Blackbird

Levi couldn’t help but raise a brow at her scolding, doing his best to cross his arms as he looked over at her. “So how would you have solved a situation like that?” It wasn’t real, of course. Levi hadn’t thrown a single fist throughout everything, but he couldn’t help but find himself curious. “I mean… call the police, but you know how slow they are. Ridiculously slow,” he said, pulling his eyebrows together. “… scarily slow. She could have been hurt far more than she already was if I’d left it alone, right?” He shrugged, shaking his head back and forth. “Defending yourself is another story, in my opinion. I’d have a lot more cases to deal with if people didn’t fight back.” He paused. “Though, not to shame the ones who don’t. It’s an overwhelming thing… sometimes all you can do is just let it happen. Hope you just black out.” Levi’s expression had become far more solemn, much to his own distaste. “It’s hard to argue either way with what the right thing is to do when you’re thrown in that sort of position… I have, uh-” He cleared his throat, trying to focus on her again. “I have dozens of stories. I can make up a new one. Ran into a couple of horses that were not fans of me at all.” Well, that was somewhat the truth. “Better?”

“You scream, You call the police. You get people’s attention. Violence doesn’t solve violence, it just makes everyone more angry,” she said, surprisingly committed to this point of view. Maybe it was a little naive of her in some ways but she couldn’t help it. “And sometimes they don’t listen at all, I know. I still don’t think violence is the answer. Some questions don’t have answers.” She shook her head. “Defending yourself is one thing but it’s still not... I still wouldn’t say that it’s praiseworthy. If someone is mad and hits you, it makes you angry so you hit them back making them angrier. The circle of violence gets bigger until it brings in people who never wanted to be involved anyway.” She shot him a very pointed look at his words, not sure how to feel about how light of a topic he was making it. “There’s a very large list of things between punches and nothing that you can do. But you’re not wrong. When you’re in a situation like that it’s not easy to think reasonably at the time.” Sighing, she really should have expected that answer from him, just rolling her eyes at him. “If a horse had kicked you in the face you wouldn’t just have a bruise. You likely wouldn’t have a face. Try again.”

“How did this happen?” Levi lifted up the cast on his arm, though the bruise on his cheek was likely another questionable mark on his body, along with the few scratches. Levi let out an over the top sigh. “Where do I begin? I was just minding my business, walking down the street, right? I hear a scream, and being the extremely brave boy that I am, went to help in any way I could. To make a long story short, I ended up in a fist fight with two other men, totally kicked their asses, but even heroes get hurt sometimes in the process.” His entire story was a lie, but being the way that he was, he didn’t feel comfortable sharing what had actually gone down. Instead, he quirked an eyebrow. “So… I say that you buy me a drink. For being such a brave, honest hero for Town. Wow, I should really start working on a costume and name. Any ideas?”

Zoey was silent for a very long moment, something that wasn’t usual for her unless it was pointed silence of ignoring or coupled with a judgmental stare. Today it was neither of those as her eyes scanned over his face. His story was... well at least clearly some of it was fabricated though Zoey had trouble telling to what degree. “Violence is never the fucking answer, you know. No one is a hero for beating someone up, I don’t care what the damn movies say. Violence is crude, it’s heartless and it’s... scary.” She just shook her head, feeling a weird mix between compassion for him if her suspicions were true but judgement if he was telling some version of the truth. “I don’t buy drinks for people who solve things with fists. If you’ve got another story for me, I’ll consider it but otherwise I don’t want to hear it.”

“Whatever. Cat, kitten, it’s the same fucking thing. I’m not just going to automatically assume because it’s small and… moderately cute looking that it’s not dangerous” she said, her eyes wide as she explained what she thought to be a perfectly reasonable point of view. “Technically that does make you a cat person because you have one and you’re clearly… fond enough of it” she pointed out, shrugging as she glanced down at the kitten again. “That’s good. Was she underweight when you got her?” Amalia asked before doing something she never would have expected from herself and slowly reaching out to gently brush over the top of the kitten’s head before pulling her hand back quickly.

