[early morning cat posting]

[sevenhorrorsmods]

Who: everyone
When: July 25
Where: class 3-C
What: a few visitors!
Warnings: none!

[On Friday morning at 6:00 a.m. on the dot, the student body is awoken not by the bell, but by the sound of meowing echoing over the intercom.

[It's not just the PA system, either. Soft, gentle, and very cute mewls fill the classroom hallways; distant on floors one and two, but much louder on floor three. Intrepid explorers who follow the noise will find that one of the third floor classrooms has been overtaken by a pack of ghostly cats!]

[Each creature is the size of a normal housecat, and has the mannerisms of one. That is, they will attempt to hop into your lap for some prime cuddling time, ears and tails flicking adorably all the while. Their bodies are a pale, ghostly white, and their eyes glow a soft, gentle blue. Although they are translucent, they are still solid to the touch, and they feel just like a normal cat does. Soft fur and everything! Aren't they precious? Aren't they just so stinkin' cute??? DON'T YOU JUST WANT TO SMOOSH THEIR ROUND LI'L KITTEN FACES??]

[So long as characters are kind to the cat spirits, the Nekomata are completely harmless. They just want to play and snuggle!! Although. . .]

[Anyone who touches a cat spirit will find themselves hit with a sudden need for physical contact. This can range from something small (desiring a high five) to something bigger (needing to CUDDLE THE SHIT outta someone). Being surrounded by more than one Nekomata means the compulsion becomes stronger, too! One cat means it can probably be safely ignored, but five?? If you don't HOLD SOMEONE'S HAND RIGHT THIS SECOND you JUST MAY DIE!!]

[Oh, so you don't like cats? No problem! The Nekomata are mischievous creatures, and they WILL leap onto people's backs and shoulders without warning. Being cat spirits, they can also teleport from one place to another, so. . . you can be minding your own business one second, blink, and then be staring into the eyes of a cute cat spirit perched on your lap the next.]

[The Nekomata will be drawn towards members of Anzen more than anyone else per their target lock curse, but they are excited to shower literally anyone in a bit of cute kitty affection, regardless of their homeroom]

[Please let me know if your character is being violent and/or aggressive towards the Nekomata. Otherwise, enjoy some compulsive physical bonding with a cute ghostly flair!]

Comments

[ordimame]

[he takes her sharp response in stride, hardly begrudging her for the response. his heart aches a little on her behalf, swelling with the need to do something to make things. . . better. something other than standing here and staring at bread and soup, fingers linked, shoulders pulled taut as he tries not to let his frustration overtake him]

[. . . because as much as he tries-- as much as he wants to, despite only having known her for a little over a week-- he can't. . . really understand her situation, can he?]

. . . that's okay.

[he eventually says as he picks up a small bowl of soup, turning to offer it towards her, steam curling in the air above the brother]

If all you can do is narrow your focus to the people you care about, then that's still something.

[it's not selfish to care more about ones friends and family first and foremost]

[tiebroken]

[ That makes her gaze turn back to him, eyes discerning. It's common for her to butt heads with people in the rebellion over this — to the point of arguments and physical violence. Thus, by comparison...

Some tension bleeds out of her features, and she laughs humorlessly. ]

...You're the first person to tell me that.

[ She takes the bowl of soup from him with her free hand with the tiniest of tired, dry smiles at her lips, placing it down on one of the available trays so they can load everything they want onto it together. ]

Everyone else tells me I need to think of the "greater good." Even if that means letting them die.

[ She pushes the tray so that it's between them on the counter at their waist level, stepping closer to him to suggest they keep moving down the line. Steadying herself and her frayed emotions, and wanting to shift the focus off of her, she turns it back onto him: ]

But you've never had to make a choice like that, have you?

[ordimame]

[. . . has he?]

[. . .]

[perhaps. . . not on the same level as her. no, definitely not on the same level. his world is nothing like hers, his experiences so far removed from a reality where humans are kept as pets. but at the same time. . . there did come a time when he had to choose between keeping his own crew safe, and doubling back to rescue a set of captives her barely knew, right? and back then, he had chosen. . .]

[. . . well. he knows what he did]

I have. Once before.

[he shuffles down the line, grabbing another bowl of soup for himself, along with a few small chunks of bread]

But that situation was a lot different than yours. I could afford to think about the. . . "greater good."

