this is where I'm going to put everything related to nymph! art, lore, and maybe even some mini fics are going to be set aside here so I can give you everything related to her without spamming my main account, @the-mushroom-faerie. also the description says "partnered with @sga-owns-my-soul" because she actually helped a lot with nymphs design, and is going to write some of the fics! so keep a lookout for fic posts with a "written by stick"
this is going to be a pinned post, and as I make them I'm going to link important posts here -
Nymph was a very sickly baby, like beyond her village's medical knowledge. the doctor said she was gonna die anyway, and there were tales of the forest being haunted by benevolent spirits, and if nothing else her soul would be at peace there. and so her parents gave her to the Forest, and the Trees took her and part of the genetic manipulation was healing her. so she didn't have bad parents, or dead parents, just ones that didn't know what else to do and they were going to lose their kid either way so might as well give her a chance (like the opposite of the changling child myth)
Laira seemed rather upset as she ate. Jack tried to let it go, but when he finally opened his mouth to ask her what was wrong she handed him his radio before he could say anything.
"I was neatening your things, and I thought I heard voices coming out of this. especially that of a child." she said, dejected. Jack's eyes widened and he snatched the radio from Laira's hands.
"this is Colonel Jack O'Neill, does anybody read me?"
silence, then it clicked to life. "daddy, is that you?"
"yes, yes Nymph it's me! where are you?" he felt like leaping for joy.
"I'm in a hole! mama made a machine that heated up the rock so when the gate went whoosh it would make a hole big enough for someone to climb in and dig!"
of course Carter was the one to get him home. he turned the tracker on, grabbed a shovel, and ran out the door.
"keep talking, Nymph! daddy'll find you, but you need to keep talking!"
"uncle Teal'c was going to come, but I told General Gramps that I could float so I wouldn't be scared of falling back in the wormhole. what I forgot is that uncle Teal'c is better at digging because he's bigger than me."
as her little voice came through the radio, a series of beeps told Jack he was getting closer and closer until he was right on top of where it said she was.
"I need you to shield your eyes, ok kiddo? I'm going to dig you out!"
"Ok, daddy. I'm covering my eyes."
he struck the ground again and again until it finally gave away, and a little hand reached through the hole. he dug the hole wider and wider until his daughter was in his arms.
we've hit pause on the Nymph au for another, bigger project (that's very nearly ready to release) but there were plans for a future "next generation" SG-1 team, and motivation willing we'll come back to those plans when we are done with this project. thanks for your patience, and sorry if we worried you!
you know what I love about Pooka and Bjorn? it's that if I asked you which of these two characters was the Werewolf Boyfriend you wouldn't guess correctly in a million years
you know what I love about Pooka and Bjorn? it's that if I asked you which of these two characters was the Werewolf Boyfriend you wouldn't guess correctly in a million years
this was supposed to get its own fic but I don't wanna write it rn and it's important information
around the time that Celise was found and adopted, an AR team found a forest much like Nymph's. no one knows which came first, the milky way forest or the Pegasus forest, or if they somehow evolved independently. it doesn't matter. what matters is Jack and Sam had the existential crisis that their kid is going to outlive everyone she's ever known by like 100 years. the goa'uld destroyed the milky way forest (Nymph can still tap into the knowledge because it's in her genes), but she can communicate with the Pegasus forest. so Jack and Sam brought her there, and asked the trees to return her lifespan to that of an average human. she kept all the other gifts - the floating, the telepathy, her physical features, etc. - but she could grow up. so despite being chronologically older than Cassie, she's physically the same age as Celise. because that's not very confusing to all involved.
Cassie watched as the fear took over her dear friend. she knew that him holding back his shifting wasn't good for him, but he had waved her off and ignored her. obviously, Pooka turning into a terrified shadow creature proved that Cassie was right to worry. she grabbed Celise, and made the girl look her in the eye.
"try your best to calm him down, I'm going to get Bjorn!"
Celise nodded, and turned to the entity that she knew as her brother. "it's alright, bubby. we're not going to hurt you."
