*Clicks recorder*
July 2nd, 30057, 10:45 AM. Right now I am taking a stroll through downtown Melursus. It's a nice morning. I'll be meeting up with Panda at Punchy's house in an hour; we're finally going to interview him so we can try to attain some more information in regards to what happened to Lolly. After that, Panda and I will begin drafting a list of official suspects.
The task of coming up with suspects seems especially daunting in this particular investigation. In all my years of being a detective, I've never gone up against somebody that uses magic to carry out their crimes. I'm still not sure what we should even be on the look-out for -- do we search the suspect's closet for pointy hats and broomsticks? Do we ask them where they keep their kettle and potions? Or what they like to do on Friday the 13th? As far as I know, the perp could be almost anyone on this island.
Punchy: Hola, mis amigos. Welcome to mi casa. Sorry if it's a little messy in here.. Haven't had the willpower to clean...
Panda: Hola, Punchy!! Wow, your house looks really cool! It's not messy at all!
Dobie: Kinda dark in here.
The time is now 11:51 AM, we are standing in Punchy's place of residence..
Punchy: Wow, this guy wastes no time at all. Anyway, make yourselves at home. There's snacks over there if you want any.
Dobie: Before we begin asking you questions, can we see some ID?
Punchy: If that's really necessary, then fine, here you go. I just had it renewed.
Dobie: Thanks. So Punchy, what was your relationship to Lolly?
Punchy: Lolly was my girl. We were dating. We had been together for a little over 3 years now... I was thinking about proposing to her, but I guess that ship has sailed.
Panda: Awww, I'm so sorry for your loss, Punchy!
Dobie: How often did Lolly practice magic? Did she ever talk about magic or show any interest in it?
Punchy: It's funny, Lolly was always so logical about almost everything, and yet, she was also a little superstitious. She wouldn't walk underneath ladders or open up an umbrella indoors, even though being afraid of those things made no sense. I never knew Lolly to try out a magic card trick or pull a rabbit out of a hat, let alone attempt a real spell. So as far as I know, she never practiced magic before.
Dobie: Do you have any clue as to what kind of spell she was attempting that day?
Punchy: No clue at all.
Dobie: What was Lolly researching?
Punchy: I know it was pretty complex stuff, but I think she said she was researching consciousness; specifically trying to see if a persons' consciousness could be transferred elsewhere, like into a computer or maybe even another creature. Lolly always liked to say that she was researching the soul.
Dobie: Do you think it's possible her research had anything to do with her demise?
Punchy: What, like she researched herself to death or something? What kind of question is that?
Panda: I think what Detective Dobie is trying to ask is if maybe Lolly was attempting some kind of spell to help with her research on consciousness!
Punchy: I don't know. I wasn't there. I guess I could see her trying it out. She was pretty adventurous in that way... Honestly, before all this, I never thought magic was even real. I'm still not 100% sure that it is.
Dobie: Do you know of anyone that might have wanted Lolly gone?
Punchy: How could anyone ever want Lolly gone? She was the heart of this island, man. She got along with everybody.
Everybody. It's not like anyone forced her to try out some dumb spell.. right?
Dobie: Were any of her friends into the occult?
Punchy: I know she liked to go see Katrina occasionally to get her fortune told... but besides Katrina, no, no one that I know of. And I don't think Katrina would have had anything to do with it, I mean come on, she's a total quack.
Panda: Katrina's not a real psychic?!
Punchy: Nah... I never said anything about it to Lolly, though. Seeing Katrina made her happy..
Dobie: That's all the questions we have, for now. Thank you for your time, kid. And, uh... sorry for your loss.
Punchy: Yeah... Adios.
12:18 PM.. First on our list of suspects: Charlise. She works part-time as a waitress at The Fruit Fly.
Main reason of suspicion: The perp smelled fruity, and was of medium-to-tall height. That's... about all we have to go on, for now. Panda and I are going to interview her -- not interrogate, mind you -- just ask her a couple of questions.
We are about to enter her yard and knock on her door... Hey, what's with the toxic waste sign?
Panda: Hmmm, that's weird! I don't remember that sign being there before?!
Dobie: Oh, here's Charlise now.
Suspect is coming out of her house.
Charlise: Hey guys! What's up?! How's it hangin'?
Panda: Howdy, Charlise! Hey, what's with this sign here?
