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Who: George Wolfe and YOU!
When: April 24
Where: At the McDonald's near the library
What: Someone's working at the Ol' McDonald's today. Whether he's the drive through clerk, or the guy taking your order inside. He also has a confrontation from a girl he pissed off over the network.

This job is painful, the forced smiling, the "have a nice day"s, it's kind of too much for this jerk, but he puts up with it. In this world, you need to wear that facade to keep your job, especially a job that George has somehow worked his way up in. Outside of his job, he's pretty unreliable, but inside, he greets customers with a (fake) smile, seems like he actually means it and all that crap.

Today is no different, with high school lunch crowd coming, the college crowd, and the after school crowd... Rush hour really sucks, but it's also the only time that keeps him from looking at the clock the entire time, then BAM! He's off...

But until then, he's a slave at the ol' Mickey D's. He's in his uniform with the usual hat, his hair pulled back into a ponytail that actually nicely goes through his hat. A complete opposite of what a waste he looks over the network. It's amazing what you do when you need the money, how nice you make yourself look, and how much you hide how much you want to cuss out those damn high school kids trashing his restaurant. Then again, he used to be one of those kids.

So, welcome to McDonald's. Would you like fries with your order?

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Okay, so she is aware that George works here. Of course she is. But that doesn't necessarily mean she expects or means to see him when she pops in for a hot chocolate after work at the library. By now most of the other places are closed, so there isn't a lot of option.

She pauses at the entrance for a moment, watching him take someone's order. He seems so different at work. But that's probably because he has to be civil with the customers, she figures. She bites her lip, wondering if she should leave. Just go home. But....no. He's probably already seen her. Too late to turn around and walk out.

Besides. She should. Probably talk to him properly. Though she isn't sure if here at his work in public is the best place to do so. It's kind of harder talking to him on the network. She steels herself, walking over to the counter. It's not like this is her first time here. Just the first since she found out about the network and everything else.

"Hey. Can I please have a large hot chocolate?"

Ordering at least. Whether there is more to this largely depends on him and his reaction. She doubts she would be the first on the network to come here, but....well. Their interactions haven't been the smoothest, to say the least.

You know, his day was going just fine. Really, he had his usual pile of shitty high schoolers, but he can get past that. Really, he can. By this time he's getting a little worn out, but he figures the next few hours can't be that bad.

Then... she. walks. in.

Fuck this day. Fuck this shift.

But still, he doesn't need to be written up, and he doesn't want to be yelled at by his boss so he forces a smile and greets her. A hot chocolate, does the little princess want a hot chocolate. Of course, his fingers gingerly tap over the buttons, trained at his job.

"One large hot chocolate. Will that be everything for you today, miss?"

The smile is still forced, but what's more is his tone and how natural it sounds. Three fucking years of working in this industry really teaches you how to hide your disdain behind a pleasant smile and attitude. But really, he's going on the chance that she'll take her order and go the fuck away.

But he gets the feeling he won't be that lucky.

"That's all, thank you."

Stella waits for her order, aware that this is public. Aware he is at work and she is likely not the only customer. Though it is quieter at this hour at least. She's just not sure how to bring any of it up. If she should in such a public place where anyone could hear them.

She takes a deep breath, watching him and picking up on how fake it is. He's good, but she's perceptive enough to see through the smile and happy greeting. He is obviously not wanting her here.

"Look, I...I don't mean to fight with you. All of this is...way over both of our heads. But I can't help you if you don't let me and keep shutting me out."

It's vague enough that anyone that might over hear wouldn't necessarily know she means the echoes and network. Her voice is soft, quiet and neutral in tone that anyone might think she is just quiet, chatting or ordering from him.

Misato's more of a Starbucks kind of girl, but when she needs her coffee fix, she needs her coffee fix. Where it comes from doesn't matter in times as desperate as these.

Times when her coffee grinder decided it didn't want to grind coffee. She should replace it, she knows, but there were some days where it worked perfectly.

Misato's only half-awake when she reaches the counter -- and she greets the cashier with a loud yawn.

"A large coffee, please."

Shit...

You know, the way she makes it sound is like they got in a lover's quarrel. In fact, his manager comes up and raises and eyebrow, smiling because he probably has (very fake) blackmail material on him now. But really, it's a good fake for now. Talking about the network would be a no no, and he's pretty sure his manager would laugh at this and wonder why Locke City would choose a shift manager as a super hero.

"Listen, sweetheart, this isn't the time or the place to talk about it. My shift's up in an hour. Maybe after that we can have a chat. I promise to be more civil than I was last time we spoke."

His tone is creepily cordial as if he were talking to a legit girlfriend (or ex-girlfriend). It's a good cover for now, and really, he may as well face it head on.

He's been an asshole. Maybe he's been to harsh. But like fucking hell he'll apologize.

"Your total comes to $3.29."

