and in a burst of light that blinded every angel-

[knowmycall]

In spite of all his faith in the strange and fantastic, Fletcher Hadley never thought that wishing he could be somewhere else would actually work.

Not twenty seconds ago, he was charging into a mess of bodies-most alive, some already dead; most demon, some human-Claymore raised high above his head, ready to to swing and spill blood in the name of

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[pwnspatrickjane]

So there is this explosion.

Thankfully for his wiener mobile, Shawn isn't anywhere near this particular explosion, but here's the thing. When explosions happen in Chicago, you don't drive away -- you drive towards. You never know what kind of interesting things could be happening.

Exciting things are happening. Shawn clearly needs to be there.

By the time he gets to the scene of the explosion, the smoke has cleared, and there's a very confused man standing in the middle of it. Shawn's intuition -- which really isn't intuition and just Shawn making assumptions -- draws the conclusion that this man must be a new Wanderer and therefore has earned one of Shawn's excellent free hot dogs. He'll fix him one, wander his way over, and say with a smile.

"You're in Chicago. Hot dog?"

... The narration apologizes infinitely, Fletcher. Infinitely.

[knowmycall]

Fletcher is familiar with this tactic, Shawn. One of his best friends back home, Dunn, also has a habit of pairing bad news with delicious food to soften the blow.

Not that he thinks hot dogs are particularly delicious.

Nor is he sure that's what Shawn's actually trying to do. For all he knows, the guy could just be a weirdo who has a Thing for handing out hot dogs to confused-looking people on the street.

But food is food (he hopes), and since Fletch didn't have any breakfast this morning on the account of war breaking out, he wolfs it down.

"Thanks."

Pause.

"Chicago, you said?"

[pwnspatrickjane]

Shawn guarantees that his hot dogs are completely safe. But this is also coming from the man who drives a wiener mobile, so his opinion may be suspect.

"Yup. You've just fallen through a Rift in time and space. It's May 14, 2011, and you just missed out on weirdo rift week. Congrats."

[knowmycall]

Well.

This guy's not one to ease in on the details, is he?

The delay in response from Fletcher's end is roughly a minute long this time, as he stares at Shawn with the most unblinking of eyes.

"Sorry, what?"

[pwnspatrickjane]

No, he's really not. Shawn is a firm believer in hitting you with it all at once, and seeing what sticks.

"Was that a 'what?' as in 'I didn't hear you' or a 'what?' as in 'Run that by me again, you should be shipped off to the looney bin'?"

[knowmycall]

"The latter."

Fletcher presses his fingers into his eyes until he sees stars, then drops his hands to his side and stares at Shawn.

Or, rather, at blurry, sparkly Shawn.

"So I've not only time traveled over a century into the past, but I've also somehow wound up on an entirely different continent. And... it was probably a rift's fault, which means I'm stuck here."

Here, Shawn. Have a finger in your face.

"I know this isn't your fault, but oh am I fuckin' pissed right now."

[pwnspatrickjane]

Shawn's eyes go down to the finger in his face as he tries to digest all that information, though he's surprisingly not intimidated by all this. He looks up at him and sighs.

"I understand that you're angry. Unfortunately -- not a lot I can do about it. I can, however, recommend some deep breathing exercises. Are you familiar with the principal of goosefaba?"

[knowmycall]

It is at this point that Fletcher decides to walk away from the situation before he chokes Shawn out. He was ready to kill something not ten minutes ago and his wings are still tingling with the remnants of his Calling, so he's just going to walk. Away.

He retrieves his sword from the spot where that tree once stood and whirls around, pointing it in Shawn's direction.

"You," he begins, tracing his steps back to Shawn, "Really do not know who-"

And then he abruptly shuts up.

Mostly because his sword is glowing.

So he's just gonna go ahead and drop it, now. And take a few steps backward.

[pwnspatrickjane]

Shawn doesn't really understand what he said that was so wrong. In fact, for once he wasn't using references from Anger Management to mock and annoy. But those thoughts are all pushed to the side when the sword starts glowing.

Glowing.

A bright grin lights across his face as he rushes forward to have a better look at it after the other man dropped it. "That's so cool!" He looks up at the other man and tilts his head to the side. "I take it it's not normally supposed to do that?"

[knowmycall]

And Fletcher's just gonna go ahead and make sure you don't touch that, Shawn.

"No," he says. "It's... no."

He squints at the weapon for a moment, then slowly lifts his gaze back to where that oak tree once stood.

"D'you think it's possible that my sword blew up that tree?"

[pwnspatrickjane]

"Anything is possible."

And really. It is. They're living in Chicago on the edge of a Rift in time and space. There's very little that's not possible. But Shawn glances around in search of another tree and frowns.

"I wonder if you could try and do it again to make sure."

[knowmycall]

"I'd really rather not," Fletcher mumbles, carefully picking the sword back up and turning it over in his hands. The glow fades, just slightly, and the angel shakes his head.

"I'm not really a fan of explosions, especially not ones that I'm in."

He's sore. There's a cut on his chin that hasn't bled much, but it stings, and he's certain his right elbow is missing some skin.

And let's not talk about all the splinters he'll be picking out later on.

[pwnspatrickjane]

"Right. It's probably a bad idea."

He pauses for a moment, before extending a hand out to him. "Well. I'm Shawn Spencer, general hot dog man and local psychic detective. I drive the wiener mobile." He points back to where his baby is still sitting, in all it's wiener-like glory.

"I can take you to where the Wanderers usually stay, if you'd like. It's not too far from here."

[knowmycall]

"Fletcher Hadley," he says, taking Shawn's hand and giving it a firm shake. "Field Marshal of the Order of Eternal Light, not psychic, and... presently car-less."

Man.

He's really gonna miss his ride.

(No, it doesn't fly.)

"Do I really have another choice?"

[pwnspatrickjane]

"There are lots of places to stay in Chicago, but if you're just starting out, the Kashtta's really the best place to do it." And Shawn's being honest about that. Then his face brightens. "Plus, you get to ride in a wiener mobile. How awesome is that?"

... Shawn may love his car a little too much.

[knowmycall]

"Do I-"

Fletcher bites his lip to keep from finishing that sentence with a, "have to?" because he knows he is in no position to turn down a free ride, regardless of the vehicle. He carefully places the sword into its scabbard, which hangs across the his back.

"I mean, yeah, totally awesome."

Pause.

"I'm Fletcher, by the way." Handshake, Shawn?