OPEN: New Beginnings In Stranger Places

[promnibusanctis]

Who: Dr. Helen Magnus and [You]
When:  Day 92
Where: Roaming around, a little lost 
What: Arrival, getting her bearings, etc. etc.

Adventure was something Helen Magnus never shied from and exploring the vastness of the underground Sanctuary, far beyond those walls was something she couldn't deny herself.  So it was that she found herself here, under contract to the Ringmaster with her eyes wide with wonder at it all.  The lights and colours, the excitement, the darker elements shining through here and there.  It was as familiar as it was alien and she drank it in with an eagerness she had long felt lacking.  It stirred her as she moved through tents, passed people much like her who had joined perhaps years before her.  A bright flash of a tail there, wings, glowing skin, all of these people becoming Abnormals or were in the beginning.  The sheer fascination would have been enough, really.

 

"Excuse me?" she asked, reaching out to catch the attention of one of the people she had fallen into step with, "I seem to have found myself a bit lost.  I was looking for the medical tent and I seem to have completely gotten myself turned around.  If you could point me in the right direction, I'd be most grateful."

Comments

[kingsroads]

The person who she falls into step with is Jonathan Strange, who still hasn't shaken off his 1800s mode of dress despite being with the carnival for months. His coat is frayed at the cuffs and edges, his cravat is sloppily tied, and his hair is it's normal state of goddamn hot mess. He's obviously wandering somewhere, lost in his own thoughts. It's only when Helen reaches out, asking him a question, that Strange snaps back to reality, as if remembering for the first time in ages that right, other people exist and they can ask you questions.

Other people who Strange hasn't met before. Probably a new arrival, which was always exciting. Everything's finally starting to return to a slight semblance of normality. So, as Helen asks him the question about directions, he responds with a warm smile that one really wouldn't expect from his generally unkempt, slightly mad everything.

"Of course," he answers, with a little nod. "In fact, I can do one better than pointing you in the right direction. Shall I escort you there myself? The carnival can be a tad confusing for new arrivals." Says the person who had gotten lost plenty of times when he first arrived. No, since Strange got lost a few times when he first arrived, that obviously means that everybody else will get lost a few times when they first arrive.

[starseedling]

Steven looks up from the notes he's playing on his little guitar, careful to keep his crystaline claws from damaging the strings. He has patches of mossy green fur covering about half of his body, with ears and a tail like a lion. There are pink roses blossoming in his hair.

"Oh! Sure." He points a clawed finger past the Gamer's Circle. "It's in the other side of all those game booths." He pauses, and then adds, "Do you need healing? I help out in there sometimes..."

[promnibusanctis]

She can't help her returning smile because his mode of dress is if anything, incredibly nostalgic. When one has watched fashion's debatable progress during the long years more than once, his is a return to her own childhood and indeed at least some of her adulthood.

"It would be a pleasure," she says. "It seems that I've been assigned to aid your resident doctor in helping others to adjust to their changes. Helen Magnus, also a doctor. Medical among other degrees."

[promnibusanctis]

Honestly, Steven looks charming and she can't help but smile. Helen is no stranger to the strange and his claws and physical appearance give her no pause. Her eyes widen a fraction and she shakes her head.

"Ah, no healing for me. Actually, I've been added to your doctor's roster, I believe, and thought I'd better head that way first thing to get my bearings." She pauses for a second and then nods. "I'm Dr. Helen Magnus and very pleased to me you."

[starseedling]

Steven's ears lift with additional interest, his tail swishing subconsciously in reaction. He stands up to greet her properly, holding his guitar aside in one hand.

"I'm Steven!" he says, grinning up at her - he's still quite short, and looks like he's about ten, though factually speaking he's older. "Are you new? Sometimes people come back after being gone for a while, so I wasn't sure!"

[kingsroads]

"Jonathan Strange, magician." He gives Helen a smile and a polite, courteous little half-bow. "Pleasure to meet you, Doctor Magnus. And may I say, I'm happy to see that we've someone else on the medical team. I think it's just poor Zecora who's working there now."

Strange leaves out the relevant information (Zecora's totally a horse), mostly because he kind of wants to see Helen's response to said horse doctor. She certainly seems to be taking all of this in stride, so he can't help but wonder what her breaking point is.

[thevictoriandetective]

Speaking of alien, the person that turned around was covered completely in green scales, and had a snake-like snout, reptilian eyes, and four little horns sticking out of his forehead and dark, curly hair. He was about six feet tall, and despite his inhuman looks, there was a keen intellect behind his gaze, as he attempted to piece together an impression based on visual clues. It was basically a reflex, he couldn't turn his deductions off. He wore a long, dark gray coat and blue scarf.

"Oh, new person, right." He sounded rather sympathetic. He pointed a clawed finger in the direction of the medical tent.

