Tanuchan

I love this - every time I read it, it seems to have a slightly different image associated to it, a different reason behind the words. There's a rhythm in it that's only enhanced by the song/music. It flows very well, and because of the title it's really easy for me to see and hear a horse seeking freedom; the pace you set specially in the song seems to echo its restlessness, maybe in the brink of breaking away from restraints. Makes me also think of how many different horses people can harbor within themselves, actually. Very well done!

*wounded* aw, c'mon... he's so sweet... :innocent: And btw, sorry for the lack of in-character signup... been rather busy. But Thomas will be around.

*hugs* Hello, Annael!! Welcome back

If you're ok with this, just for the fun of it I'm going to add Thomas the Minstrel here - he is *not* a contestant since he is my very-secondary-character, but he'll add to the mess... erm... fun. Yeah, fun I'll edit this post later to add him in RP. Let me know if there's any problem

Tanny stopped by the Conservatory on her way home, tilting head curiously at the newest poster. The cooking part appealed to her, and she pondered for a while before shrugging and signing her name. Why not? Can't be any worse than trying one of Stephen's concoctions anyway... OOC: I'd be volunteering for judge, unless you need more contestants. I understand the judges will ... well, judge, but are also RPing and interacting at will? Would it be possible also to enter a secondary character for the contest part as a kind of 'hour-concours' character? This looks like fun

A black wolf perks her ears, hearing Wyvern's name and hoping that he isn't actually around. After making sure there are no prosthetic limbs of any kind waiting for her, nor any sign of lizard schemes, she grins at the... frog? ... Shh! Don't say that name aloud... he's sure to be here soon if he sees any chance of selling his Almost Dragonic™ products! And hello and welcome back Things have been a bit quiet lately, but I'm sure you'll find it fun around here. She ducks a bow, and quietly also leaves for some safe refuge before a certain lizard appears.

