Talking

"You speak German, Japanese, Chinese--"

"Mandarin," Dree Raincave interrupted That Damn Stan.

"Yes, okay.  French, Italian, and Spanish.  Any others?"

"I can read Portuguese and I understand bits of Farsi.  I want to learn some more Farsi.  And I want to learn Tagalog."

Stan nodded.  "Anything else?"

"I like languages.  I'm good with coding," Dree stared wistfully into space for a few seconds and then sighed heavily.  "I'd like to create my own artificial language.  Not now.  After things settle down."

Stan sensed that Dree wanted to create a programming language but he left that alone.  "Alright then.  I'll see what I can do.  My mother has some friends in a language club who meet for lunch once a we--"

Dree groaned.

"Not all of her friends are addicts."

Dree nodded.  He wasn't crazy about meeting any more of That Damn Stan's mother's buddies.

"I think I can pick up some language C.D.s and books for you."  At my own expense, Stan thought silently.  The library is a piece of shit.  Nothing much there anymore.  I'd have to use an assumed identity and bit coins to get a hold of Farsi learning materials.  The Government and I don't see eye-to-eye these days on much.  Because I defend unpopular relatives of terrorists in court.

"I said 'F-ck the Pigs' in court," Stan told Dree.  "Three times."

Dree smiled.  "I've said worse in Sunday School.  Being agnostic in Carolina made me the dangerous man I am today."

That Damn Stan indicated a pile of Japanese anime comics on the living room coffee table.  "There ya go, buddy.  Stay out of trouble today.  Mom and I both have to work."

Dree Raincave smiled.  He snatched up the comics eagerly-- noticing that they were in Japanese and not English produced a smile that brightened up his whole face-- and retreated down the hallway to his bedroom where Majestic waited.

"Thanks, Stan.  You're alright."

Crap, Stan thought.  How am I going to tell him that I have to go to the City for a few weeks to attend to my law practice, and then fly off to California for the PayPal 14 case?  I hope my mother doesn't frighten Dree into a petrified stump while I'm gone.


                         ~ to be continued ~