nexus_crossings | Mother always told me to never give away a story for free

"They are called roller skates. Once we get your coat fixed... and your boo-boos blown on.... I will teach you how to ride in style." Harley waits for Molly to affix the bandages, before picking him up in her arms, bridal style. She is pretty strong, even with her smaller frame.

With him in her arms, Harley is able to skate through the plaza with ease, navigating around any crowded spots without upsetting her precious cargo.

She gets to Alex's shop and rolls right in.... calling out. "Customer in urgent need! Coat Code Torn! Weee-hooo-wee-hooo." (And yes, makes the slight ambulance sound with her mouth). She gently puts Molly down, so the other can admire the many fabrics and delights of the eye in Alex's tailor shop.

"Alex you here?" She calls out again.

Harley rolling into the shop is always a reason for Alex to emerge immediately from the back room of his shop, but this sounds like an emergency in the making. The tailor comes rushing out of a small door way in the back of the shop, situated next to a small desk and barely recognizable between walls and several racks covered in thousands of fabrics. He's dressed in something exceptionally sharp today, the stark contrast of it making him visible against the backdrop of his brightly decorated shop.

"Of course I'm here!" he calls as he makes his way over to Harley and her friend. His hands eagerly reach out for the injured coat, though he gasps in absolute horror when he notices the giant hole in it. "Oh my gods! What happened to this poor thing?!"

Yes, sorry, he really did notice you're there Molly, but his attention always goes to the fashion first. This poor coat needs some serious TLC if it's going to be fit to be worn ever again!

Edited 2021-02-21 05:01 (UTC)

"That sounds like a delightful time!" He has no idea how well that will go, but it certainly sounds entertaining and the idea of zipping around on wheels like that was definitely tempting. He can't help but laugh as he's hoisted so easily, tail shifting around her waist reflexively almost like a steadying thing as an arm settles over her shoulders to make him easier to move with.

"You know I've been swept off my feet by beautiful women before, but I can honestly say that this is the first time it's been quite so literal." Molly mused with a low amused tone, finding the skating was actually rather exhilarating.

While his hands are still bloody, he's not about to touch the fabrics but he's definitely looking once he's left near enough, interested red gaze skipping across the bolts. Oh goodness but this was his sort of place, the colors on display were lovely! His attention was caught by the cry of alarm over his poor coat, red eyes skipping towards Alex (and his lovely outfit, clearly he was in good hands) with a longsuffering smile.

"A glaive. I was hoping you could do something to help save it," The silk of the coat was bloodied and torn through the front and if Alex looked there was a smaller hole through the back, and even more blood. Definitely a mess, and it looked like the white shirt the tiefling was wearing was in a similar state. "And I'm fairly certain this shirt is a lost cause so a replacement wouldn't go amiss..."

Harley has taught someone with wings how to rollerskate. She is sure that she would have no problems with someone with a tail.

And having that tail around her waist is not the weirdest thing that has ever happened to her. It was sort of reassuring in a sense.

"Consider yourself lucky... first handsome man who I swept off his feet this year." Harley grins.

Harley herself takes a wet-nap from her other pocket, to clean any blood of her hands once Molly is safely on the ground. (Yes, she is prepared to have to clean blood off her hands).

"He is an expert of getting silly weapon holes out of precious outfits. He has saved a lot of my favorite coats, when I got shot." Harley tsks lightly with her tongue. She rolls up to Molly, and nods her head.

"Go ahead and remove it, we can toss it then. I will tend to the owies you have... while Alex has your coat covered."

"A glaive?!" That... really shouldn't surprise Alex by this point (seriously, his two favorite ladies are always coming in here with the strangest weapon holes in their garments), but he hasn't heard that one come out of anyone's mouth recently so excuse his surprise. He frowns as he gingerly takes the coat and starts examining it more closely. There's so much blood on it he can't see what he's doing.

"Yes, you take care of your friend. I'll be right back." The tailor waves a hand dismissively at the pair as he rushes back through the tiny door in the back of his shop again. While Harley is helping Molly out with addressing his wounds, Alex takes a few minutes to gently clean out all of the blood he can from the coat. In the end, he's able to all but the smallest bits of it out, which will have to do. A more thorough wash will have to wait until the coat is back in one full piece again and the embroidery has been recreated. It's likely small amount will live in it forever, but that's just how things are going to be.

