xp_logs | Time Stand Still |

Topaz does some percussive therapy with Kyle, because the idea of Evil-Alternate-Universe-Topaz is rather justifiably freaking her out.

Random details kept sticking out in her head. Killed people. Killed people in the mansion. People she cared about. The kids. The smaller one with the angry eyes. The one, inexplicably, who had her name. The blue one she had seen across the room, almost certainly Kurt's daughter. We're here to stop her.

Her own eyes, glaring at her with a darkness she couldn't begin to fathom.

There was a bit too much magic behind her next swing; the heavy bag swung wildly, the chain creaking. Topaz barely had enough awareness to move out of the way, shaking off her haze of thoughts. She'd texted Kyle, waited about thirty seconds, then decided to just get a couple hits in to warm up. Clearly that had been a mistake.

"So, what the fuck, right?" Kyle'd been halfway across Westchester when his phone buzzed about the weird visitors, halfway up the driveway when the all-clear sounded, and then halfway to his room when Topaz texted, so he changed directions enough times in a short period of time to be utterly unable to be witty.

"You, uh, wanna just have me spot, or do you wanna actually spar, because if it's spar I gotta change shirts, you look pissed enough that I don't wanna risk blood on a band shirt I actually like." He didn't really wait for an answer, he peeled the shirt off and started pulling a plain black one over his head.

"Yeah," Topaz muttered, taking a couple deep breaths. "What the fuck."

The whole evil future self thing made sense, at least. She punched half heartedly at the bag, sighing. "I dunno. Sparring? The bag's not really putting up a fight."

"Kinda the point of a bag..." Kyle said, lip curling up a little. "Okay, no mouth shots, I legit didn't bring a mouthguard, and you don't wanna get your hand cutup by my stupid teeth." He pulled a pair of padded gloves from his shorts pockets and pulled them on, and then held one fist out for a bump.

"Yeah, yeah," Topaz muttered, bumping her fist against his. "No mouth shots, got it."

She might have started off a little stronger than she meant to, aiming for Kyle's shoulder. But it wasn't a great swing and even if she hit, it wasn't like she'd break him.

Kyle ducked to the side, and Topaz's gloved fist just brushed his shoulder. He blinked and it was almost audible how surprised he was. "Yo." He said, popping out a return punch, light and almost airy. "Yo, that is some me levels of wild angry punching there."

"Bad day. Bad week." She blocked his punch, mostly just to practice (she still had a bad habit of pulling back because that was just what a sane person did when someone was trying to punch them). "Bad me from a fucking parallel universe." She aimed again and jabbed.

"What like." Kyle blocked, returned with a little knuckle tap to Topaz's head, and then grinned. "Like, Evil Universe Spock you, or like..." He turned his head, and squinted at Topaz. "I gotta be honest, T, I can't imagine you bad. Angry, yeah, I mean I got that here. Emo, sure. But. Bad Topaz is like giving me Bad Place Janet vibes or something."

"First of all, I hate that I know what you're talking about," Topaz grumbled, though she was a little less bitter. "Second... yeah, I know she's not me, and that I'd never do that, but she's...: She took a minute to gather her thoughts and hit Kyle (lightly) on the shoulder. "Magic is all about consequences. She's a very unpleasant look at what the consequences could be if I ever do mess up."

"Dude." Kyle danced out a back fist that didn't land, and followed it with another that did, light as a feather on one of Topaz's cheekbones. "I mean, I got one of those, but not from the future, he's just a legit psycho." He shrugged, skipped away from a low punch and then bopped Topaz on the top of the head with the padded side of his glove. "So, like, Maleficent bad, or like, Bellatrix bad, or like, Rasputin bad? Evil you isn't, like, a zombie, right?"

The bop on the head got him an unimpressed (definitely not at all slightly amused) look. "Not a zombie. Powerful enough to come up with the idea of time travel and accidentally break into another universe, mad enough to actually try it, so.... Maleficent with a mix of Bellatrix, I guess?"

Kyle's jaw dropped a little, and he took an involuntary step back. "Shiiiiiit. So, what, you guys get to, like, go fight evil you now?"

"It's either that or let a bunch of alternate-universe future kids do it.Which..." Topaz started counting off on her fingers. "One is six, one doesn't understand gravity, two? of them have a weird Shining twins thing going on, one is just angry at everything and wants to kill me, one is Clint's son, one is Kurt's daughter, and one is..." Her voice drifted off at the thought of Shakti. She shook her head. "It's probably best for everyone if we help."

"One of them is six?" Kyle squawked. "And he's not the one that doesn't understand gravity?" He shook his head, and then started to pull his gloves off. "Okay I know you wanted to hit a thing, and I'm great for that but yo, I think maybe you need a drink, or I dunno, pizza. Bagels. Pizza bagels. Like. This is just enough weird that I feel like you outta maybe get out of here for an hour just to process."

"I've probably hit enough things," Topaz admitted. Also she couldn't remember if she'd eaten yet today, the weird had started pretty early. "Pizza bagels and a drink sounds great."

"We gotta like, just assume food first, all our serious talks end up with me buying you a bagel. Just once I want to do that before you punch me."