#tongueandtailbutcher

[chasingtitans]

It's been so long and short, all at once, since Keiko's last seen someone's world turned upside down by a revelation like this. Seven years and a lifetime ago since the wreck of the Lawton, the imminent threat of the Ion Dragon's claws cutting them all in half being the way she was first plunged into the reality of the surreal. But at least back then, that titan had only posed an external threat; at least Billy and Lee had been there by her side to help, not to harm.

With Jenny, though... Keiko knows enough of what happened with Maxine that she can understand why it's different, this time around. Knows enough of Jenny to understand why they're different; why the woman still so desperately clings to the edges of an already lost status quo with nails bloodied and raw, in a manner that nearly any previous incarnation of Keiko would have once only scoffed at.

(And maybe being thrown out of her own world so entirely - the time she was supposed to live through not only changed, but lost, endless grains of sand slipped between her fingers that she can never hope to recapture in the same way again - simply offers more perspective than that version of her had possessed before.)

At first, Keiko only watches, arms wrapped around herself and weight leaned back against the counter, as Jenny goes about closing up shop for the night. It's easier, if she's honest, to stay silent like this. She's never really known how to nurture a person, not outside of her son - arguably not even with her son, given just how dearly her mistakes had cost him in the end. But does it being easy make it right?

There is a middle ground to be found here, however. When Keiko finally does speak, it's with an artful dodge around the elephant still lurking in the room, her only ask of Jenny - for the moment, at least - far more practical than it is sentimental. "Is there anything you need me to do?" // @tongueandtailbutcher + plotted starter!

[herleaf]

Clara is out here having dated both Danny Pink and Jenny Green.

Clara, your Fairly Oddparents is showing and you’re not being slick.

[deathsbecome]

@tongueandtailbutcher liked a plotting call ages ago lmao

"What?" There's a small glance around, as if the subject of Jenny's attention might be around her rather than Addy herself. Largely, because she's a bit put off by Jenny seeming to be hung up on her. It's not like she has any grasp on how details of her death would have gotten this far over the years.

"You've clearly seen ghosts before, so..." So what was the staring for?

[orphanedshadow]

@tongueandtailbutcher asked: Hm, 2 or 9 for the creepy location meme if you want some Jenny interaction?

Not all spell ingredients were easy to find, and while Kara could usually get around them for offensive spells, rituals tended to necessitate sticking closer to the original than was usually convenient.Today was one of those days. Faerie ghost mushrooms, which grew from the body of someone who died eating one of the mushrooms from a faerie ring. A very useful little mushroom, that glowed with a light which allowed a glimpse into Tir Na Nog.

The old grave was almost invisible, but to those who could see, well the scene was oddly beautiful. Circles of mushrooms, the size of the smallest finger on her hand, and only a few inches high, occasionally producing a bubble that allowed glimpses into an ephemeral world for the few seconds before fading out of existence.

Kara had not expected anyone else to have walked this far out, or to know of this graveyard as being anything more than a bit of old folklore. Once the mushrooms grew in, people tended to start to feel unwelcome, and the grave-sites were usually reclaimed by the wilds. She found it comforting, but most people…not so much.Still, it was perhaps polite to offer a warning to whomever she could hear approaching, she would prefer not to end up returning to deal with another hunt. “Do not eat anything you find here, lest this be where you wish to find your rest.”

[catfcng]

//I think it's time I finally throw Jenny at the Cat King if you're down ! So...

“it was fun. life is suffering.” - from the recent Murder Mystery Dinner starters to the Cat King

Sarcastically, " Well, aren't you just a ball of sunshine. "

[helltechnicality]

ah, she wishes for company. edwin can comply with such as he's learned he perhaps is more lonely than he originally realised. sure, he's always felt it but the feeling merged with every other negative emotion he's felt. it isn't until port townsend he's realised what some of those feelings are.

he follows with a small gap between them. his hands clasped behind his back. the posture of a proper edwardian gentleman.

" you have been through quite a spot of trauma of late. i am sorry our arrival has brought such things to your door. "

he has taken many walks with charles over the decades. either they people watch or simply talk about anything and everything. somehow his best friend finds it easy to fill a silence while edwin thrives in the lack of sound. he feels safe there.

