Just a Little Hair Dye with a Side of Trauma

## Rose | Rhett | Marci04/16/2019

`Friday, March 2 (afternoon)`

Arriving at home, Rhett didn’t know whether he actually wanted to go in. Odds were Annie had already arrived and she was somewhere inside causing a ruckus. Then he remembered about Lionel and immediately wondered if the other shapeshifter had even met the cub before now. After a second more of thought, he walked up to the door and pushed his way inside. “I’m home!” He announced, never really sure of who would be around and who had better things to do.
Kicking the door shut behind him, the blonde made his way into the hallway, looking up at the stairs after not finding Anastasia or Lionel in the livingroom or kitchen. He moved forward before quickly jumping back with a quiet ‘ah!’. Apparently Annie was there. Her shoes and longboard, which he’d inevitably stepped on, were just inside the hall where he hadn’t paid attention.
Huffing a sigh, he picked up the board and placed it against the wall before kicking aside her shoes and making his way upstairs. He wanted a shower and to curl up but with Annie’s presence somewhere in the house, that’d surely be damn near impossible. “Where are you?” He called out loud enough to be heard in any of the rooms.
@Vodka Aunt(edited)

## Vodka Aunt04/16/2019

Anastasia had made herself at home at the HQ while she waited for Rhett. The telltale signs of her presence were everywhere from the tripping hazard in the entryway to a lidless jar of peanut butter on the counter.
The sound of Rhett's voice calling out to her sent a thrill down the young woman's spine. "In the bathroom!" She calls back, voice somewhat muffled by a mouth full of peanut butter toast. She meets the fellow shifter on the stairwell, rubbing her fingers clean on her torn jeans.
"You ready for the carpets not to match the drapes?" She teases, leading him up the stairs and into the bathroom.
Annie had dragged a stool into the bathroom and had all the necessary tools spread out haphazardly on the sink. She had a mischievous glint in her eye as she proffered a box of cheap drug store hair dye for his inspection.
"This one was called *Tantalizing Tigress*," she points towards the garishly vibrant orange colour swatch on the box with an air of smugness. She was having way too much fun with this.

## Rose | Rhett | Marci04/16/2019

He looked up the stairs as Annie came into view wiping her smelly fingers against the jeans she was wearing. He could smell the peanut butter from his spot on the ground level. His eyes rolled at her comment and he moved up to meet her with a frown on his face. “Hey, watch where you leave your stuff, you know Val can’t see!” He hissed after her, not sharing the same enthusiasm that she was so effortlessly exuding.
Going into the bathroom, he paused to glance over the controlled clutter spread across the counter. “You need *all* of this?” He asked in bewilderment while taking the box being offered. His eyes scanned the container before handing it back with a chuckle. “Guess you’ve done this before?” Perching on top the stool, the boy looked at Annie’s reflection. Somehow the thought of putting his trust in someone so deranged didn’t entirely scare him.(edited)

April 17, 2019

## Vodka Aunt04/17/2019

Anastasia waves off Rhett's concern for the blind man. "If he can see the future he'd see if he was going to trip over something. The guy isn't helpless y'know." Her flippant disrespect for everyone wasn't phased by disability.
She snorts at his bewilderment. "I've been doing this shit since middle school so I'm kind of a pro. Mama loved my natural hair so obviously I bleached it the next week. Unless you want an orange shirt you should take that off." She busied herself as she spoke by grabbing a few spotless white towels from the closet and wrapping them around his neck and shoulders.
She grins at her fellow shifter's reflection, seizing a comb from the counter to brush through any of the tangles in his hair.

## Rose | Rhett | Marci04/17/2019

He blew out an unamused breath at Annie’s insolence toward Valentine’s ability and lack of sight but didn’t try to sway her reasoning. He knew there was no point so he just continued on. Listening to her confidently speak on her past experience with the hair dye, Rhett’s eyes only grew in disbelief. She had blatantly colored her hair to make her mother unhappy. If that wasn’t a sum of Annie’s entire character, he didn’t know what was.

“You say ‘pro’ but I’m not buying it.” Grinning, the blonde removed his shirt and set it aside before having the towels placed around his neck. “How permanent is this stuff anyway?” He asked while letting her pull the comb through his hair, flinching every now and again from a particularly tough knot. “If you make me look like a dorito, I’m never forgiving you.” His eyes darted up to Mimic’s own mischievous ones.

## Vodka Aunt04/17/2019

Anastasia took immense joy in watching his eyes widen at her tale. "It's a good thing Im not selling anything," she quips with a grin,"and it's not too bad I think the box said 6-10 months or something but I don't read instructions."

Annie was anything but gentle, and her approach to Rhett's tangled hair was to just pull the brush harder when she caight a snag. She wasn't intentionally causing him pain, it was quite obvious that she was the same on herself.
The Mimic tosses her head back and cackles. "Not making any promises Dorito Boy. You not happy with Tantalizing Tigress? I picked it just for you."

## Rose | Rhett | Marci04/17/2019

Wincing at a particularly unruly tangle, Rhett let out a sharp exhale and grabbed at his scalp trying to pause the woman in her vicious treatment. “Just let me do it.” He muttered through clenched teeth just as she threw her head back in laughter.

“I just don’t want to be painted orange for six months, is all.” At another yank, he quickly pulled away from her and glared briefly back at her reflection. “Have you always been this rough? And you shouldn’t sound like you’re doing me any favors with this.” His blues darted back to the box labeled ‘Tantalizing Tigress’. Why was it called that anyway? He didn’t get it but he was becoming kinda fond of the brilliant orange.

