Look at this photograph

[kleptophile]

|A: 338 Brady Lane|

[As he often does in Mayfield, Lyn has been carefully minding his own business and keeping his head down; the last big happening in town, in fact, he'd only heard about secondhand, which he considers something of a blessing. He's more than had his fill of the town's bullshit; the less they mess with him, the better he likes it.

So he's genuinely a little baffled when he finds something in the mail for him. Usually the return of their things and abilities from home is a sort of twisted reward for surviving the latest horror, and he hadn't even gotten near whatever dark carnival Mayfield had put on.

But hey, who is he to question the lunatics in charge if they want to give him more of his stuff? He tears into the envelope eagerly; he hasn't yet received anything from his own world that hasn't been good, and he can't think of anything he could get back that he wouldn't want -

The picture slides out of the envelope into his waiting hand, and he nearly drops it as though it had burned him. It's not that he has anything against the picture itself, it's innocuous enough...but the memories it stirs are an old wound he hadn't been prepared to suddenly have reopened. Anyone who interrupts Lyn now will find him almost viciously surly, compared to his usual casual grousing.]

|B: Around town|

[Lyn's taken his bad mood on the road, though now he's more upset than kneejerk angry. For once he's scuffing through the streets without seeming twitchy or paranoid, and traveling entirely on the ground; he's too preoccupied for his usual furtive movements and clambering around on anything above eye level.

He doesn't really expect to be bothered, since he doesn't know many people in Mayfield, thanks to his paranoia leading him to avoid a lot of them - but an apparent teenager as clearly depressed as he is at the moment might inspire comment.

He's still holding the picture - which he may or may not lose his grip on in his preoccupation and drop it at the feet of passersby. When this happens, he reacts with the sudden panic of a man who's just dropped a diamond or nuclear launch key, pouncing on it immediately before it can get away. Or someone can steal it from him...though why anyone would want to is a question for Lyn's paranoia.]

Shit - !

Comments

B: Around Town

[nyanpire]

[Bad moods don't mean very much to kittens. But interesting things floating through the air... those mean a lot! Nyanpire had just been walking on by, off to see if he could con a strawberry milkshake out of someone when that photograph went flitting past his field of vision.]

...nyaa!

[He stops. And then he crouches down, little behind wiggling... and then he pounces, determined to bring it down.]

I got it! I got it, nyaa! I... NYAAAAA!

[..he is far more likely to collide with this big human that has also gone pouncing for it.]

[kleptophile]

[Lyn couldn't be considered a big human compared to anything but a kitten, honestly. But the collision is imminent, and he nearly jumps out of his skin when it happens because he didn't see the cat at all. Which is unusual, since he's usually hyper-alert of his surroundings, but just then his whole world had been that picture.

Which, oh shit, he still hasn't grabbed. Almost as soon as he finishes leaping back from the cat, he's scrabbling for the photo again. He's goddamn terrified the wind will snatch it.] Get away from that!

[He hasn't quite processed that the voice he heard came from the cat. Picture first, then secondary concerns.]

[nyanpire]

[Nyanpire impacts, then bounces off and rolls away, landing in a pitiful sprawl. It all comes down to physics, really. He's not hurt, just stunned... and noisy.]

Nyaaaaaa... I wanted it... I wanted it, nyaa...

[Hup! He gets back on his feet, shakes off the daze, and looks up at the human that got in his way.]

That was mean, nyaa!

[kleptophile]

[Having recovered the photo, Lyn is now sufficiently freed from preoccupation to look for whatever bumped into him. What he sees is...a cat. Kitten? It's certainly small enough.

And it's talking. At him. It says a lot about how long he's been in Mayfield that he's only briefly bemused by this.]

The hell do you mean, mean? It's my picture.

[nyanpire]

But... but you dropped it....

[The kitten sits back on his hind legs, staring up at Lyn with the sort of resentment that only a cat can manage.]

I was gonnya play with it, nyaa....

[kleptophile]

Yeah, it slipped outta my fingers. It didn't stop belonging to me just 'cause I dropped it. [Later, it will occur to Lyn how completely insane it is that he's arguing with a cat.]

And hell no you're not playing with it. You'll mess it up!

[nyanpire]

[Nyanpire is not good for your average normal person's sanity, no.]

I still wanted to play with it! Nyaa... what is it? Why's it so important, nyaa?

