poly_chromatic | action for peter, justin and ken. video for everyone else

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firestarter - charlie mcgee

action for peter, justin and ken. video for everyone else

[It's the last bit of this that flashes across the screen. Clearly from Charlie's pocket. Ed telling her how to get out of there. The kiss before she does and Charlie's reaction to Ed dying. Why is it always the people she cares most about that die the soonest?

Now, the lens blurred and distorted from the water she fell in, the camera shows Charlie wandering the tunnels, keeping quiet. Occasionally, screams and that awful voice from above and Charlie stops. The camera picking up the rapid breathing of someone terrified. Eventually, it's clear Charlie got a little lost.

And then the feed shuts off for a while. Charlie probably bumped the button and after about 20 minutes, it's on again. Still wet. Shaking.

There's shaking as she climbs up another ladder and works a manhole cover out of her way before pulling herself up and through. She checks her surroundings and for anyone that's been there, it's clear she's in Xanadu. The rose path. Charlie's favorite. There's a wobble...a thud. And the rustle of plant-life being landed on. The camera bounces out of her pocket and while she's fairly well hidden, it's also obvious she just fainted. This has been an emotionally trying day for her.]

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[Ken had been about to reply to Charlie's accidental broadcast, until she, obviously collapsed. He didn't bother after that, rushing from his apartment to Xanadu. He didn't think about anything else, other than he needed to help her get inside somewhere and NOW. She shouldn't be out there, and certainly not unconscious and unaware.

[If nothing else, the kid can run. And he's by Charlie's side, gently reaching out to shake her shoulder, voice very, very quiet, and he looks around to make sure there's no Daleks anywhere.]

Charlie-san. Come on. Get up. We need to get out of here.

[There's a gasp when Charlie wakes up, eyes wide and the air around her heating ever so slightly. She recognizes Ken an instant later and calms herself, grabbing his hand and pulling him behind the bush. Just in case.]

Yelling at you for coming out would be very hypocritical of me right now. We'll leave in a minute. I need to sit.

[She could've yelled if she wanted to, and Ken would've just been happy she was alright, but he doesn't say that, just gives her a worried look.]

Why did the atmosphere around you heat up when you awoke. There's no way the human body gives off that much heat. And we can take as long as you need. I don't think there's any of those things around.

[Just in case, he looks around and stays very alert.]

That was me. Thought you were...[You know what? No. She's not going to tell about her 'talk' with Jerry. She just slumps on the wall behind her, keeping her voice low and watching everything.]

I'm so glad you're alright, Ken. So...you have no idea how glad.

I'm glad you're alright as well. [But you're worrying him, Charlie.]

What do you mean you...? How...? [No point in asking why she's out there. That one's obvious - same reason he's out there.]

I'm a pyrokinetic. Remember what I did with the Gorgon in the desert? [She tries standing, wobbles and sits again. Nope. Not yet.]

[He had tried very hard NOT to remember the desert stuff, shown by his wide eyes for a moment as those memories came back anyway. And, oh, hey, that means if Charlie hadn't realize who he was.... Oh. That wouldn't have been fun.]

I'm not used to people who can do that sort of thing. [Frowns at her attempt.] Rest a little longer. I know I'm not that tall [though fairly tall for a kid his age] but you can probably use me for balance if you have to.

[Luke rolls his eyes. If the fledgling fool had bothered to call for help, would have been guided to the closer hidden exits.

Ed definitely has a great deal to learn and then some.

There's no desire to aid the girl - she appears safe enough.]

*Shuts off video feed*

[Time to play the themesong, except Jerry doesn't carry surround sound with him so you're just going to have to imagine you hear the classic tune as he creeps in the dark and dank underground.]

[If only this were a few days ago during that one music curse. Charlie'd have better warning than splashing sounds she's not sure if she's hearing or not. Okay. Fuck this shit. It's time to get out of the sewers. Another ladder is clambered up but above, someone either has a car parked on it or the manhole cover is stuck because she can't move it worth a good god damn.]

