[Img]https://img.roleplayerguild.com/prod/users/0198214b-b664-7339-b39d-1722d0965696.webp[/img]
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[Center]Location: Seance Room, Kingston-Gray House, New Orleans
Skills: [color=A2797E]Memory Manipulation[/color][/center]
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	The scene Sabine found herself in was grim. 

	A younger Casper Kingston, dressed haphazardly in ill fitting clothes that were clearly not his own, was slumped against the brick wall of the alleyway. Various paraphernalia were strewn about, all of them his, none of them good. She didn’t need to know what his vice of choice had been on that day. It didn’t really matter what it was. It was killing him all the same. His breath was slow and feeble, his lips grey and his skin almost bluish, and while his eyes were open, there was no recognition behind them - no soul gazing out of those pinpoint pupils. The faintest word fell from his lips. Just [color=DBA1DE][i]”Ben.”[/i][/color]

	At least Sabine was not alone, as the memory continued to play out, the light becoming dimmer and dimmer, the edges of it hazier and blurrier. Somehow, Vicky and Danni were there too. Somehow, the three of them would get to see this man die together.

The abrupt change from whimsical to… this was jarring to say the least. Everything was happening fast and Danni, a little overwhelmed with how quickly things were escalating, screamed, wrapping himself around the nearest person like a snake. Beanie was a familiar touch and he greedily basked in the touch as his head moved on a swivel. [color=E948FC]“Wooow, t'is is… not t'e best place, ‘uh? ‘ow'd we get ‘ere? Did we go in t'e mainframe again? No, definately nit at scho- Beanie, did you change your ‘air product? Ngl lie, I'm lovin’ it.”[/color] Danni, distractedly patted Sabine with a nod of approval as he noticed Vicky. 

[color=E948FC]“Vicky! You're ‘ere too! 10/10 would recomm- wait a minute. Not 10/10, we gotta talk. You're bein’ kinda mean recently so we def gotta talk bit t'en we'll be good and t'en t'is'll be 10/10.”[/color] Danni gave her a thumbs up before frowning at the body in the alleyway. [color=E948FC] “Wow, t'at kinds looks like my papa if ‘e wasn't an old man. Yeesh, t'at make up was certainly a… choice. Wait, is it almost ‘Halloween ‘ere? Maybe ‘e is bein’ a zombie!”[/color]

Victoria's sole focus was interrupted as Danni made his presence known. That was... not ideal, but there was nothing she could do but roll with it. The android - or what part of her was represented here - took in the surroundings. Now that she analyzed them more closely, some things were starting to connect. This happened after she approached a psion. Mr. Kingston was also present here. And said Mr. Kingston looked younger than the man she saw just seconds ago. That probably meant-

Her thoughts were scattered by Danni's rambling. She raised her finger in a shushing gesture, without so much as making eye contact. [color=00ffff]"Really? Ms. Bassard's slumped unconscious in your seance room, with you being here I hazard a guess that so are you, who knows what's happening to my chassis with all this, but some beef you have with me is what is preventing you from having the perfect experience? We can talk about [i]that[/i] later!"[/color] she whisper-shouted. These people needed to get their priorities straight, yesterday.

She walked over to get a better look at Mr. Kingston, before giving Sabine an inquisitive look. [color=00ffff]"From what I see, I'm guessing we're in Mr. Kingston's memory?”[/color] She sought confirmation from the expert, before she busied herself with how to change that.

Sabine had been trying to hold things together when she heard voices. Before she could face whoever it was that had joined the scene, she felt herself enveloped by something. She looked and saw Danni holding on to her. Sabine, at first, felt warmed by his embrace, a familiar figure would make things better and, since the two could feel each other, he was clearly not part of the memory.

Then her attention wandered back to Casper on the ground. Danni was now about to witness a very low moment in his father’s history and that was something no child should ever bear witness to.

Another voice broke out and Sabine then saw someone she definitely did not expect: Victoria. Sabine had to think back but she remembered that, when her powers were in their infancy, she needed to physically touch a person to access their memories. After practicing and growing, she was able to not need to anymore, though touch could still help. She was holding Danni’s hand during the seance as well as Andy’s, but only Danni had gotten in. Victoria must have touched her also. [color=a2797E][i]”Great, Danni is bad enough but now her also?”[/i][/color] Sabine quickly shook off the thought. She was afraid of being trapped here alone ,but now she at least had help.

