The Magpie Emporium, Monday [19/06]

[giveittoyoursister]

Vi had bounced back from last week, and was taking advantage of the weather to shed her hoody. That this also let her show off her arms was a minor consideration.

She started sorting the sets of dice by colour, so the store could be even more rainbow than it already was.

[Open!]

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[drumsticksandd20s]

"What are you going to do with all the dice that don't fit into this color scheme?" Steph wanted to know when she came back after her workshop. Her hair was damp -- she'd gone home to take a shower first, because she had not found Nar Shaddaa especially pleasant -- and she had on shorts and a tank top with rainbow dice on it, and she'd brought cupcakes. Rainbow ones, because she had a theme in June, damn it.

[giveittoyoursister]

"I thought about shunning them, but seemed like it wouldn't fit the month," Vi said after taking a moment to admire Steph's cupcakes and also the food. "So they're going to have their own mixed up display."

[drumsticksandd20s]

Steph grinned at her and came over to kiss her on the cheek. "Yeah, you get it. No shunning anyone except bigots this month."

[giveittoyoursister]

Vi slid her arm around Steph's waist and kissed her temple. "And I figured you wouldn't be buying dice from anyone like that anyway."

[drumsticksandd20s]

"Yeah, that was some depressing research to do at first, but necessary. I ended up having to contact my old boss at the cafe back in Seattle to ask for advice." Steph leaned into her. "Everything go okay here while I was in space?"

[giveittoyoursister]

"Yeah, we held down the fort," Vi said, nuzzling her hair. "How was your trip?"

[drumsticksandd20s]

At least Vi was used to it when Steph's hair was still damp and smelled like citrus shampoo.

"Weird." Steph exhaled slowly and wrapped her arms around Vi. "Portals got mixed up and we unexpectedly ended up in this crime casino? Nothing disastrous happened, but it was... yeah, weird."

[giveittoyoursister]

Vi didn't consider that a drawback of any kind.

"No one caused you any trouble?" she checked, picturing something with a lot less neon.

[drumsticksandd20s]

"No, we managed to avoid that," Steph assured her, hugging her a little more tightly. She realized she should check in with Watts, though; he hadn't reacted well to realizing where they were. "Everyone pretty much stayed out of the way and tried not to draw attention."

She flashed a cheeky smile at Vi. "You're cute when you're being a protective badass."

[giveittoyoursister]

Vi smoothed her hands over Steph's back. "I just...Vander tried to keep people in line but back home could be dangerous for people who obviously weren't from around there."

[drumsticksandd20s]

"Might as well have a big glowing target on their backs, huh?" Steph nodded. "Yeah, I got the feeling it was the same sort of situation where we ended up. I just blew twenty bucks on the slots until it was time to bail. So not the most fun time, but it could've been a lot worse."

[giveittoyoursister]

"Yeah, pretty much," Vi said, kissing her forehead. "I'm just glad you're okay."

[drumsticksandd20s]

"I'm fine." Steph smiled at Vi, brilliant and affectionate and grateful. "I've played some weird fucking clubs, so it wasn't that much of a shock for me. Probably a hell of an experience for Libby, though."

[giveittoyoursister]

"Oh, man, poor Libs," Vi said, pressing their foreheads together. "I hope she didn't get approached by anyone," she paused as she figured out how to phrase it. "Offering intimate trade."

[drumsticksandd20s]

Steph laughed and slid a hand around the back of Vi's neck, just to keep her close. "Not as far as I could tell. She stuck with a group of people from here, away from where all the... action was."

[giveittoyoursister]

"And was there any...action near were you were?" She knew Steph would tell her if anyone actually approached her, but it wasn't like she was going to mind her noticing a cute girl. They both still had eyes.

[drumsticksandd20s]

"I wasn't actually looking," Steph told her. "I felt like that was the kind of place where just making eye contact by accident might count as an invitation, and I don't know how to turn those down gracefully."

[giveittoyoursister]

"I mean, they probably weren't going to cry on your shoulder when you did," Vi said, poking fun at herself.

[drumsticksandd20s]

"Then obviously they have no idea what they're missing, and that's fine with me," Steph replied smoothly, and nudged her gently. "You're being super unfair to yourself, you know."

[giveittoyoursister]

"I couldn't look you in the eye for weeks." Sure she'd been a kitten for a bunch of that, but still!

[drumsticksandd20s]

"Understandably," Steph said gently, and with none of the casual flippance of her remarks just a moment ago. "When was the last time you had a genuinely nice, caring interaction with anyone before we started talking? Rhetorical question. You don't have to answer that."

[giveittoyoursister]

They both already knew it was 'too long'. Vi leaned in to kiss her instead.

[drumsticksandd20s]

Steph kissed her back, slow and sweet, fingers stroking a steady rhythm down the back of her neck.

"See?" she finally murmured. "Stop being so hard on yourself. I am so not here for anyone giving my girl a hard time when she doesn't deserve it."

[giveittoyoursister]

Vi didn't pull away, staying in close to Steph. "Love you," she said softly. "And I'll try."

[drumsticksandd20s]

"That's all I can ask. It's way easier said than done, I know. Believe me, I know." Steph moved to kiss her again. "Love you too. So fucking much."