## Vodka Aunt04/17/2019

The Mimic sticks her tongue out at him when the young man snatches the comb from her hands. "Yeah cause I'm not a *pussy*," she fires right back at his reflection with a smirk dancing on her thin lips, backing off for a moment so he could comb his own hair.
"If you don't like the orange you can dye it to a different colour," she lowers her voice and leans in conspiratorially while she waves a strand of brown hair in his face,"the curtains don't match the drapes baby. I can change my whole body whenever I want so hair dye got old fast."
She abruptly straightens and leans around him to grab a jar of vaseline from the counter. She doesn't bother to explain what its for and simply begins slathering it along his hairline and over his ears. At least she was taking some precaution for the dye.

April 18, 2019

## Rose | Rhett | Marci04/18/2019

“Maybe not, but you *are* a bitch.” His eyes darted up to the mirror, colored blue with clear signs of his playful nature coming to the light. Keeping the banter alive, he grinned and finished combing through his golden locks without too much more pulling. His eyes shot to the side as the female shifter came close but didn’t say anything. Instead, suffering through her peanut butter breath and trying not to laugh at her hushed tone.
“That so?” He asked in an equally soft voice, the strand of dark hair dangling in front of him and tickling his nose. The corner of the boy’s lips twitched up to form a half smirk while he looked her over in the mirror. He was about to say something rather inappropriate when she suddenly pulled away and busied herself with whatever it was she’d picked up from the counter in front of him.
Setting the comb down, Rhett glanced up to see the woman’s shiny fingers and almost got an eyeful of vaseline when he jerked his head back to look. “What the hell?” He stopped moving after he realized what it was and relaxed back onto the stool with a sigh. “Is this stuff necessary or are you just taking advantage?” His question was followed by a shiver as the cool gel was slathered all along his forehead and the tips of his ears. It wasn’t a pleasant feeling but he stuck it out, anyway.(edited)

April 19, 2019

## Vodka Aunt04/19/2019

Anastasia snickers, "you got me there." She purposefully tickled his nose with her hair when she had leaned in just to be a bother.
She caught his smirk in the mirror and shoots back a not-so-reassuring grin his way.
Annie laughs at his aversion to the vaseline, his reaction thoroughly amusing her. "A little bit of both. You dont want to get stained orange now do you, Dorito Boy? Like you and Val aren't acquainted with this stuff, you guys need to quiet down in there," she punctuates her blatant lie with a knowing wink. Satisfied with the amount of vaseline on the man's face she wipes her hands on her pants again, leaving shiny streaks on the fabric.
Fingers now clear of the jelly, she pulls on a pair of blue latex gloves with an over the top snap. She turns away from him for a moment as she pulls the dyes from the box and pours the bottles contents into a bowl on the counter. She didnt glance at the instructions once while she confidently mixed the dyes.

## Rose | Rhett | Marci04/19/2019

Rhett scoffed lightly at the given nickname and almost fell off the stool at her second jab. He still caught the humor in it, chuckling a little before promptly shaking his head after seeing her wink back at him. “You make some pretty wild assumptions.” He grinned even if the comment had taken him by surprise. Frankly, he was just getting tired of all the suspicions going around. Redirecting his attention to the supplies on the counter, he watched the vaseline be returned to its spot. A good portion of its contents missing as it was now thickly smeared across his face.
The snapping sound caused him to flinch a little and his fingers to curl around either side of the stool seat. He wasn’t afraid of Annie in a sense of danger *but* he was on edge with her unpredictable behavior. Speaking of which, she'd already begun mixing things into a bowl without even skimming over the directions. “Hey, hey, hey! Do you *actually* know what you’re doing?” While he spoke, he’d started searching for the paper, finding it at the bottom of the box and quickly unfolding it to give it a look.
On one side it was Spanish and the other obviously English. Of course, he’d opened it to the Spanish side first, panicking briefly as he worried the dye was too cheap for intelligible instruction. “I don’t understand any of this stuff…” He mumbled while still not completely knowing what was going on and finally giving up on it, tossing the sheet back to the counter in defeat. “Just don’t burn all my hair off or anything, you can make your own but I can’t.”

## Vodka Aunt04/19/2019

"Would it even be me if it wasn't wild?" She was enjoying the banter, people generally grew tired of her antics fairly quickly. Completely immune to Rhett's concern, Anastasia was happily eyeballing the concoction being mixed before her.
The Mimic waves off his concern,"yeah obviously I know what I'm doing. How much difference do you really think there are between brands of cheap hair dye?" She had finished mixing the product and swirls a soft brush in the product.
She happens to peer at the paper in Rhett's hands for a moment to see what had confused him so much. Upon realizing he was reading the wrong side she busts out into uproarious laughter. "No Hablo Espanol?" She asks in between laughs, butchering the words to an almost painful degree.
She grabs the bowl and moves behind him, brushing some of the cool product against his scalp. "Your hair is gonna be *fiiine*. How long would it even take for you to grow it back?"

