fandomtownies | The Magpie Emporium, Thursday (7/28)

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The Magpie Emporium, Thursday (7/28)

She'd been a cat for a week, so it was totally understandable if Steph ended up a little bit on the maniacal side, the way she threw herself into work today. She wasn't worried about the general day-to-day of everything, but there was inventory to do and emails to answer and things to restock -- all those store manager types of things that required opposable thumbs and the ability to communicate in written language. And were also a convenient way to keep from admitting that she was staying busy to avoid being fucking miserable. (Which she was failing at doing, but anyway.)

So yeah, there was plenty to do but also not enough, and she could practically hear Gabe's disapproving You're doing it again, Steph in her head as she tried to find more things to do. She was trying to ignore it. She was trying to ignore a lot of things in her head right now, and had been since Tuesday night. But it was hard to ignore Saffron, who was in an upset enough mood to be coming to her with her loud complaining meows; Vi usually stopped in for at least a few minutes to say hi and give Saffron some attention, and she hadn't been in at all the last couple of days. Not that Steph could blame her at all for it.

"I know," Steph told Saffron, and sighed when her attempt to reach out and offer her hand resulted in the cat hissing and running off to the other side of the store. "This is on me, and I'm sorry, okay?"

Anyway, the store was open and if you needed Steph she was around, and absolutely not moping about the bracelet she'd found in the pocket of Vi's shirt the other night. Shut up.

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Stark had been meaning to stop by this store for a while now but hadn't quite gotten around to it yet. But now that he knew Steph had also just spent some time not as herself it seemed as good a time as any to come in, look around, and maybe check up on her. He'd lived here for a long time and turning into an animal for the first time had certainly been an odd experience for him. He thought it might be worse for someone newer to the island and all of its oddities.

"Hello, Steph."

If Steph seemed to perk up a little bit when the door opened, then deflate again when she saw who it was (or more accurately who it wasn't), it wasn't you, Stark.

She decided to save the wall of minis from a fifth unnecessary tidying and offered him a halfhearted smile instead.

"Hey, Stark."

Stark was used to people not being thrilled to see him. It would take more than that to offend him.

"The squirrels said you were a cat. Have you recovered?"

It wasn't that Steph wasn't happy to see him! It was just... ugh.

"Yeah," she said listlessly. "Not sure if I'd call it recovery, but here I am."

Punctuated with the least enthusiastic jazz hands ever, which coming from someone who always seemed to be enthusiastic about something was probably a bit unsettling.

"Are you alright?" Stark asked, frowning a little. The answer was probably obvious but he felt like he ought to ask.

"I was a koala. Anakin's daughter turned me colors."

"I'm fine," Steph replied -- shortly, which probably undercut her credibility. "I feel like I'm going to be brushing my teeth forever to get the cat food taste out of my mouth, but..."

Vi had taken really good care of her, but she wasn't about to talk about that and lose whatever composure she'd scraped together.

She sighed.

"Cats are pretty good at looking after themselves. Did anybody get pictures of colorful koala you?"

"Maybe cupcakes tomorrow will help?" Stark suggested. They would probably not. Oh well.

"Rey said she saw pictures, from Anakin. I'm sure Summer took some." He couldn't ask though because he couldn't look at Summer right now. "I don't know if Travis did."

It had been a game of pass-the-alien.

From the way Steph's face twisted up into a grimace at the mention of class, safe to say it would not help. At all. She'd apologize in advance, too, if she felt like talking about it.

"Yeah... I'll have to ask them about it," she said, nodding with entirely, blatantly fabricated enthusiasm. "I... don't know if there are any pictures of me."

She wouldn't be surprised, since far be it from Vi to pass up an opportunity to give her shit about something, but she couldn't exactly go asking, now, could she?

Would it help that Stark was going to be excessively awkward around Summer and kind of awkward around Travis tomorrow?

"Rey assured me I was cute as a colorful koala. I should ask for pictures too."

Chiana would probably enjoy them, at some point.

"Are you sure you're alright? I'm good at listening, if you need it. This place can be...a lot to deal with, sometimes."

He did not realize that wasn't really the problem, no.

Poor everyone else around all of them, basically. In between the awkwardness and the angst it was going to be fun times all around.

"I'll be fine," Steph insisted, still not at her most convincing. "It's not like... I mean, being a cat was fun, actually."

It was the changing back that had sucked.

It would be the most uncomfortable cupcake class!

Stark was unconvinced about Steph's degree of fine-ness but he wasn't going to pry. Yet.

"I don't remember much of it," he admitted. There had been a lot of clinging to people. He knew that much. "I remember turning back."

Hopefully it wouldn't affect the cupcakes themselves.

"Yeah." Steph practically bit the word off. "That part. Before that, I was having fun mostly."

And then, you know. Everything.

"You weren't hurt?"

Not physically, Stark. Try and keep up.

"I landed on the floor. In my apartment with..."

Did he need to share that part? Maybe. Was he going to? Also maybe.

Steph huffed a laugh at that. "Not even a scratch, nope."

She eyed him. "Please tell me you at least got some fun out of it?"

