Character Lounge

[Aisha deCabre]

For once, Aisha didn't have a funny reply to Gareeku's words...but she did playfully flick her ear against his nose.  With his compliment her heart felt like it was going to escape from her ribcage, and one could swear that her purring was just a little louder as she gently nuzzled his chin.

What a strange feeling, she thought.  The panther remembered when she first met Gareeku, and it wasn't on the best of terms... but she had known the wolf for a while, had fought beside him...and just in these last few hours they had saved each other's lives.  But never had she felt like this before...the panther just wanted to stay like this: warm, happy, too preoccupied to notice if someone had put on another song or not.  Perhaps it's the euphoria of the dance...

But never before these events had she seemed to care so much for anyone...and now she was wondering if the feeling was real...looking up at him with a smile, her head still resting on him, it was hard to worry about anything.

[Joat]

“I’ll ignore it for now. In the meantime, let us see if I can do some shapeshifting.” I concentrate very hard, but nothing happens. “Okay. Maybe I need a tutor for that.”

[Gareeku]

Smiling softly as Aisha flicked her ear against his nose, he looked back at her, gazing once more into her warming red eyes. It was then that the wolf realised; he truely cared for her. He wanted to be with her, to share her ups and downs, to make her happy always. Unconsciously, the wolf's lips lightly brushed against the panther's, his eyes gazing into hers...

[Joat]

I see this and sigh. After a moment, I realize that I am staring. I blush (which isn’t visible) and look away.

Sylver sees this. “I know what he’s thinking.”

[Aisha deCabre]

Once again Aisha gazed back into his eyes, and she didn't look an inch away...it was almost like she couldn't.  When his lips brushed hers, being so close sent a tingle in her nerves, like she was a second away from touching a wire charged with a thousand volts of electricity; but without the pain.

Almost unconsciously she had drawn closer, her mind flowing with feelings and thoughts she couldn't control.  Are you really feeling like this...?  Does he too? Would he?...One thing was for sure, she liked being with Gareeku and helping him if he needed it...the panther wanted nothing more that moment than to be there with him, for him.  She was focused on his eyes, her thoughts and pulse surging.

Then something in the back of her head cut through the flood and said, Oh, stop stewing and kiss him already, tonta.  Aisha closed her eyes and slowly put a hand at the back of Gareeku's head...she drew herself up to him, their lips meeting.

...And there's the wire...

[Stygian]

"...knew you wouldn't keep this up, but yet you did. You've changed so much since you were gone, and I can see it's not for the better! I want you back! You hear me? I do, and Amanda does, and so does Kurt and Eight. Even Stephen did, up until now. You have to come back and hel... Hey! Are you listening to me?" Salticia stopped, glaring at Stygian.

   He was not listening at all. He had blocked out all the sensations, and still that pulsing came back in his head, that white-hot glowing thread of feelings... It couldn't be there! It was a good feeling, a wonderful one, but what it created inside of him was so much stronger. It hurt! It tore his heart out through his throat and held it up before him!
   Gritting his teeth, Stygian pressed his fingers to his temples and tried to focus, to push the feeling away. Yet it did nothing. He stepped out on the balcony outside the room they were in.
   "Go. I need to think."
   "I am not go..." Salticia started.
   "GO!" he roared at her. She silenced, and went out, slamming the door behind her.

[Joat]

“The headache is getting worse. I think I’d better shift out of this form,” I say. Suddenly, my laptop makes a ringing sound. I open up my laptop. From the laptop comes the voice of a young woman. “Um, Joat. I was in your lab looking for you and I ended up bumping into a button while looking for the light switch. A message appeared on the moniter of your huge computer saying ‘form lockdown’. Is that bad?”

“Valencia, you just disrupted the transforming powers of me and anyone else on this planet who is an alien hybrid for at LEAST twenty-four hours. Yes, that is bad,” I say, “Now, what did I tell you about going into my lab without my permission?”

“Um… don’t?”

“That’s right. Now get out of my lab before you cause anything else to happen.”

“Yes. Right away.”

I close my laptop. “Now what in the world am I going to do about this headache?”

“Couldn’t you just use your bracers?” Sylver asks.

“No. Form lockdown also prevents my bracers from functioning, since they work in such a similar way.”

[Gareeku]

Feeling her paw on the back of his head, Gareeku closed his eyes as their lips touched in a kiss. A wonderful loving feeling was now present in the wolf's emotions. He wanted to stay like this, stay with Aisha, for as long as possible, overcome with the desire to be with her, to make her happy, to share all her ups and downs. He wanted to be with her, plain and simple.

Opening his eyes, he softly broke away from the kiss, smiling softly at her.
"Aisha..." he whispered, a paw softly stroking her cheek, before closing his eyes once more as his lips met hers again.

