Prompt 10: Poinsettias are common during the winter seasons, so it isn't unusual to see them decorating windowsills and local establishments. What is unusual are the unique Winter Star Poinsettias that seem to have accidentally mixed into the bunch. They look like ordinary Poinsettias reflecting a bit of glow from nearby lights--only, the leaves themselves are emitting a soft, silvery glow. They look like they are covered with a fine morning dew, only with fine silver glitter peppered in to give it a unique sparkle. They seem to have gone unnoticed by most of Destiny City and the landscapers, and it's not clear how these plants were selected, but anyone with a keen eye might recognize them as the catastrophe of Destiny City Botanical Garden's 2016 Winter Extravaganza. Thankfully, these variants are far less dangerous than their counterparts, however, these plants have a strange pollen that acts like an allergen and can cause agitation, oversensitivity, and sneezing to anything with much of a strong smell. Anyone who comes into contact with these plants may also find themselves suffering from flu-like symptoms such as fever, coughing, fatigue, and nausea and no medicine will relieve it, but the symptoms gradually fade. The leaves of the poinsettia are sharp and can sting like a papercut, so be careful! ...If you're worried about an all-out attack again, it might be a good idea to destroy these poinsettias--if you can manage to do so without getting caught.
Sometimes he wished he had thumbs. If Gremlin had thumbs, he could take up knitting and craft a cute blue sweater that went with his eyes- Or he would at least have less difficulty screwing in the bolts to this machine so that it could knit him a cute blue sweater that went with his eyes. Using your teeth for these things wasn't comfortable in the slightest, and his paws could barely grapple with something like a screwdriver.
Why were all these tools made to so easily fit the humans' hands? Inconsiderate monsters, thinking the only ones who needed use of tools was them. Granted, he could use this keychain pen to take on his human form...
But it was even more hideous than most humans, and well worse than how he looked in his cat body. It walked funny and fumbled around and was no less naked and wrinkly, and it was ugly and worthless and he hated it. Giving up his Mauvian body for a humanoid one for even a second made him feel uncomfortable and slimy and even less right than usual. Thumbs weren't worth all that.
But there was hardly reason to keep struggling with a screwdriver now. Gremlin spat it from between his teeth, flexing his jaw as he hopped from his workbench and went to retrieve his gaudy fur ruff that so consistently got in the way while he was crafting. He nosed his way into it, ears pinning back as it slipped over his head to settle around his shoulders.
It wasn't a cute and comfortable knitted sweater, but it did well enough to keep at least his most vital areas warm while he went out.
And he wouldn't be gone long. Just long enough to nick a couple wads of yarn from some unsuspecting grandma who'd left a window open to let some fresh air in while a fire burned in the fireplace. Why did humans decide to let the cold in and keep a fire roaring? He didn't know, humans did strange and dumb and inexplicable things.
Romano's school was very near a set of residential apartments, and since that was where the teleporter let out, that was where Gremlin decided to host his search.
He picked his way very carefully along the second-story ledge of the brick building, hunting for that one window that would inevitably be open. Most were closed, lights off. He had the suspicions most humans were at work, but elderly grandmas didn't go to work. He would find one. And he did. He could smell the fire and something baking even before he approached the window. It was open just a crack, barely enough for him to squeeze his stomach flab under, and there was a pretty red potted flower sitting in the windowsill.
It smelled strongly, and it had a strange glow about it, as if teeny, tiny crystals littered its surface...
For one brief moment, it mesmerized Gremlin, then he heard the faint pained groaning of someone in the same room. He hunkered down quickly against the windowsill, ears flicking down then up and angling for the source of the sound, fearful that he'd been spotted before he collected his prize.
The sound was from the old woman who inhabited this residence. She was laying on the couch, eyes closed, and a cloth over her forehead. By the sound of her, she must not be feeling well.
That suited Gremlin just fine.
He retrieved the yarn he wanted from a wicker basket near the windowsill, catching the threaded strands between his teeth and trying not to flick his tongue over the filaments (he hated carrying yarn like this, but what else was he to do?). He was silent as he moved, but upon alighting on the windowsill with the potted plant, a sneeze abruptly escaped him, and the old woman let out a strange, sort of curious sound as her couch creaked.
Gremlin assumed she leaned forward to investigate the sound, but his back was to her as he scrambled much less silently now back beneath the cracked window. His tail lashed as he shimmied, and with one last surge forward, he was free.
A resounding crash followed him, and he tossed a look over his shoulder to see that the plant had disappeared from the windowsill, presumably to the floor below. Strangely, as he hurried to vacate the premises, the chill felt less... obvious. He almost felt feverish, and he thought the dryness in his throat may be from more than just the yarn on his tongue.
WC: 764
