The Perk, Tuesday Afternoon

[glacial_queen]

For once, Karla wasn't making tragic faces at all the coffee on display that she was (mostly) not allowed to have. It was fall on the island, which meant caramel apple cider. Her mug was two-thirds cider, the remaining third was the Perk's delicious whipped cream which extended into a high, unsteady mound in the air. Just looking at it made her

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[not_a_parakeet]

"Isn't pumpkin spice just... I don't know, cinnamon and nutmeg? Couldn't they just say cinnamon and nutmeg? Unless they're asking to put pumpkin in, too. But why would you put pumpkin into an apple cider, anyway?"

Warren asked the important questions in life, really. He had a double Americano and was feeling nothing shy of invincible, so he was willing to go out on that limb. For humanity, and all.

[glacial_queen]

"Is that what it is?" Karla asked. "Okay, that probably wouldn't have been too bad. That's what we add to mull cider in Glacia properly anyway."

This wasn't mulled cider, just warm cider. Still good, but not the same.

"The important part of the story is that's how I ended up with all this extra whipped cream." She grinned at him over the top of it all. "Doesn't this look delicious?"

Delicious and not-for-sharing?

[not_a_parakeet]

"It does," Warren agreed easily. "I might have to get one for myself. Maybe two for the road before we leave."

Warren had been bitten on more than one occasion, getting too close to Karla's whipped cream. He was learning.

"So, that's why the barista was crying? I had wondered."

[glacial_queen]

"She was threatening to put pumpkins in my cider," Karla sniffed. "Threatening to ruin a pregnant woman's cider. She's lucky she's only crying."

[icecoldfrost]

Since she was girl-shaped again and could go home safely, Emma had been packing to head back to New York when her phone had beeped at her with Karla's email.

Packing was abandoned, a reply was sent, and in moments she was walking through the door of the Perk, causing baristas to duck & cover. Some things would never change.

[glacial_queen]

Karla glanced at the cowering baristas and sighed. She'd put the fear of her into one of them, but not all the way Emma had.

Well, everyone needed to have goals, she supposed.

"Kiss kiss," she said with a wave. "Any physical damage has to go to him. He's got the Healing factor and it's his fault."

[icecoldfrost]

"Did they miss a section in your vaunted magical healer training about how it takes two to make a baby?" Emma asked sweetly, snagging a chair and dragging it with her to the table. "I mean, I'm rather sure we covered that bit here at Fandom, but it seems you've failed to understand the math behind it."

[glacial_queen]

"Males are supposed to defend and protect," Karla said with the practice of someone who'd had this argument a lot.

Go figure who with.

"Means that it's his fault."

[anarchist_queen]

Early fall wasn't a bad time to return to the ol' stomping grounds, Leda decided. Though it'd been...she didn't know how long since she'd last been here.

Really she was just glad she'd remembered where the Perk was.

Whistling, she came in and cast about for anyone she knew. If she didn't find them here she'd get some delicious, and then continue her search.

[glacial_queen]

Well, Leda would find at least one person she knew, even if Karla was looking a little different these days. At fourteen weeks along (sixteen, going by the stupid book she was reading that started roughly two weeks before conception, go figure), both her belly and her boobs were a lot more rounded than they'd ever been before.

"Leda!" she said, standing up and waving her old friend over. "Kiss kiss! Come here and say hello!"

[anarchist_queen]

"Well hey there Mama!" Leda grinned. She complied eagerly. She could get coffinated beverages anytime, but she hadn't seen Karla in what seemed like decades. She didn't think it'd actually been that long.

"Congratulations and condolences in advance." She'd seen a few of these things grow, and knew there were some fun times to come.

[glacial_queen]

"I've mostly stopped puking and my tits look better than ever, so today it's congratulations," Karla said, giving Leda a hug as soon as she got close enough. "If I go back to hating the smell of garlic and frying onions, I'll take all of those condolences and more."

[never_dull]

Hannibal had already known about the "lump", but he wasn't going to miss a chance to visit, no matter what the excuse.

"Karla, Warren." He gave them both a smile and held out a hand to Warren to shake. "How have you been?"

[not_a_parakeet]

Warren smiled and took Hannibal's hand, shaking it firmly.

"I've been well, though I won't speak for Karla," because how well she was doing depended on such nebulous factors as the changing tides, the ripeness of the closest piece of cheese, and how many hummingbirds sneezed in France yesterday, these days. "It's good to see you, Hannibal."

[never_dull]

"And you." He hadn't gotten to speak with Warren much when he'd been in Glacia last. "How is prospective fatherhood feeling?"

[not_a_parakeet]

"Just as terrifying as ever," Warren replied, smiling wryly. "I have no idea what I'm doing. Not even the foggiest clue. But I'm told that's pretty much the norm anyway, so I'm not exactly feeling anything new and revolutionary."