Yeah, that makes sense. Of course he'd have checked December already. Seems like every version of him ends up there sooner or later, huh?

"They're right about that." If he hunkers down here in a squat, is he gonna get kicked? Or ditched? Play nice, kiddo, okay? Creepy big brother here doesn't mean any harm. "Pretty much the whole world's emptied out, and everyone's come here. That's why I'm here, anyway."

Has the kid guessed who he is yet, or does he need to be more obvious? Damn, he can talk a kid out of tears from a toma bite or bribe them into doing chores, but he doesn't have the faintest clue how to explain this whole mess. "I heard that Miss Melanie and the rest of the brats ended up out this way. Don't suppose you've seen 'em?"