tushanshu | 01 ☣ video;

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[He's seen a lot, experienced a lot, that would be considered unbelievable, but this is something else. Bruce had taken a few hours to himself to make sure he was calm, do his breathing exercises, and trawl the network with a frown. But ultimately he has to say something, he realizes. This isn't a place he can remain in isolation, as uncomfortable as that makes him.

The camera shows a serious-minded man with dark hair, face lined with tiredness but nonetheless alert and attentive. He can't resist taking a moment to complain about the illogic of it all first.]

You know, I'm pretty sure the many worlds interpretation is time asymmetric. Even if world splitting happens, why would world merging ever... [He stops himself. Sighs. Okay, yeah, physics isn't going to help him much here, is it? He can't even be surprised.

Bruce runs a hand through his hair, pushing onto practicalities without transition.] So what exactly is the process for getting a job around here? I'm not picky, but-- I have the most experience in mechanics.

And, uh. If anyone knows where I could get some superglue, I'd appreciate it.

Thanks. [He finishes the broadcast intentionally without giving his name; there's one split second of awkward pause, and then he switches it off.]

[ooc: People from other Marvel verses, you're free to recognize him as Bruce Banner or not as you want. And his permissions are over here if you need them!]

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I just go around seein' what they'll pay me to do. [He's in one of the cafes in the Wood Sector, wearing a somewhat worn white t-shirt with his Army-issue trousers; he looks pretty young, all things considered, maybe seventeen (even though he's actually 20), and his hair is combed neatly in a very 40s sort of style.] What's all that stuff you were goin' on about before?

That's usually what I do, [he admits wryly, taking in these details but not sure what to make of them yet. Being in a different dimension makes Bruce try to put aside all of his preconceptions.] I wasn't sure if it'd be different here.

[A moment's pause, because he really doesn't talk physics much anymore, not face to face.] It's quantum mechanics, part of physics. It says that time goes forward, not backward, so it should be impossible for simultaneously existing alternate realities to meet up. [That's boiled down simplistically, but Bruce assumes no one else wants the nitty gritty details.]

[Bruce Banner. Tony recognises him in an instant, but Bruce... Bruce doesn't recognise this place by what he said. Scratch it being a rerun of the Hulk he worked with. A reboot? He can deal with that. Realistically, he can deal with anything, but the intel helps.]

Mechanic work? [There's a questioning tone to his voice -- if on ignores the amusement there.] Cute, but that's a little grade school for a brain like yours, Dr. Banner.

[There's a beat in which, unseen, Tony stretches and pushes aside one more sample of water from the deteriorating canals.]

Lucky you that I'm looking to hire. Good pay, benefits. I could even fit the other guy in under a spousal clause. What do you say?

Oh, and before you fire off the rhetoric about names and credentials, allow me. [He kicks on the video, showing his workshop, with Mark VI armour and a veritable mess of samples strewn about. He's the focal point of the video and grins.] Tony Stark. Iron Man.

[And whether Bruce admits to knowing him will tell him a lot about the timing of his arrival. Rather, of his departure from the normal stream.]

[... well. This is a face Bucky hasn't seen in a while.]

Bruce?

I mean... right. Sorry. You don't remember having been here before, right?

[You're going to give him a heart attack, Tony. It takes a few minutes to get a response, because Bruce is sitting there rewatching this, trying to make sense of it.

He eventually does reply, although he looks forcibly calm in a way that someone that knows him will recognize. His room in Water is visible and completely barren yet, with nothing more than a battered backpack set on the bed.]

I know who you are, Mr. Stark. [Controlled, measured, uncertain. It breaks a moment later as he says,] --And, really, spousal clause? That's not the word I'd use.

Why exactly do you know who I am? Much less want to hire me. I'd think the insurance premiums would be a little high even for you.

[He's probably seen him on the news, Bruce knows; it's not like you could miss him tearing up the quad at Culver, and then New York. But he's speaking familiarly, too much so, and it makes him suspicious. Maybe Tony Stark is just like that with everyone-- he wouldn't be surprised-- but this is such a strange situation, he thinks it has to be something more.]

[That gives him some pause.] No, I don't remember. I didn't think to... [To check if he'd posted on the network before. He'd looked for information, but the idea that he could've been here and didn't remember was so far out there it hadn't occurred to him.]

Does this happen often?

We-ell, not often, but it's not unheard of. Some people come back and don't remember having been here before. Some people wake up and find out they've been missing for weeks and don't remember that time.

Bucky Barnes. Just so you aren't wondering who you're talking with.

