|
Oh hey, it's Rainbow Road again. We've all been here. Most people seem to like it - except creepy frat bro types who can't grasp the concepts of basic human decency. Those types get their dead asses stuffed into the hedge to rot.
Coincidentally, Sturm has grown a fondness for this place. Perhaps on account of that. Perhaps on account of she's met a good deal of her friends here... at any rate, she ducks when she enters just like she always does - though Teagan is in tow - and there's something different about her tonight. She's practically fuckin' glowing - and there's heaps of confidence where previously there was none...
The Mirrorskin follows in her wake, hands tucked into their pockets, a little shimmer sliding across their face; there's low-key delight shimmering in the edges of their expression. They click their tongue against the roof of their mouth, offering, "So what drink are you buying me?"
Lux is already there, and as easy to spot as ever with their bright neon glow. They're leaning against the bar, chatting up the bartender as a brightly colored cocktail is mixed for them.
"Dunno. What's your drink of choice?" The corner of her mouth twitches upwards just a tick - it's not quite a smile, but the frown she usually sports is nowhere to be seen. "Not much of a... drinks person anymore, so. That part's on you, unfortunately."
Tragically, she's a bit overwhelmed by the bar noise tonight and she doesn't quite see Lux yet - and even more tragically (for being recognized in public) her voice is pretty unrecognizable as Sturm's voice.
It's Teagan who spots them, and reaches to touch Sturm's elbow, ticking their head toward Lux. "Look who it is," they offer, and there's a little bit of mischief in the way they say that. They're well aware of Lux's reactions to the Jotunn, and this is, by proxy, Teagan's work, so, y'know. This is showing off, in their own way.
"Usually I drink Yuengling, or citywides." A citywide being a Philly special, even though it just means 'a shot of well whiskey and a shitty beer.' "It's not that exciting, but it gets me drunk."
They might not recognize Strum's voice, but they do recognize Teagan's. They straighten up some and glance over. Then double-take. Then turn to stare. Strum is... smiling? What the heck. "Heeeey," Lux calls out, wiggling fingers in greeting.
Sturm does her little snort-laugh as she realizes what Teagan's getting at. "Well, how drunk do you wanna be? Pick your setting, and then I'll buy."
Up close, it's easier to see it's not just Sturm's mood that's dramatically improved - though the way she carries herself does do most of the work. Her appearance has physically changed - subtly in most respects - but it's still noticible. "Hey. Sup?" Hey look, she's not even growling - and her voice is higher pitched than usual.
"How drunk do you want me to be?" Teagan answers drily, hands tucked into the pockets of their trenchcoat still; they wiggle their fingers at Lux, mirroring her gesture, when they wave at the pair. And then they're at the bar, drawn up alongside the Bright One. "Hey, shiny. How's it?" Up close, Teagan reflects bits and pieces of the neon in their fragmented eyes and on their mirror-dark skin, but mostly, their attention is on Sturm.
"Just trying to find something exciting to pass the time. The usual." As the two come closer there is definitely some staring. Lux blinks several times, lights of their eyes flicker-flickering off and on. "Strum... you look beautiful." Sure, they compliment and flirt often--but there's something more sincere and about their voice saying this. Genuinely admiring rather than the sly mock-swooning they usually do.
Sturm holds up her hands in response to Teagan's question. "Not trying to get you drunk, just trying to express some gratitude. So that's a you question, not me." Beat. "Fuck you, Lu- err." It's her instinctive response to being complimented. She's not trying to be a jackass. "Sorry, old habits. Gonna take a while to nip that, I think. Nice to see you, though."
She rubs the back of her head awkwardly - mussing the braid a bit - and then offers an embarrassed little smile. It's crooked - and kinda cute.
"I'm giving you shit," the Mirrorskin answers when Sturm holds up her hands. "Just a beer is fine, doll." They sling themselves onto a stool next to Lux, leaning back on the bartop lazily. "I'm not here to get wasted, I'm here to drink in the company of a hot, confident woman being hot and confident." They flash a grin aside at Lux, but they aren't going to explain. "She is. Facts."
"Anytime you want," is Lux's reply, lips quirking upwards into a smirk. "But seriously... damn." It takes a moment more for Lux to tear their eyes away, but then they're leaning against the bar casually, sipping their drink. They're definitely curious, but polite enough not to ask about the transformation. "Nice to see you both as well. I'd ask how you're doing, but, pretty obvious."
"Doll? Fuck're you talkin' about? I can pick you up - or did you forget already?" Sturm grumbles to the Mirrorskin - but there's none of the usual malice in her tone - as she waits for the bartender to swing by for their drink order.
"Appreciate it, but I think I'm good for the moment." Sturm huffs, diverting her attention while she orders drinks. In short order, a Yuengling and a Coke are brought out - and she passes the beer to Teagan. "Yeah. Doin' pretty fuckin' great. Probably be a pissed off rock again tomorrow, but I figure I oughta maybe celebrate a bit."
"So you're a very tall, extremely strong doll." Teagan can't flutter their eyelashes, but the look aside that they give Sturm has everything but. They lean their elbows on the bar, lazing. "Dysphoria is our bitch, gender is a fuck, all shall stand in awe." That's how they're doing tonight, anyway, delivered in a total deadpan. "Yeah, yeah. You'll be a pissed off rock tomorrow, whatever. Tonight you're doin' great, and that's what matters."
Teagan is basically willsmithgesture.gif in Sturm's general direction right now, let's be honest. TADAH!
Lux grins widely, then lets out a soft huff-snort in amusement. "Well, I'm glad to see you happy and celebratory while I can." Their hands rub together, mischief glinting in their eyes. "How can we make your night as amazing and fun as possible, Strum?"
She chuckles, shaking her head at Teagan's antics - still unused to this level of attention. Weird, the two of them being like this when their last interaction was an argument.
"It's true though. Teagan's a miracle worker. Be surprised if it could get much better than this, honestly." I mean, it definitely could, but she's been pissed off and sad for so long that this is enough for her for now. "... wouldn't say no to a big fuckin' plate of curly fries though."
She wiggles an eyebrow in Lux's direction.
It is kind of weird, but: you get what you give, especially where a Mirror is concerned. She's giving all of her joy at this moment, and so that's what Sturm is getting back. Wild how that works! They reach for their beer when it's brought, taking a long swallow of it. "Curly fries sounds fucking baller," they agree, and then offer thoughtfully, "I mean it probably could."
"But this is pretty good."
"Curly fries it is! On me!" They wave the bartender back before they can go far, ordering the largest plate of curly fries they have. "I dunno, I think you look perfect--but what I think doesn't matter at all, it's that you're happy, SO, grain of salt."
