selfhelp | [Voice / Action]

[Okay, so. Several things need to be dealt with here, one way or another. First being the fact that he has a facetwin hanging around who is pretty damn hard to explain, though Tommy being more or less okay with the "brother" title helps with that. Second is that he knows the truth about his heritage now, which is, in short, a huge weight off his shoulders. Third is that his strength is mostly back in his arm as long as he doesn't bend or twist it in a way that stresses his brace too much, which admittedly doesn't mean much, but it does mean that he's able to finish the sketches he'd promised to Pepper's art gallery.

Thus, since it's so warm and dry today, he'll be heading out to deliver a set of hefty-sized rolled sheets of drawing paper to Pepper's art gallery, and then to swing by Tony's house to catch up on some work and maybe fill his... sort-of employer in on the recent developments. Mainly the kid with Billy's face who is probably going to hate him for a while. Tommy's not as keen to forgive as some people.

His last stop will be the plaza, armed with a miniature sketchbook, and props himself up against the side of the fountain to draw whatever comes his way. Occasionally he might have to stop and give his hand a frustrated shake, but hey, there's no physiotherapy like a good work-out, right?

At some point while he's out, though, he'll be doing what he told himself he'd get done: a journal entry that is better late than never.]

[Voice, locked from Tommy]

Hey, it's Billy. Just wanted to get it out there that if you see anybody with my face - or hear my voice, I guess - that's Tommy, my... brother. Kind of. It's complicated. He might be a bit tough to deal with sometimes, but he's not a bad guy, so just try to put up with him, if you can. He could use some friends.

[....]

Just don't let this get back to him, I'd never hear the end of it.

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

Right, because tightpants are usually so subtle.

[Admittedly she's more sensible than, say, Faith. Or Spike.

...Mm, Spikepants.]

[Please pardon him while his head explodes with fanboy delight for a while.]

A-are you kidding!? Seriously, I can? That sounds- it sounds amazing!

Right... thanks.

[Wow, that was... kind of scary. He'll just watch Logan go and wonder how exactly he survived that one.]

[Pfft.]

Alright, alright, no coons will be recruited. For the sake of being environmentally-friendly.

[There's a lot of things that Peter can think of, mostly from bad sci-fi, that might fit Billy's bill. But he won't pry into it. Anything's possible when you're a witch, he supposes.]

I'll be sticking to twins. [Pause.] I can try hanging out with him, if that's cool.

You can't even get him by surprise?

Yeah. Point taken. But at least I don't change into the pants for the fight. It's more a come-as-you-are deal.

And I haven't worn leather in a very long time.

[Wow, this guy's really more excited than most of the others he's made offers to. He'll definitely have to pencil him in for a ride.]

Of course! I like to let other people ride him, because Appa loves to make new friends, and he also appreciates the exercise! I'm sure he'll like you, too.

[ Gives him a sideways smile. ] Your brother. I didn't know you had one.

Oh, gotcha. Yeah, he's... it's hard to explain. But I didn't know I had one either, until about half a year ago.

[ ... all she does is lower her chin and lift her eyebrows at him. It sounds like there's a story there - how do you not know? - but she won't force it out of him. If he wants to talk about it, he can. ]

[Ahaha, he knows that look- not specifically from her, but from anyone else he's said that to. 'Complicated' barely grazes the surface of the issue.]

You know that old cliche of twins being separated at birth and adopted by different families? It's kind of like that, with me and Tommy. Except there's also magic and amnesia involved, which makes it way more messy.

[ Pulls a face. They're walking into the clothing store now, so she pauses briefly to turn and look at him. ]

Considering your history? I'm really not surprised. Are we talking reality-bending magic, or just regular magic?

Reality-bending. Definitely reality-bending.

[He pauses, then glances over, lips pursing.]

This is really, um... it's private. I mean, I don't mind talking about it- [Liar-] But... not here.

[ ... she sighs out through her nose. ]

Billy, listen. It's okay if you mind. But sure, we can talk later. Right now? I'm really just interested in finding some pants. [ Makes a face, shrugs, and begins browsing.

She's letting it - him - go. Not that he has to leave or anything. But he's kind of an awkward kid, she remembers that much - and if he's deflecting the topic, that's fine. She's curious, but not burningly so - it won't kill her not to know. ]

[Pepper looks up in time to catch that expression, in the murky area between sorrow and joy. She doesn't know how to describe it, even in her thoughts, so she just watches and waits until Billy answers.

Special fits.]

Well. I'm pretty sure she's not a crush. [Pepper says it lightly, in a way Billy can wave off if he wants. She's curious, but at the same time she doesn't want to intrude. Billy can take the question as he wants.]

[Billy doesn't respond to that, merely furrows his brow and splits off to do his own shopping, browsing listlessly through some t-shirts and not really looking at anything in particular, just seeking out a distraction. This all reminds him of the last time she'd shown up- meeting her, sharing things he isn't comfortable about sharing with just anyone, like he's known her a lot longer than the short time they knew each other. Maybe he has Cap and the resistance to blame for that. Or maybe just because she was his doctor- the one who'd looked after him when they'd returned from the Cube. Found him a place to feel safe with Teddy, gave him bandages for the wounds that were visible and meds for the ones that weren't.

It isn't her, not the same one. She doesn't remember that, and she never will.

But he's okay with that. Hell, maybe it's better.

He'll wait for her by the door when he gets tired of staring blankly at the shirts, leaning against the wall with one foot propped up, his expression pensive.]

[His eyes widen at that, a swift flush crossing his cheeks. Oh god, that's even worse than Cap's suggestion about Tommy.]

No, oh my god, no, she's- [He lifts a hand to cover his mouth, not sure whether he wants to laugh at the suggestion or cry. Good god.] She's, ah... she's my mom. My real mom.

[It still feels wrong to say that- like the mother who'd raised him wasn't real, but it's because of Wanda that he even exists.]

Hey, thanks. I may not look it, but deep down I'm glad too. Just gotta let it sink in for a while, I guess.

I'm glad you've come to this conclusion. You'll keep me posted about Loki?

[Rogue just nodded and started to shift away. It was probably time to go. Especially since the last time she'd seen Billy she hadn't exactly... been alone.]

Just enjoy it while ya can.

[Her last bit of free advice.

Because this place likes ruining things.]

Edited 2012-09-27 05:27 (UTC)

[ ... ]

Unhappy? Why?

I'm with you there. I won't say I'm happy about the idea of getting sent back into the middle of it, but I sleep better knowing how it ends.

You could try the Battle Dome? I watch movies in there sometimes. It's like having the biggest surround-sound movie theater ever, and it's always free. Only downside is that nothing new ever comes out.

No reason. I guess I'm still surprised by how nice people can be around here.

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