"lights, cameras, action!" for Hopper (and Tim and V if you want!)
u should send inΒ "lights, cameras, action!"Β so i can tell you how ur muse would be introduced in their debut scene in aisling's tv show/movie series (i.e. the build-up, the hints, the music, the little easter eggs) ( ACCEPTING! )
S2E1: ROIMHE ( TRANS: BEFORE. )
following from the season one finale, aisling is unwittingly teleported from the diner in 2024 to indiana, 1981. there is no "previously on" segment; we're thrust directly into the thick of it all, with aisling appearing in a clearing in the woods, snow drifts halfway up her calves, and she isn't one bit equipped for the cold. we watch her try and fail to go back, even using the soul stone to try and provoke the portal into returning, but in the end, she remains where she is. the blizzard increases in severity; the scene cuts to the diner, which is thrust into chaos with her disappearance and the arrival of anthony, kate and edwina. as things escalate in the diner, aisling is preparing to unleash another blast of energy to try and reopen the portal, when she hears a distant screeching in the distance. it's recorded in a way that's easy to miss; viewers have to rewatch it to be sure, the wind almost makes it seem like aisling just looked up on instinct, as opposed to actually hearing something noteworthy. she's preparing to pursue the source of the sound, when the camera switches to a POV angle, slow but focused steps moving closer and closer, a dim torchbeam fixed on the snow-flurried figure of aisling.
the camera returns to aisling, locked on her, and as she takes a step forward, a gloved hand grips her shoulder, and she spins to face her new companion. jim looks back at her. we get some of that synth music back, a sci-fi mystical vibe that rises above the howling winds, camera panning out to the side to show this unexpected meeting. the storm almost seems to slow down as fifty years shrink to nothing. we have, for the first time, a moment to appreciate the impossibility of this; a portal has not only drawn people from the regency period into the 21st century, but also pushed aisling into 1980's indiana! this isn't possible! and even if it was, why these three different times?! what's going on??
jim severs this moment of awe brusquely. the storm resumes pace.
" are you nuts?! " his voice is much louder than the storm, but still raised to achieve it. the camera returns to his face, closing in as he reaches for a radio on his shoulder, reporting back before groaning with frustration; the storm is destroying what little signal exists out in the woods. " come on, already! we can wait it out at benny's-- "
" no! " aisling's seen pulling back, but jim holds firm, patience gone. another distant howl, long and mostly lost to the gales, and neither of them heed it. " i have to go back! "
" hopper! " a second torchbeam, dim and struggling, can just about be seen in the distance. jim turns, grip loosening a touch, and aisling pulls free entirely.
" don't be stupid! back where?! "
in this moment, with a hand outstretched to try and grab aisling's arm again, head turned back towards the source of the voice, jim is beyond an ordinary man in an extraordinary situation. we see it clear as day on his face. the conflict, the way the severity of the storm is taking him off guard, the brief contemplation of priorities and choices to make in order to save as many as possible. in time to come, things will become unimaginably different for him. but for now, he's a good man in a snowstorm, trying to save a dear friend and a complete stranger, just two feet from a cosmic anomaly that'll cause unthinkable chaos in years to come. he keeps an arm outstretched. aisling steps toward him, though from the hesitation, we can see this is a difficult path for her to take. the camera returns to jim's face, close-up, as he squints through the hazy forest.
" benny, over here-- " a slight absence is heard; a brief lessening of the wind and snow and howling volume. a brief blink, and then chaos rises again; jim turns, fingers about to coil around a wrist that's no longer there. " what the hell?! "
the camera shifts. we're no longer in the cold, dark, blue-toned wilderness. aisling, and a drift of snow, materialize in the corridor, and she slips to her knees, shaking violently as the squad react, and then race to find blankets to wrap around her as she tries to readjust. later that night, she sits in a nest of throws and cushions in the living room. eli sits with her, scrolling on his phone until he finds what they've clearly both been searching for. " found him. says there was a blizzard in 1982. one suspected death. not local. "
aisling puts her cup down on the table. with the same clink, the camera cuts to indiana, where jim is seen at his desk, examining photos of the clearing where aisling appeared and vanished all at once. he's just putting them into the file again. the camera closes in on a calendar on his desk reading "november 5th, 1983".
(but we're left with a tiny hint that the portal may return to the clearing, particularly when we see a five second post-credits scene where an owl soars through the clearing, and disappears mid-flight without any warning).