“Just because something is small and cute doesn’t mean it’s not still dangerous so that’s not the issue. But kittens? Are they even capable of hurting anyone?” Admittedly Zoey didn’t know much about cats. She hadn’t ever expected to own one so she hadn’t looked up much about them. The words made her almost glare before she just sighed. “The thing followed me home and then wouldn’t leave me alone. I guess you just get used to things like this over time. Yes, she was. Don’t know if she was abandoned or born a stray, but clearly she hadn’t had anyone to feed her in a long time.”

“I think that’s a matter of opinion, actually. I was pretty much invisible back then and now I’m often the center of attention so..” he shrugged, not really caring how conceited he sounded. “I didn’t say you had to change, I was just pointing out that you’re near enough how I remember you. I wasn’t saying that’s a bad thing” he defended, holding up his hands. Raising an eyebrow as she went on, Freddy’s amused smile slipped a little and he slowly shook his head. “I wouldn’t say you’re justified. Entitled to your own opinion? Sure but I can’t really think of an actual reason you have. Apart from finding me annoying, of course.” Had Freddy realised, or had he actually put any thought into trying to come up with a reason, he likely wouldn’t have said that. 

“Invisible but... likable, I guess. At least not a prick. But if that was your goal all along... good for you or whatever,” she said, rolling her eyes and looking away from him. “I just don’t see the point in acting like something I’m not. I’ve tried lying about shit and you know what? It’s never worth it in the end.” She just shook her head at him, sighing though looking back with offense clear in her face at his words. “... are you fucking kidding me right now? You can’t think of a reason? Not even one? Are you trying to piss me off or do you really just not give one single fuck about how much you’ve fucked up people’s lives.” That was unfair of her, it wasn’t entirely his fault after all. A share of the blame was hers but most of it came from the school and the other students. Still... it was easier to have one person to direct her anger at rather than many.

“Like I’m supposed to just know that. Some cats can be… vicious” she said, giving the kitten another wary glance before looking back at Zoey. Visibly relaxing as Zoey took Pluto away from her, Amalia lifted one of her folders and placed it onto her lap just in case the kitten tried coming over to her again. “I never really imagined you to be a cat person… or a pet person, for that matter.” This wasn’t the first time Amalia had learned that Zoey had a kitten but it hadn’t come up in their conversations all that often. “Right… was everything okay at the checkup?” It seemed like an odd question coming from Amalia but she was still a little shocked from the cat’s… Amalia likely would have used the word ‘attack’ but of course that was far too dramatic. 

“... it’s a fucking kitten,” was all Zoey said in response, though keeping Pluto contained to her own lap and preventing her from trying to crawl back over to Amalia. Even if she didn’t see a reason for concern, she wasn’t going to make her uncomfortable about it. “I’m not. I think it’s really fucking annoying but she followed me home and wouldn’t fucking leave so this is where we are.” Even as she said that, Zoey’s hands were stroking the cat unconsciously, clearly something she was used to doing. “It was fine. Just making sure she’s growing up well and not under weight anymore.”

A small package is sat outside Zoey’s door, with this, this, and a note:

Have a good day. Or whatever.

Raising an eyebrow at Zoey, Freddy slowly shook his head, an amused smile on his face. While he’d remembered Zoey’s less than friendly attitude, he didn’t remember what it was like to be on the receiving end of it - in his mind he’d decided she didn’t mean it anyway so he was able to brush it off easily. The question had him pausing, wondering whether to start on the whole story of everything that had happened to him since they last saw each other but eventually he just shrugged. “People change… often for the better” he said, the last part mumbled. Freddy wasn’t exactly fond of thinking about his former self, a shell of what he was now in his opinion. “You, however, don’t seem to have changed much at all. Apart from being a little more snarky towards me than I remember but I don’t mind it. It’s kind of refreshing, actually.”

The smile only bugged her more, causing her to shoot another glare his way as she sipped the drink slowly, still looking at him suspiciously. “That’s not what happened to you, clearly,” she said with a raised eyebrow, finding his attitude now much less agreeable than it had been in the past. “I don’t see a reason why I’d have to change. I’m just fucking fine the way I am,” she grumbled, though certain things about her had changed. She’d softened in her own way but that was hard to tell with how much hostility she had for Freddy at the moment. “Refreshing, right. God you’re so much more annoying than you used to be. I think I’m pretty damn justified in whatever snark I want to show you actually.”

