thisavrou | [Voice]

[With all of the quantum shenanigans Elizabeth has ever been involved with, this has to be the one that feels the strangest.]

[The doctor and nurses had been uncomfortably nice, even though Elizabeth had reassured them that they didn't have to treat her delicately. If this was a tragedy, she had no point of reference to mourn it. Seeing them give each other significant, sad glances was only irritating. What was possibly even more annoying though was that Elizabeth waited for the memory of her previous self to come back to her... but it wasn't. If she'd been here before, if she'd broken the rules again, memories of what she'd been like, what she'd said, how she'd died-- they would have been there. Sooner rather than later. But days went by and nothing came. She wandered around the hospital, the staff asked if she wanted to contact someone ("Who do you suggest?" she'd ask, and they would usually shrink back. No one knew who to call), and the day the 'Ingress technician' stopped by asking to talk to her she smelled a scientist and refused to let him in the room. The next day they suggested she go back to her apartment.]

[They drove her to a nice place, that they informed her she'd purchased, and once she'd been inside for a few minutes and her vitals remained stable, they took their leave to let her "get reacquainted".]

[And there she was with the strangest feeling in the world: not knowing what happened to her here.]

[There's an entire room of books-- which makes sense immediately, but the collection is the most eclectic thing she's ever seen. There are clothes in a hamper, rotting food in an ice box, dying plants on a porch, a wadded up blanket and many, many empty mugs. She was lonely, even before her apartment went abandoned for days. Did anybody know her?]

[The basic functions of the device on her wrist were explained to her on the ride to her apartment, but she's still unsure and careful as she makes selections and sets up a broadcast.]

This is Elizabeth DeWitt, formerly of the Moira's crew... [There's a long pause, and she finally realizes there's no way to avoid being straightforward.] ...I'm looking for anyone who knows me. There was an accident-- [Or incident, probably.] --and I've been told I left my timeline months ago and have been living elsewhere. Anyone who can shed some light on where I've been and what I've been doing... I'd like to speak with you.

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[The bar fight, that's right, he'd forgotten she'd mentioned that. He's going to forget lots of other bright thoughts brought to his mind too because the instant her nose begins to bleed, he panics--]

Hated-- what the hell's going on? Are you okay?

[he's yanking napkins out and pressing them to her face quickly, heart in his throat because the last time that happened it wasn't too fun]

Woah--!!

[Elizabeth raises her hands, but Badou's too fast with the napkins and Elizabeth finds herself staring at him cross-eyed and startled. Her spine is very straight and she's staring up at him wide-eyed.]

...I'm fine, my nose is just bleeding.

[More's happening than just that, but she's a little too startled to talk about science right now.]

[realizing his hands are definitely in her face, he lowers them back onto the table, expression sheepish]

My bad, blood just...yeah. I thought-- nevermind.

[Elizabeth holds the napkins to her face for a bit longer, still staring at Badou like he's about to grow a second head and carry on the conversation with himself. Incredible-- he just, leaped right up like it was a normal thing to do. And now he looks like a kicked puppy, muttering a several starts of sentences but not much else.]

[After a moment, she lowers the napkins, a light reddish smear still on her upper lip, but she doesn't look too concerned about it. She's trying to see through Badou, trying to figure out what made him do that. Maybe he doesn't like the sight of blood, but if he didn't surely he would have just looked away not-- tried to help her.]

...was that normal for us? Did I... [She tries to resettle herself to look a bit more relaxed. Elizabeth isn't used to being touched-- by anyone. Unless it's to hurt her. Someone coming at her so suddenly is usually a sign that she's about to get hit, but he didn't do that. Not by a long shot.]

I guess spending so much time having friends meant I was used to that kind of interaction, right? [God. How wonderful. And how terrible she doesn't know any of it anymore. How many times after Columbia did she wish someone, anyone, would just hold her for a minute?] I'm sorry if you weren't expecting that.

[she doesn't have to wish very hard to get him talking to a second head, really. or even clack her shoes together.

Thank god there's coffee to have him waste his mouth on instead of talking. 'Was that normal for us' that's such a-- he doesn't know what to think of that, and for a second Badou Nails is blank.

When the cogs start working:]

I guess? We didn't hold hands or nothing but, I dunno? Friends do that? Most of me and my friends kicked each other's asses so...and nah, its alright. None of this is exactly expected.

[Friends do that. Yeah, that seems about right, so she nods vaguely and twists her fingers together around the napkin under the table. She doesn't like not knowing what's going on, asking these awkward questions and feeling embarrassed when she gets it wrong.]

I'm not surprised to hear I was depressed. [She says, finally.] Or that I threw myself into trying to save someone to fix it. Did it work? Was I better afterwards, or...

[Or had they failed?]

[Did it work. Did finding this kid work, did saving this kid save whatever was left voided inside her?

Badou's silent for a moment. Then,]

We found him.

[the silence is awkward, and couldn't be vague-er]

...But I wasn't better afterwards, is what you're not saying.

[Elizabeth sits back in her chair. How had she failed? With all of the firepower she had behind her, how could she not save one boy? Why hadn't she-- is probably the better question.]

What happened? Were we too late?

If this is the result, I don't think you had a fighting chance to be better. Doesn't exactly work that way anyway.

[it is what it is. he hates to say it, but she has to hear it]

He was fine, we got there on time. But...something opened, because of the Ingress I guess.

This is the result. [She repeats, frowning at him, working backwards to figure out his meaning. Does he mean that she was like this even before whatever happened, happened? Or is he just referring to the fact that this memory wipe is a direct result of her trying to save this child and restart her countdown to depression? Either way, she's not liking the picture these clues are painting. She has a very, very bad feeling that more than she's comfortable with happened.]

...what do you mean 'something'? [She's not playing dumb, her tone is hard and low, indicating that he'd better tell her the truth if he knows it.]

I don't mean that you're like, a piece of shit or anything! [he's making this worse isn't he
but he also...doesn't think she's looking at it realistically...god, how Emotion
he rubs his hands over his hair fitfully]

The result being....something, you called it a tear, happened. And you saved us all, basically. So! So, that's the good news!

[Voice]

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