Evelyn followed into the apartment, letting the echoes familiarize themselves as she went. The place looked simple, certainly lacking the lived in feel most places would have. She suspected the deage had brought this temporary type treatment. It must be odd living above your work, she imagined. But New York was a city packed tightly together, so perhaps not as odd as she expected.

Ranger made himself comfortable, and Evelyn sat in one of the chairs, wondering how dignified she could really be when her legs didn't reach the floor. Being young did have it's flaws, and having a professional appearance when you needed to hop into your seat was a bit tough. No matter. Her boss wasn't exactly maintaining the appearance of being dignified himself. Herself. Ranger in Noel's body sort of looked like a person in a mascot suit who was finally allowed to remove their mask and breathe a little. Being a fake woman must have been a bit much for him to handle.

Evelyn tilted her head as he spoke, and nodded, "That makes sense. The facial expressions you were making, I mean. Tasting lies would be a horrible experience. The echoes are less intrusive with their input at least."

With the papers on the table, she clasped her hands in her lap and tried not to fidget. She had a lot of questions, but did not want to bombard him now that he had stopped lying. Best to start them off on a better page. "So, Jude mentioned he hired me, and based on this apartment, and the paperwork, the deaging for you is not recent. Likely along the same period of time as I have gone through so far." Fair assumption. The place was lived in, but not settled. Like a weekend guest who ended up hanging out a bit longer. Or her slowly coming to terms with maybe staying at the mansion more permanently. No real decorations, but enough time to move in a few things for comfort.

"The you being Noel part is new then? And us being up here is assuming staff doesn't know. Does Jude know?" She waited for an answer, trying not to overwhelm him more. She counted in her head and then offered information in return. That seemed to be a better way to go about this.

"Jude met me at the mansion, and now I help here because my powers are good with paperwork. You heard the echoes, sort of. The other half is that I never forget things. Like...how to fill out a form." She pointed and flashed a smile. She hoped it was a reassuring one, and less of a snarky one. She had trouble with people, and Michael was in a weird position for the whole 'getting to know you' thing.

”I don’t know how Noel manages. I’m hungover ‘cause I spent the reception last night drinkin’ t’ try an’ deal with the lies.” Ranger slowly shook her head as she remembered it, ”The weddin’ was fine… the reception, well, everyone’ was lyin’ ‘r at least stretchin’ the truth. Didn’t make it past the speeches.”

It was odd talking to someone about her current condition that wasn’t Noel. It was also odd talking to a kid about it… A kid who happened to be an employee of hers. Nothing ever seemed to make sense in New York.

Evelyn brought up Jude and him having mentioned hiring Evelyn before commenting on the apartment and paperwork. ”It’s been a few weeks. I woke up an’ went t’ Texas f’r a week. Had Jude set this up before I headed back. I’ve been here ‘bout a week now. Noel arrived last night.” Ranger scooted herself across the couch some to prop her head up a little higher on the arm. ”So y’ were deaged too.” Ranger had lost all her memories when deaging. Ten years of life gone. Between the pair of them and their records, Noel and Ranger had reconstructed much of their life. Especially the recent history. The echoes Evelyn had must have helped her either reconstruct her life or just allowed her to be that adult while still physically very young.

Ranger nodded, being Noel was new. ”Very. Happened right as the weddin’ started.” While they kissed right as the bride started down the aisle. ”That was yesterday. An’ no, the staff doesn’t know. Jude doesn’t know either. We’re keepin’ it close t’ the chest f’r now. Hopin’ we can fix it an’ no one is the wiser.” If it got out that Ranger was Noel, she would never live it down when they fix it.

So Evelyn had a perfect memory. That in addition to her echoes made her a mighty paperwork warrior. Jude hiring her made all the sense. Evelyn mentioned paperwork and pointed to the papers she had left on the table. Ranger looked at the papers and large amount of mental effort, and a small amount of audible physical effort, she sat up on the couch and took hold of the papers. ”I can see why Jude would want t’ hire y’.” Ranger scanned the papers, one hand holding them while she rest her head against the fingertips of the other. ”How long’ve y’ been here?”

