Work Text:
Aranea let out a heavy sigh as the bin fell shut, pressing the heel of her hand to her forehead. Another long, rewarding day working at her library, though sometimes she wished there wasn’t as much trash as there was today. She wasn’t really built for hard labour. Her fingers itched, searching for something in her pocket that wasn’t there.
“Damn it,” she ran a hand through her hair, teeth grinding as she hissed out the words. “Cravings.”
She was doing pretty well with the whole quitting thing, but sometimes she did automatically search for the cigarette packet, realising how much she wanted one. Kankri would never let her hear the end of it if he found out though, and one thing she’d learnt from last time she slipped was that he always knew.
She was pulled out of her thoughts by a strange sound. Something that was similar to hissing, but not quite. Aranea frowned, slowly creeping round the corner of the library, trying to figure out what that sound was.
That weird hissing, what was it? It was vaguely familiar, reminded her of…air freshener? Deodorant? A spray of some kind?
She poked her head round the wall, eyes narrowed. She realised as soon as she saw the bright colours opposite her what it was.
Spray paint. Someone was graffiting her building.
Grasping for the phone in her pocket, clenching her jaw and biting her tongue, she selected the camera option, reading it to capture the person’s face. Their back was turned to her, two long black plaits hanging down their back, a bright pink bandana on their head. Dressed link a punk, what with the massive boots and spiky belts.
“Hey!”
The plaits flew out dangerously as the culprit spun round, a girl, bright blue eyes and large pink glasses. There was a lot of pink and black
Aranea snapped a photo.
“Shit, wait-!”
“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t ring the police right now.”
The girl’s eyes widened, strong jaw going slack. “I’ll give you money, please, I can’t risk my parents finding out, not again.”
“Again?” Aranea repeated, voice hot with anger. “You expect me to let you get away with this ‘again’?!”
“Erm,” blue eyes shifted around. “I’ll promise not to do it again?”
“Not good enough.”
“No!” she dropped the can, holding her hands up. “Please, no, I’ll do glubbing anyfin!”
Aranea hovered over the call button, raising a brow. “Anything?”
“Yes, I can’t get in trouble again, please.”
She should report it.
The girl fell to her knees. It was a pretty pathetic sight.
“Okay,” Aranea put away her phone. “You have to work for me, for free, as a library volunteer, and raise the money to have it cleaned.”
“How long for? What if I get the money for tomorrow?”
“You keep working until I decide you’ve paid your time!” Aranea snapped. “You can’t buy your way out of this, and that’s an expensive job to clean!”
“Okay!” the girl quivered. “Okay, I’ll do it!”
“Good,” Aranea huffed, surprised by how easy this was. “You start tomorrow.”
“But-!”
“I can always change my mind!”
“Okay! Tomorrow!”
With a final nod, and an awkward pause, Aranea said a good day and stalked off, to the back exit of the library, punching in the code to open the door.
When she got into the safety of the building, she let out a breath she didn’t realise she was holding, feeling her heart hammering in her chest, palms clammy.
Dear goodness, what did she just do?
xXx
At half twelve, Aranea was beginning to wonder whether or not the strange girl was going to come in. The library had been open since half eight, and there was still no sign of her. The photo was still saved on her phone; she wasn’t planning on deleting it any time soon. It was the only leverage she had over the other. But as time ticked on, she began to wonder if she shouldn’t just take her lunch break and go to the police station.
“Aranea? Are you okay?”
Her head snapped up, flushing slightly. She hadn’t really noticed she was staring at her phone so intently. “Porrim! Hi!”
The dark skinned girl raised a brow, brushing her dark hair behind her ear. “Would you still like me to take over while you go on your lunch break?”
“Yes, sorry about this, my assistant’s ill and-!”
Porrim held up a hand, a soft smile on her face. “It’s fine, really. You seem a little off today, is everything okay?”
“You know me far too well.”
“I should hope so.”
