1237/Where's Wally

Where's Wally
Date of Scene:	19 April 2020
Location:	Best Beans cafe, Metropolis
Synopsis:	Colette's Titan-wrangling schedule brings her to Wally West. They meet in a coffee shop and discuss cakes, philosophy, and Wally's return to the Tower.
Cast of Characters:	Colette O'Connail, Wally West

---

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    Although it has been three years, it's not uncommon for people to contact Wally about the Titans. They were big news three years ago, and a generation of American teens grew up with posters of the Titans on their bedroom walls. Even for a speedster there really isn't time in the day to give everyone the time they ask for.

    It had actually been the third message from one Colette O'Connail that really caught his eye. She claimed to be a friend of Gar's, but that tactic wasn't totally unusual. What was less usual was that she had mentioned that Gar had tried to contact the old team recently without much luck, which was a fact. Even more telling, she'd mentioned how she understood how much the death of Don and Kole had hit everyone and she didn't want to open old wounds, but she really would appreciate it if he could spare her a few minutes for a talk.

    Dove and Kole, the two Titans who had died during Doomsday. The loss had broken the Titans that day, three years ago. Yet Colette had used Dove's real name, Don. Maybe she did know Gar after all.

    Arrangements had been made to meet in a coffee shop on St. Martin's Island, in Metropolis. Not so far from the Tower - in fact it can be seen, rising up over the buildings at the end of the street, as Wally arrives at Best Beans, a small indie coffee shop that fills the street around it with the aroma of freshly roasted coffee.

    The inside of the coffee shop is small and comfortable, and equally aromatic. Wally's arrival is greeted with a wave by a blonde sitting alone at a table, presumably the Colette O'Connail he is there to meet. She looks about twenty, and is dressed in an expensive looking leather jacket, jeans and sneakers. "Mister West," she calls out to him, gesturing for him to join her.

Wally West has posed:

Let's be fair. Even Wally had a poster of the Titans on his wall. It was Donna. And that is why she has never seen the inside of his boyhood bedroom. And no, Wally doesn't have time to do everything people ask of him -- or rather, he does, but if he did everything people ask of him, they would never learn to do things for themselves, and Wally may be a nice guy, but he's not going to let the world grow up into a bunch of lazy, entitled brats because they know the Flash will do it for them. That was Superman's job.

If it hadn't been a particularly busy time, Wally would have responded to Colette's first message. It wouldn't have been hard for him -- he would just do what he's done now: race halfway across the country to check up on this woman, make sure she really is what she claims to be, and then either agree to meet (or just appear in her office about three seconds after he heard a message) or let Gar know somebody else was taking his name in vain.

The Don thing was a tip-off, sure, but there are people who knew who Don Hall was who might have issues with the Flash. Grodd would have had no trouble getting that name from somebody or other. Despero, a white Martian, Doctor Destiny, Psimon...

But Wally agrees to meet. Because yeah, this checks out and doesn't even require a call to Gar. He is running a minute or two late, but that's practically on time for Wally West. People have said that speed powers are wasted on him, given how he loses track of time so easily. But he has so much in a day compared to other people, and sometimes that means he doesn't know how much has gone by.

Wally has ditched the Flash costume in favor of a casual jacket and jeans combo. If he needs his costume he'll have it in a flash. No pun intended. And this way he's not getting bugged by kids who want autographs over and over. He crosses the room and settles at her table. "Ms. O'Connail. Very nice to meet you," he says, an easy grin on his face. Wally, whether in his civilian gear or as the Flash, is a people person.

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    Colette greets Wally with a smile and stands up to offer him her hand. "And you. Please call me Colette. I appreciate you making the time to see me like this. Would you like a coffee? Something to eat? Please, order whatever you'd like." She gestures over to the server, who wanders across to take Wally's order.

    "Your time is precious," Colette says as she sits down again, "So I'll try to keep this reasonably brief. I've met a few of your old team-mates now. Caitlin, Nightwing, Kori and Raven too. From what I have seen what happened to you guys was hard to deal with. I'll do my best not to poke at any old wounds." She gives another smile, softly sympathetic, and takes a sip of her coffee.