The problem was that she now had to explain to Danni what he was seeing.

[color=A2797E]”Yes, we are in Casper’s memory from a while back, it looks like. I tried to leave when I saw this, but couldn’t. Danni,”[/color] she spared Victoria a glance and gave her a look that read ‘get ready for this’. [color=A2797E]”You know what my powers are. You and Vicky got pulled in to your father’s memory along with me. What we are seeing is a memory your father has from his past. It is not Halloween, he is not a zombie. He is experiencing an overdose from injecting himself with drugs. I am telling you this because I need you to come to terms with it and hold in whatever emotions you want to unleash until we get safely out of here. Can you promise me you’ll do that?”[/color] Sabine still held Danni, unsure if he was going to be able to hold himself together. She would do what she could, but she needed logical minds at the moment, not emotional ones.

Danni opened his mouth to object - Beanie made him sound like he was emotional or something. Maybe she was right but he could be [i]reasonable[/i] and [i]mature[/i] when necessary, thank you very much - but instead he peered intently at the passed out form of his Papa. He knew Papa took drugs back in the day. Hell, Danni knew if it was a drug, Papa probably had a story about how he got his hands on it, nearly got killed for it, and then one going on and on and on and on about whatever tripped out hallucination he experienced. Casper, slumped over and surrounded by the litter of his broken life, was less of a shock to Danni and more of a sad affirmation. Pops couldn't always be there to act as a filter; Danni and Dee's put enough together to know Papa probably should have been dead five times over. If anything… 

The darkness at the edge of the memory continued to creep inwards, as the details faded away - as the sky became a monotonous grey, the rubbish piled up against the dumpsters on the opposing wall vanished, even the sounds faded, as the entire world became impossibly small - became just a man, alone, whispering a name that even he could no longer understand. Until that too was gone, and there was nothing - just a void where a soul had been.

But the memory did not end.

Suddenly, color returned in a rush, with sound soon to follow. They were no longer in an alleyway - instead, Casper stood at the precipice of what looked like a retro diner, a single waitress leaning against the counter, as a few regulars chatted idly among themselves.

[Color=DBA1DE]“H-hello…?” Casper croaked out, disoriented and confused. “Has anyone seen my shoes?”[/color] he added.

The waitress glanced up, sighing in seemingly fond annoyance. “Take a seat. I’ll get your usual.”

[color=E948FC]“It just makes me ‘appier ta know ‘e made it t'rough all t'is ta be my Papa.”[/color] Danni murmured half to himself, half to the others. [color=E948FC]“I mean, Papa ain't t'e best secret keeper and wit’ Dee's abilities, it was waaaaay easier ta sneak ‘round. We got enough puzzle pieces ta know t'is wasn't Papa's first time round t'e Merry Go Round, t'is memory.  Deat’ really ain't t'at scary ta us, ya know? So I promise, no fire or water works ‘ere!”[/color] Danni reassured Beanie, content to stay wrapped around her. [color=E948FC] “And friendship is always important, Vicks! No matter what's ‘appenin’ so brin’ up stuff ta talk ‘bout is always important! I wanna stay your friend so I wantcha ta know I wanna talk ‘bout somet'in’ t'at's bot'erin’ me, like Beanie did a while ago!”[/color]

Sabine confirmed what Victoria thought, and added the current predicament on top: She couldn't leave despite trying. At least, that is what Tori assumed - she didn't think Sabine would consider this scene as captivating as to want to remain. That did not bode all that well for the rest of them, if the person versed in this was trapped here.

Then, Sabine gave her [i]the look[/i]. And for some reason, Victoria understood what it meant. Perfectly. That was... a weird occurrence. Usually, Victoria was more on the side of misunderstanding people even if they spoke. Maybe it was because of the situation they found themselves in? She felt no such understanding with Danni though. The android filed that as something she could check up on later though.

