Scene #8127: PNL: Stanley and Charlotte Meet a Child

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Caelan Stuart	You know what the trouble is about being a cop? You know, aside from dealing with a terrible public image in a lot of places throughout the Multiverse. ...And the paperwork... ......And the being a largely mundane law enforcer in a sector of timespace where apocalyptic threats regularly manifest out of perfectly ordinary-looking missing persons cases...... It's simple: Sometimes, you're out driving your daughter back from a lacrosse game (because this is /Lampport/ you tell /me/ that they don't have a bunch of inexplicably well-funded lacrosse teams) when suddenly your phone rings and you get called in to immediately head to yet another hyperviolent crime scene. Such is the case now. "...Was that work?" Alice Stuart is a young lady who can't be any older than twelve. She has smooth, very nearly straight blonde hair that curls ever so slightly up at the ends. Her bright blue eyes have seen better days, and there's a tinge of disappointment at the corners of her mouth. Her father sighs and nods, "Yeah... Sorry honey, they're asking me to come in right away. We're going to have to make a stop on the way home. Sorry, it's an emergency." "It's okay," it's not okay, but she forces herself to smile anyway. It's not as though she had much in the way of plans tonight anyway, but it meant that she'd probably be having takeout alone... again. It wasn't that long ago that they'd been having dinners together as a family, but then... Well. Nobody can help that, can they? "I'll be okay," she insists, pulling a sticker-festooned smartphone out of a pocket. It's got a great big ULTRA JACK sticker right next to the camera on the phone's back. "I can just hang out on The Reversal while you do your thing! It'll be fine!" For some reason, her father's expression only grows more complicated, but he smiles through it and nods, before opening up his own phone. He punches a number on speeddial and presses it to the side of his face. "Stanley, I need a favor." After all, he can't just... leave his daughter alone with that app near the murder scene. Who knows whether someone might be able to track her through it, or something. Or whether something might pop out of it, or worse, drag her /into/ it. No. There's only one person he can trust to keep an eye on her while he's busy. Besides, this way she doesn't have to see dead bodies. ...Very messy dead bodies, as it happens. A few minutes later, Caelan's car (an eminently economical blue hatchback) is parked about a half block away from a rat's nest of police tape and a disco inferno of flashing red and blue lights. A sign hangs half-strung from an utterly wrecked storefront: 'The Brothers Tending.' A car has smashed straight through the porch and outdoor seating area and through the front of the restaurant. It's... It's a mess. There are ambulances. At least one of them is heading straight for the morgue. ...And Alice Stuart is peering up over her smartphone towards the almost hypnotic flashing lights... Hopefully someone comes to attend to her before she gets too curious. Her father told her that /someone/ would be coming to keep an eye on her while he was busy, but... She doesn't need a babysitter at her age, does she? She's plenty independent! She's been able to take care of herself just fine for two years now!!
Stanley Padgett	Stanley is happy to take this call, at least on paper. One: despite his general "1312" and "Fuck the Police", at least Detective Stuart hasn't proven to be a shithead to him. Heck, he even helped at a case. Two: Despite John's assistance that he's going to just get into the way, Stanley has this inkling that there's more going on here. Three: Stanley is decent with other kids. You have to be, when you're bounced from family to family, around the world, dumped in with Aunts and Uncles and Others and other kid-having situations. It's not long that someone is leaning up against the side of the car. Someone lanky and gangly, wearing a Silver Springs school uniform with horrendously aqua hair. "Ahoy ahoy. I'm Stanley. You must be Alice?" The young man peeks into the window and smiles. "I'm uh... I know your dad."