## Rose | Rhett | Marci04/19/2019

Anastasia’s sudden burst of laughter earned a confused glance from the blonde, he hadn’t noticed her peering over his shoulder and it only added to his frustration. Once the paper was no longer in grasp, he rolled his eyes and folded his arms in front of him. “Hahaha!” He shot back with as much sarcasm as he could muster. The frustration dying quickly with her amusement.
While she started the process of applying the mixture to the top of his head, Rhett tugged at the towels over his shoulders. “Not long, I guess.” He couldn’t really remember the last time he’d had it cut other than a trim but surely Annie was right. It would be just fine.
“Think Andy’s gonna like it?” He grinned up at the mirror while Anastasia stood behind him painting his scalp before moving on to the rest of his head. The smell was a bit overwhelming at first, causing him to cough into the towel lining his neck and using it as a makeshift mask.

## Vodka Aunt04/19/2019

Her laughter was only spurred on by Rhett's sarcasm. "I'm sure Leo will give you lessons," she teases him, having no intentions to let him forget about it so easily.
"See! No biggie," she says in the most reassuring voice she could muster, patting his shoulder while she painted his head with dye.
Anastasia returns the grin. "Oh he's going to *love* it. It's gonna look so good you won't even consider being blonde again." She was definitely trying to hype him up for the big reveal. When she realized the fumes were getting to him, the ever-thoughtful Anastasia threw open the bathroom door to vent the space a little. There was a window a few feet to her left but she couldn't be bothered.

April 20, 2019

## Rose | Rhett | Marci04/20/2019

He was positively grateful for the bathroom door opening. A few seconds later, he let the cloth drop from his face and a smile shone back as he twisted his body on the stool to face Anastasia and not just her reflection. “Thanks.” He said in regards to the nice gesture and completely ignoring her previous teasing.
Not that he’d hated the idea in the first place but Annie’s presence was actually making it a lot more fun than he’d have thought it to be. “So, it’s a Saturday and you’re at HQ dying some guy’s hair. You couldn’t find anyone else to bother?” It was kinda nice, actually. “Don’t get me wrong, it’s cute that you care enough to do it for me.” He grinned up at Mimic playfully.(edited)

## Vodka Aunt04/20/2019

"Eh it's nothin'," she casually brushes off his thanks, not sure how else she should respond. She smiles back at him, taking a step back so she could assess how the dye job was looking and touch up a few spots she had missed.
Anastasia grins wryly at Rhett's comment. "It's a little early for the clubs and Leo's been busy, plus I wasn't going to let you forget about your humiliating defeat."
She scoffs at Rhett's comment of her caring and gives him a light swat to the shoulder. "Oh shut the fuck up," she shoots back playfully, laughter in her voice,"if I didn't do it I'm sure you'd try to weasel your way out of it. I'm better at doing it than you are."
She pulls her gloves off and tosses them on the counter, pulling her phone from her back pocket to start a timer. She waves the device in front of her fellow shifter's face. "Speaking of me being better than you, let that sit for like 30 minutes."

## Rose | Rhett | Marci04/20/2019

“It’s good to know you have a heart, at least.” Reaching out and lightly jabbing a finger to the center of her chest, Rhett let his hand fall away as she ungloved and watched her set an alarm. “Thirty-minutes?” His face scrunched up at the command. “This stuff reeks...maybe I should’ve tried convincing you for a different consequence.” He was mostly joking but after another minute of sitting on the stool, he stood up and stretched.

He sure as hell wasn’t about to sit around for thirty-minutes without something to occupy his time. That’s when the quiet thudding came into earshot, his eyes lighting up just as a flash of tan rushed past into the small room. “Have you met Lionel?” Rhett glanced at the shorter shifter with a broad smile before bending down to pick up the growing cub. He wiggled in the man’s arms for a minute before settling down and looking to Anastasia.

## Vodka Aunt04/20/2019

"Pfft nah. I have a bottle of cheap booze where my heart should be," Anastasia brushes him off with a light laugh, tanned cheeks showing a hint of pink despite herself. "It's too late to back down now! Now's the time to own it."
She had seen the lion cub once at a distance but had yet to properly meet him. A godawful sound escaped Annie's throat as the beast darted into the bathroom. "*Lionel?*" She asks, voice more shrill than normal as she crouches in front of them,"*Bozhe moy* I love him so much already. Keeping him was a great idea." Any hint of toughness had completely left her as she fawned over the lion cub.

## Rose | Rhett | Marci04/20/2019

Well, this was new. Annie’s tone of voice changing was chalked up to another one of her teasings before Rhett recognized actual interest in the smaller creature. He tilted his head a bit, letting a lopsided grin settle over his features as he looked from her to the cub. “Me and Andy made a deal so he’s ours now.”
Scratching gently behind the cub’s ear, he let out one of his many vocalizing sounds and stretched a paw out toward Annie. “Want to hold him??” Rhett’s eyes shone happily at how the two seemed to connect so quickly, he’d only seen that with Andy.
Even before she’d gotten the chance to answer, Rhett held the little lion out to be taken. He’d been able to cradle him a little so holding on was easier than not. “He’s heavy, so don’t drop him.” With that, he pressed the lion to Annie and waited.

## Vodka Aunt04/20/2019

Annie loved animals, but she was far too irresponsible to keep a furry companion of her own. "A deal eh?" She asks, one of her eyebrows raised as if to imply something less-than-innocent.
Rhett didn't even need to finish his question before the woman exclaimed an overeager,"Yes! Is that even a question?" She holds out her hands, eyes gleaming with excitement. The lion cub brought out a whole other side of her, and she gently took the creature into her arms.
She grunts softly, surprised with his weight, but adjusts him accordingly. She coos at Lionel, scratching the back of his head. "How did you even manage to get him out of the zoo? I'd think his mama wouldn't let you take him." Up until this point, she hadn't considered how on earth the shifter managed to smuggle an entire animal from it's enclosure.

