Fandom Into the fire (1x1 MzHyde/Gallifrog)

[MzHyde]

Kay and Fia let Jay talk to Cal and Cliff when Cliff made the comment about rank and who was lowest, amongst the whole everyone listens to the medic no matter the rank chat. They remembered similar discussions being made before and smirked without saying a single word, other than Fia making the remark and jibe at Elliott like she did. When Jay did remark back at Fia's remark and in turn Kay's, Fia gave the 'see! She gets it!' gesture with her hands and eyes whilst looking at Kay, which made Kay just shake her head but smile. Fia had a feeling Elliott would fall for her quip, as he rarely did, but it didn't stop her doing it anyway as just like Jay said, it was what younger siblings were for. She considered her sisterly duty to make quips at him about his attraction for Jay and anything else in general.

With Elliott instead asking about the scar on Jay's face, it dawned on Kay's mind that no one else really thought about that extra detail they had never seen on Jay's face before. Listening to the reply, she found it interesting that special effects for all tense and purposes had come that far that it could be that convincing already. She would have asked more about it but the topic quickly moved on from there to Rinaa asking about minding Jay's real phone and inquiring about a burner, which shoedd her that Rinaa was all too used to this sort of last minute situation happening. She didn't look like the teenager she was growing to try and understand even a little bit, instead looking like a grown up woman who only had work on her mind and nothing else. She even noted how Rinaa's tone seemed to change as she spoke to her mother, making her wonder if the Leah in Fia's timeline ever did the same or if Fia ever spoke differently when John had to go to a job or anyone else in the family did.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Elliott suspected that Jay's scar was a fake, he'd never seen it before (and would feel pretty damn stupid if it had been there all along and he hadn't noticed, Jay was his.....something after all). Jay, he knew made a point to not wear make-up outside of an infiltration job that involved gaining access to either a high end, high security target where the dress code was not just black tie, but sophisticate, best money can buy black tie or infiltrating more seedy venue where punky scruffy attire and messy eye make up was the dress code. But he was well aware she could make scars vanish with clever use of make-up, she'd done it to his own after all. So when she confirmed it was a prosthetic of sorts he nodded in understanding. Commercial facial prosthetics had a long way to go on Earth, never uite looking realistic or blending in properly. But they like, many, many other things were far more advanced off world. Elliott would be surprised if there was some kind of basic nano tech that had recorded the pattern and colours of Jay's sin and replicated in on the fake scar piece. It was highly effective, just like his own scar, it drew attention away from her whole face, forcing the person to focus on one aspect of the face (in Jay's case, her sharp cheekbones). The scar made her look different, just as he'd looked so strange with his scar concealed over.

All heads turned to Rinaa when she spoke. it seemed that Jay's change of outfit had an effect on her too (a completely different one to the effect said outfit was having on Elliott). John couldn't help but see this a role-reversal. The teenager was acting like the older person of the two, acting like the parent checking their kid had their phone, money, ID and keys before they let the kid leave the house for the night. The realisation that Rinaa was pretty much giving her own mother a curfew (it was a few days, but a curfew none the less) brought a smirk to John's face. Elliott and Chas were more surprised by the change that came over the girl, physically she looked just like any other teenager- casual clothes, slightly tatty and worn, one leg propped up on the table, headphones slung around her neck, experimental haircut, multiple ear piercings (only seven)- but her attitude and mentality had completely changed, some switch had been flipped inside her and Rinaa was all business. Elliott didn't need to ask, he just knew that there had been occasions in her timeline where Jay had left for some job or another and all Rinaa could do was wait and hope her mother came back safe. It was impressive, there was steel and authority in her tone, none of them had ever heard in her tone before. This was a teenager who could and would order people around and didn't take people's shit in the field. This Elliott realised was another example of just how vastly different Rinaa's behaviour could be. One side was afraid to stand up or even say anything back to her family, preferring to retreat into herself, but the other side was more than happt to all but order around a grown assassin, and her mother at that.

Leah also had such a tone, but it had only been directed at Fia once, when they ended up crossing paths tracking down the same target and the Downworlders their target was associating with. It had gone sideways quickly, they'd been too busy with the 'what are you doing here?' to notice that they'd been spotted, only realising when it was almost too late. Leah had snapped into action, giving a series of orders to her cousin without a second thought before pulling out her weapon and readying herself for a fight. A slightly more toned back version could sometimes be heard when Rinaa was on the phone to somebody, clearly trying to twist their arm in order to get them to do something for her.

Jay however was both amused, and impressed by the change that had come over the teenager her daughter and it showed in the half-smile across her face and in the glittering silver of her eyes. "I won't insult your intelligence asking if you've done this before, the answer is obvious." The teenager merely smiled ever so slightly in response. "And to answer those questions, yes the number is in that phone there, yes I'll be using the text code based on inane musings, should the need arise. And it'll be a day and a half to get there, a day and a half to get back, chuck in another half day to find the place. Make it three and a half, with an extra day contingency for minor flares, or worker's strike, or technical issues." As Jay spoke, Rinaa nodded along with her, the details being slotted away into some analytical part of her mind. "I'll keep an eye on the news in that system then." Rinaa replied. "Oh and pick me up some of those Vrykis sweets, the ones with the crunchy nut bits on top?" It wasn't exactly an order, but there was no use of 'please' or 'if you get the chance' that a normal teenager would use when addressing their parent. That made Jay laugh, or more precisely let out a low 'heh' of amusement, the kind somebody made at an in-joke, followed by "you sounded just like him y'know."

 

[MzHyde]

Fia did recognise the kind of tone that Rinaa put on, even if it was slightly different but only by a tiny bit. She had been receiving end of that tone, and as much as she didn't particularly like being on the end of it, (she did things her way and was stubborn when coming to agree that someone else's strategy was the better one) she always respected Leah's opi ion and went with it. Turned out that one time, it was proven to be valuable as neither girl would have succeeded if they had to deal with it alone and teaming up did prove quite enjoyable to Fia, even if she wouldn't admit out loud. She was more concerned and thankful that Leah wouldn't grass her up to her parents, which made her all the more thankful that she didn't have the relationship with Leah like Rinaa had with her other self.

