Heritage

Some people might have been shocked, repulsed or even intrigued by the good doctor's revelation, but Lynn Epstein had seen way too much weird s### in her life for an advanced cyborg to throw her off. "Wow; I should have known you'd go cybernetic." She reached out and gently poked the surface of his 'skin'. "Cool. So in answer to your question, just me and my husband went through it, about three days after you...embiggened. We ended up in Colt's home dimension. But we couldn't get back." She paused briefly as her drink and pastry order arrived, but unlike the Grimalkin of old, Lynn didn't eagerly slurp it all down; instead she just stared at the raspberry tart on her plate for a few seconds before continuing. "Eventually we gave up, settled down, made a life for ourselves. Had three kids, seven grandkids and eleven great-grandkids, at my last count. That was five years ago." Then she stared out the window at a young mother pushing a stroller. "But I had to leave; my kids made the point that I had to let them go, let them live their own lives, make their own mistakes. It was the hardest thing I've ever done. Well, after burying Colt, I guess..." She picked up her mocha and took a sip, her dark brown eyes fixed on Archeville.

Merge was dressed as outrageously as ever, but for whatever reason she was not in the mood for perky today; maybe one of her had a headache? Instead, she indicated the office door with a nod, and made a knocking motion in the air. "Come in," a pleasant voice called out in response to Daphne's rapping. The office was small and cozy, crowded with bookshelves on all four sides. A massive wooden desk dominated the space, and behind it sat a petite woman in her early thirties that the Grue instantly recognized the shopkeeper, who stood up and reached over to shake her fellow shapechanger's hand. "Hi! I think it's safe to say that we've met, but never been properly introduced. I'm Lynn Epstein, aka Grimalkin. Please, have a seat!" She motioned towards an overstuffed leather chair, then returned to her high backed one. "Can I get you anything from the bar? Coffee, tea or a pastry?"

"Ah, there you are," she said after he made the change. "I thought maybe you'd had some work done, but I should have known; you always were good with holograms." After he'd spoken a bit more, 'Grim' chuckled, her voice now a bit deeper than it used to be, and her Jersey accent wasn't quite as strong. "Well there's a reason I didn't pop you on sight; I've had some time to think it over. Like, a lot of time." She sighed as she signalled for a waitress. "I spent some time in a parallel dimension while you were gone, one where time moved a lot faster relative to ours. 'Course you wouldn't know it to look at me, but I'm old enough to be your f###in' grandma." The waitress came, and the smiling shapeshifter placed her order (some ghastly mint mocha concoction and a raspberry tart), which gave Archeville a little time to process that information. Once the waitress left, Grim leaned forward to whisper to the mega-genius. "Oh, and by the way, call me 'Lynn' when I look like this."

Silberman's Books. Wednesday, March 27th, 2019. 12:35 pm It started out as a bit of joke, really, until the idea began to take hold in Lynn Epstein's brain. Then the more she thought about it, the better and better it sounded. Surely there were lots of people in 'the biz' who could this kind of service. And it wasn't like they needed the money; heck, they could do it for free! No need to discriminate against struggling, up-and-coming heroes; it could really give them a leg up! So she sent a message to the one person she knew who currently fit the bill in Freedom. And who knows, maybe they could eventually add more? The changeling waited in her office, sipping mint tea as she waited for guest to arrive.

A little after one o'clock, a young woman in her early thirties came across the street and entered the cafe; she was short, with dark brown eyes and curly, brown shoulder length hair. She wore well-worn hiking boots, jeans, a suede jacket and an FCU baseball cap, and some sort of tote over one shoulder. She quickly scanned the crowd, possibly sniffing the air for a brief moment, and then made a beeline for the German's table. As she approached, her movements were powerful and graceful, her face breathtakingly beautiful. She could almost be the aunt of a young girl he once betrayed... The woman slid smoothly into the seat. "Hello, Viktor. You're looking well, although you smell quite a bit different."

"Of course," she said with a slightly warmer smile; it was oddly comforting to see that her former mentor was just as nervous around her as she was around him. The note disappeared in the blink of an eye, almost as though it had never been there. Then she spun the book around and sighed with wistful nostalgia as her fingers traced the profile of a certain interdimensional cowboy. Her dark eyes sparkled, on the verge of tears. "Ah...good times..." Then she quickly signed the book with a silver Sharpie and handed it back to its, a bit abruptly. "Nice to see you! Thanks for coming out!" It was only after he stepped out of line that Dr. Archeville had a chance to read what the changeling had written.

