Cubefall

[52_dropoff]

Where there was a man, there is now an eagle. Majestic, proud, flying into the rafters and back, ready to fly outside.

He wonders if he should see if anyone else can fly. Or he should just go soaring.

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[singthesong]

Meanwhile, another little bird has been flitting around lower down in the bar. Upon spotting the other, though, he flies up higher with a chirp.

He lands on the rafter nearby, whistles up at the eagle, and then hops a little closer. Apparently he isn't at all concerned by the fact that just one of those talons is about as large as his entire body now.

[52_dropoff]

"I would be careful, if I were you," Charlie says in a voice that is not at all majestic. "I could easily eat you whole right now.

"Not that I plan to."

[singthesong]

"I know you won't," the Balladeer replies breezily, sounding rather unconcerned about his own potential demise. "We are still inside the bar - though y'know, that would be a very ironic way to die." Swallowed whole by the bird of America. Now wouldn't that make everyone back home laugh?

"You look very patriotic."

[52_dropoff]

Charlie laughs. "I suppose I do. I hadn't thought about it, actually.

"I assume you are American when human?" Could also be German or Russian from the 19th century. Everyone liked eagles back then.

[singthesong]

"I am!" He replies, pleased. "No time period in particular, I travel around a bit. And you?"

[52_dropoff]

"Early 21th century when I left my reality. I suppose in some sense it will always be that time for me. And I traveled a lot but home was Hub City, Illinois. So very much America." Charlie lands on a rafter. And notices that he can see so much better than ever before.

[singthesong]

"Never heard of Hub City - but I do stay more on the Eastern seaboard. DC, especially."

The Balladeer, meanwhile, occupies himself by flitting between several rafters, occasionally stopping to peer down at the Bar and its current occupants. "But we may not even be from the same U.S. I haven't made it past the 1980s yet, either. With any luck, I won't."

[52_dropoff]

"Why do you get stuck then? And why not see the future?" Charlie is content to settle on a rafter for now.

[singthesong]

"I'd love to see it! But if I get a window into a new point in time, it means something bad's happened." Unconsciously, the little bird's feathers puff up a little. "I got into 1981 because Reagan was shot. That's actually one of my better years, nobody died that time."

[52_dropoff]

"Oh. You're connected to...yes, that is pretty much not something you want to be part of." Though he is. "How about presidential candidates?"

[singthesong]

"President-elect seems to be about as far as it goes. FDR, 1933." That one hadn't ended quite so fortunately as 1981, at least not for the poor mayor. The Balladeer hasn't been spending much time there lately; he pushed it too far last visit, and as much as he tends to be at odds with the assassins, he isn't really a fan of watching executions. "Why?"

[52_dropoff]

"President Luthor was shot during the campaign, by a woman whose life he ruined. He was ahead already, but the sympathy vote put him over the top. That was in 2000." Charlie thinks. He sometimes finds that dates in his timeline are fuzzy. Weird.

[singthesong]

"Was he now..."

Thoughtfully, he preens a few out-of-place feathers before continuing. "I don't see everything at once. Maybe it just hasn't gotten through yet. What was her name?" It had been a fair while since Hinckley showed up...if something was going to happen, it seemed like it might just happen soon.

[myshootingstar]

There's a rather large panther slinking between the chairs. She looks up at the eagle and purrs. This is just as fun as she expected. Now, to get the door open...

[52_dropoff]

"I hope you're not looking for a fight. I have claws, too. I think." His tone is friendly. And unmistakably Charlie.

[myshootingstar]

Minx chuckles; a warm, grumbling sound from a big cat. "Hardly Charlie." Minx's voice is clear and happy. "I suspect you have the advantage of wings anyway. I'm pretty sure panthers can climb but I doubt I could get to you if I tried."

[52_dropoff]

"Miranda...hi. That looks seems to suit you. Congratulations on your first Cubefall." He flies closer, in surprisingly good control.

[myshootingstar]

"Thanks! It feels fantastic." She stretches her long body and bounds up onto a table to meet him. "But I keep having to rein in the urge to chase the rats."

"You look pretty slick yourself." She purrs, leaning forward to sniff him carefully. "I though the American way was the other guy's gig?"

[52_dropoff]

"It was one of my choices, and I wanted to fly again, so I took it. I didn't really think about the patriotic implications till later." He feels a bit of the eagle's natural caution around another predator, but knows from the past that he and not the body is in control of the instincts and reactions.

[myshootingstar]

Minx drops down to her stomach to present less of a threat although she can feel her muscles coiled to jump. "You've flown before?"

[52_dropoff]

"The first two Cubefalls. I became a very powerful superhero. He was very good at flying. And really strange." Being a bird is less surreal than having godlike levels of energy in your body.

[myshootingstar]

"You went with that both times? Must have been good even if it was strange. Honestly, I barely looked at the other options. As soon as I saw this, I just had to."

[52_dropoff]

"It was...good." Though that second time was a mistake. He couldn't recapture what happened with him and Sallie the day they met. "I was hesitant to move further afield. And I still don't particularly trust the female option."

[myshootingstar]

She laughs warmly and grooms her ears. "I know what you mean. I looked at the male option but he looked like a basketball player. I know I'm tall normally but that's just ridiculous."

[52_dropoff]

"Never mind the can of worms of psychological possibilities it might unleash. It's not something to do lightly." He is sure it be really overwhelming.

"Though being creatures of the forest could also mean something."