( closed )

[anarchos]

Who: Grell erythristic, Hiro zerotohiro, Clarke flamekeeper, & Bellamy anarchos
When: 7/8 IC
Where: Bellamy and Grell's apartment
What: world hopping leads to awkward family reunions
Rating/Warning: will edit as/if necessary

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[In retrospect, he may have been a bit of an idiot when it came to dealing with Hiro. Especially after they'd flat out discussed the whole multiverse and multiworld thing. The opening was right there. But Bellamy ducked away from it anyway, but it wasn't like Grell had been forthcoming either. At least she'd probably been a little more subtle about it. Really, it was only a matter of time before Hiro found out; it's not a surprise that Clarke became the turning point for it.]

[It doesn't mean he's not a little nervous waiting after Grell invites him over. His good intentions don't mean shit most of the time.]

[When the bell rings, Bellamy's the one to get it, with the dog hot on his heels. He opens the door to let Hiro in, and before he even gets a word out, Rhea plows forward, whining and nosing at the kid. She's hesitant though, like she realizes there's something off, but it doesn't stop her from demanding attention from someone so recognizable. Bellamy wonders if he should stop her, but he just takes a step back to give Hiro the space to walk through instead. Rhea won't leave him alone till she's good and ready anyway.]

Uh, hey, Hiro.

Comments

[zerotohiro]

[Bellamy's correct in that assumption. All three of them united and looming over him would have made him even more uncomfortable. It's only when Bellamy settles that his hand absently pets Rhea's head again before he whistles softly to her to follow him to another chair. The suitcase parks next to him and his hand scratches Rhea behind the ears as he takes a deep breath, looking over the three of them carefully.

They're all very close. Anyone can see that. He has to wonder just how he fit into all of this.]

It's okay. [It's more to reassure the three of them instead of answering Bellamy's statement, but he smiles again even as his eyes are more on the dog than them for the moment.] It's just...you and Grell? That's how you knew about Baymax, huh? But neither of you said anything. I probably still wouldn't know if I hadn't met Clarke, would I?

[erythristic]

That wasn't intended to be a permanent state of affairs. We intended to tell you at a time after we'd gotten to know you better.

[the words come out almost clipped, and Grell leans forward both to pick up her own tea and to move the cup for Hiro more towards his direction. settling back, she looks into the tea instead of at him for a moment.]

On my own arrival, almost everyone I met greeted me as though they knew me. Claiming I'd been here prior, which is nonsense. They sought someone who was and is not me no matter how alike our faces and names may be, and spoke with such assured conviction that it was unsettling, to say the least.

[now she looks up to him.]

I had no wish to subject you to that sort of experience. To make it seem as though there were expectations of you that you didn't ask for, brought on by someone that was and is not yourself...that's hardly fair nor right. But it seems as though that course of action backfired. And for all of it, I'm sincerely sorry.

[flamekeeper]

[ Clarke immediately perks up at the mention of Baymax; if Hiro is talking about him, that might be an indication that he's here. While she's tempted to ask, his question to Bellamy and Grell takes precedence; it's a valid one to ask of them, after all.

Instead of remaining in the living room with them, Clarke reaches to give a reassuring squeeze to Grell's arm as she apologizes, offering a smile to Hiro before she stands and removes herself from the room. Not only does she want the three of them to have this moment together, but she fully intends on taking the time to grab her sketchbook. The mention of Baymax reminds her, and she wonders if it might help Hiro to have some proof. ]

[anarchos]

[He grimaces a little, nodding along with Grell's response.]

It didn't really feel fair to you, to dump it on you. I saw Grell going through it, and I just didn't want put anyone else through it. Especially you.

[He makes a face.] Grell's right, it did backfire. We probably shouldn't have kept it quiet for this long. [A beat.] That is how we knew who Baymax was though. He wasn't there - but you told us about him.

It's not an excuse. It was a weird balance to try and reach of knowing you and getting to know you all over again, and I'm not sure it worked. I'm sorry too, Hiro.

[zerotohiro]

[While the two of them explain themselves and Clarke gets up to leave the room, he finally pulls his tea closer to take a sip, only mildly surprised to find that it's exactly the way he usually takes it. He doesn't remark on it, knowing what he knows now and instead he waits for them to say their pieces before chiming in again.]

When I first got here, people told me I used to be here before. Not many people, but enough that it was pretty believable. They recognized Baymax, too. I get it. I get why you did it, I guess. [It's still a little questionable but he can deal with that. Why wasn't Baymax with him in the Drabwurld? That's strange.] But then again...? It was a little easier to deal with when I found out that other people were experiencing the same thing, too. You just said it yourself, Grell. And Ruby had to deal with it, too, when she came here a second time. [He sighs to himself, thinking nothing of dragging Ruby into this conversation too. (It's second nature at this point.) It's weird. Timeline shenanigans and multiple versions...it's hard to wrap his head around sometimes.]

I think my next question is just how much you guys already know about me anyway. It's okay. I promise I won't think I have to live up to anything or whatever.

