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 Posted: Thu Dec 24, 2020 12:08 pm
Prompt 1: Destiny City has its fair share of infestations--rats, youma, seasonal monsters...There's no shortage of unpleasantries. But, for the first time in a while, there's a pleasant sort of infestation: along with the winter chill and a steady stream of snow, it seems like a herd of small, fluffy white rabbits have overrun the city. They aren't menacing or evil, they're just everywhere. They seem strangely domesticated; they are sweet, curious, and friendly creatures that will eat anything you give them. They always seem cold to the touch, and when they shake, little snowflakes sprinkle off of them. They can show up just about anywhere, either alone or--often--in pairs. They tend to wander off on their own but they seem to appreciate anything warm and will cuddle up to steal body heat.
Oh.
Ooooh!
Calaverite had never seen so many bunnies before in his life! Even when he visited the pet store, they only kept three or four pinned up in their little den, but now there were hordes of them in the city! There were bunnies bundled up under bushes, nestled into tall snow banks, and even a scattered few hopping after passerby on the street. They were everywhere! They were cute and white and fluffy and friendly, and-
He wanted them.
If nothing else, Calaverite knew that he was going to snatch up a bunch of these bunnies right into his arms and bring them back to his room in Negaspace. Someone had told him once that normal people and animals didn’t do so well with so much chaos around, but that couldn’t be true! Bunnies would be fine. And if they weren’t, he could just come back to the city and get new ones. There were so many.
A general had dropped him off with instructions to stay put until an agent arrived to keep him company on patrol. Calaverite was a little too easily distracted when left by himself, but his general seemed to think he was better off with someone nearby to help guide him.
Cala didn’t care about that, and he’d already decided he’d stay close enough to where he’d been dropped off so that anyone looking for him could find him…
But he was also going to grab up these bunnies right now! With a delighted giggle, he moved to stalk his first prey.
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Posted: Thu Dec 24, 2020 12:09 pm
Rakovanite inhaled a slow, steadying breath.
It was far from his favorite activity to be looking after the younger agents. He already had Cervantite to contend with, so to him, it seemed smarter to let him keep his focus on his brother and his own tasks, rather than adding any other lieutenants or basics into the mix. But as a captain gaining more experience, it now was his responsibility to take on some of the training of the newer recruits.
He just didn’t want to.
Especially when he was instructed to meet with one of the boys he’d patrolled with over the summer. Rakovanite had met a decent number of his comrades, but he could only think of one boy who he’d had an outing with only once several months prior. And who had very unusually distinct instructions that he needed to be monitored while on patrol. Rakovanite didn’t think that was typical of even the newest agents. Certainly no one had followed him around when he’d been a lieutenant.
But Calaverite was one of those too-childish and too-stupid and too-messy people that made Rakovanite uncomfortable. He’d been told that Calaverite was the ideal sort to practice the delicate tightrope of leadership manipulation on: everything was straightforward with him. If he wasn’t convinced by Rakovanite’s tactics, he would know. If he said something that won over Calaverite’s loyalty and inspired him to act appropriately, it would be obvious. This was how he should learn, with someone who behaved and thought in obvious ways.
But it still made Rakovanite’s skin prickle in distaste, and his stride was stiff as he approached where he should be meeting the boy- Only to find that no one was there. Unsurprisingly, perhaps. There was at least a chaotic-feeling aura somewhere nearby. He’d just have to follow that.
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Posted: Thu Dec 24, 2020 12:12 pm
They didn’t run!
Calaverite had thought for sure these bunnies would flee the second they saw him, like most things did. But they didn’t! Some of them couldn’t be bothered to acknowledge that he was nearby, but others hopped very delicately through the snow up to him, as if they had been waiting for him all along. Cala decided immediately that these bunnies would be his new best friends.
They would play together and sleep together, and he would give them lots of attention and affection, and they would be fine to live in Negaspace. They would like it there, even. It wasn’t as cold as it was out here…
The rabbits’ willingness to be close to him shifted when he started aggressively snatching them off the ground, though. While before they had very inquisitively approached, once he started scooping them up, they realized it had been a mistake to come too close. But it was much too late. Calaverite was already lost in the excitement of having them. He picked up one, two, three, four, bundling them tightly into his arms while they struggled and squirmed desperately to be free of his grasp.
