Sunday, 1 May 1988, Montreal

[noteful]

Spring in Montreal is short, mild, less than terribly predictable, and welcomed with open arms. 1 May 1988 dawns slightly overcast, but the clouds burn off, and it hits a quite comfortable (by Montreal standards) 12°C.

No one really takes any notice of the three girls who cut across the McGill campus and spend a couple hours rambling around the park on Mont Royal. There's nothing all that remarkable about them . . . except, of course, that one of them is, on some version of Earth or another, being born 1800 miles away today, and one has metal claws in her hands and recovers from injuries almost before she receives them.

They stop for a quick lunch and then ride the Metro down to Old Montreal. They wander down cobblestoned streets and in and out of little shops, past churches and museums and the city hall.

When shadows start getting long and the temperature starts to drop, they turn down a side street.

"I know the best place for dinner," Meg says. "It was in one of those off-the-beaten-path guide books last year, so of course the path beats right to the door now, but I don't think we'll have any trouble getting a table."

There's a small crowd in and around the doorway, but Meg goes past them and waves to a tall man in a white chef's jacket. "Bon soir, Sylvain," she calls.

The man comes over, smiling. "Meg. Bon soir. Trois?"

"Oui, si tu--," Meg starts, but he cuts her off with a wave of his hand.

"Pour toi, bien sûr," he says, and lead them over to a comfortable table in the corner of the restaurant.

"Sylvain, these are my friends, Parker and Laura. They're visiting from the States and I couldn't let them leave without bringing them for the best food in Montréal. Parker, Laura, this Sylvain Gagné."

Sylvain bows slightly. "Bienvenue à Montréal, mesdemoiselles. I hope you will enjoy your visit, and your meal. Alice will be right with you."

"Merci, Sylvain," Meg says, and turns back to Parker and Laura. "Sometimes, it helps to be dating the owner's favorite nephew."

Comments

[noteful]

"Fortunately, I am," Meg says, "which means everyone at this table is worth knowing."

Meg has standards.

[parkerlee]

Laura may very well just have joked. What is certain is that Parker found herself having to take a very hasty drink of her water to cover her reaction to the entire exchange.

"Our hostess, especially," she says, once she can trust herself to keep a straight face.

"Meg's been showing us around the city today."

[cutting_edgex23]

"I have been here before," X adds.

"When I was small."

Beat.

"It is better now."

Not least because she is not working.

[noteful]

Alain, who has lived in Montreal all his life, again looks slightly surprised by Laura's comment. But only for a second.

"I am glad, then Montréal has an opportunity to make a new impression."

"We went up to Mont Royal, and then wandered around down here," Meg tells him.

"And you liked them?" Alain asks.

[parkerlee]

"Very much. It's a beautiful place. And the view is fantastic."

And it's all so very 1980s. Though Parker can't voice that particular observation aloud.

"I've never been here before. Meg is helping me expand my horizons."

[cutting_edgex23]

"I am -- "

X pauses for a moment, flicking a quick look at Parker.

" -- expanding my horizons, too. It is useful."

And interesting. X is not sure if that goes without saying.

(And it is not coincidental that her delivery of that phrase is just a little too precise.)

[noteful]

The over-precision is something Alain doesn't notice. He gets overly precise when he uses English-language idioms, sometimes, too.

"And interesting, too, I hope."

Alain pauses. "And how do you all know each other?"

One would think, given Meg's general approach to planning, that the possibility, if not the likelihood, of this question's coming up would have occurred to her.

But in this case, one would be wrong.

"Um, we . . . were all penpals," she says.

The look she casts Parker says help.

[parkerlee]

"Yes. Penpals."

Parker actually does a lot of what one might call 'penpalling.' Though in her time, it's a little different. Email and message boards and instant message, none of which are really applicable in this case.

But she thinks she can run with this.

"I forget what organization it was with--it was something that one of my high school teachers came up with. It was supposed to be just a one or two-shot thing. Like a writing assignment, you know? But, you know how it is when you hit it off with people, even if it's via letter. And we just all kept on writing. And now, here we are."

She smiles brightly.

"Who would have thought? All of us together in Montreal."

[cutting_edgex23]

X takes her cue almost seamlessly. For X.