Cassie burst into Bjorn's home, the residents already standing up ready into investigate and/or fight whatever was out there.
"it's a long story," she started, speaking quickly, "but that creature out there is Pooka. he's a shapeshifter, genetically modified. I promise he won't hurt anyone on purpose, and any attack will make him worse because he's just scared. he hid his talent - that's what it is, a talent - because he's terrified of people being scared of him. we just need to calm him down, and Bjorn, I think you need to be the one to do it."
Bjorn pointed at himself, surprised. "me? why me?"
"because he loves you." Cassie said bluntly. Pooka didn't have time for tact, and he was just going to have to forgive her for outing him.
Bjorn looked starstruck. obviously, Pooka's feelings were requited. when he got outside, he dug into his pocket and pulled out a stone that sparkled like the night sky. mica, Pooka had called it when he excitedly picked it up that afternoon and chattered away about the implications of mica on another planet. Bjorn brandished the stone as high as he could reach (which was quite high because he is very tall) and called out to the creature before him.
"Pooka!" he bellowed. "I have never feared you, and I never will!"
~ • ~ • ~
darkness. fear. memories.
this was all Pooka could see, until a voice calling his name felt like an anchor into reality.
"I have never feared you, and I never will!"
was that true? Pooka blinked, looking down at Bjorn who was holding up a small rock in his hand. he had picked up that rock on their walk that day, and had handed it to Bjorn. had he really been carrying it this entire time?
Bjorn was walking closer to him. didn't he know he could get hurt? he didn't want to hurt him.
a warm hand was on his constantly shifting arm, and it felt so nice. so comforting.
"I will never fear you, Pooka." his voice seemed to come from everywhere, drowning out the shouting in his memories. "because I love you."
oh.
Pooka felt like he could start to breathe again. he could feel his shape settling down, could feel himself shrinking back down to his usual size. however, as the fear and shadows drained away, he could feel his energy draining as well.
~ • ~ • ~
Bjorn had said it out loud. he had said he loved Pooka.
and it seemed like that did the trick. the creature stopped thrashing about, and while making eye contact started to shrink down. he had to catch the small man, who had fainted from the energy the overload had taken from him. Cassie came running, and saw Bjorn carrying an unconscious Pooka in his arms.
at least he was back to himself.
Cassie waved at Bjorn to follow her. "we can help him, but we need to get him through the gate. can you do that?"
he just nodded, and followed Cassie while carrying Pooka in his arms. Celise jogged up beside them.
"Hey, I know he looks like a whole child right now, but he is 29." she told him with a knowing look. Bjorn wondered why she felt the need to tell him that, especially when he had already had that conversation with Pooka.
on the other side of the gate, Cassie started barking orders as soon as she had reintergrated.
"mom! mom, we need you!" she cried out to Dr. Fraiser.
"what's wrong, Cassie?" Janet asked, worried.
"it's a long story, but Pooka is unconscious. I don't think he's hurt, but we should get him to the infirmary as soon as possible."
as Cassie was talking, Bjorn came through the gate. Janet looked over at the unconscious shapeshifter in his arms, and waved Bjorn over to the waiting stretcher.
"put him down on there, honey, we've got him."
Bjorn listened and gently placed Pooka on the stretcher, and watched as the medical team wheeled him away. Cassie put a reassuring hand on his arm, because she couldn't quite reach his shoulder.
"he's going to be ok, and they'll let us know when we can see him."
~ • ~ • ~
Pooka woke up in the infirmary, still quite groggy. he looked over and saw Cassie leaned back in a chair, Nymph cuddled up on Cassie, and Celise straddling one of the uncomfortable chairs probably stolen from the cafeteria. he smiled sleepily at his family, then recounted.
one... two... three...
so who was holding his hand?
his head felt as heavy as a bag of bricks, but he still managed to turn to see Bjorn resting his head on the bed, holding his hand. Pooka shifted, trying to figure out what was going on and how they all got there, when Bjorn stirred and woke up.
