video;

[threeisapattern]

[Zoom in on one teenage boy, sitting on a park bench. He looks kind of shitty—pale, a piece of gauze taped to his left cheek, and a barely-healed split lip. He’s hunched over, watching something out-of-frame.]

So there’s like—a community of kidnapped people with their own social network, huh. That’s pretty fucked up. [He leans down, wincing slightly, and picks up a dirty tennis ball from the ground before throwing it.] And everyone gets super powers, which would be the coolest thing I’ve ever experienced in my life if I wasn’t also half-convinced this is all some weird coma dream.

[There he goes after the tennis ball again. Before he can pick it up, there’s the sound of excited yipping and then a stray that looks like it might have an ancestor somewhere in the Bijon Frise family jumps into his lap, presses its little paws against his chest, and does its damnedest to lick his face.]

Okay, I appreciate the thought, buddy, but dog slobber is not a proven cure for what ails you. Let’s go back to the ball, okay? We were doing good with the ball.

[The dog whines and gives him a final lick before jumping back out of the frame, and Stiles throws the ball again.]

Also, like, my superpower is talking to dogs. And getting them to understand me, not just—my superpower is not just being a crazy guy who talks to dogs. If you have a dog and you need someone to explain to them that shoes are not acceptable chew toys, I will give it a shot in exchange for Ibuprofen. Or money to buy Ibuprofen with, that's probably smarter.

Comments

[threeisapattern]

Uh, #6 Heropa. I think that's the city I'm in right now, too? The house should be around somewhere, but I haven't exactly gone exploring or looking at maps yet.

[If she still wants to see that adorable stray, it comes back into frame again for a few seconds carrying the tennis ball, which Stiles obligingly throws again.]

[worthit]

Hi, handsome fella!

[ Because of course she's going to address the dog while he's in frame, too bad he doesn't stay there. Ah well! She may be meeting him in person soon! ]

Right! Heropa! I mean, to be fair there's a LOT to explore, even in just ONE city, never mind all the others. But I'll be there before you know it. Just sit tight!

(ooc: Do you prefer to keep this here and swap to action, or do you want to move to a log? :])

video -> action

[threeisapattern]

I'll be here. Name's Stiles, by the way, that seems like a good thing to know if you're coming to meet me. [So she can - call out his name if she can't find him? Whatever, he'd have wanted to introduce himself at some point anyway.

While he's waiting, he keeps up his game of fetch with the little stray, and by the time she arrives, he's managed to acquire a second dog, this one a golden retriever with a nice, clean coat and a collar and tag. They're play-fighting while Stiles watches with an amused grin on his face.]

video -> action

[worthit]

[ She's stepped outside in the time that it's taken to settle on a plan. Traveling by hair it won't take her long to reach the porter. ]

Nice to meet you, Stiles! I'm Rapunzel!

[ She says in between swinging between buildings.

Once she finally reaches the park it's actually the dogs that clue her in. She'll come swinging in from one of the trees, landing a few yards away, and then with an entirely too casual wave- ]

Hi...!

[threeisapattern]

[What. What.]

Were you... using your hair like Tarzan vines?

[worthit]

... Uh... well, I have no idea what a Tarzan vine is...? But... yes. I use my hair when I need to travel quickly.

[ Crossing the distance now, watching the dogs wrestle, she doesn't seem that fussed about the unusual seventy-two foot trail of hair slipping over the grass behind her, though she does raise an amused eyebrow, teasing. ]

You were just whisked away to a brand new city, you can talk to dogs, superheroes are real, but THAT'S your first question?

[threeisapattern]

Well, when you put it that way - yeah, actually, there's a lot of weird stuff happening here but travel via really long hair is definitely one of them.

[If she wanted to say hello to the dogs, now's a good time because they're both coming over to investigate her hair.]

Is this like a Samson thing? You can't cut your hair or the magic healing won't work?

