Past Tense ((open))

[Nailah Weaver]

Nailah's side of the room is plastered with post-it notes and similar things, especially the corner with her bed. One newspaper cut-out is high-lighted by having it's edges marked with a thick red border. The clipping of her saving the day in Lyon. Other things are mostly reminders about classes, homework, work-out routines. One just says 'Remember you broke your leg!', others are more mundane like 'your toothbrush is the blue one'. A nice (fake) leather-bound journal is sticking out partway from underneath her pillow while Nailah herself is lieing curled up at the bottom of the bed. Wings make it tricky to lie down sometimes and sooner or later during the night she seems to always end up with her knees pulled against her chest under the covers with mostly just the wings sticking out, one splayed out across the bed and the other folded against herself like a second blanket.

The covers shift some and there's a faint groan as she stretches, then she suddenly shoots up, flailing with the covers before tossing them off the bed. Her expression is wild as her eyes dart about the room, almost automatically falling on her wall of notes and she calms down a little as vague recollections bubble to the surface. The last thing that is truly fresh in her mind is passing out next to Hazard and it takes a moment for the realization to sink in that she's safe and sound, the confrontation in Lyon well in the past. On the upside, the feeling of triumph she gets from seeing the news-paper clipping is more impactful in being at least somewhat new to her and she actually feels pretty good as she swings her legs over the edge of the bed and hops out, stretching her arms above her head and arching her back until her tail tenses as well and curls upwards a little. Then she looks around, finding her work-out bag at the foot of the bed and grabbing it.

A couple minutes later she's bounding down the steps of the dorm wearing sweatpants that are cut off at the knees and a thick vest over a long-sleeved shirt to keep the cold winter-air at bay. She bounces in place a little, getting warmed up for her morning run.


((open))

[Janice Gilbertson]

"I thought cats weren't morning people," Janice says with a muzzy chuckle as she steps out of the dorms.

[Nailah Weaver]

"Ah but I'm also an early bird." she says, glancing back over her shoulder at the sound of Janice's voice. She does end up having to stifle a yawn though. "And I was up anyway. You seem familiar..."

[Janice Gilbertson]

"Oh, you're still having that ah... memory thing, eh?"

[Nailah Weaver]

"Yeah. I think it's getting better though. I recognize you, although I don't remember your name..." she admits a bit sheepishly.

[Janice Gilbertson]

"I'd have hoped you'd remember your girlfriend, but I'll let you make it up to me," Janice teases.

[Nailah Weaver]

"Wh-what? No, that... I wouldn't... would I?" she stammers awkwardly.

[Janice Gilbertson]

"...oh, you are way too nice to keep this up. I'm messing with you."

"Mostly."

[Nailah Weaver]

"Oh. Oh!" she laughs. "Wait, what do you mean 'mostly'?"

[Janice Gilbertson]

"Eh, you're cute." She shrugs with a smirk.

"Gotta work out to thrash the baddies, huh?"

[Nailah Weaver]

She blushes and quickly chimes up with an enthusiastic "Yeah!" at the change of topic. "Gotta stay in shape and all that. Plus I haven't lost my muscle memory and it feels good to have something I can rely on, ya know..."

[Janice Gilbertson]

"Got a list to go after for your big comeback? The Mangler? Professor Implausible? Brexit Lass? The Inscrutable Triangle?"

[Nailah Weaver]

"I wish! I only got one real enemy and he's under lock and key. Also super insane and not in the fun way. But I guess I can always go back to mopping up drug dealers and such in London."

[Janice Gilbertson]

"Do you have a costume? Because those jumpsuits the school uses are a bit naff."

[Nailah Weaver]

"Oh heck yeah! With a mask and everything, even if it's kinda moot, what with the tail and wings and all."

[Janice Gilbertson]

"They probably don't want you advertising you go here either."

"Even if, you know, daring masked sphinx girl kind of screams mutant university."

[Nailah Weaver]

"I mean... it's technically illegal, I suppose..." she hems and haws a little. Janice seems like that doesn't bother her, but you never know. Especially in her case. She probably wrote down some stuff about the other girl, but her journal is safely tucked under her pillow right now and she can't look it up.

[Janice Gilbertson]

"So what do you yell to make them soil their drawers?" She smirks.

"Are riddles involved?"

[Nailah Weaver]

"Oh ha ha, very funny. I'll have you know that sphinxes were guardians and asking riddles just one way of determining who to let pass." she says with a bit of mock-haughtiness.

[Janice Gilbertson]

"Well maybe that's how you tell they're criminals. If they're lousy at riddles they're unworthy and get a good kicking?"