Aranea nodded, finally putting away her phone. “I’ve just been a bit wrapped up in my thoughts, that’s all. I hired a volunteer yesterday, and she’s not arrived yet.”
“If she appears while you’re on your lunch break, I’ll give her something to do until you get back.”
“Thank you, for all this.”
Porrim nodded, nudging the shorter girl towards the door. “Off you go then, have a nice lunch.”
With a quick goodbye, Aranea disappeared from the library, thankful for the nice weather they were having. There was a café she wanted to go to which had an outdoor garden, and she knew exactly where she wanted to sit.
By the time she arrived back at the library, she’d mostly forgotten about the girl from the day before, and was feeling a bit better about the day. Perhaps she just needed to get out the library and into the sun for a while. Or just needed some food in her stomach.
“Aranea,” Porrim was at the door as soon as she arrived, lips pulled into a frown. “Do you know who you’ve hired as a volunteer?”
Aranea blinked, feeling her heart beat begin to speed up. “She’s here?”
“Yes, she’s here, are you sure they it’s a good idea to have such a…person in your library? I know you want more visitors, but…”
“I’ll keep an eye on her, I know she’s a bit of a bad girl, but I don’t think graffiting the side of a building is exactly horrific behaviour. And I have a picture on my phone of her doing it.”
“You’re blackmailing her?”
“She begged me not to phone the police, and I need the extra help.”
Porrim rubbed her temples, not hiding her irritation for once. “What is her name, Aranea?”
“I’m not sure, I didn’t ask.”
“You’ve hired-!”
“Where’d you want me to put these then?”
The pair turned to see the girl in question, standing holding a large box in her arms. Aranea had to admit she was impressed, it usually took two of them to move those boxes.
The large, blue writing on the side stated they were ‘New Arrivals’. “Oh, those need sorting through still, if you could put them by the reception desk, I usually try and get as much of it done while I’m working and we’re having a quiet lull.”
“Gotcha. I’m Meenah, by the way.”
Aranea flushed, assuming that meant she’d heard the conversation. “Aranea, I’m glad you came in. I was beginning to worry.”
“I had somefin to do this morning,” she explained, slang and accent thick in her voice. “Sortin’ out my little sis and stuff.”
“No problem.”
The girl vanished, heading to the reception desk.
“Thank you so much again for your help, Porrim.”
The woman hesitated, but smiled none the less. “No problem. Call me if you need anything. Be careful.”
“You too!”
Aranea headed straight over to the desk, not wanting to keep Meenah waiting, trusting Porrim to see herself out.
“Meenah, right?”
The girl straightened as she dropped the box on the floor, her plaits moving with her. “Yup.”
“I hope Porrim didn’t make you do anything too difficult as a start.”
“Nah, nofin too bad, just shifting some stuff around the joint.”
“Good, glad to hear it, I’ve been planning what jobs to give you while you’re here, as the library assistant isn’t around due to the fact that she’s ill, she’s come down with a terrible flu after her visit to her family, I think she picked something up while she was there, but I’m sure she’ll be better soon enough, and now I have you hear to help so it shouldn’t be too bad.”
“Yup.”
“Porrim, the girl you just met, she’s here helping out while my assistant’s on sick leave, though with you volunteering hopefully she won’t need to use too much of her time to helping, she’s actually quite busy, as she works at the local salon.”
Meenah groaned, shoulders sagging, eyes rolling. “Do you ever shut up?”
“Excuse me?”
“You’re just glub glub glub no pauses, don’t you need to breathe?”
Aranea scowled, feeling heat rise to her cheeks. “I don’t talk that much!”
“You haven’t stopped since you got here.”
“I have been trying to explain the situation to you!”
The girl rolled her eyes. “I hardly need to hear half that crap, just tell me water do.”
She couldn’t believe that Meenah was being so damn rude. She had half the mind to give up on this venture entirely and just go straight to the police.
