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Characters: Oliver Day (

oliverplus) and OPEN
Location: Your reality!
Time: After Oliver's fairytale has ended, and during or after yours, as you prefer
Summary: Oliver goes on an involuntary reality-hopping tour of the multiverse~
Warnings: Oliver is a geek, and depending on your reality, he might just show it. Possibly a lot.

Tag in if you'd like Oliver to visit you! Prose-style or action tags are fine; just tag in the way you feel like playing.

"Samwise! Don't go under there!"

Oliver had learned a long time ago that "getting lost" and "going somewhere in the TARDIS" were basically synonymous, so he'd long since given up on getting annoyed when it happened. Instead, he usually just looked at it as another adventure to conquer--plus, you never knew what sort of cool things you might find in the meantime. And that was all well and good when he was alone, but this time he'd made the mistake of bringing one of his pets along. Watching a dwarf rabbit run off to be lost in the TARDIS was not the sort of adventure he'd had in mind for today.

He crouched down by the random large machine that was sitting by one of the walls of a room that otherwise appeared to be some sort of study. Aside from the hulking metal contraption, the room was lined with comfortable sofas and armchairs, the lighting coming from lamps on sidetables. Fancy rugs were scattered about on the polished wooden floor, although the area around the machine was bare aside from some telltale scuff marks. And while the space underneath the machine was large enough for a rabbit to fit, Oliver doubted he could even get one of his hands in there. "Come on, come out! I'll get you some nice greens?"

As he leaned down to look under the machine, he just caught sight of a furry ball shooting out and across the room. "Samwise!" He jumped to his feet, realising now that he'd been so intent on the rabbit that he hadn't even thought to close the door to the study when he came in. And, of course, he pet was making straight for it. Oliver ran after him, hoping to grab the door and shut it before Samwise could reach it and disappear into the corridor. It was going to be a close thing. He grabbed at the side of the door--

--and missed. Oliver skidded to a stop, almost falling over in his surprise. Because it was immediately apparent that he hadn't simply missed in his grab--the door wasn't there anymore. The study wasn't either, nor was the familiar hum of the TARDIS.

"What...?" Oliver breathed, looking around him in confusion. "Where am I?"

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"No, it just sorta happened. I mean, no offense! But it seems like I can't go to the Plane or back home or anything. I just keep randomly moving to different places every once in a while for no reason." He shrugged, accepting Eithan's invitation to sit on the other swing. He was starting to feel almost used to this random world-hopping--although it was particularly nice to be in another place where people wouldn't get upset if they found him. He planted his feet on the ground, swinging lightly forward and back. "Home from where? Your job?" he asked curiously.

"You can't even go back to the plane? Huh." He bit his lip for a second, thinking. "You don't think you're stuck world-hoppin' for too long, do you? Should we be lookin' for a way to stop it?"

He pushed himself backwards a small ways, then pulled his feet up and just let the swing rock back and forth. He shook his head. "Not my job, just visitin' people." He paused, and smiled, amused. "Not that I have what most people would call a steady job anyway, but whatever. It works."

Oliver's eyes widened slightly. He hadn't thought of that. "Uh...I don't think so. I mean, everything the Plane does is temporary." Which was true, he reminded himself. Although he hadn't needed Eithan to make him remember the fact that "temporary" could sometimes last for rather a long time. He'd just have to hope it didn't in this case. "And I'm not really sure what we could do," he added, frowning thoughtfully. "I'll keep trying to go to the Plane, though."

But for now, he was going to keep enjoying being in his friends' worlds. He laughed at Eithan's swing antics. They were both obviously too tall for this, but he tried to imitate him anyway. "Probably glad I didn't show up a bit earlier then, huh?" he joked, smiling back at him. "What sort've job have you got?"

"Yeah, true. Probably nothin' to worry about, then." He nodded firmly, gave Oliver a reassuring smile.

Eithan was more than glad to make Oliver laugh, so he tried to keep up with the swinging. It really was ridiculous, he had to admit, but damn if it wasn't nice to swing.