"Well. Been a while since I've felt this good, so I'm trying not to push my luck... and if it can get better than this - well - I'm struggling to see how at this moment." Her eyes light up when the food is ordered. Apparently she can push her luck and be rewarded for it. "Yeah, well. It's harder to see change in yourself when it happens slowly... but yeah, I'm happy now. It's nice to have vocal cords that are capable of... talkin' good."
"Push your luck, if only the once. We're here to make sure shit doesn't go too sideways." The Mirrorskin is all smiles tonight, if only because they're reflecting what they've been given. "Oh, hey, and cheese fries also?" They're just gonna bloat up on grease and beer. Life's good.
"Good. You should be. That's kind of the fucking point of the exercise. You being happier with yourself."
"You voice is hot. Pretty sure I'd swoon hearing you read from a dictionary." Lux lets out a heavy swoon-like sigh, lounging back against the bar--and making sure the bartender also adds a big plate of cheese fries to the order as well. "Yeah, fuck that. Don't hold back. We'll be your... like... fun patrol tonight. Nothing will could go wrong!"
"Hold your horses, you two. I have smiled exactly... four more times tonight than I have in the past five weeks combined - and I've even got all the right bits, now. Already living my best fuckin' life here." She grumbles - but it's more snark than actual frustration... and then a realization hits here.
"... but. We could go, uhh, acquire a Switch from Walmart?"
"Yup," Teagan agrees with the voice assessment. This is a fact. Sturmvoice = hot. They take another swallow of their beer, and then raise an eyebrow at Sturm. "... I mean, I usually just walk in with the light ignoring me... " they offer. "And cameras and shit... "
"It's not that exciting when I do it. Or Lux, if I'm right about certain skills we share."
"Oh! Yeah! Let's go ste--get a Switch!" Lux says, throwing their hands up into the air excitedly. Then they pause and shrug at Teagan. "I mean, yeah, not exciting but if it's what she wants..."
"I mean. The... getting it doesn't need to be exciting. We could always smash up something else afterwards if we want that kind of excitement." Smashing stuff is exciting, right? She's thinking about more than just curly fries now, at least. "... and I might look big and slow - and I am, actually - but I'm also... uhh. Cool. Could probably hang with you quiet folx."
"... if we do it right, the getting it is not exciting at all, but we can definitely then play Animal Crossing, which is super fun." They finish their first beer and wave down the bartender for a second. They grin aside at Lux, a slim, quick thing that arrives and flees ever-so-quickly. "You could, I'm sure," they agree. "But we can just like walk in and get one, is all I'm saying."
"I'll get them to put the fries in a too go case?" Lux offers. "Then we can chill and play Animal Crossing and maybe pick up some beers. Ooh, I have some weed left we could share."
"... and I do wanna make friends with some little animal people." Sturm looks distant and thoughtful, but the discussion of to-go and weed brings her back from the Island of Cute Cat People. "I'd leave the beers to you folx, but I could absolutely fuck up a bowl right about now. Especially with two orders of fries on the way..."
"Let's get the fries to go. And then we can get beers and have weed. I know where Glitch's vape is, too, he won't care if I snag it, as long as I put it back when I'm done." Teagan literally just upends their second beer and chugs the whole thing. "CUTE ANIMAL PEOPLE."
"YEAH! CUTE ANIMAL PEOPLE!" Lux echoes the chant. They drain the rest of their cocktail then goes to chase down the bartender to change the order to go. Not too long after they're returning carrying styrofoam cases full of greasy wonders. "Ready!'
Sturm doesn't echo the other two. She's just sorta stuck half-way between laughing and grinning for the duration of when it'd be appropriate for her to chime in, but she finishes off her Coke, and pulls a wad of cash out of her jacket pocket for the drinks.
She looks longingly at the fries when they arrive, but knows that they'll be all the sweeter once weed and Animal Crossing are to be had. "Let's get out of here, then."
"Let the record show that I am very pro cute animal people," Teagan offers cheerfully. And between Sam and June? Uhh... the record does already show that. Very much so. They dig in their pockets for cash and puts some on the bar for a tip. "How about -- take the fries, and get beers, Sturm, and me and Lux will go acquire Switches and weed and shit, and we'll meet up?"
This is a very clever way to make sure Sturm does not get arrested.
"I would hope so. How many cute animal people do you even have as lovers?" Lux asks. "I've seen... two, at least?" They bob their head in agreement. "Where we meeting up?"
Sturm quirks a brow, listening for the answer as she reaches for the fries. She's confident in her ability to break and enter, but... well, there's no point in risking it if someone can just cheat the risk.
"Freehold Hollow? Or someone's place, if we prefer meatspace?"
"Mmmhmm," Teagan agrees, sighing happily. "JuneyJune and My Sam." They glance aside at Sturm, then. "I mean, you need the internet for Animal Crossing, so not the Hollow. I can rent a hotel room. I have a shitty ID and my girlfriends are rich as hell. I am not, because I am just broke as a joke. But they give me money."
"...You're not counting Laura?" They perk a brow. "Oooh, a hotel room." Lux waggles their eyebrows at Teagan, but then shrugs. "Yeah, sure, sounds good to me."
"You... need the internet for Animal Crossing?" She seems puzzled by this. Or maybe by trying to place names to faces whereas Teagan's partners are concerned. "I think June is the only one I haven't met yet - or maybe the only one I haven't almost fought with?"
Reply hazy, try again later. "Wait, Nope! Meeting Sam went well. He's great."
"Laura is gorgeous," Teagan fires back. "But I guess she's cute too. Just doesn't occur to me to call her cute because she's like six four and stacked as hell." A wistful sort of sigh, there. "I don't think you've met June yet, no. But you met Sam and you know Laura. And yes, Sam is great. I missed him a fuckton."
They flash a grin at Lux. "My family tends to walk around naked at home, and it's sort of a haven. So for temproary hangouts, I'm told I'm supposed to get a hotel room." A vague shrug.
"I dunno, I'd call her gorgeous and cute, personally." Lux waves a hand. "That's fair. I mean I'm cool with nakedness, just sayin', but I get it." They head for the door and out into the night. "So am I getting the Switch or the weed?"
Sturm, having few opinions on this matter and no nerve to say them, just stands there holding the fries with a furrow brow.
"... didn't you say you already had weed? Both of you?"
"I do but Teagan mentioned the vape so didn't know if Glitch has better weed... Mine honestly is kind of cheap stuff cause I'm broke and unfortunately don't have a rich girlfriend." Lux pouts.
"You go get the Switch. I will go swipe Glitch's vape, and I'll send you both a Google Maps pin, and we'll meet there!"
"... and I guess I'll get beer. Wait. Switches, right? Not just me?" Sturm's brow furrows. Beat. "... the console, I mean. You're getting more than one."
