[ A few key things have been bothering Alice since the whole issue with the moon. One: how the fuck is everyone going to manage Her Lunacy's... lunacy, as far as casting goes? Two: really? The Couple did all they did because they wanted to have kids? What the fuck? And three: is it really possible to master one's internal circumstances so completely that casting will always go well?
The first one she leaves in Kady's capable hands. Hedges are competent, more so than anyone ever gave them credit for, and with Lunatics on retainer, they'll manage to make sure everyone is aware of whatever the fuck the moon is doing. The second, she just throws out. George Ball might have trouble casting even after his hand heals. Fuck that guy anyway. The third... that one, she dwells on for a while. She thinks back on the last few years of her life, on her little moment with Mr. Couple, and her physically functional but magically useless fingers. Zelda said one hand is plenty. And Fen once told her that what she lost is out there, and to go take it back. Fen, hurting over an irreparable loss and really fucking drunk, had shared wisdom with Alice that could only come from a perspective of despair.
She knows what she has to do, but she puts it off for a few hours anyway, because who would she be if she didn't quietly panic for a little bit before making a big decision? At least she's gotten better at that. At least she's making choices that only affect her.
So, in time, she finds herself in the Library (it's not like Stephanie actually uses her Library card) and at the door of the once Head Librarian. Alice isn't scared of Zelda anymore. In fact, she kind of likes her, and definitely respects her. But vulnerability is still hard.
A deep breath, and she knocks, and as soom as she's face to face with Zelda, she says what she came here to say, albeit in a tone that's much calmer than she feels, shy and almost childlike. ]
You said— you said I have the makings of a master. I wanna know if that's true. I want— I have to know.
( things have been increasingly ever busy in the library since... well, everything. even with all of the time that they have at their disposal and the extra support they have it's a big job. everett left a huge mess that zelda has torturously taken it upon herself to dig through, even with shedding her mantle as head librarian (and refusing to be in charge though somehow defacto doing so) and with half of the library's collection pillaged or burned...
well, they had a lot to do and that was putting it mildly.
it's why she's a little thankful for the knock of her door, giving hwr the opportunity to step away from the dreaded thing she had to read (everett's) even if she expected it to be another task to get into.
seeing alice on the other side of her door... well, it was unexpected though with how quickly alice lept into what she wanted to know zelda didn't have a moment to wonder on the task. and the request itself makes her smile a little more, that alice is actually considering her advice )
Good day, Miss Quinn. ( let her formal at you for a minute before she steps back from her office door to let alice wander in, her desk clear of all but the one book she'd planned on looking at )
And it is true. If it's a path that you're considering following it won't be simple... but then when has magic been lately?
( or the world. but that didn't stop her belief that alice was capable of doing this. and she was glad that alice was asking, having left it in her court since first her rehabilitation and then that piece of wisdom )
( it had taken a lot of convincing, many conversations, days and hours of begging, reassuring-- truthfully, zelda had been scared to say yes. whilst she wanted harriet to be happy, to have the best she could in her life and to do everything that made her happy... time was what scared her, it always had ever since harriet had jumped into her first fountain as a child, had explored another world.
since then, zelda had only ever been reassured when she'd come back safely or if they'd taken a walk together, though the older that harriet got those became fewer. and whilst zelda would like to say that everything harriet could possibly need was in the neitherlands... she knew that wasn't true.
so after many conversations, adjustments, compromises, zelda had agreed. harriet could study at brakebills.
she knew that from here everything would change, that harriet living in real time for months, years would change so quickly. but her daughter was happy and that was all that mattered. but brakebills was the future, tomorrow, specifically. for today she'd had something else in mind.
everett had given her the day to spend with harriet, particularly with what was coming, and she'd gotten them to earth. it had been a long time since she'd been on earth, longer since it had been for a non-library related reason. and aside from everything looking and feeling different, alien to her... she at least had harriet with her. harriet who was infinitely more familiar already from her fountain jumps and having visited brakebills once already.
the only thing was... with earth now so different she wasn't quite certain what to do )
I wanted to come here with you, just once before you left.
( they were in new york, sat in a park not so long after 'landing' )
Though what we do is your choice. I don't know the world like you do.
[ This is so, SO exciting. Finally, after way too many years spent as a teenager in the Neitherlands, Harriet gets to go to school on Earth. She loves Earth. The people, the sights, the smells, the food. From the moment they set foot here, Harriet felt alive in ways she only does when she's out here, in a world where time passes so fast that every moment feels more precious.
New York City moves at time's pace, people here navigating their crowded city in the most efficient way possible to get from point A to point B. There's always something happening, colors and lights flashing in the busier blocks, people wearing outfits that stand out while no one blinks an eye, buses and taxi cabs driving past bearing ads all over, impossible to miss.
In the park she and her mother are in, however, it's quieter, a bubble of tranquility amid the chaos. People walk their dogs or jog together, past the two of them as they sit and get their bearings before heading out. Harriet, for not having spent that much time here, has paid a lot of attention when her friends led her here and there in search of food and fun. She'll find something for them to do, and if she doesn't, something will find them. ]
We're a few hours from Brakebills.
