AGE PLOT SHENANIGANS

[microbrobotics]

WHO: Everyone and anyone!
WHERE: De Chima, various
WHEN: Around 6 PM EST, March 25th
WHAT: Age plot kickoff!
WARNINGS: Cuteness.

[ LET'S GET THIS PARTY OFFICIALLY STARTED! Opening events so we don't do too much comm flooding (although people are welcome to make their own posts for the event). You're welcome to toplevel with your character if you'd like to have them show up somewhere else for this plot.

Current toplevels:
Spring Festival in a De Chima city park
De Chima #1
De Chima #1, later (Minato)

The age plot will run from March 25th through Sunday, March 29th. More deets available at the plotting post. ]

Comments

ota \o/

[moded]

de chima - day one

[Where there's a festival, there's inevitably at least one speedster ready to have fun and take advantage of any and all eating competitions that may or may not come to be. And that's exactly what Bart was doing when this whole shebang happens. He'd shown up in De Chima out of Impulse gear (better to not have the vigilante finger pointed at him) and in more than good spirits, ready to have fun and see who else was around to hang out with and try to rope into some carnival game or another--

And then, of course, with the clanging of a bell... chaos hits.

Even as a fourteen-year-old, Bart's on the smaller and scrawnier size, so that's not really that big of a change. Sure, he's all around shrunk a bit (his sweatshirt looks at least three sizes too big now that he's gotten rid of the muscle he's built up over the last year) but the biggest change between how he was and the ten-year-old standing frozen in the middle of a crowd is the look on his face.

It's pure fear that he first feels - the rush of adrenaline and a pounding heart as he realizes he doesn't know where he is, what's going on. When all he sees are people and panic and bright lights and strange colors. But then he starts to feel it, starts to notice how his limbs aren't moving quite right, how things seem to be stop-starting, the images around him slowing down and speeding up in flashes so fast he can barely understand what's really happening--

But the kid's smart, and while his body is trying to understand what to do with powers it's not used to, his mind's on a whole other track, racing on and on and piecing the puzzle together until it all comes bubbling out in a startled laugh, until he just lets his knees buckle and digs his fingers into the ground, feeling grass against his skin, staring up at the clear blue sky, and soaking in the warmth of the sun for the first time in his life.

The speed will come later, he'll deal with the way his body feels like it's going to shake apart at the seams if he doesn't run run run, but for now? For now, he's just going to spend the next few hours sitting on the ground and staring up at the sky with wide, awestruck eyes.]

various cities - basically the rest of the event tbh

[Apparently, moving around with superspeed isn't as easy as it might seem. Sure, Bart knows he was born with it (and keeps grumbling to himself how that should mean he should have some born control over it), getting used to going in and out of the speed itself is taking some getting used to. He keeps trying to move his arm a few inches and ending up flailing about way too fast, keeps trying to take a step and finding his body moving at least three times as fast as his brain.

He's run into walls a few dozen times, freaked himself out by finding out he can vibrate through things by losing his arm through a door, and tried to ask a few people questions while sounding like a tape on fast forward, all high pitched and garbled.

But that's not stopping him from seeing as much of this world as he can, from running from store to store asking people what various little gadgets and products do and what they're for, from walking into a fast food place and staring at the sheer amount of food being fried up and doled out for at least an hour, and from coming to a sudden stop any time he sees someone walking a dog in order to go up and quietly, almost shyly ask if he can just... just look at the dog for a moment.

He'll work his way up to actually asking to pet one around his third day of doing so.

To anyone that knows Bart as he normally is, the excitement and the movement is all undeniably there. The interest is in his eyes and almost in his motions, but his expressions and tone are always reserved and on guard. Or. Well. As on guard as one can possibly be when everything in the whole goddamn world is absolutely mindblowingly amazing.]

how bout nonah

[siriusly]

Aaagh...! Again and again!

[late? Manabu? IMPOSSIBLE. only, like, every other day. swing shifts mess up everything.

he manages to get one arm successfully into his uniform jacket before a– a thing blows straight across his path and sends him spinning, staggering practically into traffic with a startled yelp.]

YAH–!!

[probably his fault for being too close to the bee-line path of a street meat vendor.]

perfection c: BUT LET ME KNOW IF THIS WORKS

[moded]

[The sad thing is, this probably isn't the first time this has happened.