"oh, you're awake. good, I was worried about you." Bjorn flashed a warm smile and Pooka returned it. their movement had woken up Celise, who noticed Pooka was awake and threw a pillow at Cassie and Nymph.
"the boy is alive!" she joked when the other two had stirred awake from the thrown pillow.
Pooka mustered a small chuckle. "wow, Ce-Ce. I'm feeling the love."
"you really worried us, bud. you've been out for-" Cassie checked her watch. "17 hours. they were about to use the Daedalus and grab your mom."
Pooka's eyes widened in shock. seventeen hours? it didn't feel like that long - but he supposed it wouldn't, with him being asleep the whole time and all. his stomach rumbled, and he remembered that he didn't finish his dinner last night.
"can you get me a snack or something?" he asked, unsure if he'd have the energy to eat it.
"sure, I'll see if they have a sandwich." Cassie gently pushed a still-sleepy Nymph off of her and got up to go to the mess hall.
some memories of what happened started to come back, including what Bjorn had said to him. Pooka turned to him.
"so, you really love me?"
Bjorn startled a little, then smiled sheepishly. "yeah, I do."
"I do, too. love you, that is! I mean, self-love is important, but like-"
Bjorn leaned over and kissed Pooka mid-sentence, and the traitorous heart monitor started beeping faster and louder. when he pulled away, Pooka just stared at him. he felt another set of eyes on the two of them, and leaned over to glare at his sister.
"whaaaat? I'm not doing anything," Celise droned, a smirk on her face that could rival that of a supervillain. Pooka rolled his eyes.
"sisters, am I right?"
"I'm sure my brothers would react the same," Bjorn laughed.
"yeah, how many of those guys are actual brothers and how many are like friends you adopted?" Pooka asked, raising an eyebrow. he knew he considered all three of the girls his sisters, but he wasn't sure how Bjorn's culture worked in that aspect.
"it's hard to tell. I'm pretty sure some came from another village altogether, but we raise them as our own."
Pooka knew how that felt. there wasn't a single member of his family that was from the same planet.
Dr. Fraiser walked in to check on Pooka, followed by Cassie with that sandwich.
"hi, Auntie Janet."
the doctor scowled at him. "that's Dr. Auntie Janet to you, mister. what do you think you're doing, holding back your shapeshifting? you could've gotten very sick or even died. we still don't know everything about it."
"yes, ma'am." Pooka stared at his twiddling thumbs. he knew she was scolding him because she loved him. he also knew she was right. "can you please take out the IV so I can try shifting?"
Janet nodded, locked the tubing, and started taking the bandages off his hand. Pooka turned to Bjorn.
"don't believe the movies, ripping one of these out by yourself hurts like hell." he joked.
"what's a movie?" the viking asked, just as Janet pulled out the IV with a slight pinch.
"ah. yeah, we gotta fix that." Pooka rubbed the spot on his hand, and took a deep breath. he was anxious about shifting in front of Bjorn, but he remembered that he had already seen him at his worst, and any controlled form would be better than that thing he was last night.
"so, what would you like to see? a crow? a dog? little kitty cat?" Pooka asked, procrastinating.
"could you become a small fox?" Bjorn asked. his eyes lit up in anticipation.
"one little fox coming right up."
Pooka shifted into a fox, golden eyes staring right at Bjorn. the hospital gown he was wearing had fallen onto the bed, meaning it was real fabric and he had to remember to shift into clothes when he became human-shaped again. banishing that embarrassing thought from his mind, he pranced around the bed and shifted into a sparrow and flew onto the curtain rod around the small area, where he shifted into a little spider monkey and jumped back onto the bed. he flashed a human smile at Bjorn when he settled down, wearing a button-up with avocados printed on it, and black high-waisted skinny jeans. Bjorn was amazed, and even clapped and cheered. Pooka, being the theatre kid he was, bowed dramatically and winked at him.
"thank you, thank you. oh, thanks Cassie."
Cassie had handed him that sandwich she was holding onto during his little show, and he tore into it without realizing just how hungry he was.
