11574/What Can't My Reflection Show...

What Can't My Reflection Show...
Date of Scene:	12 June 2022
Location:	Roof - Titan's Tower
Synopsis:	That moment when your boyfriend is better at being you than you.
Cast of Characters:	Terry O'Neil, Gar Logan

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Terry O'Neil has posed:
"The reason I chose this-" Terry gestures to the water, "Is because illusions aren't all that different from reflections, if you think about it."

The redhead is sitting at the edge of the hot tub, his legs dangling into the water. The tub is not on, and the water is fairly placid. Terry's in his customary swimsuit- the red-and-black squarecut and a white tank top. "You could think of reality as your pool of water, and what's in your mind as what you want it to reflect. Admittedly, I got the idea of trying it like this from the Lord of The Rings... you know, the Mirror of Galadriel and all that." He looks up at the green Cheshire and grins.

"So now just take a deep breath and try to imagine something inside you, and try to show its reflection on the water. Make it something simple, not too complicated..."

Gar Logan has posed:
Back with the cat in Gar's possession, there is time for another lesson, or at least the beginnings of one. Illusions.

He's not touching the water, while the somewhat pale redhead has his legs in it. With the jets off, there's no churning of the water save whatever Terry does with it himself. "Or a saucer of milk, but that's cloudy," he interjects when the idea of the pool being reality and reflections and this and that is explained. "And it figures that you'd get it from a movie."

But more to the point, he indicates the surface of the water. "Like..imagine it appearing?" He squints at it, and gestures with a hand up. In his head, a puppy.

<DICE ROLLER> Gar Logan rolled 1d20 <20> + 0 = 20

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"And don't be too hard on yourself if at first you don't succe-"

His words trail off as a very visible image of a puppy flashes across the water. The redhead blinks a couple of times, and then glances up at Gar, and then back down at the water.

"... eed. Well. If that isn't. Well."

He glances up at Gar, and then back at the water again. "Well... that wasn't hard. Okay. Now, try to make the puppy move across the water. Imagine that it is suddenly dog-paddling in the reflection, and then... try to make it emerge from the water, as if it were a three-dimensional image."

Gar Logan has posed:
"Like that?" Gar asks, that grin forming again, an audible purr in place. Did he expect this? Not exactly. It just happened. Maybe he has such a strong connection to animals that imagining one is like child's play to him.

Might've done a kitten, but the idea of a puppy paddling in the water is easier to accept. Now, it's on to making it actually act, and swim, and possibly even rise up.

Biting his tongue gently, it sticks out of his mouth half an inch or so. Imagine..this!

<DICE ROLLER> Gar Logan rolled 1d20 <17> + 0 = 17

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Terry raises his eyebrows and takes a breath. "... very well done!" he says, and looks up at him. "I swear, your powers did a great job of preparing you for this. Then again, why am I not surprised. You're my starfish boy," he smiles gently and reaches over to touch Gar's cheek with his hand before sitting back, legs splashing the water a little. "Okay... so now you've got the puppy there. Give him some more detail, because if you see him, he's pretty generic. Try adding some details- an ear flipped inside-out, a collar. For extra credit, try to visualize a nametag and a name on the collar."

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan reacts with a bright smile. "Maybe I've been studying you more than you know. Maybe I'm just a natural at this." The tip of his green tail flicks and thumps where it rests, and he brushes against the fingers for a moment. Surely that won't distract at all. Right?

His head tilts, and his ears turn sharply back toward fleshing out the now 3D pup. Ear, collar, a nametag, 'Fido' on it, maybe a wagging tail, a bouncy demeanor. He pools his concentration again to make it so.

<DICE ROLLER> Gar Logan rolled 1d20 <9> + 0 = 9

Terry O'Neil has posed:
As Gar concentrates, and Terry touches him, there must have been some distraction, because the dog's ear pops, but his tail does not wag. "I may have been testing you to see if you could stay focused. You'll encounter all sorts of distractions on the field. You'll need to learn to deal with them without compromising the integrity of your illusions. SO..."

He scoots around until he is right next to Gar, and puts an arm around him, resting his nose against his neck. "Try again. And try not to get distracted." Nuzzle.

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan pffts. "Evil." In spite of that, Terry is probably right. When distractions aren't too much, it's only natural he can make things work better. It's what happens when those distractions grow and the cat wants to divert attention to those that it begins to fall apart. Look at how well things were going with the practice session, until it mostly fell apart.

Now with Terry in a position to better take advantage of things, the nuzzle causes his body to straighten while still in its seated position, something to balance against the dog's details. He's got the ear, but can he make that tail wag? Make that collar and nametag?

