redmarsshit | test drive meme: november 2019

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test drive meme: november 2019

Redshift: Welcome to the v͖͕̺̲̘̱̜͎o̴̦̣̠̦̘̹͞i̯̖d̛̪̬͈̱̦̝͍̕.

▶ Click here to read what characters will experience when arriving in Anchor.

▶ All TDM threads can be considered game canon, and current players are welcome to either top-level on the TDM so prospective players can tag them, or use the prompts for logs or network posts on the communities. All threads on the TDM can be used for Activity Check.

a. the truth hurts.

As though everything happening in the past month wasn't enough, there's been a minor explosion in one of the labs. No one hurt, if you don't count the hapless maintenance bot that caused the explosion in the first place.

But there are gases drifting through the laboratories, some of them making their way into the air vents, invisible to the purifiers in the system thanks to the explosion. And those gases are leaking into the air around Anchor, little pockets of danger waiting to be breathed in.

Those who breathe the gasses in might be the unluckiest Anchorites of all.

They're stuck telling the whole truth and nothing but the truth for the next five hours, give or take. Good luck with that!

b. retromedia.

Oblivious to what's going on inside Anchor, the shift rages outside, bringing shadows of things and places from other worlds, those things flickering into existence and out of it again.

The bad news is that the Whole Foods is gone.

The good news is the shift left something behind in its place.

A long, squat building, with cement walls painted over with stucco and punctuated by big windows. A flat roof with slanted sides, painted a deep blue. In bold yellow letters bolted to the roof, a sign:

BLOCKBUSTER
The sliding doors are broken, bouncing open and shut steadily, but the inside is clean and well-stocked with rack upon rack upon row upon row of VHS tapes, all of them neatly packaged in plastic boxes. Some of them have the movie covers on them, but most bear the Blockbuster logo and tiny labels running down the back, declaring the box's contents. There's a giant, somewhat busted up standee of Tim Allen as The Santa Clause, flickering holiday lights strung unevenly from the ceiling, and symbols of various seasonal holidays stuck up along the walls and windows.

Any movie you could possibly want lies within, or at least any movie you could possibly want that was released on Earth during or before 1994. And don’t worry if you can't find a VHS player in Anchor! There are whole shelves of VCRs tucked into one of the closets, apparently part of an aborted plan to rent out VCRs along with movies.

Poor Blockbuster. They were innovators. And now they're lost to the sands of the red shift.

c. sweet sweet self-care.

While sickness persists inside Anchor's walls, those in recovery seem to be getting better every day. And while the health bots have been working overtime, some of their processes have gotten a little borked up from all the work they've been doing.

Along with medical care, they're now administering lectures to their captive audiences about the value of diet and exercise, the importance of personal hygiene, and the healing properties of massage. Some of them are forcing massages on people just to prove their point, which, y'know, could be a lot worse. At least they're good at massages?

The spa bots are getting in on the action, nagging the healthy to come for relaxation and decontamination in one gloriously bubbly swoop. They've converted several of their spa pools into sweet-smelling antibacterial baths, so you can make extra-sure you got those visiting-a-sick-friend cooties off!

No, seriously, go with them. Before they drag you there and make you take a bath like an unruly two-year-old.

Believe them, it's worth it. If you complete a circuit of the spa, including the antibacterial baths and the fresh and zesty decontamination shower, you get a shiny sparkly holographic sticker that says "YOU ARE FREE OF DISEASE" in little cheerful bubble-letters. They designed them all by themselves, totally from scratch. Are you proud?

d. the network.

Need to get hold of someone, call for help, ask the city at large a question? Need to ask a friend which 1980s teen movie classic to watch at movie night? Maybe you need to hold your sat phone up to whatever crazy thing you're seeing and send out a recording to double-check if your eyes are deceiving you and what you're looking at is real?

Whatever the reason, the network is going strong, so feel free to include a post to it in your top-levels.

Navigation.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I don't think it makes you a bad friend. And it's fine, I don't like it when people constantly worry about me.

