2025-06-24 - Old Dog, New Tricks

[TXT to Asher] Chase: Wyd?

[TXT to Chase] Asher: Recovering from last night's chaos. Have you seen any of the viral vids from the influencer thing last night?

[TXT to Asher] Chase: Unfortunately, not. I worked a double and crashed as soon as I got home. Good times?

[TXT to Chase] Asher: Oh, shit. Bish. Check your socials.

[TXT to Chase] Asher: I assume they're all over socials, at least. I don't know. I'm not on them.

[TXT to Chase] Asher: But, yeah. A dude with fire hands and a flying chick and some of their friends staged a bit of a protest. Started screaming about how our employers were running a cult and we were all dangerous. Total nutjobs.

[TXT to Chase] Asher: I mean. They were right about the magic part, but. Cult? No one's been offering me kool-aid, unless I'm just showing up to the wrong parties.

[TXT to Asher] Chase: .......

[TXT to Asher] Chase: What the fuck??

[TXT to Chase] Asher: Yeah.

[TXT to Asher] Chase: No, I missed all of that.

[TXT to Chase] Asher: It was weird af.

[TXT to Chase] Asher: What's been going on with you?

[TXT to Asher] Chase: I mean, I wouldn't be surprised to know management is keeping secrets. But I've never known a cult you can just walk away from.

[TXT to Asher] Chase: Mostly just the same.

[TXT to Chase] Asher: Oh, there's absolutely NO WAY that they're telling us everything. Probably not even a fraction of it. But a cult? Yeah. No.

[TXT to Asher] Chase: Hey, did you have any side effects of using the portal?

[TXT to Chase] Asher: Not that I've noticed, but... I kind of don't always feel the things other folks do.

[TXT to Asher] Chase: No changes to your magick?

[TXT to Chase] Asher: Not that I've noticed? I don't think... I made some extra progress on the runes, but, I was working on them already anyway. Why?

[TXT to Asher] Chase: It'd probably be easier to show you. Wanna meet at Lucky's? If you're not surprised, drinks are on me.

[TXT to Chase] Asher: Chase. I put you back together when you lost half yourself. You're buying drinks either way. But I can be there in twenty. Surprise me!

[TXT to Asher] Chase: Fair enough. See you soon.

Chase is already at Lucky’s, sitting in one of the back booths with one hand curled around a glass filled with ice and a brownish liquid. Her dark brown hair is pulled back into a ponytail and the lack of coveralls might hint that she’s either off today or doesn’t have to work for quite a bit. The denim skirt and red tank reveal plenty of sunkissed skin.
Her other hand is lifted in a greeting wave when Asher walks in, and eyes the color of mocha track her friend as they approach.
“Sorry to be all mysterious and theatrical, but I think this would be the best way to judge your reaction.”

Asher is in their usual park uniform, though not the Park Services medic one. Fake Rex Manning band tee, black linen blazer, jeans, chucks, canvas bag. Their oil-slick sheened hair is down and loose around their shoulders. It's wet and smelling strongly of shampoo, and the wetness of the strands makes their shifting colors all the more vivid. Asher waves to Chase as they make their way through the bar, and then once they're closer, they offer, "Hey, babes. Red is good on you!"

But. When it's mentioned there will be dark theatrics, Asher smirks. "Ok, then, Sinead O'Rebellion. Shock me, shock me, shock me with your deviant behavior." The tee shirt might be to blame for the quote. "Show me what you're working with post-portal and we'll see what we can manage to unravel about it." Though it dawns on them, they never did get Parker's name. "By the way, have you heard from Alphabits? I've seen almost everyone else around after we all got back, but I have no idea what has or hasn't come of Sleeping Beauty. If he wasn't ok, though, they would have pulled all the rest of us in for testing and stuff, right?"

Chase’s grin widens when she sees Asher’s attire and gives an approving nod. “Loving the look. Not that the uniform is anything to turn my nose up at.” One shoulder rises and falls. “I mean, it is the first thing I ever saw you wearing.” She doesn’t bring up the fact that she was on the verge of dying in that moment. No need to whistle past a graveyard, as her grannie used to say.
She shakes her head. “I haven’t. To be fair, when we got back, I threw myself into work and other activities to not think about my own fairytale-like slumber.” Granted, the second the awake version merged into the unconscious one, the remaining Chase sat up like she’d just been taking a nap. “Yeah. If he had any negative side effects, I’m sure they would have wanted to examine all of us.”
“Speaking of side effects…” Chase grins and begins to go slightly out of focus, like an overexposed photo. Then there comes the audible pop of air displacement, and now Asher is sitting across from a pair of Chases.
“So, this is the old trick,” Chase One says, still smirking like the Cheshire Cat.
“This is the new trick,” Chase Two says, giving Asher a playful wink.
A second later, Chase Two’s dark brown hair begins to lighten rapidly, turning a shimmering golden honey in just a couple of seconds. Likewise, her dark eyes shift into a brilliantly green hue with a cute compliment of freckles running across the bridge of her nose.
The two women across from Asher are undoubtedly Chase, but they are no longer identical.
“Ta-da,” Blonde Chase says.
“Surprised?” Brunette Chase asks.

