14177/The Great Switcheroo: The Short End Of The Stick

The Great Switcheroo: The Short End Of The Stick
Date of Scene:	18 February 2023
Location:	Harlem, Cindy's Apartment
Synopsis:	Divine, in Kim's body, seeks some comfort and help from her favorite Spider.
Cast of Characters:	Cindy Moon, Divine

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Cindy Moon has posed:
It's your typical Friday Night at the Moon household. Instant noodles cooking in the microwave, a classic, but tasteful, anime on the television, and a whole night off to loaf around with her fuzzy bunny slippers on! Cindy has her hair all tied up in a messy ponytail and wears a Probopass t-shirt on over fluffy She-Ra sleeping pants.

This is not your moms night off!

Or maybe it is?

We don't judge peoples mom here.

"hot hot hot" She bobbles the bubbling water betwixt her hands before adding it to the bowl of noodles she's carefully emptied into a deep bowl. A soft boiled egg, a little bologna, and a whole lot of spicies! This is the way you do it!

Divine has posed:
The hour is late. It's a cold, clear late winter evening. You can see your breath on the wind, a coat is pretty well mandatory, and even in the City that Never Sleeps, not many are out walking at this hour.

One person is. A young woman with dirty blonde hair, looking as disheveled and out of it as many of the unhoused seem to be. She's dressed in ratty jeans and a hoodie that probably needs a wash. She half walks-half stumbles up to the door of a certain apartmemt building and scours the nameplates before she finds the right one and presses the buzzer once. Then again. Then again. It's almost frantic.

Cindy Moon has posed:
BLRRRRRRRR

BLRRRRRR

Cindy checks the clock with a scowl and a furrowed brow. It's not unusual to get buzzes at this hour, actually. Her neighbors are all college kids (she should be), who forget their key or are too drunk to remember which apartment they belong to... but dammit, it's still annoying!

With a scowl, she hits the button to unlock the door into the apartment building and heads back to resume adding a bit of kimchi to a small bowl. It's important, okay? Kimchi is amazing, fite me.

"Alrighty! Let's get dangerous." With a bowl in either hand she jumps over the back of the couch and lands in a perfect lotus with her legs folded up beneath her. Bowl is bounced, caught on the back of her knuckles, and a webline brings the remote over to her from the table because it's important to show your powers at least once in every situation!

Contractually.

Divine has posed:
The door unlocks as she's buzzed in. Divine sometimes forgets this is a thing because she cheats with roof access. She enters the building, sighing in relief as she's finally somewhere warm again. She's never been cold in her life until two days ago. Waking up in that rat's next with bad heat, wandering the streets in threadbare clothes. It's misery incarnate.

She moves through the halls of the building quietly. Even if most of the residents are college students, they still might call the authorities on this wreck of a young woman in their space. Soon enough, she reaches Cindy's door. She lifts a hand to knock and hesitates. Should she do this? Should she be here? Will Cindy believe her?

Divine-as-Kim grits her teeth, summons her courage and knocks politely.

Cindy Moon has posed:
Everything is put in its place. A bowl there within reach to grab kimchi with her chopsticks, ramen noodles balanced on her legs. It's perfect, she's very excited! This fine meal cost her all of $12, but it may as well be a five course meal for the bright joy bubbling in her eyes when she scoops up some noodles and is just about to slurp them into the trap-door...

When there's a knock at her door.

"Wrong apartment!" She shouts, until there's a second because there has to be a second right?

With a sigh she scoops up her food and puts it on the table, pauses her show, and heads for the wooden portal. If this is someone coming to rob her, boy did they pick the wrong place... She yanks it open and stares at the blonde woman on the other side.

Equal parts frustrated and, upon seeing the wreck what is greeting her, empathy. "Uh... you got the wrong apartment." With a little less sass... but only a little.

Divine has posed:
Divine flinches when Cindy shouts through the door. An action so unlike her. A woman who is fearless and confident, cringing like a whipped dog. It's disgraceful and a show of how much this has messed with her. She lifts her hand to knock again when Cindy opens the door. She jumps a little in surprise. Of a height with Cindy, she meets her eyes, looking distraught.

"I know--," she starts, taking a deep breath before starting over. "I know this is going to be hard to believe, but... Hi. It's Divine. I got body swapped, and now I'm like this. ... And it's terrible."