“Yo, boss, you okay there? You look ready to pop.”
“Why don’t you learn some manners considering it is your boss that you’re speaking to?!”
The silence that reigned in the library took a whole new kind of stillness that had Aranea’s face heating up as she realised just how loud she’d gotten. People were staring at the pair, some looking curious, some angry, and one with their phone out pointing it at them.
“Ain’t you supposed to be quiet in a library?”
“We are going to have a serious talk if this keeps up,” Aranea hissed, his face still aflame. “Do I need to take you out back to speak about this?”
Meenah smirked, pouting her lips out slightly, brows waggling. “Why boss, how sclamdalous.”
There was something wrong with her. Something seriously wrong with her. “Go and move more heavy boxes around.”
“Move what boxes where?”
“I don’t care just go and move some boxes.”
Thankfully she left, disappearing off to the back room again, while Aranea plopped down in a chair at the desk, letting out a long sigh. Something told her that she’d taken on more trouble than was worth.
xXx
By the time she’d calmed down and found Meenah again, the girl was lounging on some large boxes in the storage room. In her defence, she had moved the boxes about, like Aranea asked, and it did seem a little more organised in here. Aranea still snapped at her for lounging, feeling a bit like she was talking to a child. Though that begged the question of how old exactly she was, given that she acted like a teenager, and looked a good few year younger than Aranea.
“We need to put codes and stickers in the new books,” she explained, narrowing her eyes. “Do you think you can manage to be in my company for that long, or do I ‘glub’ too much?”
“I’m sure I can deal with it.”
“Good. Come on then, I’ll show you how to do it.”
There was no fuss as they got there, Meenah watching Aranea and then trying to copy. There were very few mistakes for starting with. Considering that it was her first time doing this, Meenah seemed to actually be trying to do it right. Perhaps to make up for upsetting Aranea earlier. Though it was doubtful, she didn’t seem like the type of person to do that for someone else.
“Water-bout this’n?” Meenah asked, waving the book about. “It don’t look like no history book.”
“Oh! No, that’s not for here, that’s a teen book-what is it doing in this box?”
“Some fish ain’t been paying attention to their organising.”
Aranea raised a brow. “What is with you and those nautical-themed puns and words?”
“Somefin wrong with my puns?”
She couldn’t help but giggle at the tough-guy act Meenah threw up. “They’re a little silly.”
“They are the shit, thank you very much. Everyone loves the fish puns.”
“I’m not sure how true that is.”
“You should try it and then you’d sea how amazing they are. You’d get all the fellas, or ladies.”
Aranea smothered the embarrassment and smile, shrugging lightly. “I’m not picky.”
“I sea.”
“Come on, stop getting distracted and keep sorting these.”
“Ugh, but it’s so boring, and I’m getting hungry!”
“You didn’t come in till after lunch.”
“Aye, that don’t mean I’ve had lunch.”
Aranea bit her lip, looking down at the books she was stamping. “Whale, if you finish this fast you can have a break.”
She wasn’t prepared for having arms wrapped round her and nearly knocking her off balance, taking her by surprise, dropping the book she was holding. “Whale!”
“Yes, we get it, I used a fish-pun.”
“You’re the best boss.”
It was hard to be upset with her after earlier when she got this excitable over something as simple and cute as puns. “Finish your work!”
“Yes boss!”
Glancing out the corner of her eye as Meenah got back to work; Aranea decided that she was overall kind of cute, in a punky-way. Maybe she wasn’t entirely a lost cause.
Half an hour later, Meenah was finished, and Aranea gave her permission to go find food, deciding it would be a good chance to sit down and get some of the work on the computer done, giving Meenah half an hour to an hour. She wouldn’t have to be running around showing her everything this way, and telling her what to do.
The only thing that brought her out of her work was quite some time later when someone came up to the desk and began wrapping their fingers against the wood, pulling her out of her trance.
