[thd] I may not ever get myself together [dash]

Gianna was in a good mood. She always was when she got to see her friends, and when she was a waitress she didn't get to do it that much. The irregular hours, sudden shifts, and the fact that she was always drop dead tired after covering someone else's shift made it difficult to make plans. Plans that didn't involve getting drunk or sitting around doing nothing, that is. But Dash was coming to visit today! She even made an effort to tidy the office up a little, even though that wasn't technically under her job description.

Even though she was in a good mood, it apparently wasn't her lucky day. Just as Dash walked into Write Hand Press, a small, penguin-like man bustled past her. He was short and round, with a balding top that looked like a half-cooked egg from afar. As a waitress, Gia had experienced many interesting, horrible things. But being simultaneously yelled at by a man much shorter and older than her, while being thrust with a howler was nothing like she ever experienced before.

Open it. He demanded of her, staring her down in a way she thought wasn't possible for a man of his height. With shaky fingers, Gia cast an uncertain glance at Dash before accepting the howler. Luckily the office was relatively empty; she really should have Dash come around more. It's bad for business probably, but hugely beneficial to her mental state.

Before the scarlet letter even touched her fingertips, it floated into midair and the little man's voice rang out loudly once more; I sent in the draft two months ago. Two months! And what did I hear? It's not been published yet. IT'S NOT BEEN PUBLISHED YET! BECAUSE IT WAS RIPPED UP, WHEN IT WAS WRITTEN BY MY OWN HAND, THE FIRST DRAFT OF THIS MASTERPIECE WITH MY LUCKY EAGLE FEATHER QUILL. DO YOU KNOW I ORDERED THE INK FROM ITALY? HOW MANY MONTHS–

Over the head of the very self-satisfied small man who seemed to be enjoying his own tirade, and she was very glad they were both taller than him in that moment, she mouthed desperately to Dash, "What do I do what do I do what do I doooooo?!" Will was not going to like this. Again.

After a recent six-week stint out on a boat somewhere near the greek islands, following and making notes on the migration patterns of moonwhales, Dash had August off. She had papers to hand in in September, so naturally she was working on those when she could, but it was the most free time she'd had in a while. A couple of weeks ago, she'd been looking after a little hifloppo who'd given birth in her brother's office and now she was returning to introduce the little babies to Gia. She had them and the mother all in a magically stable box in her arms. From the outside it looked to be about the size of a large shoebox, but inside there was plenty of space for all of the little hiffloppo pups and their mum to hang out comfortably. Soon, Dash and some of her colleagues would have to return the babies to the wild. They would hopefully find somewhere safe for them to go. The other option was to rehouse them in a sanctuary, but that was a backup plan at the moment.

Dash had timed her visit with Gia's lunch break. She was a little hungry, honestly. As she stepped inside, the slender brunette was pushed out of the way by a small, angry looking man. She watched, wide-eyed as he handed over an envelope. "Gia..." she said, but nothing else she said could be heard over the apocalyptic screams coming out of the envelope. Dash wrapped her arms around the hiffloppo box protectively, leaning back into the wall behind her instinctively. Gia was making faces at her, but all Dash could do was shrug comically, panic in her wide hazel eyes. "I don't know, I don't know," she mouthed back over the noise. Dash pushed her way in and grabbed Gia's hand with her free one, shooting the nasty little man a look as she pulled her friend through the office and past piles of books.

Her mind all up in a tizzy, Gia just let herself be dragged away by the taller brunette. When she was still in school she never found books comforting, but she appreciated them now. The stacks of books served as an excellent hiding space, and it muffled all of the yelling too. Thank goodness the man didn't follow them; she didn't know what she'd do then. Throw more books at him to create a diversion? Floo her way somewhere else to avoid more confrontation? She hoped the maze of books in here would throw him off, and he'd just stay put at the front door like he was supposed to.

"Oh Dash, just leave me here and save yourself." She gestured dramatically, "Tell my parents I love them, and tell Torr I forgive him." She sank onto the carpeted floor, and squeezed herself into the free space underneath Dorothy's desk. She was out at lunch, so she probably wouldn't mind her borrowing this space. It smelled a bit like squeaky leather shoes, but it was safe and it was sturdy, and she would hide here until that mean little man went away. She felt bad that there wasn't enough space for Dash though. Although this probably wasn't what she had in mind when she said she'd visit.