[But yeah the reminder that he is pretty much constantly hurting is Not Great, but thankfully Ben says something that almost completely distracts Peter from feeling bad for himself.]

...Now that you mention it, this is actually really weird.

[He stares down at his plate, like maybe there's something in the food? He leans down to sniff it, but no, it smells okay. Huh.]

Does that taste weird to you? Or does something smell off?

[ Ben takes another tiny bite of the food, heartbeat picking up, trying to detect any kind of something off. But he raises his eyes back to Peter and shakes his head, not trusting himself to speak again if he can prevent it.

Which, turns out? He can't! ]

Wait. There was something. Right when I walked in here. Not - off. I don't remember exactly, just, a strange smell. Something I didn't recognize. I thought somebody was cooking themselves an alien lunch or something with weird alien ingredients I'd never smelled before and I didn't think much of it, but do you think we've been drugged? Some kind of interrogation thing? Oh, no.

[ And here goes Mr. Worst Case Scenario, launching off the deep end. But even as he looks around the dining area ... there aren't any threats, anyone waiting to make them spill their deepest secrets. Just a few scattered groups of people talking and eating.

Ben turns back to Peter, wide-eyed. ]

What do we do?

[Peter doesn't actually look too concerned. He's tapping his fork against his plate and looking around at nothing in particular hMMMM]

See, this is gonna make me sound like a real asshole, but right now I'm trying to think of how I can use this to my advantage, against Qubit specifically. He locked me out of my lab once, and I'm still pissed about it. Like, I don't normally hold grudges, but oooooh man that just-- that really got under my skin.

[that bastard guy. Peter's going to sit here and grump for a few more seconds before turning his attention back to Ben]

Uh. Ffffff. Well, based on what we know, which isn't much, I wanna say that whatever caused this is airborne. And if that's the case, the best thing we can do is let the ventilation systems do their job and cycle the contaminated air through the filtration system. Until then, I guess now's the time to really get to know me because now I can't lie and I wish I hadn't said that but it is what it is.

[ Ben waves away the suggestion that Peter sounds like an asshole. Wanting to actually get some benefit from the latest piece of ludicrousness that the Anchor is throwing their way? That's just resourcefulness, babey! But the information about Qubit does interest him. Ben had been under the impression that Peter and Qubit were friends? But he is definitely not getting a super friendly trusting vibe, now. Ben's own encounters with Qubit have been... well, sort of tense on average, but there's always been good reasons for that, that weren't Qubit's fault. Still... ]

He... locked you out of your lab? Like on purpose? Why?

[ Ben doesn't really get why Qubit would do that. As a prank? But Peter has a good sense of humor and he seems way super mad for it to just be over a joke.

When Peter jokes (?) about how now is the perfect time to get to know him, Ben wishes so badly he could keep his mouth shut. Oh he would just give anything not to say what he says next. ]

Are you joking, I can't tell if you're joking or not but there's a whole lot I still don't know about you that I want to know. Only I shouldn't ask you now, should I, because you can't not answer and that's gross, even though I really really wanna know all kinds of things. Stuff you'd probably never really wanna talk about otherwise only I know stuff's happened that has hurt you, and I can't help you if I don't know about it, but there's no way to know it without digging up all that pain, and oh my god I can't remember the last time I talked this much and I hate talking why is this happening to us?!

Because he's worried that I'm overworking myself. I think that he thinks that because he's the "adult", [Peter says, complete with air quotes] then it's his job to keep an eye on me. Like-- don't get me wrong. He pissed me off, but I know he wasn't doing it just to be an asshole. He's worried about me, I just don't think he needs to be as worried as he is.

[Peter's just not good at sharing the load and he doesn't know what to do with people fretting over him. He's a superhero, y'know? He's supposed to be able to handle everything.

He doesn't interrupt Ben's ramble session, just watches and nods along a bit until he gets to the end of it.]

I don't have an answer for that right now, but I can probably figure it out later. And no, I wasn't joking. Like it kinda just came out, but I trust you. There's... How do I word this... I can't think of anything that I wouldn't be comfortable telling you, even if it's something really hard.