April 21, 2019

## Rose | Rhett | Marci04/21/2019

It was insanely sweet watching Annie’s ‘heartless’ demeanor completely vanish into mid-air. It was like she’d been replaced with a doppelganger and knowing Annie, that’d be some dumb shit she’d pull but Rhett had gotten the pleasure to watch with his own eyes as she turned to a figurative pile of mush.
Lionel was happy as ever in the stranger’s arms. The scratches making the little cub weak and his only movements being to swat at a stray lock of brunette hair every now and again until Rhett would reach over and move the strands back over her shoulder.
Her question wasn’t a surprising one but he’d admittedly not been asked it in a short while. Kyle, for the most part, was far too wary of the creature to know about its origin and Valentine didn’t seem too bothered either. The only person who’d known was drunk Andy.
“It’s Kyle’s fault, really.” He grinned slightly before continuing. “Not really, but after he’d left I kinda got bored so I started going around visiting with the wildlife... they were all asleep, mostly.” He paused to think back on that night then finished answering. “His mom already had a full litter and he was the runt. The keepers were probably trying to get her to notice him but it wasn’t working.” He shrugged. “So, he was lonely and I figured why not? Getting him out and home wasn’t so hard. I just avoided security and kept him hidden under my jacket. Nothing to it.”

April 22, 2019

## Vodka Aunt04/22/2019

Anastasia was beaming, tilting her head forward so more of her hair fell in front of Lionel. She glances up at Rhett as he moves her hair out of the way. It was a sweet gesture, but Annie only had a certain amount of niceness in her and didn't thank him.
She grins wryly at him when he pins the blame on Kyle. "Excuses, excuses," she teases, *tsk*ing him in mock disappointment,"I guess if you saved him I won't have to call animal control on the little guy. He's our new fuzzy mascot and there's no way it's changing unless we have TWO Lionels."

## Rose | Rhett | Marci04/22/2019

“Andy would absolutely murder me if I brought home another,” Rhett said with a grin plastered to his features before realization sank in. “Oh! I learned how to shift into one.” He stuck a finger out to point at Lionel, ignoring the cub as he swatted at it then pulled away. “It’s not as easy as you make it look.”

He grinned and sat back onto the stool watching Anastasia cradling the surprisingly calm lion. Since Andy usually carried him around, Lionel had adapted to the constant man-handling and hardly seemed to mind it much. “By the way, how’s that bite?” The question materialized outta the blue as the boy recalled the monkey situation from their last mission. “Did you wrap it or something?”

## Vodka Aunt04/22/2019

"What Andy doesn't know, can't hurt him," she says conspiratorially with a grin. Her excitement over Rhett's new form was palpable and her voice raises an octave.
"Holy shit really? Lemme see! You can be like his cat dad now!" She can't help but laugh when he conpares himself to her. "If I just focus hard enough I can almost *see* the people I've touched, It's just like wearing a body suit that's too-small and a little itchy. Whats it like for you?"
When questioned about the wound, Anastasia gently sets the lion cub onto the floor and kicks a bare foot onto one of the few clean spots on the counter. She rolls up her pant leg to show a set of angry purple puncture marks on her shin. "I figured it would just heal on its own, Daya probably hates me and a monkey bite right after the whole zoo thing is suspicious. So I'm toughin' it out the old fashioned way." She was entirely unphased by the ugly wound on her shin, she seemed almost proud to be sporting a battle scar.

April 24, 2019

## Rose | Rhett | Marci04/24/2019

“I’ll show you in thirty minutes.” He smiled referring to when they’d get to rinse out the dye. His brow rose as she explained her experience with shifting. It sounded kinda inconvenient with the itchy part but he still found himself wishing to be in the same boat. “Learning new forms is the hardest part for me...I still don’t really know how. I only seem to learn them when something bad’s happening but once I know the feeling, it’s just a matter of thinking about it.” He shrugged at the lame description not really wanting to go into detail. The whole lion thing was still pretty fresh, after all. He’d still woken to the metallic taste of blood filling his mouth a couple of times. Each occasion prompting him to wash his mouth out with as much mouthwash as he could handle.

His eyes narrowed as Annie propped up her leg and rolled the fabric to reveal a mixture of purple and blue that painted the area around the two punctures. They didn’t seem to be too deep but it still made Rhett’s stomach twist a little. “You’re such an idiot. Just ‘toughin’ it out’? What about infection?” The boy’d barely given her a second look before spinning to the medicine cabinet and beginning to rummage about in search of some sort of antibiotic cream. Completely forgetting about his own stupidity when it came to mortal wounds. What a dumbass.

April 25, 2019

## Vodka Aunt04/25/2019

Anastasia's grin only widens and she shoots the man a wink. "Can't wait until 30 minutes from now then." She hadn't bothered to contemplate what would happen if he shifted with dye still in his hair.
She wipes her hand across her mouth as she thinks about what he meant with "*something bad's happening*" before her eyes brighten with a sudden stroke of genius."Oh! Like, what's it called... Fight or flight, yeah? Like your power is based on instinct-- so does that mean each of your animal forms connect with something that feels life or death?"
Anastasia was fascinated learning about his power, she had never taken quite so much interest in anything else before. "Is Andy workin' on that with you?"
Rhett's obvious worry was shrugged off with a light laugh. "In Mother Russia, you no need antibiotic. Antibiotic need you," she says in an over-the-top Russian accent. She was left with one long leg still propped up on the counter as he began rummaging through the medicine cabinet. "I mean it doesn't look *that* bad."