    "Cutting to the chase, Mister West. I met Gar a couple of months back. We've become friends. I've seen how much you all meant to him, and I know he's hurting. I don't know how it is for you, but for him, it's obvious the wounds have never healed. I'm guessing that's true for a lot of you."

    Colette shifts a little awkwardly, and gives an apologetic shrug. "The truth is, I've been trying to track down his old team mates and get them talking. I'm sure you've seen the news about some of the team getting back together. I'm not here to ask you to rejoin them. But I am asking you to go and visit, to see Gar and the others. I believe he needs that, to help the healing process complete. I don't know you, but maybe it would be good for you too, for the same reason."

Wally West has posed:
"Colette. Call me Wally," the redhead replies. "I have all the time in the world, kind of. So I'm glad to come see what's up. And any friend of Gar's..." He doesn't continue the proverb -- and it's not entirely true anyway. There are people Gar likes who Wally himself doesn't much care for. But it's true enough here.

"I'll take two slices of the lemon pound cake," he tells the server when they arrive. "And thirty-ounce mocha chip blended coffee with a chocolate swirl and extra whipped cream. Thanks!

"I can cover that," he adds after the server has left. "I need a lot of calories to keep up with my metabolism, you know?"

He listens to her spiel, and while he's absolutely paying attention, his eyes flicker around the room, his fingers tick at the table at high speed, feet tap, shifts in his seat. He is a speedster. He perceives the world at a much higher rate -- so Colette's regular-time talk is like a college lecture hour to a normal person of his age.

"I actually heard about the Titans getting back together," he says. "And I've been meaning to check in with them. I'm in the League and all, but we aren't exactly formal. If the Titans in general need me, I'm there for them. And if Gar needs people around him, I'm there for him in specific, too.

"What happened back then was awful. I almost gave up the costume. Again. And I'm not surprised that Gar's having a hard time with it. Or any of us. So yeah, I'll try and run him down soon as I can."

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    Colette waves away the offer to cover it. "It's the least I can do," she says with a grin. "Think of it as me covering the cost of your gas for the drive down." She takes a sip of her coffee, her eyes watching him with a glint of amusement over the rim of her cup.

    "Wally then. Thank you. Well, you're an easier sell than some of the others," she says. "Is it true that speedsters perceive time at a faster rate? Perhaps you've had longer to come to terms with it than the others have. They could use you there, Wally. I mean just... as people. Raven was in a particularly bad way. Something was very much not right there, but I'm told she's starting to heal now the others are there again."

    She gives him a speculative look, and tilts her head. "The League. Another group that didn't really... /come back/, after Doomsday. It hit everyone hard. A few people did give up the costume. A few others mostly just kept it up on their own. I guess that's a kind of defensive reaction, isn't it? If you're on your own, you don't have to worry about losing people."

    She gives a momentary frown, then smiles again. "It's interesting what's happening there." She nods her head in the general direction of the tower. "They do seem to be getting it back together. They have a few new members now, and a lot of the team is returning. Starfire and Troia are the latest; that hasn't been in the news yet."

Wally West has posed:
"Well, thank you," Wally says, smiling wryly. "And if I had to pay for gas, I'd definitely not have made the offer." Gas prices. Ugh. Being able to run the way he does is such a boon on so many levels. He's surprised Batman doesn't bankrupt himself just on gas for the Batmobile.

"To be fair, and no offense to Raven, she is rarely in a good way," the young man observes. "She's kind of dour by nature. But yes, I can understand how it would have hit her very hard. Empathy is a difficult power on a lot of levels.

"As for speedsters, I don't know that every speedster perceives time faster, but certainly I do. And Barry Allen..." He hesitates here. "I'm going to say 'does', but I haven't seen him in quite awhile and I don't know what's going on with him. Which is a major reason I kept the costume on. The world needs a Flash.

"The League is what it is. People who trust each other when they're in a bind. But the Titans were always more than a team. We grew up together, and brought others into the fold and made ourselves a family that wasn't just what was forced on us by biology. If I haven't been there for my family... I should have been. If they want me, I'm there."

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    "Yeah. I'm kind of seeing that, with Gar." Colette blinks a couple of times at Wally before averting her gaze to stare out the window. "That family thing. He really does feel it, that you guys were his family. You can sense how important that was to him. Like maybe it's the only real family he had. When I brought Starfire to the tower..."

