The Magpie's Death

Coffee and Tea (A Side Story)

"Morning beautiful."

The voice was light and cheerful, a comforting and familiar sound despite coming from an almost total stranger. Ellie sat on the newcomer's lap and her big, blue eyes followed him as he headed to the counter. The coffee pot was already full, the wonderful aroma steaming out from the lid. He turned, surprise spreading across his face.

Finn only giggled, ignoring his reaction and lifting their mug in greeting. "Did you sleep alright after your eventful night? Threats, jail, a secret friend... Very exciting."

After a slow nod, Jack cleared his throat. He wasn't sure what to say. He was usually a friendly, happy-go-lucky guy, but for some reason he felt shy around this person. From their first, brief meeting, it was clear Sam's friend was far more perceptive than they looked. Unable to find any appropriate response, he poured himself a cup of coffee and sat on a stool next to them.

"You seem nervous, honey."

Finn wore a pair of loose fitting jeans, their smooth, porcelain chest peeking out from behind a plain, v-neck shirt. Their blue and pink hair was pulled into a tiny nub of a bun on top of their head. Wearing no makeup or a single accessory, stray locks clipped up randomly, the image was vastly different from the night before.

"Well?" they continued, resting a delicate index finger against their jaw. "Are you going to speak or should I have a conversation with myself?"

Snapping out of his stupor, Jack took a quick sip. "No, sorry." After another sip, he added, "You're up pretty early."

"Ah, yeah..." Finn's eyes darted out to the foyer, then landed on Ellie. "Mags finally fell asleep. I didn't want to wake him."

Jack nodded but stayed quiet. The two sat in silence for a few moments until Squirrel huffed and lifted their gaze to stare at him.

"Are you afraid of me? Am I intimidating? Maggie said you were friendly, but this is quite awkward."

It seemed like those words should be accompanied by anger or aggravation. Instead, the tone was playful, making Jack tilt his head in confusion.

"You know," the strange visitor continued, "Mags isn't here... if you wanted to ask me anything."

There was a gleam in Finn's eye. They were playing coy, but actually eager to gossip with someone about Sam. He imagined they didn't have much opportunity to talk about him, since he clearly wasn't social and apparently had no other friends. After only a second of thought, the mystery of the cold-faced man outweighed any discomfort he felt and Jack grinned.

"I'm sure I can think of something," he teased. Finn's reserved smile turned into a grin that rivaled his own. After another second of thought, he asked, "Why do you call him Maggie?"

"Random, stupid nickname." Finn answered as if already bored by the question, waving it away with a dainty hand. "I try to do everything I can to annoy him, because he never gets annoyed at me. So I call him Maggie, Mags, Mageroo... I called him Margaret once, but that was too much cringe even for me. And he calls me Squirrel in exchange. Since I'm cute and energetic and like to chatter." They smirked at some private thought. "I may also have a bit of hoarding problem."

Jack chuckled, thinking this person really was like a little, cartoon squirrel. "He never gets annoyed? How is that possible?"

"No idea!" With a giggle, they rested their head on Ellie's, who was only watching the two with indifference. "When I was younger, I constantly tested my limits by doing crazy things, but nothing ever fazed him."

"Like what?" The gentle rhythm of Finn's voice and cheery expression pulled him in and any of Jack's remaining discomfort disappeared.

"Hmm... Well, I brought a bunch of stray cats home once and set them loose in the loft. There were ten or eleven of them. They were such a pain in the ass to collect. Mags is so cold, I thought he would definitely hate having these animals meowing and crawling all over him, knocking stuff over... That one backfired on me. Turns out cats adore him and he couldn't care less what they did." Their face scrunched at the memory. "He also didn't care enough to feed them or buy supplies, but wouldn't let me dump them. So I was stuck taking care of too many cats until I could find people to take them. I don't even like animals! And god, the smell..."

Jack tried to imagine a stoic Sam, sitting on a couch, cats crawling over him or curling up to absorb his warmth. It actually wasn't difficult to picture, which only made him chuckle more.

With a quick giggle, Finn placed a hand on his, their grin spreading from ear to ear. "One time, I ordered almost two hundred dollars' worth of Chinese food. I was sure he would at least be upset about wasting money. Instead, he grabbed his wallet, paid the delivery man, and set the bags on the counter. Then, with that expressionless face, he said, 'I guess we'll be eating Chinese all week.'"

A snort escaped Jack's mouth at the perfect imitation of Sam's detached speech.

"Do you know how much Chinese food you can buy for two hundred dollars? Honey, I was so sick of rice and noodles after that, I couldn't even walk past a Chinese take-out without feeling queasy."

After a quick pet of Ellie's hair, their arms tightened around her waist and Finn spun in slow circles on their stool.

"I have replaced his shampoo with hair bleach, laced all his shoes together, and removed all the buttons from his shirts. Once, I stole his wallet and bought myself a whole new wardrobe. I've done ridiculous things and nice things and even a few really horrible things, just to get an expression on that stone face. The most I ever got in return was a groan or a sigh." Their grin dimmed a bit. "Honestly, just once, I would like to see him smile."

Jack could understand. While Sam seemed to huff out a laugh from time to time, when it wasn't accompanied by any happy expression, it wasn't the same. Maybe it wasn't even really a laugh. What kind of life created that type of person? Whatever Sam believed, he couldn't have been born that way. And no matter what he showed on the outside, Jack always felt like he could see a hint of something else underneath.

"It hasn't been easy for him, but you don't need to feel sad about it." Like the night before, Finn seemed to read his mind. They gave him a sweet smile. "I have a feeling you'll see it someday. Make sure you take a picture for me when you do!"

Those words were so matter-of-fact. So confident. He wanted to know why, but he couldn't bring himself to ask. Instead, he nodded as if he agreed, then stood and headed to the fridge.

"Want some breakfast?" he asked, flashing his new friend a mischievous grin. "Always better to chat on a full stomach."