Yeah, well, I worry about you, too, but my first instinct isn't to try to control you. You're young, sure, but you're old enough to make your own choices.

[ Kind of screwed up that Qubit had resorted to that, but then, Ben knows well that people don't always make the right calls when they care about someone. If Qubit was doing it out of concern for Peter and desperation over how else to get him to take it easy... well. It's still wrong, and messed up, but Ben gets that.

His gaze drops to his plate when Peter gives him that permission, tells him he would be comfortable telling him anything. ]

I'm really glad you trust me. Even though I'm worried all the time that I'm not worth it, and one of these days you're gonna realize it. I mean, you're like. A real hero. You're the real deal, and I'm just. The Horror.

[ The fact that he isn't forcibly trying to shut his own mouth, or walking away right now, is a sign in itself that he trusts Peter, too. And if Peter really doesn't mind... if he is honestly willing to tell Ben anything, maybe this situation is kind of a gift. He won't have to agonize over wording and what to say. He'll just... say it.

So, Ben draws in a breath, and goes for it: ]

What happened to make you so... afraid of what will happen if you take a break? Why do you work so hard? What... makes you think it's all on only your shoulders?

I don't think it's his first instinct either, but I know how... how stubborn I can be about these things. Like I don't blame him for it, but I'm still annoyed.

[Because teenage rebellion, or something. His flavor of teenage rebellion isn't very bold, considering all he wants to do is help people as much as he can despite what the ~adults~ say.

But now shit's about to get mushy. He sighs, reaching across the table to give Ben's wrist a squeeze.]

Bro, you are worth so much more than you think you are. I really wish you could see yourself the way that I see you.

...Which almost definitely sounds like I'm hitting on you, but I promise I'm not.

[But what he is doing is avoiding answering the question, at least for a moment while he tries to actually figure out how to. he leans back in his seat again, silent for a moment while he crosses his arms.]

If I had to narrow it down to one incident... This was back when I'd just gotten my powers. I was uh, honestly, kind of afraid of them, afraid of what people would think about me if they knew about it. Afraid they'd be afraid of me. So I didn't use them. I just tried to live my life like everyone else, tried to pretend I was normal. And then one day, something happened.

[He pauses, not so much for dramatic effect as it is to steel himself to get through this. Wow turns out talking about horrible past traumas is really difficult!]

My, um. My Uncle Ben - Fun coincidence there - he uh, he was shot. Murdered. And it-- it was something I could have prevented. Despite everything that I can do, I did nothing, and he--

[He stops again, sniffles, raises a hand to wipe his eyes. He's sure Ben gets the picture without him having to go into all the gory details.]

When you can do the things that I can do, and you do nothing, and bad things happen, they happen because of you. That's why I can't just stop. I don't mean that in a... in a I won't stop and you can't make me sort of way. I think it's just subconscious, like, I don't even realize when I'm doing it most of the time. Like, I really don't think it's all on me, I know that this is a team effort. I guess I just feel like I should be pulling more than my own weight, because I can.

[ Ben's gaze quickly drops when Peter leans over and squeezes his wrist like that and says he's worth more than he thinks. It's... different, hearing that, knowing it's the complete and total truth. There's absolutely no question of that, now. Peter really means those words. He isn't trying to manipulate him, isn't putting on a more positive front despite interior reservations or disgust. He just... really thinks Ben is worth knowing.

It shouldn't hurt, someone saying something that nice to him, but it does. Ben isn't sure why. He just bites the inside of his cheek, managing a small nod. And when Peter makes that joke about not hitting on him, Ben laughs, the tension breaking. ]

Don't worry. I know you're not.

[ That moment of humorous relief might be brief, but it is just enough to get Ben out of his own head and listening properly as Peter gets around to answering the question. And what he says is... nothing entirely new. He'd known elements of this. That Peter has lost people. That he feels like he has something to make up for. That he carries a heavy burden.