" it is peaceful. the lack of living people means that the world gets to grow and move without interruption. i often take walks to see new things when i need a breath of fresh air. figure of speech, obviously as i do not need breath. "

Jenny stands quiet in thought, her expression softening slightly for a moment. She wanders if her seeing Edwin was just as weird for him as it was for her. After all, being invisible to the regular human eye is something you must get incredibly used to after a few decades. And Jenny was nothing more than a regular human yet she could see and hear him.

Instead of walking away she nods in his direction, a way of inviting him to join her.

“It’s fine, don’t apologise. You’re right actually, having company tonight might be good.”

It’s rare for Jenny to voluntarily choose company over solitude, especially when she’s dealing with more emotional issues. For years now she had been tackling whatever problems came her way alone and she was content with this. It was better to deal with shit solo than to open up and have someone let you down. And at the end of the day that’s what people did best. But for tonight at least, she reluctantly admits that company might just prove the distraction she needs.

“Seems like we could both use the company.”

She glances in his direction before beginning a slow walk down the street.

“Not that there's much to do at this hour but it’s peaceful.”

[saturnmused]

@tongueandtailbutcher // ronan & jenny // starter call.

❝ you can't keep avoiding this. ❞ he knows how hard it can be, to try to reconcile all that one knows with a new revelation of such proportions. but turning tail and running away from the issue won't solve it, and he knows he needs her help in this. ❝ it's not going to change anything, and it's not going to help you when you have to fight these things. ❞ ronan's tone is firm, certain, though not without a twinge of sympathy for her. ❝ i can show you how. so you're prepared, next time something like this happens. ❞ and it will happen again ― there's no question about that.

[chasingtitans]

WHEN DO YOU GAZE AT YOUR SOULMATE?

when they're working.

see this is what you love most. their eyes light up and no one can do it quite like them. whether they are a fighter or a healer. whether they are full of grace and gentle poise, or brute strength and wild energy, you love them when they are at their purest form. raw and unfettered. unadulterated by social cues and careful masks we all wear. when they are just them, trusting their instincts, using their experience, relying on the skills they earned. this is when you heart swells with pride. and you can never decide if you want to interrupt them and draw them into your arms with a hungry, appreciative kiss. or if you could sit there and quietly observe them for hours with more satisfaction than anything physical could bring.

tagged by: @inkorrnate <3 tagging: @adizzyingemporium @auras3ye @redemptioninterlude @expositicn @tongueandtailbutcher + steal it!

[themysticmd]

a humourless laugh; "probably about as much as i do, these days," she mutters under her breath.

'what the fuck do i know' indeed. asa's been asking herself the same question ever since her life ( using the term loosely ) got irrevocably turned upside down with the involvement of a couple of dead boys. anyway, jenny's butcher shop seems to be rather akin to asa's lost & found department, in that regard; how does one extract themselves from something like that, when it's all they've ever known for so long?

she shifts slightly, leaning back in her seat, hands still holding her ledger. a smile, wry, that doesn't reach her eyes.

"you got a job description? that must've been nice."

interruption prompts the healer to look up from her studies — a futile endeavour anyway, when she knows not what she searches for. something to keep her hands busy, at least. asa likes to be busy. one eyebrow raises at the butcher's outburst; safe to assume that had not been meant for her. call her what you like, but the night nurse cannot be accused of being untidy or disorganised.

sharp gaze flicks to jenny, then to the books being transported across the room. a heavy sigh. how many times is she going to have to tell those children? order is key, they're going to bloody well lose track of everything they've even got if they don't start keeping a proper record of —

oh, why does she bother? it's aging her. metaphorically, of course.

"strewn around haphazardly, i take it?"

she's not exactly good at small talk, but considering that jenny is the only other adult — not that a human adult seems much compared to asa's own millions of years, but she'll take what she can get — in the building, she figures it might be in her own best interests to be on. . . well, manageable terms, at least.

the nurse shuts her ledger, resting it in her lap. kept close, like she doesn't quite know how to be without it.

"i've given up telling them," she continues, "they're making me feel like a cataloguer when i'm supposed to be their. . ."

she barely contains the wrinkle of her nose. it still stings to admit.

". . . operator."

[ro-doodles]

@tongueandtailbutcher OMG YES PLEASE! I would absolutely love if anyone wanted to make cosplays or fanart for this au!

DBDA swap: Jenny and the Night Nurse

Part 2 of my Dead Girl Detectives swap AU, for more info see this post

I have an idea of what I’ll do with the other characters, rn I’m thinking maybe Esther <- -> Cat King and Tragic Mick <- -> Kashi, but I’m kinda stumped on what to do with Monty. If anyone has any thoughts or better ideas, please share!

