text;

[nostraightlines]

Who: José Ramse and YOU
Broadcast: fleetwide text
Action: the Starstruck
When: now!

Celeste Blackwell went home. At least, I figure that's where they sent her. So much for my plan to be as boring as possible to get sent back.

...

Does anyone here know where I could get sleeping pills or anything like that?


[ Ramse can be found on the bridge of the Starstruck, staring down at the unfortunate moon. He's definitely in a mood. ]

Comments

[takingkarabusiness]

I was thinking "pep talks", maybe.

You know, this isn't the first time my powers have been dampened.

[nostraightlines]

Official pep talk officer.

No? Was there an eclipse or something?

[takingkarabusiness]

No, I just... overextended myself in a fight with an android. James was calling it a "solar flare", which is silly. It's more like I drained my batteries and it took a few days to recharge.

I hated it. I felt so useless... but I still managed to stop a robbery in progress, mostly by wearing the uniform and talking the robbers down from their situation.

[nostraightlines]

[ Android? What? No, that's not the point of this story. Ramse listens, nodding when she finishes. ]

Like a... negotiator, I think they used to be called. No powers, just a good read on the situation. Knowing the right things to say.

[takingkarabusiness]

Well, them thinking I'm bulletproof as helped, but yeah. I guess I have some talent with talking through things sometimes.

[nostraightlines]

You're easy to talk to. There's something... genuine. Does that make sense?

[takingkarabusiness]

[ if she hasn't taken her glasses back yet, she does now, cleaning them on her shirt and generally fussing with them slightly before putting her back on. she's clearly not completely comfortable with compliments ]

Oh, well, I have my moments, I suppose.

I mean, thank you. You're easy to talk to, too.

[nostraightlines]

[ Interesting, considering as a superhero he'd imagine she gets showered with praise from admirers. ]

So I've been told. I'm a pretty open book, that helps.

[takingkarabusiness]

It can. I appreciate honesty.

[nostraightlines]

Yeah... I've made my mistakes but I've always been honest, I guess.

Seems like you are, too, that must be hard to balance with a secret identity.

[takingkarabusiness]

It's hard. I really don't think of myself as a good liar. Though, my sister once told me the best way to be a good liar is to make people think you're a bad liar.

Except, I think I'm just bad.

[nostraightlines]

How often do you have to straight up lie?

[takingkarabusiness]

A lot more than I'd like to?

[nostraightlines]

They say you get better at it, the longer you have to. It helps if you've got your story straight beforehand.

[ ...not that he'd really know. He's hardly ever lied in his life. ]

[takingkarabusiness]

Yeah. I guess I make it work when I don't have a choice.

[nostraightlines]

You're just doing what you have to, to protect yourself and the people you care about. Right?

[ It doesn't mean you're a liar. It means you have a secret. ]

[takingkarabusiness]

Yeah. I don't... want anything to happen to anyone just because they know me.

[nostraightlines]

[ He hums thoughtfully. ]

We don't have heroes in my world but we've got comic books. I've seen it happen in those.

I've been there, too.

[takingkarabusiness]

Have you?

[nostraightlines]

Yeah... I got somebody killed. The last person I ever would have wanted to hurt.

[takingkarabusiness]

[ goes to place a hand over his hand lightly ]

Oh... José... I'm so sorry. What happened?

[nostraightlines]

[ He'll take the contact pretty much always, this time turning his hand to hold hers and focusing on that instead. ]

It's kind of a long story. Remember the crazy woman trying to reset the timeline? After the massacre I stole something from her so she couldn't send anyone back anymore, and she sent her soldiers to come back and get it. I wasn't there... Elena was.

Maybe without me she would have died in the raid anyway. Hard to say. But if there's one thing I've learned from all this time travel is that you shouldn't try and change the past. Shouldn't wish for what was. So it happened, and it was my fault, and I have to live with that.

[takingkarabusiness]

[ she'll lace their fingers, then, for added support ]

It sounds like it was that woman's fault. Her soldier's fault. You couldn't have known.

[ she realizes this is a "do as i say not as i do" situation, because she would absolutely blame herself in this situation. ]

[nostraightlines]

I knew she'd come for the case, and I should never have left them alone with it. But she sent them for me so I thought... [ He sighs, squeezing Kara's hand just a little. Ramse will never stop blaming himself for Elena. ] There was just something else I had to do and even with time travel you can't be in two places at once. It was the soldier's fault. He died for it on the spot, the leader killed him. To stop a fight from breaking out, I guess.

[takingkarabusiness]

I really am sorry.

[ There's nothing to say about it, really. It sucks. But she'll sit there and hold his hand and sympathize with his situation. ]