The Perk, Friday morning

[stykera]

Stark had already had pumpkin spice coffee this year, and there would be plenty of time for more of it since it was only August. He would have gone for another today after waking up early and wandering the island for a while if he hadn't spotted the sign outside the Perk before going in.

WE'VE GOT AN APPLE CRISP DRINK TOO!
GIVE IT A TRY

Something cold, caffeinated, and sugary sounded very appealing right now. To be fair that combination was nearly always appealing to Stark but today it was already warm out, he was thirsty, and he did like apples. It was worth trying the drink at least once and he would almost certainly like it, assuming it was as sweet as other drinks he'd gotten here in the past.

He'd ordered his drink, and a breakfast sandwich (he hadn't been eating well, or much, this week and had only realized he was hungry after smelling food). Then he'd taken a tentative first sip, decided his drink tasted something like apple pie even though it was still coffee, and found a table.


[Very open, I'm gonna be REALLY BORED and around for the next few hours between a waiting room and a 2 hour car ride, then slightly less bored and around after that.]

Comments

[throughaphase]

Kitty was planning on bringing some coffees and things home, eyeing them sign.

"I'm worried I'm going to jinx myself into an all-apple bar night now."

[stykera]

"That could happen," Stark said. "But it might have happened anyway, without the coffee." This island was like that.

"Hopefully not for your party. You want that to go well." And what could do wrong, really?

[throughaphase]

"If that turns into apple I'm actually a little worried about this company getting litigious," Kitty admitted. "Maybe it can get it out of its system for Cait or Jaye's shifts."

[stykera]

"Better if someone else has to deal with it? That's fair." Maybe not fair to the other bartenders but they ought to be used to it by now.

"
I wouldn't want to deal with everything tasting of apple either. Although the coffee is ffine.A little odd, but fine. "

[throughaphase]

"Worth ordering to try it?" Kitty wondered.

[stykera]

"I'd drink it again," Stark said. It was full of sugar so of course he would. "It tastes mostly like apple pie. But also coffee."

[throughaphase]

"See, that's where I feel like it'd be better as cider but this also can't be the grossest thing I've ever had in this town," Kitty reasoned.

[stykera]

"Cider that tasted like pie would be good," Stark agreed. "They probably have that. But it's not gross just a little strange." I

"I've had much worse. From Summer."

[throughaphase]

"I have actually had very few of those," Kitty admitted.

[stykera]

"Most of them are fine. Very sweet." All he wanted, really. "I had one with shrimp once. It was terrible. But I domy best to avoid the frightening ones."

"Nothing on Tuesday is going to have meat in it, is it?"

[throughaphase]

"No meat in our drinks on Tuesday," Kitty promised. "I think it's actually just one drink that I can confirm is a liquid."

[stykera]

"Good. I didn't think there would be but..." Stark shrugged. "Stranger things have happened here. But I'll be there Tuesday. To try it."

And maybe commiserate about teaching mishaps?

[throughaphase]

Yeeeeeah, that would have to be a thing.

"Good! Bring some people. Make it a party."

It was already a party.

[not_a_goddamn_princess]

Margo could be honest with herself: after nearly a week, she was starting to panic. Who knew what was happening to El back home without her? If she could still use magic, then Fillory had to be in one piece, right? Or had the wellspring come loose and floated off on some demented tour of the multiverse after Ember turned everyone she knew and cared about into stardust?

She could be honest with herself. The rest of the world, on the other hand…

“Yeah, I’ll have a PSL, something with a fuckton of real sugar, and a foot massage,” she said to the barista. “I can take the masseuse to go if I gotta.”

[stykera]

Well, that was a different sort of order (and a different person he didn't recognize). Not the sugar; Stark tended to order the most sugary drinks he could.

"I don't think they offer that. Unless there's a new menu. Although if there were a new menu there might be a sign for that."

[not_a_goddamn_princess]

“Honey, if you’ve never ordered off-menu, you haven’t lived,” Margo said. She took her. . . eye off the barista long enough to scope out the stranger, and. . . huh.

Well, at least she wasn't the only cyclops in the village.

“They never post the good stuff.”

[stykera]

They didn't even have a full set of eyes between them, just two left ones.

"I usually find something I like and keep ordering it," Stark admitted. "No need to look for things off the menu."

And it wouldn't occur to him to try and order people at the coffee shop. Or anywhere.

[not_a_goddamn_princess]

It wasn’t like she was planning to keep the masseuse.

She also hadn’t expected them to have one. Sometimes a girl just had to posture off some steam. “I’m not going to shame you for being vanilla. . . too hard, but there are fancier coffee drinks in the Starbucks-with-the-serial-numbers-filed-off sea,” Margo said. Her eyes slid over the mask. Did she wanna ask? Did she want anyone asking her? “Unless I’m missing something huge on this menu.”

[stykera]

She could ask. Stark was used to it and wouldn't object unless she was really awful about it.

"I mostly just want it to be sugary. Most of the drinks on the menu are."

"I'm Stark," he added after a moment.

[not_a_goddamn_princess]

Yeah, not the insidery recommendation she was looking for. Margo turned her body towards him and smiled her best ‘Hi, I’m Margo Hanson, the popular girl you wanna know’ smile. That came as a surprise to her, actually. She didn’t know she still had it in her.

“I’m,” she started.

“MARGO! WHERE ARE.”

A gray bunny fell out of the thin air between them. Its voice sounded like it smoked two packs a day.

Margo stared at it.

“Again?”

[stykera]

Stark blinked a few times at the rabbit, then looked back at Margo.

"You have a talking rabbit?"

That was the oddest thing he'd seen today but not that odd as far as Fandom things went.

[not_a_goddamn_princess]

“No, I don’t have a fucking talking rabbit,” Margo snapped, eye wide. “But this is the second time one’s just bamfed right into this coffee shop.”

But talking animals meant Fillory. She rushed for the bunny. “Hold still, you fluffy little ba—”

“—YOU?” hollered the second scratchy-voiced rabbit that fell directly on top of her head.

[stykera]

"Did someone order them?" Look, maybe there were all sorts of talking animals on the secret menu.

"That's new. Talking rabbits in here."

[not_a_goddamn_princess]

“I didn’t!”

Shit, she sounded alarmed, didn’t she? Margo snagged the gray bunny off the floor. “You! Give me some answers!”

“MARGO! WHERE ARE,” croaked the bunny. “MARGO! WHERE ARE.”

She looked from the bunny to Stark and back again. “You seriously haven’t seen these before?!”

[stykera]

"I don't remember talking rabbits," Stark told her
"There's a cat. And some mice. No rabbits that I've met. Should I have seen them?"