Solarstream
It's all in the cards
- Location
- Zombie World
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] That is way dangerous. Absolutely not.
The Arachne System (SPIDERLIV 3)
- Thread starter open_sketch
- Start date
- Superhero
- Pronouns
- She/Her
[X] That is way hilarious. Absolutely yes!
As long as her suit is not recognizable as the new modified suit there doesn't seem to be any danger here, and it is a fun idea.
I disagree, these facts actually give us extra plausible deniability. Arachne has created a device that gives the user multiple additional limbs and Liv has a special interest in prosthetics. She has special reason to be a big fan of Arachne. I don't think that her cosplaying as Arachne at a convention wouldn't add to the danger of being found out. Everything that actually points to her being spider liv is public.
As long as her suit is not recognizable as the new modified suit there doesn't seem to be any danger here, and it is a fun idea.
I disagree, these facts actually give us extra plausible deniability. Arachne has created a device that gives the user multiple additional limbs and Liv has a special interest in prosthetics. She has special reason to be a big fan of Arachne. I don't think that her cosplaying as Arachne at a convention wouldn't add to the danger of being found out. Everything that actually points to her being spider liv is public.
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HoratioVonBecker
Imperfectly Aligned
Is there a way to make it a better cosplay that's still further from realistic? Web together some legs for the backpack, maybe?
Oh yes, it is very important to use Liv's prosthetic arm instead of Arachne's. It may not be as authentic, but people will probably give us a pass on that.
[X] That is way hilarious. Absolutely yes!
- Location
- Someone else's head
Very good update. Good plural content in this one. Not all of it is stuff that works quite that way for us, but it feels authentic and the description of possession (controlling part of the body while not fronting) was good. A few really high-impact, feels-intensive moments in there too.
[X] That is way dangerous. Absolutely not.
[X] That is way dangerous. Absolutely not.
- Pronouns
- They/Them
[X] That is way dangerous. Absolutely not.
HoratioVonBecker
Imperfectly Aligned
[X] That is way hilarious. Yes, but be careful.
-[X] You need a cosplay backpack. How would May do it?
-[X] You need a cosplay backpack. How would May do it?
- Location
- United States
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] That is way hilarious. Absolutely yes!
She's Back
- Location
- Ottawa
- Pronouns
- She/Her/Whatever
"Uh... May. that'd be incredibly dangerous. I can't." you said, gesturing with your metal arm. "The thing that keeps me safe isn't really the mask, it's that nobody suspects a person like me would be wearing it. If people see-"
"Liv, we're in a totally different city. Nobody knows either of us here." May pointed out, and you shook your head sadly.
"That won't matter. You ever taken a look at the comments on articles about Arachne? At the twitter hashtags?"
"At her six hundred page long Kiwifarms thread?" Athena added.
"Yeah... some people get obsessed, and they're scary observant. All it would take is somebody looking too close at a cosplay picture, working out that, I don't know, the lenses of my glasses or the attachment points or the fabric is too realistic, that my proportions match too closely, and they might suspect enough that it's the real deal enough that they come looking for the person in the photo they can identity. And then from there, work out who I am through you."
"Oh. I didn't realize..." she said, voice falling, and with a sigh you took a step closer, pulling back your hood and removing your mask, your hair falling in a tangle around you.
"It's okay. It's a lot." you said, doing your best to try to take both her hands, your clumsy artificial fingers failing until she gripped them herself. "I made some dumb mistakes early on, but I'm always trying to do better. It's not just me at risk."
She nodded, that cute little nod she did, and then pushed herself up on her tiptoes to kiss you, rather unexpectedly.
"Well, okay. But, uh... just..." she stammered, turning bright red, "You look, uh, really hot like that. With the suit but the mask off. Dashing."
"I do?" you said, the words seeming like a complete non-sequitur.
"Yeah, it just sorta hit me. I've never seen you look so..." she said, glancing away bashfully. "You really do look like a hero."
Okay.
You wished sometimes your life was a movie, because that was the place where the scene ought to cut. Instead you just sort of stuttered out a half-hearted deflection, wilted, and headed back to the bathroom to get back in civilian clothes. But the words stuck in your head, and it felt...
