4695/Another You: Tank Half Empty

Another You: Tank Half Empty
Date of Scene:	12 January 2021
Location:	One of the laboratories at the tower
Synopsis:	Terry, Damian and Gar have separate heart-to-hearts. Terry has some s'plaining to do.
Cast of Characters:	Terry O'Neil, Gar Logan, Damian Wayne

---

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Things have settled down, in this particular laboratory. Terry's mother had visited briefly, making sure that her son actually /ate/ something, and that he wasn't poisoning Gar with 'restaurant junk.' Admittedly, Agatha O'Neil's cooking was on par with Caitlin's baking. Should the two ever co-incide in their culinary spheres, the Titans might never get up from the table.

Once the food was consumed, Agatha left Gar to his convalescence and Terry to... well, Gar's convalescence. Time had been spent together, with the redhead providing whatever companionship Gar wanted to take from him, and whatever space he needed as well. Eventually, Gar wanted to return to the tank after Terry brought in a change of clothes that he suggested, and the redhead, assuming Gar would go dormant to continue regenerating once submerged, quickly transformed into Vorpal and laid down on his back, on the twin bed that he had brought /into/ the laboratory via his Rabbit Hole, so that Gar could sleep comfortably.

He was asleep before he knew it. He needed to heal his injured shoulder, immobilized as it was in the sling, and the best way to do so was to be the Cheshire when Gar wasn't on the bed.

He also intended it this way so that Gar could not see the sling clearly, busy as he was in his acquatic endeavors. He needed to worry about himself, not about a self-inflicted wound.

Very soon, Vorpal is snoring softly, his left arm draped over his eyes.

Gar Logan has posed:
The food was needed. Very much needed. Caitlin was there and checked a few things out, a potential plan or two was discussed, and after another round of rest Gar worked up the energy to actually change and get back into the tank himself. This next part would be on him.

It was something he probably should have thought of on his own, but under the circumstances it's understandable if his mind was elsewhere. It took a lot just to get to this point. Whatever the case, the tank is large enough to hold a human with some room to spare, so it's not cramped inside. It's got water that's suitable for someone from a marine environment, as well. Really, it's just like what you'd expect for a regular fish tank, only a lot bigger.

Inside is someone green and, at first glance, possibly Atlantean or something along those lines. Not Atlantean like Aquaman or Tempest, but more like a cross between a human and the Creature from the Black Lagoon. All green, scales, fins along the back, calves, and forearms, webbing between the fingers and toes, and a face that, while humanoid, definitely holds an exotic, alien side to it, hairless with a few more fin-like extensions at the top of the head.

And, well, not forearms, but forearm, for the left arm ends just past the elbow, in a stump. Black bike shorts are the only clothing worn.

Damian Wayne has posed:
     By now, word had gotten around that Gar had been found, this Earth's Gar, not the imposter.

  So, after collecting his badge again, and his T-Comm, Robin zipped up to the lab floor, where his friend had been convalescing.

  Damian's T-Comm forced doors to open regardless, overriding any locks as he moves down the corridors. When he came across the door to the lab where Terry and Gar had been, he took a moment by himself, observing both the...fish boy, and Terry. He had taken two steps in, but he couldn't bring himself to make a sound. Once he confirmed the existence of Gar...he turned around, and started to leave, be it himself, or his subconscious, he knocked into a Mayo Stand as he turned around, banging the tray to the ground, and sealing his fate.

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"Fruthrtewah!"

That, dear readers, is the sound a startled Cheshire cat makes when awakened abruptly from a restful sleep. Vorpal's reflexes are as sharp as they always are, so he quickly rolls over to find cover. Unfortunately, his memory isn't quite there, since he forgot where he was and ends up rolling off the bed and slamming down his body weight onto the injured shoulder.

He lets out a profanity-laden cry that might almost be powerful enough to summon his mother back into the room with a prescribed dental treatment of soap--- almost. Sitting up and rubbing his bandaged shoulder, the cat looks up with bleary eyes and blinks several times.

".... Robin?"

Gar Logan has posed:
The thing in the tank treads water slowly, as if still getting used to doing such a basic thing in this form. The body shape and some of the features suggest it's /probably/ Gar, but one might not be too sure until he actually speaks. Floating also feels..different like this. Easier.

One could get used to this.

The commotion from over yonder, followed by Vorpal in the bed - and yes, it's a twin bed from Gar's bedroom - draws a little splash of reaction within the tank as the one inside - it's an open-air top - spins around to look between the two. Eyes are more like black pools than normal human eyes look like, but when he speaks the voice is definitely Gar's. "Whoa, what happened to you?" The question is directed toward the Cheshire Cat, but the third one in the room isn't left behind. "Hey..you weren't just gonna sneak back out, were you..Robin?"

