Ace:
Life had returned to being relatively normal for Ace lately since the whole craziness with the Djinn, Ace still didn't understand how the heck the group she'd been with had managed to get out of that one, just lucky she guessed.
She weight tested a knife, balancing it on the back of her hand before slowly spinning it till she griped it in the palm of her hand "I'll tak," she gasp dropping the knife, time stopped for her, well it slowed way the hell down at least. It felt, for a moment, like she'd gone back down to one heart for a second before the second one started to beat again slowly at first beating once, twice before racing back to full speed and feeling like her hearts where going to burst out of her chest, softly "Susan."
What seemed like several minutes to Ace had only been a few seconds in real time. She noticed the guy behind the counter was staring at her like she was a proper nutter and the knife had impaled his floor "So you gonna buy that knife or where you just planning on stabbing my floor." Ace recovered quickly "Sorry, hearts err I mean heart palpitations." reaching into her pants pocket she pulled out some money for the knife and handed it to the guy. Shrugging she pulled the knife out of the floor and strapped it to her belt "Sorry about the floor."
Ace hurried out of the store, stumbling as she did so the world slowly down before speeding up again "Ok, this is getting ridiculous." Ace made a fist and thumped her chest a little, she started to follow the feeling in her chest.
Honestly, Ace had no idea what the hell she was doing she just knew if she went one way the feeling lessened if she went another it intensified so she figured follow the feeling as it lessened. It lead her to an alleyway and she stopped at the entrance, she thought she heard someone say something "I need help,". Cautiously she slowly made her way into the alleyway "Excuse me, are you ok?"
Raya:
Raya tried to warn the woman about the car. But sadly "Watch Out Car!" In cat is a lot of mewing.
Luckily, the car barely missed her. Which made Raya feel so much more relieved. Though it might help if the poor woman would stop shouting at her. She was only trying to help the poor lady.
Suddenly, a power line snapped, fire hydrants exploded, and the parked cars were going off like an large earthquake happened.
Raya jumped as she saw the power line spark ferociously. Something was really off about this whole thing.
"Stop following me!" Susan bared her teeth at the cat – a hallucination it had to be a hallucination it couldn't be real – and people were beginning to stare at her because they knew, they knew because they had been sent for her. The power lines on the ground leapt forward, and Susan likened it to a snake, the way the humans stepped back as it lunged towards the crowd, to the puddle. "Just stop it. Just stop it," she snapped as the line fell in the puddle, crackling hideously.
Raya's tail twitched, as she watched the lady run away, quickly following after her. There was no way she was going to leave her alone. At least not the way she was at the moment.
She followed the seemingly crazy lady, into the alley. Stopping a few feet away from her. Waiting for the woman to allow her to come closer.
Her hands and knees scraped the pavement as she fell near an alley. She retched, the bile golden and black. Susan coughed, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. She pulled her knees tightly against her chest, her fingers digging at her scalp. "I never wanted to be like this," she whispered against her legs. "Shut up, Susan! I don't care what you want," she growled to herself, her shoulders twitching as her teeth dug into her knees.
Raya couldn't help but feel sorry for Susan. She looked like she had been through so much, lost everything most dear to her.
"Arkytior," she whispered again. Her eyes flashed the pale blue-white again and she growled and bit her leg, pulling back harshly. A small chunk of her flesh came off between her teeth, her blood dripping from her mouth. "Shut up," she told herself, clawing her fingers down, leaving bright red trails of blood. The piece of her flesh fell from her mouth and she stared at it, disgusted.
Raya wasn't sure what to do, this lady, Susan or Arkytior, just bit a part of her skin off. That's something you don't really see people do to themselves. Then she heard it.
"I need help," she admitted hoarsely, ashamed.
That's all Raya needed to hear, and she walked up to Susan. Laying down by her, looking up at the poor woman. Trying to tell her that she was here to help as best she could. Then she heard a new voice, which made her look towards the new lady.
"Excuse me, are you ok?"
Raya mewed slowly at this new lady, again... She really should stop trying to answer people when she was in her morph form.
Susan Foreman:
The blood tasted awful. Not that Susan had expected for the blood to taste like roses or chocolate, but she certainly hadn't thought it'd taste so… rotten. She spit it out, retching again. The flesh from her torn leg lay in a pool of her blood, but the blood wasn't red it was black and it was moving and slithering. She shut her eyes, a sob hiccupping its way out of her mouth. When the eyes opened – blue instead of the white-blue – the blood was just blood, red and warm and irony and sticky.
