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]

[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?

[oceiteres]

Well. [ She pauses a second. Actually, she's not sure how to talk about part of it. She'll just say the bit that's easier to explain. ] At home, I'm kind of a battery for psychics. I can make their readings stronger if I'm in the room or touching something.

And here, it says I can do that, but with everyone's powers.

[doubleblind]

Seriously? Wow, that sounds like an amazing ability.

[oceiteres]

I'm sure it's like a lot of abilities. It can be good, but it can be bad too. Hopefully I can control it here. [ At least she's sort of gotten the hang of it at home. Kinda. ]

[doubleblind]

If you want help practicing it, let me know. I can't see strengthening my powers going wrong so if you enhance them too much or something... It won't be an issue.