You can hear the laughs as Duplica speaks with Elfie’s voice, “Kammy, you’d better not let your overconfidence ruin a good stride.”
Having heard the hooting and such in the background, Duplica stops moving her mouth for a second before using it for herself. “Okay, as cute as it is, Jo, we’d better just let the kids speak via intercom. I don’t want to be seeing myself talking like Elfie on social media for the next month. That and we should probably be careful not to entertain the weirdos that would want to shake their fingers and accuse us of promoting demon possession or something.”
“It’s amazing how people will find whatever they can wrong with a piece of fiction all in the name of an exciting sermon to preach on Sunday,” laments Jocelyn. “Okay, no demon possession here, just people pretending to be robot vehicles. Now, let’s get started already. This kid’s giving me heartburn.”
“It must be my hair,” teases Kammy. Having said this, Kammy pulls Jo out of her fighting stance and offers Elf a simple, legitimate extended hand of friendship. “Hey, with all the emotions that have been thrown off kilter by everyone today, I just wanted to stop and make sure we have a fun time, you know?”
Ent happily complies and the two share a good, warm handshake. Of course, by now, Elf and Kammy are very much into this handshaking thing to the point the vehicles override their “programming” and end this themselves.
“It’s handshaking, not handholding,” Duplica corrects the two.
“Ha ha!” Jo taunts, “What was the point of that? You couldn’t even feel each other’s hands?”
“It was just a handshake, Grandma!!” Kammy angrily insists.
“Yeah, well, it just ended,” Grandma replies.
Elf would apologize, but he’s kind of confused by the whole thing. Did he shake her hand too long? Was he enjoying it too much? Was he basically holding her hand, even if he couldn’t feel it? Intentions are just as important. Is it that big of a deal if that’s all it was? Will it develop into more? Why is he slightly careless with Faye at random times? And the questions go on.
Leaning back, consumed in disgusted jealousy, Faye rattles off. “She holds his hand every chance she gets, she’s Mother Good Kindness to Paul and everyone around her, flirts carelessly and even decides to give up on her suit references and training responsibilities just to look stylish. The more I think about it, the angrier Kamron Meyers makes me.” And the more Faye Worley thinks about it, the more familiar the scenario becomes. “Wait; I’m an idiot! A little, cutesy, adorable idiot! Call me Mrs. Little Naivete and give me a glass of milk. Why didn’t I see this sooner?”
Laughing at her friend’s rant, Gi can’t help but question her new names. “Mrs. Little Naivete? What’s with the glass of milk?”
“I’m thirsty, okay?!” Faye says this like it’s so obvious. “Grace, why didn’t you see this? Anyone with eyes can see what Kamron’s been doing all day long, if not much, much longer than any of us want to think about.”
“Faye,” Grace says as she quickly places her hand on the girl’s shoulder, “you’re weird. Now, what am I missing?”
Rather than just answer Gracie alone, Faye decides to tell everyone, specifically Elfie, and thus shouts loud enough for him to hear her. Then again, it’s Elfie and Faye. He’s currently at the point that he’d probably hear her any time she’s trying to speak to him, regardless of the surrounding volume level, so there’s that. “Hey! Kammy’s playing the flirt just to trick you! She pretended to not care about training so she could trick us with her new hair attack, and she’s been pretending to like you so she can keep you distracted while she wins this exam she somehow knew was coming!”
“Well, this is an annoying way to start this fight!” Kammy yells back at Faye. “Am I fighting Elfie or you? You lost already so stop making up stuff about me, Faye!”
Inner Man Theatre 