originallutece | (no subject)

[Okay, first off, they're gonna absolutely address the fact that this dude is talking about Katherine in such a fashion. Not now, but someday. It's no bad thing, but it is gossipy, and god knows Rosalind can give into that every so often.

But for right now, there are more important things to focus on.]

And that you might have shared a universe with this boy.

What have you remembered (or theoretically remembered)?

[To be honest, it was the fact that he was talking about her that way that grabbed her attention before the idea that he'd remembered her in the same way she'd remembered him. She's not certain whether she should feel flattered that he could apparently stare into her eyes for hours, or annoyed by the fact that he was talking about her to someone she barely knew in a public forum! Maybe some combination of both?]

Well, you see how he mentioned that I said something that sounded like something he'd heard before? It's exactly the same thing. While we were talking I got a sense of déjà vu, as though we'd had this same conversation before. It felt... strange.

I remember a boy trying to sell me a newspaper and flirting very poorly as he did so. I brushed him off and put him in his place. But in the second memory, I'm talking to the same boy.

He was still trying to get into my pants and doing a very bad job of it.

[To be blunt!]

However in both of these memories, it looked just like him. Younger, maybe, with a smudge of something on his face, but the voice was the same.

And so was the cockiness, I can tell you that for certain.

Have you talked to the boy in question about it?

I should think that would be the first step. Either that, or analyzing your memories in detail to try and extract any more information from them. I can help you with that, if you'd like.

[A pause, and then:]

And what did you do, when he flirted with you?

[On her end, Ros's question is cause for laughter. Has she talked to the boy in question about it!]

I haven't. He was just as flirtatious both on the network and when we met face-to-face as he was in those memories. I'm certain if I bring it up to him, he'll turn it into some big joke about how "it musta been fate that brought us together, huh?"

[Wait a second. Why is she thinking of Jack with an accent? Is she already crossing the two boys over in her head? Get it together, Katherine!]

And I shut him down, of course. Or, well... tried to. He rolled with every punch I threw at him.

I see.

Fun, is it, going at it with him like that?

[Like, are we talking "he's flirtatious and he's awful" or "he's flirtatious and he's awful, the worst, I hate him, I can't wait to see him again", because Ros knows both feelings intimately well.]

ROSALIND

[No, no, don't shriek at your cousin! It's all well and good if it was one of her friends she was talking to, but she hardly knows Ros well enough to do so...!

But after that outburst, it'll take a moment for her to get back to Ros. Because what can she say...?]

I... maybe. Yes?

He's shameless, asking for the photos I was sent by Retrospect of my backside, but when I told him I'd prefer not to violate copyright laws he's smart enough to debate the law with me. He's clever, but he seems to enjoy pushing his boundaries to see what sort of reaction he'll get. I can't imagine he thought his bad attempts at pick-up lines were actually going to work...

If he is the boy from what I saw, the first memory was fun, but the second was more awkward. I get the feeling I was trying to talk to him about something serious and he kept redirecting to what he was "hoping for tonight."

Edited 2017-06-21 22:42 (UTC)

Believe me, I'm very familiar with that kind of, ah, friendship.

[Listen, man, she and Tony Carter hang out regularly; it's not as if he hadn't asked after those same pictures.]

Still. I wonder at the fact you two might come from the same-- let's call it "world" for now. Whether or not that affects your pull towards one another, or if it's simply coincidence.

[Hm.]

I think you ought to bring it up with him. Flirting or not, you'll have twice the amount of information to sort through if you work with him.

[Luckily for her, Tony had been discreet enough to keep from asking directly for said photos. There are some boundaries you just don't cross, especially with your lawyer's daughter...]

You said that before, too. Do you really think all these "memories" come from different worlds or universes? Is that even possible?

[It's off-topic from what she'd originally come to ask Ros about, but it's something worth looking into further.]

You're probably right. I'll message him in a bit.

Thank you for the advice. Even though I knew I needed to talk to him, I think I needed to hear it from someone else too.

You're always welcome to ask me, I hope you know.

[She lets that linger on its own for a few seconds.]

But yes. I do. The concept of parallel universes is discussed heavily in the physics field; it's quite within the realm of possibility. There's several theories on why it might be so, and I can explain them for you if you'd ever like to hear them, but the point being: there's precedence for this.

. . . and my other self studied parallel universes. She had proof they existed. I don't know what that proof was, but the very fact she had proof at all is confirmation enough for me.

[She does know. But it's always nice to receive a reminder now and then. Katherine can only smile fondly at her phone before Ros's other text arrives--and then the thought is gone entirely, because what in the world...?]

She had proof?