Evelyn had no personal experience drinking, but she knew the general purpose of it. The efforts made to rid Ranger of the foul taste in his mouth had undoubtedly been traded for further misery today. Evelyn had a moment of sympathy. After all, she tried to avoid the Playbacks by just not sleeping, and that resulted in it's own delirium from time to time. A room of liars would have given anyone a headache, she expected.

Evelyn made note of the dates, and they added up to what she knew of the other deaged mutants. "I was born in 1988. That was not a lie. She shrugged. "Does that mean I'm thirty-one, as my birth certificate would claim, or seven, as my memory tells me? For legal purposes here we stuck to the former. Less messy paperwork regarding child labor," she told him, flashing a quick smile. Legalities were important here. Her job involved keeping those legalities straight, after all.

So, they switched at a wedding, and now they were hiding it. Evelyn gave Ranger a look, and sort of made a face. "I mean, even if they don't figure out what happened, someone is bound to notice something is wrong if real Noel is acting anything like you are. You may look like a woman, but I don't know if you really act like one. The echoes are an enhancement mutation, they pick up on things anyone can honestly see. I may process information faster, but the fact I can tell something is wrong may not be a good sign for you." She was genuine at least. She watching him struggle toward the papers and scurried over, taking out a pen and pointing out the little flaws. A date, a number, a signature. Some she could do on her own, but it was important to point out why she was fixing them, so she wouldn't be chasing down the same error every time.

"I've been here for almost a week. I only come in part time. We have BlacTac listed for community service so I can come here to help. Oh, sign that one." She paused at the last paperwork, making sure it was Michael's signature. She most certainly didn't save that information for later. Nope. Forgery was frowned upon. But, in an emergency, it could be handy.

"There isn't much for me to do at the school, so this is fun. I like having things to sort and stuff to do." She picked up the papers and a quick glance proved they were ready now. She straightened them and set them neatly off to the side to send off later.

1988? Evelyn had lost a lot of time! Ranger thought ten years being lost was a lot. ”That… Is a great question.” Ranger wasn’t a philosopher. Instead, Ranger however, was a pragmatist. ”Sounds like y’r thirty-one t’ me.” Ranger smiled, ”Until they want y’ t’ pay t’r taxes. Then y’r seven.”

Evelyn spoke to a small fear Ranger had, feeding it. That her power made noticing things easier but things had to be there to notice. That if she was able to puzzle out what was going on, someone else could. That or at the very least they would notice something was wrong.

”I’m hopin’ this is short term an’ we can fake ‘til it’s over. Other than Alpha Team no one knows me from ten years ago. So, Noel just needs t’ steer clear of them. An’ she did well enough of a job actin’ like a man last night t’ make it through. I think… I was a little drunk though.” Ranger closed her eyes and remembered some of the night. Noel seemed to do fine. Ranger threw up on the floor. ”So what y’r sayin’ is I need to act more like a woman? Got any pointers oh observant one?” Catapulting high heels and clown makeuping were certainly not the best ways to do that. Ranger only had so much experience to draw upon. Two weeks as Lori, a night as Noel, and a couple memories she had lifted from Noel the night before and that morning.

Ranger had to contain a laugh. ”BlacTac listed as community service? That’s a good one.” Evelyn had joined Ranger and brought a pen. She pointed out where Ranger had made flaws on documents. Her writing was completely identical, the pen didn’t sit right in her hand. The more she fixed,the more it looked like her own man handwriting. Her signature looked correct. A sloppy mess of cursive nonsense where only the M and H were truly discernable.

”Glad BlacTac is workin’ out f’r y’.” Ranger watched Evelyn check over the papers and set them aside. ”Y’ said this was listed as community service, but has Jude set up any kind of compensation? I mean, y’ just saved us upwards of four weeks of waitin’ f’r a rejection letter on that form 1 alone. Y’ deserve somethin’... An’ this ain’t just me buyin’ y’r silence on my current… uh… state.”

Evelyn liked Ranger's way of thinking. He wasn't like some of the adults at the mansion who were set on rules and following them. Rather, he seemed to approve of the idea of being whatever age benefited her the most. At least, that was how she was taking it. "Thirty-one if I am out past curfew, and seven if I'm in trouble. Sounds like the best plan." She likes using the situation to her benefit. If she was going to be a kid again, she may as well make the most of it.

