"I won't touch." She promised as she closed the glove box carefully. She watched him drive though. She watched him use the wheel, listened to the clicking on the turn signal and the way he looked in his mirrors and all around outside.
As they got off the country roads, the trip got more interesting to look at. The dark backroads were gone and suddenly, there were buildings lit up and street lights. Things were brighter now, she could make out things like other people. Other people moving in the streets. They weren't in lab coats and they didn't have guns either. They were just normal people.
"Scotland. It's part of the UK. We are close to Inverness now." He supposed the Scottish highlands made a better hiding place for secret labs than anything less remote. Maybe there was another lab near Loch Ness. The thought tickled him a little. He imagined Sam would think it was funny too.
He pulled up at a McDonald's Drive Through and started an order. "Two Big Mac menus with fries and cokes. One Happy Meal with the nuggets. Chocolate milkshake. And an apple pie."
There, that should do it. He drove around and waited for their order to be ready, looking at Eleven from the side. "There is a toy with it. In the Happy Meal. That's your toy."
There was no person there, it was just a box with a speaker. Did he also talk to the radio too? Did he hear them? How did they bring food? As she was pondering all of this, they pulled up at the side of the drive thru and inside the little window, she could see people working. They were assembling food and moving around, laughing and joking. Her eyes were wide as she watched them, fascinated. "People."
Lots of people. Well, four people but to her, that was a lot. A women hung out of the window and held the bag out to Barty. "Have a nice evening, guys."
Eleven stared at her. She was so pretty, she had a nice smile too. She took the bag as Barty moved it towards her and she held it steady for him. It was warm and it smelled good. "Happy meal?" What made her meal so happy and why was it so big?
Barty turned the car to park in the parking lot for just a few moments, simply so he could explain things to her. He put the biggest bag down in the middle between them and moved one coke each to their respective cupholders. Then he put the milkshake into Eleven's second cupholder and he put the pie by it, for later.
For now he gestured to her. "Open it. That's your Happy Meal. It has a toy, it has fries and nuggets." And whatever else Happy Meals came with, he wasn't sure. "When you have eaten that, I'll give you more. Don't eat too fast or you'll feel sick."
Eleven opened it up and inside was a yellow stuffed toy with long hair. It had a tag that said 'Little Miss Sunshine' and she looked at it with wide, curious eyes. She felt it for a while and then set it carefully on the dash so it didn't get hurt. Inside was also a small book but she couldn't read it so she just showed it to Barty.
It was all so mesmerising, she forgot she even had food to eat. "What is it?" It was a picture book but it had some letters on it. And she knew they were words.
"It's a book." Barty took the book to quickly leaf through it so he'd have an idea of its contents. "It's a book to make you worry less. Or to help you deal with your worries, anyway."
He glanced at her and realised that this was an important moment. "I will read it to you later. But it belongs to you. Little Miss Sunshine is in it." He gestured to the toy she'd gotten. "Her. She helps people feel happy."
He assumed that was the drill, anyway. Children's books weren't his forte. "Have some fries, eh? You look hungry." He opened the barbecue sauce they had gotten and took some of his own fries to dip and show her how it worked. "It's good."
He preferred better cuisine, but hey. It would do in a pinch.
She owned a book. A book and a toy. It was really weird but she liked it a lot. She smiled at Barty, happy to have something of her own.
She copied Barty and ate some fries, not taking long to demolish her bag of fries and the nuggets. She also drank some of the milkshake, which she definitely liked the best. The milkshake was chocolate and it was amazing. She looked at Barty curiously, wiping her hands on her gown and avoiding the jacket.
"When there is a thought that stays in your head that makes you feel bad. Scared or sad or mad or all of that." Barty supposed that explained it. He was back to driving by now, focused on the road but glancing at her every now and then. "You should eat the pie. It's nice. But be careful, the inside is hot."
He gestured to what he meant and made sure she actually opened the packaging right. Smart girl. "Worries aren't all bad. They can make you focus on what matters. But they can drag you down too."
"Like bad men." Thinking about them was worrying about them. She set her empty milkshake cup aside and opened her apple pie slowly, eating it carefully because it was apparently hot. It was warm to touch and the insides were too bad. They were sweet and nice, much better apples than the one she had before.
Worries were good for focus but bad if they -- if they dragged. Whatever that meant. "Drag you down?" She frowned and ate more of her apple pie, watching where they were going again. She did wonder if Barty had lots of worries.
