Application; Benton Fraser, Due South

[sings_too]

There had been times in his recent past, rather more than a few, in fact, during which Benton Fraser had wondered if perhaps he might be a couple beams short of a bunkhouse. But recently he had come to believe that he was still in possession of his faculties, and more or less in the correct order. Facing his mother's killer at the bottom of an

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[shake_bad_guys]

What happens next is he gets an armful of Ray.

It wasn't that Ray couldn't handle himself without Fraser. Because he could! And random blonde chicks insisting he was an evil alien robot and trying to kill him, that was all in a day's work. And he hadn't been freaked out at all by having a sudden English accent and having to fight pirates, or people talking about opening mysterious doors that might destroy the world or something, he wasn't sure what. Because he was just that cool, Steve McQueen cool, and he could deal with anything the freaks around here threw at him.

But, you know, he'd kind of been worrying about how Fraser was doing without him. So the second he heard that nice, rounded, prissy Canadian voice on the PA, he scooped up Fraser's Stetson and headed for the gates to greet his partner with a hug.

"Fraser. Buddy." He pulled away to smile in Fraser's face. "You trying to write some kinda essay on quests?"

[sings_too]

Benton is rather stiff in his embrace.

"Ray?" he asked. "Wh- what is going on? You're not... dead are you?"

[shake_bad_guys]

When wasn't Fraser stiff?

"Dead? Freak," he said dismissively, and grabbed Fraser's hand to put it on his neck's steady pulse.

"'Bout time you got here. I got your hat," he added, offering it.

[sings_too]

Well, getting his hat back helped.

Benton accepted the hat and brushed one hand over the brim before setting it on his head. He was smiling a little.

"Thank you, Ray," he said, and looked around again with a slightly more decisive gaze. "Well, if we aren't dead, and this isn't the boarderland... where are we?"

[perfect_karma]

Well, it was someone similar to the way that Dodgy Detective had been on pirate day. That was rather useful.

"Constable," she said seriously. "Franziska von Karma. I am the prosecutor for this place, and as such, you will be working for me."

[sings_too]

Benton gave her a perplexed look.

"I was unaware that this place had any established government," he answered. "Unless perhaps their's?"

He indicated the Cat and Mouse with one hand, then folded both behind his back.

[perfect_karma]

Franziska cast an annoyed glare at Mickey and the cat. "Those fools? Hardly. Unless you consider criminals guilty of kidnapping to be an established government."

She smiled smugly. "I am one of the lead prosecutors for the city of Los Angeles, California. Considering that I am the only non-incompetent prosecutor here with the authority to practice in the state of California, then I am quite logically the chief prosecutor of Disneyland."

[sings_too]

"I see," Benton answered politely. "An honor to meet you, then, Prosecutor. Although may I respectfully point out that, as a police officer, I am actually an employee of the people, as in fact are you, Ms. von Karma."

[una_harlequin]

"Constable Fraser?" Una extended her hand in greeting. "Una Persson. Pleasure to meet you at last; Ray's told me a fair bit about you."

The uniform brought a touch of déjà vu; Jerry had worn it, or one very like it, once (during a disastrous Russian invasion of the North American continent where, among other things, the Russians had mistaken the Ungava Peninsula for Nantucket). And despite everything the League knew or guessed about the sorts of people who travelled the time-streams and their genetic singularity, she was half-prepared to swear that Fraser here was some other world's Oswald Bastable.

[sings_too]

"Ms. Persson." He shakes the offered hand. "He has? Well, I should worn you that he can be prone to some exaggeration."

By his smile one might almost assume that the reply was some attempt at a joke; a rather over-polished version of the usual "nothing too bad, I hope."

[una_harlequin]

"He may have exaggerated a little, but not much," she said, also in the spirit of Fraser's humour. Even though Una's taste in men didn't normally extend to the Boy Scout sort (Bastable was a dear friend, but he'd never been more than that), she could understand why Ray had been going on about the whole rubbing-against-him-like-cats business.

Not that she needed the trouble. But a girl could look.

"Have you talked to Ray, then?"

[sings_too]

Benton smiles.

"Yes, I have actually. He attempted to explain this place, although the explanation wasn't terribly clear. I understand that no one really knows how or why we're here?"

[mickey_mous]

"Okie-dokie, Benton. You ready to find out which of our excitin' lands you're gonna live in?"

[sings_too]

Benton looks only a little dubious.

"I suppose so, yes."

[mickey_mous]

"Swell! I was thinkin' you'd like Adventureland! Or maybe Main Street..."

[sings_too]

"Oh, well, I'm sure you know best," he agrees with a polite smile. "I'm sure they're both lovely."