<DICE ROLLER> Gar Logan rolled 1d20 <17> + 0 = 17

Terry O'Neil has posed:
And then there's the tail, wagging, and the collar and nametag. He squints. "... TERRY? Why you," he gives Gar a pinch on the butt with a mischievous grin, "Smart-alec." He looks at the illusion. "Alright, let's up the ante. Dismiss the puppy now and try putting an illusion on yourself. This is going to be more complicated because you can't /see/ yourself unless you're using a mirror. But for this exercise, let's use a bit of hard mode since you are doing so well... imagine an image of what you want to look like, and then think of yourself as the water. Reflect it upon yourself."

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan gives the tag a closer look, then grins and shrugs with his hands up. "Nobody's perfect?" he claims, but the pinch gets him to squirm. In fact, it causes him to rise to his feet, rub that spot, and squint at Terry before listening to the instructions. He's always been a 'learn by doing' sort, usually chucking the instruction booklet without even opening it. For this step, putting an illusion on himself..that could be a greater challenge, for sure. The puppy is there, then not.

For the next trick, he imagines himself dressed like Mistoffelees from Cats, the black and white 'tuxedo' look from his song performance. It's a familiar thing to both of them. The trick will be getting it to show up. "Okay, do you see anything?" he asks.

<DICE ROLLER> Gar Logan rolled 1d20 <20> + 0 = 20

Terry O'Neil has posed:
There are a few moments of silence, and then Terry reaches over to Gar, "Here, take a look at your reflection. Take a good, close look." He gestures towards the water, where Gar's reflection will show a perfect rendition of Mister Mistoffelees. "Examine it closely. Do you notice anything?"

<DICE ROLLER> Terry O'Neil rolled 1d20 <10> + 0 = 10

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan can tell from Terry's reaction that it must have been good. How good? As he moves over to peer at the water's reflection of himself, it's spot on, as perfect as it can be. "Yeah, I'm starting to think I'm seriously good at this," he says, visibly preening, tail swishing with pleasure from the high rate of success thus far. Hands rest at his hips, and he turns slightly for another angle.

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Terry's hand comes up to pat Gar's butt, which is the closest thing he can pat from his sitting position by him, "Yep, you are absolutely disgustingly good at this, my love," Terry says with a playful lilt to his voice as Gar admires his handiwork.

The question is: Is he too distracted to notice when the pats turn into a push, to dunk the Green Cheshire into the hot tub?

Gar Logan has posed:
<DICE ROLLER> Gar Logan rolled 1d20 <4> + 0 = 4

That would be a no!

Initially, there's a shift in body language in a positive manner from the patting, but the trick is sprung soon after. Caught up in his own hubris, not to mention self-admiration, limbs flail along with a sudden "Whoa!" as Gar tumbles into the water, unable to even form a rabbit hole to save him.

He leaps out with an indeterminate shout, water dripping everywhere. Sopping wet Cheshire. "Hey!!" Eyes narrowing, he tries to illusion himself up a shoulder cannon with which to blast a glitter bomb at Terry!

<DICE ROLLER> Gar Logan rolled 1d20 <20> + 0 = 20

Terry O'Neil has posed:
And when the aftermath passes, Terry is covered from head to toe in green glitter. His hair is glitter. His closed eyelids. Everything. When he opens his mouth, the shock of pink and white stands in contrast with everything else.

"... I think I hear Donna laughing all the way from Themyscira right now..."

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan is left staring at his handiwork, at which point the cannon disappears and he rubs his hands together in satisfaction. "That's what you get," he says, shaking the water off before doing what cats do in licking at parts of the fur to clean up better.

Still watching Terry, he clears his throat. "I'll, uh, practice more. I think I have the basics." A too-wide grin of enjoyment follows. "So what do you need me to do when we go back? By the way, you might be getting glitter out of places for a while."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Terry slowly stands up. "What I need you to do is," he says, with a very slow smirk, "Is to come with me and help me get this glitter off." He steps out of the hot tub and starts marching towards the elevator. "Double time, Logan! You'll be graded on this, too." He looks over his shoulder and grins. His teeth, the whites of his eyes and his tongue are about the only thing that isn't green about him right now.

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan hmphs. There's still a smug expression on the feline face of the Cheshire Gar, leaving wet prints behind as he follows. "Try not to sneeze. You might go up in a puff of glitter," he deadpans. "And the way you look right now is making me think of things I shouldn't say, so I won't say them." He swats at Terry's hindquarters on the way.