Evelyn considered what he was saying. She felt it may be a bit premature to relax when the previous night was being reflected on through very drunk memories. Maybe Noel was doing okay being a guy, but Ranger was certainly having issues being a woman. She sighed, rubbing her forehead a little. "It's, small things. Like, you tried to run your hand through your hair, but, you forget you have long hair. Or, you try to use size to your advantage, but you aren't a big tough guy anymore. There are just different ways to approach situations."

Evelyn paused, an idea coming to mind. "I can show you what you're doing wrong, but it involves more voices in your head. I'm not sure if you're ready for that yet," she ventured cautiously. Just letting the echoes analyze what was happening would be faster than trying to give awkward advice.

She paused at the mention of compensation, and shrugged a little. "I am mostly just investing right now. I am living at the mansion so I haven't had a lot of spending to do. I had Jude deposit a little into an account but since I can't take classes, I need something to entertain myself." It was a risk admitting how much fun paperwork was to her, but it was a risk worth taking. If they thought she wasn't getting enough from the experience they could stop letting her come. Better to keep having work than to ruin her chances altogether.

Evelyn started listing the small mistakes Ranger had made that gave away that something was up with her. Small things that had eventually helped clue Evelyn in to Ranger being Ranger. Then Evelyn offered to show Ranger what she was doing wrong. Which involved more of the echoes. Every leery of things going into her head Ranger stiffened slightly. Then knowing Evelyn’s echoes would recognize that for what it was she forced herself to relax. The voices were just making observations, they weren’t some kind of mental manipulation. There would be no consciousness overwrite or compulsions implanted. Besides, it would be the most efficient way to accomplish the goal, ”Okay. Yeah... Let’s do that. Though, maybe, take it slow?“ Ranger nodded, convincing herself it was okay to do. ”An’ sorry. I’m generally more on edge around psychics an’ those who can get into my head. I can handle any physical threat. I cain’t do anythin’ t’ stop someone who wants t’ root around up here.” Ranger pointed to her head.

Would she just make contact with Evelyn and the voices would just go off on a tear or would she need to move around and act and then make contact with Evelyn to see what she did wrong? Ranger wondered. Maybe a little bit of both? The thought of parading around in front of a kid to see how unladylike she was, was not how Ranger foresaw the day going.

Ranger nodded to Evelyn, glad that she had received something from Jude. ”That’s… Brilliant actually. Makin’ use of y’r newfound youth t’ invest. Especially when y’ have no expenses.” Ranger looked at Evelyn, honestly impressed by the genius level financial decision. ”Well if y’ need more f’r somethin’ or think of any other way I can compensate y’ just let me know. ‘R, any way I can compensate y’’ f’r helpin with this current situation.” Helping your boss pretend to be a woman was likely not on her list of duties.

Evelyn registered the hesitation, but that was normal. Not many people liked letting someone into their head. Evelyn gave a little smile, surprisingly gentle compared to the usual expression she tended to wear. "If it makes you feel better, it's less getting into your head, more letting you into mine. You can see my memories, I don't see any of yours. It's like, listening in to a radio feed. It's just easier if you can see what's happening."

Evelyn waited until he seemed prepared, then set a hand on his arm. She focused on the memory of walking into his office, and let the playback run. He would experience it from her point of view: the awkward body language, the gesture's with the hair, the way his mouth twitched every time he lied. He could also hear the echoes pointing out the problems.

Evelyn pulled her hand back, giving Ranger a moment to shake free of the images. "It's a little different seeing it from someone else's viewpoint I imagine."

Evelyn was watching curiously to see his reaction. When she told people she had a perfect memory, they never expected the clarity that came with it. Every smell, touch, moment was crystal clear. From a clock on a wall, to an object on the desk, she didn't forget, for better or worse. She kept much of that ability to herself for safety reasons. Heck, if someone knew she could remember things like that, she could harvest a whole collection of debit card pins or passwords. Not that she would ever do that. Nope.

Ranger nodded as Evelyn better explained what it was like. The idea of her letting Ranger into her head made Ranger feel better about moving ahead. ”Okay. Let’s do it.” She said when she was mentally prepared and Evelyn placed a hand on her arm.