However, this is the first time that Bart manages to actually hit the breaks and go back to where he'd managed to send Manabu careening way too close to the nearby cars.

He reaches out, still maybe moving a touch too fast, wanting to grab at him and pull him back safely into the safe section of the sidewalk when- well. When the helpfully outstretched hand curls into a fist and moves Manabu away from the nearest car through an oh-so-helpful punch to the face.]

... [Fortunately for Manabu, Bart has like zero muscles. Unfortunately, even a no-muscled superspeed punch probably stings. Either way, that scrawny ten-year-old kid is standing frozen in front of him, looking oh so confused.] I... didn't mean to do that.

[Excuse him as he just stands there and frowns thoughtfully at his fist.]

flawless tbh

[siriusly]

[down here on the ground, having landed heavily on his butt, sits Manabu, who's had barely enough time to register being tripped up to even start wondering whether he just got punched back to safety.

also, there's half a jacket draped over his head making it hard to really take stock of things. after a beat to catch his breath and wince through a shooting pain in his tailbone, he yanks it off, gaping around in bewilderment until he can lock on the source of the didn't mean to do that.]

H...huh–? What? [he's doing great, it's fine. don't worry.]

yes good excellent

[moded]

[At the very least, Bart's suddenly doubting whether or not he has control over his own body for the time being, so he doesn't reach back towards Manabu to try and help him up or anything. Nope. He's on his own for that. No more attempted heroics from this kid.

... He will be crouched and staring at him from like two feet away whenever Manabu pulls that jacket away.]

You fell. [He's stating oh-so-helpfully.] Which- [Was extremely uncool and ungraceful and Bart's about to actually say that before he catches himself, frowns, and ends up just saying a thoughtful:] -was my fault. I punched you.

[........................... nope no apology yet he's still trying to figure out if aliens made him do it]

[resipiscent]

[He recognizes Bart almost instantly. Not just the way he looks, but the way he looks like he's going to vibrate out of his skin, all of that is exactly the kid he knows. But he's younger, just like Riku is, even though it seems right now that they've swapped places on the age scale.

However, because Riku has his memories, he doesn't really understand that Bart doesn't. Not until he gets talking to him, but he can tell something's... off.]

... You got younger, too.

[moded]

[If there's one thing Bart's never had a problem with, it's other kids. Adults he sometimes gets quiet around, if just because they're usually the ones more reserved back home. They're the ones trying to do more work, taking more hits and sacrificing more so that they could give the kids a chance to feel safe.

So, when Riku comes over to him, all Bart does is drag his eyes away from the sky - the clouds really are white-- who knew? - and regards the "younger" kid for a moment before his brow furrows.]

No I didn't.

[He'd been about to say something else, but he's getting distracted by a random leaf he just spotted in the grass. Give him a second to pick it up and just feel it. It's not weird at all what are you talking about?]

[resipiscent]

[He blinks, brow furrowing. Bart seems... different. Distracted, like he hasn't seen these things before. He's working his fingers along the leaf, pensive, and Riku watches quietly. The question mark in his brain is just getting bigger every second.]

... is that new to you?

[moded]

Yeah.

[He says it easily enough, holding the leaf up to the sky and watching the sun filter through it, eyes widening slightly at the sight of it.]

We don't have stuff like this back home. [He glances back towards the tiny, silver-haired kid. He's still frowning, but it's thoughtful now.] I guess you do, huh?

day 2 or something

[polycrystalline]

[Caitlin's developed something of an ingrained response to seeing an Allen hurt that consists of (a) shout his name, and (b) get over there as fast as her non-speedster self can manage. She happens to be close enough to see someone impact a wall at superspeed, so she doesn't even think before she takes off running towards him. It's easy to guess who he is from the size of the figure that drops out of superspeed abruptly.] Bart?!

[So yeah, there's a sixteen-year-old (ish) running towards him with a clear look of concern on her face.]

[moded]

[Okay, running into things sucks.

Not only does it just generally hurt, but it's usually accompanied by a horrible ringing in his ears, a temporary black-out, and dizziness that makes him sort of stumble back a few feet looking like someone just hit him over the head with a baseball bat.

