DC: 2011-08-04 - Ditto's Dilemma

The apartment is.... nice. There's food. There's a comfortable bed. There's furniture. TV, internet, books.... it's very, very, nice. Definitely nicer than being on the street. Even a nice view. Speaking of which, you hear a tap tap tap coming from the window, outside of which there's a floating blond teenage girl wearing a familiar blue shirt and skirt.

Nice as the apartment was, Cody's been uncomfortable. He's almost positive that creepy Batman guy is watching him somehow. And the fact that he's gotten all that weird information from the visit to Dr. Mid-Nite's to go over hasn't been helping him sleep much either. When the tapping happens, Cody's at the computer. He hasn't quite figured out how to use most of it but he's found solitaire and it's kept him from spending all day in front of the TV or in bed. He does a double-take after glancing out the window, rushing over quickly and opening it to let the girl in. "Kara...I mean Supergirl...which one should I call you?" he asks, confused by that but happy to see another person. Nope, he hasn't left since Batman dropped him back off.

Kara Zor-El flies in once the window's open. "Kara's fine. That's my name, anyway. I don't exactly keep it a secret." She doesnt mention her last name -is- a secret, though. At least Kent is. She smiles a bit, landing on the floor. "Um... sorry I havent come to meet you sooner." she says, standing there, hands behind her back. "How have you been? Is Batman treating you okay?"

Cody closes the window behind Kara, careful not to get too close. He doesn't pay much attention to last names these days since he can't remember his own. He jumps after a second and quickly wheels the computer chair over to offer to Kara. "It's alright. You're a busy super person, right?" he asks with a smile. Of course he suspects Batman is telling people to stay away. "I've..." he looks away, rubbing his arm as he sits on the edge of his bed. "Been worse?" he shrugs. "Starting to wish I never met Batman..."

Kara Zor-El walks over to the bed, fidgeting a bit. "Batman's not that bad... he's just... um..." She tries to think of a good word. "Cautious. I mean... the guy's prepared for anything. He probably has 20 ways to counter any power you might mimic already, but I doubt he'll be comfortable with you until he has a way to counter the actual power copying itself." She sits down on the bed as well, a little distance from you. She sighs, really wanting to give you a comforting hug or SOMETHING. "Yknow, when I came to Earth, he basically had me kidnapped by Amazons for months until I learned to control my powers." She shrugs. "He's really a caring man though. Deep down." She pauses. "Deep..... deep...... deep....waaaay deep down"

"Why? What did I ever do to him? Does he know something about who I am that he's not telling me? I just...I don't know," Cody looks down. "Nice as having an apartment is...I don't like feeling like this. Like I have to stay away from people...that I can't touch anyone or I might explode. Like some crazy man dressed like a bat is going to kidnap me in the middle of the night and lock me in some cage for the rest of my life," he swallows. He looks up in surprise at Kara's statement. "Amazons? Like that...uh...Wonderful Woman from the news?" he asks. "Did it help?"

Kara Zor-El pauses. "Wonder Woman." She nods. "It helped. I guess. I still have gone evil a couple of times since then though. Caused a lot of damage. So I guess I do understand where Batman's coming from." She pauses. "Sorta..." She looks around, sighing. "I'm sure he'll figure a way to get some way of suppressing your powers. Then he wouldnt be" She says loudly to the bugs that she's SURE are in here, probably shielded to even her super senses "SUCH A PARANOID NUT!" Heck, this apartment probably also has red sun radiation generators for all she knows. Can't believe he has Kryptonian prisons - must have been meant for her or her cousin just in case.

She shrugs a bit. "But... yeah ... yeah it helped. I could have hurt a lot of people with my powers out of control. Like... entire countries worth of people. It's just dangerous." She smiles a bit. "I'm sure it's not that you can't touch -anyone-. Most people don't have powers. And me and my cousin are.... pretty unique, admittedly"

"Could she help me?" Cody asks, hopefully. "At least enough to make the Batguy leave me alone?" he adds. The teen tenses at the mention of hurting people, looking back down. "How am I supposed to even know?" he asks. "You look complelty normal...I look out there and all those people...any one of them could have a power and one bump and I'm suddenly flying again," he sighs. "Don't even know where these powers came from," he looks at his hands and shakes his head.

Kara Zor-El smiles a little. "I.... probably not. One... they're a bit leery of allowing men on the island. Two.... I'm not really sure -how- to train you to control your powers. I could only help when you're copying mine." She pauses. "Well... at least most people who you bump into wouldnt give you enough power to level the city, right?" She bites her lip, trying to think of something. "You know I really am trying to work on something that could suppress your um.... I'm calling it a Mimicry power, okay? You know... so you can go outside without having to be worried about stuff like that happening. Batman would like it to keep you under control. I'd like it so you can feel safe to walk around and have a normal life outside. Trust me, I know what it's like to want normal." She leans over. "Have you had any luck with your memory? Anything at all?"