Next thing Ranger knew she was experiencing the moment where she met Evelyn all over again, but from Evelyn’s point of view. She could watch herself move and speak awkwardly all while she heard the echoes pick apart everything. Maybe it was the echoes’ fault, but Ranger came out of the memory feeling like she had completely failed at playing the part of Noel. She would have to get better at not being herself while in Noel’s body. As long as the swap went on and there was still hope of somehow swapping back, she wanted to keep the whole thing under wraps.

The transition back from the memory was no less jarring than when she had come back from a memory with Noel’s power. One moment she was in her office looking up at Noel, the next she was sitting on a couch looking at Evelyn. ”Just… Just a little. Yeah.” She had yet to see any of Noel’s memories where her own body was involved. There wasn’t a huge volume of memories there for her to happen upon. Those might need to be more directed toward.

Maybe seeing memories of their time in the cabin would be a good way to avoid filling her head with all of Noel’s memories… and erasing all of her own in the process.

”It idn’t my first time seein’ someone else’s memory, just the first I’ve seen myself in a memory.” She went back over the memory in her mind. Think about what the echoes had pointed out. Much of it was subtle. Some not so much. The gross motions could be worked on easier than the fine motions, the little hints that were mostly unconscious movements. ”Mind bein’ my coach as long as y’r here? Pointin’ out when I stop actin’ like who I’m pretendin’ t’ be.”

She looked at Evelyn, careful to keep from looking her directly in the eye, ”So… Y’ can do that f’r anythin’? Any memory y’ have?” Ranger’s mind had moved from thinking just of helping with her current situation to possible applications.

The big one being training. Have Evelyn present for things and she could relay the memory to others. It would be especially helpful for demonstrations that were costly to put on. Do them once and have Evelyn distribute them later. Sure, she could also be an intelligence gathering asset, but there are only so many places where people would let a little girl run around unattended or in at all. Maybe pair her with someone to play her guardian? There were possibilities.

Hell. She could be an analyst. With her echoes, Ranger could provide her all the raw data of a situation and she could puzzle out what’s happening or a way to navigate a situation. Perfect memory means she would be best suited to changing situations. She is able to analyze a situation with perfect clarity of what led to it as it develops.

Evelyn waited patiently while RangerNoel processed what she had seen. It was not easy to see someone else's memories, but at least he had the experience once. Whatever that meant. She didn't ask details, as that was not her purpose here today. She nodded at the suggestion of being a coach, "The small things shouldn't be too hard to fix. Maybe working on ways to avoid flat lying so you don't have to taste them all the time? And honestly, the hungover bit is one you can use to your advantage on days like today. No one is going to questions why you're not quite yourself when you're hungover. Well, except me." Evelyn was a brat like that. She was not apologetic.

"Yup. I can do it with anything. Books too. Like, I was studying electricity the other week with a friend, and we needed a formula--" she waited for permission than touched RangerNoel's arm again. She had already fished through the right spot in her brain, so when she made skin contact the memory of the textbook was right on top. The formula's she had been reading about were there. She cut that memory off quicker, as he didn't really need that for more than demonstration.

"That's how I can get all the forms correct. As long as I've read the information, the echoes can hash out the rest." She was proud of how she had used her powers. While it may have seemed like a security risk having a child in BlacTac initially, it was certainly a situation now of keeping an asset close on hand and out of someone else's use.

”It’s hard t’ avoid lyin’ if y’ need t’ introduce y’rself though… ‘R tell someone where ‘Ranger’ is.” Ranger said, trying to work through how to avoid lying about her identity. ”I don’t see a way around that unless I just start identifyin’ as Noel. Decide that she is who I am now.” As convenient as that would be to stop the lies, Ranger did not see that as something that was going to happen. Unless she picked up too many of Noel’s memories, perhaps. She shook her head. ”I’ll just have t’ suffer that one, but I can try t’ talk around other questions t’ avoid lyin’. Can’t always be hungover. It’d give Noel a bad reputation. Assumin I didn’t do that last night.” Ranger hung her head, ”It started with me havin’ trouble in heels an’ that was before the alcohol started flowin’.”