[You're going to have to give her a few minutes here, this is... a lot to take in, particularly to a girl who's been taught to only see her small world from a limited point of view. If there are multiple worlds, multiple universes, an infinite number of possibilities, then what does that mean about God? She knows the theory about infinite universes; it states that in just as many universes that He does exist, there would be just as many where He doesn't. And that idea goes against the veritable foundation of her beliefs. Yet, she can't disbelieve her cousin, either, not when there's so much else going on that defies the laws of the known world. Reincarnation? Memories of a life they'd lived before? How does that mesh with the idea of going to heaven? It doesn't--it can't. One must be true, and it's hard to deny the sheer force of the "memories" she's been given.

She can close her eyes and cling to her beliefs. Who would fault her for taking the safer route? Or she can learn more about all of this and maybe learn how His hand guides all of this.]

What sort of world did your other self live in where she could study these?

I don't yet know.

I remember a lab, very similar to my personal one at home. I remember studying and studying, years' worth of equations and theories, and I remember . . . I remember that feeling of triumph that comes from accomplishing a difficult problem. That rush of success and adrenaline. I had proof, and I knew I did, without a doubt in the world.

If we imagine she was right, and that they do exist . . . perhaps the entire reason we're remembering things is because the barriers between worlds is thinning. Perhaps we're remembering their memories because they are us, and we are them, and it's difficult to keep the two straight.

So you think that these parallel versions of ourselves are living concurrently to us in the present? Or that these women might be receiving memories of our lives in their universe?

[She has so many questions! Kath still doesn't feel entirely comfortable with the concept, but her comfort isn't what's important if they're going to get to the bottom of this all.]

I don't know about concurrently. Time and space are interlinked, and time might well be distorted between universes. But these women certainly might be remembering our current lives, and going through the same puzzling effects.

I see...

[What would these visions of her life be like to another Katherine? For a fleeting moment, she wonders if perhaps the other Kath is seeing Jack's flirting through her eyes, but after a moment's smile at the thought she's moving on.]

So what does all of this mean? If the barriers between worlds are thinning... is it possible that they'll collide?

What would even happen if all of these different universes collided all at once?

[There's a reason she's not a scientist. All of this sounds overwhelming!]

Nothing good, I imagine. At best, someone would be left with two divergent sets of memories. At best, you'll be left wildly unstable; at worst, I imagine insanity.

However. All that assuming these universes will collide. And that, I don't think will happen just yet.

Not yet? Why is that? If we're all remembering different universes, and the barriers between them are thinning...

That doesn't necessarily mean they'll collide. And besides which . . .

Please understand that all of this is highly theoretical. I can't prove it to you, because it hasn't been proven, and frankly I might be wrong either way. But nor am I simply making it up - this is a subject I've been interested in for years, and I've read every bit of research there is.

That being said. There are a few physicists who theorize what might happen if universes did collide. And what it comes down to, really, are . . .

[God, how to explain it.]

All right. You know that this universe, our universe, is constantly expanding, yes? It's a result of the big bang. So what we have is a bubble, really, constantly expanding and growing; it's inevitable it'll bounce up against other bubbles. Other universes, full of people like and unlike us. So what happens when they collide?

Some people imagine that whichever universe is stronger - and I'll explain what I mean by stronger in a moment - will be the one to survive. There are theorists that speculate we can even see the scars from previous "battles" in our universe, although personally I think that's a bit romantic and oughtn't be considered.

Others theorize that when two universes collide, they give birth to another universe, and that that's how we ourselves got our beginning.

The problem is, no one really knows, and no one can really check, not yet, which is what makes all of this such a headache.

[Did you know this is real? This is 100% real.]

I see what you mean about it all being a headache.

[This is way out of her league! Katherine's much more interested in what she can see and observe in this world, not thinking about the what-ifs and the universal... it's enough to make one's head spin.]

But the long and short of it is that you think our universe will be all right, even if we have to deal with these memories from other versions of ourselves.

If we are looking at parallel universes, that would mean that one of them could be an alternate Earth, right? In the memory Jack and Dave were talking about, they mentioned Santa Fe, and I remember that we were all in New York.

Oh, yes. Most parallel universes are thought to be ones that are like ours, similar and yet different, changed because of choices we make. So yes, that's more than possible.

Did Uncle ever take you to New York?

Yes, we've gone several times. Why?

I'm simply curious as to the connection. I don't suppose you remember any specific places in your hallucination? It might be worth it to go to the same spots and see what happens.

[Not that anyone can leave the city, but shhhh]

Not so far, no. The first couple of memories were just in the street, and this most recent one was in a square I didn't recognize. Maybe as I learn more I'll be able to see something more recognizable. If so, then a trip might prove useful.

At any rate, thank you for talking through all of this with me. I really appreciate it.

Of course. You're always welcome to contact me about such things, Katherine. Or any other, frankly-- I do hope I end up hearing more about this boy.

[YOU'RE GOING TO EMBARRASS HER, ROS, PLEASE.]

I'll certainly let you know if anything new develops!

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religious shit in white whoops ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

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