Neither Fia or Kay said anything as Jay spoke with Rinaa about what to do and when to do it and so forth. The curfew comment didn't go amiss on Kay either, then nking how amusing in a bizarre way it was that Rinaa had somehow and effortlessly switched roles between teenager and mother with Jay. It seemed that Jay was just as amused by it from the way she reacted, albeit subtly and when she said about sounding like 'him', Kay assumed that she was about her twin Jack or Elliott, but her money was on Jack, if she was to put money on such a thing which she didn't. "I guess we'll see you in four days then!" Kay commented. "and that's mum's way of saying 'I would say stay safe but that'd be an insult to say'" Fia smirked, earning another jab in the arm from Kay, even if Fia was right. She may not know Jay as well as Elliott, John and Chas, but she did respect the woman as she had technically been apart of a team that saved her ass twice now, even if it was in two different timelines.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Elliott couldn't help but chuckle slightly at the brief moment when Rinaa turned right back into a stereotypical teenager, demanding sweets. He wasn't sure why it was so amusing to see Rinaa flipping effortlessly between roles, going from student, to somebody assigning a mission to teenage daughter all in the space of a couple of minutes. When thinking over it later Elliott would realise that what he should have been thinking about was just how effortlessly Rinaa could become a different person. Both sides of her were real people, but neither of them were the whole Rinaa... Leah..... Artemis... whatever the real name that fit her was. She didn't look or act like Leah most of the time (they knew that from Fia). Rinaa was an alias, a way of severing ties with the past, and Artemis, well Artemis was the fresh start she used mainly with Moya. None of the three names felt quite right, which was probably why they'd all slipped into calling her 'the teenager'.

Rinaa didn't need further clarification to know that Jay was talking about her twin. Her response was an incredibly broad grin, wide enough to flash her canine fangs at everybody. "I know." The teenager replied, knowing that being compared to her twin was pretty much the highest form of praise Jay could give. Her tone managed to convey that she both understood the weight of the comparison and was actually a little big smug and proud of that."Future you thinks it's some quirk of being a chimera, that as well as getting your physical traits in my DNA I got some of his too." Rinaa rolled her eyes. "Quin thinks that's bullshit, as does Cliff" she added with a shrug that made it clear it was the kind of debate that had had been going on for years without any kind of resolution. "Yeah that sounds about right." Jay replied.

The assassin smirked at Fia's translation of what Kay's words actually meant. "And to that I say- try not to get into any trouble while I'm gone, if there's gonna be a massive fight I want to be there for it." "Don't worry, we'll postpone the whopping massive barfight until you get back." Elliott replied with a smile. Jay rubbed her hands together in anticipation "something to look forwards to when I get back then." "If we're having a punch up in a bar count me in." John declared. "And me, it's been too long since I was in a scrap that wasn't with my mental health or with my roommate taking over because she's been turned into a psychopath." Rinaa added.

 

[MzHyde]

Fia could tell that the comparison made to Jay's twin meant a great deal to Rinaa and she wasn't afraid to show it for once. She actually thought it was a nice change of pace to see Rinaa grin so much happily and willingly over something and not be reserved with it. She just smirked when the chat went on a bit more between Rinaa and Jay, thinking how utterly believable it was about who thought and said what.

She chuckled proudly at Jay smirking at her translation of what Kay said, glad that she could still make Jay smirk, even in this timeline. The chuckle was also over what Jay replied with, knowing it was such a typical Jay comment to say, just as it was for Kay to say something so casual in a way to express she wanted people in their group and family to come home safe without saying it. In Fia's timeline Kay only ever said 'come back safe' or 'come back to me alive' to those she truly loved and direct family, which were John, herself, Chas and Elliott. That wasn't to say she didn't think of Jay or Leag as direct family, but she knew they were highly capable of coming back alive and relatively safely without being told and always thought Jay would consider it insulting to be told as such.

Kay rolled her eyes at the bar fight comments being said between Jay, Rinaa, Elliott and John thinking how typical it was of John to particularly say such a thing. "count me out and as far from any bar fight as possible" she said. She knew it was all quite possibly hypothetical and not actual plans, but there was no way she was going to be near anyone who was getting into a bar fight whilst carrying a growing child. "nah.. We'll shove you right at the front of the fight" Fia joked sarcastically, making Kay roll her eyes even more dramatically refraining from coming out with a comeback.

 

[_gallifrog_]

There was some general snickering at Fia's remark, but it didn't need to be said that if there ever was, for some reason, a fight, they'd all be doing whatever they could to keep Kay far away from it. Jay shrugged the pack further up her shoulders, adjusting the straps to make it more comfortable. The pack was filled with all kindd of things. travelling under a military passport, Jay would have immunity on certain security checks (those to do with weapons), but it would raise suspicions for a soldiers of any rank to be a carrying a bag that was mostly empty. "I'll expect great things when I get back then." Jay smirked, before making for the door only for Rinaa to pull something from her pocket and throw it at Jay.

Years of honed instincts and training meant Jay simply spun and plucked the object straight out of the air. "Space 571, second sublevel." Rinaa explained, in response to the eyebrow jay raised at the set of keys Rinaa had thrown at her. "It'll be faster, and more enjoyable than some rail trip. Also I need feedback on how it handles. You ride quite differently to me, so if there's something not quite right or something that needs to be fine-tuned some more, try remember it so I can fix it up at a later date." "I'll give you a full specs analysis then.... in triplicate?" Jay teased. "Wouldn't say no actually.... you have no idea HOW hard it is to get people to tell me this shit properly as opposed to an e-mail saying 'hey would you mind fixing this? And changing the colour of that? Can you make it have a taser too? Also you know the prototype you worked on for six weeks straight? Yeah, it might need some work, it got kinda... well blown up.'." Rinaa looked and sounded like she was going to slip into a long rant inspired by her time working as a mechanic and working with vigilantes, but she caught herself and fell silent settling for a 'hey what can ya do?' kind of shrug.

