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 Posted: Sat Jan 20, 2007 8:39 am
Beach RP ...Now what? Sophie C. Bell -New RP- Sophie had made a positive list of things in her mind about the Island in order to drown out the whole you're-gonna-die thought that'd been invading her consciousness for the past few days. Her list? It was...an Island in the caribbean. Yes, it wasn't an impressive list, but then again, Sophie'd lost track of the list at all when she realized that an Island usually had plenty of beaches to spare, and beaches were positive, right? So, heading out of her duplex once again, she followed the paths and wandered around until she found her stretch of pearly white, and trudged out towards the waves, a bit awkward in her converses and jeans. Truth be told, she hadn't packed any tropical island gear, and because of that the most she could do was leave behind her jacket, which had holes in it either way. It was only when she was already out by the water that she realized something: there was nothing to do. She blinked as she stared at the passing waves, tempted to touch her feet to the wet sand but not willing to sacrifice her socks and shoes. She thought about it for a moment: what exactly had she intended to do, anyways? Shrugging, she began to walk down the stretch of sand nearest the waves, watching curiosly as the water shifted in and out. Maybe there'd be some Island store where she could buy a bathing suit or something...oh, wait, she was broke. Nevermind. Nita MacNeal Nita had taken Comet out for a walk around the village, as she still wasn't entirely comfortable out in the jungle with the chance of Annie still on the loose. And even if Comet would technically be protection, she liked the wide open space to run. The young dog dashed ahead of Nita, who was willing, for now, to follow Comet's lead. Nita trotted after her, the handle of the extendable leash dangling from one hand. The pair eventually made it to the beach where Nita unclipped the leash from the dog's collar. Set free, Comet flashed away as quickly as her name implied, chasing bits of nothing and the occasional hopping bird. Nita grinned and shook her head, jogging at a much more sedate pace. She had pretty much zoned out when Comet's barking jerked her to attention. The dog had found a person! The person in question was female, and appeared vaguely furry. Not new then, Nita assumed. "Come back here, Comet!" she yelled, hurrying to catch up. Comet didn't obey, but at least she sat on her haunches, panting at the girl she had discovered. "Sorry about that," Nita apologized, placing a furred hand on Comet's shoulder. "She's just friendly." Sophie C. Bell From the barking, Sophie had almost thought that Gaius was out on the beach with his dog, but as she turned, she was met with not one, but two furry faces. That confused her for a bit: there was the dog...and then...what was that? It talked...what if it was a person?! Coming upon that realization, Sophie did her best not to stare, and laughed nervously. "Oh, uh, no problem at all, really! I'm sure she's really sweet." She crouched down in order to be at eye level with the dog, then held out her hand to it to sniff, trying to distract herself from the fact that she was having a conversation with a fuzzy thing. Maybe some kind of raccoon? She couldn't be sure. "...What kind of dog is she?" Sophie inquired, looking back up at the raccoon thing...raccoon girl. The voice had sounded like a girl's. "She kinda looks like Gaius's." Nita MacNeal Comet licked Sophie's hand in a friendly manner, interested but obviously not threatened by the hint of animal scent in the blonde girl. She panted happily, a strand of drool straining towards the ground. Nita made an amused/disgusted face and automatically wiped her hands on her jeans. "She is," she affirmed, nodding. "Her name's Comet, and she's an Australian Shepherd. Oh, and I'm Nita." She blinked, caught off-guard by Sophie's comment. "Gaius has a dog, too?" Nita vaguely remembered that the newsletter that had appeared on her doorstep the other day had contained a snapshot of Gaius and a dog, but she hadn't realized what significance, if any, it held. Sophie C. Bell Sophie giggled at the sensation of the dog's tongue against her hand, and she wiped the slobber on her jeans before scratching the dog behind the ears gently and then standing up, facing the racoon Nita. So, it had been a girl after all...she really did look like an animal. Was that going to happen to her eventually? "My name's Sophie...and yeah, Gaius has a dog. Uhm...can't remember the dog's name, but he has a dog." She nodded in confirmation, crossing her arms as her gaze wandered in thought. "Hey...you wouldn't happen to know where Gaius lives, would you? I have no idea where to find him." Nita MacNeal Comet took that as an invitation to hop up on her hind legs and lick at Sophie's face. "Hey!" Nita warned, the dog barking once and taking off down the beach. "Sorry, again," Nita apologized, glancing in the direction Comet had gone. Best to let her run herself out. She thought for a moment, then, "I don't remember the duplex number right off the top of my head, but there's a listing by the door to the cafeteria with everyone's name on it." The red panda girl was in the habit of checking the list every few days for new arrivals to add to her directory. She and Kikue really needed a better system for updating... "I haven't seen him for a couple of weeks; I'll have to go over and thank him. He made me a nifty chair for Christmas." Nita smiled at Sophie. "So, you've been here for a while then?" she asked, vaguely indicated her pointed ears and the bit of tail visible. Sophie C. Bell Sophie shrieked in surprise, falling backwards, but didn't seem to bothered by it as with a laugh she stood back up, shrugging it off. She listened to Nita with an interested look on her face. "Really? I didn't know they had a listing like that." Sophie nodded, then put the information in her head for storage, another thing on her list of things to do that will never get done. However, when Nita referenced her time there, she resisted the urge to groan, and nonetheless became very self-conscious: she was starting to get tired of telling this story. "Uhm, actually...no, I got here about a week or so ago." She tried counting back the days, but couldn't quite remember, and decided that it wasn't important anyways. "I was already like this when I got here." Nita MacNeal "Yup, I update my own copy of it when I can. Must have missed you, though." Now it was Nita's turn trying not to stare. "What? But that's impossible!" she began, reminding herself that less than a year ago she would have denounced the whole set-up as impossible. Or at least highly improbable. "Sorry, you sound like you've gotten that a lot already." Nita gave Sophie a lop-sided grin which made her fluffy cheeks puff out even more. "But... how?" Sophie C. Bell Sophie shrugged, then scratched the back of her head. No matter what, people always wanted to know what, how, and why she hadn't been one of the Island's oldbies. "Feral Labs was making this medicine that I was taking, and it made me change after a while." She began to tug at her ears out of some habit she'd just begun to develop, then put her hands in her pocket so as not to look fidgety. "I called the number on my pill bottle, and then they took me here and told me my side effects would be gone in a couple of weeks." She shrugged again, then attempted a weak smile. "I guess you can't trust everything they say, huh?" Nita MacNeal Nita was relieved for a moment, having been imagining Feral Labs with some sort of similar facility on the mainland. Could she really have been away long enough for something like that to happen? She had actually forgotten that Feral Labs was, technically, a legitimate pharmaceuticals company. Marketing to the public.... And she was no longer relieved. "Jesus Christ," Nita swore, reaching up to touch the necklace Lauren had given her. "That's.. well, I dunno if it's really worse than what the rest of went through, but damn. Something like that had never really occurred to me." "Hmph." Nita sniffed. "Yeah, you learn that pretty quick." She shook her head and gave Sophie what she hoped was a sympathetic smile. Sophie C. Bell Sophie stretched out her arms, but didn't seem all too surprised by the reaction. "It's all a little sudden, but I'm trying to adjust...I mean, people adjust pretty well after a while, right?" A thought occured to her that some of them settled into graves, but she tried not to think about it for too long. "This one guy, Jordan...he actually likes the Labs. It's kind of a refreshing way of thought, and it helps, y'know?" Nita MacNeal "After a while, I guess. I mean, yeah. I have my off-days, but..." Nita shrugged. Although she tried to stay positive and had a tenuous reputation as not exactly sympathetic towards the labs, but not rabidly against them either, situations changed. Nita had changed, and her physical appearance was the least of those changes. "Well, I deal," she concluded lamely. There was no good way to unload much more of her opinions without babbling at Sophie for ages, and she didn't want to freak the girl out anyway. At least, not any more than the Island was capable was doing without her "assistance." Nita nodded. "There are a handful of people like that." She hesitated for a moment then continued, "My girlfriend is one of them." Sophie C. Bell "Your girlfriend, huh?" Sophie paused to think about it for a moment, then mentally shrugged: to each their own, she supposed. It was good to see that Jordan wasn't the only Islander with a positive outlook, and it gave Sophie even more hope that perhaps it wasn't that bad a place after all. "So...how long have you been here?" Sophie asked, suddenly beginning to wonder how often people changed. After all, if Nita had been there for years, it would be one thing: but what if she'd only been there for a few months? Nita MacNeal Nita nodded, giving off a faintly aggressive vibe and almost daring Sophie to make something of the term "girlfriend." "Her name is Lauren," she said, trying to back down. The red panda girl had been just a little bit on edge lately, and Lauren (and the labs) were a bit of a sore spot. "Since last April, and it's the middle of January now, so... nearly ten months," Nita said. And guessing where that line of questioning was going, "I've changed three times. There are four in all, but I don't know when the last one will be." She frowned. It had been just about four months since her previous transformation; longer than the other stable periods had been. Sophie C. Bell Sophie didn't want to be the start of an argument, so backed off on the topic of Nita's girlfriend, deciding that it would be something she could ask about providing they met again. Instead, she chose to focus on this new bit of information, something that wasn't quite as negative as dying or losing her mind. She touched a hand to the blackened tip of her nose, then lowered it so she could speak. "Four changes? So it doesn't just gradually happen?" Sophie had thought perhaps that it'd be a slow process that she almost wouldn't notice, but it sounded like she was wrong. "Do you know how long it is before the second change?" Nita MacNeal Nita shook her head, wondering how Sophie's first change had been. Had it been something gradual, or had she changed all at once, having no idea what to expect? Not that anyone really knew what to expect, even if, like Nita, they asked ahead of time what animal they were about to become. "The changes are prompted by injections, five in all. We get injected when we arrive, told it's a vaccine for tropical disease or whatever. It's supposed to start preparing our bodies for the later stuff," she explained. "I changed for the first time about a month after I arrived, and then it was another two or three months before the next one. I think it depends on the person, though." Nita paused for a moment, fiddling with her necklace. "Sometimes... Sometimes the changes don't take. Lauren... She only changed for the third time just before Christmas, but she's been here for over a year. Almost a year and a half now, I guess. She got real sick and was in a coma for a while." She bit her lip, her eyes dark. "No one told me what had happened to her." Sophie C. Bell Sophie nodded, adding the information to her growing Island-Database. So...she had about two months of this before it got even worse? Out of habit, she began calculating how many weeks and days that was, but she shook her head in a mental retaliation, making her stop. She didn't want to know how many weeks or days it would be. All she knew is that it would happen. "I heard that people've died on the Island...you're girlfriend...she's okay now, right?" Sophie turned away, having obviously hit a sore spot. Of all the things she hadn't wanted to discuss, this had been number one. Nita MacNeal Nita's face crumpled and she took several deep breaths to calm herself. "Yes," she said softly, remembering the graveyard at Halloween, and Annie... She gulped convulsively. "But Lauren's okay now. She finally got out, and then a few weeks later she finally changed. She's been perfectly healthy since then." Nita stared down at her bare feet on the damp sand, wondering if she needed to warn Sophie about Annie or if the new girl had already heard. Sophie C. Bell "I see...well, that's good." Sophie tried to be positive: at least the Lauren girl was okay. But even so, there were people dead...she'd heard it from two now... "Hey...shouldn't we try and get your dog back? She's been gone for a while now." Nita MacNeal "Yeah," Nita agreed. "Just... be careful." She smiled slightly, not wanting to make Sophie worry too much. She shaded her eyes and gazed down the beach to see a moving speck that was probably Comet. "Oy!" Nita yelled. "Comet, get back here!" She pursed her lips and proceeded to fail miserably at whistling. Grinning at Sophie, she laughed, "I never could whistle!" Comet galloped at full tilt towards Nita and Sophie, tongue lolling to the side, and kicking up sand with her paws. "Good girl," Nita told her, fluffing up the fur behind her ears and deftly clipping the leash onto her collar. The red panda girl had learned to do that quickly in the last few weeks. Comet wasn't one to run away, but she was certainly enthusiastic about her walks. Sophie C. Bell Sophie laughed at Comet's antics, then rubbed her arms, a gust of air reminding her that she was without her jacket for the first time in a while. "Well, I better go: I think I've still got some things to unpack." Sophie was pretty sure that she'd unpacked all the way by this time, but one could never know, and besides, she wasn't feeling all that social anymore. "It was nice to meet you, Nita." Having said her goodbyes, Sophie began to tread back to ground harder than sand and better shade that the wide open spaces of the beach. It was about time she took her pills, anyways. Nita MacNeal "You, too," Nita said with a brief wave. She really should talk to Gaius soon, she decided, continuing on down the beach with Comet at her side. [fin]
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Posted: Sat Jan 20, 2007 7:32 pm
Village/Cafeteria RP Someone special, huh? Jordan Essex The sun had risen and was shining on a happy day. Jordan had taken a hot shower and groomed his white fur for extra fluffiness. He was ready to take on the day ahead. The dogman had only left his duplex on the beach a few moments before with the box of party decorations in his arms. His tail was wagging happilly and there was a definite bounce in his step as he made his way towards the jungle.
Sophie C. Bell Sophie had had enough of the beach, that was to be sure: it was no place to be without even so much as a good pair of shorts and an old t-shirt to swim in. Trudging back towards the jungle and her duplex, she began to wonder if perhaps she could just ask for those things, and they'd be supplied. After all, Dr. Duvert had said that her stay would be paid for, and so far, they hadn't charged her for food. But, then again, she couldn't exactly trust the guy, either. It was all too confusing. However, she pushed those thoughts aside upon seeing a familiar puff ball of white, and jogged ahead to meet him. "Hey Jordan!" She called out, slowing back down to a walk beside him as she caught her breath. Running was certainly not her strength, and even a little jog made her heart pound a bit. She made it a mental note to start to exercise more, but forgot about it the moment she looked to Jordan. "So, what're you doing out here?" She looked from his face to the decorations, then put two and two together. "Is it someone's birthday?" Jordan Essex He'd been minding his own business and lost in his own world, so at first he hadn't heard Sophie's call. It wasn't until she actually sped up to catch him that he was even stirred from his own little world. At first he was afraid of how to explain why he was on the beach with a box of decorations. Luckilly for him, she provided him an out at the same time.
He nodded courteously. "Indeed it is someone's birthday today. I have a lot to do today for preparations so I wanted to get an early jump on the matter."
This was perfect. Jordan ad hoped to find Sophie. He needed her to be there as a testament to the labs generosity and caring for its test subjects. "I couldn't have pulled this off without the help from the labs, though. They were so quick and helpful in getting me every party supply I requested. Fantastic, isn't it?" he wagged his tail happilly as he hoped to snag her with his line. Sophie C. Bell "So you can order stuff, and they just give it to you?" Sophie asked, the concept sparking her interests. That certainly would solve any of the problems she had regarding a bathing suit...but, she wondered if the perks only came to someone who had been there longer. Either way, it was an interesting idea. "That's pretty cool...So, who's birthday is it?" Sophie looked to the box in the hopes that the decorations might hold some clues, but she still had no idea who it could possibly be. Then again, she only knew a few people, so chances were it was someone she'd never even met. "Want me to help you set up?" Jordan Essex Jordan smiled. He had her right where she needed to be. Her interest had obviously been piqued as her face lit up. There was hope for her even in a mass of doomsayers who would have her believe the labs are the devil. "Oh yes, within reason, I imagine. I doubt they'd allow something that could harm another person, but in my case, party decorations are a great way to boost morale for everyone involved. I'm sure that if you stay on their good side they'd be more willing to cooperate for a more costly merchandise." he flashed his long canines in a friendly smile. "Do you have something particular in mind, Sophie?"
"It's Kim's birthday." his cheeks reddened as he admitted, with no way to prevent her from seeing, with his paws full. His tail wagged faster too and happilly. Sophie would see paper cups, plates, and napkins with festive balloon print, a happy birthday banner, white paper table cloths, a rainbow of streamers, plus a box wrapped in shiny silver paper with a bow on top. Sophie C. Bell Sophie blinked, then laughed weakly, scratching the back of her head with a sheepish grin. "Uh, well, I just need a bathing suit or something so I can go out and do stuff at the beach. Kinda hard to go swimming in tennis shoes and jeans." She laughed again, but stopped when her attention caught the shiny box within the decorations, and once again her interest went up. "So, is Kim someone special?" She asked, noting the way he was acting. Maybe she was his girlfriend or something. Sophie didn't know why, but her heart sank a little at the idea. But, since it wasn't relavent, she ignored it for the time being, and just looked back up at Jordan, a mischevious grin accenting her canine features. "Awww, that's so sweeeet," she said, her voice dripped with sweet sarcasm and just the slightest tinge of teasing. Jordan Essex “Swimming’s great for you, too!” he added “This is a great beach to take a swim. Some of the clearest water and the freshest breezes.” He’d swam in the waters before is change but he was hesitant to do so now wit so much fur. It might actually cool him off or make the humidity feel even worse. “I guess swimming in tennis shoes would be difficult. Who needs shoes anyways?” this of course, he referred to his own condition in which he could no longer wear shoes. The reference was able to go without clarification as Sophie had been there to pull off his shoes before his feet exploded into paws.
At her next question, Jordan stiffened up and skipped a step, nearly dropping the entire box on the ground. There was no hiding it. He was as open as a book. She’d called him out, like in some western movie showdown. So he nodded. “You could say that.” He smiled, hefting the box against his knee and back into a firm grip in his paws. Her additional commenting made him blush even more and his eartips burned bright red. If he’d had his paws free, they’d have been covering the redness in his face, but had to push on in the meantime. He wasn’t used to having someone special, nor being teased about it either. Sophie C. Bell Sophie's look faded into a smile slightly more sincere as she patted the guy on the back. "That's cool, man: sounds like she's a lucky lady." She couldn't help but laugh at the fact that his ears had turned red, though, and it took a moment before she could stifle down the infectious giggles. "Do you want me to help you carry the stuff? I think we're almost there...wait, where's this party supposed to be, anyways?" She looked around with a curious expression, then turned back to Jordan with an inquiring look. "Are we going to the duplexes?" Jordan Essex Jordan wanted to say ‘Yeah, she was real lucky to painfully transform in the presence of a stranger.’ But he didn’t. he mood was set and it had to keep flowing that way. He nodded again. “We’re all lucky to have friends and people who care for us.” He pulled the cheesy line off with a grand grin.