Asher sticks with what works, except when they're plotting ways to figure out how to eventually break into Zeke's closet, because his collection of jackets is so much better than their own will ever be. "Thanks, Sweetness." They may have told Chase that she was paying for the drinks, but they don't seem in much rush to acquire one of their own.

They remember with perfect clarity the panic and fear they'd experienced when Chase Two went down, and the instant relief on seeing Chase One roll with that issue as easily as water off a duck's back. They frown a bit that Chase has also not heard anything about Parker, though. They add a follow-up about that to their ever-growing to-do list. But that thread will have to be followed later, because Chase is talking about side effects.

Chase blurs and then doubles, and Asher is not at all surprised. "Thing Two, always a pleasure."

But when Thing Two starts to change appearance? "Huh." If Asher wasn't close with Leon, that might have been surprising. "So, at least half of you is borrowing tricks from LeeLee's books?" Interesting. It's not surprise, but there is enough curiosity to make up for it. "Can both of you change the looks, or just half of you? And do you get to pick, or is it appearance roulette?"

Chase, for her own part, wasn’t concerned about Parker until Asher mentioned not seeing him recently. After her own quick recovery, she had figured that whatever knocked them out was only temporary. Now, she’s not completely sure.

“So, I actually discovered this by accident,” Brunette Chase explains. “I went to work while also spending time down at the beach. As one who can be in multiple places at the same time is want to do. And I saw this really smoking hot tourist with the most beautiful red hair I’ve ever seen. I got a little envious, but didn’t think much about it.”

Blonde Chase nods. “Until I got home and saw that my hair had turned that exact same shade. Work Me came back still looking like I had earlier, so we decided to experiment.”

Brunette Chases’ hair turns a fiery copper color as it shortens to become a cute, chin-length bob. “Each version can make independent changes. Just small things, though. Like hair color, eye color, height.” Her smirk widens. “Boob size.”

“I mean,” Blonde Chase adds. “I can’t grow seven feet tall or have extra arms, but I can gain or lose about two inches. “But the trippy part is merging.”

Red and Blondie slide closer together until their shoulders touch, then both seem to go slightly transparent and coalesce together. Now Asher only has a singular Chase sitting across from her, with dark brown hair and brown eyes.

“It’s like it resets to default.”

Asher's infinite list of things over which to worry grows anxiously by the moment sometimes, they are more than capable of both worrying over Alphabits and tending to day to day life while nursing all their other worries as well. But that worry has been simmering since they got back. It can simmer just a little longer, because for now, they're working with Chase about what happened to her since the portal, so Parker is just going to have to wait his turn.

Watching both Chase One and Chase two switch from the Chase Asher is used to into those other versions... Asher is absolutely pensive. But as Chase explains more of the parameters she's discovered about her new talents? Asher looks envious af. "Hang on," they complain. "Are you telling me that I got the power to have to injure myself or drown in guilt for not helping when someone is hurt, but you get to just suddenly be able to reach higher cabinet shelves?" Life is incredibly unfair. "I want to speak to whomever assigns whatever talents we do and don't get, because that's bullshit."

Chase smiles and slides her glass toward Asher. “You probably need this if you’re planning on filing a complaint with the forces that control the magick around here. I don’t know why you got what you got, but I do know that I’d likely be past tense if not for it.”
She shrugs. “Don’t forget the ability to talk to and command electronics. I mean, that’s not nearly as cool as being able to fly or teleport or read minds. So it’s not like I got all the golden coins, Cutie.”
Reaching up, she scratches at the back of her head. “That’s why I asked if going through the portal changed your magick. I couldn’t make changes to my appearance before. Oh, and now it seems I can do the twinning thing for longer than a day. Haven’t tried to see just how much longer yet.”
She signals the bartender to bring another round for her and a round of whatever Asher’s poison is. (It’s a fair bet the keep knows the tastes of the staff by heart)
“Did you hear about the other doors? What those worlds were like?” Chase drums her fingers lightly on the table. “I know last time had a hiccup, but I’m kind of excited to take another trip through and explore.”

"Thanks," Asher says when Chase offers them her drink. "But I'm not much of a drinker." They will down a mocktail with the best of them, or slowly sip at one singular drink over the course of a couple hours, but. Even when they're not on official on-call duty, Asher has issues with things that would mean in a crisis they weren't able to step in to try and help. They tend to stay fully and intentionally sober the vast majority of the time.

Chase may not have gotten some of the really nifty powers around this place, but, electronics doesn't seem so bad to Asher, either. "My dearest of darlings..." Chase knows the Leeching that Asher can do. Asher might as well tell them the rest. "Not only can I fix a lot of what might be able to be broken in a person, but..." Insensate is a dangerous combination to go alongside it. "I can't really feel it until I've taken on more than I should." The severity of pain and recovery it took for Asher to have fixed Chase post-ferry was truly indicative of just how close Chase was to not making it.

"That," Asher explains, "And a need to never have to see that AI nightmare of an owl again in my life to speak languages we didn't even know existed seems to be about my only useful Spellbound effects." Though, the translations have gotten exponentially better and easier since coming back through the portals, even if Asher hasn't realized just how much better their Xenoglossy has improved - yet.

