The Perk, Sunday Morning

[my_own_advocate]

Sometimes a man - or a fallen angel shaped like a man - needed something decadent. Something deeply bad for you in the best possible way.

Sometimes a man just needed the richest and most extreme chocolate milkshake one could possibly get this far from a real city.

And so Lucifer found himself at the Perk on a Sunday morning, with a massive chocolate contraption sitting in front of him, full of tiny donuts and marshmallows and sprinkles. "Now this is worthy of the Devil," he decided, stealing a lick of whipped cream off the top with a cheerful grin thrown at the barista.

He was, as always, completely fine.

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[justice_undone]

And sometimes a spaceship in a human body needed to leave her basement apartment and her store for a cup of tea among people. That was why Breq was here, ordering a small pot, having no trouble whatsoever to get the staff to make it from loose leaves.

She looked around for familiar faces, found one that wasn't and strode across the floor towards him.

"Good morning. You play the piano at Devil's Nest, don't you?" Breq said, face expressionless and body language showing no emotion. Then she remembered, and managed a slightly odd smile.

[my_own_advocate]

"Among many other things," Lucifer said, looking up with his automatic smile plastered all over his face, "Yes."

[justice_undone]

"I run the music store," Breq said. "I'm guessing you're a better musician than the zombie band, and I find live music better than recordings, so... Is it ok if I sit down?"

[my_own_advocate]

"Oh, I know I'm always hard to resist," Lucifer said, flashing even more of a grin. "Of course, I always have time for musical interest."

Don't flirt with the space ship, Lucy.

[justice_undone]

The space ship paid no attention to the flirting, and gave no impression of having even noticed it. She had, but it didn't interest her, of course.

"I'm glad to hear that," she said, taking a seat.

[my_own_advocate]

Really? Not even a blink?

Sigh.

"And I'd hope I'm better than the zombie band," he said. "Any real comparison would be insulting."

[justice_undone]

Not even a blink.

"I didn't mean to insult you."

Breq took a sip of her tea.

"That's an impressive drink."

[my_own_advocate]

"Extreme shakes, they call them," Lucifer said. "I think it's one of my favorite inventions this century."

[justice_undone]

"Which century are you from?" Breq asked. "And which planet?"

Still no facial expressions. She would remember eventually.

[my_own_advocate]

"This planet," Lucifer said, idly, "And I am at present living in this century. Why?" A pause. He waved at her face. "Stop doing that, that's terrifying."

[justice_undone]

"It's the kind of question you ask here. And you implied you've spent time in other centuries."

She took another sip of tea.

"Unless I misunderstood. Stop doing what?"

She smiled, not quite getting it right.

[my_own_advocate]

"Whatever it is you're doing with your face," Lucifer said, pulling a face. "And while the compliment is flattering, I am over twenty years old."

[justice_undone]

"I'm not good at facial expressions," Breq admitted. "And it wasn't meant as a compliment. And if you wanted to give a more mature impression perhaps you should choose another drink."

Here she smiled, hoping to convey it was a joke.

"I'm not being serious of course. But what brings you to the island?"

[my_own_advocate]

"A vacation," Lucifer said, still eyeing Breq strangely. "And who might you be, you strange, literal human?"

[justice_undone]

"An unusual place for a vacation," Breq said. "I'm not human. I'm a space ship. And I run the music store."

Since no one on the island had ever seemed bothered about her mentioning that, she could just as well be open about it.

[my_own_advocate]

"A space ship? You know, I'm fairly certain that saying something like that is considered a hate crime these days," said Lucifer, who spent altogether too much time on the internet.

[justice_undone]

"Why would you think that? Most people here seem to think that still means I'm a person."

Breq took a sip of tea.

"I'm Breq, by the way."

[my_own_advocate]

"Right, Breq," Lucifer said, still completely not grasping the fact she meant she was a literal space ship, "What alt-right forum did you scurry out of?"

[okteiviakom]

Octavia was fine this morning, despite last night's revelries. It had been more about the violent revenge-via-effigy for her than the beers, anyway. But still, this morning, she found herself craving... something. Something that the Perk could possibly provide.

She hadn't been here since the latest incident with Purple Pants Barista. And so, she was glad to find he didn't seem to be working today because, yes, she did actually pause at the door to check whether she saw him.

Which turned into a more general glance around as she stepped inside, which turned into seeing Lucifer, which turned into --

"What," she said, "is that?"

[justice_undone]

Breq had actually done some research on Earth culture, and that sort of thing had seemed to be an important issue in current society.

"I'm not from Earth, remember. If someone makes a tool they usually don't consider it a person."

She added: "But who are you? Apart from being a musician?"

[my_own_advocate]

"Lucifer," Lucifer said pleasantly, and took a massive sip of his whipped-cream covered concoction. "Morningstar."

[my_own_advocate]

"An extreme shake," Lucifer called, "Truly an invention for everyone on this planet to be proud of."

[okteiviakom]

"Is that on the menu, or...?"

Did she kind of want one? Maybe.

[justice_undone]

"Like that character from mythology... the Devil?"

If Breq had been better to show her reactions on her face, she would have looked not entirely convinced.

[my_own_advocate]

"Ah, someone actually recognizes me," said Lucifer, sounding both condescending and unimpressed.