wildestlands | Unfurtunate Timing

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Unfurtunate Timing

[ooc: Not set immediately after they escaped Agrabah, but while helpful chores may still need to be done.]

[A whole debate happens before Adrien ever actually talks to them on the mirrors. Because he's not about to deal with the strangest situation he's ever been in (and that's saying something) without trying to figure out what approach to take.]

[At first he's not sure the situation really is what the whispers said it was - after all, plenty of akumatized villains had the ability to draw people into little pocket dimensions or realms or alter reality around people. It's only after testing his surroundings and poking around a little that he's satisfied with reality actually maybe possibly being real.]

[Then there's the mirror. Adrien listens to it first, hears voices of people organizing camp, talking about helping injured people. He tries to glean enough to at least get a vague sense of what's going on with whoever's nearby and figure out if they're hostile.]

[Then comes the debate: he wants to rush in as Chat Noir - because that's his first instinct when people apparently are hurt and talking about an attack. Plagg, his own personal Greek chorus, disagrees because the situation is so different from home. There is a bunch of furious hissing back and forth, largely because they both have no idea what the hell's going on.]

[Ultimately, Adrien is convinced he can always run off and change later, so when he finally gets on the mirror, Plagg safely tucked away, it's as himself.]

[Because he can help as himself, can't he? Adrien Agreste is not someone that wades into danger when he's always running off to transform so he can come back as Chat Noir. But this is a really odd situation he's having trouble even believing is real.]

[So he tries, even if it feels wrong to have no plan to run off to become Chat Noir as soon as he can get away. Like showing up to a black tie event in a t-shirt because he had the wrong idea about the dress code.]

Uh. Hi? [A little, confused wave of his fingers.] I'm Adrien. Adrien Agreste. I just got here? Wherever here is.

[He's definitely young. Baby-faced. He only turned fourteen a short time ago. He sounds unsure at first, pensive.]

I have no idea where I am, or what's going on, or if any of this is even real, but...

[His voice takes on far more resolve, the way it does when he's helping usher classmates and other civilians away from akuma villain attacks, barring doors and windows and giving them directions when they're too scared to move otherwise, before running off to transform and help Ladybug fight after they're safe.]

What can I do to help? I heard people talking on the mirror about an attack, saying that some people were hurt. I don't know how to do any first aid, but I can run errands. Get water, help find things that can be used for bandages, things like that. I just need someone to tell me what needs to be done.

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[Elle is going to kill someone. Because that's another child.

The Green brought in another fucking kid, one who looks like he could be even younger than Little Cato. Elle is fucking furious right now.

If she hadn't already let off so much steam tonight, she might've Frenzied then and there. Luckily, she's able to set the boiling Rage aside for now; she can deal with that later.]

Hey, Adrien, I'm Elle. Sorry no one can give you a warmer welcome, but things are kind of hectic right now.

[Understatement.

She doesn't want to put the kid to work immediately, but they need the extra pair of hands. At least it sounds like he showed up after they fled the city.]

Yeah, there are supplies that need doling out. We can make sure there's a bedroll and some food and water set aside for you, too.

Have you found the camp? We're a little scattered, but mostly in the same area.

[He can't be too far, with the teleportation boundary and everything.]

I'm here at the camp. I'll try to find you.

[He starts looking for her as he picks his way through the scattered camp.]

If people are hurt and need the bed rolls I can go without one. It seems like all of you have been through a lot but I'm pretty well rested.

[He is 900% prepared to fall asleep sitting up against a tree if a sick, injured, elderly, or younger person needs warmth and something soft to rest on first.]

And I'm used to sleeping in odd places sometimes.

[He usually has a very busy schedule. One that, even aside from school and studying, and his clubs, and sports, and tutoring sessions, often includes supervillain fights and night patrols. While he has high energy in general, he's indulged in the occasional cat nap - ha! - while upright in his director's chair while they prepped a shoot. Or leaning against some kind of prop while they worked out a technical issue while filming a commercial.]

[There was also that time he nodded off and fell out of his chair while waiting for his cue when recording some voice lines for the movie about Ladybug... and himself. Because he played himself without anyone realizing.]

[Hey, here's a kid that looks to be fairly close to Adrien's age. Peers are good, right? Disconcerting coloring aside, anyway.]

You're quick to help. Even without knowing what's real. It's very human, the instinct to give aid even with no promise of personal gain, even to complete strangers.

[ totally normal teen dialogue ]

[Adrien is utterly unphased by Kaworu's entire deal.]

[A combination of unnatural hair-color and strangely mellow and philosophical discussion? All he has to do is torture a few metaphors about music and he'll remind him of a friend.]

[Adrien has been given some tasks and is already handing things out to people by the time he answers Kaworu. Fortunately, the mirrors do that floaty thing. He's multi-tasking - as he often does - trying to get information and meet people while helping.]

I guess it is.

Even if I'm not sure this is real, I'd rather try to help. If I'm wrong about it being real and it turns out it's a nightmare - or something else that's in my head - I can live with that. But I'd feel terrible if it turned out to be real and I didn't help.

