Jenny Everywhere: Call Me Tim
Jan. 17th, 2025 08:35 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
scott_sanfordUnannounced visitors!
This week there are unannounced visitors from beyond reality! ...again.
No, this story does not stand on its own.
Jenny Everywhere in
Call Me Tim
by Scott Sanford; 17 Jan 2025
Jenny Everywhere was down in the basement when she felt someone arrive in her universe. She was pretty sure the visitor wasn’t her, so she left her laundry there and went upstairs to investigate.
She found a large robot or suit of armor standing in the hall, a large figure of what looked like gleaming steampunk brass machinery and boldly purple armor plating – but any menace it might have presented was greatly lessened by the way it cradled a small toddler in one arm. The child was wrapped in several layers of clothing and a knit cap, far more than the weather outside warranted, and was idly gumming parts of the armor, obviously unconcerned by the situation.
The head, or helmet, turned to face her.
“Oh, hello,” came an electronically filtered voice from within. “I recognize you as one of Jenny Everywhere – and this is your universe, yes?”
“Yes, it is,” she agreed, mentally dialing down the prospective threat even more notches. Her visitor seemed too polite for that. Knowing her could go either way, of course. “I’m Jenny Everywhere, who are you?”
“That is a more complex question than it may seem, but for the moment you may call me Tim.”
“Tim,” she repeated flatly, openly looking over her visitor.
“Please excuse the exosuit if it is too metallic to be fashionable. I thought it would attract less attention than if I appeared in your world naked.”
“That would probably cause talk, yeah.” Jenny agreed, trying not to imagine random naked men shifting into her apartment building. That way only lay distractions. “So what brings you to my universe, Tim?”
“I am delivering a note. I am supposed to be babysitting, but my cousin came by and wanted me to pass along a message. I know this to be possible; he is home at this time.”
Tim turned in place and knocked, which made Jenny tune in that he was standing in front of the door to number five, Professor Awesome’s apartment. Suddenly several things made more sense to her. Eric only knew so many world shifters and Jenny was half of them.
She heard Eric’s voice from inside and took the chance to ask, “Is Sophie involved with this?”
“Not yet,” he answered.
Then the door opened and a young voice exclaimed, “Wow!”
“Hello, Eric. It is pleasant to meet you again. The exosuit I wear is borrowed and no, you may not take it apart today.”
“That’s…? again…? Oh! This is a time travel thing, isn’t it?”
“Oh yes, very much. To be sure, from some perspectives everything is a time travel thing.”
“That is a really cool suit, though. I hope you don’t mind if I… look… um.” Eric belatedly noticed the toddler in Tim’s arms and for a moment he looked confused at the child’s presence. “And you brought – oh. Oh, wow. Okay, yes, I believe you when you say you’re a time traveler.”
The teen mad scientist looked incredulously at the child, distracted by a preschooler even more interesting than a technological suit of armor. He smiled nervously.
“Uh, hi, there,” he said.
“Aaah!”, announced the child. She leaned out, reaching out for Eric. “AahH!”
“Would you like to hold her?”, Tim asked.
“Hold her? Me?”
“Yes, certainly.” Tim stepped closer; she squirmed in his arm and fell forward to wrap her arms around Eric’s neck.
“She likes you,” Jenny observed happily.
“I… don’t know a lot about little kids,” Eric said admitted. He tried to support the child with both arms and mostly showed the adults he wasn’t practiced at carrying children. “Hey there...”
“Ba!”, she proclaimed happily.
“She probably shouldn’t be this far out of the house, but I’m right here if anything happens.”
“Could something happen?”, Jenny asked.
“Briefly,” Tim told her, his electronically filtered voice making what he said sound like words of destiny. “If an event were truly unpleasant I would make sure it didn’t happen.
“But I digress. Eric Whittaker, I am charged with delivering a message. Since I am not causally connected to any of the events that led to the existence of this message, I may pass it along to you without creating any direct paradox. You will be free to act on the information you receive without harm to yourself or others.”
“Uh, good? Am I going to have to?” He sounded distracted by the toddler, who had grabbed a healthy handful of his hair and was confirming that it was attached to the rest of him.
“That is up to you.” Tim produced a folded piece of paper and held it out to Eric, who rearranged his hold on the child enough to free up one hand.
He fumbled awkwardly for a moment, got it unfolded, and read.
“What!?”, he asked in bewilderment.
“You have now received the message,” Tim observed serenely.
“You time traveled for this?”
“I time travel for everything.”
“Do I get to know what it says?”, Jenny asked.
Wordlessly, Eric held out the note for her.
Jenny took it and read, then read it again.
“‘Don’t zerbert the electro-cat’?” Jenny didn’t have any context for this.
“BAA!”, exclaimed the toddler, abruptly leaping out of Eric’s arms. Despite his frantic reach for her Tim was faster, and to Jenny it looked as if he’d moved to catch her before she jumped; he was just where he needed to be to intercept the ballistic tyke.
“She does that,” he remarked, settling her back into his arm.
“Good catch. Um. So what’s this about a cat?”, Eric asked.
“It says what it says, and it says what you need to know. If you needed to know something else, Sophie would have written a different message. You don’t have to concern yourself with speculations beyond that. Not everything I do has cosmic significance.”
Tim adjusted his hold on the youngster and added, “I will see you again soon enough, Eric. Nice to meet you, Jenny.”
“Okay. I’m still trying to get used to time travel, so… See you later?”
“You will, I promise.” Tim waved and, without fuss, vanished.
Read other Jenny Everywhere stories
The character of Jenny Everywhere is available for use by anyone, with only one condition. This paragraph must be included in any publication involving Jenny Everywhere, in order that others may use this property as they wish. All rights reversed.