If anything, this felt like a sign to Maya. She was really looking to make friends, and getting another chance to spend time with someone who lived right across from her seemed like a very good thing to her. She hadn’t talked to Zoey too much, but she was easily discovering that they weren’t going to be the type of neighbors to be giving each other cookies for the holidays. Nonetheless, Maya was still happy. She had never been too judgmental or off-put by anything, and she appreciated people who spoke their minds, and from what little conversation they had, Zoey seemed to be one of those people. Maya let out a laugh at Zoey’s words, mostly at how much she sounded like a parent. “Have you tried to teach her about strangers? I’m sure there’s a video for cats online, you should really look into it,” she joked, her eyes lit up and remaining so as she redirected her gaze on the cat again. “I don’t mind. Dandy might not appreciate it when I get home, but he can just… suck it up. He’ll get over it in five minutes,” she decided, glancing up at Zoey again. “Pluto. I like it.” With a careful nod, she glanced up at Zoey again. “So… you like cats and reading, I’m guessing? Maybe the cats are questionable. Anything else?”

“I don’t know if there’s any teaching her honestly. I didn’t think strays were usually this friendly but I guess that’s just how she is and there’s not much that can be done to change that.” Zoey just leveled a harsh look at the kitten, one that softened more than she would have admitted to as Pluto looked back at her. But then her eyes glanced back up at the girl and hardened again. “Dandy?” Zoey asked, the name unfamiliar to her and she couldn’t help but look questioningly at it. When questioned about herself, Zoey pulled a little bit of a face before shrugging and turning her attention to the grass rather then her companion. “I don’t know. That’s about it really. A couple of people... not very many. And... hiking? I guess. I don’t know. I don’t have a lot of free time exactly. Why?”

After yet another conversation with her boss that had Amalia biting her tongue for the sake of her job, she’d decided to get out of the office and take her lunch break outside. Finding a spot on the grass, all of the benches were taken, she’d reluctantly put her jacket on the floor and perched herself on top of it while she flicked through some research articles. Amalia hadn’t noticed the kitten running towards her until it had already found it’s way onto her lap and she instinctively lifted her hands away from it. She spent the next few seconds frowning down at the kitten before she looked up as she heard Zoey’s voice. “Uh… yeah… you can take her back” Amalia stuttered, looking far too terrified considering how small Pluto was. “I don’t really want her messing up my skirt… scratching it or whatever” she reasoned, glancing between Zoey and the kitten. Amalia had never really known how to act around animals, she hadn’t spent an awful lot of time around them and she never seemed to get the same reaction when seeing a cute animal that most people did. “I didn’t know people… took their cats on walks.”

There was a little bit of relief when she saw it was Amalia but the way she acted around the kitten left Zoey raising an eyebrow. “She’s not going to hurt you, you know,” she said after a moment, but not offended. She likely would have acted about the same in a situation like this so she found herself reaching over to pull the slightly fussy kitten out of Amalia’s lap again. “She just likes to demand attention wherever the fuck she goes. It’s annoying but I guess she’s still getting used to being a house cat that can’t just go climbing on anyone.” And perhaps Zoey wasn’t great at discouraging the cat from doing whatever it wanted, but she didn’t mention that. “I’m not... I just took her to the vet for a check up and figured she could use some time in the fresh air. Being cooped up inside all the time isn’t healthy for anything, even cats.”

“Oh, we have zero in common already, Pluto.” Frannie joked, and laughed when it gave her a curious look. “It’s a pleasure to meet you anyway,” she said then, taking her paw and giving it a proper shake before letting go of it in favor of pets and behind the ear scratches. “She’s adorable,” she said, a long moment later, when it felt like she couldn’t keep ignoring the existence of Pluto’s owner. Frannie had a grin on her lips (if something was capable of making her forget she absolutely hated everything in the world, it certainly was cute animals) but as she moved her gaze from the kitten to the girl beside her it faded immediately. Oh. She was so distracted she didn’t notice who was it. “And you’re lucky I’m not a car. Pay extra attention next time.”