"It's just over there, you can't miss it."

[promnibusanctis]

Absolutely fascinating.

"Quite new," she said with a nod, her accent very much of British origin and her mannerisms still quite proper Victorian despite the fact that her clothes give her away as very much present-day. "I gather this place is nowhere near where I began my day, which I must say is rather an adventure in itself. Much like mapping out this place. I'll have it all soon enough, I'm sure."

He reminded her of various reptilian Abnormals she's come across in the many years of her Sanctuary work, though the horns were an interesting addition. Changes, most likely, almost along the line of Will's save for the fact that this gentlemen's intellect seemed quite intact.

"Ah, wonderful. I suppose I was headed in the right direction after all. I'm Dr. Helen Magnus and will be helping out your doctor and those who need help adjusting to their various changes."

He was also English. Her brow wrinkled a little, just for a second.

"You wouldn't happen to know where I could get a decent cup of tea, would you?" It had to be asked, honestly. Adjusting to the bustling environment, as exciting as it was, would need something resembling tea and a good place to observe the ebb and flow of the carnival itself.

[promnibusanctis]

"I am indeed new, extremely so. I've to say, Steven, your claws are quite wonderful. Do they help you play your guitar better, do you think?"

[promnibusanctis]

"I'm always willing to lend my services where needed, Mr. Strange," she says with a slight smile. "I confess, half the reason I find myself here is curiosity. I have seen a great many things in my life but this? Quite new and absolutely wonderful so far. How has your own stay been?"

[starseedling]

"Oh..." Steven pauses, glancing at his claws. The pink crystal certainly looks nice, but they make things a bit difficult, too. "Um. I dunno! Not really. They actually kind of make some things harder, because I have to make sure they don't cut the strings, or hook the wrong strings, or... You know."

He smiles sheepishly, like he's sorry to disappoint.

"But... I guess they do make picking easier sometimes, as long as I trim the points." Which he has, apparently, the ends dulled like ground stone."

[promnibusanctis]

Helen nods, very much interested. In fact, that's a very good thing to know, really, especially when dealing with claws in general. Not all claws are meant for the same things, after all.

"I've known people with very long, very sharp claws before and it does take awhile to figure out how to best use them and how to care for them," she says with quiet understanding. "I can imagine they might make all sorts of things more difficult to deal with. Did you have them before you came here or are they relatively recent?"

[starseedling]

"I just grew them a couple months ago, after I got shot," he says, suddenly, as if that assertion doesn't have horrifying implications. "I kind of grew a lot of stuff all at once, it was weird."

Apparently his reaction to kind of imaginary computer bullets was to grow fur, claws, and a tail. Who knew?

[thevictoriandetective]

He filed away the information in his mind, noting that despite her clothing, her mannerisms and accent were decidedly old-fashioned.

"Sherlock Holmes," he said, quite pleasantly, despite his reputation he wasn't actually all that rude on first meetings, he was just brutally honest. Despite looking very much like a snake, he still retained animated expressions. "The cookhouse, it's hardly decent, but better than nothing."

It wasn't that bad, but it wasn't the same as he was used to. Plus he's grown rather reliant on the coffee here as well.

"Would you like to join me?" He asked, quite suddenly. 'Helping people adjust to their changes' intrigued him. He'd been here for a bit more than three months, and come from a world where none of this should be possible. Needless to say he could use a listening ear.

[promnibusanctis]

Sherlock Holmes.

Multiversal indeed.

Her expression softened further with nostalgia.

James Watson would have been more than a little intrigued to meet Authur Conan Doyle's detective come to life, so-to-speak, as in their universe he had been the inspiration for the man. For Helen, it is as if a little bit of her home and past has been gently brought to life. It's not something she'll mention but it's appreciated in the quietest of ways.

"It would absolutely be my pleasure, Mr. Holmes. I do wonder if they'd let me make it myself or if that's just wishful thinking." She gestured almost gently. "Please, lead on."

[promnibusanctis]

Her eyebrows arched minutely. Shot? Well, it appeared the carnival was quite a bit more than it seemed if young children were being shot in the course of things. He didn't seem bothered by it very much either, which seems a little bit strange.

"What were you shot with and what was the situation, if I may ask? That seems like a great deal of change to go through in a very short time. I can imagine it would be quite strange to deal with."

[otoko]

[Gongenzaka is an imposing figure, considering his age. Despite not quite entering the tenth grade (where he's from, he's still in middle school in fact), a combination of his former stature and existing changes have created a sort of canid centaur 'thing', standing at nine feet even. The rear legs hooved, and the fore bearing paws, the observant could possibly liken his appearance to a stone lion-and he would no doubt agree, if it were pointed out.

As it is, he pauses from his patrol work immediately, turning to face the woman with a nod.] Certainly!