This week there are unannounced visitors from beyond reality! ...again.
No, this story does not stand on its own.
"There are some who call me...Tim". – Monty Python & the Holy Grail
Call Me Tim
by Scott Sanford; 17 Jan 2025
Jenny Everywhere was down in the basement when she felt someone arrive in her universe. She was pretty sure the visitor wasn’t her, so she left her laundry there and went upstairs to investigate.
She found a large robot or suit of armor standing in the hall, a large figure of what looked like gleaming steampunk brass machinery and boldly purple armor plating – but any menace it might have presented was greatly lessened by the way it cradled a small toddler in one arm. The child was wrapped in several layers of clothing and a knit cap, far more than the weather outside warranted, and was idly gumming parts of the armor, obviously unconcerned by the situation.
The head, or helmet, turned to face her.
“Oh, hello,” came an electronically filtered voice from within. “I recognize you as one of Jenny Everywhere – and this is your universe, yes?”
“Yes, it is,” she agreed, mentally dialing down the prospective threat even more notches. Her visitor seemed too polite for that. Knowing her could go either way, of course. “I’m Jenny Everywhere, who are you?”
“That is a more complex question than it may seem, but for the moment you may call me Tim.”
“Tim,” she repeated flatly, openly looking over her visitor.
“Please excuse the exosuit if it is too metallic to be fashionable. I thought it would attract less attention than if I appeared in your world naked.”
“That would probably cause talk, yeah.” Jenny agreed, trying not to imagine random naked men shifting into her apartment building. That way only lay distractions. “So what brings you to my universe, Tim?”
“I am delivering a note. I am supposed to be babysitting, but my cousin came by and wanted me to pass along a message. I know this to be possible; he is home at this time.”
Tim turned in place and knocked, which made Jenny tune in that he was standing in front of the door to number five, Professor Awesome’s apartment. Suddenly several things made more sense to her. Eric only knew so many world shifters and Jenny was half of them.
She heard Eric’s voice from inside and took the chance to ask, “Is Sophie involved with this?”
“Not yet,” he answered.
Then the door opened and a young voice exclaimed, “Wow!”
“Hello, Eric. It is pleasant to meet you again. The exosuit I wear is borrowed and no, you may not take it apart today.”
“That’s…? again…? Oh! This is a time travel thing, isn’t it?”
“Oh yes, very much. To be sure, from some perspectives everything is a time travel thing.”
“That is a really cool suit, though. I hope you don’t mind if I… look… um.” Eric belatedly noticed the toddler in Tim’s arms and for a moment he looked confused at the child’s presence. “And you brought – oh. Oh, wow. Okay, yes, I believe you when you say you’re a time traveler.”
The teen mad scientist looked incredulously at the child, distracted by a preschooler even more interesting than a technological suit of armor. He smiled nervously.
“Uh, hi, there,” he said.
“Aaah!”, announced the child. She leaned out, reaching out for Eric. “AahH!”
“Would you like to hold her?”, Tim asked.
“Hold her? Me?”
“Yes, certainly.” Tim stepped closer; she squirmed in his arm and fell forward to wrap her arms around Eric’s neck.
“She likes you,” Jenny observed happily.
“I… don’t know a lot about little kids,” Eric said admitted. He tried to support the child with both arms and mostly showed the adults he wasn’t practiced at carrying children. “Hey there...”
“Ba!”, she proclaimed happily.
“She probably shouldn’t be this far out of the house, but I’m right here if anything happens.”
“Could something happen?”, Jenny asked.
“Briefly,” Tim told her, his electronically filtered voice making what he said sound like words of destiny. “If an event were truly unpleasant I would make sure it didn’t happen.
“But I digress. Eric Whittaker, I am charged with delivering a message. Since I am not causally connected to any of the events that led to the existence of this message, I may pass it along to you without creating any direct paradox. You will be free to act on the information you receive without harm to yourself or others.”
“Uh, good? Am I going to have to?” He sounded distracted by the toddler, who had grabbed a healthy handful of his hair and was confirming that it was attached to the rest of him.
“That is up to you.” Tim produced a folded piece of paper and held it out to Eric, who rearranged his hold on the child enough to free up one hand.
He fumbled awkwardly for a moment, got it unfolded, and read.
“What!?”, he asked in bewilderment.
“You have now received the message,” Tim observed serenely.
“You time traveled for this?”
“I time travel for everything.”
“Do I get to know what it says?”, Jenny asked.
Wordlessly, Eric held out the note for her.
Jenny took it and read, then read it again.
“‘Don’t zerbert the electro-cat’?” Jenny didn’t have any context for this.
“BAA!”, exclaimed the toddler, abruptly leaping out of Eric’s arms. Despite his frantic reach for her Tim was faster, and to Jenny it looked as if he’d moved to catch her before she jumped; he was just where he needed to be to intercept the ballistic tyke.
“She does that,” he remarked, settling her back into his arm.
“Good catch. Um. So what’s this about a cat?”, Eric asked.
“It says what it says, and it says what you need to know. If you needed to know something else, Sophie would have written a different message. You don’t have to concern yourself with speculations beyond that. Not everything I do has cosmic significance.”
Tim adjusted his hold on the youngster and added, “I will see you again soon enough, Eric. Nice to meet you, Jenny.”
“Okay. I’m still trying to get used to time travel, so… See you later?”
“You will, I promise.” Tim waved and, without fuss, vanished.
The character of Sophie Everytime, created by Aristide Twain, is available for use by anyone. All rights reversed.
The character of Lord Thymon the Green was created by Aristide Twain and was used by kind permission
Eric Whittaker, Professor Awesome, was created by me and other authors are welcome to borrow him; just get him back in one piece.