April 28, 2019

## Rose | Rhett | Marci04/28/2019

While searching the cabinets for disinfectant, Rhett didn’t immediately respond to her previous inquiries, though the way she rationalized what he’d told her of his power was pretty spot-on. Fight or flight. He finally nodded and answered her with a ‘uh-huh’ before discovering a bottle of peroxide. “Yeah, he thinks I should focus on smaller animals for now. Maybe like a mouse or something.”
His eyes rolled upon hearing Annie’s exaggerated accent but a chuckle still rumbled softly in his chest. “It doesn’t look bad now but what about in a couple of weeks?” Swiping a washcloth from the cabinet and holding it over the sink, he proceeded to pour the disinfectant into the cloth til he felt it dampen in his hand then turned back to Annie’s propped leg. He knew she wasn’t a wuss so he didn’t bother doing the whole ‘it might sting a little’ or any of that. Instead, pressing the cool towel to her lower calf and dabbing the affected areas accordingly.
When he’d finished with that, Rhett moved on to put creme over the punctures then wrapped it with a couple bandaids, improvising as he went. “There!” He said once the second one was applied and stepped away to put things back in place. “Hey, so, what do you do?” Flipping down the toilet lid, the boy took a seat and looked up at her again. “You actually have a job and a place, don’t you? How?” Nothing he said was to be taken as offensive, he was truly curious and without malicious thoughts toward the woman.(edited)

## Vodka Aunt04/28/2019

Anastasia exhales dramatically, cocking her head to the side as she watched him fuss with the first aid kit. "Cuts wouldn't take a few weeks to heal, dipshit," she says the insult playfully enough, but judging by the look on her face she was starting to consider infection a real possibility,"monkeys only eat bananas so their mouths shouldn't be that bad." Her rationalization was, as per usual, very far off of the mark.
The stinging sensation of the disenfectant earned Rhett a sharp hiss of pain between clenched teeth, but the shape shifter quickly adjusted to the sensation. She watched him work curiously, resting her chin on her knee as he does so. Once he finished up she pulled her leg from the counter and swept a space clear for her to sit on the counter.
Rhett's question came as a bit of a surprise, but the smile warming her face made it seem like she took his interest as a compliment. "Well I still live with my parents, but my Papa set me up with this sweet catering gig. Flexible hours and I get to take the leftovers with me, I always bring the food to a few of my friends who live under the bridge near the Industrial district. I party a lot so I usually know how to take thinga to the next level." There was an obvious note of pride in her voice. There were few things the Russian woman took seriously, and parties were one of them.
"And what about you, Dorito boy? You can't spend all day as a cat, what do *you* do?" She grins cheekily as she turns the question back onto him.

May 5, 2019

## Rose | Rhett | Marci05/05/2019

Rhett hadn’t considered that some of the heroes still lived with their parents. Of course, assuming they had close bonds with them. It did sound as though Annie had pretty good connections with hers, though and for that Rhett was genuinely surprised. Anastasia just seemed so...wild. Too wild to have parents back home.
He smiled while she answered him, going into the job her dad had helped in getting and how she’d take the extra food to her friends. It was all pretty cool and Rhett couldn’t stop smiling once he’d began. She could act like an asshole all she wanted but he saw now just how sweet the other woman could be. “Your dad sounds nice. I’m sure the parties are always fun with you around.” He grinned at her prideful tone and reached down to pick up the pesky cub as he’d begun running in circles on the bathroom floor.
Holding Lionel and trying not to let him eat the towels, Rhett hardly paid much mind to the name calling. “Being a cat is arguably the best, though.” He glanced up and smiled before shrugging. “I was thinking about volunteering at the zoo but after our mission, I don't know.” He shrugged a second time and distracted himself with the lion in his lap, scratching the cub between his shoulders and scruffing up the little fur he had.
When the cub wiggled his way off the shifter's lap and continued to move around the floor, Rhett returned his attention to Annie. "So do *you* do more than just party and take left overs to the bridge people? What about school?"(edited)

## Vodka Aunt05/05/2019

Annie's eyes roved over his face, almost as if she were trying to gauge whether or not he was going to tease her. Her inquisitive look melts into a smile. "He's my hero. He can knock a guy out without spilling a drop of beer. He taught me it isn't a real party unless blood was drawn," she couldn't suppress the laugh that bubbled out of her. Her laughter only grew louder when she caught the lion cub running in circles. Using the leg dangling off the side of the counter, she prods at the cub with a toe before he was lifted into Rhett's arms.
"You seem more cat than man sometimes yknow? Like I wouldn't be surprised to find you sleeping on top of the fridge or something," she says with a laugh, leaning forwards to scratch Lionel,"you should totally volunteer at the animal shelter, I'm sure they wouldn't mind a few animal thieves every now and then."
She leans back at his question, blowing out a breath between pursed lips. "Ah, I'm an aspiring art school dropout. I like to paint but all the bullshit bureacracy makes it into a chore but. I go longboarding when the weather is nice but it takes a lot to be a full-time party girl like yours truly." She grins wryly at him, gesturing towards herself theatrically.

