Prompt 7 (Snowbunnies): Winter seems to bring out the cutest of all rodents; this isn’t the first time that small, white rabbits have infested Destiny City. They’re small, rarely larger than a guinea pig, and have large eyes and wiggling noses. They are always pure white and seem to show up whenever there’s snow. They aren't menacing or evil, they're just everywhere. They seem strangely domesticated; they are sweet, curious, and friendly creatures that will eat anything you give them. They always seem cold to the touch, and when they shake, little snowflakes sprinkle off of them.
While they seem to be social creatures who seem to appreciate anything warm and will cuddle up to steal body heat, they are too skittish and fast to be kept for pets. They can show up just about anywhere, either alone or--often--in pairs. They tend to wander off on their own without any trouble, but if you surprise them or try to catch or hurt them, they may bite. Their little teeth are enough to break skin, but after one bite they run away. The bite itself isn’t bad, but the effects are a bit unpleasant: for roughly two days after the bite, the injury is cold and the victim will feel random, cold, shooting pains. Their core body temperature will drop and they will often be sent into random fits of shivering. No medicine seems to help, and no amounts of blankets or hot baths can soothe the chill. You're just going to have to deal with it and hope it gets better…
Most experiences with the bunnies are perfectly pleasant, you just have to worry about them burrowing. There are holes peppering Destiny City, and with the fresh fallen snow it can be impossible to tell where they are hiding. The holes range from small holes to several feet deep, so can be a minor inconvenience to a potential hazard. On the bright side, sometimes you wind up covered in bunnies looking for warmth from their sudden guest. On the other hand, there are a rising number of trips to the hospital for twists and sprains. The bunnies always leave with the snow, so best to enjoy them--or avoid them--for as long as you can.
Oh. The rabbits were back.
Much of Cybele's time in the Negaverse was a blur, but she remembered these. They were small, and vaguely magical, and lovely.
"Hello, sweetlings," she crooned, the moment that she spotted them huddled under one of the benches in the park. Of course she knelt down immediately, holding out her hand to one of them as if it was a cat that would come up and sniff her. Never mind that the ground was covered in a layer of snow, and that Cybele had been shivering before she sat down in it.
She'd do almost anything to get a bit closer to these precious creatures.
Luckily, they did come closer. One hopped onto Cybele's lap. The second curled up in her skirt.
The senshi did not move for a while as she sat there, stroking the creature's soft ears.
MiddyGlow
Posted: Sun Dec 12, 2021 3:30 pm
stari_maga
Vela didn't know anything about the snow bunnies, she was a bit confused by the weird fluffy little things being everywhere. Since she was the senshi of bonfires she was a little more weirded out by the cold little bunnies. She didn't think they were youmas but she just wasn't sure. She didn't want to hurt them though since they didn't seem to be evil. She found Cybele petting one of the bunnies and she looked on curiously. Vela remembered Cybele, but she wasn't sure if they would remember her since everything that had been happening lately. She decided not to try to force things. "Hey, do you know what these things are?" She asked curiously.
MiddyGlow
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Posted: Sun Dec 12, 2021 4:24 pm
"Magic rabbits, as far as I can tell," said Cybele before looking up.
She hadn't paid the Order aura much mind, not when there were animals to spoil, but when the senshi talked to her, Cybele glanced over to see who it was.
Then, she blinked. "It's Vela, right?"
She thought she recognized the girl's face, but the last time that they had met had been under vastly different circumstances. They'd both been in black, for one thing.
She softened her voice, because she knew how the amnesia could be. "Do you remember me?"
MiddyGlow
Posted: Sun Dec 12, 2021 4:50 pm
stari_maga
Vela looked at the weird little cold rabbits and back to Cybele and she smiled "Yup I'm Vela." Vela nodded "Yea I remember you, besides the battlefield, last time we were together was the weird village in the fog, we were both pretty dark then, I still have my memories of being powered I guess you don't?" She asked softly staying away from the snow bunnies. She didn't feel comfortable mixing her firepower with their icy nature. "It's ok if you don't remember me, you don't have to push yourself, it might be easier to just forget the negaverse stuff." She shivered thinking about her trip to the rift and the creepy creatures there.
MiddyGlow
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Posted: Sun Dec 12, 2021 5:56 pm
"I remember the Negaverse," said Cybele, although the fact that one of the rabbits was trying to climb up her chest and nibble at her pigtail kept her from sounding too grim about it. "Which is fine. It was a miserable time, but at least I know why it's so important to stop them."
She did not know what battle she was referring to, other than perhaps the hilltop. She knew Ganymede had purified a few people, but Cybele had been preoccupied at the time, to say the least.
"I remember thinking you were sweet, back when we were trapped in the village," she added, and smiled over her shoulder even as she tugged her green hair out of the rabbit's mouth. "I'm glad you got out."