“Oh no, thank you though. Paws aren’t the greatest for carrying boxes, but I’m forcing myself to use them as well as I did my human hands.” Jordan nodded forward as they came to the village. “We’re going to the cafeteria. It’s going to look like a party zone when I’m done.” Sophie C. Bell Sophie couldn't help but smile as she shook her head, nearing the cafeteria. "If only everyone else had the same outlook that you did. The world would be a better place," she commented, running a hand through her hair. She set her sights on the cafeteria nearby, trying to think of it with streamers and such. In her mind, it still looked a little bland, but maybe they'd do a better job than her imagination. "So...is the 'party zone' going to have music? Games? I don't think you'll have to worry about food, but maybe some doggie bags for when the guests leave..." She didn't catch the slip until after she'd said it, and covered her mouth at first before she sighed, shaking her head. "...Sorry, shouldn't have said that." Jordan Essex Jordan let the slip slide. It had hit a nerve, yes, but it wasn’t worth quivelling over. As they got to the cafeteria, Jordan set the box down, opened the door and held it open with a leg, then proceeded into the food hall with the box of party supplies. “Yes, there’s going to be music and uhm… I really couldn’t think of party games to play. This is my first time planning a party and I think I’m doing well for a first-timer.”
He set the box down on a table and began emptying the contents. Further underneath the table cloths were hidden a cd player, portable speakers, and various music cds. “Okay, this shouldn’t be too hard… I hope.” He chuckled, after the pause of doom. He tore into the plastic packagings with his claws, freeing streamers, and balloons, and white paper table cloths. He carefully set the gift to the side as he began to work at once, taking streamers and setting them up. “If you’d like, you can start on some balloons.” Sophie C. Bell "Yay music! It wouldn't be a party without it," Sophie commented, taking a seat at a table as she tore open a bag of balloons. "Maybe if you're lucky, you'll get to dance with Kim." As Sophie looked down at the multicolored balloons, she was suddenly posed with a serious problem. With her nails being the way they were, one wrong move and she'd be popping the things left and right. Sighing, she nearly asked Jordan if there was something else she could do, but as she looked up to the man diligent in his decorations, she realized that it'd probably be even worse for him, so decided that she'd just have to brave it on her own. It was the least she could do. The first one didn't go so well: only half-full did she snag it on a nail and make it pop, causing her ears to ring for the next minute or so. However, she somehow managed to get the hang of it, and after she'd blown up a few, she pulled out some ribbon, sut it with her teeth, then tied the balloons to them, taping the decorations on the wall opposite from where Jordan worked. She admired her work from a few feet off, then turned and sat back down, stretching out a few more balloons to be blown up. "So, what do you think, Jordan? A couple more and this place'll be looking pretty awesome." Jordan Essex He blushed at the comment of getting to dance with Kim and lost himself in that thought till the loud popping startled him back to his task. "Let's get some music going." he stopped what he was doing momentarilly to pop in some techno. He figured he couldn't go wrong with it. There was plenty of other music as well if someone objected. As he strung streamers, he heard Sophie ask his opinion and he gave as much a thumb's up as he could with his thumb-turned dew claw. "Looking good, Sophie. Thanks for the help." Jordan went from task to task, even helping with a few balloons.
Today was the big day and Jordan was in no short order of excitement. All his efforts were paying off and everything was looking better by the minute. He’d been- with Sophie's enthusiastic help- stringing streamers over the cafeteria and blowing up balloons all morning, while the food and punch was being prepared in the kitchen by Delia. It was a great help to have her working on the party spread.
The multi-colored rainbow of streamers followed the outline of the cafeteria doors and flowed overhead where they either cascaded onto a table end (every other row of tables) where they were taped or continued to dip and bow from the ceiling for the length of the cafeteria.
Blowing up balloons with fangs had caused more than one to pop in his face, startling him half-to-death the first couple failed attempts. Balloons were taped around the inner cafeteria door.
In the back of the cafeteria was a ‘Happy Birthday’ banner with the letters strung to each other in a colorful arch.
Handling all that tape had been painful. As much stuck onto his fur as it had to the decorations, so a few strands of white fluff hung from the occasional balloon and streamer.
A few tables were covered by white, paper table cloths. Atop the white-covered tables were platters of various food: There was cubed cheeses of all varieties, from mild to spicy; diced chunks of luncheon meats surrounded by a ring of carefully-rolled meat slices; crackers of all sorts (saltines, butter crackers, melba toast, wheat, and vegetable crackers); for the more herbervorous people, there’s several platters of assorted fruits and vegetables; likewise, there’s also beef, pork, poultry, and even raw fish (as per the usual cafeteria selections). There’s also a large bowl of fresh green salad, bowls of vegetable and cheese dips, as well as salad dressings. In the middle of the spread is a large punch bowl filled to the brim with fruity red juice. Surrounding the punch bowl are plates, cups, and napkins with festive balloon print.
The dogman was running back and forth making sure everything was set up and ready like it should be, from the tables to the streamers, to the balloons, to the food. And when no one was looking he snagged a cube of ham. Yummy. Sophie C. Bell Sophie reclined in a chair away from the center of the room, stretching her arms. It'd been so long since she'd actually prepared for a party with cutesy decorations and balloons, and she'd forgotten how tedious it could get. But she'd also forgotten how fun it was, and smiled to herself as she watched Jordan to continue to buzz about, acting busy over things that she herself would've long since stopped worrying about. Sophie supposed that this Kim girl really was that special to him, and if that was the case, she would do whatever she could to make sure that things went well for the two of them. "I bet she'll love this," Sophie said, standing up as she walked over towards the food tables. Personally, she wouldn't have minded a snack, but seeing as how she hadn't eaten much for a while now, it didn't particularily bother her, and she could wait. "Can I ask what you got her, or is it a secret?" Jordan Essex Jordan was proud of the end result. It looked, sounded, and smelled like a party. Everything was in working order and all that remained was for the guests and the birthday girl to arrive. He'd made certain to leave a note for Kim on the door to her duplex asking her to meet him in the cafeteria today. It was cheesy and a bit lackluster, but it made him giggle at the thought of how surrpised Kim would be when she saw everything he'd done for her.
"She's gonna love it. She has to to." he peered over his shoulder, back at Sophie. "I'm not giving any hints. Everyone gets to know what's in the box when she does. And not before." he grinned, keeping it hush-hush. Maryke Jimenez
Maryke hoped she wasn't late. She didn't remember what time this little shindig was set for, only that she had said she would come. She'd spent most of her time fussing in her bathroom. But that was to be expected. She normally did that whenever she went out. Only instead of 'does this make me look fat' it was more on the lines of 'will this take away from my godawful face?' Finally she settled on a low cut red halter and a pair of stonewash shorts, both of which hopefully went well with her lemur fur. It was so odd that she chose her clothing based around the fur. But, that's the mindset she was in. Maybe she just wanted to make a good impression. But mosly she didn't want to look like an outcast. Despite the fact that in some way they ALL were, it still affected her.
Maryke didn't even know where this place was at, but she followed instinct and instinct told her to follow her sensitive ruffed ears, which led her to the source of music. She smirked at all the balloons, streamers and other such things. It was a party she wasn't used to. But interested her and instantly her still human eyes darted around for Jordan. Afterall she was really here for his sake.
Jordan Essex He'd taken a breather to enjoy a cup of punch and snack on a few pieces of rolled-up meat on crackers. He was bee-bopping to the music, letting himself be carefree for one afternoon. He didn't notice Maryke at first, since he was faced away from the door and jamming wit his eyes closed. He had never been one to do air guitar before, but the atmosphere just had an effect on him and he was. That's when he turned around, saw Maryke, and slowly lowered his arms in a vain attempt to play it off by straightening his tie. Sophie C. Bell "Oh, alright," Sophie said, faking a pout as she sat back down. She made a note to herself how few people were at the party, and started to wonder if this was someplace she should even be at...but, then again, she didn't want to leave Jordan all by himself until the others arrived. So, she decided that she'd wait until others show up, and then she'd leave: there was no point in staying at a party for someone she didn't know. Call her not social, but she honestly wasn't all too interested in what this Kim girl was doing, and parties reminded her too much of home. Sophie's head jerked up at the sound of the door opening, and she looked at the stranger who'd come in. Was that Kim? She wasn't sure what to do: greet the woman, or just sit down and look all nonchalant hoping that people would come to her. She wasn't all that good at parties, really. So, for the sake of being shy, she stayed in her seat, arms crossed, but she called out, "Hey, Jordan! Someone's here!" over the music. Maryke Jimenez
Keep it together, keep it together was the mantra running through her brain as she slinked forward. She couldn't help but chuckle at the air guitar, but didn't bed too much on it. She didn't want to make Jordan more nervous then she was certain he already was. The lemur girl slowly swished her tail up high, just near head. A sign that she was in a happy mood, which was good considering all the self inflicted tormoil she'd been going through lately.
"Everthing is looking wonderfuly," she said in an attempt to encourage the dog man, "and look you quite dashing..."
Instantly her hazels ticked over to the other girl, sizing her up. She didn't think this was Kim, she knew she wouldn't be THAT late. Besides there was only two people here. "So.....whose your friend?" she asked, extending a hand out for Sophie to take. "Im Maryke.."
Jordan Essex Maryke came! She came as she promised! That was fantastic! Jordan had been looking forward to seeing her at the party. Having another person arrive did ease him a little. It meant this wasn't just a foolish waste of time. His own tail made happy movements as he was excited to see the lemur woman and padded up to greet her.
"Maryke! It's great to see you! Wow, you really dress for a party." he smiled and couldn't help but be flattered by her comment of him looking dashing.
He smiled, turning his attention to Sophie. "I can't take all the credit. I'm glad I didn'ty have to do this ALL on my own. This is Sophie. Sophie. Maryke." he introduced them. Kim Nguyet Kim had gotten up like every other morning, and had lazed around a bit before finally getting dressed. So, a year older today. Again. She still wished she was home to celebrate it, but it was no use to keep thinking about that.
When noon came around, she went to go out, go fish in her lake, when she noticed the note stuck to her door. Jordan wanted to see her in the cafeteria ? She clicked her beak a bit. She had been doing very well at not showing herself to the world for the past few days, but if he was waiting for her... It's not like she could hide forever, anyway. So, she decided to go, made sure her skirt and everything was straight and neat, then went on her way. She really looked forward to meeting Jordan again, and was of course clueless. It wasn't like she had told anyone her brithdate anyway.
She rose an eyebrow when she heard music coming from the cafeteria as she walked closer. What was going on in here ? Hn. Still, she made her way inside, and was just floored. Happy brithday... okay, unless there was another islander shared the same date, there was no mistaking it.
She remained at the door for a moment, a bit stunned. Sophie C. Bell Sophie donned a modest grin, putting a hand behind her head as she laughed sheepishly. "You did most of it, Jordan, really..." She looked to Maryke, then took the woman's hand in a firm handshake, opening her mouth for further introductions when suddenly the door opened again, and Sophie turned her head out of curiosity. Ah, this must be Kim. No one else would've come to the party with that shocked a look on their faces. But, that being said, Sophie couldn't help but stare for a moment. Was she...a dinosaur? Collecting her thoughts, she held up her hands and shouted a good, loud, "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" which would've been great except for the fact that it was an obviously delayed reaction. She looked around the room, expecting everyone else would do something similar. Maryke Jimenez
Maryke was too stunned to issue shouts of 'happy birthday'. After shaking Sophie's hand the lemur girl turned to the doorway and....... her hazels grew wide. Her heart skipped around widely in her chest. A lizard...a dino....the object of her childhood nightmares? Oh so that was Kim. That was...... a frown slipped to her muzzle. But she was quick to hide it, she was used to putting on a show. And right now she needed to be there for Jordan. After all, she promised.
But hoboy were those lemur instincts kicking in. "Happy Birthday!" she said charmingly, a reaction even more delayed then the others had been.
Jordan Essex His ears twitched as Sophie and Maryke had become acquainted and he turned his head towards the door in time to see it open. The look of joy on his face was truly priceless as his eyes lit up and his cheeks rosed with glee. His mouth opened with great anticipation and he too exclaimed 'Happy birthday!' and proceeded towards the dino-girl enthusiastically and with open arms.
He greeted the stunned girl with a fond embrace, careful of her wings, and leaned close to kiss her on the cheek, smiling from ear-to-ear, he repeated more quietly "Happy birthday, Kim." his tail fanned the air behind him creating a gentle gust. He gently looked longingly into her stunned eyes. Kim Nguyet Kim couldn't help feeling a little uncomfortable. This was so much... she hadn't expected anything at all, and mostly, she was uncomfortable with herself and how she looked. Especially with the two women she had never met before right there. But... no one had ran off screaming yet, so... maybe... it would be okay... ?
"Uh..." Still a bit stunned, Jordan's kiss made her redden a bit as well. "Wow, uh... thank you, everyone ! How... how did you all know ?" This was the biggest surprise, as she didn't remember ever telling anymore. Sophie C. Bell Sophie walked a little bit closer to the party girl, but kept her distance when Jordan moved in: after all, he'd worked this whole time just for her, so he deserved a few private moments. However, after the dinosaur's gaze fixated on her, she couldn't help but feel self-conscious. "I knew because he knew," Sophie replied, pointing a clawed finger at Jordan. "My name's Sophie, and unless I just wasted a bunch of breath and embarassed myself, then I'm guessing you're the birthday girl, Kim." She smiled, not holding out a hand at the distance they were at but still keeping herself looking friendly, doing her best to ignore the saurian features of Jordan's 'special person'. Maryke Jimenez
"Well, I can always sniff out a good party," Maryke said with a light chuckle. "Jordan's been really hard at this...so I do hope you like it. I'm Maryke by the way," she said, fixating her maw into a wide grin, her lemur teeth showing in a sparkle of dazzling white.
She turned towards the others. She stayed at the back, her hazels darting from one to the next. She didn't want this party to die, or any of them to feel uncomfortable. The ice had to be broken someway. "Introductions aside....whose ready to get this little shindig started?"
Jordan Essex He knew Kim would be surprised to say the least. That was the point if a surprise birthday party. Though... he couldn't tell her how exactly he'd acquired the information of her birthday. That might... scare her off. And he worked so hard to put this all togeter just for her.
He lifted her right hand in his and enjoyed her presence. He was beet red as well. He couldn't believe that he'd kissed her on the cheek so boldly. "Enjoy yourself." he smiled, showing off those canines. "Today's all about you." he tugged on her hand. "I've got a special present for youooo." he said in a very giddy tone, leading Kim towards the silver-wrapped box.
He was ecstatic. "Open it." he was like a child wanting to know what was in there. Inside the box, when Kim opens it up, she'd find a brand new Nintendo Wii, a memory card, and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess to play on her brand new system. Jordan looked on excitedly in anticipation. Kim Nguyet "Glad to meet you both !" She said, with as much of a smile she could manage without it becoming painful with her new beak. She'd only been able to start talking normally a few days ago, after all, and right now she was MORE than glad. She gave a little bow to each of the ladies, then her attention turned to Jordan.
"You... did all of this for me ?" When was the last time she's had a surprise party ? Hell, she didn't even remember. It was very easy to tell that the pterodactyl girl was touched by the gesture, not only of Jordan's efforts, but also that Sophie and Maryke where there, at a party for a complete stranger.
All of this, and a gift, too ? She let herself be lead to the silver-warped present, and she didn't waste a moment in opening it, finally leading to her yellow eyes widening. Oh, lord, this... this couldn't be possible, was it ?! But there was the system. She had heard about it, before she came to this island... ah, but wasn't the console named Revolution then ? Ah, but it didn't matter. She gave no question about how he knew - he must have seen the pile of games in her duplex. Her question was how. And, as this was the Kim-equivalent to be given a huge diamond, she couldn't help but stare in wonder. "Oh my..."
She wouldn't be able to play this on her laptop, she would need a proper television. She could use the entertainment room in the meantime, if they would ever let her order one... But ohmygodohmygodohmygod...
Not really knowing what to say, the next best thing was assaulting the boy with an embrace, of course ! "T-thankyou..." She somehow managed, awed by so many wonderful things happening at once. Maryke Jimenez
Maryke was pleasantly surprised. To her video games were....well they weren't something she was interested in or ever thought about before, but Jordan had obviously done his homework. He seemed to be handling things quite well, so she turned and gave the dog boy a wink when Kim wasn't looking. Just to let him know that things were running quite smoothinly and he didn't have anything to worry about.
She supposed by Kim's reaction that he could already figure all that though.
Jordan Essex He couldn't have predicted she'd be this elated. Video games for her were like the holy grail of all things awesome. Jordan couldn't be happier if he'd tried. Everything was cementing into perfection. He'd gotten his foot in the door. He was in. This was so fantastic for him. For them.
"I'm so glad you love it. I noticed your video games collection and somehow knew this was the right choice."
He'd caught Maryke's wink and he looked stupified for a moment and then it hit him how truly spectacular a job he'd accomplished. And it made him tense up and blush profusely as the madame had given been there to confirm that he was doing the right thing. Miller Milano After the meeting with Emerwyn Miller had neglected to bother going back to Awen's he had spent that night under his tree getting up the next day to wander around thinking about Emerwyn's words, the song she sang also echoed in the back of his mind mixing with the sound of the beach and the small party going on as he got closer.
