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 Posted: Wed Feb 22, 2017 12:56 pm
Things were starting to get a lot better for Caleb, not that he was doing many things differently, but now he had a friend. Xi-Wang was visiting a lot…and he was starting to honestly…question himself on some things…but at the same time, he didn’t have time to question anything. His project was going really, really well and he wanted to finish it, but now he found himself going home almost every night.
He was sleeping more though, so that was one plus to all of this.
But…
But at this rate his project would never be finished.
The brunette was on his way home again, and he was tired. He never got this tired in the lab…of course then he was fueled by nothing but candy, beef jerky and energy drinks…so. That was a difficult combination to get tired with.
Pausing near a café, Caleb toyed with the idea of getting something to drink…or to eat…or maybe both. Both was good.
The only drawback to that was the fridge full of food that he had back at the apartment…and the quickly dwindling allowance that was nearly gone for the month…though February was quickly coming to an end and he would have money in about a week...
Ah well. He could wait a few minutes.
The male continued walking and paused again seeing a very, very pretty black cat…covered in jewels and a beautiful cloth with a…
With a star on its head.
Interesting. “Hey kitty, aren’t you lovely…” She had to be lost. There was no way a stray cat would be so beautiful and dressed so cutely. He reached slowly for her, trying to see if she had a tag with a phone number or contact information. “Who do you belong to? I want to try to get you home.”
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Posted: Wed Feb 22, 2017 7:19 pm
Ember preferred "people" food. Some well meaning humans saw her wandering about and tried to offer her dry kibble, at least partially confused and offended as she refused it. She was parked in front of the cafe because people like Caleb saw her there looking pretty and pampered and offered her some of their leftovers: namely meat and gravy, her favorite! She was rather content at the moment, sitting on the ledge of the window with her tail gently sweeping back and forth.
When he took notice of her she immediately started purring, putting on the charm, and enjoyed having her ego stroked. She wasn't the largest cat but she was sleek and strong with unmarred black fur. Her coins jingled on her sash as she studied him. His starseed cried out with potential. A slumbering power needed to be awakened with him.
There was no tag to find and she hopped down from the ledge when he tried, trotting along the street toward a nearby empty office park. It wasn't very large but it was surrounded by buildings and was usually deserted after office hours. If they were going to do this, she'd rather he not freak out in public where people could see him. Every so often she turned and batted her large orange eyes at him, encouraging him to follow, indicating without words that she was leading him somewhere.
Clearly, he'd thank her for her foresight later.
She hopped up onto a marble slab bench when they arrived, sitting up straight as she waited for the right moment. Ever prideful, she was aware of her appearance in the moment and waited for him to be ready before she spoke.
"Technically," she responded, "I don't belong to anyone. My home is where I want it to be."
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Posted: Thu Feb 23, 2017 7:58 am
Well…the cat seemed friendly enough, and Caleb had been just about to pick her up in order to look more closely to see if there was a name tag or something, when she jumped from the ledge and began walking away. Well…he had tried.
Of course the cat wouldn’t want to be picked up, it was a cat, after all…stilly aloof creatures.
He was ready to keep walking, when the cat paused, watching him.
…Um…well ok.
Shrugging, Caleb began to follow, half amused with himself. This was stupid. Why was he following a cat? How…silly. But. Perhaps he was growing a bit silly now, perhaps…
Nah. That wasn’t something to think about.
When the cat stopped...and…and spoke…
Caleb nearly turned again and walked away, but he stopped himself, jaw dropping and staring at the creature with wide eyes. “…Uh…Wh-what?” No, he was imagining it. He was so hungry, now he was hallucinating. That was all this was. Clearly. “Oh god. I’ve gone crazy. Nope. Not going to deal with this right now.”
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Posted: Sun Feb 26, 2017 4:33 pm
"I wouldn't walk away if I were you. If you do, you'll never know who you really are."
Ember wasn't very good at this sort of thing. She didn't have any practice and the fact that she hadn't even told him most of what was going to happen and he already thought he was crazy didn't bode well. She kept her spine straight, ever proud of her purpose and what she was about to do. It was a sacred calling, at least to her, and she had to honor that.
"That's why I led you here, to show you who you really are."
She summoned the henshin pen and it landed lightly in front of her. She nudged it forward with her nose, encouraging him to take it. She wanted him to discover this new journey on his own.
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Posted: Sun Feb 26, 2017 5:56 pm
Caleb had already turned to get the heck out of there, but paused when the cat gave this warning. What did that even mean? Who he really was? How ominous did that sound though? Sheesh.