"Nah, actually, they'd probably just think you're the kind of mage that can teleport." Eithan shrugged a shoulder, grinning. "We'd just have to come up with some sort of story on the spot, or somethin'. Not too hard! And anyway, you'd probably get along with most of 'em.

"And, I play guitar. Coffee shops. You know, that sort of thing." He waved a hand dismissively, but he was smiling. "Just doin' what I like. Too bad it doesn't pay like a 'real job'." Complete with air-quotes. Which... caused him to nearly tip out of the swing. So with an exaggerated yelp, he corrected himself, grabbed the chains and went right back to swinging.

Oliver snickered, hurrying to keep up with Eithan. He couldn't be outdone at swinging by someone who was actually taller than he was, after all. He knew this was probably a reckless idea, but it seemed worth it in any case.

"What, you've got those here?" he asked. He was so surprised that his foot caught on the ground, and he nearly pitched himself out of his swing. Thankfully, his firm grip on the chains and some quick steps allowed him to end up standing instead of on the ground. He sat back down in the swing. "Are mages, like...common?" he added, as if nothing had just happened. Hopefully he could regain his dignity through distraction--and he was curious about it, too.

Thankfully, Eithan almost pitched himself out of the swing seconds later, and Oliver grinned. It seemed they were just as bad as each other, which was perfect as far as he was concerned. "Yeah? Sounds like fun, anyway. And I bet--oh, wait!" Eithan's mention of the guitar had reminded Oliver of the last conversation they'd had, and that made him grin even more widely. "How did it go?" he asked eagerly, leaning toward Eithan now. "What'd Val say?"

Eithan couldn't snicker at Oliver tripping, he'd done the same himself. He did grin a bit, though. "Yeah, a few," he answered with the shrug of a shoulder, "but it's pretty rare. I think it's a light-user thing, and even then, it's only a few that can actually do it." He smiles. "But yeah, mages aren't exactly rare. I don't know if I'd call it common, but they're not in hiding or off in their own part of the world, or somethin'."

Of course, at the mention of Valerie, and his planned proposal, Eithan's cheeks flushed, nearly the same shade of red as his hair at this point. "I-I, uh, w-well," he stammered, rubbing the back of his head with one hand, "I-It hasn't happened yet. I know, I know, but... It's just not the right time! Not yet. I've come close! But... not just yet."

He looked off at the horizon, his smile bordering on ridiculously sappy. "I want it to be perfect." A pause... and an amused snort. "Okay, well, as close to perfect as I can get without screwin' up too much."

"That's so cool!" Oliver declared. His voice even went up in pitch in his excitement. "So magic is just--well, not common, but a regular thing here?" He looked around, as though expecting to see magic in the air. "It sounds like Lord of the Rings!" And that, in his opinion, was a fantastic way for things to be. He could hardly even imagine what his world would be like if there were magic in it. Then again, in some ways it was like trying to imagine what the world would be like if the aliens were public knowledge--and either way, it sounded wild.

He gaped when he heard Eithan hadn't proposed yet, though. "Wait, what? Why isn't it the right time?" He gave his friend a critical look, well aware of the "not the right time" excuse--and how long it could go on if a person wasn't careful. Eithan's sappy smile made him relax a little, though. He definitely looked committed. "So what sort of time are you waiting for?" Oliver pressed. "Did you decide what you're gonna do for sure?"

Eithan nodded. "Yeah, pretty regular. Though I'm not really sure what this lord of rings thing is." He snickered. "In this realm, they're not really as strict about it. In my realm, though? It's definitely a bigger deal." A big deal that he didn't know if he was ready to explain the, uh, finer points of...

When he glanced over to see Eithan gaping, he winced and gave him a sheepish, guilty smile. "It just-... it isn't? I mean, there's a lot goin' on right now!" Speaking of things he didn't know if he was ready to explain... ah, what the hell. His playful attitude faded substantially, and he even stopped swinging. He did his best to turn his expression back toward something neutral, at least. "So uh, I mentioned the Order to you before. Right? Bad people? Well, I think they found me."