=
Lux gives a thumbs up to Teagan, then turns to break out into a run down the sidewalk. (Do you want to pause and pick up later?)
The Mirrorskin dropped a pin on a location, but that can't be right, can it? The pin they dropped is at the Rittenhouse Hotel, which is right in Center City and bougie as fuck.
But it is right, because the trick to getting away with shit is to do it so big that people don't doubt you. So instead of half-assing it, Teagan gets the credit card from Sigrun, gets their fake ID, and walks in wearing a face they'll never use again. Then? They wait in the lobby for their guests to arrive with Switches, food, and themselves. The clothes are the same, even though their face is that of an imperious mid-thirties white dude.
No one questions white dudes.
Lux bursts into the hotel lobby, clearly very excited. They're dressed exactly the same as before, but now with a backpack over their shoulder. They peer around a moment before squinting at white-dude-Teagan. They smirk, shrug, then stride over. "Got the goods! Shit, this place is fancy. I don't think I've been anywhere this ritsy before..."
It doesn't take Sturm long to arrive - though she looks frickin' ridiculous carrying two containers of fries balanced on her right arm, and a pair of six-packs underneath her left. It didn't seem too bad on the way up, but now that she's inside she can't help but feel very out of place.
Thankfully, spotting Lux (and some random white dude???) helps. She makes her way over, squinting at Not-Teagan and muttering. "... whatever credibility you have wearing that face flew out the window the moment the moment I showed up looking like trailer trash. One of you take one of these before I drop them."
"They don't give a shit," Teagan answers drily, shaking their head. There's a subtle shift of their stance and the coat they're wearing -- Teagan's worn old thing -- which reveals a flash of Baby's handle. "They have their money, and a shiny metal credit card to put all the room service I'mma order on it."
Spoiled! "Those fries are about to be the perfect amount of manky," they offer with a flash of a grin, and nod aside to Lux. "It's swanky as hell. Let's go be trashy in it."
This is Philly, after all. Being trashy in fine-ass locations is basically like a city sport. And what locations these are! Teagan hands each of them a room key, and leads them up to not quite the penthouse, but the second to top floor. It's not a room, it's a suite. Huge television, ridiculous bathroom... "I've lived in apartments smaller than this," Teagan mutters, and as soon as the hotel door closes behind them? Their Mask and Mien just melt away, back to the Teagan they both have seen before.
"Whooooaaa...." Lux hurries into the suite, eyes wide as they look around. "Holy shit." They start wandering around to look and touch everything. Including the closets. "My apartment is the size of this bathroom!" They yell from inside it before rushing back out. "Geez, Teagan. Will you be my sugar daddy? I'll totally let you be my boss bitch."
"... same, actually." Sturm scowl is firmly in place in this uncomfortable environment, but it somewhat disappears when she takes a peek out the window and has a look out over the city. She gestures around the room, and then out the window. "What the fuck, this shit isn't even fair!"
They set down the fries they were carrying on a table next to the couch that faces the television, and busy themselves with putting the beers in the room's fridge. Which is an actual fridge. They reserve one, cracking it open. "I mean, I'mma be a boss bitch anyway," Teagan answers lazily, "but really, I'm a kept butch. June and Sigrun are the motley's sugar mommas. We're spoiled as fuck."
Beer acquired, they set about loosening the laces on their boots and kicking them off, then carefully wrap Baby up in their coat and set the blade next to them on an end table before flopping bonelessly onto the couch. "I know, it's pretty fucking ridiculous."
"Ah, well... I'll find someone to mooch off of eventually, I'm sure." Lux smirks, then goes to the TV, shrugging off their backpack to pull out the Switch Box. They quickly unpack the console and start hooking it up to the TV. Soon enough it's connected and all the boring profile stuff is done--and Animal Crossing put up. They move over to the couch to sit down, handing the controller to Strum. "Here you go."
"That must be nice - Not being kept, necessarily, but being able to afford to stay in places like this? Fuck." She keeps getting distracted looking out the window, and doesn't stop until Lux passes her the controller - at which point she takes a seat on the edge of the bed and mindlessly begins playing the game - naming her character Sabrina, and crowdsourcing an appropriately funny dick joke for the island's name.
"I didn't say I wouldn't be your sugar daddy," and this comes with a gesture of their bottle, "just that really... the card is Sigrun's. She just doesn't give a fuck if I use it." They scratch their cheek absently, and then produce the vape pen.
"It's not bad. One thing I will say, if you can scrape up like three hundred bucks? There are doctors out in Conshy that'll get you your weed card no problem. It's sort of obscene. Pay three hundred bucks and we'll say you have whatever you need for a card." They take a long pull from the pen, then pass it down the line. "Stuff's got a kick," they caution.
"What do Sigrun and June do to make so much money?" Lux asks, lounging back comfortably. They watch the TV as Strum gets things going, definitely throwing out dick joke suggestions. They accept the pen to take a hit from, taking it easy with the warning. They pass it on to Strum.
"Yeah, no offense meant when I say this, but it seems odd that someone who carries around a baton in their day-to-day would, like, be rolling in the dough." Sturm reaches over to grab the pen, taking a pretty hefty hit because she fears no high. She fields the first dick joke that gets suggested, and then starts up her game.
"Holy shit, look at this little Toucan. He's dressed like a knight... what a fuckin' weirdo."
They start digging in to the cheese fries that they wanted, contentedly melting into the couch to watch other people enjoy playing a video game. This is the life, honestly. Letting out a little sigh, they noise softly, a ? of sound. "Oh, it's -- June raises bees and Sigrun is a combat instructor for like, TV shows and shit. You know, like, Vikings and ... uhhh, Game of Thrones, and shit like that?"
"But the thing is, when you're in a motley, you can all be pretty fucking broke and then suddenly your money starts multiplying. Your Oath looks after you." They shrug vaguely. "Or something, I don't know. And Sigrun carries a baton because skinheads exist." Obviously, right?
AM
Lux squints over at Teagan. "Huh. Wow. That's... pretty cool. I don't think I've met Sigrum--wait, yes I have. Very, very briefly. She was hot." They kick their feet up onto the coffee table, clearly not afraid of getting comfortable. Their phone is pulled out from their hoodie pocket to idly poke at. "Never done the Motley thing, so I wouldn't know. Sounds cool though. Shit, wish I could just generate random money..."
"Oh, that's pretty fuckin' sick. Would love a gig like that," Sturm trails off, shaking a tree repeatedly in the hopes that even more peaches will fall out of the branches. "It's Sigrun, Lux - with an N - and yeah, well..." She trails off again. "Now that you mention it, she does kinda look like the chick on that show. She a stunt double, too?" Beat. "... and yeah. Money'd be nice. Hopefully the minis thing takes off, and I can stop throwing people out of places professionally and start just doing it for fun when I want to."
