[PRP] Homeward Bound (Gloom & Jamie) [FIN]

[saedusk]

Jamie was dreaming. He could tell he was dreaming because he was outside when he was certain he'd just gone to bed, because it was raining, and most importantly, because he was a hare. This wasn't the first time and likely wouldn't be the last, but he'd found himself in the Otherworld as he slept.

Being an animal was no longer much of a shocker. While it was certainly less convenient than having, say, opposable thumbs, it hardly felt poignant at times like this to worry about shifting out of it. Soon he'd wake up. His dreams never lasted very long.

Slowly hopping down the dreary, hazy sidewalk, he took in his surroundings. It was always so empty here, so lifeless, and he never quite felt like he knew where he was going despite having lived in Ashdown his entire life. He'd never seen his own house on this side, there had never been a chance to, but Jamie was curious enough to see if he could find it before he woke. Whether he made it or not was of little consequence.

azuredreamssss

 

[azuredreams]

Something, not far from where he was, was rolling around on the soft grass of a strangely well-manicured (for other ashdown) yard. Shadows flicked and wisped away from the creature, something bright and shiny being poked at.

It was a music box that was bright and shiny.

It was a shadow marten trying to open it.

"Why won't y'open?!?!" Gloom grumbled.

saedusk

jamie i am so sorry

 

[saedusk]

To see life was unusual enough, to have seen anything constituting 'normal' would've been a miracle entirely. Jamie wasn't surprised to see the othercreature, but he did ask himself for a long moment if it was wise to approach it. Delicate nose wiggling, he eventually let his curiosity guide him.

The approach was slow, calculated, and it was obvious in his tense stance that Jamie was prepared to bolt at the slightest sign of hostility. He didn't speak yet, couldn't speak as a hare, and didn't give Other Ashdown's magic enough consideration in the moment to believe he could communicate in someway if he trusted it enough. Perhaps that would come with time.

Ears tall and forward, he waved a careful paw in the marten's direction, nearly close enough to touch him.

azuredreams

i'm not even a little sorry LOL

 

[azuredreams]

Gloom's ears twitched, his tail swishing, as he paused at his attempts to open the music box and sniffed at the air. It was Jamie's scent he caught first and then he heard him, the shadow marten standing up on his hind legs and peering at him with his white glowing eyes.

"Y'not really a hare," he told him. "Y'like Lily. Y'a moonwalker." Not that it stopped him from waving back because he absolutely did. It was just he knew a moonwalker when he smelled one.

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

When Jamie shifted out of his hare form, he was sitting on his legs, hands resting in his lap, still undeniably small even for a human. "You know Lily?" he asked, expression pensive as he returned the eye contact. "Do you know other moonwalkers, too?"

There was something about Gloom's ability to separate him so easily from a normal bun that was somewhat unsettling, but what about Other Ashdown wasn't? Oh, and couldn't forget how unusual it was to see an animal speak. That was always a kicker, too. Not that this particular marten was a normal animal at all.

azuredreamssss

 

[azuredreams]

The moment he changed Jamie was promptly pounced upon by a shadow marten. If pouncing meant that he was dragging his music box over to him and planting himself in Jamie's lap.

"Gloom helped Lily get to her safe place," he told him. "Gloom doesn't know many moonwalkers but Lily is like Gloom!"

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

Jamie did jump when Gloom slid into his lap totally unannounced, but to his credit, it was much less noticeable than it would've been only half a year ago. Dealing with mystical, magical difficulties on a daily basis was apparently good for something after all. Hands once occupying his thighs were at his sides now, toying with the grass because he wasn't sure what else to do with them.

"Lily, yeah, I guess she kinda is like you, um, Gloom," he tested the name on his tongue, sort of unusual, but he supposed he didn't expect every othercreature to sport a common human name like Bill or Joe. "She's noodly, too, when she's transformed."

As Jamie eyed the music box, he continued, "A-Are you... good at getting places? Could you help me get somewhere? I could, um, help you with that i-in exchange or something."

azuredreams

 

[azuredreams]

Gloom let out a pleased rumble in agreement about Lily being a noodle like him.

At first his nose wrinkled up at what Jamie said before his gaze fell back onto the music box.

"... y'don't have to do that for Gloom to help," he said quietly. "Where do y'want to go? Gloom always helps friends."

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

At what point in the past few minutes they'd become friends, Jamie wasn't sure, but he definitely wouldn't argue. The last thing he wanted to do was upset anyone. Besides, speaking quite honestly, Jamie was still in love with the idea of friendship. Someone calling him friend made him feel warm, even if that someone was an othercreature with relatively mysterious motives.

"I, um, was kinda curious about seeing my house... the one on this side."

azuredreams

 

[azuredreams]

Jamie was officially Gloom's friend.

Deal with it.

Gloom perked up a little at the idea of taking Jamie somewhere and he let out a happy chirp. "Gloom can do that! Y'just have to tell me where y'house is! What part of town?"

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

"Oh, um..." A lot of the Otherworld was similar to what he remembered back home. Landmarks were the same in some places, streets were often the same, that convenience store they used to get home once was the same. That didn't mean everything still stood, though, when a handful of important structures were nothing but ruins.

Well, Jamie didn't have much to lose in trying, so he told Gloom about where he lived. Unsure what the marten could actually use, he mentioned street names and landmarks, he noted the side of town it was on, and he waited to see if anything would strike the proper chords.

azuredreams

 

[azuredreams]

"Oh!" he said excitedly, clambering upwards to settle onto Jamie's shoulders. "Y'mean the place with the machine! It's a weird machine with funny candies."

Seriously, he only knew were Jamie was talking about because of a vending machine outside of a convenience store. Go figure.

"I can take y'there no problem."

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

"A weird machine with funny candies..." Jamie put two and two together rather quickly. "Is there one with little capsules, too? Do you remember?" If it was the 7-Eleven near his house, he could find his way home without issue. If not, well, he'd wake up soon enough.

Standing, he tried his best to keep from rustling Gloom too much. "Um... which way should I go?"

azuredreams

 

[azuredreams]

Eventually someone was going to figure out how the not so solid shadow marten was able to settle himself onto the shoulders of a not really here dreamer.

Actually no one was. Don't question it.

"No capsules, just funny candies!" Gloom's paw pointed down the street, flicking out in front of them both. Shadows seemed to seep from everywhere and the music box he had with him disappeared into them while raced out in front of them.

"Follow the shadows ~"

saedusk

 

[saedusk]

Something about following the influx of shadows was off-putting enough, but following an apparently mobile music box of all things was even stranger. Especially while carrying a talking marten on his shoulders. Jamie felt like he was in a cartoon, just without the slapstick comedy or squash-and-stretch physics.

Though he supposed if he believed hard enough-

Cautiously shaking himself from his thoughts, he muttered, "Well, if you say so..." and took off after the music box. It felt like the shadows licked his ankles as he ran, but he was too busy trying not to lose the telling glint of the box to pay it much mind.

azuredreams