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quaranmeme2018-05-20 02:35 pm
riverview: may test drive meme
riverview test drive memeWelcome to Riverview's test drive meme! Feel free to dip your toes in on the test drive meme to try out your character in the setting, play out a mission, and get samples for your application at the same time!
● There are currently 34 Character Slots available.
● Reserves are currently CLOSED. Applications are currently OPEN and will close on June 7th at 10:00 pm EST.
● Providing all parties are amenable, threads on the test drive meme can count as game canon, as the plot in the prompts presented is game canon.
● TDM threads do not count for Activity Check, but they do count for Activity Bonus Points, so long as all characters involved are accepted into the game.
● Threading on the TDM is intended for prospective new characters, so top-levels should only be posted by players of these characters. Since the events in the TDM are considered game canon, characters currently in the game are free to use the TDM prompts for logs and posts on the regular communities.
Feel free to use the prompts below or create your own scenario. The setting is built to be flexible, so feel free to make things up as you go.
information resources
premise ● arrival ● setting ● exploration progress report ● ask a question ● calendar ● navigation
Something strange has been happening in the city over the past few weeks, and it's starting to get kind of serious - people are disappearing. It started with a little girl whose parents are still convinced and terrified that she wandered off into the jungle to the north of the city, and things have only gone on from there. So far, a total of 10 children ranging in ages from five to their teens have gone missing, most last seen near one of the exits at the city walls or near where the river flows through the fences of the Inhabited City.
Today, it's reached the point where it's becoming a bit of an emergency. With so many sightings near the exits to the city, the government and Perimeter Guard have set up a joint search project, and are requesting volunteers to help scour the jungles in search of the missing kids. Any volunteers or members of the Perimeter Guard are offered a handout with images of the kids and will be forming a grid to search the entirety of the jungle. Which won't be easy, because it's not just a jungle out there - it's dangerous!
Normally, living inside the Inhabited City is a pretty safe bet. You can go day to day without running into a monster or risking any kind of danger requiring a fight. Generally, the tall, laser-fenced walls keep out anything particularly dangerous.
The problem with walls? They only go so high.
While usually assault from airborne monsters isn't a problem that's on the map, as residents who've been around for a while might remember from last year, there's a few weeks during late spring where a swarm of flying monsters not unlike feathery pterodactyls are migrating back to another part of the moon. They're only in the area for a couple of weeks, but during that time, residents can expect occasional attacks by swooping monsters if they should see easy prey. Usually, a good sturdy dark-colored umbrella is enough to keep them from seeing a potential victim or meal, but sometimes the attacks still happen. So the Perimeter Guard sends extra details, calling in all the reserves, to patrol the city and keep an eye out for citizens in distress. There's also a general call for anyone who's experienced at fighting to help protect their fellow citizens. Whether your character is being attacked or protecting someone else, be prepared - these monsters are quick and have very sharp teeth.
It's been all over the news lately, the restoration of the old abandoned Amusement Park that was successfully cleared out and repowered, and is gearing up for a grand opening. However, thanks to a team led by Aecinos Ixocia and the technical expertise of Aoba Seragaki, there's another entertainment feature that was powered up and cleaned up at the same time, and is ready to open over the weekend - the Hot Springs!
Flyers and other advertising has been put up all around the city to alert city residents to the fact that the springs are opening, and expounding the various amenities and activities that the springs have to offer. Among the touted features are mineral hot spring pools of various temperatures ranging from cool to near-boiling, said to have healing qualities that moisturize and soothe the skin, as well as whisking away stress. There are a lot of testimonials to the fact that the springs have had an impact on chronic pain, headaches, and even temporary, acute illnesses.
If soaking in a hot tub isn't your thing, there are also lap pools, a wave pool, and even a few waterslides that are cleaned up and running smoothly - there's an easy and medium one for the less adventurous, but the other two slides are pretty harrowing! There's also a lazy river with inner tubes intended for couples or groups of friends to laze on and enjoy the warm spring weather. For those with something a little more frisky in mind, there are special tubes intended for romantic pairs or groups that go through a Tunnel of Love that lasts for 10 minutes and affords a pretty decent amount of rose-tinted privacy for lovers to enjoy.
