revivalproject | [Backdated] Storm: Our Lives On Display

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[Backdated] Storm: Our Lives On Display

WHO: Tommy Shepherd, Open
WHERE: Temba
WHAT: Two Stormy Memories
WHEN: During Storm Week
WARNINGS: CW: Child Abuse in starter 2

I. A Memory of Delight

Storms. Tommy hates the storms. In fact, if he could just have 100% less storms, he'd be very happy. The happiest a man can be. With the storms he's just... He's lesser. It's always upset him. Always hurt him. Always left him frayed around the edges. But hey, this time they were supposed to be spotty? So he tries to go about his life.

Problem is, this one hits when he's alone, and man if Tommy wasn't on his way back from the new Avengers manor or whatever Tony was calling it. Turned out he didn't like being in his room there, still a work in progress, when the storms and world felt so draining. So walking back was a thing.

And of course, that's when a storm rolled in over him. The second the rain started he felt his powers go and Tommy just cursed. Because, well, what the fuck was going on here? Why did the rain hate him in particular? Cursing one more time, this time in Polish just for good measure, he finds a bit of stone overhang and sits his ass down. If he doesn't move, logically he shouldn't have troubles, right?

Except there's something different today. Of course there is. The rain is getting thick enough that it's hard to see beyond his hand and for some reason... it almost looks like he's in his room above the diner, which makes no sense at all.

II. A Memory of Pain | CW: Child Abuse will be depicted in threads from this starter

That was an experience that was shaking, and for a while, Tommy just stays back in his room at the diner, cuddled up by the fire even though it made him too hot because it just reminded him of what was happening in the moment. It was safer. It was better.

It wasn't enough because anxiety was prone to driving Tommy out of comfortable situations. Which was why he was outside again, heading for the greenhouse. His other safe place. The one that made him feel like he was useful and had a place where he fit in. Even if he had no powers, he could help the plants, right?

What a mistake that was, going outside. Because while it was clear when he stepped out, by the time he made it across the square and was nearing the greenhouse, the rain started. And this time, well, the change comes quickly.

Too quickly.

Comes in the form of his feet stepping not on the road but on familiar worn down wood. He knows the creak his foot produces almost instantly. And there's the sound of a truck door closing.

Sure it's Tommy there, but it also isn't Tommy there, because to another person's eyes it's Tommy but younger. Tommy but with hair as dark as his brother's, not a hint of white in it. A younger, childhood Tommy who is flinching at the sound of booted footsteps nearing in the rain...

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The storm wasn't something Tommy wanted to be out in. Storms always upset him. More than upset him. Broke him mentally. Nothing he could do about that actually. It was just how things worked here.

And his memories... Fuck if he didn't want to avoid those with everything he can manage. Which isn't going well. He's trying to hide from the rain, and then he's just... in his room. Back in his room. He didn't... How did he get here? He's so confused.

"Billy?" he asks, his voice soft and shaken as the room starts to shift. Until it's night. Until Tommy's standing there, reaching out to try and find Billy and catch his hand.

Billy can sort of relate, but he knows it's worse for Tommy. That he loses his powers in storms like this but also memories? Shit. He hears his boyfriend's shaken voice, so soft, and guns towards it. The path is through the speedster's familiar room and he spots the outreached hand.

He can only hope it's the real Tommy and not a memory of him. Or maybe they were really in his diner room and not out in the rain. "Tommy?! I'm here. I'm right here--" And he grabs onto that hand, tugging Tommy to him.

Yeah, he is right there. Their hands are together and Tommy is smiling softly at them as a light comes on in the room. It sets a mood. Triggers a memory.

"Couch?" he asks, even as the couch grows more clear in the memoryscape.

Billy doesn't even realize that it's actually a memory. Maybe the storm had been the memory and he's still in the diner with Gladio downstairs. He pulls Tommy to him like that'll protect the guy from the powers-dampening rain.

"Yeah, couch. I'm okay, Daisy Dukes. You can't go fast though, right?"

There's a brief moment of confusion on Tommy's face. A crinkling of his brow, like the words sound wrong to him. Like he can't make sense of them. Like they don't fit the situation.