He was mashing a fifth one down into the crook of his elbow when he felt an aura spark to life nearby. An agent, stronger than the ones he usually met. Ugh. Calaverite didn’t really like hanging out with agents, especially the ones that outranked him.
He tucked his head into his captured pile of rabbits and grumbled distastefully.
That was probably who was supposed to patrol with him, too… He wondered if his general would be mad if he gave his patrol partner the slip. If his general was mad, he might not be able to sleep in his own room until he made up for it, though. So he’d be stuck in the cold city until someone came and got him… He huffed and rubbed his chin against the top of a flailing rabbit’s head.
Maybe he should at least look and see who it was, first, and then decide what he was going to do from there.
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Posted: Thu Dec 24, 2020 12:12 pm
Rakovanite tread very carefully as he made his way toward the senshi’s aura. The snow concealed a lot underfoot, including nests of small, burrowing creatures. If he stuck to the sidewalk, he’d be safe, but the tug of that aura led him off the main path. And by then, it wasn’t aura he was following at all, but a set of footprints.
Tracking wasn’t his specialty, but it didn’t take a genius to figure out the looping, wandering, scattered footprints had been chasing something, and not at a consistent pace, either.
When he finally found Calaverite, the boy had an armful of wriggling rabbits, all desperately trying to escape his clutches. It was a wonder nothing had bitten or clawed the boy or screamed at him, yet. Rakovanite’s distaste immediately spiked, but he tried to reign it in. People didn’t usually appreciate when someone came at them looking immediately displeased. Even Rakovanite understood that much.
The distaste was replaced by his more typical blank expression as Rakovanite approached, and he slowed his pace as his mind whirled through what was appropriate to say here.
“Calaverite,” he greeted, voice low and quiet but undeniably firm. Maybe he shouldn’t even address what was happening in the senshi’s arms at all. Maybe he should ignore it and wait for a more opportune time to mention it, so it didn’t seem like he was coming in hot with demands. He swallowed. Calaverite made him feel so… uneasy. “Do you remember me? I am Rakovanite. We met at the reservoir over the summer.”
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Posted: Thu Dec 24, 2020 12:14 pm
It was an agent he knew! The uniform wasn’t exactly what Calaverite remembered, but he definitely remembered meeting an agent on the beach a few months ago! Rakovanite had saved him from drowning, when he didn’t know how to swim.
“Rakovanite!” Calaverite called in glee as he pelted toward the other agent. Without a second thought, he smashed into the other man’s chest, eliciting a few sharp squeaks from the rodents he carried in his arms as they were squashed between the two men. Rakovanite should’ve been the one going on patrol with Cala during all this time. Calaverite liked Rakovanite.
Mostly.
His brows pinched. He’d liked Rakovanite last time they’d met, but if the agent was going to ignore him and abandon him, then Calaverite didn’t like him anymore. The warm, gleeful expression quickly soured into a squinty grimace, and Calverite whipped around, wrenching himself away from Rakovanite as if he’d been burned.
“I was really sad when you didn’t patrol with me again,” Calaverite pouted. “I always have to have someone go with me, and I wanted it to be you because you saved me on the beach. But you didn’t ever come again.” His gaze darkened, and his expression went from a pout to more of a snarl. His voice was practically a growl as he snapped, “Now I don’t want you to come with me. I want someone else. I’ll just go with my new friends, and not you. Go away.”
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Posted: Thu Dec 24, 2020 12:15 pm
The child could give him whiplash.
Calaverite cycled through moods like they were different pieces of candy, going from one to the next to the next without reason or warning. Rakovanite had always assumed that Ellian had unpredictable moods, but he could usually at least understand why his brother behaved the way he did. This one was harder to follow, even when Calaverite was so willing to explain.
Rakovanite stood stiffly, staring unwaveringly at the younger man as he pouted and snarled and whipped away from him. Okay. This was probably exactly what he needed to learn to rectify. Behaviors and attitudes like this. And even if he was frustrated by the abruptness of it all, he couldn’t sound frustrated.
He just needed to do whatever would convince Calaverite to behave in a manner more befitting what they’d met up to do.
Rakovanite swallowed before he spoke, and tried to use the added milliseconds to think on how he should proceed. “I am sorry that I was unable to come and see you earlier,” Even though it shouldn’t be Rakovanite’s job to keep up with the whims of unruly basics. “But I have been very busy.” Rakovanite gestured lightly to himself, as if it should be obvious by his new uniform that he had been working on other things, and his life certainly did not revolve around this boy-
But he couldn’t say that. Calaverite needed to forgive him and want to patrol with him and be willing to follow his orders. It pained Rakovanite to think it, but he needed to make some kind of concession here. “I will be sure to bring you out with me more often, if that is what you want…”
A part of him hoped it wasn’t, but he wouldn’t have offered if he didn’t think it was a viable and enticing promise to the other man.