"She is very, very hot," sighs Teagan wistfully. "So hot." And that's how you know Teagan is starting to get stoned; they get more sappy, as opposed to just making everything a sexy joke. "Uhh, you know? I don't know. She tells us she has work on a show, and then she gets a million phone calls, and we barely see her, and then she comes back and doesn't work for months. It's a weird life."
"Yeah, motleys are good, if you have the right one. Obviously I do. We've been at it three years, so. Must be doing something right." Their broken-mirror eyes flick aside to Sturm. "Minis?"
Lux meanwhile is actually starting to slow down. Rather than constantly fidgeting and squirming like they'd usually do, just... melting into the couch comfortably. "Hmmm, sounds like a high stress thing while she's busy, though. I just--occasionally get paid to do a mural or bus by doing some quick paintings for cash to get by. It's usually enough. But I live a pretty simple life, soooo... Hmmm..."
They grin over at Strum lopsidedly. "That'd be awesome! I wanna see more of 'em sometime."
"Again, that's pretty fuckin' sick. Would love that gig. Think... uhh, that big blonde chick needs a stunt double? The one who was in Game of Thrones? I bet I could pull that off..." Her speech is starting to get more and more comfortable. It's weird to see her so relaxed, just slowly getting high and tap tap tapping away at the switch controllers that look so tiny in her hands.
"Yeah, T. Y'know the little dudes I mentioned painting? I make a lot of them based off of people I meet. Made one for Wren with interchangable magnet ears so you can swap to animal features. I like the cat ones best, but I figured she might wanna change like she does in person."
A little nod of their head. "Yeah, I mean, it can be a lot, but it makes her happy, and it's a good excuse to, like, buy all the weapons she likes, and own a horse, and people won't give her funny looks." A lazy roll of their shoulders as they become a puddle on the other side of the couch from Lux. Well, not really a puddle, because that is a possibility, after all.
"Oh, yeah, the ... she looks kinda like Laura's Mask, actually. I forget her name. Every time I look at her I think, 'oh right, that's Laura.' But it's not Laura." Wistful sigh. Help, Teagan is gay and everyone is hot. "Oh, right. The little people for nerds." Beat. "How could you make more money? Like do you need more people to know about you?"
"I could hit up some of my artist friends to talk you up? Or boost you up on Instagram. I don't have a lot of nerds that follow me but still, some new customers is better than nothing."
"I was gonna make a custom-sculpted little mirror dude for you, 'cause I think you're pretty cool, but if it's for nerds, I'll just save all my expensive-ass metallic paints." It's more sing-song than you'd expect from Sturm, and she gravitates over to the couch with the other two without taking her eyes off the TV - though she sits on the floor with her back resting up against it instead of on it.
"... that might be help. It'd certainly be cool to have people talk about me." Beat. "... how many Instagram followers do you have?"
"... I am literally sitting here stoned watching you play a little fucking chibi person running around an island collecting bugs and fruit, and my boyfriend's name is Glitch, how could you possibly think that I'm not some level of nerd, especially if being a nerd gets me presents?" They nudge Sturm's butt with their toe when she sits down and leans on the couch. But they know nothing about Instagram, so go quiet, there.
"Currently? Like... 10k or something last time I checked." At some point they just kind of sliiiide over and flop sideways on the couch, legs dangling over the arm. They snicker, smiling lopsidedly. "They've got a pooooint, Strum."
"That's... very true," Sturm mutters to herself. She "aims" a little blind swat over her shoulder at Teagan's knee when they poke her. She leans her head back onto the couch, looking up at the other two. "10k is a lot, damn. Could you help me make one, maybe? I'm not really sure how Instagram works and shit." Beat. "I like Glitch, by the way. He's sweet. He said I was like the main character of a video game..."
She trails off, looking back to the screen just in time to stop herself from absentmindedly selling a material she needed for a project to a silly raccoon man.
"Noooo, help, I'm wounded." Teagan flops dramatically against the arm of the couch, then sits back up a second later, taking another swallow of their beer. "Is that a lot?" And then Sturm explains that it is a lot.
"I know. I was there. He told you that you were like Final Fantasy... Seven? I think? I forget. It was a good analogy. And he is really sweet. He's grown a lot."
"Don't think I've met Glitch yet either," Lux muses, squinting. Thinking was becoming hard. They flash Strum a grin, reaching over to pat-pat her on the shoulder. ...Which ends up turning into playing with her braid because pretty and high as fuck. "Yeah, sure! It's pretty simple. People like instagrams that have, like, a specific aesthetic or theme--so just keep it to your minis and it'll take off. And remember to like... tag your posts with all the nerdy words and shit so other nerds can find it. I'll show you." They wave a hand lazily.
Then they look up at Teagan, eyes half lidded dreamily. They lift a hand to poke a bit at their arm, where their metallic skin is reflecting Lux's lights, which in their current state is very fascinating.
"Huh, okay. I guess I can maybe use one of the computers at the library for that... but I might need a different phone. My camera has like 6 pixels." It doesn't seem like she actually knows what a pixel is, but she's trying, damnit. She rotates her head to give Lux better access to her braid - careful not to poke anybody by accident with her horns.
"Jesus Christ, this shit hit me really hard. You weren't fuckin' around..."
A few details to note about Teagan's arms, which I totally forgot to pose when they took their jacket off:
On their left wrist, they wear a wound-wire bracelet made of sterling silver wire which holds a chunk of marble. Beneath that bracelet on the back of their left wrist is a typewriter-font tattoo which reads 'this machine kills rapists,' the text seeming to float just beneath the surface of their skin. On the back of their right wrist is a black-ink calligraphy tattoo of their name. Swooping lines curl up their arms, with groups of five hash marks scattered in between the swoopy lines. There are a lot of groups of hash marks, and they probably show up much better when Lux is poking at their arm. Shimmer, reflect, shimmer. That's gotta be super cool to look at when you're really high.
"You should meet Glitch. He would be totally fascinated with you, I bet. Like, follow you around like a ghost chasing Pac-Man." Beat. "He loves video games. Like, loves loves."
...Yes. Very cool. Lux is MESMERIZED, just idly gliding their hand over Teagan's arm and wiggling fingers to make the light reflect at different angles.
"Just get Teagan to steal you a phone. Then you can do everything on there. ...Huh? Why would he be fascinated by me? I mean, other than the reasons why everyone would be fascinated with me..."
"... cuz you're shiny, probably. Like a TV screen in a dark room," she snickers, fiddling with the controller as she attempts to make something in the design maker. "That's a fuckin' good idea, though. Teagan what do I gotta do to for you to steal me a phone with a decent camera? Y'know. To support a small, local business."
