frogfear: (070)
Willow ([personal profile] frogfear) wrote in [community profile] deercountry2022-04-09 06:50 pm

April/May Catch-All

Who: Willow Rosenberg ([personal profile] frogfear) and you!
What: Open Prompts (Will add closed ones later)
When: Throughout April.
Where: Throughout Trench

Content Warnings: Themes of loss/grief, some werewolf body horror, will update threads as needed.



1. At Ritual Gig [Open]

[It's hardly been an easy few weeks. Stan's departure had been sad enough, and Willow found her thoughts drifting often to how the Pines family was coping with the loss. Then Glitch had left. Then John as well.

She had met John in her early days in Deerington, shortly after both Buffy and Giles had woken up from the dream. She had never experienced a real Maine winter before, and had been out enjoying the snow when he startled her, and she had nearly pelted him with the snowball she had been making. She thought it was embarrassing, but he insisted he was impressed with her aim.

They had bonded quickly, and easily, and his protective, parental nature filled a void she hadn't even really been aware of. Both of her parents had busy careers that kept them away often, and even when she was home, her mother in particular had never really been interested in what Willow did, aside from a brief period of time before the novelty of her relationship with Tara had worn off. John had never not been there for her.

She glances back at the counter occasionally, half-expecting to see him there.

Faith and Tara make things even more complicated between the confessions forced out of all three of them the previous month, and the pair moving back into the house for the additional safety it offers. It feels horribly awkward, but with the danger April has presented them, it also feels necessary. Willow copes mostly with avoidance. She feels ill-prepared for the difficult conversations she knows they ought to have, but maybe it can be delayed just a little while.

Ozpin had cautioned her that her reunion with Tara might present some challenges, and but she had never expected it to get so complicated so quickly. She certainly never thought she would find Tara preferring Faith's company over hers.

Time spent helping with the shop is a welcome distraction, and an excellent reason to spend time away from the house when she can't keep herself busy there. It's little easier to cope with her grief by funneling it into productively tidying the shelves that never seem to quite be free of dust, or studying a particularly interesting book she's found on the shelves.

Anyone entering the shop will be greeted with a little wave, and a small smile that doesn't meet her eyes.]


Hey.

1. Werewolf of Trench (With link to bonus dreamwalking open post) [Open]

[It seemed like an obvious solution. If her soul couldn't leave her body, then it couldn't turn into a wolf. If she didn't turn into a wolf, she could just sleep quietly in her bed at night instead of getting restless and feeling the need to get out and wander. If she didn't get out and wander, there was no risk of anyone else being hurt.

Her necromancer friend had seemed confident pinning her soul would work, and as far as she can tell it has. Mostly, anyway. She doesn't remember her dreams, and even when she gets a full night's sleep, she still wakes up tired. It's all easily explained away by the stress of an incredibly difficult few weeks, not to mention the adjustment of no longer changing forms at night. There's probably no cause for concern. Besides, she has already rediscovered she can use dreamwalking as a means to counteract the exhaustion.

Unfortunately, preventing her soul from leaving her body in place has done nothing to end the curse that came with Robyn's bite, but only changed the effect. Instead of leaving her human body behind to rest and taking a separate form, she changes. She grows fur that matches the colour of her hair, she grows sharp claws, and sharp fangs from a very canine snout, with ears that stand on top of her head. Muscle and bone that stretch and change in ways they were never intended to hurt. It makes it harder to think straight, it makes it harder to focus, and it makes it harder to act on anything beyond instinct.

When she changes, the urge to roam becomes overwhelming. She maintains enough sense to generally want to keep to the forest to avoid Sleepers who might mistake her condition for true beasthood and decide they need to take action, but nervousness of the area she was killed in, even if she doesn't consciously remember, drives her to linger near the edge of the woods where she may be more easily spotted. The nights she feels particularly restless, she can be heard howling by anyone nearby.

She will fight if provoked, and instinct might insist she chase someone who runs even if, deep down, she genuinely does not want to harm them. Sometimes her instincts can be mercurial, though, and she may protect another Sleeper from danger, particularly if it's someone she knows and trusts.]
entreats: (i'm trying to find a place i belong)

1

[personal profile] entreats 2022-04-10 11:23 am (UTC)(link)
[ Ange still isn't feeling absolutely great herself. The effects of the way her world was completely turned upside down last month are still lingering, but Ange also knows that she can't afford to keep lingering in those when everything could start going wrong real rapidly during a month where everything stays completely dark like now.

