An Open RP/PSL POST:

[that_cost]

It's just what it says on the tin, folks. This is for all your PSL needs. Want to continue a PSL? Throw up an idea for a thread.

Want to start one? Throw up an idea for a PSL.

This also extends to the following muses:

Eugene Sims (inFamous: Second Son) he_who_dwells

Evie Queen (Descendants 1 and 2) blueberryprincess

Emily Kaldwin (Dishonored 2) kaldwinning

Julie Grigio (Warm Bodies/Burning World) grigio

Lara Croft (Tomb Raider/Rise of the Tomb Raider) belay

Feel free to use pictures for prompt ideas, too!

Comments

Flash AU:

[that_cost]

It had taken months for Charlie to trust Cisco and everyone else. Months, honest to God. She'd been on her own since she burnt down the Shop, all those years ago. And it had been just her doing what she could to keep other kids from the same life she had. One of being chased and captured and tested.

And okay, so she was being tested by Cisco and his friends? But she had the options to tell them to stop. She'd had enough. And she was free to actually walk out of the situation when she wanted.

It was weird, having those choices offered to her. And it was weird when she started to figure out these people actually wanted to help and they were concerned for her well-being. So she ended up moving into Cisco's apartment and was more willing to go with their tests, show them what she can do.

But even then, she got bored. There were only so many cars and blocks of metal she can melt, so many times she can see exactly how hot she can go before she breaks the machines measuring temperature, before she asks for a break.

They'd given her an entire weekend to relax and this was day one of it. She had the paper on her lap and her tablet out, searching for something to do and obviously, she was dragging her roommate along. Mostly because she still didn't know the city.

"Found it! I found it. I know what I want to do today." And she's all smiles about this, something she's only just started doing regularly.

Cisco, you better like Alfred Hitchcock marathons, because your second option is probably the carnival downtown and Charlie's only vaguely interested in that.

[picksthenames]

Cisco was glad Charlie turned out to be a good metahuman. No, more than glad. Relieved. He was sick of all the metahumans they'd found being criminals or evil megalomaniacs bent on destroying Central City. He'd take a pyrokinetic who just wanted to help kids over those guys any day. Plus, she actually wasn't too awful to hang out with. When she'd gotten stir crazy staying at STAR Labs, he'd freely offered her a spot on his pull out couch because, well, she was cool and she needed a place to stay.

He joins her on the couch, bowl of sugary cereal and cup of coffee in hand, and peers over to look at what she's pulled up on the tablet. Luckily for Charlie, Cisco loves old movies. He used to watch Buster Keaton shorts with Doctor Wells all the time before, you know... he turned out to be an evil metahuman. (Sigh.)

"Movie marathon? Sweet, I'm in."

[that_cost]

The smile on her face just grows into a grin when Cisco says he's absolutely for this movie marathon. This was the best thing she's heard all day. This was going to be a touch of normalcy that she hasn't had in a while, with probably one of the best people she's met in a good long time.

"Awesome. It starts at five so, we have four hours. I have no clue what to do until then."

She's been with this group of people long enough for all of them to know that Charlie doesn't do well withbsitting aroundnbeing cooped up. That's when the stubbornness and sass kick in. It's that whole "feeling caged" issue left over from her year with The Shop. A sort of PTSD claustrophobia that she's not so great at managing.

"I'm leaving filling in those hours to you. This is your city."

[picksthenames]

This is indeed Cisco's city. It's the city he grew up in, so he knows the ins and outs better than just about anyone. He grins, shoveling another spoonful of cereal into his mouth and chewing before he answers, "Well we'll need to grab sustenance. What are you more in the mood for? Big Belly Burger or Jitters for coffee and baked goods?"

Both are staples of Central City. He's brought both to STAR Labs during their testing sessions, so it's not like the food will be new for her, but the experience of going in person is still worth it, in Cisco's opinion.

[that_cost]

"Oh, always Jitters." She adores the croissants and the tea lattes. She lives off of those like Cisco lives off of all of his sugary cereals and coffee. In fact, it's the easiest and the fastest way to make her smile. Especially if she's had a rough day or a hard night sleeping. So, Jitters is her go to for those quick bites, that snack grabbed just to waste time.

"I just have to grab my jacket and shoes, and I'll be ready to go."

(still me, just a new journal name)

[doitforthevibe]

Cisco nods, slurping up the rest of his coffee and shoveling some more cereal in his mouth. Once he chews and swallows, he speaks up.

"Just let me finish this up and get dressed." Because he's still in his pajama pants.

Stranger Feynman

[sinnesloschen]

Harry had never really stopped to think about how he'd been offered this job, not until he'd already been entrenched in it for several months. He hadn't applied for it, that's for sure. It was more something he'd been offered after graduation from MIT. Come and work for this government energy lab, they said. We like the cut of your science, you talented physicist you.

And sure. Why wouldn't he? It paid well, gave him interesting clearance levels and offered him a chance to do things he'd otherwise not have been involved with for decades.

The idea that the reason they wanted him was because of some low level abilities he'd inherited from his mother thanks to some sort of genetic lottery hadn't even occured to him. Why would it? He didn't exactly flaunt them. Low level retrocausality and some amount of thoughtographic ability. If his eidetic memory was part of it, he had no idea. But seriously. Didn't even occur to them that's why they wanted him.

But then he met the girl. Found out exactly what these experiments were for. That all they really wanted was for him to interact with her. Run minor tests. What's the card I'm looking at, can you move this thing to this place, let's try some remote viewing. That sort of thing. Nothing he could talk to anyone about outside of the labs.