Ever heard of Tough Mudder, the Spartan Race, or Ninja Warrior? Well, something similar is brewing in Riverview. With the weather warming up, several companies in the city have contributed to the construction of a difficult obstacle course with three different levels of difficulty to make it challenging for people of all fitness levels. Featuring just about any obstacle you can think of, it tests participants' running, jumping, climbing, and other athletic prowess. It also tests participants' teamwork skills, since several of the obstacles can't be overcome without a little help from a friend or stranger.
But what about people with super powers? Isn't that an unfair advantage? Yep! It sure is! Any participants in the Mud Run are required to use a power dampener of some sort if they're super powered, so everyone is on the same level. Have fun with that!
Whether your character is posting up a silly word game, trying to get hold of a friend, or putting out feelers for people to go out into the fray with, the network is going strong.
Alternately, an offer for a free app is popping up on new arrivals' devices - Friendr is a friend-finder and/or dating app. If characters choose to install it, they will fill out a short bio and parameters for what they're looking for, upload a snap of themselves, and then proceed to browse for matches. This is a typical swipe-left-or-right type app.
Friendr base code is by photosynthesis.
The code in the textbox is for the default color scheme, but the Friendr app has a wide variety of themes, so feel free to customize with colors and patterns as you see fit, but do not remove the credit line out of respect for the creator of the code.
Use the wildcard prompt to choose your own adventure and do whatever else you like in the setting!
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and billy squeezes teddy's fingers tight, purses his lips together before shaking his head a little. )
I don't--think that's a good idea right now.
( cheek kisses are one thing and it's weird that it's not--it's weirder that he has to say that out loud, but. )
Kids first?
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[That-- actually stings more than he thought it would, but if there's one thing he's good at doing, it's pretending things are okay, that they don't hurt. He's definitely feeling the need to do that right now, so a quick, easy smile to show it's fine and he's turning to look around their surroundings.]
Definitely. Come on, B. I don't want to waste too much daylight here... I have some pictures of the missing kids if you think you can do a location spell easier with those.
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because it's not that simple anymore. )
Teddy, I-- ( bad timing, they're supposed to find kids, work together, but teddy's smiling like things are okay, like they're going to be okay, and it won't be. ) I love you, I do, and I would never lie to you about that. I'd never hurt you intentionally. Hell, I'd, ( take a gun and do whatever it took to save teddy if it came down to it. teddy's always been that much more important to him than anything else. ) I'd do a lot to make sure nothing hurt you. But I don't want to lead you on either. . Loki's here, a Loki who doesn't exist back home anymore as he does here. He died again, was reborn. But he's here and we're--dating. Have been for a while. And I love him, too--but that doesn't mean I love you any less either. I'm sorry. I don't know how to--lessen that any. Make it easier.
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And no, things really aren't okay, and apparently Billy doesn't need him to pretend they are either. He takes a step back, recoils like he's been punched in the stomach -- but even he knows that'd be a lot easier to take than that.]
So that's why you didn't want to go back... was all that earlier, that promising to come back with me, that I'm important-- it was lip service wasn't it?
[So much for trying to not be angry at Billy, for trying to be understanding.] Loki, Billy? Really?
[Teddy knows that weird little kid that just showed up, that tried to take Billy's powers once already, the former villain. How is he even supposed to wrap his head around that?
He feels suddenly left behind, out of place, and with no idea how to fit in with any of it. Worse yet, he feels even more betrayed, even more disappointed. He wipes idly at his eyes, wanting the fresh tears gone.
He told Billy once that he was all he'd had and now he supposes he doesn't even have that. And whether it's his fault or Billy's, it doesn't really make it feel any less hopeless or painful. It also doesn't make him wish that he had a mom to go to, or just-- anybody, honestly.]
