lostcarnival | It's a dangerous business, going out your door.

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It's a dangerous business, going out your door.

WHO: Jimmy Novak and everyone.
WHAT: Orientation, changes, and wandering during breaks.
WHERE: Trailer #12 or various locations around the Carnival.
WHEN: The day after his arrival. (D33-ish.)
WARNINGS: None.

The first day on the new job was always overwhelming. So much information thrown at you that it was hard to keep track of it all. Trailer, clothes, kitchen, grounds.... It all blurred together into one giant mess of light and sound. It was better during the day, but that wasn't saying much. It was still a lot to take in.

And the new additions didn't make things any easier. The horns he could kind of live with (mostly by hiding them under a hat) but the ears were going to drive him bonkers. They twitched. Constantly. Picking up different things and giving him randomized surround sound, with a new focus point picked every three seconds or so. He was about ready to go grab a knit cap from somewhere just so the damned things would stay still. But all in all, he could deal. His face hadn't turned into a giant all-consuming maw, and he was still driving.

He was calling it a win.

Now he's showered, dressed, and stuffing the ears under a cap after all. The first day was his to get the lay of the grounds and stop by the kitchens to check in with Head Cook Babic. He starts off reminding himself to Keep an open mind. and that gets amended with And for the love of God, don't stare. shortly after seeing some of the transformations among his co-workers.

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At this point, Jimmy's starting to think that it's obvious that he's new simply by the fact that he's still obviously human. Not that he'll say anything like that, that would be rude and uncalled for.

"It's fairly startling, and I don't know how much I can really help staring." He has to admit that. More at the wooden hand than the wings. Wings are almost commonplace, in Jimmy's rather unusual experience. Wooden hands are much more bizarre.

The blatantly human bit is a bit of a giveaway. When you’ve been in the carnival for two years, it’s the kind of thing that sometimes yells “newcomer”. It’s the inhuman ones that are a little trickier… Although Joker makes it a point to know just about every face in the carnival.

Fortunately, he’s pretty easy-going, and just chuckles at the response he gets. “Well, you’ll get used ta it soon enough. Can only see so many strange things before it’s just one more set of wings or extra arms, yeah?”

"True. You get exposed to the unusual long enough, that it turns into the new normal." And there's a lot of new normal to take in. Wings, talking zebras, his own new ears... Yeah. There was a lot of weird to take in.

"It's just a lot to take in on your first day. New job, new roommate, new living arrangements, weird magical transformations.... I'll get the hang of it eventually. It's just the front-loading of it all that's throwing me for a loop." Jimmy smiles and shrugs a little. The sooner he gets the hang of it, the easier it'll be, really. And the Carnival has nothing on Heaven. At least everyone here has a recognizable face.

“That’s the ticket~.” Nipping some of his sandwich, Joker hops up to his feet. “Well, if ya ever need help, let me know. I’m Joker, the Stage Manager! And, ha, currently doublin’ as the wardrobe manager, too, but that’s more temporary. At least, I hope so!” Even as he laughs, he’s not exactly lying. Double shifts are killing him.

Jimmy nods, smiling back. "The name's Jimmy, and if I'm on shift in the kitchens, I'll see if I can find an extra coffee for you. Or deliver, if I've got an odd shift." Not knowing how the kitchens are set up, Jimmy can't offer much. But if they don't have coffee, then something is beyond wrong.

Oh, they have coffee. And things like coffee. And other things that Joker isn’t entirely sure should be put into a (mostly) human body, but, hey. You make do with what you have. Still, that bit of knowledge makes him light up. “Oh, you’re with Koel then, huh? That’s good ta see- we haven’t had as nearly many folks in the kitchens lately. She’s a star, but even she can’t handle everythin’ by herself. I’m sure you’ll be a welcome sight.”

"Yup. I'm in the kitchens." Jimmy smiles briefly at the thought of the understaffed kitchen. He'll be too busy to think, and too tired to dream. Perfect.

"And that's good to hear, always nice to go where you're really needed." And be kept too busy to think.

Well, that’s an uncommon but not unwelcome sight: someone apparently pleased to be doing his work. Joker wonders if that’ll last. He certainly hopes so, at any rate. “You’ll be glad for here, then. We definitely need a lotta folks like yerself about. Hope ya don’t mind if my lot straggle in at odd hours now and then- we’ve got practice throwin’ us a bit, ha, especially since some are still a bit new! Had ta make our performances from the ground up at first.”