## Rose | Rhett | Marci05/05/2019

It was unavoidable that Rhett’s lips quirked up into a amiable smile as Anastasia indulged him on the odd teachings of her father. The guy didn’t sound like somebody he’d ever want to run into but the way Annie’s face lit up it made it clear just how much she admired the man. With that in mind, Rhett steered from questioning his parenting methods and focussed on the next string of replies.
He flashed a brilliant grin as she voiced her opinion on his living style. Of course, she didn’t know that that was actually how he’d normally sleep or that he’d only recently began getting more comfortable in his own skin while sleeping. That would likely have only provided more fuel for the woman to tease him with so he kept it to himself. Still, her suggestion that he could volunteer at a local shelter sounded just as good to him. Getting out of the house and doing something fun like loving on animals waiting for their forever homes was insanely appealing and just maybe he’d get Valentine dragged into it as well. Assuming Kyle would rather rest in his spare time now that he was going back to working his cruddy full-time job.
A second or so passed before Rhett regained focus on the other shapeshifter, his own lively orbs locking with Anastasia’s golden hues. The more he looked at her the more stunning she became. Not just in looks. Learning that she had an interest in painting was also quite the surprise earning a curious look from the boy as he processed her remarks. Her partying lifestyle was nothing new, hence his fascination in the woman’s other activities.
“Are you any good?” He asked in a teasing manner before reaching up to scratch at the nape of his neck, pulling back his fingers almost immediately after getting the slathered gel under his nails. He sighed irritably then paused before inquiring about the time. “How much longer?”

May 8, 2019

## Vodka Aunt05/08/2019

Anastasia, ever the attention-whore, was reveling in Rhett's interest in her personal life. She grins eagerly, pulling her cracked iphone from her back pocket and unlocking it. "Pretty fuckin' talented," she responds with no hint of irony. She was so confident in most everything she did and her art was no exception.
She swipes through her camera album before turning the phone to face the man. It was a photo of a canvas in the corner of a messy room. Her art style was nearly as bright and garish as her personality, she would paint mundane scenes like a coffee maker on a counter but they would be painted in bright unnatural colours. The style was reminiscent of pop art, and she swiped through several neon scenes of a messy bedroom and a class of multicoloured students with their heads on their desks. "I like to imagine colour where it isn't is what my teacher said to me. Sounds like some hippy psychobabble but I like how it sounds," she offers with a noncommital shrug.
She turns the phone back towards herself to check the timer. "Mmmm, 10 minutes give or take. I left the peanut butter out downstairs if you want to have a snack before you rinsed it off."

May 10, 2019

## Rose | Rhett | Marci05/10/2019

The artwork being shown was far more interesting and kind of fun compared to what Rhett usually saw from aspiring artists. His eyes focussed in on the vivid colors, taking in and wondering just how long she’d been painting for. When she explained her teacher’s take, his mouth stretched into a slanted grin.
“I don’t think I’d ever pin you for the hippie type, until now.” He chuckled. “I’ve seen that stuff sell for big bucks, though. I bet yours would do just as good! You could be the next Bob Ross or something.” The last string of words earned another bout of laughter. His eyes still roaming the phone as she flashed the images across the screen for him to view.
When she turned it back to herself, he leaned away. His smile still very much intact even while she answered his question. It wasn’t the answer he was hoping for, the dye had begun to itch a little and he couldn’t quite tell the reason. Even so, the mention of food sent his stomach churning as he was reminded of skipping breakfast yet again.
“That sounds good, actually...I haven’t eaten.” He admitted and stood quick enough to startle Lionel who’d collapsed across his feet. “Do you usually enter people’s homes and raid their cabinets?” He asked, walking out the bathroom and to the kitchen figuring Annie wouldn’t be far behind.

## Vodka Aunt05/10/2019

"Peace, love, and drugs, who doesn't love a bit of hippy every now and then?" She winks at him with a lascivious smirk playing on her lips, letting her suggestive expression explain what she meant.
 She seemed genuinely surprised by Rhett expressing for her to try selling her work. "Oh, I mean I have probably 50 of them just chilling in the spare room of my place. You really think its good enough-- Ha! What am I saying, *obviously* I'm good enough for people to buy my work." There was a hint of self doubt hiding just below all that bravado, and her face goes red after catching herself.
Grateful for the change in topic, the Mimic practically leaps to her feet. "Well that was stupid," she says in reference to Rhett's earlier comment of not eating,"why else do people keep their cupboards stocked? I mean if it's *just* for you and you don't want someone touching it just hide it like I do." She shrugs and follows him from the bathroom, pausing to give Lionel a scratch behind the ears.
Just as she had said, there was an opened bag of bread and an uncovered jar of peanut butter sitting on the counter from her earlier snack. She siddles right up to her small mess so she could put some bread in the toaster before turning back to look at the other man.

