Nodnod.

Hug!

Hug!

"Okay, I'm gonna go back, now. You'll be around? Listening?"

"Mmhmm."

"Alright! Bye!" Off she goes.

And off Rescue goes. Her hiding place is only a couple blocks away.

Penny's dad soon arrives to see his daughter playing with her tablet on the couch again. "Hey, honey."

"Hi dad. Where were you?"

"I was doing a couple of errands in town hall."

"Mmm."

"You okay?"

"Sure." She puts her tablet down, sits up, and says, "I'm gonna go take a shower."

"—alright."

Well, that could've gone worse, anyway.

Gregory starts making dinner.

Mmhmm. Remainder of fries, beef jerky, one of those bottled coffee drinks: dinner for Denice.

Soon Penny leaves her shower and she and her dad start having dinner.

It is a quiet affair, but while Penny's dad seems to be just contentedly quiet, Penny is clearly (to anyone who is not her dad) seething.

...yeah. That's - well. She'll fix it, hopefully.

"So, what exactly did you need to do in town hall?"

"Nothing important."

"So why'd you have to do it?"

"Well, sometimes we have to do unimportant things. Like pay taxes."

"I guess."

Half a minute later: See what I mean?

Yeah.

Don't provoke him, okay? Won't help.