"so, when do you think I'll be able to go home, Auntie Janet?" Pooka asked with his mouth full.
"I'm not that comfortable with you going home alone, especially with us not really knowing what happened to you."
Pooka opened his mouth to say it'd happened before, and he'd been fine, but Bjorn spoke first.
"I could go with him."
Pooka nearly choked on his sandwich. "uh, what?"
"I'll watch over him, he can teach me how to reach you in case anything happens, and maybe I'll figure out what this movie thing is."
this was a disaster. he did have a pull-out couch, and he would like to spend time with Bjorn, but how would he get an alien viking into his apartment complex?
"that sounds like a good plan, Bjorn." Janet smiled, and pointed at Pooka. "and you, no driving for at least a week."
"you do realise who you're talking to?" Pooka retorted.
"come on, mom. I tried to teach him to drive once, and after two minutes he pulled over, turned into a bird, and flew out the window. I had to drive the car home." Cassie smirked, which made Pooka blush from embarrassment. his sisters were such brats, he counted himself lucky he didn't have any baby pictures for them to brandish.
after much argument and planning, Pooka and Bjorn were in the back of a military escort vehicle headed to his apartment. he wondered how they were going to get in, seeing as he had no idea where his keys were and he only used his front door on occasion for appearances. maybe he'd turn his finger into a key. maybe there'd be a bobby pin on the ground and he could pick his own lock. both solutions sounded kind of sketchy the more he thought about it. and then he remembered the hide-a-key above his doorframe for if his family needed to get in.
"well, this is it. my house." Pooka said awkwardly as he legally opened the door. "I can turn on the TV, and we can watch something."
he looked down at his phone, where he was texting his sister.
pookaboo
<hey would it be insensitive to watch httyd with my viking boyfriend>
thegirlfrompegasus
<lmao do it>
he closed the chat, and showed Bjorn how to call Janet if anything happened. then he turned on the TV and put on How To Train Your Dragon, hoping Bjorn would find it funny and cute, not drastically inappropriate.
Bjorn did end up loving it, and the two of them fell asleep on the couch halfway through the sequel. Pooka was in his dog form the entire time, showing just how comfortable he was.
Pooka woke up to a thread of texts on the group chat.
thegirlfrompegasus
<what did he say about the movie 👀👀👀>
no1believesme
<what are they watching>
thegirlfrompegasus
<httyd>
no1believesme
<lmaoooooo that's insane>
ispeak4datrees
<I love that movie 🥰🥰🥰>
thegirlfrompegasus
<it's a wonderful date movie>
<with your gay viking bf>
ispeak4datrees
<😶😶😶>
<that's brave>
thegirlfrompegasus
<hence why I was checking in on them>
pookaboo
<jokes on you he loved it>
thegirlfrompegasus
<AYYYYYYYYY>
ispeak4datrees
<AYYYYYYYYYYYY>
no1believesme
<AYYYYYYYYY>
pookaboo
<youre insufferable>
Pooka looked over to see Bjorn staring at him with curious eyes.
"what?"
"what are you doing?"
Pooka held up his phone, chat still open. "Oh, this? I'm texting. uh, I put words onto my device, hit a button, and my words appear on Cassie, Celise, and Nymph’s devices because of a signal."
"that's amazing."
"that's the internet for you."
Bjorn still looked curious and amazed, which made Pooka chuckle. he remembered the first time his mum had shown him a computer, his face looked pretty much like Bjorn's did now.
pookaboo
<I just told Bjorn about the wonders of texting>
no1believesme
<oh yeah?>
pookaboo
<he says hi>
ispeak4datrees
<hi bjorn>
thegirlfrompegasus
<hi bjorn>
no1believesme
<hi bjorn>
Pooka laughed at how synchronized they were. "they say hi. hey, do you wanna send them a selfie?"
"what's a selfie?"
"here, I'll show you."
Pooka turned on the front-facing camera, and leaned into Bjorn.
