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stephen hart secretly listens to the spice girls. (bleedinghart) wrote in vas_captio_rpg,
@ 2009-10-16 00:12:00

Who: Stephen and Connor.
What: Friends and teammates reunite.
Where: Vicinity of the library.
When: Day 26, early afternoon.
Rating: PG.
Status: Active.

Stephen was taking everything in stride. He had to. Panic wasn't really his thing, nor was it productive. You couldn't protect people if you were stressing out. You couldn't take on something that could easily kill you if you were busy thinking 'God, this thing could eat me in one bite.'

So, upon finding out the basics of the place he now found himself in, Stephen separated himself from the two men he woke up with and set about finding his own facts. Which so far had consisted of him exploring a bit of the forest near where he appeared and making notes in the notebook he found in the sorry excuse for a survival kit. He didn't want to wander too far from that location in case an anomaly was the cause of his arrival and it happened to reopen. The chance was slim but it was still a chance.

Once that familiar handwriting caught his eye, though, everything changed.

The forest was put to his back and his feet were hitting the pavement at a light jog, one goal in mind. Find Connor. If he was alive then perhaps Cutter was too, and Abby. God, could the others be here? Stephen spent a few moments flipping through pages looking for the map that was mentioned before deciding it was a waste of time. This place couldn't be that big. Libraries tended to have a certain look to them as well. And really? He'd probably recognize Connor a kilometer away. As he jogged Stephen couldn't help but wonder at the town; the streets were a contrast to the condition of the buildings, making one or the other look out of place. Was this place a mix of times? That man with the peculiar eyes had mentioned something about people being from different times. Perhaps that had something to do with it?

Hell, he could try to figure this place out later. He had to see that Connor was well and truly alive. Nothing else was remotely as important at the moment.

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leconnortemple
2009-10-16 02:22 pm UTC (link)

Connor had honest-to-God felt his heart stop when Stephen had first written in his journal entry. As if this place wasn't screwed up enough. If he'd run into him in person first? He'd have thought they'd gone and created zombies again. Or done the cloning thing someone had told him about. Because there was no physical way Stepehen Hart was alive and well and a part of his life. He'd been to the funeral. He'd held Abby's hand, he'd felt the comforting warmth of Cutter's hand on his shoulder, and he'd hugged Jenny tightly. Stephen was gone.

But he'd introduced himself, the handwriting was too familiar. And the casual ribbing about Connor's lack of stealth? That was Stephen through and through. No one could fake that. No clone, and certainly no zombie. But how?

The second his friend had said he was looking for him, though, Connor knew he had to see him. And he also had to admit, he wasn't looking forward to letting him meet Kimberly. Not just yet. Kimmy was his thing. His to protect, his friend, and admittedly? Stephen had always been the bloke the girls fawned over. No way was Connor going to let him near her for a while. He'd meet him outside. Stop him before he went charging in, figurative guns blazing. No disturbing Kimberly's safe place.

But when he saw him, all those thoughts flew out the door. "It's really you," was all he could say, mouth hanging open as he stared. Not his most attractive look, but he was seeing a dead friend in the flesh. Give him some credit!

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bleedinghart
2009-10-16 09:35 pm UTC (link)

Funny how the two were thinking similar things. Of course, Stephen had nothing but Helen's word to go on, and even he normally knew that was hardly the most trustworthy thing in the world. But she knew his buttons. All she had to say was that the team was dead, that Cutter was dead, and near-paralyzing grief buried otherwise rational thought. Grief, guilt, a dozen other emotions that had a way of making one's mind not think as clearly as it should.

None of that was on Stephen's mind however as his sweeping eyes finally landed on an all-too-familiar form out in front of a building. His steps faltered at the initial shock of it, eyes widening, part of him unable to believe it. But then his pace picked back up, a surge of energy hitting. Connor was alive. Stephen didn't think he'd ever been so happy to see that geek-chic style he had occasionally teased the younger man about.

He barely slowed to a walk before he was in Connor's space, hands grabbing the other's shoulders as his eyes intently searched his face. Then Stephen was pulling Connor into a sudden fierce hug as relief overwhelmed him. "You're alive, thank God!" Writing could elaborately be faked, a vision could turn out to be a hallucination, but this... this was real, as real as it got. Connor could tease him about the rare show of affection later, Stephen didn't much care so long as it meant his friend was alive and breathing.