Edited (HIT POST TOO SOON) 2013-03-31 20:25 (UTC)

[He wants to make a snarky comment about how at least that's normal for him, but he restrains himself. It's not usually weeks, anyway.]

Alright. That makes as much sense as anything else. [He runs a hand over his face briefly, but that's all he allows himself.] So how do we know each other? If I gave you my name, then... [He trails off, obviously fishing for how much he already knows.]

[Banner didn't immediately hang up and that is a good thing. He does, however, seem a bit stressed -- no. Cautious is the better word. He looks cautious in his reply and Tony makes a note to help him re-learn the value of hitting the ground running. Nary a care. That kind of thing. So it turned him into a giant green rage monster once in the past, big deal.]

You think spousal doesn't work because it's the other guy? Wake up and welcome to the twenty-first century, Banner. The world's changing and civil unions were just the start.

[Yeup. Went there. No Regrets Stark.]

And I know because it's my business to know. Thank Fury for his little initiative on that note, because without his one-eyed vision, I would never have gotten your autograph. [Which, by his tone, would be a darn shame.] But, since you look as familiar with that as Thor is dandruff, I'll make it short and sweet. We'll be working together, you and I. And the big guy. And you'll do well when we do, so consider it a reference from your future self that convinced me.

[Not that he ever had a doubt.]

[This man must come from a very strange world indeed if it has the tendency to split.]

I don't . . . think it split or merged?

[Of course, Amelia's nowhere near a physicist. But she's not even thinking about what he said in that direction.]

[Bruce is of two minds about this attitude. On the one hand, he's a little offended that something that more or less literally destroyed his life is being taken so cavalierly, but on the other hand... it's kind of nice to talk to someone that so clearly doesn't think he's a threat. It's a mistake, of course, but it's a mistake that's a breath of fresh air.

In light of that, he lets himself keep on with the snarking in reply. It's clearly what Stark expects.] Don't worry, I'm all for gay marriage, but I think I should've demanded a prenup. The divorce isn't going so well.

[He folds his arms and leans back in his chair, considering the rest of the conversation more seriously.] You mean you're from my future. And I... do well? [He's audibly dubious that that could be true.] I've been working on control, but I haven't-- Nothing on that level. Nothing that makes it safe to be around me.

No, ah, it's... theoretical. It's generally accepted that even if alternate universes exist, there's no way for them to cross over or meet. This should be impossible.

[He was really just talking to himself, and he sounds a little awkward about having to explain it. Bruce hasn't been in a position to do that for years.]

That about covers it. Makin' as much sense as anything else, I mean, which... 'Not much' comes to mind, I think.

[Bucky makes a face.] We talked like this, over the consoles. Then there was - trouble. And you were there. I mean, I was somewhere else, there, but. [Shrug. Yes, letting Bruce know that he knows, without blurting it out to the entire network, or the 98% of it for whom the encryption means nothing. Though Bucky doesn't know first-hand. Moving on.]

Also you apparently end up on a team with a good friend of mine. I've heard bits and pieces from him, too.

Nah, doesn't seem like. Least you've got skills, I guess. [He hasn't found much use around here for a soldier, let alone one with his particular... skills.] Some of the kedan'll look at you funny cause you're a foreigner but it ain't awful.

[Yeah, you know that blank look when a student is understanding basically nothing their teacher is saying? He starts to get that look. Bucky dropped out of school to fight a war, don't mind him.] Buddy, you're in for a nasty shock if you ain't familiar with time travel.

[No problems in that. Amelia will talk right along with him.]

. . . They kind of did at home? Or tried.

[She pauses.]

Kind of? I guess it depends on what you mean by "alternate universe?"

[Being offended is part of the Stark package, lbr. One more service that he offers to the masses.]

That's what happens when you break up a match made in gamma. Big guy like that just wants to be loved and accepted for the giant rage teddy bear that he is. You trying to run away? That's heartbreak on the happen.

[Couples counselling by Tony Stark happens to be all the rage as well. Meanwhile, he's leaning back and taking a sip of seriously watered down scotch (Tu Vishan's illness is doing nothing for his alcoholism.]

Well? [The laugh stops around his nose, half-swallowed.] Turns out you're quite the hero, but control's only part of it. Out of control? [A quick smile and a raise of his glass in toast.] I've seen you take down gods. [Plural. Don't think he didn't get wind of the Thor punching, Hulk.]

Oh, and safe. [He adds after cutting off his second mouthful midway.] You and him are going to have our backs once upon a future and it'll turn out great. Trust me. [A beat. A wink.] And trust him.