He slowly turned around and faced the cat again. “What do you mean by that? What do you mean who I really am…I know who I really am. I’m me.”
And then the cat did something…and was trying to get him to take…a pen? What was this? What was even happening…?
Slowly the brunette reached down and picked up the small object, frowning. “Okay…so I’m supposed to be…a writer? What are you even trying to tell me, Cat?” …More importantly, why was he listening at all? This was crazy. He was crazy for listening to the words…of a cat.
Unless of course, it wasn’t really a cat, which it couldn’t be really a cat. Maybe someone from school was tricking him…maybe this was someone’s robotics project, and they were trying to get him out of the way…
That was a discomforting thought.
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Posted: Sun Feb 26, 2017 6:08 pm
Ember was gratified by the fact that he lingered, despite his doubts. Being a believer, even a little bit, was the first step toward acceptance. With the henshin pen in hand he was ready to power up and become Sailor Gelria.
"Hold that pen up and say 'Sailor Gelria Makeup!'"
He might feel a little silly about it the first time, but that was hardly a problem once he got used to it. More than just his pride was on the line. There were people waiting to count on him, people to be saved and helped. The Negaverse had to be forced back and she sincerely hoped that he was up to the challenge. They could seduce with their lies.
She sat with her tail wriggling, waiting for him to power up for the first time.
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Posted: Sun Feb 26, 2017 6:26 pm
Caleb stared blankly at the cat, and then glanced blankly down at the pen in his hand. “What? What purpose will that achieve? You…”
He shook his head. This was getting a little too weird for his tastes. A talking cat, saying words to a pen…
But…
The cats words resounded in his mind again ‘who you really are’. What did that even mean? He was Caleb. Normal, boring, robot nerd Caleb. Nothing more. There was nothing else that he was, nothing else that he could possibly be…
If he really thought that, why was he saying the phrase? “Gelria Power Makeup…?”
Okay. So maybe the pen was magic. Or something, for after a moment of feeling strange and uncomfortable, a new senshi was born.
And was very, very confused.
“…What the heck is all of this…? What did you…do to me, Cat?”
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Posted: Sun Feb 26, 2017 6:47 pm
Ember watched with a hint of pride as he wrestled himself and in the end transformed as he was meant to. He was a pretty senshi; she hopped down from her ledge and circled him slowly, examining him from all sides. He looked like something out of an old Victorian painting and she sat beside him, purring.
"I did very little except to give you the tools to become who you've always been: a senshi. Sailor Gelria is your birthright as someone you've been before. This magic isn't coincidence. With that power you must help protect the innocent humans of this place from those that would seek to hurt or poison them."
Which was a lot to take in, she was aware, but it was also best to have out with all of it so he could ask questions in the end on what he didn't understand. All of it, likely, but they could start slowly. Glad that they were alone and aware that he was now a presence to any Nega in the area that could sense auras, she tried to adjust for a new time table.
"Now you should summon your power and say "Gelria Cinnamon Cloud."
Obviously the senshi of cinnamon. She ran away from him for a distance, just in case, and then nodded her encouragement that he should call his attack.
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Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2017 5:40 am
“Protect…what?” Gelria was looking at himself, horrified by all of the bows that adorned this new…pumpkin spice version of clothing that he was now wearing. “Sailor…Gelria…?” The new senshi took the hat off his head, and to his dismay there was yet another bow on that, along with…cinnamon sticks?
Cinnamon Cloud? Why would that be his power…?
“What, do I have the power of cinnamon or something? Warming the hearts and desserts of people everywhere?” He placed the hat back on his head. Summon his power, hm? Well…the cat had been right about using the magic stick to change his clothing so…maybe he did have cinnamon powers or something.
“Gelria Cinnamon Cloud!” The senshi’s eyes widened as a puff of…magic? Cinnamon? Something? Whatever it was, it exploded from his hand and hung there for a moment. Instinctively, Gelria stepped back, but it seemed as though the…whatever it was didn’t do anything to him…so that was interesting as heck.
“Was that it? Was that my uh…my power?” He turned his attention back to the black cat with all the bangles and trinkets. “And…just who…and what are you, cat? You’re clearly not a normal cat…” Obviously she wasn’t a normal cat…normal cats didn’t like to get dressed up.
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Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2017 1:01 pm
"You must protect the people of this world from those who wish to poison them and use them to their own ends. It is an important duty."
