We need to talk.

[Ten]

ooc| Continuation from If At First You Don't Rebel.

bic|

Taking small steps, Frozenheart kept a careful eye on Rainstripe as he walked her toward the wall, its sturdy form looming over them as it always had and always would. Stone and branches were two things he could count on to stay the same in this world – just as cats would always break down and wither away.

He seated himself near the wall without looking away from the tabby. She could rest all she wanted, (with any luck) in peace, but she would have to explain herself at some point. He knew well why any con might feel hatred for his sister. However, Rainstripe had developed unprecedented aggression. Staring her down with his unabated look of blue concern, Frozenheart wanted to know why she wasn’t herself anymore, and he figured that he could find a way to fix – or just alleviate – this problem if he could see her explanation of what was happening to her.

[Cloud]

The gray-brown tabby had been near delirious with relief as his new friend led his other new friend away from the crowded scene. Hopefully no one would notice them being gone too much...

He hoped Rainstripe was okay...though he'd only known her a little while, he found himself being concerned with her well-being. But even more than that - ashamed though he was to hope it - was that she wouldn't get so angry again.

And he wanted to know why...so he could help. It might be dangerous to ask, but...he'd never get anywhere by guessing.

So, being as gentle as he could, he meowed, "Rainstripe, why did you become so angry?" He tried to keep a note of fear out of his voice.

[duckyaisha]

Frozenheart knew the she-cat well, for the sight of the wall calmed her. It reminded her of her kithood, of her mother, and helped her mind regain its footing. The Other was exhausted from possessing Rainstripe's body completely, even her voice, and was recuperating in the back of her mind.

She was terrified of herself. The Other had taken her completely by surprise by speaking out loud, and the echo of that voice still haunted her ears. Was the Other getting more powerful? She shivered at the very thought. In fact, her entire body was trembling, her eyes wide. Calm down. Slowly, she walked over to the wall and curled up in the very corner, similar to where she had slept as a kit.

"It wasn't me!" she yowled loudly as soon as she was calm enough to speak. "It was the Other, and it- it possessed my voice. I'm scared. I'm scared it's getting stronger. I'm scared it's going to completely take over my mind and control me forever!" Her voice rose to a loud wail as she voiced her deepest fears to the two cats she considered her best friends. What would she do if they left her, thinking her insane?

Already Drabheart looked at her like she couldn't control herself, like she might fly into a rage at any moment. The worst part was that it was true. Her friends needed to be scared of her for their own good. And this, this was what made her feel sick to her stomach. It would be better for them if they stopped communicating with her all together, though the thought was so repellent that she eliminated it as soon as it came into her mind. There was no way she was leaving her friends.

Right?

[Ten]

The last thing they needed was for her to work herself up again. No, the last thing they needed was for Grimykit to come running over, but Rainstripe working herself up was the second-to-last. Frozenheart purred to her, letting her know they were all okay right now and she needed to keep a level head. So what was this "Other" that Rainstripe spoke of? He titled his head. Although he knew Rainstripe was troubled and not herself, she spoke as if there were an invader conquering her mind.

If that were so, they needed a way to fight it off. The problem was that fighting seemed to stimulate and strengthen it, if "it" was the psychotic fervor he had seen rise in her whenever her mind turned to violence. Frozenheart furrowed his furry brows. If the Other, as she called it, thirsted for blood, then what would repel it?

The white tom sent Drabheart an inquisitive glance to see if he had any ideas on what to do. As for Frozenheart, he had none -- but even though this bothered him he refused to appear distraught, instead choosing to lie down in the dust, snug around Rainstripe in a crescent shape, and lick her striped head in quiet rhythm.

[Cloud]

Drabheart couldn't hide it; he was afraid, he was very afraid. Some instinct deep down warned him that the she-cat wasn't safe, wasn't safe at all. But...he would not leave her. He could not leave her. That would be equal to killing a cat. In other words, unspeakable evil. Yet in truth, were it not for his shame, he just might've done it. The very thought made him heavy with guilt, but he could no more unthink it than break down the walls.

