thoughtformed | Third Delivery

Less of a riot, more of a... battle. Guns and casualties included.

It was pretty extreme, even by local standards. But yeah, this is what everyone has been talking about.

Ugh. Wow. I really had no idea that places like this even existed. Is there a coffee house or something I can go to so that I can get my mind off of suddenly being reduced to middle school for no reason?

Yeah, I know a few good places. Need company?

If you're not too busy, sure. Company is always nice.

The place I usually go to is at 1617 Mobius St.

See you there, then?

I'll be there with bells on.

[Tim is used to quick costume changes and traveling fast, so he's at the coffee-shop ten minutes later, better-dressed but still trying to look casual.

This isn't a thing. Tim keeps trying to tell himself that. He's just feeling slow and paranoid because yesterday everything went crazy and the only constructive thing he did was lock Steph in a vault. Which wasn't very constructive, even if it worked.

Just because he's having coffee with Ramona and she gave him her number last week, that doesn't mean this is a date. He's just going into college, and she's probably already out of it. She's not interested in him. She's just new in town and needs some company.

When he orders, he orders half-caff. He's jittery enough as it is.]

[It's a few minutes later when Ramona finally rolls into the coffee shop, pulling her goggles up onto her head and looking around for Tim. She spots him waiting at the counter and gives a casual wave and rolling in his direction. Her smile is a little weak, tired, as she's still having trouble coping with having been a teenager again, even if it was only for a few days.]

Hey. Glad to see you're all right. I heard that something crazy went on downtown last night. It's good to see that you made it out okay.

I stayed locked in my dorm room.

[It's no stretch to look a little ashamed as he says it. He feels a little ashamed of his older self.]

Good to see you steered clear of it, too. I think everybody's having kind of a hard time with things, though, whether they were in the middle of that mess or not. Jumping around in time...

Yeah. My head's still reeling a bit from it. I hope that's not a regular thing, you know? I dunno if my head can take it.

[She takes a moment to order herself a coffee and smiles softly at Tim.]

I didn't get to see what happened to you. What was it like? What were you like?

Cynical.

[Which is a bit of an understatement. But he cracks a smile as he says it.]

I don't buy that the future is fixed -- which is good, because my future self was a workaholic insurance agent with no stress relief and a big pile of regrets. I guess... if that was where I'm headed, I'm glad to know about it. Because that's never going to happen.

[Maybe that was a bit intense.]

Who wants to be that? I've never bought that regrets are really real anyway. Just a pile of things that you feel sorry for yourself for. If you live the way you want to, instead of lying to yourself and other people, then you've got nothing to feel sorry for, right? Even if you do dumb things, it's still part of the experience.

[She picks up her coffee as it comes and nods over to an empty table and begins skating in that direction.

Also, I'm not so sure the future isn't fixed. I mean, if I'd done something during that mixup like.. lost an arm or my mom died or whatever, I'm pretty sure it'd affect how I came out here, right? So why should your insurance gig be any different, just because it hasn't happened in this timeline yet?

[Tim sidles into a seat at the empty table, biting his lip in thought. Ow. Tense thought. He tries to relax a little.]

I don't have a good answer for that. Either way, I'm not going to spend too much time worrying about it. If that was... a cautionary tale... I'll do my best to learn something from it. If it wasn't, then by the time I see it on my horizon, maybe I can make sure to do it my way -- get to the same place, but not feel sorry for myself.

[He can't really comment on the 'lying' but, not given his night life -- or what he saw in his Shadow. He's getting better about that kind of thing, he hopes -- maybe if he's good enough, he won't have to worry about being a tense, bitter insurance agent who moonlights as a cyber-vigilante.]

Well that's good. I think I like you already, Tim. You're smart and good looking. Keep that up and you might just conquer the world someday. There's not nearly enough guys like you out there.

[She sits down across from him and sips at her coffee] If you don't wanna do insurance, don't do it. I can't say how time works, but I know how to live enough to know that I won't do something I don't wanna. You shouldn't either. No point.

[Tim raises his glass in a toast to give himself time to think.]

Thanks. I'll take that advice.

[Pause. Drink. Come on, Drake. What would Dick Grayson do?]

As far as I can see, there aren't too many girls like you out there either.

[Okay. That was... not a total disaster.]

[She mirrors his toast right back and pulls off the lid to sip at the whipped cream melting on top of her drink and pauses for a moment to look at him curiously.]

Maybe. I guess that depends. What kind of girl am I?

[Right. Detective time.]

You're... smart. Bold. Uncompromising. You like to live in the moment.

[He takes a sip of his drink, less for a dramatic pause and more because his throat's gone dry.]

Definitely good-looking.

[Ramona couldn't help herself but to laugh a little bit and smile over the top of her cup at Tim.]

I guess I can't say you're wrong, but it's been a while since someone was that direct with me. It's nice. Less insulting to my intelligence. Thank you.

You're welcome. I have this feeling that if I insulted your intelligence, I wouldn't be around long afterward.

[Tim is self-aware enough to wonder, after he says that, just why it is that he thinks that's a good thing. He hasn't realized, exactly, that his 'type' consists of confusing women who can beat him up, but he does know that he's seldom happier than when he's in just a little over his head.]

Probably not. My bullshit tolerance level is pretty low. But you're smart, good-looking, and a gentleman, so I might be able to squeeze one or two passes in there every now and again.

I'll try not to abuse the privilege.

I appreciate it.

[She takes a moment and studies Tim. He seemed a little more on edge than he was at the party. She figured it had something to do with the fact that there wasn't any alcohol in his system. She sets her cup down and leans forward, determined to get him to relax.]

So tell me about all the other things I need to be on the lookout for. Should I buy a gun or something? Or just start journaling like crazy in case I have someone else's brain in my head?

Buying a gun might be overkill... but yeah, I'd definitely suggest keeping a journal. Mine's set to open up on its own every morning, so if there is something wrong with my head, I'll be telling myself that first thing.

[Sadly, talking shop actually relaxes him. Preparing for disaster is just one of those Bat-clan life skills; and he's very confident when it comes to those.]

If you slept through it, I must've slept through it too. You're okay, right?

Yeah, I'm all right.

I don't think we've formally met yet. Ramona.

We haven't exactly been around each other a lot.

I'm Claire. It's nice to actually meet for real.

Nice to meet you.

So what do you think of this place so far? Kinda weird, right?

Less kinda and more just... plain old weird.

hey hey

i didnt sign up for this.

What? Murders? I'm pretty sure like, no one has ever signed up for being brutally murdered. Ever.

yeah, pretty sure you didnt either.

call it a hunch.

Well, if I knew I was coming here I wouldn't have left in the first place. Or at least gone somewhere different.

you say that like you had a choice, babe.

You're saying I didn't?

don't tell me they didn't feed you the fake bullshit.

Well, they did. But if I hadn't left Toronto in the first place, I wouldn't have wound up here. I'd still be happy and ignorant in my own little world away from crazy murders and age regression.

somehow i don't think it really has anything to do with where you left and where you stayed.

they would've got you either way.

Well 'they' sound like a bunch of assholes to me.

hey look, we agree.

I never said that we wouldn't, Mr. Poet

hey, looks like we're still stuck here anyway.

We sure are. And you're sure that we can't get un-stuck?

thats comin from a guy whos hard to keep in one place.

Third Delivery

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And she was.

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oh hi there roomie.

sup

this should be interesting. READY THE POPCORN.

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