Yes she understood that it was all rather overwhelming, but he needed to get into the swing of things. At least he wasn't refusing to follow along with her coaching, calling his attack even if he sounded dubious about it. The cinnamon puffed out in a wide enough circle that she was thankful she had scampered back.
She nodded approvingly as it cleared.
"Yes, that was your power. I'm not sure what it does, but I'm sure you'll find it useful when presented with a challenge."
Ember almost smiled as she sat beside him.
"I am a guardian to your kind. I protect and find you and show you what you can be. So no, I'm no normal house pet."
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Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2017 5:43 am
Caleb nodded and plopped down next to the cat, reaching out and lightly scratching behind her ears. “So…I’m still not really sold on the fact that this isn’t a dream…but…I guess if it isn’t, I wouldn’t mind going out and helping people…but…”
He tugged at one of his ruffled sleeves and seemed thoughtful.
“What or who wishes to poison them? What do you mean by that?” She was a guardian? A…guardian cat? That was kind of strange…but…hey. He had just shot out a cloud of cinnamon so…he really was in no position to talk about things being strange or not strange, now was he?
“Well, you’re a beautiful and cute Guardian…do you have a name by chance? Or do I just call you Guardian…? Are you…like an angel? A cat angel?”
Now that all of the practical applications had been performed…the questions were coming quickly.
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Posted: Mon Mar 13, 2017 8:48 pm
She purred as she was petted, a sucker for such things. She couldn't help it; it felt nice.
"Helping people is important. The Negaverse would take advantage of their starseeds and corrupt them, or, worse, remove the starseed and leave them incomplete."
Ember was also very fond of being buttered up and looked pleased by the compliments. She was not always in the mood for them but, at the moment, she was happy to indulge in such things. She was very proud of herself for awakening him, after all. The idea of being an angel almost made her laugh and she ducked her head down to avoid that.
"My name is Ember and guardian is just fine. I couldn't be an angel if I tried."
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Posted: Mon Mar 13, 2017 9:13 pm
Gelria nodded, rather absently the words not really making much sense to him, but it didn’t seem that important. “Ember, hm? That’s a pretty name.”
He was still quite sure that she had to be some sort of angel…for what other type of guardians were there? Especially guardians who could offer such gifts as these.
“So…Ember…how do I…does this go away? Can I stop being Gelria…or am I stuck like this forever?”
It would be awkward to walk around in such clothing all the time, and the idea of it made him flush a little in embarrassment. “There has to be some way to be Caleb again, right? And then…I just use the magic stick to…power…up? Again?”
He hoped that he was doing this right, he really, truly did.
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 10:49 pm
"Thank you."
Though her name was hardly the most important thing at the moment. She was a bit vain, and enjoyed the compliment, but also turned her attention back to business soon after to address the questions at hand. True, he couldn't just wander around the city all powered up.
"Just will it away. You'll return back to normal."
She waited until he had done it to nod approvingly. It was as quick as she could have hoped.
"Be sure to be careful where you power up. You don't want to do it at home or anywhere that might expose who you really are. When you are in costume, no one, not even your mother, will recognize you if you're standing in front of them. However, if even one person sees you power up, they'll know who you are. The Negaverse reaches far and is dangerous. They'd kill for that kind of information and use it against you, to turn you to their side. Don't give them the chance."
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Posted: Wed Apr 05, 2017 3:55 am
Gelria did as she said, thinking about not being…well. Gelria, and the strange and…ugly clothes melted away, leaving Caleb standing there, slightly starry eyed.
“So…be careful who I power up around…and don’t do it at home…what about…so I mean…”
He swallowed, thoughts going at once to Xi-Wang. He wanted to share this…but…
“So I guess I can’t tell anyone about this either, huh? It’s my secret identity so I have to guard it with my life…” Caleb sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I just got a boyfriend and…now I have to keep this big secret from him…but…it’s for the best…right?” Giving a rather half hearted grin, he reached over and scratched Ember behind the ears once again. “Thank you. This…this has been really cool. Honestly…I never would have expected something like this from…well, someone like me.”
Glancing at his watch, he let out a soft curse. “I have to go, Ember, but thank you again…we…we’ll see each other again sometime, yeah?” She was a pretty cool cat, and he wanted to see her again…especially if he had more questions…which he figured he would. He liked questioning everything. It was just what he did. Sometimes.
“See you!”
And with one last wave, he was off, late for a dinner that he had forgot he had planned. Whoops. Maybe it really was a good thing Ember had stopped him from grabbing a bite at the café. That would have just been terrible.
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