14193/Too Many New Faces

Too Many New Faces
Date of Scene:	19 February 2023
Location:	Clea's Room - Avengers Mansion
Synopsis:	Two very guilt laden people discuss mistakes and snacks.
Cast of Characters:	Clea, Bruce Banner

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Clea has posed:
The sun had set hours ago and it was getting into the later hours for those that lived at Avenger's Mansion. Though with the current situation Clea wasn't sure if anyone might be asleep. She'd went back to working on finding a way to remedy the situation after she'd talked with Bruce-Mike and managed to assure him she wasn't going to mind him sleeping in the room.

She'd moved her research to the desk and she was engrossed in going over the texts that she'd borrowed from Wong. He'd just shaken his head at her when she explained what happened. It was the 'dad is disappointed' head shake.

The white haired woman had switched into sweats and a t-shirt on one of her small breaks and she was currently floating with her legs crossed, one sight on the books on the desk and the other projected somewhere else to look for clues. That purple wreathed flaming aura has made itself prominent again.

It might be disconcerting to wake up to since it is definitely on the ghostly side.

Bruce Banner has posed:
Indeed, Bruce had been taking advantage of the respite from the Hulk to get some quality sleep. It was a bit odd to him, to be able to sleep, and somehow things kept creeping at the edge of his consciousness as he slept. Something about the dreams did not feel normal. Not that he knew what normal was, comparatively speaking anymore, but...

Consciousness slowly returns to him, and he opens his eyes, assessing his area as he has come to do through years of not knowing where he was waking up sometimes after a Hulk out. He turns his eyes over to view the ghostly form of Clea. Which is a bit confusing, at least, but he has already figured out not to discount anything with the woman. For the moment, he remains quiet, just watching her at work.

He knows she blames herself for this, but hopefully he can convince her not to beat herself up too uch.

Clea has posed:
Clea's got a lot of guilt going, but only some of it is over Bruce. She sometimes tried too hard to make things better due to the situation that she was raised in and the Dark Dimension itself. The pages of the book turned without her fingers touching the page. Sorcerors had some of the cheapest tricks.

Though she does sense that Bruce is awake and she lets her hands settle back into her lap after their mudras are done. She looks over her shoulder to him, "I didn't wake you, did I?" she asks him.

Then she lets her feet touch the floor and she pulls her chair out at the desk as she slumps into it. "Think I'm piecing some things together. Hopefully we'll have everyone situated before this goes on longer." she states.

Bruce Banner has posed:
"No. I have been sleeping at odd hours since I can sleep without feeling him inside my brain." Bruce sighs and sits up now that Clea has acknowledged his wakefulness. "It has been somewhat liberating, even if it's only temporary."

He turns slowly and sets barefeet on the floor as he leans back into the couch. "That's good. I am sure everyone wants to get back into their right bodies." He sighs, running his fingers through his hair. "I am sure Mike wants this one back."

Clea has posed:
Clea nods her head at that, "I was just checking. Wasn't sure if I'd been making noise or what." she admits to that. She gives a soft smile after that, "Maybe you can get back to a normal sleep schedule and things with the Hulk MIA in things for the moment." she points out.

"Yeah, I'm guessing anyone that is a rock star needs their body for touring, concerts and all of that." she states. "I'm really feeling bad for this, most of these people probably have jobs and significant others that are being freaked out by this." she tells him. "Need to get them back to them." she sighs.

Bruce Banner has posed:
"No, you are the perfect person to share a room with," Bruce says, returning a smile towards her. Then he sighs. "That would be great, but it would only be as long as it took to get the Hulk back. So I'd get it, and that would be that." He taps the arm of the couch idly. "Just a nice reminder of what life was like before."

He stands up and walks the few steps over towards Clea to reach out and put a hand on her shoulder. "Stop tearing yourself up over it. It happens. That's part of what we do. Certainly, I've made far more catastrophic mistakes than that."

Clea has posed:
Clea gives a soft smile when he tells her that she's the perfect person to share a room with. "I'd give you a hug...but that might be weird in a different body." she admits to that. She looks up to him, "Bruce, what would you do if he didn't come back?" she asks him curiously.

Then she gives him a bit of a bitter chuckle, "Yeah, but I'm older and should know better and..." she breathes out. "It was a mistake, I just get into the guilt too much." she confides in him.

"I'll be alright once it is fixed. I promise." she points out.

Bruce Banner has posed:
"I mean, it's..." Bruce starts to say something, but then thinks better of it. Swallowing whatever that comment was going to be. Instead, he shifts to her next question. "I don't know. Try to live a normal life?" He shakes his head. "But don't give me hope. I don't think there is any. This curse is mine to bear, for my hubris. I played god, and I lost."

Bruce laughs. "Eh, you don't look a day over eight hundred." He really hopes after he says it that she is well over that, otherwise that comment will land in a really wrong way. "I believe you. I know it will."

