The Perk- Monday morning

[notconflicted]

The original plan before everything happened over the weekend was to take a portal back home early Monday morning. And then that particular portal had been canceled. She'd found that out after taking a gondola to the where the portal was supposed to show up, and she'd been assured that things in town were still open, so she'd figured she could wait at the Perk while the got sorted out.

Which was why she was stubbornly seated on a table where she wouldn't get wetter, watching as a sea otter swam her drink over to her. Which didn't seem especially sanitary, and this drink was going to be terrible, but she was putting up with all of this on principle.

It was actually annoying enough to make her feel less weird about the weekend, so at least there was that?


[Open! Otters!]

Comments

[suitably_heroic]

"Space! Why do I still live on this karking is-- oh." Atton came to a water-logged stop in the doorway to the Perk.

Could this week get any better? ... Please?

[notconflicted]

"Because sometimes," Sia said, looking over at him, "you'll get served by an otter, and you can't get that anywhere else."

And they didn't know how to make coffee.

[suitably_heroic]

"I bet I could find a cantina where they do," Atton muttered. "Hi, Si."

[notconflicted]

"Hi," she said, a touch carefully. "How are you?"

[suitably_heroic]

"I'm... okay?" Atton ventured, taking a few more steps into the place. "How are, uh. How are you?"

[notconflicted]

"Currently, annoyed," she said, gesturing to the rest of the place. "Otherwise, I haven't decided yet."

[suitably_heroic]

"Well, that's not worrying at all," Atton muttered. "Let me know when you figure it out, huh?"

[notconflicted]

Sia raised an eyebrow at that. "I would not have figured you'd be the one worried."

[suitably_heroic]

"What is there not to worry about?" Atton said, swinging his attention back to her with a squint.

[notconflicted]

"It's just Fandom playing with us. Again," she said with a shrug.

[suitably_heroic]

"In a really specific way," Atton said, running his fingers through his hair. "Unless you're really that whatever about it, in which case we never have to talk about it again."

[notconflicted]

"I wouldn't say I'm whatever about it," she said, pausing. "It's not the first time the island has done something like this, it isn't real, it probably won't be. That doesn't mean I've decided how I feel about any of the things it brings up."

[suitably_heroic]

"You know, Si," Atton said, after a short pause. "I don't think most people decide how they feel about anything."

[notconflicted]

"Does 'figure out how I feel' sound better?" she asked patiently.

[suitably_heroic]

"Slightly less like a patented Marasiah Fel line, but in general, yeah, it does."

[notconflicted]

"As someone who Durant decide these things, how are you doing with it?"

Honestly, she was a little surprised he hadn't gotten out of here already, which she knew was unfair, since he hadn't actually done that in a while.

[suitably_heroic]

He was trying to be better, Sia. The least you could do was appreciate it.

"Trying not to think about it too hard," Atton said brightly. "I mean. Usually whoever I am turns out to be pretty together during these things, I guess we had to find a dud eventually."

He was freaking out about it. Doing a good job of not showing it, but still.

[notconflicted]

She would! Once it wasn't the morning after that weekend anymore.

"He could have been fine, for all we know. Just clueless." Or dead. No way of knowing.

[suitably_heroic]

"The last time anyone--" Meetra "--took off to the Unknown Regions on me, she didn't last long." A pause. "... But sure, he could be clueless and fine."

[notconflicted]

"I suppose that's something to remember if you ever decide to follow that particular path," she said. "I'd like to be hopeful in that case, at least."

The alternative was depressing.

[suitably_heroic]

"I'll try not to ruin it for you," Atton said. "But I'm pretty good at ruining it."

[notconflicted]

"Why do you need to?" Sia asked, managing not to sigh. "It's not as if it's happening here."

[suitably_heroic]

"Because I'd..." Atton pulled a face. "Nevermind, it's not important."

[notconflicted]

"Of course I'm going to ask you to finish that thought," she said, curious.

[suitably_heroic]

There was an uncomfortably long pause on Atton's part.

"Because it sounds like something I'd do," he said finally. "She... she keeps telling me, every time she comes back, whether it's that absolute pile of bantha poodoo the island keeps pulling on us or just... her presence in the Force. 'There's something lurking beyond the Outer Rim'."

[notconflicted]

"Which isn't incredibly helpful as a direction, and seems to be what got her killed," Sia said carefully.

[suitably_heroic]

"And Revan," Atton said, his mouth curving into a wry smile.

Under any other circumstances, he would've added something to soften that, a little twist at the end to make it sound like a ridiculous idea.

He couldn't find it in him right now.

[notconflicted]

Sia paused.

"I need you to know that if you ever decided to follow everyone else on a suicide mission without even knowing why, I'd never stop being angry at you."

After this weekend she knew that for sure.

[suitably_heroic]

"Well, see, that's the advantage of a suicide mission," Atton said, some of the jokiness returning to his tone as he yanked the walls back down. It was a little harder to do after the weekend, but he managed. "No one gets the chance to yell at you. Meetra had it figured out there."

[notconflicted]

"Which is exactly part of the problem," she said.

[suitably_heroic]

"Anyway, don't worry, I've got no plans to head out into the great beyond," Atton drawled, "Because space knows Sparkle's terrier of a boyfriend would manage to track me down and nobody needs that guy yelling at them more than... ever, really."

[notconflicted]

"I'd get dibs," Sia said simply. "He can take a backseat."

[suitably_heroic]

"See, but I actually enjoy seeing you, that kind of blunts the impact."

[notconflicted]

"Which is a good reason not to go in the first place," she said.

[suitably_heroic]

"I'm not going," Atton said. "I just told you that."

[notconflicted]

"I know." She wasn't sure she thought that would always be the case, but she also wasn't going to say that. "Sorry. Strange day."