[PRP] What're You Running From? (Preacher & ??)

[The Semblance of Unity]

When she was in mink form, Preacher felt safer, somehow. She wasn't short, wasn't too temperamental, too uneducated. She was just an animal. Still, she shifted back, catching her breath in great gulps that sounded almost like sobs. But her eyes were dry, even though her knuckles were busted up. Preacher spat on them and tried to rub some of the blood off onto her jeans. She didn't think she'd broken anything, but it would be a bruised mess tomorrow.

She'd left Oliver far enough behind and pushed the guilt from that and her other feelings down. That had been a display of weakness: unacceptable. Preacher ran her fingers through her tangled hair, wincing. She walked down one of the many streets in this place, lifting a hand to wave at some of the weird mannequins that littered the town.

ashdown whaler

 

[Ashdown Whaler]

Sometimes there was a twist of the hand, strangely fluid, in response to Preacher's waves. Mostly it was quiet and an unease hung in the air, a heaviness that weighed down on anyone that was in other ashdown at the moment.

In the distance there was an animal shape that darted down an alleyway.

Except that from right behind her she would hear the meow of a cat.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

She shivered. The air felt weirdly heavy, and maybe it was just her own sense of guilt creeping back up on her. Preacher tried to ruthlessly push it back down, but the oppressiveness still hung all around her. Something darted through the streets and she picked up her pace, eyes shifting back and forth across the pavement. Maybe it was a were... or a regular animal. And regardless, her aloneness in this moment was bothering her.

Then something meowed behind her. Preacher whirled, eyes lighting up. There were cats here, right? "Kitty?" She clicked her tongue, trying to lure it out of whatever corner it called home. "Kitty cat?"

ashdown whaler

 

[Ashdown Whaler]

As soon as she turned and started to move and make sound, the meow stopped.

... and then picked up again behind her once more, though it did sound like it was coming from a little further away.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

Dammit. The little thing must be skittish. Cats usually were, she thought, turning and fishing around in her pockets. Preacher didn't really have anything on her to entice anyone, much less a cat. She did, however, have some string cheese. Frowning, she walked in the direction of the meow. Maybe this cat was, like, super fast.

"Kitty," she called out. "I won't hurt you~ cat cat cat."Look, Preacher just could really use petting a cat right now. Everyone knew they were the superior animals.

ashdown whaler

 

[Ashdown Whaler]

With another turn, the meow was now behind her once again and further away. A lure perhaps? Except that there was another wisp of a shape, a tail that ducked down an alleyway not even a block away.

... and it was quickly followed by what was another one and this time it was obvious it was a cat.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

Well, ********, she thought. The acoustics must be weird here, or there was weird magic acoustics. Preacher clearly saw a cat up ahead, even though the meow sounded behind her. Casting one last glance behind her, she jogged down the block.

Maybe there were better things to do that chase strange cats down alleyways, but Preacher was pretty sure this was important. It was a cat. She turned down the alleyway without hesitation, slowing until her steps made no sound. Now where was that cat?

ashdown whaler

 

[Ashdown Whaler]

It turned out that the cat (cats?) had ducked into what looked like a building being worked on. There were construction tarps hanging everywhere and scaffolding that was in similar shape. For the rampant disrepair some places had, it was likely a touch odd to run into a place being worked on.

No door was on the building but it was wide open.

... and a meow came from somewhere within.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

Preacher looked up at the half-finished building distrustfully. Were there magical construction workers here or did the building remain forever unbuilt? She decided she really didn't ******** care and brushed a tarp aside. Slipping inside, she looked around.

"Kitty," she called out softly.

ashdown whaler

 

[Ashdown Whaler]

There were no walls, just the outlines for them, and once inside it was odd to find there were working lights that flickered. Again there was an echo of a meow and it sounded, strangely enough, as if it was coming from a floor higher up.

Two paths laid before Preacher: the service elevator and a door that had STAIRS emblazoned on it.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"Who tha ******** does elec afore walls?" she muttered. How did that even work - electricity usually needed wiring in said walls, and... She shook her head. It didn't ******** matter. At worst, it was just more magical bullshit. Preacher angled her head up when she heard the meow again. Well, she was thoroughly invested and couldn't just give up now.

The elevator was eyed distrustfully before she walked tot he door labeled stairs. Preacher yanked on the door, trying not to think how stairs worked with only the skeleton pieces of walls.

ashdown whaler

 

[Ashdown Whaler]

Thankfully, the stairs were oddly enclosed - how that worked, no one knew - but they were dusty and rickety and the meows echoed downward from the top.

Preacher would have to go up three floors before she would find another door that actually worked and did not look as if it was painted on the wall.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

Preacher grit her teeth and climbed up. This was such a ******** stupid idea, but it didn't matter. If she fell down and died under a ******** ton of scaffolding, well... that was her own goddamn fault. Still, she continued onward, knuckles aching whenever she pressed a hand to the wall for balance.

Opening the door, she poked her head in, followed shortly by the rest of her body. "Kitty?" Preacher called out. Then, wondering if the sense of smell would help her, she shifted into a mink.

ashdown whaler

 

[Ashdown Whaler]

There was no need to shift, though once she did Preacher would find that there were the smells of many cats. The reason? There was a circle of them sitting of varying breeds and sizes and, in the middle, was a silvery spotted cat with its ears pressed back.

That was where the meows were coming from.

As when the cat opened it's mouth once more, the meow it made came from behind Preacher.

So far, it seemed, she was not noticed. One cat, larger than all the others, let out what sounded like an angry mreow that the other cats chimed in on. This all strangely looked like a cat trial ...

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

Preacher paused. That was... decidedly weird. She hung back, watching for a bit. It seemed as though the others were ganging up on the one grey cat - like they were judging the cat.

She slunk along the ground towards them. Maybe they'd welcome a mink buddy... maybe not.

ashdown whaler