"say cheese!"
it wasn't the most flattering of pictures, but it did the trick. soon after, the girls sent selfies of their own. he knew that Nymph and Celise were together, since they shared an apartment, so it didn't shock him when those two shared a picture. Cassie threw up a peace sign and a silly face in hers. Pooka showed the pictures to Bjorn, who laughed and asked him to show him what else the phone could do.
they spent hours scrolling through memes and playing silly puzzle games and watching stupid videos. it made them forget that they were from two separate planets, and really separate times. they were just together, and laughing, and having fun.
Pooka jolted awake, sitting straight up and gasping for air. he wasn't entirely sure when he had fallen asleep, but the glowing red numbers beside him said it was 3:15 AM. it was twenty years ago, and that day still gave him nightmares. he didn't want to go back to sleep yet - the nightmare was still fresh in his mind - so he went to the kitchen to get a drink of water and maybe something to eat.
he leaned against the counter, nibbling the slice of cheese he had settled on. his apartment was small, but all his own.
which also meant he suffered his nightmares alone.
but maybe he didn't have to. he opened his chats on his phone, and saw that at least one of his friends was online.
pookaboo
<hey u awake>
no1believesme
<no>
pookaboo
<love u 2 cassie>
<why r u awake>
no1believesme
<project went long>
<what about you>
pookaboo
<nightmare>
no1believesme
<weird nightmare or trauma nightmare>
pookaboo
<oof>
no1believesme
<hey same hat bud>
pookaboo
<nirrti sucks>
no1believesme
<you can say that again>
he considered telling her the details, but his family still didn't know exactly what happened to him before he came to earth. he didn't really want them to know.
no1believesme
<wanna talk about it?>
pookaboo
<not really>
no1believesme
<want me to send you cute cat videos until you're ready to sleep>
pookaboo
<lol thanks cas>
a notification popped up on the group chat, and Pooka switched over.
ispeak4datrees
<why are you two awake>
pookaboo
<sorry nymph>
no1believesme
<sorry Nymph>
pookaboo
<wait y r YOU awake we weren't on the gc>
ispeak4datrees
<loud bird outside my window>
no1believesme
<oof>
pookaboo
<oof>
thegirlfrompegasus
<hey guys we have a mission tomorrow>
pookaboo
<WHY ARE YOU AWAKE>
thegirlfrompegasus
<video games>
pookaboo
<youre insane>
no1believesme
<technically we have a mission TODAY bc it's after 3am>
pookaboo
<that mission is gonna suck Nymph is the only one who got any sleep>
ispeak4datrees
<loud. bird.>
thegirlfrompegasus
<headphones>
ispeak4datrees
<elf ears>
thegirlfrompegasus
<oh yeah>
<pillow?>
ispeak4datrees
<maybe>
<signing off to try and sleep>
Pooka decided to take his cue from Nymph and try to go back to sleep. he had to be at work in less than five hours. not for the first time, he wished he had said yes to sharing an apartment with his team. his apartment felt a little too empty tonight.
his alarm didn't go off.
correction - it went off three times, but he sleepily turned it off all three times until he was quite late. he shifted into his uniform and shoved a plain, untoasted bagel into his mouth as he ran to the window, a string of curses in two different languages following after him like cartoonish speech bubbles. making sure no one could see him, he shifted into a crow and flew off to Cheyenne Mountain.
Pooka burst into the gateroom just as the gate was dialing.
"you look like shit." Cassie oh-so-helpfully quipped, however also looking like she hadn't slept in a week. Pooka dramatically bowed.
"Oh, why, thank you."
"SG-1, are you ready to disembark?" General Landry's voice called down.
"yes, sir!" Pooka saluted.
once the vortex settled out, the team made their way through the wormhole. there was an Asguard security device, but with the defeat of the goa'uld rendering it unnecessary it had been deactivated.
"guess this is one of those Protected Planets," Cassie said, pointing at the device.
"aren't these villages usually pretty close to the gate?" Celise asked, looking around. "where is everybody?"
"I don't know, but keep your eyes peeled." Pooka shuffled uncomfortably.
a branch snapped to their right, and they whipped out their guns ready to defend themselves. a hunter came out of the treeline, bow lowered but ready.