[herleaf]

Oh thank goodness, it appears they both are as frazzled and awkward about this. Equal awkward footing, meaning this could go fantastic or absolutely blow up in her face. Like how many of the early encounters with Danny Pink went, where both said stupid things and then would immediately rush off and proceed to proverbially bang their heads on desks or walls in absolute horror of what they had said. Lets just say that being stuck in time hasn't really helped her with social cues and conversations with modern people, exactly.

A smile pulled up her lips at the gesture the woman showed, bending down to help out and then backing away to play it off. It was sweet, and not at all something that every person would do. Meaning, this person seemed to have a good side to her. Maybe Clara could make a friend -- or, no, not a friend because the moment she figured out what was going on she was out of here. But, it didn't hurt to make acquaintances, right? The Doctor did it all the time, after all. So if the Doctor can do it, so can she.

"No, actually. What's crazy is two women walking alone at night, on guard but one so scatterbrained enough to walk into the other and drop what few supplies she has to constantly check are there or she'll worry she forgot them. Nasty habit of mine, sadly." Her lower lip was pulled between her teeth to try to hide the widening of her smile at the hint of glee on the woman's face. Perhaps she was nailing this conversation after all. "If I were to kill you, I'd be serving you a Bailey's Hot Coffee as your final drink, so your last meal would at least be a bit more exciting than just black coffee. Sadly the diner doesn't have a license for that yet; you're safe until that comes in. Except, apparently the previous family member who passed it down to me was dry as ash so it feels almost crude to bring alcohol into it. I guess that makes me the sentimental type. Bad trait for a killer, guess I'll have to scratch that off the future career list."

Taking a few steps forward, she pulled the keys out from her messenger bag for the motorcycle that was hidden in the parking spots the building over next. "A butcher? Surprisingly, I feel less worried about you being a killer, too obvious of a job for a murderer honestly. I'd call you smart, unless that turns out to be wrong. Now come on, the diner and coffee sadly won't open or make themselves. I promised you the best, after all. And maybe you can tell me what I need to know about the town, Jenny. Don't judge the food that we have now, though, I haven't had the heart to break the contract with the old meat supplier of the place yet. Reputable lass, but I feel like I need to make the diner my own somehow."

Jenny takes a step forward to go help pick up the items now strewn across the footpath, only to just as quickly withdraw upon realising the stranger didn’t need her help. She shifts her stance, trying to play it off; it’s too early for this. Now she just has to hope she can make it through this early morning social interaction without coming across too off putting to the new face in town. After all, she seems nice enough; though of course no one ever turns out who they seem to be, the world has proven this to Jenny time and time again. Needless to say, Jenny isn’t letting her guard down any time soon.

She gazes over at the woman in front of her, subtly looking her up and down in an attempt gain any kind of understanding as to who she had just run into. Jenny hadn’t expected there to be someone else out and about at this hour yet in reality she’s just another woman on her way to work, so nothing out of the ordinary. Or at least that’s what the situation appears to be. So theoretically at least, nothing all too surprising.

Though what does surprise her is the mention of a diner on the edge of town; she has lived in Port Townsend her entire life yet has never heard of this place. But then again, Jenny isn’t exactly the most social of humans; that is to say they she’d choose a meal in at home as opposed to going out every time without fail. Thus, it’s easy enough to just chalk this up to the fact that she hadn’t heard of such a place because she had never gone looking for it. It’s not like she could name every business in Port Townsend after all.

“You do realise how crazy that sounds right? How crazy it would be for me to follow a complete stranger?” she raises her eyebrows. Though as crazy as it is Jenny has to admit that a free cup of coffee sounds pretty damn good right about now. She’s silent for a moment before sighing. Screw it. At this point she had been through crazier.

“But lucky for you, your diner seems to be the only place that’s even close to being open and I am in desperate need of that coffee,” she pauses, the corners of her mouth curving upwards in a small smile for a brief moment. “So if you’re going to kill me at least let me drink have a coffee first.”

Just as quickly as the smile had appeared on Jenny’s face it’s replaced with her usual straight faced expression. She gives a small nod in Clara’s direction as if to say “lead the way”.

