, give it wings... that sort of thing. I don't think there's really much story to it."

She considered for a moment. It was pretty dead in here, after all. A glance at the raven and a small tilt of her head, and it was hopping from her shoulder onto the counter with a, 'Krrrk!' before strutting back and forth a few times, like a guard on watch.

"Here," she said, looking to Simon. I'll get you set up on one of the computers and show you how the game works."

"Thanks," Simon said, beaming at her. "I really appreciate it. Uh, do I pay up front?" He reached into his pocket for his wallet.

"Sure," Vette replied with a shrug. How long do you want? If you go over, we can just top you up again. Or you can buy a day pass or whatever, I guess."

Girl was going to have to work on her upsell.

I mean, yes and no; Simon was from a fairly affluent, upper-middle-class family with two high-paid professional parents. Money wasn't something he'd ever really had to worry about. What would it matter if he threw it around a little bit?

"Yeah, sure, let's do the day pass," he said, pulling out his debit card. "I... kinda think I'll want to be avoiding the rest of the island for. A while."

There were just so many people.

Vette gave a little nod of understanding, ringing him in and typing the price into the debit machine.

"Honestly, I'm pretty okay with being here working tonight," she admitted. "People have finally just stopped being weird at me. I'm not in any mood to do it over and over again. And I'd hate to have to kick somebody's mom or something."

"I mean, maybe their mom would totally deserve it," Simon pointed out, finishing up the payment and passing the machine back to Vette. "Because, I mean, you're pretty awesome."

Vette took the machine back, tore the receipt paper off, and rolled her eyes, even while she smiled faintly.

"Weirdo," she accused.

She... really didn't know what to do with a compliment.

"Come on, let's get you set up."

"You know," Simon said, maybe a little more confidently than he'd have thought he'd say it even a week ago, "I think I'll wear that 'Weirdo' badge with pride."

What could he say? Fandom was growing on him.

"There you go," Vette said, smiling crookedly. "Welcome to the club."

Vette was... probably not expecting Nina to come careening into the C.I.C. like the bats of hell were behind her, but that was what she was getting.

Complete with peanut butter and jelly demon cuddled in her arms.

"Vette!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Vette!!!!!!!! Oh my gosh!!!!!!! You won't believe this!!!!!!!!!!!! A criminal ghost attacked me!!!!!!!!!!!!! And tried to murder this poor cutie!!!!!!!!"

Well. Nina's interpretation of the events said that had happened.

"A what did what?"

Vette... actually paused a moment, not throwing the chainsaw into the little fireplace on her screen.

"And tried to-- what is that?"

"Veeeeeette," Nina sighed, collapsing into counter as the jelly demon burbled. "This is a jelly demon. It's adorable but it's supposed to be pink!!!!!!!!!!! And I was trying to figure out how to, like, fix it????? And then this horrible ghost came from the back and was all 'No!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I will destroy it!!!!!!!!!!!!' and since I didn't know he was a ghost and he had to be a criminal because no one else comes from the back like that!!!!!!!! I threw books at him!!!! Harder than I threw the piggies!!!!!!!! But they went right through him!!!!!!!"

"I think that's just how ghosts work," Vette offered, with her handful of years of experience plundering tombs and the like to back her up. "If the books went through him, maybe he can't even touch the," she paused, blinking at the little blob, "jelly... demon."

"It's cute!!!!!" Nina protested. "And he did, like, look the way a ghost is supposed to!!!!!!!!!!! How was I supposed to know????? If I threw books at most people, they'd get out!!!!"

Or, uh. Die.

Nina hit hard.

"He's probably just harmless but annoying," Vette decided, slipping around the counter, raven still on her shoulder and all, to get a better look at the little demon... thing. "If he could do anything in retaliation, after you threw the books I'm sure he would have."

She paused, and then smiled crookedly.

"That really is a cute little guy."

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The C.I.C, Friday Afternoon-Evening

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