Zoey quirked an eyebrow when the other seemed to chose to ignore her and talk to the kitten instead. She wasn’t sure if she was supposed to be offended or not but as long as she got her cat back in the end Zoey wasn’t going to think too much about it. It wasn’t like she was looking to make friends in the first place so the expression change didn’t bother her, looking as annoyed as ever. “She’s fucking annoying is what she is,” Zoey grumbled with a shrug of her shoulders, shooting another glare at the kitten and preferring to keep her affection for it as quiet as possible. “It’s the middle of a damn park, who do you think is going to be driving around here? And it’s not like I couldn’t outrun her if she tried to go for the street but at least consider that animals aren’t completely stupid. They just occasionally have bad taste in people.”

“Well I totally agree with her honestly. I don’t think anyone’s life is complete until she has sat in their lap. They’re all just living in false happiness,” she teased.  This had made her day. Or her week. Or year. She wasn’t quite sure yet. If this kitten wanted affection, she sure picked the right person to stumble over to. “Nah. I’m just trying to find inspiration. He said it was something that was passionate for him I thought I’d give it a try. Some of it is. Some of it is just cheese coated on metaphorical bullshit.”

“She’s pretty keen on the idea of sitting in any and all laps that will have her,” Zoey remarked with a sigh, watching the kitten with a tired look on her face. She would have thought an abandoned kitten would have learned to be more cautious but that did not seem to be the case for this one. “Trying to make use of other people’s passion rarely works, you have to find your own. Otherwise it will all just be forced bullshit.

“I know, that’s why I said I’m going to pretend it wasn’t. It’d hurt too much otherwise” he said, clutching a hand to his heart. Nodding as she informed him of her jobs, Freddy thought over how to respond carefully. He found it easy to judge others over pretty much anything but how they earned a living wasn’t one of them. Considering his mother had spent most of her life juggling multiple jobs, jobs that a lot of people would have turned their nose up at, he couldn’t quite allow himself to take it that far. He still appreciated hard work.“You’re working tonight and then again tomorrow morning?“ he repeated, lifting his brows and looking more impressed than anything else. “That’s the spirit. You going to sit down or just stand over there while you drink it?” he asked, looking up at her while pouring out two glasses. 

“It was supposed to,” she grumbled, not seeming entirely pleased with how easily he was brushing it all off. Part of her really did want him to take her words to heart. From his new attitude and appearance Zoey had prepared herself for more judgement and less acceptance so his words made her suddenly scramble for something to fight him over, raising her eyebrows at him. “Yes. I missed hours last week for some bullshit reasons so I’m making it up now,” she informed him, if more just for her own pride than anything. “I’ll sit, I guess.” There was clear reluctance in her actions as she slid into the chair, still glaring at him over the table as she took the glass. “What the fuck happened to you anyway? I don’t remember you being this...” she gestured vaguely at him before shaking her head. “Annoying.”

Maggie laughed a little watching the cat. “I completely feel her. I totally get grumpy when people don’t let me do what I want to.” Kittens were the best and the fact that there was a random one that just appeared in front of her made it better. “No it’s fine. Just some poetry. I have a friend who’s into it and I thought it would be interesting to try some. I was getting distracted already anyway.” 

“She’s a pain that way. She thinks every lap is incomplete unless she’s sitting in it. One of those types,” Zoey grumbled, looking at the kitten with a raised eyebrow as it continued begging for affection. “Ah. Must be a good friend to try and read that crap. But whatever you’re into, I guess,” she added, realizing her taste in books likely wasn’t the most normal either.

It was a little embarrassing that one dream had inspired Phoebe to trying new things with her outfits, despite the fact that everything she was wearing now felt annoyingly uncomfortable. Her heels were, for once, the only thing she really felt confident about wearing, and after trying her best to drink away the discomfort, it became harder and harder as she noticed the different sorts of men looking her way. Phoebe loved attention, but as of right now, it just made her want to disappear. Leaning over to the person next to her, she sounded oddly nervous, though her voice slightly slurred. “Can you walk me home?” She hesitated. “Sorry, it’s just - I don’t feel… safe.”

