[prp] where oh where has my little bug gone (leila + horace)

[cibarium]

"Hey."

Leila was worried. About a lot of different things.

"Hey."

Her wife was obvious. The broader trail of horrors left behind by the Spinel Lady were also obvious by extension. And then, on top of that, came her upsettingly empty mind.

"Hey."

She was in Other Ashdown, trying to feel like she was doing something about it. Instead she'd found a man she recognized as an Equinox customer, fast asleep on a random bench. So now she was worrying a little bit about him, because sleeping in Other Ashdown generally seemed like a bad idea. If he didn't wake up from her voice alone, she was going to start poking him.

the semblance of unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

This whole... warg thing was kind of exhausting. Seeing through Nugget's eyes wasn't as easy as it could be and so, Horace had accidentally dozed off in other Ashdown. He thought it was the echolocation throwing him out each time, but he'd need to try more times to be sure. Still, right now, he was fast asleep and, thankfully, not snoring.

While Horace wasn't the lightest of sleepers, the repetition of Leila's voice was what did it. He jolted awake, immediately sitting up, then hunching over into a small ball. Then he blinked, seemed to realize where he was and who he was with.

"Uh.... tea lady?"

cibarlum

 

[cibarium]

"That's my wife," Leila answered curtly. "I'm psychic lady." She opted to sit down next to Horace on the bench for a little bit, rocking from side to side for a second with a long breath before looking towards him. "Why... were you sleeping here? There's stuff on this side that can eat you, and even if you get better it's not fun. Trust me, I know."

Dead ******** serious, right there.

the semblance of unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"Oh, yeah, mind meld." He yawned widely and something shifted underneath his hair. "I... I'm not sure? I guess I was tired. Wait - you got vored?" Horace looked vaguely alarmed at the thought.

cibarium

 

[cibarium]

The question made Leila go a little pale. Because if she could get eaten. And other people could get eaten. Then Biscuit and Friend could get eaten too. "Um," she replied, "I am not reliving that experience for you." She was shaking her head, very slowly, as she answered.

the semblance of unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

Nugget rather inelegantly flopped out from Horace's hair and into his lap. Horace poked him. He'd been trying to... attune with Nugget, whatever that meant. Seeing through his eyes or something. There was a little success, here and there. He liked Nugget, at least.

Something in Leila's tone caused him to raise his head. "Are you okay, Leila?" And then, thinking he'd probably overstepped (again): "I mean, you jsut seem a bit pale."

cibarium

 

[cibarium]

"That's what happens when you wind up remembering something traumatic?" Leila offered. There was enough of a bite to her tone that it signalled yes, you are overstepping here. Horace would have been just a fine person as any to talk about her recent problem with, but instead she bent her head towards the tribbley looking mammal that had just appeared and proclaimed, "That's a bat."

the semblance of unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"Sorry," he said gently. His fingers gently rubbed around Nugget's ears. "Yes, a bat. I found him in my attic..." Horace realized this was a stupid start to a stupid story. Find a bat in an attic, proceed to cart it around.

"His name is Nugget. He's pretty chill."

cibarium

 

[cibarium]

Leila stared for a moment, utterly puzzled.

"So you found him... in your attic..." she started, slowly, making a broad and loose gesture with her hands and looking through the space between them. "Then, instead of calling wildlife services, you... gave him a name and kept him..." Leila blinked, and her hands returned to her lap with a mild slap. "And now you've gone and brought him..." There was a singular, body-dipping nod. "To other Ashdown."

She squinted over at Horace from behind her pink shades.

"Are you warging the bat?"

the semblance of unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"M-maybe," he said, looking vaguely defensive. Look, he knew it was a stupid story, but still. "I thought I was going blind, but I think I was seeing what Nugget saw up in my attic, if that makes any kind of sense." Horace sighed.

"Don't look at me like that. I did have him checked for rabies."

cibarium

 

[cibarium]

Horace's worrisome look and tone made Leila break into a small fit of apologetic giggles. "Sorry, I... shouldn't have gotten all accusatory. It happens." She shrugged and the smile shrank some. "Even if you're trained first... somehow I don't think most people get the familiar they'd expect. Maybe I can help?"

the semblance of unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"I talked to Nasir some about it. I have to attune and that''s best over here?" He shrugged. "But I 'm not sure exactly what it is besides hanging out, which I do anyway when he's not up in his closet." The Nugget closet.

cibarium

 

[cibarium]

"Well..." Leila thought for a few seconds, drumming her knees with her hands. "Magic comes easier here, sure... but things probably don't feel as safe or familiar here as they do back on the other side." Heh. Familiar. "I did most of the attunement stuff back home. Or I was."

the semblance of unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"Wait, you're a warg?" His mouth curved into a delighted 'o'. "What kind of animal?" He was maybe trying to surreptitiously see some sort of animal near Leila and coming up empty-handed.

cibarium

 

[cibarium]

Leila's head tilted in a funny way once Horace's got curious about her own familiar. Usually she'd be beyond proud to describe her familiar, right down to the breed and color and her love for dry cereal, but her heart wasn't in it today. Instead she answered, "A hen," with a crooked smirk. "Named Biscuit. I'm here looking for her and my other familiar."

Not much luck so far, obviously. The space around her was devoid of chickens.

"I don't know what happened to them," she admitted, "but I'm pretty sure she's alive. So I'm trying not to worry too much."

the semblance of unity