She looked down at the chunk taken from her leg, and then to the cat beside her. She reached out a bloody hand gingerly. "I had a cat, I think," she whispered, voice cracking. Her fingers nearly dug into the cat, her eyes becoming pale again. She blinked rapidly again and brought her hand to her chest. "I don't remember… I don't know…" She pulled her legs up to her chest, whimpering again. It was getting harder and harder to hold a steady train of thought.
"Excuse me, are you okay?"
Susan's shoulders stopped shaking. "Look what we have here," she snarled, her eyes the pale white-blue again. She looked up, a smile twisted on her face and the blood caked around her mouth. "Ace of Spades Ace of Spades Ace of Spades!" she shouted, jumping up entirely too quickly. The world swam before her and Ace's face began to twist and snarl and melt.
She looked away, shutting her eyes tightly. "Stop, Arkytior! Shut up!"
Ace:
"Look what we have here," Damn it, she hated it when she was right, sometimes. Ace had thought, well more hopped that the whole thing with her hearts had been a fluke but now she was starting to think that this whole Susan thing was going to be a permanent part of her life from now on. "Ace of Spades Ace of Spades Ace of Spades!" Ace rolled her eyes and started to say something back but stopped.
Susan seemed, even more nutty then usual and that worried Ace slightly. Then she saw the blood and Susan stumble, any hard feelings Ace had towards the woman went right out the window when she realized something was seriously wrong.
Moving over to Susan, Ace side stepped the cat nodding to it in acknowledgement "Fluffy." she'd deal with it in a minute. Gingerly, Ace reached forward and held Susan by the forearm, not tight enough to hurt the woman but sturdy enough so she'd know she was there "Easy, Susan."
Raya:She looked down at the chunk taken from her leg, and then to the cat beside her. She reached out a bloody hand gingerly. "I had a cat, I think," she whispered, voice cracking. Her fingers nearly dug into the cat, her eyes becoming pale again. She blinked rapidly again and brought her hand to her chest. "I don't remember… I don't know…" She pulled her legs up to her chest, whimpering again. It was getting harder and harder to hold a steady train of thought.
Raya purred softly as Susan reached out her hand towards her. She wanted to help, anyway she could. Even if that meant being passive as her fingers almost pressed into Raya's skin.
She watched as Susan retracted her hand, noticing how her eyes seemed to change color in time with her actions. The hardest thing was hearing the whimpers and sobs.
Then she noticed how she answered the new lady's question.
Susan's shoulders stopped shaking. "Look what we have here," she snarled, her eyes the pale white-blue again. She looked up, a smile twisted on her face and the blood caked around her mouth. "Ace of Spades Ace of Spades Ace of Spades!" she shouted, jumping up entirely too quickly. The world swam before her and Ace's face began to twist and snarl and melt.
Raya stood up as soon as Susan did, worried that she might hurt herself again.
She looked away, shutting her eyes tightly. "Stop, Arkytior! Shut up!"
Raya looked up at the lady Susan called 'Ace of Spades.' Mewing at her for help.
Moving over to Susan, Ace side stepped the cat nodding to it in acknowledgement "Fluffy." she'd deal with it in a minute. Gingerly, Ace reached forward and held Susan by the forearm, not tight enough to hurt the woman but sturdy enough so she'd know she was there "Easy, Susan."
Nodding back as she watched her hold Susan steady. Raya would've helped... Only, she didn't was a ticket for public indecency. So she stuck to closely following them.
Susan Foreman:
Out of the all the people in space and time, why did Ace of Spades have to be the one that found her? It could be worse. She could have gotten the Joy Toy, or even her grandfather. She felt a wave of nausea hit of her. Ace was saturated with energy from the vortex. Susan clenched her eyes shut again, wrapping her arms around her stomach, feeling the bile rise in her throat again. Ace of Spades Ace of Spades Ace of Spades! her mind shrieked, Arkytior shrieked at her. Susan's hands moved from her stomach to her ears as she stumbled forwards, the world pitching around her.
"Easy, Susan," Ace said gently, grabbing her arm. Susan stared at the woman and looked away, embarrassed by how helpless she was. Her eyes were pink from crying, and the skin was dark under her eyes from lack of sleep. Easy, Susan. She stumbled closer to Ace, another whimper coming from her lips. She was scared, she was more than scared, and… and she was dying…
Her eyes flashed, and she opened her mouth, her eyes locked on the woman's neck. Susan put a hand over her own mouth. Arkytior hissed, wanting to tear into Ace's neck. Susan kept her hand clamped over her own mouth, the teeth digging into the flesh of her palm. Blood leaked down her chin and dribbled down her neck and into shirt.