"Distract you. Make your mood bad. Make you so upset you can't have any fun." Barty was trying to explain as best he could. He already had a feeling that Giacomo might be better suited for explaining to her how to have fun than she was. He had never quite figured out how to relax and he still didn't believe he ever would.
"You don't have to worry now. I'm keeping you safe. No bad men." He was leaving the more populated areas again, which he hoped might make it easier on her, given her powers. "Are you tired, Eleven? We will be there soon. But you can sleep a little. If you want."
Eleven was happy to sit in the quiet, legs pulled up, as she watched the world pass her by. She couldn't sleep, she was too excited, but she rested in her own way. She was pretty good at just turning her brain off and going into another place, she had learned it over the years as a coping strategy for when things got dull or unpleasant.
She was happy to just listen to Barty breathing, the various noises of the car and the nice feeling of the car vibrating gently.
It wasn't until Barty parked the car by the house that he realised he could have turned on music for her. Sam would have done it. Sam always liked music. Sam was the one to teach him that it could be nice to have sound in the background, but it still didn't readily occur to him. He turned to Eleven and gestured to the book and the toy. "Take your things with you, eh? We're there now."
That said, he got out of the car, walked around it and opened up the door for her to get out as well. The lights on the outside of the house had gone on when he'd stepped foot on the path. Movement sensors. Useful for them.
"Home." It was a weird thing to say and to believe but she was ready. Maybe it was home. Barty got her a toy and a book so maybe this wasn't all a trick or a test. She held her stuff tight as she undid her seatbelt and hopped out of the car.
The lights flicked on and she flinched nervously, looking around her with obvious concern. Anyone could be around, it was a little scary. But they were home. Home.
She slowed down once Barty reached the door and hesitated to step inside. "Safe?"
"Safe," Barty responded, nodding his head in affirmation. "Home is safe."
He held the door open for her and already turned on the lights inside. It was a nice place, of course. He always went for nice places. Nice places, big windows. Like Sam had apparently profiled him. Well, sue him. He knew what he liked. "Do you want to shower? The water is warm."
He remembered his first warm shower. He'd never forget all those firsts. "I'll find you clothes."
She looked around but she didn't move from where Barty had left her. She looked at the walls, at the doormat and then looked up when Barty was there again. Clothes? Showers? She tilted her head to the side. She was dirty but not so bad. The shower just made her a little on edge and in a moment of rebellion, she shook her head.
"No." She didn't like the shower, it was cold and wet. She held her stuff close, in case he tried to take it away, looking at Barty with determination. She was clean enough.
"Right. Whatever you want." Barty shrugged, determined not to make her do anything. He simply headed further into the house until he found a room that had clothes in. Might have been a girl's room before he'd evacuated the family. They'd taken most of the personal items, but evidently not all clothes, which was fortunate. He opened the drawers and stepped back, gesturing to Eleven. "You can pick stuff out, if you want."
No orders, just suggestions. "Then I can read the book to you." That seemed like a nice way to round out their adventure today.
It was a relief that Barty didn't force her. That she could just do what felt safe. She came into the room and looked where Barty was looking, eyeing up the clothes curiously. She touched some of them gently and looked for something comfortable. She found a nightie that wasn't too different from her gown in the end, it was blue and had little stars on it.
Taking off Barty's jacket, she held it out to him. Then she started to remove her clothes with no shame so she could get ready to be read to. It was nice to have different clothes, it was fun. Different. She felt like she could be another girl.
Barty folded his jacket and set it down on the bed, so that she could have it again if she wanted it. He didn't look her way, but he wasn't surprised at her lack of shame. Of course. Not as if she'd have ever been treated with enough respect before. He could try and teach her later. For now, he waited until she was finished and then smiled at her, gesturing to the book and then the bed. "Do you want to sit? I can read."
Then maybe she'd feel like sleeping. He wished he could tell her to sleep, he could see that she was exhausted. But no. No orders. Besides, he was fairly sure he couldn't have made her, even if he had wanted to.
Eleven nodded and climbed up onto the bed, feeling her eyes getting heavier as she shuffled close to Barty, wanting to see the pictures. It was hard to stay awake, all the energy started to leave her as she finally started to relax. Barty was reading so nicely and he hadn't done anything bad or dangerous.
It started simple, she leaned in close to him and slumped against his side as he kept reading. Her eyes fell closed as she started to doze off against Barty.
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no subject
As they got off the country roads, the trip got more interesting to look at. The dark backroads were gone and suddenly, there were buildings lit up and street lights. Things were brighter now, she could make out things like other people. Other people moving in the streets. They weren't in lab coats and they didn't have guns either. They were just normal people.