Charlotte Newman	Not terribly far from the car that Stanley leans up against is a girl of about the same age; in a girl's version of the Silver Springs uniform. Charlotte has foregone her usual pink purse for a chique black handbag large enough to carry schoolbooks. Her attention is on the nest of police tape and cars with lights half a block away, a little frown on her face. Glancing down at her phone, she opens up the gallery and flips through some pictures until she reaches a handful of selfies of herself in a window seat right there at Brothers Tending. From a few days ago, of course. "Jeez," the girl closes her eyes, tucking her phone away and closing the last few steps to join the boy she must have been walking home with. Swinging her bag to hang behind herself from both hands, she leans forward enough to peer around Stanley's body, "And I'm Charlotte, nice to meet you."
Caelan Stuart	How many Lost Children can one town have? More than expected, when you consider what really goes down behind the scenes in Lampport. How many parents have simply ceased to be, or have gotten themselves murdered, because of one wish or another? At least Detective Stuart has managed to survive somehow, thus far. He's thankful over the phone, apparently the emergency was awful enough to call in off-duty detectives to help out. Too many are being assigned elsewhere to deal with other potential murders, the LPD is stretched thin. Someone leans on the side of the car with a surprisingly soft thunk. Alice blinks and peers over, eyes widening in... fear? Surprise? Her eyes seem to be fixed on... ...His hair...!? "Oh... oh!" Just like in her animes!? Uh, hold on. "H-hi! I'm Alice-- oh but you knew that already. Uh. Ahem...!" She coughs into a tiny fist. "It's nice to meet you. Sorry dad had to call you all the way out here, I keep telling him I can take care of myself. Um--" Oh, there's a super classy lady* there, too! Alice peers between the two and unbuckles her seatbelt to get a better look. "...Oh! I see, I see, I get it..." Dad only called one, but two showed up, and they look close, so... Clearly, they're dating*!! (relatively) (**she's a twelve year old girl, of course she's going to start shipping anyone she meets)
Stanley Padgett	The lanky guy has little regard for these sorts of things, seeing as he immediately Figured Out that Rita was dating Lilian but now is not and- Stanley smiles. "Yeah, well. I'm ust a little sorry we had to meet at a crime scene." He glances over at the taped off scene, and then down at the sedan of the detective. "But yeah, I guess we're your chaperones for a bit. I'm surprised your Dad didn't have like... a junior officer partner to foist onto you or something." That's how that usually works, isn't it?" Stanley looks to Charlotte, and then over his shoulder at the wrecked bistro and then back to Charlotte peeking at her phone. Yeah, it's getting bad.
Charlotte Newman	Charlotte coses her eyes with a little smile, "You do? Then I think we can be friends, too." She straightens her posture, lifting a hand to nudge some hair back over her ear, "He's a detective, does he even have a partner? Junior or otherwise?" She glances back at the crime scene, "...Then again, with all this going on, even if he did they're probably super busy, too." She glances at Stanley, her voice lower, "I'll take a look at it later." On the Reverse side. By the look on her face, however brief, it's clear she already knows what she's likely to find. But back to the girl of the hour! "Would you like to get a snack or something, Alice? It's my treat," Her free hand lifts, gesturing in the direction opposite of all the police activity, "We can hang out a bit while your dad gets his work done."
Caelan Stuart	"Oh, it's okay. It's good to meet you both anyway! Used to be, dad would call Uncle Paine to watch me, but..." Alice's eyes dart this way and that-- conspiratorially...? "Well... I think dad and Officer Paine had a real bad argument few months ago? Ever since then, he's been kind of going around on his own. I haven't seen Uncle Paine in a while..." So Caelan had an... issue a few months ago, it seems? Something that put him on the outs with his old partner... Weeeird... But then: The opportunity for snacks! Alice's eyes brighten up like, instantaneously. "Oh, sure! Thank you very much! Is there anywhere we can get ice cream? Or something? I'm sure dad wouldn't care!" (After all, he's the one who brought this upon all of their heads).
Stanley Padgett	Stanley smiles, and then nods. "I'm sure we can findyou something. This is the nice part of town, after all, and Charlotte here knows all the good places." Stanley grins, and shifts his duffle bag a bit on his shoulders as he glances around again. This WAS the swanky side of two, wasn't it? The perfect place for the Ripper to set up. Though... They still hadn't found the location of that Wish. That's going to make things hard, won't it? He shakes his head, and then taps the top of the car twice. "So long as its in the opposite direction of the crime scene, I'm sure Detective Stuart won't mind."