But this fills in the gaps and missing details. That Peter had been alarmed by his powers at first. That he'd tried to actually totally blend in at first. His uncle being murdered. Blaming himself for not stopping it.

Ben is quiet for a while, just reaching over and setting a hand on Peter's shoulder as he wipes away those tears. When he does speak, his voice is quiet, soft. ]

It sounds like you blame yourself, for what happened to him. And that's... what's making you feel like you should be doing more, all the time, subconsciously, even though you're already trying your hardest. And I think it's really easy, getting into these patterns of thinking about yourself that are hard to break. 'Cause I get in them, too. About, like. Things. That happened at the Academy. Stuff that was done to my siblings and stuff that was done to me and stuff that I did on missions and training. A lot of it... I could have stopped. With my powers, it's hard to really argue that anybody forced me into anything. Physically, I could've stopped any of it, at any point.

[ Ben doesn't mean to say half of that - the words come out despite him and there's just no stopping it. Maybe having this conversation when they're both on truth gas was a terrible idea. Or... maybe he had needed that sort of a push, too. He drops his eyes to his hands, worrying at a stray thread on the cuff of his jacket. ]

But - do you see how, with your logic, that makes it all my fault? Even if I was, like. A kid, and scared, and just wanted to make my dad proud?

[ Ben shifts, intensely uncomfortable, the same way he is whenever his home life as a kid comes up. The one silver lining is, at least, perhaps this comparison will jar Peter enough that he might recognize the similarity. He might be more willing to forgive himself if he sees how terrible it would be to turn that same harshness on someone else. Ben knows how much easier it is, to forgive other people than yourself. ]

I've been trying really hard to convince myself it wasn't my fault. So... no. I don't think your uncle was your fault, either. You were a kid, and scared, and wanted to be normal. Just because it was physically possible, maybe, for you to have prevented that terrible thing from happening... it's not your fault, Peter. He died and that's awful and I'm so sorry, but. It wasn't because of you.

[Ben's hit the nail on the head. Peter blames himself for a lot of things, but what happened to his uncle is way up at the top, as was the pain it had caused his Aunt. He tries pushing that to the back of his mind again so he doesn't just have another breakdown in front of Ben while they're trying to have a conversation.]

I totally would have felt the same way if I was in your place.

[It's kind of ridiculous how much Peter and Ben have in common. He doesn't think that anything Ben had been through is his fault at all, though, and it is starting to sink in how hypocritical it is to continue to blame himself for things that ultimately weren't his fault. It isn't an easy habit to break, but Ben's right. It's something he really should work on.

Aaaaand he'll start working on it as soon as he can stop his eyes from doing that pesky leaking thing. He's never told anyone about his uncle, he's never told anyone about how he feels like it's his fault, and so nobody's ever told him that it wasn't and wow he wasn't expecting to have this many emotions today. He's not so sure he agrees with that yet, but it's definitely enough to get him thinking about it.]

S-sorry, I just... I never even told my aunt about this.

[ Oh, no. Ben had known that his words would likely provoke a strong emotional reaction, and he understands that in this case, crying is probably the healthiest thing possible for Peter. But it really is awful, seeing his eyes go glassy like that, seeing his expression crumpling bit by bit even as he tries to hold the emotion back and apologizes.

Ben abandons his food where it's sitting, getting up and quietly moving to the other side of the table, pulling a chair up close to Peter's, as close as he can get, so he can sling an arm around Peter's shoulders, gripping tight. It's not much, but it's something. A small measure of comfort and support. ]

I'm so sorry about your uncle. I'm sorry you went through that. And I'm sorry you've been carrying this so long without being able to share it.

[ Ben sighs, silent for a few moments as he considers. It's a heavy thing, Peter trusting him like this. Sure, there is truth gas helping him along as well, but Peter had told him this, and that means Ben has a responsibility to be here for him, the best he can. ]

Sometimes it's harder with family. Your aunt lost him, too. So that makes it complicated. I- couldn't ever talk about dying, to Klaus. Even though we could always tell each other everything. It - it messed him up a lot, how I died, so - I never wanted to cause the hurt I would cause by talking about it.

