Storms Make Cowards Of It All

[doubled_speed]

WHO: Tommy Shepherd, You
WHERE: Diner, Around Temba
WHAT: Storm related panic attack, Heroics both good and failing
WHEN: October 10th-12th for first prompt, October 13th otherwise
WARNINGS: TW: panic attacks, blood, mouth related body horror, 'animal' attacks

I. Cowardly Behaviors | CW: Panic attack

Storms are the worst. Storms mess with Tommy's head like nothing else does. His powers are who he is, and the amount of times they've been taken away lately have been pretty upsetting. Which of course is why Tommy does the only thing he knows how to do. He hides. Hides in a corner of his new apartment over the diner, hiding under a blanket and shaking.

He's powerless and that scares him. Always scares him. Keeps getting him injured. Keeps reminding him he's worthless without what he can do. So he hides and tries to breathe because his whole body seems like it wants to shake out of his skin. And that's just how it goes.

This is just how his sanity goes.

II. Being A Hero | CW: 'animal attacks', possible explosions, possible blood

Power surges into his system and Tommy does the first thing he can think of. He takes off into the city, running at full speed.

Simple fact of the matter is that he wants to be a hero. More than that, you can do a hell of a lot of damage with speed. Force equals mass times acceleration. A lot of force happens when even someone wiry and slight like Tommy was bowls into something with an outstretched fist at sixty miles an hour. He's heard at mach three you basically turn a person into paste.

Really, the demodog deserves it, and Tommy has no issue at all booting it away from it's intended victim like he's a fucking... Whatever the name for the dude in football who kicks the ball when they kick it is called. Don't ask him. He doesn't watch sports.

"Well, that was fun," he says as he watches the creature go sailing limply through the air. No way it would get up wherever it landed. Then he looks to the person he rescued. "You okay? See or hear any others around?"

Because there always seemed to be others around.

III. When The Hero Needs Saved

What Tommy wasn't expecting once the powers came back in was for them to suddenly fail him again. Especially not when he had been hunting something. Something taller than him. Something with a big, screaming, flower-petal face.

"Shit," he curses as he feels it all flee him again. And he tries to back away.

"Shit," he says again as he throws himself at a tree, trying to haul himself up into it.

IV. Wildcard
[OOC: Tommy's heading into the Upside-Down on the 14th through the Fountain Gate. And he's a hero that specializes in emergency rescues. So if someone needs a rescue during the Mindflayer fights. If someone needs to be rescued and taken out for a doctor, we can wildcard Tommy showing up to rescue.]

Comments

[doubled_speed]

"They're... a part of me. David once explained his own as it being another sense. To me, this is... crippling."

His powers were both a disability in their own right for how hard they made interacting with the world, and losing them was like losing a limb. How was he supposed to function.

"How can you even keep me safe?"

[fatedsacrifice]

Noct wished with all of his heart that Tommy had his powers back. It really pissed the king off personally, but then again Ardyn had fucked with his powers and Noct had to rely on that damned ring.

"I get it, I really do."

But then he smiled slightly. "If needs be, I can brawl. My shield taught me how to do that."

[doubled_speed]

Brawl? Shield? What the fuck? Noctis didn't look like a brawler. And what did he mean by shield?

"You have, like, noodle arms."

[fatedsacrifice]

Noctis laughed. "You're right, but I was still taught how to do it by one of the best."

And it felt good to laugh, even if it at this point it was at himself. But he looked at Tommy. "You never got into a fist fight or anything?"

[doubled_speed]

"Not really," Tommy admits. "I mean, I throw fists of course. Helps when you can put speed behind it. Speed is force."

But throwing a good punch? Never.

"Guess it never seemed important."

[fatedsacrifice]

Noct smiled. "Wish I could throw a punch as you can." And he really meant it. That kind of speed would be amazing to have. Sure the king could warp, but damn.

Hearing that it didn't seem important, he sympathized. "Back in your world I'm sure you wouldn't need to learn."

[doubled_speed]

"Don't," Tommy says, his voice soft and shaking. "It's... You've got to be so careful. It's so easy to do more damage than you mean to."

Tommy's whole body is a weapon in a way that can scare even him at times.

"Not saying I don't need to learn there. Just that no one's teaching."

[fatedsacrifice]

Noct canted his head to the side as he listened to what Tommy was saying. The kid was probably right, even if he couldn't even begin to fathom being able to move that fast.

The last part seemed sad though, so the king gathered himself up. "That almost sounds like you were lonely back home."

[doubled_speed]

He was. Desperately. So fucking desperately. Tommy bits his lip to keep from keening. No, he can't.

"I'm not," he insists.

[fatedsacrifice]

Noctis shook his head. He could understand more than the other could know. He was surrounded by his guys for sure, and he always appreciated them being there. But they didn't carry the burdens he did even though he knew damn well that they carried their own.

"It's okay you know."

[doubled_speed]

"I'm not!" he protests. Because he needs Noctis to understand he's okay. He swears he is. Even if he's not.

[fatedsacrifice]

The king smiled very briefly. "Has anyone ever told you that it's okay to not be okay?"

There is no way he's going to believe that Tommy is okay.

[doubled_speed]

No. No they haven't.

"I'm a superhero. I have to be better than okay."

[fatedsacrifice]

That got a small laugh out of Noctis.

"You might be a superhero, but you're not a machine so you're still human. It's okay to take breaks and not be 'on' all of the time."

[doubled_speed]

Okay, no, that's a hilarious comment to make and so yes, Tommy has to laugh.

"Dude, my dad is actually a machine, so maybe I'm not so human as I seem."

[fatedsacrifice]

Noctis took in the information after Tommy started laughing.

"Really?" This was interesting news.

[doubled_speed]

"Yeah, sort of," Tommy says. "Synthezoid specifically. But it's basically the same in a really general sense."

[fatedsacrifice]

That had him confused. "So it's a human like machine..robot?"

A pause. "Were you guys close?"

[doubled_speed]

"Yeah, that's exactly what it's like."

Close, though, is a complicated question.

"Not really. I was probably the kid my parents cared least about, both times."

[fatedsacrifice]

The king nodded. This was new information, even if it wasn't happy.

"Both times? What do you mean by that?"

He's clearly confused.

[doubled_speed]

Dammit. He shouldn't have said it.

"I am not drunk enough for that, man. I'm fucked up. My whole life is really fucked up."

[fatedsacrifice]

Noctis shook his head. "Another time then, no worries."

But he had at least temporarily gotten Tommy's mind off of their current problem.

[doubled_speed]

It really had worked. And Tommy was thankful for that.

"Shouldn't you go looking for your big guy?"

[fatedsacrifice]

Noct nodded. "If that's your way of telling me you're gonna be alright I'll go."

[doubled_speed]

"I'll try," Tommy promises. "I swear, I'm not always so pathetic."

Noctis is just good at finding him when he's vulnerable these days.