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leconnortemple
2009-10-17 04:11 am UTC (link)

Connor wouldn't have it in him to tease the older man. He would still be too stunned, probably would for weeks to come. Time was only just starting to make sense to him, the way it worked. The other day, being yanked back and forth through his own timeline in order to stop him from changing it. Those little things were taking some getting used to. And he'd told Kimberly that he believed they were outside of time in itself, away from the times they all knew.

But this? This was just too weird.

And yet, he'd wanted it, he wouldn't lie. Connor so desperately wanted to believe he'd be able to see Stephen again. Cutter, too, even if losing him was still so much more fresh. If this was what the idiots running this place wanted to do? Fine. Let them. It gave him just that much more time with the friend he thought was lost to him. "I'm alive, hell, you're alive!" But he said it playfully. Because he knew then and there he would never tell Stephen what he knew from his own time. This Stephen was alive and well and that was all that mattered. "What the hell? Where've you been, I've been bored." That caused him to snort a little. Because the truth was, no one ever got bored in the glass box. And if they did, it sure didn't last long.

Connor finally pulled back, an embarrassed grin crossing his face. The Stephen Hart he knew would never have done such a silly thing as hugging the geeky friend he occasionally toted around. He really had thought he was dead. Which could only mean one thing. Helen. "What's the last thing you remember, mate?" he asked, carefully choosing his words. He knew they were outside of time. But did Stephen?

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bleedinghart
2009-10-17 09:46 am UTC (link)

If it had been Abby, he'd have kissed her. Thankfully Connor wouldn't have to deal with that. Just a tight hug that told Stephen without a doubt his friend was indeed there in the flesh, perfectly fine. Then he was pulling back to look the younger man over, hands lingering on Connor's shoulders for the moment almost as if he was weary of letting go. Stephen may not have been dealing with the knowledge that the team was supposedly dead for long, but considering his last interactions with them all, the way things were left, it was a heavy weight and severe shake of his world just the same.

"Where have I been? What, waiting for me to come to the rescue?" Stephen managed to joke as he found himself getting over the shock relatively quickly. One hand clapped Connor's shoulder lightly and then he was finally dropping his hands, his light expression fading to a more serious one at the question. What was the last thing he remembered? Feeling like nearly everything I cared about was gone. The corner of his mouth twitched in a frown. "Leaving the beach after dealing with one of those Silurian scorpions --" To rescue Helen. "-- to find Helen. She said you were all dead. That Lester had you killed."

The words were almost as hard for Stephen to say as they had been to hear. Partly because the wheels were already turning in his mind, trying to explain this turn of events that on the surface made no sense at all. At least, not with what he thought were facts.

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leconnortemple
2009-10-19 03:46 am UTC (link)

Good thing Stephen was getting over the shock quickly, because Connor wasn't. He was finding words hard to come by. There was no bloody way this could be happening. Who were the fuckers running this place to try and pull this on him? But he couldn't make himself argue it. How he was going to keep his secret, though, was beyond him.

Step number one, pretend nothing was wrong. Right? Beaming, Connor grinned up at his friend. He was real. He actually existed. It was nearly impossible to believe. But there it was. He was getting a second chance. But he'd changed so much since Stephen's death. In many ways, Connor was just starting to come into his own. How could he explain the changes in him without pointing out that he was from a future where the man in front of him didn't even exist?

Trying to chuckle, he shook his head. "Helen lied. Big time. We were all fine all along." Oops. Already a wrong choice of wording. But he couldn't go letting Stephen think he'd been yanked to this place when he should have been saving Helen Evil Wench Cutter of all people. "She's a bitch, Stephen. You need to remember that." Even if he had been... Ew. Connor really didn't want to think about it. Not that he had a lot of experience to judge anyone but that wasn't the point. The fact was that at the end of the day, Helen Cutter was the reason Connor had lost two of his greatest friends. And Connor wasn't about to forget it any time soon.

