Tamora watched the mass of characters mill around the station as she sat on the bench outside the outlet of Fix-It Felix Jr. She and Felix had plans to game jump for their date that evening, but the handyman was running late. Tamora would have been fit to be tied if it wasn't for the message Wreck-It delivered. A ruptured pipe in one of the Niceland Apartments needed fixing, but Felix had to find where it was in the wall first.
Tamora didn't wish to cause any havoc walking into his game without Felix as a buffer. She'd had one encounter with the citizens of Niceland, and it was the most awkward experience she'd ever had in her programmed life. It didn't help that she had blasted in fully armored on her cruiser, scaring the living daylights out of two of the little women.
So, she opted to wait for him on the bench and people watch. Most people who walked by barely gave her a passing glance, but this one woman – a brunette looking like to a short Jessica Rabbit in her bright red dress – sauntered by, but her click-clack heels stopped. She turned to face Tamora, smiling as she walked over to her.
"Hi," the brunette greeted, lacing her fingers together in front of her, "are you new to the arcade?"
Tamora perked up, surprised by the question. No one else had bothered to even welcome her to the community. Tamora nodded. "Sergeant Tamora Calhoun of Hero's Duty. We've been plugged in for a few weeks now."
"Welcome to Litwak's. I'm Pauline. I'm from a game called Donkey Kong, but-" she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, eyes averting to the floor for a moment, "we were unplugged several years ago."
"Sorry about that," Tamora replied, awkwardly, not used to handing out sympathy.
"May sit and chat with you, if you don't mind the company?" Pauline asked. Tamora gestured to the empty spot next to her on the bench, and the brunette hopped up. "How do like our bustling community so far?"
Tamora shrugged. "It's alright. I've been doing a little exploring in different games. Learned a lot about Sugar Rush the first week I was plugged in."
"I heard about what happened!" Pauline gasped. "That would've been tragic if all those poor characters had lost their game. We're you the lady who helped save it?"
"Yep," Tamora sat back, casually, "all in a day's work."
"That means you met Felix and Ralph."
"Wreck-It was the reason for Sugar Rush almost getting eaten alive, but the big lug came through with getting rid of the cy-bugs and he helped restore royalty back to power. I guess he'd not that bad of a guy." Tamora nodded her chin to the outlet they sat by. "I'm actually waiting for Fix-It. We're going game jumping."
"Oh. Is it…a date?" Pauline asked, carefully, and Tamora wondered about her tone.
"You could call it that."
Pauline offered her a small smile. "Felix is a wonderful man. You're lucky to have him."
Tamora was about to question Pauline's sentiments when someone tapped her on the shoulder.
"I made it, my lady."
She smirked at her little handyman. "It's not like I missed you or anything."
Felix was about to retort when he noticed her companion. "Pauline!" He gave the brunette a hug. "I haven't seen you around in a while."
"Well, you have been a bit busy lately with your game's anniversary and helping to save Sugar Rush." Pauline gestured to Tamora. "Me and the Sergeant were getting to know each other."
Felix glanced from Pauline to Tamora, the surprise on his features not escaping Tamora's observant eye. "That's dandy to hear."
"I'll be on my way so you two can get to your outing." Pauline held out her hand for Tamora to shake. "It was nice meeting you." She leaned in, whispering something close to Tamora's ear. "Hold on tight to him, Sergeant. Don't let the Nicelanders bully you into letting go of what you care about; like they did with me."
As Pauline pulled back, she held Tamora's gaze and an understanding passed between the two women. It was evident that Felix and Pauline had a relationship once upon a time that had been sabotaged, and it sparked Tamora's curiosity about the handyman's past.
"Take good care of her, Junior," Pauline said before leaving a kiss on Felix's cheek and walking away.
Felix glanced up at his date, "What did you gals chat about?"
"Just introductions." As she grasped his hand and they walked away, Tamora added, "You have a story to tell me."