kiss kiss fall in love! (scrooge x magica)

[lifesa_witch]

 Being rich had its disadvantageous. The people one had to associate with, for instance - as lonely as she was, Magica seemed to only attract insipid airheads. Wasn't there anyone else with that kind of cash that had working brain cells? But if she wanted company, and she desperately did, that meant coming along to the most ridiculous places...

Like this. This was almost an insult. Spending her money to buy booze so pretty boys would fake flirt with them? How pathetic could you get? Magica wondered if their "suggestion" of coming here was really a dig at her being single. She chose to be single, thank you! But unfortunately that choosing also meant she was woefully inexperienced with the opposite sex. Oh sure, she had plenty of men try to woo her hand to get a hold of her millions, but they were easy to get rid of.

In a bit of spite, Magica had dressed a bit more... well, she normally dressed gloomily anyway, but this was a hint more than usual. A long black dress that didn't flatter her figure, black nails, black eyeshadow, all against her pale feathers, the combination of which made her look like an old-fashioned vampire femme fatale from a very poorly-directed movie. So if any desperate employee did try to make a buck off her, he'd be the butt of a joke with his fellow flirts.

Once inside, her so-called friends instantly abandoned her, flitting to boys of their choosing and giggling like insipid school-children. Magica sighed, finding the closest seat, wondering how long she had to stay before she could reasonably excuse herself.

Comments

[richestduck]

Scrooge was arguably the most popular host at the club. True, his ancestors were probably spinning in the family crypt, but it was good money to support his family. His Scottish accent women found endearing if slightly exotic. (Duckburg was, after all, on nearly the complete opposite side of the world from his ancestral home.) He'd never gone to college, but he did a lot of reading, making him a charming conversationalist. He was fit and had done plenty of side jobs working on ranches in northern Calisota and as far as Montana, meaning he had interesting stories to tell. He also knew multiple languages, some of his clients swooning when he slipped into something they couldn't understand.

There was a reason that the most expensive bottles were tied to Scrooge, and he was almost never without clients.

He had a break in them today. His scheduled client had called to cancel due to illness, and he'd wished the woman well. A little bit of downtime was always appreciated. He had to drink with the customers, yes, but he'd become a master of making it seem like he was drinking more than he actually was. (His liver probably thanked him.)

Left with nothing to do for the next hour or so, Scrooge wandered the floor, glancing at the other hosts with their clients. A few of the women glanced in his direction and he gave them a smile. He saw the woman in black sitting alone and raised a brow. Well, this was new.

He went to the bar and ordered two drinks. Nothing alcoholic, of course. Between customers, he made sure to drink plenty of water or something else without alcohol. He walked over to the young lady.

"You look bored," he said as he sat down across the coffee table from her. He set down one of his mocktails in front of her. "Mint mojito mocktail on the house."

[lifesa_witch]

Oh great. Here we go.

Only hearing him and not seeing him yet, she tried not to roll her eyes. How long until the pity flirts? Still, she took the drink, not wanting to be rude. He was just doing his job, and he needed to be paid. Fine, she'd order something cheap.

"It's fine-" But as drink met lips, that's when she actually saw his face and HOLY MOTHER OF-

She was so startled by this Adonis of a man that the drink went down the wrong pipe, causing her to sputter and cough, smacking a fist to her chest until it stopped. Her entire face burned red.

Fitting she dressed as a vampire, because now she really wished she was dead.

[richestduck]

Scrooge leaned forward slightly, grabbing a napkin from the little basket of them to hand to her. "You all right? I didn't mean to startle you."

Because clearly that was why she'd choked: She hadn't been expecting company.

[lifesa_witch]

Unable to look at him due to sheer embarrassment, she kept her head away as she took the napkin to dab at her mouth. "Aside from making a complete fool of myself in public, I'm all right, yes."

[richestduck]

"Let me guess: Dragged here by your girlfriends and promptly abandoned when they managed to get their usual hosts?" he asked lightly.

[lifesa_witch]

"Exactly." She took the drink again, now able to actually swallow it without dying.

[richestduck]

"Well, that's horribly dull," Scrooge said. "You'll be here for an hour at least as is." He took a sip of his own drink. "Hope you brought a book. Or have a reading app on your phone."

No pressure to buy anything. Just chatting. He always felt a bit sorry for the ones who got dragged along and forced to sit on the sidelines by themselves. It always struck him as terribly rude to drag someone to a host club and then not even offer to share. As long as the bottle was bought, it didn't matter how many women paid for it.

[lifesa_witch]

There was the pity train, right on schedule. How much was he going to egg her on for?

