wildestlogs | Someone should stop that boy

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Someone should stop that boy

Who: Tim Drake & Open
What: Tim is entirely too curious a creature. This can take many forms and lead to discussions.
Where: The Castle/The Brugh. Two set-ups are given, but you're free to provide something else.
When: Pre- or Post- Haunted House is fine. Just indicate.
Warnings/Notes: None.

Library

[ Tim is coming to accept that he has some sort of magical ability - he doesn't want to classify it as a metahuman ability, because it takes very specific shapes and effects. Always 3 batarang missiles. Always a wide dome of fog. No ability to sculpt them into anything else. It's precise and dependable, which he begrudgingly has to like, but it feels very limited in that regard.

So Tim is working his way through the library as best he can. He's skipping anything that looks like fiction, anthologies of flora and fauna, or religious automatically, and he's also avoiding narrow topics like a certain war or history of a city. It's slow going, picking the three or four books to go spend the evening with. Liner notes would be appreciated, but for now he's selectively editing by titles and tables of content to pick what he reads next. If anyone asks, he's looking for more information about the Green, its quest, and this castle... but sharp eyes would see that he's also perusing books look a little more ... interesting. That heavily gilded book that's pressed closest to his chest - that is definitely a spellbook. ]

Brugh

[ This is not the first time Tim's visited the throne room. He's tried to hide from people by exploring this fantasy-Tardis, he's trained in the strange spaces and learned different routes through it, found hidey-holes, and sometimes he's just motivated by curiosity.

But the throne room bothers him. The Elves. The mirrors and the forms they take there.

The children.

He keeps coming back to check to see if they've moved. He knows where the whole room stands, how close they are together, where the elves are in relation to the non-Elves.

They don't look like mannequins. They don't look like statues. They look real in a way that Tim hasn't tried to physically touch any of them yet. Touching the Elves would possibly be a terrible idea; touching the non-Elves ... sounds like a further violation. If they're real.

But he does wonder - what if he let loose whatever holds back the healing by one of them? Would it change anything? He knows where it would hit the fewest Elves.

It's dangerously close to an irresistible call of the void. ]

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[Dirk's done his own digging the last several days while much of the castle's population has been absent. It's been a mild comfort, the isolation and hyperfixating on research, something vaguely familiar in all this magic bullshit. The tactile sensations are less familiar – he hasn't handled many physical books before, and holds them with a sort of delicacy, somewhere between awed and just awkward – but the core of it all is the same. Text and information. He's better with either of those than he is with people, so he's remained here even with the return of the haunted house crew.

The intrusion into what had begun to feel like his own private space is weathered with quiet tension even as he's careful to keep his body loose and seemingly at ease. He even manages the bare minimum of curt small talk, asking about topics of interest and such. Go him, A+ in human interaction.]

Try this one.

[A thin finger taps at the spine of one book he remembers poring through a day or two ago. With a sideways glance hidden by the ridiculous anime shades, he catches sight of the fancy-looking tome this guy has tucked at the back of his stack. Recognizes it from his own obsessive search of the library the last few days, if not from the fact that it looks like a prototypical spellbook. But no need to be nosy. He knows how to stay in his own lane.

A few beats of silence in which he glances over a few more titles. And then he indicates the spellbook with a calculatedly careless gesture.]

I think you're wasting your time with that, though. Didn't see anything relevant to the situation at hand in there.

[Okay, he in fact does not ever stay in his own lane. He less veers into other lanes and more pulls up alongside other cars and hops in to grab their wheels mid-high speed chase. But he's at least subtle about it.]

[ The intrusion will, at least, be brief. While Tim has been reading books from the library since the day after they took up residence in the castle, he's been reading books from the library. Reading in the library itself just seems like a good way to be interrupted with questions about what he's reading. It's hard to get through enough material if you're compelled to give 20 minute long symposiums (which he is).

But he will gladly take recommendations, and Tim adds it to the stack. ]

Thanks. The card catalogue leaves something to be desired.

[ The card catalogue is non-existent. ]

I think my situation's a little different than the standard situation. The Green decided to give me powers, and I need to have a better understanding of them.

[ He can't keep filling the hallways with fog when he gets annoyed by people or wants to get away. ]

[Luckily for everyone, the castle picked up a human card catalogue in their absence. Or at least, a teen who seems determined to earn the title.]

I'm not sure there's a standard at all. But I guess it's good for you if you can find that kind of understanding in a book.

[Not that he's had to grapple with whole new powers on top of everything else, at least. But he certainly didn't get a manual when he got his abilities.

(Did that sound kinda shitty? He can't help but second guess himself, knowing all too well how he comes across sometimes. Just gonna...keep his stare fixed hard on whatever random book he'd picked up to appear busy.)]