Because he's being hugged. What was up with that?

He pulls back enough to break the hug so he can walk Billy toward the couch. On the way he puts a mug of tea, when did he even get that, on the coffee table. Then he looks at Billy and down at their still joined hands.

"I need to get the pillows and blanket, man."

Because he's stuck playing this out at the moment. The memory he can't get out of. Not that he wants to. Not yet. Maybe later when the pre-confession panic sets in. For now he's just playing as the storm demands.

Hes being walked to the couch. It doesn’t make any sense. But it feels right. They’re supposed to be going to the couch. When did he get a mug of hot chocolate? His feet feel bare and ache strangely, like he’s been running barefoot.

He had, but that was a month or so ago. Right?

"Tommy," he chokes out, tightening his hand on his partner‘s. "Storm— Nightmare woke me up out of the medicine Tae gave me to help me sleep."

Shit, shit, shit.

Again Tommy looks confused. There were things left out. But Billy's trying, and that makes it settle more over Tommy.

"You're always welcome here," he says, slipping his hand from Billy's so he can go to the bed and get what he said he would.

"I'd offer you pajamas, but you're still dressed for bed. Mind if I make sure your feet are okay?" he says as he comes back over and lays things out.

Things left out, others added in. Was it left out or added in that Billy doesn't sit on the couch? The hand leaving Billy's has his feeling cold and empty and he doesn't like it one bit. Why was Tommy acting like this in the storm? Was there some kind of new thing going on with the memory share bullshit?

Billy's on the couch, ontop of the items Tommy just laid out.

"They’re fine," he starts with, natural because it's the same thing he said that night. "I didn't forget my boots this time. Downstairs." Why downstairs? They need to be there and not here. This here has already happened, but what's happening now means they need to be safe.

"Why are you doing this?" as his own voice echoes with the memory around them. It means something different now compared to then.

Boots? This time? Tommy looks confused. He shakes his head because that doesn't fit. This isn't fitting together. Why is he being like this? Tommy's hand comes up to his head briefly, like trying to drive away a headache. But then the line happens, so he latches back onto it.

But Billy has thankfully settled onto the couch, and of course he's kneeling in place because they are fine, but he's still going to check over Billy's feet because he needs to.

“Because I fucking care about you, idiot."

God, Billy doesn't want to ruin this. This reliving of a memory where he finally had enough bravery to face his feelings and admit it to Tommy. But they don't have to keep reliving in that, right?

His feet lose their bareness in favor of the boots Billy just said he was wearing. "I know you care," he grits out, trying to push against his and Tommy's memory swirling with each other. "You care. You like me, fuck—— I like—— get in the couch," which is a weird sentence when he leaves off the first part about the rats.

"Not an idiot because I know you like me. Sit up here, get in my lap, something!"

Like him? Billy... Oh god, he's been hiding it. And Tommy doesn't know what to do with this. The memory isn't working well. It's getting torn apart.

And the indecision, the confusion, the uncertainty? It breaks the memory. The couch disappears under Billy, and of course Tommy isn't fast enough right now to catch him.

"Billy," he gasps, looking around. Why is he soaked? What's going on?

Billy reaches over, grabbing Tommy by the shoulders to have something to hold onto. Someone to hold onto. It's the only thing keeping him from getting lost in his memory alongside Tommy here. he grits his teeth against what he knows is probably the next section of his own memory but-

It dissolves around them. He yelps as his ass hits the ground, but it's enough to keep him from getting back into his head.

Rain pours around them and he grabs Tommy's cheeks. "There you are. Found you, babe. C'mon, I gotta get you inside." His boots scuff against the ground as he picks himself up. "C'mon, c'mon, before that shit happens again."

"Here I am," he says, confused and quiet. He's cold, he's soaked, and he's powerless. What's happening?

"Where am I?" he asked, confused. "Billy, I... I can't feel my powers. Oh god, it's a storm."

