I11 DT: Think Happy Thoughts

[John Hino]

A couple of days after his talk with Bear in the woods, John was sitting on the ground by a tree next to a wall. Now he was bipedal again, if a slouched and awkward one. His awakened feral side was still pounding at his thoughts like a monster trying to get in. He was trying to master it, but still couldn't bring himself to think of it as part of himself.

He had no idea what he was doing.

[Teri Napliotis]

Teri was still confused by what she did or didn't see the other night and had been spending a lot of her free time buzzing around in the trees. Spotting John with one of her many, many eyes a couple locust rush ahead while she lands. The bugs land on John's snout to chirp hello while she walks over, still a little bit further away.

[John Hino]

Without thinking, John gave an annoyed grunt and shook his head forcefully.

[Teri Napliotis]

A couple fall off but two of them hold on, chirping again while the ones that fell off catch their fall by starting to buzz through the air.

[John Hino]

He growled a warning.

[Teri Napliotis]

"Hi to you too!" Teri cheerfully shouts as she runs up to John, the insects not wanting to budge, apparently.

[John Hino]

He grunted an annoyed greeting. "Get your damn bugs off of me," he said harshly.

[Teri Napliotis]

"Oh..." she comes to a stop in front of John. "Of course. We're sorry!" she says and reaches over to pluck the two locust from his snout.

[John Hino]

"You're lucky I didn't just smash them on principle," he said coldly, the feral 'other' on full volume in his head.

[Teri Napliotis]

"Why would you do that? We were just saying hi..."

[John Hino]

"Bugs are annoying."

[Teri Napliotis]

"S-sorry?" she says, sounding confused, almost a little hurt.

[John Hino]

He just grunted and rubbed his forehead with a not quite back to normal hand, clearly in a very bad mood. He glared at his fingers.

"I hope Kraven did die... horribly," he grumbled.

[Teri Napliotis]

"Oh don't say something like that!" she says, giving the big lizard a hug, including a couple bugs orbiting around them.

[John Hino]

John's eyes widened and then narrowed. He then rather violently threw her off of him with a snarl in a fit of instinct.

[Teri Napliotis]

Teri doesn't even manage as much as a surprised yelp before hitting the wall and splattering into a clump of dazed locust.

[John Hino]

John snapped out of it and sprang to his feet.

"Oh God... Teri I'm so sorry... I..."

[Teri Napliotis]

The pile of bugs shifts as they slowly shake off the daze, clumsily jerking away from john as a whole.

[John Hino]

Shame and fear washed over him in equal measure. Fear of himself.

"... I'm not... I'm not him..." he muttered more to himself than anyone as he began backing away.

[Teri Napliotis]

Bug by bug Teri slowly takes to the air, the cloud twitching nervously as a whole before they fly away.