HALO 183: The Not Remotely Gritty Reboot

[Reinholdt]

[Vet Visit]

Rein will start to rub Carlie's back gently to help her calm down. This doesn't last particularly long, however, as she drops a third bomb on him. Second? The first was something of a false alarm. Reinholdt stiffens and pulls back, hands going to hold her shoulders as he looks into her eyes, searching them. He had to know if she was certain. If she was telling the truth, and now that doubt was there. Not that she was pregnant, but whether he was the father. A dozen different identities could have a dozen different boyfriends and Carlie could be cherry picking the 'father' she thinks would be her and the child's best shot. A few minutes ago, he'd have never thought she'd be capable of something like that, but now...

"You're sure?" Of course she is. Rein lets go, feeling his legs get weak as he leans back onto the desk, sitting on it for support. "Wow." If she was lying, wouldn't he find out after the child had been born? He had some fairly distinctive DNA. Though perhaps a shapeshifter's child could be molded to whatever the mother wished. Rein didn't know. "Just... Wow." He wanted to believe her.
Those tears soaked into his shoulder felt genuine. But he had been lied to before too by others.

"That's wonderful." Rein... Rein just had to give her the benefit of the doubt. For now. For her. And her child. Did it actually matter whether it was his or not? "At least I think it is. Unexpected. But wonderful," Rein says voice still muted in a daze and now much more thoroughly staring at Carlie's extended belly, as if noticing it for the first time.

A thought strikes him and his gaze slowly shifts backs up. "I-I mean, it could be. Have you thought about what you want to do with it?" Carlie mentioned side effects already and it was possible that she meant carrying the child to term was dangerous for her.

[5a Violista]

[Vet Visit]

Carlie could, in fact, mold her child to be however she wished. She could even do it after the child was born, if she really wanted to. In fact, that's exactly what her own mother did, which is why doing it would leave a bad taste in her mouth.

Because he's really the only guy she's 'hooked up' with in more than a decade, it doesn't cross her mind whether she needs to address the whole 'hey how many different boyfriends do you have anyway' question. Then again, even if she did address it, he'd have no more reason to believe it than her previous statement she made that he's the father. After all, she has been lying about basic things and there's probably dozens more things that she hasn't told the whole truth about...and, to be honest, probably even a DNA test would be inconclusive.

"Yeah, it was unexpected," she agrees. She thought she had taken measures to prevent it from happening, but...stress got to her, she supposes, and she messed up. She paces a bit more.

"Obviously, I'm going to keep it," she says, sidestepping all the possible dangers. But what if he doesn't want it and is just saying it's wonderful because that's what you say when someone's pregnant? "B-but it's okay," the bunnygirl then adds. "You don't have to do anything, it's fine."

[Morty]

[Felandria's Office]

Felandria's phone will ring. The caller seems to be Wenomir, so whatever it is is likely important.

[Reinholdt]

[Vet Visit]

If science can't prove the truth, what can?

Probably a Zone of Truth.

Reinholdt stands back up when she tries to insist he doesn't have to do anything. "What? No. Of course I have to. I mean I don't have to. But I want to." Reinholdt assures her now that she's assured him she wants to keep the baby.

He reaches out to try and take her hand in his and squeeze it. "If you let me, I want to be there for you. For it." There's an insistence there that's almost pleading, as if Rein expects he wouldn't be allowed in the child's life. That somehow begging is the last chance he has. Even if it wasn't actually his and this was all a lie, this was the first real opportunity he's had to actually help raise one of his children.

[5a Violista]

[Vet Visit]

Yeah, probably.
Either that, or more science.

Carlie's hand is grabbed.

Seriously, pleading? Begging? He's got to be exaggerating. So, she laughs. One thing she likes about him is how funny he is. "Yeah, of course. If that's what you want."

Once she's done laughing, she decides to say something more serious: "Just...just so you know, the pregnancy isn't exactly going to be easy on me," she says, "and considering just the genetics from me, the first few years are going to be tough, too. And that's before even considering what being one-twenty-second fairy will do." Because he's one-eleventh will-o-the-wisp.

And! She doesn't even have any idea what sort elf or bunnygirl or mermaid or magical girl or that entropy magic that caused the whole problem in the first place, or anything like that will have on the genetics. Like...she might just have to wait to find out.