Exactly what's going on in here might be up for wondering about, as the good hand curls around the top of the tank, helping draw him up enough to lift his head over the barrier as he continues to tread water to help him remain in place. It's also a form of pool therapy.

Damian Wayne has posed:
     Damian immediately squat down to pick up the tray, but the damage had been done. Robin closed his eyes in disbelief before he put the tray back on the stand. "Yes." Was his only response, with his back turned on both of the others.

  Damian turned his head a bit, but his blushing face could be seen. "You were both asleep." Thanks Captain Obvious. "I did not want to wake you.

  Slowly he turns back around, and approaches the tank. "It's good to see you, the real you."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
And Damian approaches the tank, which gives Vorpal the perfect excuse to /not/ answer Gar's question. Rather, he quickly turns back into Terry, because the shoulder pain is too intense and he might have opened something. Or not. But he'll check on that later.

"Gar needs his rest but he's not going to say 'no' to a friend," he points out, now free from pain and standing up. He's wearing his usual indoor attire- shorts and a tank top. See, Gar? No bandage!

"Either of you hungry? There's still some of my mom's crepes left. They're not made with sugar," he says this for Robin's benefit, remembering the incident at the donut shop, "Regular peaches and apricots."

Gar Logan has posed:
Compared to yesterday, Gar's current state is an improvement. Where he could barely move and hardly talked due to lack of energy and nourishment, a good sleep and a lot of food has him in a better place, even if he's not quite his usual self yet. "I wasn't sleeping, and.." he begins, a pause in his words following as he squints in Vorpal's direction when he returns to being Terry instead.

"Hmmm."

There will be questions about that soon enough. For now, he has a different one to ask. "I'm trying something. It's supposed to be sort of a hybrid form. Caitlin was working on a..a thought or two, and maybe if I can hold this in between sleeping, some things might heal faster...like this." He lifts the arm that had been attacked, had been chomped, and there is a hint of an uneasy smile in place.

"I'm sorry I made all of you worry. I..wasn't ready for what happened." The smile threatens to become more of a sad expression, but he's trying to remain optimistic. "I'm gonna..gonna get him back for this." Then he forces a joke to Terry. "Was thinking..frosted fish flakes."

Damian Wayne has posed:
     "Yes, I saw you. You were sleeping." Robin asserts, looking back to the fishboy. "I am not hungry." He asides to Terry before continuing to the tank.

  "None of us were. But despite my best efforts, your doubles have disrupted our efforts to send them back to where they've come from." Robin admits, though he doesn't exactly blurt out that he was going to kill the Gar double and that Terry stopped him. "Will your...arm fully heal?"

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"Cait thinks there's a very good chance," Terry says, joining Damian by the tank side, though he lets Gar explain the rest to Damian. In recognition of Gar attempting a bad joke, he joins in. "You know, Gar, you might want to check and see if you have any family in Helsinki, because you sure are looking a little Finnish to me," he says, leaning into the tank and giving Gar a slight smile back, "But I won't go on lest I give you a haddock and you smack me for the halibut." He puts one hand over the divide of the tank and splashes a tiny bit of water at Gar.

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan's eyes narrow at Terry, and he simply scoops a handful of water out of the tank and at his head. It's a lot easier to do with that webbing between the fingers. He's already able to feel how much easier it'd make swimming be. "I'd better not find you trying to fish when you're Vorpal again. And I saw that sling," he says, accusingly. Not getting out of that so easily, nope.

But it's Robin he directs more of his attention to. "I hope mine hasn't, uh, been too bad, but he never even gave me a chance to think straight and before I knew it I was..uh. I mean, everything hurt, and I was sinking, and drowning, and I just did something on instinct and then Garth found me and here I am." He's talking slower than normal, measuring the words as he says them. The partial arm gets a frown. "I hope so. Caitlin had some ideas, and I'm not quite a starfish right now, but I'm trying a form that has some stuff crossing over. I don't think it looks that bad. And I'm..glad you came over."

Damian Wayne has posed:
     And then the puns come out. Damian's face had gone from blush to grumpy in .2 seconds. "Ugh, please stop."

  Robin gives a nod to Beast Boy in the tank, before reaching up with a hand to his. "I'm glad you're alive." Which in of itself is a huge compliment coming from Damian. "You look fine enough. Just focus on healing back up." He offers, withdrawing his hand and standing by, like a friend would.

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Terry gets hit in the face with water, and he sputters. "Ew. Fishy water," he jokes and wipes his face. "Sling? You must have been dreaming again. I didn't see any slings. And besides," he says, clearly sidestepping the issue for now, "You make for a rather handsome fish-man. As such standards go."

