You Should Not Play With Fire On Two Hours Of Sleep (TAG)

[Timothy Smith]

“This makes no sense. Makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. I haven’t been burned in five, no wait, six years and suddenly this one cat burglar has fire powers and can roast me. Literally. No. Sense.”

Tim stormed into his lab, whipping on a lab coat over his suit. It was noticeably scorched. He grabbed a Bunsen burner and hooked it up, then punched a few keys on a computer.

”Burn test, mark 1. A random sneak thief with fire powers managed to burn me. I need to figure out how. Why. Recording to check over later because I haven’t slept in a while and I need to stick a fork in a power outlet for a while before I can really think over the results.”

He cranked the Bunsen burner on to full power, and then slapped his hand down on top of it and held it there.

With his free hand he grabbed a pencil and piece of paper and started taking paper notes too.

”Feels warm, but not uncomfortably so. As expected. Shit.”

He pondered that for a while, tapping the pencil on his pursed lips, leaving his hand on top of the flame. Suddenly he dropped the pencil and moved his hand away.

”I need to make it hotter. Bigger. What do I have in here is flammable? I’m going to need to disable the smoke alarm...”

A few moments later, he had a pile of flammable materials sitting next to a lit Bunsen burner, and was standing on a rolling chair trying to pull the battery out of the smoke detector.

”Tim, I don’t think this is a good idea.”

”Alice, hush. I don’t need “good ideas,” I need answers.”

”I’m getting you help.”

Alice ran through the options she had to call to get Tim help. That he would listen to. Monica wasn’t an option, she wasn’t about to come to Aegis HQ, and plus she wasn’t even sure how close they were or if she would shoot Tim again just to make a point. Colonel was more likely to help him, and Bradley was out of town. Something about Chicago and pizza. 

Wait a second. Cassandra was in HQ at this ungodly hour. If there was anyone who could get him to stop and actually sleep more than half an hour, it was her. She was like a mother to everyone.

”Hey. Cassandra. Could you come help me out for a minute? Tim is about to burn the entire place down and give himself head trauma in his lab.”

Cassandra Lewis

[Cassandra Lewis]

[attr="class","life"]

❝

it's my life it's now or never

I ain't gonna live forever

[attr="class","les"] C assandra had been chilling on a bench in Aegis HQ listening to her favourite songs.  She had lovely headphones that brought through the bass, and was quite enjoying the songs.  It wasn't like she could play them publicly without people looking at her oddly.  Well more than oddly.  The songs she enjoyed weren't always safe for work.  The one she was currently listening to was a sped up remix of a song called 'Call Me Daddy' so that really explained it all.  But her music was her business.  She was nodding her head to the beat with a smile on her face.  There were no emergencies that needed her attention currently, and even if there were she was basically just a consultant.  Cassandra knew she could kick ass but...not if they were heavily powered.  Then her music paused on her device and she heard Alice's voice in her headphones asking for help.  Cassandra shrugged and chuckled, pausing her song for good and standing up, slinging her headphones around her neck for ease of access.  She stretched briefly before heading to Tim's lab.  That boy got in so much trouble.  When she walked into the lab the sight that greeted her was...well it was about average for Tim honestly but it was clearly dangerous.  She sighed, shaking her head. "Are you sure he doesn't already have head trauma Alice because he damn well acts like it."  It was whispered under her breath but she knew Alice would be able to hear it.  Then she put on her most authoritative voice and it boomed throughout the lab. "Timothy Emmett Smith get the hell down from there.  A Bunsen burner isn't a toy.  And your salary would not able to cover the damages you would cause to HQ."  She crossed her arms and rolled her eyes.

[attr="class","goodness"] ✉ Timothy Smith ✉ @tagtwo ✎ 0000 words

put a line of notes here, please keep it short.

MADE BY MIZO

[googlefont=Homemade+Apple][googlefont=Open+Sans][newclass=.goodness]width: 70px; height: 70px;margin-top: -223px; margin-left: -42px; transform: rotate(45deg);transition: 1s; filter: grayscale(100%);-webkit-filter: grayscale(100%);-moz-filter: grayscale(100%);border:8px solid #222;[/newclass][newclass=.life:hover .goodness]border:8px solid #efefef; filter: grayscale(0%);-webkit-filter: grayscale(0%);-moz-filter: grayscale(0%);transform: rotate(0deg); margin: 0px 0px 0px 30px; transition: 1s;[/newclass][newclass=.les::-webkit-scrollbar]width:3px;background-color: #ffffff; border:1px solid #ffffff;[/newclass][newclass=.les::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb]width: 1px; background-color: #8d8d8d; border:1px solid #ffffff;[/newclass][newclass=.life]width: 560px;[/newclass]

[Timothy Smith]

“Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised given what has clocked him in the past, but Recovery Girl insists he’s fine.”

