Chapter 62:
Bottling emotions
Rodger:
Hm, they have brought their security. Four elves, two Naga and a human walk into the hot tub... No, this is not the start of a dirty joke. This is what we are doing right now. I am glad that they are here. These six don’t act like I am some sort of an object. Like a statue, which you rub the head of for luck, and forget soon after.
I relax on the bench, and see that the six have paired up. Then, I open the cabinet above the tub, and take out some headsets.
“Who wants to do shots?” I ask them, as I hand the first headset to Daniel.
“Sure, sounds nice,” Daniel puts the headset on, and waits for me to hand him the solvent. I do so, and he hooks it up. His potion begins to glow orange then. I am glad that he doesn’t find visiting me a chore.
“We really shouldn’t be bottling our emotions, while we work on a case,” one of the officers says. I simply huff.
“My hot tub, my rules,” I say, and trust a headset in his hands. “If you don’t do the shots, then you can wait outside the room.”
I am bluffing right now. I won’t chase them away. For one, I am bored out of my mind. House arrest is tough on the brain; you know? For the other, well, I don’t think they will call me out on my bluff.
“Fine, but this stays between us,” the man says, as he puts on a headset. I make sure that everyone is hooked to a solvent, and then place my own headset on. My potion begins to glow yellow. I frown at that.
“Are you ok, Rod?” Daniel asks. I force a smile on my face.
“Yes, just fine. Don’t mind the yellow. It comes with being old,” I say. Tine looks at me strangely.
“I know plenty of people who can bottle happiness at your age,” ah, mister professional happiness bottler has spoken. I poke out my tongue at him, knowing I’ll annoy him. When he snorts, instead of frowning, my yellow glow turns just the slight bit orange. I pump my fist high!
“I don’t believe we have been introduced,” one of the red-haired officers says, as he offers his hand. “Frederik. I’m pleased to meet you, Rodger.”
“If you were happy about the meeting, you wouldn’t have worded it like that,” I retort, and the orange glow in my potion is gone. Frederik has the audacity to grin.
“I have a secret. I am here only for the hot tub. Maybe for a couple of massages too, if there are any massagists on board?” He looks at one of the brunette officers, and gives him a suggestive look.
“The only one who is going to give you a massage, is me,” the officer says. I blink at that.
“But, Ray...” Frederik whines. This, Ray, huffs, and offers his hand next.
“The name is Ray. Not my real one, but for the duration of the case, it is the name I go by,” I shake the hand, and then see that the second red-head is offering his hand. Wait, this one looks familiar.
“I think I have seen you before,” I say, as I take his hand.
“My name is Ferenc. You might have seen me on news reports, after cases. Fred never liked to show himself on the videos,” the red-haired elf says.
“So, for how long have you been an officer?” I ask him.
“How about, a question for a question? How come you can tell my brother and me apart?” Ferenc asks.
“That is simple,” I say, and poke his nose. “Your nose is just a tiny bit more crocked. Has it been broken, before?”
“A couple of times,” Ferenc sighs, and looks at his brother. “You were right, that I should get it fixed.”
“I think you are perfect the way you are,” the final officer says, and I offer my hand this time. “Robin. Again, not my real name.”
I nod at that, as we shake hands. Still, Ferenc hasn’t answered my question.
“So, Ferenc, since when have you been an officer?” I ask him again.
“A couple of centuries. But then, I got in trouble, and was kicked out of the force,” he tells me. I frown at that. Am I speaking with a corrupt cop? Surely, he has been reprogrammed?
“What sort of trouble?” I notice that I am using my Prime Minister voice. That is never a good move, when I am trying to make friends. Still, I can’t help it. I can joke and goof around, but some things have to be taken seriously.
“I started a fight at a party,” Ferenc admits. I can see that Robin and Frederik both give him uncomfortable looks. Deciding not to pry, I change the subject.
“So, what are the plans, while we wait for the headsets?” I ask them. “Surely, we can go to a couple of the rides? Tony is not dangerous at all.”
“It is strange that you call the suspect by his pet name,” Robin says, and I just shrug. It is not strange. It is a sign of respect. Agafia keeps me up to date with the latest news in the dimension theory. If Tony is an ancestor, then he deserves respect. Even if he is not, I don’t make a habit of calling people by their titles.
“We will see what we can do, about arranging you some fun times,” Robin says, clearly the leader of the security detail. “But, after the Brain Scrambler, we make no promises.”
“That one was fun, right, Dany?” I ask my favorite human in the whole Cosmos. Granted, he is the only human I know personally, but that doesn’t make me cherish him any less.
“We should totally do it again, but on Ursula 590. Just in case the car ends up busted, and the air begins to leak out,” he tells me. I glance at my potion, and see that it is a lovely beige color. Huh, I guess I can work with that.