And when she slowly tried to draw herself out of her own feelings, shoving them down, it started to become easier to notice other people's feelings again. Like Willow's. Even if Ange doesn't know all the details of what has gotten the other feeling off, she has noticed something is going on with Willow.

She has also noticed that the other seems to prefer to not spend time around the house as much, which means that Ange's idea of sitting down there with the other didn't end up seeming all that great to her.

So Ange has tried to kick her ass back in gear enough to actually go out again this month, rather than bundle herself up in her room or in the house. At least enough to make it over to the shop, carrying a bag with her as she enters, her eagle omen hopping in after her, wings tucked in to actually fit through the door. ]


Hey. [ Ange says, greeting the other in return before pulling a thermos out of her bag. ] I hope this isn't the weirdest place ever to suggest having some tea.

[ Especially since the shop seems to be quiet right now anyway. ]
eudaimonikos: (I got dreams of my own)

2

[personal profile] eudaimonikos 2022-04-10 04:28 pm (UTC)(link)
[Michael tries to avoid the forest at night. It's a dangerous place, far worse than the woods back in Deerington used to be. But Eleanor's accustomed to their old strolls, and occasionally he does like to indulge her. So he's headed out towards the edges of the woods himself, riding on Eleanor's back.

The Warg catches wind of the other wolf first, stopping up short and letting out a low rumbling growl from deep in her chest. Michael frowns into the shadows. Human eyes aren't well-suited for this.]


...Bigby? That you?
mactirebeag: ([wolf] 16)

2

[personal profile] mactirebeag 2022-04-10 06:12 pm (UTC)(link)
[Mebh has lived with being a Wolfwalker her whole life, so she doesn't think anything of leaving her body as a wolf when she's fallen asleep. Even though she's more hesitant about going into the woods here, she still feels the need to stretch her legs, so she heads out with her wolves to leave the Waystation.

They've gone a little ways before Mebh hears howling in the distance. That's not something she hears often since she arrived here, so she can't resist answering with a howl of her own, with her wolves soon joining her.
]
mactirebeag: ([wolf] 7)

[personal profile] mactirebeag 2022-04-12 03:49 pm (UTC)(link)
[Mebh tenses up at first when she sees Willow approaching. She's never seen a wolf that can walk on two legs or has paws that look more like hands, and her first thought is that she could be one of those monsters that live here. But on the other hand, this stranger does smell like a wolf...and there's something else about that scent that seems familiar.]

...Willow? [Mebh says this with some hesitation. She remembers Willow telling her that she'd become a Wolfwalker herself, but she'd never expected a Wolfwalker to look like this.]
unphase: (only not to be of use impossible so)

1.

[personal profile] unphase 2022-04-12 04:48 pm (UTC)(link)
[despite Tinya's debutante past and her own naturally bubbly nature, one might think she wouldn't be much of a reader. but she'd met Willow while searching for books, so why wouldn't she go to a store with books?

when Willow smiled and waved, well...it didn't take much experience reading people to see that her eyes were troubled although she was trying to pretend she wasn't.

but she wasn't about to mention that. not at first, anyway, they barely knew each other]


Hello, Willow! Have any recommendations?
entreats: (feel nothing like everyone else)

[personal profile] entreats 2022-04-12 09:09 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Now isn't that a question that isn't easy to answer. Maybe that's the main reason why she first just says: ]

I could ask you the same.

[ She moves over to find a spot to sit down so they can have the tea while the shop is quiet, putting the thermos down and then seeming to focus for a moment until she manages to conjure two cups out of thin air - first appearing in a golden light before they seem to solidify.

The eagle omen keeps moving until it's next to her seat, where it seems to stop. ]


But in fairness.. [ Since it wouldn't be right to ask how Willow is while dodging the question herself, Ange thinks. ] I'm keeping it together. Kind of realised I can't continue to mope while things could get super dangerous this month, if the sky is anything to go by.
eudaimonikos: (utilitarianism)

[personal profile] eudaimonikos 2022-04-13 03:20 am (UTC)(link)
[Eleanor bares her teeth and snarls back in earnest at that! She didn't come out here looking for a fight, but she's got a rider; she's not about to let some other predator think this is fair game.