Her head sorta... slumps to the side as she tries to get a better angle to view the thing she's making.
The Mirrorskin holds their arm out so that Lux can make their light reflect in Teagan's skin, laughing softly with how totally mesmerized they are with the way the Mirrorskin's skin does exactly as it should. "Because you look like you belong in a video game, and he's obsessed with video games. Like, in a good way. You look like a hot character from a cyberpunk dystopia movie about someone trapped in a video game."
"Ya gotta ask nicely, Sturm. I'll steal you a nice phone. I can't steal service, though, just the phone."
"Though," they amend, "I should probably buy a phone. The serial numbers matter on those." Handflip.
The cyberpunk dystopia comment makes their lights flicker a second before they settle. Getting high has made them dim down to a soothing, sleepy blue-green glow. "Ohhhh. Huh. Well... You wanna introduce us, sometime? I definitely don't mind having people being fascinated with me." They finally drop their hand from Teagan's arm. Instead they sit up, leaning forward over Strum a bit. "Can I re-braid your hair?"
"Well... that's dumb. Why would they go and serial number them? Are they trying to make them harder to get a hold of?" She gestures for Lux to go ahead - even pulling off the bottom hair tie for them. "I wouldn't ask you to buy me a phone. That's a ton of cash for one that's got a decent camera."
She rights her head for long enough to pat the cushion where she'd been slumped. "I will ask if I can lay my head against your knee, though. I gotta have an angle for this thing, but it's too heavy to hold up by myself while I'm focusing..."
"Pfff. I mean, if I was going to earn the cash. I was going to ask June for it. Or steal something and return it and get store credit. And yes, they want you to pay cash money for the phones, like capitalism or something." Teagan finishes their first beer and then rolls up to their feet, wobbling a little, and goes to get another. "Anybody want something to drink?"
Lux grins widely, shifting so their legs hang on either side of Strum, knee where she can easily rest her head. Their fingers comb through her hair to work out the braid and get her hair smooth. "Fuck capitalism!" they yell out... then go back to the braiding. It's not too different from the braid she had already, but done more complicated and fancier. "Me, please."
"Yeah, fuck capitalism." It takes Sturm a few seconds to register that the thing she asked for happening on the other side of her head from where she expected. A headrest is a headrest tho, and she makes it to Lux's knee despite the haze of her high. "If the fridge is pre-stocked with room service shit, I'll take a Coke and a water. If not..." she trails off for a second. "Uhh. Don't worry about it."
"This place is fancy, of course there's sodas here already," Teagan says almost dismissively, and they bring back a Coke, a water, and two Yuenglings. There's only one brand of beer in the world as far as the Mirrorskin is concerned, and it's apparently this total trash beer from western Pennsylvania. Weirdo. "Fuck capitalism, indeed." The tops of Yuenglings are twist-tops, but they open the beer for Lux all the same, because they're all chivalrous and shit, and they're braiding her hair.
"Thanks," Lux says, accepting the beer with one hand while the braid is held with the other so it doesn't slip out. They chug down some before leaning over Strum to set it on the coffee table. Then back to braiding, until Strum has the prettiest of braids. They grin and tie it off with the band. "Ta da! Ugh you're so pretty I could fucking die."
"Then perish," she offers in a deadpan - guess she must've been paying attention to Mearc's lecture about Tik-Tok and memes after all. She reaches up for her spoils without even letting go of the controllers. Holding lots of stuff at once is one of the few perks of having big hands.
"Thank you, though. Don't hear that a lot."
There's a moment where Teagan just sort of stares at Sturm, because they do not know the meme, and offers, "Well, damn, then. I guess we're done with compliment time." But then she changes her tune a bit, and they shake their head in amusement, handing over the water and the Coke both. "That's a hella nice braid. Looks good, Lux." Their smile is lazy, contented. "You are real fuckin' pretty. Were before, mind. But now you're like... your self-image. It's pretty rad."
Lux bursts into giggles at Strum's deadpan, flopping backwards to slump into the couch. They grin widely, eyelids heavy and lights dimming more. "You're a dork, Strum..." They stretch slowly, letting out a drowsy groan. "Fuuuck, this shit is making me all... mmmm..." Their eyes close. It's not too much longer before they've passed out.
"Fuck you, I was a jock in school. I just hang out with the dorks now, so it's rubbing off on me." She rolls her shoulders, trying to get comfy on the floor and failing. She chose poorly, it would seem. "Enh. Maybe it was just too close to home for me. Pretty sure I'd be super into someone who looked like I used to - but it wasn't - yeah... Self-image or whatever." Beat. "... but it is fucking rad. I know it won't, but I'm... more than a little worried I'll wake up tomorrow looking like I used to."
Once Lux has passed out and been settled (swooning) on the bed -- because honestly who can blame her, being tucked in by a frost giant? -- there's a space on the couch for Sturm. Teagan turns to the side, sprawling their legs out on said couch, like a cat. They have a beer, they have a show to watch called New Animal Crossings Starring Sturm's Chibi, and life is good. "They're cute," Teagan offers, gesturing off toward the snoozing Lux.
Sturm gets back from tucking Lux into bed just in time to encounter Cat-Teagan having spread into the vacancy. So, just as she'd wordlessly lifted up Lux, she lifts up Teagan's legs, sits down, and then sets them back down in her lap so as not to actually disturb their position too much.
"Yeah. I thought they were pretty annoying when we first met, but..." She offers a shrug. "I think most people are annoying when I first meet them. Like 'em well enough now, though." She wiggles the Switch controllers for emphasis.
And that's how Teagan's feet ended up in Sturm's lap. They lean their head on the back of the couch, watching ... well, Sturm, mostly, actually. Animal Crossing is cute and all, but they have a copy of it at home, and someone experiencing their first day without gender dysphoria is a very rare fucking treat. "When they steal you electronics?" the Mirrorskin teases.
"Yeah, I mean. The compliments help, but I'm not shallow." She pauses to growl at the TV when a wasp's nest falls out of a tree and stings Lil Chibi Sturm on the face. "Giving and receiving gifts is my... love language? So the fastest way to get me to like you is to steal four hundred dollars worth of shit from a Walmart and let me go hog wild on a plate of curly fries." Beat. "Y'know, or a fuckin' brand new body and a clear headspace."
She breaks her eyes away from the TV long enough to flash Teagan a crooked little smile.
"Oh, you can get medicine for that, from the store. Err, I guess you have the tent still? Go talk to the little tanuki and he can give you medicine. If you get stung again, you'll pass out. It's annoying." And then Teagan scratches their cheek with one hand. "Your what?" This is clearly not a phrase that Teagan has heard in that exact phrasing before, but they frown mildly, their lower lip stuck out, and as their forehead wrinkles up, they sort it out. "Ah," they agree, thinking through the phrase 'love language' such that their brain is on another track and they miss that last sentence at first.