[Reinholdt]

[Vet Visit]

Reinholdt frowns a bit, not sure what about any of this is funny. He decides not to present the question however. It was probably just relief from the stress Carlie was feeling. That's happened to him before often enough.

"I wouldn't imagine it would be," Reinholdt sympathizes, not quite understanding the extent that Carlie was trying to imply. What pregnancy is easy on anyone? "There must be plenty of people out there with a little fairy in them and they'd never even notice. I can't imagine it'll matter so long as we stay away from fey business."

Which is a general good rule to follow to begin with really.

"Tell me what I can do to help," Rein adds, realizing he hasn't asked what she needs yet.

[Felandria]

[Felandria's Office]

Felandria's phone will ring. The caller seems to be Wenomir, so whatever it is is likely important.

Felandria wakes up from a nap on her office couch and answers the phone.

Hello?

Hey, Wenomir!

[5a Violista]

[Vet Visit]

"I guess you're right," it's not ever really easy. And this is the Nexus, there's probably lots of people who are descended from fairies or demons or angels or whatever, even if only a little. Things are different from where she's from, so having fairy blood probably isn't that bad. She was completely overthinking it, probably since it's been so long and she's been overthinking a lot recently. It won't be as bad as she was thinking.

...
She's just not going to mention that she already ran into some fey business. But! Why should she? Nothing actually ended up happening, which is just more proof that she's overthinking it.

So what does Carlie need?
"...I mentioned how I gave away my house, right?" she asks, to lead into what she needs: "The only real thing I need right now is a place to sleep, I guess." He said there were lots of empty rooms, right? "Everything else I can figure out on my own." Like, getting a replacement phone, calling in to all the other jobs that are expecting her to not be a bunnygirl and/or figuring out how to still make it work, finding out the best way to consolidate her finances, finding a doctor she trusts...etc. That sort of stuff, she's sure she could figure out on her own.

[Reinholdt]

[Vet Visit]

"I always am," Reinholdt gives Carlie a confident, reassuring smile. If always means sometimes and sometimes means rarely.

"Yes, you did." Rein's still not sure that place wasn't actually condemned and suspects Carlie just means gave it to some homeless squatters. "By all means, yes, feel free to move in here. I'll help if you have any luggage or boxes or anything," he offers.

Rein squeezes her hand and tries to get her attention with a serious look. "But hey. Enough of that. No more figuring it out on your own. I mean, you can if you need the space or something, but otherwise let's figure it out together alright? You and me." Rein goes to wrap her in another hug, trying to assure her that she's not alone and she doesn't need to think that way anymore.

[Morty]

[Felandria's Office]

"Hello. I have an urgent request to make." Wenomir gets straight the point; his voice is tense and his words come out quick. "We need HALO to perform blood tests on all our members. There's a potential skin-walker infestation."

[5a Violista]

[Vet Visit]

Oh, yeah.
Confidence.
That's probably the thing she finds most comforting about him.

She nods at his offer to help carry luggage and boxes.
She probably won't ask him for help, though: there's really nothing heavy, she figures, and it's all in her car. The worst part would be waiting for the shuttle for each trip. And he's probably busy with all sorts of paperwork and stuff like that.

As she gets hugged - and hugs back - she thinks about what he said. She's so used to just dealing with everything alone, she's probably going to struggle getting used to it. She finds it really strange when she realizes her eyes started leaking again at some point. Why, though? Was it just because of the hug and what he said? "Y-yeah. Okay," she says. "We can do that, doing things together."

[Reinholdt]

[Vet Visit]

Maybe Carlie just has naturally leaky eyes and she can't shapeshift to fix that anymore.

Rein lets the hug linger for awhile again, probably because he noticed the tears. But also because he needs a moment himself to think. It was all so very overwhelming. Though during this, he finds a way to hand her a handkerchief and insists she keep it.

When he does pull back, he starts simple. "Lets go get your stuff now, ok? Get you settled. Later though, you owe me dinner and a long conversation about all the other yous. I'd like to get to know the real Holly..." The manual labor should help as he processes all of this. "... Is that what I should call you?"

[5a Violista]

[Vet Visit]

Yeah, that's probably it.