[ Physically, and figuratively. Twenty-four hours from now, Harriet will go to her first day at grad school, they'll find her discipline, and she'll settle into her dorm room. She can't wait. ]
Okay. Why don't we start with brunch? There's a nice place over there, maybe a five minute walk away. Then we can take the subway and go downtown to check out a street market.
[ There's so much to do, it's almost overwhelming, but no, Harriet feels energized by it all. The city that never sleeps, where people hurry through life and may not even realize what a gift it is to live here, to take part in it all rather than read about it in books and long to experience it. ]
Come on!
[ Harriet grins, eyes shutting briefly as she stands and leads the way. The sun feels warm on her skin. ]
[ his vortex manipulator is as old as he is, and it's seen better days. it's been damaged, repaired, and tweaked more times than he has fingers and toes to count. honestly, it's a wonder he hasn't had his jumps go wrong on him like this more often. ]
( zelda is at least used to people just popping in and out of the library -- travellers, keys, portals. with magic anything is an option. which, though she was shelving some books, simply has her turning with a smile, not surprised by a sudden appearance )
Your navigational coordinates seem to be off.
( it happened to a lot of travellers initially, two moons made internal gps a little more difficult )
[ When the mirror in the mirror realm shattered, it pierced through the barrier keeping the mirror world apart from others. The Seam, luckily, stayed where it is, the physics and metaphysics of it (and probably some old-god-level magic) keeping it fixed between the worlds of the multiverse. But the mirror shattered, and the minor mending spell went wrong. Everett reflected it back somehow, became a god somehow, and immediately put his power to use.
Such a sudden, rare thing could only spawn more problems, though. He didn't grow his power from a tiny seed, like Julia did, and so it corrupted and overwhelmed him. What's left, in Alice's estimation, is a shell of who Everett was. It's a miracle he didn't niffin out, now that she takes a moment to think about. She has several long moments to think, being that she's lying on her side on cold, hard ground, in who knows where, and feeling like she got attacked by a mob.
The temperature is tolerable. It's daytime, but the sun or other light source is covered by clouds, and light fog curls its way through the trees. Some kind of forest? She can make out a fence or something, made of cement or brick. All right, so there's some kind of settlement around here, and people.
As the strength starts to return to her, Alice sits up and scans the immediate area around her. Penny isn't here, which leads her to believe that the shattering of the mirror not only ripped through worlds, but scattered whoever was in its immediate vicinity. Or, worse still, Everett separated them. ]
Shit.
[ Softly, as she pushes her glasses up her nose and debates getting up and approaching the stone fence. Why not, though. It's not like there's much else she can do, and for now, she wants to avoid using magic, in case Everett is hunting her the way she hunted others when she was a niffin.
Standing hurts, but she feels better once she's steady on her feet. Slowly, listening for footsteps or whooshes of wind, she approaches the structure, as quietly as possible. ]
( they'd gotten caught up in the middle of a festival as they'd hit town and as they'd ridden further in it had been easier to tell when it was. feast of lights.
they'd ridden in on the eve of the first day, managing with great luck to get rooms in the inn, knowing they'd have to spend at least the next day in town, maybe two more. even not forgetting why they were here it was nice to see the merriment, to rest and regroup.
after spending the next afternoon in the town they'd joined at the inn for the evening festivities, getting a good meal, trying the ale. enjoying those few hours )
How long has it been since we've landed somewhere during a celebration?
( it happened from time to time but when you could ride so far from civilisation you could easily forget just when it was )
I don't know. ( he pauses, letting himself think about it for a few more moments before he turns to look at her, the slightest of smiles on his face. )
A long time.
( for so long, their lives had been fraught and tense, sending them across the land to try and make sure that people who didn't even know their names would survive. he's watched her take it all on her shoulders, take the burden of saving the world and balance it like no one else.
a celebration, he thinks, might be needed. it's been quite some time since he's seen moiraine smile in a way that is just genuine joy and happiness. maybe he will get that wish here. )
The music's good. ( he laughs quietly. ) Don't ask me to dance.
( she spent too long at the school, though it was the only time she had to herself, her time away from charles and now... the other he'd brought with him. though she was at least occupied. perhaps surprisingly to anyone that heard her attitude or passed by her class she was at least taking her job seriously. part of it was tactical, draw as little notice as possible to her job but also... this was her life now, for as much as she'd complain.
and she did enjoy physics. if somehow she could get some of that into their fool brains maybe there'd be some worth to it all.
that's what she'd been doing when charles had called, having just sat down with fresh coffee to mark the remaining tests that she had. the conversation had ended with her more frustrated than needed because, of course, something else had come through the rift in space-time and was threatening the existence of the planet, of course she had to spend time investigating it to save everyone. again.
she'd told him to stay put, had pulled one of her emf readers from her drawer and was working on its settings as she headed back out into the corridor. what now? )
[Parked right outside in a usually empty field is a diner that shouldn't be there. There's never been an American diner in this part of town, certainly not one that looks as old and worn as this particular one does. It's almost as if it just popped right up in a blink of an eye. Which of course, it did.