Evelyn not only confirmed she could review a memory of anything, she showed Ranger. She spoke about a formula for electricity in a book and then touched Ranger’s arm. Ranger saw the memory of Evelyn looking at the book, the formula was there, clear as day, and then Ranger the memory was over. ”That’s… Amazin’. Y’r power’s not flashy like the rest of us here at BlacTac… but I’m startin’ t’ think y’rs is likely one of the most useful.” The only downside was that Evelyn was a child. That limited the possibilities of what she could do to help on missions. Though… A few cameras and maybe some type of wearable display and that could be mitigated. Worst case, she would need to draw something for an Alpha Team member. ”Mutants like me… normally... who can tear down a building around them ’re almost a dime a dozen. Y’r one of only two I know who can review memories like that an’ the echoes on top of it take it to a whole nother level.”

Evelyn smirked a little. She couldn't help it. "Maybe you just need to be better at lying. If someone asks if you know where Ranger is, you say he is around somewhere. If someone asks who you are, just say you are here to work on paperwork. Maybe there is a call sign you can use to identify as. Rather than thinking of yourself as Noel, maybe you can just be uh...N. I don't know, I was never good at code names."

Evelyn had no reputation, so she didn't exactly sympathize with the effort to spare Noel's. But she nodded anyway, and thought about it. "Heels is all about weight distribution and posture. Thankfully, I don't have to bother with them anymore. But, if you have to try it again sometime, I have a memory or two from my tutor. You get hit with a ruler once or twice you learn to keep your back straight. I don't miss the dinner parties." She made a face. She did not miss her old life in the slightest.

As he complimented her Evelyn beamed a little. Her ego responded well to flattery. "Sam usually just gives me a walkie-talkie, an isolated frequency or some sort. I can't share information as easily over long distance but the echoes are still good at giving advice. Even around the office, actually..."

She remembered her forms, and pointed to one, looking a bit excited. "Like, you realize we are filing incoming materials with this form 13, but if you generalized all incoming shipments as a form 19, then submitted a reclassification on form 47 you would save $10 a form. On the long run, that's almost $210 a quarter." Not exactly earth shattering revelations, but a little money here and there would add up a lot in the long run.

Ranger pursed her lips and thought about what Evelyn suggested. It was in Ranger’s nature to be more direct. She was more suited to wetworks than spycraft. While she could do both, she was more used to directly lying than skirting around the truth. ”That’s… A really good idea. Though I don’t think callsigns would help. Noel has one, Boots. It’d likely taste just as bad to give a false callsign for her, or for me for that matter. I might just eed t’ get used t’ it an’ maybe knowin’ ahead of time it’s comin’ I can prepare f’r it?”

The way Evelyn spoke about her learning to walk in heels, sent up a red flag for Ranger. Evelyn’s instruction sounded a century out of date. She filed that away for later revisiting, her voice conveying she was thinking about it as she spoke about something else. The long drawn out sounds of drawing your focus back to something, ”Yeah… I’ve had t’ walk in heels on just a few occasions. It’s… Somethin’ that I’ve had t’ learn. Just easy t’ forget when y’ go a long time between doin’ it an’ y’ only did it long enough to get a grasp of it the first time.” Ranger had walked in heels when he woke up as Lori and again when he had gone shopping with Lenna and Mars. The pair had elected to treat Ranger as their Barbie and dress her up and pick her footwear out of the store when they were evading the cops. ”This… Idn’t my first time t’ have swapped int’ a woman’s body.” Ranger admitted. Evelyn would likely figure that out herself before long anyway.

It stood to reason Ranger wasn’t the first person to see how useful Evelyn’s power could be. Someone named Sam used a walkie-talkie to make use of the echoes. And Ranger had to laugh when Evelyn pivoted from talking about that to talking about putting the echoes to work at the office. She produced forms and walked Ranger through filing paperwork differently to save a couple hundred dollars a quarter. Ranger looked at the forms ”That’s… Brilliant. Doesn’t save a lot, but if y’ can find more places y’ can do this it could add up!” Ranger looked from the form to Evelyn, ”I might have t’ give y’ and Jude a bonus.” Once Ranger finally had the chance to look at financials and see how the company was doing… And likely had someone walk him through them. A lot changed in ten years.

