deercountry | yes I knew it was no moonshine, it is real

[Good, good, this is very good!! Not all cats are very receptive to being held like this, so Scorpia's so delighted by the reactions of this little winged cat! Listen to all those adorable little meows.]

Aw, aren't you a cute one! Hey there Kitty, I'm Scorpia! I'm your new friend, yes I am! [Her eyes widen as the little paw is raised up.] What's that? Got something to say?

[She leans forward slightly - and is booped. Scorpia rumbles with delighted laughter.]

You got me!! You are a total sweetheart!

[yes! you are scorpia! and she has tons of things to say, mostly questions: why? (why not) how? (she's pretty sure it was the mask. or the paint. or both. neither?) but the most important: how long? jinx has been too sleepy to pick up on her cues - though between she, mr. bananas and sansa, she has a reasonable assurance her sister won't starve.

vi, however, is hungry. and this little cat body does not want fish, jerky, certainly not noodles, and she does not think it'll tolerate a beer, either. (it won't) she's going to have to get sustenance somehow, and the idea of ingesting a bowl of random blood ...she's finally found something to turn her stomach worse than prison food. small bowls are left out fairly often, but she finds herself questioning their origins in a way she absolutely would not do were they bowl of noodles.

she lets out a sadhappy little noise - a confused greeting, and a bit of a sigh, which might or might not be odd coming from a batcat.

but the laughter's calming, and she raises both paws, curling them into as much of a fist as she can make, and shadowboxes playfully into the air]

[That is a bit of an unusual noise the batcat makes. But then, this is the first batcat Scorpia's actually met, so who's to say what's normal for them?

But the boxing definitely stands out more! Scorpia looks even enamored with the little paws boxing at the air.]

Whoa there! I get it, you're not just a cutie. We got ourselves a fighter here! [She chuckles. And as she watches, she can't help but feel that something about this boxing feels so familiar... Maybe she's just imagining it. Some weird deja vu she can't put her finger on.]

I don't want any trouble here now. Why can't we all just get along? You hungry? [It seems like a reasonable guess, as that feels like the main reason an animal would come to a bar.]

[vi is continually surprised by how malleable this cat body is - she is both a liquid and a solid, able to punch the air, and twist backbendingly to bat at her own tail (distracting), only to return to punch again before blinking, and nodding very seriously.

she sniffs at the air and makes a little trill before attempting to climb into scorpia's arms again.

'hello, this cat body i am residing in prefers blood, and since i know you're not a vileblood, might i have some' is not even something she wants to ask. would she be able to sniff out the vilebloods the way other batcats do? is her own blood still poison in this form? so many questions, and no way to know. she's not even sure if she can feed properly. she's seen visenya do it numerous times, but...?

the cat is having an existential crisis in your arms, friend.]

[Scorpia is just fascinated by this cat and her antics. And now the little creature's getting right into her arms again! Her body might be cold to the touch due to her being a Coldblood, but she's wearing warm and cozy clothing with sleeves to help balance that out.]

Awww. Or are you just tired? [She gently rocks the cat in her arms in an attempt to relax it.]

Just take it easy! And I'll try to get you something to eat anyway. Hmmmm, food for cats... I wonder what Catra's favorite food would be?

[the cold feels nice, and it's easy for her to curl into herself, to fold her wings around her body should she need extra warmth, and vi tries very hard not to hook her claws into scorpia's clothing - sometimes they just come out - sometimes she just kneads at things. but not just now - now she's---

---oh, that rocking is nice, too. she lets out a little mrrow again, tilts her head up so that scorpia might see her fangs. they're a bit more pronounced than a regular cat's, but she doesn't expect that to be hint enough. so she adjusts, climbs, sniffs at the woman's shoulder, and then at her neck. scrunches up her face and licks at the exposed skin - waits to see if scorpia reacts - if it goes numb there.

she has just licked another sleeper's neck, and does not know how to feel about this. it's awkward. and her tummy rumbles loudly.]

[Scorpia's smile grows warmer as she hears the catbat's meow and sees how comfy the creature seems with her rocking!

She does blink as she sees the fangs - do they seem a little different than expected? And then her neck is being licked! It should tickle, although instead she feels more of an absence of sensation.]

Hey there now, I'm not on the menu! [She says with a laugh. But mostly she's confused, as she raises her pincer to poke at the spot where the creature licked.] Th-that's weird. A kitty's lickies wouldn't normally feel... or not-feel like that. You... There's something different about you... [After a moment of thought-] ...Anyone ever tell you you're kinda like a bat too?

[batcat instincts in full swing, she waits for a spot to open up, for scorpia to lower her pincer just enough that she can dive back in - but gently! most of the batkittens (and cats) she has interacted with have been very courteous about their bites, and she's only seen them take a little blood.

so she nosebutts at scorpia's neck, and very gently (easily, too. her fangs are sharp) sinks her teeth into the skin that she's numbed, her face scrunching up in embarrassment, delight and the tiniest bit of revulsion (oh, fuck it, that's what these cats eat) takes a drink. it's cold! the general temperature of scorpia's skin already gave her the head's up in case she'd forgotten, but the real iciness is a (pleasant?) shock. she will attempt to settle in, kneading again with her paws, trying not to make direct eye contact but if it happens - this cat looks both happy and contrite.]

