[Action / Voice] evening + morning

[selfhelp]

[...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!]

Comments

[selfhelp]

[HRK. Billy inhales sharply, immediately cutting off the flow of power between his fingers and ducking out of sight. Which, he realizes about two seconds later, was a really stupid thing to do. She saw him plain as day, and she obviously knows he was the one glowing, and what the hell is he hiding for?

...Oh, right, probably because he's an escaped convict right now. Sort of. Super hero first, victim of circumstance second, escapee last. Or at least, that's the idea.

Cautiously he glances down at her, attempting a sheepish smile.]

Hey, uh, can I he-

[And then he cuts himself off because holy crap is that Sarah Michelle Gellar?]

[herotypical]

[ sarah michelle gellar with a stake. while she twirls it idly (mostly to show off her non-intention to use it), it still remains in her grip. like a pacifier. or a security blanket. or a tub of ben and jerry's. ]

Something tells me I'm not the one in need of the help, buddy.

[selfhelp]

[...That doesn't sound like something a movie star would say. Um.

And that doesn't look like just any old stick, either.

....

Does she do cosplay?]

Um... I'm not stuck up here or anything, if that's what you mean. I'm good at- [Teleporting-] ...Climbing.

[With every word spoken he is more and more convinced that this is some kind of crazy trick of #42. It has to be. A holographic fantasy inside a prison for super heroes is a much more likely explanation than the idea that someone had broken him out of said prison to let him go to a sci-fi con. Where Sarah Michelle Gellar cosplays.

...But it is, admittedly, a really badass fantasy.]

[herotypical]

Well, that's a relief. I'm not a firefighter. I don't rescue kittens from trees.

[ ...but she doesn't go away. ] Why were you glowing? Was that magic?

[selfhelp]

[Was that- did she seriously just ask him that? Seriously? Like it's a perfectly normal thing to ask a guy?

...She's not wrong, obviously, but still. It's just not a normal question. A normal question would be, like- ...like... well, okay, he can't think of a better explanation for the light show. In the middle of the woods. No power lines in sight.

Wow, could he possibly have planned this out worse?]

Yeah... kinda. Got a deck of cards? I know a few more tricks.

[herotypical]

[ he could be new, buffy... ]

If you come with me, I could bring us to some cards.

[selfhelp]

[This could be a trap. No, scratch that, it probably is a trap. Movie stars do not cosplay and they absolutely do not invite him, Billy Kaplan, to play with cards. And with his magic working so sporadically right now - ie. getting him up the tree but not taking him to New York like he wants it to - going along with it is dangerous.

...Still. This is pretty much the coolest dream he's ever had; may as well see how far it'll take him. Maybe he'll get to meet Xander's actor. Or James Marsters. Oh god please let James Marsters be cosplaying in this dream. He's always been a sucker for a good pair of leather pants.]

...Sure. Just give me a minute and I'll- ...I'll come down.

[...Crap, he has to come down. As in climb. Which he has never done in his life.]

[herotypical]

[ you and buffy both, billy. the leather pants get her every time. :| ]

You sure you're not needing any of that handy-dandy help? I'm a very good catch. [ ... ] I mean -- I'm good at catching. It's a thing I'm good at.

[selfhelp]

No, I'll be okay. Probably. Thanks.

[He may be slender and a bit scrawny - sixteen-year-old mage, what would anyone expect? - but he's pretty sure he'd break something (of hers, namely) if she tried to catch him. Which begs the question of why would she offer. She's tiny! Shorter than him! Sheesh...

Well, she's still waiting below, and he's still stuck thirty feet up a tree, so with a quiet huff he loops a leg over the edge of the branch to begin his climb down. This would be a lot easier if he wasn't trying to be an incognito super hero here...]

[herotypical]

[ buffy remains quiet below...watching. waiting. ready to play the hero should this stranger slip and should heroics be called for. ]

[selfhelp]

[She won't be waiting long; it's no lie that he really hasn't done this before. Lack of interest as a kid plus the current natural ability to fly doesn't encourage one to learn how to climb.

It takes a grand total of one slip of a foot - bare feet aren't good for tree-scaling, apparently - and suddenly down he tumbles, letting loose a shout and stretching his hands out to try and grab for any branches he can. Most of them snap or slip out of his grasp, and he can't do much more than slow his fall- barely. In desperation he starts muttering for a levitation spell, but the ground is coming up way too fast for that.

