/PERSEVERE

she  hits  one  final  button   &   —    nothing  happens .    her  brows  draw  together  for  a  moment  before  she  hits  the  side  of  the  contraption  with  the  heel  of  her  hand .    it  begins  to  whirl  then  print  something  out  on  receipt - like  paper  which  causes  her  to  grin  again .    she  looks  over  to  her  current  assistant .         ❝    no !    shouldn’t .   would  be  bad  if  it  did  but  i  made  it   &   most  things  i  make  don’t  blow  up .    not  on  purpose  anyhow .   not  much  of  a  blowing  up  fan .   ❞         she  rips  off  the  receipt   &   inspects  it  for  a  moment  before  striding  up  to  the  other  to  take  back  the  bit  of  machinery .          ❝    just  trying  to  learn  what  i  can  about  the  place  while  i’m  still  here .   ❞          she  holds  up  the  machine .          ❝    made  this  to  help !    it’s  detecting  certain  anomalies  in  the  area .   ❞

“finally a difference – and here i was just starting to think we had too much in common.” barbara commented in amusement. “i’ve been known to make a thing or two blow up, though. but intentionally... most of the time.” that aside, it was almost hilarious to her how familiar this was playing out – how many times had she been trying to fidget with some custom made gadget in an attempt to further her understanding of something? her head tilted curiously at the device and back to the other, suddenly perking up as she’d elaborated. “while you’re still here? plan on going anywhere?” it made her pause, realizing she was yet to hear of anyone leaving here, “has it picked up anything interesting?”

— the young man did his best not to look SURPRISED, when the young female spoke to him. admittedly, theon was still adjusting to even the IDEA that people around woodshore would WANT to rope him into conversation. theon was only starting to come back into himself— at least, into who he felt that he once was, much more strongly. despite his numerous flaws, he used to be quite the impressive conversationalist— he was able to read people well, and he did his best to focus on what THEY wished to discuss, most especially when he could benefit from flattering them. but after all that he had endured— and after all of his LOSSES— theon kept to himself as much as he could. people looked at him now… and likely saw a ghost in a shell. a timid kitchen mouse. someone who had been through horror after horror. and they would be RIGHT. “you are not crazy to make such an irrefutable argument,” theon offered kindly, as he tried for a SMILE. this time around, the look was not meek either, which pleased the man who had produced the look. “as a child, i did not have museums,” theon admitted. “but i was always CLIMBING things.” the ragged rocks of PYKE held numerous wonders, and theon liked to climb up high— as high as he could— so that he could see the SHIPS that sailed into port before they made it there. “i was about to go inside myself, actually,” theon continued. for the first time during their chat, theon managed to meet CASSIE’S gaze. “would you care to come with me?” of course, she could go on her own way, if she wished to, once the pair was inside. “i could purchase your ticket.” 

cassie never did extraordinarily well on her own – too prone to rash decisions accompanied with a frustrating impatience. she always meant well, her short temper usually focused on wanting the world just and fair, for her friends and loved ones to be safe. but she was always part of a team, some sort of found family, and perhaps that was why she always strived for conversation when she was alone. she wanted to connect with people, and not be with just her own fast paced thoughts. “well thank you,” cassie sat up, her attention focusing on the one that had seemingly agreed with her. her lips turned in a friendly smile, warm in the face of meeting someone new. “i was a climber too – kind of my mom’s worst nightmare.” she admitted with a laugh, though leaving out that eventually her climbing stage was usurped when she learned to fly. but when he admitted to not having museums where he was from, the demigoddess quickly surmised that they were from some sort of different reality and he may not have had people with super powers where he was from. his offer made her pause, head tilting slightly as she matched his gaze. “wait, seriously? you’d do that?” while she believed in kindness, it still sometimes caught her off guard. she quickly pushed herself up and onto her feet. “i mean, yeah, i’d love to. that’s really nice of you. i’m kind of a history buff so i think i’d make an excellent museum partner, if you want.” she offered before holding her hand out in introduction, “cassandra sandsmark, but really just cassie.”

“It’s meant to be an incentive for parents, guardians, or caretakers to bring children.  You only have to pay for one ticket,” Crowley said shrugging their shoulders.  Memories of taking Warlock to art or natural history museums as Nanny Ashtoreth came back to them.  They wouldn’t admit it anyone but they missed those days.  They got to see Aziraphale everyday and taking care of Warlock wasn’t that bad, almost enjoyable not that they would ever admit that to anyone.  “Why not climb the statues or touch them?  You just have to keep an eye out for security and make sure you don’t get caught or don’t bother looking for them and just do it.  What’s life without a little risk?  Hardly be the first time someone touched those statues.”