Alice’s snark was private to Cassandra, just a moment before she shouted into the lab.

Tim yelped in surprise. He hadn’t expected anyone to walk in. The swivel chair he had been standing on went flying across the room, leaving him hanging for a moment by the smoke alarm alone. It was not firmly fastened enough to the wall to handle the full weight of the superhero suddenly landing on it, so he hung there for only a second before crashing to the ground with the device.

“Ahhhh shit fudge crap, I forgot how bad burns hurt when you touch them.... ow ow ow ow ow...” Tim rolled onto his side off of his rear, which was clearly in pain. Still somewhat focused, he finally pried the smoke alarm open and ripped out the battery, tossing it on the floor before jumping back up and moving back over to the pile of flammable material, sorting it out somewhat, trying to determine the best way to get a good blaze going.

“Hi. Sorry. You surprised me, didn’t expect you to still be here. Not playing. Science. Gotta find answers. I have everything under control.”

The sleeve of his lab coat caught the Bunsen burner’s flame and ignited. It took him a second to notice.

“Ah shit shit I wasn’t ready...”

Rather than attempt to extinguish the coat, he instead ran over to the computer and slapped the space bar. “Burn test, mark three. No wait, two. Definitely two. Lit my lab coat on fire. Still warm, but not uncomfortable. As usual. Damn it.”

He turned to face his guest, arm still on fire. “See? Everything’s under control. Science.”

It was clear that Tim was exhausted and trying hard not to be. There were dark circles under his eyes, and numerous minor scrapes and bruises from a recent fight. Besides that, the way he was moving screamed “sleep deprivation.” He was more sluggish than usual, except for when he was trying to not be sluggish, in which cases he overcompensated and moved with quick jerks.

“Do you need me to help you with something because unless it’s like an emergency or something I’m going to have to ask you to wait, I’m in the middle of something at the moment.”

Cassandra Lewis

[Cassandra Lewis]

[attr="class","life"]

❝

it's my life it's now or never

I ain't gonna live forever

[attr="class","les"] C assandra rather liked Alice.  She was sassy, and Cassandra had unending respect for someone who could sass back on her level.  It was even more amazing that an AI was able to do it.  She respected Alice for it.  And for calling her.  Because what Tim was doing right now was a right mess.  He fell from the smoke alarm and she rolled her eyes watching.  Oh he didn't expect her to still be here huh?  He was doing SCIENCE huh?  Cassandra shook her head, waiting for him to do something.  Sometimes people would give themselves just enough rope to hang themselves.  Cassandra knew the only way he was going to stop was if he was presented with evidence.  And evidence took a bit longer than other methods.  Then he caught his lab coat on fire and instead of trying to put it out he said he wasn't ready.  Cassandra sighed.  Okay this was definitely getting to the evidence stage.  Everything was not under control as Tim said.  Was this what Geoffrey would've ended up like?  Good lord she hoped not.  She saw how tired he was.  Then he said unless it was an emergency she needed help with, he was busy.  Her eye twitched.  She walked to the corner of the lab while he was studying his stuff and picked up the fire extinguisher.  She looked at him for a moment, debating whacking him over the head with it.  It seemed like it could be a good way to get the boy to actually sleep, in her defense.  Instead though, she walked up to him and sprayed the fire extinguisher all over him. "You aren't in the middle of anything other than a mental breakdown Timothy.  You aren't indestructible you need rest.  Get some sleep or I call OSHA on you.  I'm not letting you run yourself into the ground and you should be thankful that Alice had better decision making skills than you and decided to contact me."  She crossed her arms. "You're absolutely exhausted and I'm not sure why anyone hasn't said anything yet.  Are you going to leave the lab voluntarily?"  Her grey eyes narrowed. "Or do I have to remove you myself?  I'm pretty sure in your over tired state I could."  She shook her head.  Timothy wasn't thinking properly, and needed someone to do it for him.  And Cassandra had a habit of taking care of people regardless of whether they thought they needed it or not.  "Seriously you don't seem like you're...okay."  And that was coming from HER.  Well actually she was probably a prime example of it and that's probably why she recognized a trainwreck in the boy before her.

