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Tree branch: check. Assorted lightweight seed-bearing fruits and nuts: check. Other seeds: check. Water bottle, for when she has to veer away from the river: check.
Better not linger in her starting place too much longer. Yellow's faster than her and may have already come home to a wreck. Thorn might have a habit of checking up on the place, even, just in case. She's invisible, inaudible, unsmellable - that won't help if he sends someone thorough. Or comes in person.
She sets out.
She's been flying for about thirty minutes after her shopping trip when she falls through a tear and squeaks inaudibly and lands in the middle of -
imeanforever
The fairies, one sturdy one crushing one manifestly fragile one under her weight, stay where they are.
The female one yawns.
The female one yawns.
wormcan
That's as good a sign as she's going to get. And Paige's voice is still charged from the song.
"Get off him. Move over there." She gestures, then remembers. "Across the room."
"Get off him. Move over there." She gestures, then remembers. "Across the room."
wormcan
Yellow doesn't look like he's in a state to be ordered to walk. Can she carry him? Enlisting the torturer's help is probably possible, but that's the last thing she wants to do.
He's little. And weighs less than he looks like he should, about twenty pounds altogether. Maybe he weighs more when he has all his blood in his body?
wormcan
That's not a thought she wants to be having right now. Too late.
She picks him up—so much blood, how is he still alive, there's a reason she isn't a cape—and tells the other fairy "don't follow us." Then she resumes singing on her way out.
She picks him up—so much blood, how is he still alive, there's a reason she isn't a cape—and tells the other fairy "don't follow us." Then she resumes singing on her way out.
Nobody, especially not the steel-winged fairy, follows her.
Yellow twitches in her arms but is in no condition to actually, like, escape.
Yellow twitches in her arms but is in no condition to actually, like, escape.
wormcan
She belatedly remembers to tell him, "don't resist."
And, when approaching the gate, "once we're in the mortal world, whisper your name to Promise."
And, when approaching the gate, "once we're in the mortal world, whisper your name to Promise."
imeanforever
Yellow makes a burbling noise.
When Canary steps through the gate, he makes an almighty lurch from her hands onto the floor, and drags himself to within whispering distance of Promise.
Trembling, Promise puts her ear to his face and listens.
When he's struggled through all the syllables, Promise tells him, "Stop," and he freezes.
Then she gets started on healing him.
When Canary steps through the gate, he makes an almighty lurch from her hands onto the floor, and drags himself to within whispering distance of Promise.
Trembling, Promise puts her ear to his face and listens.
When he's struggled through all the syllables, Promise tells him, "Stop," and he freezes.
Then she gets started on healing him.
wormcan
Canary is over here, shaking. "I am never going back there. And never complaining about not liking my neighbors, either."
wormcan
"I walked up and heard screaming. Someone was torturing him, said he broke something and was going to pay for it. I— I guess it's a good thing I got there when I did."
imeanforever
"You probably shouldn't have risked it, but - seems to have turned out all right. Yellow, you may breathe. You may not enforce any orders; but you may, quietly, speak true and complete replies to questions. Who had you?"
"The," croaks Yellow, as his upper right wing unbends in eight places, "steelwing from the canyon. Mosaic."
"Did she get your name?"
"No."
"The," croaks Yellow, as his upper right wing unbends in eight places, "steelwing from the canyon. Mosaic."
"Did she get your name?"
"No."
wormcan
"Is this a normal thing in Fairyland? If someone here were torturing people until they could control them they'd get Birdcaged, and I don't think even I would object."
imeanforever
"It doesn't happen to most people most days, but I'm mostly surprised that Yellow antagonized Mosaic in the first place, not that she reacted by trying to get his name. It's the most permanent way to settle anything. What did you do to her?"
"Took some rocks," coughs Yellow, "turned out to be part of an art project."
"Took some rocks," coughs Yellow, "turned out to be part of an art project."
imeanforever
"Only would be pushing it. And little as I hold with torture it's probably not fair to summarize it solely as 'he took some of her art and so she tortured him'. If she thought he was planning to escalate at some moment not of her choosing, or thought that looking like a pushover to him or someone else would make her seem like a good target for similar treatment..."
wormcan
"Well, that's a little less bad. And still somehow doesn't make it any less of a place to stay away from."
imeanforever
"Oh, I understand your caution entirely. This house probably has water, if you want to get the blood off. Yellow, follow me."
Promise and Yellow go through a different gate.
Promise and Yellow go through a different gate.
wormcan
It does have water. Paige washes off what she can, then she leaves a note for Promise and leaves to change clothes and re-acclimatize to the normal world.
imeanforever
Promise comes back into her house a while later.
And then thinks of an experiment she wants to try, but first she has to fly to the PRT building and use her existing gate. (And stop to see if there are any messages for her there.)
And then thinks of an experiment she wants to try, but first she has to fly to the PRT building and use her existing gate. (And stop to see if there are any messages for her there.)
wormcan
Nothing urgent. Nilbog is still surprisingly content and is gradually coming around to the idea of helping them. The E88 has been doing more or less their normal amount of crime, aside from trying to expand into what used to be ABB territory before all three ABB capes got captured. They're occasionally skirmishing with the Travelers, Undersiders, or heroes. None of the E88 news is obviously relevant to the names situation. They could bring in the top two now, but the PRT would prefer to wait a bit longer for extra surety.
imeanforever
In that case -
Promise has been meaning to spend some downtime checking out that cape forum. She is not too familiar with the interface, but eventually she figures out how to make an account, name it "Promise" (...that wouldn't be her nickname if it was not what she wanted to be called), and write a reassurance in her profile that she uses a custom computer that redacts names for her so you're safe even if your screen name is a pun or shortening or something.
What are they talking about here today?
Promise has been meaning to spend some downtime checking out that cape forum. She is not too familiar with the interface, but eventually she figures out how to make an account, name it "Promise" (...that wouldn't be her nickname if it was not what she wanted to be called), and write a reassurance in her profile that she uses a custom computer that redacts names for her so you're safe even if your screen name is a pun or shortening or something.
What are they talking about here today?
wormcan
Some of the threads are obvious continuations of ongoing conversations ("The Endbringers, Thread XXXIII"), some are things currently in the headlines (a Protectorate hero used a racial slur on camera), and in Boards ► News ► Events ►America there's a topic about her. Speculating on her powers, whether the invisible person who got Bakuda is the same unknown winged figure who was seen immediately afterward, and, if she's as powerful as she appeared in that fight, why there are still villains in Brockton Bay. The general consensus is that there's probably some limitation other than the names. Once she does anything people will see, the warning on her profile might dispel that.
imeanforever
Promise goes and reads that thread. It is that lovely Internetty mix of cruft and content. She writes People who are not villains have a legitimate reason not to want me to know their names. Since mortals re-use names a lot, every villain whose name I learn puts other mortals with similar or identical names at risk. I wouldn't misuse a random person's name, but random people in general shouldn't have to trust me like that.
A "verified cape" tag has appeared next to her name. Well, this is her weird custom computer, maybe the software can sense that somehow.
A "verified cape" tag has appeared next to her name. Well, this is her weird custom computer, maybe the software can sense that somehow.