[Nailah Weaver]

"Usually I just fly around and catch them doing, you know, crime stuff. But yours sounds much more likely to hold up in court." she chuckles. "Your honor, he didn't even know what walks on four legs at dawn, two during the day and three at dusk."

[Janice Gilbertson]

"Not like you're going to be on the witness stand as it is."

"Ah, but look at me. I got all wound up in this and forgot to tell you my name again. I'm Janice. I room with Laura."

[Nailah Weaver]

"Right! Of course, Janice. Sorry, I probably would have known if I had my journal on me."

[Janice Gilbertson]

"See, that's the real tease because now I have to wonder what your cheat sheet on me is," she chuckles.

[Nailah Weaver]

"Even worse, maybe I looked into your future and wrote it down." she smirks.

[Janice Gilbertson]

"Oh, that'd be a real trick, with me."

"But that'd require you to remember what my powers are."

[Nailah Weaver]

"Would it now?" she muses, tapping her chin, mostly just stalling to see if she can recall Janice's power. "It was... something... sneaky. Or tricksy."

[Janice Gilbertson]

"I mean, try it if you like. As long as it's not going to hurt you to try."

[Nailah Weaver]

"I don't think so. Bit of a head-ache maybe but that's not too bad. Whaddaya wanna know?"

[Janice Gilbertson]

"I'm just not even sure it'd work on me, given what I know."

[Nailah Weaver]

"Well that's a challenge if I've ever heard one." Nailah grins and closes her eyes, letting out a slow breath as she searches out that familiar feeling of everything echoing through her like a deja vu stretched into infinity. She hears the crunch of her foot in the gravel before it happens and over and over as it races towards the present and she actually moves her paw on the ground. The moment crystallizes in her mind and fractures as it disappears into the past and all the little cracks spread out in front of her mind's eye, glinting with possibilities. Tracing along them she can feel the faint slice of pain but it almost helps her focus, searching for the facets that show glimpses of Janice and following them. Too many possibilities to really take in any details without getting lost in that one particular one, but before she can even focus too much on clusters of similar futures there's a sudden swell of the sound of glass shattering the cracks change, mending and breaking in different patterns here and there, changes spreading out, some even bouncing backwards off of her and the already shifting landscape of broken reflections shimmers like a kaleidoscope.

"Ooph!" she lets out, the sound one of the things that bounced off of her in the present, changing the future ever so slightly. Focus! Look for what you're going to tell her, easier to cheat and find something sorta stable that way. It'll reinforce itself and fall into place.

Latching on to the idea she lets herself fall back to just moments into the future and find herself talking and looking for what she's talking about. If Janice is going to be smug about her power making this tricky then she's going to be tricky herself and commit to something before she's even seen it herself. "Hah!" she starts, her eyes snapping open and immediately going wide. "Wait, how's... Oh. Oh gee. Guess that didn't work!" she laughs awkwardly. "You were right. Just a bunch of non-sense!"

[Janice Gilbertson]

Focusing on the short-term is easier, but only just. Millions of possibilities winnow down to just dozens, but even among those it doesn't seem easy to pick one that seems likely. She sees one where a student on the walkway behind Janice slips on ice and goes careening through the glass of the common room window. Another where two cars out beyond the gates misjudge a traffic signal just so, hitting at a highly specific angle that sends one somersaulting before landing upside down on the ivy-covered brick wall. Yet another in which she witnesses a sewage main near the rec complex heaves and makes the frozen ground buckle, just before spewing a geyser of filth into the air. Even one where Janice leans forward to kiss Nailah. Or tries, but miscalculates and lands the two of them in a heap.

"Oh geez," Janice says with some concern.

"That didn't look like it felt good. Are you alright?" She asks, leaning forward.

[Nailah Weaver]

"It's fine!" she squeaks, taking a half-step backwards as Janice leans in, foot slipping and she lands square on her butt.

[Janice Gilbertson]

"...okay you are way less graceful than I figured," she says, holding out a hand to help Nailah up.

[Nailah Weaver]

"I can blame your power, right? That's what it does?" she says, almost a bit bashfully taking Janice's hand.

[Janice Gilbertson]

"My power messes with probability. So if you were trying to predict the future things might've gotten... weird?" She tilts her head quizzically.

[Nailah Weaver]

"Y-yeah. Weird." she mumbles as she brushes herself off. "I... did see quite a bit misfortune just... all around you."

[Janice Gilbertson]

"Pretty much what I do. Haven't managed to make it do anything but cause stuff to go wrong. But at least I can kind of... aim it, now?"

[Nailah Weaver]

"But you don't mean to? It just... happens?"

[Janice Gilbertson]

"Oh, no. Not anymore it doesn't. I mean, not usually."