[erythristic]

[but she wasn't me. this isn't a second time. the instinctual response is choked back in her throat with another drink of her own tea, swallowing her words along with the caffeine. it's not the same. the same way he isn't theirs, no matter how much they might want him to be.

instead of lingering there in a space she knows will get dark, she thinks about his question. how much did she know?]

...Enough to know a good deal of your habits. Some of where you came from. Your way of speaking, and a good number of your likes and dislikes. That you overwork yourself to the point of exhaustion in pursuit of your goals, and that you have a mind with the keenness of a newly made sword and a library's worth of knowledge. How you chose to fight. Those sorts of things.

[flamekeeper]

[ Clarke overhears everything, of course, but naturally that's to be expected what with her amplified hearing. Realizing it's a good time for her to return, she scoops her sketchbook into her arms before making her way back out to the living room; this time, she settles atop one of the arms of the chair that Hiro is sitting in.

She flips through the pages quickly before she comes to a page that holds a drawing of both Baymax's chip, as well as his piece of armor that Hiro had in the Drabwurld. She hands the sketchbook down to him, open to that page, but she won't stop him if he wants to flip through the rest. It's primarily filled with pictures of Diasbaile, the family, the dogs, and occasionally sketches of various places in both Glaschu and Dorchadas, and everything is always labelled. ]

I know that your favourite colour is blue, but when you were fourteen, red was a close second. I know that you liked to lay in the backyard with Rhea as your pillow, because 'at least sunshine feels the same way here'. [ At which point she flips the page to a sketch of him in the grassy yard with Bellamy not too far away. ] I'm pretty sure that Honey Lemon might have been your favourite friend from home, even though you'd never say as much. Grell's right that you knew so much already, but you were always wanting to learn more, anything you could get your hands on. I don't think I've ever met anyone as smart or naturally intuitive for creating as you. [ She's quiet for a moment, as though debating; even if all of the know about Tadashi, Clarke doubts that's something to bring up right now. ] I knew you for about a year and a half. You also get a bit of a growth spurt by the time you're sixteen. [ That's lighthearted enough, right? ]

[anarchos]

[It's the second time he's mentioned Ruby, and there comes with the curiosity one might have toward their Certified Alternative Universe Tiny Son. But he'll find out in due time, because now is not the time to be asking his own questions.]

Honestly, it was pretty cool actually meeting Baymax here. You were always excited to talk about him.

[There's the smallest of fond smiles on his face, despite the words that come with it next.] I know you're not above disregarding the law, if it suits you for a better cause. We may or may not have committed larceny.

Grell and Clarke are right - about everything, but - you're unbelievably smart and inventive. Connecting the dots, creating entirely new technology.

I was helping to train you in the Drabwurld, so I already know where most of your strengths and weaknesses are on that front too. What weapons suit you, what you liked using and hated. [He's half tempted to offer it up again but - he keeps quiet for now.] You like to keep busy, when you have a lot on your mind. I mean, who doesn't? But you're very determined about it.

[He grins, wanting to go out on a more teasing note too.] You ate just about everything and anything, but this weird pseudo mac and cheese was your favorite. Judging from the burgers, you've still got an extra stomach.

[zerotohiro]

[What's mollifying is the fact that they're all correct. All of that makes sense and sounds right, and while there are some things anybody who speaks to him long enough would know (his favorite color for instance, or the fact that he's naturally gifted and inquisitive), but there are definitely things only a select few people would know. He takes the book from Clarke and idly thinks of how nice her drawings are before he begins to carefully flip through the pages. He hovers on the page with Baymax's chip and armor, a little spooked by the specific detail in that before he continues to look and listen to the three of them.

They really got it. They really actually knew and it's…it's…well, it's a lot to swallow. He knows that Adelina had come here and disappeared to another place not her home, only to return here. Could the same have happened to him?

He smiles at what the girls say, smirking more at what Bellamy says and he doesn't take his eyes off of the book.]

Hey, I'm growing still. Don't judge me. [But "creating new technology." "How you chose to fight." Those things stick out to him and he finally looks up at the three of them. He's genuinely stunned, to say the least.]

Wow. [He sinks back in his chair, lingering on the picture of himself and Rhea before looking at one of the Caer Scima.] You guys really weren't making this up. [His brain's on overload, but there's one more important question pushing through.] So wait a sec. That means…I fought in that war, too? With you guys. We were all on the same side, right? [He huffs lightly, mostly in disbelief.] I'm having a hard time imagining that.

rolls on in days late

[erythristic]

Why, do you doubt that we'd all be allies? I'm offended.

[but despite the amusement on her face, she knows what he's truly asking. what was so hard to believe. (he is so young now, comparatively, and though it was so short in years, the stress and experience of a war aged someone beyond themselves. two years could be more like twenty.)

again, she wants to rush forward and hug him, but refrains.]

There are a lot of ways to fight in a war, Hiro. We all found how to contribute - be it on the field, working with fire and steel, or be it evading spies and answering the requests of the divine. You might not know what you're capable of until the opportunity is at hand to show you can do it, but you did.