The Arachne suit making you look good was always... deception. In previous versions, when cut and colour had been an attempt to hide the ship of your body, to present an illusion femininity that wasn't there, it was never really about making you, Olivia Octavius, look good. It was about... it was almost a kind of fantasy. That the body of Otto Octavius could go away for a while, buried under spider silk and foam and the harness, buried under this facsimile of femininity. You'd taken it back a bit from that with every revision, every time you had to rebuild the harness or recut the suit because the shape of your body had changed too much, each time you had a new layer to incorporate into it, until now it more or less showed the shape of your body as it was, with a margin of error for number of limbs. A lot of that was just need, the desire for something more utilitarian, easier to move in, that could fit new features. That's what you told yourself.
But you were only realizing that now, it had only just fully settled in what that meant. You'd sort of known it for a while, but only now, while you changed into your baggy jeans and XXL t-shirt, only after May had said it, did you realize what that meant.
How long had it been, since Arachne's suit stopped hiding Otto's body, and Liv's clothes had started hiding hers?
---
The morning went very smoothly, in a blur. May wanted show off her cosplay and meet some other cosplayers in the fandom, so there was a lot of waiting politely at the side while she got her picture taken or chatted incomprehensibly about character you hadn't seen on the show yet or fandom drama you were unaware of. The fandom panel you attended in particular was completely opaque to you, being mostly, uh, shipping related. You spent a lot of it quietly self-interrogating about if your discomfort was the natural outcome of being in an unfamiliar place where you couldn't really follow the conversation, or if there was an element of residual toxic masculinity involved in being uncomfortable with people talking about which dudes they want to see kiss each other. Bit of both?
"It's the first, Liv." Athena whispered insistently in your ear.
The giant photograph on the stairs up to the convention centre with everyone in costume was pretty amazing to see, though, as was the fact a lot of people pushed May up front because of the craftsmanship of her costume. That part wasn't surprising to you: if there was anyone in the world who knew how to make something stylistically 1940s look right, it was May.
You stopped after for an early lunch, taking advantage of the food court and its ludicrously overpriced items, doing your best to avoid the rush. Still, it was packed, people all around talking, laughing, sharing pictures of the day thus far on their phones or whatever. A cheerful buzz of energy all around you.
"Okay, mid-point of the con check-in." May said, and you snapped back to reality.
"Right, yes." you said, not really comprehending. "Sorry?"
"How are you doing?" she asked, and you thought about it for a second, not really sure how to articulate any of it.
"Liv is experiencing a lot of Gender today." Athena supplied for you, her voice echoing out your phone before you could get a word in. "... you know, I'm really liking this whole able to talk for you thing. I should do it more often."
May smiled, but she looked at you with concern.
"Is there anything I can do?"
"No... don't worry about it." you said, frowning. "I'm just kind of overwhelmed by all the con stuff, so it's easy to like... get in my own head while we're just wandering around, I guess."
"Do you want to take a break? There's a chillout room we could go hang in for a little bit, let you get your bearings?" May pointed out. "They have beanbag chairs!"
"Don't we have a panel to get to?" you asked, and she waved you off.
"Alternate idea: what if I took over for a bit?" Athena asked, "Seriously. Liv could go decompress in techspace, and I'm looking forward to the panel."
May looked... a little strangely at that. Uncomfortable? Yeah, she was uncomfortable. You had to veto that.
"That's a good idea, Athena. Knew you were clever."
You and May looked over to the new person who had... it would be wrong to say they'd sat down. It was more like they'd materialized at the table. They were just as completely, devistatingly beautiful as last time you'd seen them, though this time instead of a modern suit they were wearing what you could only describe as old-timey European noble get-up, all epulettes and buttons and tails, her hair flowing loose, unnaturally wavy and shiny. A convention badge hung around her neck.
"Excuse me, who are you?" May asked, and the newcomer pointed a long, elegant finger towards you.
"Ask the wonder twins over there. Is that reference too old? When did that show air?"
"Over a half a century ago." Athena replied instantly. "So yes. Hello, Loki."
"Hel-lo Athena, Olivia. Who's our little Galactic Patroller over here?" Loki asked, indicating to May now. "You three together?"
"We know you know." you responded tersely. Mind-reading was the scariest goddamn shit, and you'd had nightmares about it ever since you first ran into Loki.