"Sounds like they keep you on your toes." Jay replied, still looking amused. "They keep all us techies on our feet..." Rinaa paused before correcting herself "well except for one guy, but he's in a wheelchair, so it would be a sort of minor miracle if he was on his feet." Jay nodded in understanding before reaching out and ruffling the teenager's hair. "Don't do anything I wouldn't, which isn't really saying much, I know, so just keep doing what you've been doing." Rinaa couldn't resist giving a salute in response. After giving Elliott quick peck, jay left, pulling the door firmly sut behind her.

 

[MzHyde]

Fia was always so proud of herself when she could make the entire group smirk and snigger at her sarcasm or jibes at someone. So this moment was no different for her, especially as she made Kay roll her eyes so hard, she was convinced Kay would make her eyes roll fully into the back of her head. She knew, just like Kay did that no one in their group would let Kay get anywhere a fight in her current position, even if Kay somehow decided she wanted in one. She knew Kay wouldn't fully sit back and let her family get hurt, but she also knew Kay wouldn't let a single risk happen to her unborn self either. She couldn't help but look over when Jay said her goodbyes only for Rinaa to throw a set of keys to her, explaining the context. It was an action she was familiar with seeing between the two even in her timeline on theodd times they were in the same room, or Leah had stopped by after Jay's lessons in combat and defense with her.

She eaves dropped on the whole conversation, just by being in the same room and smirked softly when she saw Jay giving Elliott a peck before finally leaving them all to go after Dakkon. "so what now?" she asked, only just starting to feel the genuine signs of tiredness kicking in, yet it wasn't enough to make her fall asleep so she didn't see the point of going to bed just yet. Or if she did, she would only be awake either reading or looking through her phone.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Elliott was surprised when he realised that the keys Rinaa had thrown to Jay were the keys to the bike she'd built from scratch. It said something about how Rinaa instinctively acted around Jay, the time they spent together in prison had bonded them, but after finding out who Rinaa really was a bond had just formed naturally between them. He didn't remember Jay ever making a particular effort to act like a parent to Rinaa, and given that the age gap between her/him and Rinaa was so small, a parental relationship really wasn't possible. Rinaa was also incredibly mature for her age and scarily independent, though she, like Fia had had to grow up far too quickly, maybe even quicker than Fia did. She acted like an old soul trapped in a young body, which in a way she was, a nineteen, nearing twenty year, old trapped in a seventeen year old's skin. Something that neither Jay nor Elliott knew was that Rinaa actually hated people ruffling her hair, but she made an exception for the both of them because they were well...... them.

Rinaa shrugged at Fia's question, drawing her shoulders up almost towards her ears. "Well I had no plans of ACTUALLY sleeping tonight. I was going to get my coursework done and probably end up in the utility room when everybody sleeping here gets tired out and continue watching whatever show I have uploaded on this." "Well I actually DO have work in the morning, so the more sleep I can get the better." Cliff replied, stifling a yawn. She had been kept on her feet at work and was heading into a mental and physical slump, so the idea of curling up in bed, with her wife, was very appealing. "I have work tomorrow as well, so if anybody fancies a trip to the forge tomorrow to watch or have a mess around then feel free to come along, I can introduce you to the newish apprentice too." Cal offered, slinging an arm around Cliff.

"I won't be sleeping, so I'll just stay up with whoever else is awake." "We could do a few rounds of poker or something to pass the time. I brought a deck of cards with me, though I wouldn't be surprised if that coat of yours had some in it." Elliott suggested to which John smirked "I'm not bloody Gambit....." John paused"but there is a deck in me bag somewhere."

 

[MzHyde]

Fia listened to Rinaa reply first to her question, thinking it was such a typical Rinaa reply to give, finding it wasn't in the least but surprising. She then glanced over at Cliff as she replied straight after to explain how she had work in the morning and needed a proper night's sleep, as did Cal. With the offer to go to the forge with her to hang out whilst she worked, she found it very tempting. "might take you up on that offer" she said, having not quite decided just yet if she would or not. She then glanced at John who said he had no plans on getting some sleep, which she did put down to her prank partially, as Elliott suggested a game of poker making her roll her eyes. "urgh... You two and poker..." she grumbled. "if you're gonna play annoying card games then I'm gonna read in bed or something" she said, standing up from the couch. She hated it when they got into games of poker as she got highly bored very quickly as in her timeline, they went on for far too long and the competitive streak came out a lot of the time.

"I'm staying up for a little bit but will be heading to bed soon myself" Kay commented. She had no intention to play the game of poker as it was never her type of card game but she would watch for a little while. "suit yourself, night guys" Fia said, and this time actually meaning it. With the good nights said, she headed to her temporary room, closing the door behind her and going to lay on the bed, where she pulled out a book and began reading. She would have watched a film or something but unlike Rinaa, didn't bring her laptop. Even then, she was more of a book person than technology person anyway, much like her dad.

 

[_gallifrog_]

John had been playing cards from a very young age and it was one of the few good things he remembered from his childhood. At first it was just him and Cheryl playing childish games like snap or war, but over time others joined, Chas, then Aisha and some of her mates from the area. A they got older the games became more complex and they began betting, using sweets as chips, none of them having actual money, and those of them who had it not wanting to risk the precious little they had. As an adult playing cards was something that had stuck with John, when on the Waverider with the Legends he'd quickly been invited by Sara to join their poker group- consisting of her, Leonard Snart, Mick Rory and Charlie, and on a few memorable occasions Ray Palmer (who didn't possess anything close to a poker face) and Rip Hunter (who John was convinced was either ripping off his look or was in some way related to him, he was from the far future after all). With Elliott card playing was something that didn't require a great lot of words, John had figured out that he could used a second deck to explain rules and values of certain card combinations. The only time John stayed silent when playing poker was with Elliott, a throwback to the days when Elliott had been a skinny, mute thirteen-fourteen year old.

