basic_powers | Toronto, Canada, January 26th and Jan 29th 1935

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Toronto, Canada, January 26th and Jan 29th 1935

Dear journal,
Miss Squirrel's offering to teach me how to box today, since I have a lot of free time around the lair...

"Okay now just put your feet like this and keep your weight on the balls of your feet, Short Pants."

"Kay." Obediently Tyler did so moving closer to the punching bag set up on a spring and looking towards the fearless fighting female for further guidance.

"Awright now just lean forward and give that punching bag a good left jab."
-phunt!- -sproooong- "Hey I-"
-grooonk- -thunt!- -thump-

Tyler looked at the punching bag on his butt, bewildered with a glove-covered hand going to his right eye.

"Uhh..Boss? We got any icepacks?"

Dear journal,
I've been here over two weeks now. I miss TV and books so much right now. I caught myself wishing Cecil or even Zodon were here.

So far no luck on the coaster portal working yet, but they keep saying give it time.

Meanwhile I've been exploring the Lair and some of the caves whenever Miss Squirrel and Mr. Red Panda have both been out. So far nothing much except for some tubes and the workshop, which has a lot of gizmos and other things in it that might be interesting later.

Soon as they're out I'm going to take a flashlight and start exploring the caverns and tunnels.

Tyler, while being very well-behaved and trustworthy for a child his age and size, does have limits to his patience and his ability to put up with the same routine day after day. After the moment he doesn't hear either of the masked do-gooders talking in the lair or in any space where the sounds would carry to it. Scooping up his backpack he started along one of the tunnels to see where it'd come out.

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There's a faint rattling noise from a gaslight mounted on the wall a few feet away.

Huh. Figures it'd be high up on the wall where he can't reach. No problem, juuuust look around for something to stand on to get high enough...lessee....chair...wastebasket...yeh those'll do nicely.

With a knowledge of how to escape firmly in hand, the door is allowed to slide shut while Tyler arranges the two items to get to the gas lamp later.

Now! To explore!

It's a big house--'mansion' might be a better word for it--all well-kept and lavishly decorated. Whoever owns this place clearly has money to burn. Bedrooms, bathrooms, an entry hall with a crystal chandelier and a massive staircase, a parlor with a huge collection of mounted animal heads...

But what might catch Tyler's interest most of all is the smell coming from further down the hall.

...Tyler smells fresh-baked goods, the unmistakeable smell of something with chocolate and cinnamon baked in. It could be cookies, it could be cake, but that there's baked goods, with a possibility for invisible filching!

And thus the little gadget hero is padding very quietly towards the source of the smell, eager and curious.

The source of that smell would be the kitchen, where two women are busy bustling from counter to sink to oven and back again.

"Did you see the way the master looked at Miss Baxter when they came in last night?" says the younger one, as she bends to take a tray of cinnamon rolls out of the oven. "An' now they're having breakfast together... awfully familiar of them, wouldn't you say?"

"Now, Mabel," scolds the elder as she pulls plates out of the cupboard. "The master's tastes are 'is own business. Ye 'aven't been speakin' to him about this, have ye?"

Miss Baxter? ...noo... It couldn't be the same lady from the bar...

Could it?

Suddenly there's more important things afoot than sneaking a little fresh air and breakfast. There is a mystery afoot.
.
.
.

Maybe he can learn more if he just stays invisible by the doorway and listens in.

"A'course Ah 'aven't. Sakes, my job is worth more than poking the master is worth..." Mabel replies, bringing up the tray and setting them on the counter to pour icing over them. "Miss Baxter on the other 'and now..."

"Ye told Miss Baxter??" yelps the older cook, her eyes going wide. "An' yer still standin'?"

"Oh, come off it, Babs, she's not nearly as bad as they say. Bit rough around the edges, but--"

"My ears are burning..."

That would be a rather familiar figure standing just behind Tyler with a sly smirk on her face.

HOL-LEE CROW.

Miss Baxter. YUP that's her alright, he'd know that face anywhere.

And never in his entire life has he been SO THANKFUL that he's can be invisible. Because he's fairly certain he's in trouble.

Not sure what for yet, but most certainly trouble.

"M-Miss Baxter!" Mabel stammers. "We were just--"

"Just saying things you know you shouldn't be," says Kit Baxter in a too-sweet tone. "Don't worry, I won't rat you out to the Boss. Just try to be a little more polite next time? Or at least close the door first, anybody could walk in here..."

...Darn tootin anybody could. Especially if Miss Baxter is providing such a nice distraction for someone invisible to just sneeeeak past and make his way towards those cinnamon rolls.

Surely no one will notice if one happens to seemingly disappear out of existance... right?

"Well, that's right nice of ye, dearie," says Babs. "Ye can tell the master that breakfast will be ready in..."

She trails off as she turns toward the tray of cinnamon rolls... which has a rather obvious hole in one corner now.

"Miss Baxter! Have ye been sneaking rolls away while my back is turned??"

"You've been looking right at me the whole time," says Kit with a sour look. "How could I have taken it?"

"Well, somebody did! An' it wasn't Mabel, you know she has the diabeetus and can't 'ave sugar..."

"Babs!" says Mabel, sounding scandalized.

Uh-oh.