The people here seem really hurt and exhausted.

[He waits patiently, sitting away from the main body of the group somewhere. Unharmed as he seems to be, maybe he's just staying out of the way of people more equipped to help. His own ability to help people is fairly limited, after all, and he's still not accustomed to being so involved with others.]

Is this more a nightmare than a dream to you?

Yes.

I showed up somewhere unfamiliar where lots of people are hurt. Some of the hurt people don't look much older than I am.

[He notices a hurt little...cat? A cat boy? Being tended to by some people. His face falls - especially since he's a cat boy! Normally he'd want to go over and get to know him. How often does he get to meet someone else like him?]

Some are maybe younger.

[He gets back to handing out the things he was told to hand out.]

So it seems like a nightmare - or something caused by an akuma. If it's one of those two, though, I'd rather it be a nightmare; at least a nightmare would only be affecting me.

[He doesn't know an akuma isn't actually possible. He has no idea where he is, so he's not 100% sure he's not on his world. Even the cat boy and any alien looking people don't nix the possibility of somewhere on his own planet. His world has metahumans, magical amulets that create transformations with animal traits, superheroes, sentient robots, even a few displaced aliens like Majestia.]

Edited 2022-01-22 13:25 (UTC)

Pain is a natural part of life. You have a delicate heart to be so affected by it.

[It doesn't sound like he means that as an insult, somehow. Something about his gentle tone – dude's just got an intensely soothing air about him.

Anyway.]

Akuma?

[ Oh hey. New guy.

New guy who is like 12. Tommy doesn’t have a lot of room to be superior here, as his superhero squad had some under 16s but fuck it. He isn’t the one who let them in; he can judge the fuck out of the green for this. ]

How do we know that you’re not a baby magic hunter, Adrien Adrien Agreste, because you’re like ‘I don’t know if this is real’ but ‘hey where’s the water and medical supplies’?

If you’re not, sorry about your new life as missing child.

[Adrien isn't sure what to make of it but he schools his expression. The truth is he does have a delicate heart and that means he can be sensitive to insults - which he can't tell if the comment is - but he also has been taught that expressing that is just...]

[It's not the kind of thing he should do.]

[Maybe other people but he's an Agreste. And it's overdramatic.]

[So he just says brightly:]

The world might be better off if more people had delicate hearts.

[He looks confused over Kaworu not knowing about akumas, though.]

An akuma? I know not every bit of news from one city reaches the whole world, but the United Heroez got affected by a villain infected by one a little while back. Including Majestia.

[That definitely made world news. The United Heroez were pretty global in their scope. Paris tended to get ignored by them largely because it was just one supervillain, and the people also wrapped up in the same magical stuff had the best chance of stopping him - after all, it wasn't Ladybug and himself that'd gotten akumatized in New York.]

[In fact, the thought of some of the more powerful Heroez like Majestia getting akumatized in the course of trying to fight Hawk Moth was terrifying.]

You didn't see it in the news where you're from?

[The only person that Chat knows who has that much attitude is -]

[Well, himself. At least when he's being Chat. Though, this new guy - another white-haired guy for some reason? - is definitely a bit more blunt than him.]

[He'd never make a crack about someone being a missing chi - oh boy, does he really need to focus on helping people instead of picturing how much his father is going to freak if he notices he's gone.]

[He doesn't get angry, though. Technically he is a missing child, as of right this second.]

I have no idea what you're talking about.

Passing out water and medical supplies is about all I'm good for, unless people need something translated - which doesn't seem to be a problem - or need tips on how to handle a catwalk. This doesn't look like Milan fashion week so I think it's safe to say the second one isn't going to come up.

[Adrien doesn't even know if any of this is real. Mood, kid. Mood. She doesn't give a welcome line right away, instead saying:]

The Green needs to stop bringing kids.

[Why does it seem to her like they're younger every time? Well, coming of age adventures are a thing. Who knows, maybe that's why this is happening]

I'm a teenager.

[He says in the way kids do when they don't realize being a teenager in middle school is still being a kid.]

I'm 14.

[He says like he didn't just turn it not too long ago.]

That's not the rebuttal you think it is.

[Yup, definitely a kid. Well, c'est la vie. It's useless to be annoyed at the Green because it's not like anything can be done about this anyway, so may as well welcome this one to the group]

Feel free to mingle around whenever you feel like it. You'll fit right in and soon others will come to get you settled. A lot of people around here watch out for the younger ones. [As hard as that's to believe, but hey, more power to them]

My name's Ange.

[French name! Although apparently it's a masculine one, haha]

[ Tommy is also, technically, a missing child, but he has been since before he was here and no one seems much interested in finding him.

And Tommy doesn’t know what literal children should do in the camp - Molly is the only other little kid he knows and she’s definitely be pulling the rabbit’s tail and challenging Superboy to an arm wrestling match - but he had strong feelings about the exploitation of kids. ]

You’re 10. Since when do they let 8 year olds walk in Gucci shows?

