001 [location: new scape] - bumming yourself downtown

[slaying]

Normally, it wasn’t a big thing for a young woman to wake up in her own bed. Generally, it was the kind of thing that most young women expected of a Tuesday morning. But Buffy wasn’t like most young women and she certainly wasn’t normal, all despite her best efforts. For Buffy, waking up in her own bed, in her own house, gave serious cause for a

Comments

SORRY I COULDN't GET THIS IN LAST NIGHT >.o

[icanhaslogic]

It felt…strange to be out of uniform. He had grown unaccustomed, it seemed, to civilian clothing, and the “feeling” that he could only call discomfort (though the word wasn’t quite correct. Self-consciousness, perhaps?) was not alleviated in any way by being in this familiar-yet-not place wearing entirely unfamiliar clothes. The only consolation, really, was that he was just slightly less than conspicuous- he would probably be less so once he had familiarized himself with the terrain, the city, etc.- and he earned fewer awkward stares and confused looks, although, those who paused long enough to take a second glance still gave him that awkward expression that clearly stated that he didn’t belong.

All of that was well enough with him- he didn’t belong. And he never really would. He didn’t really want to belong here. Belonging here meant leaving the crew of the Enterprise behind, and that was something that he simply could not do. The last place he had where he really belonged- the only place he had ever really belonged- was on the Enterprise.

However, it appeared that he wasn’t the only one misplaced. The girl in front of him looked decidedly confused, so maybe this wasn’t an isolated incident. It certainly didn’t make the place any less ominous, but at least it wasn’t something that they were alone in. So, he approached quietly and made his observation softly.

He didn’t want to startle her, after all.

"You appear to be lost."

No worries. :3

[slaying]

And yet, startled she was. Buffy had been so consumed by her search for any symptoms of mystical interference, that she had stopped paying attention to her fellow pedestrians. It wasn't until the man spoke that she jerked her line of sight immediately upwards to meet his. With barely time to think, she blurted out teh first uncomfortably lame quip that sprung to mind.

"Not anymore, considering you appear to have found me." It didn't make any sense. Of course it didn't. How could her quipping be expected to reach its potential when there was clearly an issue at hand. This place--this whole place--was so very wrong and despite the fact that her Slayer senses were thrumming and screaming that fact to her, Buffy couldn't figure out why.

She grimaced and shook her head. "Ah--sorry. I--" she broke off, dragging a palm across her face and starting again. "Can I help you at all?"

;o; <33

[icanhaslogic]

Her first response earned a raised eyebrow- it had sounded so very much like something the captain would have said that the reaction was almost instinctual. He chose not to comment on that, instead focusing on the second- the question.

"I do not believe so, unless you are aware of a reason that certain of us seem to have been brought here against our will." It was entirely possible that someone knew- maybe even she did, as unlikely as it seemed. Still, it was not illogical to seek the information wherever he thought he might find it.

But then, after a short pause, he continued. "My apologies. I did not intend to startle you."

[slaying]

She was about to refute that she was ever startled, but thought better of it. She had clearly been the epitome of startled and getting into a petty argument about it wouldn't bring her any closer to finding out what was up with this wacky town. Except, apparently, neither would this guy. This guy who spoke like he belonged in some kind of library. Shudder.

"Colour me clueless--which is probably some uncomfortable shade of green. That's how I feel, anyway." Buffy crossed her arms loosely across her chest. "You're stranded, too?"

[icanhaslogic]

He nodded. “That does appear to be the case.” He was beginning to wonder if there was anyone who knew anything- or if they knew anything were willing to talk about it. Even so, he hadn’t really been here all that long so perhaps he was getting ahead of himself in trying to classify the place. Especially since it resisted classification with as much force as it could possibly muster.

“There is some consolation in that I seem to have been brought here along with a companion.”

[slaying]

"Oh, great. I'm really trying to rustle up some happiness for you but it's tough when I'm pretty much all lonesomed out, over here." The bitterness came out in one thick, impulsive statement. Buffy was cold and confused and woefully unappreciative of others' situations. At least, that would be the case until there was some glimmer of fixing it. Then it would be time to act the hero.

[icanhaslogic]

Her reaction was entirely unexpected. But then, it really should not have been. The illogic that humans universally seemed to operate under should have been an indicator that he would not receive any answer that he expected. "I have not asked ou to do any such thing. I apologize that you are here on your own, however, I have had no say in current circumstances."

[slaying]

She waved her hands in front of her body in a mild explosion of frustration and quickly set to work on kneading the pads of her thumbs into her temples. It was just the cold and the new-placeness of it all. And the lack of people close to her, whom she'd rarely been without over these last years of her life.

"I'm...look. I'm sorry. I promise I'm not some crazy mean lady. It's this place." Buffy allowed her arms to fall heavily to her side. "I got here this morning and I wouldn't exactly say I'm coping."

[icanhaslogic]

He gave a short nod, dismissing the entire thing that quickly. It wouldn't do any good to hold onto any ill-feelings about the incident- especially when her help could be sorely needed later. If they ever found anything else out about this place.

"It is understandable. No one in this place is particularly enthused by being brought here."

[slaying]

Buffy wondered if this was an alternate dimension deal. It felt like it. All these strange other-people being pulled, too. Her house being there. Didn't Willow tell her about how one of Angel's flunkies in LA had been tugged into some demon dimension against her will? Not that this place looked like it was a version of Hell. Not yet, at least.

Or, what if there were other options? Some other location in her own dimension or some kind of a glamour. A spell. That must have been it.

"Have you gotten chatty with any of the other new-comers?"

[icanhaslogic]

"I have not, as of yet, encountered any others." Aside from the captain, of course. But their talk had been mostly limited to the immediate- contacting the Enterprise, blending in here until they could be extracted- details of the mission they had been given, even if they would have to carry it out in another place, on another planet, perhaps. It was impossible to say.

[slaying]

"I wonder how many of us there are. I talked to this guy on the phone and he had a friend here, too. And then there was this other girl and..." Buffy trails off. Why describe them to him? He might never meet them. After all, this place looked huge. And there wasn't much of a way to tell the people who lived here from the people who arrived. Except for the confusion, but that would fade.

Fade? No. Buffy chastised herself for thinking anything with the tone of eventually. This would last maybe a day and then she would be back with the others, going through the afternoon training session like any other day.

[icanhaslogic]

He didn’t have to pause very long to think about that. “It is impossible to say how many individuals currently reside here.” At least not without some kind of a survey, which would take valuable time for information that, ultimately, was not relevant to any kind of method they might employ for leaving. However, it was probably a good idea to know how many people that they would have to move out of the city when it came time for everyone to leave.

If they ever found the solution.

[slaying]

For a considerable moment in time, Buffy simply stared back at this face that seemed to betray very little. He had said so few words and it had seemed just as impossible to gather some sort of idea about how he felt, ending up here.

To rush in and fill the gap of conversation, she decided to introduce herself. "Buffy Summers." She gave her best friendly smile, though she couldn't really muster the force of the feeling behind it.

[icanhaslogic]

That gave him pause. His name was particularly alien, and yet he hadn’t anticipated such an event occurring and was entirely unprepared for it. However, alien or no, a pause could not last overlong without becoming awkward. Especially on so simple a question as his name.

So- “I am Spock.”

[slaying]

"Spock." She repeated but sounded rather unsure of whether she had heard correctly. Kind of a weird name. But then again, since when did a girl with a name like Buffy have any right to an opinion on names? Maybe it was foreign or something. Maybe everything was foreign here, anyway.

"I'd say I'm glad to meet you but the truth is that I sorta-kinda-actually wish I wasn't here at all."