At Fia's clear dislike of poker a look of confusion came over Rinaa's face, only to be followed by a look of realisation and a sharp, angry curse in a language Elliott, Cal or Cliff didn't recognise. "Everything okay?" Elliott asked in a soft tone, hoping Rinaa wouldn't just give the 'as good as it can be since my DNA is making me self destruct and I have a second personality that's a wolf so tortured its become a psychopath'. Rinaa sighed, resisting the urge to run her hands through her hair in frustration. "Just another reason to add to the ever growing list of how the Fia in my time is an utter bitch. She's ALWAYS up for poker night in my time, she's a enough decent player... from what I've been told, but now it seems she was ACTUALLY doing it to spite me and alienate me." Rinaa bit back the sharp remark she actually wanted to give and just settled for waving her hands in a gesture of annoyance.

 

[MzHyde]

Before she went to her room, she heard what Rinaa said, even if she didn't understand it. She didn't stick around to hear why she said it, deciding to just go to the room she was borrowing to sleep in instead. Kay found it interesting that Fia didn't like poker, thinking with how close she was to John in her timeline, that it'd be something she'd enjoy. Yet it seemed that wasn't the case at all, so she just let her kid go to bed. She listened to Rinaa explain why she reacted in such a way, with the answer making her frown just bit more. She hated the idea of the other Fia going as far as to alienate Rinaa even from something as small as poker game nights. "those other versions really are relentless with you huh?" she said sadly.

She couldn't help but glance toward the hallway where Fia previously went wondering how someone who was seemingly thoughtful, respectful and caring could have another version so callous. She was actually glad that Fia didn't hear the full answer Rinaa gave as she was sure it would have only upset Fia all the more to hear yet another bad thing about her other self. She knew Fia knowing there was an alternate self of her out there who was extremely cold and heartless played on her mind. She could see it in Fia's eyes whenever it was brought up, even if Fia was trying to hide it, Kay could recognise the hiding of emotional pain in the eyes. She knew it all well from her own experiences.

 

[_gallifrog_]

John was also surprised that poker wasn't something Fia was into, but he supposed there had to be differences between the two of them somewhere. until now he'd been surprised by what Fia was into to what she did know about. She couldn't like everything he liked after all, that would be boring for everybody else around them. When Rinaa mentioned the other Fia, everybody in the room knew that whatever she was going to say next wasn't going to be a positive comment, the only positive comment she'd ever given was about the other girl's hair- how well maintained it was and incredibly versatile to style- but even then it had been accompanied by a melancholy note. To hear about such cruelty, such casual cruelty, over something that in the grand scheme of things wasn't really that big a deal, being directed at Rinaa it made Elliott more determined than ever not to die and to be there for the teenager, while John wanted to beat some sense into this alternate Fia, since alternate him clearly wasn't doing that.

Neither John nor Elliott could think of anything to say to that, it was hardly a normal situation, even by their unusual definitions of normal. Chas was struggling for words too, there was no point in any kind of reassurances of 'it's going to get better' or 'she does actually like you, deep down somewhere'. There was a dejection in Rinaa's tone and a look of defeated acceptance in her eyes as she spoke, the kind of defeat that only came from being beaten down so thoroughly she'd stopped even trying to get up. "That's beyond bitchy, to do something you don't even enjoy just to hurt somebody else. I can't imagine..." Cal trailed off, realising she was just repeating Rinaa's words and not actually saying anything that would actually help the teenager feel better about herself. "That's

Rinaa gave a humourless laugh. "Understatement, on all your parts. It's the petty things like that which hurt the most. You can get used to the names and the slurs, being called a mutt, a mongrel, a half breed, a genetic experiment, a less eight. The casual put downs, whether it's to my face instead of a name or in conversation while acting like I don't exist. The looks, the tone, the attitude, the exclusion, the blatant favouritism, the disapproval of anything either of us do with our lives, you learn to live with it. The sly, underhand psychological games played with smoke and flames can be avoided. The psychological games in general, them inviting us to a family gathering on purpose cos they can't get kicks elsewhere or whatever the fucked up reason is. But those petty acts of cruelty just because.... they hurt like you wouldn't believe. Of course now that I have proof for what I've always known, that apart from Jay upholding her Isogrii bond and swooping in last minute like Maze does" that was directed at John, Chas and Elliott as opposed to the woman in the room. "Neither could actually give the slightest fuck what happens to either of us." The word 'fuck' was delivered with so much venom that if words could kill, Chas' limited immortality would all be gone. Her eyes also flashed amber during the last sentence, a sure sign that Sykes was also contributing. Rinaa flopped back into the chair, throwing her hands in the air slightly. Talking was cathartic, but she'd never had the proper people to vent too, she'd made sure all her friends knew Fia was a pyrokinetic, but even after everything Rinaa had not breathed a word to anybody about Fia or Kay's true heritage.

 

[MzHyde]

John wasn't the only one who wanted to beat some sense into alternate Fia (and in turn alternate Kay), Kay felt the same way and so did Fia herself. Fia had told Rinaa plenty of times that if she ever came face to face with her alternate self she would gladly beat the utter crap out of her. Fia hated that there was a version of herself so cold and callous out there in the multiverse, it made her at times feel physically sick. Kay was the same way, she hated that her alternate self could be so disgusting toward another person when she has done all she could to protect others and be there for others. She was thankful that Rinaa was beginning to see that in herself and Fia, and that she could see there was a chance to experience life hoe it should have been with the two of them all along.

