Ned aka The Piemaker | Pushing Daisies (magicfinger) wrote in madisonvalley, @ 2020-07-02 14:27:00 |
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Entry tags: | !closed, !completed gdoc, !log, ~2020 july, ~~isobel evans-bracken (mindwalker), ~~ned (magicfinger) |
Who: Ned and Isobel Evans-Bracken
What: Meeting and chatting
Where: MV Tea & Pie Shop
When: this afternoon
Warnings: nope
Status: complete
Ned knew that he needed to make more of an effort to make connections in this weird place. It didn’t look like he was going back to Couer d’Couers anytime soon and the dome hadn’t been kind enough to bring Chuck or Olive here. Heck, he’d even be thrilled to see Emerson at this point. The people here were nice enough though, even if some of them had abilities that freaked him out a little. He was still keeping his own thing largely under wraps, though there had been a few people who sensed it. It wasn’t likely to be useful here anyway.
So, in addition to focusing on successfully running the tea shop, he decided to try being friendlier to people that he encountered, whether they were customers or he met them elsewhere.
A pretty blonde came up to the counter and he gave her an awkward smile. “Welcome to the tea shop,” he said. “What can I get you? Today we’re featuring a mixed berry pie.”
***
Isobel was actually a huge fan of tea. There was nothing that could quite offer the same amount of comfort or calmness than the perfect blend of tea. When she found out there was a tea shop in Madison Valley, she was excited to visit and see what the shop had to offer. Upon entering, a mixture of aromas filled her nose and she smiled, already feeling that her little venture had been worth it. As much as she liked Starbucks, it was best to support local business, wasn’t it?
Approaching the counter, she was greeted by a young man who offered her an awkward smile which Isobel returned with a confident one of her own. “Hi,” she replied in return. It was a pie shop too? Interesting. Well, a little indulgence never hurt anyone, though she doubted it could compete with the CrashDown Cafe’s sweet offerings. “Is it any good? Oh and what kind of tea do you have here?”
***
As the resident piemaker, Ned was biased to think his pies were fantastic. “I think it is,” he said. “We’ve got other sweets available too.” He preferred to focus on pie, but there were also cookies, muffins, and other pastries available like there always had been.
“We have every kind of tea, I think,” he said. “I’m still learning about it, but we have an extensive list.” He grabbed a sheet from behind the counter and handed it to her. There were at least 3 dozen varieties of black, green, white, rooibos, and herbal teas listed.
***
Isobel was not surprised at his answer. No doubt he would think it was absolutely delicious if he was the one who baked it. Still, Isobel was inclined to give it a try. “I’ll take a slice of that then,” she replied with a bright smile. She would see if it lived up to his hype.
He handed her the tea list and Isobel skimmed over it curiously. Wow, he did have quite the variety, didn’t he? It was definitely more than she’d expected from a small tea shop, but it also gave her more incentive to come back again instead of going into an always crowded Starbucks. “How about the Matcha green tea? I don’t think I’ve tried that variety before.” Isobel held out the sheet for him.
***
“Sure thing,” Ned said, pulling out the bowl and whisk that he needed to prepare the matcha. He was still learning about tea and the proper way to make the different kinds. Hopefully, he wouldn’t screw this up, though if she’d never tried it, she might not realize if he did.
As he worked, he realized this was a good opportunity to exercise those ‘friend making’ skills. “I’m Ned,” he said. “Nice to meet you.”
***
Isobel probably wouldn’t know he screwed it up unless she decided to take a peek inside his brain. Though, she was not too keen about using her abilities lately. After what Noah did to her, to others with that kind of ability, it made her nervous to attempt to use it. It made her feel like a monster. Of course, that could have been the feelings, the visions, of Noah she’d been having recently. It was as if he was around her still. It was like he was under her skin, inside her, and she didn’t know how that could be. Sometimes, the feelings became so intense that she lashed out with a blast of energy enough to shatter glass and destroy whatever happened to be closest to her.