"I don't, actually. A promise is a promise, I'm staying out of your heads. And hers, I know how to be polite." she said, then extended a hand in a you may kiss the ring sort of fashion. "Speaking of, hello, I'm Loki. You may know of me from my previous works."
"... that was the part I believed the least." she said, nodding. "G-gee whiz Liv. Wow."
"Gee whiz? But she won't get my entirely recent cartoon references?" Loki said, the sly smile still on her face. "I guess I just don't get the youth of today."
"Why the hell are you here?" you asked, finding yourself gripping the table as frustrating mounted, the cheap laminated particle board creaking under your fingers. "I did not need this now. Why'd you come all the way out here?"
"... I'm here for the convention, dear." she said, putting on her best offended airs. "I'm a huge fan, have been for decades. Ever seen Rose of Versailles? I simply adore it, and the Takarazuka adaptations of course."
"What are you talking about?" you asked, completely confused.
"You should look it up, you might like it. Well, you'd hate all the parts where they're high nobility types, but you'd love the part where it's gay." she said, continuing as if she hadn't heard you, and only then stopping to register your objections. "... seriously, I am a fan. This is the biggest anime convention on the east coast, and I've been clearing out the dealers room."
You glanced over the side of the table and saw, sure enough, quite a few sizable bags packed with what looked like little figurines and other merch.
"Seriously, though, please tell me your name so I don't have to grab it out of your head." Loki said, making a little snatching motion, and May looked at you desperately. Reluctantly, you nodded.
"M-May Parker." she said, rooted to her seat. "I-I'm Liv's... well, um... We're..."
"You're going through some stuff." Loki said, reaching over and snatching a fry off your plate. "You don't seem mad at each other, so I can only surmise this is something... oh, Liv, did you only just tell her about the whole superhero thing today?"
"Two days ago." Athena said, that's about when you lost it.
"We are not friends. I barely even know you! Why are you here?" you said, the table bending with a snap under your fingers. Loki just rolled her eyes, leaning back in her chair.
"Come on. With Betty gone you're the only mortals I even know at all on this plane, I just... I ran into somebody I knew and decided to say hi." she said. "That's what conventions are for. For people who are lonely in their regular lives to come and meet up with people like themselves, you know? Shared interests and all."
"I don't see what interests we share, other than distaste for your brother." you sniped, and she chuckled.
"Adopted brother. But I was thinking more... the fate of the world and the multiverse, the big questions pondered by the few people with the power and perspective to ponder it." she said. "And, apparently, anime. I'm behind on this season of Lensman, but I've read the books, I take it it's still good, Miss Parker?"
"... yeah it's great." she said numbly. "Um..."
"Um?" Loki said.
"You said you're lonely?" she asked. "I didn't... I wouldn't have expected that. What... what do gods do, when they aren't going to anime conventions?"
Loki sighed, leaning dramatically against the edge of the chair, resting her chin on her hand.
"Mostly, I sit at home, tracking the progress of the universe, studying old tomes, binge-watching television, and hoping for something interesting to happen." she said bitterly. "And trust me, it's less glamorous than it sounds. If it weren't for little jaunts down to Midgard and such like this one... well, it's all I can do to not go crazy."
"D-don't say that. It's ableist." May corrected reflexively, and Loki winced.
"Right, sorry." she said. "It's just... I'm sort of on the outs with my family after I... may have played a hilarious prank on my family that left my brother Balder slightly dead, but they never really liked me." You and May stared for a moment. "Oh, he got better, by the way. We're a tough lot. Took a few centuries, though, they still aren't over it."
You did your best to try and calm down, keep steady. May was looking to you, and if you were panicking, she was going to be scared. You set your hand back to the table, and were surprised to find the broken portion smooth, like you'd never touched it. You had to treat this as normal, and honestly... Loki wasn't threatening, she hadn't even done anything wrong. She'd just shown up as an uncomfortable reminder and unexpected element exactly at the wrong time. You should try to make conversation.
"So are you here for the whole weekend?" you asked. Stupidly. Loki shook her head sadly.
"Afraid not. Just have the Saturday badge, it's all the time I could afford away." she said. "I'm sure with your coming climate apocalypse you're all well aware of the feeling of something very big and very dangerous encroaching very, very slowly, and you feel like you're the only person who cares at all, right?"
