femslash feb 2022 prompt 28: rainbow.
Midday's Refraction
It wasn't that Lizzie disliked the sunshine. She simply preferred the coolness of the forest shade and the air-conditioned indoors over her skin baking on a hot, humid, cloudless day. Any rational vampire would have agreed with her, even if the temperate climate surrounding the Motherlobe was preferable to the burning cement streets and corporate offices back home.
Still, Lizzie avoided loitering under the sun, and as a brand new junior Psychonaut agent, she found herself enjoying the highlights of sorting through paperwork. Boring and trite as it was to file missions from older agents, it was a step up from running around the Quarry and the Questionable Area seeking an animal to drag back to Compton, who, in her opinion, hadn't taught her anything memorable.
So, there she was leaning back in her seat balancing a pencil on her upper lip. It tilted from left, right, and left again. It reminded Lizzie of the plain wooden chair she sat on, rocking from side to side on its back legs. As she listened to the repetitive sound of other agents typing away and the occasional hum from a computer, Lizzie puckered her lips and puffed out like a horse, the pencil falling off onto her lap.
An agent leered at her from his cubicle before returning to his work. The pencil-pushers were far pushier than she imagined. Any distraction earned their ire, which she supposed was understandable. The sheer volume of documents towering on their cramped desks spoke for themselves, and she had barely started sifting through her own stack that seemed larger every time she glanced at it.
Lizzie lifted her pencil. She directed her finger to the desk and watched as it rolled across the keyboard. When it landed next to her mouse, she slouched in her seat and sighed. Apathy had crept up on her faster than she expected. While she wasted away in an office, she was certain her fellow Junior Psychonauts were at least entertained elsewhere. Adam and Gisu were still receiving training from their mentors. Morris was probably neglecting his responsibilities and scheduling new acts for K.L.O.B. As for Raz and Norma, Hollis had taken them aside to prepare them for their first genuine mission as Junior Psychonauts, and the trio would be leaving in the evening.
And then, there was Sam. She was a curious case. Her mentorship had been unproductive in Lizzie's opinion, even if Sam insisted she somehow gleaned knowledge from the coach. Then, she had monopolized the Lumberstack Diner for herself and her animal workers. If Lizzie was a gambling girl, and she swore to never become one after the casino mission, then she'd stake her chips on the fact that Sam was still laboring and cooking the hours away in the damp, mildewed restaurant that hadn't seen a customer in years.
It was probably better than paperwork. At least Lizzie could sneer at the animals that had scorned her when she tried delivering one of them to Compton. Imagining herself freezing that particular goat's hooves to the floor elicited a chuckle from under her breath, which she deemed suitable revenge for slighting her in the woods.
But as she fantasized about an act of revenge she would never enact, a shadow crossed over her. Her head snapped to the side, a gasp escaping her. She stiffened in her seat, narrowing her eyes only to quickly relax, easing the tension in her shoulders, her heartbeat slowing to normal.
Sam stood next to her. She had no idea how long she had been present. Sam simply stared at her with her familiar blank expression, breaking into a smile when Lizzie finally looked at her.
"Sam," she began, raking her fingers through her hair, "what the heck, man? Do you like sneaking up on people and giving them heart attacks?"
"Eh, it gets the job done. I mean, look." Sam turned invisible, then reappeared. "We can turn invisible. Ain't that something?"
Lizzie poked the inside of her mouth with her tongue. Flicking her attention to her paperwork, she shrugged. "I guess so. What brings you over here? You need a goat for me to lug somewhere like your grandpa did?"
Sam snickered only to gasp. All traces of amusement drained from her face. Mustering every ounce of seriousness, she exclaimed, "We don't have time for jokes! Come on!"
Wiggling her arms, she seized Lizzie's wrist and hauled her out of her seat. Lizzie yelped, almost stumbling over Sam's shorter frame. Sam dashed through the maze of cubicles toward the entrance, not bothering to give Lizzie an explanation even when she shouted.
They hurried out to the landing pad for a reason beyond Lizzie's comprehension. Immediately, she was hit with a ray of sun that forced her eyes into a squint. She groaned and shielded her gaze, her skin prickling at the onslaught of heat. She assumed it was nearly a hundred degrees out, mentioning as much to Sam through her gritted teeth, and as she anticipated, Sam didn't answer.
"You know, vampires can't survive when they're forced to be in the sunlight. What's the deal, Sam?" she huffed only to frown when Sam broke into an impish grin. "What? Spit it out. I'd rather keep balancing a pencil on my lip than spend another minute frying like an egg."
Sam blinked. "You don't see it? Really?"
Her question threw Lizzie off her rhythm. She glanced around the landing pad, finding the familiar structures of the rocky Quarry and the entrance to the Geodesic Psychoisolation Chamber. A few squirrels scurried away from Sam, who sighed when they rejected her friendly greeting. Other than the appearance of a couple of critters, nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
Sam heaved out a deep sigh. "Norma says I'm airheaded, but you take the cake," she muttered.
Lizzie snorted and crossed her arms. "What? Nothing looks different. Are you gonna tell me something is happening right under my nose?"
"Exactly." Sam snatched Lizzie's hand and tugged her over to the edge of the pad to face the peaceful lake filling the Quarry. There, she waved her arm and said, "Look at it. It's all around us, and it's literally happening right under your nose."
Although her words had been used against her, Lizzie didn't feel a trickle of irritation. Instead, she found herself in a state of wonder. Bemused by what she was witnessing, she swallowed, feeling Sam's grip on her hand tighten.
Colors streaked across the lake. Their vibrant hues glistened on the small waves. The sunlight reflected at just the right angles to form a multitude of rainbows cascading across the clear, tranquil water.
If Lizzie had stayed inside, then she would have missed a sight too gorgeous for the imagination. And Sam, for a reason she couldn't fathom, had taken Lizzie out to see it with her.
"This is amazing," Lizzie breathed out. "It's way better when they're not on crappy little puddles. Makes 'em look like oil spills."
Sam chuckled and nodded to herself. "Yep, I knew you'd like it. You're the kind of girl who'd appreciate the rainbow."
She arched an eyebrow. "Oh, yeah? Why's that? I sure don't dress the part." She tugged at her hazard tape belt for emphasis. "What chick wears stuff like this and likes rainbows? A fraud is who."
Sam smiled. Without any hesitation, she replied, "Cause it's pretty just like you."
Her quips and sarcasm failed her. Sam's honesty melted the ice around her heart. She felt it skip a beat, skip a beat, like she was a schoolgirl in front of her crush. She tried working her jaw, but even when she sharply cracked it, she couldn't form the words she wanted to say.
Sam suddenly plopped down on her bottom. She pulled Lizzie with her, who almost slipped off the edge. Sam sidled closer to her, keeping Lizzie's hand clasped in her lap, and she gazed at the lake, humming tunelessly.
Even though Lizzie felt a trickle of sweat moisten her brow, she didn't mind. The coolness in Sam's palm and the temperate, kaleidoscopic waves lapping against the pad soothed her complaints. If she had to sit and simmer under the sun like the comparable egg, if Sam was with Lizzie resting her head on her shoulder, then she'd gladly turn to dust.