The owner of said diner comes stumbling out in her waitress uniform, hands on her hips as she scowls up at the building.]
Oh, would you stop being a grumpy old cow already?! I dropped Me off, just like we wanted. We're alone now, you and I. Alone in all our misery and brokenness. Just the way you like it!
[Clara's temper has boiled over as she yells at her tardis, shaking the sonic she's acquired in the air like it's actually going to help something. In actuality, nothing is going to fix the ship's chameleon circuit. It's just stuck as a diner. And apparently something's also wrong with the tardis' scanners, as the only reason they're there is because Clara got an alert and the ship just took off through time and space to land in this exact spot.
But Clara quickly realizes the time and the place, and knows she can't be here. She can't be seen in London. Not ever again. Clara Oswald is dead and gone. Thankfully it's dark enough no former students or friends might spot her.]
What could possibly be so important that you brought me back here? It's too reckless. Even for me.
[She turns to look back toward Coal Hill. Maybe a little step inside to look around won't hurt anything. She cautiously makes her way into the building, tiptoeing her way toward her old classroom. A plaque hanging on the wall catches her attention though. Danny's name is there, along with her own. She's so caught up in staring at it that she doesn't hear the sound of someone else's footsteps coming down the corridor.]
( another day, another evening spent marking exams. it was probably the better part of her day, she was alone, there was coffee and cat images to keep her company and no irritating voices. the only terrible thing was how terribly they did on their exams but quill's teaching wasn't that intentional.
she'd gone to refill her coffee, walking back down the corridor to her classroom. even though her back was turned it was hard not to see the bright light that appeared behind her as something arrived. something that usually signalled the space-time rift that existed within the school and-- )
Damn.
( even if she weren't tasked with protecting the school from anything that came through it'd be hard to ignore it. and she had to see what she needed to run from. though half-turning and seeing a woman there was-- not usual )
Who the hell are you?
( not yet running. talking might not be a good idea but hey, maybe she could solve this before a disaster hit )
[ This was, decidedly, not where she'd meant to end up. Her manipulator initiated an emergency protocol somewhere mid-jump, dropping her out of the vortex before fizzling out. She stumbled through the rough landing, but stayed on her feet, oblivious to the usual flash of light and wisps of smoke that accompanied her arrival.
Irritably, she pressed a few buttons on the vortex manipulator, frowning when the screen remained stubbornly dark. ]
What's the matter with you?
[ She'd definitely charged it this time. Something must have interfered with it. At least it hadn't stranded her in the vortex.
Preoccupied with her malfunctioning time-travel device, she'd been conveniently ignoring the other woman in the corridor with her as she muttered to herself, trying to work out what had gone wrong. The question made ignoring her somewhat less convenient.
Instead of answering, however, she asked a question of her own. ]
[ She had a date and place. The rest was a simple matter of programming and hoping she arrived at a reasonable hour for once. It may have been three days for Moiraine, but it was no more than a few hours for River.
Of course, she hadn't bothered to try and fit in with the locals, but she had taken the time to change into a dress of her own.
Choosing a seat with a good view, she settled in to wait. ]
[ this is not ideal, imelda thinks, as vines twist around her ankles. is there something more than not ideal? it's not an inn trying to swallow her whole and smothering her in satin bedding nor is it listening to ambrose whine about being a badger — honestly, he was very cute as a badger and, yes, she should have realized that prince charming had stolen his body sooner, but it didn't mean he needed to whine about it! — so it isn't the worst situation she's found herself in but she and ambrose had parted ways and the horse cloak is uselessly nickering nearby and flapping and she's stuck being wrapped up in vines.
presumably they want to eat her because that seems her lot in life. ]
Do you mind shutting up?
[ the horse cloak (a rough looking, brown pilgrim's cloak) puffs up in indignation, hissing peevishly at her and flapping a corner at her disheveled curls. ] Ambrose would never speak to me this way!
Ambrose called you a donkey not two days ago and I will lock you in a trunk if you don't stop fussing so I can think!
[ this is all completely normal, she is speaking to a sentient cloak and being eaten by a viny tree. imelda sighs and gives into the inevitable, bellowing, ] HELP!
As much as he tries to put off the practiced air of a legitimately trained magic, he's nothing but a hedge in sheep's clothing, a self-trained man who is good at faking it until he makes it. He's spent enough time around the real thing to make it work. In some ways, it helps that most Brakebills magicians are highly polished messes.
But, the downside of faking it until you make it is that pretending to be a Brakebills magician doesn't get you a library card. And Neal happens to be in need of an all access pass to the Library's archives for a ... project that he and Mozzie are working on. Given the hedges' lack of status in the magical world, he knows that trying to get one through the system would take more work than it's worth. So he forges one.
