Let's Do the Time Warp (Again)

[applesaucemod]

It's that time again, but time seems to be a bit muddled. As usual, people from all over the multiverse are being drawn into the Dreaming by the rift. This time, in addition to (or sometimes instead of) picking up the residents of Manhattan, they take them from their home universe but from a different point in time. You may find yourself suddenly encountering a future version of yourself, or perhaps you bump into a friend taken from long before you met them.

Tonight's setting is also time-twisted. You're still in Manhattan, but it seems to be closer to the 1930s. Specifically, you're in an old hotel. There's the dimly lit lobby, with chairs and tables for relaxed mingling. The bar, where tables are front of a stage, on which a band is playing various hits of the 30s. There's also an outdoor area if you need fresh air. Or you could explore the hotel, but it's mostly corridors, unless you stumble upon an unlocked room.



[Mod note: Usual dream-party rules apply. Both members and non-members are welcome to use any character, be they already in the game or no.

For game-specific characters, you can choose whether or not they will remember their time in Manhattan if they're taken from the future. You can take your character from multiple different points in time, if you want.]

Comments

[has_a_horn]

He squints at her condescendingly, his head tipping to the side. "I do not mean Mithros."

[wildmage_daine]

Two-legger! Not a bandit - someone from the village? No one she knows. Daine bares her teeth in a snarl; she might not know this two-legger, but she knows what the villagers do to animals, and what they want to do to her. She tries to retreat, and her back hits the thin, wrought-iron bars of an ornamental fence. When she glances over her shoulder and sees the impediment, her mind screams, Cage! No, no, no! She lets out a yelp, throws another terrified glance in Aly's direction, and then takes off along the fence line on all fours, bruising the knuckles of the hand that still clutches the knife.

[theoldgirl]

The TARDIS senses Gabriel's presence before she spots him and makes her way over to greet him, only to draw up short when he isn't who she was expecting. She recognizes this body of his from his past, but that doesn't tell her what exactly is going on here, so she cautiously closes the remaining distance, refraining from a mental greeting for now. "Gabriel?"

[has_a_horn]

Gabriel turns to her with interest, but not recognition. He can sense right away that she's not human, and a brief brush against her mind looking for information reveals much more than he's expecting. Very interesting, indeed.

"You know me?"

[theoldgirl]

"And you currently don't know me," she supplies with a hesitant nod, almost sounding a little disappointed. Is he dreaming unconsciously again? But that brief mental contact tells her a few things too, mainly that his mind doesn't feel the way it did during his nightmare. In fact, it feels different in general, more alien somehow, and a quick telepathic brush of her own confirms her suspicion - it's not just him having some kind of memory loss. This isn't the Gabriel she knows right now at all.

Which means... "I think I might be from your future."

[has_a_horn]

Gabriel clasps his hands behind his back while his face forms an expression halfway between delight and disbelief. "You're not certain?"

He smiles, and it's small, genuine. "Or is it just the future that's uncertain?"

[aly_brighteyes]

Aly doesn't follow. She stays exactly where she is and lifts her hands to show Daine that they're empty. Daine had told Aly, when she was younger, about her wilder and less controlled days, but seeing them is another, painful, matter.

"Daine?" she asks softly. "Veralidaine Serrasri?"

[aly_brighteyes]

Aly squints back, wondering who he means then, but also noting that it doesn't seem to be a good line of questioning, so she plays it slightly stunned and awed.

"I've never met an angel before, you see."

[theoldgirl]

It seems he still (or already?) has a bit of a knack for amusing her at the right time, because her formerly rather concerned expression takes on a very small smile as well, more a glint in her eyes than anything.

"The future isn't particularly uncertain to me," she points out with just a hint of teasing. "And I am becoming more certain about you as well." If her suspicion is really correct, she can see where his future obnoxiousness is coming from. "You didn't recognize me upon our first meeting, so I assume you will forget this encounter after you wake up." Which means she doesn't have to be terribly careful about what they talk about here, right?

[has_a_horn]

He's willing to go along with that assumption, mostly because it means he can ask her more questions about his future without consequences. "Then I can ask what you will be to me. In my not particularly uncertain future." This would be your cue to tell him things, TARDIS. He'll wait patiently.

There's part of him that suspects this is some sort of trick being played on him, but he's willing to play along for the time being. He's just starting to have fun with this.

[wildmage_daine]

Daine doesn't get very far before she runs into a corner and has to turn back around, breathing heavily. She's trapped, and there's no sign of the Pack. Have they abandoned her? No, they wouldn't, they wouldn't. But where are they?

Something stirs inside her at the sound of her name - especially her full name, which she hasn't heard in a while. She rocks back onto her haunches, eyeing the stranger uncertainly, until it hits her: that's the name the villagers know. This two-legger must be with them. She's one of the hunters.

Daine's limbs are shaking, and she uses both hands to steady the knife as she points it at the two-legger. She won't be captured, though she'd much rather run than fight. Risking a glance up at the fence, she registers that it isn't that tall. Could she jump it?

[aly_brighteyes]

"I don't mean any harm," Aly promises. She's shaved bald, bruised, and hardly a threat and her own Aunt looks at her like a monster.