[attr="class","goodness"] ✉ Timothy Smith ✉ @tagtwo ✎ 0000 words

put a line of notes here, please keep it short.

MADE BY MIZO

[googlefont=Homemade+Apple][googlefont=Open+Sans][newclass=.goodness]width: 70px; height: 70px;margin-top: -223px; margin-left: -42px; transform: rotate(45deg);transition: 1s; filter: grayscale(100%);-webkit-filter: grayscale(100%);-moz-filter: grayscale(100%);border:8px solid #222;[/newclass][newclass=.life:hover .goodness]border:8px solid #efefef; filter: grayscale(0%);-webkit-filter: grayscale(0%);-moz-filter: grayscale(0%);transform: rotate(0deg); margin: 0px 0px 0px 30px; transition: 1s;[/newclass][newclass=.les::-webkit-scrollbar]width:3px;background-color: #ffffff; border:1px solid #ffffff;[/newclass][newclass=.les::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb]width: 1px; background-color: #8d8d8d; border:1px solid #ffffff;[/newclass][newclass=.life]width: 560px;[/newclass]

[Timothy Smith]

Tim coughed and sputtered as he was hit with the extinguishing foam.

“Aw heck, I wasn’t done I wanted to see how long...”

He sighed and took off the scorched lab coat, and tossed it onto the pile of flammable materials he’d accumulated.

“I’m fine. I’m not that exhausted. I got a couple hours of sleep... two days ago? Last week? Two weeks ago at the latest. I’m fine. I literally absorb energy into my body. Don’t even need coffee. I’m fine.”

He walked over to a locker and pulled out another lab coat and pulled it on, going back to organizing his scattered notes and flammable materials while he talked.

“Right now what I need to do is figure out if my powers are going on the fritz or if there’s someone walking around out there with either a fire hot enough to burn someone who can literally control energy, or some other kind of physics-breaking flame I can’t figure out yet and to do that right now requires self-immolation. I’ll be fine. Thanks for the concern, but I’ll be okay. If it makes you feel better I’ll hit the wall outlet for a few minutes before I start working again.”

He paused a moment. He staggered, almost nodding off where he stood in front of the open flame. Not the best place to fall asleep.

“...I’m fine, I’m okay. I’m definitely going to suck some from the wall outlet for a minute. I’m not going to sleep. I can’t go to sleep. I won’t go to sleep. I don’t need it. I don’t need it.”

His voice was unsure, like he was trying to convince himself that he was actually fine and didn’t need to sleep.

“Thanks for coming by Cassandra, and for being concerned, but I’m going to be fine.”

Cassandra Lewis

[Cassandra Lewis]

[attr="class","life"]

❝

it's my life it's now or never

I ain't gonna live forever

[attr="class","les"] C assandra watched him get disappointed at the lack of fire.  And then get a new lab coat adding the old one onto the pile of flammable materials.  Then he proceeded to say he didn't need sleep, that he slept not that long ago.  And couldn't say when he'd last slept.  "Suck...of a wall outlet?  Tim we have superpowers we're still human."  She put her hands up in the air. "For fuck's sake."  She saw he refused to go to sleep and had a feeling there was something behind that.  Cassandra shook her head and grabbed him by the arm and tugged him insistently out of the lab and to the nearest lounge.  She pointed to a couch. "Sit.  I'll get you something to drink."  She went to the vending machine and took out a can of juice for each of them and walked back.  "If you can catch this can, I'll promise to listen to why you don't need to sleep before I lecture you."  She threw the can for him to catch and then opened her own juice and took a sip, sitting down on a comfy chair near him.  "Now why is it you're refusing to sleep.  Come on.  It doesn't leave the two of us and maybe Alice.  Something's wrong and I'm not sure why you haven't talked to someone about it before now but here.  Cassie's listening."  She smiled kindly.

[attr="class","goodness"] ✉ Timothy Smith ✉ @tagtwo ✎ 0000 words

put a line of notes here, please keep it short.

MADE BY MIZO

[googlefont=Homemade+Apple][googlefont=Open+Sans][newclass=.goodness]width: 70px; height: 70px;margin-top: -223px; margin-left: -42px; transform: rotate(45deg);transition: 1s; filter: grayscale(100%);-webkit-filter: grayscale(100%);-moz-filter: grayscale(100%);border:8px solid #222;[/newclass][newclass=.life:hover .goodness]border:8px solid #efefef; filter: grayscale(0%);-webkit-filter: grayscale(0%);-moz-filter: grayscale(0%);transform: rotate(0deg); margin: 0px 0px 0px 30px; transition: 1s;[/newclass][newclass=.les::-webkit-scrollbar]width:3px;background-color: #ffffff; border:1px solid #ffffff;[/newclass][newclass=.les::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb]width: 1px; background-color: #8d8d8d; border:1px solid #ffffff;[/newclass][newclass=.life]width: 560px;[/newclass]

[Timothy Smith]

Tim reached for the burner, going to turn it up, but got grabbed right then and accidentally turned it off.