When Chase mentions the clones also last longer now, a brow arches over Asher's shimmering silvery eyes. "Sometimes," they murmur, "It's a downright miracle we're not all locked up like lab rats. Surely some kind of government oversight organization has to want to study and dissect us until all this can be explained, replicated, and knowing humanity... Probably weaponized..." When the server comes by for a drink order, Asher asks for a glass of tonic water splashed with grapefruit juice and a double dash of bitters, a quick and easy mocktail.

As to the other portals, Asher tells Chase, "I know one of them had some apparently super cute mini-deer and other kinds of fauna that sounded way cuter than our mycologically infused gastropods, but I haven't heard much about the rest of them. I'm still trying to find time to catch up with Momo and Dilly to hear about what their trip was like. How about you? Heard anything worth sharing about the other groups and their adventures?"

Chase’s amused grin slowly fades into an expression of seriousness when Asher expands upon the effects of their ability to heal others. Chase is extremely aware of how bad off her friend was after pulling the duplicating mechanic’s ass out of the fire. “Oh. That’s dangerous, Asher. I mean, what if it had been too much? I was literally squished to near death and then I was just sore. Like I’d had a decent workout. How did you know that fixing me wasn’t going to do worse to you?”
She points a finger at the medic. “Hey, being able to speak any language, even those not from earth, is a pretty handy trick. Unless someone speaks English or signs, I’m at a loss.”
Their drinks arrive and Chase’s is another whiskey on the rocks. Picking up the glass, she gives it a little swirl, sending the ice sliding around as if on a carousel. “I’ve been thinking about that. I figure there are two answers to why we aren’t in a cage being dissected. One is money. The owners of this place are so rich and connected that they can keep the government away for the time being. The other option is that the government knows our powers don’t work off the island, so they’ve decided to just observe us here. With so many tourists staying for extended periods of time, there has to be a scientist or two in the mix.”
“Oh? I didn’t hear about the deer. The one I heard about was a cavern that led onto a beach where a pirate ship or something had run aground. But there were some really nasty giant lizard things that chased the party back to the portal.” She takes a sip of the drink. “I would be willing to go back to the Kingdom of the Giant Snails if I could take a hazmat suit or something to keep from falling asleep.” She laughs. “Or maybe they’ll let us spin the wheel and go someplace new. Surely there’s a world out there that’s just like Tahiti.”

That's dangerous. Asher nods a lot. "I didn't know then what I know now." Asher had encountered Chase early on in their exposure to Spellbound. "I knew I could help, but I didn't know it was supposed to hurt. Until you, everything was so minor I never felt it at all. I just thought I could take it away. Like, I knew it looked gross as all get out, but, I didn't know I was hurting myself in the process. You were the first one that hurt bad enough I could feel it." Chase is the only reaosn Asher realized that leeching wasn't just helping someone injured, but instead just shuffled around who it was to suffer for it.

There's a grin as the language are declared useful. "Oh, don't get me wrong!" Asher really loves that little benefit. "Other than meaning I can understand all the words when someone is unsummoning demons in dead languages, its a really fun one. Just, you know..." They shrug, "Not as cool as flying, or like, teleportation and mind reading and all the other cool stuff some folks got." But. They can't complain too much. "I don't mind when it means the MSD are bringing me puzzles to solve and codes to crack, though. I'm dying to know what they're working on, so it's nice to have a reason to find out. Between that and them needing frequent medical backup just in case, I'm actually even making some friends there. Still haven't figured out 'not-a-fed's' name from the seance though. Yet."

Asher reaches for their drink and sips from the bitter, tart, medicinal cup. Their mocktail of choice may be a strong set of flavors, and they know tonic water isn't everyone's favorite. But for Asher, nothing tastes like the best parts of summer as quinine and citrus. They listen to Chase's thoughts as to why they're not lab rats, or if they are... They're unaware of their cages.

As to the other portals, though... "Pirate cove beach sounds amazing but at least our snails were slow. I don't think I'd want to be chased down by Jurrasic Park, even if there was a shipwreck to explore along the way." But there's a nod. "If we had rebreathers, I'd go back. But, yeah. I'm hoping we can figure out the runes well enough to actually go on purpose andd not at random. It's been slow-going, but, Dilly and Momo and I finally seem maybe to be starting to make some progress, I think."

Chase frowns. “I still have nightmares. About it. I don’t have the memories of the Chase that was on the ferry. When she went squish, the only thing that transferred to me was the pain and injury.” She takes a large swallow from the glass. “But I’ve seen the footage. Management showed it to me as part of the investigation. It was … horrific. It’s too easy to imagine the terror she felt, because I know the terror I would have felt.”
She looks at Asher. “I know we joke about it, but you really did save my life that day. I just wish you hadn’t had to suffer to make it happen.”
 
Then she holds up her hand, palm out, toward Asher. “Wait. Back that up a second. Demons? Now we have demons running around with ghosts and cryptids? Please tell me that’s a metaphor or something.”
 
