thelegion | [Video] Time Ripples Event (CW: child abuse)

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[Video] Time Ripples Event (CW: child abuse)

[The omnicomm comes on and...well, it's not obviously a member of the Legion. For one, he's obviously too young. But there's obviously reason for concern as there are obvious tear tracks on the boy's face and he's reached over, holding his arm.]

[There's also a bruise on his cheek and a bit of blood coming from his nose. But that last could actually have more to do with the slight purplish-blue aura cast over the camera.]

[He huddles back into a corner, eyes wide as he swallows and opens his mouth, speaking with a fairly strong New York accent.]

Well. I'm not sure where I am, but I don't think it could be much worse than where I just was.

[He shifts and hisses, omnicomm bobbing as his concentration is shaken.]

Umm. I don't suppose anybody out there could give me a ride to the hospital? Mom was gonna, but...well, I doubt she's taking me now.

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[ Robbie hates himself for the panic he caused the kid. He doesn't normally think that he's all that threatening, but he should've knocked first. He's just so used to barging in, especially when Vance is expecting him.

He crouches down and picks up Vance's omnicom, holding it out towards his younger friend after making sure the feed is off. Then he says what he's been holding onto. ]

Vance, there is absolutely nothing wrong with being extraordinary, but if it makes you feel better, you're the dullest, normalest guy to ever live in New York. Trust me on that.

[ He reaches over towards the arm that Vance is babying. He wants to get a better look at the damage before letting him walk anywhere. ]

I'm not going to hurt you, okay? I'm - I'm an Avenger. [ That feels so awkward to say, but there was a moment when it was a heartbeat away from true, and it's probably the only thing he's got to make Vance feel more at ease. ] I know Spider-Man and everything, but my real name's Robbie. I just want to push your sleeve up and make sure it's not an open fracture.

It's...it's what Dad always tells me. That we have to be normal, not stand out. Not be different.

[Still, Robbie knows Vance well enough to know that claiming to be an Avenger is one way to get the kid to trust him. He always was a fanboy at heart.]

Are you new to the team? Do you really know Spider-Man? Or Captain America. That would be so cool. [He looks furtive for a moment.] I...I can't tell my mom or dad, but I want to be an Avenger someday. When I'm strong enough to make a difference.

[He does shift a bit, though, pulling away from the wall so that Robbie can get to his arm more easily.]

[ Robbie rakes his teeth over his bottom lip. It's that or glower at the revelation. He knew, of course, that Vance's father used to beat him up for being 'different' - for being a mutant. Like it wasn't the asshole's own genes that had help make Vance. It's never felt more real than now, though, when the twisted reasoning is coming from someone so young that's obviously been on the wrong side of that logic within hours. ]

Parents... aren't always right. If no one stood out, how'd we get anywhere? No heroes, no Einsteins, no Madonnas. Standing out can be a good thing.

[ He gives him a smile and carefully eases Vance's sleeve up, sucking in a breath when he uncovers the blossoming bruise. How could Arnold Astrovik live with himself? You're supposed to love your kid, not put him in the hospital. Vance, of all people, deserves so much better. ]

I'm ... new to you, I guess. I'm used to you being - I don't know, fifteen years older? But yeah, we know Spidey. And Cap. They're even cooler than you think they are. [ The kid doesn't need to know the bad stuff. ] But you're a better Avenger than they'll ever be.

[Within hours? Within minutes, really. The bruises are coming up, but they're fresh. These ones, at least. There are darker ones beneath the ones that are coming up, though. This isn't something new, but Robbie knows that already.]

[Vance hisses again when Robbie pushes his sleeve up, eyes watering but not letting the tears fall. But the rest of what Robbie is saying gets his attention off of his pain again.]

You're from my future? Like...like the major was?

[ The wet look in Vance's eyes makes Robbie feel like garbage for insisting on checking the arm out. Again, he wonders how that man could look Vance in the face and hit him. This time, it makes him so angry that he can't find his voice to answer right away, and, instead, he gets up and takes the top sheet off Vance's bed.

Robbie rips a long, wide strip of material free and goes back to wear Vance is still trying hide in the corner. How long was that a coping mechanism? No, don't wonder about it. ]

Yeah, I'm from your future, but I'm not that far in the future.

[ Discussions of future science and questionable inevitability will be left for later. ]

If I put your arm in a sling, you think you could walk with me to Medbay? It's three hallways and a lift. Or I can carry you.

[Vance reaches up, rubbing at his eyes and across his nose, dealing with the tears and the small trickle of blood that's stopped because he's not using his powers right now.]

[He nods, uncurling from the wall a bit more.]

Yeah. Yeah, I can walk. It's my arm broke, not my leg.

[Vance frowns, watching Robbie.]

You're not just saying that to make me feel better, right? The thing about me being an Avenger?

Okay, okay. I thought I’d ask. It looks like you took a nasty knock to the head.

[ Knock makes it sound and accidental. He doesn’t like giving it a better veneer, but he wants to make this easier on Vance.

