meadowlarklogs | another night alone, a temporary dream

[ It's the late afternoon and OA and Cass are both at home. It's been quiet in a way that leads Cass to think about things a lot and she's decided that she wants to let her roommate in a little more. Explain things they discussed in part in the catacombs beneath New Oslo, for starters.

The problem is that Cass has never felt terribly good at starting conversations, and now is no different. So she goes through the process of pouring each of them some water and makes a plate of fruit (it's cheap and abundant right now, so there's a lot of it around) before heading to their shared eating space and sitting down across from OA. ]

I was raised to be the perfect assassin. The perfect guard. [ She signs because it's easier than words, even though this might contain the gravity needed for the spoken medium. ] I was eight when I killed a man for the first time. I ran away after that.

I didn't really learn to speak for another eight years.

Edited 2020-04-15 03:08 (UTC)

[It's difficult to know when the dam will break. The cracks don't always show; the creaking isn't always audible. That Cass has something on her mind is obvious, but there's a lot to mull over here -- the eventual opening of the floodgates isn't a surprise, but there was no knowing when it would happen. No perfect moment, and therefore all perfect moments.

OA's brow furrows with sympathy and then smooths: to hurt for Cass is the easy answer, and she does, and she will. To listen, really listen, and then identify how to offer some certainty -- that's harder, and also more worthwhile. It takes her a moment, a few moments of thoughtful silence before she reaches out to place her hand palm-up on the table between them, to be taken or left. Either way, what she means is: You do not repel me.]

I tried to kill a man once.

[She squeezes her eyes shut for a moment and shakes her head.]

Twice, I guess.

[The details don't matter right now. She's only saying it to drive the point home: if there's a moral high ground to take, this isn't the source of it.]

It's a cruel thing to ask of a child.

[Another pause; OA's gaze searches Cass's face, her mouth set in a grim line.]

That must have been lonely, not being able to share in a way that people could understand. Overwhelming.

[She gives a little huff, a humourless laugh.]

And then overwhelming in a different way once you could.

[ Cass makes a soft snorting sound. ]

It's not how I would do it.

[ Parenting. Raising a child. Starting an assassin army (though she doesn't think she'd do the latter at all). She sighs and takes OA's hand, smiling just a little. She likes OA - she makes Cass feel like there is a window into the inner workings of the universe and OA has looked through it. Across the empathy bond swells Cass's positive feelings towards her roommate, plus her anxiety at trying to hold this conversation in the first place.

It's dumb, maybe, but there it is. Cass continues holding OA's hand and clears her throat to try speaking for a while. ]

It was hard, I guess. I didn't think about it then, I just wanted to survive. I got to Gotham and my father tried to kill someone, a good man, and I had to stop him.

He's kind of a terrible parent. [ She rolls her eyes. Understatement, to be sure. ]

It's easier here. To read, I mean, and understand others. Things are just...there, I don't have to fight with the letters jumping around. Speaking is still hard. I feel bad at it, and I don't know the things people take for granted about...anything. Everything.

[There's a rush of dark amusement in response to Cass' not-quite-laugh; it's crested and begun to ebb by the time the empathy bond begins to swell between them. OA worries at her lower lip with her teeth, ducking her head for a moment. When she meets Cass's gaze again she's smiling, tenderness crinkling the corners of her eyes and bleeding through the bond.]

Like you're from another dimension?

[Her tone is gentle, but the question is accompanied by a pointed quirk of one eyebrow. The pointed look persists a moment, unelaborated-upon, before OA gives Cass's hand a gentle squeeze.]

It is hard. It makes everything just... a little slower. A little harder to take.

[There's a pause; a chill dart of sadness slips across the bond. Sadness, affection, shame. It was easier for her than for Cass. Whatever OA has experienced since, at least she was, for a time, able to be a child. She looks down at their joined hands and sighs softly.]

When I got my sight back it was like... like going to another planet, like I was suddenly coming to know all the things other people already knew. What my friends looked like, what I looked like. How to read the way other people do. It's still hard. I still feel like there are parts of the world that other people take for granted which I can't understand, things I should know but I don't.

[OA pauses again. She's saying this not to redirect the conversation, but to make a point. A joyful point: a sliver of mischief shows in the faint smile that comes back to her features, in the almost coy glance she shoots Cass through her eyelashes, at once childlike and self-assured.]