Fuck.

[Back down the ladder she goes, grumbling quietly before continuing on, watching and listening to everything as best she can.]

Need a hand?

[Jerry has no problem announcing himself at this point, hiding within a shadow across the tunnel. No the logic of normal people don't hang out in sewers doesn't escape him. At this point it just seems has has no reason to hide his nature from Charlie anymore. However for the time being, Jerry's face stays human.]

[She startles. That much is obvious and her eyes go right to the source. Hey, guy. This is the first time they've actually spoken in person. What a time for it.

She looks at the grate above, briefly considering trying to melt it out of the way, but there was still the matter of what was holding it there. Plus, she had a feeling she should really, really keep her focus on Jerry.]

I'll try the next one. Thanks, though. [Pausing.] Did you duck down here to escape the robots, too?

[She's guessing no.]

Not really.

[He's already sniffed out the remains of Evil Ed Lee and lo and behold, there are none. Not even enough ashes to put in the palm of his hand. Ed wasn't like the others, the ones Jerry put in the ground, Ed had a little bit of Jerry inside him. When it was Charley's fault it was okay because he wanted Charley, he craved Charley, Ed was a casualty in the hunt for Brewster. This though? Ed put himself on the line for her on his own volition. What value do you have, Charlie McGee? He wants to know.]

Oh.

[Shit. Oh, so much shit. This is just not good. She's not nervous, though, just annoyed. The hits keep coming for her, don't they? She eyes him for a moment, not so much sizing him up as actually trying to get a good look at him.]

Okay. What do you want? If it's not anything important, I'd love to continue on my way.

How important depends on who you talk to, huh?

[Out of the shadow, into what dim light this place has. He's pacing himself around her, giving a moderate birth but circling for sure. Also he uses his hands to talk.]

You. [Point.] Sound really important. To Ed.

Probably.

[Watching. Everything. Seriously. This is a girl who was used to being stalked and hunted and nothing Jerry did right now made her happy. She turned with him, keeping her eyes on him. Keeping herself calm. The last thing this situation needed was her letting her emotions, already built up from the day in general, slip and ignite an already volatile mess.]

Yeah? And if I am?

[Charlie. It's not 'if'. It's 'you are'.]

You are.

[He's moving closer but he's keeping his hands to himself. Would he be able to smell Ed on her? Taste him on her lips? If she says. He could attack her, Jerry's thought about it, but for the whole time Ed was alive he also considered the boy to be a bargaining chip. Without Vincent's special sacred fucking stake, who knows what could happen to Ed if Jerry were to die. Now the kid's gone but for how long? It's a strange feeling, having that piece of you gone yet you can still smell it in the air somewhere.]

What'd you do to him, Charlie? How does a girl like you turn a little monster like him?

[Without baiting him into the water then embracing him tight, without teeth.]

[Well, there was that kiss before Ed died, so...

She steps back calmly and gives a short laugh at how flat out absurd this situation is, shaking her head and shrugging slightly. It's an honest reaction, the look on her face hiding nothing at his question.]

I have no clue. Ask him when he comes back. Maybe he'll be able to give you a better answer. Maybe it has something to do with the desert. I honestly do not know.

Edited 2012-03-25 22:31 (UTC)

What happened in the desert, Charlie?

[Jerry speaks like it's casual conversation but it's clear from his demeanor he's predatory and he doesn't hide that either. She's not stupid, he doesn't believe for a second he can convince her otherwise, not after his appearance here. Not like their first conversation.]

[A casual shrug. Like this was no big deal when really, it was. Jerry's just...now on her People She Doesn't Like list and isn't in the mood to be anything but stubborn.]

I got a van set up to keep him from the sun. Stole blood from a crumbling hospital. Nothing exciting.

[Which now someone wants to shoot her for but that's highly irrelevant. And there was so much more than just that. There was her and him out at night, hunting food and keeping each other from harm. Him keeping her from overheating in the van, just by letting her sleep next to him.

