sunfloras | OPEN POST III

[wanda is minding her own thoughts, happy for a bus that isn't at full capacity. traveling has its own kind of power, she thinks, and after everything's that happened, it is a nice break from the reality of her responsibilities (or lack thereof, at this point in time). where will she go next is anyone's guess, but for now whatever turbulence exists in her mind are kept at bay by the possibility of not having to think about it until the next stop.

it would all just be herself and her thoughts, were it not for the loud music blasting from under her seat. it sounds familiar, like a faraway memory, but her knowledge in music isn't entirely too great if taking into consideration how she grew up.

wanda does pick up the phone that's slid under, taking it into her hand and studying the phone a moment before pressing 'ignore call' as asked. sitting on her knees to hand it over to the girl sitting behind her.]

It feels like I am years younger after hearing that song.

[with a smile, she encourages a bit of polite conversation to try and sweep off the embarrassment from the girl.]

Ah... Thanks!

[ Lien gratefully takes back her phone. Her gloved fingers grasp at the end of the device as if purposefully distancing herself from the other woman. It's not that notable on its own, though. ]

True, Spice Girls is technically an old hat, but not that song. That song has the greatest ability known to man, and that is called being an earworm.

[ She leans back in her seat, unlocking her screen with a few swipes to glance at her call history.

Rolling her eyes, she looks at Wanda ruefully. ]

Ugh, it was just my grandma. I need to assign a custom ringtone for her. Something like I dunno, "Night on Bald Mountain?"

[ Her change of expression quickly changes to a wrinkle of the nose as if some realization has struck. ]

Wow, I'm just referencing all the ancient history now, aren't I?

[wanda thinks this is as far as the conversation will go, that she can just go back to sitting and keeping to her thoughts until she either fell asleep or found distraction by some other means. however, the girl looks at her—says something about her grandma, and wanda can't help but shrugging her shoulders, a small smile on her face.]

... Ночь на лысой горе?

[it takes her a moment, but wanda thinks of it as familiar. her russian isn't particularly good, but the sounds are there.]

That is pretty ancient, though perhaps has something to say about your grandma?

[and sure, it's none of her business, but wanda can't help but be curious...]

Will you not call her back?

[ Ooooh, Russian. It's one of the rougher languages for Lien because it requires a good amount of crossreferencing that even her psychometry can't cover fully from a textbook. But before she can remark on Wanda's usage of it, it's the question that takes her immediate attention first. ]

Call her back? Well, you see...

[ With a mischievous glint in her eye, the esper grins shaking her head. ]

I... Don't want to! [ Cue two victory finger signs!! Why is she so proud of herself???]

She's going to nag me to go home! And home is overseas! And home is hot and sweaty and even though the coffee in Vietnam is better, I like the taste of freedom here!

[would that wanda had family that would call her and nag her about all kinds of things, but the bitterness of her own circumstances is chucked down as her face reflects, instead, confusion at how proud the girl looks.

there's a tilt of her head and a look of what? as wanda tries to understand the circumstances.]

I mean, that's... fair, but— [hm..] Maybe she's worried? If you're on your own and she's all the way in Vietnam.

[lien sure is by herself, on a bus, several hours of a trip ahead of her.]

[ Wanda's sincerity throws Lien off just a bit and it shows in her expression. She slumps down in her seat slightly. ]

I mean... When you put it that way. Then again, she's not exactly the 'grandmotherly' type. Her being worried kind of feels like she just wants to pull me back in.

I'm doing mostly fine on my own though. It's better this way... [ Her voice trails off before she tosses a question Wanda's way. ]

What about you? You look like a lone traveler too. Trying to get away from it all?

[it's a curious answer, and while wanda's sentiment towards family is a rather strong one, she also realizes that not every family is the same. there seems to be a definite inkling to something a little strained, at the very least, between this girl and her grandmother's relationship.

it is best not to pry, and as soon as she's going to answer the question, the voice of the bus driver crackles through the speaker, reminding passengers not to sit up on the seats, stand, etc.

with a roll of her eyes, wanda just shuffles the conversation along.]

Mind if I take a seat?