Cindy Moon has posed:
Cindy does what any rational person in her situation might would do, she nods a few times at the information she's just been given and stares at Divine in Kim body as if she just grew a boob out of her forehead. Not a huge boob, as evidence by how she hasn't slammed the door in her face, but definitely a reasonable sized forehead boob.

There's a length of time, which may feel like forever, but is only just a couple seconds, where she's just quietly staring. With her head tilt to one side. Would this set off her Silk Senses? This feels like it would set off her silk senses. She gets a read on people pretty quickly because of them, usually, but they can be unreliable.

Instead she leans out and peers side to side, then waves Divine in.

"If you're lying to me, I'm definitely going to throw you through a wall.. and if this is some kind of prank where Divine sends you to break up with me rather than doing it face to face, 'oh hey, sorry we can't see each other anymore, I got body swapped and hahaha seeya dummy', this is arguable going to be the worst."

Divine has posed:
She's expecting the door to be slammed in her face. To be sent on her way, derided and maybe punched in the nose. But she's waved in instead, and it looks like some of the weight is pulled from her shoulders. Some of it. She shuffles, not the confident stride, not the powerful body language. This is almost a scuttle.

"I'm not lying. I wouldn't lie to you, or dump you via proxy. I'm kind of shitty at being a person sometimes, but not like that," she says quietly. She takes a gander around, the unfamiliar face smiling slightly. "This is a cute place. It suits you. I just wish I were me, and not whoever the hell this is."

She pauses again, taking a shaky breath. "So I was sleeping, and somehow ebded up in a shared dream. Most of the details aren't important. The Hulk was there chasing some white haired wizard lady in purple. She tried to send us back, but the Hulk messed it up, and we got scrambled. Someone is joyriding in my body, and I'm in -this-." She trembles slightly. "I didn't know what pain felt like until now."

Cindy Moon has posed:
The door is closed behind Divine with the ends of Cindy's fingers flicking forward once the scraggly junkie looking blonde steps inside properly. It's a rough situation because if this is an attempted coupe, well Cindy isn't trapped in here with Kim... Kim is trapped in here with her.

In Bunny slippers.

Explain getting your butt kicked by someone in She-Ra jim-jams and bunny slippers.

It's rough.

"That sounds terrible and like it's very much above my paygrade by a lot of zeroes.. Nor do I even know how to begin to unpack this." Headed towards the couch, where her ramen is... with a glance over at Divine, she holds it out to her. "You look hungry." There's Kimchi too.

"So.. like.. did you find an ID or something? Maybe crack lady has your body and we just go to wherever you were when you were sleeping. Then you do the Freaky Friday switch-er-oo? I have no idea how magic works."

Divine has posed:
She does look a wreck. Exhausted, haggard. She follows Cindy towards the sofa and takes a seat gingerly. "I ...I--," she starts, frowning. "Is that what this is? Am I hungry?" That might explain partially why she's miserable. If she hasn't eaten since she woke up yesterday. She takes a breath through her nose, smelling the air, and her stomach audibly growls. She's hesitant to take what is offered, and it's hard to tell which is worse off, her physical or emotional state.

She goes to take a sip of the broth, remembering something about how eating too much when starving is bad and she pauses.

"There's, uh, also something in my head. Talking to me off and on. ...It wants me to eat people."

Cindy Moon has posed:
In all the worlds great stage, there's a handful of moments where a person must ask themselves 'have I messed up'. Cindy feels fairly certain that what Divine is describing is hunger, there's no reason she would be in 'pain' like that... well there is, but she didn't mention any strange bleeding and she isn't even sure if that's not a thing Kryptonian women do anyways! Maybe she'd know?!

Who can be sure.

She nods along with what's being said and points to the couch, offering her a seat where an classic, and tasteful, anime is playing. Then Divine goes and says somes there's something in her head telling her to eat people. "Uh... well... I don't know. That's not normal, so I'm going to say that you should probably ignore it. I really don't think people would taste very good..."

Divine has posed:
Divine, still holding the steaming bowl, takes the offered seat on the sofa. She takes a slow, delicate, sip of broth, thinking this over. "It ... It almost happened. I went to see Emma, the security guards wouldn't let me through and it ... came out. Like some kind of goo suit. With way too many teeth. I managed to make it go away, but it wasn't happy." She pauses as she looks up and away at nothing. "Still isn't."

She takes another sip from the bowl, she already looks a little better. Calmer. Less manic. "Thank you for, well, believing me. I barely believe it myself, honestly."