“Sorry-oh, it’s you, don’t you have work?”
Opposite her was a tanned man wearing a red jumper, greeting her with a frown. “That’s hardly an appropriate way to great your customers.”
“I’m just curious, or should I tag my nosiness.”
“Probably.”
“I was being sarcastic.”
“You should tag your sarcasm too.”
Aranea smirked. “What can I do for you, good sir?”
“I am here to return the book that Karkat borrowed, and discuss something important with you.”
“Excellent, I’ll scan that through,” she held out her hand for the book, picking up the scanner.
He handed it over, nose wrinkling. “I hardly see how this is appropriate reading material for a teenage boy, whether he’s nearly eighteen or not. He and Porrim can insist as much as they like that romance makes for good literature, but certificates are put on such things for a very valid reason, and-!”
Aranea rolled her eyes, clicking her fingers and effectively cutting Kankri’s rant short. “You actually came here for something?”
“Oh, right,” he cleared his throat, pinning her with a particularly serious stare. “Porrim informed me that you had employed a new member of staff.”
“Why are you guys so concerned about Meenah? I doubt she’s going to do anything, she’s actually kind of sweet in a-!”
“She’s the heir of Pixies Studios.”
Aranea stopped. “Excuse me?”
“She’s the eldest daughter of a business tycoon who owns Pixies Studios, the movie company, surely you’ve heard of it, I imagine most people have, it’s a name that’s hard to escape in a society such as ours which has such a focus and dependency on the media…”
Kankri continued to talk, but Aranea wasn’t paying attention. Of course she’d heard of Pixies Studios. Who hadn’t heard of them? She hadn’t expected to find out that the delinquent she’d employed was the eldest daughter. Which made her roughly Aranea’s age, if memory served. Which only served to make her more attractive, she certainly didn’t initially look that old, or act it. The youth that she had about her was actually quite refreshing.
“Aranea? Aranea, are you paying attention?”
“Huh?”
Kankri raised his brows. “You look slightly flushed.”
“What?” Aranea panicked, attempting to compose herself, and failing. “What do you mean, I’m fine!”
He was unconvinced.
“I just didn’t expect that news, that’s all!”
“You’ve not gotten star struck, have you?”
“No! Of course not,” she gave a nervous laugh. “This hardly changes how I feel about Meenah.”
“I don’t think becoming involved with someone with such a bad reputation is a wise decision, nor did I think the ‘bad girl’ attitude was your type, you certainly never showed an interest in Damara, and I would assume she followed that type-!”
“Kankri, please, stop.”
He frowned, but did as he was asked.
“I’ve never really considered what my type is,” she informed, becoming a little uncomfortable. “I mean, you’re nothing like a bad boy, and I dated you.”
“High school years are said to be the most experimental, so it would make sense if I didn’t fall into ‘your type’.”
“I guess Meenah’s a bit of a bad girl, from the sounds of things she does have a bit of a track record.”
“That’s an understatement.”
Aranea turned, her eyes seeking out the girl in question, before she realised what she was doing and panicked again. “Not that I would consider Meenah a possible romantic interest or anything! She’s working off a debt, and working for me, it would be entirely unprofessional and hardly appropriate given the situation!”
Kankri raised a brow.
“Don’t give me that look! I mean, she’s not exactly unattractive, I guess, and if you take out the part where she is a bit delinquent-y then she’s kind of sweet, in a mischievous kind of way, which I guess is kind of nice seeing as I don’t really know anyone-!” she paused, focusing back on Kankri’s face, her hands up in the air from where she’d been moving them animatedly. His eyes weren’t quite looking at her, but rather something behind her.
Her stomach sunk, face losing colour.
“Is she behind me?”
“Yes, she is,” he replied. “I was unsure whether or not I should stop you; I didn’t want to trigger you in any way.”
This was totally revenge for cutting him off mid-rant earlier, she knew it. For someone so concerned with not wanting to trigger anyone, he could be a right dick.