But I know lots of things they don't. I know how to get around in the dark. I know that it's even better to feel the sunshine than to see it. You know things too. Don't discount that.

[ Cass works various shifts at the bar, mostly midday to late evening. She's sad because some of her newfound friends and coworkers are gone, specifically Kal-El, but there's still work to be done.

Plus she gets to meet all kinds of people here.

The bar has a wide variety of drinks and plays the local sports on screens that can only be accessed by the implants. Come up, order a drink from the young woman with short black hair and a smile who appears to only speak in sign language (fortunately for you, the implants translate all that for you). ]

Edited 2020-04-15 05:30 (UTC)

[ It's between 2 am and dawn when Cass goes out, patrolling the streets of New Amsterdam. She sticks to the seedier parts of town, where one might find the underground fights or the edges of the Red Light district. She keeps to alleyways and shadows, appearing suddenly when someone needs rescuing, staying back usually when they don't.

The benefits of being able to read body language.

You might still come across her though and she makes a bit of a weird sight, of course: covered head to toe in dark materials, with just enough of an opening in her mask for her eyes to be visible and little else. Even her mouth is covered (and her hands, of course). While you might not see her, you could see the wash of blue coming from that dark corner over there, while she tries to keep herself hidden. ]

(qi doesn't quite know what to do with himself in this reality. he's been curiously walking around town these first days, and he has probably gotten in trouble once or twice. big mouth and inconsequential actions certainly are enough for that.

this time, his biggest issue is understanding how to read the map in front of his eyes and most likely, the address he is supposed to be going to is wrong, so lost he is.

he walks, looking to the sides in attempts to find anything that can be useful to get him home - nothing too specific to check aside from the a random, slightly moving blue light reflected on a building. it was probably one of his, but why... on earth would they be hiding like this? he grabs the pair of scissors - which funnily enough were a gift from the mystery figure - and approaches.)

You know... It's kind of counterproductive to be dressed like this when I can see your light... Wouldn't it be less noticeable if you just wore normal clothes...

[ Cass freezes, not because she's been spotted but because she recognizes who's seen her - it's Qi, the newbie who offered people haircuts and wig styling that she gave those scissors to.

Well. She recognizes his face and his voice. His body language seems to belong to a wholly different person though. ]

I'm just practicing, [ she explains via sign language, turning towards him and pulling off her mask to reveal her smiling face. ] Hi, again. Have you always known how to fight?

(he's still unsure of who exactly is he staring at until the mask comes off and he gives a relieved sigh. he definitely did not want to get into a fight without his powers. or actual scissors. or his chicken.)

Great question, but I don't know. (he shrugs.) I don't remember a lot. What are you practicing?

(usually at this point, qi would be playing with the scissors, making them fly around and keeping them ready, but at the moment, just spinning it around his fingers was a comfort.)

[ Huh. Like amnesia, she wonders? ]

I have a power. Well. We all have powers, those of us who arrive here from other places. Mine is my shadow. See?

[ She points it out as the glow in her chest increases and she focuses on the sliver of darkness attached to her shape. It stretches and grows for a moment, before wiggling back down to her size. ]

Do you know what your power is?

(certainly amnesia. it does clear off for a second every now and then, but it definitely doesn't answer anything.

cass proceeded to show her power, which makes qi impressed and excited in turn.)

That's so cool!! What do you do with it?

(at her question, qi settles the scissors in the palm of his hand, allowing it to levitate shakily before it dropped to the floor - not before he tries to grab it and fails miserably. of course, his chest glowed through the process.)

Ah, it was cooler before I came here!! I could make it spin super fast, like a saw blade...

Edited 2020-04-17 16:41 (UTC)

Hide things. Small things. Myself, eventually? Maybe?

[ She's not sure how it works, you see. It's not like they were each given a handbook on how the powers function on an individual level. ]

You have to practice. [ An aha moment! ] I can practice with you! You probably won't be able to hurt me.

(oh yeah. that makes sense. he wonders for a second if theres anything else he could do with his, but right now, he really just wants to get his scissors to spin.)

Oh, for sure. No problem... Do I gotta cosplay a ninja too or is my hoodie ok?

(he plays, but at soon as he attempts again, he hears a scream.)

... Raincheck, let's go see that first.

[ Cass grins, tho he probably can't see it because of the whole 'cosplaying a ninja' thing, but she nods at the mention of a raincheck and is off, running full tilt past him and down the street, following the sound of the scream.

