The Perk; Thursday Morning

[totalwildcard]

Some days the coffee machine at home just wasn't enough.

And some days the coffee machine at home just didn't work because of ill fated experiments involving an attempt at infusing coffee with things coffee apparently shouldn't be infused with - at least not through putting the thing directly into the machine.

Which one of those days this one was... was unimportant and nothing to worry about!

Harley sailed into the Perk and directly up to the counter with way too much pep in her step for someone who hadn't had her morning caffeine yet: "Hello! I'll take it extra large and with everything in it!"

The baristas were already used to these kinds of orders from her, so this was going to be fine.

Probably.

(open! and early)

Comments

[joan_of_bark]

And just as they were handling Harley's order, one of the baristas took a peek over her shoulder and-- sighed. Both of them in one day? What had they done to anger the gods?

Pam let the door fall shut behind her. "Harley," she called, taking a few steps inside. "Hey."

[totalwildcard]

"Pammy!" Harley enthused, whirring around towards the door. "Hi! You lookin' for your fix, too? I'm getting an everything coffee!"

Not a thing, but she was well on her way to making it one.

[joan_of_bark]

"You know all that sugar is going to mess with you later today," Pam said, not because she thought Harley would relent, but because someone had to say it. "But yes. I'm in town for a few days, so I thought I'd come pick up a coffee."

"Ethically sourced!" chirped one of the baristas.

[totalwildcard]

Harley glanced back towards the barista in question, and then back to Pam, her eyebrows taking a journey of confusion.

"What is that all about?" she asked, pointing backwards.

She was fully ignoring the sugar thing. No one should be surprised and besides, sugar kept her going!

[joan_of_bark]

Pam shrugged. "I had a conversation with them once about the coffee industry," she said. "I guess they want to show their homework."

Conversation was a word doing a lot of heavy lifting here.

[totalwildcard]

"Conversation," Harley repeated, with the sort of emphasis that suggested a barely repressed urge to throw in some air quotes.

But then she shrugged. "So, just a regular, ethical coffee, right? My treat!"

[joan_of_bark]

"A regular ethical coffee," Pam said, nodding. "Or as ethical as we can get it, at least." She looked up at the barista. "I'd love that," she said, and then back to Harley, "Thank you."

[totalwildcard]

"You heard the lady!" Harley told the barista, unnecessarily, with an equally unnecessary flourish (a big wave of her hand). Then she turned fully back to Pam. "So! What's up? Anything new?"

[joan_of_bark]

"'New' is relative," Pam said, slipping her hands into the pockets of her overalls. "So far, home has been... quiet, for Gotham standards."

Did she trust it? Not even a little.

"We stole Harley some new outfits?" she volunteered. "I think she's on the brink of a new makeover."

[totalwildcard]

"Oooh," Harley said, looking somewhere between impressed and delighted. "Is there a color scheme? I used to do some stuff with red and blue!"

Her hair still did, sort of, but the rest of her... was between color schemes, so to speak.

[joan_of_bark]

"This time I think the scheme is 'all the colors'," Pam said dryly. "Purple, pink, red, black..."

[totalwildcard]

Harley... looked doubtful.

"Really? That don't sound like much of a scheme." And then a small gasp. "Oh, is she gonna try and blend in?"

Harleys sometimes had questionable ideas about how that worked.

[joan_of_bark]

"If she is," Pam said - and by now her voice was the Sahara, "It is going to go very poorly."

The barista handed her her drink.

[totalwildcard]

"Don't slam it, she's not even tried it yet!" Harley objected. "You don't know!"

She probably did, actually.

[joan_of_bark]

"Do you think this is the first time I've seen Harley 'try to blend in'?" Pam asked, leaning back against the counter, amused.

[totalwildcard]

"She might crack the code this time!"

Sure she might!

[joan_of_bark]

Pam's mouth curved into a smile. "She won't," she said. "Want to go sit down?"

[totalwildcard]

Harley brightened back up a little. "Sure! As soon as I get my --"

An extra large thing of coffee got hastily shoved across the counter to her.

"-- drink," she finished. And picked it up. "Okay, I'm good!"

[joan_of_bark]

Pam waved her on towards a seat in the corner. She settled down with her own coffee, tossing one arm over the back of the booth.