Charlotte Newman	"And you can just text him where we're going," Charlotte offers to Stanley, "Jerry Can is only a block away." Most easily described as an 'ice cream bar' that's more funny than fancy. Mostly because the eponymous Jerry has done everything possible to make this place feel like an ultra upscale five star restaurant. Except all they serve is ice cream and despite the ritzy decor, the place has a very casual feel to it. Business is slow right now, no doubt in part due to people being spooked by the recent events and also the crash that occurred not terribly far from here. It's easy enough to get a table by the window. Charlotte herself only asks for a milkshake, but makes it quite clear Alice and Stanley can order whatever they like. "Was Uncle Paine fun to hang out with?" she asks, "I'm guessing he's less a real uncle and more a friend of your dad's."
Caelan Stuart	Anything to keep his daughter away from yet /more/ trauma. Nobody needs to go through the sort of thing that a police detective in this town does, and that goes double for people under driving age. Caelan would probably insist on reimbursing Alice's snack-bill later, though. If he finds out about it. Alice has purchased something called a 'Pink Panther Sundae.' In reality it looks like some kind of relative of a milkshake, only festooned with extra whipped cream, dark chocolate sprinkles and a heaping helping of sliced strawberries. It is also possibly too large for one small girl to eat, but... She's A) A growing girl, and B) just got out of Lacrosse practice, and is thus h u n g r y. "So gooood~" Alice chirps around a mouthful of sweet, strawberry-y delight. "Mmph. Thanks so much, Charlotte! You're the best!" Even if she /doesn't/ look as much like one of her anime characters. Apparently 'paid for ice cream' gets you a rung higher than that in Alice's good books. "Oh, uh. Yeah, Uncle Paine was dad's partner. He helped out a lot after mom died, so it was really sad when he stopped coming around. I guess he and dad's argument was pretty bad..." There's an uncertainty in her eyes that suggests she might know what the argument was about, but... it's a little well-hidden right now by Delicious Ice Cream Radiance. Also: "Soooo..." Oh no, she has a catface. How does she have a catface, she's only twelve. "...Did dad catch you two smooching or something...?"
Stanley Padgett	Stanley gets himself what's labeled as a "Misty Mountain Gorge" which turns out to be some sort of float, but with one of the house made soda spritzers, with blue moon ice cream for the base. It is pure sugar, an Stanley will be feeling it later. "Sorry to hear that, I know that there's been a lot of rough times in Lampport recently, even with all the big businesses mov-" Smooching. Stanley's cheeks turn slightly pink, which looks silly with the aqua hair, and he coughs on his Bespoke Sugar Explosion. "No, actually. Would you believe we're both hardened criminals? Oh yeah, on probation, in and out of Juvie." Stanley recovers and activates COOL KID MODE. "I go by the name Brick Hamface, and I rob safes." Stanley, please.
Charlotte Newman	Alice mentions her mom's death and Charlotte recoils just enough to be noticeable, before glacing down, "I'm sorry, I didn't know." Parent things seem to hit her pretty good, given the anxieties she's shared with Stanley it makes some amount of sense. Smooching. The reserved, guilty expression on her face disappears, replaced with an intense pokerface. She raises her hands to defend her honor when Stanley takes the most ridiculous possible escape route imaginable instead. The result is just her staring at him with a face that clearly asks 'Are you for real?' "Well, the 'ham' part is accurate at least," she eventually gets out, "We met at one of the Reversal hangouts and attend some of the same classes. We're friends." Eyes opening, she shifts the subject, "Your dad did save me from a bad person recently though. That's how I met him." Gesturing, she adds, "He probably busted Stanley-- what was it, robbing a safe?"
