5717/Astral Flux: Home Sweet Hole in the Ground

Astral Flux: Home Sweet Hole in the Ground
Date of Scene:	05 November 2018
Location:	Unknown
Synopsis:	Wanda meets Scott Lang, and recruits him to help rescue the Avenger's mansion. She might have promised him a room.
Cast of Characters:	Scarlet Witch, Ant-Man (Lang)
Tinyplot:	Astral Flux

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Scarlet Witch has posed:
It had been raining for days, which was fairly typical for early November. What wasn't typical was the fact that the rains had turned what used to be the Avenger's mansion, but was now a hole in the ground, into something of a swimming pool. Only with less chlorine, and a lot more mud.

All of which had Wanda considering the problem at hand: the space the mansion was supposed to be was slowly crumbling away and was going to cause a lot of problems come the time they tried to put the thing back. Though if she rightly understood it, it was still there, but in another dimensional space. Which didn't bother her so much.

The mud filled hole that wasn't doing much as a place-holder for the mansion did bother her, though. Even if she knew things would work out in the end, it just didn't seem right.

All of which leaves her sighing over the cup of coffee she's holding between two hands to keep them warmed in the November chill.

Ant-Man (Lang) has posed:
    "I /am/ an Avenger. Ant-Man! No, the other Ant-Man. Well, I'd say 'active reserve' and not 'spare' but sure, spare Ant-Man. Tony Stark's gonna hear about this, guy. We're best friends. No no no no no no no, you don't have to call him. No no no no."
    One of the security guards hired to keep intruders off the cratered grounds where formerly stood the Avengers Mansion is giving a guy in a strange red, black, and silver suit a hard time. As the security guard reaches for his cell phone, however, the self-proclaimed Ant-Man - who could just be a very talented cosplayer - throws up his hands and walks away. Except he gets about five feet before he promptly disappears out of sight, shrinking down and reappearing full-sized on the other side of the fence.
    He's chuckling at his own cleverness as he walks over, not noticing Wanda until he almost bumps into her: "Oh! Uh, hello!"

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda blinks, and startles at nearly being bumped into, but still manages not to spill her coffee all over herself (or Scott!), and looks torn between a mild scolding of the man, and an amused laugh.

"Oh! You did very nearly wear my coffee. I do not think that is the best way to enjoy it. But are you supposed to be here?" Because, really, she's not entirely sure who he is. Even if he did just loudly declare he was 'Ant Man!' over there. She either didn't hear him, or she's not sure she's willing to accept his declaration as utter truth, because, in fact, she hasn't met the man, and he could be just anyone. Even if he did manage a neat little trick disappearing and reappearing like that.

Okay, there's the helmet, too. That also gives her pause. Still, he could have stolen it.

Ant-Man (Lang) has posed:
    "You, too? Look, I /am/ Ant-Man. Honest. And if I /was/ trying to break in here with ill intent, what exactly am I going to steal?"
    Scott gestures at the muddy pool where the Mansion once stood: "Dirty water? I've got plenty of that leaking through my ceiling at home. I don't need anymore."
    He holds up a hand, struck by an idea: "I know, a demonstration. Hang on."
    He steps back a little, opens his palms to look at the miniature triggers embedded on the inside of the gloves, and then hits one. For a moment he seems to disappear, rapidly shrinking down to a size barely visible unless you are really looking for him. Then, he shoots back up - past his normal size to something akin to a ten-foot-tall giant. This, too, only lasts a moment as he shrinks back down to normal.
    " ... I'm dizzy now, but you get the point."
    

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda ponders the hole, and the man's statement. "Well, there really isn't anything to steal, but still, that doesn't mean you should be wandering about here just willy the nilly, yes?"

She's pretty sure she's met Ant Man - or at least seen him. This guy isn't him. But he's got the helmet.

Of course, he's got the perfect solution, his demonstration! All of which has her smirking. "Oh. So, you can make yourself small and big and then normal again, yes? And this is now to make me believe you are Ant Man. Wait, you said, hrm.. how was it? Ah! Yes. No, the other Ant-Man." And her eyes are twinkling devilishly as she says it, too, knowing she's teasing him full out now.

