The Magic Box, Tuesday

[always_someone]

Norman walked into the Magic Box today and... pretty much immediately stopped in his tracks.

"What."

Yeah. Today was apparently the day that the entirety of the stock had been transformed into magic markers.

At least the dog was still normal?

Normal for a strawberry-banana cerberus, anyway. Norman sighed and resigned himself to playing with the puppy for his shift, unless people came in looking for a very limited variety of art supplies today.

[OOC: Open!]

Comments

[thishouseishaunted]

Mae had pretty effectively avoided the shop after her disastrous first (and only) shift there. It was only boredom and a sort of perverse curiosity that had her wandering in, today.

". . . If this had been a magic marker shop from the start, I would have been a way better employee."

[always_someone]

.... Oh no. Norman glanced up from playing with the (banana-scented) puppy, and blinked.

"I think this is a one-day-only thing," he noted, quietly moving to make sure that there were no potions still on the shelves.

[thishouseishaunted]

Ah, but which of these markers had been potions? And would they turn back into them again, later?

"Like a pop-up?" Mae asked. Look, she'd been here since January, sure, but she was still usually going to reach for a mundane explanation before a more . . . Fandom-y one.

[always_someone]

The maaaagic of Faaaandom (and comedic effect) would dictate that!

"... I guess a little like that," Norman replied, a bit dubiously. "They did just kind of pop up."

Not like that, Norman.

[thishouseishaunted]

"I like it," Mae said. As though that weren't obvious with what she'd said when coming into the store. "It's way more colorful this way."

She reached for a red marker on the shelf next to her, glancing over to see if Norman was looking at her before trying to stick it into her pocket.

[always_someone]

Norman was... sitting right there, Mae. He blinked, opened his mouth, and then just kind of shut it again as he watched that marker vanish away.

Um.

"It's probably safer, anyhow," he hedged. "I mean, fewer potions."

Banana or strawberry.

[thishouseishaunted]

The worst part was, in her world, she was considered skilled at this.

"I dunno. Those potions were fun."

Mae. You ended up spotted last time. For a week.

[always_someone]

The cerberus still had one banana-shaped spot on his butt. Still!

"The potions..." Norman managed to resist facepalming, at least. "I mean, I guess they would have been, yeah."

If you were a reckless person who mixed potions.

[thishouseishaunted]

"Reckless person who mixed potions" was Mae's middle name!

Or, you know, just "reckless". It described so many of her hobbies and decisions after all.

Mae shrugged and wandered further into the shop, hand slipping out to grab a yellow marker this time.

"It's like what chemistry should have been," she said cheerfully. "Just mix liquids together and see what happens!"

[always_someone]

"I'm pretty sure that's how people lose eyebrows," Norman hedged, sounding a little distracted as Mae just... openly grabbed another marker.

...

"Which I guess is fine if you don't want eyebrows."

[thishouseishaunted]

"According to some people around here, I apparently don't have any, anyway."

Did cats have eyebrows?

[always_someone]

They had... eyebrow whiskers?

Norman squinted a little.

"I dunno," he hedged. "I mean, I see hair there..."

And everywhere else. But. Details.

"Pretty sure that counts."

[thishouseishaunted]

Norman, you were now one of Mae's favorite people. Because she assumed you meant she didn't have a cat head.

Yeah.

"Do you really have eyebrow removing potions? Because the prank potential there would be epic."

It was a really good thing she didn't work here anymore.

[intotheout]

"Wow," Tip said, stepping carefully around discarded markers as she came in. "I think your store exploded."

[always_someone]

"It kind of did," Norman agreed, glancing up at Tip as he rummaged around for a box or something to put the spilled markers into. "It turned into art supplies, and then it exploded."

Incoming three-headed banana-scented dog trotting over to say hello, Tip!

While Norman just sort of smiles sheepishly.

[intotheout]

"Hi puppy!" Tip greeted, in an absolutely ridiculous talking-to-the-dog voice. She crouched down to give all three heads thorough pettings, then looked back up at Norman. "It's Fandom, so I have to ask: did it literally explode?"

You never knew.

[always_someone]

"Not literally, no," Norman admitted, smiling crookedly as he ambled over, not far behind the pup. "I might have given one of the newer kids thirty seconds to stock up on as many markers as she could grab. Maybe in the name of mischief?"

He glanced around the shop.

"She kind of Cookie Monster'd it, though. I think there are more on the floor than there are in the bag."

[intotheout]

"Um," Tip said, looking around again. "Yeah, I'd say she kinda did."

There were, like, three markers total left on the shelf she was next to.

"You need a hand cleaning this stuff up?"

[always_someone]

"I was kind of just going to stick it all in a box and hope the markers turn back into actual stock before next week," Norman admitted. And paused. "... And hope that the ones she took... don't."

Because the island didn't need Mae with any more potions.

"But I wouldn't mind some company while I do. How are you doing today, Tip?"

[intotheout]

"Oooo, good point." Anyone who was willing to just clean out shelves like that probably didn't need to be wandering around with however many magic wands.

Tip went back to playing with the cerberus puppy, wrinkling her nose from time to time when she got a full whiff of its odd fragrance. "I'm good. Glad to be, you know, people shaped again. I had a whole weasel thing going for awhile."

And yet no dance to go to. Where was the fairness in that?

[always_someone]

"And I missed the weasel thing?" Norman grinned faintly. "I'm kind of jealous, now. You got to see me when I was a crab."

So small. So crabby.

[intotheout]

"Sorry," Tip said. "I went straight for the vents. I think I was trying to hunt gremlins."

They were probably very lucky she'd come out unscathed.

"You also missed me being stuck in a bubble dress for my whole library shift."

[always_someone]

Norman blinked at that.

"A bubble dress?" A pause. "You mean... literal bubbles?"

Don't picture it don't picture it don't picture it DON'T PICTURE IT...

[intotheout]

Bill zipped into the air to offer a miniature example. Tip rubbed her forehead. "Yep. Apparently I turned back just in time to work my shift. It was either bubbles or books."

[always_someone]

Norman considered the books for a moment.

"... Bubbles probably held together better than the books would have," Norman noted. "And you probably made the right choice, not wearing something around that sometimes has a mind of its own."

The books around here seemed to have taken lessons.