[ ... but you can find everything in books and research if you try hard enough. Or write the books. Tim likes order and knowledge. Even if he knows that magical metahumans are among the least predictable, he doesn't want that sort of chaos in his life. He wants to understand it to its core. ]

If there's not a standard, I'll settle for the mean, median, or mode.

[ Tim looks at the books that he's carrying. ]

Whoever curated this library wouldn't have this many books about magic if there wasn't something to be gleaned from them.

[A soft huff of breath out the nose might approximate something like a laugh? He's kinda hard to read.]

Maybe skip the mode. Just because something's been written about a ton don't make it true.

[It's an intentional push of his accent there, an emphasis of that Texan drawl that's only more ironic given the fact that Texas had long since ate shit by the time he was born.]

Just because the mode isn't necessarily true doesn't mean that it's not worth anything. If the majority of people in a certain town believe that the government is controlling the population with chem trails, it's not going to make you smarter about chem trails to read their pamphlets, but it is going to make you more informed about the people writing it.

[ Tim will find a positive to almost any intellectual pursuit.

As for the accent, he doesn't have any particular reason to mock Texans, and, to be fair, his own is solidly New Jersey. Even to the uninitiated, it screams "East Coast". Whether its mistaken for New York or Philadelphian, it's impossible to be that far off. ]

[The East Coast was also nonexistent in his time, but he can still place the accent. Obsessively consuming the media of a dead civilization will do that to you.]

Fair enough.

[And he could leave it at that. Social interaction accomplished, good job everyone, hit the showers. But he's at least self-aware that he can be...standoffish. And he has been trying to be somewhat less terrible a person. So he makes an attempt, glancing up from the books.]

So what are these new powers?

[ Tim appears shifty and slightly uncomfortable, going so far as to crack his neck to stall.

Finally, he sighs. He is being open and honest with his abilities and that doesn't just mean the ones that he's learned for himself. It should also apply to the ones the Green forced on him. The group needs to know what everyone can do. ]

Healing. Myself and others, but not as much as I'd like. I don't have touch them to do it; it works from a few feet away. Fog generation, but that only seems to happen when I'm on the flight side of fight-or-flight - or I manage to force myself into that level of anxiety. And... there's some sort of energy attack, but it's harder to pin down what triggers that one.

[Oh good, at least they're both uncomfortable. Dirk attempts to escape that discomfort by latching onto the problem in front of him, as is his wont. He makes a thoughtful little sound, head tilting a bit like a bird.]

When has it happened so far?

The first time it happened was in Agrabah.

[ Tim can still remember it clearly. Rushing to escape, the foothold falling away beneath him. Dropping between the Nazgul... ]

When I was attack by some Nazgul. I thought I must have imagined it - I was messed up from the moment they stabbed me, but I've done it again twice when I'm trying to practice. It's not reliable.

[Dirk pauses mid-thought, head turning slightly to actually look at this guy properly. The shades hide the stare, but there's a certain incredulous intensity to it.]

Nazgul as in Lord of the Rings?

[He knows his ancient Earth pop culture.]

I know, it sounds crazy. I wouldn't have believed it, either, but...

[ Tim shrugs, waving a hand at the library around them. ]

We're in a moving case that's half steampunk and half magic. I was healed by Elrond. The world is stitched together from a mix of fairytale and the multiverse, and you and me are just along for the ride.

Not that. This is far from the craziest thing I've experienced.

[That's sure saying a lot, especially after Tim's explanation of exactly how crazy the current situation is, but Dirk powers right through it. He's definitely actually looking at Tim now – it's obvious somehow, even through the shades. Kid's got one hell of an intense stare.]

The Nazgul spark terror, don't they? Assuming this manifestation of them is accurate to the original canon.

[Ange has been wandering in the Burgh from time to time. After her experiences with the mirror, she's really wary about it all, and can't help but check for any changes that may be happening in this bizarrely surreal area of the castle. The maze is the only place she never enters. As much of a reckless person as she is, she has limits.

Stumbling into someone checking out these frozen living beings...]

Don't touch them. You could end frozen as well.

[It's not impossible, no?]

[ He looks over at the new arrival and gives Ange a small smile. ]

I haven’t touched them.

[ Yet. He’s definitely thinking about it, though. They can’t fully understand what’s happened here without having a sense of whether or not they’re alive.

(The children HAVE to have been alive. This isn’t a twisted art installation.) ]

I don’t think we can accept that the convenient castle quarters are otherwise unrelated to everything else going on.

Agreed. I find it hard to believe something meant to help us would have these...weird areas, as well as objects that could entrance you until you die. Something about this castle is just not right.

