Smelly Salvation [2430-2-1-Sun-10pm]

[Alexander Riggs]

Already they were on the right track. "Locked up adoption records? You really have access to that stuff??" Alex leaned on the bar, thankful no one was yet looking for a refill that the other guy couldn't handle at the other end of the counter.

If Leif really had access to adoption records, he would be the one to find the first step in tracking down Alex's sister. Maybe, just maybe, if he could track down Anna and feel like he had a real family again, he would feel like his life wasn't a complete waste. Alex knew there was only so long before he would get bored with the bartender gig and probably do something to change it, and it would probably be for the worst, as usual.

People could change a lot between sixteen and their twenties. He didn't know how his sister had turned out, but he really hoped the traits of their mother that had always helped keep him grounded had stuck with her. Anna had always been the far better adjusted one. At least, up until they had gotten split up. He could only guess what she was like now.

[Leif Chelio]

"Oh yeah, they're pretty easy to get into." The wonderful thing about getting access to a civil servant's password was that it gave you access to plenty of things you shouldn't have had access to. Of course, you had to be careful. That was five years in jail if you were caught. "Of course, some adoptions are more locked than others. Depends on who they ended up with. Top adoptions pay extra to have the data locked up from everybody, but there's always at least one copy."

The key was to approach it through the marriages department. Even if you couldn't see for sure who had adopted a child, or who the birth parents were, even if their name had been erased everywhere else, they had to keep a record there, just in case somebody got married to a relative. It wasn't a sure-fire way of locating people, since those records were double-encrypted and hidden, but when every other method failed, Leif had found people there.

[Alexander Riggs]

The bar was starting to get a little noisier as the night went on, so Alex had to lean a little closer in order to hear the faun. The faun probably wasn't having any difficulty with those huge ears of his. Or maybe he was having an even harder time, who knew? It was probably rude to ask him, so Alex suppressed the urge to do such that. Even he was impressed with himself. They had a more important topic to discuss than a faun's hearing ability anyway.

"So, if I said, hypothetically... that I needed to find my sister who went to live with some other family when we were sixteen, and I lost contact with her... you could find her?" Alex asked.

[Leif Chelio]

"Sixteen? Oh yeah, piece of cake." Leif felt his heart life. He might be able to get a real job from Alex, and even better, it could be something he could easily do. "It's harder when they're adopted real young, since they try to lock the records tight and hide it from the kid that they're not even their biological daughter. But if she was sixteen, then all the records will still be there."

The conversation behind him got loud, and Leif just swirled his ears, turning them to face Alex's voice. "If you're interested, I can do a little legwork. She might be looking for you too, or might have put her name out there to make it easier to be found."

[Alexander Riggs]

Leif seemed confident that it could be done. Maybe it was worth trusting his money and hopes in this complete stranger. "Alright... if I gave this case to you... what's your price?" This was probably the longest job Alex had ever held, and the hardest he'd ever worked at one, but it still didn't mean he was rolling in expendable cash.

A man a few stools down at the bar caught Alex's eye. He was waving him over. Alex held out a finger towards the Faun. "Hold that thought, I'll be right back." Of course, Alex sighed as he headed over to take the man's drink request. Duty calls, just when the conversation is getting important.

[Leif Chelio]

Leif was about to pull a number out of the air when Alex got waved down. That wasn't so bad. It would give Leif a sec to figure out a good price. Alex didn't look like he was rolling in credits, so it wouldn't do Leif much good if he set it too high. But too low, and Leif would end up eating nothing but tinned beans.

$500 would be more than fair for the work he was asking, and would keep Leif well taken care of. But there was a girl involved... and Alex hadn't thrown him to the mobsters. That was worth a discount. $400 then. It would be a bit tight, but that would keep the power follow to Leif's office and his lovely sunlamps, and let him buy at least some fresh veggies.

Leif waited until Alex came back over. "$400, and a pint of Crippled Creek." The faun said, "And if I can't find her, you get it all back."

[Alexander Riggs]

Alex left the man's drink in front of him and then slid back down to where Leif sat. "So?"

Leif quoted him a price. Alex mulled it over in his head, attempting to calculate how much it would leave him for the month. He would have to scrape if it all worked, but in the end it would be worth it to have contact with Anna once more. He smirked and stuck out his hand for a shake. "Deal."

He pulled out Leif's card once more, holding it up. "I have your contact info now, so I'll send you all the information I have on her over the Network. Too much to go over right now since I'm supposed to be working." He stuffed the card back in his pocket and turned to pour Leif his requested drink.

[Leif Chelio]

Leif waited a bit anxiously to see if Alex would accept his price. When he did, Lei happily shook the human's hand, ecstatic to have a job. "Sounds fine to me, I'll get started as soon as possible!" He promised Alex, ears noticeably perked up.

The faun happily took the pint of beer and took a long drink from it. It was cool and perfect after the rather hectic day he'd had. "Feel free to drop by my office anytime if you've got any questions or more information. The moment I find out anything concrete, I'll let you know."

[Alexander Riggs]

"Will do," Alex nodded. "Your address is on the card too, so I'll make sure to keep it in a safe place. Hope you enjoy your drink, buuuut I've gotta actually start working properly if I want to keep this job and be able to pay you, so I'll let you be for now."

Alex turned to head down the bar, but paused for a quick moment. "Oh, my name is Alex Riggs, by the way. Don't think I actually introduced myself earlier. Don't really have my own fancy card or anything," he smirked, and then waved and headed towards another customer who was motioning for a drink.

He felt good about the whole deal. All he had to lose was a pint of Crippled Creek out of his paycheck, since Leif would pay him back if nothing was found. As long as Leif was telling the truth, of course. But Alex had enough sense in him, as well as enough experience with scammers, to get a good feeling about the faun for the long run. Hopefully, he would soon get word on his twin sister, and he couldn't feel more awesome about that.