Surprises of an entirely different nature.

[rebellious_lady]

The Post Office was not a place that Marian often went. She knew of the boxes for each resident, but she felt little need to send notes, nor did she truly expect any to send them to her. Yet, with the new school semester approaching, and having offered to teach again, Marian thought it best to check it every few days in case Remus had left any

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[notforredlights]

Donna had been out for a walk, because, frankly, there wasn't a lot to do some days other than stroll out. The island had some nice foliage going for it anyway. It was roughly lunch time, though, as far as she was concerned, and she was heading back for food when she spotted Marian. Their work at the IPD desk had served as introduction enough for her to smile now and wave. "Hi!" she called, nodding at Marian. "How's it going?"

[rebellious_lady]

"Donna!" Marian looked up in surprise, fumbling with the... The object in her hands, watching in horror as it tumbled to land on the boardwalk beneath her feet. "I... Hello." She tried to snatch it up before the woman might see it, but she doubted her success, her cheeks on fire.

[notforredlights]

"...hi," Donna said again, staring at Marian, bewildered by the reaction and the subsequent tumble and the -- yeah. She looked carefully away, gaze turned upward, her own cheeks burning red. "It's, uh -- careful. Careful there. That's... you should probably disinfect that." Her voice trailed off. What Marian did was her own business, but that didn't make this any less awkward.

[rebellious_lady]

"This does not belong to me," Marian insisted quickly, biting at her lip as she realised exactly how it must sound. "It isn't - I found it. In my mailbox. Someone left it for me, and I simply looked and..."

There was no way out of this, she was sure.

[notforredlights]

"Someone left it in your mailbox?" Donna echoed, latching on to that explanation with a hint of relief. It wasn't that she had a problem with... whatever, but there were some things she preferred not to discuss in public and this was definitely one of them. "That's... wait, you don't know where it came from?"

[rebellious_lady]

"No, in fact until a moment ago I'd no idea what it could be used for. Now-" She pursed her lips again, unsure and perturbed. This disturbed her, more than she could describe. "We do not have such things in my time, not such as this, and while I think..." Her cheeks burned red and she looked away. "It is of no matter. I will find who put it there and have words with them."

[notforredlights]

"Well," Donna said, uncertain, "we have them in my time, but I, uh, I haven't actually seen one before. In person. That's... why is it purple, do you think?" She winced, waving a hand. There was no reason to discuss it, if Marian was uncomfortable. "Maybe you should do up a report of some kind. I'd say it's harassment."

[rebellious_lady]

"I will report it, yes," though it might be embarrassing if someone was leaving these sorts of things for people. "Do you think perhaps it was a mistake? That it was meant for someone else?"

Marian did not want to think why it was purple.

[notforredlights]

Donna thought about that, expression thoughtful, and nodded her head from side to side. "Around here," she said, "I wouldn't be all that surprised. It's... not really the kind of thing you take to the Postmasters, though, and say, 'I think this was left in the wrong box.'" She trailed off, then shook her head. "There wasn't any kind of label? Or note?"

[rebellious_lady]

"Nothing," now that it was out of sight, wrapped inside her tunic, she minded less. Marian was still embarrassed, but it helped in some strange way that Donna was too. "I did not even look at what it was until a moment before you were here. I was hurrying."

[notforredlights]

"Where to?" The space of almost two months might not have been enough to curb Donna's wish to be busy, but she'd begun to get used to the fact of not working someplace like the White House, and she couldn't imagine hurrying anywhere here. "You should, uh, probably hide that first."

[rebellious_lady]

Marian flushed again, knowing she could not explain to any her strange desire for keeping the bizarre object. "To the IPD office. I should go over Shawn and Banky's work. They have a tendency to not take it seriously."

[notforredlights]

"And to re-label things," Donna added wryly. She pursed her lips, but mostly that was to hide her amusement. "They changed some of the names around before." She began walking back in the direction of the office. The work got done faster with two sets of hands, after all.

[rebellious_lady]

"Have you noticed that Shawn enjoys tossing pencils into the ceiling?" Marian could almost ignore the thing wrapped in the edge of her tunic. "Banky seems to think Commander Vimes looks like some man from your time I believe. An actor Di-something. I can never remember."

[notforredlights]

"De Niro," Donna clarified. "Robert De Niro. He... bears a striking resemblance. And I have no idea how we're gonna get all those pencils down. I know it's boring, but he could try throwing them somewhere easier access."

[rebellious_lady]

"A ladder, I suppose, though we must get it from the building crew when they are not all in use." She smiled at Donna, visibly relaxing. "Di Niro. That is it. Vimes was not particularly amused by that. Not that Vimes seems to find amusement in much, but that less than the usual."