"Y-y-yep." May said, her voice breaking considerably.
"Well, I'm in a similar position regarding... some events. I don't know what's safe to tell you quite yet. But I like to spend as much time as I can monitoring the situation." she said, then her eyes lit up, and she clapped triumphantly. "That's a thought! Olivia, I have a fact about the New York signal that may interest you."
"... uh, yeah. Go ahead." you said awkwardly.
"The signal gets most intense on Tuesdays, unless there's a holiday on Monday, in which case it moves over a day. I think that means that whatever is causing it is a human organization of some variety: they power it up on Monday, it peaks a day later, then they shut it down. Maybe that can narrow things down for you?"
"It would probably be easier to let us have access to your data directly." Athena pointed out.
"How's your understanding of the magic starter guide going?" Loki asked.
"... I'm about thirty percent done reading it." she said. It had been six months.
"Then no, you won't be better off with my raw data." Loki said. She looked over the table, shaking her head. "I'm sorry I barged in, I just got so excited to see a familiar face. Have a lovely convention, all three of you."
She picked up her bags, gave a little smile, and turned to walk off. You glanced away for a moment and she was gone, and all of a sudden you became aware again how loud the room was, how many people were talking.
May reached across the table, taking your hand with both of hers, her eyes wide.
"What the hell. Does that happen often?" she asked, and you shook your head.
"No! It really doesn't!" you said, squeezing her fingers in what you hoped was a reassuring way. "Just the worst timing."
"God, Liv, that was so scary." she said. "What is she anyway?"
"Fairly sure she's essentially a member of a very powerful extradimensional alien species." Athena explained. "She's got power over fundamental reality that very much falls under Clarke's Third Law, to the point where it came in a spooky leather-bound tome. We... think she might be mostly benevolent."
"Okay. Wow." May said, leaning back in her chair and staring off into space. "... why is she so hot?"
"God, right?" Athena said.
"Please steppy." May muttered, and the retreating tension of the moment made you burst into hysterical laughter. It took you a few minutes.
"You okay, Liv?"
"I guess. What... what the hell are we doing now?"
---
"Liv, we're in a totally different city. Nobody knows either of us here." May pointed out, and you shook your head sadly.
"That won't matter. You ever taken a look at the comments on articles about Arachne? At the twitter hashtags?"
"At her six hundred page long Kiwifarms thread?" Athena added.
"Yeah... some people get obsessed, and they're scary observant. All it would take is somebody looking too close at a cosplay picture, working out that, I don't know, the lenses of my glasses or the attachment points or the fabric is too realistic, that my proportions match too closely, and they might suspect enough that it's the real deal enough that they come looking for the person in the photo they can identity. And then from there, work out who I am through you."
"Oh. I didn't realize..." she said, voice falling, and with a sigh you took a step closer, pulling back your hood and removing your mask, your hair falling in a tangle around you.
"It's okay. It's a lot." you said, doing your best to try to take both her hands, your clumsy artificial fingers failing until she gripped them herself. "I made some dumb mistakes early on, but I'm always trying to do better. It's not just me at risk."
She nodded, that cute little nod she did, and then pushed herself up on her tiptoes to kiss you, rather unexpectedly.
"Well, okay. But, uh... just..." she stammered, turning bright red, "You look, uh, really hot like that. With the suit but the mask off. Dashing."
"I do?" you said, the words seeming like a complete non-sequitur.
"Yeah, it just sorta hit me. I've never seen you look so..." she said, glancing away bashfully. "You really do look like a hero."
Okay.
You wished sometimes your life was a movie, because that was the place where the scene ought to cut. Instead you just sort of stuttered out a half-hearted deflection, wilted, and headed back to the bathroom to get back in civilian clothes. But the words stuck in your head, and it felt...
The Arachne suit making you look good was always... deception. In previous versions, when cut and colour had been an attempt to hide the ship of your body, to present an illusion femininity that wasn't there, it was never really about making you, Olivia Octavius, look good. It was about... it was almost a kind of fantasy. That the body of Otto Octavius could go away for a while, buried under spider silk and foam and the harness, buried under this facsimile of femininity. You'd taken it back a bit from that with every revision, every time you had to rebuild the harness or recut the suit because the shape of your body had changed too much, each time you had a new layer to incorporate into it, until now it more or less showed the shape of your body as it was, with a margin of error for number of limbs. A lot of that was just need, the desire for something more utilitarian, easier to move in, that could fit new features. That's what you told yourself.