"Stop! I don't want this," she whispered. "I don't care," she muttered, raising her bloody hand to her ear. Pale white-blue eyes stared at Ace, bloody teeth bared. "I don't care what you want," she continued, and casted her gaze down to the cat. "Ace of Spades Ace of Spades Ace of Spades!" she shrieked, slamming herself into a wall and crumpling to the dirty ground. "Ace of Spades, Ace of Spades, Ace of Spades," she snarled.
Easy, Susan.
She looked up at Ace, teary eyes wide and terrified. "I don't want to die, Ace." She reached out a hand to the cat, her hand resting on her neck. She felt an urge to squeeze, to snap the fragile neck, but her trembling hand moved, picking her up under the arms and holding the cat to her chest. "I don't know what's real anymore…and I'm scared…" she admitted bitterly.
And there was nothing they could do, Arkytior whispered. Because we shouldn't exist.
Ace:
Ace watched as Susan stumbled making sure to keep a hold on her so the woman didn't hurt herself more, she saw Susans eyes flash and her bite into her hand and the blood leak down onto the shir "I don't care what you want," softly "But, I don't want anything, Susan."
And then Susan started saying her favorite nickname for Ace over and over before slamming herself into the wall and falling to the ground "Ace of Spades, Ace of Spades, Ace of Spades," she snarled. Ace knelt down in front of Susan and next to the little cat that had been following them and placed her hand on Susans shoulder trying to comfort the woman in any way she could because honestly Ace had no idea what to do or how to help.
Ace watched as Susan picked the cat up and put it to her chest, she took her hand off Susans shoulder and used her index finger to run her finger from the top of the wet part of the cats nose to the spot between its ears, there was something not so cat like about the little fur ball but Ace wasn't so sure about it yet.
Looking up at Susan again when she started talking "I don't know what's real anymore…and I'm scared…" Ace reached forward and took one of Susans hand and placed it on her chest so she could fell Aces hearts beat "I'm real," she took her hand off her chest and placed it back on the cat so she could feel the animals fur "He, no wait she's real, focus on that. I won't be going anywhere till we get you squared away." Though, how they'd pull that off she was still working on.
Raya:
"Stop! I don't want this," she whispered. "I don't care," she muttered, raising her bloody hand to her ear. Pale white-blue eyes stared at Ace, bloody teeth bared. "I don't care what you want," she continued, and casted her gaze down to the cat.
"But, I don't want anything, Susan.""Ace of Spades Ace of Spades Ace of Spades!" she shrieked, slamming herself into a wall and crumpling to the dirty ground. "Ace of Spades, Ace of Spades, Ace of Spades," she snarled.
Raya mewed up at Susan, trying to tell her to calm down. Moving closer to the poor woman, wanting to comfort her somehow.
She looked up at Ace, teary eyes wide and terrified. "I don't want to die, Ace." She reached out a hand to the cat, her hand resting on her neck. She felt an urge to squeeze, to snap the fragile neck, but her trembling hand moved, picking her up under the arms and holding the cat to her chest. "I don't know what's real anymore…and I'm scared…" she admitted bitterly.
Raya purred as Susan reached out and picked her up. She nuzzled her head to Susan's chin, as if trying to comfort her. Feeling Ace's finger on her nose moving towards her ear, made Raya lean her head slightly.
"I'm real," she took her hand off her chest and placed it back on the cat so she could feel the animals fur "He,"
Raya mewed in protest to being called a 'he.'
"no wait she's real, focus on that. I won't be going anywhere till we get you squared away." Though, how they'd pull that off she was still working on.
Raya fidgeted slightly in Susan's arms. She could only tolerate being held in short periods of time. However, that didn't mean she was going to run off. She was determined to stick around until she was sure Susan was going to be alright.
Susan Foreman:
"But I don't want anything, Susan," Ace insisted softly. Susan stared up at her mistrustfully. Everyone wanted something. Even the lovely little Ace of Spades who could do no wrong. Susan lowered her eyes, looking dimly at the ground. Her head was fuzzy and light and her hearts were speeding rapidly. She swallowed thickly, wishing she could just take an Aspirin and curl up and die. But the last time she had tried to kill herself, she'd regenerated. She'd regenerated into this. A blood-soaked pathetic mess of a creature, afraid of time and her own shadow. Terrified and psychotic, and she hated it.