    She stops herself mid sentence, gives a shake of her head and looks back to Wally, smiling. "It meant a lot to him. Like he couldn't quite believe his eyes at first. It... well I expect when you go back, you're going to have to deal with a Gar hug." Her smile breaks into a grin.

    "It's interesting... if you'll forgive me diving into a little bit of psychology, for a moment." She leans back in her chair, tilting slightly on the rear legs, and playing with her coffee cup. "What you guys were, compared to what the League was. Is, I guess. It seems to me from the outside at least that the League is very much a gathering of individuals. The Titans... yes, as you say, something more. People could see that, you know. When I was growing up, the Titans inspired people in a way the League never really did. Or the Avengers, for that matter. Because the other two seemed like they're just about /now/, and the Titans seemed like the future. What Gar's doing... getting the team back together? I hope it works. Not just for him. I think the world really needs that feeling again. That hope for the future."

Wally West has posed:
"As long as he doesn't turn into a sloth first. I can handle Gar hugs, but Gar hugs at sloth speed are a bit much -- it's like watching your aunt come closer in unavoidable super-slow motion." Wally grins at this. His aunt is his favorite biological relative.

He accepts his cake and supposed drink from the server when they return, slips the man a five. "I can at least cover the tip," he notes as he rapidly starts to dismantle the cake. "The League is a collection of independent heroes who handle huge problems. The Titans are a collection of heroes who know they can lean on each other. And over the last few years, maybe we haven't been that to each other as much as we should have been." His nose wrinkles slightly. "And the Avengers. Happy Hogan's Heroes." He may have some less than stellar opinions about 'Earth's Mightiest Heroes'.

"We were good together," Wally adds after a moment, during which about half of his non-trademarked Frappucino disappears. There was a wince that lasted a fraction of a second in there -- brain freeze. "Are you part of our new Titans, Colette?" he wonders. "I know Gar's friends with a lot of people, and I don't have a clue if you're superhuman. But I'm curious."

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    The image of slothGar elicits a laugh from Colette that happens before she's even really aware she's about to do it. "Oh my God. Sloth Gar. That's... quite an image. I've seen him turn into a number of things but never a sloth. For all the image you summon of predatory aunts, I think I'd like to see that."

    Colette lowers her chair again with a slight snap, and picks her coffee up again. "It makes a difference, I think. When you have a group of individuals, they all have their own ways of doing things, and that means they're not really learning from each other. Don't get me wrong, it's great to have them. We all owe our lives to them. To you. The attack in New York, Doomsday... the world has problems that only you guys seem to offer a solution to. But individuals aren't a long term solution. People learning together are. New generations. That's what's happening with the Titans now."

    Colette gives a slight shake of her head. "I'm not on the team, no. There's an archer, Hawkeye. Not the Avenger's one, she just stole his name. A guy who can turn into a cat-man. Another one who I haven't met yet, apparently she just joined up the other day. And Kian, an alien bird-man. That's kind of how I got involved, I was there when he arrived on Earth. Crashed into the sea, and I dragged him out. I met the cat guy, he met Gar, he introduced to the two of us, and I introduced them to the bird guy and then the archer. I guess that's kind of how it all kicked off."

    She sips her coffee, watching Wally demolish the cake with amusement. "If you want more, just go ahead and order. I guess that's my superpower, I was born into a rich family. I can afford it. And I can afford to hire a few PIs to track down Gar's old team mates and try to talk them into going back and seeing him. Good for him, hopefully good for them. It may not be saving the world, but it's my way of helping I guess."

Wally West has posed:
"Oh, most of the time he's more like the sloth at the DMV in that Disney movie. Another reason I'm glad I don't drive," Wally observes. "But a sloth coming in for a hug? Sloths are clingy. They like to grab things and hold on. And to me it's like watching a car crash happening that I can't stop. Not a comment on Gar's hugs -- just sloths."

Wally nods his understanding, still fidgety -- because that's how he is -- but definitely focused. It's just he's capable of focusing on a lot of things at once because none of them take that much of his attention to follow. "Us and the X-Men," he notes. "They're kind of familial themselves. And most of them are about the same age group. Maybe that new hero school will get some traction that way. We'll see.