"fair tidings, traveller! are you friend or foe?" the hunter called out.
"what is this guy, an NPC?" Celise muttered, making Pooka and Cassie snort. but Cassie, as team lead, quickly regained her composure.
"we are friends! I am Lieutenant Cassie Fraiser, this is Nymph O'Neill-Carter, that's Dr. Celise Baird, and her brother Pooka Baird. we come from the stargate as peaceful explorers."
the hunter relaxed his grip on the bow, and motioned for them to follow him. "I am called Erik. I will bring you to the village."
the team followed Erik through the forest for about half a mile before the trees gave way to a bustling village. the smell of fresh-baked bread filled the air, and Pooka patted Celise's arm and motioned her to follow the smell with him. they made their way to the bakery, a wide window counter in the wall filled with bread and muffins.
"find anything you'd like?" a deep, but gentle, voice asked from behind the counter.
"it all looks and smells ama... zing," Pooka's sentence faded away as he looks up and sees the buff baker with long, flowing bronze hair. his steel-blue eyes had a gentle gaze, and a smile as warm as the bread he baked spread across his face.
Celise smirked, and reached over to close Pooka's dropped jaw.
"careful, buddy. you're drooling a bit." she whispered.
"it's the bread smell, I swear," Pooka whispered back.
"uh-huh. why don't you ask the bread smell his name?" a knowing twinkle was in Celise's eye, making Pooka playfully push her off him.
"Uh, hi! I'm Pooka Baird. my team and I came through the stargate to explore." he awkwardly waved, and his sister almost felt bad for him.
"I'm Bjorn." the baker smiled, wiping the flour off his hands.
"Buh- Bee-yarn?" Pooka stumbled.
"Bjorn." he corrected gently.
"Be-yorn?" Pooka tried again.
"Bjorn," Bjorn corrected again, smiling at the attempt.
"Bjorn!" Pooka exclaimed, excited that he got it right.
"exactly!" Bjorn laughed, and passed Pooka a small loaf of bread. "here, eat."
"Oh, thank you." Pooka broke off a piece to give Celise, then bit down hard.
it was the best bread he had ever eaten.
"so, Bjorn. what does that mean? like, what does it translate to?" Pooka asked while chewing. not the most polite thing to do, but he was curious.
"it means Bear."
the siblings both choked on their bread. it had to be a coincidence, right? they weren't even sure if he liked men that way.
Bjorn was confused by their response. "well, what does Pooka mean? it's strange, for a name."
Pooka blushed. "uh. well. uhm. it's a, uh, mischievous goblin creature from the, like, folklore of my mother's people."
"smooth," Celise whispered, earning her another playful smack.
Cassie and Nymph make their way over to the bread stand, and just stare at Pooka being an absolute disaster with this giant of a man. when Nymph got close enough to read Bjorn, she was more than satisfied with what she saw. he would be an excellent fit for Pooka.
Celise turns to see the girls, and waved them over.
"you've got to taste this bread!" she called out, pointing with her eyes at the very obvious exchange between the two men.
"how did you two get bread? we dont have any currency on this planet," Cassie asked, which was a valid question.
"Bjorn gave it to Pooka out of the goodness of his heart," Celise answered with the teasing voice only a sister could have. poor Pooka looked like he was going to expire any minute.
"really? that was so kind of you, Bjorn!" Cassie said, a knowing glance pointed at Pooka.
"aah! look at the time, we have to check in with Landry!" Pooka stuttered, practically herding the girls back to the gate. "it was lovely getting to know you, Bjorn!"
"you're welcome back anytime!" Bjorn called after him, looking almost forlorn watching him leave.
out of sight of the village, the team slowed down to make sure they were still on the path. Celise and Nymph danced around the path, swinging each other around while singing and giggling. Pooka looked at the last bite of bread in his hand with a blush and soft smile. Cassie bumped against him with a knowing look.