"Wolf-Lady, I still think-" "Well, do you have a better idea, Stephen?" Tanny's voice was annoyed as she looked levelly at the Ranger, then looking down at the Standing Stones from a small hill. "Unless you tell me you can find a Portal just by sensing it through Earth!" It was early evening, and they could see the soft glow of the torches, one sitting at the center of the circle of stones and three more placed further around it. Tanny rested eyes on them, feeling eerily detached all of a sudden. Stephen frowned, and touched her arm. "I still think it's a bad idea." Startled, Tanny looked back at Stephen still with an annoyed expression. "You wanted to find a way to that place without having to get near the tribe again. After almost a week of scouting and looking for it, now you tell me it's a bad idea?" "That place seems rather... unstable to my senses, Wolf-Lady. Even from this far, I can feel that there is something not purely earth on there." "Is there anything at all in here that feels like pure something?" She sighed, letting her annoyance go and sitting on the ground, still facing the Stones. "I can believe you, though - there is something not quite right when we come from this side. The energies are not only vibrating, they are... resonating with something else." I wonder if that might mean the Portal is still there... Stephen sat down next to Tanny, and after a while he asked, "Do you have any idea how Portals work?" "Enough to know that I don't like them," she growled. "Little more than that, Stephen. That's magic, and I don't understand magic." Her voice was rueful. Quietly, Stephen continued, "Portals are just that... doors to other realms. Like a door from one room to the other." He tried to reach memories that he had buried very deep, and succeeded only partially as he completed, "Their energy can be sometimes directed to real Gating, and that's about all I remember from my magic lessons." Tanny chuckled wearily, "We just need a Mage now, right?" She looked at Stephen, but chose not to pursue it. "Do you remember how we activated that portal from the Orc Realm back to the Pen?" "With rather a lot of commotion, confusion and a big bang. Right in front of a huge Orc army trying to trample us." "I was rather asking about the actual opening of the portal, not the circumstances." Stephen chuckled, "I know, but I needed a moment to let it come back. I seem to remember finding a spot in the earth that remembered the portal. Then you did something with it to open it again ..." "Now if only I could remember what." Tanny made a face, and after some effort just shrugged. "There were a lot of wild energies around us... there was you, I, and those Orc shamans. I don't think it was exactly me who triggered it, Stephen." She sighed wistfully and stared down at the Standing Stones for a while before speaking again. "This isn't going to get us anywhere." "We'll get somewhere eventually, Wolf-Lady. After all, this is the Pen we're trying to get to. How about we just try? Last time you managed just by instinct, perhaps you'll be able to do it again." "You're being a bit too optimistic, aren't you, Ranger?" She looked at him with a grim smile. "But we have at least to try. Either that, or find someone with some magic-" Some shadowy movement around the Standing Stones caught Tanny's eyes, and she stopped Stephen's question with a hand on his lips. ::Shhh... there's someone down there. One of them....:: As the almost-feline passed in front of a torch, she recognized her. ::The priestess - Amareyha.:: ::I assume that if anyone here does magic, it's her. I wonder what she's doing, though.:: ::From the way she's moving about, she seems to be waiting for something. And ... wait ... there are more of them.:: Tanny stared down intently for a little longer. ::It seems like those ... the ones that look like trainee-priestesses are with her.:: Stephen nodded, and after a minute added, ::And if they stay there, they're going to become very, very wet kitties.:: Tanny looked up a little surprised. ::What do you mean?:: ::It's still rather far off, but there's a torrent of water heading their way. I can just barely hear it rushing closer, but it's becoming stronger already ... it must be approaching rather quickly.:: At that moment, Tanny noticed Amareyha and the Sam'ey'aren moving away from the stones to what looked like a safe distance. ::They know.:: ::Hmm ... do you think they're waiting for it?:: ::It's possible. With those cats, you never know. :: Frowning, still following them, Tanny added, ::At least these cats seem to not like water that much...:: Down at the Sam'ey, the junior priestesses made a loose circle around Amareyha, and soon the soft chanting reached Tanny's and Stephen's ears. Amareyha was silent, eyes fixed on the central stone, oblivious for a moment of what was going around her. One more Kal'th... one more year. Will this be the different one? She answered to the chant of the Sam'ey'aren automatically, still half-lost in thoughts. The Spirits arrived, and then went into hiding. I have seen them at times, during the night - why are they avoiding us, Illonia? Was I at fault? Or is that a sign that more changes are to come? She turned to the direction of the flood, raising arms and joining the invocation chant. Illonia, Mother, guide us... guide me. I feel restless. Where does this desire comes from? Why I do not see myself leading the Tribe to the day You call me to your side? The chant seemed to go on and on for very long, and Tanny wished she could shut her mind to it. It was starting to grate in her senses, the subtle changes in intonation sending waves of vibrations in different frequencies through her mind. She was startled when Stephen's hands touched her head. ::Take it easy, Wolf-Lady,:: he sent gently while massaging her temples. ::I don't think it's safe for us to lit a fire here so I can prepare you some tea...:: Tanny made a face, half-mumbling, ::I'm glad it's not safe, then... you need to find better herbs, or at least some that do not give me a reaction headache to them.::. She closed her eyes, letting Stephen's gentle fingers work tension away. ::Thank you, Stephen.:: As she relaxed, and trusting Stephen to keep senses on the priestess's ritual down the Stones, Tanny let her awareness flow and expand at will. The vibration that permeated the space around her still put her on the edge, but she forced herself to observe its flow in a detached way. Threads are no more than the way we choose to see the energies around us. You can consider them as lines, or floating specks of dust, or a stream. However you choose to see it, you have to know how to recognize them in spite of what your mind-sight tells you. The voice of Karala, the old High Priestess in the temple of Dyrenne, came back to Tanny's mind. Stephen vaguely felt Tanny's awareness extending into the earth around them and realized that she was searching for the portal spot. ::I think it was somewhere near those stones, but please try not to interrupt their ritual.:: Tanny nodded slightly as Stephen's thought touched her mind, and shaped her perception towards the Stones. She hesitated, frowning at what seemed to be a wall in front of her. A wall of ... vibrating threads. Yes, they are threads. And I can work with them... forget the vibration. See their nature. She groped for anything familiar around her, faltering for a moment. Sensing her faltering, Stephen instinctively sent out a protective, steadying sense of earth to stabilize her again. ::Someday you'll have to teach me how to do that on purpose, rather than by instinct, Wolf-Lady.:: ::Any time you want, Ranger.:: She smiled, and then drew on Stephen's strength to steady herself as she reached out for one of the vibrating threads. Air. She gasped at the vaguely familiar touch, trying to resist the urge to retreat. ::Wolf-Lady?:: Steadying herself, Tanny forced herself to isolate and follow a single Air thread. ::Why can't they use plain Water in this place?!::. ::Hmmm...:: Stephen noted the gruff tone in his friend, and after some time studying what he felt from Earth and what he heard very faintly, he completed, ::Wolf-Lady, I believe your wish is about to come true. I don't know how those things go for you, but... brace yourself?:: Stephen's warning confused Tanny for just a moment, as she suddenly felt Water rushing to meet her. With a mental yelp, she hastily leaned on Stephen's shielding, opening herself just enough to both absorb and deflect the waves of watery threads battering her energy-sense. In spite of its almost subliminal vibration, Tanny felt comforted by the otherwise familiar touch, drawing a good measure of soothing and calm from them before slowly receding back to the hilltop. "The flood," whispered Stephen, feeling through Earth how the waters filled the area of the Stones — an area that just then he recognized as a small flood-basin. "Yes. It's filling fast." Still half-entranced by the energy-sense, and still shielded by Stephen, Tanny grasped his hand and let images fill her mind. Water, rushing in from the channel so far hidden among tall grass and boulders strewn randomly. Flooding the basin, waters rising fast around the stones, swirling and splashing around the central one. The sam'ey'aren, all kneeling but for Amareyha, who stood with arms raised and looked just like a statue. The moon rising behind her. Stephen drew a sharp breath, surprised as images