It's a damn good forgery too. He spends a lot of quality time with the real thing, to make sure he gets the fine details just right. In fact, it's good enough to get him in through the door.
But it's not good enough to last. Before he can find the books in question that he needs, one of the drones tap him on the shoulder. "The Head Librarian wants to see you."]
Is that the same thing as being called to the principal's office?
[The drone doesn't respond. Instead, he walks off, indicating that Neal should follow. In the end, he rolls his eyes and follows, hoping that he isn't in too much trouble.]
[ with the enterprise repaired and resupplied, its five-year mission to explore strange new worlds can begin anew. ]
[ for the first few weeks, it's routine as usual as the ship coasts through the alpha quadrant without a care in the world, the healthy need for caution and fear non-existent in federation space. though that temporary safety net doesn't stop la'an from busying herself outside of her usual duty assignments by working on a program to perform a constant background scan for polarized EM signatures nor does it stop her from requesting double-shifts to perform extra security sweeps. ]
[ and that's the thing, maybe it's only natural to be nervous about heading back out into territory that could turn out to be a new gorn hunting ground. it's not like the federation owns a star chart of their homeworld and breeding planets. they don't even know what quadrant or star system the gorn natively belong to, likely because most people still don't believe they exist, given their bogeyman status. would prefer to write them off as a scary story that you tell in the dark, but la'an knows better, even if her psych evaluation presents her as an unreliable narrator due to the gaps in her memory where her mind made the decision for her that the past is better left dead. ]
[ the only exception to that is her brother, who still shows up sometimes wearing that same "everything's going to be okay" smile from across the room, like he's proud of her, or maybe that's just her own imagination. needing his sacrifice to mean something because otherwise manu stayed behind and died for nothing when it could have been him on that raft instead of her, but that's survivor's guilt for you. ]
[ after the enterprise leaves the alpha quadrant, however, it soon finds itself a new course: a moon sharing atmospheric similarities to earth located in the goldilocks zone of a binary star system. needless to say, excitement runs rampant through the crew at their discovery, especially the science department, who practically start salivating at the thought of taking samples and running tests on the surface, and then there's lieutenant kirk with his outdated earth-speak clearly not having learned his lesson from last time about touching things as he giddily points out places of interest. ]
[ though all of this is just everyone getting ahead of themselves. there are still checks to be carried out and scans to be completed to ensure everything is as safe as it seems, the two suns that orbit the planet an oddity that also involves investigation. only once protocol has been followed to the letter does the captain give the all-clear for the next stage of starfleet procedure to commence: sending down a landing party to assess the situation in person. then once that's said and done, down come the scouting and scientific parties, looking like they're on shore leave, not a mission. ]
[ by the seventh day of exploration, the captain makes the call for the crew to camp overnight, saying it'll be a good experience to sleep on the ground looking up at the stars instead of floating in the sky among them. makes a big deal out of building a fire and beaming down s'mores to be toasted over it. even spock, of all people, joins in with the kumbaya circle, strumming song after song on his vulcan lute while uhura offers her accompanying vocals. the only person who doesn't join in, obviously, is la'an. ]
[ sat away from the crowd on a stack of boulders and rocks overlooking a shimmering lake, though not far enough to be completely out of earshot or eyesight in case of emergency, la'an looks out steely-eyed across it, as if waiting for something to happen, her shoulders hunched as she stares down the dark. ]
[ it's idiotic, really. she knows there's nothing out there because she's spent the last week combing over every inch of the planet for signs of life before switching to regular perimeter checks just to be on the safe side. no, the real reason she's by herself and not with everyone else is because she can't think of anything worse than being around other people, expected to engage in pointless conversations, or share personal stories as part of some archaic wilderness bonding experience. ]
[ she's even still wearing all of her tactical gear, phaser holstered securely at her side, the protective layers of armoured black clothing a comfort that she can't help but cling to. ]
( she'd let her steps be loud enough to be heard as she'd approached, not trying to conceal them or spook her friend. la'an's disappearance from the group hadn't been that unusual, first passed off as a security officer doing her job, then fun's funeral with her inability to stop. but una knew better, so it seemed did chris and to an extent spock with the slightly more concerned expression he had.
but she'd gone, had moved before the others would have had had a chance to, not concerned but understanding. people can be a lot and even though una's perhaps closer on the enterprise to anyone than she's been in her whole career... her old impulses to hide and push everyone away, to protect herself still run high.
she's got a stick held out to la'an as she sits on the rock, not with s'mores on it but toasted marshmallows, a second in her other hand that's has a bite to one of the marshmallows and then left a little ignored )
Apparently, bonfires aren't complete without these.
( she had many different codes on her list of things to learn. and honestly, those would probably be the things she could pick up easiest. it was just the time to learn them now )
I'll leave the light on when we get back.( to guide him home ) You can show me the code.
