The first thing that Joanie thought when she heard the knock was "Shit, what did I do now?" She half-thought it might have been that guy from #202, the one that threatened to hit her with a cane for no reason. God, the people in this building were psycho. She walked slowly to her door, taking her sweet time in the hopes that it would encourage whoever felt like bugging her to disappear.
She finally opened the door, peering down the hallway both ways. Snorting, she shook her head. Nobody. Of course. It was either not important, or some jerk playing "ding dong ditch." Just as she was about to shrink back into her room, Joanie had the presence of mind to glance down, where she was met with a simple cardboard box with no unique markings.
Her heart dropped. She had scanned the last Anonymous forum and seen mentions of "weird creepy packages." Biting her lower lip, she picked up the box, nervously bringing it inside. Who would be giving her a package? She didn't really talk to anybody, and the people she did talk to didn't seem like the sort to drop random things in front of her door. It was worrisome.
She sat for some time just staring at it, wondering if this was a good or bad thing. Zephyr crawled all over the mystery box, chewing on its corners and stretching out on its top before she finally pushed him away and set about to seeing what was inside. After all, if it was really weird, she could just turn it into a paper weight and throw it out the window. Magic was practical, too!
Opening up the box, she felt her hands shaking as she peered inside. There were just two things. First, a little robotic pirate figurine that seemed far too cheerful for the situation he was in. Second, a small note. With the figurine in one hand and the note in the other, she pursed her lips, momentarily confused. She glanced to the note, reading it.
At first, she had to grit her teeth to keep the laughter inside. She could feel her nose scrunching up and her cheeks turning red from the effort it took to keep it in. Finally, she burst out laughing, though it was neither scornful nor dismissive. No, the strange little pirate and the swashbuckling language of the note were just so sweet that she couldn't help but be thrown into a good mood.
She set the pirate figure on her dresser, giving him the prime real estate of her bedroom. Looking down at the note in her hand, she shook her head, pressing a hand to her cheek. "What the hell, Russell?" she asked herself, positively amazed that somebody would go out of their way to do something like this for her. With a smile, she tucked the note under the figurine, wandering away to pour herself a glass of water.
Though she didn't want to admit it, Russell had been more than forgiven. How could you stay mad at a friend like that?