Rawr?

Who: Herbert and Charlotte
Where: Library
When: Early Afternoon

So... America, eh?

Herbert Cayce had been cycling since sunrise, but you'd barely know it to look at him. The tall, well-built boy was standing looking at the local library for the town of Marquette, Michigan with his hands in his pockets and his brown eyes idly scanning the building. This was the first large settlement he'd come across since crossing the border last night and he figured that it was a good place to find a phone and call his Pa from. Only trouble was, he didn't have any of the local currency. Loonies didn't work in the phones round these parts he was sure.

Ah, well. Maybe American librarians were just as nice as the ones back home and they'd let him borrow the phone until he could swap his money from Canadian to US dollars. Herbert turned and wheeled his loaded bike towards the bike stands and set about locking it up. Another reason to come to the library, they always had cycle stands. Humming away to himself he locked down his muddied mountain bike and pulled the heavy pack containing his tent, his sleeping bag, and all his possessions onto his back.

Herbert sniffed the air, looking around. This town surely did have an odd sort of smell to it. Different. Very varied, changing so much just depending which way he turned his head. He had to wonder what was causing that. He gave a hearty sneeze and rubbed at his nose with the back of one big hand. Well, at least the library smelled like books.

Ever since someone had been murdered, Charlotte's mom was a bit panicky about Charlotte going out on her own. Which Charlotte found just a little ridiculous. People were murdered weekly back home, that didn't mean she couldn't go to the library. Isadora really hadn't appreciated that one. Valen had calmed her down, and reasoned with her that Charlotte wasn't going to do anything dangerous.

Which was good, because Charlotte's stomach was a mass of nerves. That party was tonight. Lulu had sent her a message last night that an emergency had popped up and she couldn't go, and Charlotte had done her best to assure her that it was fine. But she'd had a very restless sleep, and couldn't help but feel panicky. Was she still going to go? She almost had to. She'd wanted to call Kaysen and beg her to go with her, but she'd managed to hold back. Isadora and Valen were going out tonight - a date planned special so that Charlotte could take the car and have fun - so it would be a snap judgement whether she actually made it or not.

Her mom had the car, but Charlotte felt like walking it off anyway. Her most natural destination was the library - it was just where Charlotte went. She'd been there several times a week back home, and she didn't expect that to be any different here. Her mind was on the party as she walked, wondering if what she was wearing was going to be okay, when she turned a corner and narrowly avoided walking into a bike rack. An owner of one of those bikes was pretty close, and Charlotte doubted he would have appreciated that. "Sorry, Sir, I-" She looked up to him, because at 5'6" she most certainly had to look up at him at the close distance, and blinked. This wasn't a sir. A mountain man, yes, but he had a young face. Holy crow. Oops. She'd been talking. "I mean... sorry."

"Rawr?" Herbert peered around for the source of the voice before realizing he had to look down. Then he saw the small girl peering up at him and realized she was talking.

He raised a hand to wave slightly (she was rather far away, down there) and looked at her curiously. "Hallo," he said, smiling at her cheerily. "Who're you apologizing to?" he asked, looking over his shoulder and around.

Oh, great. He didn't even notice. I could have blended in and not had to say anything. Crap. Charlotte's ears went a little pink, but thankfully, that was hidden by her hair. "I almost walked into you, I wasn't paying attention." she explained. It didn't help that the way he was looking down at her made her feel like a little kid. She estimated that he was at least nine or ten inches taller than her. And he was huge! "I was in my own little world." Of doom.

"Oh, they get nice weather there?" he asked, resisting the urge to just kneel down or something to talk to this girl. He knew he was kinda tall, and she was kinda small, but in the end the weight of the pack on his back said that was a bad idea. He might overbalance and squish her.

"Occasionally. Do they get nice weather up there?" ...I just really said that, didn't I? Aw, nuts. Charlotte smiled sheepishly, and took a step back so she wasn't craning her neck. Okay, that helped. That made him slightly less overwhelming. "Don't answer that." she corrected herself. "You probably get that a lot."

Herbert laughed, a deep rumbly sort of sound made all the more amusing by the fact he put his hands on his belly when he did. "I do," he confirmed. "But it never gets tiresome to hear. You're the first American to ask anyway," he informed her. He took a sniff of the air. Again with the weird sniffings? Hm. He looked over at the girl and held out a hand, "I'm Herbert Cayce, pleased to meet you."

Charlotte noticed the sniff, and wondered what he smelled. Everything smelled normal to her. Unless it was her. I am not even going to dignify that thought by considering it. I'm not. She reached out and shook his hand, silently amazed at how much bigger his hand was compared to hers. And warm. Very, very warm. "Charlotte Angel. Um, Charlie's okay too. You're Canadian, then?"

"Charlie Angel," Herbert repeated, so that he would remember. Somehow he doubted a name like that he would forget. He carefully and gently shook her tiny little hand in his big ol' paw, and beamed at her. "I am indeed, just crossed the border yesterday. I thought this looked like a good place to stop. It smells interesting anyway."

So did the inhabitants, but Herbert knew to mind his Ps and Qs well enough not to say that part outloud.

Charlotte had been hoping he wouldn't put that part together, Isadora was always convinced that people would tease her for the 70s TV reference, but he didn't seem bothered by it. That was comforting. She smiled up at him, looking curious. "It smells different here? How?"

Herbert considered it with a thoughtful look on his face, glancing up at the sky. "I'm not sure yet," he confessed with a big shrug of his bigger shoulders, he looked down at Charlie as though she might have the answer and not know it. "I suppose it could be just because it's a new country and I've never been to one before. But my Ma always said to me I had to trust my nose."

Charlotte had never actually been to Canada, and didn't know what to say on that score. Maybe it did smell different. She'd never been to another country. "I used to live in the lower peninsula - you know, the part that looks like a mitten..." She wondered if that was a Michigan thing, if anyone had any clue what she was talking about when she said that. When people said they were from Italy, did they point to their boots? Doubtful. "I think there is kind of a different smell here, you can smell the water. What brought you down here?"

Mitten? Ah yes, Herbert knew exactly what she meant. He loved maps, had quite a few stuffed in various places in his backpack, and he studied them at night the way some people read books. He gave an understanding nod for that part, and shoved his hands in his pockets considering the simple answer to the question.

"I'm here to finish my schooling," he admitted, looking down at her. "Missed my last year, so I gotta catch up and get my graduation. Plus I just wanted to travel some." A thought occurred to him then and he looked at Charlie curiously. "Is there a high school 'round here?"

Charlotte nodded, getting a mental image of where the school was from here. Just a few blocks to the west, if she remembered correctly. "Marquette Senior High." she answered. "I just moved here, too. I don't know what grade they're putting me in yet, though." She was glad to know another student, and knew it'd be pretty hard to miss him in the halls. "Why did you miss last year?"

She was new to the school. Herbert didn't notice that somewhere in his brain a little dial was flipped which indicated this would be a good reason to also be new to the school.

"Ah, it was some family trouble," he said, not wanting to worry a little thing like Charlie with the wherefores and why of the whole thing. "Had to take the year out, but it's alright now. I was actually just about to ask if the library would let me call home to check up with my Pa. Think that'd be okay? I don't have any change for the payphones, you see." He pulled a hand out his pocket, a couple of shining canadian coins in his palm.

Charlotte frowned as she looked over to the library, and then back to Herbert. "Well, if they don't, I have a few quarters you can have. It's not a big deal." She nodded her head towards the building, slowly making her way there. She didn't ask for more details on the 'family trouble', knowing enough that that was none of her business. It had to be bad if he missed school, though. "Are you going to be staying here... by yourself?" she asked, trying not to look particularly wide-eyed.

Charlie's generosity didn't go amiss in Herbert's mind, and he gave her a grateful smile at the offer of some of these quarters for phoning as they walked towards the library. He looked down to the small girl. "I'm not sure. I was planning to stay for a day or two, check out the town and maybe sell a few things to earn some money. I usually camp everywhere," he shrugged his backpack on his shoulders. "Got everything I need right here."

"Really?" Charlotte asked, definitely looking surprised now. It was a good surprise, but not something she was used to. "Even in the winter?" She loved the outdoors, but most people she knew would hate the idea of camping once the winter came. It would only take a month or so to start getting really cold.

Herbert nodded, and stepped forwards to hold the door open for Charlie as they entered the library. "Have done a few times," he told her, seeing her surprise. "Is that a kinda weird thing for these parts? I don't want to offend any sensibilities or such." He didn't have money for a hostel or anything right yet either, so maybe he'd just have to keep moving? Hm. Didn't want to do that, this place smelled interesting after all.

Charlotte had to shrug a bit as she stepped inside. "I've never heard of anyone in high school doing it, but I'm not a very good source." she admitted. She'd just use being new as her excuse. "But I think it's kind of cool. You don't freeze or anything?"

"Really?" Herbert grinned a bit for her thinking camping was cool. "I love camping. And I'm always feelin' pretty warm," Herbert stated, looking around the library they were now standing in and blinking a little in the artificial light. Everything was shades of gray to him most of the time, and in here it was no different. All he could pick out were flickers of blue on spines of books and the odd piece of clothing. Oh well, maybe it was a bit much to ask that one of the walls be painted in blue.

He sniffed again, and yes, there was a good hefty scent of learning and books and that odd plasticy burn you got off of computers in here. "Mmm, smells educational."

"I like the outdoors too." Charlotte said. "I'm not sure I could sleep outside in the winter though. Then again, I've never tried." And knowing her mother? Probably never would. Isadora would be convinced she'd get hypothermia and die. She tried to hide a smirk as she looked up at him. "Does everything have a scent to you?" she asked. She'd never met anyone who did that before. Though she did like the way libraries and old books smelled. Next to stuff that belonged outdoors, it was one of the best scents in the world.

Herbert looked down to her, and couldn't quite stop himself sniffing again, though only slightly. From here little Charlie smelled like... grass and cotton, yep. "Ah, well, sure does. My nose works better than my eyes," he confessed with a slightly sheepish shrug. "Probably better than my brain too, if you believe my old maths teacher. But I think he was just mad at me on account of the fact algebra smells lame."

Charlotte had to giggle, though she hid it behind her hand and tried to keep reasonably quiet. The last thing anyone wanted was an annoyed librarian. Especially considering Charlotte was fully intending on partially living in Marquette's libraries. "What does algebra smell like?" she asked, trying not to grin.

"Like ink and stale bits of alphabet soup," Herbert told her with a grin, trying not to laugh too, for the same reasons as Charlie. "Lame, really. But then, I've never been a real brain-box, you know? Not my call in life, I suppose, eh?"

Speaking of, there was the main desk and right sitting on top of it was a phone. Herbert gestured to it as subtly as he could (which was not very subtly at all, given how huge he was) and looked down at Charlie. "D'you think they'll let me give it a try?" he asked.

"I guess that would smell pretty bad." Charlotte agreed, snickering. Math wasn't one of her better subjects, but truthfully, she was a pretty good student all around. It was nerd territory. She never got less than a B.

"Well... there's one way to find out." she replied to his question, stepping to the desk to address the librarian behind it. "Pardon me, but may he use your phone? He needs to call his dad." And I'm the only teenager in North America without a cellphone. She didn't mention that Herbert needed to call Canada. She didn't think that would go over too well.

Giving the librarian his version of a friendly, winning smile, Herbert waited for her reply. Luckily it was an affirmative - apparently the librarian was impressed by the fact neither of them was in possession of a mobile phone. She left them to go catalogue some returns, and Herbert quickly poked his big fingers against the keypad until a string of numbers sent the phone back at his family home to ringing.

He smiled at Charlie as his father answered, and though his voice was lowered with them being in a library and all, he did nothing to conceal the conversation from her. It was no worry of his if a nice person like Charlie overhead him and his father. All they talked about was how each of them was, and where Herbert had gotten to, and how things were back in Alberta and for all the family back there. The answer on all scores seemed to be just fine, so Herbert was deeply satisfied as he promised his father he'd call back tomorrow, and that he loved him, as he hung up the phone.

"Okay, that's much better," he said to Charlie with a smile. "Thanks Charlie. And my Pa says 'hi'."

Charlotte couldn't help but actually feel a bit guilty for the long distance call, and felt much better when the librarian didn't seem to have a problem with it. Thank God for nice people. They made things so much easier.

She didn't feel right about wandering off while Herbert talked, though she was careful not to eavesdrop on too much. She got that he was from Alberta though, and took a moment to mentally picture that on a map. She realized that he was pretty far away from home. He'd come here by himself, all this way, and he didn't know where he was staying. Charlotte couldn't imagine ever doing that herself. Maybe it was the earth attitude in her.

While he talked to his dad, Charlotte took the opportunity to get a new library card, and she was done by the time Herbert hung up. She smiled at him, and gave a small chuckle. "Well... hi to him next time, too." she offered. "I didn't realize how far you'd come... when you said Canada, I figured you meant Ontario." she admitted. "Did you ride your bike all the way here?"

Waving a thankful goodbye to the librarian, Herbert walked with Charlie out the library and into the daylight. "Sure, me and my bike made it all the way. Been travelling since April though, so it isn't really very far to come. I've been taking the scenic route, I guess you'd say."

He sniffed the air again, quite happily this time, and shrugged his backpack further up his shoulders. His stomach chose just then to give a very hungry growl, and he looked down at it with a bit of a start. "Rr?" he queried, then looked over to Charlie. "I guess I'm kinda hungry. Is there anywhere around here with cheap vegetarian food?" he asked, a little bit self-consciously.

"That's a long time." Charlotte said, brilliantly. Oops. "I can't imagine traveling all that way on your bike." It made her own recent move seem even easier. She'd hardly had to do anything, compared to that.

It was a bit hard to imagine Herbert as a vegetarian. With his size, he looked like the sort of guy that could just live on meat. Finding no other better animal to compare him to, he looked like a big bear of a man. The inner grumblings sort of supported that mental image. "I don't actually know. I just got here a few days ago." she admitted, stopping on the sidewalk and looking down the street. She knew there were a couple of pubs and restaurants in the area, but hadn't actually been to any of them. "It doesn't sound like so hard a thing to find." What place these days didn't have a salad, anyway?

Ah, that was a good attitude. All the same, it occurred to Herbert that he still had the same trouble as with the phones. No US money. Maybe he could go forage for some local berries, but the trouble with that was it was sort of anti-social and more than that he wasn't sure what the seasons were for them around these parts. He was worryingly sure they didn't have saskatoons and blackberries lining the bushes in this area.

Plus, he was just plain starving. "Hmm," he murmurred deeply. "Is there a bank around here?" he asked, and then a better idea occurred to him. "Or maybe somewhere that would buy some handmade wares?" He did have a good bundle of scarves he'd knitted up in his backpack, and some mittens and even a few hats. If he could sell those it'd be an instant currency exchange. Ah hah! Sometimes he did have good ideas.

"You forget, I'm new here, too." Charlotte pointed out. Once she knew where something was, she was fine. She'd never forget it. But settling in to a new house has guaranteed that the only place she'd really gone, other than down to Harvey to the stables, was the grocery store. As she imagined the drives and walks around town in her head, she tilted her head from side to side thoughtfully, scanning her memories for something of interest. The bank she remembered was a bit far away, and she wasn't sure she could give directions from here.

Her eyes settled on a payphone, though. More importantly, the phone book attached. "We can probably find something." she guessed, heading over there. "It's a small town, how hard can it be?"

"That's the spirit," Herbert replied with a grin. He had to say he liked Charlie lots already, and she'd been very kind to him. Some people were quite wary of him, being as he was so tall, but she seemed fine. Which was great! Herbert was all for being friendly with folk, so as they made their way to the phone box he did a mental count and worked out that one way or the other he could no doubt spring for a salad for her too.

She was just a tiny little thing, it was important she have something to eat too so she could grow up big and strong, right?