Edited (Phrasing) 2013-03-31 21:27 (UTC)

I mean alternate histories. Every decision that could've been made differently, was, or at least it was out there somewhere.

I didn't really give a lot of thought to it before, [he admits.] They, uh, do that at home? Your home? [He's still enough of a scientist to be curious.]

[Bruce listens carefully. It's obvious what Bucky means when you know the context, and he's grateful that he's trying to keep it off the network.]

What... team is this? Tony Stark mentioned something about it, too, but I haven't gotten there yet. [He's still too baffled over talking to Tony Stark of all people to stop using his full name, but he'll get there.]

--Sorry about all the questions. I really appreciate this, it's just. Overwhelming.

I've been doing odd jobs for a few years now, so I've picked some things up, [is his explanation for his skills. It's even true.] They said we're supposed to work, but do they do anything if we don't?

[Bruce has always disliked talking down to people, anyway, so he drops the science explanation and frowns, growing tense.] I'm starting to get that idea. But-- time travel, it's-- I don't know how to deal with this. [Everyone knows who he is. To a career paranoid, that's a nightmare.]

[And Bruce tries so hard not to be offended by anything. This is stretching his ability to keep up with witty banter, and he sighs quietly, the only sign betraying his underlying frustration.]

He's not a teddy bear, and I don't trust him. I don't even-- before a few months ago, I was still calling it it. Him. [He can count the number of times he's talked about the Hulk this directly on two hands, and they were all with Betty, Dr. Sterns, or General Ross. This is difficult to verbalize.]

I don't want to take down gods, Mr. Stark, I just want to live my life. I'm grateful to know that I... that there's less collateral damage in the future, and for the job offer. If that's still open. But I'm not a hero.

[This is something Bruce knows as immutable fact, and he has a hard time imagining any reality where he is. Stark has to be exaggerating, and it's difficult enough taking him seriously in the first place. As much as he tries to avoid getting into verbal conflict, this is just too unbelievable for him not to call it out.]

You should be alright then. [He shrugs at the question, though.] They probably would, but there isn't much else you can do but work anyway. Food's at a premium lately.

[Man, Bucky can totally relate on everyone knowing who he is when they aren't supposed to. He's just been through that himself, and it doesn't sit well.] ...Let'cha know if I figure how. It was 1945 for me, it's 1949 for my buddy. An' don't get me started on some of the crazy people 'round here.

Food's at a premium? Why? [Okay, that's concerning, and he looks it.] It's not that I don't want to work, but I'm wondering what they do if we don't cooperate. [In short, Bruce wants to know how aggressive the government is.]

That's... quite a difference. It was 2009 for me. Anyone I should be looking out for? [He'd like to avoid the big names as much as he can.]

Edited 2013-03-31 22:41 (UTC)

They started up a rationing system. 'The turtle has a cold' or somethin'. Not sure I believe it. [So much sounds crazy around here. So much.] I don't know, I haven't been around that long honestly. The Emperor's got her own little police force though.

Yeah, apparently everybody's from way far in the future to me. [He looks a little more serious at that question, though, gnawing on his bottom lip for a moment.] No one in particular that I know of. But I... had a rough first day. People sayin' they knew me, mistakin' me for someone else, thought my best pal was here but he had no idea who I was... Just watch out for that kinda thing.

Every decision?

[Excuse Amelia as she freaks out for a second, because there have been some decisions made in her world by people close to her that could have ended very, very badly. Those versions probably don't exist any more. And that's a scary thought. Flaaaaail.]

[Okay, must calm back down now.]

Not . . . usually? But we kind of had someone from another world want to bring one of their gods to our world to destroy him. Except it probably would have destroyed our world too.

I don't know a lot about all of the worlds part, but Lina-san says there are four different worlds where I come from, including ours, and normally they would never interact. But this time they did.

It really wasn't good.

[He's done enough network stalking to know that he's on a turtle, at least, but this news he takes seriously. Bruce has lived several places where food was a major concern, both for him personally and for the general populace.] The turtle has a... wait, so, the rationing is indefinite? Is anything being done to fix it?

[The fact that the Emperor has her own police force is noted carefully, but Bruce lets it drop for now. One issue at a time.]

Yeah, I... I've had a little of that already, [he admits soberly, then gives a wry smile. Rough as this is, Bruce isn't someone that complains about his problems.] This is going to get complicated, isn't it? I'm not usually this. Popular.

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no subject

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omg Amelia! you make my day

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You make mine for knowing her and being excited about it. <3

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I haven't seen Slayers in a long time, but I loved it. :3

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It's a great series. ^^

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