JGOB | Tuesday Afternoon

[knife_bender]

It was a little strange to be in a place that didn't have cars, but after seeing the tiny winding streets Diego could understand why. He didn't mind the walk too much but it did make him hungry enough that he turned to the bakery even before getting a room at the hotel. He tossed his single black duffel bag in a chair to claim a table and went up to the counter to get a jelly donut and a black coffee.

If asked, this was him treating his body like a temple.

[And now Diego is here. Open post]

Comments

[betterthanaplan]

Duke was a little bit at loose ends now that he wasn't having to teach a class. So he found himself wandering into the pastry shop in the middle of a Tuesday afternoon.

No one could have too many madeleines, right?

He nodded to the new guy. "How's it going?"

[knife_bender]

"Can't complain," Diego said, giving the guy the universal bro nod in turn. "It's hard to mess up a jelly donut."

[betterthanaplan]

Duke snorted softly as he nodded. "You'd think. But around here, you never know." He placed an order for a dozen madeleines and some palmiers as well, then turned back to the guy. "You're new around here, right?"

[knife_bender]

Diego had no idea what that guy ordered but it sounded very French and fancy.

"As new as can be," he said, nodding over to where his bag was. "Just arrived...I guess fifteen minutes ago now?"

[betterthanaplan]

". . . Yeah, that's about as new as it gets," Duke agreed. (It was French! But not terribly fancy. He was basically ordering pretentious cookies.) "What brings you to town?"

[knife_bender]

"Nothing in particular." Because he was not about to admit to a stranger that he got thrown out of the police academy back home. "New horizons, I guess."

"Although there's not much horizon here. This place is smaller than I expected."

[betterthanaplan]

"It's pretty tiny, yeah," Duke agreed. He offered his hand. "Duke Crocker. I run the diner."

[knife_bender]

"Diego Hargreeves," he said, shaking Duke's hand. "The island is small but has enough room for a bakery and a diner, that's a good sign."

[betterthanaplan]

"This place has more restaurants than people some days," Duke said with a laugh. "And yet, only the two bars. So make of that what you will."

[knife_bender]

"That's actually two more bars than I expected. I thought I was going to have to go to Baltimore for a drink." Instead he would just go there to play superhero on the weekends. Like a normal person.

[betterthanaplan]

Hell, Fandom's Baltimore was practically used to people doing that.

"Well, you still can. But the Devil's Nest is a lot closer."

[knife_bender]

"Good to know," he said with a nod. "Any other tips or secrets I should know about?"

[betterthanaplan]

Duke looked him over with a critical eye. "How much time do you have?"

And how willing was he to have his brain broken 20 minutes after arriving?

[knife_bender]

"That bad, huh?" Though Diego had his doubts about how bad it could be.

Then again, he started his life via immaculate conception and the world's fastest gestation so it took a lot to phase him.

[betterthanaplan]

"Well, that all depends on your perspective," Duke said. "It's significantly better than my hometown. But that's not a high bar." He pulled up a chair to sit across from Diego. "So. How much do you know about magic? Or, like, quantum physics?"

[knife_bender]

"Depends on your definition of magic," he said. "Wand waving crap? No."

He also wouldn't consider his abilities to magical in any way, shape or form. They were just...there. Along with 42 other kids turned screwed up adults.

"And I'm aware of quantum physics." Barely. Like he knew that the two words often went together in a sentence.

[betterthanaplan]

"I would not be surprised if someone around here swore by using a wand," Duke said. "Alright, how about time travel. Or dimension hopping? Because my girlfriend's from about 110 or so years into the future. And I'm from about ten in the past. In what I'm pretty sure is a different universe."

[knife_bender]

"That's not so bad." It was weird, sure, but not totally out of the realm of possibility. "My brother thought he could time travel."

In fact that was the last thing he bitched about before running away from home and disappearing entirely.

[betterthanaplan]

"Well, you're one the hell up on me when I got here, then," Duke said. "Alright, how about aliens? Or zombies? Or giant shark-princes?"

He missed Sidon sometimes. He was a good one to just point at and watch the new brains break.

[knife_bender]

"Okay you got me with those last three," he admitted. "That's beyond me."

He had actually already met an alien but he didn't know it yet.

"How do you feel about intelligent chimpanzees in tweed suits?"

[betterthanaplan]

Well, you know. Aliens were tricky like that.

Duke grinned. "I suppose that would depend on what those intelligent chimpanzees in tweed suits were doing. My theory is, they're not bothering me, I won't bother them."

That wasn't quite how his life worked, but he needed to keep at least some illusions.

[knife_bender]

"That's probably wise," he said. "The one I know is pretty cool. Kind of a mentor."

[betterthanaplan]

"Sounds like good people, then." Duke nodded. "Let's see. You're going to be fine with the reporter squirrels, then. And the various students who look like animals. How are you with hallucinogenic reptiles?"

[knife_bender]

"I might be willing to believe that," he said. "But any weirder and I might begin to think you're fucking with me."

[betterthanaplan]

"So I'll skip over the sea monster then," Duke said. "For now. You'll see, though. There's no need to fuck with the new people around here. Island does it just as well for us."

[knife_bender]

"And here I was afraid of being bored here," Diego said. "Thank you for quelling my fears."

[betterthanaplan]

"No problem. Seriously, though, it starts to get too nuts for you, swing by the diner. I'll get you a free beer." He looked at Diego's mug. "Or coffee. Either way."

[knife_bender]

"Appreciate it, man, thanks," Diego said. He didn't quite smile at Duke but he did offer another bro nod. Which was just as good in Diego's case.

[betterthanaplan]

Duke's significant other was basically allergic to smiling. He'd take the nod.

"Any other questions I can answer for you?"

[knife_bender]

"Not yet," Diego said. "But I have the feeling that might change so be on standby."

[betterthanaplan]

Duke tossed off a lazy salute. "See you around, then, Diego."