May 14, 2019

## Rose | Rhett | Marci05/14/2019

Rhett barely caught onto the split second of insecurity but by the time he was preparing to say something Annie had bounced to a new topic. The food, sounding more appealing than not, took most of his focus from there on. Leaving the somewhat stifling bathroom, the pair made their way down the stairs and into the kitchen where Anastasia went right back to her spot behind the counter.
While she popped another couple slices of bread into the toaster, Rhett swung the fridge door open to grab at the half gallon of milk. He swiped a glass from the cabinet and poured a good amount into the cup before replacing it. “So, then your answer was yes.” He grinned at the woman as she looked back at him. His fingers wrapping around his cup of milk before putting it up to his lips and drinking down a good portion.
Reaching out for a couple pieces of bread, Rhett placed the two side by side before sliding the peanut butter closer and using a spoon from the drawer to spread it across the two. Slapping them together, he eagerly took a bite and happily munched away. He would talk again after a couple sips of milk, leaving him with an obvious milk stache that he didn’t care enough to wipe away. “What’re you planning to do after this? Want to help me with something else?”

May 16, 2019

## Vodka Aunt05/16/2019

Rhett's words prompt a half-smile to tug at the corners of her lips. She had her hands behind the small of her back, bouncing herself on the edge of the counter while she watched the man pour himself a glass of milk.
Once her own toast had popped from the toaster she slathers it with peanut butter and makes an overdramatic moan of approval.

They lapsed into what could possibly be the longest silence the two had shared since meeting while they ate. She perks up at his question, her response slurred slightly by the food still in her mouth. "Im pretty flexible, whatever you have planned is probably more fun than what I was gonna do." She grins, swiping the back of her hand across her mouth to clear it of crumbs.

May 20, 2019

## Rose | Rhett | Marci05/20/2019

Her eagerness to help him wasn’t necessarily surprising as it was enthralling. His fingers opening from around the cup and lifting to wipe at his mouth absently. He wasn’t sure that she’d say yes without context but with her clear interest, he felt confident in a positive response.
“Ok, this is sorta serious so I need you to really hear me out.” Giving a moment’s pause, Rhett continued once his thoughts were in order. “You said something about that ‘flight or fight’ stuff earlier and it gave me an idea..what if we test your theory? See what happens this go round...what do you think?”
There was hope in the boy’s eyes as he practically begged Annie to help him. Surely he could have asked another hero...Andy or Eli? He wasn’t certain how they’d react to his idea, though. *Hey, I need you to act like you’re going to kill me without actually doing it.* It sounded absolutely mental but looking across the table at Anastasia, Rhett couldn’t think up a single reason for her to say no.
@Vodka Aunt

## Vodka Aunt05/20/2019

Anastasia's casual intrigue had left all realms of being casual when Rhett began elaborating. Her dark eyebrows inched up her forehead, mouth agape.
He wanted her help unlocking a new form.
Her surprise quickly melted away into an eager grin. No one had asked for her help in a super capacity before and she was a bit honoured her fellow shifter came to her. "You want me to make you think you're gonna die? Since you're asking nicely I can do that." There was a glint behind her eye as she began plotting ways to "help" him.
She stuck out a hand to him. "We shake on it, no hard feelings after the fact. Safeword is creamsicle-- yknow, cause the hair."

May 22, 2019

## Rose | Rhett | Marci05/22/2019

As she repeated his proposal back to him, it became suddenly clear that Annie was going to absolutely take things too far. It was one of those things you just knew would happen even without prior evidence. Although all the evidence Rhett needed was how she typically acted. The danger she emitted from being unpredictable but that’s what he was counting on to make things work.
Nodding along with everything coming from her mouth as they shook hands, he stopped mid-shake to give a confused look at the safeword given. After a quick explanation, it made sense...unfortunately. Still, he was pretty excited by her acceptance of the role he’d needed filling. If it worked out maybe he’d be able to better time how and when new forms occurred. Would he be able to control what animal it was too? The lion thing was out of pure panic but maybe it related to the first creature he thought of?
“What do you think I should think about? A bug? Maybe a fly or something?” He wondered aloud while going back to his sandwich and milk.

May 23, 2019

## Vodka Aunt05/23/2019

After they shake on it, she returns to leaning with the small of her back pressed into the cool countertop. "You don't have any water breathing forms do you? We could start there-- after you rinse out that dye," She was distracted by the loud chirping of her phone's alarm and pulls it out to silence it,"we can do 2 things at once, once you've washed your hair out."
She bounces back up to her full height and grins as she leaves for the bathroom first, eager to see what he looked like with his new hair. "Cause, like, I have an idea that definitely won't *kill* you per se..."

## Rose | Rhett | Marci05/23/2019

The alarm sounding was what brought Rhett’s thoughts back from the depths. He’d been trying to figure out what Annie was thinking. She’d mentioned him not having an aquatic based form and while turning into a goldfish seemed highly stupid to him, she was probably right about him needing to branch out. Still, he decided not to ask any questions. Trusting her to use her best judgement when it came to ways for him to go.

Getting into the bathroom, Rhett kneeled by the tub and grabbed for the shower head. “Mind helping me then?” He asked while handing her the sprayer and proceeding to fool with the knobs. After a steady flow of lukewarm water began gushing out, he twisted back around and leaned his neck against the edge.
@Vodka Aunt

## Vodka Aunt05/23/2019

Annie clicks her tongue and shoots him some finger guns in response to his request,"you got it." She grabs the showerhead and sprays her hand with it to gauge the temparture before moving it to Rhett's head.
"Look at me being all helpful," she comments playfully as she runs her ungloved fingers through his hair. She hadn't thought to put them on before jumping to help. While she may have been rough with the brush, she was significantly gentler when it came to the rinse. "I need you to turn over so I can get the back of your head without spraying myself." She nudges him with her knee to spur him on.
It took a few minutes for the water to run clear, and she decided to question him while they had to wait. "Any plans on what you wanna be? I'd say a shark but I doubt the tub is gonna hold you. Ooh! What about an electric eel?"