I'm fourteen. My dad owns his own brand so I do a lot of modeling.

[He doesn't sound like he hates it but also doesn't sound super enthused.]

[Because he's not really bragging, it's just that he doesn't want anyone to suspect he's some of the things he is, and the modeling definitely helps some people suspect even less, generally. He wants to try shaping some perceptions through his first impressions.]

[It's pretty useless compared to "hero that regularly teams up with another hero to save all of Paris."]

I can't think of anything else to do other than this.

[The handing things out.]

Edited 2022-01-22 16:11 (UTC)

[He's not too phased by her objection because he assumes that anyone that sees him as a kid wouldn't look at him that way as much if they knew the things he does as a superhero.]

[This assumption may sometimes be wrong.]

It's nice to meet you, Ange, though I wish we met somewhere better than here.

[A pause.]

Ange is a nice name. It means 'angel' in French.

Edited 2022-01-22 16:09 (UTC)

Yeah, my family has a tradition of giving Western names. I'm not sure what to make of it.

[Mostly because sometimes it ends with names such as 'Battler' and she knows her brother hated that name so much, haha]

Same, I suppose. You better be a fan of fantasy or else you'll have a hard time around here.

[Well, not that being a fan of fantasy spared Ange anything, that's for sure]

That’s crazy. So your dad’s loaded and you’ve definitely got a finsta.

Why do you automatically jump to being a gofer? Like there’s dozens of people here who’ve had days to get used to this and who know where everything is. You can see that - just look around. You can take a day to wrap your head around how you just fell through a tunnel into the 1500s but also a nerd’s dream.

...but everyone looks like they've been here days.

And I'm coming in fed and well-rested.

Also I'm from Paris. Even normal people try to help out every time an an akuma attack happens, at least in the places they can.

[Even ignoring the police officers and fire fighters, civilians help each other get to safe places or lead others to safety. Bus drivers sometimes block roads with their buses at Ladybug's request.]

[ Gee, thanks. Tommy needs to be reminded how exhausting and disgusting this is and how he can’t get all the blood out from under his nails. ]

Yeah, give it a few days, and you can be dirty and itchy like the rest of us.

[ Akuma sounds familiar. It takes Tommy a good minute to come back with the meaning of it. ]

The Street Fighter character?

[This kid is way too prepared to sacrifice his comfort for others.]

Dude, it's fine. We have extras, and some people are taking watch.

[If he's insistent on helping then Elle can give him some stuff to do. That way she can make a general assessment while she's showing him around. So far the youngest members of the group have had powers or combat skills; something that could make a non-human entity think they're suitable for saving the world. Maybe Adrien will continue the pattern.]

I'm by the west campfire. The clearing with the big fallen tree.

[Hopefully that's enough description that he can find her relatively easily.]

Adrien. Agreste, that's, uh, French? I'm Miles. Only recently arrived myself. I'm pretty much in the same boat, just. Trying to help out where I can somehow. This is....real enough. I mean. We just have to figure doing what we can to help each other out.

[As much as others would let them, being probably among the youngest of those here. Miles is the same age, after all. And without anyone familiar from home, even if some others are vaguely at least aware of Spider-Man, just. Not Miles specifically. Other Spiders. Probably Peter, whatever version of him their world has.]

It's. A lot, I know.

[ this sweet summer child ]

Most modern cultures, which account for a large share of this group, would still not see that distinction as a justification. Our presence here is comparable to a military draft, albeit one lacking in clear goals and any hierarchy.

[ Mostly he just means that they're here to possibly kill and be killed, which for a fourteen-year-old who appears to be from a twenty-first century society, is no bueno.

Koshimizu sees it a bit more pragmatically, given that he's been around for most of human existence. He's seen views change and evolve, and while he doesn't exactly like relying on teenagers to help him defend Tokyo in the absence of the rest of his pantheon, he's seen that some of them are absolutely capable of rising to the occasion - even those raised in those softer modern times. ]

Don't take it as a reflection on your own capabilities, but rather as a statement on the dangers we face here.

[Elle raises an eyebrow.]

Doesn't make it less shi-- [Fuck. Small children.]

--I mean. That doesn't make it less bad. If "The Green" can grab people out of different worlds, they should be able to grab more competent adults than children.

[Unless even The Green doesn't have control over who gets nabbed, which is not a particularly comforting thought.]

Just because a kid can handle the stuff that's happening here doesn't mean they should.

[Everyone please ignore that Elle herself is literally a few days out from turning 18. She doesn't count, she comes from a world that conscripts children without much regard for their age or level of preparedness. The Elders are putting kids in danger just as much as the Spirits.]

I'm far from pleased with it myself, but I think it quite possible there are limitations of some kind placed on their actions, so I intend to withhold judgment until we can hopefully learn more. Even the gods may be restrained.

[ ha ha angry laugh-crying

in his heart, anyway. His expression does not flicker, because he has a damned good Parliament Face. ]

But if they are in full control over their selections, then yes, I would very much like to know what the hell they're thinking.

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Unfurtunate Timing

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