Roleplay

@Polyhymnia I've subscribed already, so no need to ping [i]While driving home on a quiet backstreet, Muse A spots a wounded animal on the side of the road. Having a soft spot for suffering creatures, Muse A pulls over and scoops the animal up into the backseat of their car. Muse A drives home with the good intention of nursing the poor animal back to health, unaware that the animal (Muse B) is really a shapeshifter. After making a comfortable place for Muse B to sleep, Muse A heads off to bed. By morning, Muse B is feeling a bit better and they shift back into their human form just as Muse A enters the room to check up on them. Muse B tries their best to explain what’s going on without terrifying Muse A. According to shapeshifter law, Muse B now owes Muse A their loyalty and must stay with them until the debt is repaid.[/i] So, as discussed in the PM, you'll play the shapeshifter female and I'll play the human guy. I'll go ahead and sign up my character to kind of give an outline for your own (if you need it). Also, for your own character, you can choose whether it's only one creature they can shift into or multiple. I'll leave that up to you. [center][img]https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/e8/e7/b3/e8e7b339e64ba7ef0cba5bf0b3dcc98b.gif[/img][/center] Name: Jordan Matthews Age: 22 Family: Father left this mother when he was born, younger half-sister and step-father History: Jordan had not been planned, he was an accident. His mother got pregnant fresh out of high school with her boyfriend, who didn't want to be a father but tried it. He only stayed for nine months but left two days before the baby was born. Heather, his mother, raised him for three years before marrying a doctor and they had a baby girl a year and a half later. Jordan was an A+ student who learned that if you wanted something, you had to do it yourself. He was quarterback for his football and got scholarship money for being his school's star athlete. Once he graduated, he jumped right into college, earning his bachelor's degree as a veterinary when he was 21. Unable to find work right away but still wanting to live on his own, he moved to a small city and has been working as a volunteer in the animal shelter for the last year or so, as well as part time as a barista in the local coffee shop just down the road. Personality: Jordan is quite open about himself, not wanting to keep secrets from anyone since he knows that they can hurt people. He likes to joke around and tries to make everyone smile, even when he himself is hurting. Jordan loves animals (obviously) and has a soft spot for them. He treats them like they're people. Doesn't have many friends, since it can sometimes take him awhile to trust people, but he his loyal to a fault. (Alright, here's my post) Jordan the door to the coffee shop, turning and locking it quickly. As usual, he'd been the one to lock up as he always took the later shifts, not wanting to keep people away from their families. The shop usually stayed open till at least midnight, but Monday nights were always slow and so the owner had him close up at 9, or any time he felt, really. Zipping up his jacket and shouldering his backpack, he turned and began heading down the sidewalk, street lamps lighting the way. The city noise was still present, though it was quieter, the occasional car whizzing by. Jordan had a bike that he would sometimes take when he needed to go somewhere, but the nice weather was just too good to pass up. The last of the winter snow had melted last week and spring was finally beginning to show it's face again. The sky was dark, though it was only about six o'clock. Coming to a crossroads, Jordan hesitated, wondering if he should take the more direct route towards home or a not-exactly-short-cut through the park. He chose the latter and turned the corner, heading somewhat further from his small house and towards the park. It wasn't well taken care of, since the grass needed cutting constantly and flower beds needed weeding, but it was comfortable and rarely used by majority of the people living in the city. Which made it all the more appealing to Jordan. As he walked further from the hustle and bustle of the city, the sounds of the park reached his ears: crickets chirping, frogs at the large pond croaking every once in awhile, and, if he listened hard enough, he could hear the hoot of an owl. All in all, it was a good night to take a walk through the quiet space, enjoying the beginnings of spring and the end of winter.

(No problem)

As he strode through the park in the growing darkness, the sound of a distressed bird caught Jordan's attention. Figuring it was just a baby bird who'd fallen from it's nest, he searched for the source of the noise. The darkness and other night noises made it difficult to pinpoint exactly where the sound was coming from but the bright orange tabby pouncing at something did draw his attention. The cat was feral, evident by it's mangy fur and size, meaning it probably ate out of garbage cans and anything dead it could find and fit in it's mouth. With a sigh he prepared to turn away. The circle of life and all that. But then he saw what exactly the cat had been pouncing on. It was a little blue bird, bright against the darkness. He hadn't seen such a bird like that around here, meaning it was probably just flying through. What made Jordan turn back around and move forward though, was the fact that it's wing seemed to be injured. If the bird had been okay, he would have left it to fly away on it's own.

"Hey!" he shouted, moving forward swiftly. "Leave that little bird alone!" The cat turned around and hissed at him, hackles raised as it spat at him. When he continued to move forward the cat turned tail and ran, jumping over the injured bird and disappearing into the night. He watched where it had vanished for a moment, half expecting it to return. When there was no flash of orange he turned his attention to the little bird. It's wing was definitely injured, though he couldn't tell how badly. Crouching down and balancing on the balls of his feet, Jordan slowly reached his hands out towards the bird. "It's okay, you're safe now. That bad kitty's gone somewhere else now," he said calmly and kindly to the creature. He knew it couldn't understand him (he wasn't speaking bird, after all) but he knew that soothing and quiet voices helped animals to calm down. He was reluctant to pick the creature up immediately, since it had just experienced what mice usually go through when faced with a cat, so he merely cupped his hands around it, careful not to touch the blue feathers as that could just scare the creature further.

He jumped slightly as the bird nipped at his palm, though tried not to move his hands as that might distress the bird further. After a few more minutes of waiting, the little creature seemed to give up on trying to stay upright. Jordan cradled it in his cupped hands and stood up, looking about for some sort of nest. It could still have fallen from a nest and he would return it if he could. Searching in the gathering darkness however was difficult and eventually he gave up. With a shrug, he turned and continued on his original path which would take him back to his apartment if he didn't let himself get distracted. Which had already happened, as the evidence proving so currently lay cradled in his hands. The walk back home didn't seem to take as long as it normally did, which somewhat surprised him but he merely shrugged it off.