Kay listened to everything that Rinaa was saying, finding it baffling that Rinaa could even take all the others forms of bullying she was the victim of over everything else, even if deep down she probably didn't take it, but fought through it, even though it had clearly done a lot of damage and really dragged Rinaa down so much. She noticed the flicker of gold in the teenager's eyes, and knew deep down that Sykes was influencing the girl's behaviour and mood as she spoke. She also had to give the teenager a lot of credit for finally opening up to them and ranting, letting some of what she had been holding in out, seeing how much relief it was partially giving her for finally saying it all out loud. She couldn't say a single thing after Rinaa finished speaking, she just found herself nodding in an somber manner, absentmindedly her hands ran themselves over her bump, as a way of hoping this unborn Fia wouldn't grow up to become a bully.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Elliott had heard about the vow future Jay had to him before he died and how Jay kept her word, there without fail to save future Fia and future and Kay's lives, despite how much it hurt her (mentally and physically) to do so. He'd suspected it was an Isogrii bond, like the one Rinaa had made with Sykes, but this was the first time Rinaa had actually confirmed this suspicion. Everybody's faces had various looks of horror and/or disgust on them as Rinaa detailed what she'd been through. They'd known about some aspects before, but the sheer extent of it caught them off guard, particularly the psychological element to it. Hearing that the women would purposely invite the others over just so they'd have a target was an action that didn't fit with the kind of people the knew this Kay and Fia to be. But the idea that they'd use their powers to try and trigger a panic attack in Rinaa was a whole other level of cruelty, no, torture. It was torture pure and simple, they were the reason she had such a fear in the first place and they were all too happy to use it against her. John looked like he was going to punch somebody and Elliott was the same, his dominant hand clenched into a fist.

"I'm gonna regret asking this, but why isn't future me doing something, anything? He can't be turning blind to all this going on?" John asked, trying to keep his tone level, trying not to let the anger he felt at his future self bleed through into his words. Rinaa went as if to shrug her shoulders, then stopped. "I don't know if he knows about my fear of fire, I never told him... or Chas for that matter. As for the rest of it, he's physically unable to do anything." John didn't like the sound of that one bit, but he had to know, it would eat him up if he didn't at least ask. The can of worms was well and truly open, there was no going back now and Rinaa was willing to talk, it seemed to be helping her somewhat, even though the damage could never be repaired. "What's that supposed to mean?" "You don't want to know." It was hard to tell whether it was Rinaa or Sykes who spoke those words and in a way it didn't really matter. "I bloody well do." Blue eyes narrowed at the amber and grey flecked ones.

"Jay has read your timeline with her cards by this point, yes?" Rinaa asked, not breaking the gaze, her expression unreadable. John nodded, remembering the experience well, or more precisely, the spectacularly shit hand Elliott had been dealt. "Those cards represent different things in the future, not necessarily from the same timeline. One of your cards was 'The Bound' a person strung upside down struggling from restraints they can never escape. That's from my timeline. The bond was corrupted, so corrupted that it became a sort of prison, and because it was technically put on you by Kay, you're the one stuck in it. Sometimes you fight it and succeed, which happens often enough actually, you're not a complete puppet on a string. But the strength of two mythical creatures against one for the most part human person? Not a hope"

 

[MzHyde]

Kay could see how angry the news was making John and Elliott in particular, and how shocked and unlike her and Fia it truly sounded as they only knew this version of them. In a bizarre manner it almost made Kay feel glad that it was completely baffling and shocking to the others as it did shoe they didn't see that kind of personality in either herself here and now or the Fia they all had begun to know from the other timeline. With John asking why his other self didn't do anything about it, she too wasn't sure she wanted to know the answer but as Rinaa was being open enough to give it, she was going to listen. Even if it meant hearing something that was incredibly hard to swallow. Hearing that John is physically unable to do anything in her timeline made Kay feel all the more morbidly curious, especially when she said he wouldn't want to know that reason.

Seeing John insist that he did want to know, Kay was hesitant in wanting to hear it but she refused to move from where she was on the couch. She knew she needed to hear it as well, even if it painted her alternate self in an even worse light and made her feel even worse than every other time she had heard bad things about her alternate self. So listen she did, taking in every word that it was their bond that corrupted everything, made John practically a prisoner to side with her which made her feel sick. She never wanted to make John a prisoner to her. She didn't even know at the time a bond would be forged between herself and him when they first slept together. If she had a choice in the whole thing she wouldn't have forced it upon either of them.

She was so glad that Fia wasn't in the room to hear all this but she knew it was only a given that Fia would have a take on their bond and would no doubt be sensing their anger and upset by hearing all of this. Kay didn't know what to say, she was thrown into silence, speechless but her thoughts clearly were plastered on her face and in her eyes. The hurt, the guilt and the shock all clear as day on her face. It took all of Kay's willpower to not leave the room and vomit from what she heard, hoping that John would never see what they had as a prison.

 

[_gallifrog_]

For the briefest of seconds John had wondered how Rinaa knew about the card reading (she hadn't been there), but the his brain kicked into gear reminding him that this was Jay's daughter and the vast majority of Rinaa's knowledge of the time before she'd been born would have come from Jay. The explanation of it's meaning was like a punch in the gut. He knew how powerful bonds like his and Kay's, or Cal and Cliff's were and he knew how they could be corrupted, how they could be abused and turned into something else. He'd seen how the witch mark of Hecate had corrupted Wonder Woman (a supposed paragon of virtue and all things good) and sent the witch Circe into a further spiral of madness. The idea of such a bond being used to control him made him feel sick to the core. He'd made it clear to Kay when they first realised about the bond that he had no intentions of being forced into something he didn't want. He hated being somebody's puppet, hated being played, particularly by Giovanni Zatara from beyond the grave. Yet it seemed, in Rinaa's timeline, that was exactly what had happened. So much made sense now, why future him and Rinaa only met up when Kay and Fia were out (and therefore unable to manipulate him), why Rinaa couldn't trust future him with any of her major secrets, for fear they'd be found out and used against her. The only glimmer of hope was that he could and did fight it. But Rinaa's last line really hit home, voicing a fear he hadn't been realised he had until that moment. If Fia and Kay teamed up, using their powers to their full extent and manipulating the bond, he really stood no chance. There was really only one thing he could say to that as he slumped back into the couch- "well bollocks".

