fandomtownies | Semi-Secluded Spot on the Beach, Monday Afternoon

Entry tags:

@beach,
toby logan

Semi-Secluded Spot on the Beach, Monday Afternoon

Picking up on the occasional stray dirty thought was nothing new for Toby. It happened, he could deal with it. But the constant, consistent, way more prevalent than usual thoughts from virtually everyone on the island? At the same time? Was giving him one hell of a headache.

So he'd left the dorms in search of a relatively secluded spot and was trying his best to recreate the relaxation techniques Ray had taught him, fingers curling into fists, and then back out again, over and over.

It wasn't working so well, no.

[ooc: expecting one, but tis an open beach.]

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Coincidentally, Raven had also fled the school. Suppressing the books in the library had been one thing, but she couldn't do that to the emotions of the people around her, not against their will. Even if technically their will was already being manipulated by the pollen. Regardless, the crush of amorous feelings around her was just making her frustrated and unhappy, so she teleported to the beach to take a walk and get some peace.

When she spotted Toby, she thought about keeping her distance at first, not wishing to disturb him. Then she remembered how he'd been overwhelmed by the thoughts around him when they'd been transformed into children and realized he must be as disturbed as she was.

"Hello, Toby," she said, carefully shielding herself so she wouldn't add to his distress with her own thoughts.

"Hey," Toby cracked his eyes open at the sound of Raven's voice, giving her a somewhat forced smile in greeting. "How's it going?" The question was more automatic than a real inquiry; even without reading her thoughts in particular he felt he had a pretty good idea.

"I think I have found the dorms as uncomfortable as you have," Raven said. Hadn't she just told Kenzi she'd like to meet Toby under more pleasant circumstances? Fandom didn't seem to want that to happen, at least not today.

"I have been giving myself a headache shielding myself so strongly."

"Yeah," Toby nodded. "I've been- trying? To make it quiet. It's not going too well." Most days he was resigned to his lack of control. Today? His frustration was finally getting the better of him.

"Have you tried the Safe Room?" Raven suggested sympathetically. "I have found it very helpful in the past when things such as this occur. It is a relief to be able to relax."

"...The what?" Toby gave her a blank look.

"The Safe Room, you do not know about it?" Raven said.

She gestured back in the direction of the school. "It is on the sixth floor of the dorms, and was built with the understanding that students such as you and me, who are sensitive to the minds of others, might need a place where they can go and not have to deal with the thoughts or emotions of those around them. I do not know how it works, only that it does work. If you enter the room, you will find that it is as if you are alone on a deserted island in the middle of an ocean. There will be no thoughts but your own."

"That sounds-" Toby paused, trying to find the right words. "Amazing. How do we get in? I mean, is there a key or do we have to ask someone, or...?"

Raven shook her head. "It is open to all, and we will likely not find it occupied now. I can show it to you, if you would like."

"I'd-" oh god, the cashier at J,GOB was about two seconds away from jumping his coworker, "-really like that," he finished, shaking his head slightly as if that'd actually do anything to dislodge the constant stream of invading thoughts.

"I can get us back to the school quickly, if you do not mind being teleported," Raven offered. Much quicker than walking all the way back.

"It is perfectly safe, I assure you."

"Teleported?" Toby raised an eyebrow. "That's a thing?" Sometimes the fact that he wasn't the only one with unusual abilities anymore was still a bit of a trip. "I. Sure. I don't mind, if it's faster."

Raven smiled and held out her hand to Toby. "You may wish to close your eyes, as it can be a little disorienting. But there is no danger."

Toby took the offered hand... but made no move to close his eyes. He was curious, okay? "All right. Let's do this."

Raven closed her hand around his, then let her Soul-Self rise to sweep its wings around them both. They vanished from the beach in a puff of black smoke, and for a few moments there were standing on a stepping stone in the Netherverse.

Another burst of black smoke and they were standing in the hallway of the sixth floor in front of the door to the Safe Room.

"...Whoa," Toby blinked, a little awed by the whole experience. "That was cool."

"That is the Netherverse," Raven said with a little twinge of pride at how impressed he was. "It is how I move between dimensions."

She gestured toward the door to the Safe Room. "And this is the Safe Room. Shall we go inside?"

Toby nodded. "Quiet sounds good right about now."

Raven opened up the door and stepped inside, waiting for him to follow before she closed the door. She exhaled a long sigh of relief as abruptly the crush of amorous emotions suddenly vanished.

"That is so much better," she said, easing her shields down.

And for the first time in- a long time, as far back as he could remember, anyway, there were no thoughts in Toby's head save for his own.

"It's so quiet..." he said, more than a little awed by the idea.

Raven dropped herself into a soft chair with a happy noise. "I come to this place often when I am overwhelmed," she said. "I have learned to keep out the usual emotions of people around me, but when outside forces amplify them, it is good to take a break and come here to relax."

"So there is something messing with people?" He'd thought so, but then he'd wondered if it was just... a preoccupation with the coming holiday, or something.

"This has happened before, yes," Raven said. Shortly after her initially arrival on the island, in fact, and several doors had paid the price since she hadn't learned how to shield herself very well yet.

"It lingers longer than some of the other strangeness Fandom has to offer," she said. "But the effect should fade within a week. Fortunately."

"I hope so," Toby made a face. "I've learned way, way too much about some of my classmates', um. Tastes. Than I ever wanted to know."

"As have I," Raven said, rubbing her temple. "I am able to shield much of it out, but I can still feel all the emotions pressing against me. It is very disconcerting, particularly when I am attempting to do something such as studying."

"Can you teach me how to do that?" Toby wondered. "The shielding thing, I mean."

"I can certainly try," Raven said with a smile. "I learned from Professor Skywalker -- you could also seek him out for instruction if you so desired."

"I'd rather learn from you, if that's okay?" Professor Skywalker hadn't been a bad sort, and Toby had even enjoyed being a TA for him for a semester, but part of him was still... wary of adults in general.

"Of course, I would be delighted to help," Raven said. She'd never really taught shielding before, but she could go over the lessons Anakin had taught her and apply them to Toby. And helping others was just how Raven rolled.

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Semi-Secluded Spot on the Beach, Monday Afternoon

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