"A cat-shifter. A bird guy. Hawkeye. So... there's a definite animal theme going here. I'm not sure if we should be the Titans or if I need to put on a red giant cat mask and call myself 'Red Cheetah'." He grins at this. Just kidding around.

"I'm okay for now. I'll probably grab something for the road on my way out. I'm not exactly rich, but I provide a service that a lot of people will pay a lot of money for, and it takes almost none of my time. So I live comfortably. For somebody who spends most of his time battling giant gorillas and guys who can create glaciers."

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    "Not to mention Ravens and Robins, Hawks and Doves," Colette mentions with a laugh. "The animal theme isn't new," she points out. "I figure Gar is just following the trend. Cat-guy rather sticks out from the bird theme, though apparently Tameraneans are evolved from a species that was something not completely unlike cats."

    She takes a thoughtful sip of coffee. "You know... the X-men limit themselves. They have an agenda. It's not like it's one I disapprove of, but it's an agenda that is focused on the problems of the present. A problem that needs to be solved for sure, but once that problem is solved, where do they stand? The Titans is inclusive. Metahumans, mutants and magi. Aliens, Amazons and androids. Well, cyborgs anyway, but I was enjoying the alliteration."

    "What you guys had..." she stops and corrects herself. "What you guys /have/ is something unique. It's not just about fixing the present, it's hope for the future. "

    Colette stops herself, blinking, and looks slightly embarrassed. She may have just caught herself lecturing. "Sorry. I guess I've been doing quite a bit of thinking about this all since I met Gar."

Wally West has posed:

"We'd take an android too, if one presented him-, her-, or itself," Wally replies, the corner of his mouth quirking upward. "I think the X-Men recognize that it's a battle they're going to be fighting for a long time, and that they need to show they're the good guys, and that they're not going to take that sort of prejudice lying down. I mean, we've come almost sixty years since Martin Luther King was assassinated, and still we've got racism -- both systemic and personal. There is a lot of good in the world, and there's a lot of evil as well. We have to combat it in our own ways, and I'm positive, even if they're not going to let a non-mutant on their team, they're happy to work with us when they have the chance." He pauses a moment, thoughtful. "May have to go introduce myself to 'em," he adds.

"See, here's the thing: fixing the present creates hope for the future. We can't tackle the future, and so when we do what we do, we are dealing present problems. The effect is to say 'We are here and we are going to do this every time we have to, from now until we just can't anymore.' By dealing with problems in the present, we create hope for the future. The X-Men do the same thing. But they are dealing with problems for a specific group of people, not for everybody. When they don't have to deal with that particular problem anymore, I'm pretty sure it'll look a lot more like general hope for the future."

A hand waves. "Don't worry about it. I get this stuff on the brain all the time. Perceiving time from such a high speed, I have time."

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    Colette doesn't have the advantage of living at high speed to think things through, but she has the benefit of the memories of lives previously lived, in particular a centuries-old Martian philosopher. That does help make up for living at normal speed.

    It also gives her a rather unusual perspective. Although she was 'born' decades after King's assassination, she can't quite help herself from thinking in terms of centuries rather than decades, and that's rather a hard thing to explain.

    "You may be right about them," she concedes. "Hopefully as the world grows up more, they will feel less ghettoized by the hostility of sections of larger society, and will become a more integral part of that society. More accepted. That would be good to see."

    Colette drains the last of her coffee cup and puts it down with a smile. "And you are right that dealing with the problems of the present creates hope for the future. But it does not necessarily create /solutions/ for the future. The Titans... I think you guys are shaping something unique there. Not just a hope for the future, but a model for it. How to solve the problems that the universe is going to throw at us here on Earth, and if the last few years has told us anything, it's that the universe /is/ going to throw problems at us. We don't have the answers to those problems yet. But a true team rather than a group of individuals, open to all that humanity and beyond has to offer, and learning from each other rather than sticking to individual dogmas? I'm pretty sure that's the way we get to figure out those answers."

Wally West has posed:
"Well, one thing we could do would be to get a mutant on the team," Wally observes. "But yes. I think we've built something good, and we're going to keep building on it. Now that we're back in action." He leans back in his seat a little, stretching his arms. "But we've always been inclusive -- willing to welcome anybody who was willing to welcome us. Sometimes that didn't work out for the best, but..." A shrug then. "We have managed to muddle through, mostly intact." During this most recent speech, the remainder of his cake has disappeared, and he glances toward the counter speculatively. Then apparently decides against more food. For the moment.

