maskormenacelogs

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[OPEN]

WHO: Normie Osborn and You!
WHERE: All over; locations specified in starters
WHEN: March
WHAT: Normie's trying to get used to his new life
WARNINGS: None, will edit as needed

01. Nonah - Around Residence 004

[He didn't set out to build a goblin glider.

At least, not at first. It was originally an attempt to figure out how this world's hovering technology worked. However, when he found out that this was a guarded industry secret, he gave it up for the time being and started to learn about the steam engines certain cars used instead. The problem was, he could only learn so much by reading about them. He was the type who learned through reverse engineering and trial and error.

And that's where the glider came in.

He needed something to put a steam engine in, and between his brief (better left forgotten) career as the Green Goblin and Phil's, he'd built or modified enough goblin gliders that even without the blueprints, the design was familiar enough that he was able to reproduce it from memory. Sure, it might not have been an exact replica of the ones back home, but everything worked properly, and that's all that mattered. Getting the steam engine to work in the glider proved a challenge, but after a few sleepless nights, Normie finally got the hydraulics to stop leaking and frying the circuit board, and the glider was ready to take to the skies.

Which is exactly what he was doing on this night, as well as the past few nights. The glider itself isn't exactly something he'd show off to people (or even use beyond testing), but he sees no reason in making the outer shell look polished if the device didn't work. Besides looking like a typical glider's ugly cousin, it also doesn't have the signature horned mask head in the front. Normie's aware of how bad this might look, and had tried to make the glider look less like he's about to go terrorize a Parker on a bridge somewhere (but really, it just looks like a goblin glider without a mast, so he failed).

Keeping himself attached to the glider by specially designed magnets on his shoes, Normie just pilots the machine around the perimeter of his backyard at first, maneuvering it in small circles a few inches off the ground to make sure everything's still working before bringing the glider straight up a few feet, his body perpendicular to the ground below before he evens himself out. Nervous he might still be visible despite the darkness, he goes a little higher before attempting to push the glider's limits, speeding across his neighborhood in a giant circle. When he's satisfied the glider can handle it, he lands back in his backyard, but not before doing a loop-de-loop in the air for good measure.

He's taken precautions to not be seen during his testing: doing it at night, wearing all black, designing the glider to be as quiet as possible, but even with all of that, he's still probably not as stealthy as he'd hoped.]

02. Maurtia Falls - The streets

[Ever since Clark Kent had mentioned the thrift shops in Maurtia Falls to him, Normie found himself venturing out there first whenever he's on the hunt for some old, busted electronics. He has found they typically had a good selection, were inexpensive, and that any sort of damage the machines might have were cosmetic. Sure, he can buy the parts he needed, but this way he not only saves money, he's able to learn more about this world's technology by disassembling them (there are obviously exceptions, parts Normie refuses to compromise on by salvaging it from other units, but whatever he can salvage he does).

In this particular outing, Normie is done for the day, and is somehow precariously balancing a stereo, a microwave, and a computer tower in his arms, to say nothing of the two cloth shopping bags containing who knows what hanging from one arm. Though he doesn't appear to be too worried about dropping anything, he also can't see very well in front of him, doing his best by craning his neck around the side of the tower of junk and attempting to maneuver around anyone else on the street.

Careful, or he might bump into you.]

03. Heropa - A cafe

[One of the perks of his job as a Family Genealogy Researcher is that he's not stuck in an office all day, as often the research takes him out to various libraries and government offices. Rather than return to his office when he's done, he instead finds the nearest cafe, parks at an empty table, pulls out his laptop and any sort of notes he'd written down, and gets to work filling out various client's genealogy charts (after he pays for a coffee and a pastry, of course. Both of which he's careful to keep away from both his laptop and his papers).

He always tries to do this after the lunch rush, though he's not always successful. He might be hogging one of the cafe's larger tables, or perhaps he's asking to use the plug near your foot for his laptop cord, or maybe he's actually managed to knock his coffee all over his table, pulling his laptop away to safety in time, but not his notes.]

04. All over - The library

[Another place Normie finds himself visiting with frequency are the local libraries. If he's not looking through public records, he's at the microform machine looking at old newspapers. He's at the one in Nonah so often people have actually confused him for a librarian (even though he isn't, if he can help, he does). Often, when he finishes gathering the information he needs, he can be found wandering the shelves for a bit before leaving, taking a particular interest in the Science Fiction and Fantasy, Graphic Novel, Mystery, and Nonfiction sections, as well as the DVDs.

And because Normie apparently can't get enough of the library (no, really, he could, he just thought it would be a nice gesture), he's teaching a Genealogy workshop in each of the major libraries in the Porter cities. The blurb on the libraries bulletin boards and inside their newsletters reads:

Researching your family tree may appear daunting, but thanks to the Internet it has never been easier. Learn how to utilize search engines and other free resources to uncover your ancestry.
If you catch him teaching one of these workshops, you'll see him explaining each of the resources in what he hopes is an engaging manner, though some of his explanations might be a little too technical in the earlier classes, and he has to stop to clarify several times. He'll also stay as late as needed, answering any questions any stragglers might have.]