It takes a minute (and another scream) before they end up on the scene of a mugging or maybe a kidnapping. Someone is being held in a way they don't seem to have agreed to, and someone else has their hand over that first person's mouth. They've got a knife, not a gun at least, and Cass halts in the intersection, waiting for Qi to catch up. ]

(before qi can really process, cass is gone and trying to keep up with her was, to the very least, tiring. when he does, he's trying to catch his breath before his attention shifted to what was happening in front of them.

if cass ran towards trouble and if she dresses like this, his only logical conclusion is that she definitely could fight - never in his life will he tell her not to do something. he learned this from meihua, who definitely didn't need protection. he reckons cass doesn't, either.)

Ok, what's the plan?

[ It's the blue light that catches Cassandra's attention, of course. Never one to run from potential danger, she approaches it instead, cautious but interested as she peers into the dark alley and tries to determine who - or what - is hidden within. ]

Is someone there?

[ For a moment it looks as though nothing is there, but suddenly, a small person dressed entirely in black steps out and gives a little wave. ]

Hello, [ she signs. ] Who are you?

My name is Cassandra Pentaghast.

[ She answers without thinking, only pausing afterwards, blinking in confusion. She'd known exactly what the person was asking, but...she hadn't heard a word. ]

Who are you? What are you hiding from?

[ You can find Cass in one of the following places:

♦ shopping in whatever passes for a farmer's market these days
♥ checking out various parks around the city
♣ dancing in clubs late into the evening
♠ just about anywhere public

If you want a custom starter, feel free to nudge me at

spacewitchery or on discord at spacewitchery#9221! ]

[ silena loves dancing, cass love dancing, put two teenage girls dancing together and it is a Good Time™. she's gone to get drinks, just juice this time so they don't get dehydrated, but she twists and twirls her way back to cass with two bottles, passing one over. ]

Yours is a mandarin-tamarind soda and mine is strawberry-guava-coconut.

[ cass's is an orangey brown that tastes like an orange root beer and silena's is bright pink and tastes way too sweet, but it's functioning basically as a natural sugar high so here we are! ]

[ Marta had heard about the fighting rings from the occasional patient at the hospital during her internship, people who took her earnest expressions, gentle touch, and kind inquiries to warn her away from them. That doesn't mean she listens, exactly; in fact, she does the complete opposite tonight, giving almost all of the credits that she has available to spend to the man at the door to get him to allow her in.

Something about her face probably makes her stick out like a sore thumb.

She tries not to see anything too specific since that seems like a great way to get into some sort of trouble she's not prepared for. Instead, she watches the fights and watches where the fighters go afterward, trailing them until she's stopped by a bouncer or a guard or something. ]

I just...they have a concussion. I'm sure of it. Who is treating the fighters afterward?

( he's gettin' a talent for pickin' out the displaced — they've all got that look that ain't quite right for this place, an' the newer ones always wear it with less ease than those that've been here some months. he thinks he'd seen this gal at the safehouse in a brief glimpse when he'd stopped by to drop off baked goods. when he spots her talkin' to the bouncers who don't seem much prone to givin' her much leeway, he leaves his beer half-finished an' goes to see what all the fuss is about, catchin' the snippet of that convo as he approaches. he touches her elbow gently just to let her know he's behind her, an' then nods to the guard. )

Ah, I was just goin' in myself. She's with me.

[ Marta doesn't jump out of her skin at the touch but from the hard blink she immediately gives it must've been a near thing. She's grateful, though, murmuring her thanks as he leads the way past the bouncers into the area where a few of the fighters are meandering around or sitting. She glances at the fighter who just left the ring. ]

You're more familiar with the people here. [ It's not a question. She'd rather be introduced than elbow her way into a situation she's not exactly welcome in. ] I'm Marta. [ A smile. ] In case anyone asks.

[ jyn has a lot of aggression and little outlet without stormtroopers to beat the shit out of on the regular, but despite that, she isn't often a staple of the fighting rings. she was at first, before she got her job, and sometimes when she is in a particularly bad mood she returns to the rings to work it off before she goes home.

she is an incredible fighter, ruthless and vicious, making up for her diminutive size with sheer ferocious power and her matches always end with jyn winning, however bloodied up she may get in the process. this fight is no different, jyn's opponent being helped out of the ring by other fighter while she steps out on her own. her lip is split, knuckles bloodied (whose blood is debatable) and bruised, cradling one of her arms to her chest, but she is seems flushed with pride at having demolished another man's ego.

snagging a stool at the bar, she gets a glass of water, but winces when the cold water touches her split lip. ]

Damn it.