[worthit]

[ She absolutely wants to say hello to the dogs, stooping down until she can kneel on the grass, welcoming them both in closer and heedless of their stray status (though she IS careful not to get licked all over her face). ]

Hi! Hello! Aren't you two just the sweetest?

[ But they aren't the reason she came!!! Well they aren't the ONLY reason she came. Looking up at Stiles sharply at his question, her face is an open book of panic. ]

Wha... Who told you that?? Why do you want to know?

[ She stands up quickly, and a good thing, too, backing away from the dogs and Stiles just in time. The heat builds up in her hands in reaction to a rush of emotion and a flicker of flame appears over her palms. ]

[threeisapattern]

[Woah woah woah. Stiles holds his own hands up in an oh god don't shoot gesture. Unfortunately, the dogs that were so friendly a second ago aren't so thrilled with this major change in atmosphere; the golden retriever gets in between her and Stiles, both dogs snarling, and it occurs to Stiles that there might be more to this talking-to-dogs thing than he initially thought.]

Okay, you have like 80 feet of hair and you said it's magic, I inferred! No one's trying to hurt anybody here, [god he hopes], so if you put the flame hands out, I'm pretty sure man's best friends here will stop growling and nobody will have to get burned alive or bitten. I don't want anyone bitten, okay? [That last part is directed more towards the dogs along with a silent plea that everyone will chill out.]

1/2

[worthit]

I didn't do it on purpose!!! [ She exclaims, trying to pat the flames out by clapping her hands together (she'd learned the hard way that her clothes were NOT flame proof, even if she is). She's backing away from the dogs a little more, though, definitely wary now that she's alarmed them. ]

It just happens when I get too excited or nervous! [ To which point she finally stops, pinching her eyes shut to try to relax. After a few moments the flames finally start to dissipate, though she has to tune out the snarling and the tension to do it. ]

[worthit]

[ Once the flames are gone, one eye peeks open to look at her hands, to make sure, and gradually she relaxes a little, letting out a shaky breath. Now she just looks embarrassed, burying her face behind her hands to cover the blush. ]

I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to do that, I swear. It's just that the only person who knows about that is my mother. I panicked.

[threeisapattern]

[While she's finding her zen, Stiles kneels down near the dogs and does his best to convince them that everything's fine here, no one's actually threatening him. They're not totally convinced, but they do chill out when Rapunzel manages to extinguish her hands.]

It's fine! I didn't mean to freak you out, either. I just figured - hair that long's gotta be a pain to deal with, must be a really good reason you don't cut it. [He turns to the golden retriever and gives it a couple extra scritches.] Thanks for having my back, but you should go back to your human, okay? [He would feel ridiculously terrible if some poor person's pet got in trouble for biting in defense of a guy who's unintentionally manipulating dogs to like him. He'd feel terrible about that happening to the little dog, too, but it's a stray and there isn't exactly anywhere he can tell it to go.]

Is the pyrokinesis something you got here?

[worthit]

No, it's not like you could've known that. But thanks for being understanding. [ She sighs, hands coming up to grip the back of her neck. She's feeling pretty ridiculous, jumping to such wild conclusions when no one here has given her reason YET to be so suspicious.

Keeping a respectful distance, she still looks to the retriever and the stray before the larger of the two can depart for home, a wince in her voice, but sincerity, too. ]

Sorry. I didn't mean to startle you guys, either... That must've been pretty alarming, huh?

[threeisapattern]

It's okay, accidents happen. I just - [His hand, buried in the little stray's fur, pauses.] It didn't occur to me before now that this dog power thing would make them want to jump to my defense like that.

[It's kind of sweet but also concerning. The dog whines, and Stiles resumes scritching it.] Yeah, I know, buddy.

Are you still willing to do some healing? [Brief shot of adrenaline aside, he's still in some pain, so. Yeah.]

[worthit]

[ This time when she lets out a breath she really is a little more relaxed, smiling a little and crossing more distance to come closer. Still not sure if Stiles' stray will be keen on her getting close, but she can cross that bridge when it comes. ]

Of course I am. Where were you hurt?