Clea has posed:
"It's?" Clea asks him curiously. She wasn't sure what he was about to say. Then she gives a soft smile and she reaches out to pat the extra chair in the room, "Tell me what a normal life is, Doc." She then looks back to the books and decides to leave them open for now. "I don't know the whole story about how the Hulk came to be." she admits.

Then he teases her and she reaches out to swat his shoulder gently, "I'm over one thousand." she tells him. "Thank you for believing me. I appreciate that I have a vote of confidence." she states.

Bruce Banner has posed:
Dodging Clea's follow-up, Bruce moves over to take a seat and answers her second question with a laugh. "Not sure I really know what a normal life is anymore, or what it would look like for me." He settles back into the chair and regards her. "Well. We were doing experimental research into the use of gamma radiation, and a kid wandered into the protected area somehow. The test was going to go off, no way to stop it, so..." He takes a deep breath. "I ran out there, pushing past the guards. I got the kid to safety, but I was irradiated." He shrugs. "And ever since..." She knows the rest.

He nods in approval of her age. "Like I said. Aging like a fine wine." He grins a bit at her. "And no problem. You give me confidence. I think you're a lot like me - you'll never give up until you find the answer."

Clea has posed:
Clea's violet eyes squint at him when he passes up her first question, but she doesn't call him out. Didn't need to have him upset or uncomfortable. She listens to him and there is a bit of a confused look, "Wait, you saved a kid from going through an absolute nightmare, that's not a thing that I associate with hubris. Unless you're talking about using gamma radiation." she states.

"You saved someone and sacrificed your own health and well-being while doing it." she tells him.

Then there's a chuckle, "I tend to go after the answer until I have it or I'm beaten. Which doesn't happen often really." she admits. "Maybe I need to change that habit though given things." she muses to him.

Bruce Banner has posed:
"I thought we were going to be using gamma radiation as a means to cure diseases. Eradicate cancer. Make advances to help people." Bruce sighs. "It was to be a weapon. And I was too blind to realize what they were doing." He sinks back into the chair. "The Hulk is my punishment for unleashing what could have been devastation on the world. But instead of my invention, I become that devastation, personified."

He grows quiet for a moment. He nods in slight agreement to her assessment about saving someone, but he does not quite seem as if he is buying it.

"Sometimes, even if you find the right answer, it might be to a question that never should have been asked in the first place."

Clea has posed:
Clea listens to him and there is a soft frown, "We both carry a lot of guilt." she tells him. Maybe one day they'd get over it, but she doubted it. "You had noble intentions, Bruce. Sometimes we don't see that those around us are not so noble. You're taking things as they come though." she states to him.

"I don't think that there are questions that are off limits. But then again I'm not human, so I don't usually pick up on when I should leave something alone as well as everyone else might." she frowns at that.

Bruce Banner has posed:
A shake of his head. "I didn't. It wasn't noble, it was arrogance." Bruce looks at Clea and admits to her what he has never really spoken of to others. "Did I know it was for a weapon? No. Did I suspect there was something else at work? The government doesn't pour that much money into cancer treatments." He sighs. "There was less about providing solutions for humanity than there was about Bruce Banner seeing an "unsolvable problem" and proving that he could solve it." He picks at something, some mote of dust, on the chair. "I wasn't trying to do anything noble. I was trying to feed my ego." He laughs ruefully. "And my punishment was unlocking my id."

He nods. "My point is, even if you find a way to free me from the Hulk, the question is - should you be doing it? What are the other unintended consequences?"

Clea has posed:
"And now you have a big green ego monster that shares space with you." Clea states as she looks to him. "Prison sentences tend to have a probation or parole date. Even for those who have done monstrous things, Bruce." she tells him. "But, I am not wanting to argue or poke this wound of yours. You should enjoy things while you don't have a mental roomie." she admits.

"I don't know, do you want to be rid of him?" she asks him pointblank. "Because if you can't get rid of him...maybe you two need to work on co-existing? He is another entity, he's got real feelings and things. He probably feels like a prisoner just as much as you do somedays." she states.

"I know I'm talking nonsense, I'm sorry Bruce." she murmurs. "You want a midnight snack? I'm going to order some food and then get back to work." she tells him.

Bruce Banner has posed:
"Maybe after I've done my penance, he will go away. Do something else. Or just...be at rest." Bruce shrugs, running his hands through his hair again. "I'll enjoy as much as I can," he says quietly. "I should make a list of the things I can't do when he is in there..." He trails off, and shakes his head. Nope.

He considers her point. "We could try to coexist, but it is still a zero sum game. We can't both be in control at once."

"It's not nonsense," he counters. "You have a very interesting take on all of this. A fresh one, from a different perspective." Snack. He could go for a snack. "Yeah. I think I'd like that." He smiles towards her. "In some ways, this almost feels like a vacation," he admits.