Robbie gently works the material in place and ties it behind Vance’s neck slowly, so it drew his arm into position. Then, he rested his hand on Vance’s shoulder. ]

I’m not lying to you. Your parents are Arnold and Norma Astrovik, and you…

[ But he falters. Most of Robbie’s Vance trivia is years away from applying. He wants to prove his future, but 'the Avengers' means nothing in this world. He's got nothing, because it’s not like energy bubbles demonstrate anything but his own ability – oh!

He jumps up and beelines for Vance’s closet, where he shoves a bunch of terrible life choices out of the way and holds up a blue and white costume up. ]

This is yours, Justice. [ Robbie is nothing if not merciful. Marvel Boy can be left out if this version. The kid's having a rough time already. ] I’m not big on the cape, but you like the vintage look, right?

Edited 2017-06-05 22:01 (UTC)

[Reaching up, Vance touches the bruise rising on his face and winces.]

Yeah. Wasn't watching where I was going and ran into something. I'll be okay.

[When he's older again, though, Vance will appreciate that Robbie didn't call it out, gave it the better veneer, just for a little bit.]

[He pushes himself to his feet once the arm is stabilized, making certain that he actually is able to walk. Not that he really wants to be carried anywhere, but he gets that this guy doesn't really want him getting more injured, either.]

[The uniform pulls his attention, stepping forward to touch it with his good hand. Then he glances up at the action figures, eyes going wide as he realizes that one of them has the same uniform.]

[Yes. Vance has an action figure of himself. If pressed, he'll blame it on a fan.]

Whoa.

Yeah. Watch out for the doors here, they whip open at the last second. Think Star Trek, but without the swoosh.

[ He'll play along. Robbie has decided he'll give it until Brainy declares the affected stuck that way. It's not like the asshole is here, so the damage can't get worse for ignoring it. But it's tough to swallow that logic, when Vance lies about it so smoothly. How many times has he ran into that wall?

A week, he amends, and that he gets Dr. Ry'krr to sit down with Vance somewhere not as threatening as her office. ]

Told you. Once they get you patched up, I'll show you how to space-google yourself so you can see how badass you are. It's all Legion footage here, but that's basically like the Avengers in Space.

Edited 2017-06-06 00:56 (UTC)

[It's at least something that Dr. Ry'krr will be familiar with. After all, Vance has been going to talk to her for a few months. It hadn't all been about dealing with the aftermath of Stamford for him. A lot of his issues were seated a lot further back in his life.]

[Vance nods at the warning about the doors, though, and listens to the rest of it with no little amount of awe.]

I thought the Guardians were like the Avengers in Space.

[ Robbie nods at this, but it doesn't deter his own growing enthusiasm. He might not be able to see the young Vance safe for the next five or six years, but he can be cheered up by seeing how cool the kid thinks his future is. ]

They are in our universe, but you're not in our universe anymore, Vance. You're in a completely different corner of the multiverse, in the 4th millenium, and on the other side of that door?

[ Robbie tosses the uniform on the nearest furniture, jerks his thumb at entrance, and starts walking backwards towards it. ]

The Legion of Superheroes, and me and you have been acting members for months now. Plus, there's a couple of hundred support staff of this satellite. I think we're at least as cool as the Guardians. [ Beat. ] Although we do still hang out with Nova, hm.

Anyway, a lot of the people out there aren't human, so Xavier's Academy rules apply, and you don't stare at anybody just cause they're green or have more arms than you're used to, capisce?

[Vance looks up, narrowing his eyes a bit before he nods.]

It's like the Major, right? He's me, but he came from a parallel reality. So...okay.

[He really does get it fairly quickly. It's a lot to take in, but Vance has been reading comic books since he was a lot younger than this. It's not that much of a stretch for him.]

[The rest of it gets a quick nod.] I won't. Stare, I mean. Or I'll try not to. The only non-humans I've met were with Major Victory when he came to see me.

[Well. They'd come to STOP Major Victory, but they'd already been too late. Not that it makes that much of a difference to young Vance's mind. He'd still met them.]

Well, we went to the parallel reality, and you've definitely... shrunk, but it's close enough.

[ Is it weird, that he's proud that Vance grasped it so quickly? No, he decides. Underneath the teasing, Robbie has always been proud to count Vance among his friends. Seeing the traits he's admired - intelligence, the ability to throw himself into a rough situation and roll with it, never getting overwhelmed - in him this young would make anyone proud of this tough little kid.

Plus, the narrowed eyes like he's baby Clint Eastwood is adorable. Robbie would noogie him if he wasn't worried about head injuries. ]

Excellent. Let's roll, bud. You've got a date with a healing tube full of goo and a scuba mask. I'll give you the tour on the way, and answer any bizarre alien questions you can think up before you ruin your rep asking a native.

[You get used to rolling with things when you never know how you're going to be received at home from day to day. Sometimes even faster. His upbringing was rough, but that's one thing that Vance can credit to it.]