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Posted: Thu Dec 24, 2020 12:16 pm
He was mad.
Calaverite was mad that Rakovanite had just left him there and probably not thought of him again until this moment, now that they were supposed to do an assignment together again. His eyes squinted shut, and he pinched at the rabbit’s fur in nearest proximity to his fingers. They were still a writhing mass in his arms, but his grip was ironclad, even when their tiny claws scraped at him.
Little pain like that was easy to ignore. Calaverite huffed and put his back to Rakovanite, and whispered softly to the rabbits, “What do you think? Can I forgive him? I didn’t want Rakovanite to be like those other agents who think they’re better than senshi, but he kind of is, isn’t he? He said he was sorry, though… He said he would even come take me out with him more often. I can only go into the city when someone goes with me, so if I don’t have anyone, I’m stuck in Negaspace.”
He cast a quick squint of a glance over his shoulder in Rakovanite’s direction.
“He still can’t teleport me, though. I can tell. He’s not strong enough. I would still need to find a general and explain that I have someone to go with me… That’s a lot of work.” He pet one rabbit’s head. It seemed like the lot of them were starting to tire out, and all the others in their vicinity had darted for cover, but Cala wasn’t going to let his new friends go. Bunnies could be kept locked in bedrooms. They were easier to trap than people. “And he can leave whenever he wants to. That doesn’t seem very fair.”
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Posted: Thu Dec 24, 2020 12:17 pm
Rakovanite stood motionless, doing absolutely nothing to pretend that he couldn’t hear what Calaverite was whispering to the rabbits.
He shouldn’t have to address these concerns. Calaverite was a senshi, not Rakovanite’s spawn that he needed to look after and follow behind and worry over. He was an adult who shouldn’t need anyone (least of all Rakovanite) hovering over him.
But loneliness was something Rakovanite could understand. It was why he so often went out of his way to the bar to seek companionship. He knew he didn’t want to be alone all the time, even if it was easier usually. Having someone close, even just a random body that he’d never see again, was still better than having no one ever. And Calaverite didn’t seem like he had anyone-
It definitely shouldn’t be Rakovanite’s problem-
He exhaled. Because even though it shouldn’t be his problem, by having a position as someone’s superior, he had to pay attention to these things. His subordinates needed to be tended to if no one else was available to do such tasks, and Rakovanite knew that this senshi in particular had no family and no job and no civilian life. He’d dived into the Negaverse headfirst, and so other agents and senshi were the only contacts he really had.
In the absence of anyone else to sway his mind, it should be so easy for Rakovanite to mold this child into a loyal and devout follower. That was the task he’d been given.
Rakovanite had to force his voice to remain flat and level as he asked, “Will you forgive me?”
The loneliness wasn’t his problem, but ensuring that Calaverite was so tightly tied to the Negaverse and its members and values that he could never leave was. “I will make sure to inform whoever I need to when I come to patrol with you so that someone can get you to and from the city. You will have no reason to worry about it.” And then, feeling that familiar prickle of unease, he said more quietly, “I will take responsibility for your patrols. You will only have to talk to me.”
It felt more decisive than he’d come into this prepared for, and if Calaverite did decide he liked Rakovanite again, and decided he didn’t like someone else higher up, there could definitely be… problems that Rakovanite wasn’t sure he was committed to solving.
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Posted: Thu Dec 24, 2020 12:19 pm
Calaverite leered at the agent from the corner of his eye as he scrubbed his cheek back and forth against a rabbit’s soft, white fur. Everyone lied. He knew that much, but he couldn’t remember if Rakovanite had ever lied to him, yet… He didn’t think he had.
It sounded easier to him. If all he had to do was message Rakovanite whenever he wanted to go out, and the agent would take him into the city and stay with him, instead of Cala having to beg a general and that general needing to enlist someone else to keep up with Cala. But Rakovanite couldn’t teleport them both. That part didn’t seem easier. Calaverite mulled it over slowly, tipping his head back and forth as he smeared his face against the rabbits in his arms.