Looking back at the Memory of Mr. Kingston, she shrugged a little. [color=00ffff]"Whatever your old man went through to get there, I'm glad he's in a better place now."[/color] she offered, [color=00ffff]"Sad as it may be though, we can't do much about it. We aren't back in time, just in a memory. And those we probably shouldn't mess with."[/color]

She looked around as the memory changed, but as witnessing any number of memories would not likely bring them to the solution to their current problem of being stuck witnessing them, she stopped paying attention to them. Danni's explanation of why he was bringing up whatever it was he wanted to bring up left Vicky unsatisfied, but she chalked it up to Danni being Danni, or perhaps just humans being humans. [color=00ffff]"Well, since the one of us skilled in traversing others' mind is currently unable to get us out of here, we may just have time a plenty to talk about anything. Before that though-"[/color] she looked at Sabine, [color=00ffff]"-Can we be of any assistance at all? Not that I wish to pry into your personal matters, but perhaps if you could explain to us in a bit more detail how your powers work, the two of us might be able to come up with something you might have not considered. Otherwise, I'm afraid you're our only hope."[/color]

Even as she said it though, her mind was already trying to come up with a solution based on what she knew of Sabine's powers and what she assumed might hold true. If they couldn't get out, they had to send a message somehow. The only medium they had access to was Mr. Kingston's memory. So... Could they plant a simple memory to his mind? 'Oh yeah, the kids are stuck in my mind!'? Wouldn't that be nice, alongside of perhaps inceptionizing an idea to throw them into a car and drive them to C.A.G.E., so the power dampeners there could force Sabine to turn off and free them.

Sabine held Danni, unsure, but if he was willing to hold it together then so be it. She didn’t know if Danni knew his father’s history, but apparently he did, which made things easier. Especially as they shifted to a new memory in a diner. 

[color=A2797E]”As best as I can describe it, I am able to enter people’s minds and view and alter their memories. This has impacts to their presenting persona, like what happened with Arcade as I shifted a memory to make him realize the horrible things he was doing and want to change. I can make people forget things like how to swim or implant new memories, altering what they may be able to do. I can’t physically interact with things inside a memory, like how I couldn’t grab Casper when I first got here. If I can maybe implant a new memory into Casper, one where it shows us being stuck here, he may be able to let everyone outside know what happened and then they can work on getting us out.”[/color] Sabine had to admit, having others with her to bounce ideas off of was helpful. 

Danni spoke of his father in such kind words it nearly sent Sabine into a tizzy. Again the love shown from this family made her feel equal measures of sadness, anger, and joy. It was a kaleidoscope of emotions. [color=A2797E]”Unless you all have better ideas, of course, but that is the gist of it. I can also use telepathy, though, again, I cannot physically touch anything so that won’t do us much good.”[/color]

Oblivious to their conversation, Casper took a seat at the counter - he was somewhat used to odd changes in environment, in scenery. His life at this point in time was fragmented, events that happened out of order without any real connections. He let himself slump in his seat, propping his head up on a napkin dispenser. “Why’m’I so cold?” he mumbled, drawing his coat in closer around himself. 

The waitress placed a plate of waffles in front of him with an emotionless stare. “Because you’re dead.”

[Color=DBA1DE]“Fuck! Really? Shit. Where’s Ben then? Fuckkkk I had a rave I wanted to go to later. God fucking damn it!”[/color] he whined. 

“Sucks to suck,” the waitress replied with a shrug. 

[color=E948FC]“‘Cadie didn't just wanna be better? We ‘ad ta mess wit’ ‘is ‘ead for ‘im ta wanna be better? Aw, t'at's kinda a bummer. Like, good job Beanie but…”[/color] Danni pouted. [color=E948FC]“I t'ought somet'in’ someone said got t'rough t'at ‘im. Dang.”[/color] Danni watched his Papa whine (somethings never change) and the implications of [i]everything[/i] hit him all at once. He scrambled away from Sabine, one hand in his hair and the other fiddling with his locket, and paced in the diner. 