A snort at the end. "You made up your body. You invented it. I just ... gave you the keys." But they smile back at her, just the same.
"Thanks. Aside from that, it just looks fuckin' ugly as hell and my little lady doesn't deserve that." She pilots her little lady who doesn't deserve a fucked up face over to the little tanuki to get some medicine. "Yeah, it's a thing my- err, this little disaster kid I know was talking to me about. They're pretty smart about a lot of shit like that. Probably all the Internet they have access to."
She pauses. "I mean, I know I'm the one who did it, but you can't start a car without keys, right?" Beat. "Well, you can, but you probably won't get to keep it."
They watch the little chibi scampering around with vague amusement. "I'm pretty good with, like, emotions and shit, but I didn't know that phrase. Mostly, I'm good with them because... " Teagan waves a hand in the air, trying to summon words when you're stoned and tired is hard. And they are stoned and very tired, even if the tired is very good. "There are six of us. Seven if you count Laura, who's not part of the motley but is dating half of it. It should not work as well as it does."
"But it does."
They absently chew on their lower lip, take another swallow of beer thereafter. "I mean, I guess. Still. It was you. You knew what you wanted."
"Hah. I am not." She nods along, listening - or trying to. She is stoned and distracted. "Was actually talking to Jack about that the other day. He reached out to me first after the big fuckin' fiasco, so I asked him how I was supposed to talk to you all before I went to meet Sigrun - and the conversation turned into... that."
She pauses, turning to peer at Teagan. "You keep saying this is something I did - and I know it is. That's not what I'm thanking you for. You're getting thanked because I definitely insulted your boyfriends, and tried to knock your girlfriend's block off once, and I was a consistent pain in the ass at every turn - and you still helped me." Beat. "That's the thing I appreciate, so let me appreciate it."
"Talking to Jack about which?" This conversation has multiple threads! How is Teagan supposed to follow them? "And you mean, like, my Johnny, Jack, or the other Jack? It's so confusing, the both of them." Teagan lets out a little puff of breath from their nose.
They go silent for a bit, and then their shoulders shift. "I mean, okay. But, like. I don't... even view that as being... something I should be thanked for. It's like -- to me it's the bare minimum of acceptable behavior. It's like... I saw you bleeding on the floor and I had the ability to stop you from bleeding to death and I... didn't walk away, and you keep saying thank you. You and I both fucking know dysphoria is a literal fucking killer."
"And I'm Summer, and... not every fight you win with a fucking machete. I dunno. Like. I saw you bleeding and I offered to stop the blood. That's not something I get thanked for. That's minimum human behavior."
"But okay. You're welcome."
"I'm just... it's that I'm just surprised is all. Not that I thought you were a piece of shit or whatever, but I dunno. You had the opposite of reasons to give a shit about me." Beat. "... but we don't need to keep carrying this end of the conversation. Thank you for letting me fuckin' thank you, jeez."
She lets that hang in the air for a bit, messing around with her ridiculous little Animal Crossing persona. "... but I meant that I talked to him about your polycule, and how you folx juggle it all. He explained it pretty well. Can tell you're all very important to him."
"I take some shit like real serious," is all Teagan says, in a sort of overwhelmed little mumble. Then they let that side of the conversation drop, too, scratching their cheek.
"We better fucking be," they laugh. "What did he say?" A pause, and they add, "I mean, I could just ask him, but if I ask you, then I know what you heard, if that makes sense."
"Oh. Well. We talked a bit about Laura briefly, but it wasn't the focus of the conversation. He just mentioned that you all have been through some wild-ass shit with him, and that you gave a shit about him even when you probably shouldn't have." She gestures feebly - switch controllers still in her hands. It looks a little silly. "It wasn't what I was really asking about, though. Mostly I just didn't understand how you all... made it work. It was... insightful."
Teagan might get the feeling that she's not being entirely truthful... but it could've just been an extensive conversation that was difficult to summarize.
They sort of toss her a little look aside. "We talk all the time, and we fuck a lot." Teagan is a lot more flip as they get more tired. "We have been through some wild-ass shit with him," they agree, and their eyes darken a little, but that just seems like... maybe they're tired. "If you don't wanna tell me the whole thing, you ain't gotta."
"No, I- err. What I asked him exactly was how he has enough... person to give to six other people - 'cause I barely feel like I have enough person for me most days." Beat. "Something about cups. Pouring shit out but everyone's pouring shit into eachother's cups so the amount of shit in the cups is all the same."
She hits the pause button, and tosses the controllers over onto the cushion next to her. "Well, I didn't, but I guess if you're just gonna call me out I'm gonna look like an asshole if I don't." Sturm does that little snort-laugh she seems to do whenever she's feeling particularly known. "I think he took me literally, but I told him that I wanted something like what he has - and I'm embarrassed about talking about that shit, okay?"
The Mirrorskin thinks about that a little bit, and one corner of their mouth curls up as it's wont to do. "I mean, yeah," Teagan agrees, absently scratching their cheek and taking another swallow of their beer. "It's a good metaphor, even considering like -- "
" -- if you're pouring from one cup to another, there will still be ... loss? You know? Water splashes out, et cetera. So you can't ... expect to not have to pull back now and again, do whatever refills you as a person. Or even, like, having friends outside the polycule, or relationships outside the polycule, that can fill your ... self... back up, you know?" They flash a small smile aside. "Johnny is still working on being a person again. He was very... Story. So being a Person instead of a Story... that's a skill. He'll take you literally, because he wants to help."
"And want something like what he has in what sense?"
"Huh. I didn't realize. He's very... functional. Probably more than me." She does that little snort-laugh. "Oh, just. It's hard to explain," she trails off. "...Not used to wanting, or needing people around. Been pretty On My Own for as long as I can remember." She makes a scrunched up face, and swats the air as if to banish that verbal thread in favor of another. "I just sorta... saw the way you all are with one another and it made me mad at first because I couldn't really process it. It's something I want, though. People to give a shit about. Ones that give a shit about me."
Probably the first time she's ever mentioned that last thing aloud, tbh. It even sounds awkward coming out of her mouth.
"He's very functional," agrees Teagan lazily, "I can see it, which is probably just because, you know. He's my Johnny. I've known him for three years. I've seen him ramp down from the Laughing God that I met in a park in Vermont. It's been hard work, but he's done it." They realize that they're doing a Stoned Ramble and sort of trail off.