Caelan Stuart	>Brick Hamface. Stanley Padgett, hero extraordinaire, attempts to lie to a tweenager. It is... of questionable efficacy. She's peering at him with squinted eyes and slightly pouted lips. You can almost /hear/ the sound effect in the air. That long, drawn out 'jiiiiii.....' But somehow Charlotte confirms(???) it. Alice tilts her head, still not QUITE convinced she didn't just catch these two flirterers in a kissing crime. But she knows better than to press (it would be impolite). "Oh, that makes sense. Dad's always doing that kind of thing. He has awards, you know...!" (Aside from Best Dad, that is). "Oh... but don't worry about mom. It was a little while ago now." It is most absolutely Not Fine, but Alice is putting on a brave face, because that's the kind of girl she is. "Dad's the one who's been really shaken up about it, though... I'm worried. I think maybe he's dealing with too much stuff at work, you know...?"
Stanley Padgett	Stanley sighs as Charlotte busts his cover of being Cool Crime Boy, and stuffs some more ice cream in his face. "He also did a round at school as Officer Friendly after Dr. Hunnicutt got fired, just to make sure that all of the kids were okay, that's how I met him." Stanley makes sure he texts that one to Detective Stuart to make sure he's on the same page. I mean, he probably WAS there, but maybe not as 'Officer Friendly'. He rubs the bridge of his nose as Alice goes on about her mom and then grumbles. "...I know how that is, I lost my mom when I was really little You're lucky your dad is taking it well. Mine didn't." He spoons more into his face, and then looks to Charlotte again. Smooching crimes, really?
Charlotte Newman	Charlotte glances at Stanley when he relates some of his situation. With a sigh, she admits, "I never see my parents. They're always gone on business, so I basically live by myself." Eyes opening, she leans a bit towards Alice, "You're very strong, I'm sure your dad relies on you a lot. Support him as best you can, okay?" "With all the trouble happening lately," She adds, "He's sure to be working like mad to solve the case." Something is bothering her, though. After a moment with her milkshake, Charlotte rests her elbows on the table, "Say, Alice... You mentioned a fight between your dad and mister Paine. Do you know what it was about?"
Caelan Stuart	Stanley being Cool Crime Boy is impossible, sadly. Even the twelve year old can see through the Cool Facade. "Ohhh, I remember that," Alice says with a nod. "He was real worried about all of you guys then. I hear from my friend's big sis that something reaaaally weeeird happened over there." She wiggles her fingers at that to emphasize the spookiness. Wiggle wiggle. (Caelan might also have been around on occasion to sub in for the local Don't Do Drugs copdutainment. He's been around the community quite a bit, but you probably wouldn't know to look for him if you didn't already know his face.) "...Mm. Dad does his best to take care of me too, but I'm trying to make sure he doesn't have to worry." Alice pumps her fists cheerfully, "If he doesn't have to worry, then he'll do his job better, right? And that means he can come home more!" O o f. The topic turns to the fight again. Alice pauses, her exuberance seems to shrivel a little as she spins her spoon around in her cup. "...Well... Yeah, I know. But you have to promise not to tell anyone else if I tell you, okay?"
Stanley Padgett	That admission from Alice gets Stanley to perk, and he hmms. "I heard they never figured out what it was that Dr. Hunnicutt had done to those kids, or if he was even involved..." He glances to Charlotte and swirls his spoon at the bottom of hiss now-empty sundae cup. It's as good a chance as any to judge what it is the rest of the general public knows about The Events. Though, as he's asked to promise, Stanley lifts up his pinky, and looks seriously at Alice. He knows the rules.
Charlotte Newman	Charlotte nods once, eyes closed, "That whole thing was just freaky-mysterious. I try not to stay late at school anymore if I can help it." When Stanley looks her way, she glances back, then returns her attention to the girl who is now visibly distressed. "It's okay," she says, her voice quieter, "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to." She does however reach out, extending her pinkie the same way Stanley is, "But I promise it'll be just between the three of us, if you do." And maybe John. Does it count if the person she tells technically doesn't exist? She'll consult with Stanley on that one later.