Oh!

[Scorpia makes a surprised noise once she notices what's happening. That cat sure is gettung a drink of her! It must be like sucking on the strangest freeze pop.]

I- I guess I am on the menu after all! [She feels like she couldn't be disturbed more by this, but she knows that blood has its uses in this world. If it's helping this kitty stay alive, them so be it! She tries to take it in stride.]

You, uh, go ahead and take your fill! Just leave some for me, okay? [A sheepish chuckle.]

[it doesn't take long for her to finish, and her catbody rewards her with a quiet stomach and a renewed sense of energy without anxiety. (if scorpia has virgin blood, then little does she know a deeper drink might have broken the curse, ah well.) it is like drinking a slushie! and while vi knows that vilebloods can gain energy from drinking blood, too, it's not anything she'd been planning on doing unless an emergency arose. this, she supposes, is that emergency? kind of?

she has left more than enough blood, but now that it's done, she feels as if she should at the very least try to make up for it. somehow? so with all that renewed energy she leaps into the air, speeding gracefully over the bar to grab a clean glass - which she holds out to a slightly surprised bartender. it's water.

she zooms over to scorpia, glass in hand and sets it down in front of her, but she's not done. she only stops after cajoling a woman into giving up her beer, so over to scorpia that tankard goes before it's even been touched. and for her finishing thank you she will slide a bowl of snacks across that bar just for you.

it is time to replenish your energy.]

[Scorpia has used her blood in rituals before, so Vi's not missing out on anything by not drinking more.

She then watches in astonishment as the batcat springs around so spryly, bringing her some water, beer and snacks.]

Whoa! Wow. You, you are good. [She gently pets the creature... and quickly gets to work downing the water. Always nice to have something to dig into right after giving some blood! She quickly starts digging into the snacks and will start on the beer shortly.]

Thanks for that! You really know how to thank a gal for a drink.

[vi does a little fistpump (pawpump) in the air, glad that scorpia isn't mad, surprised that the blood has not only invigorated her, but also how palatable it had been. she's going to chalk that up to this borrowed body and the intricacies of its insides. who's a good batkitty? this batkitty. she holds her paw out again for a little high five.]

[She would have liked a little more heads up about it, but she understands there's only so much a non-talking cat can do on that front! Once the initial surprise wore off, Scorpia was just happy to feed her adorable little furry and vaguely familiar friend.

She sets down her beer after a sip and then extends her pincer to gently give the little high five!]

There we go! That's a good girl. I wonder what I should call you. ...Toothy McKittensworth? ...I'll brainstorm a bit!

[scorpia is good with words, and it's a silly name for a cat, so she tries to laugh - it comes out as if she's about to hork a hairball onto the counter. not what she was aiming for.]

[It does sound like that! Scorpia's concerned for her little friend!]

You okay there, Toothy? Sorry if my blood went down the wrong pipe! [She gently pats the batcat back to help her out!]

[vi leans into the pats because pats - lets out a small cry and tries very hard to give a thumbs up, but it's not ...working very well. she can kind of curl her paw and try to extend the ...claw. the cat's face is unsure as she looks from scorpia to her gesture and back again. dammit. she can't do fingerguns either. she looks at the beer a bit longingly. but she's very! awake!]

A-aw! [The catbat seems to be okay and making cute noises! She thinks the cat's just batting at the air with her paw in a funny way, because cats can be inexplicable creatures. But they sure are cute when they're doing it! In any case, it looks like she doesn't need to cough anything up after all, and that's a relief. Scorpia transitions into gently petting her with one claw, while taking a swig of her beer with the other.]

You know, I think this is the start of a great friendship. A classic one!

[nosebump against the claw, friend! she'll turn a couple of circles before catching sight of her own tail, batting at that and headbutting scorpia's claw with a pretty impressive show of strength for a small animal.]

Mrrrrow!

[Each one of those individual actions is incredibly adorable. Scorpia continues to grin widely as she admires the cat's antics.]

Heh, you're a tough one! [She remarks in response to how strong that headbutt felt for a little cat head.] But you're also super adorable. I like that combo. Keep up the good work, Toothy!

[it's an upside to being a batcat - maybe not enough to offset the blood drinking (please let this be over before she has to do that again) but people are free with their affection, and she's able to be the same without anyone getting the wrong idea, or anything getting weird. weird...er?

vi will continue to hang with scorpia as long as she's able, and when she leaves, she might just follow her out to make sure she gets home okay. a little worry's back, and she might be small, but batcats are a bit of a force to be reckoned with when they're on the offense. so it's +1 bodyguard tonight, friend.]

[It's a pleasant evening indeed! The batcat's as fun as any human companion would be, and she's in a jolly mood when she makes her way home. Not to mention that, as tough as she can be, she feels safe as she returns to her place. She almost wants to adopt the batcat! But she has the feeling that the kitten has a home already, so she just warmly bids her little companion farewell at her door.]

yes I knew it was no moonshine, it is real

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject