#rivervale_lodge

Tove cleans.

"No." Flat.

"I told Siv, and the Chief; one day we're gonna see him on the news. He'll be famous. Guy's a psycho."

Another shrug. "He's good at what he does. You might need him some day."

A shrug. "Gonna be really bad, if I do."

A furry yorkie poodle who knows what else swarms Adam's legs with a huff. Who is he? what's he doing here? Canine security wants to know!

"Woah! Hey, little guy!"

He offers the back of a friendly hand.

"Girl actually" Tove says "Her name is Twobit"

"Two-Bit, this is Adam."

A snort, but when Sylvi vouches, she takes a cautious sniff

She gives a firm look up into Adam's eyes that seems to suggest he will be tolerated , perhaps even welcome, but if he gives her family grief? No mercy!

A friendly grin. "Two-bit.... hey there...."

"If Two-Bit approves of you, you're good. If not, you're doomed." Sylvi smiles to show she's joking.

"You gotta trust dogs." He agrees. "Hey, that little kid seemed cool too. I met him, kinda. There was a lot going on."

Oh yeah, Terrier Mix is judging. He's under double fuzzy supervision

"Oh, Connor? He's a sweetheart. Um...he's a pooka...you know what that means, right?"

"They said... a puck... uh.... jokes and gag and pranks and things. Why does he look like a dog?"

"Was it a joke, a gag?"

"Well, pooka can change their shape into their animal forms...but with Connor, he's got this thing where he's got animal features that even mortals can see, all the time. Makes things tricky for him outside of the Lodge."

"Connoer has it hard" Tove sighs

"Wait, so that wasn't... like, me seeing things? I mean, he looks like that to everyone all the time?"

"He wears gloves"

"A boy with floppy puppy ears? Yup. He usually covers them with a hat when he has to."

"Right, and gloves, too."

"Woah." He thinks about it a second. "That's... that'd be really.... -hard-."

"He can't go to regular school, for obvious reasons."

"Sometimes he's very lonely, though Gerd has been giving him an excuse to wander around in dog form...she has leash he's not on for show"

Adam blinks. "I don't think I've met Gerd. Am I allowed to talk to her?"

He pats his pockets to find the list, reads it.

Gerd is on The List!

"Let me see...." she looks over his shoulder.

"Yeah, there she is," pointing out the name.

"Here she is." He says at the same time, then turns his face and smiles.... so close.....

"She's a little younger than us, and she likes to do a goth look."

Sylvi blinks at the smile, gives a half-smile back, and goes back to her seat. "Anyway...."

Adam notices the clock across the room. "Oh.... uh, dang it. Work."

"I called out yesterday, almost got caught by dad. I gotta go." He stands.

"Okay. Good to talk with you, Adam." A polite smile.

"Okay. It was nice to see you again" Tove says "Dagmar remembered something she had to do or she'd be down here."

"Yeah.... uh, Mrs. King?"

"Yes?"

Adam looks a little abashed or sheepish, then shrugs and says "Could you tell Sam... uh, Dagmar..... I think what she has, you all have, here... it's really cool. Says a lot about what strength really is, I think."

"I will" Tove smiles

And Twobit wags just a bit

That makes Sylvi grin a bit. Then her eyes light on something. "Hey...whose staff is this?"

"Oh, shoot, I guess....." he looks at Tove.

"Take it with you. Just try to keep track of it... or where it's located when the enchantment wears off."

"It's nice. Dagmar's work?"

He nods seriously. "Thank you, Mrs. King." He gets it. "Yeah, she -made- this, isn't that cool?"