Caelan Stuart	Alice looks conflicted. Whatever this is, it's something that clearly didn't just unsettle Officer Paine. But... These two older kids... have unleashed a weapon that none can just ignore: the pinky promise. And not just any old ordinary pinky promise, but... A DOUBLE PINKY PROMISE. Alice fixes their extended digits with a wary stare. But she seems to muster up the courage, and reaches out to clasp them with her own pinkies...! And thus The Pact is Sealed. Breaking it will result in an optional mid-game boss fight against Nebiros and Belial. So, like, don't??? "...Okay. Well. Dad thought I was in bed, but I'd snuck out to get some water and saw him and Uncle Paine arguing..." Her lip trembles and... tears start to well up. "Dad... H-he was saying something about mom being alive, or... or that she /was/ alive, that he'd seen mom just the other day. Uncle Paine tried to get him to calm down but dad... dad got angry. Really, /really/ angry...!" She shakes, drawing her hands back to wipe at her eyes, "...He said some really awful things, and Uncle Paine took him outside. Dad came back after bit, but Uncle Paine hasn't been back around since..." She sniffs again, rubbing her eyes, "Uncle Paine came to ask me if I was okay, later. I said I was, but... I don't know what made dad act like that. Mom's been gone for two years, there's no way he could have seen her... Could there?"
Stanley Padgett	Stanley very seriously completes the pinky promise, before sitting back in to listen... And then nearly immediately moving over to sit next to Alice as she starts to cry and relieve the incident. No no no no little girls crying is his bane. "Oh... oh no. Oh I'm sorry to hear that Alice. I... I'm sure there's a good explanation or something." And while Alice is looking down and rubbing her eyes, she looks straight at Charlotte. Well that's the reason the Detective's connected.
Charlotte Newman	If Charlotte felt bad before, she definitely feels bad now. She made a little girl cry. Much like Stanley, Charlotte shifts her seating to be closer to Alice, tentaively placing a hand on her upper back. She doesn't say anything beyond this gentle indication that she's Listening and Here. She casts a look past Alice to Stanley though, a very clear 'We will have to talk later' look. Though not necessarily the 'You are in trouble' look. After all, Charlotte is the one who asked, she wouldn't try to put the blame on her scraggly friend here. It's probably more related to how Officer Stuart reacted when they let slip to him what it is they actually do in the Reversal. "Sometimes friends fight," she finally says, her tone quiet, "And that's OK. I'm sure everything will work out alright in the end. And Stanley and I will be here to help you if you want. You don't have to take this all on alone."
Caelan Stuart	Making little girls cry is one thing. What one does after making little girls cry is another entirely. The former can be done with surprising ease, the latter is a sign of character. And in any case, Alice isn't quite 'little' anymore. Though she's still very much younger than the two of them. She sobs into her sleeves for a while longer, and it's an absolute miracle from whatever divinity you choose to believe in that Caelan doesn't walk in at this EXACT MOMENT. That would have been, as the kids say, awkward as heck. Instead, there's an abundance of time to comfort a crying tween. Stanley can feel her nod through the sobs, but it's what Charlotte says that gets her to stop and look up with swollen eyes. "Y-you really mean that?" She's still for a moment, before lunging forward with a full-armed hug. It's aimed at Charlotte at first, but she's soon wrapping Stanley in on it too. At some astral level of meta-reality, there's a sense of something changing. Perhaps an intertwining of fates. Perhaps something else. Regardless, a bond has been forged today. <SOCIAL LINK UNLOCKED - The Girl at the Threshold - DEATH XIII> She stays like that for a while, but soon she remembers that she has ice cream that's melting, and returns to sip quietly at it. She still sniffles periodically, but it's clear that the worst is past.