flooded his mind as certainly as the rushing sound of water filled his ears. Tanny's whispered thought came in before he could retreat, ::No. Stay open to me.:: ::Open? How-:: ::Just don't fight it, and keep the... sense of earth.:: Stephen nodded and tried not to resist, which became harder as he focused on it. After a few moments and some irritated grunts from Tanny it suddenly clicked in his mind and the images continued to flow. Amareyha lowered her arms slowly, timing it with the slowing of the flood. The resurrected River was now flowing steadily, feeding the small lake that already covered two-thirds of the central pillar of the Sam'ey. She waited until the water level reached the carving of the Goddess on the face of the stone, and then intoned a sharp syllable. Leaves behind her rustled as two acolytes stepped to her side, one of them offering a small statue with bowed head. Illonia, Mother, what fate did you choose for me...? She took the chains the other acolyte offered her, and carefully placed them around arms and legs of the statue. With another sharp syllable, Amareyha dismissed the Acolyte of Chains. Another took her place, and the three of them went to the margin of the lake. The acolyte helped Amareyha out of her robe, and tied a scarf on her wrist. The priestess took the statue and dived into the lake. As she swam towards the base of the central stone, Amareyha tried to sort out her feelings. What do I expect? What do I fear? She chained the statue to the stone, making sure it was well fastened, then braided her wrist-scarf into the links with the intricate pattern that identified herself to Illonia. Almost out of breath, she gave a final tug in the last knot, and kicked upwards, to the surface. Up the hill, Tanny saw Amareyha surface without the statue, and also noticed the lack of the scarf. She kept eyes on the priestess while two acolytes robed her, some tension rising in her that she herself did not notice until Stephen queried softly. ::What's wrong?:: Tanny blinked, and mentally shook herself vigorously. Then, sighing, turned her back to the newly-formed lake. ::Let's find a better place to camp for the night... preferably in a place where no one would look for intruders.:: ::There was a nice spot not far from here ... I doubt they'd visit there, but I'll scout the area just to make sure.:: It didn't take them long to get to the spot Stephen had in mind and make themselves comfortable with some of the food that they still had left. When they finished their meal, Tanny rested against a tree trunk and after a while sighed. Seeming almost talking to herself, she explained, "A week ago you asked whether I had repaired my empathic barriers. I actually don't think they can be 'repaired' — not in the sense of getting them back to what they were. They seem to still be a bit unstable right now-" Tanny stopped abruptly, and the face Stephen could not see showed some internal struggle. After a moment, she continued as abruptly, "-I'm not sure what is happening, but there is a lot of confusion and doubt in Amareyha's mind. Centered on that lake, and that strange ritual we saw." "Hmm ... you saw her diving into the lake with a statue, some chains and a scarf, but came up without all that stuff? I'm actually tempted to go and check that out, see if we can find any clues about what's going on. Perhaps those items and the ritual can help trigger our portal back. After all, we did appear right there." Tanny shrugged, "Why not? We'll need to start somewhere, even if it doesn't seem like a good idea to try and open a portal in the middle of a lake." With a chuckle, Stephen nodded. "We can start checking whether the tribe stays away from the stones tomorrow. If they do, we'll use the opportunity." "Alright." The silence stretched, with Tanny becoming more and more absorbed in thoughts. Stephen lit a cigarette, and for once made an extra effort to keep downwind from his brooding friend, while sorting out his own thoughts. We'll need a portal back, but ... neither one of us really knows how to open it, or even to make sure it goes to the right place. And if there is enough of a memory of the last portal in the earth, we'll just end up at that weird place again where memories become reality. Slowly exhaling the smoke of his cigarette, he let his thoughts wander on what would happen if they would actually be able to open a portal, and how big the chance would be it would end up in a familiar place. Suddenly, unbidden, a fragment of a lesson from his childhood returned to him. A secret which the magi have long kept hidden is that new portals can no longer be created, not even in Ilistar. They do, however, have a set of historical portals which they can open and close as they desire. The only restriction is that they cannot make them end up at new destinations. Thus, they have all their possibilities carefully mapped out. Frowning slightly, he wondered whether the same theory would apply here, or whether it was strictly tied to his own world. Tanny gazed at Stephen, raising some barriers around her so that he did not notice her intent observation of him. Her eyes flickered in the moonlight, the normally silvery-gray having deepened to a bluish hue. There is more to you than you admit, Stephen. She recalled bits and pieces she had noticed in her friend since they had left the Keep through a wayward Portal, and started to see the vaguest of patterns in there. She shook her head lightly, still arguing with herself. Should I? Would it really help him, or just... break him? He has barriers on memories... almost as strong as mine. With a soft sigh, Tanny hugged her knees still with eyes on Stephen, who suddenly addressed her. "Tanny, you know more about magic than I do ... how much of a chance do you think there is of us ending up with a portal back to that weird place we came here from in the first place?" "Honestly? Pretty big." Her voice was hushed, and a frown creased her expression. "A Portal is but a door. Unless it has been created with the intention of opening in different worlds, and even so one who uses it would need to know how to trigger it to the correct destination." After a pause, she continued, "I wish we had a choice in the matter, but..." Picking up Tanny's meaning, Stephen finished her sentence for her. "We really don't, do we?" "Well, our choice is staying or trying to go somewhere." Her voice was grim. "I don't work Portals, Ranger... unfortunately. That's pure magic." Though.... I wonder if I'm able to see through the web of energies it creates... "Web of energies? What do you mean?" Tanny started, a bit surprised at Stephen's ability to pick up her thoughts. "Hm... a Portal is nothing more than a complex weave of energies. My energy-sense is able to also sense magic being channeled, and occasionally detect their ... threads. I do not understand them, nor can I interfere with them, but I might be able to see them. For all the good it might do." "Have you ever tried interfering with them? Who knows, it might actually help getting a good result ..." "Or it might end up with us arriving in an even stranger world. Are you sure you're willing to take that risk?" She tilted her head, wondering whether he really was that crazy. Stephen chuckled, "We run that risk anyway, so we might as well try to influence it to our advantage." Tanny kept silent, though Stephen could feel her grudging agreement. She went back to her previous brooding, again focusing on what her memory insisted on recalling. She was so intent on following branching possibilities, that she was aware of Stephen trying to get her attention only when he prodded her gently through their earth-link. ::Wolf-Lady ... what are you thinking?:: ::That it would be easier if you were not so stubborn,:: she answered in a half-teasing tone. Then, more seriously and making up her mind, she touched his arm. "Stephen, tell me what you did when you created the earth-shield around me." For a few moments, Stephen thought that over. "You know... that is a very good question. I know I sort of ... anchored my own sense to the earth around me, and I guess you used that to protect your weavings from the rushing water?" "Hmm...." Tanny thought that over, then threw a grounding line for her using still the Water threads. It didn't feel as reliable as the normal earth-grounding she would use, but she did not need more than some hold on any familiar element — and Water seemed to be the least tainted by vibration so far. "Do it again please?" Stephen harrumphed. "You still believe I actually know what I'm doing when it comes to that earth-stuff? In that case I think I still have a few barrels of Lemonoaid™ that need selling ..." "Stephen!" She glared, shuddering at the thought. "Don't be stubborn. Just... do it? You were able to manipulate the threads... somehow. Can you See this?" Tanny reached out for a flimsy thread of earth, nudging it until it stopped struggling and allowed itself to be braided into a simple cord. She let it glow softly, and nudged Stephen gently. ::Can you sense the weaving in any way?:: Frowning, he took a few moments to sense around himself, then suddenly noticed it and nodded. "There is ... something all right." ::Can you pick it up?:: She let the weave drift towards Stephen, observing through her energy-sense. With a straight face, Stephen stuck his hand out to where he sensed the threads to be and grasped a handful of air, holding it