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 Posted: Thu Jun 13, 2013 12:37 am
It was not uncommon for Orin to play outside between the time he got home and the time his father got home, nor was it uncommon for him to wander a bit away from his residence. His father had told him not to do it, but Orin couldn’t help it; his feet often carried him farther than his mind told him to. He wasn't exploring anywhere new today, but it didn't stop him from wandering to the small, neighborhood park. It almost couldn't even be called that; it wasn't like the big park in town that he loved to go play in; this one had a sidewalk that went a good few yards away from the road. There were a few benches, some mulch, a few flowers and trees—and that was it. The city seemed to have forgotten it, as no one had been out to tend to the plants in a few months. Thick bushes surrounding the area helped give the illusion that there was nothing but plants for miles—which was the perfect place to make believe you were on a jungle expedition.
That was today's game—and it was going better than ever! As if Orin didn't have enough fun hacking at the overgrown brush with a stick, today he had seen something. Small, black, almost fluffy, he hadn't been able to identify it. His mind was already filling in the gaps—maybe it was a rabbit, or a cat, or a large rat. Or better! A totally unidentified species that someone had magically missed identifying when it had been right here, under their noses all along! How could anyone resist such an urge?
He chased after it, though lost it quickly. Despite the lot not being incredibly large, the overgrown flora was just being tricky. Tapping the stick he held on the ground thoughtfully, he scratched at his head and tried to figure out where this rare and undiscovered creature had vanished to.
His skin was pinched, hair standing on edge, but he didn't think for a moment that anything could have been wrong.
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Posted: Sat Jun 29, 2013 8:06 pm
There was another creature stalking the one that Orin had been chasing, though this creature was quite a bit larger, and much more friendly. Not to mention much more fluffy. Julienne crept up behind Orin and put a paw on his ankle. “Hey. Hey stop chasing that thing. It’s nothing but trouble and I don’t want you getting hurt.”
This boy. There was something about him that she really just couldn’t put a paw on…but there wasn’t anything she could do right now other than try to protect him from getting any nearer to the youma that was in the area. Because…well. Youmas mixed with civilians was just not a good combination.
“Stay away from that okay? It’s nothing that you should be getting yourself involved with.” What was it about this child that made Julienne so willing to speak to him? There was something. She was sure of it…but she just couldn’t figure it out! Maybe with a few more minutes of thought…provided they got that much time.
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Posted: Sat Jun 29, 2013 8:14 pm
Orin jumped, originally imagining some older, high school girl who was out walking dogs or something—just keeping a general eye on the neighborhood. Needless to say, when he spun around to sheepishly greet the girl, he found himself surprised to be looking at empty space.
He blinked, looked from side to side, and then up—and then down.
And he stared.
Had she not spoken again, he would have thought he imagined the voice (which was odd, since it was usually his father's voice nagging at him whenever he was acting on a poor idea).
He stared for a short while longer.
"Okay," he said somewhat awkwardly, not sure what you were supposed to say to a talking animal. He was uncomfortable—but in the best way possible. Uncomfortable, like his world was being shattered. Like the foundation on which he'd built his understanding of reality had crumbled.
And it was amazing.
Because cats couldn't talk. No animal could talk.
Orin couldn't have imagined her—she'd have been a cow or a dragon or Chewbacca if it had been his imagination.
He shifted on his feet, excitement slowly bubbling until he couldn't contain himself anymore. "How are you talking, how did you do that? Is this some sort of joke?" he asked, eagerly jutting his hands forward and brushing them through the cat's fur as he tried to find some hidden walkie-talkie.
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Posted: Thu Jul 11, 2013 5:54 pm
Julienne scoffed just slightly, still tense from the youma in the area. “Now’s not the time to be acting surprised. I’m not a joke and yes, I am talking. I’m just…I’ve…I talk, that’s all that you need to know right now…”
She paused, eyes narrowing, trying to stare into the bushes. Where was the thing…she knew it was close. The guardian looked up at Orin for a long moment. This feeling? Was he a senshi? One of the young ones like Lenka perhaps? It was unfortunate that they had to be awakened before they were really ready…but when lives were in danger…it was always better to keep them safe than to let them come into harms way.
The cat gave a small nod, jumping into the air, a small pen falling to the ground just before she landed. “Here.” She picked the pen up in her mouth, trying to hold it up to the boy. “Take this okay? Take it and say ‘Goretti power, Make-up!’ And say it with feeling, okay? I have all the faith in you. Go on…take it!”
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Posted: Thu Jul 11, 2013 6:31 pm
Orin seemed entirely perplexed by her request—suspicious, but not enough not to accept the pen she offered. "I don't want to wear make up," he said warily. He half expected the pen to be some joke prop with a small electrical current (but that cat…definitely wasn't some sort of animatronic…) but what he felt certainly wasn't what he was expecting.
There was a warmth that flushed through him the moment he held the pen and, almost trancelike he mumbled, "Goretti power…"
His thoughts were broken with was a shrill cry from behind them. He spun, eyes wide, and finished, "Make-up!"
He didn't know what was happening, but there was a strange warmth that spread through him. He felt stronger, more aware of everything.
