>> Yeah. I'm on the way. Thanks.
Stahl cut the connection and rose from his bed. It was still dark and Stahl took extra precautions to avoid waking Heidi. She'd only just fallen asleep and Stahl himself had only managed to get a couple hours of sleep before Hendrick messaged him. The young elf shuffled his way across the dirty floor, pausing to glance at the relatively new crib resting near the entrance to the kitchen. Thankfully, she was still sleeping. After an entire afternoon of yelling and crying Stahl supposed he would be tired too.
Stahl managed to make it to the small bathroom, flicking the switch on the wall upwards and causing dim light to cover the room. Stahl peered into the dirty mirror with a squint, inspecting himself. The young, energetic elf he was a couple of years ago was gone. He looked, above all, exhausted. With a short frown, Stahl prepared himself for the day's events. Showering, Stahl took a moment to plan on how he was going to handle this particular problem. Hendrick had informed him of Reiner falling off the wagon again. Stahl couldn't blame him considering the trio's circumstances but regardless felt hostile towards the young human for tying him up like this. It wasn't exactly easy to find work or take care of people you care about when you're constantly looking for your drugged up friend in some seedy bar or alley.
Stepping out of the shower, Stahl dressed in a simple white shirt and a dark green jacket along with a casual pair of slacks. The sun was just now coming in through the small windows spread out through Stahl's apartment and Stahl made a mental note to unlock the door for Abigail as he strapped his holster to his waist. Doing a quick check of his weapon, he slid it into his holster along with his trusty knife. Debating on whether or not to grab something to eat before leaving, the tell-tale sign of Heidi broke the peaceful silence of the apartment.
"Waaaaaaah!" Heidi wailed, now standing up in her crib. Stahl quickly made his way over, attempting to be cheerful. "Good morning, you." Reaching down to pick the surprisingly angry child up into his arms, Stahl made his way past into the kitchen in a valiant attempt to search for food. Heidi, meanwhile, had thankfully stopped crying. She seemed more interested in Stahl's slicked back platinum hair, pulling and grabbing at it with little regard for Stahl's comfort. Wincing, Stahl attempted to negotiate a peace treaty with the restless two and a half year old, "Hey, hey, hey-" Stahl attempted, re-directing the infant's attention with a well-placed snap of his fingers. At this moment, thankfully, Stahl's door opened and in stepped the middle-aged lifesaver known as Abigail Cross. She was his landlord and more often than not his babysitter. While she could be a pain to deal with, her hours were flexible and she had a way with kids that Stahl simply didn't have.
"Helllllooo! Oh, give her here Erik. Did she sleep well? Did you feed her? Why is her face red? Was she crying? Oh, give her here, come now!" Abigail crowed, her surprisingly large bag of what Stahl assumed to be baby supplies trailing behind her. Stahl handed Heidi over and thankfully the girl was pleased to see Abigail. Stahl echoed that sentiment as he greeted the woman. "Good morning, Abigail. She slept well, ate, cried. I was just about to make breakfast-" Abigail cut him off abruptly, waving her free hand as she coo'd and proceeded her usual routine of baby-talk. "Oh, I'll handle that. You get going. We both know you're very busy trying to find work in order to pay me. Run along, we'll be fine here. You should really clean this place up. It's disgraceful." Stahl trailed off as the woman berated his admittedly poor living situation. The money he had saved up was slowly draining away and it showed. "Alright, alright. You know how to reach me if there's any problem. I should be back in a couple of hours. Thanks again, Abigail." The thanks was heartfelt, perhaps a bit more then Stahl intended, but without Abigail Stahl dreaded his prospects in this place. Leaving the daughter of Maxwell Frei alone all day filled him with a sense of dread and he knew it was something the late Maxwell simply wouldn't do.
As he stepped out the door he inspected the general area to ensure it was free of the usual loiterers - ganger scum, squatters, druggies and the like. Apparently pleased by the lack of those types of characters around, Stahl began walking down the uneven street towards some of Reiner's usual hangouts. Hendrick had tipped him off about some sort of fancy, ritzy club he had seen Reiner at last. Stahl supposed he would start there, though he was unsure on whether or not a club like that would be open during the day. He didn't even know the name of the place, only the rough location. Why couldn't Hendrick do this again? Stahl thought as he paced down the street. Hendrick had seemingly made a few friends since the trio had moved here from the Allied German States and Stahl just assumed he had a demanding work schedule. Regardless, Stahl had to find Reiner before Reiner found the wrong end of an alley. After all, Maxwell would have done it. The young elf continued down the road, aiming to find the fancy new club and with it, his friend.