When you get into a particular routine, sometimes you don't even realize it until something's different about it.
Zoid caught himself before thanking Smokeshine for his coffee, realizing that her horns were much, much longer.
And that he'd just paid for it.
"...Sir?"
He shook his head, snapping out of it.
"Sorry, but would you happen to be Meryl?"
The new barista looked suprised, but nodded.
"Yes, that's me. Why?"
"You need to tell Smokeshine to start turning on the register when you're not here."
He cursed himself out mentally; So much for the free lattes. Meryl's eyes widened in further suprise and frustration.
"Is she seriously still not--Wait!"
She snapped her fingers, pointing at him.
"Are you Zoid?!"
"...not really?"
"Oh, sorry. Smo--"
"But Smokeshine has been calling me that."
"Finally!"
She punched the table, pointing back at him.
"You're lucky that you're the only one here, because I need to have a word with you."
Zoid winced, already not liking where this was going.
"First off, she said to point out that I am *not* her sister, and not a Satyr, either."
She said, pointing to her horns. They were straight, jutting out from the sides of her head at a harsher angle than Smokeshine's, and only curved at the end to point the tips up.
"I'm a holstarus. Like a Satyr, but think of a cow instead of a goat. And before you ask, no, the creamer is made with Terran cow milk."
Zoid blinked, scrunching his eyebrow a bit.
"Well... yeah? I imagine shipping milk from Gaia through to here would get stupid expensive."
Meryl's turn to blink in confusion. She decided not to correct him, instead clearing her throat to move on.
"Second, she told me to keep giving you free coffee, which I'm not doing. She's doing it as an apology."
Zoid couldn't help but wilt a little at that. She continued;
"Thrid, and most importat: What in the hell did you do to make Smokeshine *apologize*?!"
She leaned over the counter, making Zoid aware of the good six inches she had on his height. He winced, shielding his coffee.
"I might have accidentally caused her to... overshare a biit? I think?"
Meryl narrowed her eyes, lowering her voice.
"How exactly?"
"Okay so I think I was a little racist on accident and it made her overcompensate with a story that she shared about how all humans used to look the same to her and I think she might be worried I thought she was more racist back please don't kill me!"
Zoid took a deep breath, shielding his face with the scalding-hot coffee.
Meryl responded by standing back up.
"That's it?" She asked,
Zoid slowly unshielded his face, expecting it to get punched in at any moment.
"Probably not, but I think so?"
Meryl let out a snort, crossing her arms over her-- Jesus those were big. Her eyebrow raised.
"Huh, thought I just missed your look when you walked in."
"Sorry? Oh, shit, sorry, I didn't--"
"I get it, 'eyes are up here' and all that. Usually I can tell the second people realize it, and *usually* it doesn't take them that long. Guess you really do just come here for the coffee."
"Right, but you shouldn't have to just get used to it like that, still."
Meryl went quiet for a moment. Zoid took an opportunity to take a tentative sip of his coffee.
"I see why she got pissed at you and over compensated."
Zoid's thoughtful response was cut off by a mouthful of very-much-too-hot coffee, which he smacked his lips to try and cool. Meryl rolled her eyes, continuing.
"You're the best worst apologist I've ever met."
The backhanded compliment confused him enough to make him forget the first degree burns along his tongue.
"What?"
"You're apologizing for something you can't be sorry for, and you mean every word of it."
"...What?"
Meryl pinched the bridge of her nose, leaning over to rest her elbow on the counter. Zoid strained one of his eye muscles keeping it from glancing down. Meryl went to say something, but snapped and pointed at him.
"That, that right there. That eye twitch."
"You're still not... explaining..."
"You're trying to act like there's a world where Gaians could just waltz right into a place and have the fact they've got animal horns and hooves wouldn't matter. That's just not going to happen."
"Why... not?"
"Because even the best-intentioned of you look like you're tweaking when you try not to stare."
"I'm not--"
"I Literally just watched a blood vessel in your eye pop. and I don't think you've blinked since you apologized."
Zoid turned around, his eyes wound up tight enough that they snapped to the tile, taking in every crevice of the pattern. He heard Meryl snicker, but clear her throat.
"Look, whatever your name actually is, the effort's appreciated, but it hurts to see more than it helps at this point. I've been barista long enough and Terran-side long enough to know how people are. We talk, you notice, and then I'm Gaian. I notice you notice, and then you're Terran. It's just how it is. Trying to apologize for it is like trying to apologize for the sky being blue."
By now his coffee's temprature and tongue's burnt numbess had found a middle ground, so he sipped back some of his coffee. He looked out the cafe windows, watching the tail end of the sunset over the horizon.
"Maybe, but I can't help but feel like there's something better about sunset. I guess it's not right to apologize for things being what they are, but is it wrong to wish they could be different?"
He steeled himself for another fight to keep his eyes up as he turned around, only to find Meryl's bewildered look tilting her head far enough to his eye level for him. He only met her confused look with his own, turning around to see if she was looking at something behind him. He opened his mouth to ask what her look was about, but she cut him off;
"Get out."
"Yes Ma'--"
"Not like that."
He froze mid-step, slowly turning his head back towards her. She looked into his eyes again, scoffing and turning away from him to the sink.
"Did... I do something w--"
"No, you're just a bad poet."
"I didn't even say anything that rhymed."
Meryl clanged her head between the gap in the cabinets over the sink. Her horns caught on each side of the gap, creating the effect of slamming her head without actually hitting her skull. Did horns count as skull?
"Okay, now get out."
"I'm sorry?"
"Oh so now you want to test me?"
Zoid didn't even see the wall as he turned back towards the door, finding himself far enough before he could even say the word 'no'. Meryl called out after him.
"Just do me a favor next time you run into 'Shine; Stare at her horns more, and quit trying to hide it!"
I've heard there used to be a lot of stories about one human getting punched into a fantasy world. This one's sort of the opposite, save for a caveat; the rest of my world came with me, and nobody really wanted to go back.
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