Including the spiny creature in front of him.
It looked like a sheep that wanted to be a porcupine, and while odd it wasn't exactly the stuff of nightmares.
Unless you were a twelve year old boy. "Wait, what—what is that?" he demanded, backing up. While confused and intimidated by the strange, hissing beast, he stood between it and Julienne, not wanting to leave the poor cat to fend for herself against such a monster.
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Posted: Thu Jul 11, 2013 6:50 pm
“Don’t be afraid of this, Goretti. We’ll beat it, I promise. You just stay calm and listen to what I have to say. I’ll explain all of everything once this thing is gone.” The cat moved to stand behind the newly awakened chibi senshi and began to draw her energy towards the star on her forehead. Sure she was already a bit tired from awakening the boy, but she would have to protect the both of them…it could be scary when you were all alone and newly awakened.
“I want you to point at that creature, it’s called a youma, just so you know…but I want you to point at it and call out your attack. So point and say, ‘Goretti Glue Puddle’, then watch what happens. It should make sure that the creature doesn’t move while I finish it off, okay? Just stay calm now Goretti. This is all going to be okay. I promise.”
She didn’t want him to panic, that was the last thing that they needed right now. If the youma got wind of any sort of anything…well. It could end badly. The boy just had to focus for a few minutes, then…well maybe then he would be able to take care of her because there was no way she’d end up making it home tonight, not after using all of this energy to keep them both safe.
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Posted: Thu Jul 11, 2013 7:29 pm
The boy was stiff and uncertain and scared, but at least he wasn't alone. He had a magical, talking cat to back him up.
Which was the biggest sign that this was a dream. Which meant that he was totally fine and there wasn't actually anything to really worry about.
…Unless, it wasn't a dream, in which case, he really shouldn't be screwing around.
There was an internal debate inside his head, and Orin—Goretti—would have been fine to continue trying to convince himself whether or not this was a dream or reality…except the thing moved. It sucked in a huge breath, trembling from the effort and—scared beyond belief—Goretti shouted the words he'd been coached to say.
"Goretti Glue Puddle!" he said, louder and stronger than he thought he'd be able to manage. He was pointing at the creature, compelled by an unknown force, and for a split second he was afraid nothing had happened.
Until the ground bubbled, sloppy, gooey and white.
The youma deflated instantly and squirmed, struggling to free itself from the puddle of glue pooling beneath it's clawed little feet.
Goretti wasn't sure if he should be running or celebrating, so he tore his eyes away from the youma to the cat. "—I don't get this! What do I do!"
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Posted: Thu Jul 11, 2013 7:48 pm
Julienne seemed very pleased at just how well the chibi was doing. “Very good Goretti! You did it! And…and now to finish this thing off…”
The cat drew in a breath then let out a yowl, shooting a stream of energy from the star on her forehead. It hit the youma and turned it to dust in a matter of seconds, though clearly it took a lot out of the guardian. She let out a relieved sigh then slumped down onto her belly, eyes closing. “Oh I forgot how difficult that was…Goretti…we did it. We won. Isn’t that great? You just helped to dust your very first youma…”
She turned her head just slightly, then opened one blue eye to look at him. “Are you okay? You look a little scared…there’s no reason to be scared anymore though…the monster’s gone.”
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Posted: Thu Jul 11, 2013 7:59 pm
Goretti didn't seem to be ready to calm down; his eyes were wide and his chest was heaving. There was a glint of excitement in his eyes, but he was trying to be realistic.
It definitely wasn't his forte.
"I guess. Are you okay?" he asked, shuffling closer to the cat. He dropped down to his knees so he could be nearer to her, though kept checking the spot where the youma used to be. "…I never saw a youma before," he said, hesitantly petting her. He looked down at himself, trying to figure out just what he was wearing.
His father definitely would not have let him leave the house like this, so this was definitely not what he put on this morning.
"What are they, like the monsters under the bed? …Or like some wild forest creature? …It looked like it wanted to eat us, and now it's just…it's gone? What did you do to it?"
Hesitance and quiet did not sit well for Goretti; he was still a bit shaken, but the confidence—the curiosity was rapidly returning to him. His heart was still pounding, but—this was it, wasn't it?
It wasn't a dream.
…So what was it?
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Posted: Thu Jul 11, 2013 8:57 pm
Julienne nodded, nuzzling his hand. “I’m okay. Just very tired. That took a lot out of me and was a lot more work than I’m used to doing, so…” She gave a yawn, shaking her head and trying to stay awake. He would have questions, and sure enough, right after she thought it, he began to ask them.
“They are very bad monsters, they help the bad people in the city called the Negaverse…the youma hurt a lot of people and steal their energy, and you could have been in a lot of trouble tonight if I hadn’t found you…but now…now you have the ability to defend yourself…”
The cat moved closer to the chibi and sighed. “You are a senshi, a guardian of the people…a protector of everyone in this city…and the world…Your name is Sailor Goretti and your are the senshi of glue…that’s quite cute…at least I think so.” She sighed, slumping again. “In order to go back to who you were…just think about it…concentrate on you looking like yourself, what you were wearing, and all of that…and you will turn back into that…then to go back to being Goretti…you hold your pen just like I showed you and say the words I told you to say…”
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Posted: Fri Jul 12, 2013 12:24 pm
Julienne was spewing a lot of words, and Orin didn't understand all of them. 'Monster' and 'protector' and 'glue' were easy enough, but Goretti…senshi…
They took a little longer to sink in.
