strangetrip | Check-In: Not-Mother Hen

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Check-In: Not-Mother Hen

Kitty sat at the bar with a cup of coffee and her notebook, watching the 'welcoming committee' make themselves busy. Liz was here, as she'd promised Kitty she would be and Kitty gave her a quick smile of encouragement.

One of the worst things about Check-In Days was that you never knew whether it'd be a whole long day of no one arriving, one spectacular fall from the ceiling and dropping dead after another, or anything in between. It made it hard to know what to do with yourself. After awhile, you got used to it and just kept on with whatever you'd do otherwise, and know that if you didn't step up for a new arrival, someone else would. But for someone not used to treating it like a responsibility to be here, especially someone with Liz's anxious need to be perfect at it, Check-In Day could be emotionally exhausting.

So Kitty made sure to have milk warmed for hot cocoa and her plans for the obstacle course handy in case Liz needed something to do with herself. Otherwise, she was working on a modification of Cerebro to see if she could start detecting new arrivals.

[ooc: Regular check-in day gathering post. If you want Kitty, ping me.]

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"Hey," Kitty said quietly as she approached him. She moved quietly and she didn't want to startle him by just appearing at his elbow suddenly when his attention was elsewhere.

He looked warmer than he had before but she still had a cup of hot cocoa for him. It was a tradition she had with the younger new arrivals. "I thought you might want this. Heat and sugar are always good for easing the shock of showing up here. I'm Kitty, by the way."

He looked at her, then the cup, then reached out tentatively for the hot cocoa.

"Thanks..." He said as he held the warm cup with both his hands. "It's been a while since I've had anything to drink, actually. Especially hot, so."

Bradley took a careful sip. He felt the heat slide down his throat and coat his stomach. He had a hint of a smile on his lips.

"I'm Brad," He said finally.

"Hi Brad. If you haven't had anything, maybe we should get you some water, too," Kitty said, her smile kind and friendly. "Have you eaten?"

She knew that Liz had tried to be helpful but sometimes the first few hours were just too much for being practical.

"Not really." He replied. "I've been in a cabin in the middle of nowhere for almost three days."

He took another sip of the hot chocolate and enjoyed the comfort in it.

"Well, food's free and we've got plenty of it." Coupled with what Liz had said, Kitty had the impression he really needed someone to be kind to him. Someone he could rely on for a bit while he got his bearings. She'd do what she could. "What sounds good right now?"

Brad hesitated.

"Anything but pancakes," He answered. "Doesn't really matter what it is, really."

He pushed his hair out of his eyes with his hand.

No pancakes, check. She wondered what made him think of that right away, but she didn't press. He'd talk when he was ready. "Well, the chef only makes chicken, but I bet there's someone around who could make a cheeseburger and fries if you'd rather have that than a chicken sandwich or chicken tenders or a chicken Caesar." She smiled conspiratorially. "You get the picture."

"Chicken fingers is fine, really," He said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm not picky. As long as it's hot."

Brad smiled politely.

"It's... still pretty weird to think I'm here." He continued. "I've never stayed at a hotel by myself before."

"Hot we can do." She gestured for him to follow her back into the cafe. "It's probably going to be weird for awhile. I wish I could say it won't, but even for people who are used to weird stuff happening, this is hard to get your head around."

"This stuff usually only happens in the movies," Brad said as he followed. "Like sci-fi movies and stuff. This isn't supposed to be real."

He dug his hands in his pockets while they walked.

"I keep thinking maybe I passed out and I'm in a coma or something." He added.

Kitty nodded sympathetically and gestured him to a quiet, cozy spot in one of the booths by the counter.

"What I usually tell people is that it doesn't much matter whether it's real or not. If you treat it like it isn't, it'll make you crazy. If you treat it like it is, it's weird, but you learn to deal with it." She offered a smile and a shrug. "I don't know how much that helps, though."

"I guess," He said unhelpfully. "I guess if I thought it wasn't real then nothing would matter and that would.. suck a lot more."

Kitty smiled a little more brightly at that. "Good attitude." He was going to be all right. "Let me go grab you something to eat and then we can talk some more, okay?"

He nodded, then waited. He wasn't used to adults being so nice to him unless it was a teacher and they thought he was depressed or something. This whole place was so weird.

Khani wasn't busy (since most people were sick of chicken), so popping up an order of chicken fingers and fries took the same amount of time as it did for Kitty to whip up a chocolate shake. In a hot minute, she was back, putting plate, shake, water, ketchup, and ramekins of a few different dipping sauces since she'd forgotten to ask what he wanted.

As she sat, she pointed to each and listed out, "Honey mustard, ranch, bleu cheese, teriyaki, and sweet and sour. If you prefer something else, we might have it. If we don't, it'll probably show up with the next inventory. And if you have any regular meds you take, they'll be in clinic."

"I don't, but.. that's good to know." He said, looking at his choices.

Bradley liked plum sauce the best, but he didn't hate any of the ones she picked out, either. Brad started to dig in tentatively. The food was good.

"I guess you've been here long, huh?" He asked.

"Yup." Kitty'd brought along a cup of coffee for herself and sipped it now. "I was in the second batch of new arrivals. New Year's before last. A year and a half."

Sometimes it seemed like a minute. Today, it felt like an eternity.

"Every once in awhile, a big group shows up at once. Or a big group disappears at once. Most of the time, it's like today. Maybe one or two people on the first or the fifteenth of the month. We figured that out pretty quick, and some of us started making a point to be in the cafe or out by the road on those days."

Another sip. Mostly she was talking to give him a chance to eat and acclimate a little, and maybe give him some relevant information without making a big deal out of it.

"It's ended up saving a couple of lives, too. Some people's entrances are pretty dramatic."

Bradley ate as he listened. When Kitty got to the part where she mentioned some people's arrivals were dramatic, he let out an unhappy laugh. He paused and looked sheepish. He decided to say something.

"Anyone ever be totally okay with this place?" He asked.

"When they first arrived?" Kitty thought back over the various arrivals and recalled Regina flipping Dyson through the air. She suppressed a chuckle but the light showed in her eyes.

"Regina. She came blazing in looking for her daughter and found her here waiting. I don't think either of them has complained since. Zahra, Kashaw's very pregnant girlfriend, she seems okay, too, and now that she's here, he's good too."

Kitty shrugged. "Most of us get around to okay eventually. Even if we're trying to get home still, it's not so bad here."

"Getting okay with it sort of makes it feel like defeat," he admitted. "Like you've accepted this is your life now."

"At first it does feel that way." Kitty remembered that feeling well. Sometimes she still woke up wondering if there was more she could be doing to get out of here. "Especially if you're worried about someone at home."

Bradley's expression darkened slightly.

"Yeah..." He said, looking down at his half eaten food. Caleb's probably really hungry right now.

He sat up from his food. He was suddenly not hungry anymore.

"Hit a nerve, huh?" Kitty gave him a sympathetic look. "Liz said you mentioned something about your brother. Do you want to talk about it?"

"I just have to hope he's not alone, you know?" Brad said quietly after a beat. "I keep just hoping it's one of the theories people say... Either where time stops or there's another copy of me there still being me..."

"From what I've learned, that is what happens. If it would make you feel better to talk to people who have some more direct experience, Vax, Percy, Vex, Pike, Scanlan, Kash, Zahra and Lillith all came from the same world at different times," she said evenly. "I'm pretty sure they'd be willing to walk you through their timeline."

Check-In: Not-Mother Hen

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