“i don’t have a whole lot of experience with kids but is it really that fun taking them to a museum around all the old and fragile things?” of course, she’d seen this more times than she could count, and she’d been that kid once that just couldn’t sit still. “if they really want to lure parents in, offer them free childcare.” for as much as she gave it a hard time, cassie really wouldn’t change her childhood in places like this for much of anything – she didn’t appreciate it then but loved it now. she laughed quietly at their words, giving a nod. “when i was a kid, i absolutely did, but not getting caught was a lot harder. my mom ran the place.” that, and one time a statue came alive, but that was harder to explain. “plus you never know what kind of secrets old relics have.” she opted for instead.

❝    do  me  a  favor ?   hold  this !   ❞          there  wasn’t  a  wait  for  an  answer .    just  an  object  being  put  into  the  other’s  hand   &   the  doctor  scuttering  a  feet  away  with  a  remote  device  connected  to  it .   her  hair  is  flipped  out  of  her  face  several  times  as  she  tries  to  turn  dials   &   hit  switches  on  the  small  device .          ❝   don’t  move    —    i’m  almost  done  i  promise .   ❞

CLOSED STARTER    /    @perseveriing​​ ,  anyone .

barbara paused, glancing down to what she’d been given before turning back to the other, “it’s not going to blow up, is it?” if there was anything babs knew for sure, it was that even something seeming innocent could be dangerous. "not going to lie – i’m usually on the other end of these situations. now i know why my friends always looked at me like i had five heads when i was in the middle of a project.” she admitted with a quiet laugh, inspecting the object curiously. “can i ask what you’re working on?”

“yeah?” so he wasn’t totally alone on this particular front. cassie would have loved that exact kind of thing, but she wasn’t here – a painful disappointment, but scott willed himself to believe it was only temporary. he and maggie had worked things out over the years with her going back and forth between them, he knew exactly how to be patient. it was just… longer than he was used to waiting for. “you know, i’ve never met a vampire, but i’d love to. i think it’d be awesome. as long as they didn’t try to bite me.” even if fighting a vampire? also sounded pretty cool. “you think so? this place is just full of it.”

“i think you could,” lorna started, her head slowly nodded in musing over the subject. “meet a vampire, i mean. actually, for all you know, you already have.” she only really had her own experience to go off of, and while she didn’t have a history of running into vampires, she did know what it was like to be different. most people that spoke to her did it without knowing she was a mutant, afterall, they just assumed she was some sort of edgy girl who colored her hair green. “biting probably isn’t an issue maybe unless you pop open a vein around them – i think if they had no control, there’d be a lot more dead bodies around here.” she continued with a shrug. “but hell yeah, we can start recording the weird shit, send it in, and they’ll just have to come back, right?”

“sometimes,” david noted, with a slight playful smile, “it pays to know those who can get you in for free regardless of age.” the sense, he reasoned, was, as he told her, “that’s the point, i believe, though. children can’t truly appreciate the beauty and mysteries behind museum walls, therefore… adults are more prone to get more out of their money. the… bang for the buck, shall we say?” david, of course, spent far too long in libraries and museums, perusing the aisles for old tales, and new evidence. he paused, then tilted his head towards the museum, as though motioning. “come now. would you like to see inside or not? no climbing on the statues.”

cassie raised a brow in curiosity as he spoke – honestly, she hadn’t really expected anyone to take her seriously. most people never do. “i mean, logically yeah i know it makes sense.” someone had to pay and it’s not like kids had money anyway. “but i guess my mom always preached the whole ‘importance of education’ side of things more to me more than the financial.” her shoulders lifted and fell in a shrug before his offer had her quickly getting up on her feet. “well if you’re offering – don’t worry, i’m well past my statue climbing days.” plus, there wasn’t much need when you could fly, but she couldn’t just go telling everyone that. “she was an archaeologist, my mom, so i guess i’m just curious what they have around here.”