She jumped when Ace rested her hand on her shoulder. Susan pressed herself against the wall, baring her blood-stained teeth in an effort to scare the other Time Lady away. She didn't want this – she didn't want to be comforted, Susan just wanted to be the way she was. She wanted to be a loving mother, she wanted to be a terrible domestic wife and have David tease her about her inability to be a stereotypical 1950s wife. And instead of feeling a well of sadness or love for those brief wafts of memory, Susan felt the familiar fist of anger. Her eyes paled and a streetlight burst.
She was afraid, and she was angry. It was funny how she could only handle those two emotions. It was all Susan had left – her fear and her anger. The rest of her had been washed away with the time line. And she didn't know what was real, because her mind was able to flawlessly merge her worst nightmares with her waking conscious. She held the cat against her chest, shivering when the cat nestled her head underneath her chin. Had they had a cat? David… had David had a cat? David…
Who was David?
Susan flinched as Ace took her hand, her grip on the cat loosening. "I'm real," Ace said, and Susan felt the hearts beat beneath her fingers. She licked her lips, a new fear washing over her. Nobody had willingly held this Susan so close, it had always been Susan trying to hold on to people. Why would Ace of all people want Susan's hands on her? How many times had she tried to make Ace feel the pain she felt? The cold and clammy despair? Ace led Susan's hand to the cat now, and Susan's fingers clenched in the fur. "She's real, focus on that. I won't be going anywhere till we get you squared away."
She withdrew her hand and held it against her chest, shaking her head. It was something Alec had often accused her of… running away when someone cared. "No," she said miserably, shoving the cat away from her. "Just hate me! I just want you to hate me!" Susan snapped. "I don't want your sympathy."
Susan grasped at Ace's shoulder. Arkytior felt tempted to shake her, to squeeze until blood leaked, to harm her. Her arms trembled as Susan fought against the instinct to harm, to kill. "Just hate me," she pleaded, wrapping her arms around Ace and burying herself in a hug. "And… why has a cat been following me around?" she asked pathetically, mumbling against Ace's shoulder.
"Just hate me," Ace held her arms out to the side a little when Susan wrapped her arms around her in a hug. At first not knowing how to react and half expecting a knife in the back from Susan, but when that didn't happen Ace wrapped her arms around the older woman slowly returning the hug.
"But, I don't hate you." Ace really had no choice to lie; well it wasn't really a lie, because she didn't really hate Susan in the sense of the word "hate" they'd just always been on opposite sides of everything they'd gotten throw into together, causing Ace to develop a strong dislike for the woman.
"And… why has a cat been following me around?" This caused Ace to laugh a little, "Susan, out of all the species that have lived, will live on this planet cats have got to be the most intelligent and most intuitive." she pulled away holding Susan a little at arm's length but not letting her go. "Come on, let's go get you cleaned up." she looked down at their new four legged friend "You can come too fluffy." Ace wanted to keep the cat around there was still something about their little friend that she couldn't quiet put her finger on just yet.
Raya:
Raya flicked her tail, landing on her paws. She felt a little hurt that Susan had that sort of reaction. However, giving the poor woman's condition, she let it be.
"And… why has a cat been following me around?" This caused Ace to laugh a little, "Susan, out of all the species that have lived, will live on this planet cats have got to be the most intelligent and most intuitive." she pulled away holding Susan a little at arm's length but not letting her go.
Raya nodded in slight agreement, before realizing that she really shouldn't agree. Considering she wasn't really a cat, just a half morph in the form of a cat. So it really didn't count.
"Come on, let's go get you cleaned up." she looked down at their new four legged friend "You can come too fluffy." Ace wanted to keep the cat around there was still something about their little friend that she couldn't quiet put her finger on just yet.
Raya looked up at Ace and mewed, ready to follow her where-ever. She moved to her leg, purring as she rubbed up against it. Sometimes, she had way too much fun acting like a cat.
"But, I don't hate you," Ace insisted. Susan shook her head stubbornly, because there was no way that Ace of Spades didn't hate her. It wasn't that Susan wanted people to hate her, but it seemed to her as though it were the only thing she's good at. Arkytior was skilled at making enemies. Still, she clutched Ace's shoulder. It was no wonder her grandfather liked the woman more – she was patient, she could lie well, and she was brave (or stubborn) enough to stick by Susan despite the self-cannibalism and violence.
Susan sighed, feeling the Time Lady beneath her hands was helping to anchor her. "I don't want you to hate me," she admitted, hating herself for each word. Arkytior hated everyone, even Susan. And Susan didn't want to like anyone because it hurt so badly when they died or when they left her, and it'd be much easier if she could hate everyone. It was what she had Arkytior for. "I…" Her teeth clamped on her lips to keep from spewing any more nonsense.
