Entry One: Video Entry

[themountie]

[The camera turns on to show what appears to be an actual cabin in the woods, quite small, but complete with a roaring fire blazing in the hearth. The man holding the camera is wearing full Mountie regalia, including a Stetson hat, and looks pleased as punch.]

My thanks for the accommodations, Admiral. It's rather more space than I need, but I'm sure I'll finds ways to fill it.

[There's a bark from offscreen, and the man raises an eyebrow and says, quite pointedly:] No. Not with Krispy Kremes. We don't even have a Krispy Kreme on board, as far as I know.

[He turns his attention back to the camera, clearing his throat.] I beg your pardon, everyone. My name is Constable Benton Fraser, RCMP. I first came to the Barge-- well, that's not important right now, but I'll be here as a warden for the time being. I'm very much looking forward to it. [Horrifyingly, this appears to be genuine.]

Comments

[ Video ]

[themountie]

Well, reads, of course. Understands. [He's straight-laced, but not actually stupid, and he understands now that he's being mocked. The change is very subtle: a slight narrowing of the eyes, a stiffness in the expression.]

I'd be happy to demonstrate, sir, if you like.

[themountie]

[Don't worry, Ariadne, the most he'll do is search you for donuts. Dief lets out a remarkably pleased-sounding bark, and Fraser sighs and smiles wryly.]

Oh, dear. I wish you hadn't said that, ma'am; I'll never hear the end of it.

[themountie]

That's a bit worrisome, isn't it? I would hate to think they'd forget, after all the work that must go into their rehabilitation.

[themountie]

In which case, all I would have to do for any given person is show them how the public interest is also in their own.

But I'm not sure I agree, at any rate. I've had some remarkable successes.

[19centconstable]

But if they remain influenced, like I was, then it's really no loss.

[ Video ]

[surfaceshine]

[Ironically, Dean was pokerfacing while he was mocking; he has a certain appreciation, though, for cheerful eccentricity. For people, in all the odd and amusing shapes and sizes and colors they come in. Sometimes it's not enough to keep him from doing or saying something stupid, but what's making him nearly-smile is actually a sincere kind of benign amusement. He ignores the narrowed eyes for now.

Sure. How'd we do hat?

[most_feared]

My notepad saved me once when I couldn't remember exactly who I was. I forgot a whole language that I'd learned in my time here because- ...well, none of us can remember who, just that our memories at the time were botched.

Re: voice;

[zeitgeists]

What are you supposed to be?

[ Video ]

[themountie]

Well, we are video conferencing, aren't we? Hold on a moment, please. [Fraser sets the camera down, shifting it until both he and Dief are visible in the frame. He bends slightly, sets his hands on his knees, and says to the wolf:]

Atii, innarviut aivuqtutit?

[And lo and behold, Dief pads offscreen, and returns with a little leather bag in his jaws. Fraser grins and scratches his ears.] Thank you kindly, my friend.

[themountie]

Oh, dear. I hope I don't lose any further languages -- I'm already awfully embarrassed over the state of my Chinese dialects.

voice;

[themountie]

Canadian.

[most_feared]

Fortunately it came back when the matter was corrected or there woulda been a whole lot of notes that would have been gibberish until I relearned it.

[themountie]

Ah, well. That is a relief.

I hope I can come to you if I have any further questions, Agent K?

[most_feared]

Shouldn't be a problem. Good luck settlin' in, Tiger.

[maybebatman]

Well, I wish you luck in that endeavor, although in some cases, you may have to lead a revolution to make sure public and private interests coincide.

What kind of successes have you had?

[themountie]

[Wow, does he ever hate that nickname. But Kay is older and has been here longer, and so is clearly to be respected, so he smiles stiffly and says nothing.] Thank you, sir.

[themountie]

Oh, all sorts. Let's see... Ah. [He smiles a little, wistful.] All right. William Porter. Two years ago, he drove the getaway car for a bank robbery. However, he double-crossed his partners, stole the money, and set an elaborate trap to catch them and kill them -- a scheme in which he would undoubtedly be killed himself, but that was no matter, since the whole arrangement was intended to bequeath all the money to his son Del.

We had a long talk, William and I, standing right in the middle of this firetrap of his. The two of us, and my partner. And it was in his self-interest to murder us, and for a while, I genuinely believed he would...

[maybebatman]

And yet here you are, so I'm guessing no murdering took place.

[themountie]

[His smile widens, brightens. He really was very proud of William -- he still is.] It didn't, no. In the end, we agreed that while his self-interest was to make a great deal of money and die in a blaze of glory, leaving his son unburdened, that was actually very far indeed from what was in Del's best interest. William turned himself in and took a reduced sentence in exchange for testifying against his partners, and...

My goodness, I suppose he'll be getting out any day now. I should write to him.

[maybebatman]

You should. I'm sure he'd appreciate it.

[ He's not gonna let his inner criminal speak up about how unwise it is to rat out your partners in crime. It's too nice a story to ruin with technicalities. ]

That's quite the story, Constable Fraser. It sounds to me like you'll do a good job here. With some inmates, at least.

[themountie]

[Oh, he has stories about that, too, like the time his father died...]

Thank you kindly, Mr. Crowder. I very much appreciate the endorsement.

If you ever need that CES pass, by the way, please feel free to ask.

[maybebatman]

[ That sounds like a less uplifting tale. ]

I may take you up on that. Good luck, Constable.

[buildindreemz]

[Ariadne laughs.] Sorry. And don't call me that, seriously, it's just Ariadne.

[themountie]

[Again, there's a flicker of surprise, but this time he smiles.] Your parents must have been very well-read, if you don't mind my saying so.

[buildindreemz]

A bit. My mother is a classics professor.

It's probably a good thing I was born a girl. I'm sure my name would've been Apollo or something equally atrocious if I'd been a boy. Ariadne is tough enough to deal with.