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bleedinghart
2009-10-20 02:32 pm UTC (link)

"So Cutter, and Abby... they're alive too? Are they here?" He couldn't help but to glance around, as if there was something or someone he'd missed. If this place was truly as he'd heard, then it was unlikely they were, and it certainly wasn't the sort of place he would want them all to end up at. But Stephen couldn't deny what a relief it would be to see those two. Especially Cutter.

"What happened, Connor? Was it the traitor?" Which he was convinced was Lester. His attention focused on Connor as he brushed aside his emotions for the moment. He needed to know. Needed all the facts so he could make sense of things. The talk of Helen was ignored for the moment, though Stephen did find it a little curious coming from Connor. It sounded similar to something Cutter might say, even if the conviction Stephen thought he heard wasn't quite as strong. Was he missing something?

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leconnortemple
2009-10-20 11:24 pm UTC (link)

Oh boy, was there a lot to explain. Connor released a slow breath, then nodded. Sure, he could explain a lot about what had happened without telling Stephen about how that day had ended....right? Even if a part of him did think his friend deserved to hear what a hero he was. But then, Stephen Hart had never been the craving the limelight sort. He'd probably be okay with not knowing it.

Nodding towards the library, he led Stephen to the front steps and settled down, motioning that he should join him. Sighing, Connor shook his head. "They lived through that," he amended carefully. To say anything else might imply that Cutter was alive in Connor's life. And he wasn't. And that just made the hurt that much fresher. So he gave a little shrug instead of going into detail. "We all did." Sort of. "It wasn't Lester, Stephen." They'd all believed it. Every one of them. "Leek. He was working with Helen."

Because damn if he was going to let Stephen think Helen was any sort of innocent. As far as Connor was concerned, she could rot in hell. And he couldn't tell his friend why. Not really. That made it hurt more. "What do you know about this place, mate?" he asked quietly. That would make all the difference in what Connor could tell him upfront and what he'd have to explain first. While Stephen might be a little more receptive to the taken-out-of-time theory than Kimberly had been, he was still prepared to be given that I'm-hanging-around-a-crazy-bloke look Stephen sometimes wore around the student.

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bleedinghart
2009-10-21 04:03 pm UTC (link)

He sat easily, arms resting on his knees as he turned his head to look at Connor, and his brows almost immediately furrowed at Connor's first statement. Not 'yes Stephen, they're alive' but 'they lived through that'. Implying there was something they didn't. The relief he had started to feel dissapated. What had happened... and when?

Stephen eyed his younger friend, took in the seriousness of his expression as he ran the words over in his head. "What aren't you telling me?"

He tried to ignore the sting of the words implicating Helen. Connor could have been lying. But, no. Stephen had never known Connor once to lie, and what reason would there be for it? None at all. He remembered how he had caught Helen on the phone earlier that day, the way she dodged his questions and seemed in a hurry to leave. It was convenient, just like the way she kept showing up. Stephen knew she was manipulative but could she really stoop that low? Maybe the better question was why should he be surprised? She let them think she was dead for eight years and had practically left him to die after he was attacked by the arthropleura. Somewhere in his mind Stephen had known Cutter was right; when she gave him the message to give to Cutter she had no certainty that he would stay conscious or live long enough to do so. She was toying with them, with him, just like she always had.

A deep frown darkened Stephen's face as he looked out at the street, mind running over thoughts he previously hadn't the time or energy to properly think about. What their lives had become... there wasn't time for anything but the 'now'. He had told Cutter to let go of the past and live in the present, but the past really did come back when it pleased, didn't it? At least when its name was Helen Cutter.

"This place... it's not right. It doesn't feel right." he quietly remarked, his absent gazing having pulled Stephen from his thoughts. His head cocked slightly to one side as he stared at one of the rundown buildings across the street from them as if it might have answers. "I keep thinking that it shows pieces of the past and the present but it's been almost impossible for me to pin a date to anything." Which, if an anomaly had somehow brought them here, wouldn't be the case. But the puzzle of it all still felt similar. He looked back over at Connor, that look on his face that said he was trying to figure things out. "This bloke with strange eyes, he mentioned something about people being from different times. Could that even be possible without time being altered?" Stephen was thinking back to all the times Cutter mentioned that woman, Claudia Brown, that none of them had heard of. Cutter had been convinced they did something that erased her from existence. If that was true, wouldn't that be happening here if people were truly from different places and points of time? Stephen was alright with figuring out the theory of it but possible logistics of messing with time? Not so much. Hence how he was looking to the smartest person he knew for answers.