Chase leans forward slightly, listening intently as her friend discusses puzzles, mysteries, and someone may or may not be with the government. Sighing, she shakes her head. “I feel so out of the loop sometimes. The weirder things get, the more I just throw myself into keeping the lights on and the rides running. Then I get pulled into helping build a machine that opens doors to other worlds and discover that I’m the last to know things. I really should at least spend more time on the employee boards.”
 
A quick nod. “Yeah. I’ll pass on the raptors, even if that means not getting to explore an actual pirate ship.” She takes a drink, finishing the beverage and holding the ice-only glass. “As for the place we went, I’m curious about those globes. I get the feeling that they were not natural, but built by someone. I’d kinda like to know who.” She taps one finger against the glass in her hand. “Do you think they would allow a longer trip back there if we had breathing equipment?

"Me too." Asher still has nightmares about that roller coaster. They won't ride it, not for anything, because they avoid going into it at all. Asher never told Chase this, but, there at Lucky's with their only liquid courage a mocktail, Asher tells her, "After I had gotten better, too, they let me see the video. It's how I knew how risky helping actually was, and that I needed to be a lot more careful." Because seeing that, combined with the pain of it... "I couldn't figure out why you hurt so much to help, when everyone else I'd used my talents on hadn't hurt me at all. But the scale was so drastic. I can be numb to a lot of things, but not that much." It's good that Asher knows, but they'll never forget the way they learned it.

They do joke about it a lot. It's easier to joke about than to talk about. But since they are talking about it, Asher says, "I'm a lot more careful with it now. But if the half of you that went down hadn't come back up again, and we only got part of you back to this side of the portal? Chase. You're one of my best friends here. I'd have done it again." Asher would have thought twice this time, but, they would have done it again.

As to the demons, though? "Not a metaphor." But, "Also, I'm hoping it was only a demon, rather than multiples. I'm really hoping the idiot that did that was the only one." One demon was more than enough. "It was by far, though, the weirdest first date of my life. Eunice seems sweet, but, I don't think there is much going back after that." But Asher isn't exactly known for being the dating type anyway. "But I'm glad she didn't try it alone. I think I'd rather get that text any night and be able to help than anyone have to deal with that alone."

When Chase says they're out of the loop, Asher has to laugh. "Babes. There are two of you. How are you not twice as in the know as the rest of us?" Clearly, Clone Chase is totally slacking. "But you keep the place up and going. You throw yourself into the work." Asher can admire that, there are times they're the same. "But I'm not good with unsolved puzzles. I can't help it. I can't not try to solve them."

And the portals - and the worlds on the other side - are puzzles in all their own rights and glories. "I've been wondering the same. I'm not sure how we figure out what we need... Gas masks? Rebreathers? Full on hazmat?" Asher doesn't know what kind of protection they need. Could take EVA suits for all Asher knows. "But fungus isn't something to fuck with, especially in the lungs, so, I'm kind of glad their air was inhospitable. Asher admits, "I'd like to track down Alphabits, see how well he knows his own castings. Was it mushroom spores, or the flowers he'd predicted? Mycelium isn't actually a plant, but, maybe it was close enough?" A puzzle. "But either way, if we can figure out how to stay awake over there, I'd like to learn more about those globes, too."

Chase’s mouth opens slightly in surprise. She was unaware that anyone other than Management and herself had viewed the ferry footage. But, thinking about it, it would make sense to show Asher, due to their being involved in fixing the aftermath. A shake of her head is followed by a wiggling of the empty glass in the direction of the bar.
Turning back to Asher, she sighs. “I knew it wasn’t more than being out cold since it didn’t come with any pain.” She holds up her free hand and makes a fist, showing Asher the small, still-healing scar across her knuckles. “Wrench slipped. Banged it on a metal corner. The other me was at home, making cookies. Nearly dropped the pan on the floor when the sensation hit.”
She smiles. “You’re one of my best friends, too. Which means I probably would have fought to prevent you from doing it again. No need to harm yourself again on my account.” Is this going to be a source of disagreement between them? Probably.
A brow arches in amusement as another whiskey rocks is placed on the table. “Oh? Demon summoning not on your list of first date ideas? I mean, I know dinner and a movie is passé, so why not raise a little hell?” Laughing softly, she shakes her head. “I guess I should be at least up to date on who’s doing who and who’s trying to do who.”
Chase’s mouth twists sideways in contemplation. “Can you absorb spores through the skin? I’m not saying it’s the mushrooms, but there were mushrooms growing all over the place there. If we don’t have to cover skin, I could probably get some of the portable tanks and masks we have for working in areas with hazardous fumes. If we take a spare tank that should give us at least ninety minutes to explore and get back to the doorway.”
Taking a sip from the glass, she grins. “I’m not saying going back to the Toadstool Kingdom ranks up there with banishing demons on date night, but I think it would be fun.”

Asher sips at their mocktail, the tart and bitter bubbles over ice refreshing in the summer heat. They give Chase time to take in what they've just shared.

They're not sure how they expected Chase to take that bit of knowledge, but, being shown an injury wasn't it. "I swear, babes." Asher is laughing softly, but they still sound half-serious. "I'm going to make Rhea write a doctor's note demanding your uniform come with a mandatory three layers of bubble wrap at this rate." But still. It scares Asher half to death the way Chase just lets half of herself go wandering off out of sight. "How do you not panic any time you can't see where the rest of you is?" Asher cannot imagine it. "I'd be non-stop high-key horrified I was about to walk in front of a tram while napping and never even know it."