At least he wouldn’t have to do anything but talk to this one agent.
“Mm. Okay,” he decided after a pause, as he gave a nonchalant roll of his shoulders. “I’ll forgive you, but you have to make sure you come whenever I call you.”
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Posted: Thu Dec 24, 2020 12:19 pm
No. That was not what he wanted.
Rakovanite pinched his tongue between his teeth to keep himself from snapping the first thought that came to mind. He was absolutely not going to be at the beck and call of some basic senshi anytime Calaverite was bored and decided he wanted attention.
He still needed to take a measured approach with this, though. He could do this, he could do this. He just needed to be patient and thoughtful, and perhaps a little creative. He took a step closer to the younger man. “You must know I would be unable to come to you any time you wanted,” Rakovanite started slowly, and fearing backlash, he continued more abruptly. “I have work during the day, and my schedule is…” He somehow doubted Calaverite cared much about that, so he simplified the thought. “Busy.”
“But what if I promise to come get you at least twice a week, and you will still be able to message me anytime you need me,” He put stress on the word in hopes that Calaverite would realize Rakovanite didn’t want to be bothered constantly, but he somehow doubted that little detail would go through.
Twice a week wasn’t so bad, though.
Rakovanite typically only took two nights a week off from patrolling, leaving five when he was tending to Negaverse duties, anyway. He had started bringing Diesel along with him more, though there was probably no reason he couldn’t have them both with him at the same time. ...They might even like each other and be able to learn to work together without him there. And the more time he spent with Calaverite, the more time he would have to give him direction and focus.
Okay. This was fine. “How does that sound?”
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Posted: Thu Dec 24, 2020 12:20 pm
Calaverite’s nose crinkled.
“Only twice?” He prompted. “I live in Negaspace. I need to be able to go out more often than that if I have to-” His eyes narrowed. There was something he was supposed to be doing when he patrolled. Something all the senshi and recruits were supposed to be doing… He only sometimes was able to, so the details were a little fuzzy to him… Oh, right. “Meet my quota.”
And that wasn’t usually what he wanted to do when he was out in the city, anyway. Why was everyone else always so much busier than he was? Rakovanite said he’d only have to talk to him, but that wasn’t going to be true if the agent was only going to take him out twice a week!
He was lying already.
Calaverite’s expression pursed into a frown again. He didn’t like this arrangement, it wasn’t good enough! Even if it was still better than how he was working currently. And Rakovanite promised he’d come see him. Two whole times a week. That was more than no times, ever. But he’d wanted more. He still wanted more. Everyone else could come and go whenever they wanted, as often as they wanted, especially once they could teleport liek Rakovanite could! He should be able to come see him every day, every day! Even if his schedule was busy.
He didn’t think Rakovanite would, though, so Cala turned scrutinizing red eyes back to the other man. “You have to bring me a treat when you come get me then, if you’re only going to do it twice a week. You have to bring me something good.”
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Posted: Thu Dec 24, 2020 12:22 pm
For all his composure at the rest of Calaverite’s antics, Rakovanite couldn’t prevent a dissenting hiss that escaped from his lips at this boy’s demands that he needed to be brought something in order to cooperate. “I will not.” The refusal was out before Rakovanite’s mind could even fully process it.
It was so presumptuous for this boy to ask anything of him. They’d met once (twice now, after this). They weren’t friends. They were only barely colleagues, and this child had the absolute and utter audacity to think Rakovanite was going to bring him treats whenever they saw each other? He wasn’t a parent; he shouldn’t have to give into the whims of needy children just because they wanted something from him while he was ‘in charge’ of them.
How anyone could justify making a 14-year-old an agent- not that Calaverite was fourteen, but he had the mental aptitude of one- Rakovanite would never understand.
But it only took a second for rationality to catch up with his irked thoughts. It would be inconvenient to bring Calaverite a cookie or a toy or whatever, but not especially difficult. He was supposed to be trying to win this ******** brat’s layalty, so… maybe he could relent. He could just keep a small stash of wrapped treats in his room, and he could bring one to Calaverite whenever they were to meet.
It didn’t have to be difficult, even if it felt ridiculously unnecessary.
The thoughts whirled through his mind so quickly that little more than a second had passed between when he’d refused, and when a much tenser, “Wait,” dropped very unconvincingly from his lips. And even more unconvincingly, in a tone that suggested defeat, “I will bring you a small treat when I come collect you. For work.”