Upon the sudden realisation she hadn’t introduced herself yet, she quickly adds, “I’m Jenny, by the way. I own and run the butcher shop not far from here.”

[catfcng]

" Hm, sounds pretty kinky if you ask me. " Followed with a careless shrug of shoulder as he dismisses her trauma so crudely. Though it's not actually something he'd really wish on anyone. Not being in control of your own body like that -- something he doesn't even want to imagine. But he can't just say that to her.

Mention of lack of peace is something he can understand. Things have been less quiet with the those three in town -- but the cat king didn't exactly hate that. It was sort of exciting. But there were the annoyances that came with it.

And he leans in a little closer to Jenny then as he recalls Nikko and Crystal barging in on him in his territory. " Tell me about it. Those two girls just barged in my place with meat cleavers. " A glare. " Which -- I'm going to assume was you're doing. Don't really know what the thought process was there-- " And he's not sure if they were intended for him or Esther, maybe both. " Then they had the gall to insist for help. "

Jenny keeps her gaze fixed on the figure as he steps towards her; her guard is up that much is clear.

"Well getting possessed by a demon isn’t exactly my idea of fun.” there’s a pause, her eyebrows raised. “But then again, what the fuck do I know? Maybe you’re into that,” she gestures to him on the last sentence before letting her arms drop down back to her side. Getting stalked and nearly murdered by a secret admirer wasn’t a particularly joyous occasion for her either but that’s not exactly something she is keen to bring up in conversation.

She’s aware she should perhaps be playing a little nicer; sure this stranger appears to know Crystal, Niko, Charles and Edwin but that doesn’t negate the fact he could still be dangerous.

“Haven’t had a moment of peace and quiet lately but yeah, I’m doing just great.” She cares about the crew, she really does; but damn would it be nice to have some peace and quiet around the shop.  

[helltechnicality]

" most ghosts are quiet. we are not used to being heard or seen so many ghosts simply lapse into silence if left alone. "

jenny is an interesting character to say the least. she seems as emotionally available as edwin himself but more aware of them instead of confused as the edwardian is. she also showed great bravery especially in the face of possession and the reveal of the supernatural world. before he had been invisible to her and now she knew he had been in her home for several weeks.

ah, she wishes for solitude. edwin cannot fault her for that. " apologies, i did not mean to intrude. " if she does not want his company he will not force it. for many years as a living child he had been forced into companionship despite the other hating him for his very existence. charles is the one person who accepted him without question and made friendship seem attainable.

her pause confuses him. does she wish for his accompaniment to her walk or does she wish to walk alone? her pause would imply she did accept him joining. he tilts his head as he examines her. tries to see if there is a small facial reaction that shall give him complete understanding.

" i will not force you to entertain my company should you wish for a walk alone. however if the invitation is there i would be happy to oblige. sometimes walking with someone is more comforting than without. "

“Guess I’m still getting used to the whole extremely quiet, ghost thing.”

Jenny shoves her hands into the pockets of her leather jacket in an attempt to fight the chill in the air; admittedly those aforementioned nightmares had left her feeling a tad jumpier than usual but there was no way in hell she would entertain the idea of actually being vulnerable and saying that aloud. She’d deal with her issues how she always did, alone.

She breaks eye contact with Edwin and looks off to the side before confirming his assumption, “Not that it’s really anyone’s business but I couldn’t sleep so yes I'm going for a walk.” That’s all the information Jenny’s willing to offer up at this point in time, that much is evident.

She goes to start walking off but pauses, taking a deep breath before turning her head so she was once again looking at Edwin, “I had come out here under the assumption that I would be walking alone but that’s not going to happen now, is it?”

Despite the seemingly unamused, straight-faced expression she wears as she speaks, Jenny has started to think that maybe it would be good for her to have a companion tonight; it might just take her away from whatever bullshit her own mind was currently putting her through.

[chasingtitans]

"I know." A hint of a smile twitches at Keiko's lips, amused with the idea of being here only out of obligation. There's very little Keiko has ever tolerated that she doesn't want to, aside from what the prejudices of the time she'd been born into had forced her to endure. Even then, she'd grown more than adept at challenging those wherever she could. For everything else she's lost in the process, the present she's been unwittingly catapulted into is a much kinder one in that regard.

Jenny Green, of all people, has certainly never forced her hand.

