Rabbit Hole Carnival: Not Replaceable

“Tea all made!” Susie said. Barging to Renee’s rooms.

“Oh so you’re all here? Renee asked. “My space is just headquarters now.”

“I seem to remember complaining about you all the same,” Joshua said. “So perhaps we both grown?”

“You have an entire upstairs, and me to a shambled home.” Renee replied. “It’s not the same thing.”
“Why not?” Joshua asked.

“You’re not serious?” Renee said. “Because you left first, Jojo. Because I told i dunno how many times, and you just—”

“Up and left,” Susie replied. “ I missed Renee, and I’m still mad at her. But she did what had to survive, you could’ve rejoined at any time. You just didn’t.”

“Honestly, I deserved to be kicked out.” Renee said. “I may have made the thing, but I abandoned what it stood for.”

“So you would’ve told me no when I first asked Nick about you?” Cel asked.

“Of course not.” Renee said. “I was happy as ever when he found you. And learn you've been looking for number 4 all this time.”

“You like being number 4, and fit you.” Cody said. “But that doesn’t mean you weren’t vital.”

“Was that the whole point?” Susie asked. “ We couldn’t be the ‘Occultic Five’ without all five.”

“Even Joshua, here,” Cel said. “The Occultic Four would never sound as nice.”

“Yet I bring nothing to the table.” Joshua replied.

“You bring more than me and Susie.” Renee said.

“Agreed.” Susie replied.

“You two can’t be serious what—” Joshua started.

“I bring tea, and a good mixture of it to the table.” Susie said. “Hardly worth the trouble. Renee could take the spot if she wanted.”

“I can spot drinks that passes people out.” Renee replied. “That’s hardly much to write home about.”

“Renee, you could win a Nobel prize, and it would be nothing to write home about.” Cody said.

“That’s not true.” Cel said. “Nick would hang that up on the wall in a heart beat.”

“No, Cody has a point.” Renee replied. “I could, in fact, win a Nobel prize, and I am still here thinking I didn’t earn it some nights.”

“Aren’t you like super proud of some old inspection paper?” Cel asked. 

“Well yeah, but that’s different.” Renee. “And before any of you start, yes it is. I know Travis. I talked to Travis, and I know what I ran away from. And remain proud of doing so, a Nobel prize is just someone who knows next to nothing about the amount of work you actually did giving you a medal.”

“You would think of it that way.” Susie replied. “Move over.”

Renee complied, and got a kettle. “We don’t have anything ‘fancier’ miss I could take your place.”

“Shut up.” Susie said with a playful nudge back. “Not a kettle gonna limit me anyways.”

“Would you two stop—” Joshua tried to inject only for Cody to cover his mouth.

 “Just let them do this, Jojo.” Cody said. “We both know it is not the first time.”

“Odd that you of all people noticed that, Cody.” Cel replied. “Though I yield, Joshua, it is a bit strange.”
Joshua pushes Cody’s arm away. “A negative times a negative, I suppose. I’m just wondering why they do it at all.”

Cel stared at Renee and Susie both clearly lost in their own little world about drink mixing. Squabbling about things that would complete nonsense to 99 percent of the population. “Because it reminds them, I think. It's their little way of keeping each other in check.”

“Yeah?” Cody asked. “How?”

“Do you understand even a quarter of what either are arguing about right?” Joshua asked. “Neither are replaceable. And as annoying as I find it, Cel’s right. And knowing those two? They’ll both have made a new drink out of this. In two days tops.”