[color=E948FC]“Oh no. Ooooh no. We're in Papa's memories. In ‘is ‘ead. Not outside, not in t'e astral, in ‘is ‘ead. Oh, t'is is bad Beanie. We ‘ave ta- ta- ta find somewhere safe after t'is. But, ‘e'll find ‘er so I can stay wit’ ‘er ‘cause ‘e'll find me.”[/color] Danni panicked. [color=E948FC]“I like Beanie t'ough. Is t'at enough? No, Beanie used mind stuff on Papa's ‘ead. And def not wit’ consent ‘cause Papa wouldn't consent and Pops wouldn't eit'er and Pa and Appa would shut it down in a ‘eartbeat too. So t'at means ‘e'll t'ink Beanie is a [i]t'reat[/i]. No, Beanie is a kid. ‘e won't ‘urt a kid. But t'ey wanna put a new memory in and like, I trust Beanie. I'm chill wit’ Beanie in my ‘ead anytime but t'ey def don't like Beanie so t'at means…”[/color] Danni whirled around to face Sabine and Vicky. 

[color=E948FC]“We absolutely can't put a memory in Papa's ‘ead.”[/color] 

[Color=00ffff]"I thought you had something to do with Ed's quick change for the better. It's refreshing to see that someone with a gift is not stingy in using it for a change. The world could use a few more people like you."[/color] Victoria smiled at Sabine. She felt a sting in her mind remembering that. She was ready to [i]end[/i] Edward there and then, despite saying that she considered that a last resort. And then Sabine went and did the job better than her, serving Tori a portion of humble pie.

Back to the issue at hand though, Danni made an argument for why the suggested plan of action shouldn't be taken. [Color=00ffff]"Okay, let's call that plan F then... I was going to suggest planting an idea to throw us through a portal into C.A.G.E. so the power dampeners there turn Ms. Bassard's powers off, but even then I give it a 50:50 chance of just trapping us here forever. Any other ideas on how to get out of here then?"[/color]

She thought a bit more. [Color=00ffff]"What's holding us in here? What's different than any other time you did this?"[/color] she asked Sabine, [color=00ffff]"If I assume you aren't in any sort of mental distress or anything that might throw your powers out of control, then it has to do something with Mr. Kingston... Were you having a bad day?"[/color] she asked, just to be sure.

Oh Vicky, if you only knew.

Sabine let Danni go off on whatever tangent he needed to. She still did not fully trust him to not lose it, but if he said he would try then she knew he would give it his best. Danni’s words hit Sabine hard though. She knew she broke a semblance of trust and she would be facing some harsh truths.

No, she helped Arcade. The man was about to kill them all. She may have shifted things around, but it was his choice…right? She saw his past, how broken it was, could even see why he went the route he did, but she helped him. And she tried to help Casper and look where that got her.

She wanted to challenge Danni. What option did they have? It wasn’t like she was going to alter his personality. But…could she promise that? [color=A2797E]”All right, plan F it is then. It’s not like I was going to alter anything or change who he is.”[/color] She felt her defenses get up and knew better. Danni wasn’t accusing her, not really. He was concerned about his dad.

Then Vicky’s prompting made her pause. Vicky was proud of her? Lost respect in one person and gained it in another. Well if nothing else she would have a lot to talk about in therapy.

[color=A2797E]”I mean, without trauma dumping…yeah today wasn’t great. Found out someone targeted Leah to mess with her head by pretending to be her father, I’m on the outs with April, and entered a home with a slew of people who definitely don’t trust me, no offense Danni and recent events aside, so I was feeling all sorts of stress. Hell, I nearly had three different panic attacks the whole time I was here. So when I saw Capser in distress I just….acted.”[/color]

The waitress had continued to chat idly with Casper, serving him his favorite waffles. None of the other patrons in the diner were doing anything of note, all content to enjoy their food while the teenagers panicked, desperate to come up with a plan that would reduce the odds of harm coming to Sabine. 

She then turned, and stared at Sabine directly, as all movement in the diner stopped. The syrup he had been pouring onto his waffles was perfectly suspended in air between the bottle and the plate. It was as if the world had been frozen.

“Is that what Casper would have wanted you to do?” She inquired, a flash of a skull appearing on Her face, before She turned away, and the activity in the diner resumed. 