"It's a film," Oliver explained. He had no idea if that would mean anything to Eithan, but he didn't really mind at the moment. "So this isn't where you're actually from?" he asked, wondering what exactly Eithan meant by "realms."

He was surprised by Eithan's explanation for the reason he hadn't yet proposed, though. His smile immediately faded into concern. "You mean...that's why you're here?" Glancing around, Oliver made sure they were alone in the park before adding in a whisper, "Are you on the run? Where's Val?"

He had to grin at that. "A film, huh? So my world's like fiction in yours? That's pretty funny."

And he started to answer where he was from, but the rest of it kind of took precedence. He shook his head, held up his hands in a placating manner. "Hey, hey, it's cool. She's safe. She's... probably healin' Travis or somethin', knowin' how his luck runs." One corner of his mouth twitched upward into some semblance of a reassuring half-smile. "They can't find me in this realm." A pause. "Yet. They can't find me in this realm yet. Keyword. But it counts. And they don't even know about her. It's just me that's in trouble."

Oliver blinked; that was an odd way to put it, but he couldn't help a smile because it was rather true. "Yeah, I guess so! People in my world wish they had magic."

As Eithan explained his situation, though, Oliver stopped swinging. "They aren't after Travis, too, are they?" he asked with concern. But when Eithan finished, he immediately stood. "Then what are we sitting around here for?" he asked urgently. "What can we do to keep them from finding you?"

After all, if he was in Eithan's world and Eithan needed help, there was no way he could let this go without doing something.

Eithan was blindsided by Oliver's insistence, and all he could do was stare, a little wide-eyed. After that initial reaction though, he actually managed a small smile. To be quite honest, it meant a lot to him that Oliver would be so worried on his behalf. He laughed a little, shaking his head, and stood as well... but only so he could walk over to Oliver and put his hands on the man's shoulders.

"Don't worry, man. It's okay," he said firmly, smiling, then dropped his arms back to his sides. "Though I think I've got a lot of explainin' to do just so you won't worry so much, huh? How about startin' with why they can't find me here yet?"

Oliver, on the other hand, was shocked by how calm Eithan was about it all. "Yeah, that'd be good," he said, rather confused by the whole conversation. "You're sure you're safe?" he added, as though he were afraid Eithan wasn't clear on that part of his concern.

"I'm sure I'm safe, yeah," he answered with a small laugh. "And uh, you might want to sit back down. This might take a while to explain."

Thankfully, the ground around the swing set was worn enough that grass would no longer grow there. He crouched down, and with his finger, drew two large circles in the dirt.

"So uh, there are two realms. Tharia, and Meridia." He points to each of the circles as he "names" them. "We're over here right now, in Tharia. The Order is over there, in Meridia. Where I'm actually from. Most people can't just go from one realm to another." And he drew some squiggly X's between the circles as if that would show as much. "They're completely separate. They're like... parallel universes or dimensions or somethin', no one's really sure why there are two realms. But there are.

"Pretty much everyone here in Tharia knows about Meridia, but not a lot of people in Meridia know about Tharia. And even fewer of 'em can actually get here. Even if someone in the Order knows this place exists, I know for damn sure they have no way to get here." He sighs. "Yet. I'm pretty sure they're workin' on it. But it also means they have no idea that I'm here. Hell, I don't even think they know my mom's originally from here, or they'd be tryin' even harder to get to me. Use me. Whatever. You know?"

He gave Oliver a small smile, really hoping that all of that made some sort of sense. He wasn't exactly confident in his ability to explain things. He probably contradicted himself a time or two. Well, damn...

"Uh...okay." Oliver followed Eithan's instructions and sat back down on the swing, although he kept it still this time, more interested in listening than in messing around.

"Oh. Well, that's good!" he said, relieved, as Eithan explained about Meridia's limited knowledge of--and ability to travel to--Tharia. It sounded like Eithan was definitely safe for now, which he was very glad to hear. "How long do you think it'll take them to get here? And would they realise you were here then?"

