maskormenace | 001 ✨ video

[So here's a feed mostly unrelated to recent shenanigans, video gently out of focus from being held too close to its target. It resolves itself into a rumpled sweater a moment later, worn by a boy with fair hair and a peculiar smudge on his face. There's a school patch on his chest, an embroidered emblem of a raven (and possibly familiar to anyone who has seen a uniform from Aglionby Academy).

There's a beat of silence as his hands hover around the camera and he pulls back, anxious, pocketing them briefly before they finally drop to his sides.]

Being dead makes this a little less weird than it could be, but I'm pretty sure this isn't how it goes in history texts. [It's a little breathless. A faint, almost blurry frown ticks its way across his face and he blinks a couple times. Tiredness, from the looks of it, though somehow he wears it a little odd.]

I'm pretty sure they skip the superhero part completely, actually, but I could be wrong. And the music— [Someone has discovered pop punk never really happened. He leans forward, earnest and worried.]

I'm looking for Henrietta. It should be in Virginia, but... [But the struggle is real for canon-specific cities. He shakes his head once and the feed cuts off.]

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[ Gansey isn't anywhere near Virginia right now, and suddenly, it's the only place he wants to be.

Jesus, he thought Noah was gone for good. ]

Noah?

It's not there. Don't you remember? Jesus, I have so much to tell you.

Gansey.

[The relief is palpable, if undermined by concern.

..."Concern" is a very mild way of putting it.]

Is everyone else here?

[—And:] It's not there? [There is a note of genuine alarm at that part.] Is it gone? [Like Cabeswater had been gone. Like he had been gone.]

Noah.

[ He's smiling, despite being a country away from his friend. Of all times, why did it have to be now?! ]

It's not gone; we are. Ronan, Adam and Blue are with me. We have a house there, in Virginia, but we had to leave. There's...a lot I need to explain.

Where are you now?

De Chima.

[But he lets out a breath when Gansey lists off Ronan, Adam, and Blue.]

I know—I know some things. It's different, but— [He's perfectly ready to accept most details surrounding the Porter, but a few are so much more difficult. Henrietta not being in its rightful place is one of them.

He trails off and takes a deep breath.] Where are you?

[ He makes this as private as he’s capable, and also switches to the Mirrornet. ]

Mexico City. We evacuated when the Soviets came. It’s a very long story, but the important part is, I can’t get to you. They’re not allowing us to fly back until things are resolved there.

Noah, I’m so sorry, but I need you to get to us. You’ll be safe here, we all will.

[ Jesus Christ, the porter would have to choose now to bring Noah back. Gansey hates the thought of him being alone there. ]

Can you do that?

You're in Mexico?

[His mouth hangs open a little. And he thought Florida was bad.

But he frowns, leaning back, expression indistinct but thoughtful.]

...I think I can do that. It's—um, is there energy? I think I could do it if there's energy... [That's not imprecise or anything.]

[ There's a question. It would probably seem obscure to most people, if those people had not spent the past several years searching for sources of mystical energy. ]

There's no ley line that I'm aware of.

There's power, though. Every import has superpowers, and those that got out of the cities all came here. I don't know if that counts -

[ But, of course. There's always Starbucks. ]

- but Blue is here. She still amplifies, Noah, and you know her. Could you find her?

[He chews at his lip, unsure, but his eyes fix somewhere past the feed, blank and somehow blurry despite him looking solid in the light. There's something unnatural about it, but then he draws in a breath and the boy who glances back at Gansey is as ordinary as ever.]

Could you show me—where you are? [A better view of the room.] I think it helps if I know where I'm going.

Yes.

[ Gansey moves, but then stops, suddenly looking thoughtful. ]

But these rooms all look the same. Wait a moment and I’ll find you a landmark.

[ Which ends up being the sign with the name of the apartment block on it, just outside the door. Gansey goes there quickly, and starts to film a panoramic view of the building’s driveway. The building is a tower block which dominates one side of the skyline, while the rest involves a typical Mexican street scene, with cars occasionally going past. He stops with a view of himself, standing beside the sign, and holding the device at arm’s length. ]

Noah, how’s this? Do you think you can manage it?

[ He’s about half a minute away from sending Noah to find Billy, if he can’t. ]