Ant-Man (Lang) has posed:
    A dramatic sigh from Scott, "That's right, I'm the /other/ Ant-Man. The one for when Doctor Pym's busy building death rays or whatever and you need a shrinky guy. I know you guys haven't really needed me around that much, but I promise I'm telling the truth. When I heard about what happened to your - /our/ headquarters, I wanted to see if there was anything I can do to help."
    He pauses, looking down into the hole for a long moment.
    "Buuuuuut ... probably not, right? I mean, you'd probably magic it back if it were that easy, right?"

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda laughs outright now. "I am sorry for the teasing. I do think that was maybe not so nice of me. And yes, you are the other Ant Man, but I confess, I do not know your name. I think we did never meet before?"

She moves one hand from her coffee cup and extends it to him, "I am Wanda. Wanda Maximoff. You might know me best as the Scarlet Witch. And..."

She sighs at the hole that was the mansion and is now masquerading as a swimming pool of sorts. "And that is where our mansion should be. It is not so simple as to just magic it back. But magic will be involved. We will probably need other help, too. I hear that there are creatures attacking it. But we would have to ask Bruce about that more."

Ant-Man (Lang) has posed:
    "I'm, uh," Scott pauses, as though reluctant to take off his mask. Secret identity and all, even though he probably should nix that idea if he's going to be an Avenger. None of them have secret identities. At least as far as he's aware. He takes the offered hand to shake it, lifting the other to lift the faceplate of his helmet to reveal his face beneath.
    "I'm Scott Lang. Nice to finally meet you, Wanda."
    He turns his gaze to the mansion-hole, blurting out before he can really think about it: "I'd like to help. I mean, spare Ant-Man or not I can still help."

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda's lips remain curved over a smile. She understands that reluctance. It kind of goes with the territory, and truthfully, there are many places she wouldn't openly lead off with who she is, for all the reasons. She'd had a rough enough beginning as a mutant.

"Spare Ant Man. Is that like a spare tire, only better? You could fit a bus, or a bike just as easily." She grins, and nods at him. "I think it will be that we will be needing many to help us. Maybe not so much as a small army, but enough to distract the denizens who attack the mansion, while the rest of us return it to its rightful place. I am going to imagine that magic is not your thing, yes?"

Ant-Man (Lang) has posed:
    "Friendship is magic," Scott says, almost reflexively as hours and hours of his daughter's cartoons march past behind his eyes, "And I guess growing and shrinking is a kind of magic. But uh, no, not the you kind of magic with the -"
    He makes a couple wild gestures, imitating the flinging of hex bolts at evil-doers.
    "But if you need someone to knock some monsters around, then I'm your guy for sure. Haven't met the creep yet who can get past a sixty-foot-tall Scott Lang. Just, uh, we'll have a couch or something for me to lie down on after, yeah? Of course, we will. The Mansion has couches."

Scarlet Witch has posed:
"Oh, ouch," Wanda complains. "Do I really look like that when I do the magic?"

She knew *exactly* what he was mimicking, and strongly suspected that's how everyong imagined she looked like flinging hex bolts, whether or not it was true. "I really need better public relations."

There's a nod, though. "We will need many someones to knock the monsters around. I think they are vulnerable to the punches? I am afraid I didn't ask all the questions of Bruce. Only now I will have to. But it is my experience that most things do not like to be punched. Not so many things are safe against everything except magic. Usually if you hit it in the nose, they stop what they are doing."

Ant-Man (Lang) has posed:
    "Oh, I don't do it justice," Scott says quickly, trying to smooth over the rough terrain, "It's much more elegant and ... mystical? I'm gonna say mystical."
    The talk of the monsters prompts him to nod his head like 'sure, he talks about the Avengers and uses their first names all the time.' He clears his throat for an awkward conversational transition: "And if they can take punching then I can just pick them up and throw them as far as possible. Creatures in an evil other dimension have to follow the laws of time and space too, don't they?"