“Isobel Evans,” Isobel offered in return, putting on a smile quickly. “It’s nice to meet you, Ned.” She pushed any thoughts of Noah out of her head; she didn’t want to wreck the tea shop or display any of her abilities at the moment.
***
Making small talk was not exactly Ned’s forte, but he was trying. “Nice to meet you, Isobel,” he said. “Have you been in town long?” That seemed to be a solid opener with anyone who was dragged here. The weirdness of their situation made for a good ice breaker, even with the people who had been here for a long time and were more settled.
***
“Not long,” she replied. It felt like longer, much longer, but Isobel knew it was only months. This place had a way of making people think otherwise. “How about you? How long have you been here?” Enough to know his way around making a green tea matcha at the very least. That was impressive at the very least.
***
Ned smiled awkwardly as he finished preparing her tea and handed it to her. “Almost five months,” he said. “It’s… flown by. And yet I feel like I haven’t really done much. Well, other than learn a lot about tea.” The pie making knowledge had been his before. “It’s a strange place. I’m not really sure what to think about any of it.”
***
Isobel felt much the same. Her time here had seemed to fly by and yet, she felt as if she had accomplished very little. Of course, she had secured employment so that was a step in the right direction. She was lucky that it was even in her field of expertise too. It seemed like Ned had lucked out too aside from having to learn about making tea. At least he could handle making a decent pie it seemed.
“I know that feeling,” Isobel replied, accepting her tea and immediately taking a sip. Not bad. “And, for me at least, making a good cup of tea is definitely a good skill to have.” It was her “go-to” comfort substance. “But, this place is very strange. I feel like we probably haven’t even experienced how strange it could possibly get either.” Rival Roswell? It was a possibility.
***
Unfortunately, Ned had a feeling she was right and that concerned him. A lot. He nodded. “I suspect that’s accurate,” he said. “Which is unsettling, to say the least.” It would be easier if he had Chuck or Olive or Emerson here. Someone who knew him, someone he trusted. “Guess we have no choice but to go with it though.”
They were stuck here and couldn’t leave. And it seemed like they couldn’t prevent whatever weirdness the dome wanted to give them.
***
Unsettling was probably putting it lightly. Isobel sensed something big was coming. This place had...abilities. It was strange to talk about a town in that respect, but it was true. Isobel felt it. Something about this place was different and it had nothing to do with the dome that engulfed it, preventing anyone from leaving.
“It’s unnerving, but you’re right. We have no choice, but to go with it. Whatever it brings.” So, it was a good thing there was plenty of good tea in this place.
***
“Maybe we’ll be wrong,” Ned said, a note of hopefulness in his tone that he didn’t quite feel, not matter how much he wanted to. “And if not, well.” Ned shrugged. “We’ll get through it.” Or they wouldn’t. That was a dark thought though and he did not want to go down that path. If he could survive losing his mother, being abandoned by his father, the work he did with Emerson, and his unusual relationship with Chuck, he could survive whatever Madison Valley might throw at him.
He just hoped no one would be seriously harmed. “And we’ll always have tea.”
***
We’ll get through it. It was the perfect mantra for Isobel’s life. Well, before she started trying to take more control over her powers. Before she wanted to learn more about her life and who she was before Earth. She’d spent so much time lying about her abilities and hiding them that when the time came, she couldn’t protect herself, her brother, Michael, or any of their friends. In fact, she’d been used against them. After that, she vowed for that to never happen again. Ever.
Now, her mantra was a bit more positive and as long as she had Max and Michael, she could face anything this place threw at her. Nevermind that she hadn’t been able to feel Max back home-
“Thank God for tea,” Isobel replied with a smile, holding up her cup. “Speaking of which, this tea is delicious. I’m sure it will go great with that pie.” Yes, best to move on to more positive things.
***
Ned smiled as he gave her a small plate with a slice of pie and a fork. “I hope you enjoy,” he said. “And if you want a refill on the tea before you leave, let me know.” He was always happy to provide free refills to the customers who dined-in at the shop.
***
“Thanks,” Isobel replied, giving him another smile before moving to find a seat and enjoy her pie.