And even that, even that much, her next to him and the opportunity it provided him. An opportunity to kill her that he ignored and the millions of opportunities after. And the conversations that had nothing to do with fire or feeding and were just calm, goofy conversations in general.

There's also the fact that Charlie knows Ed dislikes being a vampire and the fact that she keeps that to herself. That might also have something to do with it. She's not sure.]

What do you want, Jerry? Seriously.

I want to know what you're about, girl.

[Through her, through him, through them as a whole, there's something to understand here. There's a mystery to unravel, how the fuck did that kid realize his own autonomy, enough to put aside that predatory edge Jerry gave him, for this girl. For Charlie who granted seems to have a lot more going for her than Amy. She's special, she's different, and by virtue of that she's a potential threat. How close will she let him get to her? Jerry thrives on scent.]

You're the last person he saw, he touched, he felt. Maybe you didn't know this but I felt it too.

[Not very close, good sir. She's working to keep a fair bit of distance between her and Jerry. Not quite threatened enough to heat her skin or the air between them, but enough to keep herself moving away any time he moves near. If he does get close enough, he'll notice she has a distinctly smoky scent to her. Something like a campfire, minus the horribly burnt marshmallows and the idiot that can't play a guitar to save his life.]

Did you? That's interesting.

[Considering what she and Ed were doing during that one curse day where no one gave a shit about consequences? Oh, lord.]

Ed is important to me. If I'd had the chance, if I thought for one second I could get him to listen to me and go for the escape first? I'd have been the one that died. Willingly. Which, okay, people have been telling me all week that this is stupid but I really don't care.

[The more you know, Charlie dear, the more you know. He's within reach-out-and-touch-a-girl distance but he's not going to lay a hand on her. He detects the smell and it's coming from her. She's not someone to fuck with, not the way he played with Vincent or with Charley's mom. And, if Ed's set to return--and that's still a big if--Jerry's fairly certain at this point there's no telling if the boy's loyalty leans towards him or the girl anymore.]

It is stupid. Do you know what you're in for, Charlie? All the bad a guy like him can turn up?

Bad turning up has been the definition of my life since the day I was born.

[That's all he's getting about that. And she steps back again. Seriously, man. Just don't. She's tired. This day sucks in more ways than she can count right now. All she wants to do is go home, get a shower. Maybe make another try to get to Lockdown and whatever electric weapon he has rigged for her and take out a Dalek or two while she waits for Ed to come back.]

I'm guessing you're somewhere on that list. Aren't you, Jerry?

[He's stopped circling to watch her straight on now, neither coming closer nor putting greater distance between them. No need to try and corner her. That smell, the things she can supposedly do, the tunnel is a fucking powder keg to her and Jerry has no desire to get burnt to a fucking crisp. It took a while for him to heal after Charley's attack. Fucking unpleasant.]

What makes you say that? Do you think Ed and I are any different?

He's more human. You're just creepy. [Not a lick of hesitation in her answer. Not for a second. She didn't even have to think about that one. She watches him a moment, head tilting slightly before continuing.]

You asked me what I did to Ed. Maybe I managed to find that bit of human left in him. Not that I was trying to. [Another pause as she watches, arms crossing over her chest, and a small smile she doesn't even feel on her face.] Are we done? Not that this conversation has been unpleasant, or anything.

[Except for the bit where it actually has.]

[Creepy? That really makes Jerry smile, moreso than her choice of words, it's her confidence when she says it. She's so sure of herself in that conclusion, that Ed's more human. Jerry was 'more human' once, he likes himself better this way.]

I don't think you really know what you found.

[There's his window of opportunity framed by her own casual demeanor, those arms crossing, the smile on her lips tempting him. Jerry doesn't respond with words when she asks if they're done. They're done but he wants to put in the last nail. Pushed by his own supernatural speed, Jerry moves forward to take Charlie by her shoulder and her face, to force her mouth to his. He doesn't intend on drawing blood, at least not yet.]