[Joat]

“For crying out loud, stop being so emotional, you too…” I think as my headache worsens.

[Mel Dragonkitty]

When the music stopped Mel shook her head as if trying to wake herself up. She glanced around expecting to see magic lingering in the air. Then she dismissed the thought as silly, music was magic even when it wasn't magical. Then she caught sight of Gareeku and Aisha out of the corner of her eye and decided at least two would agree with that statement.

She grinned at her partner, "I'd call that experiment a success. It was fun and there was minimal property damage done. But I think my next experiment shall be called "eating before I collapse from starvation"."

As she headed for the pizzas she added, "I'm much less awful at dancing as we dragons do, in the sky. There are less things to bump into."

(OOC:    Sorry for being AWOL these last few days. I was being held prisoner by an evil cold germ)

[Joat]

“Ow… ow… I’m gonna kill Valencia for this… ow…” I say.

[Aisha deCabre]

When Gareeku returned her kiss, Aisha was filled with a warmth that felt like the core of her body was melting...it was a comfort that felt like back when she was a cub with her family...but also different in a good way.  Her knees were weak, but she was content to lean gently onto him to keep on her feet, as they stayed like that for what seemed like a long time.

She broke away slowly, her eyes opening to look into his gentle blue ones.  The panther's smile was soft and even a little shy as her forehead rested comfortingly upon him.  "Gareeku..." she whispered back, her purring as rhythmic as a toy motorboat.  She believed then that she was happy to be with him, and would be for however long their hard lifestyles or fate allowed them.

It was then, taking a glance around the room, she had noticed that the music was stopping and almost everyone else had moved around except for them.  With a quiet and awkward laugh she playfully scritched Gareeku's ear.  "This party turned out better than expected, verdad?  Maybe we should let the others have a chance at a good dance, now."

((S'okay Mel, I was held prisoner by worse...studying for final exams.  x.x ))

[Joat]

“Ow… Sylver, do you know of any way to get rid of this headache?” I say.

“Aspirin?” Sylver suggests.

“That’s just obvious enough to work. Can you go get it for me?” I say.

“Sure thing,” Sylver says. He chronoshifts out.

[Stygian]

Stygian had almost broken down. He was hanging over the edge of the balcony, shaking with sobs. Him, of all people! Images flashed though his head, the sensation he could not stop calling forth more painful memories than even his nightmares could, simply because this was not something he could enjoy or distance himself from.
   He only barely noticed as the door at the back of the bedroom opened, and a white figure gracefully slid in.

  Why... are you... hurting? Its voice in his head was clear, split and snaking like his own but not crawling, instead dancing, like crystal chimes. And like his own, when it spoke its words carried more meaning, more images and feelings to it than just words could communicate. It slowly strode towards him.

   Who... are you? he asked.

   I... don't... know...? she answered, confusion upon her face and her thoughts labouring to find the right meaning. I had to... help. I think... this is... yours.
   From her palm, she let a little round object on a chain slip. Stygian looked at it with surprise.

   Do you want to know yourself? he asked, but didn't wait for an answer. He stepped towards her, tears still trickling down his face.

   Then, the room was enveloped in green light and shadows.


   A few minutes later, Stygian walked down the stairs into the main lounge, watching its occupants. His eyes had returned to their poison green colour. He smiled shortly at Gareeku and Aisha, and then practically snaked over the floor to the stereo to put on some more lively music.

[Joat]

Sylver returns. “We’re out of aspirin.”

“Oh, come on!” I think aloud.

[e_voyager]

e bows to Mel and nods " i understand." and in a lowered voice he says. " they do make a cute couple don't they?"

[Joat]

My tendrils begin typing (“pecking” the keys) on my laptop. I watch the tendrils and the screen and, in response to what I see, I say, “Wow, my tendrils are better websurfers than I am. Of course, now come to think of it, that kinda makes sense. After all, they are acting on a subconscious level and the subconscious mind is a powerful thing.”

I look at the screen. “A guide to self-hypnotism?” I look at my tendrils. “Nice to know my wings are thinking like mad scientists. This is a crazy scheme that will probably end in disaster. Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s get to it!”

*OOC: I like the title of this post. It pretty much sums up his experimentation style.*

[Gareeku]

Smiling softly, Gareeku listened to Aisha's voice as his eyes closed, leaning into the scritches slightly and chuckling softly.
"Heh yeah. Let's go get something to eat." the wolf said softly, looking at the panther before him with a loving smile as he held her hand in his, leading her over to where the food and drink was.

[Joat]

“A pocket watch or similar device. Where will I get that?” I say.

“Maybe you can use your wings,” Sylver says. Without further prompting, one of my tendrils moves over the top of my head and in front of my face, slowly moving side to side.