"Hey, I can ask Landry for an extended research mission, to study Nordic culture and maybe see if there's naquadah or something in the soil. maybe open a trading agreement. this won't be the last time you see that baker."
Pooka looked up at her with stars in his eyes.
"you'd do that? for me?"
"of course! also, did you see his face as we were leaving? you definitely need to visit him again."
Pooka chuckled as Nymph dialed the gate.
"also I didn't want to deal with your pining if you can't see him again."
"wait what-" Pooka's surprise got cut off by the trip through the wormhole.
"welcome back, SG-1." General Landry said as he met them at the ramp. "how was the mission?"
"Pooka got a viking boyfriend!" Celise exclaimed as if there was any attempt on her part to hold that information back. Pooka turned bright red.
"No! no I didn't! there was no official date, we're not dating!" he yelled defensively.
"he gave you free bread and looked at you like you were his entire world and practically begged you to come back later! on what planet is that not asking for a date?"
"hmm, on what planet. that's a good question, Ce-Ce, seeing as I have THREE TO CHOOSE FROM!"
Cassie shared a glance with the general, one that said "do you see what I have to deal with?" which made him laugh.
"shall we debrief, general?" Cassie asked, motioning towards the general's office.
"Pooka and Bjorn sitting in a tree! K-I-S-S-I-N-G!" Celise and Nymph sang out as Cassie and Landry walked away. they could hear Pooka yell and flutter up into the rafters, and Cassie turned around to see Nymph floating and carrying Celise to follow him.
SG-1 got permission to spend a week on that planet - half research mission, half vacation time. Pooka held back his shifting, not wanting to risk people seeing him as anything other than human. however, this was about as healthy for him as holding back a sneeze.
on the fourth day, Pooka was sitting at a lovely dinner at Bjorn's house when his arm started to cramp. when he looked down, he saw black feathers. his sweater wasn't supposed to have feathers, and feathers weren't supposed to hurt. he rubbed his offending arm and the feathers settled back into his skin. the thing about holding back a sneeze is that the longer you try to stifle it, the worse it gets until it feels like your sinuses might explode.
Cassie noticed this unfortunate slip-up in form, but a glare silenced her.
"this is good soup!" Pooka smiled as his held up his bowl. "and even better bread."
Bjorn chuckled. "I'm glad you're enjoying it! I've always thought that soup warms the soul."
"I was just thinking the same thing," Pooka smiled. and he wasn't just saying it - soup was one of his favourite comfort foods. he definitely needed it now. the hand that was covered in feathers moments ago was shaking terribly.
"please excuse me, I'll be right back," Pooka stood up from the table and stumbled to the door. he couldn't shift now, not in front of all these people. but if he didn't soon, it wouldn't be good.
and then the flashbacks started.
he was just a child. he thought he had become something amazing, something wonderful. his village thought he had been replaced by a monster.
how right they were, when they came at him in an angry mob. poking him, prodding him, calling him horrible names. it was too much.
and now it was happening again.
Cassie and Celise had followed him outside. that was the last thing he wanted. he tried to wave them off, show them that he was fine. but those stupid feathers popped back up, and coarse black fur on the other arm as well.
where there was only concern in his family's eyes, his anxiety saw fear and even hatred. he couldn't bear it, couldn't bear thinking of them seeing him like this. he tried to tell them to leave, that he was fine and just needed a minute alone, but all that came out was a scratchy roar.
that wasn't good. he couldn't hold it back any longer. it hurt too badly. he couldn't control it, either.
he let out a roar that scared even himself, his eyes clouded with black, and he grew into an almost-formless shadow being. it wasn't for the first time, either. flashes of memories clouded over reality. the flames of lanterns and candles distorted into torches, the pleas of his family twisted into terrible war cries.
why couldn't they just leave him alone? he didn't want to hurt anyone.
but when does a comet become a meteor?
when does a candle become a blaze?
when does a man become a monster?
the crunch of wood underneath what passed for his foot told him that he had destroyed a stall or wagon. he had to leave before he caused more damage. there wasn't any room to turn around or back away. he felt like he would've cried if he were still able to.