[Ever since she was caught by the mirror that shows your desires, she has been so wary of everything. Justifiably so, really]

It's better than having to survive by ourselves in the wild, but that doesn't mean it's good.

I wish we'd seen the castle before we'd met the Green. There's more than one person I haven't seen in days, and I can't tell if the Green's realized they're not a poor fit and removed them from the group, sent them home, or if the castle itself is eliminating them.

[ Which sounds like a bad Stephen King miniseries that Tim watched once when he was recuperating with a high fever. He wouldn't remcommend it. ]

Don't get me wrong, I like having a bed to sleep in. I'd like it even more if the castle didn't forcibly teleport me to it every time I fall asleep anywhere else.

It has happened while we have been here in the castle. Perhaps they wandered into a place they shouldn't have, and this castle is meant to be one trial more we're supposed to overcome. Those who don't get lost are the ones who get to go on and save the world.

[In which case, wow, that's pretty unforgiving]

In essence, yes.

[ If Ange needs to rehash his statement to have it make sense to her, he'll be her sounding board, but in that case, Tim will leave her to think or ask questions, rather than continue to overwhelm her with his own thoughts as he continues to examine the frozen people. ]

[Tim's strange behaviour does not go unnoticed. Price has been coping with Aziraphale's absence by isolating himself in the library and reading books to compile a list of things Aziraphale would like so that he can recommend them to him if once he comes back - so yes, he has been attending this place for a while.

Quietly observing Tim, he thinks back of that one time when the boy asked to talk to him. He avoided him on purpose, thinking it would be the best solution. That way he didn't hurt him, and others did not get worried about him possibly hurting the kid - even though if that is the opinion they have about Price it would be completely wrong, but still...He likes taking care of people, and maybe the things he was good at are not completely gone. It could be wishful thinking, but maybe Tim really needs him.

He's unsure on how to seem not threatening, so he leaves. He comes back with a mug of coffee with added cocoa powder.]

It looks like you are going to be here for a while, so...I thought this would help.

[ Lately, Tim’s been in his own head a lot. There’s quite a bit to muddle through - not only with his powers, but with facing how much he’s upended his own relatively stable friendship with Kon.

So, while he had meant to keep a small eye on Price, he hasn’t really paid him any more attention than any other party member. To have Price bring him a steamy mug? Tim’s honestly shocked. ]

Huh? Oh! Thanks, Mr. Price. You didn’t have to -

[ Tim sniffs the air mid sentence when smell hits him. ]

Is that coffee?

Yes.

[Price smiles softly.]

I added some cocoa, too. Hopefully it will encounter your taste.

[He seems to ponder something and hesitate, but eventually he gathers the courage to set the mug down and sit next to Tim.]

It looks like you are studying very diligently.

You didn't have to add the cocoa. I like it black, too.

[ Coffee alone is a huge deal, and Tim almost wants to find a way to freeze it in tiny shot-sized doses because, holy cappuccino, he has coffee. To add cocoa to it seems almost wantonly indulgent. He takes a deep drink. ]

It's really good, thanks.

[ It's coffee. It could be Sanka and Tim would want to weep. But it's really not bad at all. ]

And I don't know how diligently, but I can get focused on a task. I wanted to learn more about the rules of magic in this world.

[He did a good thing?! Price?! Price did a good thing!! It was making a good cup of coffee, but he legit looks shocked as if Tim saved his life or something. It's endearingly pathetic. Hell, even Project Freelancer which he deems to be the happiest period of his life had him isolated due to ranks from basically everyone except for the Director who actively bullied in front of everyone when he felt like it, so this sudden moment of decent treatment when he was not masking is surprising him. Now he's almost mentally begging himself not to ruin it by being weird.]

I am glad you like it. [He glances at Tim's books.] And that is a very smart move, the whole team could benefit from some research on the matter. In fact, I should start as well. Do you have any recommendations about the basics? I am not familiar with magic.

[ To Tim, the moment is less significant than the actual cup of coffee, but he's smiling broadly (something of a rarity). It takes a few years off him. He really does appreciate it.

Enough so that he actually pries himself away from the coffee -

(Okay, he has one more sip first)

And goes to the shelf nearest the door. ]

Start with.... where is it, no, no, that one's terrible - ah! This one.

[ He pulls a rather beaten looking book with page edges near black from fingertip oil off the shelf. ]

I don't know if it's right, but so far, I think it's the best overview.

Thank you very much. I appreciate it.

[It looks like he wants to go on talking, but he doesn't add anything. Perhaps for the better, he doesn't want to ruin the conversation. Also, he needs to make himself useful. If he deserved to be thrown away while working under the Director, he surely deserves it now. The brain damage is no longer an excuse, he has to get back on track and make sure he's not more trouble than he's worth.]

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