She uses the handkerchief to dry the crying-liquid from her face, and thanks him for it, and after the insistence to keep it, she finds a pocket to stuff it in.

"Yeah. Sure, we can get them now," she says. They can do that. She'll make him carry all her books. She sniffs. "I think it was my turn to plan the dinner, anyway." She's actually a pretty decent cook, but, unused to cook for two, she'll probably get the proportions wrong and make too much of some things and too little of others.

"Um. The IDs I've been using with this face all say 'Carlie'," she says. "...Carlie Hopps. But I lost most my IDs in that bus so it doesn't really matter, I'll have to get new ones anyway." So, to be honest, he could call her whatever he wants, and she could get used to it and make it stick.

But wait
What if he was asking for her real name or her preferred name?
"...to be honest, I can't remember my birth name," or rather she doesn't want to remember it, "but my favorite one is Harley."

[Felandria]

[Felandria's Office]

"Hello. I have an urgent request to make." Wenomir gets straight the point; his voice is tense and his words come out quick. "We need HALO to perform blood tests on all our members. There's a potential skin-walker infestation."

Of course we can help, will you be coming here or do we need to come there?

[Hattish Thing]

Entrance - A Call for Help

A small crowd of beleaguered men and women pours into the halls of HALO, all clad in heavily stained industrial garb. Many of their number appear quite ill, with gaunt faces and filthy cheeks, and their hollow eyes speak of hardened hearts. In between nervous chatter and a small chorus of coughs, a woman limps to the front of the pack of two dozen works.

Her dirty face is ridden with scars, and her worker's apron has all but deteriorated in various parts. Workboots stomp against the tile as she presses forward.

--

She calls out, first somewhat weakly, then stronger. "Is there... someone we could speak with? Someone in charge?"

"We... we need help."

---

Spoiler: Woman

Show

[Morty]

[Felandria's Office]

Of course we can help, will you be coming here or do we need to come there?

"You'll need to come here. We couldn't send everyone down to HALO even if we didn't need to keep people in before we can be sure they're not skinwalkers."

[Felandria]

[Felandria's Office]



"You'll need to come here. We couldn't send everyone down to HALO even if we didn't need to keep people in before we can be sure they're not skinwalkers."

We’ll be there as soon as possible.

[Reinholdt]

[Vet Visit]

She can just doubles all the numbers and then she has servings for two.

Might not be edible servings admittedly.

"Carlie Hopps? Really? A rabbit pun? I knew I liked you." Reinholdt grins a little at the punny bunny.

"Right. Harley it is then. Nice to meet you Harley," Rein says, giving her a less silly and more genuine smile. He wasn't around during the period where she was in charge of AMEN, so he doesn't recognize the name's implications.

[Entrance - A Call For Help]

A small blue cat sleeping atop one of the waiting couches near the entrance uncurls and stretches, claws out, butt high. The yawn is immense, but he settles into a seated position when he's done.

"You know I never understood the jump straight to the people in charge. Our members are trained to at least direct you to who can help you best if they themselves can't do it. It's like walking into a store and asking to speak to the manager before checking with an associate."

The cat licks his paw a few times and rubs the back of his ear. "Well, it doesn't really matter. How can we help you?"

[Morty]

[Felandria's Office]

"Thank you. See you there." Wenomir hangs up. Seems he really is in a hurry.

[5a Violista]

[Vet Visit]

There are some practical problems with simply doubling numbers. Like, what about leftovers? There's a good chance you'll make too many leftovers so it doesn't fit into the usual container, or not enough and then the other person will feel obligated to eat more than they want. What if you're making salad in a large bowl? Then one person will get all the toppings and the other person will just get leaves soaked in oil.
...
but as a bunny, she'd probably be okay with that, to be honest. Nevermind, I guess it actually works out in the end.

"People are less likely to question your name if it's a pun," she comments. "I guess they feel it would be unoriginal to do it." Like, Holly. She always wove flowers into her hair, elves are connected with nature, holly is a plant.

See? It's not like she just made up a pun because it'd be funny...probably. Or maybe she's just retroactively justifying it. The real reason is that puns are probably easier to remember and to keep straight. Regardless of the reason for it, she likes that he likes it.