Cindy Moon has posed:
"I..." Cindy purses her lips thoughtfully. She's clearly unsure why she was willing to field the possibility that something so abnormal was true in the face of what rationale says? She shakes her head at the abstract of it, "I guess I've just seen how weird the world can be? Besides which... There was a feeling I got. I always get feelings. I can read people... but I want to think that I can read you?"

It's weird to say out loud.

She takes a seat on the couch beside Divine in Kim body and links her fingers togethr between her knees. "Please don't do that? Like... please dont' eat anyone? I don't know that you'll ever mentally come back from something like that? And I'd look at you differently, which isn't fair, I know, but..."

Divine has posed:
Divine is quiet, almost pensive as she sits there with the ramen bowl and listens. "I'm ... pretty easy to read, I think. I don't really have guile. What you see is what you get. ... Except right now." She sighs, staring into the bowl. "I don't really feel like me. I feel small and fragile and whatever's sharing this body with me is making me feel like I'm insane. It's terrifying, and I'm not...I'm not used to feeling fear. Not for physical reasons, anyway."

She glances sidelong at Cindy, lips that aren't hers twitching upwards. "You know, I always thought the moment I got to see your apartment would be more fun." She is, apparently, still a smartass.

Cindy Moon has posed:
Cindy half smiles and tenatively reaches out to lay a hand on the back of Divine, in Kim, shoulders. She rubs just at the base of her neck as she explains the perticulars of the situations she's in. "It's a lot... but if you think about it.. like.. you're a clone. And I was bit by a radioactive spider that turned me into a super hero?" She's clearly trying to make light of the situation, but specifically for the purpose of making Divine feel better.

"We'll figure this out? I promise you, we will. I have this sense about it... everything is going to be okay."

Even if she doesn't necessary know that for sure. She still rubs the back of Divine's neck as if this is just fact.

"Well.. it's not that great an apartment, so I wouldn't make a big deal of it. Regardless, you've been here now, so you're basically welcome."

Divine has posed:
"I am a body swapped clone, thank you very much," she says indignantly. At least her sense of humor seems to be on its way back? She at least doesn't flinch at the touch, but she's still incredibly tense. Not quite on edge, but stressed all the same. "I know we will. I just wish I knew someone who knows a white haired lady wizard who wears purple so I could talk to her and make her put me back."

She goes quiet again for another moment. "I...I feel bad for this Kim person. She doesn't have much, and doesn't take care of herself. Whatever problems I've got normally, hers seem worse."

Cindy Moon has posed:
"See? That's turning a frown, upside down." Cindy squeezes teh base of Divine's neck. Trying to put on the brave face someone in someone elses body would, understandably, be unable to wear. "You really have to look at the bright side..." Does she legitimately belive that? Probably not. This is an astronomically piss poor situation, but she has to be brave for both of them!

As for the white haired lady.

"I'm sure we could find someone who knows someone? We... and by we, I mean probably you... know a lot of people? Maybe someone knows a person who is cousins with this person? Or has a cousin who is friends with them. Like seven degrees of seperation from kevin bacon, only with a white haired magic lady wearing purple."

She forces a smile and looks over at Divine. "Either way.. I'm with you, okay?"

Divine has posed:
It is a piss poor situation, and Divine truly appreciates the support. "You are the best," she says, her head drooping like a cat being petted at the squeezing of her tense neck muscles. She closes her eyes, just measuring her breaths for a moment, trying to get the tension to release. Slowly, it starts to. She has to lean a bit forward to set the bowl down before she goes slack.

"I'm ... I'm starting to feel better. At least a bit. Thank you. You don't know how much that means to me."

She looks at Cindy again, smiling slightly with a mischevious glint in her eyes. "You know, normally this wouldn't work, but," she looks at herself. "I feel gross. Could I borrow your shower? And some clothes?"

Cindy Moon has posed:
Obviously this is awkwardly for Cindy, but she can only imagine how it feels for Divine. That's something she keeps in her mind when she touches someone who seems abnomral to what she's use to, hearing a voice that sounds strange to her ears. She remembers how weird the life they lead can be, but more importantly, how the feelings she feels feels.

So many feels.

She smiles at Divine in Kim body and lets her hands fall back down into her lap at the question, "I think I have some clothes that would fit you too. They may be a little loose, but it'll be better than what you're wearing. Cleaner.. You can wash your clothes too. Just... I don't know how I'm going to help you, except for being there, but I'm totally here. Whatever I can do, I'll do it."