"Island?" Cody just looks confused there. "You don't know anyone who's got powers like this I could talk to? Other than that Parasite guy?" he asks, wondering how other people with mimicry powers deal with this sort of thing. "That's the thing...how would I know who can do what? I've seen a few people on the news but they wear costumes and that makes it easier to not touch them," he shakes his head. "Control me? Rather he just go away..." he mutters. There's a pause before he shakes his head in reply. "Nothing. All I've been able to get since I woke up in that bush is what feels like my name, the fact that I like milk in my coffee, and as of two nights ago the fact that I'm seventeen. Lot of good that does me because I can't even remember my own birthday..."

Kara Zor-El winces a bit. "Pretty much anyone I know of who's a power drainer or copier has been a criminal, actually. But they also can sense other people's powers." She shakes her head. "It's not about controlling you. It's just.... making sure you don't go bad. Batman's not the trusting type. And he won't go away. He probably also won't stop watching you like a hawk....er... bat. Not until there's some way to contain your powers to make sure you don't become like... well... Parasite or Amazo or someone like that." She hangs her head. "I'm not making you feel much better am I?"

Cody's expression sinks at this news. He goes pale and flops back to stare at the ceiling. "You have got to be kidding me...I have bad guy powers, some crazy man stalking me because he thinks I might be bad, and I can't even remember where I'm from. Why me?" he askks no one in particular. There's a long silence before he speaks again. "What if I do the opposite?" he asks suddenly.

Kara Zor-El shakes her head. "I don't really think any powers are 'good' or 'bad." I mean... Superstrength, superspeed, invulnerability, flight... heat vision. I know my powers can be used for bad purposes too. It's just.... seems like people with power draining and power copying abilities seem to always go that route. There's a huge temptation to power hoarde or something. Like collecting cats or pez dispensers. But instead, collecting powers." She tilts her head. "What do you mean if you do the opposite?"

"Why would I want to horde powers?" Cody mutters. "What would I possibly do with them? Put them behind the dumpster I used to steal thrown out food from?" he asks dryly. He pauses for a moment then takes a breath. "The opposite of going bad. I've been watching the TV and seeing all these people with powers. You, Wonder Woman, Superman, some red running guy...and you all help people, right?" he sits back up. "You use powers to make people safer and stop the bad guys. Do...you think I could do that?"

Kara Zor-El shrugs a little. "Greed's a natural thing with people. If you are faced with being hungry or being rich, wha's to stop you from using your powers for crime? I'm not saying you would... I'm just explaining how Batman thinks. I think he's wrong. We've argued about it already. He's....... stubborn. But... I think you'd make a good hero, actually." She smiles.

Kara Zor-El looks at you. "But that's not going to make Batman comfortable. I mean.... I'm a hero right? Don't you wonder why he had a prison built specifically that can hold someone with my powers? He feels anyone can turn bad." she pauses. "He's probably right, in a way. I just don't think being evil is natural for people. Being good is. But people can go bad."

"The fact that I'm not a criminal jerk is what's stopping me..." Cody sighs. "Wasn't like I've been stealing from stores and kicking puppies or anything. What good's money do me anyway? I don't know what kind of stuff I even like to buy," he grumbles. "I'm glad you believe I'm not some crazy bad guy waiting to happen at least," he says. "You do? So you think I could...try?" he asks. "I just thought it was because he's a jerk," Cody shrugs.

Kara Zor-El shrugs a little. "Your good intentions alone arent enough for him. He sets up prisons for me and my cousin even. My cousin's like... perfect. He's the poster boy for being a hero on this planet." She frowns a bit. "I really wish I could give you a hug and tell you everything will be okay. But I can't hug you without making it possible for you to accidentally destroy the building." She pauses. "But everything -will- be okay. Batman might be a paranoid, mean jerk sometimes.... a lot of the time... but he's really smart. And he means well. He's just... like... crazy prepared. Emphasis on crazy. And yes, I think you could definitely try to be a hero. I think you have a good heart." She smiles.

"Well...forget him," Cody sighs. He smiles slightly a the mention of a hug and then looks down. "I was thinking about that too. When I copied your powers. At first...I kind of freaked out," he blushes. "But after you got me up on that roof and I calmed down things felt...different," he shifts a little. "Like the flying. I figured out how to make it work when I wanted it to. I don't know how but I did...and those lasers...I think I knew how to make them happen again and how to make them stop," he says, a little unsure of it himself. He looks back up and smiles again, still blushing. "Thanks, Kara. I think I want to try. To be a hero. If I'm going to have these powers...maybe I can do something good with them."

Kara Zor-El pats her lap. "I so want to give you a hug but don't want Batman throwing you back in that prison."