Grim wouldn't have been much a hero if she hadn't noticed Mr. CreepyPants lurking about the store, but so far there were no alarm bells going off in her head, so she just kept him in her peripheral awareness. Sometimes heroes, especially female ones, attracted fans who while initially appearing unsettling but were in fact just very, very shy. She'd encountered a few of them over the years, especially in Japan, and she'd gotten pretty good at handling them. They typically waited until almost everyone was gone to approach, so she'd have to watch for that. But then he moved into the line, with a purchased item no less, so she had to reevaluate his motivation. But then a familiar scent of cologne wafted by her nostrils, along with traces of metal, ceramic and just a hint of blutwurst... No. F###ing. Way. Despite herself, she felt her heart racing; this was a reunion she was both looking forward to and absolutely dreading. What would he say? What would she say? It took all her strength to keep the shake out of her voice as he finally stepped up to her table, but the resulting smile was rather strained. "Wie gehts, Herr Doktor. How should I sign that for you?"

Millennium Comics, West End location. Saturday, March 23, 2019. 12:35 pm It had been a while since Grimalkin had done a signing event of any kind, but when her favorite local comic book store asked if she was willing to partner them and the charity of her choice, how could she refuse? The usual table was set up near the back of the store, and the changeling's ego got a bit of a boost since the line snaked its way out the front door. In the near five years since she'd returned to Freedom, she'd done enough crimefighting and overall heroics to put herself back in the public consciousness after being gone for the three previous years. And she had always proudly maintained her roots in the eclectic West End, to the point that many people still considered her one of their own. It was the usual crowd: middle-aged fans who'd been following her since 2008 when she first made her appearance, die-hard Interceptors fans in their twenties who always asked when she was going to rejoin Jack's team (she was always diplomatic and did nothing but praise the current team line-up), and now the new wave of cosplayers and little girls in their homemade costumes. Thankfully her current fan base was a lot less 'pervy' than it used to be, a welcome change in the last few years that made it a lot easier to do this sort of thing. And it helped that every dollar generated went to Freedom's Warriors, one of her favorite charities that helped out disabled local vets. The next group was two simply adorable little girls in cosplay, herded up to the table by their mom, holding her cellphone in one hand. Lynn's heart simply melted as they rushed up and grabbed her by each hand. "Hi Gimalkin!" "Hi Grimalkin!" "Omigod, you're so cuuute! What are their names?" "Sasha and Felicity," offered their proud mom, hands shaking in shared excitement as she tried to focus her iPhone. "Well, Sasha and Felicity, let's do a cool action pose, okay?" "Yeah!" "Cool!" All three Grimalkins stood in front of the backdrop Grim had conjured up that morning, a photo-realistic depiction of a moonlit roof top, crouched forward together with their claws out and snarled for the camera. "Grrr!" "Rawr!" "Raaahhhh!"

This is sort of a random idea that occurred to me while I was talking with Dok in chat. How many shapeshifters are there currently running around in the Freedomverse, and how many of them know each other? The thought popped into my head when I considered the idea of Grimalkin doing a signing at Silbermann's Books, and who she might call on to take Lynn Epstein's place. This then got me thinking this would be a free service she'd be willing to offer others who needed to maintain secret identities. And then that got me thinking about an informal 'body double' network for heroes, with friendly shapeshifters coordinating to keep multiple secret identities secure. Just something fun to think about!

Grimalkin suddenly appeared in the hotel room, still filthy but holding a bottle of Cuervo Gold and three shot glasses. "Be my guest," she said to Strix with a shrug. "You're the one who has to be back home by 'cock's crow'." She set up the three glasses on the dresser and poured three sloppy shots. "Anyone wanna join me?" One. Two. Three. "Gah! I need to pass out, or else I'll have nightmares. Hopely interfere with the formation of long-term memories, too, because I don't want to remember any of this s###." She poured three more shots as she absent-mindedly waved her hand, and a small futon appeared near the window.

And then it finally happened, the awkward face-to-face encounter with another psychic. Lulu froze for a second and went full deer-in-the-headlights as she gasped a quick hiccup of air. But then she closed her eyes and took a deep breath as she smoothed out her dress and smiled. -Please forgive me. You're the first telepath I've encountered on my own, and I was concerned for our hosts' safety- Then the Southern psychic offered her hand as she spoke out loud, her Alabama accent very different from her more neutral mental communication. "Ahm sorry, ma'am, ah don't believe we've met; Lulu Beaumont from the US of A. Ahm stayin' with Lord and Lady Harrow for the holidays? Such a pleasure to meet you!"

For the girl who grew up in the downright matriarchal South, It took Lulu a second to make the mental adjustment; as the man with the title, Robert was the important one here, with his mom as his welcomed guest. So strange, but over here, it was normal. She began to gingerly fork cold meat onto her plate as she spoke about her first semester at Claremont "Well ma'am, ahm not gonna lie, it was hard at first; my schoolin' back home in Columbia was fairly hit or miss, with a lot more misses than hits. But Miss Megan made sure I got the best tutors, and now my grades are climbin' back up. Algebra's still a bit of a struggle, 'cause ah've never been too good with numbers."

