My Co-Worker is an Elf Girl?! (#thewattys2024)

Chapter 17 - Want to See a Magic Trick?

HOKIEN MEDIA BATHROOM WING - AFTERNOON

Remy's words strike a chord somewhere deep within Sam. Samara leans in closer towards the door.

SAMARA: "Would you... like to come out and talk more about it?"

She could hear the shuffling of feet from the other side, followed by a gentle turn of the knob. Samara takes a step back for this stranger.  The bathroom door opens.

Remy oozes out into the hallway with the hood of her cloak fully up. It is a pitiful attempt to cover up her red, swollen eyes.

REMY: "Why? So you can make fun of me for being a useless fraud?"

Samara finally beholds the extent of the damage she has done. She stares at her own feet in shame.

SAMARA: "No. I didn't realize how much this would hurt you. I want to apologize."

Remy wipes her tears with the sleeve of her tunic.

REMY: "This was all meant to be a new beginning. In the human world, I would be born anew..."

SAMARA: "I know we're having a real heart-to-heart right now, but I really can't get over how insistent you are that you're an elf and not an elaborate cosplayer."

Remy grows frustrated.

REMY: "I am an elf! What further proof must I offer?"

SAMARA: "I don't know! Maybe use a different... form of magic...?'

REMY: "Magic is magic! Why would one be different from another?!"

Samara scratches her head. She has to reach deep into her nerd reserves for this.

SAMARA: "Do you have any faith power? Arcane arts?"

REMY: "Nope."

SAMARA: "Are you carrying any special artifacts that may prove you come from a world of sorcery and adventure?"

Remy ponders for a moment.

REMY: "Ah. There is a thing I may show you."

Remy reaches into her cloak and pulls out a deck of cards. She fans them out.

REMY: "Pick a card. Any card."

SAMARA: "........................................................."

Sam begrudgingly indulges Remy and reaches for a card.

SAMARA: "...You've got to be kidding me...."

There is a curious, uniformly lettered piece of text written on the back of each one.

SAMARA: "Modernity... the Gathering? What on earth...?!"

Samara flips the card over. The front displays a medieval-style illustration of a 4-door hatchback vehicle from the Human World. It has clearly labeled levels of might and hit points. The card would not look out of place being sold in randomized 16-card packs for $4.99 each at your local retailer.

SAMARA: "Mid-sized SUV?!"

REMY: "Hey! You're supposed to keep it a secret!"

SAMARA: "Is this deck full of cards like these?!"

Sam snatches an assortment of cards out of Remy's hands. The careless grab spills many onto the floor, incensing Remy.

REMY: "I spent a lot of money building a deck with a meta-relevant Jimmy engine! Please, treat it with care!"

SAMARA: "Jimmy's Labradoodle? Jimmy's 2-bed, 2-bath? Jimmy's Wife? Jimmy's Wife's Boyfriend?"

Sam flips through them with manic curiosity. They all depict similar objects in the human world but are all rendered like signs at a Renaissance fair. 

REMY: "I have shown you enough!"

Whoosh!

An unseen gust of wind sweeps up the fallen cards, arranging them neatly back into Remy's hands. The elf girl vanishes the deck into one of the many folds in her tunic.

Samara's eyes bulge out of their sockets. What the hell just happened?

SAMARA: "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!"

Remy is startled by Samara's sudden outburst.

REMY: "What was what?!"

To be continued...