"Like he could catch me if I was speedy like you," Cody jokes a little. "If he's so smart then why is he being so dumb. Good way to encourage someone to be bad is to lock them up when they haven't done anything wrong..."

Kara Zor-El pauses. "Trust me.. That red speedy guy? Batman's been able to take him down too. Don't assume you'll beat him just because he's a guy. My cousin says he's the most dangerous person on the planet. And.... he's just....being cautious. Like I said. I agree though... it's wrong to lock someone up if they havent done anything wrong. Don't think we havent argued about it."

Cody Bishop frowns. "I don't want to beat him. I just want him to not try to lock me up or anything like that," he sighs. "You won't let him do it then, will you?" Cody asks, tone a bit worried. "Won't let him lock me up?"

Kara Zor-El bites her lip. "I won't let him lock you up." she says, feeling so bad for Cody.

"Thank you," Cody murmurs. Now he's resisting the urge to hug the other teenager. "I wonder if I ever had this kind of problem before and that might be why I can't remember anything. Some paranoid person thought I was going to be evil so they scrambled my brain and tossed me in the river or something..."

Kara Zor-El nods. "Welcome to the hero scene, where you get your mind scrambled and erased more times than most people change underwear."

This brings a faint blush to Cody's face. He shakes off thoughts about his formerly more limited wardrobe and pauses. "Do you think...that I could have already been a hero?" he asks. "And that might be why I can't remember...well...almost everything?"

Kara Zor-El smiles. "I wouldnt be surprised."

Cody Bishop looks down. "Maybe...we could try to find out if I was. Try to find out who I really am..."

Kara Zor-El nods. "I'm thinking of that as the most important thing. Batman's probably got it on his list of top 3 also."

"I say it a lot already but really...thank you," Cody says as he looks back up. "You and that other guy actually talking to me were the nicest things I can remember people ever doing for me...and then all this," he shrugs. "So...thanks."

Kara Zor-El takes out something from her belt. "By the way... here. I know that wherever i am on the planet I could just hear you if you call my name.... but I this way you'll be able to talk to me back if you need to." She takes outa tracfone with 3 hours of call time. "Sorry it's not that much. I don't exactly have a job and ther hero thing keeps me really busy but..." She reads off the number on the tracfone. "That's a number you can reach me at if you need to talk and I can't... you know... see you in person." She shrugs. "If you just want to vent about how Grumpy Ass is treating you. Or.... you know, you remember anything or... well.... anything."

Cody peers curiously a the phone as it's taken out. He takes a sheet of paper from the bedside table and quickly writes down the number. "Okay...thank you again, Kara," he smiles. There's a pause as he jumps and moves over to the door to the bathroom. He takes something off the hook on the otherside, revealed moments later to be Dr. Mid-Nite's goggles. "I almost forgot. The doctor can have these back now since I'm not copying him anymore. I washed them too so umm...tell him thanks for me too?"

Kara Zor-El carefully takes back the goggles, making sure not to touch him too closely. "I'll let him know. I'm going to see if there's anything I can do to help also with the research. Not just a pretty face yknow." Kara holds the goggles. "And Cody? Go outside every so often. If Batman's letting you, don't make yourself a prisoner. Just be careful with touching others in the meantime. Believe me, hiding yourself away will drive you nuts, whether it's the Fortress of Solitude or an Apartment in Bakerline."

Cody smiles when the goggles are taken. He takes a moment to make sure he can't fly and then lets out a little breath of relief. "At least now we know I can't mimic powers just by touching something at the same time as someone else," he says, flexing his hands a bit. "Batman's not going to swoop down and punch me if I go outside?" he asks warily. "Because he made it sound that way," a pause. "Fortress of Solitude?"

Kara Zor-El smiles, nodding that the powers at least don't transfer when touching the same item. It does seem to support Kara's hypothesis about an aura field. "I think as long as you're careful and don't go touching anyone, he wont." She pauses. "He'll probably swoop down if you do though. Pretty sure he has satellites and everything." She looks out the window the back at Cody. "oh... it's just... it's sorta where my cousin lives. When he wants to get away from everything. Batman and Superman had me stay there when I first came to Earth. Maybe one day i'll be able to show you."

"...why would anyone think of just running outside and randomly touching people? That would probably get me slapped. A lot," Cody shrugs. "I'll try to avoid touching people though," he says. "I'd like to see it sometime," he smiles.

Kara Zor-El smiles a bit, heading to the window. "I'll take you out for pizza or something next time, okay?" She flies out the window and hovers there. "Look on the bright side.... you have your own place. I still don't."

Cody Bishop smiles as he follows over to the window. "That sounds good," Cody replies. He pauses and laughs a little. "I think this is still Batman's place and not mine..."

Kara Zor-El smiles and winks, "Potayto, potahto." Then she flies off, twirling around as she heads up past the clouds. She makes the 'call me' sign with her pinky and thumb as she looks back before she disappears in a burst of speed.