Rinaa just nodded sadly, a cocktail of mentions visible in her eyes. She hadn't wanted to say that, knowing that it wouldn't just shatter John and Kay's worlds, but those of everybody else too. It was a small mercy that Fia wasn't around, everybody else was an adult and had the emotional maturity to take it, even if they were disgusted by the mere thought of it. Fia probably didn't have that emotional maturity and Rinaa suspected that she wouldn't have been able to stay to the end of it. It was Chas who broke the stunned silence in the wake of Rinaa's words. "But isn't there some kind of consequences for abusing the bond like that? If John's to be believed there's consequences for everything, good or bad in the world of magic."

Rinaa nodded sombrely at the cabbies' words. "Once again you've hit the nail on the head. Yes, John's right with that there is consequences for everything in the world or magic. Abusing the bond and abusing their powers is no exception and the consequences are pretty damn severe."

 

[MzHyde]

Kay had never forgotten that John made it clear he wasn't to be controlled and made to do anything he didn't want to, even if they were bonded together. She just hoped that John wouldn't now forget that she swore she would never do that to him or anyone and she didn't want that for him either or to do that to him. She had never once lied to him since knowing him, and she hoped this news from Rinaa's timeline wouldn't tarnish that or make him question her word. She let Chas ask the question or more to the point, mention the assumption that they all knew, all magic has a cost of one sort or another before listening to Rinaa give her confirmation.
"can you tell us if those consequences have happened yet to mine and Fia's alternate selves? Or what those consequences are?" she asked quietly but still loud enough to be heard by everyone. Her quietness was due to the fact her mind was still comprehending everything.

IIt was a good call that Fia wasn't in the room because she wouldn't have stuck around to hear it all. She would have left after hearing enough to get that she and her mother manipulated her dad, even if it was her alternate self. The idea of doing something for sinister purposes would have broken her heart and would have made her vomit from the realisation. After that she would have just stormed off, or snuck out not caring that she wouldn't fully know where she was going to try and metaphorically run from that information. She wouldn't have wanted to be in the room when Rinaa was there, as she would have just felt so much guilt for something she didn't technically do. She would have found it even more difficult to look at John. Luckily for her, she was in the other room and by this point listening to music whilst still reading.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Cal and Cliff decided to stay strategically silent, this wasn't their world yet and neither could fully claim to understand the nuances and things that were going unsaid as the Earth group took them for granted. Nobody was surprised that it was Chas who asked the right question, he did have a knack for such things. one of the reasons why John valued his opinion over almost everybody else's. (The only person that could trump Chas was Cheryl, though usually the two agreed or had very similar opinions). Hearing that there were consequences of some sort was a relief, albeit a sort of morbid one. Rinaa's response was a slow nod from her slumped position in the chair. "The answer to both questions is yes- yes I know what they are, and yes, I could already start to see them back there."

When she didn't say anything further on the topic, falling silent and crossing one arm over her chest, the other going to fiddle with the hair on the nape of her neck, the others realised that she wouldn't say any more unless directly asked. That despite everything she'd been through, she wasn't willing to take petty revenge by spilling all the gory details in the bluntest way possible, in the way that would hurt those who'd hurt her the most. It was a mature stance, and not necessarily one they were expecting. "Well enlighten us then, we can't just end here on a cliffhanger" had the topic not been so serious, John knew that he or somebody else would have made some kind of joke about Cliff and cliffhangers.

"Well there's two effects really- one is hardly surprising, with each action their souls are becoming further and further damned to Hell." There was a tiny, almost perceptible clench of John's jaw at the mention of his daughter and his..... Kay being damned to hell. He'd long ago accepted his own face, his hands and soul were far too tainted for any kind of redemption and besides, he knew powerful people in Hell. Fia and Kay were supposed to be better than him, their bloodline was supposed to be based on hope after all. "The other goes hand in hand I suppose" Rinaa gave a shrug of 'not my area of expertise' "they're Falling. Capital F falling. As in changing from something Celestial to something underwordly."

 

[MzHyde]

Kay listened to Rinaa confirm that the consequences were beginning to show themselves in her timeline on their alternate selves. She saw Rinaa being reluctant to tell exactly what those consequences were unless directly asked, taking the higher maturer ground but for herself and clearly John, that wasn't good enough. They needed to know the full truth of what those consequences were if she and their daughter became horribly corrupted by their own grief. What was said made Kay become pale from the shock of hearing the one thing she never wanted to hear. The idea of being damned to Hell scared her more than anything, knowing down there she was lost to all and at the mercy of every demonic being that wanted her for their own gain. She saw John's jaw clench tight at the news, which gave her some kind of reassurance that he didn't like that idea either. Like him, she knew her and Fia were meant to be that symbol of hope, of bringing back a race from extinction and uniting people. This isn't mesnt to be how it goes and she would do her hardest to make it not happen, even if she was shook right through at the news which only got worse when Rinaa said they were turning from something celestial to something underworldly.

She found herself even more speechless than before, before finding herself needing to get up and need some air. "I need some air.." she muttered, walking to the balcony. It was so much to take in and she didn't know how to even begin to process what she was told. Even more thoughts started racing through her mind, of how it started to sound her alternate self was turning into her father and how much of a disappointment she became to her mother and to her own kind. In her eyes, her alternate self wasn't just letting their entire family down, they were letting the entire phoenix kind down by being the way they were. The whole news was just making her utterly sick to her stomach. She didn't want to become that person, that being that ruined a kid's life and in turn damn her own child to Hell in the process.

