selfhelp | [Action / Voice] evening + morning

[Action / Voice] evening + morning

[...This doesn't look like Prison #42. At least, not as he recalls it. Billy pushes himself upright in the grass, squinting in the early evening light, and absently lifts a shaking hand to his ears. There's no device there, nothing to prevent him from casting any spells... a fact he proves to himself with a wave of his hand, conjouring up a shirt to go with the unfamiliar white pants he finds himself in. What's all this about, exactly? Some new trick that Stark and Richards came up with to keep their prisoners placated? Or has he - against all odds - been freed and dumped somewhere in the wild?

What've you gotten yourself into now, Kaplan?

Cautiously he lets his magic take him up to the tree line, resting on a high branch to get a better look around. Up ahead, not far in the distance, he can see a village, but it's so small and old-fashioned that he doesn't recognize it at all. Wherever he is, it's pretty remote.

Well, whatever. What does location matter to a witch who can teleport? His priority is finding Cap and the rest of the Young Avengers. Teddy's probably flipping out right about now. Dropping back into a crouch, he sits himself down on the branch, cross-legged, and lifts his hands again, letting the glow return to them, and begins chanting under his breath-]

"IwanttobeinNewYorkIwanttobeinNewYork..."

[Yeah, he's pretty noticeable like that. Especially since he'll be there until he's discovered, pointedly not teleporting to New York. Awkward.]

[In the morning, however, things are a bit different- he's settled (sort of), he's rested (a bit), he's informed (just enough). And he's sorted out how to use the journal. Thus, around mid-afternoon, he sends out a message:]

Okay, this is weird, but... let's give it a try. Hey, uh, whoever's listening out there. I've heard there are people from all over the galaxy, and lots from Earth, especially. That's where I'm from, too. I was wondering, though- are there people living here who'd be considered "super heroes"? Here or on your own world, I mean. I'm actually-

[Actually... he really shouldn't just announce it. What if someone from the Initiative is here and remembers him when they get back to Earth? Even a slim chance isn't worth the risk.]

...I'm actually a huge fan of the superheroes from Earth! You know, heroes like Captain America, Iron Man, Spider-man... I've been a fan since I was a kid. Though I guess it's not unusual for someone from New York. There's a ton of superheroes living in the city these days.

Sorry for rambling so much. To be honest, I'm just nervous... I've never been to another world before.

[....]

Teddy? You here?

[ooc: first dibs to action (chronologically) goes to Buffy, otherwise he is free to be met wherever/whenever. Also if you could have a look at his permissions post I would be much obliged!]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

You seem ta be takin' this... well.

[Whatever your name is.]

I guess I can't really help myself. It's a little scary, sure, but it's exciting, too.

[Sure, if you like making like a lab rat.

She bites it back.]

So ya got the low-down already?

[NOT THAT SHE CARES. Or anything. But dang, you sound squishy and she doesn't like people going squish.]

More or less. I mean, I'm probably missing a few things, but I read as much of the guide as I could handle in one night.

[Or until he passed out. Chanting takes energy.]

Mmm, fair enough.

[She's not one to poke too much into other people's business, so right about now she'll start looking for an 'out' in the conversation.]

Makes for some thick readin'. But ya should get ta findin' your way around all right. Most folks here are right helpful.

[But not her. Nooooo sir.]

[Out? Out? Are you mad, girl, he's never letting you go. 8)]

I've noticed that. You've been really helpful so far, thank you.

[Boy, didn't Carol Danvers teach you what a bad idea that is? )8]

Easy now - I ain't most people.

[So don't come crying to her about being lost or lonely or squished or anything, because it's not like she'll... try to do something about it. Nope.]

I didn't tell ya a thing you couldn't have learned goin' far enough back in this journal.

[He can't help it, he likes to play with fire. ...Okay, lightning, but it causes fires so half-counts.]

I don't doubt you there, but you're still going out of your way to explain things anyway. It really does mean a lot.

[Gawd, kid, you're going to totally spoil her rep here. But since she doesn't want to make it so you wouldn't be able to come to her if you need something, she's not going to push back too hard here. In fact, she just gets the feeling you'll get more effusive. So. Better to shift subjects.

Her tone is lightly teasing.]

Not enough for an introduction?

[Okay, she's got a point there.]

Ah, sorry! I'm Billy Kaplan. It's nice to meet you.

[A nice normal name. And no name she knows, from any of her experiences. Here's a test, then.

After all, superheroes and mutants aren't the same thing in everyone's world.]

Rogue.

Rogue, huh.

[And the real test is: does he reveal what he knows and risk alienating her or play dumb and risk boring her? It's not like he's all buddy-buddy with the X-Men back home, so he honestly has no idea how she'd respond either way.

...Still, what's the worst that can happen? He's not exactly chasing her with a flaming pitchfork or anything. Mutants are pretty accepted in his time.]

...Like... X-Men Rogue?

[Her interest sharpens.]

Ya got X-Men in your world?

[...]

They weren't in your superhero line-up.

[If he does... then his Iron Man isn't her Tony.

"Her" Tony.

What a ridiculous possessive qualifier.]

Yeah, sorry about that. I've never actually met the X-Men, and if I went and named every super hero I'm a fan of we'd be here all day.

[But you've met those other superheroes?

Not journal discussion, Rogue.]

S'alright. Last I heard, the general public didn't exactly consider us heroes anyway.

[...]

'sides, I don't think we're from the same version of the world. There is no 'Iron Man' back home.

[And here he's hoping she didn't notice that little slip 8D]

...No Iron Man? So that means- no Avengers?

[He... can't really fathom that. At all. A world where the Avengers don't exist... that would mean that he doesn't exist.

Ouch.]

Not that I've heard of... I'm guessin' they're kind of a big deal where you come from?

[...Wow. Alarming.]

Yeah... you could say that. They're even more famous than the X-Men now.

Well, considerin' we never wanted ta be famous in the first place, I'm guessin' that's a good thing.

Well, that kinda depends. I mean, mutants aren't harassed that much these days. At least not in the world I know.

Yeah? [Well, if ever something sounded too good to be true...]

What happened, did they round us up an' put us in camps?

What? No- I mean, at first, and it's still bad sometimes, but- uh.

[Wow, he really should have steered clear of the whole future timeline thing. There's also the matter of the mutant population being... severely lowered... dammit, he shouldn't have said anything.]

Ah... listen, there's a lot more super-humans in the world, so that's helped. And the mutants living at your school have government protection now. The X-Men are doing okay.

[...

Government protection.

Gawd. What had happened that they would accept that - that they would need that? Unless that was just code for 'glorified prison.'

And at first? Did that mean there had been camps?

Her instinct is to go full throttle on the kid and find out everything, but she shoves it back. First of all, he just got here - here, in Luceti, where there's not a damn thing she could do about it. Secondly, it might not even be her world.

...that doesn't mean she doesn't want to know. But that's not her responsibility right now - she's got Apocalypse on her hands, literally maybe, and there's this kid who showed up from a world linked to hers who looks at the X-Men as heroes, and that makes him her responsibility first.

...and I know what knowing the future does better than most, now don't I?]

Guess it's a comfort ta know the world hasn't ended. [...unless...]

What year are you from?

Year? Um...

[Crap. Uh. Crap. He really needs to learn to shut his mouth.]

It's 2007.

2003. So your world's made it four more years.

[Smile.]

Congratulations.

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ]

[ voice ] I hope I do not regret this 8|;

[ voice ] We can always pretend he said something else!