"Daine? I'm Aly. I'm a friend."

[theoldgirl]

She's still a little sad that this isn't the Gabriel that knows her; she'd been looking forward to spending more time with him in the telepathic current, now that they're on speaking terms again. But this is definitely an interesting opportunity, though she's not sure how much 'her' Gabriel would actually approve of this, given how guarded he is about his past.

"We are friends," she answers with a proper smile, mirroring his posture with her hands behind her back as she looks up at him (more so than usual). "Not... without difficulties, but I think we are rather important to each other, given our circumstances." She gives him a look, anticipating his curiosity. "Which are a little too complicated to go into now." Mostly she just doesn't want to talk about being stuck in New York and all the unpleasant things that have brought them closer. With some effort she forces herself not to think about the most recent one at all.

Instead, she gives him something that she thinks is bound to excite him. "I am a space and time ship from a universe far more populated than yours. I'm called the TARDIS."

[wildmage_daine]

That's not right. The wolves are her friends. Cloud is her friend. She doesn't have friends among the two-leggers - why would she?

Daine growls at the stranger in warning, then reaches for the top of the fence with one hand and pulls herself upright, the other hand still aiming the knife in the two-legger's general direction. Her intention was to leap over the fence, but standing on two legs causes her head to spin. She shouldn't be standing like this... should she? She lurches forward almost as if she's going to be sick, then topples gracelessly over the fence and lands on her back on a manicured lawn, too winded to run.

[aly_brighteyes]

Aly doesn't chase, worried though she is that Daine will hurt herself.

"Do you want some food?" she asks. "We can find some? Or look for your friends?"

[has_a_horn]

"No." He tilts his head at her, disbelieving and amused, then looks up, scanning the crowd as if he's looking for who has pulled this joke on him. "Did Lucifer put you up to this? He knows that I like..."

Suddenly he stops and his face crumples as he remembers just why Lucifer or any of the other angels wouldn't be behind a practical joke at the moment. Gabriel left while his brothers were busy trying to kill each other, then he'd fallen asleep trying to escape himself. That's why he's here.

"I'm-" He's lost for a moment, but as his face swivels back to her he remembers where he is. "Would you like to go listen to the music?"

*pounces on*

[has_a_horn]

Hey there, Ned. Have a Gabriel sliding into the seat next to you. He hasn't seen you around before, so he's a bit curious to see what brought him here.

Gabriel orders a Pink Lady and casts a glance over to Ned, sizing him up. He feels human, but maybe he's got himself a rift power in there too. It's hard to tell without really diving into his head, and he's not really that interested at the moment. "Enjoying yourself?"

[has_a_horn]

He sees right through the show of awe, but her statement seems true enough, so he lets it go.

"You may have met one already." He provides, "Without knowing. Many angels have been sent to be guardians of humanity on Earth."

[alittlemad]

Well, this is one way to make a fellow feel really small-town. It's not like Norman is under the delusion that the Bates Motel is anything more than a small-time place that's past what little moment in the sun it had, but there's always something weird about going to a 'real' hotel and seeing how it's done in the big city. Not that he's done so often, of course; Mother has always needed him with her, and there hasn't been much money for travel.

He's not terribly interested in examining the lobby, and the sight of the bar sends him awkwardly looking for somewhere less threatening. He fetches up in the garden/patio, his spotless white shirt and hunched shoulders making him look like a particularly awkward stork perched among the plants.

[brink]

Topher doesn't recognise Gabriel. Whether it's because he can't remember his time with Romac or because he's not able to sense his Grace is uncertain, because Topher doesn't remember a lot of things. His mind doesn't work in the way it used to.

And being told not to be afraid of someone isn't actually that helpful. He's heard that before. And given this someone knows his name makes him even more wary. He assumes now it's someone he knows in a different body - which is true enough, really.

"No thanks," he answers, which makes sense in his own head.

[brink]

Topher's immidiate reaction when spotting the man is to dodge behind a corner, somewhat obviously. Grace and stealth were never his strong suit, even in his glory days.

[bluesuit_handy]

Like many animals, Andrew's natural inclination when he sees someone running is to run after them and eat them ask them many questions. Hurrying toward where he saw the stranger 'disappear,' he calls out, "Hey!"

[has_a_horn]

Hey there, ickle little Peter. Gabriel laughs aloud when he sees him and heads on over. Even if the modern Peter is still mad at him, he really can't pass up this opportunity.

He sidles up to the reception desk and leans against it, peering over at Peter. "Hey there, kiddo, rent me a room?"

[brink]

Unfortunately for Topher, he dodged into a blind corridor. So really all he can do is wait until Andrew rounds the corner, where he will find Topher with his arms up around his head, as if protecting himself from an attack. When Andrew catches up, though, Topher drops his arms and just says, "No."

[fucking_ebay]

Shit. Peter stands up a bit too quickly, eyes darting about for some sign that the man miraculously isn't talking to him. Yeah, no. The guy has to be blind to think he looks like someone who works here, but there they are.

"All full," he lies, the piss off part implied by his tone.