## Rose | Rhett | Marci05/23/2019

Doing as directed, he shifted around so that she’d have an easier shot at getting the dye from behind. He couldn’t help but close his eyes and enjoy the weird tingling the water left against his skin and the relaxing sensation of Annie’s fingers running through his hair. It was way nicer than he’d been expecting.
Using the towel around his neck to shield his face while the spray sent water dripping down into the tub, he listened to Anastasia’s question. Honestly, he hadn’t given it too much thought. “An eel?” He repeated and grinned. “That’d be really cool, actually. They’re like electrocutive snakes, right? I can try!”
He was growing more and more optimistic that he’d managed to forget all about *how* he’d need to achieve this. His neck, which was growing a little stiff from the odd positioning, turned and he brought the towel up to his face again. “Is it over?” He asked in regards to the color.

## Vodka Aunt05/23/2019

"Fuck yeah!" She says cheerfully, no hint of what she was about to do could be heard from her chipper attitude. She takes a calming breath and takes on the burly form of her "uncle" Boris. He was a mountain of a man with a bald head and thick beard.
Rhett would be able to immediately feel the size and texture difference of her hand as she shifted. "It'll be over soon, *Tigr*," she says with a newly gruff voice and thicker Russian accent.
She quickly pulls the towel over his mouth and nose, pinning him in place with her much larger body, and holds the water spray directly over his mouth.
She began shouting vaguely threatening Russing gibberish, but was careful not to actually hurt him against the tub.

May 25, 2019

## Rose | Rhett | Marci05/25/2019

The sudden change wasn’t lost on Rhett. His eyes darting from the towel and up at the unfamiliar face before freezing in place for the seconds that followed. The towel tugging from his grip and being firmly wrapped across the lower half of his face was alarming in itself but he couldn’t get in a reaction before being manhandled against the tub.
It was on reflex that he began trying to push the man away, his legs scrambling under him to get any kind of traction. Yes, he’d told her to trick him into thinking he’d die but this was all a bit much. The water being inhaled from the frantic attempts at breathing quickly became an issue as he gurgled against the liquid seeping into his lungs.
His eyes were blurring and face darkening into a blueish-red coloration as the lack of oxygen only worsened. Thinking nothing was actually going to happen, he closed his eyes tightly and willed his body to save him. That’s when it finally happened. He felt it first. His lungs expanding and welcoming the water while his body changed. Slimming and retracting into itself until what lay in front of Annie was the towel and...not an eel.
Rhett’s body had taken on the much smaller shape of a seahorse. He just laid there, only the water he’d previously been absorbing left for him to breath. Funny how the water was the problem before and now again after.

## Vodka Aunt05/25/2019

Anastasia was obviously not a pro when it came to enhanced interrogation, and wasn't giving him more than a second to breath before returning the spray to his face. Her unintelligible tirade had quickly died off as what she was doing stopped being fun.
Anastasia jumped back in surprise as soon as he shifted, dropping the shower head into the slightly orange water. She returned to her own figure, eyes wide with amazement as she leans over the tub to look at him. She laughs with amazement, letting her fingers swirl around the water next to his seahorse shape.
"Holy shit! That's so cool I can't believe it worked--" her voice breaks off as she realized what exactly she had done,"fuck! You're ok right? I know I'm usually pretty crazy but even I think I maybe went a bit too far." That was probably the closest she had ever gotten to a genuine apology, and based on her expression she wasn't lying.

## Rose | Rhett | Marci05/25/2019

Rhett while letting himself float about in the tinted water, eventually began moving on his own again. The swirling sensations caused by Annie making just enough current to spin him softly in circles. All in all, it had been a success even if the outcome wasn’t as favorable. A minute or so went by without response to Annie’s half-assed apology before Rhett’s body changed again. Going back to his natural form while still sputtering water.

“Don’t worry about it...” He croaked, sitting in the tub of water, his legs outstretched and head lolled back in exhaustion. “Let’s...let’s wait to try that again.” His chest heaved as he finally got up, dripping wet now.

## Vodka Aunt05/25/2019

Every second that passed without movement or word from Rhett, her face fell more and more. For a soul-crushing moment, Anastasia truly believed she had killed her friend.

When he shifted back to his human shape, she lets out a sob of relief and plants her forehead against the edge of the tub. "Yeah..." She agrees in an uncharacteristically soft voice, climbing to her feet to grav the man a fresh towel.
"I guess this is gonna make meeting my uncle kind of weird," she says with an awkward chuckle.

## Rose | Rhett | Marci05/25/2019

Taking the towel with a thankful nod, Rhett used it to wipe his face and upper body then wrapped it around his waist. He was just glad to have survived the ordeal but seeing how upset it made Anastasia, he was a bit worried she’d been as scared as him.
At the mention of her uncle, however, his eyes widened and a shiver went down his spine. “I don’t think that should happen for a while…” Still, he laughed along with her chuckles and carefully stepped from the tub.
“You really helped me, though.” His arms opened at that and he closed the space between them before she could have pulled from him. “You also made me realize how terrifying the Russian language is...I should probably go change my underwear...” He laughed again, more alive now and released Annie before heading to Val’s room for new clothes. He even forgot to look in the mirror. That’d be an exciting discovery for the morning.