"I think we're going to do fine. We're going to -be- fine. Gar included. I'll go find him soon as I can. Is he... leading the team?" This is said with a hint of concern. Gar is a great guy. But Wally is not entirely convinced of his leadership skills.

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    Colette notices Wally's glance towards the counter, and with a grin she waves a hand in that direction. "Really, if you're still hungry. Please, I'd be glad to treat you."

    "I do actually know a mutant who might work out as a Titan," Colette says thoughtfully. "And maybe you're right that the mere fact of having a mutant on the team is an inherently valuable thing. I'm not certain he's really ready for it though, he's rather... young." A slightly odd thing to say given the age many of the Titans started at.

    "Honestly though I have a suspicion that the entire thing mutant thing is overblown and when the science is fully understood, a lot of people are going to feel rather foolish. We identify a particular genetic marker and call the people who bear that marker mutants, while other people without that specific genetic marker show up with powers and we call them metahumans instead. "

    There's an item of unspoken intelligence behind what she's saying. Colette isn't a biologist, but she's one of the very few people around today that know that twenty millennia ago the White Martians attempted to surpress the metagenic potential of the human race. It's a solid guess that the X-gene is simply an expression of a genetic inheritence that was particularly resilient to the Martian meddling. That's not really something you can drop into a conversation though.

    "Gar leading... probably wouldn't be the best idea," Colette says a little cautiously. Whether she's reading his concern or simply expressing her own is not clear. "I love the guy, but he's not a tactician. He's a people person, and that's important. He brings people together, and makes them feel better about themselves. Long term? Well, yeah. I guess that's a problem you guys are going to have to find a solution for, because I don't get the impression Nightwing wishes to return. Not full time, at least."

Wally West has posed:
"Colette," says Wally. "You ever here that story about the Hulk and Captain America around the time everything went down? I don't know if it's true or not, but Hulk is in non-Hulk form or something like that, and Cap asks him about whether or not he has the rage to pull off this fight. And Hulk says to him, 'That's my secret, Cap. I'm always angry.'" Wally grins. "That's my secret, Colette. I'm always hungry."

He nods his understanding. "Youth is not a bad thing among the Titans. We kind of train our own replacements. Robin puts on the Nightwing garb? We've got a new Robin coming down the pike. That sort of thing. But while I agree with you -- mutants are people, and maybe they're the next step in our evolution, but there's no reason to be scared of them when there are human beings like me and Green Lantern around. All of that. While I agree with you, there are a lot of people who still don't think of African-Americans as people. I live in Kansas. I was born in Nebraska. I have lived with those racist idiots all my life."

Wally might have uttered a sigh of relief. Certainly there's a quick puff from his side of the table. If he did, it was too fast to be noticed. "Gar is definitely a people person. A great guy. A good friend. But I'm not sure about a leader. If we have Donna on board, though... she'd make an excellent leader. I'm assuming Nightwing's not on board for the ride yet. I'll have to go bug him in Bludhaven."

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    Colette answers Wally's grin with a grin of her own. "My secret is my father's credit card. It's probably deep enough to defeat even your hunger, he owns a large construction company. I mean he's not exactly Lex Luthor, but this place will run out of cake before I run out of credit."

    Colette places a finger on the rim of her coffee cup, and starts spinning it idly, just something to do. The energy-filled speedster will be familiar with such idle motions. "Youth is good. Youth is your strength in a lot of ways," she says. "Hell I'm only twenty myself. You were what, sixteen when you joined the Titans?" She tilts her head to the side. "This guy though. I mean he's skilled, smart. I'm pretty sure he has what it takes to be an asset. But he's kind of... I'm not sure he's quite ready. In his mind. Had a hard childhood, things to work out. He has a friend, not a mutant, but similarly very skilled. Both of them could become great Titans, but I think they have a little growing up to do." She breaks into a thoughtful smile. "Hopefully they'll do that fast."

    "Donna... Troia. Yeah, she might be a good leader," Colette says, watching Wally's face thoughtfully. "Or, there's you. You're a smart guy, Wally. That's been pretty obvious to me from this conversation. Maybe that's not a notion that's even crossed your mind, but perhaps you should think about it." She gives a wide grin. "If nothing else, you'd have more time to think through the options and figure out the right course of action than anyone else would."

