(no subject)

[pullsneedles]

The house is nice and clean and there's cider simmering on the stove. The table has a small buffet setup with curry and make-your-own-riceballs.

With how cozy the house is, it'd be hard to guess that four people could have ever lived comfortably here, especially when two of them were young boys. There's a big bed with a blue pillow and a dresser with a mirror, a scrap of red cloth, and a little blue shoe.

Outside, Wess, Lighter, and Fuel are all waiting with Boney and the sheep. There's a fence, a doghouse, and a small stable.

Each person is easy to tell from the others. Wess is clearly the oldest, somewhat short with white, sparse hair. Lighter is tall and muscular, stubble on his chin and a 2x4 on his shoulder. Fuel looks to be about the same size as Lucas, the light still in his young eyes. All three are bundled up, with Fuel running around with Boney.

"Welcome to my house," Lucas says as he brings everybody in.

Comments

[raptorcanaria]

"Velvet interior?" Dinah laughs. "Never seen that in a police car."

[basic_powers]

"Jasil got the whole thing done years ago, purple velvet, and I'd make a very off-colour joke about where he got all of that, but there're little ears present." Beauford sips some of the cider up. "How're your 'identity papers' coming?"

[raptorcanaria]

Dinah grins, proudly. "All sorted and waiting for me at Bar, whenever you're ready to go."

[basic_powers]

"Alright, I'll set things up in my world for a good visit to the Concrete Method Gym, good indoor professional course."

[raptorcanaria]

"Sounds great," Dinah says.

"Any advice about what I should wear?" She's used to doing this in heels.

[basic_powers]

"Good track shoes or tennis shoes, comfortably loose pants, t-shirt you don't mind getting grubby, and a change of clothes if you wanna visit the place where I work later." He's used to doing these things sensibly. "Or you can go barefeet if you're feeling adventurous for the course."

[raptorcanaria]

She gives this some consideration, and shakes her head. "I think I'd be better off in shoes, if it's all the same." She has track shoes at least, for training.

[basic_powers]

"Everyone has their own tastes," Beauford muses, heading to the food table and picking out some pickled plums for a riceball. "I'll probably have to pick you up from the library, its the only place with a Unisex bathroom. Most reliable doors I get usually only happen in restrooms for some reason."

[raptorcanaria]

Dinah accepts this, but shakes her head. "Doors are weird. I've only had one door that wasn't in my bedroom, and that was when I was living in Okinawa."

[basic_powers]

"So what's new in your world Dinah? Alien healing machines?"

[raptorcanaria]

Dinah laughs. "Healing machines would be a welcome change."

Though she does hesitate, taking a sip of her drink for a second. "You know, I have no idea what you know about my world."

Except that he's done Justice League themed happy hours.

[basic_powers]

"Well, I know you mentioned a teammate you called Martian who had a bad Oreo Habit."

[raptorcanaria]

"...right," Dinah says with a grin. "Yeah, that's J'Onn. We save the world together."

Which is sort of a surprise!outing. "I guess you've heard of him; I've seen your themed happy hours."

[basic_powers]

"Juuuust a bit." Beauford grins. "But I already suspected who you were, given the roster AND your choice in drinks."

[raptorcanaria]

Dinah laughs. "Well, I guess I'm the worst at Secret Identities ever."

She doesn't mind though. It's not like the bar is a dangerous place. At least, not for her identity.

[basic_powers]

Not yet anyways.

"Gotta get your practice in girl, that stuff can bite you hard in the ass."

[raptorcanaria]

Dinah raises her eyebrows. "Yeah?"

She didn't expect him to sound like he knew about it.

[basic_powers]

...

=/

"Mild confession time, I'm not from your world. I have friends in the Bar who bring me news from your world since they know I'm a big cape and cowl kind of fan." Beauford starts out in the explanation. "My world does have superheroes though, been that way for a little over a century now."

"It didn't have a happy start."

[raptorcanaria]

"Really?"

Dinah frowns, thoughtfully, ready for the story.

And wondering if 'my world has superheroes' means anything.

[basic_powers]

It means if Black Canary showed up to use Concrete Method as a training ground they'd let her pass right on through.

Beauford nods outside towards the fire, with a plate full of riceballs in one hand and his cider in the other. Don't want the kids hearing this one.

"The first recorded metahuman was Mr Extraordinary, a Mr. Thaddeus Booker. His powers manifested during the first world war, and he was a huge media sensation at the time, after the war demonstrating them at fairs and major city events. He was the first recorded powerset that came to be known as FISS. Flight, invulnerability, super strength and super speed." He begins. "And things at first were going easily enough. Then the first attempt to kidnap his only daughter, Naomi came, which he thwarted with extreme prejudice...but he feared for future attacks on his family, so he agreed to a deal offered by the government lawenforcers at the time. He;d work for them and in exchange, they'd protect his family while he was away."

"Except it turned bad very quickly. Thaddeus was finding himself hunting down the very men he had fought along side of in the war on the basis that they were 'Bolshivik sympathizers'. They were organizing labor unions, and given at this time that there weren't many anti-monopoly or fair wages laws in place, you get three guesses on who was really calling those shots."

[raptorcanaria]

"Yes," Dinah says darkly, staring at the fire with a rather set expression. "My world went something that way after the second world war. That's why my Mom quit."

For a while.

[basic_powers]

"Some jerkweasel of a senator is trying to pull the same shit again in my world." Beauford just about growls out. "But since Thaddeus was already known to the public...the government didn't use that. They threatened to break up his family, to put his daughter into...a government home if he didn't do what they wanted."

"So. He had to do something drastic. This is where there's speculation, but there's supposedly a diary from Naomi, his daughter, detailing what happened. It says that he had his wife disown him, call him a Bolshivik supporter, everything to tarnish his image to all of the public records, magazines newspapers. Then...he had to disappear, leave his family entirely. The government didn't have a leg to stand on, if they went after his family now, they'd be the worst men alive."

"See, he never told them that he had the ability to fly."

He sounds so darkly and supremely happy about that.

"The records of what the government official and his payoffs from the companies came out about 50 years ago, during Macarthy's push on the heroes in my world."

"Most damning evidence in existence."

[raptorcanaria]

Dinah shakes her head, string into the fire again.

"Like to see them come after my family, though. They'd eat them alive.

"Macarthy. Guess he was an anti-superhero jerk on every world."

[basic_powers]

There's a derisive snort from Beauford.

"Let's not make it like he singled out just superheroes. He's an anti-everything happy and grey jerk in every world."

[raptorcanaria]

Dinah laughs softly. "Probably. It's just really close to what happened to my Mom and uncles."