Colors On My Skin

chapter 4 - after hours

Magnus got back to his workshop later than he expected. It was close to ten already. He dropped his jacket on the sawdust-covered floor and walked toward his workbench where an unopened can of wood stain still sat. He placed the paper bag on the bench next to the can and sat in the wooden chair he'd made years before. He opened the bag and took out a macaron. He took a bite, the flavor filling his tastebuds instantly. The elf—Taako—was right. They were perfect. The cookies had just the right ratio of crunchy outside to fluffy inside, and the filling was creamy and thick, and the flavor was a perfect compliment to the cookies.

He grabbed another one out of the bag and stuck it in his mouth. He picked up the can of wood stain and stood from his chair to choose a paintbrush from a hook on the wall. He turned finally to the pulpit sitting on top of a canvas tarp in the muddle of the room. He pulled out his phone and started playing a playlist of vocaloid songs. He figured if his soulmate was into them, he might as well give them a chance. He swallowed the macaron, and went to work on staining the pulpit.

About twenty minutes later, a sudden feeling on his forearm caused him to drop his brush.

#

Taako locked up the door to Sizzle It Up and flipped the sign to the closed side. He busied himself cleaning off the glass case and service counter, and then made his way back into the kitchen where Lup was cleaning up for the day. He helped her finish off the counters, and then the two sat down at a small folding table in the corner of the room with a deck of cards. They did this dance most days, sitting down and talking about the day's events with a deck of cards, neither of them ever knew what game they were playing, but that's what made it theirs. There were no rules and no boundaries. Just time for them.

Lup placed down a queen of spades in the middle of the table and then began. "Barry says his experiments are going well." Taako hummed a sound of intrigue as he placed a king of diamonds down next to Lup's queen. "He hasn't quite gotten one of them to fully come back to life yet, but a couple of the rats have started to move again. No sign of brain activity though." She placed a card face down on top of the queen.

Taako placed a card face down on top of his king. "What'd you think of that guy Lucy brought in today?"

Lup huffed a laugh. "He's a little old, don't you think?"

Taako flicked Lup on the forehead. "Not the dwarf, dingus. The big guy. Magnus."

Lup placed a card from an Uno game down on top of Taako's pile. A red 2. "I thought you were giving the soulmate thing a shot," she said.

Taako sighed. "I am, I am, but... does that mean I should have to deprive the rest of the dating pool from the beautiful koi that is Taako Taaco?" He punctuated this sentiment by swooping down a card onto Lup's pile: a brain sloppily drawn on top of the 7 of hearts.

Lup chuckled at her brother's one-of-a-kind phrasing. "No," she said as she flipped over her pile. She had three cards: The queen of spades, the red joker, and the brain 7 of hearts. "All I'm saying is not to give up on it. I mean look how well it turned out for me and Barry." She stood up from her chair and walked up behind Taako. She leaned over and hugged him from behind. "It's there for a reason." She released him and scooped up her cards, placing them neatly in a pile in the middle of the table. "I'm gonna head up. Don't stay up too late, okay?" She started walking up the staircase at the back of the store up to the apartment. She stopped three stairs up and turned around. "Promise me you'll try, okay, Ko?"

Taako stared at his cards for a moment. He turned to his sister and smiled. "Night, Lulu." Lup smiled at her feet and continued up the stairs.

Taako turned back to the table where his cards still sat. He flipped over his pile. Three cards. The king of diamonds, the king of hearts, and a red Uno two. Taako stood up from the table and turned toward the kitchen. He drifted toward the oven, still warm from the macarons. He shifted his gaze to the counter in the shopfront, where a pile of brown paper bags and a black marker still sat. He walked over and picked up one of the bags. He turned it over in his hands and examined the scribbled out writing. His cheeks filled with blood as he thought of how many times he redid that writing. Taako looked down at his arm. It looked oddly empty without the red markings there.

He grabbed the marker off the counter and made his way over to a table in the parlor. He sat, leaning back in the chair and resting his legs on the table as he stared at the sky outside. The night was slightly overcast, but the parts in the clouds allowed the moonlight to shine into the dim store in bands through the half-closed blinds. Taako shifted his arm into the moonlight. It shone like diamonds on his skin. He pulled the cap off the marker with his teeth, and began to write.

heya red

Taako didn't expect to get a reply so quickly.

howdy lefty! what's up?

just felt like a chat. whatcha doing?

working on a woodworking project for a friend. i'm a carpenter.

Taako silently thanked the gods for giving him a soulmate who wasn't talentless.

woah rad! im pretty much the best chef in faerun, probably everywhere

pretty confident there, lefty. i've got some macarons that might say otherwise.

yeah? what kind?

elderflower.

This caught Taako by surprise. He had made his elderflower macaron recipe from scratch, and had kept it tight to his chest since its inception. How the hell could this guy have some? He had to investigate.

sounds delish. where'd you get em?

a cute little shop near where i live. they were actually out of them for the day, but the guy was nice enough to make me some.

Shit, Taako thought. It couldn't be.... actually it really fucking could be, but he had to make sure.

oh what's it called?

it's called Sizzle It Up! it's kinda funky but the food is great

Taako's heart skipped a beat. He almost dropped his marker before scribbling a quick goodbye as he scrambled out of his seat and up the stairs in the back. "Lup!!! You're never gonna believe this!"