Soon enough the little bird boy could make out figures just past the tree line on the edge of the beach. Slowly making his way closer he popped out amongst the trees edging closer to the party noticing what seemed to be the birthday girl opening a present, he wasn't sure what the girl was turning in too but that box sure as hell was obvious! "Ze island has Wiiz but they can't fixz mah door? Eh leastz they got Wiiz..."
He blinked when he realized just how loud he said that and how close he was to the others. "Er... heyaz?" Kim Nguyet Right now, the how and the why didn't really matter, but she could only think of two things - either she did give out the date to someone and Jordan asked enough, or he asked the lab. Oddly the second option didn't bother her too much... It wasn't like Jordan would do anything bad with that information, or could, really. The dog-boy had her full trust after all.
Still not completely letting go of him, she gave him a smile before turning her attention to the new boy who had entered. "Fix your door... ?" It had taken her a moment to understand, with how the beak distorted his speech. Looks like she had it good for now, but she would probably struggle after the thing became fully grown. Maryke Jimenez
Maryke looked very furry right at the moment. Instantly at the loud noise her ruffed ears flattened against her skull and she leapt backwards, her eyes darting around widly until she located the bird boy. Letting out a 'hmmp' she began to smooth down her silky white fur and especially her hair, which was now standing on end. She let Kim ask the question, but still raised an eyebrow.
Jordan Essex The interruption didn't bode well with Jordan. Everything was ruinning so smoothly and then this bird crashes in yelling about a door and the gift he'd just given Kim. How dare he try to sully this moment of triumph! He clenched a paw behind his back in annoyance at Miller. He didn't want the dinogirl to see him agitated in this happy moment.
His eyes squinted at Miller, giving an upturned snarl of his mouth, minus any sound. He should have known that with so many residents on the island there would be one upstart who was so ill-mannered and so very rude they acted on imputent impulse.
He tried to ignore Miller for the most part- as much as he ould for the time being- and snugged Kim from behind, wrapping his fluffy, white-furred arms aroud her shoulders, leaning forward to rub his fluffy sideburns against her cheek. Miller Milano Miller's cheeks turned a bright shade of red as every one in the group seemed to stare at him like he was insane, and he didn't blame them if they did. After all it didn't come across as sane to be mumbleing about your door not being fixed at a party you stumbled in to.
"Yahz... mah doorz been jammed past few dayz and labz said they can't fix it..." he shrugged his shoulders a bit looking to Maryke who seemed to be frowning at him, "Sorryz if I wuz a bit loud, I didn't meanz to scare any one." He nodded towards the Wii and smiled, "Congratz I guess on gettinz a Wii for yah birthdayz?"
Something in the back of his mind however, the very small part of him that was thinking like a Budgy told him to back down a bit when he noticed Jordan more closely, something about him just seemed to startle that little alarm in the back of his head, but for now he ignored it thinking it was only the result of having scared the group with his arrival. Maryke Jimenez
Maryke upturned her nose at his apology. Some people she was more accepting to, but some people just.....rubbed her the wrong way. And her fuzzy body was living proof of that factor. "You didn't scare anyone," she said, still smoothing herself, which really looked like a primate fuzzing over themselves though she lacked the picking bugs part. "You startled us," she correctly. "And yes, Kim's the birthday girl..."
Her tail was swishing back and forth behind her, lower now. It really was a long tail, and she was always careful with it. Sometimes it seemed like the damn thing had a mind of it's own. If she was irritated or agitated she really couldn't take the blame for anything the long black appendage did.
Jordan Essex He wanted to ignore the birdboy. He was trying to ignorew him, for the sake of keeping things moving in a more positive direction. Then he remembered, he had one more surprise for her! He smiled wide and nuzzled her cheek again, before pullign back gently, letting his fur rub soothingly against Kim’s skin.
Jordan winked “Be right back. I’ve got one more surprise for youooo.” And he padded past Miller, resisting the urge to kick him. Oh, how that would have been so satisfying to teach him a lesson in manners. An ironic one at that. He vanished into the kitchen, where he applied the appropriate number of candles on top of the specially-made cake. Having her info, he knew she was diabetic and he’s so glad he knew about that. What could he possibly say if he’d inadvertently caused her to go into diabetic shock- or worse!
After lighting the candles, he came out with a red heart-shaped cake. Yeah, it was probably over the top, but he was going for the gold here. He was fighting for the affections of someone! With twenty-three lit candles, Jordan began singing ‘happy birthday’ as he precariously held the cake on its platter in his paws. Kim Nguyet Kim did seem a bit sad to see him go, but she let him, turning to Miller for the moment. "Wow, I do hope they fix your door..." Unlike Jordan and Maryke, Kim didn't seem too annoyed. A little bit, perhaps, at being startled, but that wasn't too evident.
But then... Kim didn't get mad all too often. Most of her frustrations turned to sadness due to how passive she could be at time.
Her thoughts where interupted by the song, and she couldn't help but stare at the cake. Awww...
"Oh, wow... You didn't need to do all that, really..." But she was happy, and she milled. Hopefully all this hadn't been too much of a pain to put together. She had of course noticed the shape, and blushed sightly. No, it couldn't mean that, right ? No man had... loved her before, after all. And who could love a dinosaur ? No, it was probably something else... Miller Milano Miller bit his tongune for the time as Maryke went at him and eventually let out a little sigh, "I didn'tz mean to starttlez any one then I'm sorryz..." he shook his head, what had he done to get her so up in arms towards him? Was this going to end like it did with Antony? Him laying semi unconsious on the ground for a bottle to the head?
Miller turned to regard Jordan as he walked away tilting his head as he went and looked back to Kim as she spoke. "Eh it'z not so badz really, I'z living with a friendz for the time beingz." When Jordan returned he steped back from Kim letting him have the space to present the cake. He didn't sing along seeing's how his voice was horribly slurred but the sight of Jordan making Kim smile reminded him again of Kikue causing his mind to wander away for the moment coming back once the singing had finally stopped. Maryke Jimenez
She was satisfied for that, but pursed her maw together. Finally after a beats she relented and gave her fur one more smooth down. "It's okay... it happens."
Finally she directed her attention back to Jordan's display, and clapped her blackened hands together when the cake was brought out. She wondered if Kim might think this was all overboard, and worried that she might be turned off by it. But by the dino's reaction she was pleased to see that she wasn't.
Jordan Essex With care he set the heart-shaped cake infront of her. He was going for the heavy tactics now. He’d won her trust, he’d won her favor, now he wanted to win her over entirely. Jordan took a step back, resting a paw upon her shoulder and massaged gently, but firmly, smirking at the very cute girl.
“Blow out your candles and make a wish. It just might come true.” He winked and massaged her shoulders with both paws as he stepped behind her, coazxing her into relaxation. He was playing his cards well, but even he was worried this was like the gambler who held five aces in his hand.
He’d help her blow out the candles if she weren’t able to manage with her new beak. Kim Nguyet Kim, of course, already knew that her one true wish was impossible. Still, there was no harm and playing around, no ? Nodding with a smile, she croutched a bit and managed to blow all the candles out in one go.
"Yay, I got it !" She grinned, feeling herself leaning into the massage. Miller Milano Miller slowly came to attention as Maryke addressed him again nodding, on an island like this being startled was almost a daily given for you never knew what might bump in to you just around the corner.
He stood back from the whole scene though letting Jordan and Kim enjoy what ever moment the two were having with the cake. His mind continuing to slip back to Kikue and what Emerwyn had told him the day before. Maryke Jimenez
Maryke watched the happy couple and without wanting to, her mind drifted to Billy. She wondered what he was doing....maybe who he was doing. A shiver ran down her spine at that. It made her uneasy, she really hoped he was just sitting at his lake, enjoying fish or something. But the thoughts were unwanted to she tore her eyes away from Kim and Jordan, instead concentrating on bird boy.
"Enjoying yourself?" she asked him offhandly.
Jordan Essex Those words Kim spoke as she blew out her candles.. struck him deeply and he melted. His paws continued massaging another few moments and then they slid down her body as he leaned against her backside, giving a bold kiss to her cheek once more.
Jordan held his cheek to hers and closed his eyes, huolding her snugly. He shivered at the thought he'd won her over completely and that made him happy. The course of events had just happened and here he was, throwing a party for such a wonderful woman. He didn't have to say a thing. He felt so close to her. He wanted to be with her. He was so smitten with puppy love.
"I'm so glad you're enjoying the party and your presents. It makes me happy to see your beautiful smile. I hope you can enjoy a love-struk dog just as much as I do for you." he whispered softly, rubbing the back of a fluffy paw on her cheek. He couldn't hide the feelings back. Even if she had known, he'd feel wkward if he didn't express the way he felt. "The day we met.. was intense. And we held one another on the beach.. watching the sun dance on the waves." he rubbed his paws down her sides and held onto her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. "I hope I'm not out of line for feeling this way or for planning this special day for you." Kim Nguyet Everything was going fast... almost too fast. Spiraling out of her control, even if she still had problems believing it. This island... There where so many girls here, all prettier, better, not as shy... Why her, then ?
But what if she didn't care why ? And what if she didn't want to think of the possibility of another. He had been here for her, at her best and at her worst. But still, as he spoke, as he admitted his own feelings, she found herself speechless.
She had loved, once. But then, she wasn't loved back, and she had given up. But then, what did it matter here, on this island, away from everyone she once knew ? It was useless to live in a past she couldn't go back to, right ?
Still not saying a thing, she moved, slowly, until the tip of her beak reached his lips. This was the closest thing to a "true" kiss she could manage without twisting her head too awkwardly. Her first kiss. The adrenaline rush was amazing, and when she finally figured out what exactly she had just done, her face reddened and her face lowered a bit torward the rest of her body as her neck folded upon itself a bit, her own way to attempt to hide a blush. Had she... really just done that ?! Jordan Essex He’d been taking this so fast, possibly far too fast. But look at what he’d accomplished for overcoming his shyness for the cause. He’d achieved the successful mission to get closer to her. These new feelings that told him he wanted to be near her, to hold her closely like thy did on the beach.. they were overpowering.
This was right. He wanted this and he hoped that she wanted this as well. Before his racing mind could flood him with more of these thoughts, she’d turned and kissed him on the lips. It caught him off guard and he blushed deeply. He held her close as she did and he kissed her in return, tilting his head to the side so that he could kiss her directly upon her lips. The spark was there. This was right.
Jordan stepped back from the birthday girl, holding her hand as he helped her to her feet. He smiled at Maryke for all her help as he held Kim tightly in his arms. “Thank you for coming, Maryke, Sophie.” He nuzzled through Kim’s black hair. “It meant a lot.”
Jordan smiled wonderously into Kim’s beautiful eyes. “It’s been a great afternoon, but I think we need to retreat into a more private atmosphere. Neither of us are exactly the most social of party animals and all the excitement has me yearning for a quiet rest with a special someone.” He squeezed Kim gently around her torso, hugging the pterodactyl against his front. . Sophie C. Bell It was nice to see that Kim was enjoying the party, the present, and everything else: it was a good thing among everything Sophie heard about death and disaster and any other sort of dismay, and it made her feel good somewhere inside to watch her be close to Jordan, to snuggle up against the dog-man in the awkward way that made Sophie somehow think that she'd lost that kind of innocence along the way. Maybe that's what made her feel so lost, then: she felt like she didn't belong here, never mind the fact that she'd decorated and hollered out the first 'Happy Birthday'. It didn't matter that Jordan had accepted her as a member of the Island and that she'd pretty much settled in. She just...didn't belong there. Pure and simple. In all that happiness and purity, she wasn't supposed to be among the people involved. "No problem, Jordan," she said, offering a thumbs up and a smile, but the moment he looked away, the smile faded, and she began looking for the door. In order not to be rude, she simply slipped away from all the action and excitement, looking over the Duplex information before making her way to the door, taking one final look at the party before heading back to her duplex. She had some things she had to take care of, anyways. Kim Nguyet Kim just nodded. All those emotions did have her pretty tired, anyway. Rest seemed like a good thing. Right now... nothing really mattered, beyond being with him some more. She took the Wii along, but forgot all about the cake as the two lovebirds made their way out. Jordan Essex He'd become so infatuated with Kim that Jordan wanted her all to himself for the rest of the day. All that mattered was being with her and making/keeping her happy. His arm remained around her backside, gently stroking the length of her back and scritching carefully with canine claws. Jordan laid his head on her shoulder as they walked along. He was totally smitten and her big fluffy puppy to love and cherish and in-turn he would do the same. Ah, to be young and in love.
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Posted: Mon Jan 22, 2007 1:33 pm
Sophie noticed something as she returned to her duplex: she was tired. not ever as tired as she'd been before taking her pills, mind you, but her eyelids felt heavy as she entered her dimmed room, turning on the lamp before the darkness seduced her any closer to sleeping. Maybe she was building up a resistance to her medicine: maybe it just wasn't working anymore because she had pointy ears and a nub. But, either way, it wasn't long before she was shuffling into pajamas at the oh-so-late hour of eight, pulling off her covers from her bed and flopping onto the mattress, hoping to dream off all of her worries, like she usually did.
Most people associate narcolepsy with falling asleep at abnormal times. What most people don't know, however, is that some of the symptoms can include hallucinating while awake, and even worse (in Sophie's opinion), sleep paralysis. You see, during sleep the body produces a chemical that prevents a wide scope of movement. This chemical works in varying degrees: on one side of the spectrum, people sleepwalk, and on the other end, they wake up unable to move, living out a nightmare with their eyes open.
It was with a drowsy mind that Sophie suddenly realized that someone was in the room. She couldn't see them, but she could feel their presence, and the idea of a foreign person in her room scared her: no, it terrified her beyond all belief. She tried to open her eyes, but her body wouldn't respond, and she began to panic: why couldn't she move?! Sophie tried to get up, but no matter what she tried, she lay still, and only became all the more frantic as a snarl crept into her ears, followed by the feeling of pressure on her legs. Whatever was there was on her, and it was deadly.
It was then that Sophie regained the ability of sight, and her eyes shot open to behold just what was terrorizing her. In the darkness, she couldn't make out the details, but there was a large bulk at the foot of her bed, staring her down with a menacing red stare. Tentacles writhed from it's back in an agitated manner, and it growled again, crouching down in order to pounce. She wished she could close her eyes again, but found that her reflexes were lost to her, and had to watch with a frozen stare as the thing's muscles tensed, ready for an attack.
The worst part of it all was that she couldn't even scream.
All at once, Sophie found herself able to move, and she shot into a sitting position, trying to scramble from the tangled bedsheets but only managing to fall on the ground in a pile of knotted sheets. She worked with frantic speed to free herself, then stumbled through the dark of the unfamiliar room, fumbling for the light switch and snapping it on.
The light burned her eyes, and she had to put a hand to her face to allow time for her pupils to adjust. After a moment, she peered out into the room, looking for the monster that had pursued her just moments before.
There was nothing there.
Sophie blinked for a moment, her eyes wide and her heart racing from the adrenaline rushing through her veins. She'd had...a nightmare? She hadn't had one of those since she'd started her medication, and even before then, she didn't remember them ever being so bad.
Even so, she never remembered being stuck on an Island with a killer before, either.
With shaky hands, Sophie rummaged through her things until she found her Sno Cone plushie, clinging to it as she started turning on every single light in the room, even opening up the bathroom door and lighting that area. She sat on the edge of her bed, eyes scanning the room, and clutched the penguin toy even more, thoroughly shaken by the experience. Why wasn't her medicine working anymore? Had she done something wrong?
Pulling her legs up onto the mattress, Sophie hugged her knees, making no attempt to get her covers. There was no way she'd be sleeping that night.
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Posted: Sat Jan 27, 2007 7:44 am
Cafeteria RP Well isn't this a fine mess? Newton Filinas Although Gaius's words had giving a new strength to the confused frog-man, his far more greater sense of general terror concerning everything around him made the idea of up and quitting right then a bit too hasty for his taste. While thinking things over, he had finished his rounds, only to then wearily hop off to try to find something to eat. By the time he dragged his cart back to his duplex, he had been too exhausted to do much of anything but crawl into his bathtub of mud and curl up to sleep.
The next morning, he had been up again bright and early. By the time he had time to think about quitting, he had been mopping diligently before the cleaning crew came in for the day. He felt guilty in the sight of the cameras, though. Big Brother was watching. He remembered reading 1984 when he was still in school, and felt very much like the unfortunate Winston Smith. In his head, he hated this. It was degrading. It was stupid, there were other people who could do this, and it was boring and he wasn't even very good at it! Externally though, for anyone who might have been watching, he moved about in his awkward hopping manner, tidying and wiping down each table. He was diligent. Nothing to be reprimanded.
It was the fear of those cameras and the pointed, stern warnings he had received and a terror of a fate that could possibly be worse than not only being turned into a frog, but being a janitor for the rest of his life as well kept him locked into submission.