up with a triumphant grin. What he did not expect was the sudden tingling in his hand, almost like a shock, complemented by Tanny's smug grin that he could not see but sensed all the same. "Right, my dear, smart Ranger... can you actually show me what you do with the earth threads?" There was a hint of amusement now in her voice, and Tanny settled down more comfortably. "This is not just out of the blue, Stephen. I won't be able to do much only by myself, as you should have noticed by now. It would be good if you could do consciously what you did by instinct so far. There might be more things hanging on that than just steadying me." Stephen shook his head. "If you like, I could knit you a sweater with them, but I'd have to find those threads first. For all I know, there is just "the earth" as I sense it underneath my feet. Although, perhaps ... who knows, it might just be a blanket..." Ignoring Tanny's confusion at his last remark, Stephen concentrated on the earth directly around him, this time not extending his senses in distance but in depth. He sat in silence for so long that Tanny started wondering whether he'd fallen asleep. "Stephen?" He briefly shook his head and tried to go deeper into his sense, trying to find those threads. After several more minutes, he spoke without letting go of his concentration. "Do you think you can ... mark one single thread that runs underneath me?" Tanny frowned, trying to make sense of what Stephen were trying to do. She did not answer, relaxing instead and concentrating on what she could feel through their earth-link. It dawned on her then that he was searching for a web of threads in the earth itself — the solid matter, and not the web of energies that hovered around anything solid. Deciding against clarifying him, she decided to tackle the problem from another angle. ::Stephen,:: she mind-spoke softly, ::Relax.:: She felt him blink, and Saw a wavering on the knot of energies close to him. Nodding to herself, she insisted again, ::Just relax, Stephen... feel the earth as you usually do — when you just try to get information from it.:: Stephen slowly relaxed and, still rather lost as to what Tanny wanted him to do, shifted his awareness to the usually soothing earth-sense that he relied onto. Tanny's voice intruded softly again, ::Trust me.:: Breathing slowly, Tanny let part of her awareness drift toward Stephen through their earth-link. At least unstable barriers might be useful for something, she thought ruefully as she used the trickle of empathy leaking through barriers to touch Stephen's foremind. ::See this?:: She focused on the earth strand glowing to her energy-sense, ignoring the vibration that made her clench her jaw. Trying not to focus on it too intently, Stephen just kept his senses centered on the small area around himself. When he became aware of Tanny's thread, it came as such a surprise that he almost lost his contact. ::I sense something, yes.:: As he tried to focus on it, it seemed to be eluding his grasp, but after several attempts and a few curses muttered under his breath, he started getting the hang of it. "I think I've got it ... at least I can sort of sense where it is without it slipping my grasp." ::Good.:: Tanny smiled, changing her weaving a bit. The cord of earth was now more similar to a small net, with nodes that glowed softly. ::Focus on the glowing nodes. Don't try to actually grasp them - just focus as close to them as you can. As if you were trying to fill your sight just with one of them.:: "Wolf-Lady, I still don't understand why you keep insisting that I can see those things. Even with my extra sense I'm just ... aware of various patterns and presences. You did change something though, didn't you?" ::I added some more threads to make a sort of net. See if you can find the points where the threads cross each other.:: With a frown of concentration on his brow, Stephen tried to sense the different threads. After a little while he thought he could sense where the different threads were in relation to each other and started focusing on the nodes instead. Picking one, he concentrated on it to try and get every single detail about it firmly in his mind. He blinked mentally in surprise as the node suddenly seemed to fade away and almost lost his hold on the earth-sense. He felt Tanny's characteristic touch, somehow steadying his link. Her voice came softly, ::Try to do it again with another node. Just focus - I have woven them in a way that they'll darken if they're touched by another's mind.:: Chuckling softly, Stephen couldn't help but grin. "You really can sort of see them, can't you? For me they just ... fade away, almost as if they suddenly stop existing." "Fade away?" Tanny frowned in surprise, tilting her head inquisitively. "How so?" "They become vague. Imagine holding someone's hand, and suddenly discovering that that person is a ghost." Block. A very deep one. She nodded slowly, nudging a glowing node right in front of Stephen's mind-eye and keeping him busy with chasing nodes for a while, using the time herself to think of her options. Tanny slowly unraveled the weaving. I must not. I cannot. But without his help... Carefully, she wove Water around him and let it refresh and clear his mind. Be strong, Stephen, please... without a bare minimum of control, what I need do to will probably destroy us both. She monitored the small, subtle healing weave as it hovered around the Ranger. It is only your awareness that I need to nudge back to life. Stephen sagged as the Water-weave was dispelled, and only then noticed a rather suspicious headache telling him of its existence. He groaned softly, feeling suddenly very tired. "Just relax, Stephen." Tanny's voice was as gentle as her hands rubbing his shoulders, deftly working on the tension points and helping his muscles unknot. "You might want to try one of your concoctions, they'll probably help the headache." "What-" "Reaction headache. It comes with the effort of controlling elemental threads.' "I wasn't controlling anything!" His voice was almost a growl, though Tanny's massage was starting to ease his body and mind. Sighing, he shook his head. "What was all that about?" "You were actually touching a couple Earth threads, Stephen. Nudging them, though just very slightly." She smiled at the sudden tension she felt under her hands, and proceeded to work it out. "I also noticed how quickly you were able to follow their movement by the end of the exercise, dear Ranger." Confused, Stephen tried to recall what he had actually done. He could only remember focusing his mind on glowing knots in front of him, passing on to the next as soon as one faded away. "I think that next I have to teach you to keep barriers in place... relax, Stephen. You're broadcasting." Tanny's soft chuckling interrupted his thoughts, and he started to answer when she hushed him again. "Turn your earth-sense towards you, Stephen. Draw it in. Now." Her voice was suddenly so sharp, that Stephen instinctively recoiled and pulled his awareness of earth back into himself. He was even more confused and surprised as his friend said, "Thank you - you were starting to give me a headache." Laughing softly as he pulled a few leaves from one of his pouches and started brewing a tea out of them, he said, "That would only be fair, wouldn't it? So what, exactly, was that torture you were putting me through all about?" "That was a very very basic exercise, Stephen. One that we used at the Temple with those too eager or too anxious to be able to succeed in Weaving... I guess it works well in other situations too." She gazed into the forest around them, voice somewhat hushed and a hint of unwillingness to talk that Stephen caught. But in spite of it, Tanny continued. "The point is that 'touching' elemental energy-threads is much more focusing on them than reaching out to grasp a real thread. Once you're able to focus, you're just a step away from 'nudging' them." After a pause, Tanny continued with a wry smile, "We just need now to make you see the threads on your own... and not through my energy-sense." "Before we start that, though, you might want to come up with a reason why I'd want to start giving myself headaches." Tanny chuckled wearily, working on her own headache. "If you really want me to find a way to trigger a portal back to the Pen, I'll need your help. I'm unable to ground properly here, I'm unable to fine-control elemental threads... hell, I'm just unable to get my energy-affinity working in here." She grimaced, standing up abruptly and taking some steps away from the fire - and from Stephen's cigarette. She let silence grow for a while, conscious that Stephen was saying something but just too intent on her own thoughts to actually listen to him. "And you think I can somehow he..." Realizing that Tanny wasn't listening, he lapsed into silence and watched her for a while before mentally nudging her. ::Wolf-Lady? What's bothering you?:: ::Memories.:: answered her curtly, making it rather clear to Stephen that she did not want to discuss those with him. Going back to her brooding, she unconsciously clenched her hand. Air. Opposite Earth, incompatible in normal weaving. But one subtle enough to not create too many ripples around magic energies. And the need of a strong grounding line to be able to control it without the Training. Stephen nodded and leaned back, knowing that she'd need some time to mentally sort things out .