When Chase mentions catching up on who is doing what and with and to whom? Asher laughs again. "It's a soap opera more than anything, as far as I can tell." But, the pairings they're aware of aren't their business to share. They do share their own recent demonic date, though. "I'm not sure I knew it was a date until it was over. Or maybe it wasn't a date?" Asher shrugs. "I don't know. I haven't dated in a really long time. It was a woman I met at the Pride parade, though. She'd said we should get drinks, but, we got a banishment instead. She seems sweet, but, I think seeing her as more than friends would lead her on, and she deserves better than that." Asher takes another sip and adds, "But I do hope we end up friends."

As to what can be absorbed through skin, though? Asher just shrugs. "Myocological spore contamination is outside my scope of practice, Sweets. You'd have to consult infectious disease about that." Asher has no idea. "All I know is if you're around spores, you don't want to breathe them into your lungs, get them into your blood stream, or let them anywhere near your heart." Fungal sepsis can go south faster than a heartbeat. "But it wouldn't hurt to ask security for a medical consult about it." Because yeah. If there are worlds out there that can hurt them? Asher wants to know how and why. They want to be better prepared to get everyone their best chances on each and every trip.

Chase laughs. "How can I just split up and let one of me go off on her own? Because she's me. When I twin, each version is the 'real' version. So, not being together isn't a big deal. " She takes a sip and thinks for a moment. "Okay, imagine that you go about your day doing stuff and in the evening you come home and relax and suddenly get a whole set of other memories added to the ones you already have. Instead of spending the day fixing broken people, you also spent the day relaxing on the beach with a good book. I know it sounds confusing, but it's really not." A grin forms. "Besides, how many people in the world can see what a dress looks like from the back? Or what it's like to kiss themselves?"

Chase is going to let that one simmer a bit.

"Of course it's a soap opera. It would be even if we didn't hang out on a magick island. I used to be knee deep in the gossip, but this whole Brass House thing has thrown me off my game." She nods as Asher sums up her evening with Eunice. "If you don't mind me butting in, why don't you find out if she's actually looking for something serious? Maybe she wants to be more than friends but doesn't want to be in a relationship. Sounds like you made up your mind for the both of you." A little smirk. "Only us twins are allowed to do that."

"Yeah, I'm well-versed in avoiding the fungi and mold that we have here on Earth. I sure as shit don't want alien mushrooms growing in my chest. The question is if you're game for a little return to Snailville? Only this time with protection and appropriate gear."

"I am not going to debate the ethics of clone sex with you, Chase. Whatever you and you do behind closed doors is private, and I don't need to know about it." Asher doesn't need for that thought to marinate nor to simmer at all. And maybe part of that is explained when Asher tries to explain about Eunice. "I'm not scared of commitments, babes. I like strings. I like when they're firmly attached." The commitment isn't Asher's problem.

Asher sighs softly. "I like date, and I like people. I actually even like flirting, as long as everyone involved know there's no intention behind it." It's the intentions Asher doesn't enjoy. "But the idea of someone touching me intimately, or me trying to touch them back?" They shake their head. "I'm happy for anyone who likes that, that's great. It's just not for me." Sometimes, they wish it was. "I like romance. I'm panromantic. But, I'm asexual, and I've learned that with other folks who aren't also ace, talking romance almost always leads to at least regrets." Hey. If you can't come out to your best friend in June, when and where and to whom can you come out at all?

But Asher looks around the room, making sure no one else is paying attention to them before telling Chase softly, "And if I was going to pursue something platonic... I think my interests are elsewhere." They aren't ready to name any names yet. It's so new, and they're not super sure what they feel or think about it yet. But they know that either way, "I like Eunice a lot, as a friend. But I'm just not in a place to pursue or be pursued for anything more than that."

“I didn’t realize that selfcest required an ethical review. Since it’s not really all that different from masturbation.” Chase laughs and winks. “Except better. Then she holds up her hand in surrender. “Got it. Chase’s sexual exploits not appropriate dinner conversation.”
Listening to Asher lay out the details of their proclivities, Chase gives a slow nod of understanding. “I hear what you’re saying. My bad for jumping to the way wrong conclusion. And everything you just said makes sense to me. So I apologize for assuming.”
That Cheshire smile comes back. “Maybe that’s why we’re friends. They say opposites attract. I’m reckless and impulse driven. You’re more cautious and pragmatic. I’m hypersexual and you’re asexual. I think I like romance. Or at least the idea of romance. But the people I let into my bed I don’t let into my heart.” She shrugs. “It’s easier to be the one walking away than the one being walked away from.”
The fact that teenage Chase would be mortified to hear her older self feels that way is better left not explored
“Well, girl, you can come out to me anytime. Not just in June.”
She nods again. “Nothing wrong with exploring your interests and options. I’m sure there is an awesome person out there ready to sweep you off your feet. Metaphorically, that is.” Then she taps her chest. “Just know that you’re my friend and whatever makes you happy makes me happy.” Then she forms a fist. “And I’ll likely punch whoever makes you unhappy. It’s one of the perks of being someone I care about.”