"He glances over at Robin, "Look, I know you want to give him a proper hug and I dare you to deny it. Seawater's being pumped in and out so he'll always have a fresh supply. Get your kryptonian bathing suit and give him a hug. I've got to take this over to the fridge before it starts getting droopy and looks like Donna when the caffeine wears off," he jokes, gesturing to the box of crepes. "I'll be back in a bit."

And with that, Terry walks out of the labs. Crepes must be spared, after all.

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan feels, it seems, a little awkward about some of this. "You know, uh, with all of the stuff that was going on, we never got around to that invite you sent. If you still want to do that after this is over.." He figures out what he wants to do with his hand, returning an offered fist bump, lightly. "I probably look better than I feel, but I'm better than I was yesterday." There is evidence over by the bed that an IV drip was used, and remnants of some of the food from earlier.

"And I know we haven't always seen eye to eye on things," he adds, like he's making excuses for why they might not be closer. He apparently doesn't know just how much the apparent death affected Robin, still seeing him as more aloof and hard to get through to, though they had that moment after the fight and some things had been better since.

He frowns after Terry, who is clearly hiding something. Robin will probably explain it. "So what's the deal with him? He's being evasive. And don't listen to him about bathing suits and all that. He's trying to be annoying."

Damian Wayne has posed:
     Damian didn't need more than that before he watched Terry leave, his head on a swivel like an owl. He didn't say a word.

  That was until Terry had actually left, and Robin jumped the tank, fully clothed and in his uniform. He waded in the water as his head popped out from the surface.

  He gave Fishy Boy a hug, quickly, given the water around him, but it was a hug. "He got injured. Didn't want you to know about it. He tried to save me from harm from himself, after he threw a log at my face. There are many issues there."

  Robin kept wading before he continued. "This situation has done a number on the team. I do not know how to fix it. People turning on one another, suspecting them for being a doppel, accusations flying."

Gar Logan has posed:
A look of surprise on Gar's face, at Robin simply hopping in to embrace. It's returned, awkwardness giving way to a moment where it feels more natural, though the partial arm can be felt where the rest of it and the usual hand is missing.

The first thing he asks is, "This is something that didn't just happen, right? Like the other time it also didn't happen?" It's important to be certain. "You might have to check the tapes, too."

His expression, which definitely leans more toward a sort of 'mer-man' kind of thing, turns questioning after he hears of saving Robin from harm, and throwing a log. "You know what, that sounds like the most normal thing that's happened lately." He resumes treading water, which is also good limb and cardio exercise, murmuring, "Once I can help more again, I'll get everyone back on the same page somehow. I'm already thinking of how I'm going to deal with..me..when we find my copy again. I just know he's out there waiting, and he's not gonna surprise me again."

Damian Wayne has posed:
     "Do you want to gaslight your significant other? Because we can say it didn't even though I am now soaking wet and smell like salty feet." The concept of which was completely serious sounding. As if it was something that Damian wouldn't think twice about.

  "Leadership needs to have a talk as well." Yeah, that was an inevitability, where Damian and Kate were concerned, they had led the team while everyone was out in space. Then they came back and demolished all that had been worked on.

  "I was going to kill him, you know." He admitted it quite matter-of-factly. "That was when, we all thought you were dead."

Gar Logan has posed:
"I..splashed you a lot?" Gar offers by way of an idea, an expectant look in his face. Even a few of the frills that run back over his head fan up slightly. "You decided to show me how good your balance was and you slipped?"

What he doesn't know is the way Robin spoke of him to Terry, to Vorpal, when he thought Gar was dead and gone.

He runs his good hand through the lack of hair he forgot he doesn't have. If he's going to do this hybrid thing, it'll take some getting used to. "I'm not a leader, so you don't have to worry about that. I just want to make everyone smile if I can. And..I would have understood if you killed him. He deserves it, even if he..I mean, I'm not saying he grew up the same way I did because I don't know, and it's hard to feel sorry for him because of what he did, but..man, I just don't know."

The fins and frills do too good a job of lowering, conveying the confusion and conflict he feels.

Damian Wayne has posed:
     Robin pulled himself out of the tank, landing on the other side. Robin wouldn't tell him exactly how he talked about Beast Boy when he thought him dead.

  "I know, I was just commenting in general." He unclamped his cape, and allowed it to drip on the hanger a bit. "Vorpal kept me from doing so. But he and I have varying views. And next time, he may not be as lucky."

  "Magic is bullshit."

Gar Logan has posed:
There is silence from Gar for a few seconds, stretching to ten, fifteen or so before he speaks again. During that time, he stops treading water and simply stands with his arms partly hanging over the edge of the tank.

