Needful Things Building; Monday

[totalwildcard]

The Dream House was gone by morning, replaced again with the antique store and the apartment above it, both with all four walls intact, and the color scheme decidedly less pink.

And in said apartment, late in the morning, Harley woke up with a start. Like fully bolting upright and everything, with a gasp.

"... Barbie looks like me."

She couldn't believe it. She brought her hands up to her face, smooshing her cheeks.

"Like me."

This jaw! These cheekbones under her skin!

Something about it was making her eyes well up.

At least, until something else about the weekend came back to her. "Bruce!" Oh, God, he'd been eating something obviously plastic, all weekend long! Harley scrambled out of bed to find him - only to, yes, find him curled up in one of his usual spots, seemingly right as rain.

She still ended up taking him on a long walk around town. It took a while for her to be convinced that just as magically as he'd turned into a toy dog for the weekend, whatever the plastic stuff he'd been eating (and, to be fair, pooping out at what seemed like an alarming rate for a fully functioning gastric system) had just as magically turned into actually edible stuff in his guts when he'd turned back. He seemed fine! He was leaving behind dog shit that was the usual level of disgusting!

Still, between the long walk and then breakfast for both him and herself, the morning had already turned into the afternoon by the time something occurred to Harley, and sent her bolting down the stairs into the store.

There, she found the display of dolls of varying ages and kinds.

And there, tucked near the back, was a Barbie. Harley carefully pulled her out from between a Victorian-ish porcelain doll and a fairly creepy 1950s baby, and smiled down at her.

It was a little watery, but there was no one here to see it, was there?

"Oh, there you are."

Something in her chest ached a little.

(expecting one!)

Comments

[hasaknightjob]

"They're a horse with a horn," Marc said. "Right?"

Marc didn't pay attention to mythology.

[totalwildcard]

"No, they're their own thing!"

Harley was not so much basing her take on mythology as just vibes, of course.

"If they were just a horse with a horn, doncha think we'd have them around?"

[hasaknightjob]

"I dunno," Marc said. "But they're still animals, right? Those don't talk where I'm from."

[totalwildcard]

Harley gave him a big pout. It wasn't serious, but it was dramatic.

"But -- unicorns!"

[hasaknightjob]

"If anybody could be a talking unicorn, it'd be you," Marc said.

[totalwildcard]

"Thank you!" Harley said, very sincerely, especially compared to the pout of only a second ago, now gone. "That is all I needed to hear! Wasn't so hard, was it?"

[hasaknightjob]

"All I was saying is I like when you talk," Marc told her. "'scuse me for thinking you couldn't as an animal."

[totalwildcard]

Harley just grinned at him, like she was pleased with herself.

"I like it when you like it when I talk." Say that three times fast. "But I'm still gonna give ya a hard time about it."

[hasaknightjob]

"Because you're a pain in the ass," Marc said.

He didn't sound like he minded.

[totalwildcard]

"A pain in your ass," Harley corrected him.

As if she wasn't that for a lot of other people, too. Whatever, he was different, he was a special case.

[hasaknightjob]

"You are absolutely a pain in my ass," Marc said. He followed that up with a kiss on her cheek. Because shut up, that's why.

[totalwildcard]

Harley preened, which only slightly obscured the particularly softly pleased tilt of her smile.

"Excellent work, if I do say so myself!"

[hasaknightjob]

"Me acknowledging you're a pain?" Marc asked, quirking an eyebrow up.

[totalwildcard]

"No, me bein' a pain," Harley clarified. ('Clarified'.) "You've got the easy job."

[hasaknightjob]

"Telling me being a pain doesn't come naturally?" Marc asked, looking dubious. "You gotta work at it?"

[totalwildcard]

Harley rolled her eyes, big and dramatic about it as always. Just, also with a laugh.

"Are you gonna nitpick this to death? Is that what's happening ?"

[hasaknightjob]

"I don't get to be a pain in your ass?" Marc replied.

[totalwildcard]

Harley paused for a beat.

"Well played," she decided. "Not that I do fair, so don't expect me to!"

[hasaknightjob]

"Wouldn't dream of it, Doc," Marc assured her. He was grinning.

[totalwildcard]

Harley made an amused noise.

And leaned in to steal another quick kiss. Shut up, she liked to think of it as stealing even when he gave decidedly freely.

[hasaknightjob]

Marc held on to her a little tighter after the kiss was done. You know, keeping a thief in place.

"Glad you're not a unicorn," Marc said. "Or a doll. Or an anything 'cept you."

[totalwildcard]

"Well, ya can't kiss any of those other ones, so..."

That was so very much not it, and Harley knew it. She was just continuing to be a pain.

While feeling all aflutter with being held in place, but shush.

[hasaknightjob]

"'course I've never tried," Marc pointed out.

Not that he wanted to, but shush.

[totalwildcard]

"Wasn't gettin' a vibe like smooching Barbie was very high in your list of priorities," Harley pointed out, oh so helpfully. "And, no offense, but you also seem kinda anti-unicorn."

[hasaknightjob]

"I have no opinions about unicorns," Marc told her. He wasn't disputing the Barbie thing since she was right. "You in that outfit is about it."