Charlise: URGH, not again! I'm sorry guys, I'm not really radioactive.. My cousin Ursala decided to prank me by writing to
NOOKILEAKS and got them to publish an article about how I'm radioactive or whatever. I'm not radioactive; I'm naturally this green! Anyway, Ursala likes to mess with me like that. She's probably the one that put this sign here... Again.
Dobie: Do you mind if we speak with you for a bit? We have a couple of questions we'd like to ask you.
Charlise: Of course not! Why don't you come inside?!
Panda: Oh, cute room! Love the Mush Lamp!
Charlise: Thanks! That's not actually a lamp though, that kinda just grew there! Pretty neat that it glows, huh?
Panda: ....Oh!
Dobie: Mind if we see some ID?
Charlise: ...Sure? Let me see if I can find it around here.. Ope, here it is. Here you go!
Dobie: Thank you. So Charlise, tell me about yourself.
Charlise: Hmmm, where to begin!
Charlise: I like pastel colors. I like to chill. I like to party. I like to scrapbook. Sometimes I make bowls and bowls of Jello. But y'know, I mainly like to spend my time by just kickin' it, keepin' it cool. Chillaxin'. Relaxin'.
Dobie: And you work at The Fruit Fly?
Charlise: Oh, yeah. The Fruit Fly. Yeah, I waitress there in the afternoons, mainly. Not today though, today I'm kickin' it with my pals Panda and Dobie!
Panda: Woo, pals!!
Dobie: How much fruit do you handle at The Fruit Fly?
Charlise: Kind of a weird question! I like it, though! Tons and tons of fruit. It's ironic, after my shift I sometimes have fruit flies swarming me! It's so awful, haha! But at least I smell nice!
Dobie: Who else works at The Fruit Fly?
Charlise: You probably already know one of them! Ribbot is the head chef of The Fruit Fly.. Pretty crazy, right? That frog literally never sleeps. I guess he doesn't need to, since he's a robot and all. He runs both a dojo and has a wildly successful career as a culinarian! It's nuts!
Charlise: Oh, and his brother Cephalobot also works there as his sous chef.. Nepotism, am I right folks? But they're both actually really good at their jobs. I eat the food sometimes, and it is SO. good.
Dobie: Next question. This one is a little off-topic. Ever practice any magic?
Charlise: Magic? Like putting someone in a box and then sawing it in half? Nah, not really my style.
Panda: Charlise! Do you know anyone that does like magic?
Charlise: I don't know if it's related at all, but my coworker Cephalobot really loves Halloween. Like, he's completely obsessed with it! You should see his house! Other than that, I don't know anyone that likes magic. Well, I mean, everyone
likes magic, but I don't know anyone that pursues it as like, a hobby or whatever.
Dobie: Next random question. Do you have a vacation home?
Charlise: Huh-what? Vacation home? Me? Pssssh, as if I could ever afford that, hahaha! Haha! Ha! Where'd you get that idea from? The weird idea store? Heh. Anyway, I'm gettin' pretty tired, so I won't be much more fun to hang out with. I better let you guys go, or you'll get real bored. Thanks for stopping by and asking me all those totally-not-weird questions! We should do it again some time!
Dobie: Hmmm, she sure was in a hurry to get us out of there when I asked if she had a vacation home..
Panda: I know right?! I noticed that, too! That's so unlike her!
Dobie: We'll put a pin in that for later. Let's take a break and meet back up later tonight.
6:45 PM. Decided to take another stroll around the island. I'm watering some flowers at the moment.. it's kinda peaceful.
I'm thinkin' we'll talk to Cephalobot next. I hesitated to go over there right away seein' as that's Dr. Petri's kid and all.. I hate to upset my good friend, but Cephalobot fits the very vague description that we have so far of the perpetrator, so he's a potential suspect. We can't leave anyone out.
And I somewhat know Cephalobot too; he's always seemed like a nice lad. But for all I know, he could be masking his true self.
9:07 PM. Panda and I are standing outside Cephalobot's home.. I've never been to his house before, though it's not too far away from Petri's house. First impression... the boy really loves pumpkins. I never knew that about him.
Panda: All these jack-o-lanterns in his yard.. You'd think that it's Halloween!
Dobie: Indeed. Let's see if he's home. His lights are on..
