forum Sliding into the roleplay forums

Started February 23, 2018 by @_sleeby_rat_

tune

"N-No. I'm real. I think," Pluto said, putting her glasses back on. Oh jeez. Another kid. "Are you real?"

"Yes," he said reassuringly. "I was sent to ask you what you came here for."
By now the darkness was fading, revealing that they were in an abandoned shopping mall. The ground was cracked and covered in weeds, and ivy hung from the windows. Bright white light shafted down from a hole in the roof far above. All was quiet.

Pluto wiped at her eyes again. She was still trying to rid the images of her town from her mind, and she wasn't doing too good of a job at it. "We're-We just wanna go through. We aren't here for trouble or anything."

"That's good," Perry said, and coughed. It was a bad cough that made him lean forward, his bony shoulders shaking. When he straightened back up, there was a bit of blood coming from his mouth. He smiled weakly. "I don't get to talk to strangers a lot. Usually it's just Kitty and me."

Pluto gave him a concerned look. "A-Are you ok?"

"Hm?" He looked down at his hand, which was slightly bloodstained. "Oh. I'm fine. It doesn't hurt. I don't feel pain, or hunger, or tiredness, or anything. Kitty makes sure of that."

"Who…Who's Kitty?" she asked, now a little worried. She didn't really want to fight anything after PTSD turning her into an emotional trainwreck

"He's my friend," Perry said. "He's the one who sent me to talk to you. He's really nice! And he knows just about everything. I'd be all alone if it wasn't for him." He rubbed his eyes, which had deep shadows under them. "He said he'd be along in a minute, he wants to talk to you himself."

Pluto froze up. Coming to talk to them? That definitely didn't sound good. And if he was the one who made her see all that stuff, she most certainly wanted nothing to do with him. "Alright. Okay," she said, unsure of what she planned to do once this guy got here

"I think you'll like him," Perry was saying. "He's very smart, we talk all the time. He might look a little strange, but that's okay. At least he's always real, even when nothing else is."

"I…I don't know. People don't like me," Pluto said warily

"I like you." Perry's voice suddenly became layered, and his face fuzzed over. He looked like a computer glitch. His eyes were bright, radioactive green. "How sad, Pluto, that some people don't. But don't worry about that. Perry here clearly doesn't mind you. And I can be your friend too, if you want."

Pluto recoiled, falling back on her hands. She started to scrabble away from the thing in front of her. "Oh gods, please don't," she whimpered, starting to shake again

"If you insist." Perry slumped sideways, coughing, and a slim black cat with bright green eyes materialized beside him. It grinned at Pluto. "Better?"

"You…You're possessing that poor kid," Pluto stammered, trying to keep her distance. "You're hurting him."

"Oh, perish the thought!" Kitty's voice kept changing, swinging from low and growly to smooth and feminine to thin and childish. "If it weren't for me, he would have died long ago. Poor lad broke his neck falling into an old mine three decades back, and I revived him. In return, he lets me use him as a house once in a while. He doesn't mind."

"Are you…Are you A?" she asked. "Did you make me see…" She trailed off, not wanting to mention what she had seen

Kitty sat down, suddenly solemn. "It's been a long time since someone called me that. Yes, I did make you see those things. At least, I poked your brain in the place that would trigger any traumatic memories you might have. So in a sense, it was your doing."

"Just because it's in my head doesn't mean you should go poking it!" Pluto said indignantly. It was difficult to talk about this, and now she couldn't keep from shaking

Kitty's voice became an almost sickening croon. "Oh, dearie, don't fret. I'm sorry I made you so sad and frightened, but you're safe now." The cat blinked slowly. "You know, I'm not just the god of chaos. I'm in charge of death, too. And death is something that nobody should be afraid of, in my opinion."

"You…You aren't the only one in charge of death," Pluto said. "You try anything, and, and Dekah will come after you. And Arik. I'm not scared of things like you."

"Good!" The voice deepened, the cat slunk closer. "As I said, you shouldn't be scared of me. Perry isn't, and he's died already. Twice. What's your trouble compared to that?" The cat leaned against Pluto, purring in a way that made the floor tremble.
(I gotta go, I may not be back on for the rest of the night, sorry)

(hello) Pluto eyed the cat warily. "What do you want from me?"

"I'm curious, that's all. What are you little people doing here? Where are you going? Why, why, why, it's all so confuzzeling." The voice giggled like a little girl. "I'm also a bit lonely. Perry's a lovely friend, but sometimes, his brain is like a rabbit. So dull and frightened. You…..you're much more interesting."

Pluto scowled. "I won't be your pet," she spat. "None of us will. We're just passing through, just like I told Perry."

"And where are you passing though to? Come now, if you don't tell me I'll open up your head and find out myself."

Pluto's eyes widened at the threat. "No, no, wait! We…We're trying to free Zhan."

"Zhaaaan?" The cat lost its form momentarily, became an ooze of black smoke. "Delightful! Oh, he and I go waaay back. Back when there was nothing in space but fire and dust, we had more fun than a pair of college buddies on a Friday night. I had no idea you were on his side! How wonderful." The cat solidified again, bathing its paw. "I suppose you want to see your friends again."