"How about you?" she asked. "Anything new?"

[totalwildcard]

Harley slapped some money on the counter and didn't look back as she followed Pam to the table.

She shrugged, sliding onto a seat across from her. "I was in Atlantic City over New Year's?"

Unknowingly.

"And I was a lot more legal 'bout it than you'd think!"

[joan_of_bark]

Pam sipped her drink.

"That doesn't sound like a lot of fun."

[totalwildcard]

Harley chuckled, undeterred. "Well the parts I remember were!"

Yes, this called into question how legal the parts she didn't remember had been.

[joan_of_bark]

Pam made an amused noise. "And how many of them do you remember?"

[totalwildcard]

"At least three!"

Immediate and entirely sincerely - at least until she laughed.

[joan_of_bark]

"Well, three's something," Pam said, sipping, her mouth twitching on its way to a smile. "And that something is company, I think?"

[totalwildcard]

Well ya can't do Atlantic City solo," Harley replied, with a little lift of her massive coffee. "That would be boring."

She took a loud sip.

[joan_of_bark]

"The kid?" Pam guessed.

[totalwildcard]

"Huh?" Harley said, likely disproving that theory immediately. Even before the head shake. "Oh, no, she was on the mainland with the hyena."

A beat, and then she looked vaguely offended, as she insisted, "I swear I know other people, yanno!"

Never mind that she had only known any of these people very briefly.

[joan_of_bark]

Pam shrugged it off. "So who'd you take?" she asked. "Or meet?"

[totalwildcard]

"Oh, just some guys," Harley said, willing to let it go (duh), with a little wave of her free hand. "And some girls. Yanno, fun people."

[joan_of_bark]

"For the fun times you had," Pam said, nodding, "Of which you remember exactly three."

[totalwildcard]

"I didn't say 'exactly'," Harley protested, but it was with a small laugh. "Anyway, I remember vibes, too! Moods!" A beat. "And stuff not happening!"

[joan_of_bark]

"Mh-hmmm," Pam hummed into her coffee. "Stuff 'not' happening?"

[totalwildcard]

"Well I sorta missed actual New Year's Eve was happening," Harley admitted, but in a way like it was no big deal to her, honest. "So I didn't actually do any, yanno, New Year's stuff."

[joan_of_bark]

"I'm sorry," Pam said. Sip. "I know the New Years' rituals are a big deal." A pause. "Do you remember what you did do around then, or is that part of the blur?"

[totalwildcard]

Harley snorted. "I got back on the island and then I found out it was already like the third of January."

So, no.

[joan_of_bark]

Pam nodded. She pursed her lips. Thoughtful.

"Are you okay?" she finally asked. "That's a lot of time to lose."

[totalwildcard]

Harley blinked.

"Well I didn't lose it," she said then, dismissive but in a light way. "I know where it went, I just didn't -- yanno. Save it."

[joan_of_bark]

"Sure," Pam said.

The look she fixed Harley over the top of her cup made it clear she didn't feel her question had been answered.

[totalwildcard]

"What?" Harley asked, frowning, but mostly in mild confusion. "I just lost track of time. It ain't a new thing!"

[joan_of_bark]

"No," Pam agreed, "But sometimes it's a 'you're not doing well' thing." She sipped her coffee. "You can just say 'I'm okay' if I ask you if you're okay, you know."

[totalwildcard]

And now Harley blinked again. Kind of like she was running things back in her head.

"... Did ya ask?"

Pam had, of course, but occasionally Harley had selective hearing. Or attention.

[joan_of_bark]

"I did."

[totalwildcard]

"Oh."

Absolutely no recollection, no.

"Well, I'm okay. I'm fine." And Harley did appear to genuinely feel that way, even if a large sip of coffee followed. "I just -- tried to have a little caper to end my year on, and I kinda overshot it. By... a lot."

[joan_of_bark]

"Well, slowing down has never been your strong suit," Pam said, a little wry, a little fond. "But there'll be other little capers. New Year's Eve is just a date we made up."

[totalwildcard]

"I know," Harley sighed, slumping just a tiny bit in her seat. "But the symbolism is just too good if ya can get it right, you know?"