video

[aglonby]

[ the feed comes on to show a boy with very tall hair and a much shorter girl with scratches on her face over her eye, one looking rather cheerful and the other less so. ]

Hi hi hi everyone, I have an important question. [ he holds up a finger, tilts his head as if a thought had just occurred to him. he's so preoccupied he was going to launch himself into his spiel without even introducing himself. ] I'm being rude. I am Henry Cheng, and we were wondering —

[ the not so tall and in fact very short girl interrupts. ] We're looking for someone we know! [ she pulls a little face, looking over at Mr. Henry Cheng. ] A few people, actually. [ okay, maybe that was a little rude. she murmurs something unintelligible and takes a step back. please, proceed. ]

And that was my lovely friend Blue. [ he gestures with a flourish toward her, shoots her a wink, absolutely unbothered by the interruption or her outburst. ] As she said, we are looking for someone. Multiple someones. I'm sure this place has a list of sorts, yes? A quick way to CTRL-F a friend's name and find out their status?

[ he looks a bit more serious, then, like underneath the cheerfulness he's exhausted. his next words are very earnest. ]

We would appreciate any info. Thank you.

[ in the background, Blue begins tromping away, shedding dead leaves for some reason, and can be vaguely heard to say 'maybe we should've mentioned Gansey by name' before the video ends. ]

Comments

[doubleblind]

This explanation is gonna get kinda confusing before it makes sense, but stick with me, okay?

[Cosima knows all about confusing time line issues. Her own clone had been here for months before Cosima showed up, and everyone from home seems to be from different points on what Cosima fondly calls, their "home timeline". She can understand the confusion.]

[oceiteres]

[ There's a sort of hesitant pause here and she bites her lip for a second. ] All right. [ If she doesn't listen, she's just going to stay confused, isn't she?

Better grit her teeth and see what's what. ] I'm listening.

[doubleblind]

Would you believe that many different worlds exist? Worlds might not be the right world, universes might be better, I'm still deciding which one works best.

[oceiteres]

I believe a lot of things. [ And she's skeptical of probably just as many. ] That's a lot to swallow though.

[doubleblind]

[Cosima actually smiles. She can appreciate the skepticism. She herself operates under a "show, not tell" policy when it comes to believing improbable things.]

Told you things would get confusing.

I swear it's true, but you don't even have to take just my word for it. I can show you my research if you want real proof. I ran an informal survey, have been observing... There's no way most of the people who are brought here call the same world home.

[oceiteres]

[ That's kind of intriguing? Blue leans in slightly. ] You did research on this?

[ Well, it's not that shocking that someone would, right? If this is all real. ]

How?

[doubleblind]

I asked around. Most people here love talking about their homes.

[oceiteres]

[ This strikes her right away: ] They're probably homesick. [ And the implication there does not sit so well with her... ]

If this really isn't their home. [ There. That feels better. ]

[doubleblind]

... Yeah, exactly. I think we can all know that feeling.

[oceiteres]

[ Her expression shifts several times in the span of a few seconds, a wide variety of emotion there. ]

How long have you been doing research?

[doubleblind]

[Cosima's still smiling, open and sincere. She wants Blue to feel like she can trust her.]

Almost six months. I got here in January.

[oceiteres]

Six? [ She just blinks dumbly at the screen for a moment. ] Half a year?

[ Wait, hold the phone. Or, the other phone. Something. ] January? That can't be right either.

[ Hoo boy. ]

[doubleblind]

I know, I know. It doesn't line up with what you remember from home? That's totally normal. Time here... It's weird.

[oceiteres]

I guess it makes sense. [ In a weird way. She looks unsure to the extreme. ] Sort of. I'm trying to make it make sense.

[doubleblind]

I can wait for you to process. Don't want to totally blow your mind.

[oceiteres]

I need to figure this out. [ She looks less unsure at that. ] Putting it off won't help.

[doubleblind]

[Cosima nods, approvingly. Noah was right. She likes this girl.]

Good attitude.

The best way to realize how time's different here is to ask your friends what the last thing they remember is. I bet you guys'll have different answers.

[oceiteres]

[ Blue chews on her lip a moment. ] Right. So I shouldn't go around saying anything that might've happened without checking who knows what first. [ And keeping in mind they know things she doesn't, since they've been here longer. ]

[doubleblind]

You've got it. It can be a weird couple of days at first, getting everyone's timelines sorted out, but things settle down...

[oceiteres]

I guess they have to, with so many people here. [ It'd be total chaos otherwise, right? So she assumes. Not that she knows how chaotic it can be, but she'll find out before too long. ]

[doubleblind]

[Cosima isn't about to emphasize how chaotic things can get on Blue's first day. She'll see that for herself sooner or later. (Hopefully later.)]

So many people from so many different places. You won't believe some of the worlds people come from...

[oceiteres]

[ That draws a little curiosity onto her expression. ] How different are we talking about here?

[doubleblind]

For some people, their super powers aren't new.

[oceiteres]

[ Well, that... ] Actually, what I can do here apparently isn't that different from what I do at home. I can't figure out how to control part of it though.

[ Is it not smart, talking about this? She's not sure. But Cosima is really easy to talk to, actually. So. ]

[doubleblind]

[Cosima can't hide her interest, but it's curious, and in no way malicious.]

How different?