He had been mopping again after the dinner rush when he reached a saturation point of misery, having left his puddle and mop and cart to hide under a table so the cameras had a smaller chance of seeing him cry. Sophie C. Bell Sophie needed to relax: after learning just about every little dirty secret belonging to this rock she now lived on, she'd also started having nightmares from hell, which meant that her medicine wasn't working right. Oy, nothing seemed to be going right, now that she thought about it: she'd never even gotten around to begging for Marshall's forgiveness! She sighed as she entered the cafeteria, not even paying particular attention to what she slopped on her tray before starting her walk to one of the farther tables. A certain sniffling noise made her aware to someone else in the room, and for a moment, she thought herself to be hallucinating again, all too alert as she scanned the room for anything out of the ordinary. Of course, she'd forgotten to assume that a puddle was out of the ordinary, and before she could even realize that it was there, she lost her footing and fell forwards, dropping her tray before falling flat out on the floor. Whatever she'd put on her plate (it appeared to be macaroni and cheese) had splattered all over the floor, and apparently, she'd landed in some of it as well. Grumbling as she got to her feet, she started a very feeble attempt at scraping her noodles from her shirt into her hand, just knowing that the sauce wouldn't come out in laundry. With her luck, it'd probably gotten into her hair, too, and knowing cafeteria food, it might just get her to sprout another nub of a tail because of it's radioactive nature. It just wasn't her day, was it? Newton Filinas At the sound of a crash, Newt jumped under his hiding spot, hitting his head on the underside with a loud thunk. The table itself was bounced off of the floor for just long enough to come crashing down again with a scuffle scrape. "Ah-!" Oh no! His bucket! He hadn't put out any cones or anything! Did they see that slip up? Did they notice him abandon his post? He wanted to decidedly officially quit, not be actually honest-to-goodness... whatever came next after this. Would they serve him up in the cafeteria? Would they try to find medicinal properties in his amphibian skin? Would they kick him out into the jungle to be hunted by the horrible tiger-man or even worse... It was a few long moments while he debated internally since bumping the table before he suddenly leaped out to land beside her heavily in a froggish crouch and a thick throated, "KrrKIT! Ah... I... I'm s-so so sorry! L-let me help you..!" Sophie C. Bell Sophie had been jumpy at any rate, but when she saw the green thing just appear into her peripheral vision, she panicked again, and stumbled backwards, landing solidly on her bottom as she looked up at the strange creature with wide, startled eyes. For a moment, staring was all she did: she took in every little detail of the pattern of it's glossy skin, the bulging eyes, and odd physique. It took her a small while after that to realize that the thing was not a concocted monster from her imagination...it was a person. "Oh! Uhm...i-it's okay..." She replied, shaking her head to refocus her thoughts as she stood. "You scared me for a second there...I, uh...you wouldn't happen to know where a mop is, would you...?" Her voice trailed off as she spied the mop at a bit of a distance away, and somehow put two and two together. "Is that your mop? Can I use it?" She made a bit of a gesture to the mess on the floor, her hands still a bit shaky. "I really shouldn't leave it like this, after all." Newton Filinas He seemed far too preoccupied with the horror of the puddle to begin with to let her horrified stare sink in, and perhaps it was for the best. "Ah... n-nuh-no," He croaked, glancing to the mess and then to his mop. As he hopped towards it in an easy two heavy but lengthy bounds, he continued, "No, I'll g-get it! Ah... j-just... d-don't w-worry, I'll... I'll ah..." He returned, dragging the thing behind him awkwardly. Sophie C. Bell Sophie didn't know why, but the hopping creeped her out just a tad. The whole frogginess of it all wasn't lost on her, and her skin crawled as she thought of the possibility of herself being that way. What if she started turning into a frog? It was highly unlikely, seeing as how frogs didn't have tails, but lots of other yicky things did, and Sophie did her best not to think about it. "Oh, you don't have to get it: it was my fault," she insisted, feeling awful for even makng the poor guy feel obligated. "I really don't mind cleaning up a little spill." To at least say that she'd done something, she picked up the tray from the ground and discarded it on a nearby table, leaving only the macaroni on the ground to be easily swept up. Newton Filinas He'd have none of it, though, hopping over to inspect the damage before he wobbled and rocked up to stand all the way upright. It turns out he was a very tall man, strangely proportioned without any real differentiation where his head became his neck. When not huddled over like a frog, it was far easier to see his Feral Labs Blue jumper and the ID badge with a distinctly ungreen face in the tiny photo on it. "N-no, it's m-my job." That said and now in a far better position for mopping, he began to try to push it all into a pile to start with. Sophie C. Bell "Your...job?" Now Sophie was confused: he worked here, but he was changing as well? She risked a glance at the cafeteria lady: she looked pretty human. So had any other staff she'd seen. She looked at his badge, and also saw a human face, nothing like the frog she saw wearing it, and compared the two images for a moment as she looked back and forth from the amphibian's face to the man's. She certainly didn't see any resemblance. "You work here?" Newton Filinas Whether I like it or not, He wanted to grumble, but instead gave a shy sort of, "Y-yes, m-miss." He kept his bulbous eyes locked down on his work, clumsily stepping around the pile. He lifted the cheesy mop, his shoulders slumped as he concentrated on walking back to his cart for his dustpan to scoop the noodles up. His toes weren't quite built for bipedal walking, even if his legs didn't quite mind if he could keep the spring from sproinging. He stumbled only once, though, and managed to catch himself at his cart. Sophie C. Bell Sophie watched the strange frog man work for a while, but couldn't help noticing that he was having problems with standing up straight. To her knowledge, frogs couldn't stand up like that, and it was probably hurting him. "You sure you don't need any help?" she asked, tilting her head as she gave him a confused look. "I mean, even if you do work here, it doesn't mean I can't help out, does it?" She took the tray back to it's proper place, then brought back some paper towels, not quite sure what to do with them, but figuring that they were good for cleaning stuff. Call her sensitive, but she felt sorry for the poor guy. Newton Filinas "Ah... ah n-no! No, I have it!" Newt stammered pointedly, but ultimately snatched the towels from her hand and pushed his mop into it instead for her to hold while he worked. He dropped back down into his more comfortable crouch, throat trembling where it rolled out from over the wide-open collar of his jumper and he began to shove the macaroni into the dustpan in jerky, weary movements. Sophie C. Bell "Oh, uhm, okay..." Sophie gently clutched the mop as she watched Newt work, somehow feeling there was something more she could be doing. She scanned the room out of slightly boredom and considered whistling to herself...no, that'd be rude. So, she just looked back to Newt, her fingers rapping against the wooden handle of the cleaning instrument she held. It was then that something clicked into place, and she remembered a piece of information that she'd lost when she fell. "Not to be rude or anything, but were you crying in here before?" she asked, a sympathetic look on her face. It certainly would explain his demeanor, if being a giant frog hadn't been the excuse. Newton Filinas He flinched at the comment, not bothering to stand to hop over to his cart to empty the pan, "I... I... n-no, th-that... it w-wasn't... I d-don't know what you're t-talking about! KrrKIT!" Sophie C. Bell "Oh, okay..." Sophie's voice slowly trailed away as she lost focus of her thought, putting her hands in her pockets. "I just think, y'know, that talking about stuff makes it better. It might work for you..." She ran a hand through her hair for cathardic purposes, then sighed, shaking her head. "For example...I just had a really bad nightmare. Really scary. I don't even want to go back to my duplex right now, I'm so scared." She hoped that opening up to him would allow for him to open up a little as well. Awkward silence was a bit more than she could handle. Newton Filinas It seemed to make him uncomfortable as well, and he quietly hopped back to her to retrieve his mop, "Wh-what... what s-sort of nightmare?" It would be okay for him to just talk to someone for a little while while he worked, right? His eyes darted to one of the closer cameras for a moment before he straightened to mop up the left over cheese and glanced over to her with a wobbling sort of smile. He needed to get his mind off of things, if anything. "Wh-what happened?" Sophie C. Bell "I...it was weird," Sophie explained, rubbing her forehead in some pseudo-hope that it would help her forget. "I was in my room, and then something was in there...this thing...and I just knew it was going to get me...andthen, when I turned on the lights, it was gone." She looked up to the frog with a despaired glance, then began to laugh weakly. "It sounds insane, but it felt so real...I haven't had a nightmare that bad in a long time..." A shiver ran down her spine, causing even her little nub to spasm in a small quiver. However, the more she thought about it, the more her nightmare didn't seem so bad, and she figured that telling someone else had made it sound rediculous, and therefore not quite so scary. "So, what's on your mind?" Newton Filinas "I g-get n-nightmares t-too a lot... it m-might j-just b-be... " He paused for a moment, shifting uncomfortably before he continued in a much quieter voice, "Th-this p-place, y-you know?" He swallowed, quickly hurrying to get back to work, his wide mouth wobbling into a buck-toothed frown. Whether he was deliberately avoiding the question or not, he hoped she couldn't tell. Sophie C. Bell Sophie glanced around the room: the Island itself didn't seem all that scary to her. "You think so?" She shrugged, then began fiddling with her hair, sitting down at a table as she watched him. "It's not all that bad here...everyone I've met so far has been pretty nice to me. I mean, they pay for our food, lodgings, and from what I've heard, just about anything else." Looking to Newt, she offered her best attempt at a comforting smile. "Something like that can't be all bad, can it?" Newton Filinas That only made him frown further, sinking down towards the floor a bit as his legs wobbled and his knees bent. He finished the area and quickly moved onto the next bit of floor he hadn't yet mopped. "N-no... I... I w-wouldn't th-think so..." He managed hesitantly. Sophie C. Bell Sophie didn't know what to do to cheer this guy up, and slowly her expression faded back to worry, and she put her chin in the palm of her hand to make for a rather confounded expression. There just had to be something she could do... "My name's Sophie, by the way," she said, filling the awkward silence with something, at least. She'd read his name on his tag, but couldn't seem to think of it...Finn? Nah, that wasn't it..."What's your name?" Newton Filinas He fidgeted, glancing up at the camera and then to this young woman again. She wasn't very changed, was she? Just a bit here and there... not enough to tell anything for sure. He stopped, leaning the mop up against a chair befor hopping over to sit at her table with her. The labs be damned, he needed a break. He hadn't eaten himself in nearly twelve hours. "N-newton," He murmured shyly once planted on the bench across from her with his knees up on either side of him, "N-newton F-filinas." Sophie C. Bell "Newton...well, nice to meet you!" The smile she provided this time was one of a more cheerful nature, showing off her slightly pronounced canines as she offered a hand to be shaken, regardless of whether or not he was slimy. Chances were that she'd handled worse, and after all, the guy still had feelings. He seemed like a nice enough person regardless of being froggy or not. Newton Filinas He actually smiled, looking embarrassed and ill at ease even as he raised a green, webbed hand to her own clawed hand. "It's... ti's a p-pluh-pleasure to m-m-meet you, Miss S-sophie... ah..." He shifted uncomfortably, "M-my... p-previous ex-experiences w-with... um... th-those... er... th-that is to say... l-less ch-changed um... w-well... w-were a b-bit... I'm g-glad y-you ah... I m-mean..." He stopped himself, pulling his hand back to fidget with both in front of him. Sophie C. Bell Sophie hesitated, then shook her head, still smiling. "Yeah, it was a bit hard when I first got here, but I'm starting to adjust. People are still people no matter what, right?" She didn't withdraw her hand, but rather rested it on top of his fidgeting webbed fingers, forcing herself not to draw back at the strange sensation of touching his moist skin. She decided that just as Jordan had been a positive influence to her, she would be to Newton. It was the least she could do. "I figure that as long as we're still people, and we still know that, then there's nothing wrong with looking a little different." She even tugged on her elongated ears a little for effect. Newton Filinas "Y-you... l-look m-mammalian," His eyes twitched from her ears to the fangs to the rough brown nose, huddling down a little bit in an embarrassed fashion. "Ah... er... I m-mean... y-your n-nose it... um... " With his free hand, he pointed to where his would have been if it wasn't a flat pair of nostril slits. "It l-looks like.... like a m-mammal s-sort of nose, n-not like... a b-b-bug or... or... s-something... y-you know." It was intended to be a polite comment. Any conversation that didn't involve... well, just about any topic was touchy. Sophie C. Bell Sophie blinked, then touched her hand to her nose, realizing that she still hadn't bothered to ask what she was supposed to be. "Yeah...you're right, now that I think about it...mammal's certainly better than a bug." Her stomach rumbled, and she suddenly realized that she'd never actually eaten, despite the whole food incident. So, with eating on the mind, she stood, then gestured over at the variety of things to munch on. "Want me to get you anything? I'm going to go see if the mac and cheese isn't quite so dangerous now." Newton Filinas "Ah... I ah..." He was starving, but he wasn't sure exactly what... he didn't see any bugs around, unfortunately, but he'd been adventurous lately. He swallowed, tongue sticking to the back of his teeth for a moment before he popped it free, "M-maybe s-some... f-fruit? Th-th-that would be won-wonderful, th-thank you!" He twittered, smiling a little bright now. He was a fan of making friends with people who didn't want to hurt him in any way. Sophie C. Bell "No problemo." Sophie had never intended to make it a habit of fetching people food in the cafeteria, but that's always what seemed to happen, and within a minute or so, she came back with two plates: one of fruits of different variations (on account of the fact that she wasn't sure exactly what Newt liked) and one of mac and cheese, a fork wedged under the noodles so that it wouldn't fall. Sliding back into her seat, she lay the fruit plate out in front of the frog and then turned to her own plate, pushing around noodles until she finally decided to take a bite. Mmmm...now if it had only come with little chopped up hot-dog bites, it would've been just like her mom made it. Newton Filinas He shifted for a moment, glancing from the plate, to Sophie and back again. There was a sudden movement and a thunk, his wide mouth opening as something flew out to slam against the fruit in question, springing back to his mouth with several apple slices, a hunk of melon and a slice of orange all in tow. He wobbled with it in his mouth, hairless brows furrowing as he tried to figure out the taste with his froggish tongue. Sophie C. Bell Sophie hadn't been expecting the tongue, and that with her added sense of anxious nerves caused her to jump. She would've toppled over had she not caught herself before-hand, and even so, it was a moment of bewildered staring from the plate to the frog and back before she'd collected herself enough to speak again. "That's...a pretty neat trick," she admitted, rubbing the back of her neck. "Do you eat like that all the time?" Newton Filinas "Ah?" He flinched, glancing up as he resolved to swallow his mouthful of fruit. He still had his teeth, but they weren't exactly positioned for chewing very well, more for show and to help him speak than anything. "I... w-well... y-yes, g-gen-generally..." He huddled down shyly, "Usually w-when I ah... c-catch er..." Sophie C. Bell Sophie understood where Newt was going as far as his dietary habits were concerned, and decided not to question him any further about it: it was making him nervous. So, in her best attempt to change the subject, she took another bite of her food, swallowed, and then asked, "So, Newton, how long have you been here?" Newton Filinas "Ah... h-here... on the island?" The skin of his massive throat trembled as his breathing quickened, "Ah... about... about th-three and a half y-years... b-but um... I d-didn't r-really... y-you know, g-get around m-much e-early on..." Sophie C. Bell "Three and a half years?? So you mean this place has really been around for that long?" Seeming to have lost all interest in her food, Sophie leaned forward, suddenly very interested. She though Nita had said that her girlfriend had been there for about a year or so, but she'd always assumed it'd been a pretty recent project. After all, a place like this would start to get pretty hard to hide. Newton Filinas "W-well n-not as s-such, I m-mean, I d-don't know for s-sure... I n-never really asked q-questions... b-but.." He stopped in mid sentence, eyes twitching up to the video cameras. His grip on the edge of the table tightened as suddenly his throat inflated like a pair of balloons on either side of his hidden chin, and deflated again with a loud, "KrrKIT!!" that echoed about the otherwise empty cafeteria, "I... I.... I... I d-don't... I m-mean..." Sophie C. Bell Sophie had been just as poorly prepared for the croak as she had for the tongue, and her arms flailed as she attempted to get herself balanced again from her flinch. It was one thing to have something jump out at you from nowhere. It was one thing to hear a loud sound. But with the two combined, it seemed to rack Sophie's nerves tenfold, and suddenly, she didn't feel all that hungry anymore, the jitters having made her stomach a bit queasy. "Hey, it's okay if you don't know: I probably shouldn't have asked anyways." Getting to her feet, Sophie picked up her half-finished plate, glancing over at Newt's. "Do you want me to take your plate, or are you still working on it?" Newton Filinas "Ah- I w-was s-still... er... n-no, I"m f-finished," He murmured, rubbing his neck as it settled down in an embarrassed matter. "I'm s-sorry I j-just..." His voice dropped down into a whisper again, "D-don't know how much I c-can really s-s-say..." Those enormous, bugged out eyes twitched back to the camera in the corner and back again, "W-without... g-getting in tr-trouble, you know?" Sophie C. Bell Sophie took his plate, but didn't move just yet, moving closer to hear his hushed tones. Maybe it was just the way Newt was, but maybe something really was wrong, so she decided to play along. She knelt beside him at the table, and with a soft voice, replied, "Trouble? Why would we get in trouble?" Newton Filinas He stared down at his hands clutching the table, trying to keep his throat under control although his heart rate was picking up. They were probably watching him now, already angry from the things he had done before. He had probably already stepped over the line by even seeming to offer any information! Part of him wanted to say ******** it. He didn't care anymore. He wanted to kick his cart over, rip off his name tag and spit on it. He wanted out. Unfortunately, that part was very very small in comparison with the vast majority of him that feared pain and rejection and all of the rest of the negativity that constantly bogged the poor janitor down. He opened his mouth and closed it a few times, wanting to speak but not wanting to speak, and therefor getting himself trapped in a sort of error and the functions canceled each other out. Sophie C. Bell "Newton? You okay?" Sophie recognized the signs of major anxiety, and rested a hand against his shoulder in a comforting manner. It was easy to see that something was bothering him, and she didn't think that people ever needed to be quite that upset about something unless they were in danger. "Is something going to happen to you if you tell me what's going on?" Sophie pushed the plates aside, then sat down beside the frog, rubbing in a small circle on the back of his shoulders. "It's okay, you don't have to tell me, don't worry about it." Newton Filinas He opened his mouth, flinching as she touched him but managed to keep himself from hopping away. His eyes were getting glassy as he made a sad sort of choking noise in the back of his throat that turned into a ribbit as it left his mouth. "M-m-miss... S-sophie, I... I... I j-just... I c-can't d-do this anymore!" He hissed finally in a low, terrified whisper that he hoped only she could hear. Sophie C. Bell It was worse than she thought: ducking down so that she might not be heard as well, she looked into his eyes, her brows furrowed and her expression concerned. "Are the labs threatening you, Newton? It's okay, I won't tell anyone." She kept her voice as soft as possible, so that there was some chance that whatever Newt was scared of wouldn't hear. "It's okay, really...you can trust me, I promise." Newton Filinas "I... M-my... my f-friend.... he.. he s-said I sh-should j-just quit, h-he said so, b-but I m-mean... if t-turning me into a f-frog wasn't... wasn't f-firing me, I'm ter-ter-terrified to find out wh-what is!" He hissed in a frantic whisper that ended with a punctuating croak. The tears had freshly bubbled up in his massive quivering eyes, and he swallowed heavily to try to keep them at bay. Still they threatened to burst forth messily at any given moment. "I... I m-mean, I th-thought they had, b-but they hadn't!" Sophie C. Bell Sophie nearly felt the need to cry, too, from the state of the poor man. "Well, he's obviously not a very good friend if he's making you feel this way..." she softly responded, not even flinching when he croaked. "Do you think maybe you can just call and ask the labs if you could quit, or at least take a leave of absence until you're feeling better?" Sophie could feel for the man: she'd been in some pretty crappy job situations before. However, they never threatened to change her into a frog if she quit, and she had the feeling that that was part of his anxiety. "I'm sure someone there would understand...even if it's cleaning equipment that's a little more comfortable with your posture, I'm sure they could do something." Newton Filinas "I t-tried!" He cried, and then said much much softer, "I t-tried! I asked... D-doctor D-duvert himself, and... and he s-said... krrKIT W-well, it w-was m-more wh-what he d-didn't s-say that sc-scared me most of all..." His webbed hands gesticulated wildly as he tried to make his point. "And... And G-gaius is a won-won-wonderful friend! I'm j-just..." he paused, throat trembling and high-boned cheeks streaming with wet. "Er... a ter-terrible coward." He finished lamely. Sophie C. Bell "Oh, I don't think you're a coward," Sophie replied, wiping the tears from his cheek with a soft brush of her thumb, making sure not to scratch him with her sharpened nails. "I doubt that's the case at all. It just sounds like you're under a lot of stress, that's all..." She smiled, then gently patted his shoulder. "It's a lot of pressure for anyone to handle, and if there's nothing you can do, then there's nothing you can do. If you take what you have and just go with it, then things won't seem quite so bad." Newton Filinas He sagged even deeper at that, his wide lower lip trembling slightly, "Y-you're... s-saying I sh-should stay a jan-jan-janitor, then?" The look on his face showed every sign that apparently he held the opinion of a near stranger at a very high regard. Her answer to his plea for advice was apparently disappointing. He didn't blame her, though. That's just how things seemed to have worked out for him, he supposed. Or was it worth the possible danger of crawling his way out of this mess? Was there even a way out? It all made his head ache terribly. Sophie C. Bell "I'm saying that if you really hate it, then you should try your best to get out of it, but if you can't, then there's no point in getting worked up about it. There's only so much you can do, Newton, and after that, you're giving yourself unrealistic goals and making yourself feel bad for it." The answer she was giving him wasn't her preffered happy-ending style, but it was the truth, and that was really what the man needed right now. "I mean, being a janitor isn't that bad...if you can hold out for a little while and stay persistant in asking for the chance to quit, I think the labs'll give." "In all honesty, I don't think the labs would've turned you into a frog if they'd intended for you to stay a janitor. If you give it time and try to stay positive about it, then maybe they'll just let you go." Newton Filinas Stay positive. Right. It was easy for her to say, just as easy as it was for Gaius to say it. They weren't the ones threatened. He sighed, though, his grip on the table relaxing as he let his legs sag to the floor. "Th-there's... n-nothing more for it, I sup-sup-suppose..." Sophie C. Bell "Nothing more for what? Life?" Sophie blinked, confused by his response. "Oh, of course there is! You could always take up a side hobby to have fun with, or have some sort of reward system, and just tell yourself, 'Hey, if I put up with being a janitor today, I get to do something fun,' or 'I'll treat myself to a nice little gift'. The labs won't be opposed to you ordering something for yourself now and again, and it'll be a good way to positively reinforce a better attitude." Okay, so now she was quoting out of her Psych book from high school, but it had to be a useful hint, right? Newton Filinas "Ah, n-no, I meant... q-quh.. qui-qui-quitting! B-but ah... I g-guess I... m-maybe I..." Maybe he was being whiny. Maybe he was being stupid and lazy and selfish. Maybe he hadn't earned a free ride like the others. "I... aught to... to g-get back to w-work." He shifted, lifting a large, webbed foot up and over the bench to slip down to the floor. Sophie C. Bell Sophie sighed: it was easy to see that he still wasn't happy with the decision, but what else could she do? She didn't want to mess around with what the labs could or couldn't do, and even though it might've been the more conservative route, from her perspective it was the much safer one. Standing up herself, she felt that it was probably her time to go, and she picked up the plates to be put back where they belonged. "It'll be okay, Newton, really: I'm sure you'll be in a better situation soon." She came back to him instead of the door and rested a hand on his shoulder. "And hey, if you ever need me, I'm in Duplex 10, okay?" Sophie had made it a habit of telling strangers her duplex number, and as an afterthought she decided that maybe she needed to stop doing that. However, she felt she could trust Newton, and if nothing else, he didn't seem like the kind of person capable of hurting her, anyways. "I'll see you later," she called, leaving the cafeteria and heading home.