"It is the good kind of unexpected."

This is probably true for a lot of things about today.

[noteful]

Honestly, it's probably true about anything that involves the three of them.

Alice returns with their orders. Alain waits until she has gotten everything where it belongs and made sure they don't need anything else.

"I should leave you to your dinner and conversation. But thank you, for letting me join in."

He stands up, then leans down to speak to Meg. "À demain?"

"Oui. À demain."

"Bon." He kisses her quickly, and turns back to Parker and Laura. "It was very nice to meet you both. Enjoy the rest of your visit. You are in excellent company.

"Excuse me."

He heads back for the kitchen.

[parkerlee]

Parker smiles and waves at the retreating Alain.

"He's a cutie," she says. "The pictures almost don't do him justice."

She grins at Meg.

"Pen pals, huh?"

[cutting_edgex23]

"It is a plausible cover story," X says.

"It is important to have one."

And X does not know enough about the technological restrictions of the eighties to be able to whip out one on her own.

[noteful]

"It was the first thing that came into my head, honestly," Meg says, picking up her fork.

"And the pictures definitely don't do him justice."

[parkerlee]

"It's a great cover story. Much easier to roll with than that we came on some kind of exchange program, or something."

Parker doesn't know much about covert ops, but Keep your story simple just seems like common sense.

"I feel like we'll need spy pens or something to commemorate the occasion."

[cutting_edgex23]

X frowns, head tilting slightly as she studies Parker.

"They will double as detonators?"

Someone has apparently been watching too many movies lately.

[noteful]

"I think Parker more meant the ones that, like, write with invisible ink, or something," Meg says.

At least, she hopes so.

Not that today hasn't been a blast, but, um . . .

[parkerlee]

"Actually, I was thinking about the kind that are hollow, and you can roll up notes and stick them inside."

Parker grins at her friends.

"Don't worry. I wasn't about to suggest that we go all Charlie's Angels."

Even if they would make a good Hollywood-style crime fighting trio.

[cutting_edgex23]

"Oh."

X's expression goes blank.

"I do not know what that is."

No one has ever thought to suggest she should watch it.

[noteful]

"It was a TV show that was on when I was young," Meg says. "Three women worked as private investigators for a man named Charlie, who you never saw. He was just a voice over a little speaker. Or he'd send information through a sort of liaison or middleman named Bosley.

"And they would go undercover, um, usually in some guise that required them to wear some sort of scanty outfits, and solve mysteries and such."

Honestly, if you were going to assemble a team of beautiful women to run around solving mysteries, you could probably do a lot worse than the three at this table. Though they'd likely all insist on sensible clothes and shoes while they did so.

[parkerlee]

Parker would agree.

"Brains, charm, and butt-kicking skills. We'd make good Angels."

Hey, there are worse career paths.

Parker, smiling serenely, neatly cuts a bite of her crepe.

"494 could totally be our Bosley."

[cutting_edgex23]

X thinks about that for a moment, then frowns.

"He would want to go on missions, too."

Beat.

"I think he likes when people do not wear many clothes."

And then she, too, starts eating her crepe.

[noteful]

The look Meg gives Parker says Right. You got us into this, you get us out.

Because Meg has nothing to contribute on 494's opinions on people who don't wear very many clothes.

[parkerlee]

"Well, of course. He's a healthy, twenty-something-year-old heterosexual guy. But if we're going to form our own crime fighting trio, I'd like to lobby for more practical clothes. A good pair of jeans will carry you a long way. 494 will just have to deal."

Not that she's giving this actual thought or anything.

"I seem to remember Bosely being more the 'damsel in distress' character. The one the Angels have to rescue. But I'm not sure if I'm remembering that right."

Parker is way more familiar with the movie version than the show.

[cutting_edgex23]

"It is useful to be able to run," X agrees.

"And it is better if people do not stare."

Everything about sex that X knows she has learned from the brothel or the streets of New York.

494 is more confusing.

Not as confusing as Charlie's Angels, though.

"It is important? Whether he was rescued?"

[noteful]

"Certainly important to him . . ." Meg says.

Meg would probably be mind-boggled that anyone bothered to make a movie.

"Jeans are a must. Oh, and flat shoes.

"One broken ankle is enough, thanks."