 

[_gallifrog_]

John didn't follow Kay out to the balcony, and neither did anybody else. They were all too wrapped up in their own thoughts trying to understand how all this could happen in such a relatively short time period- less than seventeen years. It didn't cross their minds at any point that this could be some sort of elaborate lie (it wasn't, but believing Rinaa was lying would be a far easier pill to swallow than what she'd just told them). John knew that being damned was either the consequence of an unrelenting downwards spiral or one single action (which was usually followed by that same downwards spiral when the person damned realised that there was next to nothing they could do to get out of their predicament). John was the latter, though he wasn't sure what exactly the event was. It could have been killing his mother and brother, the death of his friend Billy when they were kids which he played a part in. If it wasn't those then it was his successful suicide attempt, committing suicide carried an automatic damnation sentence. Everything since that had only added to his sentence- particularly Astra and the events of Newcastle. The only thing John could see that vaguely worked in Fia or Kay's favour was that they were technically immortals, they had a lifespan long enough that they could turn their lives and undamn their selves if they wanted to do, a luxury John definitely didn't have.

Rinaa shifted uncomfortably in her seat at the silence, badly wanting to draw one leg up to her chest and hug it in a defensive pose. She knew what sharing this information would do to those she cared about (and more recently those who she would have cared for had they actually existed in her timeline), it was one of the reasons she kept herself so isolated from the group, once she started talking, and her guard dropped, it all sort of flowed out. There were other secrets in her mind, including the exact story of how she got the fear of fire, a secret she had no idea that future Jay had told the Fia in just a few rooms over. She knew that telling that story would tip Kay over some edge and Jay would no doubt jump right over it too. She couldn't understand why she had let herself talk about this in the first place, why she'd act this way. All she'd wanted was to do some damn work, try and finish her degree (a task that was getting less and less possible as the days ticked down towards her death). She could feel Sykes uncurling in her mind, she could almost visualise the wolf's elegant form walking around her mindscape. If Elliott was to attempt to MindWalk with her now, he'd have seen both consciousnesses interacting with each other- the inky-black wolf with fur speckled with points almost like starlight pacing back and forth conversing with a tired looking nineteen year old in sparring gear, both wrists wrapped in bandages that matched those on her arms in real life. The landscape was that of her student apartment, a place she always felt safe in as nobody in the immediate family bar Jay and Chas knew where it was. In real life her eyes went glassy and appeared to focus on something in the far distance.

"Well that went surprisingly, thought they were gonna accuse you of being a liar." "You're not the only one. In a way it would be easier if they just dismissed it as lies from a spiteful kid wanting revenge for her fucked up life, happy to take it in any way she can get it. This is gonna be preying on them for.... well ages. It's gonna be in their eyes every time they look at me. I've had enough of fucking pity, doesn't change the fact that happened." Rinaa slumped onto the floor dejectedly. "You and me both pup." A pause "It's not like they're gonna REMEMBER it anyway, you ARE still wiping their minds, yes?" The wolf raised.... well not an eyebrow as such, wolves don't have those, but it had the same effect. "Yes, they can't remember this, can't remember me. If they do that's all they'll be able to think about- the kid they failed, and that's gonna have some serious repercussions that will affect the new Fia.... and the new Leah/Leon.... if they even want to have kids after this shit show. Best option is just to become a warrior hermit." The wolf snorted derisively. "Like that worked SO well for your precious Beta. All the time left alone with her thoughts and regrets? That what you're gonna do with Jack then is it? Force him into hermitage for all those years Jay is on Earth, not wanting to risk shattering it all if they meet each other?" The wolf taunted.

 

[MzHyde]

Kay wasn't expecting anyone to follow her to the balcony to get air. She probably would have told whoever did to just leave her alone even if they did, but there was that tiny part of her that almost wished she had that opportunity to even do that. Her mind was racing with so much as she stared out at the world in front of her, leaning on the balcony via her elbows on the bar. She didn't want to become such a screw up that she would for all intents and purposes imprison John to her and Fia, and damn both herself and Fia to a life os misery in Hell. Sure, they were both immortals to an extent and did have time to try and fix that, but all she could focus on was the fact it sounded like her alternate self and alternate Fia didn't have any inclination to do so. In her eyes, she felt like her alternate self and daughter had become worse than her own father and the people who hurt her growing up. She became a monster, nothing more nothing less and in such a short amount of time to top it all off. The realisation that it could go that far did indeed make a couple of silent tears fall down from her eyes, which she quickly wiped away. All she ever wanted to do and still found herself doing in some ways, was to prove she wasn't someone who would betray the group, that she genuinely cared so much for them and felt she found where she was always meant to be. She found hope and love being with John, and now she heard in Rinaa's timeline, she jeopardised all of that.

Fia had absolutely no idea what was going on in the other room but the moment Kay on the balcony had started letting silent tears fall from her eyes, Fia felt the anguish and upset through the bond on her own wrist. It made her wince as she looked down, seeing the bond glow ever so slightly and the sigil that represented her mother burned the most. Something had gone down in the other room, making her take her headphones off and strain her ears to see if she could hear some kind of commotion, but heard nothing. It got her curious, and she did debate about getting up and checking what was happening. In the end she picked up her phone and text John,

"everything alright out there? I'm sensing a lot of upset from mum. Fx"
​

She then clicked send and put her phone down beside her, deciding this was the best first step to take, instead of going out into the main room. She had no idea it was because of what Rinaa had told them, her first concern was maybe something happened to her unborn self.

 

[_gallifrog_]

If John was to actually pay attention everything else going on in his head, he would have been able to feel the anguish coming from Kay's end of the bond. Unlike Fia's bond, which had had years to develop, John's one was still developing and not very reliable either. Without consciously knowing what he was doing he was preventing anything from his mind leaking into anybody else's over the bond. The thoughts were swirling around in his head, questions he could answer, far more he couldn't, theories- the 'what ifs' and 'what could have caused' this. What Rinaa had told them was heavy hitting and yet again he found himself wondering a) what other secrets she was holding and b) what kind of strength and restraint it took her not to blurt it all out and have a meltdown.

