a human likeness

[fallen_ancient]

Objectively speaking, her drafting of landscapes and buildings showed a spark of real talent. Her life drawings, on the other hand, could not be classed as anything but abysmal. For as well as she read people and was able to be helpful in parsing their problems, she still could not seem to translate the cues that gave meanings to their actions onto

Comments

[purplensparkly]

Trance smiled a little. "Sure, why not? I mean, Vincent wanted to paint me, once. No reason I can't have someone else draw me." Not that she was at all sure what to do. Did she just sit there and smile and wait or did she actually have to do something? She supposed that was up to the person doing the drawing.

She looked at...she wasn't entirely sure who that was. "What do you want me to do?"

[fallen_ancient]

Morgan answered that small smile with one of her own. "Thank you. My skills at life drawing are poor and I am trying to improve them." Considering the question of posing for a moment, she lifted one shoulder in a small shrug and extended a hand to the space in front of her. "Perhaps you could arrange yourself comfortably in a characteristic pose?"

The pose she chose would perhaps tell Morgan more about the woman, and they might become acquainted. "I am called Morgan Le Fay. And you?"

[purplensparkly]

Yet another woman who didn't look twice, or even once, at her skin color and Trance was pleased. It seemed to be that more and more people were familiar with purple-skinned, or at least non, humans. "Trance Gemini." She looked around and shrugged. "I'm afraid I've never really modeled before, so I don't know what you mean by 'characteristic pose'. Do you want me to just...stand there? Do something?"

[fallen_ancient]

"I simply mean to suggest that you might arrange yourself comfortably in a manner that is common to you. You are not human, or were not, and I should like to see you as you see yourself. At least insofar as that is possible." She had met very few nonhumans, excepting herself, Delirium, Austin now gone, and Garak. She supposed she might include Vala in that since she had been a Goa'uld host, but in any event, the opportunity to learn of another species pleased her. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Trance Gemini."

[purplensparkly]

"Oh, good. I was worried that you were going to make me do something like stand in an awkward position with a bowl of fruit on top of my head." Trance smiled and found herself someplace to sit, shifting until she was sure she'd be comfortable for an extended period. "I'm just glad I'm not getting in over my head, here."

[fallen_ancient]

"Technically, under those circumstances, the fruit would be over your head, not you. Although, if you wanted to perform a handstand, I suppose I might try. I certainly could not do worse with you than Dick." Morgan's mouth twitched in an amused smile and her eyes brightened, despite the deliberately didactic tone.

[purplensparkly]

Trance laughed. "Well, I could manage it, but I'm not sure how long I could stay in that position. Eventually I'd either have to start walking or just fall over and I'm sure you don't want a picture of me on my ass. The only interesting thing about that part of my anatomy is gone, now."

[fallen_ancient]

"If you falling on your posterior is characteristic," Morgan rejoined, fingers moving the pencil quickly to channel her amusement, "Then perhaps I do wish such a drawing." She considered the purple woman's words briefly, then nodded. "You had an additional appendage at one time. Perhaps a tail? May I ask if it was the island that removed it?"

[purplensparkly]

"I did have a tail, but the island didn't remove it." Trance was relaxed, now, and she moved just a little so she wouldn't fall asleep where she was. "I got it shot off. Someone who couldn't die was being shot at, so I jumped. Sadly, it got my tail instead of me." If it had hit her, she would have woken up a few minutes later none the worse for wear.

[fallen_ancient]

"Someone who couldn't die," Morgan repeated, parsing the sentences Trance had spoken several times to be sure she had heard it correctly. When she felt certain that she had, Morgan gestured with her pencil. "How did you come to know they could not be allowed to die?"

[purplensparkly]

"Because she was the President. Even if she hadn't told us, yet. Besides, she was going to be a vital part of creating peace for her people. Dylan just needed enough time to convince her of that and we were in the middle of a battlefield. There ended up being deaths anyway." Trance sighed. She couldn't always see the smaller details and wished that she'd been able to prevent those, too.

[fallen_ancient]

Morgan blinked, then set down her pencil. "You were precognitive." That was rare indeed. In her experience so rare as to be worth studying whenever it appeared to occur. Her gaze narrowed, lips pressing together into a firm line. "Or a time traveler. I should know you. If you were from my universe."

[purplensparkly]

"Not precisely." Trance smiled. "You might say that I was aware of all the different possibilities of an act and was able to pick the one I wanted. People always say there are an infinite number of choices, but that's not true. A lot, certainly, but not infinite." It was more complicated than that, of course. She didn't have an infinite amount of time to choose and often there were possibilities that were hidden to her. "And how would you know me? Even if I have been to your universe, it probably wouldn't have been this form."

[fallen_ancient]

"Nor would I have been in this form, had you been to it," Morgan demurred, more interested in what Trance had said than in her own explanations. Nevertheless, the question required an answer. "I was not omniscient, but I was functionally so. Very little happened in our universe that the Ascended did not eventually learn. Someone with your abilities would not have gone unnoticed, if only by the ripple effects of your actions."

[purplensparkly]

"Unless you were paying attention to me during a millionth of a microsecond, you wouldn't have noticed. After all, I've been doing this since time began." Trance smiled a little. "Okay, maybe not that far back, but I'm afraid I'm not entirely sure how old I am anymore. There was time back then. It was just a different version of it."

[fallen_ancient]

"One of us might have been, as it was our way to watch for such things, but someone of your...age...might have escaped our attentions." Advanced age, as old as time. She had hypothesized such might be possible, the matter of the universe itself possessing sentience, and yet...to meet such a one, here. Something akin to excitement in her eyes and her tone, Morgan asked, "Then you are, what, not as I was, pure consciousness, but something else?"