13841/Hearts Across the (Phone) Line

Hearts Across the (Phone) Line
Date of Scene:	15 January 2023
Location:	Phone Conversation from Gotham to New York
Synopsis:	Carin gets lent a burner phone by the Outsiders after being rescued by them and waking up in their medbay. She gives Toni a call and more than one kind of connection is made over the wire.
Cast of Characters:	Carin Taylor, Toni Ho

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Carin Taylor has posed:
    Late night, Eastern Standard Time. Carin stares at a burner phone in her hands as she sits on the edge of a bed in a spare dorm room at the Roost. She turns it over and over in her hands and then sighs, closing her eyes. A moment later, she opens them, and unlocks the screen so she can dial.

     Moments later, a certain someone's phone starts ringing. It's an unlisted, unknown caller. A caller for a one 'Toni Ho' at this hour.

Toni Ho has posed:
Toni briefly considers letting it go to voicemail, but she answers it. "Hello?" She's safe in her and Carin's room in the Trisk, watching some archived stream of a streamer playing video games.

Not just any streamer, a VTuber.

Carin Taylor has posed:
    The voice on the other line lets out a relieved sigh. "...h-hey... Toni. It's. It's Carin.." she sounds both scared and relieved, the latter being that someone on the other line actually answered. It didn't go to voice mail. It didn't ring to nothing. It wasn't hung up. It's Toni's voice on the other line.

Toni Ho has posed:
Toni stits up straight, suddenly sounding worried. "Carin? Are you okay? ... You don't sound okay."

Nervous energy makes her get off the couch, starting to pace in front of it. She had been a little worried since Carin hadn't been back in a while.

Carin Taylor has posed:
    It had been a couple of days. She had headed to NYC to visit Ted and sort some stuff out for later and hadn't been heard from since she left. Now... Carin can be heard shaking her head. "...um. I'm. In Gotham. Cyberdata... tried to grab me again. And. Almost did..." she sighs. "..listen I can't.. I can't talk long. This is a burner phone. Some... local heroes rescued me... Con--Superboy, and Balm, and... Honey Badger... and... It's Red Robin's place?"

Toni Ho has posed:
Toni listens, somehow the worried frown is evident in her silence. "I've heard of these people. I'm glad they didn't get you, and I'm glad your safe and in friendly hands. What do you need me to do? Besides have some nice hot tea ready for you when you get back here."

Her free hand clenches into a fist. Cyberdata again. She's going to make it her personal mission to end them.

Carin Taylor has posed:
    Carin lets out a relieved little laugh, "...so... so they're good people? I mean. You trust them? Um. I mean. They gave me food. And. Some replacement clothes. I.. I guess just. Let the others know I'm safe? If. They were looking for me anyway.." There's a surprising amount of doubt in her voice over it. "I might be here a couple of days. Maybe... maybe come get me..? Or.. should I have one of them drop me off at the Triskelion? They... don't know I'm working with SHIELD yet. I wasn't.. sure how much to tell them yet. Should I?"

Toni Ho has posed:
She sounds a lot more relieved. "Well, Superboy's trustworthy. He wears the S, that's good enough for me. Red Robin, well, he's linked to Batman. So you can trust him, but don't expect to have secrets, he probably knows you're with S.H.I.E.L.D. already. I don't know the other two, honestly." A pause. "And I can come get you personally, if you want. We knew you were gone, but, well, I was the only one extremely worried. But you're my friend, and I figure you'd feel the same about me."

Carin Taylor has posed:
    Carin makes a tiny sniffling noise. "...I. I do. Thank you. It's. Been a long time since I.. had a friend.." she says, trailing off. Maybe she can't remember when she last had a friend. Maybe it was her sister. "A-anyway... where's.. a good place to meet in Gotham? I don't know this place very well, and... I think I'm in a secret hideout. It's.. kind of cool, actually.." she manages a laugh.

Toni Ho has posed:
Toni laughs a little. "I'm not super familiar with it either. Hold on," she says, moving to her computer terminal and pulling up a map of Gotham really fast. She scans it, squinting to try and find a suitable place.

"...Maybe Batburger? That seems landmark-y enough to find." She laughs a bit more. "Batman will probably be real mad at me when I land in the parking lot."

Carin Taylor has posed:
    Carin ponders, "...o-or.. shoot. Should. I just tell them to call you... when it's time for me to go..? Because... this phone's going poof.. when I'm done.. I don't.. want to leave you waiting somewhere. Especially here.." She sighs quietly, but does seem to be giggling quietly. "..wait.. Land? You--you'd...fly me back.. to our room? I mean. The.. Triskelion?"

Toni Ho has posed:
Toni makes a hmm. "That might be better, yeah. Have them call me when you're ready to go. And of course I will fly you back here. Why wouldn't I?" She sounds incredulous, almost pulling the phone from her ear to stare at it. She doesn't, but she almost does.

