entrancelogs | Hey, brother, what you thinking? Leave that old record spinning...

Entry tags:

Hey, brother, what you thinking? Leave that old record spinning...

Who: Napstablook, a closed starter, and YOU!
Where: Throughout Genosha
When: 8/5-8/9
Rating: probably won't get higher than PG-13, will update with any needed cw
Summary: GHOST is the face of the resistance spy GLAMOUR. They deliver messages from the elusive spy, be it information or warnings. NAPSTABLOOK is a human with a habit of snooping around where the don't belong. Will match any format.
The Story:

ONE: RESISTANCE [ACTION]

You follow the address you were handed between hushed whispers to a hotel room. You knock twice, wait three seconds, and knock once more as instructed. The door opens and standing in the entryway is Ghost, in their signature white tux, long platinum hair draped past their shoulders. They're much shorter than you expected. "i heard you would be dropping by..... come in, make yourself at home...."

TWO: ANTI-HUMAN [NETWORK]

It looks like a pop-up ad at first. A window opens, but it's not a browser window, and you can't close it. The human on the screen tips their white satin top hat, expressionless. "hello... i am the entity known as ghost... i'm from the human resistance, and i have a warning..."

THREE: WILD CARD

Want to interact with Napstablook in another way not mentioned here? Give me a starter and let's do this!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Bucky's settled in for the night at one of the resistance's many hangouts, Steve asleep nearby, a book spread open across his lap. When he gets the call, all the different routes he can take are flitting through his mind as he tosses the book aside, and runs out the door. Down third street, through the alley behind Carmichael's, no, left on fourth and over the bridge.

He slows when he reaches Napsta's place, circling the perimeter once before entering Napsta's place through the back, slipping through the halls. Bucky hears voices inside Napsta's bedroom, but doesn't hear them talking. After a deep breath, he busts through the door, charging straight at one of the perpetrators.

"Boss, stay wherever you are," he adds, wrestling one man to the ground.

Napstablook is standing in the corner of their room, clutching a heavy lamp, lampshade on the floor somewhere. They don't know how to fight, all of their dealings were with secrets. The fear of death seems strange for some reason, like it's non-essential, but they can't fathom why.

"I'm not... moving...." they say weakly, heart pounding in their ears as the woman who has them cornered whips around in surprise. Napstablook promptly goes against their word and ducks around her, bolting across the wall. They slam the lamp clumsily into ththe back of the third assailant.

"sorry..."

Bucky snakes an arm around the man's throat, holding him up against his chest until he feels the man slump into unconsciousness.

When he hears Napsta speak, then move, he huffs out a sharp, "Get down and stay down."

He charges the woman, lashing out with his legs to knock her back, then swings his fist at her jaw. Bucky clips her just right and she goes down in a heap.

"I'd be mad if you hadn't taken that one down. Are you alright?" He approaches Napsta carefully.

The lamp clatters to the floor, out of shaking hands. It felt so wrong to hit someone, any one.

"i'm... i'm unharmed..." their stomach turns as they look at the unconscious attackers, heart beating too fast, breathing getting shallow.

"how did they... how did they find me...
i.... i was so careful....i....
i'm sorry.....
.....what do we do now?"

They press their back against the wall, the words coming out in shuddering chokes. They had hired Bucky as a formality, they didn't think they'd actually need a body guard, not like this anyway. Their eyes well up involuntarily as they try to get themself to calm down.

"i'm sorry...
this is so unprofessional....
i'm sorry..."

He looks them over quickly, checking for any kind of injuries. When he's satisfied, he reaches into his back pocket for his phone. Bucky shoots a message out, requesting back up.

"They'll come get them. You don't have to worry."

Bucky nudges them towards the door, leading them out into the hallway.

"It's alright. There's nothing wrong with being upset. You weren't expecting that, none of us were."

Which is the first thing he'll tell the resistance when they show up.