“When I am in a state of hypnosis, tell me that when you bark, I will stop having a headache and wake up; then bark to wake me up,” I say to Sylver. I follow the motions of the tendril with my eyes, allowing myself to be taken into a trance-like state. After about a minute of that, my eyes close.

“Alright. When I bark, you will wake up and your headache will be gone,” Sylver says. He then barks very loudly and I wake up with a jolt.

“Wow, it worked! My headache is gone!” I say.

[Mel Dragonkitty]

"They're adorable," Mel agreed but at the same time she wondered what e meant by saying he understood. Was her dancing so bad that he meant he understood she had to be a better sky-dancer than land-dancer? She started to get offended but then let it go. She had invited the criticism, she couldn't be mad when it arrived.

Mel grabbed a slice of the garlic pizza and wolfed it down. She really was starving. But at the same time she merged a memory with an illusion, much the same way she had with Aisha's gown. Tiny illusions of dragons whirled in the air around her, a memory of the last ball she had attended. Between bites of a second slice of pizza she narrated. "I'm much better skydancing. Can you imagine if a bunch of dragons started crashing around on the ground. We'd be extinct from trampling each other." She laughed at the mental image. "Oh, there I am," she pointed at one of the little illusions. She watched the miniature dance and the familiar whirls, dips, and plunges and found herself a little homesick.

[Stygian]

Meanwhile, Stygian had propped himself at the table by the fireplace, and looked up over some southestern Chinese barbecue at Mel's little... hallucinations, he thought, before he could stop himself. She still felt a bit off, he realized. So after she had downed some more pizza, and he had chewed down nearly all the spicy beef and noodles that he had right now, he went over to her.
   "Show me," he said, placing a reassuring hand on her back.

[Joat]

“That’s quite a beautiful display,” I say, walking over to Mel, “I think I should take lessons from you on how to dance as a dragon; that is, after I get out of this cubi form.”

[Boog]

Boogey, also noticing Mel's illusions, walked over.
"Wow, that's pretty cool. Makes sense too, really," He watched the one she had pointed out as herself swoop and twirl, "That's you, huh? You're quite graceful."

[Joat]

“Aye, that she is,” I say to Boogey.

“Um, Joat. You don’t have to wait until you can go into dragon form to learn how to skydance,” Sylver says.

“Why not?” I ask.

“You have wings, Joat. That’s all you need.”

“Oh. Good point.” I then say to Mel, “Think we can go outside later so you can teach me?”

[Mel Dragonkitty]

Mel gestured at the little illusions. "This is a group memory of last millennial day. We have a big party with lots of dancing. This is the dawn dance." She stepped into the middle of the twisting design. It flashed around her like meteor shower. "This particular dance is very exciting and a little dangerous because you follow the sun then drop with the stars." She traced an upward arc then a spiral down. "At the end you fly as high as you possibly can then plummet as far as you dare. Without, of course, killing yourself, anyone else, or messing up the pattern. Particularly without messing up the pattern unless you want to never hear the end of it."

She smiled at Boogey's comment. "Thanks. Much better than crashing around like a wounded animal in the brush, huh? I get all confused because I don't have enough directions to go in. Sometimes the music just says "up and flip" and you just can't do that when you're grounded."

Mel looked at Joat assessingly, "I can start, but nothing fancy. You're not balanced right with such a skinny tail."

[Joat]

“Hm. And most people think my tail quite bushy,” I say.

“Don’t worry about Joat. The laws of physics have nothing on him. Plus, he’s pretty darn good at balance, even when in human form,” Sylver says.

I blush, which cannot be seen. “Well, I suppose I do have a mean dance record; and I am pretty agile.”

[Stygian]

Stygian looked a bit at Mel, taking in the explanation. However much he could think at once, or they could, if one chose to see it that way, he was still that confused by all these new things. These really were odd creatures.
   His confusion didn't last long though. Something that wasn't there, the almost unnoticeable outline of an invisible shape where light bent through the air, whipped out from him, and a pair of those tall, arched and floor-to-ceiling high windows quickly swung open. Things moved under the skin on his back, and then blackness tore through his skin, bursting out and forming a pair of large bat-wings. He reached out a hand.
   "Please... will you show me?" he said to the dragon.

[Joat]

Sylver and I look at the window, then at Stygian.

“Ooh, cool,” Sylver says, “Maybe after the dancing lessons are done, you can teach Joat how to do magic like that.”

[Mel Dragonkitty]

Mel stepped towards the windows, opening her tightly folded wings as she moved. The sky called and she never could resist. She smiled at Stygian as she took his hand.

[Joat]

I look out the window. “The moon looks so beautiful tonight. Sometimes I think I’m lunar-powered.”

*OOC: I am right in assuming this happens at night, I hope.*