[ Marta had watched Jyn fight, amazed at how much energy the woman held; it reminded her that even someone her own size could be dangerous, even deadly if the situation called for it.

She might be a healer by calling (and now, by divine choice?) but even she could see the usefulness in being able to beat up someone so much bigger than Jyn as that other fighter was.

Grabbing the seat next to her she orders a ginger ale and nods at the other woman. ]

Congratulations on your win. I'm Marta.

Edited (maybe just introduce yourself first, M) 2020-04-22 05:56 (UTC)

Thanks. I'm Jyn.

[ jyn has never naturally been someone to shake hands, it isn't custom in many galactic cultures, which made not shaking hands on earth pretty easy for her -- despite how many first meetings still come with that outstretched hand before they realize about the empathy bond.

marta is barely taller than jyn and almost delicate looking, but it doesn't stop jyn from asking: ]

Will you be fighting?

No, I don't really know how to fight. I'm a medic.

[ It's been a little more difficult for Marta to remember not to offer her hand, but she can usually wave it off as a risk of the job, whether or not she has gloves on at the moment. ]

Do you mind if I take a look at your arm?

[ ah, a medic. sneaky.

jyn makes a face that illustrates how begrudgingly she ever takes advantage of the free health care on this planet. she also knows a lot of medics, but only a couple of them have figured out that in order to get jyn to sit still for doctoring she has to be cornered into it.

like now. ]

It's my shoulder.

[ a lifetime of hauling herself up buildings and cat walks and cliff faces has done a number on her shoulder and she just keeps fucking it up, leaving it weaker than she would like to admit. ]

[ Very, very sneaky.

She'd been watching the fight closely and realized just about when something started to go wrong with Jyn's arm, the way she held it even in swinging gave it away to sharp eyes trained to look for injuries covered up by people who don't want to draw attention to themselves.

Marta's expression softens to understanding. At least Jyn knows her own body and isn't going to lie to her face about being hurt. She takes off her glove and reaches for Jyn's shoulder, pausing to get confirmation that she has permission to touch with a raise of her eyebrows. ]

Edited 2020-04-22 06:34 (UTC)

[ stupidly, in a dumbass move she has pulled many times in her life, jyn shrugs, despite her messed up shoulder. immediately she winces, exhaling sharply because that was a profoundly stupid thing to do but it's habit. ]

Maybe not here.

[ damned if she will show weakness in public. she slides off the stool, still blessedly steady on her feet, gesturing with a jerk of her head toward the changing rooms. her stuff is in there anyway. bringing her water with her, she leads marta back, bypassing a bouncer that gives marta a nod, and slips inside the empty locker room. she perches on one of the benches, leaving room next to her. ]

They recognize you. Making a habit of this?

[ Oh, Jyn. Marta makes a wincing sort of expression; that can't have felt good. But she nods, grabbing her ginger ale and pulling herself off of the barstool to follow Jyn to the changing rooms. Giving a nod to the bouncers, she smiles as she sits next to Jyn. ]

Just in the last few weeks.

A lot of the fighters are unwilling to go to a hospital for treatment. There's another medic working with them too, one of us. [ She's not gonna out Gene by name unless he gives her the okay, though. ] I got in through them. [ She pulls the bag she's been carrying on her shoulder off in order to dig through it for a diagnostic tool. ] Well. And making a lot of noise, too.

When did you first injure your shoulder?

[ a half smile flickers on her expression. she can guess who the medic in question is, but it's marta making a nuisance of herself to wear the bouncers down that draws the mirth out of her. she has a soft spot for girls who get their way with sheer, stubborn annoyance. ]

Nine or ten? It dislocates easily.

[ it's probably just a compressed nerve, if the tingling in her fingers is any indication but it feels weak and she knows her shoulder isn't as stable as it used to be. could the medi-unit have fixed it when it brought her back from the brink of death? it probably had and then jyn was jyn and six months later, here she is with a bum shoulder all over again. she's 22 with shit joints. ]

How do your fingers feel right now?

[ Marta is definitely leaning towards a pinched nerve, but she's not sure that her power (weird, still, so weird to even think that) can manage something that deep below the skin's surface.