( why not make use of him? or do something with him? she didn't know if she'd pick it up better alone or with him there but it was nice doing different things with him )
[There used to be a time where he would have scoffed. I don't need a Guardian, he'd yell and he'd walk away (very quickly) and he'd bark out unpleasant laughs and he'd make snide remarks about how he really doesn't need second opinions or badly-founded, unacademic guesses on complex linguistic code-switching, thank you very much.
But there is a text on his dusty screen and it reads I'll leave the light on when we get back and he feels a warm surge of happiness.]
I'll see you back home then.
[Home which is now full of people and full of her and full of togetherness.]
Hang on!
[There are a few pictures of his notebook attached, scribbles and lists of which letters switch around, the first few translated lines.]
I've gotten most of it, at this points it's just a little tedious filling the blanks.
Well, whatever we can do to make sure that doesn't happen. It's been good serving with you. I didn't know if I'd like a new Captain but you surpassed expectations. Which is a compliment.
Sometimes exercise can help, work out a problem a different way, a little physical exhaustion too. Sometimes I try something calmer, reading, music. Meditation. What helps isn't always the same thing.
On the list physical exertion is the one I don't try often outside of my regular workouts. I may attempt it later and see if I should add it to my rotation more often.
I would indeed be concerned if she was ever not on time and did not let me know well in advance. Punctuality is one of her many attributes. Usually it is only work that ever detains us.
I get it, really. Been there more than enough times myself, though not always out of choice. Well there's plenty of coffee if you need it. Seriously, adding cupholders into the bridge stations in the last refit really was a gamechanger.
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AU where zelda survives and alice is on earth, yolo
The first one she leaves in Kady's capable hands. Hedges are competent, more so than anyone ever gave them credit for, and with Lunatics on retainer, they'll manage to make sure everyone is aware of whatever the fuck the moon is doing. The second, she just throws out. George Ball might have trouble casting even after his hand heals. Fuck that guy anyway. The third... that one, she dwells on for a while. She thinks back on the last few years of her life, on her little moment with Mr. Couple, and her physically functional but magically useless fingers. Zelda said one hand is plenty. And Fen once told her that what she lost is out there, and to go take it back. Fen, hurting over an irreparable loss and really fucking drunk, had shared wisdom with Alice that could only come from a perspective of despair.
She knows what she has to do, but she puts it off for a few hours anyway, because who would she be if she didn't quietly panic for a little bit before making a big decision? At least she's gotten better at that. At least she's making choices that only affect her.
So, in time, she finds herself in the Library (it's not like Stephanie actually uses her Library card) and at the door of the once Head Librarian. Alice isn't scared of Zelda anymore. In fact, she kind of likes her, and definitely respects her. But vulnerability is still hard.
A deep breath, and she knocks, and as soom as she's face to face with Zelda, she says what she came here to say, albeit in a tone that's much calmer than she feels, shy and almost childlike. ]
You said— you said I have the makings of a master. I wanna know if that's true. I want— I have to know.
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well, they had a lot to do and that was putting it mildly.
it's why she's a little thankful for the knock of her door, giving hwr the opportunity to step away from the dreaded thing she had to read (everett's) even if she expected it to be another task to get into.
seeing alice on the other side of her door... well, it was unexpected though with how quickly alice lept into what she wanted to know zelda didn't have a moment to wonder on the task. and the request itself makes her smile a little more, that alice is actually considering her advice )
Good day, Miss Quinn. ( let her formal at you for a minute before she steps back from her office door to let alice wander in, her desk clear of all but the one book she'd planned on looking at )
And it is true. If it's a path that you're considering following it won't be simple... but then when has magic been lately?
( or the world. but that didn't stop her belief that alice was capable of doing this. and she was glad that alice was asking, having left it in her court since first her rehabilitation and then that piece of wisdom )
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since then, zelda had only ever been reassured when she'd come back safely or if they'd taken a walk together, though the older that harriet got those became fewer. and whilst zelda would like to say that everything harriet could possibly need was in the neitherlands... she knew that wasn't true.
so after many conversations, adjustments, compromises, zelda had agreed. harriet could study at brakebills.
she knew that from here everything would change, that harriet living in real time for months, years would change so quickly. but her daughter was happy and that was all that mattered. but brakebills was the future, tomorrow, specifically. for today she'd had something else in mind.
everett had given her the day to spend with harriet, particularly with what was coming, and she'd gotten them to earth. it had been a long time since she'd been on earth, longer since it had been for a non-library related reason. and aside from everything looking and feeling different, alien to her... she at least had harriet with her. harriet who was infinitely more familiar already from her fountain jumps and having visited brakebills once already.
the only thing was... with earth now so different she wasn't quite certain what to do )
I wanted to come here with you, just once before you left.
( they were in new york, sat in a park not so long after 'landing' )
Though what we do is your choice. I don't know the world like you do.
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New York City moves at time's pace, people here navigating their crowded city in the most efficient way possible to get from point A to point B. There's always something happening, colors and lights flashing in the busier blocks, people wearing outfits that stand out while no one blinks an eye, buses and taxi cabs driving past bearing ads all over, impossible to miss.
