(no subject)

[hellobugbite]

Hobbie, in a booth, sitting with his back up against the wall and his legs stretched out on the bench. Two mugs are on the table in front of him, one empty, the other half full of what is by this point stone cold caf.

Beside the mugs are his platoon of yellow army men, all arrayed in a desperate battle against the looming evil of the salt and pepper shakers.

Comments

[undignified]

Wes, coming from...somewhere. He stops and leans over the back of the booth beside Hobbie's, studying the battle carefully for a moment.

"...why is the enemy always so much bigger?"

[hellobugbite]

Hobbie cranes his neck up and back so he can see Wes.

"Way things work," he says easily. "If we were bigger'n the enemy, they wouldn't be an enemy, see? They'd just be something to step on. Only that doesn't hold true all the time, lucky enough for us Rebels."

[undignified]

"Stepping on them would be fun," Wes muses, "but... 's always nice to see a big explosion." He smiles. "Lucky us, huh? Must be all the Corellians we've got."

He steps away and round, sliding into the booth opposite Hobbie, careful not to disturb any of the army men. He pauses a second, then searches his pocket and pulls out an action figure, holding it up. "Want an Ewok for back-up?"

[hellobugbite]

"I think my men can... handle that," Hobbie says happily. "Force was with us. Don't know if you can call that luck, though. S'something, at the very least."

[undignified]

"Yeah, somethin'." Wes studies the Ewok figure for a moment, remembering when he got it, who he got it from-- then he stuffs it back in his pocket and smiles suddenly.

"Guess there's always something. Luck, the Force. Ka," he adds, thinking of Susan, though he still has no idea what ka really is. "Always somethin'," he repeats, trailing off into a not-quite-awkward silence.

[hellobugbite]

"Alwas something," he echoes. "Always... I got the note," Hobbie whispers, some of his earlier happiness vanishing. "I... I, kiff, Wes, why don't you hate me? She left because... because of me."

[undignified]

Wes swallows and fixes his gaze on the table between them, on one of the triumphant little yellow army men. "She left you a note, too?" His hand unconsciously goes to his shirt pocket, where his own note still is.

He shakes his head, still looking at the toys. "Can't hate you, Hobbs, even if I wanted to. 's impossible." And there's a faint rueful smile.

[hellobugbite]

"Yeah." Hobbie smiles, or at least tries to. "Says... says that I better make you happy. An'... yeah."

[undignified]

Wes looks up at that, chews his lip for a second, stares at Hobbie. "She said that to you?" What else did she say? But that's everything anyway... "Told me to tell you--" He stops and shakes his head. He can't say it and he's not sure why.

[hellobugbite]

"Tell me what?" Hobbie prompts, not certain he wants to know the answer even as he's asking the question.

[undignified]

Wes shakes his head and runs a hand through his hair, then looks up again. "That--" He grins a little, entirely failing to pretend that he thinks this is all a joke. "That you... deserve me. More than she does." And he wants to look away, but he can't, and he's watching Hobbie closely.

[hellobugbite]

"She said-she said the same thing. To me." Hobbie's bright red and staring at something evidently of great interest on the backs of his hands.

[undignified]

"Oh, right."

Now this is awkward.

Part of Wes wants to laugh at Hobbie's apparent embarrassment, and part of him wants to tell him to snap out of it, tell a joke, do or say something to break this tension. Part of him wants to just run.

But he sits there, watches Hobbie for a second, then says, "You-- um-- think she's... right?"

[empath-wiggin.livejournal.com]

From out of seemingly nowhere, another action figure, this one strangely enough, seeming to be of Hobbie himself. It just stands there. If Hobbie were to look up, he'd see a rather familiar girl, grinning.

[hellobugbite]

Hobbie does, and staaares at the tiny-Hobbie. "Erk," he says intelligently.

[empath-wiggin.livejournal.com]

Val laughs. "Well, I have to admit. Erk wasn't a reaction I was expecting." Her eyes twinkle. "What battle is complete without Hobbie?" Frellit, there needs to be -some- happy around here.

[hellobugbite]

"One with less crashings," Hobbie says mournfully.

[empath-wiggin.livejournal.com]

"Psh. There always need to be a few good crashigs." She pulls a few more figures out of her apron. Wes, Luke, Wedge, an ewok, Jaina, Zekk, and Gavin. "Got a few others too, but that one's for you."

[hellobugbite]

"Could do with less of them, myself." Still, Hobbie smiles and picks up the toy Hobbie, running his fingers over the tiny pilot's face. "Thanks, Val."

[empath-wiggin.livejournal.com]

She smiles. "Of course, Hobbie. Everyone needs an action figure of themselves sometimes." Granted, she doesn't have one of herself. Doesn't feel right yet. Perhaps some day.

[hellobugbite]

"Kapow!" Hobbie moves the figure's legs into a scissor kick he'd never be able to execute in real life. "Bampf!"

[empath-wiggin.livejournal.com]

Val giggles a bit, watching, and then picking up the Wedge figure. "Watch yourself, Hobbie." She puts on a bit of a mock-stern tone.

[hellobugbite]

The action figure Hobbie snaps a plastic salute. "Sir yes sir!"

[empath-wiggin.livejournal.com]

Val bites back a giggle. "And don't you forget it." Val sets the rest of the figures up. Tiny!Wes is over by the ewok, his arms raised as if he's in a conversaion. Luke seems to be teaching the other two Jedi something. Gavin's just standig there for some reason. Val just grins. "Sorry, I have a bit too much fun with action figures for no real reason."

[hellobugbite]

"They're good fun," Hobbie assures her. Tiny-Hobbie frog-marches over to Wes and hovers behind him.