[a small shake of his head as he regards her with a slight sideways glance]

It's not wrong to be selfish. And I think you deserve to be.

oh my god this got buried in my inbox IM SORRY

[tiebroken]

[ If nothing else, she's glad he can understand the weight of such a choice. Even if he is more noble than she is, could think of the greater good — he says it's because of his circumstances, but Mizi immediately attributes it to him being a better person than she is. Whenever she notices that in a person, she feels a strange mix of jealousy and admiration — though the latter outweighs the former, for now. ]

I don't think I do... but I still feel this way.

[ She knows, on some level, that it's wrong... but she also can't stop herself. She tightens her hand around his, glancing at him so they can do Teamwork and lift up the tray together. ]

Did everything work out with your choice, at least...?

I WILL WAIT FOREVER FOR JAMS TAGS

[ordimame]

[. . . nah. he'd outright deny that his choice made him a good person. he isn't a good person. never has been, despite efforts to prove otherwise. and in that moment, torn between escape and heroism as he had been, he was only doing what felt selfishly, painfully right. he hadn't even considered the consequences or dangers that might have been involved. how it might have affected the people around him]

[. . .]

[. . . he'd say it was only luck that saw things turn out for the better. but that's not entirely truthful either, is it. . .? luck might have been part of it, but Laurent's ability to see through him and come up with contingencies in response to his own reckless, unpredictable actions, is what really saved them all]

[hah. pathetic, isn't it?]

[. . .]

[he'd make the exact same choice again in a heartbeat]

It did. [his smile softens] . . . only because I had a lot of smart people in my corner.

[tiebroken]

[ That's the difference between them. He had people in his corner, smart people, supporting him and helping him. In her own situation, she can't see a single person standing by her side or helping her wishes come to fruition.

At first, she doesn't know what to say. "Good for you?" "I'm glad?" Neither of those seem right, so she settles for the connection between their hands, hand tensing in his while they carry their goodies to a table. ]

You're lucky. To have that.

[ordimame]

[. . .]

I am.

[he hadn't meant for it to be a brag. if anything, it was a subtle dig at himself. how he always seems to rely on the wit of his crew to haul him out of the holes he digs for himself. but he senses the subtle tension in her fingers, and decides not to linger on it]

Can you tell me more about your friends?

[tiebroken]

[ For what it's worth, she takes his words at face value — their neither gloating nor self-deprecating. His circumstances are just different. As a result, she lets the moment pass without protest, happy for him, somewhere deep down, that life has dealt him that hand. ]

Their names are —

[ She stops herself, the ever present reminder not to say any "real" names hanging over her. Even though they're not here... it's probably better to be safe than sorry, right? Serious and grave as Mizi seems in msot matters these days, sometimes the carelessness, the airheaded-ness, of the woman she was before all this pokes through. ]

Um, never mind. [ a beat, and she almost looks a little mortified to have almost blurted it out like that. ] We met in Anakt Garden — it's a music education school for pets.

[ordimame]

[he tenses when she almost drops the names of her comrades, grip on her hand tightening, as if in warning. her friends may not be present amidst the student body, but none of them know what happens if they share their real names-- or the real names of the people close to them-- with each other, right. . .? it feels like a risk not worth taking. . . and the tension in his shoulders only relaxes when she stops herself and moves on]

[a quiet nod]

Musical education. . . for singing? Or playing instruments?

[tiebroken]

Singing.

[ She responds immediately, squeezing his hand back in thanks for the pseudo-warning from before. Then, she settles in to give him some context — this, at least, she can talk about neutrally, as it's just factual information. ]

Segyein are fond of the "cries" that humans can make... they can't make them themselves. [ Much like humans being fond of birdsong. ] So a lot of pet-humans are trained to sing from a young age. Ones with owners who care about that kind of thing... and have the money for it.

[ordimame]

[the implication is, of course, that her "owner" had enough money for it. to. . . teach her to sing. to force her to entertain, whether she wanted to or not]

[. . .]

[he takes a seat, and finally reaches for a spoon]

Do you like it? Uh-- singing, that is.

[tiebroken]

...I do.

[ She replies after some time to think, trying to tear a piece of one of the rolls off. ]

Just singing for fun, or together... that's the nicest way.

[ She dips the bread in the soup. Singing came to symbolize something intrinsically human, the more the divide between them and segyein was drawn as she got older. She can't help but wonder — ]

Have you ever tried to sing before?

[ordimame]

[it gives him some comfort, to know that she enjoys it. that being forced into it hasn't diminished what lyrical harmony can do to one's heart. he draws up a tiny smile as he eats a spoonful of his own soup]

I have, though I can't say I'm very good at it. I just don't have the voice.

. . . though! That wouldn't necessarily stop me.

[from joining in on a drunken ballad or two, if the moment was right]