[color=E948FC]“Oof, tbh I was super shocked ya came ta t'e ‘ouse at all. Its awesome ya came but considerin’ ‘ow anti… mental powers t'e ‘rents are, I figured ya would ‘an’ out wit’ t'e ot'ers…”[/color] Danni frowned as he turned that over in his head. [color=E948FC] “Well, guess its just ya and Leah t'ere now wit’ all t'e crazy ‘appenin’. FYI, workin’ plan once we're outta ‘ere is full water works, claimin’ ‘ow upsettin’ spaghetti at all t'e changes ya are, and get t'e ‘rents all frettin' over your lack o’ control, my tears, and t'e imminent t’reat of burnin’ down t'e ‘ouse again. Great priority changer, bury t'is whole mess in the depths of t'eir great big ‘earts, ya know. Just roll wit’ me, act a little shell shocked, and let Pa and Appa squirrel you two away before Pops ‘as a chance ta catch up wit’ t'e situation.”[/color]

[color=E948FC]“But, like she said,”[/color] Danni thumped over to where the spooky lady waitress was still talking with Casper. [color=E948FC] “If ya do it now on purpose, knowing Papa would be real upset, I don't t'ink I could pull it off.”[/color] Danni paused, brow burrowing. [color=E948FC] “When my fire is outta control, I always gotta like, focus on somet'in I really, really like ta get it back ya know? Like, I get spooked, door catches fire, I get double spooked but I gotta focus on like… the ‘rents or like you and Vicky and Dee and Peincess and all t'e fun stuff we've done ta calm down and keep it from causin’ any big problems! Obvi, not t'at great at it but maybe if ya focus on like if, t'e milkshakes or… or… or Leah, bit not t'e whole Daddy stuff but like uh… uh… a date! Or idk what else but I'm tryin’!”[/color] Danni paused again, slowly turning just his head to stare at the waitress as the gears whirred in his head. 

[Color=00ffff]"...oh."[/color] Well, that could explain a bunch of things. She shoved the fact that Leah didn't call on her with this issue aside, that was neither here nor now. [Color=00ffff]"Well... The way I see it: Either something is preventing us from leaving - Be it Mr. Kingston or some external influence - Or you're not in control enough to leave. So, we may want to tackle both ends. I have no clue how to address the first part, but if you think it'd put you at ease? Trauma dump away."[/color] she offered.

She was no dr. Whitehall, but she could listen to another person's troubles. And keep herself from vocalizing her judgments. Probably. [Color=00ffff]"And if you're concerned about the consequences of this... I came armed. I can have a hole blown in the wall and us two flying out of reach in... I give it 2.31 seconds, barring any serious magic reinforcing the walls."[/color]

Then, something... Unexpected... Happened. No, something that should not have been [i]possible[/i]. [Color=00ffff]"Uh... How did a [i]memory[/i] just talk directly to you?"[/color]

Sabine had never had a memory actually speak to her and, quite frankly, she never wanted it again. [color=A2797E]”The fuck?”[/color] She barely registered the others talking to her, but she focused on them. They were all she had in here. [color=A2797E]”Okay, okay, no power use if I can help it.”[/color] She appreciated Danni wanting to stand up for her and use his mega-useful waterworks to do so, but she also felt….icky. [color=A2797E]”Look, I’ll own up to what I did as a mistake and if that means I’m kicked out then that’s what will happen. I should have known better but I panicked. All I seem to do lately is panic.”[/color]

If they wanted a trauma dump, they would get one.

[color=A2797E]”All right, so I get panic attacks. A lot. It started when I was younger, after losing my mom. I also…self-harmed. Whenever I would get a panic attack, I would hurt myself because at least I could control that. Eventually, the panic attacks subsided and would only come occasionally. Then I had an eating disorder, which started them back up again. There were also many incidents after my powers manifested. People didn’t trust me. Those who knew assumed I was altering people’s memories to get what I wanted, and those who didn’t realize just assumed I was doing something wrong. My father never trusted me, and my stepmother was the devil on his shoulder, forcing me to move and come to this country. Avenger’s Academy was one good thing that happened, but even then, I was faced with scrutiny because no one ever outright trusts the mentally powered people, so I decided to live up to the threat they put on me. Fast forward to more recent events, and my relationship with April disintegrated, and I can’t help but feel at fault for forcing her into it when I should have known better. Now Leah is facing off with thoughts of her father, and I am trying my fucking best to hold it all in for everyone else. I feel like I am cracking, so when I saw someone in trouble,I jumped in to help to prove that I am not someone that can’t be trusted, and in the end I destroyed that trust anyway because I am fucking terrible person.”[/color]

Dr. Whitehall would be proud.

