A.N. — And now here's me trying a humorous tone after the last few drabbles were anything but. This poor fellow is a bit deluded, though he's trying his best.
46. Stan Shunpike
Stan was a people pleaser. He had political ambitions; knowing what the masses wanted was key. Seeing his job on the Knight Bus as a stepping stone to being Minister might be stretching it, but Stan had a plan.
Step one: make them smile. Always offer the rider hot chocolate and be attentive to their needs. And it never failed, when they got off the Bus, passengers' moods lifted.
Stan didn't realize they were smiling because they were off the Bus, but that tied into step two: ignore the critics. Being a gossipmonger, though, this was a work in progress.