Billy, I can't do this. Don't-- just don't tell me you love me because right now? I really can't and don't believe it. Maybe you should go back to your new boyfriend and just forget you saw me. It'd be easier.
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how much more would telling teddy have hurt if he waited longer? if he'd held onto teddy's hand and nosed in against him, whispered how much he cares about him, kept him up. )
It wasn't lip service. I'd--I'd never just lie to you, Teddy. ( it comes out as broken as teddy looks, tone shaking just as much as billy's shoulders are. ) I'll come back with you, we just-- ( need to figure out a way to save loki, too, but teddy doesn't want to hear that. )
I do love you. I missed you so much. ( his heart hurts just having this conversation, but there's nothing he can do to fix that. this is a grave billy dug himself into. one he's not going to be able to get out of using magic (ha, could, but that'd be lying, manipulating, and he's not doing that to teddy. teddy deserves better) or his own strength. he gets it, how teddy felt. telling him he had to leave. this must be close, right? ) But I'm not going to--make this worse by lying. I won't forget I saw you, I won't forget this. I don't want to hurt you, please believe me. I'd never want--to hurt you.
( and hurting teddy hurts him. he still has teddy's hand, holds onto it tight, fingers shaking. )
I'm sorry.
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Even when he left, it wasn't that he hadn't trusted Billy exactly. He knew Billy wouldn't intentionally control him or hurt him. He wouldn't have intentionally wished up a boyfriend, let alone a boyfriend who'd have to watch his mother die with his own eyes.
Right now though? His trust is shaken and it hurts. Billy had always been enough for him. He could have lost everything else in the world, but he'd still feel like the luckiest guy alive if he had Billy with him. It's why he stuck with him, tried so hard to be what he needed through every depressive episode, could shoulder his own losses because of it.]
What if I don't want you to come back with me? [It's not true. He knows it even as he says it. He asked Billy to marry him -- and maybe partly as a desperate act to get him off the windowsill, to react to something, but mostly because he'd wanted to spend the rest of his life with him.
He just doesn't see how that can happen now. Billy's moved on and he hasn't even been given a chance to yet.]
Well, you did, Billy, whether you meant to or not. [He manages to squeeze Billy's hand back where he's still gripping it, though he still can't bring himself to look at him.
And it isn't even that what Billy is saying doesn't make sense. He'd rather know now than be lied to or have false hope, but it doesn't make it any easier to process. It feels like he really did end up in his worst nightmare.]
Right. I'm sorry I can't forgive you right now, Billy... or know when I'll be able to.
[If ever, really.]
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teddy's still holding onto him regardless. even though he's crying and looks like a giant disaster, even if teddy doesn't want him to come back.
and billy's slumping his shoulders, trying to keep himself from trembling too much. it doesn't help, much. he's tense and wound up, two steps away from laying down on the floor and trying to cease to exist again but. doesn't. not yet. he can't let himself fall to pieces. not in front of teddy, not now. )
I'm sorry, Teddy. I'm--s-sorry, I'm sorry.
( sorry but he's not making any promises. he's not leaving loki, regardless of how much this hurts. that'd--hurt even worse, he's sure. losing loki on top of teddy, on top of everything else. maybe he should. maybe hurting himself is the right way to go here.
maybe it's the only way to make this right. )
I don't. . expect you to forgive me. I don't. If you--don't want me to come back, 'll stay. ( it was his original plan anyway. ) I. . I'm sorry.
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[Teddy is too weak to that. Billy hurting has always been a weak spot, even if part of him wishes he could be petty about it, find some satisfaction in knowing Billy is hurting. He can't though. He's not that type of guy.]
And stop apologizing, then. It doesn't change anything, it doesn't make anything better. Besides, you were the one who already decided to stay. I'm just giving you what you want, and apparently it's not me, or your family, or home. You made your choice... I guess it wasn't me.
[He lets out a shaky sigh of his own, wipes at his eyes again. He should at least try to get himself together a little bit. He can't go and crawl into a hole yet after all. Maybe later, when he's away from Billy.]