Edited (grammar) 2014-04-25 03:40 (UTC)

He honestly recognizes the girl instantly when she comes in. While she may have not seen him, he's seen her. And he remembers that really weird penguin thing. Well, at least she's not someone who might have a bone to pick with him, so he's not thinking too much of it. This is his job, and well, he'd prefer if people actually kind of didn't notice him.

"One large coffee. Will that be all for you today, miss?"

His tone is trained and kind, almost sounding sincere. It's pretty easy to fake it when you've been working for this long. Still, she's free to recognize his voice...

"That's it." Misato's in the process of digging through her wallet for her debit card when she catches a glimpse of the cashier for the first time.

Her eyes narrow slightly on him and she frowns. Finally, she puts to voice exactly what she's thinking:

"Do I know you from somewhere?"

"Your total will come to $1.69. Please slide your card when you're ready."

He looks up at her, knowing that look of recognition. If it's mutual, then there's no harm in it. Giving a slight shrug he tries to find a roundabout, but clear answer to her question.

"Yeah, we... met at the zoo while looking at penguins. Guess that left and impression on you like it did me."

Weird answer, but he feels it conveys what she wanted to know.

"All right then. I can wait."

Stella nods. An hour isn't all that long to go. She can read in the meantime. When his manager raises an eyebrow to them, she's thankfully too busy counting out her cash to pay for the drink that she doesn't notice or catch the implication that seems to have arisen from the short exchange. Which is probably for the best, considering how well their conversations have gone over the network. But if they are to keep this up, she may need to pick up on it in order to play along.

"Here. Thanks." She says as she passes him the cash to pay for her drink, her free hand taking the cup.

"At the zoo? Penguins?" Already, she's mentally scrambling for the memory, but there's nothing she can think of. She can't even remember the last time she went to Locke City Zoo.

And then it dawns on her. She knows exactly where she knows him from. "Oh! Oh, yeah!" She smiles, then runs her card through the machine.

"So you work here, huh?" Not the most fabulous place to work, for sure, but at least it probably paid the bills. "You ever figure out anything about that pink tree of yours?"

An hour is a long time when it's the tail end of your shift, especially when you have something waiting for you directly afterward. It's going to be a few beer night. But yes, after everything. So slowly, the hour went by for him, then as soon as on the dot it was over, he was quick to get back to his locker room, grab his keys, cigarettes, wallet, phone, and jacket and get out of there.

When passing by Stella's table, he gave it a quick knock to get her attention.

"C'mon, sweetheart, we're going now."

Yep, she remembers him. That damned pink tree. They're in a public space, but still it's something that can be played off pretty easily, especially since it's something he doesn't know the answer to.

A co-worker in the back hands the coffee that was placed in the cup, then George hands it to her.

"Still looking into it. I mean, no dream dictionary really has a definition and people I've spoken when aside from that one girl have never heard of such a thing. Though I've spoken to her a coupla times to no avail."

Basically, he was an asshole to her.

If there's ANYTHING that can make the drudgery of fast food retail worse, it's having a coworker who not only does a fantastic and enthusiastic job, but also is able to keep up with the constantly changing advice from management.

That's right, the guy one register over not only has a real smile, but he just convinced a THIRD customer to sign up for a McDonald's credit card.

Yeah, well, fuck you. George couldn't give a crap about that. Still, an enthusiastic upstart does kind of piss him off. Honestly, he doesn't think he's anyone who seemed to care about his job in fast food as much as him. Okay, you take all the customers, George will just mosey along...

...and then get the yelling at for not meeting quota. Sorry he doesn't feel the need to sign people up for credit at a fast food joint?

"Pretty impressive. Keep it up!"

There's George's moral support... he did his job.

Of course, by the time he finishes she is engrossed and distracted by her book. The familiar way he raps at the table for her attention makes her look up, initially confused for a moment before she remembers. The whole reason she was waiting and didn't automatically go home.

There's a nod, as she marks her page in her book, drops her cup in the trash and stands to follow him out. Though she isn't quite sure where he might intend on them going after this. So long as they try and sort this out, she doesn't really mind. It just isn't something she is used to, getting on such negative terms with someone like this. And he did say he'd be more civil, so there's nothing for it but to wait and see.

"So we are going...where, exactly?"

Misato's not going to keep him long; there's no one else in line, but there's almost certainly going to be someone clamoring inside for an Egg McMuffin sooner or later. The last thing she wants is to get George in trouble with his boss.

"Things going good in that department?" she asks, taking the cup in hand.

"Just outside."

He wasn't planning on taking her anywhere, and really he's not interested.

Once he's outside, he takes a lighter out of his pocket, and lights a cigarette he had already pulled out while they were talking. Taking a puff of his cig, he exhales.

"So, what is it you wanna talk about? Echoes, pulses, whatever, right?"

Another drag of his cigarette before he speaks again.

"Got another myself. I apparently can use magic, I just don't want to. Whatever the hell that means."

There, see, he told her what he got and he's not being too bad about it. The cigarette is actually helping him relieve his stress more than she would know.