[ Ben drops his head to the side, squeezing Peter's shoulders a bit tighter. His voice is fervent as he goes on: ]

It wasn't your fault, Peter. I know I already said that, but. Well, I'm just gonna keep saying it 'cause it's true and I gotta tell the truth right now and honestly I think you need to keep hearing it a few more times. It wasn't your fault that your uncle died. It isn't your fault when bad things happen. You're not a freakin' god. You're just a guy. You're a very, very good guy, who deserves to forgive himself for only being human.

[That does not help Peter STOP CRYING, BEN. He kind of starts to reel himself in when Ben puts an arm around his shoulders, but as soon as he sets in about how it wasn't his fault, and then keeps insisting that it wasn't his fault, Peter just loses it again. No over the top bawling or anything, but his breathing is shaky for a few minutes, he's covered his eyes with his hands. The idea of allowing himself to forgive himself isn't an easy one for him to wrap his mind around, but maybe this is a good first step.

Maybe. I mean, he's also very stubborn so we'll see.

For now though, it seems to have gotten through to him some, the fact that Ben literally cant lie right now definitely helps. Eventually he does calm down again, wiping his eyes with the back of his sleeve. He takes a shaky breath to try to calm himself down a bit and leans into Ben a bit because fuck it, he wants a hug okay.]

Sorry about that. Shit, I didn't... I didn't realize how, uh...

[How much it had been affecting his every waking moment, his every action, his every reaction.]

Man, we've both had it just... crazy rough, dude.

[ Ben can feel Peter leaning into the contact, the way his breaths are all shivery and quiet, and yeah, he doesn't really care all that much if people stare. They're probably all too distracted by the truth whatever to even notice, so he twists in his chair and pulls Peter into a hug, rubbing a hand up and down his back. Ben's heart is still breaking for him, because Peter is apologizing to Ben despite everything. ]

You don't have anything to be sorry for, okay, Peter?

[ Then, when Peter mentions how crazy rough they have both had it, Ben can't help a little laugh, wry and quiet. Because Peter is so right. It's not funny, not at all, but sometimes all you can do is laugh at how ridiculous their bad luck had been, how marred with tragedy their pasts. ]

No kidding. Kinda amazing we both made it this far, huh?

[ Ben keeps holding Peter tightly, like that would give him armor again the guilt and grief and loneliness. It won't, but he can try. ]

And you don't have to worry about me telling anybody about this. It's your story, not mine, and as soon as I'm not truth-whammied, my lips are sealed, okay? You can trust that.

[He almost says he's sorry for saying that he's sorry, but he refrains from doing so and just let's himself be held for a little while, eventually wrapping his arms around Ben and resting his chin on his shoulder. Honestly, at this point, Peter knows most of the people in Anchor, so he wouldn't really care if they decided to stop and stare at this too much. He just wouldn't want to have to explain why he was so miserable to them later.

As bummed as he is, 'truth-whammied' still gets a chuckle out of him.]

If you do spill the beans while you're all truth-whammied, I wouldn't hold it against you. Thanks though, seriously. I think I'd go out of my mind here if it wasn't for you.

Of course, Peter. I'm only telling the truth, remember?

[ Because he wants to remind Peter again that all those things he'd just said weren't just words. They aren't Ben saying nice things he doesn't believe because Peter's upset. They are the truth, without alteration or augmentation.

Ben doesn't stop hugging Peter or rubbing his back, but when he can feel some of that awful tension leaving Peter, he asks, with just a touch of mischief creeping into his voice: ]

So is it totally going to ruin the tender moment if I ask some embarrassing questions to collect blackmail material for the future, now? 'Cause I got a couple on deck.

[Peter also does not stop hugging Ben, but what he does do is give him a perhaps unnecessarily tight squeeze in reply.]

Aaaah yeah, probably would ruin it, bud. Not gonna lie, though, you've got me curious now. Fire away.