But you were only realizing that now, it had only just fully settled in what that meant. You'd sort of known it for a while, but only now, while you changed into your baggy jeans and XXL t-shirt, only after May had said it, did you realize what that meant.
How long had it been, since Arachne's suit stopped hiding Otto's body, and Liv's clothes had started hiding hers?
---
The morning went very smoothly, in a blur. May wanted show off her cosplay and meet some other cosplayers in the fandom, so there was a lot of waiting politely at the side while she got her picture taken or chatted incomprehensibly about character you hadn't seen on the show yet or fandom drama you were unaware of. The fandom panel you attended in particular was completely opaque to you, being mostly, uh, shipping related. You spent a lot of it quietly self-interrogating about if your discomfort was the natural outcome of being in an unfamiliar place where you couldn't really follow the conversation, or if there was an element of residual toxic masculinity involved in being uncomfortable with people talking about which dudes they want to see kiss each other. Bit of both?
"It's the first, Liv." Athena whispered insistently in your ear.
The giant photograph on the stairs up to the convention centre with everyone in costume was pretty amazing to see, though, as was the fact a lot of people pushed May up front because of the craftsmanship of her costume. That part wasn't surprising to you: if there was anyone in the world who knew how to make something stylistically 1940s look right, it was May.
You stopped after for an early lunch, taking advantage of the food court and its ludicrously overpriced items, doing your best to avoid the rush. Still, it was packed, people all around talking, laughing, sharing pictures of the day thus far on their phones or whatever. A cheerful buzz of energy all around you.
"Okay, mid-point of the con check-in." May said, and you snapped back to reality.
"Right, yes." you said, not really comprehending. "Sorry?"
"How are you doing?" she asked, and you thought about it for a second, not really sure how to articulate any of it.
"Liv is experiencing a lot of Gender today." Athena supplied for you, her voice echoing out your phone before you could get a word in. "... you know, I'm really liking this whole able to talk for you thing. I should do it more often."
May smiled, but she looked at you with concern.
"Is there anything I can do?"
"No... don't worry about it." you said, frowning. "I'm just kind of overwhelmed by all the con stuff, so it's easy to like... get in my own head while we're just wandering around, I guess."
"Do you want to take a break? There's a chillout room we could go hang in for a little bit, let you get your bearings?" May pointed out. "They have beanbag chairs!"
"Don't we have a panel to get to?" you asked, and she waved you off.
"Alternate idea: what if I took over for a bit?" Athena asked, "Seriously. Liv could go decompress in techspace, and I'm looking forward to the panel."
May looked... a little strangely at that. Uncomfortable? Yeah, she was uncomfortable. You had to veto that.
"That's a good idea, Athena. Knew you were clever."
You and May looked over to the new person who had... it would be wrong to say they'd sat down. It was more like they'd materialized at the table. They were just as completely, devistatingly beautiful as last time you'd seen them, though this time instead of a modern suit they were wearing what you could only describe as old-timey European noble get-up, all epulettes and buttons and tails, her hair flowing loose, unnaturally wavy and shiny. A convention badge hung around her neck.
"Excuse me, who are you?" May asked, and the newcomer pointed a long, elegant finger towards you.
"Ask the wonder twins over there. Is that reference too old? When did that show air?"
"Over a half a century ago." Athena replied instantly. "So yes. Hello, Loki."
"Hel-lo Athena, Olivia. Who's our little Galactic Patroller over here?" Loki asked, indicating to May now. "You three together?"
"We know you know." you responded tersely. Mind-reading was the scariest goddamn shit, and you'd had nightmares about it ever since you first ran into Loki.
"I don't, actually. A promise is a promise, I'm staying out of your heads. And hers, I know how to be polite." she said, then extended a hand in a you may kiss the ring sort of fashion. "Speaking of, hello, I'm Loki. You may know of me from my previous works."
"... that was the part I believed the least." she said, nodding. "G-gee whiz Liv. Wow."