[It kinda sucks. But it's too useful not to be grateful for, too.]

[It takes a moment, but Vance's nose scrunches up a bit, even as he grins.]

At least I didn't have to spend the night inside a tauntaun first. [Yes, he understood that reference. And adds a nod.] Okay. Any questions I have, I'll ask you, first.

[ Except... Robbie wasn't actually making a reference. They do use healing tanks here, and he thinks Vance is getting dunked in one. Robbie hasn't seen anyone rocking a cast.

So, he has to blink at the reference. ]

Gross, man. For the record, I don't know if we're ever going to be good enough friends for me to gut Dobbin and shove you inside.

[For something low level like a broken arm, there's probably something else. That doesn't mean that Vance isn't pumped about it, though. This is the future, after all, and it looks cool.]

Like you're that upset about basically being Han Solo.

[Which makes Vance a Jedi and he doesn't remember that conversation, but he'll laugh later when he does.]

I am definitely upset about being Han Solo. There's got to be an Ewok I could be instead.

[ It's not the best time to talk about buttchins. ]

So, Mini-V. Give me dirt I can use on your older self. Did you or did you not try to raise an X-wing toy out of the bathtub when you discovered your telekinesis?

[Vance looks up at him for a long few moments before nodding.]

You're R2, then.

[NOBODY can object to being R2D2, who is definitely the best droid in all the Star Wars universe.]

[He wrinkles his nose a bit.]

I wouldn't get my X-Wing wet. [Pause.] My Yoda action figure, maybe.

[ Well, it's better than C-3PO. Robbie does his best to do a couple of chirps and whistles. ]

No, what was I thinking? Soaking the X-Wing would be criminal, and you're young enough to think Yoda is still the most annoying character.

[ He reaches over to mess up Vance's hair lightly, careful to not pull or press too much, but it's that or call him a dork. Robbie doesn't want the kid to take the latter to heart, so he doesn't go there. ]

When I was a kid, I had an AT-AT. No idea what happened to it.

[He hasn't met Jar-Jar. Of COURSE Yoda is the most annoying character.]

[Well. After C-3PO.]

[The hair ruffling is unfair because Vance can't really move out of the way without possibly jarring his arm, so he just scowls slightly as he reaches up to put his hair back with his good hand.]

I don't have anything really big. Mostly some of the action figures and the X-Wing that Grandpa gave me a few years ago. [Not that Vance knew how terrible Jerry Astrovik had been. He'd always been a good grandfather, even if he'd been a terrible father.] An AT-AT would be cool, but I'd rather be on the Light Side of the Force.

[ ... even a midget Vance can make Robbie feel inferior and conflicted. He's reminded of a long ago conversation with Elvin about it being the thought that counts with presents. Not everyone got to have the biggest, coolest toys when they were kids.

But damned if Robbie wouldn't love to spoil Vance rotten. The thought could be "I want you to know what it feels like to not hear no." ]

I guess I was always a spoiled brat.

[ Robbie shrugs a shoulder. ]

And I didn't want to join the Dark Side - I just liked having somebody for the Rebels to fight.

[Vance's eyebrows pull down.]

You weren't spoiled because you had something I didn't. [Seriously, what kind of thought process was that?] It's just the reason I wouldn't get my X-Wing wet. Could have damaged the paint and then I'd have been in for it.

[He pauses after he says that, it having come out of his mouth without any actual thought. It's something kids say all the time, but Vance avoids saying it because it actually would happen.]

[It takes a moment for him to shrug it off.]

I have other toys for them to fight, if I want to.

[ He keeps the silence to only five seconds and feels reasonably good about that. Nothing really preps someone to listen to nonchalance like that. I'd have been in for it, Vance says, for scratching a toy. Robbie used to say things like that, but the 'it' was losing video game privileges or maybe getting grounded.

No, Robbie was spoiled because he'd had a lot of things Vance didn't, including parents who didn't beat the crap out of him. But the subject needs changing, desperately, and Robbie reaches for the first thing that comes to mind. ]

You're really making it harder and harder for me to understand how you didn't pop an aneurysm first time you heard about what we did to that Quinjet. Forget the paint - we crashed it in Madripoor.

Edited 2017-06-19 00:21 (UTC)

[That makes Vance stop, just staring for a long few moments before he manages, horror obvious in his voice:]

You. You crashed a Quinjet? In Madripoor?

[Adult Vance might not have had an aneurysm when he heard. Baby Vance, on the other hand, may just faint.]

Crashed, lost when an entire mystical bad guy temple imploded, possibly got stolen but no one's really sure 'cause Nova broke the tracking array... who can tell?

[ Robbie is all for letting Vance know he's going to be an Avenger someday and even telling him a gently improved story of of his life, but he's not going to lie and make it sound like the Avengers always have the situation under control. Pffft, Hank Pym lost the Infinite Mansion, and it was barely an oops.

Vance needs to know that mistakes are allowed. ]

I don't think it made a dent in the operating budget.

[Video] Time Ripples Event (CW: child abuse)

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