Conversation · Jean Vicquemare

"I've been there: Perhaps it's not because he's a petulant teenager in a 40-year-old man's body. Perhaps it's pale-related? Perhaps it's extraphysical?"

"Or perhaps it can be cured with mesmerism? But then I think: No, that's unlikely. He's probably just an asshole. A drunk asshole who pretends to have amnesia to get out of shit."

If you investigated further, you -- or Kim -- would have more to say. But you didn't, so here we are.

If you investigated further, you would have more to say. But you didn't. So here we are.

"I'll explain later, but there's another man who's lost his memory. A crab-man."

"Crab-man is an unfortunate choice of words -- but I was there. The church on the coast shook from an audio-spatial anomaly. It may have been entroponetic, or perhaps related to radio waves..."

"Either way, I have put this into my report -- you should read it. I do not, however, think it has anything to do with him drinking himself to the point of brain damage."

"Crab-man... Look, I get it. In your delirium you came up with an entroponetic explanation for why you're such an insane drunk."

"Take this seriously. I suspect there might be something wrong with Martinaise."

"Well it's not capitalism. So we can cross that off the list, you lefty dink."

"Lefty dink? Well, actually -- I don't consider myself a classical leftist at all. Not in the Mazovian sense at least. But, fine -- theory aside, what happened?"

"As displayed in your interactions with him here and previously, at the bar, and -- I don't want to be a 'snitch'," he makes air quotes, "but also mine with him before, when Harry did not seem to know who I was... It's all very interesting."

"As displayed in our interactions with him here, and also his interactions with the locals, where he did not remember being a law official... It's all very interesting."

"You! You never told me you're not the Horse-Faced Woman!" (Point at her.)

"Lieutenant," she says with a heavy sigh. "My name is not 'Horse-Faced Woman'. It's Judit Minot. I was assigned to your unit two months ago. I thought we were friends..."

You know what she means by 'friends'. But ask, just to be sure.

"I'm truly sorry, Officer Minot."

"Okay." Another sigh. "You're my commanding officer. I... I really want to respect you. I want us to have a normal relationship."

"That will never happen, Jude. He's the rudest man on Earth. He is the reason why the rest of us have to take sensitivity training. And I hate sensitivity training..."

"Patrol Officer Minot, glad to make the acquaintance. Let's put the past behind us."

"Right, sir." Her tone is suddenly very cold.

"Friends with... benefits?"

"No." She shakes her head. "Without any benefits."

"You fucking idiot. You stupid fucking idiot. You're even worse than before. How is that even possible?"

It's true. You have a problem.

"We're still friends, I just have a stupid head."

"Okay." Another sigh. "Because you're my commanding officer. I... I really want to respect you. I want us to have a normal relationship."

"How did you know I was here?"

"The cafeteria manager you fucked over told us where you went."

(Turn to face the general direction of the Whirling and yell.) "Damn you, cafeteria manager! You've betrayed me for the last time!"

"Speaking of which. The giant aero-graffito in front of the building. The one that's burning -- did you do that?"

"Yeah, I lit it on fire. It was a poetic gesture."

"I knew it. Didn't I tell you, Trant? I told you it was our shitkid."

"The line is from Lu Jiatun's 'Mirova 82', isn't it? About Girl Child Communism -- the titular returning character. The ghostly apparition of..." He looks around and, noticing the impatience of his companions, stops himself. "Good choice, Harry."

He is correct. It was the Seraise poet Lu Jiatun who in the Fifties of the last century composed a...

"Don't encourage him, Trant."

"Okay."

"Yeah, I wrote that. It was a poetic gesture." (Lie.)

"I knew it. Didn't I tell you, Trant? I told you it was our shitkid."

"The line is from Lu Jiatun's 'Mirova Cycle', isn't it? About Girl Child Communism -- the titular returning character. The ghostly apparition of..." He looks around and, noticing the impatience of his companions, stops himself. "Good choice, Harry."

"It was this one junior delinquent."

"I don't know..." He squints at you suspiciously. "It had shitkid written all over it."

"Speaking of which. The giant aero-graffito in front of his building, in red, government-marked fuel -- did you do that?"

"I understand. Okay. Garte told you."

"Uhm, and..." She looks around. "People on this street helped us too. With your whereabouts."

"You're a legend among the drunks, Harry. A legendary local drunk."

"After all that Sylvie stuff, he betrays me..."

"Shitkid," he says, shaking his index finger, "he didn't betray you. He just told us the direction you went in. Who's Sylvie?"

"Sylvie's a whore. She rides the cock carousel... and foreigners."

"Super," he says with a nod. "Whore. Foreigners. Hatred."

"Uhm, and..." she interjects, trying to defuse the situation. "People on this street helped us too."

"You're a legend among the drunks, Harry. A legendary local drunk."

"Sylvie's a girl I hooked Garte up with. I did that and saved his establishment!"

"Strange. He didn't mention that. In fact, the establishment didn't look saved at all -- there was a giant aero-graffito in front of the building. It was on fire."

"Strange. He didn't mention that. In fact, the establishment didn't look saved at all -- there was a giant aero-graffito in front of the building. Mixed with blood."

"No one. It's not important."

"It better not be."

He means: "You better not be partying with this Sylvie, shitkid."

"I saved his establishment and still he betrays me?!"

"Have you been spying on me?"