"I'll stay with you until they get here and then I can take you somewhere else or we'll post up around the place to keep you safe."

Napstablook lest Bucky guide them, shuddering

"i.... i need to... go through my records.... i've kept my identity so carefully.....no one knows who i am or where I live... not even most of the resistance....you called someone on my list, right?"

Their voice breaks, realizing someone on that list could have betrayed them.

"oh... oh gosh... what if you called the one that tipped them off....
they....
they could all be conspiring to betray me.....
i shouldn't have told anyone i should have stayed hidden this is all my fault oh...."

Their hands cover their face as they ramble, words shaky.

"It'll be fine. I promise."

Bucky stops, turning to face them. He understands the fear. It's all unknown and, honestly, Bucky's not even sure of where the threat stems. He does know that the people he called can be trusted and that's a start.

"Yeah, they're on your list, but they're good people. They wouldn't try to hurt you. This whole situation is dangerous, you know that."

He urges them to rest against the wall beside him.

"But we can't give up. If we don't fight then nobody will."

They lean against the wall, trying to even out their breathing, knowing how unprofessional they look and hating it. They can still hear their heartbeat pounding through their ears and when Bucky mentions quitting, they let out a very uncharacteristic laugh. It's the first time they've laughed in front of the bodyguard, the loudest sound they've made in months, but there's a cold edge of desperation in it.

"Mr. Barnes.... i'm in so deep, i couldn't quit right now if i wanted to..."

It brings them back, and it's almost jarring when their breathing returns to normalcy. They shudder a bit, but they're back, looking at Bucky as if they only just realized he was there. There's something between a sob and a giggle in their throat.

"thank you... i... i don't know what would have happened.... if you hadn't shown up..."

Edited 2016-08-21 22:42 (UTC)

"Good. You can't let them shake you up."

Bucky shoots Napsta a crooked smile, leaning a little closer as he gestures vaguely at them. In the heat of the moment, Napst had fought back and had stood on their own as fine as any fighter would have.

"You would've kicked their asses."

They'd handled themselves even though they'd been afraid and Bucky couldn't be prouder. He tips his head and folds his arms back over his chest.

"Seemed like you had a handle on it. If you hadn't helped out back there, I'd have been in real trouble."

They snort. "oh please... i'm not meant for fighting. i work with secrets, not people."

Usually when they say that last sentence, they're referring to their lack of tact with diplomatic relations, but they suppose it applies here as well.

"You can make that sound all you want. Doesn't change the fact that you did well in a pinch."

Bucky raises a brow, and he'll totally argue with Napsta on this.

"there were three of them, Mr. Barnes. also i didn't.... i was afraid of actually swinging the lamp before you were here...."

They avert their eyes at that last bit, a little embarrassed, walking into the main living space towards their desk.

"We'll really never know now what could have happened. It's just as easy for me to say you could've handled yourself as it is for you to say the opposite."

He shrugs, it's over now and there's not much they can do about what could have happened.

"We should train you."

"i suppose that would have its purpose.....
but you don't want your job to become obsolete, haha...."

They type a combination on one of their file cabinets and pull out a file.

"oh gee.... where are my manners, do you um, want anything to drink....?"

"You'd keep me around just because you like me. But it's better to be prepared in case someone's not."

Bucky smiles lightly, the adrenaline of the fight starting to wear off.

"Sure, whatever you have on hand is fine."

"...true. also i have a feeling i'd get attacked more often if i didn't walk around with you, whether i'm trained or not..."

They idly page through the file as they pour out two glasses of ginger ale and hand one to Bucky.

"i have reason to suspect it was someone in the resistance who leaked my address... should i go to a resistance safehouse.... to prove i'm not afraid of them...... or one of my personal safehouses.... where i know i'll be safe?"

It's the first time they've actually asked him for advice regarding their safety. They follow instruction perfectly well, but they don't normally ask.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Hey, brother, what you thinking? Leave that old record spinning...

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napsta will totally argue back lol

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