[ Ben is going to keep holding Peter until he is ready to let go; and in the meantime he tries gently coaxing a little amusement into him. He hadn't been lying, of course, about having those questions ready. He couldn't have been. But what he hadn't said aloud is that half the point of asking them is to remind Peter of smaller, frivolous mistakes. Little errors and faults that he'd made that hadn't been connected with anyone he loved dying. To make Peter laugh at himself, but also, in a more subtle way, to remind him that the stakes weren't always so horribly high, that he is allowed to mess up and have it just be a funny story. ]

What is the absolute dumbest thing you ever said out loud, either in school or to a stranger, as a little kid?

[ That seems, to Ben, likely to be a relatively safe question to ask. All kids blurt embarrassing nonsense, but the consequences aren't, he thinks, he HOPES, usually all that traumatic. ]

Oh. That's a lot tamer than I was expecting.

[Not that he's complaining, it's something else to focus on and it's not treading into deepest, darkest secrets territory. Except now he really has to stop and think, and it would be kind of awkward to do that for a while still clinging to Ben, so he's finally going to let go and lean against the table.]

...Oh, okay, got one. We had this neighbor lady a couple apartments over that was horrible at doing her makeup. Like, her face was always way lighter than the rest if her, she wore bright blue eye shadow, she even had this really bad perm right? I legit thought she was one of those birthday clowns, and I don't remember how I worded it but one say we passed her in the hall and I straight up asked her where the clowns work, something like that. She was pissed, but my aunt and uncle thought it was the funniest thing ever.

Well, I'm not gonna ask anything that actually makes you uncomfortable, duh.

[ There's a gentle teasing in the comment, but it is still deeply true: Ben is uncommonly averse to making people uncomfortable. He avoids it at all costs. He is willing to make Peter sad, if he thinks it will genuinely provide wisdom and comfort to him over unhealthy coping mechanisms. But the thought of making him even remotely, actually embarrassed, just for his own entertainment? Yeah, no. Ben's way too much of a softie for that.

He listens to Peter's story with open glee, covering his grin with his hand as Peter reveals just what he'd said. And oh, that really is a good one. Ben's eyes are bright with mirth as he stifles giggles, trying to imagine a baby version of Peter absolutely dragging that old lady, without even meaning to. ]

Ohhhh my god. Amazing.

There's not too much that makes me uncomfortable these days, but I sure do appreciate that.

[And that's why Ben is Peter's best friend, he's just so goddamn thoughtful. Even if he is willing to deliberately make him sad sometimes.]

Do you have any good embarrassing stuff you said as a kid stories?

[ Ben casts his mind back, for a story that will be funny - outright funny, not tinged at all with anything grim or depressing or messed up. A lot of the embarrassing stuff he had said as a kid had come from being ignorant and isolated and abused and not really having a sense of what was normal. A lot of it, in retrospect - stories he can still laugh about with his siblings - is majorly fucked up.

But he hits upon a story that will work, one that is completely harmless, and similar enough to Peter's story that it connects, in a way. His face lights up, and he begins: ]

I must've been, like, five? We got a lot of stuff delivered to the house, and we didn't go out much at that age so it would be like such a big event to sneak to the back door and get a look at whatever strangers were bringing, like, groceries or soap or cigars. It got to be where we recognized a lot of the guys who would make the deliveries and it was always the same one who brought produce. This older dude. He might not have even been that old - maybe fifty or sixty, but that seemed ancient. And then one day there was somebody new. He was maybe college age? Who knows.

[ Ben can feel his face getting hotter, but he'd committed to telling an embarrassing story and so he's just going to have to live with it. The truth gas is certainly ensuring that he doesn't leave any details out, even if he would prefer to. ]

Anyway he had this really long hair and I'd never seen a guy with such long hair before, and he was honestly pretty cute. The second time he came instead of the old guy, I asked if it was a permanent thing, and he said this was his delivery route now. And I uh. I might've asked him if he'd replaced the other guy and gotten his job because he wasn't so old and ugly.