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leconnortemple
2009-10-22 11:21 pm UTC (link)

"Ah, the creepy red-eyed bloke?" Connor asked, chuckling a bit. He knew he was skating on thin ice. Damn Stephen for knowing him so well. He was either going to have to tell the truth or outright lie. And Connor couldn't even say the truth out loud yet, let alone admit it to Stephen. For now, he would move past the subject as best as he could. "Ignore him, most of us do. Andy and I have decided he's way too comfy here. No one should ever grow to like this place." Hint number one to Stephen that Vas Captio was anything but normal.

Sighing, Connor shook his head slowly. "You're right about one thing, mate. This place is all wrong. To be honest with you?" Connor lowered his voice, preparing to not be believed again. "I'm not even sure we're on Earth. Haven't you noticed nothing looks right? And no animal life?" Even if some of his friends did think hunting the land was possible, Connor knew very few species could stay hidden as well as these had.

Figuring he was already taking enough chances with the skeptical Stephen Hart, Connor took a breath and threw caution to the wind. "I think we're outside of time, if you want the truth. People here are all from different times. Our past, future, everything. It's...it's not normal, mate. More than not right. It's downright weird."

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bleedinghart
2009-10-25 10:24 am UTC (link)

Despite the seriousness of his thoughts and the undertone of their conversation, Stephen couldn't help but crack a smile at Connor's chuckle and the normalcy of it. "Yeah, him. Didn't particularly find him creepy but he was hard as hell to understand."

His brows rose as Connor continued, and Stephen just let him speak for the moment, absorbing the younger man's theory. He was admittedly skeptical of the whole business of being on some other planet, but Stephen couldn't deny that the plant life he had seen thus far and the animal life that he hadn't had him scratching his head. And that wasn't even touching on trying to figure out the climate. Days of constant sunlight or darkness spoke to either of the poles, but clearly the weather was all wrong for that. Of course, he had yet to see the glass walls that were confirmation of their prison, which would only stir up new questions for him. He didn't like having all these questions with no solid answers he could find.

"What do you mean outside of time? Are you trying to say this is some sort of place where the past and the future and the present meet? Or... I mean, you can't stop time. So how could we be outside of it?" He gave himself points for sticking to one thing, even it was the one element that made the slightest amount of sense to him out of all that Connor had said. Stephen understood time, to an extent. It was something he could at least wrap his mind around. The possibility that this place wasn't on Earth? That would take some serious convincing.

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leconnortemple
2009-10-26 02:18 pm UTC (link)

"Cajun, I think," Connor said with a simple shrug. Personally, he didn't like to give the guy much thought. The fact that Stephen had met him already and had only been there a short time definitely gave him pause, but he didn't dwell on it. There was far too much else going through Connor's head to really care.

Sighing, he pulled his knees up and dropped his elbows to them, trying to look more casual than he felt. Truth was, he felt terrified. This was the one person who might have a chance at understanding the theory coursing through his head. However, he was also, at times, Connor's biggest critic and the most skeptical man he knew. Left up to Stephen, the incident in the Forest of Dean might have been ignored completely and Connor simply brushed off as a crazy student who rarely bothered with 'serious' media. But he might also understand. If Connor could only word it properly.

"What if it were possible to stop time?" he pondered carefully. "What if they could freeze the times we were all living in and turn it to a different time all together? One...I don't know. Outside of the one we were living?" And this was the part where he got the giant brush-off, wasn't it? "These people, Stephen, the ones we're living with? They're all from different times. The girl I'm living with, a few years back. The bloke I met my very first day? Nearly a decade ago. There's some kid here from the seventies, and no, I'm not making it up."

Chewing his lip, he dared a glance over in Stephen's direction, expecting a disbelieving or even mocking expression. He could pose the theory all over this city, but this was the one person here he desperately wanted to believe him. Because, next to Cutter, Stephen was the one Connor typically seeked approval from.