Because one of them had to.

Stark ducked his head, fighting back a small smile.

"I...it wasn't fun at first. I didn't have a mask. Or anything else." And he'd still been rainbow dyed! "And Summer and Travis were both there.And the door was broken and someone called the police and..."

"And then there was some fun, after Summer and Steve left. Yes."

"Fuck," Steph said after a moment, "sounds like you earned it after all of that. Someone called the cops? Seriously?"

She wasn't jealous. Nah.

"Travis broke the door, taking me home. He didn't want to keep me at the fire station. When I wasn't myself yet." Something about climbing fire poles...

Stark glanced up then, still fighting back a small smile.

"That's fucking adorable," Steph said immediately. Just... don't mind her fixating on this instead of on her own feelings right now. "How'd you end up at the fire station in the first place?"

"I'm not entirely certain," Stark said. Which was good, because he had abandonment issues.

"But he brought me back and didn't turn me colors."

"A positive sign," Steph decided. "You were probably safer at home than at the fire station anyway, so obviously he was looking out for you."

Which was totally different from Vi bringing her home so she'd stop trying to drive Saffron absolutely up the wall, because look, totally different outcomes.

"I think he was," Stark agreed. Which was a good feeling and one that he'd been missing.

And to be fair, Stark and Travis had already slept together before this which did make the situation a bit different. Steph and Vi were closer to the Summer situation.

"He...asked me to dinner. Yesterday. At the bar."

Listen, there were reasons that Steph's old Smolder bio had started out with that banger of a line, 'Disaster dork in search of next ex,' but yes, it actually was a different situation.

"I mean... congratulations, dude?"

"Thank you?" Stark was still a bit bewildered by the whole thing.

"Changing back to yourself didn't go as well for you." That was fairly obvious.

Steph shrugged half-heartedly. "I don't really want to talk about it," she said, because she was stubborn like that.

Which was a confirmation to the already obvious but what was she going to do, cry on people about how she'd probably permanently fucked things up with her best friend, and changing back to herself was just the catalyst that set it all off?

"I'm sorry," Stark told her quietly.

"You don't have to talk. But if you want to, I'll listen."

He was good at that. And he could handle being cried on.

"Thanks," Steph replied. "I'll keep that in mind. No guarantee I'll take you up on it, but... for real, thanks for offering. So. Date, huh?"

Stark nodded, that faintly confused look crossing his face again.

"Yes? Yes." Because he apparently only went on dates with people after they'd slept together.

"It's not...I haven't done that often. Dates."

The normal sequence of events was boring anyway, so you go and break it, Stark. More power to you.

"Bro," Steph said wryly, "I am... way not the person you want to ask for advice on this kind of thing."

The problem wasn't about her getting dates, mind you. It was just everything that happened afterward.

"I don't know who I ought to ask," Stark said. "Or maybe I shouldn't ask anyone." He could just muddle through and hope for the best.

"I was just surprised he asked." And a little surprised that things had gone the way they had on Monday because he'd thought the first time was entirely due to pollen.

What was that joke she used to make to herself back in Haven Springs? She should start a new radio show and call it 'The Dateless Dating Advisor?' The trend might be continuing.

"Anything's safer than asking someone who can't keep a relationship going, at all, like ever," Steph muttered. Did this have anything to do with her own recent events? Not at all! "I mean, if you want to ask I'm not gonna stop you, but any and all advice should come with a big fucking grain of salt."

She shrugged. "I just think... someone sees you at your most embarrassed and still wants to ask you out instead of, like, bailing --" no projection going on here, nope -- "then I guess... I don't think you should be worrying about it, you know?"

Stark really just needed 'Advice for Hopeless Aliens with No Confidence.'

"I can find someone else to ask." There just weren't a lot of options available. He didn't have that many friends, really. Plenty of people he was friendly with but it felt like very few friends.

"I just worry often." Constantly.

And he rather thought that Travis being there when he was extremely naked and embarassed and still colorful had been more of a catalyst than anything.

"Bro," Steph said gently, with a sad little laugh, "I feel like I can at least say with confidence that this is one thing you don't need to worry about quite as much. He seems like a good dude."

"He does," Stark agreed. "That doesn't mean I won't worry. It's hard to stop, sometimes. But he's...he's a good man, I think."

Who'd flat out said he liked Stark and that was rare enough.

"So we'll go to dinner. And...I'll try not to worry."

Steph nodded. "That's all I can ask. Flat out telling you not to worry is dumb, but in this case I can ask you to try not to let the worry eat you."

"We're having dinner on Tuesday. I'll try my best not to worry."

No guarantees Steph. Stark was very good at worrying.

"Seriously though, man," Steph said, mustering up a genuine if very brief smile, "I'm happy for you. Fingers crossed everything works out well."

"Thank you. It's...I hope it works out well too. Or at least not poorly."

"If it doesn't, I'll kick his ass," Steph said in a reasonably convincing breezy tone.

The claim was probably much less convincing.

"What if it's my fault?" Stark asked.

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The Magpie Emporium, Thursday (7/28)

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