name:  barbara gordon room number:  744 relevant experience: extensive study of the multiverse, speedforce, and time travel. expert hacker and eidetic memory. long history of foiling supervillain plots. what do you currently believe is the explanation for woodshore?: the possibilities could be endless, but i would probably start the possibility of a pocket dimension – but why it exists and draws people in with promises is the real mystery. could it have a life of it’s own, needing the essence of citizens to thrive? or did someone just screw up reality and made a new dimension? do you have any other theories?: well, i’ve seen speedsters alter timelines and screw up lives on fundamental levels before so i guess you can never really rule that out either.

optional ooc additional:

“so you’re telling me that buzzfeed unsolved was here and i missed it?” damn. scott let out a huff, his arms folding over his chest for a moment and weighing the different possibilities. of course, if he’d interpreted it right, it wasn’t like he’d missed it snoring away or performing magic tricks in his room. “huh. well, i guess if there’s any reason to miss it, being on coruscant is a pretty good reason. still! that blows.”

“you know, i was thinking the same thing.” lorna perked up at the mention – she had, admittedly, watched the video more times than what anyone could call reasonable. some people could call it all ridiculous, impossible, but aside from being a mutant herself, she’d always believed there were no limits on the possibilities of what could be out in the world. “isn’t that the crazy thing though? we all just took this random trip to star wars land, but i’m sure there are still people thinking vampires aren’t a thing.” she pointed out, “i bet we could lure them back here if we uncover more weird stuff.”

@perseveriing​ - jim gordon to barbara gordon

“you look familiar,“ he stated, watching the young woman move around stacking books in the library. he’d gone there to do some more research on the town, finding it odd how so many people from all walks of life had just… shown up - when he spotted her. “something tells me that i know you.” belatedly realizing he was being pretty cryptic, jim stepped forward and offered her a hand in greeting, “jim gordon, formerly of gotham, now of woodshore.”

it wasn’t her father’s voice that came as a surprise to her as she put another book back on the shelf – she’d been there to find him, hadn’t she? but it was the immediate realization that he was younger, the he didn’t know her, that caught barbara off guard. for a second, her jaw hung open as she tried to formulate a response. “uh – yeah, uhm, i guess you could say that.” she started, taking the quick breath to regain her composure. “i’m actually from gotham too – born and raised.” she started, now keeping her attention steady on him. “this place works in weird ways, i guess. my name is barbara.”

brunnhilde had been bored out of her trees. sure, getting a bartending job was taking the easy way out. however, in her own defense, she’d only just moved to woodshore and regained her memories - - it was a lot to sit with. so, she chose to sit behind the bar, nursing a drink while continuing her project of carving her name into the wooden bar top with her trusty dagger. as the bell chimed - alerting her that someone walked in, she sighed a breath of relief. “finally, a new soul in here. it’s just been me and - -” she pointed with her dagger to the stranger at the other end of the bar who sat idle. “ - - that fool. who… i hope is just sleeping.” and just like that, she went back to her carving. “drink?” / @woodshorestarters​

lorna adjusted the strap of the guitar hanging over her shoulder as she pushed the door to the bar open and stepped inside. she preferred to come when things were slow and avoid the larger crowds – it certainly saved her some hassle, at least. her brow quirked at the other patron as the bartender mentioned them before taking a seat at the bar herself. “i’ll take a passed out drunk over an obnoxious drunk any day of the week.” she shrugged, brushing emerald green hair from her face. “i’ll just take a rum and coke, if you don’t mind. i’m kind of surprised it’s this slow today – clearly people don’t know the beauty of occasional day drinking.”

pietro had made his way to sit across from his sister, unsure if she’d actually seen him come up or what she remembered. it was nice to see her, of course, but lorna and him had never had the best relationship. “what are you watching?” he asks, accent thick and he takes a sip of his own caffenated drink. that was probably not the best drink for a speedster but yknow, he was never smart. “are you speaking of the murders around here?”

green eyes lifted to her brother in some amusement before she turned her laptop around to face him so that he could see the video. “buzzfeed unsolved – i do love a good conspiracy theory.” lorna shrugged – a more common trait from her newer life, the one where she didn’t know she had siblings. granted, in every life she had a large distrust for the government. but she remembered it all now, including the twins. “i am. what do you think, pietro? vampires, werewolves? we’ve seen weirder, i think.” she questioned, quirking a brow in curiosity at the state of his memory. 