I'm around and lurking - just very very busy Will try to post...

The sight of the sleek cat immediately sent Jimmy's thoughts back to the dream - there had been the shadow of a black panther in there, hadn't been? As he frowned, trying to remember, he sighed as the snippets of pictures left just the hazy feeling that he had missed something. Must have been in those extra 15 minutes, he thought. The baby, rosy and screaming, had kept changing from a baby to an amorphous red blob. At the corner of his eye, Tug saw what looked like the shadow of a black panther.

I'm out of town with more or less limited dialup access until tomorrow, and Mynx is out of town until Sunday if I'm not wrong. We'll try to figure out something by then Also, Mynx will probably keep writing the Evil one, who is an NPC

Bruce closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. He forced his thoughts to shut up. SHUT UP! He was somewhat relieved that everything seemed clear for moment. Gripping his shotgun, he went back to patrolling the corridors, aware that there were some whispers and that there were eyes following him. Thomas... weird guy... he was the bloody guy who beat that inm... patient into a pulp Bruce frowned. Wasn't he? I just looked and it was... done... ~~ OOC: Sorry, in a hurry! Vote for Lord Panther/Thomas

huhhhhh... right, will think of something soon(ish)....

"Regulations say that I should not touch the patients in their cells unless ordered to, or them being out of control, or threatening non-patients. This one is doing nothing," muttered Bruce again as he stopped in front of Loretta's cell. He shook his head, looking at her as she stared back blankly. "Stop shouting, you are disturbing the order." "Oh... you are an officer, aren't you?" Loretta examined Bruce with a puzzled expression, trying to find out why he looked vaguely famlilar. "Where am I, and why?" "You are where you've been for the last months, and you're here because you were sent here. That's all you need to know. Now stop shouting before everybody else thinks that they are allowed to do the same." Shut the fuck up, bitch! You shout enough as it is.... maybe I should give you reason to scream more than shouting.... Bruce frowned once more, forcefully stopping his hand that had risen to open the cell door. No. I should not touch patients, if they are disturbing the order but do not look dangerous I must call the doctors. Sissy! You know you want her... The voice was suddenly smooth, almost enticing. Now angry, Bruce hit the bars of the cell, startling Loretta who took a few paces back. "Shut the fuck up!" he yelled, not exactly at Loretta but at the voice in his mind. He forced his hand to the radio, more to give it something to do instead of trying to open Loretta's cell; scowling at the radio, not very sure what to do once he had it on his hand, he shrugged and called the doctors. "Cell C12, needs some calming down." Slapping the transmitter back in place, Bruce gripped the shotgun more firmly and continued checking the patients and the cells. "Weapons are to keep patients in his cells," he muttered to himself, "Use them only if patients are out." And where is the one who killed the Director...