Aaaaand with the ill-gotten goods already in hand, putting it back is sure as shooting not an option.

Have to find a place to hide where no body is going to step on him or shove stuff into him...

The pending argument is interrupted by a male voice from somewhere down the hall. "Kit? Kit, are you here?"

"Just a sec, Boss!" Kit calls back over her shoulder. "Gotta go, ladies. Remember, close the door before you badmouth other people in this house, got it?"

There! The top of the breakfast troller is full, and just enough room on the bottom of it for a small boy to hide invisibly if he curls up real tight and stays very very quiet.

"I'll keep that in mind, Miss Baxter." Mabel replies shutting the door. "Best not be late if the master calls. I'll bring the trolley out in a bit."

A bit of bustling and fussing later, Babs pushes the trolley out the door ("Goodness, when did it get so heavy?") and down the hall to a spacious dining room at which Kit is seated, along with a dark-haired, square-jawed man in his early thirties.

"Breakfast is served, Master."

"Ah, yes, thank you, Mabel, that will be all," says the man. "We can serve ourselves today."

"How generous of you," Kit mutters quietly to herself.

...Well crud.

If Mabel was staying he could disguise his footsteps with hers and sneak away but now.

...Why does the voice of that man (who is obviously the master) seem so familiar?

"What exactly were you talking about in the kitchen?" asks the man as he starts doling out creamed eggs and toast onto Kit's plate.

"Eh, the usual. Mabel thinks we're being 'awfully familiar,'" replies Kit, mimicking the cook's accent.

"I wouldn't worry too much about it," says the man mildly. "People gossip. It's nothing new."

Kit smirks. "We could always give them something to gossip about..."

The man quirks an eyebrow. "Kit Baxter, behave yourself."

"Yes, Boss."

...Now there's a line he's familiar with.

But is he's... ...then she's...

ooooh boy.

I am in such deep bantha puuduu...

The man reaches for the tray of cinnamon rolls, then frowns.

"Did you hear something?"

"Yes. It was you, telling me to behave myself for the five thousandth time."

"No, it was something else... almost..." The man half-rises from his seat, frowning in concentration. "Please tell me you didn't sneak a dog into the mansion."

...OOooooh..

Tyler does not have the voice of the Revenant in his head giving him a telling to for this entire adventure. His own conscience and survival instinct are doing a fine job of that.

This could go one of two ways right now. Tyler could attempt to flee like he just saw Charles Brigman teleport and try to make it back to the Lair and delay the punishment...

Or he could get up the guts and decloak right now, to face the music.

Ulp.

"No, I did not sneak a dog into the mansion," retorts Kit. "Although... that would kinda explain a few things..."

"Oh? Like what?"

"Like how Babs was complaining about someone stealing food out of the kitchen this morning. She turned her back for a second and one of the cinnamon rolls disappeared."

"Hmmm." The man looks perturbed. "This could be problematic..."

And believe us, that cinnamon roll ain't digesting any faster now that the kid is freaking out.

...what's the worst the Red Panda could do to me if I ran?

.
.
.

...okay I don't want think about that.

There is a ten-year old who wasn't there five seconds ago, hunched up with his face in his knickers. "Yeh."

Edited 2008-05-03 05:10 (UTC)

The man boggles. "Tyler??"

Kit, on the other hand, looks more angry than surprised.

See? That's another very good reason for him to not look up right now.

"Yessir."

The man is giving him a Look usually only seen while he's wearing a red mask.

"Young man, you have a great deal of explaining to do."

He can feel it on the back of his head.

"I've been exploring the other caves and tunnels whenever you guys have been away."

It's...the start of an explaination.

"I believe I told you from the outset that you were not to leave the Lair."

He's also ten and hasn't seen fresh air in two weeks.

"Sir, there's a buried space station that's part of our school and sealed off, but it's still part of the school."

"This is not your school, Tyler," the man points out. "Nor is it the Panda Lair. That much should have been obvious from--"

"Uh, Boss?" Kit pipes up. "You really think we should be havin' this conversation here??"

"Maybe I should go back and wait for whatever punishment I'm gonna get."

The man's frown deepens. "You're not going anywhere without an escort, young man. We'll discuss your punishment later."

So he's just supposed to stay here? In plain sight?

"Yessir." And the man will be given a wary look, as Tyler usually gives grown ups outside of Milliways. "So what should I do, then?"

Edited 2008-05-05 20:55 (UTC)

"Just stay here and keep quiet," the man replies. "The staff know that I prefer not to be disturbed during meals. We'll escort you back to the Lair after breakfast."

...After breakfast? You're just going to make him sit here and watch you guys eat that really tasty looking breakfast?

The aforementioned cinnamon rolls and some of the juice are going to be given a look before a begging, 'I'm hungry' look to Miss Baxter. Tyler may not have yet fully mastered the art of speaking Canine, but the puppy-face is pretty easy to do.

Edited 2008-05-05 21:31 (UTC)

Kit immediately turns and gives her boss a similar look.

The man sighs. "Here," he says, pulling out the chair next to him. "Try not to make too much of a mess."

Tyler beams up at the man before coming up and sitting politely at the breakfast table. "Thank you and I will, sir."

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Toronto, Canada, January 26th and Jan 29th 1935

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