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Post by hugodouglass on Oct 28, 2010 17:53:57 GMT -5
Hugo nodded, saying:
"I need to get cleaned up as well." He didn't stink, but he sure could use a shower at this point.
"Oh, Dad, guess what Captain Mike showed me?" And so began Lisa's tale, Hugo listening intently as the two of them walked to their quarters, the detective chiming with an occasional "Wow!" or "What else did you do with Captain Mike?"
Lisa didn't stop talking until they got to their quarters, the girl sitting on the floor and saying:
"Dad, I have to do this thing for school."
"Be specific, baby."
"Well, I have to do these problems and it's really annoying."
"Math?" She pouted.
"Have you done it?"
"Noooooo..."
"Is it due tonight?"
"Yeeeees."
"Lisa..."
"But I don't wannaaaaaa..."
"You're not going to whine your way out of this, baby. You either do it or I make you clean the toilets again." Instantly Lisa began her homework.
After a quick shower and change, Hugo noticed that his personal console had lit up. Who could have called on his personal line? He spoke:
"Message playback."
"Message received yesterday at 10:30 P.M. GST." An image of his old boss, Mike Sellers, appeared as a miniature projection.
This should be interesting.
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Post by darcyneumann on Oct 28, 2010 18:06:45 GMT -5
Darcy was so thankful when she was able to peel her clothes off and check the damage. Apparently, she managed to get away pretty clean, a few cuts on her hands, around her shoulders, one on her cheek and another hidden by her hair line - there was no glass left in the wounds, so she went straight into the shower, washing the blood and the sweat away.
Feeling refreshed, she pulled on a bath robe for the moment and collapsed on her bed.
"Computer."
"Yes Ms. Neumann." She was always thankful the computer, with it's tinny likeness to a human voice, could pronounce her name right.
"Anything of note?"
"One message from a Miss Casey Neumann."
"Ooh, play it, please."
Speak of the devil.
"Hey Dee, it's me! I feel like we haven't talked in aaaaages, because we haven't. School has been absolutely crazy this past semester. But I have a couple of days of no classes coming up, and I want you to come visit. No buts, no nothing. Just come. If you have to bring work with you, I don't care. I just wanna see you. Call me back, or just turn up. Love you."
"Love you more," Darcy said quietly, even though Casey couldn't hear her.
That was just what she had needed, visiting Casey for a couple of days would be good. Great even. Casey knew what she was like, telling her that she could bring work if she needed to. But for once, she just wanted to see her. They'd find plenty of stuff to do.
Then a thought cross her mind.
No, surely it was too soon for something like that?
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Post by hugodouglass on Oct 28, 2010 18:14:55 GMT -5
Hugo reclined on his bed, the mattress foam beneath him adapting to his shape as he shifted his position every so often. His thoughts dwelt on the message Mike had left him. LAPD was functioning, but Mike thought there was something wrong, something he couldn't put his finger on. He had uploaded a few case files in the message for Hugo to go through, said case files still remaining on his desk as holographic 3-D models. Each one was a murder, each one was unresolved.
Same detective, similar cases.
Oh it smelled rancid.
Lisa had finished her homework and, after a few minutes, crawled into Hugo's bed, tucking herself close to her father, her head on his chest. She was humming, eyes closed. Hugo's thoughts were interrupted by a question from his daughter:
"Daddy?" He knew something was wrong from the moment he had come on board.
"Yes baby?"
"I miss her."
"I do too, honey."
"Do you think...do you think she thinks about me?" Hugo looked down at his daughter, kissing her on the head as he said:
"I'm sure of it."
