09 - Security, Home and Otherwise

[imjustpicky]

[Action A - 7132 Brooks Street, Morning - Backdated to May 15th]

[Mother's Day came and Mother's Day went, and Picky was just as effected as any other little boy in town was. And having a drone for a mother didn't dissuade him from showing his love and affection. He had gotten up early and managed to make her toast and (only slightly over-browned) scrambled eggs for breakfast in bed. He made her a card. He did every chore she asked him to do. And he felt good the entire while that he did it. It felt right to be a good son. And the praise... even if it was drone-praise, empty words and empty smiles... it was the best.

Waking up the morning that it was all over was... kind of awful. First it hit him that all those feelings had been fake.

Then it hit him that he didn't really have a mom here. Or anywhere.

Then he sort of felt like he had to throw up.

His blankets were tossed aside and he made a bare-footed dash out of his bedroom and down the hall. Bathroom, he had to make it to the bathroom... If anything was different in the house this morning, he hadn't realized it yet.]

[Action B - Around Town - Backdated to May 15th]

[This is one kid that is skipping school today. If it's bad to do... well, so what? What did it matter? It didn't, not in this dumb town. Maybe he had his backpack and his school stuff with him, but he wasn't going to actually use any of it!

Well, maybe his history notebook. History was a pretty dumb class, here, and he had a lot of extra pages in it. Pages he could draw on. Draw cool things on, like... like his plan for the best home safety system thing ever. If Engie could do it, and Pokey could build things, then... then someday, he'd do that too! He'd just have to get the plans ready.

So maybe he's sitting in the park. Or at a booth in the diner. Or on the sidewalk in front of one of the stores. Or somewhere on your front lawn. He's got a pencil, an eraser, and a look of intense concentration. If you were to peer over his shoulder, you'd see something more or less like this:]



[Give or take a few traps in the yard. Or canon-looking things. Maybe art isn't his best class... but enthusiasm and creativity is what really matters, right?]

Comments

[derp_detective]

[Gumshoe is walking from work during his lunch break when he notices a kid sitting around drawing. Not that he thinks that's too much of a big deal, but it's a weekday...]

...Um hey, is there a school holiday today or something?

[imjustpicky]

Huh?

[He glances up from his art, sees that it's a pretty adultish looking adult doing the asking, and immediately looks guilty.]

Uh... no....

[derp_detective]

...You don't normally skip school a lot, do you? I'm guessing it's not really the best place to learn, but I think this place has some kind of rule about that and I'd hate to see you get droned for something as silly as that.

[imjustpicky]

I don't! I don't! I go to school! You have to go to school!

[His protest drops in volume, though. Now he's just embarrassed.]

I didn't wanna go today. I really didn't...

[derp_detective]

That's good, like I said, hate to see someone get in trouble for something as small as that...

...Wait, what's wrong about today? Is it like school picture day and all you have are really ratty clothes to wear? Man, do I know how that goes. Let me tell you, markers are not a good way to hide stitched up old clothes.

[imjustpicky]

I won't get in trouble. I don't think. It's just one day... I'll make my dad write a sick note!

[...there's a sad story beneath what this guy's going on about, isn't there? Picky frowns, feeling some sympathy for the guy.] No. It's not picture day. They do that at the START of the year. It's almost the END.

[derp_detective]

Oh yeah, guess they do. Been awhile since I was in school... Just was worried for a moment something bad was happening at the school.

[imjustpicky]

Nah. School's just... normal school. So it's really boring, and some of the teachers are nuts, and... yeah. School.

[He shrugs and looks away and sort of trails his pencil in the dirt.]

[derp_detective]

Oh, okay... Least it's nothing you can't handle then, huh?

[Gumshoe glances at the notebook pages.]

So what are you drawing there, anyways?

[imjustpicky]

I'm... drawing. I'm making plans for a security system.

[This guy seems... pretty okay for an adult. So he turns the notebook around and offers it so he can have a look.]

[derp_detective]

A security system? That's not a bad idea, what with all the craziness this town sometimes produces...

[Gumshoe looks over the plans.]

...Wouldn't the cannons cause a lot of property damage if they missed their target?

[imjustpicky]

Uh... [He hadn't considered that. Sort of.]

They won't miss! I'll get Engie to make sure they lock-on!

[derp_detective]

[Good thing Gumshoe is asking important questions then! After all, why wouldn't he take this seriously? He has seen some kids pull of crazy stuff in this town, so there is no reason to believe these plans will lead to actual construction.]

That's good then, a security system that might accidentally blow up the house next door is kinda a bit overkill after all.

Is it going to protect the house when everyone is out and about as well? Or is it one of those things that you arm from inside and it keeps people out unless you let them through?

[imjustpicky]

Yeah, I don't want overkill... [Well, not too much. Explosions are kind of cool. In theory.]

It's going to protect everyone when they're safe inside! And we can turn it off for a bit to get someone in safe, then turn it back on!

[derp_detective]

That's a pretty good plan then. And it'll protect everyone, too, which is a great plus there. Sometimes a locked door really isn't helpful in this town...