Duped, part 4

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

Artie's Office
Warehouse 13
South Dakota

Whatever's going on with Lewis Carrol's mirror, it definitely requires further analysis. Which means bringing it up to the office, a dicey proposition at best. If they drop it and break it--Artie doesn't even want to think about that.

As it turns out, though, the danger is less to the mirror than to his and Claudia's patience with each other.

"Careful!"

"Stop yelling!"

"Start listening!"

"Oh, I am so running over your toes--"

"Alright, just get it straight--not like that!"

"Okay!"

"Could you close the door behind you?"

[Dialogue from Warehouse 13 episode 1x09, "Duped."]

Comments

[claudiometer]

"Got it."
She's starting to think that if they never have to do that again, it'll be too soon.

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

"Y'know what, pull all the Dodgson files, would you? And, ah, pull anything that's got a listed cross-reference, like Alice Liddell, Lewis Carroll..." Artie trails off. "What are you still standing here for? Go pull files!"

[claudiometer]

"I'm not your Girl Friday!"
And she can think of a few better ways to handle this than reading files.

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

Fortunately, before the argument can really heat up again, Leena walks in the door.

"What kept you?" asks Artie.

[k39zzz]

"Three pumpkin pies and a broken oven thermostat that you keep promising to fix..." Leena's annoyance fades into confusion as she takes in the sight of the cloth-covered mirror. "What's this?"

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

"Uh, yeah. Well..."

Artie pulls the cloth away. The Myka in the mirror flinches at the sudden bright light.

"This is why I called you."

[k39zzz]

!!!

"Artie, what happened??"

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

"Yeah, optical divagation," sighs Artie. "I think."

[claudiometer]

"Wait, what?"
That sounded important.

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

"Uh, kind of like a retinal flare after a photo flash? My best guess is the blast from the disco ball, it, uh, kinda fritzed this mirror's primary reflective capacity, and then probably clipped part of Myka's psyche and fused it in there... I dunno. It's kinda like shadows on a wall after Hiroshima?"

[k39zzz]

"It's a pretty lively 'shadow,'" Leena remarks.

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

"Ah, yes, but is it?"

[claudiometer]

"Is it what?"
More information would be good. This is one pressing Question of the Day, after all.

[k39zzz]

"Alive."

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

"Uh-huh." Artie turns to Leena and gives her a meaningful look.

[k39zzz]

"You wanna...?"

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

Artie shrugs. "Sure." That's why he called her, isn't it?

Leena nods and steps over to face the mirror, rolling up her sleeves. Artie steps behind her and hooks his free hand into the back of her belt.

[claudiometer]

"...uh. What's that about?"

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

"I'm gonna pull her back if she falls in, get your mind out of the gutter."

[claudiometer]

"Oh, hell." Reaching into a mirror that seems to have eaten Myka wouldn't be on Claudia's top ten list of things to do, let's just say.

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

Artie just rolls his eyes and braces himself as Leena leans forward, running her hands over the mirror and frowning in concentration.

After about ten seconds of this, he pulls her back.

"So?"

[k39zzz]

"Nothing."

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

"So what is it? Just a shadow-play?"

[k39zzz]

"Well, the glass is--is like a barrier," says Leena, looking frustrated. "If that's alive, I can't tell."

[claudiometer]

...oh for god's sake, people.
"Let's just ask her."

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

"It."

Anthropomorphizing Artifacts, while sometimes appropriate, is usually a bad idea.

[claudiometer]

"It. It might have something to tell us. I mean, why can't we just talk to it?"
Seems like the easiest way to get to the bottom of this.

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

"Because we do not converse with reflected entities, okay?"

[claudiometer]

"...Because?"
What, you thought she was going to stop pressing for answers there?

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

"Because two words: 'Bloody Mary.'"

[claudiometer]

"That's just an urban legend, though, right?"
(Someone's still adjusting to the realities of her job.)

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

See icon.

[claudiometer]

"...oh, of course it isn't."

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

First rule of the Warehouse: Nothing is ever 'just an urban legend.'

"Shadows have power. You let this thing speak--" he jerks a thumb toward mirror!Myka-- "and there is no telling what could happen."

[claudiometer]

"Pete was playing ping-pong with one of those things."
On a fairly regular basis, from what Claudia knows.

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

"Weren't you supposed to go pull files or something?"

Y'know, go do something useful instead of just snarking?

[claudiometer]

...Fine, fine. She rolls her eyes and stalks off.
She can at least give him something to work with while she goes and puts her own plan into action, right?

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

"Thank you," says Artie. "Okay. Oh, and pull anything on Studio 54."

[claudiometer]

"Got it."
No, really, how many hands does he think she has?

[doyousmellfudge_archive]

"Fifty-four!" he repeats for emphasis.

[claudiometer]

"Heard you!"
And after she pulls him some damn files, she goes and pulls herself some parts. One way or another, this needs some answers, and she still thinks the best bet is asking Myka.