Asher is not going to get into the debate on the ethics of clone sex. They just aren't. And really, that's probably a blessing for Chase just as much as it is for Asher.

That apology about conclusion jumping gets a shake of their head, though. "Nah, you're fine. It's not like I really ever told you, and well. Most folks just kind of assume that even if they might not know who someone is or isn't attracted to, they're at least attracted to something. It's a pretty reasonable assumption to make." Asher's hints are subtle. The colors are on their lanyard, and for those more in the know there is the black ring on their right middle finger. But much like those in Victorian times, the flowers only mean something if you, too, know that specific flower's codes.

"Is that why we're friends?" Asher throws Chase a bright grin. "I thought it was just the trauma bonding." But it's true. They do complement each other pretty well.

Asher does her best Janet impression, "Not a girl." But they're grinning as they tell Chase. "I'm rooting for your happiness, too. If you ever need a wing-person looking to meet someone who isn't yourself, I'm there for you. But I'm not going to go punching anyone on your behalf. You've got a clone for that." But even if Asher can't throw a punch, they're still useful. "I'll fix up your knuckles after, though."

Chase grins, but a bit of blush appears on her face. "And some folks seem to have an unhealthy attraction to a lot of people. Like they're part crow. See something shiny? Want to collect it." Picking up the glass, she takes a sip and then nearly chokes when Asher conjures up The Bad Place. Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, she frowns and looks extremely abashed. "Oh my god. I'm so sorry, hon. I didn't ..." Chase's jaw clenches for a moment. "You would think after so many years of being on the receiving end, I would know better than to misgender someone. I want to say it just slipped out, but that is so not an excuse. Especially since I already knew." She reaches across the table for Asher to take her hand if she wants. "I really am sorry.

The offer to patch up her hand if a Chase punches someone gets a small smile. "Well, thanks. But I'd really rather our relationship be more than you patching me up. That's going to get old quick."

Asher takes Chase's hand, and give a squeeze of it. Outside of their androgynous fashion choices that lean a touch masc when a bit more formal, they keep the gender - or their lack of it - casual. They shake their head. "Seriously, I get it a lot." And when someone does it to be cruel, or to try and take control of the narrative of who Asher must be? Yeah. Asher can get a little stabby about it. Not literally, they're too small to go stabbing every bigot they've stumbled over, they are not built to do well in a jail cell after. But honest slips? They don't actually bother them. "I didn't get that thing where I'm stuck strong to any of the genders. It's more I just didn't really get hit any any of the genders. So. Since none of them are exactly right, none of them are exactly right, either. They/them feels the least incorrect most of the time. But as long as no one's being a dick about it, it's not the end of my world."

When Chase mentions that she'd want their relationship to be more than just patch jobs, though, Asher laughs. "Look. Some of us are good at staying in our lanes, staying moisturized, and being unbothered." But. Since those patches have to go someplace else, and since Asher won't put an injury into anyone else... They never mind not getting hit with the remnants of what they've had to heal into their own body about it. Sometimes, though, it's worth it. "Least I'd owe to anyone willing to defend what's left of my honor, babes." But clearly from the way they're grinning, it's a joke.

Chase does look relieved when the hand squeeze comes right along with Asher's comment about their feelings on the gender spectrum. "Yeah, I would never be a dick about that. But I also try to be more cognizant. Especially when it comes to my friends." Grinning, she squeezes back. "What's a lane? Is that something I should stay in?" Because, if Chase actually considered staying in her lane, she would likely have less close encounters with bodily injury.

"Then consider your honor defended, hon." Chase's own grin widens. "My sisters might have teased me for being more princess-y than them, but it's always been more of a Xena than an Aurora. Not that I don't rock both leather and pink. Just sayin'." Picking up her glass, she taps it against Asher's seltzer. "So, when do you think we'll get another chance to explore more of those 'strange new worlds'?"

Asher laughs when Chase asks about lanes, and they promise her, "They're those boundaries marked so us rule-followers know where we're at, where we're headed, and where we're supposed to be along the way. Pretty sure folks like you don't have them, babes." Asher actually appreciates Chase's willingness to ignore the rules when needed. Everyone needs someone in their life willing to do the bad ideas when the good ones have run out. Chase's chaos goblin energy balances Asher's worries nicely.

"If Lucy Lawless was not part of a girl's gay awakening, I don't want to meet her." Asher has firm opinions about what other people's opinions should be regarding Xena. "But you'd rock a leather kilt without even trying." Asher clinks glasses and sips from their fizzy cup before telling Chase, "From what I can tell, there are projects running almost daily. I'm on one as medic this weekend. As long as no one goes down to any mushrooom naps, I'm willing to call it a win."

"Hey! To be fair, only one of me succumbed to the fungus. Obviously the weaker one, of course." Though she's pretty much proved to Asher that both Chases are, in face, THE Chase. Regardless of their new ability to alter appearances. "Oh Em Gee. Don't even get me started on the awakening caused by Xena. Watching the reruns with my sisters was what led to me asking why I couldn't be like her." She snorts a little laugh. "Talk about awkward."