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Post by darcyneumann on Oct 28, 2010 18:29:27 GMT -5
Darcy had managed to fall asleep, hair still wet, splayed out across her bed in her bathrobe. She woke groggily, having slept twelve hours straight without a peep. Her hair was a tousled mess, but clean, that was the main thing. After dressing, and taming her hair by tying most of it back, letting a few waves roam free near her face, she came back to the thought she'd been having when she'd fallen asleep. She decided to go for it. Wandering along the corridor, her surprisingly unhungry stomach stayed quiet as she mulled over how she was going to ask Hugo this question; if he wanted to go to Earth with her to visit Casey. Lisa could come too of course. Just getting the first words out was going to be the interesting part. He needed down time as much as she did, she imagined, so that would be her angle. Some time away from the ship, no action, just relaxing. And, seeing as she had met Lisa, he could meet Casey. Win win. Knocking on the door to his quarters, she waited, rocking back on her heels slightly. |
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Post by hugodouglass on Oct 28, 2010 18:37:52 GMT -5
Hugo had forgotten to lock the door(which he usually did), so the personnel sensor did what it was programmed to do: open the door. What Darcy would see is Hugo in a black sleeveless t-shirt and shorts doing push-ups with a gravity belt around his waist. He was sweating profusely.
"COME ON DAD! YOU CAN DO BETTER THAN THAT!" Lisa shouted, cheering her father on as he cranked out one last repetition, the detective collapsing to the ground a sweaty mess.
"Thirty seven."
"Dad, you did forty yesterday."
"Don't remind me honey."
"Oh hi Darceee." Hugo looked to his left, seeing Darcy's feet.
"What brings you by this morning?" The detective asked, still lying on the ground(the gravity belt gradually increased the weight Hugo was pushing. By the thirtieth rep, he was pushing at least two hundred and sixty pounds.)
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Post by darcyneumann on Oct 28, 2010 18:47:54 GMT -5
Darcy did her best not to stand with her mouth agog at the scene before her. Her next reaction was to burst out laughing, which she stifled by placing a hand over her mouth, refusing to let any noise escape.
"I uh..."
Why was she here again?
"Do you need a hand?"
She offered him a hand as he lay on the floor, her mind slowly engaging with the task at hand again.
"Oh, yes," she remembered now, "I got a call from Casey last night. She's got a couple of days off and wants me to go visit. I figured I could use the time off. And that maybe, you could too?" That was vague. "I mean, I wondered if you wanted to come with me?" She glanced at both Hugo lying on the floor, and Lisa.
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Post by hugodouglass on Oct 28, 2010 18:58:30 GMT -5
Hugo reached for the gravity belt, turning the contraption off. Not wanting to spurn the offer out of politeness, he took Darcy's hand and got up off the floor, listening to her question. Lisa almost went nuts, knowing that she could get off of this confining ship and go somewhere with humans! And animals! And plants! Hugo couldn't even say anything before Lisa was at Hugo's waist, asking:
"Can we Dad? Can we can we can we?" He looked down at Lisa's pleading eyes and did something he usually did not do, even under the worst of pressure.
Cave in.
"If you want us tagging along, sure. She needs to get off the ship." Lisa was already getting her things ready, talking to herself about what she should bring. Hugo looked over at Lisa for a moment before turning to Darcy, saying with a smile:
"I appreciate the offer. Maybe I can get you a drink. You know, for your attempt at saving me." He gave her a bigger smile, the "ladykiller" smile as his wife called it. He never knew why.
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Post by darcyneumann on Oct 28, 2010 19:16:00 GMT -5
Darcy hadn't actually expected him to say yes. She found herself grinning widely, chuckling a little as Lisa ran around excitedly packing her stuff.
"You're welcome," she said, looking back at Hugo, falling under the power of that smile. "I'll hold you to that."
Darcy had to retreat to her room to pack some of her own things, extra clothes and such like. She met Hugo and Lisa in the docking bay where a small shuttle was waiting for them. Lisa had embodied all meaning of the word 'bouncy'; obviously Darcy's offer was to blame for that, hopefully Hugo wouldn't hold it against her.
The shuttle ride was spent entertaining Lisa, she attempted to engage Hugo in conversation a couple of times but it was difficult with such a ball of excitement sitting between them in an enclosed space.
She'd already warned Casey that one, she was actually coming, and two, she was bringing company. Casey had immediately agreed to meet them at the shuttle port, so when they climbed on out, she was standing there waiting, waving her arms and beaming.