[ She can see some of it for herself but there may be more she doesn't know about, so it doesn't hurt to ask. ]

And yes, sorry- it is. The fire thing, I mean. It's new.

[threeisapattern]

[Yeah, so. This is awkward, and he kind of tenses up when she asks because even though she's here to help him heal, he doesn't really want to... talk about them? That much?]

We were gonna go find my house first, right?

[worthit]

[ The awkward is tangible, WHY is it tangible? But okay? We can roll with this. After a second of hesitating, and looking unsure. It doesn't seem he's in THAT much pain, though, and she DID say that, right? Okay, so... ]

Ah, right. Hmm... [ She considers this, holding up her arm so that she can interact with the interface of her device- she found it to be more intuitive than the physical one, don't ask. ]

There's supposed to be a map here, somewhere... You said Heropa #6?

[threeisapattern]

Yeah, that's the place.

[That he hasn't been to yet, so hopefully it's empty right now? He doesn't want to meet potential housemates while he's asking some girl to heal him with her magic hair. And he needs to figure out what to do about the stray, still - bring it along? Find a shelter for it later?] Do you have any idea where that is?

[worthit]

Kind of? I'm from De Chima, so I've only been here in Heropa a few times, and there's really a lot to see. It shouldn't be hard, though. The map will help.

[ Give her a second to fuss around with it, and mumble a bit as she reads street names and the like, but after a few moments she looks triumphantly to Stiles. ]

There, see? It should be this way.

[ She's... not exactly waiting for a response, setting off in the indicated direction. ]

[threeisapattern]

[Well, it's not like getting lost here would be effectively any worse than wandering around randomly like he'd been doing. Stiles nods and straightens up with a wince.]

Come on, buddy. We'll figure out some place for you to go later. [He's following at the pace of Teenager Who's Really Achy Right Now.]

[worthit]

[ She's slowing down to meet that pace, because it would be rude to run off ahead, and she wants to be sure she doesn't lose him by accident, or push him too hard, too fast. Aside from startling the crap out of everyone with her fire summoning she's actually trying hard to be proactively considerate. It's not difficult, really, the worry is genuine. ]

So... Did this happen here...? Someone here didn't do this to you, did they?

[ Shouldn't take too long to get there, even with the slow pace. The housing rings the city, so once they get past the native housing they should find his designated place. ]

thread content warning: likely discussion of kidnapping & violence against a minor

[threeisapattern]

No. No, this [he waves a hand vaguely at the visible injuries on his face as the dog trots along at his heels,] happened before I got here.

[He should - probably figure out what to say about that, too: tell the truth or improvise a believable lie.]

[worthit]

[ Somehow that's more disquieting than comforting. Suppose it's good that he was brought here when he was, but it's unsettling to think about what kind of possible situations could have led to his current state. ]

... Do you want to talk about it...?

[ Rapunzel understands the desire for privacy, so she has to give him that out. It's up to him if he wants to take it. ]

[threeisapattern]

I don't - [If it comes down to it, he's barely even processed this. When he asked for painkillers, he was focusing on the practical end of things. And back home, he'd only kind of started to sort through his feelings before Lydia showed up and he had to drive his long-term crush to go save her boyfriend with the power of true love.

His shoulders and expression are both tightening up, and he doesn't realize he'd just stopped talking until the dog following him starts to whine.] Things weren't... going great at home before I was ported in.

[worthit]

[ Aside from the fact that his response confirms her fears- Oh, she recognizes that look. She's felt it enough times to see the signs even on a stranger. Without actually touching him she holds out a hand placatingly in his general direction. ]

Hey, it's okay. You're safe here, now.

[ She's not sure if he means to elaborate, though, and to avoid shutting him down she adds- ]

We don't have to talk about it if you don't want, but it helps to tell someone about it I can be a pretty good listener...? No expiration date on that offer, either.

[ Sure, she just met him, but she definitely does not like seeing all that tension in his frame. ]