Evelyn's suggestion was half useful. She blinked slightly at the mention of the callsign though. Boots sounded strange to her, and she glanced at NoelRanger's outfit, wondering where the boots fit in. She did not look very Boots today. Was it like Puss In Boots? Was she like, a cat but secretly super fierce? She stopped the echoes from following that rabbit trail, and then giggled slightly at the idea Ranger had been a woman more than once.

"Sorry, I just didn't expect that this had been a common problem for you. I mean, I know someone at the mansion who changes gender, but that's their powers. You being someone else seems more intentional. I mean, I heard there was some body swapping once before at the mansion. But I don't remember that. The whole becoming a kid thing managed to erase a lot of memories. It feel weird to not remember something," she mused. She got back on track as she circled to the original comment. "If it were the same type of situation though, other people would have swapped bodies. Just you and Noel...Did you upset someone? Or like, get into something you shouldn't have? No cursed objects?" All of those seemed like likely candidates for a couple to suddenly become each other.

At the praise for the help financially, Evelyn brightened up again. Maybe a bit too much. She never thought her childhood was exactly lacking, but somehow, the praise was comforting. She didn't get praised for using her powers often. Most of her memories had been telling her the mutation was a problem or a mistake. Except for Sam and Jude. And maybe William. She liked being able to do things with her powers that helped. "I can point out more things if I find them. Or, the echoes find them. For having the deage set everything back it could have been worse."

Ranger just bounced her head in small nods as Evelyn giggled in a nonverbal way of saying, ‘yes, yes. Get it out of your system.’ The giggle was followed by an apology, that Ranger didn’t need. Were it not happening to her, she would likely have found it funny too. ”I don’t know much about what goes on at the mansion. I know that there was someone givin’ out muffins in Central Park. People who ate ‘em swapped around. Lasted for two weeks.” Ranger added emphasis on the last two words. ”Hadn’t met her before either. This time… Just Noel and myself, far as I can tell. We swapped durin’ a kiss at the weddin’, swapped back when our heads collided at the reception, but then immediately swapped back next time we kissed. Might be somehow related t’ our powers?” Ranger wasn’t convinced of that but it was the only working theory she had. ”We tried t’ fix it this morning. That’s how I got this.” Ranger pointed to the back eye she sported that was poorly covered by makeup. ”Which… Was less than pleasant with a hangover.”

”I don’t think we upset anyone, other than the bride. She cain’t swap bodies as far as I know though. I don’t think we touched anythin’ cursed an’ I’m not sure what I could have gotten into that would cause this anyway.” Ranger tried to think of any other possible cause for the swap. ”An’ I checked. Neither of us ate a muffin.”

Evelyn was willing to point out more things that she or her echoes found. She mentioned that the deaging could have set things back in a worse way. ”True. Y’ could have been even younger.” Ranger had the thought of being deaged to a toddler or younger. She shuddered at the thought. ”Could’ve been deaged right back int’ diapers.”

Evelyn got the giggles out of her system, then focused on the facts on hand. Last time there was a body swap, Ranger ate a muffin. This time, he did not eat a muffin. Therefore, that lead went nowhere. Also, they managed to switch between bodies multiple times. That... actually that seemed important.

"If you ate something, it wouldn't make sense that you swapped to your old bodies then back again. If you keep getting sent to each other's bodies, that sounds more like powers at work. Like, anytime I walk around an adapted, my echoes go away. But then I leave, and they come back." Evelyn liked coming up with theories, and this was certainly an entertaining situation to her.

She swung her feet a little before remembering she was trying to be professional. She stopped. Then she made a face when he mentioned the wedding. "Wait, you ticked off the bride. Sorry, but haven't you ever heard warnings about upsetting the bride? I'm seven, and even I wouldn't do that."

Evelyn pulled a blank sheet of paper forward, and drew a little sketch. There was a stick figure bridge, a stick figure groom, and then a bunch of pews. She scribbled in little smiley faces for the guests. "You piss off the bride, and your possible body swappers opens up to be--" she circled the right side of the paper, encompassing half the church. "Anyone on her side of the family. And, maybe even part of the grooms side. You may be stuck with a game of 'how long does it take for a grudge to let up'." Evelyn warned delicately.