[Open]

[notachickenhawk]

Starving. His Beast is starving, and Tobias knows it. As the days go on and he can't seem to find a decent something to feed on, he knows what's going to happen. He knows, and he tries to drag himself out somewhere in the middle of the night where he can sleep, far away from anyone he knows.

He doesn't make it very far. His Beast's exhaustion and need to feed catches up to him, and he holes up in an abandoned house at the edge of the Sixth. He doesn't have much on him, but that's more in case someone finds him and tries to rob him. He curls up against a wall and closes his eyes, dropping off to sleep.

And inside the realm of nightmares, the great hawk shrieks to the skies and bursts pasts its barriers to hunt.

[[ooc; How this log works: Post a toplevel with a general description of a dream your character is having. Tobias' Beast will come in and attempt to terrify your character. Those with dream-combat experience (like some Changelings) are likely to fend him off easier.]]

[[Please note that this will leave your character feeling restless and disturbed when they wake up if they do get spooked. If it goes particularly bad (or well) for your character, there are other effects that are possible.]]

Comments

[notachickenhawk]

"Yes." The answer comes almost immediately, before he huffs a bit.

Admitting this... admitting he failed... "It, more than me. I didn't keep it well-fed enough... but I'm worried that I might have fed too much."

[runs]

"Did you have any control over it?"

It doesn't really matter, but it does. "What happens if you have fed too much?" If it being hungry makes Tobias lose control...

[notachickenhawk]

"Sort of." He can't really control it in dreams that well. Not yet, at least. He doesn't usually get this hungry, but... well.

As to what if he feeds too much... "You don't want to feed so much that it falls asleep. But if it isn't really careful when it feeds... you can attract attention."

[runs]

"The attention of whom? And why would it be bad if it falls asleep?"

She's waking up a bit more now, but sees absolutely no reason to not remain where she is. She doesn't have to project any professionalism here, so why bother to get out of a comfortable situation?

[notachickenhawk]

"... Heroes. People who think that Beasts are just monsters. We... I mean we kind of are, but we're not mindless things. Usually. We're still people." And as for why it would be bad if it falls asleep... "And if it falls asleep then I'm... kind of defenseless. I'm pretty much just a normal human, but when there's so many things around you don't really want to be left defenseless."

[runs]

She nods and settles back in, thinking, which makes it look like she's almost falling asleep again. But her voice is very clear when she asks:

"Does your horror always have to hack people apart to eat them?"

Because the similarity between what Tobias showed her and the bird that she dreams of was just uncanny.

[notachickenhawk]

He goes quiet, and sighs. "... I don't know where you saw that. But usually it doesn't. Usually it's fine with just... wrecking things. Stuff people own."

[runs]

"So it's safer to have things on you when you dream?"

She never has anything on her when she dreams, or close to never, because she's almost always a cat. And she doubts that you can really change your dreams like that. ...She also should really come clean about a certain detail about herself, but it's so ingrained to not tell anyone that she's a cat that it's really hard.

[notachickenhawk]

"I... maybe. It's hard to tell. Usually it doesn't go after someone who's dreaming about not having things." He sighs, and shrugs. "I didn't mean to worry you about being out all night... I just thought you might try to follow me."

[runs]

....Well. There'd been that weird fruit.

"You could just have told me to not follow you." It's another question if it would have worked. "And you didn't get far enough away, anyway, if you tried to not be in my dreams that way. Because you were. Or your horror, anyway."

[notachickenhawk]

"Would you have listened? And - wait. What?" He tilts his head, confused. "I don't remember seeing you there." He's sure he would have remembered Kitty...

[runs]

"I'm always a cat in my dreams."

Well, almost always. It's often how she recognizes dreams, that she's a cat in situations where logically she would have to be a human.

[notachickenhawk]

... Oh. Uh oh. Shit.

"Then I - then you - okay, first of all, why?"

[runs]

Well, seems like she should really come clean. Everything in her screams to not do so, but...

"Because I am a cat."

[notachickenhawk]

He opens his mouth, then closes it, then sits up and looks at her. "... You know, I should have been more suspicious when you told me your name was Kitty, but... okay. You're a cat. A magical, psychic cat. That's one of the weirder things I've heard, recently, but considering what I've seen..." Yeah. There's a whole slew of weird things. What's another one?

Tobias lies down again, ducking his head. "... Then I guess I... I really should apologize. That was you, wasn't it? The one I..." Shit. How can he ever... explain, or justify it, or...

He can't. Not really.

[runs]

"It was just a dream. ...And I would've regrown everything anyway." Maybe. Probably not, because blood loss in real life, and other such things. The hawk took a significant portion of her body. But she doesn't want Tobias to worry, and sits up to flop over his chest.

"And I'm a mage and a cat. You can be both." Where she's from. Compared to how many metahumans are mages, she feels like there are probably more shapeshifter mages out there. In proportion to their general populations, anyway. "And the woman that adopted me wasn't very good at names. And it's a good streetname." And nobody will be able to tell her otherwise.

[notachickenhawk]

Sudden physical contact what - but he puts an arm around her, holding her gently. "If you say so. I've got no reason not to believe you." So she was adopted, huh... by a human? Maybe. He's not sure. He's been trying not to pry. "I really am sorry, though. I guess... since you're familiar, it was easier to get into your dream."

[runs]

"Will it happen again?

And you don't have to be sorry. You lost control and were hungry. You just should be more careful next time." Yes, good. Good course of action, Tobias. She curls up on his chest a bit.

[notachickenhawk]

"I'll try to make sure it doesn't. I don't like being like that. I... need to hunt more often." But he's been distracted, trying to make sure Kitty is safe... he's been more focused on her than taking care of himself.

[runs]

"Mmmmh." She hums in agreement, curling up a bit more and then he can feel (and perhaps see) her shift right there. At least she doesn't get heavier down the middle? It may feel really weird though, everything about her changing shape and shifting and shrinking, until a few seconds later she's done and starts to crawl around until her head pokes out of the collar of her coat, and then she'll just lie there, a much lesser weight than before on his chest. It's more comfortable to lie on him like this and besides, she has found, people will be less awkward about physical proximity when you're a cat.

[notachickenhawk]

He freezes, and looks down at her, feeling her shift. It's... really strange to watch, but he kind of can't look away. He's quiet, until she's finally done, and settles her jacket around her, keeping his movements gentle and careful.

"... I used to have a cat. His name was Dude. I wasn't very good at names." She's so small...

[runs]

He'll probably be able to hear her snigger, being a beast and all that.

No better or worse than Kitty.

There were way worse options. "Kitty" at least is neutral.

[notachickenhawk]

"It can pass for a human name, too." He moves his hand in and brushes the fur on the top of her head, careful not to put too much pressure. "Do you prefer sleeping like this?"

[runs]

Yes, good, pettings. See, it's a lot easier when she's in her birth shape.

Seriously? I always use different names when they should sound like human birth names.

Does she prefer sleeping like this? She's never thought about that. It's better to sleep as a human when it's this cold. Because she has clothes then.

[notachickenhawk]

"It sounds like a nickname. I've heard people use it for Katherine or Kathleen. Or Karen." He pulls her jacket up a bit more, so it's just barely touching the back of her head. "Here..."