Chapter Text
Velvet arrives home nearly soaked. The end of winter has seen the snow turn to rain, buckets of it, and while simple preparation could have prevented this, Velvet has never been much for umbrellas. She wouldn't have taken one with her even if she owned one.
Which is why she steps into her apartment dripping all over, water running off her hair and her coat into a puddle on the floor. The moment she takes her boots off the moisture starts to seep into her socks, too. She curses under her breath, but doesn't stop; like hell she's tracking her muddy shoes across the carpet.
"You look like you're having fun," a voice says from farther into the living room, and Velvet looks up. Through the wet bangs hanging in her face she gets one glance of Magilou walking toward her; then something soft and white descends over her head.
Velvet rips it off, straightening up and preparing to send it back Magilou's way twice as hard - but it's a towel, fresh and dry. Grudgingly Velvet runs it over her head and down her hair, stepping away from the door.
"And you look awfully dry," she says as she gets a proper look at Magilou, who's now lounging nearby in perfectly comfortable sweatpants and a hoodie. "How long have you been here?"
Magilou shrugs. "Oh, a while."
That tells Velvet absolutely nothing, but she doesn't pursue it. She's actually gotten used to having Magilou around at all odd hours now. Ever since their relationship developed into... well, whatever this is. Certainly more than mere companionship, but without any of the structure Velvet could call "dating."
As soon as she's no longer dripping, Velvet heads across the room in the direction of the kitchen. On her way past she flings the used towel toward the couch, where it happens to land right in Magilou's face.
"Hey!" she squawks, clawing it aside. Velvet smirks.
She gets halfway through heating up a kettle of water before Magilou joins her in the kitchen.
"Soooo," Magilou starts in immediately, leaning against the counter. "Have you given any more thought to my little proposal?"
Velvet sighs. "I'm not going to buy a motorcycle, Magilou. I've never even had a car."
"You don't need a car if you have a motorcycle!" Magilou launches right into her debate points, clearly having foreseen Velvet's answer. "And the motorcycle is cheaper!"
"Cheaper to buy," Velvet insists as the kettle starts to rumble. "It costs money to maintain. Plus it's cold in the winter, and more dangerous-"
"Baah." Magilou waves a hand dismissively. "Since when do you shy away from a little danger?"
The kettle begins to whistle, and Velvet flips the heat off, frowning. "It's just too much of a hassle to deal with right now." She reaches for the mug she left on the counter behind Magilou and suggests, "How about a scooter instead? It's basically the same thing."
"No no no, that's a completely different image-"
"Hold on," Velvet says suddenly, digging her hand into her pocket. And Magilou actually does - the room goes quiet enough for both of them to hear her phone buzzing.
For a moment Velvet is grateful, but then her eyes light on the caller ID and immediately narrow.
"You gonna answer that?" Magilou asks, stepping closer.
"No," Velvet decides. "It's my parole officer. Probably just wants to nag me about something again."
The phone continues to vibrate in Velvet's hand. She waits it out, unmoving.
"Oh. Hume, right? Eleanor Hume?" Suddenly Magilou is right behind her, trying to peer around Velvet's shoulder. "Ha! You got a real gem there."
Velvet hurriedly tries to snap the phone shut, but Magilou is faster; her hand around Velvet's stops her, and she grins at the screen.
"That her? Oh, she's cute. I can see why you'd keep her picture."
Magilou's coy smile flashes in Velvet's direction for a second before she abruptly unattaches herself, casually moving just out of Velvet's reach. Velvet shuts the top of the phone with a little more force than necessary.
"She gave me the picture, to remind me who she was," Velvet growls. "As if I'd forget. She's always on me about something or other."
Magilou raises her eyebrows; Velvet's scowl deepens.
"So you know her?" Velvet asks, less because she cares and more to derail Magilou's train of thought.
Magilou shrugs. "I know of her, yes. She's young, but apparently pretty hardcore. As far as starry-eyed good girls go, I guess."
"Hmph." Velvet slides her phone back into her pocket. "Well, she hasn't done much for me other than preach and set me up with an awful dead-end job so I can pay my rent."
"What else are they for, eh?" Magilou sighs and drags a chair out from the table so she can sit down. "So as I was saying-"
Velvet turns back to the kettle with only one ear tuned in to Magilou's ramblings. It's all well and good to ignore her phone for a day or two, but she already knows she's going to have to answer eventually. Hume probably wants something, and if Velvet knows anything about her, it's that she won't quit until she gets it.