“Wait no no no no no I’m not done I need to...”

He saw his protests were ineffectual. He figured he could probably get away from her if he used his powers, but...

He pulled on them, but he barely got any sparks. He had really drained himself. He gave up and let himself be dragged to the lounge and tossed onto the couch.

“I don’t need—AAH!”

He put up his hands to block the can of juice that came flying at him, and somehow managed to catch it. He looked at it, and opened it and took a drink.

“Really, I’m fine. I’m just busy, and if I remember to absorb enough energy I’ve figured out that I don’t need it. It’s fine. I’m fine. We’re all fine here. How’re you?”

“Bullshit.”

“W...what?”

“That’s all bullshit and you know it.” Alice’s voice was insistent and firm. She was actually a little pissed, and trying to keep from letting it show too much, but she had a feeling Cassandra knew her secret.

“If you don’t start telling Cassandra what’s really going on, I will. Either way it’s coming out, tonight.”

Tim sighed. He was cornered, and he was really too tired to try and fight it more.

“Fine. I talked to a very good friend of mine about this a few months ago, but really I’ve been avoiding him since then because I know he’d give me a lecture. Every time I sleep I have a nightmare. All variations on the same theme. I’m either reliving the accident or killing my parents or someone else I care about in some other equally terrifying way. So I’ve just started to... not sleep. I don’t really need it. So long as I can absorb energy from some other source, I’m fine. See, it’s no big deal. Not a problem. I just need to keep working and figure this out. Some random museum thief calling herself Torch actually managed to burn me tonight, which should be impossible. I gotta figure out why that is. It’s going to drive me nuts. If I don’t.”

Cassandra Lewis

[Cassandra Lewis]

[attr="class","life"]

❝

it's my life it's now or never

I ain't gonna live forever

[attr="class","les"] O kay he'd managed to catch the can and she did do as promised, listening to the excuses.  But they were just that.  Excuses.  And then she heard Alice call him on his bullshit and her mouth quirked up in a smirk at it.  She'd known Alice had a personality for a while, but as far as she was concerned if you had a personality you had soul.  So Alice was just like everyone else.  She finally heard Tim's reasons for not going to sleep and her face fell.  She got up and enveloped Tim in a big hug for a moment. "It's okay."  That part was whispered.  When she drew back from the hug and sat back down, she smiled kindly and gently at him. "Everyone needs sleep.  You're running on fumes, Tim.  And have you ever thought that maybe the reason that thief was able to burn you is because you ARE running on fumes?  Your body isn't going to be working at full capacity unless you get actual sleep."  The look on Cassandra's face was very sympathetic despite the mini lecture she was giving. "Listen.  I know about nightmares that haunt you okay.  I don't know how much the media's dug up about me but I'm going to tell you something.  For a long time I had nightmares too.  Sometimes I still do.  I try not to nap around Aegis HQ because you guys might hear me scream or cry."  Her smile struggled as she told him.  She knew it was necessary though.  He needed to know he wasn't alone. "Mine are about my upbringing, or well...mostly about my son's death.  I know things are going to haunt us.  And I'm not about to say that it's going to stop because...I don't know yet it's only been about four years since my own nightmare started.  But we still have to take care of ourselves.  We owe it to the people who have left us behind."

[attr="class","goodness"] ✉ Timothy Smith ✉ @tagtwo ✎ 0000 words

put a line of notes here, please keep it short.

MADE BY MIZO

[googlefont=Homemade+Apple][googlefont=Open+Sans][newclass=.goodness]width: 70px; height: 70px;margin-top: -223px; margin-left: -42px; transform: rotate(45deg);transition: 1s; filter: grayscale(100%);-webkit-filter: grayscale(100%);-moz-filter: grayscale(100%);border:8px solid #222;[/newclass][newclass=.life:hover .goodness]border:8px solid #efefef; filter: grayscale(0%);-webkit-filter: grayscale(0%);-moz-filter: grayscale(0%);transform: rotate(0deg); margin: 0px 0px 0px 30px; transition: 1s;[/newclass][newclass=.les::-webkit-scrollbar]width:3px;background-color: #ffffff; border:1px solid #ffffff;[/newclass][newclass=.les::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb]width: 1px; background-color: #8d8d8d; border:1px solid #ffffff;[/newclass][newclass=.life]width: 560px;[/newclass]

[Timothy Smith]

Tim was about to brush her off, stand back up, grab some energy from a wall outlet, and get back to work, but then the hug stunned him. He couldn't move. Against his own will, his arms reached up and squeezed Cassandra back. He had to fight tears back. It had been nearly six years since someone had been this kind and tender to him, in this specific fashion.