"Where are we?"
no subject
He pulled up at a McDonald's Drive Through and started an order. "Two Big Mac menus with fries and cokes. One Happy Meal with the nuggets. Chocolate milkshake. And an apple pie."
There, that should do it. He drove around and waited for their order to be ready, looking at Eleven from the side. "There is a toy with it. In the Happy Meal. That's your toy."
no subject
There was no person there, it was just a box with a speaker. Did he also talk to the radio too? Did he hear them? How did they bring food? As she was pondering all of this, they pulled up at the side of the drive thru and inside the little window, she could see people working. They were assembling food and moving around, laughing and joking. Her eyes were wide as she watched them, fascinated. "People."
Lots of people. Well, four people but to her, that was a lot. A women hung out of the window and held the bag out to Barty. "Have a nice evening, guys."
Eleven stared at her. She was so pretty, she had a nice smile too. She took the bag as Barty moved it towards her and she held it steady for him. It was warm and it smelled good. "Happy meal?" What made her meal so happy and why was it so big?
no subject
For now he gestured to her. "Open it. That's your Happy Meal. It has a toy, it has fries and nuggets." And whatever else Happy Meals came with, he wasn't sure. "When you have eaten that, I'll give you more. Don't eat too fast or you'll feel sick."
no subject
It was all so mesmerising, she forgot she even had food to eat. "What is it?" It was a picture book but it had some letters on it. And she knew they were words.
no subject
He glanced at her and realised that this was an important moment. "I will read it to you later. But it belongs to you. Little Miss Sunshine is in it." He gestured to the toy she'd gotten. "Her. She helps people feel happy."
He assumed that was the drill, anyway. Children's books weren't his forte. "Have some fries, eh? You look hungry." He opened the barbecue sauce they had gotten and took some of his own fries to dip and show her how it worked. "It's good."
He preferred better cuisine, but hey. It would do in a pinch.
no subject
She copied Barty and ate some fries, not taking long to demolish her bag of fries and the nuggets. She also drank some of the milkshake, which she definitely liked the best. The milkshake was chocolate and it was amazing. She looked at Barty curiously, wiping her hands on her gown and avoiding the jacket.
"What is a worry?"
no subject
He gestured to what he meant and made sure she actually opened the packaging right. Smart girl. "Worries aren't all bad. They can make you focus on what matters. But they can drag you down too."
no subject
Worries were good for focus but bad if they -- if they dragged. Whatever that meant. "Drag you down?" She frowned and ate more of her apple pie, watching where they were going again. She did wonder if Barty had lots of worries.
no subject
"You don't have to worry now. I'm keeping you safe. No bad men." He was leaving the more populated areas again, which he hoped might make it easier on her, given her powers. "Are you tired, Eleven? We will be there soon. But you can sleep a little. If you want."
no subject
She was happy to just listen to Barty breathing, the various noises of the car and the nice feeling of the car vibrating gently.
no subject
That said, he got out of the car, walked around it and opened up the door for her to get out as well. The lights on the outside of the house had gone on when he'd stepped foot on the path. Movement sensors. Useful for them.
"Let's go inside. We are home. Home."
no subject
The lights flicked on and she flinched nervously, looking around her with obvious concern. Anyone could be around, it was a little scary. But they were home. Home.
She slowed down once Barty reached the door and hesitated to step inside. "Safe?"
no subject
He held the door open for her and already turned on the lights inside. It was a nice place, of course. He always went for nice places. Nice places, big windows. Like Sam had apparently profiled him. Well, sue him. He knew what he liked. "Do you want to shower? The water is warm."
He remembered his first warm shower. He'd never forget all those firsts. "I'll find you clothes."
no subject
"No." She didn't like the shower, it was cold and wet. She held her stuff close, in case he tried to take it away, looking at Barty with determination. She was clean enough.
no subject
No orders, just suggestions. "Then I can read the book to you." That seemed like a nice way to round out their adventure today.
no subject
Taking off Barty's jacket, she held it out to him. Then she started to remove her clothes with no shame so she could get ready to be read to. It was nice to have different clothes, it was fun. Different. She felt like she could be another girl.
no subject
Then maybe she'd feel like sleeping. He wished he could tell her to sleep, he could see that she was exhausted. But no. No orders. Besides, he was fairly sure he couldn't have made her, even if he had wanted to.
no subject
It started simple, she leaned in close to him and slumped against his side as he kept reading. Her eyes fell closed as she started to doze off against Barty.