When he returns to the pair in the front of his shop a few minutes later, he looks far less stressed. Not happy by any stretch of the imagination, but the panic is gone from his face at least. "This is going to take some serious work," he informs them. "I'll probably need the coat overnight to properly get the embroidery done, but I think I can save it."

"I will happily consider myself incredibly lucky then." Molly agreed with a wink to Harley. She really was charming in a strangely off-kilter but fun way, and he could see them becoming fast friends.

Alex was on the coat clearly, which was reassuring, so Molly turned his attention to peeling out of the ruined shirt. It was a fine sort of linen that might be salvageable if it were dyed and mended, but that was something he'd let Alex decide. He was definitely a bloodied mess, with a wide variety of tattoos across his arms and upper chest and back under the mess, along with a wide swath of scarring across arms, neck, and his chest, a few others scattered over the skin showing that someone is definitely no stranger to fights.

"Go easy on me darling, I'm delicate." Molly teased lightly as he settled to let Harley tend to him, waiting patiently to let the tailor work his magic in the back. Reassured by the lessened stress when Alex returns, a wry smile crossing his face. "Whatever you need, that coat's my favorite."

His current only too, but no one needs to worry about that.

"These are lovely..." Harley reaches out, and just barely remembers to restrain herself from dancing her fingertips over the many tattoos. She should really make sure he is tended to first.

After the many battles Harley has been in, she is an expert at first aid. Even if she is blessed enough not to need it in most cases, not everyone on the Suicide Squad had the same healing abilities.

"Mine are drawn with marker..." She notes with a bright smile, as she first cleans the wounded area. Checks to see if he needs anything stitched. And if he does, applies some of Red's special pain-reducing salve to the wounded area first. This way, the stitches will heal without much scarring too.

Not like it looks like Molly worries about that.

"What are your emergency room policies Alex? Anything the coat needs... just put it on my account." Harley is always good with paying Alex what she owes him. On time. And most times with a large tip.

"I betcha that Tall, Purple and Handsome doesn't have a place to stay in the Nexus either..." She looks up at Molly with a smile.

"I'm Harley by the way. Figure you might want the name of the girl that swept you off your feet and introduced you to the best tailor in the Nexus."

"You know how I am, Harley - I'll do everything I can to save it." Payment for his labor is usually the last of his worries. The unique nature of this piece means he's far more eager to get his hands on it and to play with it than he is to be paid for his services in this case. Money can always be settled later.

Gingerly resting the coat over his arm, Alex look over the pair in his shop a little more closely. Molly is an extremely artful specimen, though the blood is doing nothing for their look. He frowns at the display, but doesn't mention anything about it. Being on the wrong end of a weapon is none of his business so long as none of his fabric gets ruined. Seeing as that's not about to happen, he's got other things to focus on - like the ruined shirt on his floor.

"I suppose you'll need a new shirt while I'm at it?" He toes at the discarded garment with a polished shoe. "I'm not going to bother with that one. It's soaked through and it's not worth the magic to clean it out. I can make you something better in a few minutes, once you're bandaged enough for me to take some measurements."

The coat is definitely one of a kind- the embroidery is obviously all done by hand, and to a tailor's expert eye the fabrics and thread all seem to be hand spun, hand woven. If not for the unfortunate mess, it otherwise looked to be well-cared for.

"Oh thank you, darling." He didn't seem to be moving away from those moving fingers, not bothered by the idea of touch, but he understood the shift of attention towards the injuries. Though he did have to look a bit confused at the next comment. "A marker though? I'm not sure what an iou has to do with tattoos though..."

"Mollymauk Tealeaf unfortunately hasn't secured lodgings yet." He admitted with a laugh and a smile towards Harley. "You can call me Molly though. All my friends do." With or without the salve, Molly seems used to toughing through pain, but he definitely relaxes faintly at the salve's effect. Which is a good thing given the mess that the injury was. His back wasn't too bad, but his front would need stitches. His attention was drawn by the conversation, brows furrowing faintly as he tilted his head. "Oh but surely that's too much. I've got the gold, there's no trouble there..."

