When the world is running down [03]

[dr_schreber]

Dr. Schreber does not sleep for the tuning but he doesn't think that's strange, because he never has. They'll be looking for him. There's nowhere to run, and he knows he'll be even easier to find if he's the only one moving around when the whole city is asleep. When the whole world ripples and the carnival shows up, he hides, and when the mirrors

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[too_late4tom]

Detective Wheeler did not expect his evening to end up like this; walking along the canal with a bartender and a debutante after having successfully escaped from aliens and animated furniture. He keeps his gun holstered, but he's got his eyes peeled for suspicious activity.

"You ever think about joining the force?" he asks his companions. His tone is half-joking, to cut some of the tension, but he really does admire their bravery in the face of danger. Especially Chantal. He's seen Thorny bust some heads before but not with a mop.

He spots the diner, its neon sign beckoning a block away. It's the only non-residential building around. "Let's stop in there a second, I want to call my partner. And maybe Miss Kotva..."

[janitor_thorn]

Recovered from his earlier moment of private sorrow, and the loss of the mop, Thorny grunts in response to the question. "I'd 'ave to talk to people." The bartender makes quite a good listener, but he doesn't often indulge in conversation unless it's a regular, or someone he's cutting off.

His slight limp has not eased with the walking, and he's grateful for the chance to stop and rest, in a well-lit, public place. "Sure. Could use some coffee or sommat." Sam may reach the door first, but Thorny is quick to hold it for either of them if he gets the chance. His manners are more chivalrous than his speech. Even the sodium light of a late-night diner feels welcoming after the sterile white of the hospital, and he nods hopefully towards an empty table. They could all use a few minutes to sit down and breathe.

[courtneycrumrin]

Chantal gives Sam a skeptical look. "I think my parents would have something to say about that. In fact, if I'm not back before they wake up, they're going to have a lot to say to me. I wonder what time it is."

She's still a little breathless, but the shaken-up feeling is dulling down into an acceptance of the situation. Like Alice in Wonderland, she's fallen into a rabbit hole, and she must accept the Mad Hatter and the talking animals or else go insane.

Once inside the diner, she takes a quick look around for anyone alien-looking, and she spots the bespectacled man in a dark corner. A feeling of familiarity hits her, as well as a certain sense of compassion. He doesn't look well at all. "That man," she points. "I think I know him."

It'll take her a moment to recognize him as the man from the picture in the hospital.

[dr_schreber]

Dr. Schreber has had time to drink his tea and get his breathing back to what it normal for him at least. The waitress has decided he is just a twitchy little nebbish and she's mostly right. He looks up whenever the door opens though and when these three come in he feels a tug of familiarity too. He looks down again quickly when he sees Chantal point his way though. Pointing is never good. Maybe she's pointing at something near him or past him, though.

His heartbeat speeds up again and he sits still and listens and wishes his peripheral vision wasn't useless.