Casey ran over and dived on Darcy, who stood nearly a foot taller than her in her heels. "Gahhhhh, I missed you so much!" Casey cried, swinging herself back down and onto her feet.
"I missed you too," Darcy said, ruffling up Casey's hair with a grin - the advantage of the height different was that Casey couldn't get her back.
"And you guys must be Hugo and Lisa right?" she knelt down to Lisa's height and said teasingly with an outstretched hand, "nice to meet you Hugo."
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Post by hugodouglass on Oct 28, 2010 19:23:31 GMT -5
Hugo could barely keep Lisa still on the shuttle ride over, having to force Lisa to calm down by putting one hand on her shoulder and squeezing slightly, indicating his displeasure. She called it the "pain hand" and she knew that if it was administered, she was in trouble. She calmed down slightly.
Slightly.
As Hugo emerged from the transport, he saw Darcy and Casey embrace. There was love in that relationship for sure. He watched as Casey strode over to the father-daughter pair and listened to what Casey had to say, the detective chuckling slightly.
Kid had a sense of humor. That's a good start.
"I'm not Hugo, siiiilllyy. I'm Lisa." Lisa said playfully, giggling slightly.
"Shake her hand, baby."
"Oh...ok!" She grabbed Casey's hand and shook it in a controlled manner(Hugo had taught her how to do this on more than one occasion.)
"Good to meet you, Casey. Darcy has mentioned you in very positive terms."
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Post by darcyneumann on Oct 28, 2010 19:31:20 GMT -5
"I know cutie, I'm just teasing," Casey grinned as she politely shook Lisa's hand in return. She then sprung back onto her feet, full of energy and youth, like she normally was.
"Very positive terms, huh?" she glanced back at Dee, with a raised eyebrow, "well, I haven't heard much about you yet, but I'm sure I will soon enough." She extended her hand to him too out of politeness. Honestly, she had no idea about this guy at all, but if Darcy had felt comfortable enough to bring him with her, then that spoke volumes.
"Okay, so," Casey clapped her hands together, "what do you guys want to do? There's tonnes of places to go on campus; parks, cafes, restaurants. Or, you can see what all that money you're paying is going towards," she nudged Darcy, "and I can cook you guys something back at my place. If Lisa wants to, she can be my little helper?"
Darcy looked at Hugo, "what do you think?" She was happy to catch up with Casey anywhere.
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Post by hugodouglass on Oct 28, 2010 19:43:04 GMT -5
Hugo, after shaking Casey's hand, responded:
"Honestly Darc, I'm up for whatever our guide here has in store for us." It was an honest enough opinion: Casey was generous enough to allow two extra guests, so he could follow them around wherever they went. It seemed like a safe enough place to roam around, which meant he didn't have to look at everyone with a suspicious eye. San Fran really had cleaned up it's act over the last few years, that's for sure. Well, it really shouldn't be much of a surprise: Hugo knew the guy in charge of law enforcement here and he was a stickler for detail.
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Post by darcyneumann on Oct 28, 2010 19:54:16 GMT -5
This had been a good idea, Darcy could see that already.
"Well," Casey interjected, "I wouldn't mind catching up with mother dearest here, if you don't mind," she said, teasing Dee a little, "but there's plenty for you guys to do here in San Fran. I'm sure Lisa would love to see the old golden gate bridge, or the zoo, right? Then we can meet back at my place at say four? I'll have the food ready."
"And it will be delicious," Darcy agreed with a nod, "I swear on her life."
"And we can gossip about you two while you're gone," Casey said with a cheeky grin.
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Post by hugodouglass on Oct 28, 2010 20:04:55 GMT -5
"That's what women tend to do, isn't it?" He laughed, Lisa looking up at her father with a frustrated look.
"Ladies don't do that ALL the time, Dad! We do other things like breathe and...and..."
"Uh huh. Talk to me when you're fourteen, kiddo." He looked over at the mother daughter duo and said:
"We'll see you gals soon then. Come on Lisa, we're going to the Zoo."