Gently moving the bird to one hand, he dug around in his back, which was awkward as he couldn't see what he was grabbing at. Eventually he found the keys to the building and unlocked the door, letting it close quietly behind him after entering. The elevator didn't work and no one had come in to fix it yet, meaning he had to take the stairs... all the way to the fourth floor. Standing at the base of the stairs, he groaned and brought the little blue bird closer to this face. "Sorry about the wait. My apartment's not exactly located in the best place, so you'll have to wait a little longer before I can fix our wing." With that said, Jordan began the trek up the stairs. He wasn't out of shape by any means, but climbing three flights of stairs would cause anyone to be a little breathless. He paused at the top, breathing heavier than he had been a few moments prior. The brunette glanced at the bird once more, worry flitting quickly across his face. Continuing the trek down the hallway, he unlocked his apartment and filed inside, closing the door behind him with a snap and locking it, flicking the lights on once he'd finished. His small kitchen lit up and he sighed, moving over to the counter. "Home tweet home," he said with a grin, laughing at his own pun for a moment.

After he'd finished laughing at his stupid joke, Jordan looked around the kitchen for a moment before his eyes landed on a shoe box he kept forgetting to throw out. "Here ya go little birdie," he said softly, gently laying the feathered creature within. He slipped his backpack off and threw it onto the couch, rolling his shoulders and sliding his shoes off as well, though leaving them in the center of the floor. He turned to make his way to the bathroom, looking for cotton balls that he could lay out on the bottom of the box to create a more comfortable thing for the bird to lay on. Jordan was pretty sure it was a girl, though he didn't know enough about birds to prove his guess in any way.

Hearing the bird begin to chirp loudly, Jordan quickly grabbed some of the cotton balls he'd found and rushed back into the kitchen. "Sorry for the wait," he told the bird, pulling the cotton balls apart enough that they'd cover more of the box. He gently picked the bird up in one hand as he lay the cotton down in the box with the other. Once the bottom was covered he laid the blue bird back inside of it. Sitting down at the counter, and rested his chin on his folded arms as he watched the bird. It'd been awhile since he'd had to do any sort of work on a bird, as people didn't often have birds, but it didn't look like her wing was sprained or anything, just dislocated or bruised or something. He didn't want to cause it any more pain that it was probably already in, but if he didn't fix the wing it could end up getting worse.

Sighing he stood up and made his way over to one of the cupboards, pulling out a bag of sunflower seeds. He'd bought them awhile back, deciding to try them to see if they were as good as some of his coworkers had said they were. He'd hated them, but it looked like they might actually serve a purpose now. Jordan poured a little bit into his hand and gently set the pile in the box, careful to not startle the bird. If she got scared and tried to escape then her wing might end up getting worse. He sat once more a the counter, trying to figure out the best way to fix her wing. With small bones that had been dislocated or sprained, what was typically done was straightening it out and seeing where the damage was, then pushing it back into place or attaching a splint if need be.

"Now, I've gotta take care of your wing, little bird," he said, leaning closer to the bird as he spoke. "It'll probably hurt, but that's the best I can do at the moment." Reaching into the box, careful to move slowly, Jordan pulled the injured wing and spread it out, running his fingers gently down the feathers to hopefully calm the bird. The bones of the wing didn't seem out of place not once compared to the other wing, but several feathers were bent out of place and there seemed to be some bruising around the main joint. "Looks like you'll be okay," he said happily, smoothing down the ruffled feathers. "Just a little ruffled and some bruising, but that should go away in a few days. You can probably fly again tomorrow, though not to where your nest is. Your wing won't be able to handle long distances till the bruising is completely gone." It was at that moment that Jordan realized he'd been talking to the blue bird as if it was a person and he groaned, letting his face fall into his hands. "Why do I always do that?" he asked himself.

Jordan's eyes were watching the bird carefully, making sure that she was okay before he sighed heavily and stood up slowly. He glanced at his watch and groaned, realizing that it had gotten later, latter than he had thought it was. He stretched his arms above his head, a few joints popping as he did so. As he let his arms fall down at his side he tipped his head to the side, staring at the box for a moment before nodding to himself. He reached forward and carefully lifted it up, carrying it over to the coffee table just in front of the couch, placing it on top. "There ya go," he said proudly, as if he had just solved some sort of monumental problem. "No you're less likely to hurt yourself further if you were to hop out of the box and off the table. The drop won't be so bad if you do." Jordan snorted slightly and shook his head, ruffling his hair tiredly. "If you like you can even sleep on the couch if the cotton balls aren't cutting it for you." He chuckled at his own joke, dumb as it was and turned away, heading towards his own room.

As he reached the doorway he turned slightly, watching the little blue bird, his fingers hesitating to flick off the lights. With a shrug he decided to leave them on. It's no like they were going to combust if he left them on, and he wasn't entirely sure that birds had night vision, so the little bird in the box would need something to see by. Rummaging through his closet, he changed into an old college t-shirt that was only a little too small and sweats before heading into the bathroom to brush his teeth. As Jordan looked into the mirror, he realized how utterly exhausted he looked and sighed, shaking his head. Spitting out the tooth paste, he switched off the light as he left the small bathroom, making his way to his rumpled bed. He fell onto it with a dull thud, face deep withing the confines of his pillow before he turned his head to stare at the empty wall. It was a few more minutes before his eyes closed and he was snoring softly.

((Sorry for the sudden absence, internet was kinda sketchy and I've been gone all day to boot. You can time skip to morning in your next post if you'd like, or I can do that in my next post))