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I. . I wanted to stay because I was afraid to go back. ( to face that head on. billy's learned to hide less, but when he does.. ) Don't bring my family into this.
( not when it's already his fault mother took hold of his parents. )
You're the one who left first, remember? I was just--staying away.
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[He lets out a sigh, heavy and tired.]
David suggested I go away for a bit, you know. Loki is the one who told me I might just be a nice little daydream of yours. I didn't know what else to do and I didn't have any better answers or advice to go off of.
[He wanted to write Billy a novel of all the things he meant to him, as a matter of fact. Maybe it had been dumb. Maybe he'd been weak. At least at the moment? He can be entirely certain that he's under his own control.]
And what was the point in being afraid if you knew it ended well? If you know Tommy is back and Mother is gone and we get back together? You turned your back on a happy ending.
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they're both tired of this though. billy's absolutely done, exhaustion set deep into his bones. he wishes he could just collapse right here, close his eyes for a little while. but that's not happening. deep breaths. in, then out. it's fine. he can do this. )
I--I was afraid I'd go back home and ruin it, at first. Ruin our good ending. Mess something up--cause it not to go as Loki said it would, but. . I still wanted to come back. I was still planning on it. ( this is still hard as hell. ) Honestly? I uh--I spent the first few weeks pissed at Loki. My roommates were a mess, my room was a disaster zone, I was either watching them be catty back and forth or--spending time at the Sanctum. ( this isn't what teddy wants to hear, but. ) Loki lives there. Every time I started to fall apart, he'd put me back together again. I needed it. And I guess he--got close to the other me who was here before. I don't know, I wasn't here, but.
He kept saying he was in love with me and I kept telling him there was no way anything was going to happen, because I love you and I always will. That there's no way I could ever love someone like I love you. ( it wasn't a lie, as far as he was concerned. every time loki got closer, billy told him to lay off. ) We spent a lot of time together, he--apologized for the whole mess, he said he was responsible for Mother, for our fight, for--all of it. Everything. I was pissed, but--
( but he forgave loki for it. and loki promised not to lie to him again. not like that. )
I never stopped loving you, Teddy. I don't think I ever will. But I--started loving Loki, too, even if I know how ill-advised that is. He's been good, he's been--trying to be a better person. But he doesn't exist back home any more, not as this Loki, but as another Loki, and I--I didn't want to mess up our future, I didn't want to go back and somehow undo the team saving you, saving Tommy, the New Years party I haven't been to yet and I didn't want to leave him here all by himself, because last time he was left by himself? He fell apart. Who's going to be here to help pick up the pieces for him, Teddy? He did the same for me. I got sick, I went into a coma and he went so stircrazy he didn't sleep for days. Read a science book. Loki. I don't--want to go back and mess up our happy ending, I don't want to be the thing that holds you back, either. I want you to get the best, and I don't know if I can do that. I don't know if I can fix everything, I don't even know if I should. And I definitely don't want to leave behind the person who has, every day, for the past--what, six months? Been there for me regardless of how shit everything was for him.
( something teddy's done for him for years. he knows that, too. )
I don't know what you want from me.
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And I get that you're scared, Billy, but you don't turn and run out! You can't fear yourself that much!
[He pauses, listening to Billy even as he tenses up, eyes narrowing. Loki is the lat person he wants to hear about right now, especially when Billy tells him about the lies. He pulls his hand away, arms crossing defensively.]
He's responsible for that monster wearing my mom's face and you're dating him? You didn't think he could tell you how to end it, that you couldn't--
[It doesn't matter. None of it's going to change anything and right now, he feels sick.] Well, I'm glad someone was here to put you back together.
[And even if his tone is rough, he does mean that. Seething or not, he can't imagine Billy being genuinely hurt or worse yet, hurting himself.