"SNAKES!"
"Uh huh. What else?" Their dialogue was very animated and could be seen as they departed, Hugo knowing that they could anywhere by using the SuperRail(what a dumb name).
"Ready to ride the train?"
"Oooohhh! Yeah, yeah!" And so the bonding began.
Several hours of ice cream eating, picture taking(Hugo was a goof in most of them. Lisa needed to see her dad's fun side), animal feeding, question asking(Why did that Zebra poop in the middle of the plain, Dad? Doesn't he know the other Zebras will step on it?), and general bonding(Lisa had, on the ride home, put her head on Hugo's arm and whispered an I love you to her father.), they were now back where they started. He had forgot to ask Casey for directions, but he knew a way to get there. Hugo brought out a small device from his left front pocket, quietly whispering into the device:
"Isolate DNA trail. Sample: Neumann."
"Isolating..." The machine hummed, then flashed a small prompt on screen to please put on the ocular piece. Complying, Hugo took a pair of innocent looking sunglasses(it was still light, so he wouldn't look like a total goofball) and saw the trail that both Darcy and Casey left.
He loved being a detective.
A few minutes later, both father and daughter stood outside Casey's door. He knocked.
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Post by darcyneumann on Oct 28, 2010 20:31:07 GMT -5
No sooner had Hugo and Lisa disappeared out of sight, Casey tugged on Darcy's arm and bounced excitedly. "Oh my God, you like him don't you?"
"Casey."
"You do! You SO do. Oh my God. Why else would you bring him along?"
Darcy bit her lip and shook her head.
"Come on, you know you do. I'll will weed it out of you one way or another. I may be small, but I what I lack in height and I make up for in determination."
"I know you do," Darcy smirked, "you got that determination from me."
They made their way back to Casey's apartment, hand in hand, up to the North of the campus, chattering the whole way, making up for many missed conversations. Her place was a decent size for a student. There was a spare room which one of her friends inhabited sometimes when they didn't want to make the daily commute from San Jose. The kitchen, dining area, and living area was all open plan, so the smell of the food could be found wafting around the entire apartment.
Darcy chewed on the raw vegetables as Casey prepped her kitchen, talking to whole time. She'd cooked so many times now, multitasking while doing so was easy.
"He was kidnapped?" Casey couldn't hide any shock or horror from her face.
Darcy nodded fervently, "by a splinter group of the terrorists that are causing all these anomalies in space."
"And the club exploded?"
"Part of it did," she said, "I didn't even get time to see my whole life flash before my eyes."
"And then you were both locked up in the terrorists place together? And saved by the UGAP?"
"Yup."
"Dude," Casey shook her head, sprinkling oil into a wok before snatching the vegetables away from Darcy, sliding them into the seering hot pan so they crackled, "Dee, that's insane."
"You're telling me."
"But, you did follow him in the first place," Casey pointed out, "I've seen you not even say two words to men before, following one into the Third says a lot, I think."
Darcy shook her head and smirked. "Fine."
"You'll admit you like him?"
"Yes," she sighed, "I like him."
Casey punched the air in victory with a whoop, "I knew it."
Casey finished up the stir fly, spring rolls, and fried bread and served them in large bowls on the dining table, accompanying them with spoons so people could help themselves. Then there was the knock at the door.
Darcy opened the door and smiled at the pair. It was a miracle they'd managed to find the place considering neither her nor Casey had given them directions. "Welcome to Casa del Casey." Stepping aside, she gestured for them to come inside.
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Post by hugodouglass on Oct 28, 2010 20:39:04 GMT -5
"That smells soooo good! What is it?" Lisa asked, nearly running into the apartment. Hugo had to caution Lisa with an "Indoor walk, please." She slowed down slightly(again, slightly being the key word), examining the food on the table and left her father the chore of carrying both their bags in. Not a problem.
"Well it does smell good, doesn't it?" He brought the pieces of luggage in and saw the spread on the table. Wow. Hugo looked over at Darcy with a smile, asking:
"You guys catch up much?" Lisa was already seated.
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