entrancelogs | [Open] And live while we're young

Entry tags:

[Open] And live while we're young

Who: Tim Drake and YOU
Where: The Labs
When: the event
Rating: PG
Summary: Tim is having fun exploring. And trying not to let on that he's having so much fun.
The Story:

It's not that Tim isn't aware that this is a Serious Situation for some people, but the problem is that he hasn't had this much fun in ages. There are puzzles to be solved, and spooky labs to be explored, and even if he weren't Robin in another life, this would be fantastic. He's just trying to keep his glee to himself while he explores. And works on puzzles. And explores some more.

[Tim can be found all over the labs, solving puzzles and looking for clues. He's trying not to let on that he's enjoying himself so much, but. He kind of is.]

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Cissie is glad she found Tim, but it does not take long for her to be reminded that Tim was always the brains of the operation. It doesn't do much for her ego that even being older than him does not mean she's anywhere near as smart as he is, but it's also a little comforting.

Comforting, and boring. She can't really help him with the puzzle he's currently working on, mostly because every time she makes a suggestion, he's about ten steps ahead of her and by the time she catches up to him, he's even further ahead.

So instead, Cissie lies back on the floor of the lab next to him and looks up at the ceiling.

"You are enjoying this way too much, you know."

He glances over at her and gives her a quick--if slightly apologetic--grin. "How many times in your life do you get to solve puzzles and find clues in a spooky lab while trying not to aggro the monsters lurking around? It's like being in a real live tabletop game, or video game. I'm... kind of geeking out a bit."

Cissie rolls her eyes, smiling fondly, and kicks out at his foot with hers. "First, you're geeking out a lot. Second, how many times in your life? Let me ask you--how many times in your life? I'd say it's more than most people's."

He snickers a little at that. "I do live kind of a charmed life, don't I? All of the mental exercise I can stand, and then some."

Cissie bites back a smile, shaking her head at the ceiling. "Who trained you again? I can't remember."

Call it nostalgia, but she couldn't stop herself.

He gives her the most innocent look he can manage. "Gosh. I think it might have been the World's Greatest Detective."

She giggles, and kicks at him again. "I never would have thought I'd miss hearing you say that. Like Kon talking about his tactile telekenesis."

"You're saying that like you've heard it one or two hundred times, and that can't be right. Are you saying Kon and I say that a lot?"

"Just once or twice. A day." Cissie laughs, and sits up to look over at the puzzle Tim's working on, if only to keep herself from thinking about the fact that she hasn't heard them say those things in a long time. "How's it coming? Failing miserably without my help?"

He grins over at her. "I dwell in darkness without you, obviously."

[Dipper is enjoying this event probably a lot more than he should be, but he loves events that let him do puzzles.

Not that he's actually helping with the puzzle. Tim seems to have a handle on it. He's got his notebook open and is taking notes.]

There's this freaky machine Frisk and Alphys say no one should go near. I don't think they realize that's the best possible way to make people want to go near it.

I know I'm kind of interested. And telling everyone to stay away definitely just made it worse. [He glances over at Dipper. He's not having trouble with the puzzles, really, but he does appreciate the company.]

I'm interested too, but I know enough about them and their world that I'm not gonna mess with it.

[Dipper's died twice. He's interested in solving the mysteries of Wonderland and to a lesser extent, of Frisk's world. He's not interested in dying again.]

Last time I didn't listen to someone who said not to do something during an event from their world, I got me and my whole family killed. [He says it almost flatly. It was almost a year ago, and it's not like any of them stayed dead. He's fine. He brightens slightly.] Besides, I can always bug them about it later.

Edited 2017-03-19 00:11 (UTC)

[Tim's eyebrows go up at that. Dipper's flat tone is a pretty good indication that he's not okay about it at all, but he's not going to press that issue. The warning is pretty clear. And it's a good reminder. He doesn't know what it could be, and there are better ways of finding out than testing it. Sometimes things you don't know can hurt you.]

Good call, probably. I don't know anything about their world except that it's kind of spooky. And maybe it's not a good idea to touch spooky machines.

I'm, like, eighty percent sure they're from a video game. [Not one he's played, but that's nothing new. He's not familiar with most of the people who may or may not be fictional here.] I'm pretty sure most people here are fictional somewhere, actually.

[Well, Tim is happy to help you with your theory, Dipper.]

Huh. Well, I've been told that my world is in comic books, and there are definitely people here I've heard about in fiction in my world, so I think that's a pretty solid theory.

[Dipper nods seriously.] Oh, cool. That explains why you're wearing glasses. What's your superhero name?