Having his name yelled out, however, has reality coming snapping back together with the sudden lurch of his heart in his throat. He knows he's been here for a while, by now. Even if he doesn't remember it. But his gut reaction is still that this is someone who knows him from back home, someone who'd been in that awful time, who'd been freed just like him only they might need help, they might be scared and confused and-- hey, who knows, they might be able to help each other adjust to this new place.

So when he turns towards Caitlin, his eyes are maybe a little too sharp, his body tense and his jaw clenched in preparation for whatever it was he might be greeted with-- only for all that tension to drain away when he sees an unfamiliar face, leaving him just frowning up at her and taking a small step back when she finally approaches him.]

What? [.... Sorry, Caitlin. He hasn't reached the chatty and friendly portion of his life, yet.]

[polycrystalline]

[He clearly doesn't know who she is, which is (a) concerning and (b) enough to make her slow down a few feet away instead of coming right up to him. There's a lot of reasons he might not remember her. He's clearly younger, and she's heard that at least a few people were experiencing memory problems in addition to age change. It could also be because he just ran into a solid object at superspeed and gave himself a concussion.

The way he retreats slightly when she moves toward him makes her take her own step backwards to give him some space. The best she can do now is soften her approach and try to seem non-threatening. Which isn't exactly difficult, given that her teenage self does not cut a physically-imposing figure.

When she starts talking, her voice is gentler.] Are you okay? You hit the wall pretty hard, there.

[moded]

[The mirrored step back has Bart letting out a little breath, has him relaxing a bit. And even if he doesn't grin like he would have normally, he does look at least ten times more approachable than he did just seconds ago.

It's a small compromise.

But, he does shift in something akin to embarrassment as Caitlin brings up the little wall incident, glancing behind himself at the slight - uh - dent in the wall and actually wincing. Just a little.]

Yeah I'm- ... [He raises and lowers a shoulder, slightly] I'm getting used to it.

[There's a whole fifteen seconds of silence before he realizes he forgot to answer the second half of what she asked. At which point he awkwardly blurts out a quick: ] But I'm fine. [Before just going back to staring at Caitlin with that mix of wariness and curiosity.]

whispers heropa

[dilatoriness]

[ Sorry you are not blessed with this particular Barry's genes, Bart. Of course, Barry himself spent the first day after being made younger running into walls because he apparently forgot how physics and acceleration worked. Also because of natural lack of paying attention to things sometimes, but that's a minor detail in the grand scheme of things.

Barry had meant to check on Bart, make sure he was okay and make sure perhaps if Wally was okay. He had meant to, but that first day made Barry a little gunshy about going to check on his alternate universe grandson.

Thankfully, it looks like Bart came to him— so to speak. More accurately what ends up happening is that Bart runs by and Barry sees the streak he leaves behind. It takes him just a second ( or less ) to process it and without missing a beat, he goes after him. He sees him stopped right in front of a dog and while it looks like Bart— he's never seen Bart act like that around a dog. ]

Bart! [ He yells even though he's not that far away. Something about being around the kid kind of makes him just sort of&mash; lose his ability to do things like control how loud he's speaking. It's the excitement really. He then closes the distance between them and stops right next to Bart, hugs him and grins before he realizes— that Bart's not the right age. ] Did any of us actually get older? You probably should have because— it's a little mean to make you even younger.

[ Hi Bart. Sorry about your life and everything. ]

[moded]

[This is a dog he's seen before. He remembers the markings just as well as he remembers the woman walking it. She'd been sort of unnerved the first time he'd come to a sudden stop, practically tripping over his words after a second of just wide-eyed staring. But by now (it's his fourth time coming to see the dog during this particular walk) she's just smiling and letting the little thing wag its tail and pull at the leash.]

.... can.... [He finally, finally manages to mutter, cutting himself off and risking a glance up at the woman before going back to staring at the fluffy thing at the end of the leash in front of him. He swallows, raises a hand only to have it fall again uselessly.] Can I...... pe-

[And then, in something that's become pretty common-place since Bart found himself in the middle of a park like not even two days ago, his name is being yelled out.

He jumps, the dog jumps, and he stammers out something before turning away, his hands balling into fists before he shoves them moodily in his sweatshirt pocket, already having picked out the person who'd called out his name and--

Uh. ]

...... [He's basically just frozen in that hug, eyes wide and mouth open in shock-

And then, he's ducking down, slipping underneath Barry's arm and pushing him away, zipping back a few feet and staring at him with a more-than-alarmed expression on his face, hands up like he's frozen between a defensive and offensive gesture, just completely unsure of what to do.] I'm not younger.