"Yeah...um, nice to meet you too, then," she responds. It's okay that he doesn't know, though: most people don't really remember her name anyway. Pretty forgettable, apparently. And, besides, there's an Eastside politician who always wears a mask, with the same name, anyway. Apparently, it's a common name.

And so, I'm sure they end up getting everything from her car and bringing it down - a handful of loose-fitting clothes - mostly dresses, three blankets, a box of romance novels, a pink translucent nightgown, that hammock, a sheathed sword, a makeup box...and that's about it.

[Hattish Thing]

[Entrance - A Call For Help]

The woman at the front frowns sheepishly before raising a hand to scratch at the side of her head. "Well, I - uh. Sorry, not done this before." She blinks a few times before glancing back to the others. Their worried expressions seem to give her a bit of confidence. She puffs her chest out and breathes in before continuing.

The words which come out of her mouth are pained. "My husband, he - he's gone. Disappeared while working, the foremen... they say nothing."

"And we're sick."

[Reinholdt]

[Vet Visit]

"Huh. Never thought of that," Reinholdt admits. He's usually not shy about unoriginally calling something out. Probably would have done it to Holly if he had realized it was a pun, but he never made the ingenious connection between the flowers and her name.

Hopefully Harley's stuff is boxed, but if it's loosely thrown in the car, then Rein ends up juggling some of the objects and making multiple trips. It'll give him a chance to sneak peeks at the romance book titles. "You'll have a fully furnished bed and everything, so you won't have to use the hammock if you don't want to." Rooms come with a bed. It's quite nice really.

"Oh yeah. I guess if you're meeting me, I should tell you I'm a cat," Reinholdt says nonchalantly, half expecting she already knew. Though he certainly doesn't look like a cat. He says it so seriously too, like a person might do if they were trying to hard to make a joke.

[Entrance - A Call for Help]

"Hmm... going to have to write this one down I suppose." Reinholdt says after a moment of pondering. Missing persons was more Vigil's thing, though Rein supposes they did have a Private Investigator now. He'd really not want her around sick people with a child on the way though and sick people was definitely more a HALO thing. And boy did these people look sick. Maybe he could get one person from Vigil to assist the search while HALO doctored or something. Depends on the circumstances. Circumstances he'd have to dig up.

Pulling out a small kitty sized notepad and a smaller kitty sized pen, he takes even smaller kitty sized notes. "Alright. I have questions. Many, many questions. Just answer as best you can.

What's your name?
What's your husband's name?
Where do you work?
What do you work on?
How long have each of you been working there?
Who are the foreman?
When and where was your husband last seen?
Did your husband say or do anything unusual before he disappeared?
Has anyone else disappeared recently?
How are you sick? Symptoms and such.
When did you first notice getting sick?
Have any of your friends or family that do not work in the same location show the same symptoms of getting sick?"

Reinholdt chews on the end of the pen, thinking up other questions, but nothing immediately comes to mind. Maybe some follow ups.

[5a Violista]

[Vet Visit]

The books are definitely boxed, and there's one more box that has a bunch of those masks and some jewelry thrown in. That's about it. With the two of them, it'll take two or three trips.

"I sleep better in a hammock," Harley says. Or on the floor. "My late husband died in bed, so...waking up in a bed reminds me of what happened." Not a fun sight to wake up to.

Fun fact! She didn't actually know he was a cat.
Sure, Magtok called him that once, but the way he said it, it sounded like it was intended as an insult.
Other fun fact: in her native language, calling someone a cat translates to English as calling them hot.

"Oh? You're a cat?" she asks, deciding to play along because even though he doesn't seem to speak Portuguese, she still finds the translation in-joke as funny. Is he actually a cat, or is it a joke? she wonders. Trying to sound flirty and treating it as a joke seems like the best option, because he'll eventually either confirm it or not, hopefully. "I agree, you're certainly very gato. In that case, you should probably know that I'm a vet." She pauses, then corrects herself. "Well, assistant to a vet."