This was a bad idea.]

[herotypical]

[ and -- as she has insisted -- she's a damn fine catch. the impact isn't soft but she managed to grab the boy from the air; grounding her heels to absorb the kinetic force, she hopes to catch the kid bridal-style before affably delivering him to his own two feet. ]

Careful. Snapped shin-bones are kind of a bummer.

[selfhelp]

[IwanttolandsoftlyIwantto- what.

...no, seriously, what.

He's standing on solid ground, on his feet, after being caught by Sarah Michelle Gellar. Cosplaying.

.........what.

Please pardon the staring.]

[herotypical]

...Such a pleasure being your flight attendant for this evening. I do hope your trip was smooth and uneventful. Sorry about the lack of snacks. Everything was a little on the unexpected side.

[selfhelp]

[...Wh...

...did he just get damsel'd by Buffy the Vampire Slayer?

He totally just did.

Teddy is going to flip. When he rescues me. I'm probably gonna need to be rescued. Totally still in prison here.

He gives her a quick once-over - she still looks way too real to be a dream, but Iron Lad's training simulations had admittedly been pretty real, too - then tries to shake off his shock, scuffing a hand through his hair. Wow. Embarrassing, much?]

...Yeah, uh... thanks. About the tree-climbing thing? I kinda lied.

[herotypical]

Lemme guess. You're new and your shiny, glowy, new butt got dumped in the trees. It's better than showing up in the fountain.

[selfhelp]

New? To the area, yeah- I mean, I've never seen this place before, and you- [He pauses, his gaze suddenly drifting to her back. Okay, dream or not, something is definitely not right about that.]

[herotypical]

Like'em? I hope so. You have your own pair. Sorry if I nudged'em on your way down. They sometimes smart at first.

[selfhelp]

[Still staring, he reaches over his shoulder with an idle hand to poke.






oh.]

That... would explain why my back's been hurting since I woke up.

[Maybe it's a drug. Is that how they're keeping him locked up now? Hooked up to a nice big IV line of hallucination-inducing happy juice. He's totally drooling on a lab table right now. There is something wrong in Tony Stark's head.]

[herotypical]

...You must have a lot of questions.

[ so she starts with one of her own! ] Did you, uhm, find your -- book? Thing? Journal? 'Cause it looks like you found your clothes.

[selfhelp]

[The biggest question is "how do I wake myself up", but he can't expect a hallucination to know the answer to that one.]

Journal? I didn't have one.

[...Did he? Was he supposed to have one? Maybe they're researching, too. He ignores the clothing bit, too- can't just say he waved his hand and made it appear, can he?]

[herotypical]

Everyone has one.

[ she kicks at some detritus -- then glances up at the branches. ] It's like a welcoming fruit basket only minus the fruit and the basket and the welcome.

[selfhelp]

So it's like "ing"?

[Lame, he knows, but he's pretty sure he has a good excuse. He's still riding on the surrealism of talking to a cosplaying movie star in a fever dream while imprisoned in an alternate universe.

Being a super hero is weird, okay.]

Maybe it's back where I woke up. Hang on, lemme check.

[He steps away from her awkwardly, poking around in the bushes. He can't help but glance back at her as he looks, though, wondering if she's just going to disappear. Or maybe be replaced by a fire-breathing lizard or something. He's never been on drugs before but it's supposed to be weird like that, right?]

[herotypical]

[ nope. no disappearing. just....following. ]

W-wait. You didn't wake up in the tree?

[selfhelp]

[.....oh

that

was not smart.

He goes still immediately, crouched beside a bush with one hand half-stretched for the journal hidden between the low branches. His body is tense, like he's about to pounce- or run. He's checking his options before he decides. He may be small, but he could take out a cosplayer, right?]

...Okay, look. I'm pretty sure this isn't real- [Because she caught him from thirty feet and she's a movie star talking to him and hello, they have wings-] But in case it is, you should forget you ever saw me and go home right now. That's the only way you'll be safe.

[It's not exactly a threat, but it's close enough. And he's ready to start muttering a teleportation spell if he has to.]