[OOC: Or feel free to make your own starter!]

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[He'd rather look ridiculous than trip on it again.]

Can't I just like black?

[He smiles, though he knows his excuse is laughable. Still, he'd rather deflect until he can figure out how much she knows.]

I just thought you looked familiar is all. I try to know the people who appear in my backyard in the middle of the night. I'm Norman Osborn, by the way.

...

[ Ah. That name. She thinks back to what she's seen on network, breathing in and out before settling on a course of action. (Turns out that course is talking.) ]

The newer arrival.

[ Not the one responsible for events with Kanaya. ]

The other man is my grandfather. [By his tone, he's not a fan. Because he isn't.]

And you are?

[ She can hear that in his tone. She just doesn't decide how genuine it is... but doesn't hold lineage as an indicator of what may be true in bonds or behavior. ]

Annie Leonhart.

[ One of those with files released to the public during the recent Hornets incident, and the person responsible for all the damage down at Cape Canaveral. Standing out here in his backyard, she's just a short teen girl in dark clothing, with her hair pulled back into a ponytail. ]

What exactly is that thing you've been flying?

A pleasure. [And he mostly means it. He'd entirely mean it if their meeting wasn't occurring in his backyard in the middle of the night.]

It's a glider.

[He sighs. He knows he can easily avoid the subtly's of the glider's significance, but he worries it might come back to bite him in the ass... so he decides to lay his cards on the table.]

More specifically, it's a goblin glider. My grandfather, the other Norman Osborn, designed the first one years ago. [He briefly pauses so he doesn't appear to be rushing past that detail.] I've since re-purposed it for my own use, but it still has a certain... stigma attached to it.

Edited 2015-03-15 01:33 (UTC)

[ The pause helps. Annie hasn't followed so much of the goblin business here as stumble into it once Kanaya had been manipulated in the ways that had destroyed her and Rose's relationship for now (and who knows if that's longer than a for now). She may well live with Kaine, but most the business he considers his she leaves as his. She's not very fond of the proselytizing Spider-man, but that was an old impression, and one the other had never given her reason to reconsider.

Though more and more spiders seemed to be crawling out of the Porter these days. It's just not her problem; Annie likewise turns her attention in other directions. She can still understand what it is Norman's talking about. ]

What do you plan on using it for here? Not to say that I can't understand not wanting to call on those certain stigmas... but acting like this is probably going to strengthen those worries for select audiences.

Honestly? I don't have any plans. I'd been reading up on steam engines and wanted to test it out. I can build a glider quickly and from memory.

[Another pause.]

Besides, nothing I do is going to change those people's minds anyway. I could join the priesthood and they'd assume I'm just trying to corrupt the faithful or something. I've been standing in the shadow of that man for a long time, even if in my world it was just his ghost. I'm used to it.

[He sounds nonchalant, but by the end of that little speech he's looking anywhere but at her. He may be used to it, but he doesn't like it.]

So I built what I want to build. The glider is mine now, not his.

[ It's not like she can't get what he says, too, for her own reasons (and on her own personal levels), but it's kind of six of one, half dozen of another. ]

So fly it during daylight hours. All this?

[ she nods her head to the fenceline, where the shadows are more dramatic. ]

Is saying you're not so sure about that either. Whatever your world believes, this one is framed by what you do within it. What he does here, or what he's done, is his own to own up to at some point and have people collect on. Debts come due. If you're not him, then find your own way. Don't hesitate just for the people who'll never believe you can be anything other than what's come before.

[...Okay this is far too good of advice to be receiving from a stranger who just barged into his backyard in the middle of the night. It also might bother him slightly that she can see so clearly through his bravado. Most people never notice.]

...That's easier said than done. [He bites his lip, trying to figure out how much he should say.] I'm just... tired of fighting it.

[ It's sad that a lot of it just happens to echo personal experience for her, but it's not from family lines - just personal lines of action. More recent events here have made it even more apparent to her that trying to keep parts of yourself hidden away won't necessarily make it anything other than something people are more afraid of when they do see it, having built it up in their minds.

Jean is such a ready voice sounding off in her mind. Armin follows not far after. ]

Life doesn't ask if we're tired. The fighting doesn't stop... it just has easier times, I'm finding, when you have people standing at your side.

[ It's a quieter statement, because that is personal on her part. It's tied into thoughts relating to his grandfather, too, but only through Kanaya. Kanaya being one of those unsought allies who matters to Annie in the here and now. Houka, Aracely, even Kaine in his way. Ira. Reiner of course, but he had at least come out of her world, and he knew that situation. Kay, John - no, Nathaniel. Ken. Hide. They're not people of her world for the most part, but they make it easier, even when control is wrested away from her. ]

No one said it was going to be easy. If you wanted easy, you know what it is you'd do.