"I don't really understand magic, but there's a lot I don't understand. I do know we have a lot of different people here. Some do magic. Some are aliens. Some are normal with a hell of a lot of training. Some are Amazons. We all have something that makes us special. I still can't even tell you why I survived Sakutia and ended up being able to be any animal I can think of, but I did and I know it's saved my butt more than once," he says, turning introspective about himself and the Titans as a whole.

Clearing his throat, he plays around with spitting some water up and letting it fall over the top of his head. "I guess what I'm saying is we all need each other, and we all have our warts and our problems, but we also have things we shine in and we all mean something to someone. It makes me hurt inside whenever I see us fighting with each other, and I know it hurts you and Terry and everyone else to know there's another me out there who's just..who doesn't care, who doesn't try to control things. That's why I'm going to put him down once I'm better. Because I have to."

His voice transfers from nervous, wanting-to-please-everyone Gar to cold steel, do-what-must-be-done Gar.

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Terry has totally not been listening at the door. But he does choose that moment to come in. To his credit he says absolutely nothing about Robin's state, but he does say- "Who wants labneh? I also have some kibbes here. My mom dropped them off. Apparently." He says, bringing the boxes in his hands, "And some other stuff. I am afraid she and Caitlin might start getting into a turf war until you recover fully, my love," Terry says, one eyebrow raised.

Damian Wayne has posed:
     Once Terry comes back in, Damian politely declines baked goods. "We will work on it soon, first comes these doppelgangers. Once they are out of the way, we can have words."

  Robin grabs his cape, and starts to head back out of the lab. "I have to get back to Gotham. Keep me informed on things." He offers the rest as his boots squish and leave puddles behind him as he heads...probably to change clothes before he goes to Gotham.

Gar Logan has posed:
"Good talk!" Gar calls after Robin, a hairless brow sliding upward quickly at the wet spots Robin leaves in his wake, eyes shifting back over toward Terry as he returns.

Clearing his throat, he says, "Later..thanks. I guess that means I'd better get right as fast as I can." He isn't saying a word about whatever it is Terry missed.

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Terry gives Gar a glance. "... you are acting sus, Garfield Logan, and I know it's not because Robin peed in your pool." He approaches Gar on the tank and opens the box, "... but I'm sure you'll tell me about it if it's important?" he smiles a little, and nods to the box. "Do you want to come out and eat now, or should /I/ join you in the tank for a hug? I can actually reach the bottom, so I don't have to dog paddle. " He winks. He is mostly joking. Mostly.

Gar Logan has posed:
"No more than you were before you left," Gar is quick to say about anyone acting suspect. "Actually, I think I want to sleep for a little while again. I can go back to this easier next time, now that I feel like I know it better. But I'm getting tired." That may not be entirely true or false, but he's acting like he doesn't want to talk about something all of a sudden. Maybe the last bit of the conversation with Robin left him feeling weary from what he knows is ahead for all of them. "You can have the hug, though. Just let me get out first."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Terry knows better than to push, when Gar is like this. Especially after what he's been through recently, They had a whole month to talk to each other. "Of course, hon." He puts the food away and walks over to the tank and helps Gar out of the tank, "C'mere you..." he says. There are towels on the floor to prevent water spillage. There are also towels handy for Terry to help him dry. That accomplished, Terry hugs Gar tightly, lifting him off his feet a little.

"You are precious to me, Gar. I love you." he whispers, holding him close. "Let's get you to bed. I'm going to go out to take care of a couple of errands... don't worry. I'll go as the cat. Disguised by illusion. Nobody wll know."

Gar Logan has posed:
Gar Logan accepts the assistance, though he waves off the towels. "Remember, I'm, like, sort of part amphibian like this. I thought of it after remembering Garth can be fine on land or in the sea. So I'll just dry off after I change back." The hug engulfs him, much more than the one Robin absolutely did not give minutes earlier. "Oof..careful," he exhales. "I'm delicate."

"Love you too," he adds, squeezing back as he can before they get him over to the bed by the time he's changed to his usual green self again, hair replacing the frills, the fins and webbing and all the rest going away. "I'm not going anywhere."

But before Terry's left, whether by Rabbit Hole or more conventionally, he's sure to hear Gar add, "And I don't know what was going on, but something tells me you got shot doing something with Robin. You can tell me later."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Terry freezes. And then he sighs and nods. "Alright. I'll tell you when you wake up. I was going to tell you when were a little more rested. " He walks over, bends down and touches his nose to Gar's. "If you need anything, anything at all. You call me or text me, okay?" He places Gar's cell near him. Terry had scrubbed it thoroughly and anything that DoppelGar had posted, texted, emailed, or anything at all had been eliminated completely. Social media no longer had those posts. It's as if he had never been. "And I'll be here in less than a second. Try not to hog the bed," he smiles "Or when I get back I'll have to sit on your head to sleep." It's a cat joke, obviously.