"I'm used to it." She tried to keep her answers short and precise, not wanting to give him "ammo". Still...

She glanced around. He was clearly the best-looking man there. Maybe he was new? That made sense. A face like that would have flooded with women and he'd know he could choose whoever he wanted, instead of settling for the dreary loner.

"I finished my last one anyway." Despite wanting to keep it quick, her opinion always had a way of rolling out. "Hardly worth the effort with a tacked-on sappy ending..."

[richestduck]

"Those are the worst," Scrooge said with a groan. "You devote hours of your life to the characters and the world they inhabit, follow through their suffering, and then the ending just cheapens it. Having a tragic ending would've been more satisfying."

[lifesa_witch]

Now that got her attention. She finally looked at him head-on again - which was dangerous, it was almost like looking at the face of the sun - with a raised eyebrow. "That's... exactly how I felt. But when I say it, people call me a downer."

[richestduck]

"Most people aren't too fond of it when I say it either." He took another sip of his drink. "But, really, there are times when 'happily ever after' just doesn't seem to fit the story. Particularly one that was bleak for most if not all of the rest of the book."

[lifesa_witch]

"And it was the draw of the book in the first place!" She pointed out, looking more lively than she had before. "After that, it was like falling into a trap! If I wanted a land of sugar and sweets, I'd purposely choose one! But this felt like a mockery!"

[richestduck]

"Exactly! I'll accept a bittersweet ending, but everybody's smiling and laughing at the end?" He shook his head. "I'm not a child."

[lifesa_witch]

"Exactly! We're old enough to know, and sometimes even enjoy, the fact that happiness isn't a guarantee." She was getting so heated up in the conversation, her glass was soon empty. "I bet you in a year's time, it'll be made into a movie with boring leads, and expect everyone in the theater to coo and awe as the credits roll."

[richestduck]

"Yuck!" He stuck out his tongue before taking a swallow, trying to get the imagined saccharine taste out of his mouth. "And you know they'll adapt it to take out the meat and potatoes of the story to make it all the more 'heartwarming' and 'magical'. Turn it into nothing but empty sugar."

[lifesa_witch]

"And then these idiots-" She jabbed a thumb at the gaggle of giggles nearby, knowing full well they couldn't hear her. "-Will drag me to see it on the premiere night, and fawn over some actor who I couldn't pick out of a line-up, when they know full well I'd fall half asleep within five minutes, wishing I was just at home with my bird."

[richestduck]

"You've got a bird?" he asked, interested. "Not a parrot, I take it."

She didn't seem like the type.

[lifesa_witch]

She hesitated, filled with regret. Nobody liked her bird, and he was going to have to put up one hell of an act to "prove" he wasn't disgusted. What a pity, they'd been getting along swimmingly...

With a sigh, she pulled out her phone, and swiped to find the best picture. "His name is Ratface." She said as she turned it over, revealing her raven.

[richestduck]

Scrooge leaned forward to take a better look, setting his glass own on a napkin. He adjusted his glasses.

"Oh, he's a handsome thing, isn't he? Mind if I take a closer look?"

[lifesa_witch]

... Huh?

Magica was so stunned by his reaction that she unthinkingly held out the phone for him to take.

"What?"

[richestduck]

Scrooge took the phone and adjusted the view, taking in the bird's image.

"Look at that wingspan! Handsome and strong fellow, isn't he?" He glanced up at her, holding the phone back out to her. "And you said his name is 'Ratface'? Sounds like a name with a story behind it."

[lifesa_witch]

"I, uh..."

A story she was having trouble remembering, with his amazing reaction. This kind of acting deserved an Oscar! Except... was she so sure he was acting?

She swallowed, trying to regain control. "Everyone... kept suggesting Poe, because of Edgar Allen, but I... thought that was so obvious and corny, and he deserved better, so I just... named him after something I thought was cute, and would make people surprised..."

[richestduck]

Scrooge tilted his head in thought. "...I suppose rat faces are really cute. Never gave it much thought before, to be honest."

It was a completely genuine reaction, no acting required. Ah, this woman was interesting. He wouldn't mind sharing a bottle with her for an hour or two.

[lifesa_witch]

Magica was suddenly very grateful for the coffee table between them, because she was starting to feel if he got any closer, she'd be completely helpless.

She cleared her throat, trying to knock off this silly girlishness. "No one does. I know my tastes are strange."

... She did pick up a menu. Fine, praising Ratface would earn him a drink.

[richestduck]

"I wouldn't say 'strange'. 'Unusual'. Not quite the same thing."

He finished his mocktail, setting down the glass again.