Although he does scoff a little. He'll have sympathy for Loki later, maybe, once he's calmed down. But right now? There's just a bitter little twinge that apparently Billy can sit and stroke Loki's hair and tell him it's going to be okay, but apparently not for him even if he's done just that for a year.]
So was I, Billy. My entire life was turned upside down, I watched my mom die in front of me, and our teammates, and I stayed with you. I told you everything would be okay and never asked you to do the same for me, even if it would have been nice once in a while.
[He shakes his head and lets out a tired sigh.]
I don't know... Nothing. I fell in love with a superhero who I thought was brave enough to face his fears, and I stayed with you even after you insisted being a hero ruined your life because you were everything I had left and I was glad for it. But-- I can't deal with this, Billy. With the Loki thing, or you being so scared of yourself all over again... or even worse.
[Because this is even worse than the past year as far as he's concerned, Billy running away, refusing to even go back because he's afraid he'll mess up what sounds like a sure thing.]
Hate or be angry at me for leaving or whatever, but if you can't even trust yourself... how did you expect me to? And it's kind of rich... you making me feel like an idiot for trusting Loki when you're trusting him with more than I ever did.
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He says he's responsible. I was still the one who brought it there. Who brought her into our home with your mom's face, because I was trying to do something nice. I was trying to be a better boyfriend. And look how that turned out!
( spreading gloved hands out to his side, gesturing to all of this. teddy, billy, where they are now. )
I want to be there for you, I want to tell you that it's all going to be okay, that this's gong to be fine, in the end. I'm sorry, I'm a bad boyfriend, I always have been--I know. I don't hate you. I could never hate you, Teddy.
( not even if he wanted to. not even if he willed himself to, tried to use every ounce of magic he has to hate teddy. there's nothing about him billy can think of to hate. he's--sweet, kind, tries his best even when he shouldn't. and teddy's always been a hero, even if billy--hasn't. even when billy has shut down, teddy was always trying to save someone. something. )
I'll always love you. I'm--sorry about this. About all of this.
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Like he didn't plan that out, come on. For whatever reason, he had to know you'd bring her here with Mom's face, and if he was just bullshitting to get me to leave you or to cause problems? Then he knew how to get you alone too! And he knew how to hurt me enough to do it.
[He takes a step closer to Billy, eyes narrowing on him. Really?] You weren't a bad boyfriend! Do you think I would have threatened to rip off Quicksilver's legs if you were a bad boyfriend? That I would have been worried to death when you single-handedly invaded Latveria, or asked you to marry me? No. You're the one who thought that. All I wanted from you was-- acceptance, Billy. That you let me be a hero, that you stop saying it ruined your life. I wanted you to stroke my hair once in a while-- those were all things that could be worked on! They were problems, but they didn't mean you were a bad boyfriend or a bad person.
[He can't even get properly angry. He's too worn out all of a sudden, too hurt, and all of this is just an open wound... it's all too fresh, too painful.]
Stop apologizing. It doesn't undo anything and right now, it doesn't make it better either.
[He makes an idle motion, shifting back into his Hulkling form. He could use a little armor -- both because he doesn't know what's out here or how dangerous it is and because maybe it'll at least make him feel a little less like the Teddy who let himself be led around by Greg all that time.] If you really want to do something for me, be a hero and help me find those kids. If not, then leave me alone for a while because I didn't volunteer to back out.
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( shut down, didn't say a word. needed teddy to be there to stroke his hair, tell him everything was going to be okay but could billy do the same? no. because he's a selfish asshole who can't even stop to see when his boyfriend needs him. )
You were always the hero, Teddy. My hero, everyone else's. ( no more tears, no more yelling. that's not going to help them. and billy--finally moves to release teddy's hand. tries to shake his loose. ) Let me see the pictures.
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[He'd tear someone apart for Billy if he had to. If he thought he needed to.]
I'm not that much of a hero... I'm not as good as you seem to think I am, or as strong. I'm not the popular one of the pair, Billy. [He feels like he's breaking apart at the moment, actually. He can claim to be a good actor at least.] Besides, you were always my favorite hero, Billy.