In the park she and her mother are in, however, it's quieter, a bubble of tranquility amid the chaos. People walk their dogs or jog together, past the two of them as they sit and get their bearings before heading out. Harriet, for not having spent that much time here, has paid a lot of attention when her friends led her here and there in search of food and fun. She'll find something for them to do, and if she doesn't, something will find them. ]
We're a few hours from Brakebills.
[ Physically, and figuratively. Twenty-four hours from now, Harriet will go to her first day at grad school, they'll find her discipline, and she'll settle into her dorm room. She can't wait. ]
Okay. Why don't we start with brunch? There's a nice place over there, maybe a five minute walk away. Then we can take the subway and go downtown to check out a street market.
[ There's so much to do, it's almost overwhelming, but no, Harriet feels energized by it all. The city that never sleeps, where people hurry through life and may not even realize what a gift it is to live here, to take part in it all rather than read about it in books and long to experience it. ]
Come on!
[ Harriet grins, eyes shutting briefly as she stands and leads the way. The sun feels warm on her skin. ]
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I think I took a wrong turn at Albuquerque.
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Your navigational coordinates seem to be off.
( it happened to a lot of travellers initially, two moons made internal gps a little more difficult )
But we can get you to where you need to be.
post-apoc: god everett won, chaos ensued
Such a sudden, rare thing could only spawn more problems, though. He didn't grow his power from a tiny seed, like Julia did, and so it corrupted and overwhelmed him. What's left, in Alice's estimation, is a shell of who Everett was. It's a miracle he didn't niffin out, now that she takes a moment to think about. She has several long moments to think, being that she's lying on her side on cold, hard ground, in who knows where, and feeling like she got attacked by a mob.
The temperature is tolerable. It's daytime, but the sun or other light source is covered by clouds, and light fog curls its way through the trees. Some kind of forest? She can make out a fence or something, made of cement or brick. All right, so there's some kind of settlement around here, and people.
As the strength starts to return to her, Alice sits up and scans the immediate area around her. Penny isn't here, which leads her to believe that the shattering of the mirror not only ripped through worlds, but scattered whoever was in its immediate vicinity. Or, worse still, Everett separated them. ]
Shit.
[ Softly, as she pushes her glasses up her nose and debates getting up and approaching the stone fence. Why not, though. It's not like there's much else she can do, and for now, she wants to avoid using magic, in case Everett is hunting her the way she hunted others when she was a niffin.
Standing hurts, but she feels better once she's steady on her feet. Slowly, listening for footsteps or whooshes of wind, she approaches the structure, as quietly as possible. ]
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they'd ridden in on the eve of the first day, managing with great luck to get rooms in the inn, knowing they'd have to spend at least the next day in town, maybe two more. even not forgetting why they were here it was nice to see the merriment, to rest and regroup.
after spending the next afternoon in the town they'd joined at the inn for the evening festivities, getting a good meal, trying the ale. enjoying those few hours )
How long has it been since we've landed somewhere during a celebration?
( it happened from time to time but when you could ride so far from civilisation you could easily forget just when it was )
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A long time.
( for so long, their lives had been fraught and tense, sending them across the land to try and make sure that people who didn't even know their names would survive. he's watched her take it all on her shoulders, take the burden of saving the world and balance it like no one else.
a celebration, he thinks, might be needed. it's been quite some time since he's seen moiraine smile in a way that is just genuine joy and happiness. maybe he will get that wish here. )
The music's good. ( he laughs quietly. ) Don't ask me to dance.
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and she did enjoy physics. if somehow she could get some of that into their fool brains maybe there'd be some worth to it all.
that's what she'd been doing when charles had called, having just sat down with fresh coffee to mark the remaining tests that she had. the conversation had ended with her more frustrated than needed because, of course, something else had come through the rift in space-time and was threatening the existence of the planet, of course she had to spend time investigating it to save everyone. again.
she'd told him to stay put, had pulled one of her emf readers from her drawer and was working on its settings as she headed back out into the corridor. what now? )
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The owner of said diner comes stumbling out in her waitress uniform, hands on her hips as she scowls up at the building.]
Oh, would you stop being a grumpy old cow already?! I dropped Me off, just like we wanted. We're alone now, you and I. Alone in all our misery and brokenness. Just the way you like it!
[Clara's temper has boiled over as she yells at her tardis, shaking the sonic she's acquired in the air like it's actually going to help something. In actuality, nothing is going to fix the ship's chameleon circuit. It's just stuck as a diner. And apparently something's also wrong with the tardis' scanners, as the only reason they're there is because Clara got an alert and the ship just took off through time and space to land in this exact spot.
But Clara quickly realizes the time and the place, and knows she can't be here. She can't be seen in London. Not ever again. Clara Oswald is dead and gone. Thankfully it's dark enough no former students or friends might spot her.]
What could possibly be so important that you brought me back here? It's too reckless. Even for me.