[Tim blinks several times behind said glasses, which--if anyone is really paying attention aren't actually prescription.]

Uh.

None? I'm just a teenager.

[Dipper squints at him.]

That's exactly what I'd say if I were a superhero trying to keep my identity secret.

[He takes off the glasses and offers them to Dipper.]

Sure, me too. And they are a kind of a disguise, I guess. But not for superhero reasons. A friend of mine gave these to me when I went off to boarding school. I was on the news, and I didn't like being recognized for it all the time. The glasses help.

[Dipper puts them on.] Do I look smarter? I feel like I look smarter.

[They also aren't changing his vision at all, so like. Yeah. Clearly not real glasses.]

Anyway, that's cool, but that's not really the main reason I think you're a superhero. This place tends to take... well, for lack of a better term, main characters. At least, I think it does. I'm pretty sure me and Mabel are the stars of whatever we're from. We stopped an apocalypse.

[He pulls off the glasses and hands them back to Tim.]

So you're either a superhero, a supervillain, or possibly the romantic interest. Do you have a kind of boring and normalish person with a crush on you that you never really notice because you're too infatuated with a superhero that's never in the room at the same time as the other person?

...Huh.

[Well that's... pretty well-reasoned, actually, from a storytelling point of view, and as an avid reader of comics himself, Tim can actually kind of... see the logic. He takes the glasses back and puts them back on.]

Don't forget the kind of nerdy and awkward best friend archetype, though. I might be that, because I am definitely both nerdy and awkward. [So awkward.] My girlfriend is pretty fantastic, though. Maybe I'm her romantic interest and she's a superhero?

I dunno, a lot of heroes have nerdy and awkward secret identities. Like how no one expects mild-mannered Mark Spencer to secretly be Slightly-Above-Average-Man.

But I know how this part goes too. [He waves a hand, rolling his eyes a little.] If you are a superhero, it's not like you'll just admit it. You barely know me. And it's pointless keeping a secret identity here, but you haven't been here long enough to see that. If it helps, I can promise to act surprised when you do fess up.

Slightly-Above-Average-Man? [Tim laughs. It definitely sounds like a Clark Kent/Superman reference to him, but it's just so funny.] Do you read comics, too?

He's called "Superman" in other people's comic books. Me and Wirt have been comparing media. Everything's different except stuff that's public domain.

[Which is, in some ways, deeply disturbing. There's knowing he's fictional, and then there's knowing he's in a world of expys. That's just... weird.]

I read everything. Kind of more into novels and nonfiction, but I've read a lot of comics too.

[Tim nods a little.] Me too--on both counts, actually. But I'm from the world where Superman is real. And obviously a bunch of other vigilantes and superheroes as well, since--comics.

One of which may or may not be you or a significant person in your life. [Sorry, he's trying to let it go. Maybe. Sort of.] That's cool. We don't have any superheroes in my world. Well, not ones with costumes, anyway.

[Or powers. Dipper and Mabel would probably qualify if not for that whole no powers or costumes thing. They did save the world.]

[No worries, Dipper. After being interrogated by Ms. Mason, this is pretty tame.]

It is pretty cool. I've been a fan almost as long as I can remember.

[He raises an eyebrow curiously.]

Not ones with costumes? What kinds of super heroes do you have?

The whole apocalypse stopping thing. Brought out the best in a lot of people. [He gives a half smile.] There's this girl I know, Wendy? She was here, but she's gone now. [That happens so often. He doesn't know if it gets easier or harder as time goes on.] Anyway, she'd give Beewoman a run for her money. [A beat. What was it in Wirt's world?] ...or Batman. But no costume or superpowers. Just an axe.

[Batman... Beewoman. Tim is just barely managing not to start laughing. But he has to agree that anyone who stops an apocalypse qualifies as superhero material.]

That sounds pretty awesome. Totally Justice League material.

[Dipper doesn't really know the Justice League, but it's not hard to guess.] It was a pretty epic battle all around. We turned my great uncle's Mystery Shack into a giant robot.

[Tim's jaw actually drops open a little. He has never heard of anything like that happening in his world, outside of fiction.]

That is seriously cool.

It really was. [Dipper's entire summer was amazing. And a little terrifying, and highly nightmare-inducing, but mostly? Amazing.]

And we won, in the end.

[The giant robot wasn't what did it, but still.]

That's kind of the point when the apocalypse comes--beating it. And I don't think just anyone can handle something like that, so your whole apocalypse-stopping team sounds pretty amazing in my book.

[Dipper beams, trying and failing to not look totally pleased by the praise.]

Thanks, man. We were pretty amazing.

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[Open] And live while we're young

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