"Yeah, that's a fucking mood." With regards to being On Her Own. "I was, too. For a long time. I feel that." And then they go quiet, hearing her out. They smile, just a little. "Yeah. Well. It seems to me like you either have, or are gaining that. Do you mean, like, in general, giving a shit? Or like, romantically, or?"
"I dunno. The latter one is a hard thing to parse. I've had girlfriends - and some boyfriends, too - but I..." She manages to muster a hard look aimed at Teagan, even while stoned off of her fucking ass. "- and this is extremely private, so please don't go throwing it around or anything - but I wasn't really capable of romance or sex, because I couldn't find a way to enjoy that shit with the way I felt about my shitty body." Beat. "Which is to say that I definitely wanted them - tried once or twice to mostly failures on my end - but... Well. I definitely want that shit. It would be nice is all I'm saying, y'know?"
They spread their hands out as if to say 'who the fuck are you talking to, here' and then answer, "I'm not going to go throw it around. I might, like, discuss it privately with a member of my polycule, but, like... I generally don't keep secrets from them." Not anymore, anyway. "If it comes up. Anyway." They make another one of those small, dismissive gestures with one hand, finish their beer, and get up to get another one. "It makes perfect sense to me. Like, dysphoria is a fuck, so you didn't fuck. Got it."
They open the door to the fridge, and stare at it for a moment. "I'm gonna order room service, because I want food to go with this beer." They snag a beer, and ask, "You want anything?" The stack of room-related cards are picked up and handed over en masse. One of them is surely the room service menu.
"You got anyone in mind for 'that shit'?"
"Reply hazy, try again later." She deflects for comedic effect, fishing for the menu from the pile, and looking over it while she continues talking. "Well sure, but y'know. I've already trusted you with a fuckuva lot more than this tonight, but I'm just covering my bases." Beat. "Honestly all of this shit sounds amazing, but I think that's probably just cause I'm hungry. So. Burger?"
She passes the menu back to Teagan, not knowing that they can't read. "... to actually answer your question, though... maybe. I don't say it ever, but I like a lot of people. Some of them probably already would give a fuck about me if I let them." She shrugs, a wry look spreading across her features. Time to turn the tables for a change. "Why you care? Trying to add a Frost Giant to your collection?"
"Burger sounds great," Teagan agrees, because it does, and that's a safe thing to order; they glance down at the menu, and then tuck it back into the pile of things, which gets dropped on the table. They forestall having to answer any questions by calling to order two burgers, extra fries, a bunch of cokes... and desserts. Whatever desserts they have. Stoned Teagan Wants Food.
Once the phone's hung up, they snag another beer, but don't open it yet, just wander back to set it on the end table and flop down on the couch. "I mean, I can kinda tell that you at least like Lux quite a bit, and obviously, because Lux is hot. But who else?" They pause, and then snort. "I mean -- you're hella hot." That's not an answer, exactly. "But mostly I was asking because you're, like, talking through shit, and I'm ... trying to be a not-shit friend about it."
"Well. I do like Lux, but I don't actually... like Lux like that? They're very fun to be around, but I probably need more than just fun to be around if I'm considering... y'know, more than just a one night stand?" Beat. "Which I am in this conversation."
"That's not much of an answer," she points out, quirking her eyebrow - further enhancing the very wry look she's projecting. "... but I appreciate you trying to be a not-shit friend here. Probably only got one or two of those."
A vague shrug of their shoulders. "That's kinda how Johnny and I started. Fun to fight things with, fun to fuck. And then it became other things. Glitch, too." They pause, and admit, "Probably the only one of the motley that didn't start out that way for me was June, but... June ... is June." That's not much of a sentence, but it seems to be the only one that Teagan has at the moment.
They screw their mouth to one side. "Well, here's the thing." Teagan sits still, looking for words. "I like you. I'm attracted to you. Like, hella. And if this were three years ago, yeah. No question. No doubt. But -- like -- shit's still kinda tense with you and Significant, and Laura just moved up here from Florida chasing me and Glitch and Sig, but she's not part of the motley yet or maybe ever because June and Johnny barely know her, and that's kinda tense... and that complicates my answer. None of those things are, like, really anything to do with how Teagan feels about Sturm, but they are complicating factors to Teagan and Sturm dating without me fucking up my relationships within my motley."
"Well," she begins cautiously. "I think you're a fascinating person... but yeah. I know of, or am a party to most of those complications, so I'm very..." She grumbles "Aware? Of shit?"
Beat. "To clarify, this wasn't really what I was digging for, I was just be a snarky little shit like you do sometimes."
She shifts awkwardly on the couch, stretching out and putting her feet up on the closest nearby surface. "... but since we're here, yeah. Would probably be interested under a different set of circumstances. Hell, I'd probably be interested in the future as well, but y'know. I'm not prying, because there's a lot of shit to sort out on my end alone."
Their cheeks silver briefly when she calls them fascinating. "I know," Teagan answers, flopping their head to the side to look along the couch at her. "I totally did know that, but like, there's a point where if you don't answer, it gets weird and looks like you're not interested. And I am interested. I'm also just, you know, interested in not fucking things up."
"On all sides." They turn their head forward again to watch Sturm's little chibi human, and crack their beer open, now that food's ordered. "But since we're here," they agree, and then they nod, once. Agreeing, apparently, on all points. "Basically, the whole... Laura-and-the-motley thing... I have to handle that first, before anything else." And then they stop. "But I really do want to be not a shitty friend, because, like. You're pretty awesome. And, uh. Yeah."
Sturm grunts in response to that first part. She gets it. Probably more than she's willing to let on. She looks back at Animal Crossing, remembering the little chibi person that's awaiting further instruction. Enh, they can wait longer right?
"That makes sense. How do you think it's going to be resolved - if you don't mind me prying? Spoke to Jack about it, but he didn't say much beyond that it was a thing." Beat. "... and you're pretty awesome, too."
A long, slow breath in, and a very slow one out. "I don't know," Teagan answers, truthfully, after they think about that for a minute. "I mean, I don't know what I think will happen, but I know what I hope will happen." A corner of their mouth curls up. "Johnny doesn't know how to be pursued and is learning how to be a person. Laura is anxious about the possibility of having uprooted her life and moved from Florida to fucking Philly and having June and Johnny -- and Sam, but honestly, I don't see Sam saying no, Sam just... is... Sam -- say 'we can't be in a motley with you.'"
They flop their head back on the couch and slouch even more, taking an almost sulking drink of their beer. "I wish Johnny and Laura would just fuck and get on with it. They're both Autumn and I think they'll get on great once they get their emotions untwisted. But, like, I gotta wait, and be patient, and be helpful. It's VERY NOT SUMMER and it's frustrating." Huff.
"Thanks," they mumble in closing. In Animal Crossing, that would be in very small, light text.