He wasn't going to argue too hard if Harley insisted- but he also didn't want to just not offer to pay either. A wry huff at the assessment of the shirt, but he couldn't argue that it would be miles better to do what Alex was suggesting. "You're a doll, Alex. Whatever you think would look best, I submit to your clearly lovely sense of style."

Harley laughs at the confusion of the word. She finishes with the stitches (which are of good quality, since she is medically trained), and then bandages him up. She pulls out a marker from her belt and holds it up. "This kind of marker." And she draws a little kissie face on the skin above the stitches, with her initials.

"Well, Molly, we can also find you lodgings. That is the nice thing about the Nexus. People help other people." Harley grins.

"And save your gold to set up your own account. I am sure you and Alex will find a lot to talk about in the future."

"A flatterer, are you?" Alex grins with delight as he carefully deposits the coat onto the counter of his desk. Now that he knows what it looks like, he can come back to it at any time. As he returns to Molly and Harley, the tailor opens the small notebook he swiped from the desk and starts taking some notes for himself in it. "I can't promise I can copy the style of the world you came from, but I promise you my own style is very fun and flexible. So long as you're happy with the final result, I'm happy, and I promise that will get you far with me."

Looking the tiefling up and down, it's easy to see there's a lot to work with, which pleases Alex to no end. They'll have to talk about all those delightful tattoos in the future once Molly is properly clothed and less covered in blood. No offense meant, but the tailor would really prefer his shop and personal clothes not get entirely soaked through today.

"Do you have any fabric preferences, Molly? As you've no doubt noticed, I have everything you can and never could imagine available on my shelves." The tailor chuckles to himself as he starts a basic sketch in his notebook. Yes, maybe a little ruffle here and there? Asymmetry would look stunning... "Money isn't a matter right now. If you're seeking out a tailor, my assumption is you know the worth and value of services like mine and are willing to take on the costs for it."

"You kissed it better and everything, Harley you are an absolute dream." If she wasn't resistant, he'd catch her hand to give a light kiss to her knuckles in a maybe exaggerated display of gallantry to earn a laugh from her, but if not he'll just turn the gesture to an equally theatrical bow instead.

"People helping other people, a lovely thing to hear that, clearly the way it should be." Not just a flippant agreement that, if there was one thing Molly was staunchly about in his travels it was that a person should leave a place better than they found it, even if it was just leaving one more person smiling there than had been when they'd arrived.

"Is it really flattery if I'm just being honest?" Molly teased as Alex spoke up, giving the tailor a wink. "I mean I flatter easily but at the same time this isn't just that, it's clearly no wonder a woman of such discerning tastes as Harley here comes to you for her fashion needs."

"As for preferences, I've a couple spare shirts so this one doesn't have to be as 'practical' as the old one." As practical as any of his clothing was, his wry smirk said. Which even with the ostentatious patterns and colors, his clothing was more practical than initial gloss might suggest, Alex was certainly a skilled enough tailor to see that little hint in things. "Maybe something bright, in a nice silk. And no worries about where your inspiration comes from, creativity is creativity and will surely show through no matter that it might be something new. And besides that, new can be fun!"

Molly liked his clothes and style but also wasn't about to hinder an artist at work, that was a way to get something that wasn't nearly as wonderful as it could be. "An artist has to eat, just like the rest of us lesser mortals." He replied in an amused assurance. "Not to mention fine fabrics like these don't come cheap."

Harley does allow the kiss to her knuckles. And grins lightly. She is glad that she found Molly. He seems like her kind of people.

And watching him teasing Alex is giving her matchmaking ideas.

"You are more than welcome to bunk in my Nexus apartment. It is pretty basic. Not as fancy as what Alex has on display here..."

"Not all of them are as expensive as you might guess. When you deal in trades and are willing to take blends, prices can come down dramatically." Alex chuckles as he finishes a sketch in his notebook. "But that doesn't include the cost of any embellishments, and I'm sure you know how important those are."

The tailor turns a magnanimous smile to Harley. "You're always such a giver, Harley. It's no wonder you bring me so many wonderful new clients." He gives the woman a quick peck on the cheek and then holds out his notebook between her and Molly to show them his sketch. Molly said it didn't need to be practical, so of course the design is more Art than standard clothing.