Bruce paced the corridors, keeping his shotgun ready. He didn't feel too comfortable with it, or at least thought he shouldn't feel; but truth be said, his hands sometimes caressed the weapon as one would caress a lover, and there was something oddly familiar in the weight of it and they way it fit his arms. shoot... killing shot... bangbangbang... shootingpartykillkill... His vision wavered a bit, and another presence gazed greedily at the shotgun through his eyes; there was a stray thought that was almost perceived by Bruce, ooooh... nice toy... and in my hands... Bruce shook his head, frowning. "Must be the shock of it," he muttered to himself, "The Director did not deserve to be killed like that." Of course he did... he was an idiot... "No he was not." Bruce was a bit angry now, feeling again the old inability to keep his own thoughts under control. "He did everything that was needed. He was correct." He looked at Lokriad, hidden behind his book. "Hey, you! Put down the book so I can see your face and hands!" Lokriad barely glanced at Bruce, keeping his book and hands exactly where they were. Bruce's expression closed, and he raised the shotgun with the full intent of poking it through the bars and at the book, and maybe even letting his finger pull the trigger. It lasted a full four seconds before he lowered it again, sweating. "Regulations say that I should not touch the patients in their cells unless ordered to, or them being out of control, or threatening non-patients. This one is doing nothing." He repeated that over and over, with slight variations, taking two steps back and then walking rigidly away, eyes darting to all sides and to each cell.

Bruce looked down at the bloodied mess that was at his feet, and stepped back with a disgusted grimace. As he turned to Thomas, he was met by a bland face and grinning eyes. Kill... finish it, kill'im... he'll point fingers at you... kill...kill... "How did this happen, officer?" He frowned. Thomas unobstrusively let his nightstick fall close to the boy's body, glancing at Bruce with a suddenly wary look. "He resisted, obviously... don't you remember?" The sound of steps stopped right behind Bruce. "What the hell has happened here?" bellowed the warden, before realizing that there was a pool of blood spreading slowly towards his feet. "Officer Daniels?" Killkillkillkillkill... "He attacked us, Director." Controling the strange impulse to hit the boy's head was not difficult for Bruce, for although he had never talked about it, he always felt that when he was near a dying criminal. He considered it to be an impulse towards mercy, to end the suffering of a human being... or so he told himself. What was more difficult was to remember what exactly had happened; he remembered running after the boy, and he seemed to remember Thomas fighting him. His memory, or a voice in his memory, told him that the boy had grown savage and rather dangerous — as Thomas' nightstick near the body proved. Bruce looked levelly at the director, as he told how the boy had been completely out of control and the use of some force had been necessary to calm him down after the boy had managed to take Thomas' nightstick from his hands. "... right. We'll talk about this later." Frowning, the director shouted for the doctors without taking his eyes off Bruce.