"Yes, yes. I believe I have heard of these lanes, now that you mention it. Sounds completely not my style in the least." Winking, Chase nonchalantly shrugs one shoulder. Even among her peers, she's known as the mechanic that doesn't shy away from taking a chance or going the experimental route. Most of the time, it works out for the best. But whether that is dumb luck or a testament to her skills is up for debate.

"Well, be careful. I would volunteer to have one of me go with you, but just because I can twin on the other side of the door doesn't mean that the magick will allow one to remain behind." The smile on her face is jovial and amused, but the lightheartedness doesn't touch those brown eyes. "When you're over there, just ask yourself 'what would Chase do?' and then don't do that."

"Hey," Asher isn't going to argue with Chase about how damned lucky they all were that everything ended out coming up Millhouse. "You only tripped, but didn't pull a full Alphabits about it. The getting right back up and out again was talent." And it's talent that Asher was really glad showed up. But when Chase talks about the Xena awakening, they nod. "See? You get it. I didn't know if I wanted her to be my bestie, or if I wanted to be her, but I absolutely realized I wasn't sure which way I was, but my aesthetic attractions went just about any which way."

But when Chase talks about that awkward conversation with her sister. "Ummm." If a situation can be awkward, Asher will always know how and where to get there. "You're not just cloning you now, babes. Have you tried? Can you be like her now?" Asher's not so sure Chase couldn't be, if she made an effort. They do laugh about the lanes, though. "Correct. Staying out of your lane is smack dab center of staying in your lane."

"I'll take it," Asher tells their friend when the luck is wished. "I'm curious what to see what everything looks like when people are awake about it. Ours was gorgeous, but some of the others sound breath-taking, too. I'm not looking forward to that bone shake, but, I am excited to see what else we might find. And I think we're getting closer to getting the runes cracked. So. Who knows what else might be there." Asher is always going to be nervous about the dangers. But they can at least look for those beautiful silver linings where they can find them.

Chase shrugs. “Getting right back up again was less about talent and more about having an awake form to merge with.”

Sighing, she takes a sip from the glass as she looks down into the melting cubes. “To be honest, I don’t know what could have been done if both of us passed out. Does a merging happen automatically? Does it require us to be physically touching? I mean, I know that pushing a separation past the deadline results in both of us starting to experience fatigue and aches. There’s so much I still don’t know about the whole thing.”

Letting out a little laugh, she brings her gaze back up to Asher. “Wow. Okay, that went dark and serious for a moment, huh?” Thankfully, she’s got a better topic to discuss. “I don’t know. I’ve not tried to change more than minor physical details. I suppose if, like everything else, it has a progression rate, then I might eventually be able to look exactly like someone else.” The corner of her mouth ticks up in a little smirk. “Which could lead to all sorts of … interesting … situations.”

“I think the more we understand about the doors and the runes, the more worlds we’re going to be able to find on purpose. I mean, yeah, the giant mushroom snails are way out there, but think about how awesome it would be to find a world very similar to ours, where they’ve managed to cure diseases we still have to deal with.”

She deliberately ignores the antithesis of her wonder: a world with plagues that their side has no experience (or immunity) to.

“Okay. How about this? Any time I take a trip through the door, you are with me? That way, you can keep an eye on my shenanigans and be the voice of reason that neither copy seems to possess.”

When Asher hears that Chase doesn't know what would have happened, well. Asher also doesn't know what would have happened. But they'd made an instant plan in their head about it, and they explain to Chase what they would have done if it ever becomes what need to be done. "Eddie was going to carry the part of you that fell. And if the rest of you went down, too, Roman was on it." Brandon was hauling Alphabits. "I would have gone through the portal first, then they would have shoved both halves of you through together all at once. I don't know what would happen about it, but whatever I could do with what pieces made it through, I'd have done all I could."

It is not uncommon for a medical professional to promise to do all that they can. And they almost always mean it when it's said. But Chase is aware of how much Asher can help when they do all that they can. She also knows the costs. She also knows they meant it entirely. Dark and serious indeed. So when Chase changes the topic to how she's now able to change her clones, at least their basics, they grin, letting the other woman pull back towards levity again.

And when it shifts to the runes, and what they can do, Asher nods. "That's the theory I've been working on with Momo and Dilly. The more we figure out about them, the more certain we are they're coordinates. We're certain they point to other worlds, but we're still trying to figure out the details of how, or what specifically each of them might mean, much less in combination. We've gotten to the point that we absolutely know that they're red. But I'm almost certain we're on the cusp of figuring out which are crimson, or scarlet, or vermillion, or brick or any of the other things red can be."

Asher is on the verge of figuring out the languages that will let the engineers figure out how to translate their work. They're confident that those translations will lead to better - and hopefully safer - understandings. So when Chase strikes that deal, Asher nods. "Any mission you sign on for, if I don't have a clinic shift I can't manage to swap or trade, I'll be there." Asher has a vested interest in not letting Chase come apart again. "But I'm never getting used to the way stepping back and forth feels. It's the worst." They have gotten a little too used to their Insensate tendencies numbing them. Feeling their body vibrate from the inside out is not their idea of a good time.