Not to mention that he felt a mixture of pride and fear from the information—guardian of the people? That was a huge task! A superhuman!
…A superhero task.
"Okay, I think I can do that," the boy said—optimistic, despite not really comprehending just what she was asking. He closed his eyes (after one more quick glance around the area) and pulled Julienne close as he tried to concentrate on what he was wearing.
…Which took a little longer than he'd like to admit, as he wasn't entirely sure what he'd been dressed in. When he was finally back in his usual outfit, powered down, he released a sigh of relief, clutching the cat and pen close.
"…You look really tired, kitty. I can take you back to my place, I have a kitty, too. But I don't think he talks. Or, at least, he's never talked to me." Orin shrugged, heaving the cat up as gently as he could. "You can take a nap there, if you want. Just don't let my dad see you. Or!" He was suddenly bursting with excitement, again. "—You can talk to him! I have to tell him about all of this, he's not going to believe it!"
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Posted: Fri Jul 12, 2013 6:59 pm
“I am exhausted…” Julienne nodded, seeming quite pleased indeed that the child had made it back out of his fuku with little effort or trouble. “My name is Julienne, you don’t have to keep calling me Kitty…and what is your name? I would like to know, I think we should be friends...I’ll introduce you to my senshi, Lenka soon too. Maybe tomorrow night. She’s been doing this for a while and I really think she’ll be able to answer a lot of your questions…”
She yawned, nuzzling closer to Orin, though paused when he mentioned her talking to his father and him telling his father just what he was. “Now, I really don’t think that’s a good idea. It will be difficult…but this isn’t something you can run and tell your family…There are a lot of other enemies besides youma in this city…and if you tell your father he might end up getting hurt because someone is trying to hurt you…” The cat sighed, then shook her head. “You must not tell him anything about me talking, or about you becoming Goretti…”
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Posted: Fri Jul 12, 2013 7:14 pm
Orin glanced down to the cat in his arms; she was heavier than his though to be fair, she was a lot fluffier. It didn't deter him and he was almost immediately trotting back towards his house even as he considered her words. "I don't…think that's fair," he said after a short moment. "I don't keep anything from my dad. He made me promise, no secrets ever. He said to me, 'Orin—'" the boy paused to clarify, "That's my name. He said to me, 'Orin, I love you very much and I will never ever keep any secrets from you, no matter how bad they are, so I hope that you can do me that favor.' I've never kept anything from him. Not a bad grade, not a nightmare, nothing. I don't…"
He seemed genuinely torn about this. "…If I don't tell him and he finds out, I could get in trouble. I mean, I—I get…get it…whole…world saving stuff." He had his doubts again; his mood on the matter was fluctuating frequently and he found himself quickly wanting to talk to the senshi she had mentioned. "…I don't know. I won't…tell him," he finally decided, but didn't seem happy about it. "But he's gonna notice something's up when I wind up on the news for saving everybody."
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Posted: Thu Jul 18, 2013 8:08 am
Julienne nodded rather sadly. “I understand your concerns, but not to worry about showing up on the news, Your senshi form, Goretti will protect your identity. Nobody will know that Goretti is Orin, just the same as nobody will know that Orin is Goretti, unless you tell them, of course…but be careful who you tell, always make sure they are on our side of this war, for if they aren’t, it could be dangerous for you, and I don’t want anything to happen to you.”
She gave a soft purr in his arms, closing her eyes and wriggling just a little to get comofortable. “I know that Lenka will be able to explain all of this when you two talk. So right now, why don’t you head on home and get some sleep and we can figure all of this out when you meet her? It will all be okay, I promise. You are not alone in this, and if you’re confused, we’ll do all we can to help.”
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Posted: Thu Jul 18, 2013 9:49 am
Orin was very easy to read; he looked a bit relieved to hear that he didn't have to worry about his secret identity being revealed. "Okay," he said finally. He still had questions, but this Lenka person was going to be able to explain things to him. He could wait until then. At the very least, it gave him some time to figure out what questions he wanted to ask.
Very carefully, he continued to carry the large cat towards his house. "You can take a nap if you want, you look sleepy." Cats always looked sleepy to him, though. Either sleepy or on a catnip high. "I'll put you in my room and you can rest for as long as you want. And I promise I won't tell dad anything right now."
…But he wasn't promising the future. He didn't want to risk breaking a promise, and there was no telling what the future held. Maybe his dad was some secret superhero!
…No, he worked too much for that.
Unless he wasn't actually working! He was going out and saving the world!
…No, his dad definitely worked, Orin had been there more than a few times.
"Oh—and thanks for rescuing me, Julienne." Orin hugged her a little tighter, adding, "You're my hero."
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