"What do you think? I've plenty of fabrics we can use here and I can have it done for you in only a few short minutes." Ahh the joys of being a magical tailor some days!

Carnies are, as a general rule weird. And Molly is Pure Carnie for the whole of his life, or at least the parts he remembers which to him are the only ones that matter.

"Your hospitality is most appreciated Harley, once again you have saved the say. Clearly I'll have to think of some manner of way to repay your generosity." Once he'd learned a bit more about her, found out what kind of things she enjoyed he'd see about a present of some manner.

"You caught me Alex, I am but a humble peacock masquerading as a tiefling and I have to have my elaborate feathers or I will positively wither away into nothing." Harley wouldn't find it difficult to get Molly's flirting focused on Alex- he was cute and had some sass that the tiefling could sense which was always fun for good banter and conversation. His attention goes to the sketch Alex was showing them, smile brightening as he nods his happy agreement. "That is positively lovely, Harley was clearly right to bring me to you."

Especially if the turnaround on it was minutes that sounded even better!

Molly would certainly get a better taste of Harley's personality once he gets to her apartment for rest. She was a flamboyant little butterfly herself, and gives with passion to the many causes important to her. Be it rollerskating, aerial dancing, or even picking up Lost Boys again.

The thought of the first Lost Boys in her care makes her smile, thinking of Loki.

"His hands are magical. No lie."

"Harley please," Alex chides teasingly. "My fabrics are listening." He winks at the woman and then turns a grin to Molly. "She's not technically wrong, though."

That said, the tailor is going ask for non-verbal permission to take Molly's measurements and then get started. His hands are quick and practiced, and they don't feel magical at all. A little warm, but the tailor is excited about new work!! He's a professional, though, so he won't let himself be distracted by pretty tattoos or unique skin color right now. There's fashion to create and that will always take priority. Yes, even above any and all flirting with his customers. He has standards to uphold.

When he's all done and all necessary numbers have been written down, Alex moves to the nearest wall and selects a bolt of cream silk. What follows is a few lines drawn on the fabric, some cuts, and then a dazzling display of magic. The cut pieces of fabric hold themselves perfectly still in the air as several needles weave thread together at the seams. Alex moves his hands through the air gracefully, directing the flow of magic through the fabric and his tools to bring the base of the shirt to life. After a few minutes of work, the shirt - minus embellishments - is complete. The tailor plucks the garment out of the air, gives it a good once over with his eyes, then sets it down on his little desk before moving about the shop to collect secondary fabrics and some lace.

"Flashy enough for you?" he asks as he moves about, grinning to himself as he digs through several drawers near the far wall. The perfect embroidered lace must be here somewhere. Maybe something with a touch of gold? Hmm... he'll find you yet, perfect embellishments!

"Not the normal scenario I hear that claim in, but something tells me to believe you~" Molly was more than willing to hold still and let Alex get the measurements he needed, adjusting as the tailor asked if necessary but otherwise putting himself in those magical, capable hands.

As Alex busies himself with starting on the actual creation, Molly focuses at first on mopping up lingering bits of blood with kerchiefs plucked from a pocket in a rich wine color that would hide any potential stains rather well when washed, but his attention was quickly caught by the showy display that followed, a graceful sort of skill that was in some way as flamboyant as the tiefling was himself.

"I should say!" He replied with a laugh, applauding the unexpected show. "I can't say I expected a show coming into a tailor's shop and yet you have so handily delivered!"

And on top of that what he could see so far of the shirt was well-made and rather lovely in that silk Alex had chosen. Molly was definitely interested to see what the tailor had in store to bring it to completion.

Harley, meanwhile, is now skating around Alex's shopping, stopping to look at a few of his fabrics on display. While the tailor is occupied. She finds a few extra glittery ones, and puts little stickers on them. They are bright Yellow Happy Face stickers, that she has designed with her pigtails on them.

This is how she tells Alex what fabrics she likes, for next time he has one of her projects.

She pops a piece of bubblegum in her mouth, smiling as she sees Molly's reaction to the tailor's magic. She takes out a marker, and writes a little "Harley Quinn was here" on one of Alex's tables. Just to be a brat.