“Oh my word,” she couldn’t bring herself to turn around. “I’m going to kill you.”
His face remained expressionless, but there was a smugness in his eyes.
“I don’t believe we’ve met,” Kankri started. “I’m one of Aranea’s friends, it appeared that she wasn’t informed of who exactly you were, and our mutual friend was slightly worried about her lack of knowledge to your heritage, not that it would cause much of a problem, but Aranea can occasionally be misguided on occasions, and I came to check that everything was okay.”
“Kelp. I thought no one could glub as much as Aranea did.”
Aranea began giggling, despite her embarrassment.
Kankri’s eyes narrowed. “Charming.”
“How do you two manage to be friends when you both glub like a tidal wave?”
Aranea finally turned around, eyes meeting Meenah’s. “We enjoy engaging in intellectual discussions, thank you. Did you finish your lunch?”
Meenah blew a raspberry at the sound of intellectual discussions. “That sounds borin’. And yeah, I did. Water you wantin’ me to do next.”
“Is there any particular reason you’re consistently using water-themed references in your speech?” Kankri asked.
“I do what I want, biatch.”
“Please don’t swear, it can be quite triggering for certain people.”
“Your face triggers me.”
Aranea jumped in. “Kankri, I appreciate you stopping by, thank you for returning the book. I’d begun to worry that your brother had forgotten.”
“You’re welcome.”
“I must get back to work however, if you could follow me, Meenah?”
“Waterver you say, dolphin.”
Was that supposed to be a term of endearment?
“Later, loser.”
“Pleasure meeting you,” Kankri replied, though sarcasm dripped off his words like syrup.
The pair headed towards the back room, Aranea feeling her stomach in her throat and her heart in her ears, not really looking forward to whatever their next conversation was going to be. From what she’d gathered, this wasn’t the kind of thing that Meenah was going to let go so easily.
“The returned books need returning to their shelves,” Aranea explained, finally reaching the back room. “I managed to organise them mostly yesterday, so you’ll just need to take the trolley out and put them back.”
“Your friend told you who I was.”
Aranea turned, eyes wide, not expecting that to be what Meenah latched onto. “Yes, he did. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I thought you’d tell them,” Meenah admitted, shrugging with her hands in her pockets, shuffling her feet. “For the publicity or somefin.”
“I think it does me better to have you working for me than telling the police.”
“I never reely thought about it, I guess. It didn’t seem like the type of thing I should bring up,” the girl-woman, glanced around the room. “I thought it’d make you go easy on me.”
“Wouldn’t you want me to go easy on you?”
“I like spending time with you,” her brows pulled into a frown, cheeks tainting a pink colour. “Even if your constant glubbing sends me to sleep.”
Aranea felt her heart flutter, smile tugging at her lips. “You know, you’re welcome to stay here because you want to. I don’t have to be forcing you to stay here.”
“It was a good excuse.”
“Well,” Aranea decided, turning to one of the trollies in the room, pushing it towards Meenah. “I believe I said that you’re working for me until I decide that you’ve learnt your lesson.” Meenah stared at her in bewilderment, making her chuckle. “Best get started on putting these books up.”
“What?”
“You think I’m going to let you off that easily? You still have to work off your debt.”
Meenah groaned, her shoulders slumping. “Can’t I just pay you back? I have the money.”
“I believe in good, honest, hard work. Besides, I thought you enjoyed spending time with me?”
The blush on her face really way adorable. “Ugh, I was just trying to make you feel better.”
“So you do care!”
“Piss off.”
Aranea giggled, feeling a burst of confidence, leaning over the trolley and placing a kiss on the warm cheeks, her own face heating up. “Come find me when you’re finfished.”
Meenah grinned, despite the flush on her face. “Yes ma’am!”
She might’ve appreciated the pun, but Aranea had a feeling she was going to need to work on getting better with them. A lot better.
xXx