"Ah... I kinda pissed her off, but she's still kinda annoying."

Most people would assume he's talking about a girl who's after him, and that's okay. Because that's what it feels like even though he's initiated every conversation. Just that she's his only lead right now and he's grasping on to it for answers in case they are from the same world.

"You get any more pets?"

Yeah, yeah there's a line... his coworkers can take them. He'll be done soon.

"You should be nice to girls, you know!" Misato chides, leaning slightly over the table. "Besides, what if she knows more about that tree than she's letting on? Being a jerk's not going to get you any answers."

Well, it wouldn't win any answers from Misato, anyway!

"No, nothing else. Pen 2's enough, honestly. Though, truthfully... it's nice to have someone to wake up to. Even if it's just a pet."

"Thanks. It's not hard, though. You just have to pay attention to everything."

There was a brief lull in customers, giving Sam a chance to stretch the kinks out of his neck.

She follows, trying to stifle a cough initially when he lights the cigarette. She's used to smokers and tolerating it, even if she herself doesn't and might not necessarily approve. It's their choice. His choice. And she didn't come here to lecture him.

"I told you about mine. The healing and the tree. I'm just figuring maybe if we are from the same world, if we did know each other....we could maybe help each other with the echoes. To figure out more."

She explains, feeling like she might just be repeating herself but trying to explain and answer all the same. There's a pause and a tilt of her head at that answer though.

"Magic? Did you figure out what kind? Why wouldn't you want to use it?"

Unless it was dangerous magic? But he did mention being a knight, so Stella can't be sure that would be the reason behind it. She considers that, a small frown at her features.

With his hoodie up, Arthur just sort of oozed into McDonalds with an air of caution in his eyes. Most people who wore their paranoia on their sleeves would worry he was either drunk or out of his mind given his distant stare and semi-hostile posture and they would be completely right. Officially, though, if asked--he was stinking sober. He definitely didn't have six beers for lunch. Nah. He was just looking worried and semi-sedated because he'd been really worrying about something for the last two hours.

As he reached the counter finally after waiting for a painstaking ten minutes, he put his palms on the top and stared at George.

"George, I'm real hammered right now," Said by the young man who cleaned house on an empty stomach. He was nearly whispering despite the noise in the place. "I need a whopper."

"Listen, I don't know. It sounded like I just didn't like studying spells."

It's vague, but he does know that much. Still, she can heal, yeah? He honestly still calls BS on this super hero stunt and even though it's on the news, it's not that hard to fabricate stuff. Even if he did echo the fact he can use magic. Call him a cynic in regards to it all, he really doesn't care.

Still, healing, huh? Looking at the cigarette in his hand, he gets an idea. A very bad one, but one he decides to try.

It's without any prompting or warning that he takes his lit cigarette and rubs the hot end into the back of his hand. 400 degrees of heat hurts like fucking hell, but also something he can heal with some neosporin and bandages. This was a good time as any to test her 'magic'.

"Here, heal this."

He wants to see if she's just insane or if this is the real thing.

"Well, not everyone is academic. And I'm sure there is some theory and ethics to learn around spells, like anything."

Stella muses, curious about the process herself but pausing in her wonder about such magic and the like when she notices him smother the cigarette with his hand. Her green eyes widen in concern and almost anger when she realizes he did it on purpose.

"Don't...get into the habit of this. And don't....freak out, okay?"

She tries to reassure herself and him, taking a deep breath and closing her eyes as she places her hands out over his own. Focusing on the memory of her echo. The healing light and warmth it provoked. She can't very well ignore this. Even if the idiot did this to himself.

There's a pause before anything happens. A warmth and a sudden light as she heals him. It's not much. But it temporarily eases the pain. Enough that he should be fine until he gets home to properly look at it.

It was almost instantaneous... that stupid pulsating headache that accompanied an echo when she healed him like she had. To be honest, he had been half expecting this, even if he was cynical about it all. But... he recalls a scene, something he had done before exactly like this.

A girl with pink hair who looked eerily like Stella. A girl who he recalls as 'important'. That right there made him know that this was real, because aside from his roommate that he's been kind of off and on bickering with, he didn't have anyone he considered 'important'. Yet, this came to him as a 'fact'. Damn, if Stella dyed her hair pink, she'd look exactly like the girl in his memory.

In fact, she probably is that girl, who is he kidding.

Estelle...

...Stella.

Even George knows it's not a coincidence.

"Well, that settles it. If I knew you, you were named 'Estelle' or something."

His tone almost immediately changes, and even he catches it. That girl really must have meant something to him.

He rubs his hand where he had burnt himself, still feeling a bit of the heat from his burn, but it's definitely healed up a bit. He'll take care of it when it gets home.

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satan is his coworker... i laughed at this harder than i should have

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"Satan does this trivial, mundane thing. Everyone point and laugh!" That's it. That's the show.

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arthur is a lot more stable than i am when i do this

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