She's gone. Completely gone. How is that possible? Worried, Stephen paused briefly, frowning as he wondered what this could mean. Then he knelt down and extended his senses into the earth, careful as ever not to sense too much, and started searching for Tanny'stracks with his mind as well as his hands. It took him a while, but eventually he found tracks leading away from the clearing and started following them. It seemed he had been following them only briefly when he noticed the tracks turning into wolf tracks ... wolf tracks that had apparently been made at great speed. Assuming correctly that Tanny's instincts would keep her safe he slowed down a little and started also scouting the area. It took him quite some time, but eventually he was satisfied that none of the tribe was here and that Tanny would have had enough time to calm down a little after whatever thoughts it were that had scared her off. Picking up her tracks again without too much effort, he started following them to a small clearing in the trees. When he noticed the wolf lying down there, he quietly went to sit down near it, concentrating on preparing another one of his cigarettes... The wolf suddenly raised her head. Smoke? This smell is... Then she sneezed. Stephen smiled at the familiar sound, and puffed another ring of smoke that drifted towards the wolf's nose. What he had not quite predicted was her reaction, for the wolf growled and jumped at him with bared fangs. Out of surprise, he just emptied his lungs sending a full cloud of smoke into her nose. Tanny sneezed again, making her miss the annoying target. She landed a bit awkwardly, turned to attack again and was met with another well-aimed puff from Stephen's cigarette. As she immediately had a sneezing fit mid-jump, it resulted in her landing heavily on the ranger's lap. Ouch... my head... this smell... She sneezed again and again, a faint deja vu sensation coming to her. ::Wolf-Lady, as much as I usually enjoy having a lady on my lap, could you please leave it vacant? It's rather difficult to have a good smoke with a sneezing wolf right on front of my nose...:: What the... Then it came to her, the reason for the deja vu — an annoying ranger and his more-than-annoying smoking habit. ::Stephen?!:: And another sneeze. She dug her nose forcefully into his belly, trying to stop the smell. Stephen, as she had quite planned, got his breath cut short and gagged, almost swallowing the cigarette in the process. If a wolf could smile while sneezing, then that was exactly what Tanny was doing. He unceremoniously dumped her on the ground, and what came to him in mind-speech was laughter mixed with coughing and sneezing. Then he felt Tanny changing shapes, and her voice came rasping, breathless. "Stephen, you moron ... I still wonder how someone attuned to Nature can stand that smell..." She rolled further from him, and reached for a fresh thread of Air to bring her some respite. And she froze again. Stephen, once again sensing some strange change in Tanny's mood, acted quickly and quite without thinking. He felt her presence through the earth and just ... inverted that sense to try and send her a feeling of reassurance. ::Not again, Wolf-Lady... please, I don't think I can stand another wolf digging its nose in my stomach this soon... He tried for a cheerful, teasing tone, but at the same time he stood ready for any sudden change in his companion's mood. Tanny grabbed the Earth thread that had suddenly appeared, and quickly used it as an anchor point. Then she recognized Stephen's touch in it, conveying as much his presence as his worry. Slowly, she forced herself to relax and closed her eyes. Soon she felt Stephen's arms around her, a comforting presence thankfully without any more cigarette smells. After a while, Stephen carefully asked while still holding her, "Huh... so... well... what happened...?" Tanny sighed, and murmured, "Air threads." As the silence told her that Stephen was still confused, she added, "I used them. Snatched at a nice, smooth, inviting damned Air thread when I was weaving a shield around you." "Does that mean that now I am damned?" Stephen was relieved to be answered by her laughter, although a bit on the verge of hysterics. "Oh yes, you have been damned on the day I met you, moron of a ranger... it's a wonder you haven't yet been blasted by those threads you weave so carelessly!" It was Stephen's turn to blink, surprised. "Weave? I don't weave anything, you know that." There is no magic affinity in me, never has been, never will be, denied his mind. Tanny pondered, without taking her gaze off Stephen. Then she added, slowly, "We need more time to talk about this than we have now... but what you did a while ago was exactly that. You sent a protective thread of Earth towards me, and though very crude it had the principle of shield-weaving in it." Stephen was silent for several minutes, trying to analyse what exactly he had done. The only thing he could come up with was an attempt to use his sense of the earth to convey information, instead of getting information from it. And so he told Tanny, adding, "You did the same at least once, Wolf-Lady... right before we ended up here." She nodded, "yes... but that is something that is well within my abilities, I just did not quite expect it to work with you..." "Alright... but anyway, what is so wrong about you using Air?" he asked, now feeling it a good opportunity to give Tanny a chance to talk about it. She sighed wearily, and leaned on Stephen's reassuring arms. "We were talking about Abomination... remember?" He nodded slowly, murmuring, "Why would you be abomination for using a third kind of energy?" "It's a long story... misty, rooted in legend... a legend that was created from reality." "As usual with legends." He smiled, "I wonder if you are a good story-teller?" Tanny chuckled, shaking her head, "Not really... but that story is not for now, Stephen. I'll tell it to you one day, when we have time... " And when I have sorted out what is happening to me... Stephen could not see his friend's drawn face, haunted eyes looking far away through the forest. But he could very well sense her darkening spirits, and felt quite lost. He hugged her closer, not knowing what else to do; part of him regretted having asked her, part knew he had done right, and still another part insisted on asking him what he thought he was doing. "Suffice to say that weaving opposite energies is wrong. They have properties that make them incompatible, and trying to encircle fire with water, meshing them, making them work as one, is unnatural. Besides that... power might be measured not only by skill, but also by the number of elements one can control. Even in a crude weaving, those energies will have more power in them than a one-dimensional weaving." Pondering about that, uninvited and so far buried memories came to Stephen's mind. He frowned and mentally grounded them with his heels; he sensed Tanny flinching, and knew she had picked up something of his utter disgust. ::Stephen?:: ::It's nothing. You were saying...?:: After a moment more, Tanny's voice came again, tinted with darkness. "I faced exile for being a Rebel; for being Tainted I risked Ablation... the burning out of my energy-sense. But more than that, being Tainted reminded them too much of cursed Myrienne. She ... she dared to reach for the power of nature itself, tried to weave that and the dream-spirits... she let darkness creep into her heart and mind, and almost destroyed all the Clan Lands. Legend says she was tempted by the Demon-God and taken as his consort... and from the darkness weaves the destinies of all her blood, constantly drawing them to the same path she traced for herself." She suddenly stood up, taking two steps away from Stephen and facing the sky. In a fey mood, she raised her arms, closing her eyes and bending her mind to the currents all around her. She found what she knew was there, and enveloped herself in a cocoon of Air. "Myrienne was able to weave all energies with equal skill. Water, Earth, Fire, Air. Myrienne was also my foremother. Abomination." There was an undercurrent of both horror and terror in Tanny, mixed with resignation and regret. Stephen sat, stunned, not knowing what to do or say. He sensed air moving around them, rushing towards his friend; and could feel earth flowing, bringing with it the coolness of water. A sense of impending danger enveloped Stephen, and without thinking twice he sprang toward Tanny; he encircled her with both arms, reached as deep into the earth as he dared and not even being aware how, brought up that sense of security all around both of them. ::Tanny... Wolf-Lady!:: His mind-voice was urgent, focused, trying to break through the increasing turmoil of energies around Tanny. He sensed the warmth of fire searing the edge of his mind, and mentally shouted and shoved Tanny. ::TANRYELL OF LEYANNE! Don't you dare to consume yourself in Fire, you stubborn savage wolf! We still have a full pride of bad kitties to take care of!:: It might have been the panic in Stephen's voice, or the sheer absurdity of his words... or the deep, caring worry that was shown in that moment. But all of a sudden the energies around Tanny dissipated as if they had never been, and she sagged in Stephen's arms. "Stephen... do you remember when we talked about True Names?" The voice was but a whisper. "Yes..." he was hesitant, not really sure yet what to think about it. She told it to his mind, and repeated it again, making sure he understood it clearly. Aloud, she completed, "Use it if I get out of control again. It will reach my mind whatever is happening." "But..." "Stephen, I could have killed you. Now, and before... if not for your cigarettes." She squeezed his hand, then completed, "Thinking better of it, I might as well kill you because of them... actually... it might help the environment quite a lot... "

Bruce knew that some hours had passed, since it was time for the morning break. At this time, half of the inm... patients had their 'sunbathing', while the other half left for occupational therapy. Hah... therapy... they will never learn anything useful... unless it is how to kill in a more creative way... haha... yes, kill... kill them! He blinked at the suddenly intruding thought, and pushed it aside. Bruce wondered for a minute where the morning had gone, since last he remembered it was still wake-up call... but probably he had just been distracted by routine, and never really noticed all the automatic things he'd be doing. Yes, that was it... a calm, uneventful morning most probably. He and his fellow guards started escorting the patients out of their cells towards therapy; Bruce kept his attention on a couple inmates that were usually very restive, and who once in a while tried something stupid like trying to escape in some way. He had but thought about that, when it happened: there was a shout, a boy pushing through the more or less organized double line of inmates, and suddenly half of them were falling. The guards were quick to act: some of them closed in making a circle around the fallen and falling inmates, some used a bit of well-placed persuasion to make the standing ones help the others up, and a couple dashed out to arrest the would-be-escapee. Bruce was one of the latter, and he easily recognized Thomas just a few steps ahead of him. As Thomas grabbed the boy, he started screaming. A well-placed punch on his stomach by Thomas made him double, and Bruce pushed him to the floor. Bruce looked up and saw Thomas' grin, staring at the now whimpering boy. Bruce started shaking his head. "No, officer. He is already down. We must take him to the director, who will take the necessary measures." "Oh?" Thomas barely turned to Bruce, focused as he was on the boy curled up on the floor. He started screaming again as Thomas stepped on his hand. Bruce made as if to stop Thomas, and inhaled sharply as dizziness overcame him. Scum... just annoying trouble... a little old discipline and ... kill... yes, kill him... accidents happen, he resisted ... kick knock out kill kill...