From where she was sitting, Gia spied the shoebox that Dash held protectively in her arms. "Are those the hiffloppo babies? Ooh can I cuddle them?" She made her best puppy-dog face at her friend. Maybe if they hung out here long enough, the man would just go away! Or Will would come back to handle the situation, whichever was easier for her.

Dash zipped through various book piles and then suddenly Gia was crawling under a table.

"What the hell was that?" Dash hissed, still clutching the box to her chest. Dash followed her friend as she curled up in the cramped space under the desk. "Yeah they're the babies, I brought them to come say hi to you but I wasn't expecting that." Dash snuck a look out from under the table, wondering if the man was still there and if he was maybe still trying to follow them. From the other side of the building, she could still hear the howler going off. Something about publishing this and months ago that. She shrunk back down under the table, making herself comfy in their new hiding place. The woman set the box on the floor gently. "Where's my brother?" she asked, opening it slowly and reaching in to pat the little things.

They'd become quite accustomed to her already. This was one of the reasons they were endangered - they were just too friendly. She worried about what their futures might hold if they werent relocated to the perfect places. "Here," Dash plucked one of the babies up, holding it by the skin behind its neck as she held it out to plop into Gia's lap. "I know it looks like it hurts, but I promise it doesn't." The little squeaks coming from the box were so cute. She pulled one of her own little wide-eyed babies out to play with. It crawled up her shirt and sat on her shoulder and she couldn't stifle a laugh.

"I have no idea," Gia sighed, "But at least it's safe under here?" She scooted over however much she could managed to for Dash to fit in next to her. "He's out for a nice lunch with a lady friend, I expect." That could've been her too, but now she was stuck here. And the worst thing was she did know why the man was angry. "Well... actually I do have an idea. Remember that book I ripped up for the hiffloppo mum? I think it's that man's book. And there's only like, one copy of it ever, which is stupid because why would you only have one copy of- Never mind. It's my fault anyway."

Another sigh was going to escape her, but Dash dropped a baby hiffloppo on her lap, and that cheered her up significantly. It was dry as a bone this time, and much bigger, not like the last time she saw it, when it was still wet with fluids and couldn't open its eyes. "I wonder if this is the one who almost didn't live." She whispered, scratching it behind its tiny ears.

Still cradling the small creature in her hands, Gia perked up, nearly bumping her head onto the underside of the table. "I don't hear anything anymore." It's true. The only thing she could hear besides their breathing and the babies' mewling was relative silence against the distant bustle of London streets. "I think the howler stopped. It's probably safe to come out now. Do you want to go somewhere real quick before he comes back? " Gia turned to her friend with a hopeful smile on her face. Maybe it wasn't too late to turn Dash's visit around.

"I really need to know about this lady friend," Dash said with a sigh. If Will had a girlfriend, then she needed him to tell her about it! The Dashers weren't the most emotionally open or available family, but she'd always given him updates on her love life and she expected her brother to do the same for her. Come on. "Wait, really?" Dash's eyes went quite round as she imagined pouring herself into an entire work - a whole book - only to have it ripped to shreds so a cute little creature could give birth on it. "Wow, I can see why he's angry then." After a moment, Dash had to laugh because the situation was so ridiculous, even though she did feel bad for the guy. Showing up with a howler didn't really seem like an appropriate response to that sort of emotion, but Dash acted stupidly because of her feelings all of the time. She felt highs just as strongly as her lows and she tended to fluctuate heavily.

"No that's this one," Dash said, scooping up another little pup. This one was a little smaller than the others, but still healthy. Dash pulled them all out one by one and let the little creatures crawl all over them. Dash straightened up, bumping her head painfully on the underside of the table. She noticed when the howler stopped screaming too, but was more hesitant than her friend to leave the relative safety of their hidey hole. "Lets just stay in here for a little moment," she said, running her fingertips through the fur of one of the little creatures. This one had crawled into her lap of its own accord and was curled up on her thigh, taking a nap.