[ Give in to the expectations. ]

[Yeah, he's tried the giving into the expectations thing. It almost ruined his life.] I know it's not easy. I knew what I was getting into back when I chose to go down this path when I was still home, but...

[Another pause. It's getting harder and harder for him to find the right words. He pulls the glider out from underneath his arm and stares at his reflection in the metal.]

It's as you said. It has easier times when you have people standing at your side.

[If she catches his drift.

To be fair, he isn't entirely alone. May was here too, and she's seen him at his lowest. She's the reason he's as strong as he is today. But May has her own problems to worry about, and he has no intentions of adding his to the pile.]

[ She can, even if the "standing at her side" has been a rocky sort of road for her to travel. Annie watches him stare down at the glider. ]

Are you finding many here?

[ He hasn't been here long. It's taken her months, and many losses along the way, to feel she has people she can trust to any extent around her. And that's with only one from home, and their relationship one that's in flux as they continue to adapt to each other - not less strong, and not less of them being present for each other but less... natural, in ways. Or more formed with the environment they've found themselves trapped in as the impetus for why they were growing close; different from the bonds they had back home. ]

Not really. [Most people seem far too quick to eye him with suspicion, and it's discouraging him from even trying.]

I realize how pathetic I sound right now, it's just... I've barely met you and I don't want to burden you with all of this. I know I'm just making excuses. I can't blame other people for my own shortcomings.

[ She's been told even stranger things (or more burdensome things) by people she's just met around here, having more to do with their odd circumstances than any inherent need anyone has ever had to speak with Annie Leonhart. Frankly, she doubts if he hadn't been covertly practicing with his stigmatized technology that she'd even be speaking with him quite yet - not for any particular reason other than not having yet had an impetus to start out the interaction.

Still, he's not being unwise in what he says. Following through is probably the most difficult part after acknowledging one's present shortcomings. She has her own plethora of experiences with that. ]

If you know, then you know what you're facing if you want to change that.

[ She has her hands shoved into the kangaroo pocket of her dark hoodie. Annie shrugs. ]

As for burdens, I'm not asking to take any more on. Listening is something I can do. Talking... well. Only a few people think I'm any good at that.

[ And Bumblebee isn't here anymore. She still misses him, which was a surprising sort of revelation onto itself. ]

While it's true he had been somewhat avoiding Annie, it had nothing to do with her at all. The second day he was here, he had sworn to Kaine he'd keep away from his house, and he figured that had extended to the people who lived inside it as well.

Normie sighs and lightly tosses the glider away. It lands on the grass a few feet away.]

I've faced it before. I'll be all right. [Eventually. He has to be. He's not sure he could handle the alternative.]

Then most people are fools, Ms. Leonheart. You've certainly helped this idiot tonight. Are you sure you aren't selling yourself short?

[ She gives a shake of her head. No, she's pretty sure she's not. When she does speak up, it's blunt enough, but in anything that requires finer handling for reassurance, she's terrible at it. She's learned to talk more while she's been in the United States. She's still a quieter person overall. ]

No, I don't think I am. If what I say helps, then I've managed to get my timing right. Often enough... it's going to fall on deaf ears.

[ Though imPorts have been more willing to hear than people on average were where she was from. That might account for some of the differences she's seen. Not all of them, but enough to make it a curious situation overall. ]

If you're hearing what the people around you have to say... that's a skill of it's own, and it's a credit to you. Following it up by making your own decisions and standing by them? That, too, is something to decide on for yourself.

[ She has nothing to do with it; and that's really what she means. She's not a motivational speaker, so no, to her, what she says lacks the worth of conviction one finds in the truly righteous. And it always will - she will never be one of those righteous people. ]

That's hardly your fault, though. It doesn't make what you say any less meaningful if the other person isn't willing to hear it.

[He shrugs at her compliment. Looks like neither of them are particularly good at taking one.]

Some would say I listen a bit too much. But I'm determined to not make the mistakes my dad and granddad made, and that means listening to people and acknowledging my faults. When it matters at least, and I'd say that this matters.

[ She cants her head to the side. ]

What about when you determine it doesn't matter?

[ ... That's a half serious question, and half a dry, dry tease. ]

[Gives her an amused smile.]

Then I ignore them and continue on with my day.

I'd like to think I've figured out the genuine criticism from the noise.

You'd need to, in order to get anyway.

[ Which is almost like saying, "Good on you," without actually saying anything that straightforward at all. Annie glances back toward the fenceline... then inclines her head toward her companion. ]

I should let you return to the rest of your evening's pursuits.

[He nods.]

The rest of my evening is probably going to be spent getting reacquainted with my bed. We haven't exactly been seeing each other lately.

But seriously, thank you. For smacking some sense into me.

[ Moving away, she tosses him a backward wave. ]

It's not a problem. Catch you around... and good luck with your bed situation.

Thanks.

Good night.

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