And boy did he want to. He had some serious reservations about this place, and about what was going on with that girl. Especially after someone tried to put her in confined quarters and she ended up panicking and breaking their necks with her mind.

So. At that point he resolved to try to figure out how the hell to get her out of there.

Re: Stranger Feynman

[upsidedowns]

Eleven does not hate the man they brought in. She likes him. He was kind. He made their time together fun, even though she knew why he was there. If she had someone like her there, someone who could do things with their mind like she could, she'd be much more willing to participate in their tests. What is this man in the photo doing? Can you find him? What is he saying?

She would help.

But she wouldn't hurt. She didn't like making people or things hurt, not without reason. So when they told her to hurt the cat who was scared and could probably smell that Death would be soon so it hissed and growled and grew angry...Elle couldn't do it. She knew deep down it was wrong and she just didn't want to hurt the cat.

So, she rips the weird hat off of her head. And Papa does his disappointed sigh and looks at her like she did something wrong. And the men carry her roughly to that small and dark room and she's thrown in, anger filling her and pushing her to get up. Lash out. One man hits the wall and is gone. The other reaches for a taser and Elle twitched her head and then he's gone too.

That lashing out had been sudden. Too sudden her ears and nose are bleeding as the weight of what she'd done hits her, sending her crumbling to the floor.

That was wrong. They were wrong. She was wrong and had only one person that could help her. With a little bit of what energy she had left, a name escapes between the gasps and sobs the girl is wracked with. She wants help. She wants out.

She wants her friend.

"...Harry."

Re: Stranger Feynman

[sinnesloschen]

At least he's here and can respond to it. Go to her without really thinking about it, and bend down to the ground. "I'm going to pick you up. Hold onto my shoulders, okay?" He's going to try to get her the hell out of here, even though he can hear people coming. Security and, he imagines, her alleged papa.

"It'll be okay, I promise." His abilities may be low-level, but at least one of them will be useful here. He thinks.

Re: Stranger Feynman

[upsidedowns]

Elevens thin arms wrap around his shoulders and once he has her securely, she lets herself slump. Let's the weight of everything pull her down, the world growing hazy and muted around her. But she's still alert. Still aware. She knows they're in trouble. They won't get far if she doesn't do something.

But she can't think of what. The secure team that rounds the corner is just two men. Two men who stop to look at their fallen coworkers. Their hesitation, that moment of assessing the situation proves to be their downfall and Eleven lashes out. It's a hard telekinetic blow that sends them down the hall, but it's not hard enough to damage them or worse. They land on their backs and slide a few yards down. They'll be up soon.

"Run." Elevens voice is weak and her ears and nose are bleeding more. She can't go on like this much longer.

Re: Stranger Feynman

[sinnesloschen]

Running is something he can do, albeit a little awkwardly considering he's running while carrying someone. Around a corner, a bit breathlessly and stopping when he hears someone coming from the elevators in a hurry. "Wait."

A directive to her, not to do another telepathic wave just yet. He's assuming she'll actually do it, but who can say? He shifts her to support with one arm while he lifts one hand like it's a gun and concentrates on whoever's coming around the corner. Focuses, because his abilities? Kind of low level without a lot of concentration. "Bang."

And when the security guard, a guy who could definitely stop Harry if not Eleven, comes around the corner he jerks backwards as if shot. There's even blood as if he was shot. Retro-causality. The effect coming before the cause.

That'll be hell to figure out later and mind-melting if he doesn't, but he'll well. Figure it out later. "Where are the cameras?" One more trick he can do to keep things from going sideways as long as possible.

Re: Stranger Feynman

[upsidedowns]

"Corners. Up high. And above important doors." She means secure doors, doors that require key cards and high level securities. But this is a child who hasn't spoken much to people or been spoken to beyond what people needed to say for the sake of testing. Even Papa spoke to her like she was a baby, though at present she's not entirely able to recognize condescension. Everyone does it.

Except Harry.

It's a long run down the quiet hall. No one has found them yet, but that doesn't mean anything. At the end of the hall is an elevator that Elle knows from experience takes forever to arrive. So they need a delay.

"The Bath." She doesn't want to go in it. She hates it in there. But there are things...sorry, Things inside a rift near there that they could use. "The monsters."

Is Harry catching what she's saying? She's not terribly thrilled with this idea, but it's the best they have.

Re: Stranger Feynman

[sinnesloschen]

He stops in front of one of the cameras, directly in front of it, before turning his attention to...well, to anyone else it would just look as if he were having a glaring-staring contest with a camera. But he knows that what he's doing is trying to burn a new image into the camera feed. It's difficult, because he usually just uses this power to entertain his sister or Eleven. Occasionally for his minor benefit. But this is important.

Once that's done, he continues on their way. A little winded, but nothing he can't handle. "You're sure?" Genuine concern here. He's seen what happens in The Bath.

Re: Stranger Feynman

[upsidedowns]

Eleven nods. The Bath is their best bet. She just needs a couple minutes. They won't suspect them of heading there. The security team and lab personnel all think Harry and Eleven are headed to the exits.

"I am sure." She just doesn't like the idea.

Re: Stranger Feynman

[sinnesloschen]

Thanks to that image burning? For sure. At least until her Papa figures out Harry's using his own power. "All right." So, to The Bath they'll go. He's seen how they get her into it, so it won't be that hard to figure out.