[008]

[grip_on_reality]

[today there is a nine-year-old girl on the Astral Plane who, perhaps surprisingly, doesn't seem that bothered about her sudden presence in a multi-dimensional nexus. she has long brown hair and is wearing a plain T-shirt and jeans that are a little tattered and dirty, as though they've seen quite a bit of exploring. but her hair is neat and she doesn't look like she's been in anything particularly dirty today. being a curious child, though, she's made for the most interesting place she could spot--the black hole. currently, she has a hand in the gravity field around it and is attempting to see how far she can reach into that]

That feels weird! [she pushes her hand a little farther in, making a face at the sensation of the gravity fighting back] What is this thing?

[anyone listening might notice that the girl has a clear Mancunian accent. in fact, she may even look a bit familiar. but on her end, she's too busy poking at the field to notice anyone who might be approaching]

[ooc: Menzies is currently under her first experiment! For the time being, she has been regressed to when she was nine.]

Comments

[grip_on_reality]

[her eyes widen, and she brightens] Ohhh! That might work!

[she nods at the first part of his question. to the second, she says:] I 'aven't got one. It's just me and mum. [her answer is flat--factual. there's no sense of sadness, regret, anger--no real emotion at all in her tone. it's simply a statement, as if she's just given the answer to 2+2]

[betrayedtwin]

[the simplicity of her answer surprises him a bit.] Oh come on, we all have a dad. Don't you think it's a bit harsh to say you don't have one?

[grip_on_reality]

[she shakes her head, looking annoyed] No, I 'aven't got one. Mum says 'e doesn't count.

[betrayedtwin]

Ahhh. [he nods slightly] I see. [he definitely catches her drift there] Okay then, so no siblings either, huh?

[grip_on_reality]

Nope. [she shakes her head again, unconcerned. but if he's going to ask her more personal questions, she's going to continue firing them back at him] What about you? What's your family like?

[betrayedtwin]

[something tells him this could go on for a while, so he thinks a change of venue is in order. he holds his hand out to her] I'll tell you once we're back on the Plane. Deal?

[grip_on_reality]

[she glances at the door, wondering how soon the owner of the flat is likely to come home. with that in mind, she nods in agreement and takes his hand with her much smaller one] Deal.

[betrayedtwin]

[and with that, he drops from the Plane, turning up right where they left. he lets go of her hand once they're back, though, figuring she'd pull it away anyway.] So you want to know about my family, huh? [he nods his head towards the kitchen and starts to slowly move off in that direction. hopefully, she takes that as a sign to follow him.] Well, I can tell you I have a twin sister. She might even be around here somewhere.

[grip_on_reality]

[she follows--but it's a good thing he's moving slowly because her much shorter strides mean he'd easily lose her otherwise] She comes to the Plane, too? What's her name?

[betrayedtwin]

[yeah, he has a feeling it'd be difficult, so his pace is quite leisurely] Sure can! And she's like me in that we both fight the bad guys. You can call her South.

[grip_on_reality]

[surprised--and a bit excited] She's with the space police, too?

South...Dakota? [she giggles] Are all the undercover names like that?

[because it sounds more like what they'd do in a film than what she imagines in real life]

[betrayedtwin]

Yeah, all of us in the space police have names like that. [boy, talk about deja vu...] It goes back to the whole 'bad guys can't know our names' thing. Goes for everyone.

[he pauses for a second, and when he speaks again, his voice is a little softer] Not even my mom and dad know.

[grip_on_reality]

[she frowns, picking up her pace to step a bit closer to him. she lowers her voice, too] They don't know you're in the space police?

[betrayedtwin]

[shakes his head] No. Haven't spoken to them in a long time. [a very long time now that he's thinking about it]

[grip_on_reality]

[she's quiet briefly, thinking about that. it sounds far too sad to her; she can't imagine never talking to her mum]

Maybe you could write 'em a letter? If you send it from the Plane, then nobody would know it's from you or where to find you. [she brightens a little, happy with that idea--but she watches for his reaction]

[betrayedtwin]

[he glances at her and stops for a second when he sees her expression. he's...not sure what good writing a letter would do, or even if it would reach them.]

Maybe I will. [starts walking again, his voice warm again] Couldn't hurt. Besides, I need something to do while you write yours.

[grip_on_reality]

[she nods, her firm tone very like the one that he's heard from her as an adult] You should do.

Is it far? [she scurries after him]

[betrayedtwin]

[teasingly] All right, you're the boss.

[scans the area quickly before speaking] Not too much farther. It's just over there. [points at the small postbox in the distance] See it?

[grip_on_reality]

[she nods again because yes, she is]

[even squinting, it takes her a second to spot the post box. but when she does, she nods eagerly] Yeah! C'mon, let's go write letters! [and with that, she takes off running for it]

[betrayedtwin]

[chuckles to himself; it's not often a guy hears such enthusiasm for letter writing. it's a good thing he grabbed some paper and a couple pens right before he dropped back to the Plane or else he'd have no idea where to get any.

he gives her a moment's head-start before taking off after her, though his pace is more akin to a leisurely jog than anything. he actually has to make a conscious effort not to run fast; he's so used to doing the exact opposite. the number of times he's pushed his suit's capabilities just to get out of a jam--or rather, to avoid one... it's worth it, though, letting her stay just ahead of him. he has a feeling she'd like winning, just like someone else he knows.]

[grip_on_reality]

[she isn't racing so much as just eager to reach her destination. after all, considering the choices are endless stars versus a post box in space, it's easy to see which is more interesting. still, she gives him a wide grin when she gets there first. she would have been annoyed if he had hung back too much, but this result is perfect]

[it's at this point that she realises what she didn't think of before, though] Oh... [she frowns, concerned] North, have you got paper?

[betrayedtwin]

[he pulls out the paper just as she finishes that question] You bet. [holds it out for her, but takes a sheet for himself. is he really going to write a letter to his parents, though? ...does he even want to?]

You know, the best part of this mail box? You don't even need any stamps or pay any kind of postage to send a letter. It just goes.

[grip_on_reality]

Really? [she's just eagerly accepted the paper, but now she looks up at him skeptically] That's not how mail's supposed to work!

[betrayedtwin]

Nope, but it does here. [he sits down on the ground next to the mail box, folding his legs in front of him] This place isn't like our worlds, remember? So that makes our letters extra special.

[grip_on_reality]

Are you sure? [because she's not sure she believes him. but she sits down next to him all the same, laying her paper on the ground and leaning over to write on it] Well, yeah! It's space mail.

[clearly space mail is automatically special but still requires postage. or, at least, that's how her mind sees it]