Still, he tried to push such dark meanderings out of his mind.

He now set to the admittedly not much better job of figuring out what the Other was. It seemed, essentially, to be some dark being that lived in Rainstripe's head...he shivered. This was the stuff of nightmares. But he had no choice but to delve deeper. Maybe a reverse personality to her own natural one? It certainly seemed not really her...when he'd met her by the boneyard, she'd given no sign of any of this. He had felt no anger coming from her.

Maybe it was all this dark thing's fault, after all. The con was chilled to his bones, but he had to try and reassure Rainstripe. He had to make himself believe things were going to be okay. That was what he lived for, after all.

He watched Frozenheart curl down around her, and felt wistful that he could not do the same. But he could serve another useful purpose. Standing but a few cricketlengths from the gray con, he kept a wary lookout for Woodstripe or any other Clanners he might know by sight. Or even any cats who looked bloody, angry, or provocative. He would do his best to make sure nothing else made that Other thing mad.

Just because it seemed to hurt Rainstripe so much. But then, it must be bad, he thought, to feel unwelcome in your own head.

[Darky [Megan]]

Speckledclaw hoped she wasn't being nosy.

She wasn't Rainstripe's friend - not in an intimate manner, but she would still help the she-cat if she needed it. She wasn't concerned kin, either, nor, she presumed, was she a direct cause for the trauma the she-cat was going through. Regardless, she felt somehow responsible for the state Rainstripe was in and considered part of the entire ordeal her business.

She couldn't think of a good reason as to why she felt involved, though, which made her feel uncertain as to whether or not it was a good idea to go in and help. It was unnatural, too, for her to behave like this. She knew she was strong-headed.

But this was such a delicate matter of psychological distress that perhaps it was making her nervous.

Ah well. Nervous or not, Speckledclaw was determined to help in some way. She approached the group of cats, feeling uncertain at how Rainstripe would react to her presence and hoping that the addition of one cat to an already increasingly conspicuous group would not alarm her.

[duckyaisha]

Ooc: Stop posting so fast! DX

Bic: The instant she felt Frozenheart's warm body come in contact with her fur, the tense, nervous energy that wracked her entire being after the Other had invaded dissolved completely. Unconsciously relaxing from her rigid position, Rainstripe reciprocated Frozenheart's affection by fitting herself to the curves of his body and rubbing her head on his shoulder. She felt a rush of gratitude towards the white tom, so thankful that there was at least one cat that didn't fear her, that didn't think of her as some sort of monster. It was impossible to convey how much this meant to her, a simple 'thank you' wouldn't do at all. Words of any kind couldn't really express her feelings, so she settled for a loud and rumbling purr, rusty from disuse.

At the same time, she felt crushed by Drabheart's obvious alarm. She felt that this should be expected- after all, he barely knew her and now he knew her as a psychopathic maniac. But still, some hope had wormed its way into her mind, some hope that perhaps he wouldn't be afraid of her. Perhaps he would treat her just the same as he had before, as a nice enough she-cat with views he shared. But those pitiful hopes had been dashed and she finally realized just what effect her transformation had on people. It must be terrifying, she thought, as terrifying as having your body taken over by the creature, maybe even more so, seeing as she at least knew what was going on.

"I'm sorry," she meowed in a near-silent voice. Despite her claims that it wasn't her fault, she still felt responsible. She had lost control of it, and this was the result.

[Ten]

ooc| I love that you describe hope like a worm.

bic|

Frozenheart glanced up at Drabheart, and seeing the fear, he pressed a lick down on Rainstripe's head and into her face, chiding her not to look at him. Even though Drabheart's anxieties were understandable, he wasn't doing any good by showing them. Besides, Frozenheart was prepared to throw himself in front of anyone whom Rainstripe tried to attack, and if the Other were strong enough to proceed and attack him instead... the white tom had enough pride to doubt that Rainstripe could kill him, even if she wanted to.