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Posted: Sun Jan 28, 2007 9:49 am
Duplex 59 I'm Sorry... Sophie C. Bell Sophie looked from her sheet of paper to the duplex numbers as she hurriedly strided down the lower level, looking for 59. In theory, it would be after 57...but, then again, sometimes people vandalized the numbers, and she was only going from a sheet she'd seen in the Cafeteria. What if she couldn't find it? What if it wasn't Marshall's duplex? What if the real occupant ate her?! The woman made herself stop, taking a deep breath as she rubbed her temples. She just had to relax: after all, it was only the author of one of her favorite comics...and he was only entirely infuriated by her presence the first and last time they met... No pressure, sure. Written apology in hand, she started walking, until sure enough, she found 59. Right after 57. Go figure. She took another deep breath, sighed, then knocked on the door just as hard as she could do without actually hurting her knuckles. She didn't give the penguin man time to answer, though: after she knocked, her panicked mind instantly assumed that there was no way he was home, and she took the folded note and left it on his doorknob so that it would be there when he got back. Sighing, she paused for a moment to stare at it, a weak smile on her face. At least she could now say she'd tried to make amends. Marshall_Green Marshall groaned, rolling over onto his good side. He had wasted all of yesterday and the day before that! And now he was too exhausted to go look for the blond haired girl who may or may not be named Lauren. And no, he hadn't found a shorter name for her yet.
He slowly got to this talon-like feet, making his way towards the sorce of the racket: his own door. He threw it open, quicker than usual for some odd reason. He expected to see Newt, Gaius, or maybe even Nita. He did not expect in any way, shape, or form, to find the blond-haired girl with pointed ears.
"...AH!" Marshall exclaimed happily, "ITS YOU!" Sophie C. Bell "AAH!" It's quite a shocker for a door you'd assume to stay close to quickly slam open, and Sophie stumbled backwards, a hand on her chest to keep her heart from going into cardiac arrest. Honestly, what was it with people and making sudden movements? It got to be nerve-wracking after a while! Shaking off her anxiousness with a weak laugh, she scratched the back of her neck, and responded. "Uhm...yeah...me. Look..." Her gaze trailed to his door, and it was only then that she realized that her note had fallen off of the door, likely never to be found again. She shook her head, then sighed, biting her lip as she looked back up to the penguin man. "I'm really sorry that I made you mad the other day. I didn't know that they'd taken Sno Cone from you, really." She began to wring her hands out of nervousness, and she began to think this was a bad idea. "Do you think, maybe, y'know...you could forgive me? I'm still a fan." Marshall_Green Marshall listened to her apology, and could honestly feel the arrows of guilt shooting through his chest. Oh. Great. She's a good person. Marshall you big jerk! Marshall thought.
"N-No...Look, it was kind of a shock but...I had no right to yell. I've been trying to apologize to you for the past few days. But umm...I never got your name. I'm sorry!" Marshall said, feeling as if this would be a good time to bow and beg. Sophie C. Bell Sophie blinked: yelling and ranting she'd be prepared for. Humility...not so much. "...My name's Sophie," she responded, still a bit confused as to why he had been trying to find her. He hadn't done anything wrong, after all...being angry like that was entirely understandable when it's something that he cared that much about. "You were...looking for me?" Something about that put her at ease, and something about it made her think that she should check for traps outside her door. As much as she loved his comics, Sophie didn't hardly know anything about the man behind them. Marshall_Green "Y-Yeah! I even had Gaius looking for you. L-Like I said, I had no right to yell at you like that. It wasn't fair. To be honest, I was kind of mad at Gaius and stuff but that still doesn't make it right and um..." Marshall looked down at the ground, heaving a heavy sigh.
"Its nice to meet you, Sophie." Marshall said with a weak smile, holding out his flipper. Sophie C. Bell Once she had determined that Marshall wasn't mad at her, Sophie's anxious vibes multiplied into happy ones, and she took his hand with a smile growing across her face. "I'm so glad that you're not upset!" It was perhaps the first good thing that'd happened to her in days: thank God or whomever else might've sent this blessing that Marshall Green wasn't mad at her. Instantly her mind thought of a million questions to ask, but Sophie repressed her inner fan girl, and seemed to calm down a bit as she took a step back, wiping her hair from her face. However, the calm soon turned into awkward silence, and she found herself unable to think of how to carry on the conversation. "...So, are you and Gaius friends?" Sophie remembered that Nita had known the Pegasus-man, as had Richard...maybe he was an Island-celebrity or something. Either way, Gaius had caught her interest, and she was curious to know a little more about him. Marshall_Green "Yeah...He's, um, kind of like my big brother...He lives right there." He said, pointing over Sophie's shoulder to the duplex adjacent. "He's a nice guy, really...Though he's kind of been obsessed with his new project. He wants to build a Theater." Marshall explained with a strange beak smile. Sophie C. Bell Sophie peered over to where Marshall had pointed, then tried to make a mental note of it: she knew she was going to forget, but still wanted to at least make the attempt. However, the dazed look she'd been giving the duplex turned to one of interest when the penguin man mention Gaius's current project. "A theater? As in plays and stuff?" Sophie found that the idea of performing on stage again was a rather pleasant one, despite the fact that only weeks ago she was ready to put her acting career behind her. She supposed that it was just the time away that was making her miss home. Marshall_Green Marshall nodded, "Yep! Its um...Kinda how I broke my arm. But there are a lot of people workin' on it! I think Billy- um, he's an octopus and he's kinda the boss of the project, he's looking for talent! I think its gonna be some sorta...Um...Variety Show? Maybe?" Marshall chuckled, not sure if it true or not. Sophie C. Bell "...An octopus?" Sophie processed that little bit of information before the rest of whatever Marshall had said: something about the idea of a sushi-man intrigued her. But 'looking for talent' processed soon after, and the woman began to plot to herself. "You wouldn't happen to know if any acting troupes have gotten together for the theater, have you? You know, something I could join?" Sophie turned and looked behind her, as if she expected to see the theater somewhere in the general vicinity, then directed her attention back to him, adding, "You see, I used to act, and I think it'd be something fun to do." Marshall_Green "Oh yeah! You mentioned some thing about voice-work!" Marshall said with a smile, "Well...Not that I know of. You could always start one, though. I'm sure there are plenty of other people who love to act!" Marshall said happily. It was like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders! Sophie, not Lauren, had forgiven him!
I'm so telling Gaius... Sophie C. Bell "Yeah...I never did make it to the final call-backs, though..." Sophie shrugged, not seeming all that upset about it. "Auditioning processes are always kinda rigged anyways." The more she thought about it, the more Sophie wanted to perform, and it was giving her ideas. Lots of ideas. And the more she schemed, the less likely she was going to be able to sit through a long conversation without squirming, so she figured she should go ahead and start saying her goodbyes. "Well, I better go, but just so I'm not wandering lost around the place later, where's the theater being built?" She looked around once again, but gave up after only a momentary glance, having already decided that it wasn't here. Marshall_Green "You just want to head to the cafeteria and hang a left. Its huge, so you can't miss it. Oh, and to make it up for you, once my good arm heals up...Would you like an artist doodle?" Marshall asked with a slight chuckle. He was never sure why people at conventions loved free doodles, but he thought it'd be a nice gift for a fan.
Its good to know I still have some... Sophie C. Bell "...Artist doodle?" The look dawned on Sophie's face with the same sort of excitement as a child's on Christmas morn. Her eyes lit up and she bit her lip to keep from squealing in delight. "Oh, man, that'd be awesome! You'd really do that?!" Marshall_Green Marshall nodded with a patented odd smile, "Yep. Sure will!"
Well, she's certaintly enthusiastic... Sophie C. Bell Sophie couldn't help but jump up from pure happiness, even though she'd probably look back on the memory later and give herself a rather appropriate face-palm. It'd been a while since she'd had something to really look forward to, and it made her forget for a moment that she had troubles or worries to care about. Stepping forward, she hugged the penguin man from the side, staying clear of his broken arm so that she wouldn't hurt him. "Marshall, you've just made my whole week!" she exclaimed before letting go, flashing him a toothy grin. "See you later!" Sophie called out, already having started down the long hall to the staircase that would take her to the second floor and her duplex. "I'm in room 10 if you ever need me!"
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Posted: Mon Feb 12, 2007 1:27 pm
Things had been a little slow for Sophie after the run-in with Marshall, and even though the next few days had her elated with the thought of actually getting a sketch from the Marshall Green, after a while, the novelty wore off. She went back to her somewhat regular routine (as regular as can be made when only on an Island for two months), and soon, the days slipped by without any sort of regards to time or reason. Sophie began to feel the anxious boredom of her schooldays, in the days before school would start. Of course, she wanted her boredom to end: but did she want what would it would be replaced by?
She'd watched Jordan changed, she'd seen some of the others, she knew what this Island was about. But she was supposedly already at her first change, and she wasn't as nearly as bad off as the others had been. Was that in store for her, too? What parts of herself would she lose next?
What if she died from it?
Such questions tug at her consciousness, which had over the weeks begun to deteriorate back to it's normal slightly-sluggish self because the pills had stopped working, and she'd started having nightmares. The woman that entered the cafeteria on this particular day was not the same one who saw Newt only weeks before: the soft tissue under her eyes had begun to tint purple from her lack of sleep, and because she wasn't supposed to do laundry until the weekend, she wore what pretty much consisted of her pajamas: her white tank top, khaki shorts, and mismatched multicolored socks, to top it all off. High-top converses were never meant for shorts, but alas, they were the only shoes she had other than formalwear, so they had to do.
For once, she was grateful that there were only cold items available, and got herself some cereal before sitting down. Who cared that it was 3 o' clock in the afternoon? She wanted Froot Loops, and darn it, if she was turning into a freak of nature, she'd get Froot Loops.
As she crunched into her fruity goodness, her mind lazily counted the days that had passed. It was February, she knew that much....February...12th? She blinked, paused before taking another bite, then fully concentrated on making sure the days were right. Yep, February 12th, alright. Sophie's birthday.
So...she was twenty-five now? Sophie didn't feel much different, or at least, she didn't think she did until her tongue ran over her sharpened canines. Truth be told, she was different...but then again, different was sometimes for the good. She had a chance to start a new life here, with good people, and even a theater being built as she thought about it. Marshall Green was here, and there was Jordan...well, Jordan had his girl, and that was good enough for Sophie. At least he was happy.
She wondered about the dog-man for a moment, then decided to treat herself to another bowl of Froot-Loops: after all, it was her birthday. Since she decided she was going to start anew, she needed something to do here, something where she could meet people, be productive. Gaius was the head of the theatre project, right...? She could call him and see if maybe she could help!
Complete with a purpose and her nub wiggling with excitement from all of her ideas, Sophie put away her plates, taking a final peek at the buffet to see if maybe she could have some birthday cake? No? Oh well: she had things to do, anyways. So, she took a look at the list again to get Gaius's duplex number, and then began the walk back to her duplex.
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Posted: Wed Feb 14, 2007 8:15 pm
It starts... ironically enough, with your ears. Even as you realize they appear to be, swelling and growing larger. Your reach up to feel the fur that appears to be spreading up there. The bridge between your nose and lip grows more protruded, the start of a muzzle. Your face pulls in a bit as your eyes also grow larger. Fur grows down from the ears and around the growing eyes. The nails on your fingers grow longer and fur grows on the backs of your hands. Your feet begin to ache next, as they push out, tipped with dark nails like your fingers your feet grow longer and thinner. Your tail nub grows longer and furrier. Your senses grow more acute as you become more like a fennec fox. 
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Posted: Fri Feb 16, 2007 4:47 pm
Bright lights, dim shadows, everything seemed to have much more contrast when an audition was going on. Sophie fiddled with the large paper that had her entry number on it, the nerves causing her to fidgit with anything she could get her hands on. After all, landing this gig could mean so much for her: a new home, a new life...now all she had to do was impress the judges.
"Miss Bell?"
Sophie looked up to who'd called her: a lanky young man that was probably younger than she was, looking down to a clipboard with his hand pressed against an earpiece. "Uhm, that's me: I'm Sophie Bell." She nodded in confirmation, trying not to look as nervous as she felt. The man looked from her, to the clipboard, spoke in hushed tones into the earpiece, then grabbed her by the arm and pulled her to the side.
"Uh, yeah...look, we're not hiring any animals for this show, so you'll have to leave."
Sophie gave the man a confused look. "What? I'm not an-"
"Yeah, yeah, we've heard it all before. Now I'll tell you this one last time. We don't want animals."
Sophie looked down at her hands, which felt particularly stuffy, and cried out to find paws in their place. She touched her face, and found it to be a short, stubby muzzle. Moving her paws backwards, she felt animalistic ears, and to top it all off, she reached behind her, and found a long, fluffy tail.
"What? But-But I'm not an animal!! I'm a person, like you!"
The man shrugged, then ignored her, going to the next person on the list. "Hey, wait: I need this audition!" Sophie tried to grab at his arm, but he merely snapped, and two people in Feral Labs uniforms began to drag her away into the shadows.