Wordlessly, Keiko pushes off the counter, taking what was left for her and moving to the back. It's easy, mindless work - a simple spray, wipe, repeat, that makes for a solid distraction until Jenny's comment sinks in and prompts a humorless chuckle.

"Not really, no." Keiko was never a social butterfly to begin with, but even if she had been, the life she'd built before is gone. Billy and Lee are both dead, Keiko's wedding band and every unmet promise it still holds weighing heavy on her right hand. Hiroshi has grown up far beyond her in every way that matters, and she refuses to ruin his life again by showing back up now. She herself has no identity, no legality; in the eyes of a society that still knows nothing of titans or ghosts, nevermind alternate realms that warp space-time, Keiko Randa died sixty-five years ago.

So, she's here. Alone. No family to speak of, no stability outside the sanctuary of Mick's kindness or purpose beyond what little knowledge she can offer the kids. There's no way to tell Jenny any of this without shaking up her entire understanding of the world for a second time, however - so she doesn't. "I still barely know anyone here, and the majority of those I do know are teenagers. Half of those teenagers are dead. The only possible better place would be home, alone, and..."

Lips pursing, Keiko pauses, straightening up and glancing back over Jenny's way. "Well, I don't think that's what either of us could use right now."

Growing up Jenny never really had many people to turn to when things got tough; between her narcissistic father and her tendency to keep to herself she very quickly became accustomed to dealing with stuff alone. Hell, she even prefers it this way and her current situation is no different. And so, she had thrown herself back into her work as soon as she was physically able to, an attempt to cling to the only element of normalcy left in her life. An attempt to illustrate that she is pushing through and moving forward, that she is fine.

Jenny steps out from behind the counter and walks past Keiko towards the front of the shop. A silence hangs in the air, only broken by the sound of her flipping the “Open” sign to “Closed”. For a moment her gaze lingers on the storefront windows, in that moment she is unable to stop herself from feeling acutely aware of the lack of blinds.

“If I happen to find myself in the alley at night I can see in your window!” Maxine’s voice echoes in her head; Jenny has found herself unable to leave her bedroom curtains open since that night. The feeling of being watched has stuck to her like glue since the incident; at best it made her feel uncomfortable, at worst it felt almost suffocating. And this doesn’t even begin to cover the whole ‘ghosts and the paranormal all exist and there’s been two ghosts living in your upstairs’ thing; yeah, she doesn't know where the fuck to even start with that.

Keiko’s voice cuts through her thoughts, in that moment bringing Jenny back to reality. She glances over her shoulder in the woman’s direction before proceeding to turn around and make her way back to the counter.

“You don’t have to stay, you know that right?” Jenny doesn’t need Keiko staying around purely because she feels obligated to out of pity; she gets more than enough glances of pity from customers throughout the day. Quite frankly, she doesn’t need pity, no all she needs is for folks to stay the hell out of her business. But then again, Keiko was a friend of sorts…right? As well as someone who doesn’t push her way into Jenny’s business or pressure her to open up, something which she can definitely appreciate.

“But if you insist, be my guest. The counters back here need a wipe down.” Jenny doesn’t tell her to leave, instead dumping a spray bottle and cleaning cloth on the counter before gesturing to some of the benches further back in the store. She picks up a spray bottle and cloth of her own, getting to work scrubbing the front counter tops before adding, “Yet, I’m sure you have much better things to be doing on a Friday night than this.”

[herleaf]

Why was she here? Why had her first solo mission in the TARDIS end up being one where she ends up in some spooky, teen comic looking town, having to explain to people how a diner appeared out of nowhere? Good lord, when she gets back to Me after this to catch her up, Me is going to have an absolute field day with this. Clara Oswald, the Doctor’s past companion, not able to keep her nose out of trouble for one minute.

Yes, she was still having to keep up the facade of being a waitress/owner of a seemingly timeless diner that constantly seemed to appear from nowhere, and she was damn glad that she had enough psychic paper to pretend to have permits to run things. To be fair, she did end up hearing a lot of what was what and weird around while serving coffee, but needing a place to rest or rent to pay wasn't an issue for her seeing as the diner was a facade and somehow her TARDIS had realized that in order to seem legit during undercover it would need to make food. The old girl is clever, making food that is good enough but not so good that people will want to keep coming back regularly because she was the only staff and she would not be changing that.

