capeandcowl | 009 [ Voice ]

Entry tags:

julian keller | hellion

009 [ Voice ]

[ So Julian's been gone somewhere close to a week. He finds that out from a newspaper stand. For him it's been a hell of a lot longer than a week, and his head is spinning now. Memories he hadn't known were there are rising to the surface, fitting back into place. Friends, enemies, people from other worlds. Events he'd thought he'd never forget. Skrulls, Vulcanus.

God, this is weird.

And last time he'd been here, he hadn't looked like this.

He's walking through the City, metal hands concealed in his pockets. Every part of this is a mess. His powers are holding the phone to his ear, and there's no video.

He sounds like he's bored. ]

This place has good timing. I was almost in math class.

So I'm back. You can all stop missing me now. Since nothing's in pieces I'm gonna guess no one tried to destroy the place this week. Did I miss anything worth telling?

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Everything was the real world. You're going to have to accept that at some point! [ she rubs out the line she drew, and instead draws a circle ] Pretend this circle is my game session. [ and another of the same size next to it ] And this is Dave's game session. [ a couple more circles for good measure, and then she draws a large circle around them all ] And this big circle contains the furthest ring, the Green Sun, and everything else that is part of the game's function but not attached to any particular session. It's where you exist when you die or sleep, and although it's difficult-- nearly impossible, under normal circumstances-- you can travel from session to session sometimes.

When you die or sleep. [ He repeats it and stares at her, because that's kind of freaky. ]

So what, it's like...your soul can move through there? [ He stops himself, because what. What. ] That's crazy.

I... guess so? I try not to clarify it that much. It makes it easier.

Right. Because the part with the frog and the robot body, those make total sense.

Well, that happened, so you're just going to have to learn to live with it!

Whatever.

I'm okay with this version anyway. [ That's about as close as he's getting to saying he likes you, Aradia. ]

You have a funny way of showing it! [ but she laughs and turns a little red gOD THIS IS STUPID you're stupid julian you have a stupid face. AHEM ]

Where was I... Oh, beating the final boss, and timelines, right? Okay, there were basically a ton of alternate Aradiabots in all the different timelines they had to fix. Does that make enough sense for now?

[ wow why is she going red?

it's probably nothing. ]

Uh. Yeah. [ no. ] You were like Multiple Troll in robot form.

The weirdest part is how this is all normal to you. I know people from other dimensions, I know there's alternate forms of people I know. Some of them are here, I get that part. But you know your alternates and what they're doing, it's...crazy.

[ the longest...pause. ] Did you hate it? The robo thing.

I was kind of a special case, even on my world. [ she draws her knees up and rests her chin on them for a moment, cocking her head ] I hated a lot of things. I was angry at a lot of things, too. So I was really sullen and grumpy basically all the time, and dragged my feet a whole bunch, and beat someone to death. But it wasn't being a robot that really got to me, it was the rest of it. I really, really hated having to follow orders and do what I was supposed to all the time!

[ …holy crap, is she serious? To say he could relate to that is putting it mildly. He looks genuinely surprised, and isn’t even covering it with a smirk. Or with a glare. He hadn’t been expecting this. ]

Yeah, I can get that, believe me. [ He glances down at his hands. ]

You killed some guy? You?

[ That surprises her in turn, and she lifts her chin up ] I killed the girl who killed me. I thought you knew what trolls were like by now. [ humans are just so picky about age and gender. As a troll, to make it to six sweeps already means you've fought your way to where you are ]

[ He scowls at her, automatically defensive. ]

That’s not what I mean. I know Kanaya’s insane and cuts people with chainsaws and whatever the hell, but you didn’t seem like that.

You’re nice, you’re happy. [ People who kill people aren’t happy… ] Annoyingly so. You don’t seem like a killer.

What's so bad about being happy? I've never been this happy before. I'm enjoying it! [ she scowls right back at him ] Trolls who don't kill don't survive. It's just a part of life.

Yeah, I know that, I get that. You do what you have to, there's nothing wrong with that.

I didn't say it was bad. [ He stops, because he doesn't really know what he's saying. The truth is, she doesn't act angry, or quiet, or any of the things he'd associate with someone who'd been a killer. She's just...normal. That's what's weird to him. ]

[ she stands up, brushing off her skirt, and goes to sit down on the bench again ] How about I just keep going? Maybe you'd understand better after hearing the whole story.

[ Now he just looks blankly at her. ]

I thought that was the whole story, what am I missing?

A lot, actually. But I guess we can leave it there, unless you want me to talk about something in particular.

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009 [ Voice ]

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