Panda: *knock knock knock*
*door slowly creaks open slightly, then jerks open suddenly*
Cephalobot: BOO! Haha! Panda and Dobie? What are you two doing here? Come on in.. If you dare!
Panda: Wow! This is your house? It's so spooky!
Cephalobot: Thank you, compliment accepted! I released real spiders into my house so that they'd make me some authentic cobwebs. That's how dedicated I am to having the spookiest house in Melursus!
Dobie: How're you doing, son? Say, can I see that ID of yours?
Cephalobot: Uhhh okay! Here ya go! I've been good; I raked some dead leaves earlier today so I could add them to my house. What do you guys think? They look good here in this pile?
Panda: Looks real good! So fun! As long as there aren't any spiders in that leaf pile.
Cephalobot: You never know! There could be tons of 'em in there. More cobwebs for me!
Dobie: So, Cephalobot. How's the job at The Fruit Fly going? Ribbot bossin' you around real good? Gah-HA!
Cephalobot: Don't even get me started. It's like I can never do anything right. He always has something to say about every little thing I do. Sometimes it's "Oh, there's too much milk in this milkshake" and other times it's "Oh, there's not enough milk in this milkshake." WELL, WHICH IS IT,
BRO??
Panda: That must be hard! Do you work with a lot of fruit?
Cephalobot: Yeah, I'm the one that's always chopping up all the fruit, mixing it, mashing it, all that jazz. Ribbot is the one that does all the actual cooking and baking. He never lets me do the fun parts. I also have to do all the cleaning! It's so boring, I'd rather be out looking for pumpkin patches or ghosts or whatever!
Panda: Omg.. Is that... a
real skeleton on your dining table?!
Cephalobot: HAHAHAHAH! I wish! No, it's papier-mâché! I made it myself! Does it really look real??
Panda: Super real! That's so cool!!
Dobie: Ceph, all this Halloween stuff -- does it have anything to do with magic?
Cephalobot: Uhhh well, I know jack-o-lanterns are supposed to scare away evil ghosts or whatever. They're pretty cool like that. That's one of the reasons I like them. But I mainly like jack-o-lanterns because sometimes I
feel like a jack-o-lantern.. and it's like.. whoa. We both have lights inside ourselves. We both look spooky. We have a lot in common! Did you know in some countries they carve turnips instead of pumpkins?
Cephalobot: Also, I think folks dress up as scary things to like, make fun of the Devil. I think that's pretty baller. I should dress up as Ribbot at my next Halloween party.. Which is next month, by the way! You're both invited!
Panda: Next month? But isn't that August? Has my been calendar wrong this whole time?!
Cephalobot: Who says Halloween should only happen once a year? I have a Halloween party every month!
Dobie: Do you know much about magic in general, Ceph? Ever try out any spells? Or know anyone that does?
Cephalobot: No, but that's a cool idea! Maybe I'll get a spirit board for my next party! I don't know anyone that casts spells. If I did, I'd have a spell cast on Ribbot so he'd quit working at The Fruit Fly and go back to working in his dojo full time! Then I'd make all the food at The Fruit Fly spooky, with fake blood and gummy worms and all that cool stuff.
Dobie: Do you happen to have a vacation home?
Cephalobot: Yes, actually. I thought I told you about it before? I'm pretty sure you even visited. Don't you remember? I made it into a haunted laboratory! It was a real hit! Look, I've got some pictures from last year!
Dobie: Oh. Yes. Yes, of course. I remember now... I think..
Panda: Maybe you're just tired! It is getting pretty late.
Dobie: Yeah, that must be it. Anyway, thank you for your time, sport. Say hi to your mom for me.
12:59 AM.. I'm feeling very confused. I don't remember ever having been to Cephalobot's vacation home, let alone even knowing about it. But Panda is probably right, I'm probably just tired. And I am old. Maybe my memory is fading a bit. I am putting so much time into this investigation that I barely have a moment to think about anything else. I think the memory simply got pushed out of my mind.
I can't possibly see Cephalobot as having been the perp, but I am pretty biased. Panda says she is unsure. We still have several more suspects to interview. If only we could catch the perp red-handed. All those cameras I put around Melursus haven't paid off yet.
I'm falling asleep.. I don't know if my ears are playing tricks on me; I swear I can hear some faint music coming from outside... But I'm just too darn tired to check it out. I think the music is making me extra sleepy..
Zzzz....