Michael, on her back, doesn't actually have much way of controlling her. What's he gonna do, put reins on her like a horse? Even the leash he sticks on her for walkies is mostly just for show. Still, he grumbles and hops down to the ground to shove her back.]


God - okay, can we not do this? Let's all just chill out, there's plenty of woods here.
unphase: (she wore Shiseido Red and we drank tea)

[personal profile] unphase 2022-04-19 02:51 pm (UTC)(link)
I'm looking into books on, well. Other dimensions? I don't know if anyone, anywhere has something about those.

[because she was trying to figure out if anything could point her in the right direction to making her birthright actually work properly]

No, no. It's [she could feel herself flush slightly] about other dimensions. I tried the archives, but I couldn't get much more detail than "yes, they exist." Which I know, I'm proof of it.
entreats: (it's hanging over my head)

[personal profile] entreats 2022-04-19 09:21 pm (UTC)(link)
.. and you seeming to avoid the house?

[ Okay, maybe that call out wasn't exactly the most subtle.

But Ange is not always the best at navigating social interactions, though she sure is trying - especially when it comes to people she doesn't want to hurt, like Willow. Maybe it's why Ange picks up the thermos to start pouring the tea into the cups, rather than immediately continuing to speak.

Allowing for a slight pause while she's busy.

Besides, she is curious about that. If there's something wrong with the house, she'd like to know. Especially since Ange had to kick someone out last month, just to continue to have it be a comfortable space for herself. ]
eudaimonikos: (the republic)

[personal profile] eudaimonikos 2022-04-19 11:07 pm (UTC)(link)
[Michael may not want a fight, but he's not going to put up with his dog getting attacked by some wild animal either - he turns and lets some blue flames swirl around his hand as he points.]

You could also use a little bit of chill, buddy.

[And he grabs Eleanor's harness and starts just kinda dragging her off.]
mactirebeag: ([wolf] 8)

[personal profile] mactirebeag 2022-04-21 03:11 am (UTC)(link)
[Well, this is certainly strange. Wolfwalkers don't forget things like that, as far as Mebh knows.]

Yeah. It's me, Mebh. We met before, remember?
entreats: (but now i feel like i'm the flower)

[personal profile] entreats 2022-04-25 09:24 pm (UTC)(link)
[ In all honesty, Ange was perfectly content with just accepting whichever answer or information Willow wanted to share. Despite the call out from a moment ago, it's not like she was going to really press this matter - unless Willow looked like something she was repressing was causing her major trouble, and Ange doesn't think this situation seems like it's at that level yet.

Which means she's perfectly fine with giving Willow some space and privacy. Ange gets it, often having a hard time herself with sharing problems.

But surprisingly enough.. Willow says more than Ange anticipated. Though there's not much of a sign of that surprise - instead Ange just keeps looking calm, slowly nodding as the other speaks to show she's listening. ]


So you haven't talked much to them? [ Is that why Willow is staying away - because she's trying to avoid having too much contact with them? ]
unphase: (the big picture gotta big white cloud)

[personal profile] unphase 2022-04-25 11:09 pm (UTC)(link)
[that's how she keeps herself going. that and eternally smiling and insisting that Everything is Fine, even when it wasn't. and when she thinks about what she lost, what her mother and her mother and all of her foremothers have been able to do for all of recorded history, she gets a little neurotic]

Yeah. It's hard to be more specific, though, with me apparently being the only one from my particular dimension. [she tries to not look as concerned as she feels] Have you ever heard of something called the Phantom Zone? If my planet is one one dimension and Earth on the other, the Phantom Zone is what's keeping the dimensions separate.
Edited 2022-04-25 23:09 (UTC)
eudaimonikos: (utilitarianism)

[personal profile] eudaimonikos 2022-04-26 12:47 am (UTC)(link)
Freaking wolves...I hope that one's not a beast.

[He comments idly to Eleanor as he leads her away. If it is a beast, he should...possibly try to do something about it. Or at least tell someone. Kinda just seemed like a weird wolf, though.]

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