Casper yawned loudly.

He arched his back and stretched out his arms, a bit of whipped cream from his meal stuck on his nose. “So if I’m dead… now what? What am I supposed to do? Is this heaven? Is heaven eating waffles all day? And why isn’t Ben here? Is he too much of an asshole to go to heaven? Or hmm actually, y’know this place kinda reminds me of this diner I crashed at after a party - have you ever thought about rebranding? Maybe ghost Hawaii? Make it tropical and shit? Crank up the heat a few notches so I don’t freeze off my nipples?”

The waitress ignored him too. 

Danni's eye watered up and he threw himself at Sabine, the strange incident behind them. [color=E948FC]“No, Beanie! You're not a bad terrible person! And ya don't ‘ave ta ‘old yourself taget'er; we're friends, let us ‘elp! Just tell us everyt'in’ is all funky and we can ‘ave a night and you can let is all out, we can watch movies and make terrible dinner decisions, and t'e whole shebang! Well, ya know could ‘ave and now we'll probs ‘ave ta put t'at on ‘old or maybe at t'e ‘otel, we could do t'at!”[/color] Danni wrapped himself tight around her, deciding that they were far too far apart. [color=E948FC] “Let us be ya frieeeeeend. I ‘ave a breakdown like once a week. We're real good at ‘elpin’ wit’ t'em!”[/color]

Victoria absorbed what Sabine confided in them. It looked like the real person was a lot different from the one presented on the socials. That in itself wasn't surprising, but the degree of it surprised the android.

[Color=00ffff]"I'm with Danni."[/color] she said after a few ticks of deliberation. [Color=00ffff]"From what I heard, you're a reliable person above anything else, to the point it takes a toll on you. Ed is slash was a horrible person. Leah's dad is a 'fucking terrible' person."

"You had a fucking terrible [b]day[/b], and at the end you just... Made a mistake, that is all. Mistake you realize and own, one made out of good, if perhaps a little self centered intent. That's not terrible, that's normal. People make mistakes. Not just superpowered ones. This is just like if someone read somebody else's mail. Heck, robots make mistakes. A robot made a lot of mistakes recently. I don't believe this is anything so big in the grand scheme of things to beat yourself over it this much."[/color] she delivered the most analytical pep talk ever.

[Color=00ffff]"As for holding it together for everyone else... You're surrounded by a group of people that was ready to defend, and give a second chance to a guy who, in an alternate timeline, killed them and as a consequence got that entire timeline erased. I think it is safe to say there are more than a few who'd be willing to help with anything you need."[/color] she gave Sabine a brief reassuring smile.

Sabine felt another welling of emotion inside her chest. It was different this time around. Rather than the heat of pressure it felt…cool. Like a cascading waterfall. She willed herself not to completely lose it as she petted Danni on the head. Even Victoria, whom she had rarely regarded as anything more than just a body that was there that Leah enjoyed talking to, offered comfort.

She willed herself not to completely lose it. [color=A2797E]”All right, thank you. Now, enough of the therapy session, we still need to find a way out of here without planting or changing Casper’s memories. And hope that the others outside are finding a way as well. Should we look around, see if there’s another part of a memory that we can interact with?”[/color]

Sabine looked and felt a surge of energy, of power. It felt new, but also something she recognized. Maybe….She faced Danni and Victoria and nodded. [color=A2797E]”Let me try something.”[/color] She closed her eyes and, with the power in her, tried to leave Casper’s memories.

And it worked.

The next time the kids opened their eyes, they were back in the Kingston-Gray house, back in the seance room, slumped over at the table. And at the very same moment as they came back to consciousness, Casper collapsed in a dead feint, blood trickling from his nose. 

As she came to, Victoria huffed a sigh of relief, both at being back in her shell, and that the safeguards worked and Ultron wasn’t able to take over in her mind’s absence. Quietly shuffling her feet, she positioned herself between Sabine and the Kingston-Grays - Just in case anyone woke up on the wrong side of the bed today and refused to listen to reason. Or was too immune to waterworks.