I, the man Gongenzaka, can lead you there myself if you wish! [Sounding like an ancient old man does not help your age case, Gon.]

[promnibusanctis]

[Helen looks him over with a smile and nods a little. Nine feet tall at the least is awfully tall but she meets his gaze without anything but good humour. No fear here, she's met her own share of Abnormals who looked, well, far more imposing.

But that's not to say he wasn't. She was quite impressed to say the least.]

That would be quite lovely of you or, actually, I could probably use a quick tour. I think I'd be a little more settled if I had a good grasp of my surroundings. You do seem like you know where you're going, after all.

[kingsroads]

"It's been wonderful," Strange can't help but admit, with a small smile of his own. Yes, he got shot that one time. And yes, they literally went to hell that other time. But to be here, in faerie, surrounded by magic of all sorts and learning about faerie and fae magic is just something he never thought he'd actually do.

"As a magician for the carnival, I'm able to stretch my magic and craft it into entirely new and different forms that I never could have managed back in England. When you add in the fact that we regularly travel and I can see strange new realms...well, what's not to like about that?"

[thevictoriandetective]

He catches the look, but without context he can hardly make any conclusion.

So instead, he gives a polite smile and strode forward, towards the cookhouse.

"Oh, we can certainly make our own," he said, almost cheerfully. Even if they said no, he'd do it anyway. Though he'd visited the kitchen enough times that he knew where everything was. He quite liked the heat by the stove, it was comfortable and helped him think. Between that and sunning himself or taking a trip to the hot springs, he'd discovered that being overly warm, not only was physically helpful for his current appearance but also stimulated his thought processes.

"So what sort of doctor are you?"

[promnibusanctis]

"Medical," Helen said, keeping up with him easily, "though my specific areas of speciality are biology, anatomy, chemistry, teratology, crypto-zoology, and xenobiology." The breadth of her studies itself at least speaks to her qualifications. Helen has always enjoyed the challenge of a puzzle, to say the least, and Science itself had given her many of them in her life.

"Oxford University for the medical degree," she added a beat later. "I did do extremely well in the field of surgery. I had some wonderful mentors."

[promnibusanctis]

"I can't even begin to argue with that," Helen says warmly. "It sounds honestly delightful. I think I would honestly love to learn magic myself if it's possible. After all, what is magic but a kind of science one can't comprehend? I have seen many absolutely stunning creatures in my own world and here, I suppose I will see many more. A chance to study and understand them was among the foremost reasons I'm here. Also, to help others with their own changes, which seem to be very much a part of being here."

She tilts her head as they walk and offers a smile.

[thevictoriandetective]

Oh, he could jump for joy. It was like a breath of fresh air in a stifling, non-academic, scienceless land. He was a (somewhat) logical man adrift in a sea of nonsense and magic. There was a definite spring in his step as he looked sideways with a smirk. "Xenobiology? Crypto-zooology? Really? Interesting world you come from."

"Ah, Oxford," he said with he slightest trace of irony. "I went to Cambridge."

The Cookhouse was within view, and it didn't seem to be particularly busy. Good, they could steal a kettle.

"Surgical skills, very good." He filed away the information in his mind. A pang of missing John almost derailed his thoughts. How indeed did he miss his own Doctor. "I'm sorry to say you'll probably be needed, we could have used someone like you not too long ago."

[promnibusanctis]

"In my own universe, I've aided many creatures and many people going through their own metamorphoses, giving them sanctuary when they wish while providing a safe, comfortable place for those Abnormals who prove too dangerous to be allowed to roam free," she said shaking her head a little. "I've quite the practical experience with xenobiology and crypto-zoology. It can be challenging to create proper living spaces for creatures and people who, for example, don't breathe oxygen."

Helen's laughter is honest at the schooling. Ah, rivalries and alma maters.

"I am still in very good surgical practice," she assured him, though there's a quietly grim note to it. Not all of those times she's been at the table have been remotely normal. Helen is sure this Carnival will not be any different. Her next words are quiet but firm as she seems to settle into her role.

"I suppose it's all the better that I'm here, then."

[thevictoriandetective]

That was fascinating. He'd come from a world where the fantastic and impossible that he'd seen here were just figments of imagination, but even as much as he'd seen here, that was a new concept.

"I should like to hear more about that," he said, looking a bit deep in thought. She'd come from a world where people were 'metamorphosizing' enough that specialists and assistance were warranted. He could only imagine how awful it would be to not be able to breathe oxygen, to be trapped in a small climate-controlled space.

"My brother went to Oxford," he said, with the tone that he really might have just gone to Cambridge just to spite him. (Though it wasn't just to spite him.)

He nodded, as he walked through the opening that led to the interior of the cookhouse. His forked tongue flicked out, scenting all the varying cooking smells, old and new, spices and steam and stale breakfasts.