So, physically, this thing was already under control. If Drabheart understood this, he would be feeling pity for Rainstripe's heart, not fear of her claws. When Frozenheart next looked up, Speckledclaw was coming forward as if curious or concerned, and not wanting to bother Rainstripe for another explanation, he issued a sharp bark of a meow to Drabheart and jerked his head at the newcommer. He could make himself useful by telling Speckledclaw of the plight and enlisting her in the search for a remedy.

Frozenheart was delighted to hear Rainstripe purr. She was so precious, rubbing on him like that, that he had no choice but to give her a bath. To assuage her severe mental anguish, snuggling might have to become a routine with them, but he sure wouldn't mind that. He could do this all day.

[duckyaisha]

Ooc: Ahh, you and Cloud are such good writers. Makes me feel inferior. X.X

Bic: Frozenheart's comforting touch banished the feelings of remorse and inferiority from her mind as the glowing happiness she felt whenever he was around filled her entire body as if she were lying in a rare pool of sun during the dark season. This gave her strength to look up, to look in the faces of all cats gathered there, no matter their take on the subject.

Drabheart's obvious fear still stabbed in her heart. She felt absolutely terrible for having scared the tom so, especially since she knew he was as fragile as she had been before the Other had invaded. A memory of the cat she used to be played through her mind as she thought about how alike she and Drabheart had been. Where had that cat gone, the one who shied from the stares and voices of strangers, whose mind was clean if not calm. More importantly, her mind had been her own back then.

How she wished this thing were out of her head. It was a nasty parasite, feeding on the deep emotions she had kept so hidden she never even knew she had them, gnawing through the wall separating those two completely different parts of her mind, and causing more of those emotions- the negative ones that caused her to attack cats for no reason and speak in that dreadfully cold voice- to surface until she ahd to fight them back. It was difficult for her to remember what life was like when one's head was their own. How could life have been anything except an exhausting struggle? But she knew it had been better and the fact that it seemed so long ago, that she was weary of life despite her youthful appearance, made her feel a pang of some unknown emotion deep inside her.

Now, however, was not the time to dwell on what she had lost. Hopefully, the cats she viewed as her best friends, loyal despite their fears, would help her kill Grimykit and take control of her mind. Speckledclaw's arrival was a great improvement, since she was skilled at killing things and was probably the most skilled fighter Rainstripe had known so far. Surely she could improve the severely lacking battle skills of both Drabheart and Rainstripe. The tabby had never seen Drabheart fight, but a cat that timid would only be so if he couldn't fight.

She was so glad Frozenheart was there; she leaned against him for support as she stood, for all the emotions rolling around in her mind seemed somehow to have made her body heavier, as if they had weight. "I'm glad you're here Speckledclaw. We need your help." Her voice still held the occasional tremor, but it was steadier and louder now, less hysterical. For this she gave Frozenheart a last lick on the head and sat down in front of him, the soothing, solid feeling of the wall behind her relaxing her mind. It didn't really make sense that she felt this way, for the enemy was inside her mind now, but a kithood spent always in the vicinity of the wall had given it an almost nuturing quality, as if it were a second parent.

[Darky [Megan]]

ooc
Aw Ducky, frankly you're all such wonderful writers in your own special way that I don't think your sense of inferiority is justified. ;w; I enjoy your portrayal of the Other in Rainstripe's eyes and in my opinion you do it really well.

"...since she was skilled at killing things..."
Hurdur.

bic
Speckledclaw followed Frozenheart's signals and intepreted them herself, looking at Drabheart while she did so. She shook her head gently before the tom could reply, as if to say that there was no need for explanations before padding forward.

She seated herself some distance apart from where Frozenheart and Rainstripe sat, but close enough for her to carry an intimate conversation. The atmosphere had changed quite dramatically. It was amazing how some caring support could light a cat up, instill new hope in them and motivate them to move forward. She waited as Rainstripe adjusted herself comfortably, and spoke.

"I'm glad yer ready to do something about this. I'll be happy to help out any way I can. What do you have in mind, then?"