[she points to the seat beside lien.]

Go ahead!

[ There's little objection from Lien as she scoots over to make room for Wanda. ]

My name is Lien. What about you? And I'll have you know, if you're planning to chat with me, I'll talk your ear off. Ideal topics are Thor, boba shops I wanna hit up once I hit my destination, Thor's hair, which hotel I'm going to reserve, Thor's muscles, and probably what gigs I can hopefully pick up to make sure my savings don't dip.

Also Thor.

[wanda moves over from her seat to the one next to lien's, showing a little bit of hesitation as she lowers herself onto it as she hears what topics of conversation she would get "talked her ear off" with. there is the raise of an eyebrow.

thor.

okay, she can see where the hyper fixation may come from.]

I guess you are a Thor fan. [no real thoughts on the asgardian from her part. he was an ally, if nothing else.] My name is Wanda.

[ Although it's a bit hard to make out the reflections from a distance, the bus driver's rearview mirror was in plain view. Lien glances at it and notices in the distance that there are black dots following the bus... Black cars? Hm.

Well, that could be saved for later. ]

Nice to meet you Wanda.

[ Lien gives her a 'V' sign with her fingers as a greeting. Does it mean anything, nah, just a friendly gesture. ]

And to be more accurate, I'm fascinated with Thor, but that's probably most people so I'm not too different from the majority. I just thought it'd be funny if I sounded overinvested.

[ She snickers (directed at herself really). ]

I guess you're not interested? That's fine too. There have been so many weird things in the past decade that has opened up that try to grab all of our attention.

Edited 2021-10-25 00:09 (UTC)

It is just funny because he would love all the attention. Even after the whole [she waves her hand about dismissively, as if it is obvious what she means] Blip-depression.

[—which shouldn't be a joke, but what's one way of coping with major, general world trauma if it isn't to try and make light of it with throwing buzzwords around?]

He would love knowing people are still any amount of invested in him.

[ Lien sighs at the mention of the Blip but nods in commiseration. ]

Oh yeah, after getting most of the world... Universe... Something... Well, the general population back, I would hope that cheered him up. It would have been great if he was at one of the parties that happened.

I'm telling you, Little Saigon back in California was on fire. You'd think it was Lunar New Year with all the firecrackers going off after people were able to reunite with one another.

[wanda thinks she understands why thor wouldn't want to be part of any parties. losing your home and your family is not something one can simply put past themselves—rather, it took wanda all this time to manage her grief, as it turns out.]

Well, I'm sure he is having a lot of fun in space, wherever he is. Probably saw all those firey celebrations from there.

[sadly, that's the last wanda ever heard of him and will, probably, ever see of him in the foreseeable future. the avengers are no more and would likely not hold to the title any more, considering that the so-called 'founders' of it are either dead or retired.

speaking of—] Are you a fan of the Avengers?

Hm. I don't think I'm exactly a fan... A fan starts buying questionable merchandise and starts searching for increasingly questionable fanfiction.

[ Not that Lien would know about that... Honest... 💦 ]

I suppose it's a good healthy admiration for the people who've been able to accomplish a whole lot. And in a way...

[ Lien glances down at her gloved hands, contemplative. ]

... Well, there's no way that wouldn't inspire someone to do more you know?

Fanfiction?

[now that is a term she is not very familiar with; not that she's had plenty of time to really bask in the fame of being a superhero of sorts and what that itself branches into.

she wonders vaguely... no, she removes the urge to check it out on her phone, out of sheer curiosity or otherwise.]

Has it been inspiring to you?

[the state of the world is something else, after the blip, and she understands many have found themselves without a home or without what they considered their own either before the blip or during the blip. the world has been thrown into a bit of turmoil, and wanda is reminded of the brief conversation she had with sam after she saw his speech on the news.

everyone just wants a fairer chances in this world.

tilting her head, she glances at lien.]

Things are very complicated in the world right now, I guess. Having people willing to make it better for everyone would be a great thing.

Edited 2021-11-29 17:44 (UTC)

OPEN POST III

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slams this down!! I LIVE.

SAME!! welcome back!

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