[... is what he finally says, his tone sharp and clipped and more than annoyed.]

Who are all you dumb meat anyway? I don't know any of you.

[Way to freak out the traumatic apocalypse baby with a display of affection, Barry Allen.]

[dilatoriness]

[ So now it's official, Barry hates this. It was bad enough he got deaged because honestly, the last thing he wanted to do was relive his teenage years. He could deal with it though, it's not optimal but it's tolerable. Having Bart react like this to a hug and not know who he is falls more under not optimal or tolerable. When Bart slips out of his arms Barry manages to just put them back at his side before he looks a bit confused. ]

Considering I'm used to seeing you when you're fourteen, you kind of are. [ See also: definitely are or just sort of are. ] But now I can kind of see what's going on.

[ Even though it's weird as hell and honestly, if Caitlin and him didn't have any adverse memory effects, why would Bart have them. ] I'm— Okay this is going to be hard to believe but depending on who you're calling dumb meat. [ There's a pause there where Barry just has to shake his head about that particular naming before he continues. ] We probably have met you when you're fourteen. I promise it's not as stupid as it sounds. Or impossible.

[ He pauses again because he's not entirely sure if he wants to tell Bart that his name's Barry. He figures that just maybe Bart won't have a good reaction to hearing that Barry's his grandfather and while he doesn't want to lie to the kid— he also doesn't want to somehow make him fly off the deep end.

So to speak at least. ]

And I'm— Bartholomew. [ Good God, he hates saying his full first name, this is the worst. But maybe Bart won't react to that one like he worries he'd react to Barry. ]

[moded]

[Magic, Barry. Blame magic.]

Right. Like time travel's actually possible. [Says the most bitter ten-year-old in the planet who will end up making his own working time machine in three years.] I've gone over the theory it's not- [He cuts himself off, just making a frustrated noise before falling quiet again. This guy hasn't earned the right to hear anything more about that. Anything more about the harebrained scheme Nathaniel had been trying to sell to him over the last month.

But if Barry actually thought that hearing Bartholomew would be any better than Barry-- well. The bottom line is, it isn't. The bottom line is the second Bart hears that full name, he goes almost deathly still. He freezes so completely it's almost like someone just walked on up and stopped time.

He swears, swears that this guy was moving at superspeed just a bit ago. And he knows him. And his name's-- Bart swallows, lets his hands drop down limply at his sides, before he... takes a step back, moves away because- ... well, because.]

Bartholomew's a stupid name. [He says, though his voice is coming out a little weak, with a little warbler.] And it's- there's a lot of Bartholomews.

[aviate]

[Once Jaime had given him the heads up on what happened Hal had immediately gone out to find him. Normally finding a kid with superspeed in a big country would be difficult, but he can say 'find Bart' and his ring does the work for him. He's not sure what he can do, but Hal has a tendency to jump in and figure things out on the fly and this is about Bart so he knows he has to move quick.

Which is a good thing because he finds him as Bart's start stopping in an erratic path that'll end with him hitting a wall. Hal doesn't hesitate, hoping his thought-based ring was fast enough to grab Bart just before he hit a wall. To hell with his secret identity if someone else needed him.]

[moded]

[Running is hard.

It's way harder than Bart remembered from when he was a kid, harder than he'd ever thought about or dreamed of. His legs want to move faster than he can really keep up with, his body trying to move and adjust his sense of balance in a way that his mind just couldn't quite keep up with.

Which is what's sent him crashing into buildings and walls and even the side of a car more than a few times today. He's getting the hang of it, learning to adjust and compensate. The crashes have been cut in half already, but every now and then? Well, every now and then he just can't quite get his brain and his feet to match up, and he ends up in the situation that Hal found him in.

Only this time, Bart doesn't hit the wall he'd been careening towards. This time, he finds himself suddenly coming to a stop, the wind halfway knocked out of him, and his eyes wide and blinking at the wall a few feet away.]

... Huh. [Give him a few seconds to fully realize what just happened, his brain's still on a completely different track.]

[aviate]

[Hal releases him as soon as he's sure Bart isn't going to zip off again immediately. While he's prepared to throw his secret identity out the window, it doesn't mean he's going to do it willy nilly. He glances around to make sure no one saw that little display before walking towards Bart.]