[Hattish Thing]

[Entrance - A Call For Help]

The woman at the front nods appreciatively as Reinholdt begins to take notes regarding their case upon a sheet of notebook paper. First, an introduction. That should be easy, right? The worker retrieves a handkerchief from her apron and proceeds to wipe some grime off of her face, coughing loudly as she does so. "Much appreciation, mister. My name's Angelou Cotton. My husband's name is Robert Cotton, and he's the best man there ever was." She sniffs a little, her tears welling up as she utters his name. A figure from the crowd steps forward to grip her shoulder and comfort her down. A second later, she continues. "I work in coal, got a contract with a company called Olympian Extractions. My husband, he does mine work. I work the conveyor lines, basic routine work. Worst the girls and I get is a little singe, a little cut. They give us gloves, but they slow us down. Paid by the pound, you know. Time is money." She sniffles again before blowing into her grimy handkerchief.

After stuffing it back into her coat, she stammers. "Uhh, I've been with the company three years now. Real company girl, yeah. Robert, he lost his warehouse job down Riverside two months ago. I put in a good word with the floor boss a week later, and he got hired up straight away." She frowns for a second before shaking her head. "Uh, there are three of 'em. I don't know their names, I only ever seen one of 'em. Real fierce looking woman, fiery hair and dark eyes that don't see you for what you are, but what you done wrong."

"Floor bosses answer to company managers, and the managers answer to the foremen. I dunno who they get their orders from, though. The boss I know, his name's Len Morris. My husband, Robert, he was called into the foreman's office, last I saw him he was stressin' 'bout it over breakfast. I'd made his favorite. Told him it was a raise, he works so damn hard. We both got to work, I served my shift, but he never got back to me."

"He didn't come home, I got in a panic, called Boss Morris. He said, well. They - they said they were letting him go, and he got real angry. Said some threatenin' things and stormed out onto the streets. They said it's not their problem, but that's just not like Robert. And yeah, it's not just him! Dozens gone missin' now, but nothing's been done about it. Ain't no police, really. They don't care what happens to us Skysiders."

"Coal lung, black breath. Hard to breathe for lots of us. They been workin' us so hard..."

[Reinholdt]

[Vet Visit]

"Oh I'm sorry. I didn't know," Reinholdt says softly. "Guess there's a lot I don't know." That's to be expected. It's only been two dates. Still, waking up and finding a loved one dead next to you has to be horrifying and traumatizing and Rein can only imagine. Maybe that's why she was sleeping on a bench when he first met her. A bench is just more comfortable to her than a bed.

"A vet, huh? Or assistant. Are you going to practice on becoming the master?" Rein asks, putting the last of her luggage down in her new room, the sheathed sword. "Am I due for a thorough check-up? A full body scan to make sure everything's working properly," Reinholdt flirts back. "Should I be terrified or excited?"

[Entrance - A Call for Help]

"Best man there is," Reinholdt tries to assure her. "We haven't given up on him yet." Though prospects do seem grim. What're they looking at? Secret demon bosses eating humans? Can't imagine they'd taste very good with all the coal. Probably something else. Though maybe not dissimilar.

At least the illness seemed unrelated to the disappearances beyond terrible working conditions. Reinholdt flips the notebook closed. "Alright, that's it for now. Leave me some contact information and I'll get someone on this right away. We'll look into it and get you answers as soon as we're able. In the meantime, the lot of you should swing by our medical wing and have a doctor or medbot look at you. They'll probably tell you to stop working so much in coal, but maybe they can give you something to alleviate the symptoms." And check if there is anything more to it.

[Hattish Thing]

[Entrance - A Call for Help]

Angelou nods solemnly before the worker at her back begins to guide her off towards the medical ward. Another man in the back steps up with a small journal filled with phone numbers and names. With that, the group of sickly looking workers will wander off through HALO.

[5a Violista]

[Vet Visit]

The last things Harley has in her arms are just the last of the clothes that were still in there.

"I...I haven't really told anyone," she says. So of course he wouldn't know.

Honestly, she has much more experience as a professional nurse/vet than a sexy nurse/vet. So she treats it at first as serious questions, as she tosses the clothes onto the bed. "I haven't really considered going any higher because it'd require a lot of schooling and I need the flexible hours for my other jobs," she says. But she can't just show up as a bunnygirl to all the other ones, so she's going to have to drop most of them, which will hurt the resumes she was going to use them on and the colleague-relationships she built up, requiring her to just...abandon those identities. There's still the politician one; maybe if she tells her secretary and wears the right clothes and stops making public appearances, she could still figure something out for that one.
Finally, she gets to the flirting part: "I actually have the next couple days off-" injury/sick leave from the bus crash "-so I'll definitely have time for a thorough check-up. Maybe even a couple times," she says, "so that I don't get rusty. You can be excited at first." She winks.

