[open] lately i'm feeling like a big bang

[brightline]

who: marco & YOU
what: catch-all post with various open starters (amnesia and regular)
when: August
where: all around the Quarantine
warnings: descriptions of morphing (body horror) and nightmares; Marco is forgetting how to morph, though he's still capable of it.



i. nightmares/nocturnal (for floor 2)

[The thing is, Marco's been living alone for the past few years, or at least sleeping as alone as he can. Even back when he lived with his parents in the valley, he'd had his own room, his own space, with walls thick enough to hide it unless he was having the absolute worst nightmare possible. The only real exception had been when he was staying in Ax's scoop with him and Tobias, but at that point things had been so bad they were all having nightmares and judgement wasn't on anyone's minds.

But honestly, since the war had ended, Marco hadn't been obligated to share even a whole house with anyone, let alone a building floor with 9 other people and a room with 4 other people. So it's been a hell of a long time since he woke up, sitting up straight in his bed with sweat pouring down his face, yelling 'NO!' at the top of his lungs, in a room where people could actually hear him. And the whole floor probably heard that.

Breathing heavily, he pushes his hands back through his hair, dark eyes scanning around him, looking for an enemy for the first few, muddled seconds; after that, he's embarrassed and still panicking, his heart beating too hard, his face flushed, skin and hair damp with sweat, trying to figure out if anyone saw him.

Once he's dealt with the nightmare, he'll be in the kitchen with a light low, drinking water and making himself a snack. Anyone on the floor is welcome to hear his nightmare or run into him in the kitchen in the middle of the night.]

ii. morph-capable

[At some point, Marco forgot how he does it. Morphing. It had been so second-nature before, like a really, really unpleasant version of breathing, and now he can't remember how to trigger it at all.

But that doesn't mean he doesn't do it still. He just has no idea when it's going to happen. Or where. Or what he's going to turn into. Thankfully, he still remembers all the rules, and remembers how to get out of morph, or he'd be one sad sack nothlit in a flash. Unfortunately, pretty much no matter where he is, you might run into him spontaneously shifting forms, a gruesome mass of protruding bones and extruding feathers or scales or fur or mandibles. It's pretty unpredictable, and there's wide variety of animals and aliens that might pop out next - pick your poison.]

iii. beach party

[Marco was around the big River Festival party, wandering along the beach, checking out the water, occasionally going gull to scope the place out, do some recon, getting a feel for the place. It's been a while since he had to be secretive, since he had to hide what he can do, and who he really is, but it's a habit he falls easily back into, morphing out of sight, making sure his regular trunks are tight enough to do it.

But when he's human, all bets are off. Marco is loud, exuberant, and running around basically anywhere, on the regular beach or the clothing optional one, without a care in the world. And he's his usual charming, charismatic, wisecracking self. Even while he's gathering as much intel on the people here and what they can do as possible.]

iv. out and about

[Marco is no Rachel when it comes to shopping, but he's no slouch either. After all, with 7 million in the bank and counting, he's learned how to do a fine bit of shopping. Unfortunately, he's totally lacking in the 7 million here, so he's got to manage a budget, and thankfully he's pretty decent at that.

Marco will be out and about around stalls in the various outdoor markets, haggling up a storm. He'll also be at the outlet malls looking for discounted brand stuff, an trying to figure out the style conventions in a totally new world. Everything he knows is totally wrong here, and he's not Marco if he's not ready to grace the cover of GQ at any moment.]

v. wildcard

[Throw me a random starter, combine any of the above prompts, or hit me up via PM for a customized starter or to plot something special!]

Comments

i

[notasaviour]

[He's not sure about the whole floor, but Teddy definitely heard that "no"; then again, he hasn't been sleeping that well since his shifting turned off. Luckily, he also doesn't need much sleep.

He's not sure it's really the best idea to interfere- maybe whoever it is would really rather be left alone right now- but he guesses asking is probably better than ignoring it. And whoever it was sounded pretty unhappy...

For someone his size, he's surprisingly quiet moving over to the bed he thought he heard the noise from, keeping his voice down as he asks the question.]

You okay?

[...Well, he knows the answer is probably no, but it's more of a query on whether concern is welcome or not.]

I

[threatenwithcuteness]

*So there wasn't much movement from the bed next to Marco's as he woke up. But... there is a curious thing. Marco shouldn't be feeling alone as he heads to the kitchen. Like a gentle feeling that someone is there for him, and he should be feeling a little less uneasy, a little calmer, and a little better rested. At least than how he should feel after such a nightmare.*

...Do you want to talk about it, or do you want some sort of distraction?

*Lola's standing at the edge of the kitchen watching him for a few moments. She's very quiet, not entirely because it's the middle of the night and maybe people are trying to get back to sleep. Her hair is still that dead white color it turns while she's unconscious, and with that right level of bedhead to be cute but not amusing. She's wearing a thin nightgown over her tank top and shorts, but the gown is long enough to get down to her knees.*

*Look it's summer and and she doesn't want to wear any more than she has to. Sharing a room sucks.*

v. wildcard

[thegreatninja]

[When Yuffie goes to bed that night she isn't expecting anything strange to happen. When she wakes up she decides that something strange has definitely happened. This isn't her room or her bed. It isn't the first time she's woken up somewhere strange however she usually knows how she got there.

She stretches out, tugging at the blankets, before noticing that she isn't alone in the bed. Yuffie pauses and looks over at the mess of black hair.]

Ah, good morning?

[Yuffie is at least dressed.]

ii.

[alchemyfreak]

[Ed had gotten used to seeing some strange things in all the various worlds he'd been to. Although Attollo hadn't boasted much on the monster front, Purg and the Quarantine certainly had their fair share. Plus there was always the random resident here or there that looked like they fit in better with the monsters.

He was used to all of that. Truth be told, if he considered it he'd also be used to the idea of someone shapeshifting, not only Envy from home but others over the years as well.

What he wasn't used to was someone in the middle of the path he was on that appeared mostly human, as scales seemed to grow along his arms and neck while a giant snake-like tail started to form out of nowhere. Only for the process to reverse just as abruptly as if the guy had no real control over it.

Sorry Marco, that doesn't seem normal.]

Hey, are you all right?

[At this point Ed's just hoping this is something unique to this guy's personal experience and not the new confusing and horrifying surprise awaiting everyone on the moon.]

ii, backdated a little

[franciscoramon]

[ Cisco doesn't even think about it, as he gets into the elevator, waits for the doors to close, and hits the button for the ground floor. It's just like the thousands of other times in his life, when he's gotten into an elevator and just stood around, waiting for his stop. There's a young guy in the elevator, too, but he doesn't stand too close or try to start up a conversation, he's just standing on the other side of the elevator and maintaining the silence and personal space etiquette, so Cisco pays him no mind.

That is, until the elevator comes to a shuddering, loud halt. Then, terrifyingly, it drops - only about a foot, before it comes to a grinding stop once more. Still, that tiny drop was enough to get Cisco's heart racing, enough to make him shout dios mío and grab hold of the railing along the side of the elevator.

He waits for the elevator to move again, or for the doors to open, but instead it just... stays there. Closed and unmoving. Cautiously, Cisco takes a step towards the panel, tries pressing a button. Nothing. He hits the door open button, and the light comes on, but the doors do not budge. He hits the number for the floor he'd come in from, but there is no change. ]

Well, fuck.