[kleptophile]

It's a picture of a friend of mine. [He holds it a little tighter, not sure how much, if at all, that will inspire the cat to not chew on it like a teething ring.] He's dead. Real dead, not Mayfield dead where you just come back.

[nyanpire]

N...nyaaaa...

[That seems to trigger a bit of the kitten's actual empathy. His ears flatten and his little wings droop.]

Dead for real, nyaa? That's nyot nice at all... I don't want it, nyaa.

B

[a_gentle_boy]

Huh?

[Lucas doesn't even have a chance to look at what's floating past his knees before someone pounces and snatches at it.]

...Are you OK, Mr. Lyn?

[kleptophile]

[Lyn's already clutching the photo to his chest like an old lady clutching her pearls.] Wh - oh. [Only now does he process whose feet his picture fell at.] Hey, Lucas. 'M fine. [He doesn't look it. He looks pale and kind of harried.]

[a_gentle_boy]

[blink blink]

I know people usually say that because they don't really want to talk about things. ...But you don't look very fine.

[kleptophile]

It's... [Lyn hesitates. Lucas is about the least judgmental person in Mayfield, in his limited experience, and he's fond of him. He...can probably tell him. At least vaguely.]

I got a picture from back home. It's...of a friend I used to have. One of the only friends I used to have. I...got him killed by accident, a long time ago. It's a really shitty reminder.

[a_gentle_boy]

Oh.

[It is a rather quiet 'oh'. As far as getting important people killed, Lucas had some practice at the concept himself.]

...I'm sorry to hear that. Um. ...Maybe you should try not consider it a reminder of that, so much as just... a reminder of your friendship.

[kleptophile]

Hard to be reminded of our friendship without being reminded of how it. Y'know. Ended. [Lyn looks down at the now slightly crumpled picture in his hand and belatedly tries to flatten it out again.] Still, I don't wanna lose the picture.

[a_gentle_boy]

...Yeah.

[Lucas lowers his head towards the picture, though he doesn't seem to be trying to see who's on it.]

But... something like that... it's not worth letting it ruin all of the good memories, too. It's easy to say, I know, but... Well. I don't think your friend would want you to keep blaming yourself, either.

B

[forgotten_titan]

[She didn't even notice the picture until Lyn nearly pushed her over in his haste to grab it.]

Hey! What was that for!?

[kleptophile]

You were gonna step on it! [Lyn's a couple centuries too old to be a teenager, but he's just had that much longer to practice the belligerent tone.]

[forgotten_titan]

Step on what? I was just minding my own business!

[kleptophile]

My picture! [He waves it in the air as proof.] I dropped it.

[forgotten_titan]

[Immediately her mouth shuts as guilt colours her face.]

Oh.

Sorry. I...I didn't see it.

B

[soulless_soldier]

[Barton isn't paying him much mind as Lyn passes by, until she sees he's dropped something. As the picture slips from his grip, it never hits the ground - instead of falling under Barton's feet, it instead floats up, and she plucks it from the air. Telekinesis is handy.]

Ya dropped somethin'.

[kleptophile]

[Lyn's immediate dive is brought up short as the picture suddenly leaves its logical trajectory and defies physics. He stares for a second in surprise, though - not a lot of surprise. He's got limited telekinesis of his own, although it's not fine-tuned enough for him to pluck a fluttering photo out of the air.

Which might explain why he huffs a bit at her trick and responds with one of his own - with her hand holding it still, he's able to use his own to tug it from her fingers across the foot or so of space to his own hand.] Yeah, I noticed.

[He's not gonna get shown up by a girl.]

[soulless_soldier]

[Oh you're gonna get shown up by a girl. This one has talent. She's surprised for a moment when it's tugged away, but she's met some other psychics in town. The photo is suddenly tugged back, right back to her own hand.]

Maybe ya coulda said thanks?

B

[a_crazygirl]

[Sounds like someone needs a PUPPY! Perhaps a blue, fuzzy werepuppy who just happens to see the picture slip out of Lyn's hand. She dives for it as well, in an attempt to keep it from being blown away by a breeze.]

B

[swineprince]

[Of course, he would run into Ebony when he wants to brood by himself. And of course Eb has his hands full with a tupperware of brownies and can't really go after the photo at his feet.]

Ah... Lyn? Are you okay?