"Out here in the streets getting soaked," he supplies. Billy tips his head forward until their foreheads touch. "Yeah, soon as I remembered you don't do storms, I came to find you. C'mon, I'll carry you. I think I can figure out how to get to the civic center or the diner from here."

Wherever here was.

But he lets go of Tommy's cheeks and starts gently pulling at his arms so he can pick his boyfriend up. "Hold onto me, I'll keep you safe."

Soon as he remembered... He came to save Tommy? Good thing it's raining, because he's definitely maybe sort of moved to tears by that information.

"Okay," he says. "Just pick me up. I believe in you. Just don't drop me. My bones are more fragile when I'm not powered."

He knows it from experience. But he gets slowly to his feet and lets Billy figure out what he's doing.

Billy gets to his feet and nods. He gathers Tommy up like the roles are reversed from the lake incident with Kaplan. Sometimes even superheroes needed to be saved. "If I catch a cold, I'm moving in on your couch and making you suffer having a sick me, just so you know."

He keeps a firm grip under Tommy's knees and the other around his back. "Hold onto me." Billy starts at a careful jog, going in the direction of the civic center.

Frankly, superheroes needed saved a lot more than the average person. They just didn't like to advertise that fact.

"You can have my bed," Tommy answers. Because there would be no way he wouldn't snuggle up so the guy might as well have the good space.

He throws an arm around Billy's neck to stabilize himself and leans close.

"Thank you."

"Bold of you to think I wouldn’t take it anyways." With his boyfriend secured against him, he picks up the pace. At least he’s somewhat warm, starting to put off heat from the exercise. At some point he slows just so he can press a kiss to the white hair.

"You’re lucky you got a hero for a boyfriend, Daisy Dukes. But you’re welcome." The pace gets picked up again. He can see the civic center not too far. "You hurt?"

"Not bold. Just hoping you'd be practical."

Tommy... isn't warm. His body isn't running at its usual furnace levels. And so he's shivering in the guy's arms.

"I don't know if I'm hurt. It's... Focus is hard when this happens."

"Nothing practical about being the sexiest guy in this city." Hopefully talking is helping. His grip flexes to strengthen his hold. "You were trapped in a memory. The memory where I think I texted you and you made me hot chocolate. We confessed and were boyfriends now. I know it’s hard to focus on anything when I’m involved."

He finally reaches the doors and after a moment of balancing and shifting, pulls the door open to duck inside. "Straight upstairs of locker room for shower?"

Yeah, okay, he snorts in amusement at that one. Billy, you're a charmer. Please never stop. Especially when you're so good at distracting him.

"Oh. That night. Right. I guess it's better than the thing that Leo almost saw. But yeah, you're a grade A distraction, babe."

Once they're inside Tommy breathes a small sigh of relief.

"You sure you'd be okay with a shower? I mean, the temperatures..."

"I don’t need to shower, I’ll just dry off." He wonders what Leo almost saw, and how bad it was. Maybe he got that memory in the diner because of how strong his own memory resonated with it.

He hasn’t made any move to put down Tommy.

"You can shower, I’ll bring you some dry clothes, even though they’ll be too big on you." He heads towards the locker room and noticed his bundle damp from the rain, brought in by someone who found it. "Sound like a plan?"

"You should warm your body up some," Tommy corrects, but he doesn't know how to get Billy to listen. Maybe he'll help with toweling him off.

As for getting carried, well, he doesn't bother asking to be let down.

"You just want me in your clothes."

"I'll warm up, don't worry." He pads across the way and heads to the locker rooms. No one really comes in here it feels like, or maybe Billy will just say that because he exercises when no one else is really around.

He smirks. "I don't hear you complaining about getting into them, either. Also they'll cover you a lot and help keep you warm." He squats down to help get Tommy back on his feet. "Go ahead and shower. I'll go get the clean clothes and a towel for you, okay?"

"Warming up to me isn't the same as getting your core body temperature up," Tommy points out. But whatever, he's not going to argue any more than he already has.

He does snort once he's back on his feet, though. Oh well. He'll just have to deal with it when it comes.

"If I wanted into your pants I could do that easily. But I'll take this cheat code. And I'll try and not make you wait too long."

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