"Yeah, that seems pretty fuckin' rough for both of them - and for you." Sturm reaches out, and pats Teagan on the shoulder. It's about the extent of her ability to provide physical comfort. "Though, if Joh- err. Sorry. Jack isn't used to being pursued - and he's being pursued - maybe there's a different angle that Laura should be approaching from, and waiting is for the best." Beat. "I know you didn't really ask for my thoughts, but... being in the not good at being pursued, or being a person corner, myself, I felt like I should say that."
"... I think probably that things will work out. I don't know Laura well, but Jack seems like he knows what the fuck is up." Sturm holds the controller out for Teagan. "That doesn't make the waiting any easier, but do you wanna maybe play a little? So you have something to do with your hands while you're being patient?"
They let out a long, slow breath, exhausted. "It is," Teagan admits. They've been so focused on handling how Laura and Vorpal both feel, and how Sigrun feels about her issues, and how -- that they hadn't actually stopped to consider whether it was pretty fucking rough on them. And, it turns out, it is. The pat on the shoulder is received with a small, lopsided smile. "No, I know. And I appreciate it. Maybe it is for the best. I told Johnny maybe he should think about it as pursuing the answer to a question, rather than like... being pursued by Laura."
"I'm pretty good at reframing shit, so... " Their voice trails off, and they reach out for the controller. "Johnny does know what's up," they agree, turning to look at the TV again. "I think it'll be fine, but limbo sucks." And that's the last thing they have to say for a moment, sort of lapsing into a stoned haze as they get sucked into Animal Crossing.
"Well. Y'know. Stuff spills sometimes, so. Make sure you're doing what you need to refill your cup, too." The irony of saying this to another person is probably completely lost on Sturm - who has probably only just tonight done exactly (1) thing just for herself and nobody else.
"Yeah, you are. That's one of the things I find so fascinating about you." She zones out for a bit, too, watching the reflection of her Animal Crossing character in Teagan's mirror skin. "... yeah. Limbo fuckin' sucks."
Laughter puffs out of Teagan, then. "And you're good at listening and integrating shit into your worldview. Better, I think, than you think you are." They start piloting the chibi around the island, mostly just running in circles and looking at things.
"Hunh? Which thing?" They're stoned, and starting to zone out, the chibi just running back and forth. Zoom, zoom! "It really does."
"How good you are at reframing shit, I mean. Context can be a pretty huge barrier for people, and the ability to put something into a different perspective - one that someone else can understand - is... invaluable for growth." Sure, that sounds like stoned rambling, but... maybe she actually thinks that. "Well. To my credit, I didn't have much of my own worldview to begin with. Just trying to absorb good shit for a change."
"Oh." Teagan lets the controller rest in their lap, and frowns a little bit. "I guess... Yeah. I hadn't really thought about it? Like... " Their voice trails off. "I'm a mirror. Showing the other sides of things is... what I do?"A vague gesture with one hand. "I'm glad you think the shit that we say is good."
"Enh, if it's not good it's certainly helpful." She pauses for a bit, watching Animal Crossing. "... is that something you enjoy doing? Showing the other sides of shit, I mean?"
They don't even have to think about that, they answer without even pausing. "Yeah. I mean... " They hold one arm out, turning their tattooed limb this way and that. "I'm not the front of the mirror."
"That's fair. Just figured I'd ask, because..." She trails off, chewing on how to phrase it without being condescending. "It just seems like it'd be an easy thing to do just because it feels necessary - or because somebody oughtta."
They put the controller down and turn toward Sturm, flopping their feet into her lap. "No, that's a fair question." Their head sort of collapses sideways, and they yawn, drooping comfortably, and very very stonedly. "I actually really like it? It's a good way to ... help people."
Sturm hums in response, lifting her arms - which had previously been in her lap - to make room for Teagan's legs. Suddenly very aware (thanks, weed!) of those arms, and unsure what to do with them without the Animal Crossing controller, she rests her forearms on Teagan's knees and shins. Sturm's skin is pretty cold, so. Mirror fogging commences if skin is exposed. "Yeah, it is a good way to help people." Beat. "How do you... not overdo it?"
If they're uncomfortable, they don't show it. They just... relax. As best they can. Demonstrating. Reframing. It can be okay. Teagan is also very, very stoned and very very tired. They let out a long, slow sigh, breathing out contentedly. "... practice. Sometimes I do screw up with it," they admit. "Like I try to ... not fuck up? But... "
"Yeah, I guess that's fair. Guess you uhh..." Sturm trails off on account of a giant yawn, and all her crooked, icy teeth and tusks are visible for a few seconds. "Jesus, I'm fuckin' tired. Probably should sleep at some point tonight, huh?"
Laughter rolls out from Teagan. "It's... been kind of a day," they concede, and pull their legs back from her lap so she can get up. "Sleep might be in order. You know. Adrenaline crash."
"Yeah. You could say it was a... pretty big day. Feels like two, at least." It's a dumb joke. The couch creaks when Sturm gets up, and she turning back to Teagan - offering to help them up. "You gonna head out, or are you gonna take the couch? It's a fancy-ass hotel, so it might even fold out..."
Laughter from Teagan, and they glance off to where Lux is crashing. "I got a suite. If you go off that way, there's like, two other bedrooms. They can sleep there, I can sleep in another place, and you've got your own crash space." They reach to take Sturm's hand, and then, one corner of their mouth curling up, stretch their arms up toward Sturm in offering of a hug. It isn't often a six foot tall androgyne gets to feel smol.
"... fucking what?" She balks, looking off in the direction Teagan mentioned. She blinks like five or six times before turning back to Teagan and sweeping them into a hug - complete with being picked up and jostled. She laughs. "I was so busy lookin' at the view out the window I didn't even fuckin' realize. This shit really isn't fair."
It's okay, Teagan. Sturm makes everyone feel smol.
The one thing a Mirrorskin can't really change is their height or general mass, so they have to enjoy relative change. It's totally against their stone butch badassness to enjoy being picked up and jostled, but here we are. Teagan even kisses the Snowskin on her icy cheek, frosting up their mirror-dark nose. "It's totally unfair, and yet. That's why I enjoy the crazy bullshit that my girlfriends' money gives me." Once back on their feet, they pat Sturm once on the arm, gather up their coat with their machete wrapped in it, and stumble off toward one of the suite's multiple rooms. Seriously, what the shit, bougie hotels.
"No judgements. I'd do it, too." Sturm's brow furrows when Teagan kisses her cheek. It's not, like, a grouchy look - just a mostly confused one. Ultimately, she comes away with a soft smile - watching Teagan grab their shit and then wander off. Then she saves her game, turns off the TV, and heads off to one of the remaining free beds for some well-deserved sleep. For real, though. So bougie, what the fuck.
|