The sound of the phone notification jolted him (and the others) out of their thoughts. "Ah shit!" he cursed, passing the phone to Elliott so he could see what it said, before his adopted son even had a chance to question what the text was about. "Shit is right." Elliott agreed, passing the phone to Chas. "You gotta give her the truth." Chas sighed, knowing it wouldn't be easy to do."Yeah mate, I know." John took his phone back and typed a reply

"Short answer, Rinaa was willing to talk and we made the mistake of asking some questions and finding out some heavy-hitting shit we really shouldn't have."​

John knew that Fia would be able to guess the rest for herself.

Rinaa meanwhile was still deep inside her own head, conversing with Sykes. Or more precisely having a shouting match with the wolf. When it was over it would be cathartic for both of them, a way or releasing tension and stress that naturally built up between them as they shared a body that was too small for one person, let alone two. None of this showed on her face, the only sign anything was vaguely wrong was the small sparks of pink dimensional energy crackling silently across the teenager's hands.

 

[MzHyde]

Fia sat up waiting for a reply from John, knowing if there was a delay in the answer then it had to be relatively serious and nothing that couldn't just be brushed off easily, which concerned her. This was more than her unborn self, that much she was getting from the small delay in response, which got her wondering what was being said that could upset Kay so much. When the reply did eventually come through and it reading it had to do with stuff Rinaa told them, it felt like her stomach dropped. Fia was putting so much together and her fears of the truth of Rinaa's fire burn scars were swirling through her mind, that not only some hard truths about her alternate self and Kay's came out but also that. She couldn't remain in bed by this point, swinging her legs out and walking into the room. "so... How much do you know?" she asked, worry in her tone of voice giving away she knew something that they possibly didn't. A clue that she didn't want to be visible in her tone but she couldn't hide it no matter hard she tried.

She glanced across at Rinaa and saw the pink sparks in the teenager's hands, recognising the void in her her stare and putting it down to the fact she was conversing with Sykes inside her mind once again. She then glanced over and saw Kay on the balcony, able to tell from her tightened shoulder muscles that she was clearly crying and extremely upset about what it was she heard. Finally she looked back at the rest of them, biting her bottom lip anxiously. Seeing the looks on all their faces as they tried to comprehend whatever it was they were told just made knowing what she did all that much harder to keep to herself. She knew it would tip one or more of them over the edge, Hells, it almost tipped her over the edge when she found out from future Jay and it was hard enough to say when she let it slip to Chas way back when at the forge that one day.

 

[_gallifrog_]

The sound of Fia's voice made the others look up and turn to face her as she stood in the doorway. It was written all over her face that she knew something they all didn't about Rinaa's timeline, something important. Chas was the only one who knew, but he'd kept it a secret. He wanted to give some indication to Fia that it wasn't the truth behind Rinaa's scars that they had found out, to stop her outing herself as knowing something, but it was all too obvious on her face that she knew something they all didn't. John wouldn't let that go in a hurry, and he suspected Elliott wouldn't either (this was his kid they were talking about after all). Cal and Cliff had wisely stayed almost completely silent throughout the whole thing, leaning against the kitchen table, all thoughts of going to bed gone from their mind.

"As great and constructive as this yelling has been" the wolf said sarcastically, her tone change from one of angry yelling to one that could only be described as 'an ominous smirk' "your half-sister has showed up, wanting to know what's going on. You're always telling me to 'be gentle' and 'go easy on her', so I'm gonna shoot that right back at you." The wolf drawled, prompting Rinaa to sigh. "Not my half-sister...... how many times? And you're hardly one to give me advice on how not offend and/or piss people off." The wolf just tutted disbelievingly. "Sure, sure, keep telling yourself that" she said before sauntering off and allowing Rinaa's mind to regain control of her body. Her eyes snapped back into focus, Rinaa shaking her head as if trying to dislodge the wolf from her mind, before raking her hands through her hair, not caring that the sparks of dimensional energy made it stand on end and crackle loudly.

"Too much and at the same time enough." John replied, knowing his answer was vague, and really not caring, more interested in what it was that Fia knew and why she'd been keeping it from them. "How much do you know?" He returned Fia's question right back at her, his tone surprisingly even and close to normal given everything he'd heard. Chas recognised the tone as the one John used to mask what was actually going on in his head.

 

[MzHyde]

Fia glanced at Chas but not long enough to give anything away, her own concerns of what was said masking anything else that was going on inside her head. She knew her dad and half brother well enough to know that they would know she knew something and they could tell it was eating her up not knowing what they knew, or more to the point, how much they knew. She didn't even notice when Rinaa snapped out of her mind argument with Sykes as she was too focused on what John had to say, hating that he was using the old vgaue answer tactic to get what she knew out of her.

She winced slightly at the tactic and tone John was using, showing she had heard it all before, knowing now that she had no choice but to say what she knew. "when I helped Rinaa at her lock-up, she went off to do something and I met future Jay... Or more to the point, alternate Jay ambushed me with an iron blade to my throat" she started explaining, her tone shaky. "Rinaa's burn marks are from phoenix fire..." she concluded. "but no one knows if it was alternate me or alternate Kay that did it... Just that alternate dad confirmed it was phoenix fire" she added. Kay overheard everything from where she was on the balcony, with her back turned to everyone she let her shock overtake her face, eyes wide, her breath being lost on her as her hands clasped over her mouth, shaking. It was then, she truly felt even more sick to her stomach to the point she walked back inside and straight to the bathroom where she was sick. Fia watched on not sure if she should go after her mother or not, she hated saying the words out loud, she didn't want that truth to come out and be on their shoulders as it was hard enough on her own.

"that's why I was off when I came back...why I barely looked at Jay....alternate her swore if it wasn't for the bond and vow she made she would have killed me there and then... If it was alternate me or not" she shakily said, a single tear running down her face.