She can probably heal up that split lip though, easy peasy. She takes note of it.]

Are you interested in getting a scan done?

Fuzzy. [ she taps the tips of her own fingers idly and fuzzy sure does cover the tingling sensation. feels fuzzy. ]

I'd rather not.

[ getting jyn to a doctor is impossible, even in this place of quality free health care. her gut instinct is to suffer in silence. ]

I think you've pinched a nerve. [ Marta gives Jyn a brief smile. She's been dealing with medical-averse people her entire life, and she knows the signs. At least Jyn is being honest with her. ]

If I give you something to treat it, and some exercises to strengthen your shoulder, will you take the meds and do the work?

Your lip I can fix now.

No drugs, but I suspect you'll badger me if I don't do the exercises.

[ all human medics are the same, jyn's never met one that'll give up easily. droid medics, on the other hand, jyn can get around following their orders. they commonly have an off switch.

people do not.

she spreads her uninjured arm as if to give marta the go ahead to do whatever doctorly thing she's interested in. ]

Edited (i can't type) 2020-05-01 04:50 (UTC)

Well. It'll be better for your hand if you do. And your shoulder, too.

[ She nods at Jyn's acquiescence and leans in a bit. ] This shouldn't hurt at all.

[ With her fingers outstretched she touches Jyn's lip. The blue glow lights up in Marta's chest as Jyn's flesh knits itself together beneath her touch. ]

All better?

[ warmth spreads across her lip as it heals, the sensation not unlike bacta treatments without the antiseptic smell and the chill. a fingertip touches her lip, finding no cut and no stinging pain either, even when her tongue runs across her teeth. still tastes sticky and metallic with blood but it's not longer flowing. ]

Huh. That's a good one.

[ healing powers seem rare, suited to their owner in most cases, but they're probably the most important powers of them all. ]

Does it work on yourself?

It does but it's limited to small things.

I cured my own hangnail yesterday. [ Marta shrugs. ] As long as I can touch it and it's not too complex of a wound, it works.

What is it that you can do?

Water.

[ it should be hard to show it off inside, but jyn has gotten good at it over the months she has been here and soon the blue light flares in her chest as the water vapor in the air stills, suspended motionless in the air like a thousand stationary raindrops. after a moment they coalesces into a miniature river that runs nowhere in midair, then into a swirling disc of a shield, before breaking apart into the raindrops that disappear back into the air like nothing had happened at all.

her mouth slants down, thoughtful. ]

I've healed someone, too, but it's not... reliable.

[ she's obviously got a handle on the other aspects of her power, but healing is not quite so handled. she doesn't practice because she doesn't want daisy or cassian to be hurt but daisy and cassian (and now marta) are the only ones that know. ]

Edited 2020-05-01 08:16 (UTC)

[ Marta's eyes light up because while she's experienced other people's emotions (more than once, now, but that's okay) she's not gotten the chance to actually see what someone else can do.

And what Jyn can do is absolutely beautiful. ]

That's amazing. Oh, my God.

Do you ever just make patterns for fun? Something beautiful? Not that it isn't, it is, I guess I just...I never imagined anything could look like that.

If you need a guinea pig... [ She shrugs. She is a nurse; knowing how to properly injure herself without a great deal of risk is part of the job. ]

[ there is a little flash of pride because jyn does work hard to push the capabilities of her power, but even still she shakes her head. she probably could weave them into the barriers. ]

I've never tried.

[ she doesn't take marta up on her offer if only because she is still thinking about it. ]

I have a fondness for beautiful patterns.

[ Marta gives by way of explanation. Also don't think she's forgotten about those exercises, either. Marta is still also running a search for good ones, and manages to send Jyn the modern version of some stretches. ]

How long have you been here?

Edited (I always end up with these extra spaces under my tags and it drives me nuts) 2020-05-02 01:00 (UTC)

Seven months?

[ it's a long time for jyn to stay still and she's started getting antsy, the wanderlust her mother instilled in her leaving her itching for someplace other than the same city, same job, same routine. it's better than prison, by far.

but it's a long time. ]

It doesn't feel that long.

another night alone, a temporary dream

For OA;

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Open to all; Red Wings

Open to all: The Masked Girl

- assumed to be after qi leaves the safehouse!

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Open to all: Wildcard

💃💃 dancin' queens

For Gene:

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fighting rings ➙

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