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda laughs again. "It is okay. I am mostly teasing you. I am pretty sure that is what it looks like to most people. Mystical isn't really all that special when you are watching it. All the hand waving and silly words so much magic seems to call for. Truthfully? It is not all necessary. So much is affected."

Her laughter gentles to a smile that is welcoming. "And, when you punch things, it is kind of like that" - she makes some odd jabs in the air with her non-coffee holding hand, that are pretty much the physical mirror of his mimicking her hex bolts, only with punches - "to me. So it is probably all the same in the end."

A pause.

"You really can be 60 feet tall? Isn't that uncomfortable? And I do not think it would be so very easy to pick up monsters when you were that big and they were so small. Maybe only twenty feet. Large enough."

She gives his question some serious thought, though. "I do not know. There are many dimensions that have their own rules of time and space. If I understand it correctly, the mansion both exists frozen in time and space, and is also being destroyed in time and space. I confess, I was busy with other thoughts when we were discussing the matter, but that is much how I remember it. When we go to the other dimension, though, we will exist in its actual time and space and things will happen there. It is one of those things that are difficult to explain to others."

Of course not knowing that he may know a thing or two about dimensions himself.

Ant-Man (Lang) has posed:
    "Alright, I'm just going to take your word for it that if I throw things they'll stay thrown. If I try to comprehend magical dimensions I think I'll go cross-eyed."
    Her other questions cause Scott to nod the affirmative: "Sixty feet. I've clocked out higher but it's tiring. It's more like my body grows but the amount of energy inside it doesn't. If I ate non-stop for a week and went that big? I'd still be hungry afterwards. I try to avoid getting that big for too long. I'd show you but I don't want to pass out and squash the neighbors."

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda considers his words, "That is interesting. But it does make sense. You are using a comparable amount of energy equal to the space you are occupying. So it would be exponentially increased with your size to compensate for the increase in mass."

She nods to herself, not so much asking him, as pondering aloud.

Belatedly, she remembers herself, and makes a small noise. "Oh! I am all the rude. I should offer you a coffee, too. It is cold." And without much fanfare or preamble, she hands him a cup that wasn't there a moment before, from the hand that had been punching the air in mimicry of him. "Cream and sugar? I did have to guess. But you looked like maybe a cream and sugar sort of person."

Ant-Man (Lang) has posed:
    Scott nods, reaching out to take the coffee gratefully: "I'll take that as a compliment. And, hey, if Doctor Pym wants to be Ant-Man again I could always be Cream and Sugar Guy. Sugarman. The Cream - no."
    He shakes his head, sighing as he runs off at the mouth again without letting his brain catch up. Rather than continue in that vein, he lifts the coffee and takes a sip. Better to just put something in the way of his mouth rather than keep talking.
    "Oh, hey, this is good! And you just - " he wiggles his fingers in the air, "- like that?"

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda waits until he is done, looking every so amused as he goes on. "You are the ridiculous. You know this, yes? Cream and Sugar Guy. Though, I do think I like Sugarman better." She leans forward a little, "I don't want to know what you meant about The Cream, yes?"

She's non-plussed about his question as to how she got the coffee, though, shrugging. "Mostly?" It's not precisely finger wiggling. "I did need another coffee, so there was another coffee. It helps if I don't try to think about it so much." Which is to say she knew full well it happened all the time around her, but being aware of magic forming and folding itself about her was one thing, being absolutely cognizant and pinpointing it happening all casual like was another. Wanda preferred to not consider just *how* she did these things. It left her the illusion that she wasn't just exerting her will upon things willy nilly as a matter of course. Even if providing a hot coffee on a cold day was a relatively innocuous use of her abilities.

"Sometimes it just happens," she finishes quietly.

