60

[perfectsymmetry]

[Crowe's talents lie in being stealthy and sneaky. As much as he wants to leave his thieving ways behind him, he's also always glad to be able to use his skills for good. Not only is it good to keep them sharp, he liked doing it. It was fun. Exciting. An adrenaline rush!

After speaking with King Frederick, and his partners in crime Kay and Zidane, the next target of investigation in Mayfield was the Milkman. First move was to monitor his actions. After that, time to move on to the Dairy, which was always locked. The Milkman always seemed to just appear and disappear into thin air when doing his deliveries, so the first step was to see how he did what he did.

Crowe knew that this could be even more hazardous to his health (and his sanity) than the City Hall investigation. If the Milkman was really tied that closely with Lucy Smith, this could be real trouble, for everyone. But he knew this is what they needed to do. If they didn't move forward, keep trying to find answers, than they were as good as the drones placidly living their empty lives here. Something had to be done, and if it was up to him, so be it.

Starting Saturday, and going through the upcoming week, Crowe is up before dawn. No one will notice as no one should see him unless they were truly trying to. He stays hidden in shadows and around corners, behind trees and buildings, following the Milkman and his delivery route. He started when the Milkman approached his own street, Williams, and followed him from there, hopefully on to the Dairy once he was done his deliveries. He wouldn't approach or try to enter the building - not yet. More observation was needed. While incredibly stealthy, Crowe didn't have any powers or abilities to hide or protect himself like many others in town. He had nothing but his skills and wits to keep him hidden, and while Crowe was never the most confident of people, he was sure he could do this without being followed.

He hoped, anyway. If he got caught, Kay and Zidane might still be able to get away with it. That's why it was important to work independently this time around.]


[Action 2: this weekend during the afternoon:

Crowe's out and about with his camera again! So many new people have rolled into town, that he had a lot of catching up to do. After talking to Lucas about this project again, he realized how important it was to have something like a photo gallery He already had two rolls of film's worth of photos of his friends and acquaintances from around Mayfield, and planned to take as many more as he could. You'll find Crowe today snapping photos of passersby, or scenes at the park. He'll also be stopping his friends and anyone who doesn't look like a drone, to see if you'd like to pose for a picture for his collection! Occasionally he'll take out his recently regained iPhone and snap a photo with it. While he was glad to have it back, there also wasn't too much else he could do with it in Mayfield.

He'll also be wandering around the stores downtown, looking at some of the displays that are already up for Valentine's Day. It seemed like Christmas was just yesterday. Time moved fast in this town. He'll be lingering outside the windows of gift shops and the bakery, looking thoughtful. Feel free to bug him any time he's out!]

Comments

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

[Lucas . . . has also brought a notebook. He juggles trying to hold the camera and write at the same time before he realizes there is a strap for it to go around his neck. And he nods emphatically to what Crowe is saying.]

Keep . . . fingers . . . out of . . . lens. . . OK! I'll try to remember that.

. . .

What's the lens?

[perfektsymmetry.livejournal.com]

[He grins, and holds Lucas's camera up, pointing to it.] That's the lens. Whatever it's looking at is what you'll be taking a photo of. So if your hand gets in the way, forget it. Ah, this here is the viewfinder. Look through there before you take the photo to get the shot you want.

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

[This is too much for Lucas to write down so he gives up a little. Also he wants to look through the viewfinder. Peering at it closely, he looks through and blinks.]

You look a lot smaller.

[perfektsymmetry.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that's how the picture will work, too. Go ahead, try it.

[Crowe will pose, running a hand through his hair to fix it and straightening his coat.]

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

[Lucas will very carefully move his hand as far away from the lens as possible somewhere off to his side, put Crowe in the middle, squint, and press the button with an inordinate amount of shaking.]

[perfektsymmetry.livejournal.com]

Good. Next time though, relax. Nothing to be nervous about. Film is cheap, yeah? Don't worry about messing it up.

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

. . . Film?

[Oh. Um. Whoops.]

[perfektsymmetry.livejournal.com]

[He laughs at that.] Uh oh. Well, I've got a roll I can spare you, at least. [He'll take one out of the bag.] Let me show you how to load it up then.

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

S-Sorry . . . I'll pay you back tomorrow.

[Lucas sheepishly hands the camera over to Crowe gently, then poises himself to pay close attention.]

[perfektsymmetry.livejournal.com]

Don't worry about it. [He'll pop open Lucas's camera and walk him throw loading it up.] Make sure you advance it far enough; it'll show you how many photos you have left up here.

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

[Lucas watches very intently as Crowe leads him through the steps. He'd get the hang of it himself eventually, right?]

How do you get the pictures off the film and into . . . well, a real picture?

[perfektsymmetry.livejournal.com]

Ah, you can pay to have them developed. That process is a bit more complicated. Involves using chemicals, and it has to be done in what's called a dark room, with barely any light on.

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

People usually pay to have someone else do that, you mean? I guess it's enough to learn how to use this for now. I shouldn't get ahead of myself.

[perfektsymmetry.livejournal.com]

Exactly. It's not something I could teach you anyway, I'm afraid. Ok, ready to take it out on the town?

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

Of real people?

[Spoken as if Crowe was a fake person.]

They won't mind if I do, right?

[perfektsymmetry.livejournal.com]

It's usually polite to ask first, since some people don't like being photographed. But yeah, real people.

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

[After a few moments or so, Lucas nods firmly.]

OK, then . . . I'm ready! I'll follow whatever you tell me to do.

[perfektsymmetry.livejournal.com]

You'll be fine. Let's hit the park, then!

[He can only hope he's a good teacher. After all, he's still new at it too.]

[a-gentle-boy.livejournal.com]

[Lucas feels rather good about this, actually, as he marches to the park. Learning something new was always fun.

That is, until it's time to actually start taking pictures.]

. . . Maybe I'll practice on squirrels first.