memories became difficult around here. bruce saw people continue to contend with memories of their own, some taking it better than others, but most - unlike him - seemed to have a full grasp on them. but he still was left facing the fractions of anything that came to mind. things he would’ve marked down as impossible if they hadn’t felt real and if he hadn’t already experienced the impossible since he followed his letter. he knew he knew barbara even before she introduced herself. the name came to mind just as a warm feeling did. he did his best to spile at her because his answer probably wasn’t what she hoped for. “i know we’re close,” he said, “but i don’t remember much of anything.”

barbara tried not to allow her expression fall at his admittance – that he was still lacking his memory. it’s okay, they’ve faced worse. still, it didn’t really make anything any easier, did it? she gave a nod as she quickly decided the next course of action. “it’s okay – that’s okay, i can probably help.” the offer came without hesitation, but she paused a moment after speaking it. what if he didn’t want to know? or regretted it once he did? the life of bruce wayne wasn’t exactly an easy one. “if you want, of course.” she added to the offer, “we’re friends, though, so you’re right about that. i guess you could say we worked together.”

t’challa’s smile softened at her words and he nodded. “home is home,” he repeated. he wanted to believe that, sooner rather than later, he would be able to return to wakanda and to his family – but the longer he stayed in woodshore, the less sure he felt about the fact. whatever this place was, it was like nothing he’d ever seen. shuri, he imagined, would be impressed. he accepted babs’ invitation to sit gratefully. “i hope i’m not intruding on any work,” he said, motioning to her laptop, “but i appreciate the company. my name is t’challa, and my home is wakanda.” and wakanda seemed to be missing from the maps he’d been able to find in this place. he couldn’t even find mention of it in old records of third world countries. “where are you from, babs?”

“not intruding at all – i could use the break.” she admitted honestly. thinking of home, she felt the small pang of a reminder that she was yet to find all of those she was close to – the ones that would forcibly tear her away from a computer screen or a case to have some time off. although, it made her appreciate the newfound company. “wakanda?” she repeated, curiosity pitching in her voice. “i have to admit, i haven’t heard of it, which is really surprising because i usually know my stuff. i’d actually love to know more about it.” her mind was already buzzing about alternate realities since they went all star wars, and somewhere in the expanse of her mind, she made a note of it. “home for me is gotham city. not really a vacation destination, but it’s never boring.”

erik’s entire demeanor changed as he stiffened up to greet her. she was his daughter, only older and far more aware of her own abilities and surroundings. “no, but i was promised that i would find my children, so i am going to safely assume that all of you are here.” he added, letting go of her arm after a moment and then frowning. 

“apologies for coming up on you like that, i felt there wasn’t another way to get your attention other than displaying our gifts.“ he added, stepping closer to whisper to her. “lorna, how long have you been here in woodshore?“ he asked, his gaze lingering on her face, wondering how long he’d been gone from her again.

“that’s what got you here?” she asked with doubt lingering in her voice, and though lorna knew it shouldn’t be much of a surprise, her father’s relationship with his children was always questionable at best. her promise was to find her family, and their similarities once again expanded beyond just their powers. “i haven’t seen the twins yet, but i heard they’re here.” she hesitantly confirmed, knowing that had more to do with her reluctance to see them and not knowing what their memories consisted of.

“no – it’s fine – you’re just... younger than i expected. but i’m guessing that kind of goes both ways.” awkward was the only word she could really think of in the moment, that and a bit of relief she’d be in denial of if asked directly. her hand pushed back strands of emerald hair before shaking her head. “not long, right before everyone went all star wars and ended up in space. kind of bummed i didn’t get to have any space battles, if we’re being honest.”

@woodshorestarters​

“tell me…” caroline studies the ring on her finger, frowning. it wasn’t quite the right ring she wanted on that finger, nor was it from the right person, but it reminded her of home, and of a terrible, terrible time in her life. she hated it, why would the universe give her…this as a gift? why not…literally anything else? “how do you think they chose these gifts? why do you think they chose these specific items as gifts?” 

her eyes rolled almost out of habit at the sound of caroline’s voice – not that katherine really held an obnoxious amount of resentment towards the woman, beyond being annoyed at her persistent goodness. “are you really going to pout because some cosmic joke gave you jewelry?” she questioned, arms folded in front of her. they certainly weren’t friends, but there were people that katherine disliked more, which was saying something. “what i’d really like to know is who is sneaking into people’s rooms at night and leaving them creepy other life gifts.”