"Hey, wait! Stop it! I'm a person!"
Her shouts quieted when she heard a growl, and her heart leapt into her throat. It was the monster from before. She tried squirming free, but instead began to fall into the dark abyss of shadows...
...Sophie shot forward out of bed, a cold sweat sending shivers down her spine. For a moment, she stood there, frozen, and then just began to shake her head. These nightmares really needed to stop.
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Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2007 7:26 pm
Construction Site Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes... New RP Sophie C. Bell New RP Sophie was particularily excited, though she couldn't tell quite why. Maybe her medicine had started working again to make her more alert, or maybe she was just getting nervous over calling someone she barely knew, but either way, adrenaline seemed to rush through her veins, and she paced back and forth from within the interior of her duplex with her arms crossed. Why was she so nervous, anyway? She'd sung and danced in front of total strangers, so why was it so awkward to make one phone call? Sophie figured it was probably because she knew that once she talked to Gaius, once she started working with him, she'd have a purpose, and a new direction in life. It was exciting, it was new, but it was also a bit nervewracking, just to let go of everything she'd known before in exchange for this new chance to live. Of course, she could just stay all mopey and upset about the Island and it's vices, but she knew she couldn't be like that forever: it had to be this way, and it had to be now. She'd moped long enough. So, checking the paper only six times, she dialed the number for Gaius's duplex, her leg twitching as she anxiously waited for him to answer. Gaius Harper Gaius was in his own duplex, having just showered off after his excursion to the beach. He'd just been in the process of patting down his feathers, frowning at how ratty they were looking lately - especially with the pinion missing - when the intercom buzzed. Wondering who could be calling, and silently hoping it wasn't Newt again or anyone in a similar predicament, he picked up the unit. "Y'ello?" he answered. Sophie C. Bell "Oh! Uhm...hi. This is Gaius, right?" Sophie didn't know why the sudden noise made her jump, but it had, and she spent a moment putting her hair back in place before speaking again. "It's Sophie: also known as the blonde chick with elf ears. You got a moment?" Gaius Harper "Yep! This is Gaius," he replied, scratching at the blackish hair on his cheek. His ears went up as she mentioned her name. "Sophie? We... met in the cafeteria, right? That Sophie?" He couldn't see her hair-fixing of course, just like she couldn't see the way he awkwardly shifted from foot to foot. "It's, uh, good to hear from you! And 'course I got a moment! What can I do for you?" Sophie C. Bell "Yeah, we met in the cafeteria," Sophie responded, glad that he remembered her at least. That meant that she wouldn't have to do more introductions. "Well, I heard you were the one working on the theater project and all that jazz, and I was kinda wondering if there were any spots open for people to work. I mean, I don't know how much I could do, but if I saw the site then I think I could get a general idea...just a little help, y'know?" She crossed her fingers and shook them, hoping and praying for a 'yes'. After all, she'd already gotten dressed for some sort of outdoor work in her khaki shorts and an older t-shirt. True, she normally wouldn't wear it on account of the fact that she'd have to shave every hour or so to keep her legs hair-free, but that's what her long, crazy multi-colored socks were for. Gaius Harper Gaius' chest puffed up proudly. "Yep, that's me!" Someone finally noticed! And took interest too! Still, his response wasn't quite as welcoming as it would have been for someone like Oz, or even Lucas and Newt. "Well, I don't know... it's hard work, even for us guys, you see, not really the kind of thing a girl like you would want to do... But I can definitely show you around if you'd like to see what we've got so far? Just be careful, it's pretty dirty out there!" "Shall I meet you out there in a couple minutes?" Sophie C. Bell Sophie laughed warmly, then responded, "I'll try and do my best for a girl, then. See you out there in a little while." She ended the call and let out a sigh of relief, coupled later with a fist-pump of victory! She had something to do! Which meant she wouldn't be boring her brains out! Without any hesitation, she left her duplex, making sure to lock it before jogging down towards the site with loads of enthusiasm. By the time she got there, though, she seemed to be considerably lacking in it, and paused as she looked around to check her forehead for a fever. Was she sick? Her temperature felt right, but she certainly didn't: specifically, her head was throbbing quite a bit. Merely attributing it to the already warm tropical air and her jog (which would naturally leave her a bit winded), she waited for Gaius, already a million questions about the site coming to mind. Gaius Harper Gaius had yanked on a pair of old modified jeans he'd cut off around the knees after finishing toweling off his legs, and left his hair kinda damp, which made it even curlier than normal. Putting Vixen on a leash to keep her under control - the dog had taken to getting her nose in the worst places! - he trotted out towards the site. It was about mid-way that he stopped to think about his last encounter with Sophie. That had been weeks ago... and last she'd seen him, he still had a human-ish face! He stopped dead in his tracks, suddenly gripped by panic. Crud! He didn't have anything to cover his head! Or his legs, why hadn't he worn longer pants? But he'd already taken this long, she'd wonder if he kept her waiting and probably get mad... Quietly, he walked the rest of the way, head held a bit low on his long neck, and wings puffed behind him as he tried to dry the feathers in the sun. Looking ahead, he saw Sophie standing around, and worked on approaching her from behind. Not until she was a couple yards away did he call to her. "Hey! Uh, hi Sophie..." Sophie C. Bell Once again, the sound made Sophie jump, and she turned around sharply with a loud "EEP!", nearly toppling over from losing her balance. It took her a second to recognize the fuzzy, winged man as Gaius, and she gave him a confused, blinking stare until she did, at which point, her eyes momentarily widened, despite her attempts to hide her surprise. "Oh, uhm...hi! You, uh...you look different." She nearly slapped herself in the face for being so blunt, but it was true. His face had widened, the extent of his fur had spread over his body, and his wings were now feathered. But, as she couldn't take it back, she just did he rbest not to stare too much, and instead looked out towards the site. "So...what exactly are you guys doing right now?" The pain in her head caught her for a moment, and she rubbed her temples, the aching throb becoming slightly more acute. Gaius Harper Gaius jerked at the reaction, taking a step forward as Sophie fell over, but he was too far and too slow to even think of catching her, so he offered her a hoof-hand up instead, along with a sheepish smile. "Yeah, I'm different... sorry, should've warned you or something." Waiting until she'd caught his hand, he hauled Sophie up, making sure she was okay before looking around the site. His eyes widened with surprise as he surveyed the site work in progress. "Heey... someone's been working here... Those beams weren't up last I was here!" Augh, that made him feel guilty. How long had it been? Offering her an arm, he gestured towards the pit. "Well, shall I show you around? We've been working on building a theater for the islanders..." Sophie C. Bell Sophie didn't quite notice the gesture of offering the arm: instead, she made note of his hoof-hands, and did her best not to make a comment about them. So, she looked out at the site, her head still throbbing as she replied, "Sure: where do we start?" She waited for a response, but instead found herself hissing in a breath of pain when the pain in her head suddenly became centered on her ears, pulling upwards and itching as fur began to sprout from their tips. With a soft moan, she clutched at her head, unaware that it wasn't a migrane treating her so harshly: it was a change. Gaius Harper Gaius was heedless of the pain in Sophie's head, instead leading her around to the edge of the site. He babbled along happily, talking about wood quality and tools and hours of man-work and how helpful people were being. He didn't notice as Sophie seemed to trail behind a bit, growing more distracted with her own problems. It wasn't until she clutched at her head that he looked down, clearly hearing the low moan she uttered. "You feeling okay?" Was it something he'd done? Had he annoyed her with something he'd said? "Do you, uh, need to sit down? There's trees with some shade right over there..." Sophie C. Bell "I dunno...I kinda feel sick, but I think I'll be okay..." Karma seemed to feel particularily wicked that day, and no sooner had the words left Sophie's lips did she feel the same sharp aches in her face, and she yelped as her hands went to her ears to her nose, now exposing the inches that her ears had grown and how they were continuing to swell, getting larger by the second. "What's...going on?!" Sophie managed to cry from clenched fangs, her sinuses gritting as her nose began to push forward the slightest bit, fur spreading onto her face starting from her eyebrows. Her feet bucked and she went to her knees, her eyes tearing up from the pain. Gaius Harper Gaius opened his mouth just as Sophie first cried with pain. He jerked back a step, ears and tail twitching in agitation. "No, Sophie...! Not her!" Of course, it was inevitable, they all had to succumb to it, didn't they? But she'd come changed! Somehow, he'd wondered if she'd be different... Recovering himself, Gaius stooped to gather the fallen girl up in his arms, slinging one arm behind her shoulders and the other beneath her knees, and quickly carried her over to the trees he'd pointed out earlier, setting her down on the softer grass. A glance was all he needed to note what damage was already done. Her ears - huge, and her nose. Gaius could easily imagine the pain her nasal cavity was going through, as he'd felt something like it before. "Don't panic, whatever you do..." he said to her in a tight voice. That close, he could practically smell her fear - a bitter smell to his nose, and it acted on his own nerves. He had to clench down on them to keep from losing control of himself. Sophie C. Bell Sophie was barely aware of the fact that Gaius had picked her up and set her down in a different place, her senses aflame and painfully aware of what was happening to her body. Fur spread out in a mask over her eyes, closed tight from pain, and she cried out again as she put a hand over her face, an abrupt stab to her sinuses indicating the reshaping of her skull to accomodate larger eyes. Despite the fact that none of this could be seen from under the cover of her hands, there was still a sight to behold for the poor horse-man witnessing her change. An itch prompted sandy fur to come forth on the backs of her hands, and her moans began to creep up to wails as the bones within her hands cracked, her fingers actually growing longer. "It...hu-hurts..." Sophie whispered, bending her back in upon herself to try and hide from the harsh realities of her deforming body. "I don't w-want...to die, Gaius!" From underneath her hands, her tears began to flow freely, aching sobs joined with the fact that she could feel her nub growing as well, sproting fur as it did. Gaius Harper Gaius bit his lip as he watched helplessly. Hair washed over Sophie's hands like a werewolf movie, accompanied with claws and cracking, growing joints that his sensitive horse ears could hear all too clearly. "I-I know it hurts..." he stammered, brushing his fingers against the back of one of her hands, and then up, pushing back locks of hair that had tumbled forward. He wished he could stop it, or at least somehow take all this pain into himself. He was used to it, he could handle it. This slight girl didn't have the body to take such abuse! Surely she would be snapped in two under the pain. "It's... a change. It'll be over soon. Try to focus on something, anything but the pain. Here, grab my hand, I don't want you scratching up your face..." He held out one of his hoofed hands to Sophie, hoping the girl wouldn't somehow accidentally hurt herself further. Sophie C. Bell With a whimper, Sophie took the hoof-hand, leaning against Gaius without any regards to the things that might be taken from such a move. Her eyes remained closed, but slowly, the changes abated, and she let out a deep breath, too scared to look up at Gaius, to see what had happened to her. It was a false security, however, and the moment of silence was replaced with another cry of pain as she went scrambling for her shoes, her feet lengthening from within and pressing against the linings of the fabrics. Shaking hands got her shoes from her feet, and she watched in horror as they lengthened, feeling with a painful strain how one toe was left behind from the others as the beginnings of a dew claw. She winced, and as the sound of ripping fabric exploded from within her ears, the claws of her feet shredded into her socks, showing the extent of her change. For a while, Sophie merely sat there with a quivering lip, her whole body sore and her mind wracked with fear. She wasn't dead...that was a start. However, everything looked...different. Would 'more vibrant' be the way to put it, or was it just that she was exhausted from the change and not thinking straight. Still, she refused to look at Gaius, and feeling very vulnerable, leaned back onto his chest, the tears starting down her face once again. "It wasn't that bad last time..." Gaius Harper Gaius held her hand silently, and wrapped an arm around her thin shoulders, too caught up in the midst of the change to think about anything that would bring out his modest, shy side that would have leaped at the proximity of the girl. He had to let her go again quickly, though, as she scrambled for her shoes, and he knew what was likely happening, ascertained as he watched fer feet straining within the socks. His own feet twitched in remembrance. Ah, the second change, how long ago it seemed. As it slowed again, Gaius wrapped his arm around Sophie, hoping that somehow he could channel some strength into her, somehow shield her from everything else, somehow make it alright. As she cried, he brushed a thumb against her furry cheek, wiping away some of the tears that were coming. "I know... I know. It always gets worse, somehow. But, at least it's over now..." The poor girl. Gaius gave her a small squeeze, trying to reassure Sophie. "Hey, you made it at least." Sophie C. Bell "I...Oh, God, Gaius...what's it look like?" Sophie looked up at Gaius from her shaken self, clinging to his shirt with her elongated fingers, trying to stop the flow of tears. She looked down to her strange feet, then back at her tail, and to her hands...It was all too strange to be real. It couldn't be her...could it? It wasn't just that, either: there was a subtle change to the way she perceived things, a gentle awareness of noises she hadn't noticed before, a certain detail in the things she could see. "I...I look really weird, don't I?" Gaius Harper Gaius' expression said more than the man vocalized - his expression sad and depressed as she asked him how she looked. Now that she was looking up at him, he was able to get a better look at her face, able to see the unusual, even alien size of her eyes, which exaggerated her worried expression. Attempting a weak smirk, the horse-man chuckled. "Hey, I can definitely say you don't look nearly as weird as me..." He was startled by a sudden cold, wet feeling against his arm, and looked down to see Vixen, who'd run off once more, nudging him. In her mouth, pulled from one of the supply buckets, was a slightly dirty rag, but it would do well enough. Taking it from the dog, he wiped Sophie's cheeks clean. "Want me to take you back to your duplex?" he offered, doubting she'd want to see more of the site in this state. Sophie C. Bell Sophie closed her eyes to allow him to wipe her face off, then offered a weak smile, biting her lip. "I never thought you looked all that weird...Well, not really, I mean..." Turning away, she gently petted Vixen, using the dog as a distraction to escape what she'd gone through. "...Yeah, I think I need to get back to my duplex. Maybe order some new shoes or something." Shakily, she got to her feet, but before she could stand, she was back on the ground, her rump giving her a painful reminder of the tail that now resided there. Looking back up to Gaius, she blushed a little bit, then added, "Do you think maybe you could help me up? I...I don't think I can stand up on my own." Gaius Harper The horse had been about to warn her about walking so soon with feet changes, but it was too late and he winced as she fell with a small thump. He could hide a small, amused smile as he shifted to his knees and placed an arm around her shoulders again. "Don't worry, I'll get you there just fine." With that, he scooped her up. The girl was light, lighter than he'd expected, or else the physical labor he'd been doing was paying off. Either way, he began trotting off across the grass, Sophie in his arms. It did occur to him now that this was probably a bit close even for a changed girl, and he focussed on looking straight ahead to avoid embarrassing himself, though his cheeks were already colored pink. Vixen bounded along beside and ahead, leash trailing after her. It wasn't until they were within the outer ring of duplexes that Gaius paused, looking a bit perplexed, and finally looked down at Sophie. "Uh, where do you live again...?" Sophie C. Bell "Duplex 10...it's, uhm...upstairs." Sophie had never been scared of heights, but the idea of just one person holding her didn't give her any sort of comfort, and she'd wrapped her arms around his thick neck as best she could without scratching him. As an afternote, she remembered that she'd left her shoes out at the Construction Site, but didn't bother mentioning them: they were of no use to her anyways. "I can try and get down...it'd be too much for you to carry me up a flight of stairs..." There were several hints of reluctance in her voice, and she knew she wasn't ready to walk. However, she had to at least make the offer, in case his arms were tired. Gaius Harper "Duplex 10, huh? That's near the center then..." He changed direction slightly as he spoke. All that Sophie got in reward for her protests and offers was a widening, knowing smile. Gaius still wasn't looking down at her, but he knew how awkward stairs were. It was too bad she was stuck with an upper floor as