Business is tense today, to say the least.

Though, more aptly said, there is no business today and the atmosphere of the city itself is tense. Except for the odd guard or soldier who finds themselves fighting crabs on the beach during their routes, nobody comes by. They’re the only ones out on the beach today and the only ones killing any crabs and so, they’re the only ones who ever stop by the window where a particularly bored looking Basil stands. The beach has been closed off for now, as well as access to the dungeon entirely.

Fresh stands behind Basil, leaned against her back as the two of them look out of the window together and sigh.

There had been an attack of some kind on the ship in the early morning hours. Fresh didn’t really understand it, as they only heard a word here and a murmur there, but there was something about a saboteur. Apparently, there had been someone on the ship who didn’t belong there and they very much didn’t want the ship to leave the port of call. The strange man, who everyone on the coast has been warned about, apparently vanished after diving off of the boat. At least according to the eye-witness accounts.

Though, those are held to be unreliable. It was dark and the storm was strong and the soldiers doubted that anyone could swim from there to the shore without getting snatched or eaten by some monster in the water. The ocean is apparently full of all sorts of horrific, high-level things.

Just in case however, the shoreline and the dungeon, where an intruder like this might hide, have been locked off for the general public for an ‘indefinite period’.

“I don’t think we’re going to be selling much ice-cream today,” says Fresh.

Basil shakes her head. “I don’t think so either,” she says, as both of them look out over the gray sky. The wind is still blowing today.

“Should we close?” asks Fresh.

“Are you fucked in the head?” asks Jubilee. “We already sold two bottles of water and a towel,” they say. “We’re staying open.”

Basil sighs. “That’s what… not even sixty Obols?” she asks. “This is a waste of time.”

“Oh yeah?” asks Jubilee, leaning against the counter. “What else do you have to do, misses ‘time is precious’?”

“We could cook a nice lunch together?” suggests Basil. “Or we could play a game, or we could fix up the house a bit?” she shrugs, lifting Fresh’s face up together with her shoulders. “There’s lots of stuff we could do.”

“Mhm,” says Jubilee. “And who’s going to work the ice-cream window?”

“We’re not going to sell any ice-cream today,” sighs Basil.

Fresh frowns. “Do you think they’ll reopen the beach tomorrow?” she asks.

“Doubt it,” says Jubilee.

Fresh sighs. “We could all take a big nap together?” she suggests.

“No,” replies Jubilee.

“I’d be up for a nap,” says Basil, yawning. Though perhaps out of boredom rather than exertion.

“But Jubileeee~” says Fresh, looking out at the gray skies outside. “It’s perfect cuddling and nap weather!”

“What the fuck are you, a house-cat?” asks Jubilee. “We’re merchants, we’re trying to run a store here,” they argue, hitting the back of their hand into their open palm.

Basil reaches with her arms around her back, grabbing Fresh. “It’s hard to run a store with no customers.”

Fresh gasps, pulling herself free from Basil as she comes to a realization. With some energy, she jumps over the counter and runs out of the front door, heading to the other side of the ice-cream window.

“Hi, Basil!” says Fresh.

“Hi,” replies Basil, watching as Fresh sets a coin down onto the counter.

Fresh beams, her dream is finally becoming a reality. “One hug, please!” she exclaims, sliding the coin towards Basil with her finger. Basil looks at it, checking to see if it's real and tosses it down into the bowl. Leaning over the counter, she holds her arms open and Fresh moves in for the kill, grabbing the priestess in a window-hug.

“I always knew that this day would come,” says Jubilee, sarcastically.

“What? When I became the favorite?” asks Basil snidely, rubbing Fresh’s back.

Fresh looks at Jubilee, blinking. “No, when you start selling your body,” they reply. Basil gasps, turning her head around.

“You’re such a horrible, rude, little gremlin!”

Jubilee shrugs. “I am what nature made me.”

“Cranky,” says Shamrock, coming past the counter. “Game night?” he suggests.

“It’s not night and we don’t have any games,” says Jubilee.

Fresh lets go of Basil, coming back inside. “We could make a really big lunch together and have a little party with the fairies?” she suggests. “Then we can play some games and stuff!”

“Pass,” says Jubilee.

“Oh, come on,” says Basil. “It’ll be fun.”

Jubilee crosses their arms. “No fun allowed during work hours.”

