Going Swimmingly

[palmerthing]

 *Palmer has found a lake today and is giving it an uncertain kind of look. Not only is such a large outdoor feature a bit unexpected when there appears to be nothing in particular dividing it from the couches and chairs in the main area of the nexus, not only would he probably start turning into something aquatic on automatic as soon as he tried swimming, but he's fairly sure that he saw Gollum from The Lord of the Rings swimming in there and that's just too much weirdness for him. Not that he has any room to talk, but he's not up for that meeting yet. So he sits on the beach and watches the waves. Hopefully there won't be any merfolk or cartoon fish, one fantasy character at a time is bad enough.*

Comments

[palmerthing]

Kids tend to be pretty stubborn in any case.

[save_us_alice]

[and indeed, Chester is starting to eye the sand again -- Alice figures it might be time to stand up and get him out of grabbing distance] I'm just wondering how bad he'll be once he's a child. I could be a little terror sometimes.

[palmerthing]

*Probably a good idea, yes.* Sounds like it's gonna be pretty exciting. *He vaguely wonders how long it'll be before she wants a drink or smoke or something all the time. Or is that just what he'd do?*

[save_us_alice]

[that's probably mostly you, Palmer. Alice would probably settle for a sneaky five-minute nap]

Probably. At least I have plenty of help. [she smiles] It's nice to be part of a family again.

[palmerthing]

I envy you, man. Wish I had such a good family. *Or any at all, for that matter. It seems like one of the better things about being human.*

[save_us_alice]

Well, I kind of stumbled into it after I came here, so. . .if you hang around long enough, maybe you'll do the same.

[palmerthing]

Yeah, maybe. And if not I can at least hang around with you, right?

[save_us_alice]

[Alice smiles] Of course you can. We're always happy to help those trying to find their footing here. We all needed that help ourselves at one point.

[palmerthing]

So, you gonna bring the kid somewhere where he can't eat sand?

[save_us_alice]

[Alice looks at Chester] I probably should -- we seem to be done with the beach now. If he's hungry, he'll need ACTUAL food.

[palmerthing]

Yup. What does he like, by the way?

[save_us_alice]

He's inherited his parents' sweet teeth, I can tell you that much. When we introduced him to ice cream, I thought he was going to inhale the damn cone.

[palmerthing]

Wish I could have seen it, it must have been very entertaining to watch.

[save_us_alice]

[Alice chuckles] It was -- he basically just grabbed it and essentially slammed his face into it. Victor and I had to pull him back so he didn't get ice cream up his nose.

[palmerthing]

*Palmer laughs.* Wish I'd been there.

[save_us_alice]

Well, we might be able to semi-recreate the moment, given there's an ice cream place around here. One that Marty's already told me can cater to your own tastes.

[palmerthing]

*Palmer smiles.* Oh yes, that place.

Yeah, man, what the Hell. Better than him trying to eat sand again.

[save_us_alice]

[Alice laughs -- as does Chester, though he's clearly just laughing with Mummy] Yes, really. Let's head out then. [And she starts walking, content in the knowledge that you generally just get to wherever you're going in the Nexus if you walk far enough]

[palmerthing]

*Before too long they're at the ice cream shop. Palmer of course goes for something ridiculous like fresh sprout and mouse ice cream, because he can be alien like that here.*

[save_us_alice]

[the counter person doesn't even blink -- seems like they're REALLY used to all types in here. Alice gets a dish of strawberry for herself, and a small cone of chocolate for Chester, who recognizes it immediately and tries to squirm out of her arms over the counter as they scoop] Easy, small one, it's coming. . .

[palmerthing]

*Palmer laughs over his very strange ice cream cone.* Squirmy, isn't he?

[save_us_alice]

Yes -- he's a handful and a half, let me tell you. [she collects the little cone and hands it to him, where he promptly tries to stuff the entire thing in his mouth] Easy! Small bites! Or you're going to learn the hard way what a lot of ice cream at once does to one's head. . .

[palmerthing]

*Palmer is just laughing hysterically as the small child gives himself an ice cream headache. He's also licking his own ice cream, which contains a very cold and generally unhappy mouse.*

[save_us_alice]

[Chester whines as the cold hits him, pulling his mouth away from the ice cream and scrunching up his entire face. Alice shakes her head as she accepts her dish] See, what did I tell you? Watch Mummy, do this. [she presses her tongue to the roof of her mouth, which Chester copies, still whining a little]

[palmerthing]

*There's another of those abortive movements as Palmer fights the urge to give the boy a pat on the head.* Silly kiddo.