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bleedinghart
2009-10-27 12:00 am UTC (link)

"If someone could stop time, we'd all be in trouble. Time's too dangerous to be controlled. Change one little thing, adding or removing or altering, and who knows what might happen." Cutter's intent words about Claudia Brown again rang in his head. "And if it were possible, to control time like that, the means would have to be man-made. As far as we know the anomalies are natural occurrences and time still runs the same on both sides, the only difference is the era." They had plenty of proof of that, at least. Which would mean it was certainly no fluke of nature that any of them had ended up here. Which still brought him back to the question of how this could even be possible.

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Stephen closed his eyes a moment, trying to will himself to go where Connor's theory was trying to lead him. But he kept thinking that if Cutter were there he would be looking to him to see what kind of reaction he had to Connor's idea, and take some of his cues from that. They both looked to Cutter for approval, Stephen had simply been doing it a lot longer and could be far more subtle with it. But Cutter wasn't here, and Stephen was definitely feeling the absence.

And that made him think of something.

"If everyone here is from a different point in time, does that mean you and I are as well?" He looked over at Connor as he lowered his hand, asking the question though part of him wasn't sure he wanted the answer. The younger man's words from a few minutes earlier were still running around his head. The implication that someone had died, just not from what Stephen had thought was going on, wouldn't go away. And it did hint at truth to Connor's theory.

Which he was trying like hell to get on board with. He just... he needed to know. To get this one thing settled and then he would try to work out any theory Connor thought could apply to this place. The younger man had clearly been here long enough to come up with a theory or two. Stephen's brow furrowed as something else came to him. "How long have you been here, Connor?"

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leconnortemple
2009-10-27 02:24 am UTC (link)

Connor remained quiet longer than he'd intended. Stephen would have to know something was wrong. It wasn't like Connor was the type to remain quiet, after all. But the whole of Vas Captio tended to change a person. It didn't necessarily mean anything was specifically wrong, right? "I'm from a couple of months in the future from you. There's a new girl on the team, Sarah. Pretty, I guess, but...you know me." A wry laugh escaped, because it wasn't like Connor was getting off of his Abby kick anytime soon. Well...maybe. That was a story for another time entirely, though. "They've stepped up security, too." Because of Helen, but again, couldn't get into too much detail. As much as he enjoyed placing the blame on her for things.

Biting his lip, he glanced sideways at Stephen and gave a somewhat helpless shrug. "I've been here...about a week, I guess? It's easy to lose track of time here. Days of no sun, days of no moon..." Lifting an arm, he waved the wrist with the watch attached. "Pretty sure that's why they installed these. Don't try and take yours off, it's pretty much pointless."

Did he sound frustrated? Yeah, probably. That was okay, though. Stephen had heard Connor with multiple emotions. Guilt, anger, fear, and completely helpless. Frustration was on the list, nothing new. After all, Connor didn't really know what else to do about this place. He couldn't get out, he couldn't save them all...now what?

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bleedinghart
2009-10-28 06:05 am UTC (link)

His brow furrowed deeper and he cocked his head slightly to the side, trying to wrap his mind around that, combined with what Connor had already said. "A couple months, huh? And there's five of us now? Or..." The smile that had crept onto Stephen's face at Connor's laugh, understanding immediately what it was for, faded as he pieced things together. It had been the four of them since the start, each of them bringing something different to the table for the team. What need would there be for someone else to join them unless in the form of a replacement perhaps?

"Or did something happen to one of us that merited the need for someone new? You said 'they lived through that' but you didn't say everyone's alive now. What happens? Who dies, Connor?" Given that Stephen had already begun to deal with grief, it wasn't near as hard a question to demand an answer to as it should have been. Clearly Connor was fine, so that meant something happened to Abby or Cutter. That something might have happened to himself was a thought that had yet to occur to Stephen. And why should it? He spent most of his time worrying about the others, not himself. It was practically his job, no matter that they occasionally had the special forces team to back them up.