It is washable. So she adds a little heart design. And writes the initials M+A in it. With a playful grin on her face.

After all their time together, Alex is very used to Harley's particular flavor of antics. He'll roll his eyes at the marker when he finds it (that's so close to his fabrics, Harley, come on!), but otherwise brush it off. This is a very Harley thing to do and nothing was harmed in the process, therefore the tailor will happily let it go.

"It's my gift," he tells Molly as he retrieves what is finally the perfect lace. He knew he could find it in this shop of his! "Rather than practice more mundane magic, yours truly decided to create art for the rest of his life. It's far more interesting than the usual fireballs and various fancy to-dos you see from traditional mages. No offense to them, of course, but what I create is far more intriguing." Well, actually, he does mean offense, but only to those mages of his world. They were never any fun.

A few more minutes of much more careful magical sewing follow as Alex get the lace and other embellishments in place (gold thread for you, Molly, because if it's going to be fancy, it's going to be fancy), and then the tailor is exhaling a slightly tired, but still very happy, sigh as he retrieves the shirt from the air. He looks it over carefully, checking to make sure all of the seams look good and there's no loose threads, and then offers it to Molly with a smile.

"Give it a try. If it's uncomfortable or needs any adjustments at all, tell me now. I can't fix problems I don't know exist." He's fully confident in his abilities, but he'll always be a bit more cautious with first-time clients. The best way to get them coming back is to make sure they're happy before they leave his shop!

"A lovely gift indeed," Molly agreed, quite amused at the 'no offense' offense offered in that adorably proud sort of way. "I can certainly appreciate turning one's gifts towards such a wonderful calling."

And Alex was much more entertaining than one's typical wizard or sorcerer in Molly's experience, they were always so uptight and boring. The tiefling was aware of Harley's meandering path around the shop, casting a smile her way when she passes near but for the moment he'll just be admiring the tailor's magic. And be very approving of the embellishments, appreciative of that little detail of the gold thread, clear in his grin as he accepts the shirt.

"You sir are a god amongst men," Molly complimented him as he slipped the garment on, shifting it to settle as he cast about for the nearest mirror to get a gander at just what it looked like on him. "You're definitely going to be seeing more of me."

Harley rolls on back, and has a large roll of rose gold fabric with her, and she sets it down. She checks out the fabric carefully, and nods.

"While I am here, might as get several yards of this. For my aerial silks. So you know how I like it.... long as possible."

"You have to catch one of my shows, sometime, Molly. If you like the rollerskates, I am sure you would be thrilled with my act."

"Do go on. I love a good compliment thrown in my direction." Alex grins, unabashedly flirting with Molly at this point. There's been plenty coming in his direction that he hasn't given proper attention to, so now it's time to give it back!

Well, as much as he can anyway. Harley's needs must be met while she's here as well. He nods to the woman as he takes the fabric from her, then turns and tosses it into the air away from the pair currently in his shop. The whole of the bolt unravels from its cardboard base in front of them, and the tailor holds it in place in the air while he quickly works up a pair of aerial silks for Harley.

"This is a lovely choice of fabric. Do you have an outfit to go with this already?" He knows she makes her own much of the time, but if she needs some fabric for something to match while she's here... When the silks are properly crafted, he gathers them into a neat bundle and then offers them to Harley. "Anything I've got is yours to have, of course."

"An aerial silks show? Oh goodness I haven't seen a silks act since miss Faeth left our darling little carnival behind. I'd love to see your act Harley." He assured her, gaze brightening with interest. "You tell me where and when and I'll be there with bells on."

"And you," He exclaimed happily, turning his attention and beaming grin back onto Alex at that returned flirting. "Absolutely insatiable aren't you? Luckily there is plenty to compliment such a wondrously skilled tailor as yourself. Especially one that looks as lovely as you do." He winked as he said this, leaning to absently prop an elbow against a table, chin resting against a palm as he watched the next little display of that magic of Alex's as delightfully flamboyant as anything else he might find in the shop.

"I have a show at the Viper's Pit. Here...." She pulls out two VIP tickets and slides on to Molly, the other to Alex. "For a night off."

"As for an outfit... I have a really great pairs of shoes. Does that count?"

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