Mask or Menace. IC Contact.

[selfimage]

"Ah, yes. Here we go! Insert all appropriate messages at the beep! Beeeeeeeep!" [ beeeeeeeep. ]

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[selfequipped]

Has she passed the buck? We know that multiversal versions of selves can all exist at the same time and in the same plane. There aren't any rules against it. [Though Kate does wonder if that means the previous Kate and Billy had been different versions of them.]

There are obviously mounting coincidences, but I think it's time we got to the bottom of this. I just don't know where to begin.

[selfimage]

But that doesn't make the other you you, or any other mes me. We could get into complications of the self--unless, perhaps, she is the same. Then there's time, dimensional travel, space, quite a lot of weight to pass through without a definite plan of action.

[ most people weren't him. destroying versions of themselves to rewrite themselves, and using the universal laws to manipulate each step in the dance. ]

Unless there's good reason for it. It could be something as simple as the violent sort of sibling rivalry that makes a younger sister run off into the multiverse to create her own dimension over some slight and collect special snowflake scatter of travelers for some grand better-than-you party. Or, she destroyed herself to an intentional rebirth, and this whole world is a giant cocoon inwhich she feeds. Sounds deliciously Matrix-y, doesn't it?

Unfortunately that leaves the possibilities beyond the scope of most imaginations. Even those imaginative imaginations.

It seems that everywhere there is to begin, it runs into a wall, or a mass of unrelated and totally coincidental scattered mythological references.

I'd say find out what Lana's intentions were, and if we fit into that.

[selfequipped]

So, for now, we might need to wait and see what Thomas pulls up.

[Kate doesn't like that. There's so much waiting, but at least some of the waiting will involve a trip to Brycha. Of course, they'll be pulling Thomas off the trail to do that.

Well, hopefully they can set him right back on it when they're done.]

I'm worried about Kitty going with him. Maybe one of us should've done that side of things a little more ... closely. Unless you are?

[selfimage]

[ there are some things that Loki can be patient for. he can play the game, and he can set the pieces. he can wait for those pieces to move, and he can nudge them in the right direction. so while Kate gets antsy about the wait, Loki doesn't seem at all perturbed. it's possible that there will be kinks along the way, but it's not as if he's the god of chaos or anything. ]

And have Kitty ruin it with her whole multiversal war schtick?

[selfequipped]

It might be better to passively stop her from doing things if you are, then. Since she refuses to listen.

[She always refuses to listen. It's so irritating for Kate, and Kitty acting as if her advice was not to be listened to just because they weren't on the same team ...]

[selfimage]

She certainly refuses to listen. I've graduated from speaking to the rock.

[ he says with an amount of pointed frustration. ]

Thomas is there, and a simple tracking spell will do. Mention Mandrake and it's simple enough to kill her grandiose ambitions.

[selfequipped]

It might work for you, so she might've just been avoiding the rest of the conversation. But I'd prefer someone have an eye on them. [She tried the Mandrake thing.

It failed. And then Kitty cried.

Kate still feels guilty for that last part.]

[selfimage]

I have it covered.

[ he says with a little smile, and now that the groceries are properly put away, he heads over to get some glasses because they're talking about Kitty. talking about Kitty means they need wine. ]

Did you hit her in the face with your bluntness, Kate Bishop?

[selfequipped]

I was trying to be tactful, [she says in defense of herself.] This time, it's hard to make up for the concerns of her pride.

[selfimage]

[ Loki pops the cork easily, fills the glass half full and slides it her way. ]

She has a single-minded goal that's been keeping her distracted.

[ he says with a knowing smile as he helps himself. ]

[selfequipped]

Apparently she can handle both Mandrake and ... everything else. She's coming on the trip. [Once the wine is pushed over, she gratefully grabs it, taking a sniff—some habits are hard to break—before she takes a grateful sip.]

[selfimage]

Oh—[ he pauses ]—is she? I didn't think we'd be babysitting, but I suppose it beats her jumping off a building, making deals with nefarious individuals or possibly running into traffic.

[ it's not very good wine, it could stand to be aged a few years, but whatever, we live for today. ]

[selfequipped]

[She can taste it, but she'll live. She's definitely done a lot of "living" since she arrived here. Ah, so long are the luxuries of her past.

Kate's lips quirk at the statement about babysitting.]

I get the feeling that Thomas might also require a little extra care. But she invited herself. She even offered to drive, but thankfully, we had an alternate plan.

[selfimage]

Ah, yes, "not clown car." Definitely a solid plan.

[ he puts his fingertips on the rim of the glass, swishing it back and forth. ]

She invited herself? She seems to do a lot of that.

[selfequipped]

Worse than the time she decided to replan a party, actually, but here we are, and she might be helpful. [Kate has her doubts, but.]

[selfimage]

It's almost as if she hadn't learned her lesson during that battle.

[ if Lydia was anything, she was fierce. ]

[selfequipped]

I don't think she learns lessons, [she says irritably.]