She also wishes she was better at flirting. The fact that he's so hawt doesn't help her flirting, either.

The shapeshifter walks over to a nightstand and half-sits on it.
She looks down.
She pushes some of her hair that's come loose and messy back behind her ears.
"I..." She bites her lower lip. "So I think I've spent all the courage I had just to get this far and say this much. Any more and I'm not sure I'll be able to stop myself from dodging the questions. And I'm sure you probably need time to think, too. If...after you make a list of questions, I'll decide on some dinner recipes that work with the things in the kitchen here and will do my best to work up the courage to answer them."

[Gullara]

[More Fourth Tower Settling]

Reinholdt raises an eyebrow. "... Yes. I've remarkably unlocked the secrets to crafting a baby." Rein just finds it better done intoxicated. Well, everything was better done intoxicated. What did Korrina see in this goblin? Perhaps his single-minded, straightforward nature. That's often admirable. Right?

"So, where did the two of you meet?"

[More Fourth Tower Settling]

"Bit of a funny story, that." Delv grins. "I'm a volunteer firefighter, see. Korrina likes to have a place to stay outside the compound, so she had her own apartment. Well that place caught fire. I met her on the scene."

[Reinholdt]

[Entrance - A Call for Help]

Reinholdt wanders off to go take care of the missing persons aspect.

Meanwhile, the group heading towards medical will encounter a different cat.

Spoiler

Show

Medicat!

Here to treat the sick and injured. Medicat will usher the coal workers into a waiting area and one at a time call them in for tests, checks, and treatments! Lotta tests.

[Vet Visit]

"Oh," Rein says somberly. Makes sense. Why share personal details if you're just going to be a persona with different personal details?

The mood changes as Harley tries to flirt back and Rein busts out laughing. He doesn't want to, but Harley's delivery was just so amusing. "I'll be excited, then terrified, huh? Sounds like my kind of party!" More than the joviality lets on really. Daredevils like them live for such things, so it wouldn't be particularly hard to relate.

Reinholdt settles as the bunnygirl sits and while the comic relief was much needed, he shows every sign of being serious when he nods to her. "Yeah. I get it. Settle in. Rest. Take your time." Rein's quiet a moment as if debating whether to leave immediately, but he adds just a little more first. "And... Thanks. You didn't have to tell me. I've had... lovers- girlfriends disappear on me for less. I..." Rein takes one arm with the other and squeezes it for moment. "Just thanks. It means a lot to me. Anyways, see you around." Now he turns to leave.

[More Forth Tower Settling]

"Huh." Rein's not sure what he was expecting. Guess it wasn't that. "That's pretty neat. Two questions. Did you scoop her up in your arms and carry her out? And what caused the fire?" Rein's money is on a spell gone wrong, but he's also hedging on scented candles for a bath or relaxation or something.

"Anyways, I think I've stalled you for long enough. Thank you for humoring me."

[5a Violista]

[Vet Visit]

Also, she just generally avoids sharing personal details in general.


Feeling like she's being made fun of, Harley blushes and raises one leg up onto the nightstand as well, so it can be essentially a barrier. "Hey, I don't laugh at you when you're sexy." It's okay, though. She deserved it, with a line like that.

"I mean, when you try to act sexy." She corrects herself, having misspoke. She groans. "Sooner or later, I going to stop embarrassing myself in front of you."


Anyway. Serioustime.
With the bus crash, the biggest thing she was worried about was that the bus had somehow crashed into a different world and that she wouldn't be able to get back to the Nexus. Luckily, that was the case, but him mentioning having girlfriends disappear reminds her of that. If that had actually happened, she would have been missing for more than a week, and it would have been pretty much the same result as if she had decided to just give up and ghost him instead of telling him. "Y-yeah. I'll try to not disappear," she says. "Bye. I'll see you."

After he leaves, she'll just sit there for a while, thinking, until eventually she realizes that she has to get everything here put away and find a place for the hammock and hang up her clothes so that she can tell which ones are wrinkled from sitting in her car for weeks.