Chase blinks. "That's a rather extensive evac plan. Let's just be glad it didn't have to go down like that." Not that she hasn't had a few nights of waking up in a cold sweat from a nightmare about having to leave her sleeping half behind in the Land of Fungi and feeling the squeezing of her flesh and bones as the upright version suffered the penalty. Again. "You've already had to put up with fixing me once, babe. Let's not do it again."

Though she knows that Asher absolutely would if the situation called for it.

"I wonder if there's a map? I mean, if the inventors of the portal machine took time to etch runes that might be coordinates to various worlds, maybe they left behind some sort of ... I dunno ... tour guide? You know, 'this is a world filled with dinosaurs' or 'this world rains fire from the sky'. The kind of information that might come in handy before you visit."

"Deal. To be honest, I would feel a lot more confident going on excursions knowing that my own personal voice of reason was accompanying me." She winks at Asher and shrugs. "Well, I only remember the feeling going in. I was too focused on putting myself back together to think about the return trip." Taking the empty glass, she swirls the half-melted ice cubes around. "I was thinking about actually joining the Magical Studies group. I figure if my technopathy can help build the house and the portal, maybe it'll help if we go to a world with technology. Or assist with the work that Estella and Jackson are doing."

Extensive backup plans are kind of Asher's specialty, they're the bread and butter of any halfway decent medic. You get it, assess the problem, make a plan, and get to work. And while you're getting to work, you start planning out the worst case sceanrios and what to do if it all goes sideways along the way. They are incredibly glad that it didn't have to go down like that.

"Agreed." Asher would very much like to avoid a repeat of the ferry incident. But they sure weren't going to leave one half of Chase behind. That's called the fucking around phase, and Asher doesn't want to have to find out again. But they weren't going to leave the other half of Chase to suffer those consequences alone.

As to maps and guides, though, Asher nods. "There absolutely are, but I don't know that anyone in Em Ess Dee has found them yet. But Landrydale so much as said so at the seance. We know he had notebooks and translations and documentation in his old lab that as far as I know, we've not found yet here in modern Spellbound. I don't know where they wound up, or if they're still anywhere near the park, but. I hope someday someone turns them up."

When Chase mentions joining that team, Asher grins widely. "Good. I need more contacts in there to keep looping me in." They are incredibly curious to get involved. "I asked HR about what it would take to transfer, but they don't take applications for direct medical support. I'm welcome to tag along when they need me, or to be invited in on projects where someone thinks my skills can help. But. Unless I'm brought in, I have no actual ideas what they're up to or what is going on." For someone not involved, though, Asher sure does seem to keep up to date on more of it than the should. Probably because of those folks like Chase willing to serve as contacts about it.

Plans, backup or otherwise, aren’t exactly a part of Chase’s toolbox. When you never know what you’re going to find when you slide into a cramped space full of gears and wiring, you learn to live by the seat of your pants. Maybe it’s a blow fuse that you can replace in two shakes of a lamb’s tail. Or it might be a busted gear missing half its teeth that’s going to require yanking out a whole assembly and putting it back together. But this is also the way she’s lived most of her life.
 
On the knife’s edge.
 
And, despite this thrilling, devil-may-care method of going through life, Chase is fine to never repeat the ferry incident ever again. Even if Asher can put her back together.
 
“I’ll see what I can nose out,” she says with a grin. “One of the things I want to try to do now that the portal device is up and running is try to talk to it. When I was helping Elmo put it together, I could feel some type of consciousness behind it. It might just be programming, but since it also seems to react to the outside environment, there’s a chance it might be more than that.” She shrugs. “Hell, maybe it can either tell us where these notebooks are, or provide some other form of information about the destinations. I mean, the last thing we need is to dial in a number and step through to a world that’s been engulfed by its sun.”
 
Because there ain’t no amount of magickal healing going to fix that.
 
She holds up her hand in a swearing salute. “I will keep you informed of whatever I find out. Not to mention I’ll be sure to let it be known that any trips I take are going to require you to come along.” 

Asher nods as Chase starts discussing the portal, and a conversation with it. "I think the runes are going to be able to help with that. Momo and Dilly and I are so close. But I think some of them are for setting parameters. Or maybe filtering them? I'm not sure. We're not quite there, but. I think it's going to help a lot. But if you and Momo go having a conversation, I'd love to be there. It would be cool as hell to see how other people hear it instead of just reading it."

Asher isn't a technopath. But they have a way of translating things, even if they shouldn't know the languages. But when it's mentioned some day that they might as well be walking on the sun... Asher admits, "I've been wondering how much hazard pay the security team gets to keep going in first." Then again... "If they stepped onto a sun, though, it's not like they'd be coming back to tell us. We'd all just follow along like lemmings."

There is a nod of Asher's head as Chase promises to keep them looped in, though. They finish off their mocktail as that pledge is made. "I'm going to hold you to that, Chase. But you've got my number. I'll always show up." They grin. "Just maybe not always for long. I've got to run, I want to take one last crack at the runes before I give it in for the day. Thanks for texting me, though. Seriously. The upgrades to the Wonder Twins powers are awesome. I can't wait to see what you figure out about it next." After, Asher offers a hug before they need actually to get going.