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Posted: Thu Dec 24, 2020 12:23 pm
There was an explosion on the tip of Calaverite’s tongue.
If Rakovanite wasn’t going to be nice to him, then Cala wasn’t going to forgive him! They would not go on patrols together, and he’d be sure to tell his general that Rakovanite wouldn’t work with him, and he’d be in trouble, then! Cala would find someone else, someone better who would go into the city with him, and he was so close to screeching and flinging these rabbits in the agent’s direction that just the thought made his entire body seize with anticipation.
Then, he blinked, as Rakovanite relented. He didn’t sound super enthused about it, but Calaverite didn’t care about that. When he went out to do work for the Negaverse, he deserved a treat! That was how these things went. So if Rakovanite wanted him to do something, like gather energy and patrol, he needed to make an offering.
That was only fair.
Cala couldn’t even understand why refusal might have been an option.
It wasn’t like Cala had a lot of opportunity to get his own treats, now. Especially if he was supposed to be working every time he went out. Rakovanite should bring him something, since he was in the city all the time. It was the only thing that made sense.
When the agent very half-heartedly acquiesced to Cala’s demands, he felt immediately much better. That was much better than being told no! Despite having only just recovered from the storm of a tantrum that had been brewing, Calaverite bobbed his head in pleased agreement. With no regard for the lives in his arms, he dropped the tired rabbits to the snow and flew back in Rakovanite’s direction, flinging bony arms around the man’s shoulders. “Okay! Just don’t forget you promised.”
“If that’s all, we better get right to work. My general only gives me a couple hours before he comes get me, and he’ll be mad if I haven’t done anything.”
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Posted: Thu Dec 24, 2020 12:24 pm
Rakovanite’s body went rigid as the senshi sprang toward him. His impulse was to shove the boy off, keep him at arm’s length. Everything about Calaverite made him so uneasy. His skin crawled when they touched, and he wanted so badly to assert how not right Calaverite was.
Saying and feeling such things was exactly what he so detested from others, though… When anyone told him he was ‘off’ or ‘not right’ or ’something wrong with him’ it sparked a loathing that he never quite got over. It was such a personal needle of an attack that it was almost impossible to dislodge from his psyche. He wasn’t right. No one was like him…
And there was no benefit to saying it out loud. Even if he couldn’t quell the feeling, Calaverite didn’t need to know about it.
He held entirely still until the senshi released him and stepped away. Rakovanite’s gaze drew down to the tired rabbits piled in the snow. A couple of them had managed to hop away, but a couple others had not. Rakovanite couldn’t be sure if they were just tired, or if Calaverite had mangled their spines, or maybe just outright smothered them while they were in his grasp…
Everything about Calaverite made him so uneasy.
The boy didn’t seem to notice or care about what he’d done. And even though Rakovanite knew that lives were short, with very little meaning, this had seemed… especially unnecessary. Cruel even, if they were leaving mangled rabbits in their wake. He never intended to be cruel. There were just some undesirable things that needed to be done.
“Calaverite. You lead the way. I will follow behind you, and… make sure no one catches you off guard.” Any excuse would work. He didn’t believe Calaverite thought that hard about what they were doing out here.
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Posted: Thu Dec 24, 2020 12:25 pm
Everything had worked out!
Calaverite hadn’t expected much when he was brought into the city today. He’d known some agent was going to meet up with him and take him out on patrol and supervise him to make sure he did all his work while also not causing a scene. Boring stuff like that. The bunnies had been his treat today! There were a couple left on the ground, but most of them had run away. He still wanted to take one to Negaspace, but Cala decided it would be better to get a fresh bunny after his patrol with Rakovanite was finished.
He’d made sure the agent would come see him regularly, and he’d even been promised treats out of it. He’d have to tell Rakovanite all the things he liked, so that the agent would bring him good things, and not something he didn’t actually want.
They’d have time for that while they were patrolling.
Feeling pleased with all he’d accomplished, Calaverite gave a firm nod toward the agent’s suggestion. “Right!” He definitely didn’t want anyone sneaking up behind him. He was sure if there were any problems, Rakovanite would be able to take out anyone they came across. It was better for him to take up the rear, and Cala would keep his gaze forward, for prey.
“Okay, I’ll get going! Don’t stick too far behind me. That’s not what a good supervisor would do.” Without further warning, he darted away, moving briskly through the snow and back out to the road where he’d first been dropped off.
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