"Gee whiz? But she won't get my entirely recent cartoon references?" Loki said, the sly smile still on her face. "I guess I just don't get the youth of today."
"Why the hell are you here?" you asked, finding yourself gripping the table as frustrating mounted, the cheap laminated particle board creaking under your fingers. "I did not need this now. Why'd you come all the way out here?"
"... I'm here for the convention, dear." she said, putting on her best offended airs. "I'm a huge fan, have been for decades. Ever seen Rose of Versailles? I simply adore it, and the Takarazuka adaptations of course."
"What are you talking about?" you asked, completely confused.
"You should look it up, you might like it. Well, you'd hate all the parts where they're high nobility types, but you'd love the part where it's gay." she said, continuing as if she hadn't heard you, and only then stopping to register your objections. "... seriously, I am a fan. This is the biggest anime convention on the east coast, and I've been clearing out the dealers room."
You glanced over the side of the table and saw, sure enough, quite a few sizable bags packed with what looked like little figurines and other merch.
"Seriously, though, please tell me your name so I don't have to grab it out of your head." Loki said, making a little snatching motion, and May looked at you desperately. Reluctantly, you nodded.
"M-May Parker." she said, rooted to her seat. "I-I'm Liv's... well, um... We're..."
"You're going through some stuff." Loki said, reaching over and snatching a fry off your plate. "You don't seem mad at each other, so I can only surmise this is something... oh, Liv, did you only just tell her about the whole superhero thing today?"
"Two days ago." Athena said, that's about when you lost it.
"We are not friends. I barely even know you! Why are you here?" you said, the table bending with a snap under your fingers. Loki just rolled her eyes, leaning back in her chair.
"Come on. With Betty gone you're the only mortals I even know at all on this plane, I just... I ran into somebody I knew and decided to say hi." she said. "That's what conventions are for. For people who are lonely in their regular lives to come and meet up with people like themselves, you know? Shared interests and all."
"I don't see what interests we share, other than distaste for your brother." you sniped, and she chuckled.
"Adopted brother. But I was thinking more... the fate of the world and the multiverse, the big questions pondered by the few people with the power and perspective to ponder it." she said. "And, apparently, anime. I'm behind on this season of Lensman, but I've read the books, I take it it's still good, Miss Parker?"
"... yeah it's great." she said numbly. "Um..."
"Um?" Loki said.
"You said you're lonely?" she asked. "I didn't... I wouldn't have expected that. What... what do gods do, when they aren't going to anime conventions?"
Loki sighed, leaning dramatically against the edge of the chair, resting her chin on her hand.
"Mostly, I sit at home, tracking the progress of the universe, studying old tomes, binge-watching television, and hoping for something interesting to happen." she said bitterly. "And trust me, it's less glamorous than it sounds. If it weren't for little jaunts down to Midgard and such like this one... well, it's all I can do to not go crazy."
"D-don't say that. It's ableist." May corrected reflexively, and Loki winced.
"Right, sorry." she said. "It's just... I'm sort of on the outs with my family after I... may have played a hilarious prank on my family that left my brother Balder slightly dead, but they never really liked me." You and May stared for a moment. "Oh, he got better, by the way. We're a tough lot. Took a few centuries, though, they still aren't over it."
You did your best to try and calm down, keep steady. May was looking to you, and if you were panicking, she was going to be scared. You set your hand back to the table, and were surprised to find the broken portion smooth, like you'd never touched it. You had to treat this as normal, and honestly... Loki wasn't threatening, she hadn't even done anything wrong. She'd just shown up as an uncomfortable reminder and unexpected element exactly at the wrong time. You should try to make conversation.
"So are you here for the whole weekend?" you asked. Stupidly. Loki shook her head sadly.
"Afraid not. Just have the Saturday badge, it's all the time I could afford away." she said. "I'm sure with your coming climate apocalypse you're all well aware of the feeling of something very big and very dangerous encroaching very, very slowly, and you feel like you're the only person who cares at all, right?"
"Y-y-yep." May said, her voice breaking considerably.
"Well, I'm in a similar position regarding... some events. I don't know what's safe to tell you quite yet. But I like to spend as much time as I can monitoring the situation." she said, then her eyes lit up, and she clapped triumphantly. "That's a thought! Olivia, I have a fact about the New York signal that may interest you."