beautiful

*looks around innocently and decides to duck for cover just in case...*

rofl... brilliant, Katz!!! *hugs* Glad to see you in a WW again!!

Tug was not ten steps into the new passage when three things happened, all at once. Or at least in a way that seemed to be all at once. First, the baby he held and who had been mercifully silent for the last few minutes, started to make strange sounds. Second, he felt something wet against his hand. Third, he noticed a nice blue coloring growing on the baby's face. Tug blinked, confused. Did he have in his arms a changeling, those frail and wicked fairy babies that mother fairies left in place of a healthy human baby so that fairyland could have a stronger blood in them? Was he doomed for having saved such a fairy baby? Sniffing his hand, he also wondered if he was doomed by having been wet by a fairy baby. Luckily for the baby, Spot chose that moment to come back to him, bounding at full speed (which, let's remind, does not mean a real full speed) and actually crashing fully on him. Tug cried out in surprise as he found his feet again flailing in the air, clutching the baby instinctively. And as they landed in a ball of limbs and fur, Spot's nose dug hard into the baby's belly; with a cough and a splutter, a piece of the honeyed sweet was thrown out of the baby's throat and into Spot's neck. A bit dizzy, Tug looked again at the baby — now getting rosier and testing his lungs wilfully. Tug wondered if changelings changed colors that easily.

I haven't followed the original RP thread, and just skimmed through it when I saw your post, Snypiuer... but I don't know whether you can say that it was a failure. It did come to a halt after a while, but honestly I have no clue why it happened; unfortunately RL has the bad habit of interfering with our writing times, and inspiration is also fickle. I have noticed that activity at the RP threads at the Pen (even the cooperative stories and interactive threads in general) suffer from some 'inconstancy' — they have spurts of activity and then periods of quiet. While interactive threads (see for example the First Line Poetry Challenge) do not suffer as much from those inactivity periods, RPing is usually killed when people cannot keep posting, for one reason or another. The only thing that occurs to me, right now, is that maybe people missed a bit of information on how to go on... but since I have not read the whole thread, I cannot say whether this was a factor or not. But I think that having an OOC thread (at the Greenroom) usually helps people to exchange ideas and plan interactions in a RP, and maybe can be used as a motivational factor... Also, sometimes it's just a personal choice... sometimes we are just not thrilled/inspired by the direction things go as we interact further in open RP. It has happened to me — it has become pointless after a while because I had no idea what was going on anymore and what people expected me to post... but then, that's a personal view on specific situations. Other than those... well, keep trying? People will always have fun with the chance to post

I agree with Feast — seem a bit hesitant in the beginning, but I like how it ends; rather catchy! The lyrics are... intriguing I think I'd like to hear this with other instrumentation, if you ever think on doing that. And since I have no musical formation enough to add more than my listener's opinion, that's it

If I'm not wrong, there are certain kinds of food that stimulate the release of neutrotransmitters that are responsible for the sensation of well-being (think endorphins). That, coupled with being used to look for comfort in food (from being used to that since childhood), might lead to a reinforcement of the behavior... But leaving chemistry aside... I think Peredhil has a point; being used to having food when they need something else (comfort? attention?) would lead people to keep looking for it when they cannot find an answer for emotional needs. I know I have many friends who say they tend to eat a lot more when they are depressed or anxious; though others say they just lose all appetite (as I do), so I guess it's just another hypothesis? Oh, and as for solution... putting aside the 'look for emotional help somehow', I think physical exercise also release endorphins, making you feel better (I should go and recall all those classes on physiology... *mumbles*)

Tanny, who had up to know been observing all the comings and goings with either an amused look or with suffering groans — and relaying them to Stephen — dropped on the floor with a very audible growling groan. ::Wolf-Lady, I did hear our lizard friend?:: The groan in Stephen's mind-voice is perfectly audible too, and Tanny just sighs. Then something clicks on her mind, and she jumps on all fours ready to run... except that Stephen grabs her by the tail. ::You cannot...hey!:: Stephen's voice is startled as he feels the fangs just graze his knuckles, releasing Tanny's tail very promptly as she refrained her instinct to snap off the offending hand... just enough. ::That was not very ladylike. Though seeing who has just come and gone, I can perfectly understand your wish to be out of here.:: ::Featherbrained ranger... that lizard said something about some other thing being in front of my place! I...:: ::You need to stay there to be run over by those troglodytes?:: Tanny huffed, rolling eyes. ::Obviously not, featerbrained one. I need to dump all those mannequin limbs he's been "gracefully" putting on my way for all these years back on dear Wyvern's head. C'mon, let me go?:: Stephen pondered, a slow grin coming out as several ways of getting rid of limbs crossed his mind. Then he sighed and shook his head, ::But... we need to keep the voting going... and you need to be here, you're my seeing-eye dog!: ::I'm a wolf, if you have not noticed yet... and we do have coffee breaks.:: Tanny grins smugly, as she sees from Stephen's face that he's considering the idea.