Ant-Man (Lang) has posed:
    "That's very cool," Scott says earnestly, his body language and expression showing that he considers her abilities far more impressive than his growing and shrinking, "I guess it's no surprise you're an Avenger, huh?"
    The ridiculous comment just sort of prompts him to shrug and smile: "I've been told. I figure in this line of work, things tend to get a bit tense. Sometimes it's good to lighten the mood." Not to mention he doesn't know when to shut up, but he leaves that part out.

Scarlet Witch has posed:
"In truth? Some days I do not know why I am an Avenger. I suppose because it is better to do the good than all the other things I could be." All the things she had been taught, and coerced into doing and being. Things she still struggled with, especially as some of the sources of that coercion were especially beloved to her. She had a much stronger sense of self and personal will these days, but she knew that she was still weak in the face of them.

It was part of the complicated that was Wanda Maximoff.

"You are right about the humour. I think you will either very much like Tony, or you will both be the clashing like thunder. He is all the all over the place and so much lightness of mood. I think sometimes he is all the smallness still in a very grown up body. But he is also all the brilliant." As much as to say the one made the other okay, though not necessarily which excused which.

"You wish to help, though. That is good. We will be needing the help. Only, how is it I will contact you? It would be usually that I would let the others know of you." And, of course, there were other ways they did communicate, though Wanda generally ignored those, being Wanda. "You do have the cell phone?"

Ant-Man (Lang) has posed:
    "Yeah, I mean, is there like an Avengers Facebook group or - how do you guys usually talk to each other? I mean besides yelling while things explode."
    The mention of getting along with Tony Stark brightens him up a little, although he doesn't say anything. Don't want to appear too over-eager. He wants to be one of the team, not the guy who is desperate to be an Avenger, after all.
    "I've got a cell, yeah," he reaches to where his pocket would be if he weren't wearing his Ant-Man suit and finds that it isn't there, "It's in my clothes, though. Do you have a pen? I can just write down my number."

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Of course Wanda has a pen! Well, she has a pen because she needs a pen. He asks, and she's able to just hand one over.

"They do use the cell phones mostly. And the computer system in the mansion." It was a wonderful system - only, its greatest failure was there had to be a mansion. Which there wasn't.

Ant-Man (Lang) has posed:
    "Well, hopefully I get to use it some day, too," Scott takes the pen, jotting down his cell phone number wherever it is most convenient to do so, "You can just send me a text or call me or whatever works. I've got work from ten thirty til six but if you give me a little warning I can call in sick. I've got a couple of sick days under my belt."

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda takes the number, and folds it up, tucking it away into what looks to be a pocket? Even if it isn't, she's tucked it away for future use. "I will give you the warning. It has been very nice to meet you. It would be okay if I spoke to the others about you?"

Ant-Man (Lang) has posed:
    "Oh! Please do! I'm, uh, look - if I'm honest, I want to be part of this team. I can do good things. Really. It's not all about being able to grow and shrink and stuff. I want to help people. But when I don't get the call, and the fact that you don't know who I am? Makes me think that maybe I might be a bit forgotten. I want to change that." Scott lifts his coffee to finish the last of it, "I'm an Avenger, too."

Scarlet Witch has posed:
"Of course you are," Wanda says gently, and without contradiction. "I will talk to the others. And, who knows, once the mansion is back, maybe you will have your own room in it. It has been very nice to meet you. I will remember to call you. After six." She grins at that last.

Ant-Man (Lang) has posed:
    Scott beams a little bit at that. That'd make a hell of a weekend visit for Cassie - bringing her to the Avengers Mansion to meet all the Avengers! Oh well, baby steps for now. Got to get the foot in the front door. He looks back towards the gate for a moment at the security guard who has now turned about and is peering warily back into the grounds at him. Then, he looks back to Wanda: "Great! It's been nice to meet you, Wanda, but I've got to - uh - I've got to jet before they throw me out on the curb. Bye!"
    That said, he once again shrinks down - disappearing entirely from sight. A moment later, what looks to be a flying ant zips up from the ground and speeds away into the air. The most keen of eyes might be able to spot the miniscule Ant-Man riding in the saddle, though not even those eyes could see the beaming grin on his face.