[sdrp] first things first (the moms)

[cibarium]

As usual, they'd been pulled into adventure suddenly and without much warning. The reality of the resulting situation came barreling into them about fifteen seconds after they'd been gruffly "reminded" that it was the year 1969. The time travelling part of their task was already over. Now they had present needs. Like food. And somewhere to sleep.

It was a horrifying realization that they didn't actually own a house in this time period. Why hadn't either of them thought of that? They'd been too focused on magic-this and veil-that and the world-in-peril doomsaying. Now they seemed like laughably distant problems compared to how they had no idea if they could find a wheelchair-accessible bathroom in the late ******** 60's. Leila had to turn her shirt inside out because there was a reference to the year 2011 on it and people had given long looks trying to figure out if it was some kind of a joke. It was upsettingly ridiculous. As the couple continued trying to find their bearings, the list of little things they weren't given the time to think about kept growing and growing and growing.  

[cibarium]

Leila's mind was,
for the first time in months,
completely Empty.


No visions.


No Multitude.


Not even the little mental door she'd learned to open as a warg-in-training.


She'd been silently wishing she could
return to mundane emptiness for months
but now,


instead of relieved

she just



felt



lonely



and



small

 

[cibarium]

"Okay, how about this then?" Eve asked, leaning sideways into the pile and plucking up another shirt to try.

It felt awful to steal from a clothesline of all things -- Leila had always been a goody two-shoes. It only felt worse when none of it really fit, but they had to something to make sure she could blend in. So now she was in a mustard colored blouse with an exaggerated collar and too-wide shoulders that made her look like a human-paperdoll hybrid as she moved around uncomfortably in it.

"I guess... it'll work for now," Leila sighed.  

[cibarium]

"Augh, ******** -- are you kidding me?!"

Oh, Leila was angry at the world now. Of all the strange powers that could have followed her to 1969 from her home in 2016, it just had to be the one that pissed her off the most. Of course it would.

Her body shivered with dread as she released Eve's arm from the deathgrip she'd had on it. A sudden gust of wind had bowled into her and started carrying her away, as if she were a down feather. Because magic dictated that she might as well be. It took a lot of teeth gritting and barely-controlled deep breathing to get her feet feeling like they were solidly on the ground again. It took the rest of her willpower not to cry. She felt miserable, and it was all for selfish reasons, but she felt miserable.

This time travel s**t was making her so angry, she wanted to go as dense as a lead statue and smash everything in sight.  

[cibarium]

Actually, this gave her an idea.  

[cibarium]

"I need a watermelon," Leila whispered to her wife, her voice husky with sudden clarity and determination.

Eve loved it when she got like that.

A crow hopped down to them, croaked in a neighborly fashion and spat out half a banker's roll of dimes.  

[cibarium]

When Leila was six years old she liked to stalk dramatically around the house, pretending to be a dinosaur (she of course believed all dinosaurs were giant). When autumn came she would put on this act while stomping on dry leaves scattered around the driveway, imagining they were buildings and helpless civilians. When she was older she abandoned the act but, like many other people, still secretly delighted in stepping on leaves and had to fight to not do it when there were others around.

Crushing a watermelon with her face and getting money for it by a handful of confused, but truly impressed bystanders was like being a kid again.

Being offered more money to repeat the trick again with other objects was even better.  

[cibarium]

Unlike her dear wife, Eve had lost all of the magic she had any control over. A few crows had given her an acknowledging puff of their headfeathers at different parts of the day, and she was grateful for it, but there was quite a difference between magic that followed around you and magic that seeped out from the marrow of your own bones. Not two days after having her senses awakened, they had vanished completely. The world as a result felt and sounded and smelled half-real.

The were-fox envied Leila somewhat for her self-control of her emotions in this circumstance: she'd been the one to make a scene out of being angry and frustrated.  

[cibarium]

Be the right combination of entertaining and friendly for long enough, and if you're lucky eventually someone will help you out. This was the case for the pair, who found a couple of nights or so with a young couple who'd recently finished furnishing their new house after moving in and were desperate to have company come in and admire it.

show spoilerhide spoiler

kuropeco

iloveyouDIE

i did thing! 'u'

 

[iloveyouDIE]

The women wouldn't be able to escape city talk about the upcoming beach concert. Not many of the older people, but most of those young or simply progressive were buzzing especially since the local band would be playing and apparently the band members, whoever they were, were considered to be choice.

Posters stapled to phone poles fluttered invitingly.

Peace and Love and Tunes. Come one, come all.

cibarium