Wally West has posed:
Wally shakes his head. "You're going to spoil me," he observes. "Cafe baked goods when I usually have to make do with protein bars and Hostess cakes. Which, I have to note, seem to be the center of the crimes of a lot of REALLY stupid villains." Pause. "Also Snickers bars just the last couple of years. I don't get it. but there you have it. I was fifteen -- it was before my birthday when I joined the team."

He considers the description of this kid who Colette knows. "I think most of the early Titans had pretty lousy childhoods -- it's why we came together as a family the way we did. Nightwing was an orphan. My parents were just kind of rotten. Everybody had something. Once we get things better organized, you'll have to tell us more about these two."

Wally does not laugh at the suggestion that he could be a leader, but he does give a wry smile. "It's not exactly a secret, but not really common knowledge. I can lend some of my speed to other people. They won't be as fast as me, but fast enough that they can think faster than our enemies. Assuming they're not speedsters. Anyway, I'm smart enough, but I don't know that the Titans are ready for me to lead, or vice versa."

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    "Oh I certainly will tell you more about the pair when the time is right," Colette agrees. "But they are both kind of... it's complicated." She gives a slight frown. "There are things both of them have told me in confidence, so I can't really go into details. Just when I say trouble childhoods, it's kind of... in ways that would impact their dynamics with the group. There are certain demons that they both need to overcome."

    Colette leans back, tapping a finger against her lip thoughtfully. "You know, I think it's pretty much de rigeur for any leader to be thrust into things before they feel they are ready. The ones who think they are ready tend to be the ones with too much ego to make great leaders. Maybe you /should/ consider throwing your hat into the ring."

    Colette holds her hands out, and spreads her fingers wide. "But, not my business. I want to help you guys out where I can, but I'm not a part of the team and I don't have a say in this. /Shouldn't/ have a say in this. It's important you guys listen to each other, not to me."

Wally West has posed:
Wally chuckles softly. "Given how much effort you're going to, bringing the band back together, it would probably be a good thing to listen to your opinions. So, you know, I'll think about it. And talk to Gar and Donna and Kori and Raven." Kori has some leadership qualities herself, at that. Things to consider. "And we'll figure it out.

"Thank you for bringing me out here, Colette. I meant to get in touch with everybody, but it looks like they need me more than I thought. And I know I need them, too." He flashes a grin. "I'll talk to them, and we'll be in top shape in no time."

Colette O'Connail has posed:
    Colette waves away the praise and thanks with a self-deprecating sweep of her hand. "It's the least I could do for a friend. If I'm not going to help Gar beat up bad guys, at least I can help him see his family again. "

    She grins wide. "Well, that and buy his friends enough cake to sate them and save them from having to hunt down Hostess-cake-and-Snickers stealing gangsters so they can eat the evidence."

    "Thank you for taking the time to speak to a total stranger," Colette says, holding her hand out across the table to offer a shake. "It was a pleasure meeting you, Wally. I can see why the others liked you. I'm sure they're all going to be really hyped to have you showing up again. Also..."

    She leans forwards, grinning, and whispers in a conspiratorial voice "The tower is sooo cool. I'm sure you miss it!"

Wally West has posed:
"I have never eaten the evidence," Wally says, affecting a shifty-eyed sort of look. "That's hearsay, libel, or possibly slander since I forget which one is spoken and which one's in print. I'll sue!" A wink as he rises. "Hey, a friend of Gar's is generally a friend of mine. You seem to meet the qualifications, Colette, and I'm very glad to have met you. I'm definitely looking forward to getting back to the Tower, though -- it's a great place to hang out and play ping pong with myself, if nothing else."

The speedster stretches his arms back behind him, twists his neck from side to side. "I need to run," he says apologetically. "I have a delivery to make. Pick-up's in about two minutes, delivery in four. Gives me time to stop in Italy along the way to grab gnocchi. See you around!" His costume pops from a ring on his right hand, and then the Flash is there, and then the Flash is gone.

Leaving poor Colette to deal with stares from people who want to know who this girl having coffee with the Flash was. Talk about speed dating, right?