Basil lifts her nose. “I’ve never heard that rule before.”

“It’s on the sign,” says Jubilee, clearly raising an eyebrow behind their mask.

“Sign?” asks Basil.

Jubilee snaps their fingers. Shamrock bends down and picks up a wooden board from his side of the counter that had apparently been strategically planted there for exactly this moment. He lifts it up, showing it to them. ‘No fun allowed’ is engraved into the wood in a handwriting that Fresh recognizes as Shamrock’s own. Apparently, Jubilee had conscripted him for this task. “See?” asks Jubilee, pointing up at the sign.

Basil stares at them, dumbfounded, turning her gaze to look at Fresh who is doing her best to hold in a laugh and failing. Jubilee apparently has been really bored too.

“How long have you been waiting to use that?” asks Basil.

“A week,” says Shamrock, setting the sign down.

Jubilee turns their gaze to look at him, nodding. “Good work.”

“I serve.”

“Damn right you do,” says Jubilee.

“Jubilee~!” argues Fresh. “Don’t corrupt Shamrock!”

“I’m not going to dignify that statement with a response.” Jubilee snaps their fingers at Basil. “Shut the window. We’re done.”

“Huh?” Basil looks at Jubilee and then at the window.

“I’m not wasting more of my life here for a few coins. We’re closing,” states Jubilee.

“Wait.” Basil turns back towards them. “Were you just arguing for the sake of arguing?”

Jubilee nods, dusting their hands and going around the counter. “It’s boring as fuck here today.” The priestess sighs, but Fresh can’t help but continue to laugh.

They close the store early today, seeing little point in it being open any longer and instead, the four of them head upstairs and start preparing a big lunch. Fresh goes one floor further and heads out onto the roof. It really is very windy though.

Heading over to the improvised fairy-house, she knocks on the side.

“Hey guys,” says Fresh. “How’re you doing?”

Sauli pops his head out of the door. “Hey. It’s boring,” he says. “The others are getting weird,” he explains, sighing as he looks back over his shoulder at the others. For some reason there’s a lot of giggling. Fresh scratches her cheek and shrugs. “We’re making lunch. You guys wanna join us to eat?”

Tarja’s head pops out of the door next to him. “We’re up for lunch!”

“Mm!” nods Fresh. “Come on down then, we’ll eat inside. It’s too windy up here,” she says.

“Okay! We’ll be there soon!” says Tarja and the two of them vanish back down into the fairy-house. Fresh shrugs, having had the feeling that they were acting a little odd. But that’s not her business.

Heading back down, she tells the others and helps them get food ready. The fairies fly down through the balcony a little while later, coincidentally, perhaps, right after the table is finished being set.

Lunch is a very nice experience though. The four of them sit around the table at their usual spots, Jubilee with their mask on as they entertain their guests. The fairies tell them all about how they’ve been doing and all of the weirdo’s they’ve encountered during their living here so far. It sounds like there are a few odd-balls here or there, but all in all, everything is going pretty well for them.

Well, apart from the whole house thing, but that’s only a minor detail in the grand scale of things, in Fresh’s eyes. They aren’t thrilled about the beach being closed either.

Tarja shrugs. “At least we aren’t losing any foot-traffic,” she comments. Fresh nods, supposing she had a point. If there was ever a time for their business to shut down for a few days, it might as well be while the beach itself was closed.

An hour and a half later, lunch is eaten, the conversations have been had and the fairies even stay for the clean-up. They seem pretty exhausted though and make their escape after that.

Fresh stretches, yawning noisily as she shuts the curtains behind the fairies and shuffles over to Jubilee, taking off their mask for them from behind.

“Nap?” suggests Fresh. “After you eat.” She sits down, resting her head on the table. That question essentially goes unanswered, at least with words. Everyone seems to be ‘talked out’. Jubilee finishes eating their lunch and then without a word, shuffles to their room, kicking off their boots on the way.

Fresh rises from the grave, shuffling after them and Basil shuffles after her.

Jubilee just sighs, but doesn’t say anything as Fresh enters their room uninvited and lays down next to them. Basil lays down next to her and Shamrock lays down on the far end.

She closes her eyes, listening to the howling winds outside that seem to press on as forcefully as before, having not lost even a little of their energy, unlike the four of them.

Fresh pulls up the blanket over them all and they nap for the rest of the day.