[Action] Fourth Wall

[selfhelp]

BILLY KAPLAN will be either a) flying/teleporting around or b) wandering through the chaos just wondering what the hell is going on; he's never seen this in Luceti before, and it's definitely something to look at. He'll be watching for familiar faces, definitely, or just poking at interesting-looking people.

EDWARD ELRIC is, surprise! Back from his kidnapping. Sort of. Temporarily. And he's trying to get himself home, but who knows what he'll run into on the way... eh-heh.

ASCH is in Good Spirits, mostly unruffled because he's been through like five years of this madness and refuses to get his feathers ruffled. But he will anyway, because he's like that. You might catch him outside as well, if he decides he's had enough and tries to drown himself in the lake or something. (This is entirely possible.)



[ooc: please put who you want to ping in the subject line or something, this is a catch-all! And Ed's just back for 4th Wall, his real return will be a few days after this. |Db]

Comments

[supersoldiered]

I'm sorry I brought it up.

I thought you knew already.

[selfhelp]

I didn't... I had no idea. Teddy, either... he doesn't...

[Oh god, what's he even going to say now...?]

[supersoldiered]

Then keep not knowing. When we go home, we'll forget this all happened anyway. So let's just keep trying to get home.

[That home they don't deserve to see again because they're MURDERERS.]

[selfhelp]

But...! [That's not good enough for him, now.] If we forget, then- then Cassie still dies! I'm not from that time, so maybe- if we find a way to remember, she won't...

[He trails off, swallowing hard as he remembers what happened with Iron Lad. What if it's a timeline thing? What if she has to die?

...No, no, he can't think like that! Cassie... he can't let that happen to her.]

[supersoldiered]

She won't try to save her father if she's got half a chance?

[selfhelp]

Is that what happened...?

[He still doesn't have the full explanation - and he seriously doubts he ever will until he actually lives it - but each piece of the puzzle helps to create the bigger picture. Of course... the Scarlet Witch is the one who caused Cassie's dad to die. So finding her could bring him back.]

[supersoldiered]

Lots of things happened. I set off the dominoes. I made a bad call and now Cassie's dead.

[There's a tremble in his bottom lip, but like hell he's going to entertain the idea of crying about it. Again.]

[selfhelp]

Eli...

[He doesn't know what to say. He's not going to blame his friend for what happened - especially with what he already suspects - but he lacks the knowledge to properly disagree. He opts for a hand on the other teen's shoulder instead.]

[supersoldiered]

Don't.

[He shrugs the hand away. It's not fair. Nothing is fair. He's stuck in the interplanetary ghetto that barely has running water, and Billy gets to stay in the suite that's got cafes and electricity. Probably internet too, somewhere. Why does he always have to work twice as hard for everything? Cassie's dead. They should all have to pay for it equally.]

[selfhelp]

[Well, that was kind of a horrible bust. Billy leaves his hand hovering for a moment, empty, before he finally lets it drop. There really are no words for this.]

Sorry.

[supersoldiered]

Don't be.

[He sighs.] Look, I'm sorry. You don't need this dumped on you. Why don't we talk about something else? [Not that he has much of a somehting else to talk about.]

[selfhelp]

[Now he wonders what other bad news people might be hiding from him. It's kind of scary. Eli does have a point, though, even if that point is just that they're going to be running around in circles if they keep this up.]

...Um... you should see Teddy, and Jonas. I can take us there?

[supersoldiered]

[sdghgfdjkk cracker say WHAT?]

Did you just say Jonas. Is here?

[selfhelp]

[That reaction makes him nervous, bro.]

Uh- yeah. He got here about a month ago. I didn't even recognize him at first... he looked just like Nate.

[supersoldiered]

You're sure it's Jonas. It's absolutely not Nate?

[It's a different kind of tension from the Cassie thing. If Nate is here masquerading as Jonas then it's an issue. If Jonas is here even without Nate, that's just as much of an issue.]

[selfhelp]

[This face.]

I think I know Nate well enough that I'd recognize him, Eli. Anyway, why would he fake that?

[supersoldiered]

You have to listen to me, Billy. If there's anything you remember when you go back home, remember that we can't trust Nate anymore. He's lost it.

[selfhelp]

[Good god, it's like this whole conversation is a series of blindsides. And Eli's words bring a very dark picture to mind.]

...Kang?

[supersoldiered]

[And this is with him deliberately leaving out the bad stuff. HAVE FUN WHEN YOU GET HOME, B.]

Not yet. But he's trying too hard to keep it from happening.

...He killed Jonas. After we couldn't save Cassie.

[selfhelp]

["Leaving out the bad stuff" after saying Cassie and Jonas died omg Eli plz 8| ]

Oh god.

[Why is today full of awful? Seriously. Just. Why?]

That's why... oh my god. When he first showed up, I called him Nate... I thought...

[Shit. Shit. How could Nate do that!?]

[supersoldiered]

[He's leaving out the play-by-play where Billy's the catalyst for everything. He's also leaving out the lederhosen.]

I told you we deserve to be here. At least. I do.

[selfhelp]

[The lederhosen was the only good part omg.]

That's not... what Nate decides to do, evil or not, it's not like we chose for him...!

[supersoldiered]

The day we put on costumes and tried to fight crime, it became our fault.

[selfhelp]

...We were just trying to help people.

[He can't help but think that Eli has a point, though. Would Cassie be okay if they hadn't formed the Young Avengers? What would have happened to Nate? But they would never have met...

It's not like they can change the past. But now he desperately, desperately wants to change his future somehow.]

[supersoldiered]

We were just messing around. Like kids. We wanted to be cool.