[She turns to look back toward Coal Hill. Maybe a little step inside to look around won't hurt anything. She cautiously makes her way into the building, tiptoeing her way toward her old classroom. A plaque hanging on the wall catches her attention though. Danny's name is there, along with her own. She's so caught up in staring at it that she doesn't hear the sound of someone else's footsteps coming down the corridor.]
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she'd gone to refill her coffee, walking back down the corridor to her classroom. even though her back was turned it was hard not to see the bright light that appeared behind her as something arrived. something that usually signalled the space-time rift that existed within the school and-- )
Damn.
( even if she weren't tasked with protecting the school from anything that came through it'd be hard to ignore it. and she had to see what she needed to run from. though half-turning and seeing a woman there was-- not usual )
Who the hell are you?
( not yet running. talking might not be a good idea but hey, maybe she could solve this before a disaster hit )
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Irritably, she pressed a few buttons on the vortex manipulator, frowning when the screen remained stubbornly dark. ]
What's the matter with you?
[ She'd definitely charged it this time. Something must have interfered with it. At least it hadn't stranded her in the vortex.
Preoccupied with her malfunctioning time-travel device, she'd been conveniently ignoring the other woman in the corridor with her as she muttered to herself, trying to work out what had gone wrong. The question made ignoring her somewhat less convenient.
Instead of answering, however, she asked a question of her own. ]
Where am I? And the year, if you could.
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i look forward to it.
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Of course, she hadn't bothered to try and fit in with the locals, but she had taken the time to change into a dress of her own.
Choosing a seat with a good view, she settled in to wait. ]
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presumably they want to eat her because that seems her lot in life. ]
Do you mind shutting up?
[ the horse cloak (a rough looking, brown pilgrim's cloak) puffs up in indignation, hissing peevishly at her and flapping a corner at her disheveled curls. ] Ambrose would never speak to me this way!
Ambrose called you a donkey not two days ago and I will lock you in a trunk if you don't stop fussing so I can think!
[ this is all completely normal, she is speaking to a sentient cloak and being eaten by a viny tree. imelda sighs and gives into the inevitable, bellowing, ] HELP!
for the wife;
You remember that lovely little resort planet I dragged you to on our last date?
And those earrings I stole you made me promise to return?
You haven't seen them recently by any chance?
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might have.
( she has not )
why? finally returning them?
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for zelda ; a million years later, sorry for the delay!
As much as he tries to put off the practiced air of a legitimately trained magic, he's nothing but a hedge in sheep's clothing, a self-trained man who is good at faking it until he makes it. He's spent enough time around the real thing to make it work. In some ways, it helps that most Brakebills magicians are highly polished messes.
But, the downside of faking it until you make it is that pretending to be a Brakebills magician doesn't get you a library card. And Neal happens to be in need of an all access pass to the Library's archives for a ... project that he and Mozzie are working on. Given the hedges' lack of status in the magical world, he knows that trying to get one through the system would take more work than it's worth. So he forges one.
It's a damn good forgery too. He spends a lot of quality time with the real thing, to make sure he gets the fine details just right. In fact, it's good enough to get him in through the door.
But it's not good enough to last. Before he can find the books in question that he needs, one of the drones tap him on the shoulder. "The Head Librarian wants to see you."]
Is that the same thing as being called to the principal's office?
[The drone doesn't respond. Instead, he walks off, indicating that Neal should follow. In the end, he rolls his eyes and follows, hoping that he isn't in too much trouble.]
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[ for the first few weeks, it's routine as usual as the ship coasts through the alpha quadrant without a care in the world, the healthy need for caution and fear non-existent in federation space. though that temporary safety net doesn't stop la'an from busying herself outside of her usual duty assignments by working on a program to perform a constant background scan for polarized EM signatures nor does it stop her from requesting double-shifts to perform extra security sweeps. ]
[ and that's the thing, maybe it's only natural to be nervous about heading back out into territory that could turn out to be a new gorn hunting ground. it's not like the federation owns a star chart of their homeworld and breeding planets. they don't even know what quadrant or star system the gorn natively belong to, likely because most people still don't believe they exist, given their bogeyman status. would prefer to write them off as a scary story that you tell in the dark, but la'an knows better, even if her psych evaluation presents her as an unreliable narrator due to the gaps in her memory where her mind made the decision for her that the past is better left dead. ]
[ the only exception to that is her brother, who still shows up sometimes wearing that same "everything's going to be okay" smile from across the room, like he's proud of her, or maybe that's just her own imagination. needing his sacrifice to mean something because otherwise manu stayed behind and died for nothing when it could have been him on that raft instead of her, but that's survivor's guilt for you. ]
[ after the enterprise leaves the alpha quadrant, however, it soon finds itself a new course: a moon sharing atmospheric similarities to earth located in the goldilocks zone of a binary star system. needless to say, excitement runs rampant through the crew at their discovery, especially the science department, who practically start salivating at the thought of taking samples and running tests on the surface, and then there's lieutenant kirk with his outdated earth-speak clearly not having learned his lesson from last time about touching things as he giddily points out places of interest. ]