Zoey hadn’t been starring. At least that’s what she was going to tell herself repeatedly until she believed it. She certainly hadn’t felt he need to swallow uncomfortably as a strange and almost entirely new feeling bubbled up inside of her. It was only when Phoebe leaned over to her that she looked away, face heating up immediately. It wasn’t really that Phoebe looked amazing in her outfit--she lacked the confidence to really make it work--but somehow it just left Zoey feeling overly warm and uncomfortable despite her never really having thought about girls in quite that way before. “... I... uh... yeah. I can. I don’t know how much fucking... safety I’ll provide but uh... sure. If that’s what you want.”

Angelo wasn’t someone who hung around outside by any means, and yet he found himself sitting at the park. It was abnormal, but he definitely hadn’t been in the best of moods when he woke up, and for once he wondered if fresh air would fix it - a failed thought, most likely. He was just scrolling through his phone, so it wasn’t too different from how he spent his time at home, though the small paws had caught him by surprise. The kitten was familiar, but he struggled with pinpointing why until he heard Zoey’s voice, and he actually felt a relief wash over him. At least it wasn’t someone who annoyed him to no end, and he then found himself picking Pluto up, meeting her at eye level. “You’re gonna get fucking… catnapped acting like that,” he scolded, gaze narrowed before slowly lowering her back down. “Are you supposed to take cats for walks? I’ve never heard ‘a that before. Aren’t they fucking lazy?”

When she recognized that Pluto had run to Angelo, it sent a wave of relief through her at least knowing she wasn’t going to end up in some strange situation. “You probably just smell familiar to her. She messes with my work clothes more often than she should,” Zoey remarked, shaking her head as she watched Angelo interact with the kitten. “She’s not the smartest either. I mean she picked me to follow home and move in with so that should tell you plenty.” Zoey gave a small scoff but it was clear that she was far more fond of the kitten than she’d ever say. “I was just taking her to the vet and decided she could use some time outside. It can’t be healthy to just keep them inside all the damn time, right? Besides clearly she’s in need of more company than just from me if her excitement to see you is anything to go by.” Shaking her head, Zoey sighed. “I thought that too but Pluto has way too much fucking energy all the time. Maybe she’ll grow out of it or something.”

Tom was obviously enjoying his tuna salad sub, sitting outdoors on a bench in front of the park. Typically he’d see dogs run up to him. In fact, so often they would recognize him. However, it wasn’t until a cat suddenly sprang onto his lap and started to sniff his lips from his tuna breath. It made him laugh while he glanced around for a possible owner, trying not to breath in the air too much since he was actually pretty allergic to cat fur. “She’s adorable, best first impression I’ve gotten from anyone. As cute as she is though, I don’t know if shes worth so much sneezing.” Tom explained right after sneezing away from both of their direction. 

Sighing, Zoey made her way over to the figure, though pausing for just a second as he thought he looked strangely familiar, but she brushed that off as just another quirk of small town life. Everyone looked familiar after a while. “Ugh... she doesn’t know when to leave well enough alone,” Zoey said, reaching forward to pull the cat--who meowed in complaint--back and settle her on her own lap. “Sorry. If she sees a free lap she immediately thinks it’s a fucking invitation. It happens to everyone.”

Maggie nodded a bit. “If you wanna head out I can totally lure her into a sense of calm snuggles and put her back in her carrier.” she joked a bit. “I’m cool with it, you can totally come sit over here with me if you want. I was just reading a bit.” she smiled. She had been having a quiet day, so she was cool with it staying that way.

“It’s whatever. I don’t have anything else to do right now. It’s not that she’d fight... just that she’d get grumpy with me. Best to just leave her to what she wants to do,” Zoey said, feeling silly having to admit that she didn’t want her cat to be upset with her but she couldn’t avoid that. Sighing, she nodded and set down her stuff to sit. “I didn’t mean to bother you. Sorry. Reading anything interesting?”