Chapter 62:
Bottling emotions
Rodger:
Hm, they have brought their security. Four elves, two Naga and a human walk into the hot tub... No, this is not the start of a dirty joke. This is what we are doing right now. I am glad that they are here. These six don’t act like I am some sort of an object. Like a statue, which you rub the head of for luck, and forget soon after.
I relax on the bench, and see that the six have paired up. Then, I open the cabinet above the tub, and take out some headsets.
“Who wants to do shots?” I ask them, as I hand the first headset to Daniel.
“Sure, sounds nice,” Daniel puts the headset on, and waits for me to hand him the solvent. I do so, and he hooks it up. His potion begins to glow orange then. I am glad that he doesn’t find visiting me a chore.
“We really shouldn’t be bottling our emotions, while we work on a case,” one of the officers says. I simply huff.
“My hot tub, my rules,” I say, and trust a headset in his hands. “If you don’t do the shots, then you can wait outside the room.”
I am bluffing right now. I won’t chase them away. For one, I am bored out of my mind. House arrest is tough on the brain; you know? For the other, well, I don’t think they will call me out on my bluff.
“Fine, but this stays between us,” the man says, as he puts on a headset. I make sure that everyone is hooked to a solvent, and then place my own headset on. My potion begins to glow yellow. I frown at that.
“Are you ok, Rod?” Daniel asks. I force a smile on my face.
“Yes, just fine. Don’t mind the yellow. It comes with being old,” I say. Tine looks at me strangely.
“I know plenty of people who can bottle happiness at your age,” ah, mister professional happiness bottler has spoken. I poke out my tongue at him, knowing I’ll annoy him. When he snorts, instead of frowning, my yellow glow turns just the slight bit orange. I pump my fist high!
“I don’t believe we have been introduced,” one of the red-haired officers says, as he offers his hand. “Frederik. I’m pleased to meet you, Rodger.”
“If you were happy about the meeting, you wouldn’t have worded it like that,” I retort, and the orange glow in my potion is gone. Frederik has the audacity to grin.
“I have a secret. I am here only for the hot tub. Maybe for a couple of massages too, if there are any massagists on board?” He looks at one of the brunette officers, and gives him a suggestive look.
“The only one who is going to give you a massage, is me,” the officer says. I blink at that.
“But, Ray...” Frederik whines. This, Ray, huffs, and offers his hand next.
“The name is Ray. Not my real one, but for the duration of the case, it is the name I go by,” I shake the hand, and then see that the second red-head is offering his hand. Wait, this one looks familiar.
“I think I have seen you before,” I say, as I take his hand.
“My name is Ferenc. You might have seen me on news reports, after cases. Fred never liked to show himself on the videos,” the red-haired elf says.
“So, for how long have you been an officer?” I ask him.
“How about, a question for a question? How come you can tell my brother and me apart?” Ferenc asks.
“That is simple,” I say, and poke his nose. “Your nose is just a tiny bit more crocked. Has it been broken, before?”
“A couple of times,” Ferenc sighs, and looks at his brother. “You were right, that I should get it fixed.”
“I think you are perfect the way you are,” the final officer says, and I offer my hand this time. “Robin. Again, not my real name.”
I nod at that, as we shake hands. Still, Ferenc hasn’t answered my question.
“So, Ferenc, since when have you been an officer?” I ask him again.
“A couple of centuries. But then, I got in trouble, and was kicked out of the force,” he tells me. I frown at that. Am I speaking with a corrupt cop? Surely, he has been reprogrammed?
“What sort of trouble?” I notice that I am using my Prime Minister voice. That is never a good move, when I am trying to make friends. Still, I can’t help it. I can joke and goof around, but some things have to be taken seriously.
“I started a fight at a party,” Ferenc admits. I can see that Robin and Frederik both give him uncomfortable looks. Deciding not to pry, I change the subject.
“So, what are the plans, while we wait for the headsets?” I ask them. “Surely, we can go to a couple of the rides? Tony is not dangerous at all.”
“It is strange that you call the suspect by his pet name,” Robin says, and I just shrug. It is not strange. It is a sign of respect. Agafia keeps me up to date with the latest news in the dimension theory. If Tony is an ancestor, then he deserves respect. Even if he is not, I don’t make a habit of calling people by their titles.
“We will see what we can do, about arranging you some fun times,” Robin says, clearly the leader of the security detail. “But, after the Brain Scrambler, we make no promises.”
“That one was fun, right, Dany?” I ask my favorite human in the whole Cosmos. Granted, he is the only human I know personally, but that doesn’t make me cherish him any less.
“We should totally do it again, but on Ursula 590. Just in case the car ends up busted, and the air begins to leak out,” he tells me. I glance at my potion, and see that it is a lovely beige color. Huh, I guess I can work with that.