"Susan, out of all the species that have lived, will live on this planet cats have got to be the most intelligent and most intuitive," Ace told her. Susan watched the cat nod, then abruptly stop. The critter didn't seem to be intelligent, in Susan's opinion, but she wasn't one to ignore the intuitiveness. Why would someone or somecat stick willingly around Susan? She was dangerous even on her good days, and she'd just electrocuted several unfortunate people.
Yet more deaths to add to her alarmingly increasing list.
A swell of panic rose in her chest as Ace pulled away. She tried to lean forward and reattach herself to Ace, but the woman held her at arm's length. "Ace…?" she asked, wounded that the woman wasn't letting her cling. Get cleaned up? She looked down at herself and winced. She was covered in blood, tears, and her feet had bile on them. "My apartment…" she said, picking herself up unsteadily and watching as the cat rubbed against Ace. She stepped back nervously.
She still didn't like the engine noise the cat made. "My apartment is… is somewhere around here," Susan muttered, stumbling out of the alley. The world looked so unfamiliar to her, and she was positive it was because she was hallucinating again. She kept her eyes trained on the ground, trying not to appear scared in front of Ace and unsure for the cat. She hated the hallucinations more than anything else.
Susan fumbled with her dress pockets as she pulled out her key shakily. It would be the first time she had guests since she'd electrocuted her grandfather. She'd wanted to forgive him so badly, but it was too late for that now. She was very much past saving, she figured. She pushed opened the apartment door and shuffled inside. She was immediately tempted to go to her normal hiding place under the bed and wait for something to happen, but she couldn't.
The mirrors were taken from the wall and shattered. The clocks had been beaten with a hammer and taken from the wall. There were bloody footprints and sometimes pools of it. Susan would cut her stomach, her legs, her arms. She liked the way the blood felt and tasted. She wouldn't kill herself, unfortunately.
The last time she had tried to commit suicide she'd regenerated by instinct.
"I have clothes," she told the cat quietly. "Dresses, mainly." She walked to her bedroom and opened the door, pulling out a towel and a dress. The bed was still thrown against the wall from the Marid kidnapping her in the War. She hung a blanket from it and used it to crawl inside and hide. There were various weapons, but she couldn't use any of them to save her life. She could only rely on Arkytior's instinct for survival.
She wiped her eye, smearing the blood across her face. "I hate water," she admitted quietly. "I'm…" scaredofit. But who was scared of water? Too scared to wash the filth and blood and tears off? She held the towel to her chest nervously, her head beginning to swim again. Sometimes her mind moved backwards, and she could remember and see everyone who wasn't there but their faces were melted because she couldn't remember them. "I'm okay. I'm fine. I don't need help."
Raya:Raya trotted along behind Ace and Susan, a little anxious. This woman obviously needed help. Like one of those specialized 'hug myself' jackets that crazy people in movies wear.. And Raya wished there was something she could do to help other than purr and be adorable. But as a cat, other that scratching or biting, what else was there? And what was even more annoying is that as a cat, communication skills were sorely lacking.
When they got to the apartment, Raya sheepishly looked around and sat, looking up at ace with a soft 'meow' as if to ask "Okay... now what?"
"I have clothes," she told the cat quietly. "Dresses, mainly."
Raya nodded and stepped aside as Susan got a towel and dress from her room. At least she seemed to know that she wasn't a normal cat. Actually, she seemed to know she could change, well that made things rather simple. At least, as simple as they could be, when dealing with a slightly crazed woman.
"I hate water," Susan remarked, "I'm.."
The cat only nodded, to be perfectly honest, Raya didn't care much for water either. However, it depended on the type of water, and it's location. For example, Raya could handle a shower or bath, those were simple. A lake or Ocean, or pool... those were a completely different matter.
"I'm okay. I'm fine. I don't need help." Susan explained softly before going into the bathroom.
"Ok, I'll be right here." Ace leaned on the wall before sliding down. "Fluffy, I might have to call in reinforcements on this one."
Raya took the time she had when Ace closed her eyes to actually change back into her normal everyday form. Then quickly slipped on a dress Susan had in her closet. She had no intention to leave with it, in fact, when she had to leave, she would just change back into a cat. Simple as that.
"You're telling me." Raya agreed with Ace's sudden realization, then added. "I'm Raya, also Fluffy.. considering you've been calling me that for a bit now."