Fifth Floor Common Room, Sunday evening

[willbethenight.livejournal.com]

After getting back from Colorado, Bruce got some dinner from Ching Tai. Unfortunately, they gave way too much food, so he set up in the common room. If people were hungry, they could take. He could have done that and gone to his room with his food, but he figured that would prevent him from seeing how other people were reacting to the gender switch. And really, his want to be left alone was easily overruled by his curiosity.

While he was in the common room, though, he wasn't touching the TV. It would end up stuck on the Style Network or something if he did. He could deal with being a girl, but that was asking too much.

[OOC: Open like a gender-neutral common room.]

Comments

[notmyownage]

"Well, I don't know, the guessing game is a lot of fun. We could trade clues."

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Scully considered with a grin, and said, "Well, I'm taller. But that isn't difficult." She took another careful bite of chicken, and said, "Hmm. I haven't done this before?"

Well. Gender-switched, anyway.

[notmyownage]

"Sooooo . . . short. And newish." Claudia nodded. "I haven't actually grown or bulked up much at all. And I've been a boy before, but totally not like this."

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Scully gave Claudia an inquisitive look that might look familiar, squinting and trying to see the boy in front of her as a girl. "What was it like the last time? You turned into a different boy this time?"

[notmyownage]

"I turned into a different person last time. Some guy named Zane." Claudia shrugged, smiling internally at the inquisitive look. "And you totally just narrowed down the list of people I'd guess."

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

"Hunh. I haven't turned into anyone before... Wait, what?" Scully straightened, frowning and looking even more like herself. "What did I do?" Zane. Zane. Did she ever hear anyone mention that before?

[notmyownage]

It wasn't something Claudia mentioned much, but she might have brought it up once or twice.

"You looked all . . ." Claudia waved a hand vaguely around her face -- only slightly aware that every hand gesture probably gave another clue. "Well, let's just say I have a guess."

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Scully blinked, watching the hand waving, and put that together with someone who knew her well enough to recognize her facial expressions. "Claudia?" she said, very tentative.

[notmyownage]

Claudia snapped her fingers. "And you're totally Scully."

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Scully laughed, and then ran a hand through her hair and grimaced. "This is so, so much weirder than wanting to wreck a trebuchet."

[notmyownage]

"Yeah -- I totally freaked out this morning. I thought I'd managed to really screw something up this week while experimenting."

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

"Rheticus again?" Scully gave her a rueful look. "I hope that's going better than this."

[notmyownage]

"I've got a new lead. I . . . I've been having these visions. Of what happened when I was little."

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Scully put all gender-bending questions aside to lean forward, frowning in concentration. "Visions? Do you mean memories, or actual hallucinations?"

[notmyownage]

"Kind of . . . both? It's stuff that's already happened, like a dream, but I'm awake. And it seems like it's real. I think -- I think it means something. I think I'm supposed to find the other person involved."

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Scully gave Claudia a worried look; that expression was more ... Claudia, than anything else had been, that determination and calculation. "Who's that? And how does it happen?"

[notmyownage]

"Professor Artie Nielson. He was there to approve a grant for Joshua. He practically dared Josh to try the experiment." Claudia scowled. "It's kind of the same as when I saw Joshua in the lab. I get all . . . like I can't breathe right, and I get dizzy and then suddenly it's like I'm back there. And Artie and Joshua are there. I, um. Sometimes my nose bleeds."

It'd happened several times in Minnesota, way more often then she actually saw glowy!Joshua.

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Scully pulled up, even more worried. "Was Jake there keeping an eye on you? Or were you doing this alone? You can't keep doing that by yourself, Claudia. What if you passed out somewhere?" Bad badness. Bad. "Do you know how to find this guy, so you don't have to keep trying to contact Joshua?"

[notmyownage]

"No, he wasn't, and he already lectured me for that." Claudia was a little bit defensive on that point. "And I'm fine." Because nosebleeds were totally fine. "And not yet, but I can totally find him. Everyone leaves a computer trail, and those I can totally follow."

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Scully glared at her, still worried. "Next time," there would be one, yes, this was Claudia, "take one of us with you... Hmm. Yeah, maybe you should find him before you try again? He can at least tell you what to look for, I'd guess." She frowned. "He pushed Joshua into this? That was irresponsible."

[notmyownage]

"It was pretty much his fault. So he'd better help me fix it." Claudia even looked . . . almost dangerous, at that. It probably wouldn't be that nice to be Artie when Claudia found him. "I don't want you guys getting hurt, okay?"

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Scully threw up her hands, frustrated. "And I get that, and I get that you want to rescue Joshua, but Claudia, if you get hurt, there won't be anyone who knows how!" She took a breath, scanning her friend's face as she spoke of Professor Nielson. "Or if you get arrested for assault. Or anything more creative."

[notmyownage]

"Oh come on, I'm not going to get arrested."

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Which of course was not a denial of doing anything creative.

"You'd better not. Think of Mrs. Frederic." That was one scary lady.

[notmyownage]

Claudia winced. "Okay, point. But still. I don't want you guys getting in trouble, either."