"Sure, no problem." Casey dropped into the offered swivel seat and began to scroll through her emails, unconsciously using the smallest bit of her flight power to slowly spin the chair around. As always, her brow furrowed in intense concentration as she read, her brain whizzing at high speed as she pondered every article from the various news services to which she subscribed. How would she handle the situation, if she were present? How could she best apply her gifts in a similar situation?

Miracle Girl floated over to the Grue, arms still crossed but her stern features slightly softened as her suspect seemed to be more compliant. "We can straighten all this up outside, and have you on your way in no time." She turned to the assembled coeds and nodded. "Ladies, please go back to enjoying your fashion show." Meanwhile she sent a quick message to Daphne. -Hold the fort as Casey for now, but be ready to make an excuse and slip away if I send you the signal-

Yes, very much so! Also I wouldn't say no to a Deadhead/Grimalkin thread; she's not based in Bedlam, but she's willing to visit. I have a telepathic student at Claremont, so no doubt she will run into Horrorshow.

Go for it, Team Rocket!

I was planning to sit the rest of this one out, since you guys seemed to gave a handle on it, but if people's souls are on the line, should Lulu pull a Han Solo and swoop back in to help out? Assuming the gate Salvo created is still open, of course.

Grim managed a weak nod."Yes. Hotel. Liquor store on the way if we can't get room service." Cradled in the goddess's powerful arms, the changeling felt like a child, small and frail; she hated the abomination they'd killed for making her feel so puny and pathetic. Still, she felt safe and protected, which wasn't so terrible right now; it was okay to admit when you needed help.

Grim was shaking, but not from the cold; it was from the shock of being thrust to the very brink of insanity, and then being forcibly yanked back. This turned out so much worse than she could have anticipated, and the exhaustion of the past twenty-four hours were taking their toll If she didn't stop to rest, she would crumble into dust. "I can't do this anymore," she finally managed with a shudder, her voice hollow. Then she shook her head and waved her hand vaguely, realizing she wasn't explaining herself well. "I mean, I know we're not done here; this is far from over. I just need to...f### or get s###-faced or something, something normal and alive to scour this feeling off my soul. Does that make sense?" Then she turned to Sekhmet and put a hand on on her shoulder. "Thank you, by the way; that was really f###ing close."

No problem! Have fun!

Finally caught up on reading this thread! How delightfully horrific! Do we have the option to go somewhere and rest for a bit before we continue our investigation?

Lulu was drinking it all in, her eyes wandering over all the furniture, paintings and plants, her mind on autopilot as she drifted through the house as if on silent wheels. Part of her wanted to stop and marvel in each and every room, but she didn't want to gawk like some dumb hick. Besides, there would be time to explore later. In the presence of Robert's mother, she stood perfectly straight, hands folded primly in from of her and her eyes somewhat downcast. "Yes, ma'am. It's an honor to meet you, ma'am; ah've only heard the nicest things about you from Miss Megan and her family." She gestured towards the house and smiled, finally managing some eye contact. "You're home is just so beautiful. Thank you having me."

Was it a bad habit for Lulu to use her telepathy so cavalierly? Of course it was. Did it sometimes lead to intriguing results? Oh, absolutely! When she'd first arrived in England, she was terrified of embarrassing herself, the Harrows or even the entire United States by making some sort of unforgivable faux pas in high society. But it turned out she needn't have worried, as her natural charm, sunny disposition and good old-fashioned Southern manners won over nearly everyone. Everyone thought she was so well-behaved for an American, and though her frequent gaps in knowledge did much to confirm opnions on the lack of education in the Colonies, she didn't wear her ignorance like a badge of honor like some Yanks. But far more intriguing than all this was the presence of other psychic activity here at the party; she sensed two minds in mental conversation, more than likely initiated by the one with the stronger mental defenses. Mental conversations aren't typically illegal, though their content could be, pretty much exactly like a phone call; it was really only the biases of the 'psi blind' that made telepathy seem so sinister. She and Adam would probably register the same way at a Claremont dance, and they would just be awkwardly flirting. Still, it was worth checking out, on the off-chance supercriminals were planning a robbery or other dark shenanigans. Excusing herself and getting directions to the restroom, the telepathic teen left the Harrows and their friends as she did her best to locate the two conversants by triangulating their position for different points. She kept the pings brief, as she knew they might detect her; hopefully if they were up to no good, the presence of another psychic might be enough to deter them

Crystal-Gazer (3) Christmas with the Harrows (1) Reflections Of The Mind's Eye (2)  Grimalkin (13) [Maxed] Body Doubles (3) Mending Fences (7) Siren Song of the Void (3)  Miracle Girl (2) Hero Worship (1) Ooooh Fashion (turn to the Left) (1)  Shrike ()  All points for Grimalkin go to Shrike

Maybe good for Lulu's return?