well. Without missing a beat, he trotted up the stairs, his hoof-nails clip-clopping on the hard surface, and he only stopped after trying her door and finding it locked. "Alright then, looks like this is end of the line..." Kneeling a little, he set her down gently so she could catch the railing while trying to stand on her own feet. With his task complete, Gaius found himself suddenly feeling much more awkward, having no purpose to stand around waiting on her, but never the less, he didn't really want to leave. Shuffling his foot a little, he rubbed at the back of his neck and looked down at his toes. "Anything else I can, uh, do for you?" he asked sheepishly. Sophie C. Bell Sophie wobbled on her changed feet, but with a tight grasp on the rail, she somehow kept her balance. Fumbling for her keys, she found that it took quite a deal of concentration to hold anything with her strange hands, and even more concentration to keep from falling as she shuffled her feet over to the door, taking baby-steps until she was able to get to the door-knob, turning it and with a bit of force, getting the door open. "You can come in, if you want." Leaning against the doorframe for support, she smiled with a sweet sense of admiration. In any normal sense, she would've been blushing beyond all reason at the fact that she was practically flirting with the guy, but for now, she was feeling clingy, and rather liked the idea of someone staying nearby, just in case. "I might need some help with the child-proof painkiller bottle or something." Gaius Harper Gaius was grateful for the offer, accepting it as he slowly shuffled in after her. Vixen, ever curious about new places and people, rushed in between both their legs and went to business sniffing every corner to get a proper assessment of the place. If he'd been more aware of his instincts, Gaius likely would have known he was being impacted by his need for a 'herd,' but right now all he knew was that he wanted company, and it seemed Sophie did too. He was more than willing to provide it. However, the awkwardness outside didn't go away once he was through the door, as he stood there fidgeting with his hands and not really sure where to put his massive form. At the mention of bottles, he winced, chuckling weakly. "I may not be the best to offer any help when it comes to bottle-opening. Fingers and all that... I might be able to break it with a little effort, but I doubt that'd be any good." Sophie C. Bell "It's alright...I think I've got it." From within the bathroom, she stumbled out with a small bottle, and with some effort, she popped it open, gulping down two pills like it'd been easy. "If only they'd made these things to work sooner...everything still hurts." She looked up at Gaius, then mentioned to a couch, pocketing the pill bottle before shoving her bags off of the seats and gently sitting down, keeping her tail in mind. "...You wouldn't have any idea of what I'm supposed to be, would you?" The question had been nagging her for some time, but she'd made it a point not to look in the bathroom mirror, and still the animal that looked like this eluded her. Gaius Harper Gaius grunted his thanks as he took a seat, waving a hand beneath him to pull his tail out of the way as he did so - an almost automatic gesture now. Her question made him look up, and for the first time he really looked at her face, eye to eye. "Well... it's, uh, kinda pointy... and your ears... er, well..." He fidgeted, wrapping the end of his tail around a finger. How to say it nicely? "They're pretty big?" He winced. That wasn't it. "I... don't really know? It kiiind of looks like a cat of some sort? Definitely mammal, at least. At least you're not a reptile... or a plant." Sophie C. Bell Sophie sighed, then looked down at her hands, opening and closing them methodically. "Yeah, that's what Newt said...some sort of mammal. Doesn't really narrow it down, though." Wringing the hem of her shirt with her hands in a nervous gesture, she looked up at him with a worried glance. "I mean... should I know? How would I find out?" Gaius Harper Gaius, caught by those large eyes of hers, gave a bemused shrug and quirk of the mouth. "The only way anyone I know of has found out was by asking the labs, especially in the case of more obscure animals. I didn't know I was a 'pegasus' until I was told." Scratching his scruffy black chin, he mused. "Thought... there's a lot of books in the entertainment room. You could always do some research there, see if you can find something with similar features?" Sophie C. Bell Sophie shrugged, then yawned: she hadn't realized how much the change had taken out of her. "I'd been planning to call the labs, anyways, so...I guess I'll just ask, then." She wasn't liking the idea of calling whoever had just made her go through her experience, but it was the only way of knowing what to expect for the future. "Awww...I just realized that we never got to talk about Construction!" Sophie realized, crossing her arms as best she could without overly straining her still sore arms, a bit of a pout spread across her face. "I'm sorry...it probably wasn't the best of times...Maybe we could try this again another day?" Gaius Harper "Don't worry, the construction site seems to have a curse around it for bad luck!" Gaius laughed, something half between a whinny and a warm, loud laugh. It was true, the place had had the worst luck lately! Oz's change and the tools... "But if you're still so bent on helping, I'm sure I can find something a girl like you can handle." The horse-man smiled widely, leaning over to pat her on the shoulder. Sophie C. Bell Sophie giggled, then shrugged his arm off. "A girl like me? And just how would you know what or what not I was capable of?" The question was asked in a playful manner, and it was pretty obvious that Sophie wasn't some psycopathicly-religious feminist, but it was fun to tease, and she took advantage of the situation. "For your information, mister, I can carry, uhm...I think thirty-five pounds in each hand!" She nodded, confirming her uhm-sorta-theory. Gaius Harper "Well!" Gaius laughed, letting Sophie push him off. Vixen, who'd been beneath the bed, reappeared with a colorful sock in her mouth and hopped up besides Gaius, lying down across his lap and the space available. He rested a hand on her back. "Just comparing you to Oz... who I bet easily weighs over 250 pounds... you just don't seem quite as 'hardy', you know? Besides! Construction is a man's job. Maybe you'd be better with something like sewing costumes!" His tone carried the same joking nature of Sophie's, but there was an element of belief in what he said - honestly, he was a bit sexist, when it came to work roles and physical labor. Women were plenty smart, he would never question that, and great leaders too, but he'd rather have a man by his side when hauling bricks. Sophie C. Bell "And I suppose that next I'll be asked to wear a bonnet and dress? Tch. Puh- leeze." She affectionately petted the dog, secretly mourning for the sock but figuring that she probably couldn't wear them anymore anyways, so they might as well be chewtoys. "And I guess that makes you the gallent knight in shining knight in armor?" the question left her blackened lips before she'd been given a chance to think about it, and the parts of her face that hadn't been furred started to turn pink. The part of her that had been able to smooth-talk mercilessly died on her, and she could only wonder what the horse man would take from a comment like that. Gaius Harper "Hey now, no need to go that far," he grumbled after the bonnet suggestion. Gaius blinked, his horse-like face blank as she blushed. He'd heard her correctly, but failed to see the problem with the statement. "Well, uh..." he began, scratching at his nose, a bit self-consciously just by proximity to Sophie's embarrassment. "I was one for Halloween? But, I guess, if I could be one..." He shrugged slightly, then cracked a smile. "Though I'm going to need new armor if that's the case... and, er, I'm worried about looking more like the steed now..." Sophie C. Bell "Nah, the steed's usually white, and he doesn't have a bunch of peachish-beige on his face." Playfully, she pressed the fleshy part of her pointer finger into his nose, then laughed to herself, for some reason amused by that. She pulled her feet up to her on the couch, then curled up into a ball, comforted by teh position more than made comfortable by it. "I...I guess I shouldn't keep you here, though. I'm sure you've got lots of stuff to do." Gaius Harper "Gee, thanks for your confidence there..." Gaius muttered, though it was with wry amusement. He crossed his eyes as she pushed his nose, wrinkling it a bit, and he couldn't hold back a small snort that escaped him. Her laughter was probably better than he'd hoped for, and he laughed as well, glad that she could still be cheerful, even so soon after a change. As she curled up, Gaius got up from the couch, pushing Vixen off as well though the dog seemed to be fancying the idea of curling up with Sophie, but the horse had her leash again. "Mm, some stuff, but I don't want to keep you if you're tired, so I'll just head back to my duplex..." He padded across the carpet towards the door, resting a hand on the doorknob. "Feel free to call if you need me, okay?" he called over his shoulder as he headed out. Sophie C. Bell "Will do," Sophie called back, getting up on shaky legs to let him out. She peeked her head out from the door frame to watch him leave, then when she was sure that he was gone, closed the door, locking it behind her. She had some things that she needed to do anyways. [FIN]
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Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2007 7:59 pm
After Gaius left, Sophie was tired, aching, and on top of that, she'd just realized that she'd left her only pair of shoes at the construction site. Things weren't looking so up for her. Nevertheless, she needed to face herself in the mirror, and do some damage control: or at least, as much damage control as she was able to do.
She didn't want to see her new reflection: she didn't want to see why the whole thing had hurt so much, how different she could be, or what she could be. The very idea nagged her: what was she supposed to be, anyway? How is it that everyone else could know, and yet the animal she was turning into eluded her? She supposed there was only one way to find out, and with sore, shuffling feet, she clambered over to the bathroom door and opened it, flicking on the lights with a pained finger as she looked up reluctantly.
She'd never expected so much...blue...to be part of her face. Had...had her eyes exploded?! Creeping closer with weak balance, she put her malformed hands on the sink, staring into her enlarged pupils with a look of shock. Her face...it was all furry! On the plus side, it made a pretty neat mardi gras mask, but the thought was soon whisked away when she realized it was something she couldn't take off. The short muzzle, the fur...it was her face, not some costume.
Her ears twitched, and she would've jumped backwards if not for the fact that she hadn't gotten quite used to walking with her feet yet, much less any sort of surprised acrobatics. What was she, some sort of cat? She turned around and stared at her tail (no longer could she affectionately call it nub) and painfully shook it. It didn't quite look like a cat's tail...but that didn't mean it wasn't one, right? Looking down to her clawed hands, she rubbed at the soft fur now sprouting on them, feeling very much like something out of a teen werewolf movie. Was that it, then? Some cat with really big eyes?
Sophie didn't want to think about it anymore: she just wanted to sleep. Fumbling out of the bathroom, she flopped on her bed, groaning in pain as she did so, and bundled the covers around her, trying to dream it all away.
But, alas, she was alert as ever: it would seem that she wouldn't be getting any sleep for a good while.
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Posted: Fri Mar 30, 2007 3:00 pm
Sophie found that she had to relearn a lot of things after changing so much: it took nearly a week just to become comfortable with her new feet. It started with just walking, and within about an hour or so, she figured she was adept enough to try running. Bad mistake. As it turned out, animal feet were great for speed, but without the thick calloused pads, it was like having a race car with faulty breaks. Okay, so maybe it was her fault for trying to stop next to a wall, but she hadn't expected to fly right into it. Besides, it was nothing a few bandaids and some peroxide couldn't fix.
One thing that really fascinated her, though, was how much her hearing sensitivity had increased. It was amazing: she could hear all sorts of things she'd never thought she'd been able to before! Practicing her walking skills out near the forests one day, her ears perked up as she heard a tiny squeak, probably some rodent. Looking around, she thought she'd finally determined the direction it had come from when the piercing shriek of some bird of prey caused her to wince, covering her ears. When she'd recovered enough again, she listened out for the rodent, but couldn't seem to hear it anymore: only a lazy flapping of wings filled her ears. Sophie's eyes widened for a moment, but then she continued her walk: maybe some things were just better left to the unknown.
Sophie's eyes, too, had changed: she noticed that she had a slightly better view of things, but it became harder to particularily focus on just one detail, for instance, the gloss of a glass door. Note to self: always check before assuming that the cafeteria door has been left open.
But, most regrettably, her tail got in the way of most of her clothes, so Sophie spent a good bit of her time with her pants, using her new claws to poke holes where the tail could be comfortable. It was a crude way of doing things, and on one occasion she'd actually broken a nail, but she didn't have any scissors, and she didn't think to call the labs and ask for some.
At some point, she needed to call the labs, but not for the reasons she needed to before. It no longer mattered that her medicine wasn't working: because of her change, it was almost like she didn't need it. Always alert, energy levels high...it took more effort to actually go to sleep than it did to wake up. If there was one thing she could say about Feral Labs, it was that at least their products worked.
However, there was one part of adjusting that Sophie wasn't so sure she could handle, and that was seeing other people. The time alone had made her self-conscious, and she didn't know how she would take it if someone reacted harshly to her new look. However, she couldn't stay a hermit forever, and finally, she decided that she was going to give the rest of the Island the benefit of the doubt. After all, they'd all seen animal people, right?
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Posted: Fri Mar 30, 2007 8:04 pm
Cafeteria RP Now Ain't That Peachy Topher Garrison New RP Topher had awaken from his mid afternoon nap in the evening. He still felt groggy and a little disturbed by his dreaming plus the back of his neck hurt like a son of a b***h. Topher rubbed it and felt his stomach rumble with hunger. He thought it best to get ready and go get some grub, and maybe check out the beach.
So he put his fingers through his hair, put on swim trunks instead of jeans. He still wore his cowboy boots because he forgot to pack sandles but added the cowboy hat for good measure. It was much hotter than he was used to on this island, too hot to wear jeans over his shorts and he wasn't really looking to impress anyone. As far as he was concerned, the island was full of drunks, no one worth his time.
He whistled his way to the cafeteria not sure what he was getting into. When he opened the door he found a strangly empty room with just one woman serving food. It must of been in between time, too late for most probably. The food served struck him as odd, but foreign people tended to have odd taste in Topher's eyes. He grabbed a tray and piled on the food. Lucky for him there was a rather rare steak and mashed potatos tonight. There was even rarer steak, but Topher really didn't think it was cooked at all. He picked the one that was large and slightly cooked instead. Sophie C. Bell Every day had been a new experience for Sophie since she'd changed: each little thing was relived because of the way she could smell it, hear it, or see it. True, it'd been hard, adjusting to her new feet and eye placement (she still had bruises from those mess-ups), but now that she had a handle on her body the way it was, she figured that maybe it was about time for her to start seeing people again. One could only be so reclusive, after all. So, she went where both her stomach and her thoughts agreed that she'd find people. Lo and behold, as she shyly entered from the back door, she looked up to see a figure, someone she'd never seen before. In fact, he looked...human. Sophie blinked, and peered closer at his appearance from her distanced space, but to her, she definitely looked normal. Bashfulness and her twenty-four-seven adrenaline rush screamed for her to duck back into the shadows, to save her reappearance for another day. He had to know about the Island, she reassured herself, but she wasn't so sure she was ready to show herself to someone who was still normal. It would feel like she was tainting him with her furry-ness, or something philosophical along those lines. However, much to the reluctance of her instincts, she went into line, forcing herself not to give into the temptation to try raw meat, and instead got a much smaller steak and some ham rolls from the salad bar, as well as a single piece of celery to try and balance some vegetable intake. Her tail swished to match her anxious thoughts: if the man hadn't noticed her before, then chances were he'd noticed her by now, so there was no point in trying to hide. Attempting to be social, she came to the table he'd been sitting at, and motioned to the place across from him. "...This seat taken?" she asked, though because she'd said it at a near whisper and almost tripped over her words she repeated the question. Sophie did her best to smile, though with her small muzzle it looked more like a fox-like grin, and her rather large blue eyes blinked at him as she waited for an answer. Topher Garrison Topher was too focused in on devouring his food at first to notice the fox girl. But when she came up and brought herself to attention, he definately did a double take. Not polite to stare He told himself but he couldn't help it. What the hell was wrong with her face and more importantly her EARS? She almost looked like part animal or..."Dengue... fever?" He whispered to himself, too inaudible for a human to hear him clearly but surely this woman with big ears had heard it. Topher was clueless however and sighed, it was a good thing he got his shot. Maybe others weren't so lucky?