When she let go, Tim sat still, fighting back tears as she comforted him. He struggled to keep from crying, to keep his face unaffected, but it was incredibly difficult.

"I-I'm fine. I'm fine. I'll be fine. I just need... I'm fine. It'll... I just wanna do my work. I just want to forget. I can push it away when I work. I can't... can't.... can't...."

He failed in his attempts to keep the tears back, and just sobbed into Cassandra's shoulder. "I can't... can't do it. I can't live through it anymore. I can't take it. If I have to see it all happen again, if I have to see their blood on my hands, I'm going to go insane. Something in me is going to break. It's safer, it's better, if I just don't sleep."

Cassandra Lewis

[Cassandra Lewis]

[attr="class","life"]

❝

it's my life it's now or never

I ain't gonna live forever

[attr="class","les"] C assandra saw him fighting back tears, struggling to keep from letting them fall.  Tried to tell her he was fine, he just wanted to do his work and forget.  And push it away.  Cassandra sighed, and then smiled slightly as he cried into her shoulder.  She heard his words about not being able to take it.  She rubbed his back like she would to calm a child.  Sometimes even adults needed that. "It's okay to not be okay.  And I know it's difficult to work through what you're seeing in your dreams.  But if you don't sleep, you're breaking yourself.  Slowly, but surely, you aren't going to be able to do your work properly."  Her eyes sparked with tears of her own when she realized how similar their situations were. "And Tim?  I don't know what happened but...I'm sure it wasn't your fault.  And that they don't blame you."  She pulled back from the bear hug slightly to look him in the eyes.  Her eyes were still filled with unshed tears.  For Tim, and for herself.  "I...I am sorry you went through whatever you did.  No-one deserves to be haunted by their actions.  But sometimes we are, and we have to work through it."  Next to Cassandra suddenly a spirit popped up.  Tim couldn't see him, but the spirit looked about fifteen years old.  Cassandra knew him, and she knew he was actually about nineteen.  She heard the spirit speak. "Take your own advice."  Cassandra sighed and looked at him. "Look...I can't.  I just...I can't!"  She ran a hand through her hair and shook her head before sitting back down on the chair in the lobby of Aegis.  "You need to forgive yourself, just like he does." "IT'S DIFFERENT!"  The words burst out of her rather loudly and her face ran through a gamut of emotions, from anger and frustration to sadness.  She sighed, realizing how it must look to Tim.  She touched his shoulder and focused.  Tim would be able to see the fifteen year old blonde now.  It would take concentration of Cassandra's powers to do it.  But she needed to do it so he had context.  She stayed silent and the teen spoke instead. "Hi Tim.  I'm Geoffrey Lewis.  If you have questions about being dead, I might be able to help.  And...my mum isn't as strong as she likes to lead everyone to believe."  He smiled sadly, and Cassandra glared at him.

[attr="class","goodness"] ✉ Timothy Smith ✉ @tagtwo ✎ 0000 words

put a line of notes here, please keep it short.

MADE BY MIZO

[googlefont=Homemade+Apple][googlefont=Open+Sans][newclass=.goodness]width: 70px; height: 70px;margin-top: -223px; margin-left: -42px; transform: rotate(45deg);transition: 1s; filter: grayscale(100%);-webkit-filter: grayscale(100%);-moz-filter: grayscale(100%);border:8px solid #222;[/newclass][newclass=.life:hover .goodness]border:8px solid #efefef; filter: grayscale(0%);-webkit-filter: grayscale(0%);-moz-filter: grayscale(0%);transform: rotate(0deg); margin: 0px 0px 0px 30px; transition: 1s;[/newclass][newclass=.les::-webkit-scrollbar]width:3px;background-color: #ffffff; border:1px solid #ffffff;[/newclass][newclass=.les::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb]width: 1px; background-color: #8d8d8d; border:1px solid #ffffff;[/newclass][newclass=.life]width: 560px;[/newclass]