[ though all of this is just everyone getting ahead of themselves. there are still checks to be carried out and scans to be completed to ensure everything is as safe as it seems, the two suns that orbit the planet an oddity that also involves investigation. only once protocol has been followed to the letter does the captain give the all-clear for the next stage of starfleet procedure to commence: sending down a landing party to assess the situation in person. then once that's said and done, down come the scouting and scientific parties, looking like they're on shore leave, not a mission. ]
[ by the seventh day of exploration, the captain makes the call for the crew to camp overnight, saying it'll be a good experience to sleep on the ground looking up at the stars instead of floating in the sky among them. makes a big deal out of building a fire and beaming down s'mores to be toasted over it. even spock, of all people, joins in with the kumbaya circle, strumming song after song on his vulcan lute while uhura offers her accompanying vocals. the only person who doesn't join in, obviously, is la'an. ]
[ sat away from the crowd on a stack of boulders and rocks overlooking a shimmering lake, though not far enough to be completely out of earshot or eyesight in case of emergency, la'an looks out steely-eyed across it, as if waiting for something to happen, her shoulders hunched as she stares down the dark. ]
[ it's idiotic, really. she knows there's nothing out there because she's spent the last week combing over every inch of the planet for signs of life before switching to regular perimeter checks just to be on the safe side. no, the real reason she's by herself and not with everyone else is because she can't think of anything worse than being around other people, expected to engage in pointless conversations, or share personal stories as part of some archaic wilderness bonding experience. ]
[ she's even still wearing all of her tactical gear, phaser holstered securely at her side, the protective layers of armoured black clothing a comfort that she can't help but cling to. ]
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( she'd let her steps be loud enough to be heard as she'd approached, not trying to conceal them or spook her friend. la'an's disappearance from the group hadn't been that unusual, first passed off as a security officer doing her job, then fun's funeral with her inability to stop. but una knew better, so it seemed did chris and to an extent spock with the slightly more concerned expression he had.
but she'd gone, had moved before the others would have had had a chance to, not concerned but understanding. people can be a lot and even though una's perhaps closer on the enterprise to anyone than she's been in her whole career... her old impulses to hide and push everyone away, to protect herself still run high.
she's got a stick held out to la'an as she sits on the rock, not with s'mores on it but toasted marshmallows, a second in her other hand that's has a bite to one of the marshmallows and then left a little ignored )
Apparently, bonfires aren't complete without these.
( she wouldn't know. neither of them would )
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► cahooted
I'll leave the light on when we get back.( to guide him home ) You can show me the code.
( why not make use of him? or do something with him? she didn't know if she'd pick it up better alone or with him there but it was nice doing different things with him )
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But there is a text on his dusty screen and it reads I'll leave the light on when we get back and he feels a warm surge of happiness.]
I'll see you back home then.
[Home which is now full of people and full of her and full of togetherness.]
Hang on!
[There are a few pictures of his notebook attached, scribbles and lists of which letters switch around, the first few translated lines.]
I've gotten most of it, at this points it's just a little tedious filling the blanks.
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► chesscaptain
Well, whatever we can do to make sure that doesn't happen.
It's been good serving with you. I didn't know if I'd like a new Captain but you surpassed expectations.
Which is a compliment.
TY for the move. <3
Did you feel the same way, when first transferring to Enterprise? That it fit pretty seamlessly?
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► stonedagain
That simple?
Alright, tell me why a cheeto.
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You can't exactly target one specific person with a cheeto. I mean, I guess you could but that would be a feat.
So probably someone who just wants to watch the world burn.
Either hates or loves cheetos.
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► pawnswithlogic
Sometimes exercise can help, work out a problem a different way, a little physical exhaustion too. Sometimes I try something calmer, reading, music. Meditation. What helps isn't always the same thing.
Re: ► pawnswithlogic
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► pawnswithlogic
That's probably wiser. Though I also doubt that T'Pring would already have an acceptable reason provided if she were ever late.
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► stemtypeoflady
Or a Darcy. Just not usually that vanilla.
It won't happen again.
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► redhourglass
It's not for everyone, but the environmental systems tend to help.
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► t88
Having worked with Spock I can see things that he'd find admirable. Keeping working as you are and you'll be the officer you want to be.
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[SPOCK might find her ADMIRABLE?? Excuse her while she dies over here]
I promise that I'm giving it my all! In fact I'm pretty sure I'm ready to take the next test right now! There is a test, right? I love tests!
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► doitinthree
Would you believe catching up on sleep?
It's been a rough few weeks, it caught up to me.
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Well there's plenty of coffee if you need it.
Seriously, adding cupholders into the bridge stations in the last refit really was a gamechanger.
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► thedreamer
Sweetie, if I gave you any clues you wouldn't be surprised the next time. And I do like you on your toes.
(attempt at) date night > for river
[ Yes, he takes priority over everything else, obviously. Can't resist this face!! ]
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