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leconnortemple
2009-11-05 08:14 pm UTC (link)

Connor closed his eyes, trying to think and mourn at the same time. He should be handling this better. Cutter would. Hell, Stephen himself would. Reaching up, he rubbed his temples with his thumb and ring finger, shaking his head as he did. Stephen couldn't be making this more difficult if he tried to on purpose. How could he explain that they'd picked up Sarah because of a vacancy left by the man sitting next to him?

He couldn't. It would ruin everything. As much as he wanted to be able to change time, to rescue the people he cared about, the events that had led him to sitting on the library's steps were proof enough for Connor. You couldn't change what had already been. "Please don't ask me that again," he said quietly. "I can't tell you much else than I already have--knowing too much might make you change things when you get back. It'll throw off the course of time itself, can you see that? Paradox, I think it'd be. Not entirely sure, to be honest." Connor was still working on that bit. "We have Sarah because she's brilliant when it comes to mythology and their beliefs, and Cutter thinks it may relate to cryptozoology and some of the creatures we've already found. He's trying to make the link between the two. That's all."

Or, at least, that was all Connor was willing to give up. That was all he could give up without stopping the world turning as they knew it. Or something.

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bleedinghart
2009-11-10 09:32 pm UTC (link)

Stephen watched his friend closely, almost warily, looking for clues. Whatever Connor wasn't telling him was pretty major. It had to be. He didn't think he had ever seen the younger man look quite so stressed. And... tired, maybe. Made Stephen almost feel bad for asking.

He thought about continuing to push but he simply wanted answers, not to break Connor down, and he worried that might happen if he kept up. It wasn't as if he couldn't bring up the subject again later. Especially if they were truly trapped in this place until whoever brought them there decided to let them go. By that logic, it almost sounded to Stephen like there wouldn't be much to do but talk. Sighing quietly, he gave in with a nod, raising his hands briefly in a sign of surrender. "Alright. Alright, Connor, I'll let it go." For now. And it certainly wouldn't stop his mind from turning on the issue, trying to figure it out for himself.

"What else can you tell me about this place, then?" Stephen was hoping a shift in topic might settle Connor down a bit. Or at least do away with that tone and expression. Reminded him a bit of when that friend of Connor's died. A stressful day for all of them. "No anomalies popping up around here at least?" He could hope, even if one might offer a way out.

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leconnortemple
2009-11-11 03:18 pm UTC (link)

Connor's sigh of relief was likely audible when Stephen agreed to let the subject drop. Oh, he knew better. It wasn't the end of their talking and it wouldn't be the last time Connor would have to side-step the issue at hand. But at least he could have a few moments to breathe and pretend he wasn't looking the impossible right in the eye.

"Sometimes I think this entire place is an anomaly," Connor said in reply, fiddling with the edges of his shirt sleeves. "Completely outside of time. I really don't know a lot here. I don't think anyone does, to be honest. It's...not normal, I can promise you that." The slightest hint of a smile crossed his face and he shrugged. The science geek in him came out in full force when heading into talks like these. "I'd probably find it fascinating if I weren't the one in the middle of it all. Remember when you told Cutter we should let people know about the anomalies? I kind of wonder if this is the same sort of thing. You know, technology that got into the wrong hands because proper measures weren't taken in the very beginning."

Stretching his legs out in front of him, he gave an almost bashful little shrug. "I don't know. Some people think it's technology stolen from an alien race. Some think we've all been given hallucinogenics to make us think it's all as crazy as it seems."

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bleedinghart
2009-11-16 01:30 am UTC (link)

"Well, 'not normal' is right up our alley, wouldn't you say?" Stephen gave a wry smile, resting his arms on his knees once more as he attempted to relax a bit. It was more for Connor's sake than his own. "I have no problem with you finding it fascinating on some level if it helps you figure a way out of here. Regardless of what precisely the 'how' and the 'what' are, I've no doubt you'd be able to wrap your mind around whatever technology's at work if given half a chance."

And Stephen wasn't just saying it either. It might have taken him a little while to see what Cutter had seen in the younger man, but it hadn't taken long for Stephen to realize how invaluable Connor was to the team. Even if he was a bit... quirky.

So they were seemingly trapped in some place that didn't obey the accepted laws of space and time. That was no reason for there to not be hope. Surely between the two of them they could find a way to get home.

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