Tea with the Queen

[welcomequeenalice]

Superheroing was great for the soul but didn't pay the bills. Genevieve subsidized her hobby and her rent payments through working the late shift at a coffee shop. Her coworkers were a relatively ordinary mix--some went out of their way to be kind and chatty, some had a chip on their shoulder, most regarded her with an apathy that was often a relief when she needed to be alone with her thoughts and the blender. The need to focus on each coffee-related task and complete it with practiced motions was soothing and kept her from wobbling in indecision. Some days were easier than others. Some days stress threatened to eat her alive.

The Queen helped with that, but you couldn't bring the Queen to work with you...and of course there was the problem of Jervis.

Genevieve heard the voice of a coffee order as she wiped down the spout of the latte machine. She turned and saw no one, and went back to work. Late night, must be hearing things. She was short, for any gender, and occasionally had to get up on a step stool to reach the spare beans and milk stored in the hidden cabinets behind the menu boards. Seeing particularly small people over the height of the counter was even more troublesome.

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[not_a_doll]

Being the new girl in town was never easy. All right, granted she wasn't exactly new. But she did feel like a fish out of water. She'd spent so long locked away feeling sorry for herself that she had nearly forgotten what it was like to be out in the real world.

And how rude everyone could be.

If they did see her, Mary got semi-assaulted by former fans of her show. It was no wonder she'd receded from society. But, she was broke and needed to get out there again. All her savings had gone to holing up for as long as she possibly could. Now she had to find a job and get used to the outside world again.

A trip to a coffee shop for a tea seemed in order. At least she could feign, like so many writers who frequented the place, work.

"Excuse me?" Mary said, trying to be heard over the clink of cups and woosh of espresso machines. It would help if she could be seen over the counter. At 3 foot, Mary stood just as tall as your average 4 year old. Better dressed, though. Her heels added at least a few added inches.

She waved a hand above the counter. "Aren't these things supposed to be built to be handicapable?" This sure didn't feel handicapable to her.

[welcomequeenalice]

They find mutual literature loves to talk about, and the pair walk until they run out of park to walk in. It takes Genevieve an extra 45 minutes to get home on the bus and has no regrets.

Any specific attraction she might have to Mary is quickly stifled and sat on, but she's basking in the joy of having a new friend to talk to. Waylon's lovely but there's something very different about Mary, something she can relate to--that shared understanding of what it's like to be overlooked.

Pandora's needs had to be sated, unfortunately, and Genevieve found herself looking up 'Mary Dahl' on YouTube to get an idea of her acting talents. She expected cheesy humor. What she found was ghoulish.

Everyone else was used to seeing Baby Doll, and Mary Dahl acting the part of the mature adult was like watching a child playacting the part of her mother in gaudy costume jewelry and a dress several sizes too big. Goofy, impossible to take seriously. Genevieve had met Mary as a twenty-nine-year-old job hunter, and seeing that face on a tantrum-throwing baby with curled locks was unsettling. A child might show some aspects of the looks it might hold in later years, but the face was identical. And the dates on the show's airing...that couldn't be right, could it?

Slowly, reluctantly, she found herself drifting towards Wikipedia.