[ He gives a little shrug, explaining: ]

I didn't know how jobs worked! I didn't get why he thought it was so funny! It seemed like a valid question at the time!

Oh thank God, I wasn't the only awkward disaster child. [I mean he's laughing, but no, he's still an awkward disaster child. He's just a disaster in different ways now.]

It's probably a good thing that our goofy embarrassing stories are this tame. Things didn't start getting too awkward for me until I got my powers.

Ummmm I was an awkward disaster child before you were born, kiddo.

[ Sure maybe the timelines of their worlds don't sync up perfectly but considering their relative ages? It IS true.

Unfortunately, so is Ben's blurted, honest response to what Peter says next: ]

Well, I picked the tamest one I could think of on purpose, because sometimes I just wanna pretend my childhood wasn't completely fucked-up and horrifying even though I know you know it was.

[ Ben shuts his eyes, frowning and biting down hard on his bottom lip. He really wishes he hadn't said that. Even if Peter could probably have guessed it. He feels completely mortified, admitting it out loud. Could he really sound any more pathetic if he tried?

Best to change the flow of the conversation, fast: ]

Tell me about getting your powers. That sounds potentially amusing and embarrassing, right? Let's talk about that and not me and how pathetic I am.

[ ...Dammit. ]

I know your circumstances were super weird, but when I'm thirty I hope I look half as good as you. [though at this rate like honestly, he'll be lucky if he makes it to thirty. He's already died once, after all.

First of all, I don't think you're pathetic at all. You're my friend and I'm proud to know you.

[so THERE. Peter whaps him upside the head, very gently.]

As for my powers, when I first discovered I could stick to things, I was in the bathroom getting ready for school, right? I hopped out of the shower and I was getting dressed, and when I was zipping my pants my fingers got stuck to the zipper. I couldn't let go, I was just stuck. So I was like, 'shit, I can't go to school like this', and while I was in the middle of panicking about it my uncle knocks on the door all 'hey Peter, you're gonna be late for school'. I still can't let go of the zipper, so I just blurt out the first thing that pops into my head, which was 'I'm stuck in my zipper'. Which... wasn't completely untrue, but he's thinkin' I, y'know, had skin stuck in there, so he's like 'oh my God, are you bleeding, do you need help', I hear him tell my aunt what happened, or what he thinks happened, and then they're just out in the hall cracking up and handing me an ice pack through the door. I didn't go to school that day, I was kind of afraid to ask what May said when she called to tell them I'd be out.

[Peter just presses his lips together, nodding silently to himself. Mmmyep, that happened.]

Aaaand that's how I discovered I could stick to things like a spider.

[ Ben accepts that whap, which he figures he'd probably earned. More than a little hypocritical of him, sitting here and preaching about self-worth and not taking responsibility for things that aren't your fault, and then saying negative stuff about himself. Without reproach, he reaches up to neaten his hair where Peter had mussed it. Peter Parker is proud to know him. Part of him can't believe that, even though he knows it's the truth. How could he deserve a seal of approval like that? But most of him is just happy.

He is also grateful that Peter does what he asks, and starts telling a story from when he was first getting his powers. He grins through the story, laughing until his eyes are shining. Ben can tell it must have been distressing at the time, but it's the kind of story where now Peter can look back on it with some fondness and amusement at himself. And Ben is glad to hear Peter actually talking about his uncle, and to hear how well his aunt and uncle treated him when he was going through... all that. ]

That is. Amazing.

[Oh yeah, Peter can laugh at himself for that one now. Telling this story comes with the realization that it's been nearly three years now since he got his powers, a year and a half since he died and started getting stuck in these weird other universes, and that's kind of a trip. He's just gonna try not to think about that too much.]

Yeah, well, "amazing" might not be the word I'd use to describe it. Although, after my aunt fond out that I'm Spider-Man - and stopped being mad about it, I told her what really happened with the zipper incident. She cracked up all over again.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

test drive meme: november 2019

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