[She hardly has a second to get a sound out, eyes widening and a faint spark of worry running through her.

He wasn't. He couldn't be. Oh, fuck her life. he was. Charlie was trying hard as she could to pull away, pushing against his chest, grabbing at his wrists.

Her shock didn't last long and she pushed with her ability, rapidly heated her skin and the air around her and pushed at him more. For now, it was just a warning. The same kind she gave Ed the three times he tried to eat her. Let go, Jerry, or this will be the second Charlie to turn you into a cinder.]

Edited 2012-03-26 02:10 (UTC)

[The burn her skin gives is far removed from any kind that would suggest she's sick or diseased. Because of that, because of the mysterious origins of her own ability, because of her clear dislike for the gesture, it intrigues Jerry. It makes him want to push and push until he reaches her limit or he succeeds in seducing her, is this what Ed likes about her? Is this what keeps Ed coming back for more? Interesting. But again, powder keg.

So Jerry backs off, completely releases and steps back to put distance between them. Not without licking his lips though. It still burns in a pleasantly painful way.]

Better? Worse?

Never do that again. Ever. That was...[Just completely uncalled for and just so, so creepy and so wrong. She looks horrified and almost like she's about to run, something she knows would be unwise. That was just...Charlie steps back, significantly less calm than she was before, arm running over her mouth in shock.]

Why would you even...no. You know what? Just go away. Really. Don't come near me again.

[Flustered doesn't even begin to cover how she's feeling right now. She knows he did it to upset her, though, so she shifts her demeanor to one of mild annoyance, a complete lie to the panic she's feeling inside.

She keeps the heat she's built up around herself, adding to it just a bit as she continues backing away. There was another ladder around here somewhere. A few others. She'll just keep trying them until she gets out.]

[Never, she says. Jerry laughs, nothing raucous, nothing even particularly loud. It's more like a soft unapologetic rumble in his throat. He's broken through so to speak, gotten under her skin. That's good enough for him. He'll wait and see whether Ed returns whole or not before deciding how he wants to 'proceed' with her, and believe it, Charlie McGee, he's got an interest in keeping her on his radar now.]

You can find your way out at the end.

[He waves a hand in one direction, towards another set of ladders. Don't mind him if he keeps watching, Charlie, but the second she takes her eyes off him he'll be gone.]

[lkjafdg dear lord that looks. Bad. Not that everything doesn't look pretty bad in general. Ugh.]

Charlie?

[She won't answer until she's woken up and spoken to Ken for a moment. It's only then that she notices Merlin. He gets a tired, stressed smile and pay no attention to the red in her eyes. It's a trick of the light.]

Merlin, tell me you're somewhere safe.

[Oh, good, he was beginning to really worry.]

I'll be fine. Tell me you're somewhere safe, you look like you need that.

Xanadu. Behind a thick rosebush. [She's leaning her back against a wall, keeping her voice low. There's that metallic, garbled 'EX-TER-MIN-ATE' off in the distance and she tenses instantly but...other than that? She's fine.]

This is absolute bullshit, Merlin. Pardon my language.

[He snorts, and tries a bit of a grin.]

Tell me about it. Maybe you should move; is it really safe enough?

It is. Probably. Just...my legs are on strike, I think. I don't remember ever fainting before today. Pretty sure my brain has no clue how to handle it.

I can come get you, if you want, take you somewhere else.

No. Don't go out in this. I'm not far from my apartment. I'll get there. Thank you, though. I really appreciate it, Merlin.

I'd be fine, Charlie, really.

[But... he won't push. And while some part of him wants to go anyway, if her apartment really is close, that's likely to just be a waste, and a too stupid risk even for him.]

I know. I trust you will. I'd just rather everyone I knew stayed safe.

[Remind her to hug you next time she sees you, Merlin.]

[Will do.]

Me too. So be careful.

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action for peter, justin and ken. video for everyone else

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