[open] I believe I can see the future

[overninelives]

Who: Claire and whoever wants an encounter with Ms. Broodsalot
What: Out with her dog.
When: Today (Thursday), late afternoon.
Where: Outside the castle somewhere.
Rating: PG-13 just in case.

Comments

[scarletspeedsta]

Wally's out and about, as well. He didn't catch much sleep last night, thanks to this little lady right here. He was speed-running around the perimeters of the castle grounds when he sees a familiar sight.

A girl and a dog, in nearly the same spot he'd met Claire. He almost tripped over a fallen tree, but stopped abruptly and watched the girl for a moment.

Wait.

It was Claire. He hesitated, but he found that he had a hard time staying away from her. So he went over to her.

"Claire?" He furrowew his brow and looked over at her. He could have made a joke about her hair, or her clothes, or the fact that the only height she gained was in her ponytail, but he just looked at her, concerned. 'Guilt' may as well have been tattooed on his forehead, too.

[overninelives]

Claire was leaning down to accept the tennis ball from Penny when she heard a familiar voice. Even though it felt like four years ago, Claire knew in reality it was only a few months since she ran into Wally around here. She was eighteen then, relatively carefree and naive about so much. Now...

She turned as she stood, noting his expression but appearing unmoved. Penny, on the other hand, ran over to the new source of attention. Claire watched her go but didn't move to call her back. Instead, she focused on Wally again.

"Yeah. It's me." And then, almost sweetly: "Do you need something, Wally?"

[scarletspeedsta]

He kneeled down to Penny and held his hand out to her. She licked it, then he pet her on the head and looked up at Claire. There was something different about Claire. He could tell since last night without even looking at her. He registered the question after a brief moment.

"No, nothing. I just... want to talk to you I guess. I read your journal." He stood up and folded his arms.

[overninelives]

"Then you should know it's been four years." She had dyed her hair darker because no one took a small blond seriously. She wore eyeliner and make up because she still had the face of a teenager thanks to her immortality. She had ditched the pom poms for a gun and had carefully bottled up her humanity, or what she thought she had left of it.

Because when you couldn't feel anything, what did that leave you with?

She held herself differently. She stood with her feet apart, hands at her sides, and a gun tucked securely into the back of her pants. She smiled thinly as she tilted her head. "What's there to talk about?"

[scarletspeedsta]

He simply stared at her, not knowing what to say. She was so different. He didn't even know where to begin.

"Well... I don't know. A lot, apparently." He had a million questions for her. This was just awkward. The last time they talked, he was a complete jerk to her. Then she went home for four years. It was just a mess.

"What happened?" It was the only thing he could think of to say. "I bet you've gotten that question a more than a few times since you got back. Sorry."

It was still Claire, still the same beautiful girl, but he didn't feel like he was talking to her at all. He couldn't help but be incredibly worried. Whatever happened must have been horrible.

[overninelives]

I grew up. She had said it at least half a dozen times since finding herself in Paradisa. I stopped being a victim.

"I learned how to take care of myself." Four years was a lot to explain. She didn't like recalling the details of how her life went to hell. This was the best explanation.

She didn't need people to protect her anymore. Not that she ever did.

[scarletspeedsta]

He looked at her, confused for a moment. There was a lot of tension, and he was pretty scared of her, to be honest. He leaned down and grabbed the tennis ball that Penny had dropped between their feet and threw it a few yards.

"Penny, fetch. Let the grown-ups talk." He watched Penny take off, then looked back at Claire. "Did you learn how to fight or something? Or buy a gun? The brown hair looks more hardcore, too. Good choice. Personally I would have gone with black, but brown's a little more subtle."

He couldn't help but remain a little facetious in the situation. He turned to that when he didn't know how else to act.

[overninelives]

She kept an eye on Penny as she ran off. Even after all this time, she couldn't help but be protective of that dog. For the two years Claire had been in Paradisa, Penny had been a constant. Penny was hers and unlike the residents, she didn't come and go every other month.

"I'm an agent. I stop villains," she said, agent sounding better than hero and sounding less like a lie. Pinehearst wasn't without its secrets swept under the carpet, but it was her only resource. Morally gray was her only option.

[scarletspeedsta]

He raised his brow. "Way to go." He nodded. Somehow something was being left out. He'd met some introverted heroes, and some angry, bitter and all-around depressing heroes, but there was something tainted about her now.

He looked over to see Penny prancing over with the ball in her mouth. "Stopping villains now... Somehow I get the feeling something's missing. You're unhappy." He looked at her with a sort of sympathy, although he tried to hide it. Why did he feel on edge when he talked to her? He had to keep reminding himself that it's Claire.

"Claire... what's going on?"

[overninelives]

A lot was being left out, more than Claire herself was even aware of. Not too long ago she had gunned down her uncle in the street and had been prepared to kill his past self, too. It was a small blessing that she didn't remember that.

She ignored the comment about her happiness. Kyle had asked, and she had been honest. Of course not. Claire had become exactly what her father had tried so hard to protect her from. But he was dead, and so was her mother, and so were hundreds of thousands of people.

She wasn't happy, but capturing terrorists made her feel better.

"Nothing is going on," she said as Penny reached them, "I'm here now. I'm talking to you."

[scarletspeedsta]

He frowned at that and sighed.

"But you're not really talking to me. You're actually just avoiding talking about anything serious. But you haven't seen me in four years. I can understand." He held a strong gaze on her, trying to figure it out.

"I'm sorry for how things were with us when you left. I know that's four years ago to you and must seem so petty. But I just want you to know that." He bent down and took the ball from Penny, tossing it yet again.

[overninelives]

Another thin smile that was more mocking than anything. "Oh? I'm avoiding talking about anything serious? Doesn't that sound familiar, Wally?"

Her memory was foggy in some places, but she remembered how he would always change the subject or make a joke or just avoid whatever she was trying to talk about. His gaze didn't elicit much more than a shrug.

"Do you feel better now?"

[scarletspeedsta]

He just gives her a look that shows confusion and disappointment. He had no idea what to say, and didn't want to say the wrong thing, but he couldn't help his expressiveness.

And then his face fell into a frown. "No, Claire, I don't. I feel terrible. But I'm not thinking about myself, for once." The frown faded quickly, but his brow was still furrowed and his body language was a little tense.

"What the hell happened to you? How did you become so damaged in four years?" He wasn't going to just leave her alone.

[overninelives]

"You're four years too late, Wally. You should have that of this before."

Penny was on her way back with the ball, and Claire whistled her over. She grabbed her leash and attached it to her collar. The conversation was over for Claire.

"I told you to leave me alone. That still stands."

[scarletspeedsta]

"And what if I don't? What's gonna happen, Claire?" He gives her a challenging look.

"I have no idea what happened to you back home, but here? You have people that care about you. And that includes me. And whether you like it or not, you're stuck here again. You can't just avoid me forever."

[overninelives]

Claire started walking, Penny following. She didn't know where she was going. "You should know by now that persistence doesn't get you anywhere with me."

She didn't know what she was going to do. Hunting villains here would be fruitless, not to mention annoying. Clark had already threatened her. And the number of people who cared about her, about the old her, was once a comfort she was grateful for. Now, it was just an annoyance. She felt suffocated.