"... uh, yeah. Go ahead." you said awkwardly.
"The signal gets most intense on Tuesdays, unless there's a holiday on Monday, in which case it moves over a day. I think that means that whatever is causing it is a human organization of some variety: they power it up on Monday, it peaks a day later, then they shut it down. Maybe that can narrow things down for you?"
"It would probably be easier to let us have access to your data directly." Athena pointed out.
"How's your understanding of the magic starter guide going?" Loki asked.
"... I'm about thirty percent done reading it." she said. It had been six months.
"Then no, you won't be better off with my raw data." Loki said. She looked over the table, shaking her head. "I'm sorry I barged in, I just got so excited to see a familiar face. Have a lovely convention, all three of you."
She picked up her bags, gave a little smile, and turned to walk off. You glanced away for a moment and she was gone, and all of a sudden you became aware again how loud the room was, how many people were talking.
May reached across the table, taking your hand with both of hers, her eyes wide.
"What the hell. Does that happen often?" she asked, and you shook your head.
"No! It really doesn't!" you said, squeezing her fingers in what you hoped was a reassuring way. "Just the worst timing."
"God, Liv, that was so scary." she said. "What is she anyway?"
"Fairly sure she's essentially a member of a very powerful extradimensional alien species." Athena explained. "She's got power over fundamental reality that very much falls under Clarke's Third Law, to the point where it came in a spooky leather-bound tome. We... think she might be mostly benevolent."
"Okay. Wow." May said, leaning back in her chair and staring off into space. "... why is she so hot?"
"God, right?" Athena said.
"Please steppy." May muttered, and the retreating tension of the moment made you burst into hysterical laughter. It took you a few minutes.
"You okay, Liv?"
"I guess. What... what the hell are we doing now?"
---
[ ] Stick to the plan. Go with May to her panel, try to get the day back on track.
[ ] You need some room to process all that. Take May up on her offer, go crash in the chillout room.
[ ] Athena had a good idea. Switch so she can go to the panel and you can relax in techspace a bit.
- Location
- Somewhere.
oh no
TortugaGreen
Constantly out of the loop
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Being secure enough in your relationship to enthusiastically discuss how hot an unrelated person is is relationship goals. I mean, having a relationship in the first place is also relationship goals for me, but this seems like the sort of cozy trust you want in a relationship.
[X] You need some room to process all that. Take May up on her offer, go crash in the chillout room.
As much as I think athena would have fun in the con, may is not comfortable with it rn and we've piled a lot onto her. Still, we are stressed enough that more convention could be disastrous, so beanbags it is.
As much as I think athena would have fun in the con, may is not comfortable with it rn and we've piled a lot onto her. Still, we are stressed enough that more convention could be disastrous, so beanbags it is.
- Location
- Leeds
Replacing one problem with a smaller one. Failing forwards!
Athena lost her formatting.
FaeGlade Plural
Semper Legens
- Location
- Land of Bureaucracy
- Pronouns
- Plural/They
[X] Athena had a good idea. Switch so she can go to the panel and you can relax in techspace a bit.
This is essentially just the option where Liv goes to the room and takes a break, except 1) Athena will get to enjoy the Con 2) she gets to have experience of the Con afterwards without emotional distress attached to it 3) May will have company
Oh, what if May doesn't like Liv and Athena switching? Well, though.
Also, unlikely that she'll actually dislike it - she may have initial discomfort about it because she is unfamiliar with it, but it's not actually a bad thing, so once she sees it, it'll be fine.
This is essentially just the option where Liv goes to the room and takes a break, except 1) Athena will get to enjoy the Con 2) she gets to have experience of the Con afterwards without emotional distress attached to it 3) May will have company
Oh, what if May doesn't like Liv and Athena switching? Well, though.
Also, unlikely that she'll actually dislike it - she may have initial discomfort about it because she is unfamiliar with it, but it's not actually a bad thing, so once she sees it, it'll be fine.
- Pronouns
- They/Them
[X] You need some room to process all that. Take May up on her offer, go crash in the chillout room.
- Location
- Florida
[X] You need some room to process all that. Take May up on her offer, go crash in the chillout room.