"Nope. Shouldn't, anyway. If I'm on, I'll be sure to leave a pot going for you too. Since if it's just me and the head chef, I'll probably get posted all kinds of crazy shifts." It probably was going to be boring, but now there's a good chance he won't be working it alone every night.

“Good news- not just yerself!” Never let it be said that Joker can’t be the bearer of good news, sometimes. “We got another lady workin’ in the kitchens, too. Hinwa, I think her name is? Yeah, sounds about right~.” Joker grins. “She’s nice and modest, so I don’t think you’ll have any problems workin’ with her, ha.”

"That's even better to hear, yeah." Jimmy would probably have been fine either way, but hearing that there already is more help is a load off his mind.

"But yeah, if you can send a runner over before you call an end to rehearsals or a show or whatever.... Assuming you aren't already doing so, that is." It's more than likely that Joker's more on the ball here than Jimmy is, but it's an idea. "Then we can try getting something ready for you guys when you get done."

“Can do~.” Ah, but before he forgets- Joker taps his fingers together, wood clicking sharply in the best substitute for a snap that he can manage. “We got a kid workin’ with us. Short, curly hair, fat- name’s Steven. If ya could make somethin’ with him in mind, that would help.” He chuckles. “Kids don’t care much for coffee, a lot of the time, huh?”

"There should be some non-caffinated options, yeah. If there aren't, I'll see if we can get some. What does he like? Any allergies?" Talking about kids and dinner plans gives him a twinge of homesickness. But the better he gets along, the easier his contract will be. And the easier it is, the faster it'll go.

“Hmm… Not that he’s mentioned.” Joker taps his chin a bit. “But his pa is around, Greg- he’ll be workin’ on the lights and things around here. If anyone would know, he would.” It’s still a little weird to think that there’s family stuck together in the carnival, but Joker tries not to tink about it too hard. Starts making his stomach twist if he does.

That.... Jimmy has to stop and think about that. On the one hand, having family here would be nice. On the other, it's having family here. He can't help but wonder what he would do if Claire was here too. Probably lose his mind worrying about her, honestly.

"I didn't know that. How are they doing?" Yeah, the thought of Claire being here has definitely put a damper on his mood. But she isn't, so that's something. "I mean, I'm not sure which would be worse, being here with your kids, or being here without them."

“Eh…” Joker grimaces a bit, because there’s no denying that things are a little rough. His hand makes a vague wobble of a gesture- the universal symbol of it’s tricky. “Rough. But the lad is handlin’ it all pretty well, honestly. When there’s not anythin’ dangerous, he’s pretty cheery, loves helpin’ out people. His pa is more worried, but I think he’s tryin’ ta hold up best he can.”

A little helplessly, Joker shrugs. “All ya can do sometimes is offer a hand and hope they adjust. This place ain’t particularly bad, most of the time, so it’ll just take a while, I think.” At least, that’s what he’s hoping. It’s only a year- folks just have to remember that when they don’t want to work here.

"Yeah. I'm getting that. Not that it's bad, I mean, but it's jarring." Waking up with new ears and a pair of horns had been bad enough, but something as..... different as some of the other changes he'd seen?

"I hear that. It's only a year, and there's probably going to be a good amount of suck involved, and it's easier said than done, but it's really all you can do." It's a lot to think about on your first day, really.

“At least there’s good company.” That’s enough to make Joker grin again. “Not that I expect ya ta know much about that, since you’ve just got here, but there’s plenty a decent folks workin’ here. Good company and good food can get ya through a lot.”

At least, that’s how he’s always viewed it. Other things are just extra dishes on the side.

"Good people always make anything easier." Although he's just happy to be around people period. Angels and hunters made for poor company under most circumstances, and now his circumstances are his own again.

"And I'm hoping to provide the former while offering the latter." Jimmy smiles again, feeling a lot better about this job now that he's had a chance to meet some of his co-workers. Even if he was going to be totally late now. Oh well. He can always claim he got lost on the way.

“We’ll be countin’ on ya for it, then!” Getting up to his feet, Joker stretches out his arm and his wings a bit, just to get the cricks out. “But for now, no rest for us supervisors, so I’d best get back ta work. Good meetin’ ya! Here’s ta a nice year with one another.”

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It's a dangerous business, going out your door.

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