Bart? Bart Allen?

[He doesn't know when Bart started that persona, but if this is before that he needs to tread really carefully.]

[moded]

[He regains his balance easily enough once Hal let's him go, and amazingly? He also stays put after he's released, just looking around and trying to find the source of--

Aha. Bart might have never met Green Lantern, but he's sure someone he heard stories of. So at the very least, he knows that much.]

Yeah. [He stops, waits for something more for a good ten seconds, before continuing with an unsure:] Thanks.

NONAH

[runningstart]

[Bart would sometimes...disappear. Usually not for long; just for a few hours, occasionally overnight. Wally's slowly gotten used to it, gotten used to Bart checking in late or just plain not checking in at all, strolling into the cave a day later yelling about some weird forest in Utah or how bad the sulfur pits in the desert smell or that the coffee in Seattle just tastes the same as everywhere else and if he's really being honest, Texas is the only state that got it right. It's hard, but he gets used to it.

Wally likes control. Bart hates being controlled. It's a little like a tug-of-war, but as the weeks go by they have less fights and as Bart keeps coming back without a scratch on him, Wally loosens his grip.

And then Bart's gone for days. His comm still pings back so he hasn't gone home, but he's nowhere to be found and Wally's starting to freak out. So when he sees Bart walking -WALKING- by on the street before he breaks into a run, and it's odd because it's not his usually clean one-step bolt-

Well, obviously Wally chases after him. What's even odder is that he manages to grab hold of his sleeve.] Bart! Jesus, I've been looking all over for you! Why didn't you call me?!

[moded]

[He feels like he's getting the hang of it. Running, that is. It'd been pretty touch-and-go at first, like his body was about to explode if he didn't just run run run, but once he got that initial need to move out of the way, he's been able to slow it down, to pick running apart and work on getting used to it bit by bit.

By the time Wally finds him, Bart feels like he's mostly gotten it down. He no longer disorients himself when he launches into superspeed, his eyes and brain keep up with his legs from start to finish. The only thing he's really still trying to get used to are his sense of balance and the ability to stop running. Sometimes he just seems to get stuck, like he couldn't stop moving forward even if he wanted to. Other times, his brain slows down faster than his body, leaving him unable to correct and avoid obstacles.

But today? Today he has a feeling he's going to get it. His kick off is smoother than it has been, and he's actually managing to keep himself going at a slower pace, allowing him time to think and plan and see and work with what's going on.

Except, well, he really hadn't been counting on someone else moving with him, grabbing hold of him and keeping pace and talking to him-- he's gotten used to people knowing his name by now, sure, but this? This causes Bart to stumble slightly, to grit his teeth and grab a hold of Wally's arm instinctively to try and steady himself. He cuts back on the speed, slows down until his stumble has left him moving at a jog and, eventually, grinding to a stop.]

Maybe because I don't have to? [He actually sounds annoyed, his voice clipped and a little harsh, and he's all set to get actually annoyed at the latest person butting in and declaring them friends or acquaintances or whatever when-- well. When he finally really looks up and sees just who it is that just interrupted his run.

Red hair. Green eyes. Superspeed. Looks like a picture his dad had shown him once. Knows him.

It's impossible, sure. But literally everything that's going on here is impossible, so what does that really matter?]

... Wally?

[runningstart]

[Not this shit again.

Wally lets go of Bart's sleeve just before they stop, eyes narrowing as he pushes down that swell of disappointment low in his gut. That snap earlier, that...wasn't Bart. And there's a look on his face like Wally can't possibly be here. And weird shit has been going on with people again, with Riku earlier turning into a kid and-

Oh. Oh.]

Are you from 2056?

[moded]

[Some day, Wally, weird shit will happen in this place and Bart won't be caught in the middle of it. Some day something will pretty much explode in weird and Bart will actually be able to appreciate how weird it all is.

For now, though, he's still just staring at Wally with a mix of wariness and a look like his cousin has sprouted two heads and started singing Britney Spears.]

No. [He's speaking slowly, because he actually can't figure out how Wally would even know that-- unless what people have been telling him is really true. And he really was here when he's older.] 2053.

[Which, in the grand scheme of things, is pretty much the same thing. But still.]