Chapter Two: The Movie

[backinthsaddle]

Today was the last day of finals for Cole, and it's with a silent sigh of relief that he heads home, ready to ditch the books for the summer. Not that he'll stop studying altogether, but a break is welcome after the week long cramming session.

Liam doesn't appear to be home once he gets back to the apartment, but he's slowly been getting used to there being someone else living there, and she isn't really the going-out-and-about type, at least not right now. So he makes a little noise on his way in, so he doesn't startle her.

Comments

[victormakesart.livejournal.com]

"Yeah. I was just walkin' around Houston, but I was in, like, lime green stockings, this turquoise skirt with sequins, a mustard yellow scarf, this giant floppy red and purple hat, an orange and red shirt, a pink furry coat, rollerskates, and twelve necklaces."

[backinthsaddle.livejournal.com]

He winces just thinking about it. "Why twelve?"

[victormakesart.livejournal.com]

"Because I could. That's the only good reason for anything, as far as I'm concerned."

[backinthsaddle.livejournal.com]

"Fair enough, I guess." That does seem to be the way she rolls.

[victormakesart.livejournal.com]

"It was fun. A good day." Speaking of good days.... "I'm making something. To make it so I can go outside again."

[backinthsaddle.livejournal.com]

"What's that?" It's a good sign that she's creating already, even if it isn't art or writing.

[victormakesart.livejournal.com]

"It's a mask. I... I've always wanted to be a hero. Maybe, if I pretend to be a superhero, I can feel brave enough to go out. And a mask'll mean that no one's looking at me. Or, when they are, they're not really looking at me."

[backinthsaddle.livejournal.com]

That gets a bit of a pause from him. He'd just been joking about the supervillain thing; he hadn't realized she'd been actually thinking about it. Well, minus the villain part. "That's... really interesting." And if it gives her the courage to go out again... why not?

[victormakesart.livejournal.com]

"I guess it's kinda stupid. But... I haven't been able to. Go out, I mean. I tried yesterday and then I had a panic attack and...." That's why she spent the rest of the night hiding in the workout room. "And I think if I could just be someone else for a while, it'll get easier."

[backinthsaddle.livejournal.com]

"You'll need to think of a name... and more of a costume, I think."

[victormakesart.livejournal.com]

"Actually... I have, uh. Ideas. I just haven't put it to paper yet."

[backinthsaddle.livejournal.com]

"Maybe that's the other thing you can use the notebook for," he suggests.

[victormakesart.livejournal.com]

"Yeah. I'm thinking... um. Like, a plague doctor mask, a long coat, a green wig. It'll give me a lot of pocket space. Do you know about plague doctors? They're pretty cool."

[backinthsaddle.livejournal.com]

"Tell me about them?" he asks. Cole does actually know a little bit, but he doesn't mind her talking, and telling him more.

[victormakesart.livejournal.com]

"They've got white bird masks, and waxed overcoats, and they were around during the Black Death. They thought the herbs they stuffed in the nose of their masks would protect them from the bad air, but really it was the wax. It kept away the fleas from the rats that passed the infection."

[backinthsaddle.livejournal.com]

"So they were half-right, just for the entirely wrong reasons."

[victormakesart.livejournal.com]

"Exactly. And I love the ritual of it all. The idea that, if we just do this, and this, we'll be safe."

[backinthsaddle.livejournal.com]

"And even though it was wrong, it saved lives anyway." It is a bit odd. And interesting. And given that he's seen some measure of OCD tendencies from her, it does make sense that it appeals to her.

[victormakesart.livejournal.com]

"Yeah. I like that. And I like the idea of being a doctor, of having my purpose be to heal instead of hurt and... I think I'm going to actually go for it. For being a hero, I mean." As she talks, she gets more and more animated, until the end, which makes her sheepish, like he's going to laugh at her.

[backinthsaddle.livejournal.com]

He does look at her with a bit of surprise. It's a big step from having panic attacks just going outside to wanting to be a superhero. "Really?"

[victormakesart.livejournal.com]

She's staring at her hands as she talks. "Yeah. I wanna make the world a better place. I wanna make it so no kid feels as scared as I did as a kid, so that no one feels hopeless, and I... I have theories about heroing as it's done in life and fiction. Theories on how to make it better, so it isn't vigilantism, so it's more like doing a citizen's arrest. Filling out paperwork with the police so the folks don't get out on loopholes. Taking care of the victims on the scene. Doing charity work in persona. Actually making things better."

[backinthsaddle.livejournal.com]

"You want to be a more practical superhero," he says thoughtfully. It's not what you normally think of when superheroes come to mind, especially with a background like his.

[victormakesart.livejournal.com]

"I do. I had a lot of time to think, tied up on that table, and... and this is what I want to do. There isn't any reason for me not to." She looks down at herself, tsks. "Except that I'm weak. And I don't hurt people. That's a rule. I don't think hurting people is necessary, being a hero. Just immobilizing and self-protecting."

[backinthsaddle.livejournal.com]

"But what if you need to defend yourself? Or other people?"

[victormakesart.livejournal.com]

She wets her lips. "I'm not very good at defending myself. I... um. I've never been strong. And I really can't hurt anyone; I've been hurt too much for that, the thought of it makes my guts hurt. But there are maybe gadgets that could help with immobilization, and there's gotta be martial arts moves that can help me tie someone up without hurtin' them."