Stanley Padgett	Stanley receives a HUG and something more that he'll have to explore later but... He's the older kid in this scenario, and there's only one correct thing to to when being hugged like this. Hug back, apply headpats. "Hey, kiddo. We pinky promised, right?" Stanley pets Alice's hair for as long as she's clinging to him, and then murmurs. "...We're helping your dad solve stuff, right? By being here with you. And maybe we can help him more directly later, right?" When Alice relents, Stanley looks to his own empty glass and murmurs. "...Your dad's better than mine is, that's for sure. He seems like a good guy, and..." Stanley sets his own jaw, and looks into his cup. No more words.
Charlotte Newman	Charlotte is absolutely here right now to support, and she keeps gently patting Alice's back as the girl starts calming down. She nods once with a little smile, "Yeah." And then suddenly hugs! She brings her hands up out of the way briefly in surprise and soon finds herself returning the gesture, a light embrace with both arms, "...Yeah." Charlotte releases when Alice moves on to hug Stanley, bringing her own hand up to stifle a little laugh. "You really can be gallant when you try, huh?" A little needling at her friend as she sips at her milkshake, "But I agree. I don't mind putting some extra work in to help out." It is, after all, basically what they're already doing. After a moment, she perks up, "Oh, Alice, do you play Reversal? We can friend-list each other if you want. You can borrow my Officelady Witch any time."
Caelan Stuart	Headpats are given! BOND LEVEL UP!! Okay it's probably not quite that easy, but in spite of her protests to the contrary, Alice is absolutely still of the age to appreciate headpats, especially in an emotional moment. She sniffs one more time, "We did... So make sure to keep it, okay Mr. Hamface?" Stanley is: Never living that down. Ever. Alice placates herself with a mouthful of strawberry goodness before taking a moment to properly wipe off her face and blow her nose to erase any evidence that this whole thing even happened. That way, Charlotte and Stanley get off scot free with her dad. Hooray! She nods, "Dad... please help him if you can. Even if it's just small things like making it so he doesn't have to worry about me." Alice smiles, even if the sentiment is still kind of sad. "He works really, really hard for me. I'm sure your dad works hard for you too, big bro..." The words of a child can cut like a knife. But at least she's yanked away from pursuing that line of thought (and leaves Stanley with the TERRIBLE REALIZATION that he has earned a certain status), because Charlotte is sharing friend codes. "Oh! Yeah for sure! You can borrow my Mister Redsuit and Mister Blacksuit whenever, too! They might not be very helpful if you don't have their partner... But they'll try their best for you anyway!" FRIEND LIST GET.
Stanley Padgett	Stabbed absolutely through the heart, is Stanley Padgett. The young man takes a breath and then nods. "He sure does work hard, yeah." But he lets the rest of that go to the wayside as he shifts to share friend codes as well. "Oh, I've got... hold on, who IS my support right now?" He fiddles with his game, sending his code, and then ah-ing. "Still getting used to playing with friends, I've got the Mr. Chief promo guy you got for drinking a bunch of Oyabun coffee. Not sure how they swung that collab, but I found a bunch of the old cans with the codes still attached, sooooo." So now Alice will get an Office Lady and Alien Disguised As An Old Guy. "...And we'll try our best for your dad, too."
Charlotte Newman	"Redsuit and Blacksuit, huh?" Charlotte touches her lips in thought as she taps in the friend code, "I don't think I ever had a chance to field them. I'll treat them with care." Closing one eye, she glances at Stanley, "Oh, resourceful. I should've known people would throw those away without using them." Shaking her head, she confesses, "I tried it the regular way, but just didn't like their coffee enough to finish." Talking about this silly game is a nice way to decompress after some heavy subjects and emotional turmoil, she realizes. But it could easily be seen as tonedeaf. If she does this again, it's got to be timed right. "Mm," Charlotte nods once while making that understanding sound, "I absolutely will hold that promise. We'll help him out however we can. I've already got a few ideas in mind, even..!" Which might sound a bit distracted as she's realized she hadn't done today's dailies yet, and as a result, is still poking at her phone.