Clara wasn't the Doctor. She wasn't going to be bringing on companions. She didn't even mean to land here--wherever here is--but something was keeping her grounded here. So, she played the waitress role. Went into town at early and late hours to mention a diner that was catered to the early birds and night owls, that people were convinced that it had appeared from no where when in fact it was just a gem hidden in plain sight. Really, it's too easy to convince people what is real with a fake couple fake Google reviews and a TARDIS-generated website.

Tonight, though, she'd spent most of her late hours snooping around town, trying to see if anything was amiss. Well, amiss enough that it would halt the TARDIS from moving, because in all her time as the Doctor's companion, only a few things could keep a TARDIS landed.

Having been so lost in thought, Clara hadn't noticed she was in the direct walking path of another before it was too late. The items that were in her hands (psychic paper, a burner phone, and a couple of old newspapers) were strewn to the ground. Eyes widened as she took in the physique of the individual--had she touched Clara long enough to feel her lack of pulse? Surely not, but she couldn't be too sure. Nothing seemed to have raised alarm bells as the person seemed as frazzled as Clara herself.

"No, no -- it takes two to tumble, I wasn't watching where I was going and I'm not used to the town just yet." Falling into character, Clara began to pick up her fallen belongings before stuffing them into the messenger back that was slung over her shoulder. She needed to play the part of a small town waitress who... somehow inherited a diner? What is this, a Hallmark Movie? Clara, focus. This is your first interactions with someone interesting and who might be your in to beginning to figure out what the heck made this place so special. "I can't tell which I need more at night, a cuppa tea or coffee. I was rushing to get to my cycle to head into work, the diner just outside of town? Been here for ages, passed down by some estranged family member who married into the family. I'm lucky I got here when I did because it apparently had been forgotten by everyone. Can I -- do you want coffee on the house?" Realizing this was absolutely an outrageous thing to ask a stranger, she added in the words that every woman would want to hear after being requested to go to a second location with a stranger, "I promise, I'm not a murderer. Just a waitress and owner... and absolutely failing at this conversation. Can I blame the different social cues from the UK and here? Or do I just have to say that I have scared away a potential customer? I'm really bad at this communicating with new people thing, what with the diner hours being so whack that I barely get to get out. I'm Clarissa, but everyone just calls me Clara. I'm... very new, as you can tell."

@herleaf - Starter

All Jenny wants is a god damn cup of coffee.

Running the butcher shop meant that some days involved getting up at the ass crack of dawn each morning for a trip down to the market. On a morning like this a cup of coffee was desperately needed yet of course today is the day Jenny’s old coffee machine finally decides to kick the bucket and stop working. And she has no instant coffee either; the sun hasn’t even risen yet and her day is off to a bad start.

So instead of getting to enjoy a hot cup of coffee in the comfort of her own home, she’s out roaming the streets, searching for any café or coffee shop that is currently open no matter how overpriced they may be. The morning air is cold, the sun is yet to rise, the streetlamps still on. The only saving grace of the situation is that the streets are practically empty and thus Jenny’s search for a coffee shop is a solo journey. Or so she thought.

A brief moment of distraction is all it takes for Jenny to quite literally bump into another person, her shoulder hitting someone else’s.

"Shit," she curses under her breath as she looks over at the person she bumped into, a sheepish expression flashing across her face for a moment.

“Sorry about that.”

Of course that’s exactly what would happen, only one other person on the whole street and she had managed to bump into them. Now who the hell else was out here roaming the streets at this early hour?

[catfcng]

There's nothing but a scoff at her little come back. He could care less if she smiled or if she was miserable or not. It's of no interest to him. But her little shop did provide some scraps for his cats. And it'd be a shame to lose that. So he'll try to play nice. Steps are made toward her, giving her a small assessment with a glance.

" Couple of ghosts and some teens making your life hell? " It's asked with a mocking little pout. " Cynics tend to be strong willed. So you should be fine. "

Continuation of ask - @catfcng

He is promptly met with an eyeroll from Jenny; she’s used to people having this sort of reaction to her, she knows how this shit goes.

“And what are you gonna do next? Tell me to smile more?”  She matches his tone without hesitation, straight-faced. A beat of silence as she subtly looks him up and down for a quick moment, an attempt to find any kind of clue that might hint as to what this guy’s deal is. There’s something strange, almost otherworldly about him. She can only assume Esther was only the tip of the iceberg when it came to otherworldly beings living in Port Townsend.

“Life hasn’t exactly been all sunshine and fucking rainbows lately.”