Carin Taylor has posed:
    It takes Carin a few moments to respond to that simple answer to her question. She can feel her pale cheeks turning red. She might be blushing so hard the phone's melting. Eventually, she finds her voice, sitting up straight on the bed, "..like.. how..? In.. in the.. armor? Carrying me?"

Toni Ho has posed:
Toni blinks so hard it's almost audible over the phone. Her pause is long and drawn out. "...Yes? I mean, how else would I come and get you?" She seems honestly confused.

Carin Taylor has posed:
    It's silent on the other side, but it's clear the line hasn't gone dead. There's soft, even breathing as Carin just stares at the wall. Her mind is wandering through various possible scenarios for being carried home by the Iron Patriot with Toni at the controls. Fireman? Backpack? Fulton Recovery System balloon? After the pause so pregnant it might start snowing, she finally speaks. It's a mixture of stuttering and a very tentative tone as the option her mind decides is the best, safest, and maybe the option she truly wants is the one to query: "l-like... like... like a.. princess..?"

Toni Ho has posed:
Toni does look at her phone during the long silence, making sure it's still connected. She worries in that moment too, wondering if something happened, or if the phone died. She almost jumps when Carin's voice, so quiet, comes through.

She laughs because the tension breaks. "How else?"

Carin Taylor has posed:
    There's a small noise, and Carin almost drops the phone. Her voice remains tiny, and she speaks fast, "I-I dunno... l-like.. a van? Or something?" she sputters. The girl is such a useless lesbian and some part of her is painfully aware of it. It's even worse because she has all the time in the world to think before responding. And instead all she does is mumble a follow-up to be sure, "..you'd... really... carry me?"

Toni Ho has posed:
Toni goes quiet, making a face. "I mean, a van would make sense, but flying is more fun. And I would absolutely carry you. We're a team, after all!" She kicks herself immediately for using that turn of phrase, but it's already out there now. She can't take it back.

Carin Taylor has posed:
    Yep. There it is. Carin's heart sinks. The heat filling her face gives rise to perspiration and she chokes. It could be one of those tasty gummi sharks Phoebe had given her, but in reality it isn't. She coughs, sputters, and not only does she speak way too fast, she speaks way too loud too. "Y-YES. Uhm! A team! A TEAM! That's it! That's all!" Poor Carin is /such/ a useless lesbian.

Toni Ho has posed:
Her tone is hard to describe. professional, but forced. "Right, so ...I guess have someone call me, and I'll come get you." Her own face is flushed with embarassment and disgust at herself that she could miss signals, or rather see some where there were none to begin with. Tears threaten the corners of her eyes.

Carin Taylor has posed:
    Carin can FEEL the tension over the line. She can hear every word in that tone. Every tiny inflection. In slow motion. The sudden chill after the jovial warmth stabs her like an icicle in the heart. She chokes back a lump in her throat, and whimpers a little. "...a..are... are we... more..... um.. more... than a team....?" she asks, and Toni's heard her go through a fairly wide range of emotions in the short time they've known each other, but now it's a volatile cocktail of fear and hope.

Toni Ho has posed:
Toni is very quiet for a long moment. It probably feels like hours. When she talks again, it's very quiet, and very nervous. "I ...I think. I think I'd like to be." The tears that threaten fall, and she scrubs her face with her sleeve. Why is this so hard? It's always hard, it always hurts.

The wrong answer might shatter her.

Carin Taylor has posed:
    It feels like more than hours. It feels like an eternity. When Carin's life experienced is experienced nanoseconds at a time, the space between heartbeats feels like hours. Anything more, like this wait for a response, is pure torture. Agony in waiting for an impending disaster. And when she hears Toni's voice return on the line, so soft, so nervous, she gasps. She immediately clamps her mouth shut, though, not wanting the sudden breath to be louder than the other woman's voice. It doesn't matter, her augmented lungs can handle it. But why does she feel so dizzy? So light-headed?

    When that nervous response is given, she chews on her lower lip, and finds the courage in the span of too many seconds. She pushes as hard as she can, shoving her fears deep, and even then, she can only find the strength for one word. And not just one word, but a word intoned with a question. Needful. Desperate. Hopeful yet afraid. So much weight behind a single syllable:

    "...please?"

Toni Ho has posed:
Unlike last time, her response is immediate, almost speaking before the word is out of Carin's mouth. "Yes! Oh thank god. I was worried it only went one way." She laughs, it's the half-mad giggle of relief. He flops back onto the sofa, her body going mostly limp with relief and cut tension. She stifles more giggles that threaten to bubble up.

Apparently she -is- allowed to have nice things that aren't just certificates on the wall, or high tech gadgetry in the lab. She knows, though, how close to the edge she was. She caught feelings pretty fast, and that's always, always dangerous. How many times has she cried herself to sleep? ...Let's not figure that out, the number is absurd.

