OPEN

[paterelohim]

Who: Chuck Shurley and YOU.
When: Friday-Sunday of the event
Where: all over the place! (and Purgatory)
Summary: Rule 63 is fun.
Warnings: TBD.

[Chuck is having a weird week- as is the rest of the city. After spending the first half of the week going through various and sundry traumatizing experiences, he- she decides to get out into the world and spend the weekend basically being irresponsible. Except at night, when she's in Purgatory, doing her new managerial duties and busily drinking on the job.

Friday is for lurking around various bars and restaurants, engaging in some healthy day drinking and wasting money on arcade games. She's pretty convinced that she's awesome at air hockey when she's drunk. Which is a lie.

On Saturday, she spends a lot of the day roaming around the Underground Mall vicinity aimlessly and eating weird bacon-based foods. She might also be sitting in a city square on the edge of a huge fountain, tongue sticking out in concentration as she busily paints what appears to be a... giant invisible dog.

Sunday has her in a park somewhere, playing an expensive-looking acoustic guitar- mostly Simon & Garfunkle, the Beatles, whatever she can remember without too many mistakes. Which isn't always successful. She's singing softly, too, trying to get used to her new, very unfamiliar voice.]


(ooc: A couple closed threads are posted below, but everything else is totally open!)

Comments

[magnetic_magpie]

Yes, seriously.

[Nerdism is default for his crowd so it doesn't seem that odd.]

I'm sure they will explain it.

[matereloah]

Like she'd care.

[She rolls over gingerly and reaches over him to get the flask, her sweater all but falling off the elbow she's leaning on.]

This just turned into us waving our lightsabers around. I mean- when I had one.

[magnetic_magpie]

It was fun to do.

[Which was why he did it.

He watched her and handed the flask over but didn't let go of it, kinesis balancing him while he used the other hand to tuck the sweater around her.]

It did.

[Smirk]

Oh come on. You could still do that.

[matereloah]

[She frowns a little at the touching, abandoning her efforts to take back the flask for the moment. Christ, this was a bad clothing choice, it fucking hurts- not that she's (intentionally) letting that show. Time to take the flask and hitch up a smirk.]

What, go down to the friendly neighborhood Quik-E-Mart and buy myself a vibrating AGI "lightsaber?" [SNORT] Sure, I'll get right on that.

[Time for a drink. She takes a swig then idly dangles the flask between her buzzing fingers, relishing the familiar sweep of warmth. It takes so much more alcohol for her to feel it anymore, so actually feeling a buzz- it isn't too common. Not for her. She idly brushes some of her ridiculous long hair out of the way, running a hand through it lazily, and regards him.]

You should try this. Just think of how self-righteous you'd be if you could do the whole "silly men and their egos" thing, y'know?

[magnetic_magpie]

[He was concerned but not yet ready to push over the injuries. Still he laughed.]

That would be one way to do it.

[And he just watches. Blue eyes and long hair - he's always been attracted to both.]

...Try what?

[matereloah]

[Chuck rolls her neck a little, enjoying the warmth of the buzz. It's been a while since she's actually felt buzzed from drinking so little- this new body, and its new wiring.]

Being a chick.

[She lets her hair fall around her, feeling distinctly like KStew, and hikes her slipping hoodie up her shoulder again with a faint wince.]

It's not bad.

[magnetic_magpie]

[He could probably do that to himself or others by hitting the right parts of the brain with practice.

He just watches her for a moment.]

I don't think changing the packaging changes the person? Does it?

[He leans into her space a little, curious.]

[matereloah]

Are you kidding? Of course it changes you. Everything feels different.

[She shifts her weight a little and restlessly pulls her jacket around her, fiddling with the zipper.]

I gotta say, I only left the house once on Monday, to go to an AGI Toys-R-Us. [oversharing!!] Women- they have it pretty good.

[magnetic_magpie]

Really? You like...it's not just a physiological change?

[He reaches over to flick the zipper with a finger tip. Shiny thing.

Snort.]

Wiring's all pretty similar you know.

[matereloah]

[Chuck flicks him hard on the back of his hand.]

Maybe, but the big red button does a hell of a lot more. And... does it more.

[Shaking her head in quiet moral outrage.]

It's an injustice.

[magnetic_magpie]

[He flicks back at her fingers though it's more playful than anything.]

I know. It's quite something to see.

[Snort.]

For you maybe. Not everyone.

[Oh the things he can do to a brain.]

[matereloah]

[That choice of response actually brings back a strong surge of memory, her fingers going still in his. The last time she- he saw a woman have multiples-

She shakes her head very slightly, moving past the swell of sadness, and looks at him. There's a slight blush creeping into her cheeks; she might have tried to shake missing Fred, but the memory, his response- yeah.]

It's unjust that they're the only ones who can.

[magnetic_magpie]

[He watches, watches nerves fire and brain centers light up. A lazy smirk plays over his lips.]

No they aren't.

[matereloah]

[A skeptical eyebrow.]

I mean outside of esoteric Tantric mutant medication crap.

[magnetic_magpie]

It's not 'crap'.

[Lazy cat-like stretch.]

And that's not what I mean. It's all nerves. And my powers don't just stop at being an fMRI, at seeing something. I can touch them too.

[matereloah]

-Wait, are you... [She shifts a little, because saying this next sentence up this close is a little awkward.] Saying you have actual mind powers, that you use to get people off?

[ . . . ]

Wow. [A somewhat discomfited chuckle.] I can't believe Emma actually had a reason for liking you.

[She'll just be over here, pretending she isn't imagining that in detail vivid enough to require another pull from the flask. Goddamn, brain bleach. It's like a playback loop that can't be stopped.]

[magnetic_magpie]

[He just laughs, quietly but smug.]

Emma had a lot of reasons.

But it's not psychic. Bio-electric impulses, it's just tapping the right ones and...

Nerves are nerves, whether it's walking or picking up a pencil or...

[Well.]

[matereloah]

[Scoff.]

I'm sorry, but can you really expect me to believe that? I'm pretty sure that you're just inventing powers on the spot now. Your powers are magnetism based, not some mystical control of all electricity.

[magnetic_magpie]

Electro-magnetism. You can't actually separate the two. Here, let me have your hand?

[matereloah]

[Chuck looks at him skeptically for a moment, but sets down the flask and holds out a hand.]

[magnetic_magpie]

[He watches Chuck's hand, and one by one the fingers curl in, gently making a fist, open slowly, then he makes her snap her fingers. It doesn't hurt, it doesn't even feel unnatural, but it's not something her brain is telling her hand to do.]

See?

[matereloah]

[She sees, all right. She feels it, too- her hand moving entirely on its own, with no command from her. All of a sudden it isn't her hand, it's some alien thing, an intruder, invasive and outsider and Chuck actually tries to stop the snap before it happens, but- it happens anyway.]

Stop that. Stop it.

[magnetic_magpie]

[He stops as soon as she says to, turning his head a little to watch her face, almost sprawled over the hood of the car.]

I wouldn't abuse that power Chuck.

[I wouldn't hurt you, he means.]

[matereloah]

[She scoots away a good ten inches and sits up, pulling her knees closer to her chest.]

People with power never consider themselves abusive.

[magnetic_magpie]

We do, actually. It's why we teach ethics to the children. It's why I asked you first.

Some I don't have to - sort of like poking a friend with a pencil when you're bored. But mostly, I'd never use...almost any of my powers on someone without their consent.

[Well. Most people. Red Skull he'd trip pain centres until he had seizures. Gleefully.]