"Uh...yeah... I mean no little laa... lady?" Topher replied hoarsly. He dropped his fork and picked it back up again, then fidgeted in his seat and looked down at his food. Don't stare, don't ask, he kept telling himself. But he looked up again and couldn't help but raise his eyebrows as he blinked and looked closer, tilting his head as he tried to figure this mystery out himself. Sophie C. Bell Sophie winced as he looked her up and down: he mentioned something about a fever, but she'd never heard of it before, nor did she really want to know. What worried her is that he seemed so surprised: hadn't he seen others before? "Thanks," she murmured, taking the seat opposite from where he was. At this point, Sophie wished she'd taken the seat on the opposite side of the room, but since it was too late, she figured she'd at least try to eat. Looking down at her plate, her stomach did a nervous backflip. It would seem she wasn't hungry anymore. Sophie looked from her food to the man back to the food, but seeing as how he was still staring her down and it was making things rather awkward, she decided to speak up. "It's, uhm, I don't know exactly what serum it's supposed to be, but I'm still mammal," she stuttered, tripping on her words. "I've seen people who're off a lot worse...like...uhm...well, who else do you know?" She hated comparing herself to other people, but at the moment, she was backed into a corner, and not quite sure what else she could do. Topher Garrison She spoke normal, which put Topher more at ease, but then she started getting nervous and talking about 'serums' and animals, "Wait!" She suddenly said very loudly, "Yer tellin' me yew got that dengue fever they told me about?" He asked her sitting upright and dropping his fork, "Damn, that's one hard case ya got there. What tha hail is a seer rum?" He asked her looking very confused and worried. "I done up and got my shot, I aint gonna turn into no dengue like yew." He felt kind of bad to say that, he hoped he wasn't the only person on the island without dengue fever, everyone else would hate him for being normal. Sophie C. Bell "Dengue fever?" She'd never heard of that before, but she certainly didn't like the way it sounded, especially since he seemed to be referring to her animalistic features. He had to know, he just had to know they were turning into animals...right? However, when he asked about the serums, her blood ran cold and her eyes widened. He didn't know. He actually didn't know. "I-I..." Sophie found herself at a loss for words: how was she going to explain this to him? The guy didn't even know what he was in for! She wanted to leave things just like they were and run, find some corner and hide, but she knew she couldn't: she knew that he had to learn, just as she had, just as everyone had. "I d-don't have any disease," Sophie weakly asserted, her voice starting to climb in pitch from her tension. She looked at her hands to avoid his gaze, then ran her elongated fingers through her hair, her ears flattening in the process. "It's, well, it's a little hard to explain, but the labs did this to me. They're testing on all of us, and it makes us like this." "The fact is...they're, uhm...they're turning us into animals." Sophie broke away from his gaze the moment her words left her blackened lips. She wanted to see the look on his face about as much as she'd wanted to tell him in the first place. Topher Garrison Topher's eyes widened as he leaned foreward, "ANIMALS!?" He said in disbelief. "What tha hail!? Yer shittin' me right? Yer in some kind of sick, dressin' up like that and tellin' me I'm gonna turn into an animal." He flailed a bit then took a breath to calm down. Topher crossed his arms and leaned back, "Alrigh', ya got me at first but ya aint gettin' me no more. Is this part of that there test? I aint drinkin' alright?" He wasnted to disbelieve so bad, it was easier than taking in the impossible. Sophie C. Bell The way Topher yelled made Sophie's ears twitch, and they went back against the side of her head as she jumped: she still wasn't used to how things were amplified. "I'm not testing you," she whimpered, feeling worse than ever, "and none of this is a costume. I mean, does it look like a costume to you?" She held out a furred hand for examination, and brushed her bangs away to show where her ears met the side of her face. There were no wires, straps, or adhesives anywhere. "This is who I am now, because of the labs. They do this to everyone. And the shot on your arm is how they do it. The serum." Topher Garrison Topher was reluctant to listen, "Aint seen any pictures lately? They got some good makeup now adays." He said reaching his hand out slowly, nearly shaking to touch her hand, "Well than iffn' it's real ya won't mind me pullin yer fur would ya?" He asked harshly. He didn't WANT it to be real and his heart was beating as he was sure the fur patch would just come off. Sophie C. Bell "No, no, I don't mind if you...pull the fur," Sophie responded, her voice getting weaker with each word. She didn't want him thinking that it was all a fake, but even so, this was probably going to hurt. So, keeping her hand extended, she looked away, trying not to think of the pain that'd be going up her arm in moments. Topher Garrison Topher winced a little at her being afraid. He didn't want to hurt her but at the same time just COULDN'T believe what she was saying was real, "Alrigh'..." He said as he pulled on it, at first lightly, but then a littler harder. In disbelief he grabbed her hand and examined it with horror in his hazel eyes. "Wha tha' are ya SURE it's not DENGUE!?" HE asked panting. Sophie C. Bell Sophie winced from the tug at her fur, but it wasn't as bad as she'd thought. Once he'd finished inspecting, she pulled her hand back, understandingly not feeling very sociable. Upon being asked about the disease again, she shook her head, her ears almost flat against her hair. "It's not dengue, or anything natural like that. It's an experiment. Everyone around here looks kinda like me. Some better...some worse...but we all started normal." She tried smiling, but it failed, and she looked away. "It's not what anyone wants to hear, but it's the truth. They keep us here, and after things start to get bad..." she paused, holding up her hand to reference her changes, "...well, they don't let us go home." Topher Garrison Topher stared blankly in disbelief, "So yer sayin' I'm goin ta get...furry..." He said slowly slumping back in his chair, "Hail no I aint gonna let some b*****d play around with my good looks! Why don' y'all make a boat and git tha hail outta har!?" He asked. It was a lot to take in, the fact that he would turn into something like the girl in front of him. "I gotta go home! Ya don' understand... oh hail..." He was getting sweaty and nervous, "So did ya git here by getting a DUI too?" He asked her, trying to get his mind off of this happening to HIM. "I don FEEL like I'm gonna git furry..." Topher added on the end. Sophie C. Bell "Well, not everyone's furry," Sophie responded, shrugging meekly as she did her best to hide her anxiety. "Some people are frogs, or penguins, reptiles...pretty much any kind of animal, I guess." It was only after saying that when she realized that her words would likely bring no comfort to the man, so she quieted herself, looking down sheepishly at her feet. "I came here because I was taking medicine for narcolepsy-this disorder where you fall asleep, y'know?-and it made me change because it had serums in it. They brought me here, and I guess they intend to finish the job." She shrugged again, trying to make the whole situation seem impersonal. She just needed to be detached. "I don't really know what I'm supposed to be, though..." Topher Garrison " I jus' can't be any KIND of animal! I aint changin' now, do they hafta catch me? I wasn't changin' before!" He exclaimed in a form of panic flailing his arms, "They AINT gonna catch me! I gotta stay human and I gotta become a country singer and show everyone I CAN do that. You don't understand!" He said shaking his head. "I feel sorry for y'all I do but I aint gonna turn into no frog or no penguin or whatever tha hail you are!" He pushed his meal aside and stood up, so much for hunger. Sophie C. Bell Sophie's arms flailed as she jumped back in surprise from the sudden outburst, and it took a moment to get her rattled breathing back and shape, her posture bent away from him as she shielded herself like a wounded animal. A hurt expression came upon her wide blue eyes, and she looked down, a passing glance to the food on her plate that she knew had gone to waste. However, food was the farthest thing from her mind, and she did her best to calm herself so that she could calm the man. Obviously, it wasn't working. "None of us can help it, it just happens. And I'm sure everyone's tried getting off...it just doesn't work. We can't beat guns and boats and the security they've got." She shook her head, her eyes starting to well up with tears. "And I do understand that it ruins your plans and messes things up. But it's not something you can change." Wiping her eyes, she got to her clawed, bare feet, her ears and tail drooping. "I really wish I could tell you otherwise, I do, but you'd have to talk to the labs about getting a free ride out, and they don't even do that for the people they like." "I'm sorry, really. But it's not something anyone around here has the power to change." She paused to wipe her eyes again: it was getting harder and harder not to cry. If this guy didn't get it soon, she was going to end up severely embarassing herself. Topher Garrison "Well I for one aint just gonna give up! I aints scared of no guns or no ships an I figure I rather die than become whatever tha hail they want me to be." He nodded, looking more angry than anything. But he noticed he was making whatever she was cry. "Ah s**t, I didn't mean to make ya cry ma'am." He tentatively reached over to pat her back. "Hail I just don't wanna give up jus yet, and I geuss I jus can't believe it righ now. Not yer fault." He looked a little worried at the thing before him, she still looked relatively human, with just some features that showed something indeed was being done to her that was against her power. Anger swelled up in him that they would do this to such a nice young lady. Sophie C. Bell "Oh, I'm not crying, really, I-I just-" Sophie stopped trying to wipe her eyes and just put her face in her hands, letting out a squeak of a sob as she wept into her hands. Her shoulders shivered as she gulped and forced herself to stop, wiping her eyes once again to slow the flow that stained the fur a darker color where it'd become wet. She weakly laughed, as if the whole scene were trivial, then looked back up to the man with eyes that were slightly red from tears. "I'm sorry: I, y'know, I feel really bad...I've only been here since late December, January...I was in your shoes just a few months ago..." Topher Garrison Topher did feel really horrible for the poor girl as he put his arm around her, "Listen here, ol' Topher... hell I aint told ya my name... it's Topher.." he sighed and continued, "I'm gonna show those labs what for ya hear me? Pickin' on me is one thing but pickin on young girls and turnin' them inta something they don't wanna be aint right! Ya can cry all ya want cause I figure ya got a lot to cry bout. I'm gonna go tell them they better turn ya human again, hear me? I'll tell them or else I'm gonna go punch their big overgrown sci-ence brains in!" Topher wasn't kidding, he really thought he could take on the world, and no one should ever pick on young girls and make them feel that way. Guys were there to protect women, not to go and turn them into fox looking things! Sophie C. Bell Sophie couldn't help but giggle just a little bit as the man's brotherly reaction. It all seemed so pointless, and she felt so dismal, and yet he thought he was going to just waltz on in and beat up the Island staff, all on her account. He honestly believed he could do it, too. Her mood brightened a good bit by the warmness of it all, she said, "I guess I never really got to introduce myself, either. My name's Sophie." Smiling, she rubbed the last bit of tears from her face and looked up at Topher. "You tell me how that thing goes over with the labs, okay? From the sound of it, you're the kinda guy we've all been waiting for." For the first time in their conversation, she sounded hopeful, and if nothing else, she certainly seemed to be feeling better. Topher Garrison Topher smiled slightly at the remark as he blushed a bit, he wasn't a hero but there were times that life tested people and they either sink or swim. Topher was a swimmer. He patted her head and stopped the brotherly embrass, "Sophie huh? Well I geuss I got some work on my hands. Gonna go kick some mad scientist a**! They aint got God on their side." He smiled a bit more at that, it always seemed in tough situations bringing up god or jesus made it easier, like he wasn't alone.
"Well then Sophie, it was sure nice to meet ya and hopefully next time I see ya, you'll be all fixed up! I gotta go." He waved as he started to leave, determined he would indeed change the island in one day.
If only it were that easy. Sophie C. Bell Sophie couldn't help but smile: the guy really had guts. She watched him leave the cafeteria, then in a slightly better mood, went and picked up the discarded plates, apologizing to the cafeteria lady as she threw the remnants away. She then began the trek back to her own duplex, her day made just by the man's stubborn attitude. She hoped he would stay the same way when he started to change, too. [Fin]
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Posted: Sun Apr 01, 2007 9:42 am
Beach RP ...Zelda the Musical? WTF? Liamh Doradan [Liamh at 50%]It was an island. It wasn't even that big of an island. The blasted ocean had to be around here SOMEwhere. Liamh trudged up the path to the beach, readjusting the pack on his back gingerly every dozen feet or so to keep it from crushing the sprigs of foliage sprouting from him in most inconvenient places. He was also sure he had a rock in his shoe, but every time he checked, it was gone. He grumbled, wondering why he'd bothered coming out here, but as the breeze picked up slightly and carried the scent of saltwater, his eyes brightened. "Hahah! Our intrepid hero perseveres!" he chuckled to himself, continuing onward with renewed speed. Breaching the edge of the jungle, the path turned much sandier, and he slipped his flipflops off and took a moment to wiggle his toes in the sand. He took a deep breath, raising his face upward. "Ahhhh. That's more like it," he murmured, giving a patchy green grin. He bounded over the piles of junk washed up by the tides, finding a clear spot of sun-warmed sand. "Hahahh. They can't keep me down." He arched a hairless brow and pulled off his pack with a grateful grunt. Taking out a long beach towel, rolling it out with a flick and laying it on the sand. "I'm here to relax, and they can't stop me." he assured himself, digging out sundry relaxation accessories. Sunglasses, ipod, sunblock, novel, sports bottle of.... something. Flopping down on the towel, he shook a fist back toward the jungle. "I'm on vacation. Vacation, you hear me!" he hollered. Sophie C. Bell It hadn't taken long for Sophie to hem a pair of jeans into shorts, and the moment she'd finished, she wanted the chance to use them, and after tying a loose t-shirt at the waist to make it seem more tropical, she decided to head out to the beach and enjoy the sun. Already, it was warm enough to swim, but since Sophie didn't have a bathing suit yet (the procrastinator that she was), she was content to just watch the waves for the day. As she approached the beach, she heard a shout, something about hearing a vacation, and she blinked, a bit confused as to why someone would say that. Shrugging, she continued on, as the decidedly male voice didn't seem to need help, and as she stepped into the white sands of the beach, her toes wriggled, enjoying the freedom of bareness. Gripping the towel she'd brought, she continued forth, stopping only when she saw another figure already relaxing on the sands. At first, she tensed up, fearing that the man was still human, but upon closer inspection, she saw that he was rather...green. A reptile, then? However, as she ever-so-nonchalantly walked by him to get a closer look, she realized that he was growing leaves. Actual leaves, like some plant. So perplexed was the fox girl by all of this that she failed to notice a particularily large dune of sand, and tripped right over it, her cry muffled by the ground as she made a rather nice faceplant onto the beach. It seemed that no amount of animal DNA would cure her of her clumsiness. Liamh Doradan Liamh raised his sunglasses, rolling over - he winced as he mashed some leaves. Blasted leaves. - and looking around for the source of the muffled OOMF. He was pretty sure that wasn't a sound he'd heard crabs and oysters make. "Hey, is anyone...?" His brows rose as he thought he saw a couple of paw-ended legs sprawled over a dune. He blinked a couple times, then awkwardly scrambled to his feet, looking somewhat like a camel on a slip'n'slide. Dusting off his hawaiian shirt, he trotted over in that direction. "Y'okay there?" He called chipperly. He didn't want to startle anyone, though fortunately it looked as if this wasn't a newbie. Sophie C. Bell Sophie somehow managed to lift herself up, shaking the sand from her hair and fur as she got to her feet on wobbly legs. "Yeah, I'm fine, just wasn't paying attention," she called back without looking up, only bothering to see whom she was speaking to after unlodging a shell between her clawed toes. When she saw the man's leafy head, her eyes widened, and she nearly fell backwards again. "Whoa...are you some kind of plant?" On any other occasion, Sophie would've smacked herself in the face for such bluntness, but at that moment, it really seemed that odd. Liamh Doradan The curly-haired girl before him was, unless he were terribly mistaken, somewhat canine around the edges... reminded him vaguely of his downstairs neighbor, Seth, but that wasn't likely the thing to bring up in conversation just yet. Liamh scratched at his patchy, sprouting head with his 'good' hand and stared, his expression somewhat horrified, at his leaf-sprouting vine-arm. "Great scott! The prophecies have come true! Watson, get the weed killer!" He glanced at her with a wild-eyed deadpan for a couple seconds, then broke down and grinned warmly. As warmly as one could, minus patches of one's face. "Just kidding, sorry. And yes, apparently I'm getting the express ticket to the top of the food chain." He held out his still somewhat human hand toward her. "Liamh Doradan, pleased to be acquainted with you, miss...?" "What brings you out this way?" Sophie C. Bell Sophie blinked, at first somehow afraid that she'd insulted the man, but her expression relaxed as she grinned, and she couldn't help but chuckle a bit. "My name's Sophie," she responded, taking his hand and shaking it gently. Normally, her handshake was a bit more firm, but she didn't know if more of his skin would just fall off if she shook him harder. "I was just gonna enjoy the beach since I'm already here, what about you?" Sophie added, remembering the man's voice that had said something about hearing a vacation. Seeing as how it wasn't polite to ask if someone had screamed into nothingness, she decided not to bring it up, and if nothing else just act casual. Or, at least, as casual as one could on an Island where you were being turned into some chihuahua thing. Liamh Doradan The patchy, weedy looking fellow nodded. "Yep, about the same. I figure if I'm going to be held hostage for horrible medical experiments, at least i'm being held hostage on a tropical island. Until I can stage my own 'Death Star Run' on the labs, I thought maybe i'd achieve one of my life long dreams and get a tan." He gave a wry grin. "Not that i've much skin left... For the moment." He felt a slight twinge as he tried to shore up his hopes. After all, if they could turn his liver into spinach, they certainly could grow it back again in their free time, right? "But no time like the present." He looked at his watch. "Except now. And now. And now." Shaking his head with a leafy rustle, he sighed. "Right, sorry. Going a little stir-crazy, i think. I haven't been off the internet this long since... before they invented the internet." Sophie C. Bell "Yeah, no time like the present," Sophie repeated, chuckling when he continued it on to a joke. For a plant, this Liamh guy certainly had a light-hearted mood, and after running into Topher, her day was really starting to look good. "I never was an internet junkie, but I know what you mean. What I wouldn't do to find a CD store or something...or even yet, get an mp3 player and put some music on it. I've been trying to put together a routine for the theatre, but it's kinda hard to do without music." She stood on the tips of her toes experimentally, looking up at Liamh with a grin. "I'm thinking maybe I can find a few people who know how to dance a little, and if I'm lucky, maybe one or two singers. With all the people around here, someone's gotta be talented." Liamh Doradan "Music, eh... I've got an ipod," he jerked his thumb toward the towel and backpack, "But i bet you could requisition one from the labs, if you wanted to deal with them. Personally, one of these days i'm going to make a giant list of expensive stuff i really 'have' to have. See how much i can take 'em for." He scowled. "Dancers?" He winced. "Well, if you want a reenactment of the Napoleon Dynamite dance scene, except bad, i could help. Or maybe with Dance Dance Revolution!" He grinned. "But you don't want me to sing. Seriously. Everyone in a mile radius would be bleedin' from the ears, and you've g.. err, it'd be bad." He cut off, giving a lopsided smile. "Still, if you need help with sound system stuff, i could probably set something up without electrifying myself. Again." He snapped his fingers. "Oh hey! I think i heard that Gaius can sing. You should ask him. I bet you could convince him." The grin turned devious. "And if not, we can just duct tape him up and shove him on stage." Sophie C. Bell "Gaius can sing? Really?" Most of the other information with in one of Sophie's enlarged ears and out the other, but she certainly processed that quickly, and her eyes lit up with some form of enthusiasm. It seemed the more she heard about Gaius, the more she liked about him, and this was definitely a major bonus. "I never would've thought it...I mean, there's no reason for him not to be able to sing, but even so...aw, man, that's awesome!" Sophie gave somewhat of a nerdy fist-pump of victory, excited that she actually had somewhere to go with her plans. "And, you know, you're welcome to perform, too...if you can handle DDR, then anything I make shouldn't be a problem. I doubt there's any serious professionals around, and even if there were, I don't think I could do choreography that would match up with their skills." She nodded, trying to be serious, but somewhere in her eyes lingered that childlike glee, whether caused by the good news or her near-constant adrenaline rush. Liamh Doradan Liamh nodded, the springs of leaves bouncing with the movement. "That's what I've heard, at least. Err... though I don't know if I've heard him personally." He rubbed the back of his neck. A slight, annoying tingle. "And I dunno, I don't think I'd be able to do any kinda performance unless there were other people for me to make look better by comparison... I mean, then i'd at least be falling on my rear for a purpose, right?" He chuckled. "Oh, man! You should get Marshall to dance some DDR up there. Or maybe you could see if Emerwyn will turn her play into a musical? Any kinda genre you're thinkin' of? You can borrow my Ipod if you wanna browse for ideas..." He crossed his mismatched arms over his floral-print chest. "Too bad there isn't a 'play video games' performance category. Seriously. Then we'd be talkin... but no. You know, unless we did, like, Zelda the musical." He smirked. Sophie C. Bell "Zelda the musical?" Sophie laughed again, barely containing a snort that attempted to weasel it's way out of her canine nose. "I dunno: I'm not a composer or anything, but either way, that'd be pretty sweet." Sophie would've continued with some other retort or attempt at a joke, when suddenly she was paralyzed by a sharp buzzing in the back of her neck. Choking up, her eyes widened, and she attempted to make eye contact with Liamh but only managed to collapse to the ground, the painful buzzing getting worse with each second. After only moments of kicking in the sand, the fox girl fell still, the only indication of her still even living being her soft breaths. Liamh Doradan "Well, you know, we could-" started Liamh, grinning, but the strange expression that passed over her face made him pause. "Sophie? Are you..." She choked, stiffened, and her eyes rolled up as she started to fall. Well, that wasn't right. His brain caught up with him. "Sophie!" He yelped. His nerves were jangling loud alarms in his ears and the adrenaline of surprise was dancing a mazurka with his internal organs as he tried to move forward toward the fallen, twitching girl. A violent jolt at the base of his skull hit him like a hammer blow, seizing control of his muscles. All the better, since he couldn't dance a mazurka anyhow. He stiffened, his mind trying frantically to sort out what was going on, but he lost hearing and everything went vaguely dark as he felt the warm sand reach up and hit him. (Fin)
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Posted: Sun Apr 01, 2007 5:17 pm
When Sophie wakes up after the Incident!, she is sporting a new, plastic ear-tag, much like many cattle wear. It has a number on it: 47002100 If she takes it out, then the piercing will close within the next week or so.
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Sabin Duvert Vice Captain
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Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2007 7:02 pm
Topher wasn't sure what he would tell Sophie and hoped she wasn't mad at him for disapearing for four months. He breathed in some air and knocked at her door. "Sophie... I sure do hope that there pig was right and this is your place." He said to the closed door. He never realised pigs had such a keen sense of smell and when combined with a human mind that smell could decipher many things. Geuss there had to be a reason the labs were doing this experiment and Topher could see many uses just from the pig alone.
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