MiddyGlow
Posted: Tue Dec 14, 2021 6:01 am
stari_maga
Vela watched as the bunny was trying to gently eat Cybele's pigtails if they were youmas they were the most gentle youmas ever, so Cybele was likely right and they were just magical creatures. After all the city was full of strange magic and there had been some strange stuff going on lately. Aliens and stuff. Consols on the moon. Vela nodded "Yea I saw some dark stuff too when I was with them." Vela smiled "I'm glad you got out of the village too, and.." She laughed "Yea I guess I was never meant to be in the negaverse, I didn't even know there was a way out till recently." She reached out and offered her hand to support Cybele "I'm glad you got out of the negaverse too."
MiddyGlow
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Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2021 6:05 am
“I don’t think anyone truly belongs in the Negaverse,” said Cybele with a wry smile. “They’re just good at their propaganda.”
Cybele herself had never fallen for that side of it. She knew she’d been taken from Order, and very few people treated her like she belonged. She’d known that there was something wrong with her corrupted self from the beginning, and there had only been so much of a leap there to realizing that something was wrong with the Negaverse.
She absently scratched at the rabbit’s ears as she asked, “How’s Order treating you, then? Are you settling in?”
MiddyGlow
Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2021 8:26 am
stari_maga
Vela nodded in agreement "That makes sense." She still avoided petting the snow bunnies, she had a weird worry she might melt one of them since their elements were opposite. She knew that it was a silly thought since her magic didn't just manifest randomly but she was still uncomfortable with the rabbits. Vela smiled when their conversation turned to talk of the order. "Good I'm getting my civilian life in order with help from other Order members and working on training to get stronger, how about you?" She hoped that Cybele could say the same otherwise she wanted to make sure that Cybele found the help she needed to get back into life too.
MiddyGlow
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Posted: Fri Dec 17, 2021 7:55 am
"Luckily," Cybele began, then cut off, because she wasn't sure if it was completely luck, or even completely a positive, but in the end she continued, "I was Order before, so I had friends waiting for me when I returned who were ready to help with a lot. I'm doing well."
The bunny continued to try and nibble at Cybele's hair, so this time after she gently pulled a few mint strands out of the creature's mouth, she undid her pigtails and pulled her hair up into a messy high bun instead while she spoke.
"Of course, I've got Generals after me for my 'treason', which is unfortunate, but," she shrugged, "I've also got a family."
That alone was worth all of it.
MiddyGlow
Posted: Fri Dec 17, 2021 8:06 am
stari_maga
Vela watched as the weird bunny continued trying to eat Cybele's hair. "I don't know how you can cuddle that thing, maybe it's my element but.." She shivered and laughed. "Yea I don't remember my old family, but I'm sure it will be alright since the Order seems to be pretty nice so I'll get my life back on track as best I can and fight the negaverse." Vela said with a shrug, it was how things were shaking out and there wasn't much that could be done about it. They were both facing their own challenges after being purified. Vela wondered if Cybele had it worse since she had gone back and worse more than she had.
MiddyGlow
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Posted: Sun Dec 19, 2021 5:43 pm
"It's a sweetie," Cybele insisted with a soft smile. "They just like to chew things. It's in their nature."
With her hair tucked away, the bunny had turned to sniffing at her clothes, its tiny white nose wiggling.
"You can come touch it. They don't mind your sphere. I mean, I'm the Senshi of the Hunt," she said.
In fact she had used her magic to hunt rabbits not so different from these, back when she'd been staying in the woods while she looked for someone to purify her and she'd needed food. These little ones didn't seem to know or care, though. They stayed nuzzled up to her.
Cybele tilted her head at the other senshi, then nodded to the bunny at her side, as an invitation.
MiddyGlow
Posted: Mon Dec 20, 2021 3:01 pm
stari_maga
Vela still didn't look convinced that she shoud touch the bunny. "Are you sure? I'm the senshi of bonfires, it's kinda different than hunting.. and that is a snow bunny I'm worried I might hurt it." She said softly as she looked at the magical creature. Vela crossed her arms the bunny was cute but she still didn't want to risk melting it, even though she wasn't sure if that was even possible, but she didn't want to take the chance she would feel really bad if that happened. "Nah I think I'm good with looking at them from a distance."
MiddyGlow
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Posted: Tue Dec 21, 2021 8:47 am
"As long as you don't use your magic," said Cybele with a shrug, "But all right. You don't have to come closer."
Cybele, on the other hand, seemed quite at home in the middle of a pile of bunnies, no matter how much they squirmed or what they tried to nibble on.
"I think I'm going to be staying here for awhile," she told the other senshi. "I don't want to spook them by moving." She could watch for youma just as well from here as she could from anywhere else in the city, after all.
She did smile over her shoulder, though.
"Anyway, it was nice to see you again."
MiddyGlow
Posted: Tue Dec 21, 2021 8:48 am
stari_maga
Vela smiled and nodded she was going to head off and leave Cybele to her snow bunny cuddling. "It was nice to see you too, yea I'm going to leave you to it then and go check out some other stuff in the city, see you later Cybele."