Carin Taylor has posed:
    The sound is almost mirrored. She flops on the bed, the WHUMP noise easily coming through as her head hits the pillow and her entire torso thumps into the bedcovers. The amount of loving, healthy relationships Carin can rememember having in her life that isn't just her sister being protective is... none. Zero. This. This is new. "..y-yes! N-no! I mean..! I'm. I'm.. I've.. I've never.." she stammers and even squeaks. "...w-wait... One way? You were worried? How.. how long have you... um... thought of me... like... like this?"

Toni Ho has posed:
She is quiet for a moment. "Well...When I saw you that day with the Hydra goons, I thought you were cute. Then when you moved in with me, I got a little fluttery, but it only really sank in when we had that ... uh ... moment the other day."

The moment in the bathroom. Her stomach did flips and jumps. She hasn't blushed that hard in years. She loved every second of it. She can still feel the heat of Carin's face in her hands. Her warm fingers on her wrists.

Carin Taylor has posed:
    There's a moment as she sighs as she remembers that first meeting, even if it had been incredibly brief, "...right that... that was you in the armor... I.. I didn't even actually see you until... we got the room together...! And... and..." there's a pause, "...the... moment? I... you... fell in lesbians with me after hugging me on the bathroom floor?" She's a little adorably flustered. Okay, a lot adorably flustered. Her mind tries to focus on the whole sick situation, but she manages to pull it away to the good things.

    The good things, she had blushed so much herself at the palms pressed to her cheeks. She wanted to nuzzle them, to lean into them, to feel more of them. She'd grabbed Toni's wrists so fast when that warmth went away. She didn't want it to go away.

Toni Ho has posed:
Toni's blush is audible. "Y-yeah. ... Kind of a weird spot, huh? But then again, I think at that moment was the most You I'd seen. And ... I liked it. I mean...You were taken and turned into a killing machine...but you hate it. You don't want it. You'd rather never hurt anyone. Pure and beautiful."

Toni closes her eyes. She can see Carin in her mind's eye. Brilliant red hair, and eyes like living emeralds. ... She's got it bad.

Carin Taylor has posed:
    There's an audible and clear hitch of breath over the line, hearing Toni just. Explain herself in such a sweet way. It tugs on Carin's heartstrings at the slowest, sweetest pace. "...well.. y-yeah... n.. not all.. people with powers like this... want to just.. fight fight fight..." she sighs and even whimpers a little.

    "...but.. maybe... I dunno.. feel an obligation...? Sort of..? I want to help. I really do. But I don't want to kill people. Or. Or hurt people.... I just.." she trails off, stammering.

    Then softly, "...pure.. and beautiful..? Me?" She leaves the doubt unspoken. The skinny girl with the white skin and the tattoo. Well. Maybe pure white?

Toni Ho has posed:
Toni sounds way more relaxed now. Almost sleepy. The benefits of tension dropping. "Yes, you. I think you're very beautiful. Not like plain ol' me. Then again, I might just be another sucker for redheads." A pause. "And, you know, I've heard Spider-Man's spiel. With great power, comes great responsibility. You have that. You want to be responsible with it. It just means you're a good person and not what those assholes tried to make you be."

Carin Taylor has posed:
    Carin was so used to taking abuse from so many angles just for how she looked. Her pale skin, even before the augmentations. Then the forced tattoo. Hearing all of this praise just continues to make her flustered further and further! Then she sputters at Toni's proclamation of being plain, "N-no! You're really pretty!" One could almost hear her clamping her hand over her mouth suddenly. "...I mean... you really are..." she mumbles and sighs, imagining that pretty pink hair and those cute glasses. Those big brown eyes of a girl her age.

    "...I'm. Doing my best. I'm. Safe now. But... thank you. I..." she trails off. "...I look forward to... having tea with you. And. Um. Being close to you... carried... home by you..." Another little pause, and then softly, almost whispered: "...I miss you."

Toni Ho has posed:
Toni stifles another giggle. It's adorable when Carin gets flustered. It also makes her feel bashful when she's called pretty. She hasn't really stopped blushing since this part of the phone call started, but it's better than the alternative.

"Alright, alright. You get some rest. Have someone call me, and I'll come and git you and princess carry you all the way back up here. Then I'll make you tea and put you to bed."

Carin Taylor has posed:
    There's a little noise, a nod. "...thank you..." Carin says. "Be in touch soon. Might.. be a day or two. I think they want to talk with me... but.." she exhales a long, soft sigh. "...good night, for now..." She stares at the phone for a few long moments, then hangs up. She hovers her finger over the power switch before finally optimg to hold it down. But she smiles. She can always play back parts of the conversation in her mind.

    And as she pulls the blanket up over herself and hugs the Robot Unicorn Attack sweatshirt a bit tighter to herself.

    She plays parts back, not just to hear Toni's voice, but certain words. Certain phrases. 'Pure and beautiful.' 'Carry you back here' Elements of the full picture. Thoughts that bring her warmth. The redhead curls up a little tighter and manages to fall asleep with a smile on her face.