[And he's being honest there. But fine. He lets go of Billy hand with a shake of his head, trying to clear it, get it back on the job. He takes a moment to pull out the pictures and offer them out.] Here. It might be easier to focus on just one of them, if your magic is limited here.
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it's not a new feeling but it is so much more prominent than usual. he's never--had a problem being who he is. being loud about it. comfortable in his own skin but right now he wishes he were anyone other than billy kaplan.
the pictures get ignored for a moment, just long enough for billy to reach both hands up, cup palms around teddy's cheeks. look him straight in the eye despite how red and puffy his own are. )
You've always, always been my hero, Teddy Altman.
( but that's as far as he's going and as deep into it as he's going to get. they've been fighting for what feels like forever, and he's tired. a step backwards and billy grabs onto the fingers, blue magic sparking from fingertips as they raise to float just a bit away from him and he shifts back, sits himself down on the ground with legs crossed in front of him. )
It's distance-based. I can do anything I normally do, just not--more than fifty feet away or so.
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He doesn't feel like much of anything at the moment either.
But at least Billy pulls away and moves on to his spell. It's easier to focus on the task at hand, switch over to business mode.]
Okay, well... it's worth a shot anyway. I didn't see much from up above.
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but that's--later. right now, there's something he can try and do, something he can possibly handle, people who need help and he's--here. partially. he can handle this. eyes close and he rests his hands against his knees, letting his guard down just that much more to focus on trying to find this mess of missing kids. despite his and teddy's--their thing, he still trusts teddy to keep an eye out. keep him from getting hurt if anything jumps out of the foliage.
he's--horrendously quiet for several moments, hands outstretched and flecks of blue shimmering from fingers, from closed eyes, surrounding the pictures of the children and glimmering around him but despite his attempts, it's not long before billy's shaking his head and dropping hands, letting those pictures fall to the ground in front of him. )
We'll need to deeper into the jungle.
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Maybe he can just crawl into his bed and stay there for a while. Or find somewhere he can go to be alone at least. He doesn't really know.
But that's for later. Right now, he can't turn his back on people who need their help. He gives a short nod. He won't let anything happen to Billy, no. Teddy is nearly impossible to physically hurt, so playing shield to whatever might jump out at them isn't a huge deal. He can deal with that.
He won't let him be hurt if they venture any deeper in either.]
All right... let's get going then. We'll find a spot deeper in and you can try your spell again. They seem to think they're here, somewhere.
[He reaches down idly, gathering up the pictures.]
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flying's generally safer, but considering the current state of their. more sky-bound monsters. . maybe better to stay on their feet. deeper, he'd said, and billy does turn to start taking several steps even further into the jungle. )
If we can't find them, we can always go ask Doctor Strange for help.
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Don't do that. You have a new boyfriend and I know I wouldn't like it very much if you were out getting too close to someone else without my knowing it.
[And whether he likes it or not, whether he's happy being sucked into this bizarro world or not, it doesn't matter. He still has to accept it and set some boundaries.]
Doctor Strange? That-- might be a good idea... Do you think he's too busy? I don't know how much the Sorcerer Supreme has to do in an entirely different reality...
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He spent forever and a half going on about how he was only a pitstop, that the moment you came back, I'd leave him again. That we couldn't be boyfriend boyfriends because I'd be giving up too much, giving you up.
( it hurts. a lot. loki wasn't wrong. but he's not going to turn away from him either. )
We'll keep trying first, go to him if we can't. He--has a decent amount of things going on at home.
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[Not that he thinks he necessarily ever will, but-- it's not Billy's problem at the moment, it's his. Figuring out how to just be Teddy without Billy is going to be... daunting.]
Don't we all... I don't want to bother him if we don't have to. There are other people out looking too. They might come across them for all we know.
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This? This is the hardest thing I've ever had to do.
( he selfishly wants to lean into teddy, too. wants to hold onto him, refuse to let go. but he can't. )
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