[Day 4, Late Afternoon] A Conversation About Freaky Stuff (Expecting)

[Milo Whitewood]

"... My parents appear often. Their faces and... their voices."

[Calico Carter]

Oh crap, he's an orphan?!

I let a kid with no parents pay for lunch?

I am SCUM.

"I... see. Uhm... do they... say what they want?"

[Milo Whitewood]

Milo looked down and trembled. "They usually ask... why I didn't save them... um... they both died fighting off this big monster swarm approaching our town." He took another deep breath. "There were others who died too. Lots were injured. AMBA had asked basically every wrangler to help. My parents owned a ranch and they had quite a few monsters so they volunteered. I was really young so I don't remember it too well. My parents put me in the basement with Diva and told me not to come out." The Warwolf perked up as its name was mentioned, but it settles down quickly when nothing is asked of it.

"She was told to protect me while they were away. It was... a few days, I think, until someone checked the basement and found me. I was pretty freaked out by that point. Diva was much more aggressive back then and we didn't have a bond so she wouldn't listen to me at first. It took some time before I got out. Um... yeah." Milo looked up to Calico and put on a brave face. "After that my aunt came to run the ranch and look after me, but most of the rest of the town was rebuilding. Home wasn't the same after that. I missed my parents a lot. The scary stuff began not long after that, which made it hard to... to keep friends, you know? Um, anyway, I think it could be related to that. My parents were never found. Just their monsters. Everyone says ghosts aren't real and it's just different monsters, but... it's hard to explain it otherwise, right? Well, I guess until now with this fire thing. It's like it's responding to you too."

[Calico Carter]

Calico crouched down and hugged him.

She didn't trust herself to speak.

[Milo Whitewood]

In the hug Milo was surprisingly calm. He'd mostly come to terms with his past and losing his parents. Remembering them and feeling loss made him sad sometimes still, absolutely, but he didn't let that rule him. Even so, it wasn't like he'd been supported through it. His aunt was more hard working and civil than considerate and loving. She was his guardian, sure, yet it wasn't a close familial relationship.

If it had been he probably wouldn't have ended up traveling at such a young age.

Maybe it was that which caused him to hug Calico tighter after a few moments? His voice crackled a little as he spoke up. "Thanks. I'm alright so it's fine."

[Calico Carter]

"You being tough doesn't mean it's fine."

[Milo Whitewood]

Milo considered it and slowly, gently shook his head side to side. "... It doesn't change anything either way." A quiet, muffled sound of pain escapes him and he grits his teeth. "So, I'll be fine."

[Calico Carter]

She held on a second longer, then pulled back, looking him in the eyes.

"You ever get feeling like you won't be, drop me a line, all right? I'm not good at much, but I can always listen."

[Milo Whitewood]

The boy was glum as he looked up to Calico. "Won't you need a new phone for that?"

[Calico Carter]

That got a chuckle.

"Well. I should get at LEAST second place, right? So I think I can afford a new phone."

[Milo Whitewood]

The chuckle dared him to smile a bit too. There's a long pause before Milo tried to tactfully approach a related topic. "You could even go shopping for some new clothes because there will be stuff for the new season soon."

[Calico Carter]

"Ah ah ah. Phone. Pay off my debts. And then we'll see about clothes. After all, I can always try to make 'hobo chic' a thing."

It seemed to be a joke. Well. The last line, anyway.

[Milo Whitewood]

"Please don't." Milo protested about the 'hobo chic' thing, taking it seriously. He held up a finger to make a point. "Actually, I'd still like to hire you to help me get another monster."

[Calico Carter]

"Hire me?"

She blinked.

"I'm a bit light on tools of the trade, but if Orlok and I can get close, I suppose he could whammy the opposition a bit..."

[Milo Whitewood]

"It's also dangerous to go too far alone so, um, you'd be backup too!" Milo asserts. "What do you normally charge for that sort of thing?"

[Calico Carter]

"Generally, I charge based on the anticipated target, and work alone, and.... you know, you bought lunch yesterday, I'd call that a pretty sound down payment..."

[Milo Whitewood]

"Hmm. I'm not sure of the target yet... and the pizza was my treat so, um, don't worry about it." He paused a moment only to let out a little sigh and look away. "I still have this weird thing to deal with too. Any ideas about that?"

[Calico Carter]

"I am completely at sea on that one, Milo. But I'll keep my ears open for anything that might be useful."

[Milo Whitewood]

Milo nods a couple of times, trying and failing to hide his disappointment. "Yeah, back to the drawing board I guess." He straightened himself out a moment later and mentally shook off the negative feelings. "Thanks for hearing me out Calico. Sorry it has, well, targeted you too. You'll be fine when you're away from me." A pause. "Probably."

[Calico Carter]

"Takes more than some spooky junk to make me ditch a friend, Milo."