And as safe as Eithan made the situation sound, there was one more loose end that was bothering Oliver--Val. Oliver knew what it was like to be separated from that one special person for a long period of time. Eithan was probably safe here, and that was very important, but if Val was over there, they couldn't stay apart forever. No, Oliver wouldn't let them stay apart. He'd already made that mistake himself, and he wouldn't watch anyone else do it. "Val's in Meridia, isn't she?" he asked softly.

Eithan's smile dropped, replaced with a distant, worried frown. He nodded. "I'm goin' back over tonight. I'll get her and bring her back." He sighed. "She's actually from here. But she went there to heal one of our friends and got stuck. I fuckin' hate politics..."

"I could help you!" Oliver blurted out without thinking. When his mind caught up with his reflexes, however, he frowned. "No... No way I'll still be here then." He sighed. Still, he was glad to hear Eithan and Val would be together again soon.

"But that sounds like a good plan, Eithan," he said encouragingly. "You think you'll be able to get to her okay? I mean...you know, staying safe and all?"

He watched for Eithan's reaction, rather concerned about that part of whatever plan Eithan had. Oliver knew if he had to sneak somewhere dangerous to bring Chloe home, he would be willing--and eager--to take some awful risks to do it, and he had a sinking feeling Eithan was the same in that respect.

"Yeah, no, I can get her back here," he answered with a wave of one hand, "I'm the son of the Paine family. They have to let us back through. I just... have to be careful the wrong people don't hear me givin' my name. You know?"

There was more to it than that, and Eithan knew it. Even so, it's not like he was withholding information about how dangerous this was just so Oliver wouldn't worry. He was doing so because he genuinely didn't want to think about it, so he wasn't. This whole thing depended on just how much of a threat the Order thought he was...

He shook his head. "But it's okay. Really. I'll get her, and we'll get back here safe. Nothin' can stop me from protectin' her."

Oliver looked Eithan in the eyes, even though he knew he wasn't going to experience pleasant feelings for it. "Just be really careful, okay? I'm sure she wants you to be safe more than she wants to be with you." It was the way he felt about Chloe, after all. It wasn't an entirely fair feeling--she should have her own chance to make a choice, just like Eithan was taking his now--but it was still important. If Eithan got himself captured or killed trying to get her, all that effort would have been at best, to bring her home, but also to bring her horrible pain.

For a long moment after that, he struggled to think of anything else he could do--anything he could give Eithan to help him stay safe. Any advice he could give. But he didn't know enough about this world or the situation, and he didn't have any solve-all gadgets like psychic paper. "Good luck." It was all he could think of to say. "And hey, you'll ask her after tonight, right?" He grinned encouragingly as he said it. Warning his friend to cautious was important, but optimism was, too.

Worry. That's what Oliver would feel. Worry, a faint sense of panic, yet determination in spite of it... and underneath that, a stinging hatred for the Order. There was a lot more going on inside than Eithan's letting show on his face. Still, there was also that appreciation. Eithan was glad to have an ally - no, a real friend in Oliver. He wouldn't go forgetting that anytime soon.

"You know, Val'd say something just like that, I'm pretty sure. Don't worry, I'll be really careful."

His final question made hin blink, surprised by the shift in the conversation. He was even startled into a real laugh. "Yeah, no, I will," he answered with a grin, "I promise. I think if I put it off too much longer I'll go crazy."

Oliver kept his gaze on Eithan, steeling himself against the confusing mix of emotions that he was now experiencing. "Good," he said at Eithan's promise to be careful. He knew that, in the given situation, that was the best assurance he could get. He decided he'd have to watch for Eithan on the Plane and see if he could find out what had happened as soon as it was over. He doubted he'd be able to do anything about the result, but...well, hopefully it would be good news. It didn't bear thinking about otherwise.

And with that in mind, at Eithan's laugh and answer to his last question, Oliver gave him a real smile back. "I'm gonna hold you to that!" he declared, grinning. "Let me know how it goes."

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