#mouseminded

He’s gaining traction in the film industry, slowly but surely, and he’s landed a few small-time appearances in moderately successful, made-for-television movie roles. Labeling him a B-lister at this point might be generous, but when entertainment newsletters and ‘listicles’ do just that, he grabs it and runs with it. 

Not long after graduating from C to B, Tao’s agent surprises him with a link to a fansite dedicated to him. Unable to help himself, he pores over the forums, feeding on adoration with as much--if not more--fervency as he does adrenaline when on-set. He watches the site for a few days, cherry-picking the most dedicated fans and offering to meet up with them to show his gratitude.

First up: Steven Boxleitner.

Arriving at the cafe near his hotel a bit early, Tao selects a table near the back and camps out, studying people as he waits for his guest.

Thunder crashed and lightning struck. The poor boy was inevitably soaked to the bone despite using his shield as a makeshift umbrella to keep the heavy rain from pelting him into oblivion. There appeared to be no sign of the storm letting up as the ground flooded with large puddles spanning long distances. Only shallow enough to sink him to his ankles, but a deep ocean for smaller companions with whom the boy was acquainted.

Blending into the fog, was a dingy old building that promised solace from the weather. Link made a quick assumption that it was abandoned before crawling in through the broken window. Any place was better than outside. Even when his face met concrete, he was just happy it was dry concrete.

The young hero sat up while rubbing the pain out of his nose. Surprised to find that the place didn’t look as abandoned at this perspective as it did before---rather, someone actually seemed to live there. His suspicions were confirmed when he heard the voice of a man. Or two men? And their conversations promised a third.

Hope was actually enjoying being in this area; it was far calmer here than in the rest of the city. The noise and bustle of large cities usually overwhelmed the young mage after a little while, so it felt good to get away for a bit and decompress. A sudden movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention, causing her to halt and look. Three mice were slipping into the broken window of the warehouse she'd been passing. How cute! Maybe she could go in and talk to them.

Slipping into the warehouse was simple, the door unlocked and the building seemingly empty. And there were more mice! Cute little fuzzy figures that seemed perfectly at ease with her approach.

"Hi there little buddies." She said with a smile, not caring how her voice seemed to carry throughout the building.

Taking a seat upon the dusty floor she began to speak- no, squeak in gentle tones. Magic had many useful applications, and learning to speak with the animals you could turn into was one such application. With a few mice padding up to her as she squeaked she didn't seem to notice that there was someone else near.

After everything the others knew about--his speaking with his father in the afterlife, getting sober, saving Diego, conjuring Ben, and discovering a new power in the theater--a surge of hope had flooded Klaus’ veins. He took great pride in his accomplishments; in the recent strides he’d made in understanding himself and his potential. And while he knows better than most that old habits die hard, when his siblings turned him away from their strategy meeting, he’s disappointed; though not surprised.

Being left to his own devices is still a bit worrying, regardless of the circumstances: it’s quite possible that he’ll never going to be free of that itch, the desire for another high. But he has Ben--who has proven his dedication to keeping Klaus clean and motivated--and he has something to focus on. Two things that just might get him through the evening.

After a long, aimless walk, Klaus finds himself in a dark, empty park. And as soon as his feet touch the half-dead grass, he kicks his boots off and scrunches his toes against the cold earth with a sigh.

Fingers wrapping around Dave’s dog tags, Klaus lets his eyes fall shut and tries to quiet his mind. This process drags on for what seems like hours: each time a hush falls over his headspace, some errant thought pops up to distract him as though it’s fearful of the silence. But finally, finally, his mind cooperates, and it’s as though a weight has lifted from his shoulders; he feels lighter, like his tether to the ground has snapped.

Just when he thinks he’s close--when he can practically hear Dave, and smell the gunpowder in the air--he opens his eyes, eager to see the man he loves. And he does; Klaus sees a sliver of that familiar, beautiful grin, but it’s too low. Dave had been taller than Klaus, so why...?

“Oh, shit--” he bleats in a panic, feet flailing a good four inches off the ground before he falls forward into a heap as gravity reclaims him.

Collecting himself and taking stock of a couple bumps and scrapes, Klaus stands, laughing gleefully from the shock of what he’d just done. He’d levitated: of all things, Klaus had just levitated. On top of conjuring Dave. What a night for progress!

“Ben! Did you... see--?” Klaus’s excitement wanes, voice trailing off curiosly as he sees a corporeal figure--who is decidedly not Dave--watching him from a distance.

“--that?”

Suddenly, Five’s voice is in his ear, reminding him that this dimension is not their own; that they should be careful about what they do and say. But Klaus is still over the moon, high on his own adrenaline spike, and caution goes by the wayside.

   “Do you even know what you’re doing?” A simple question as Noir’s arms folded across his chest. “Or is this one of those times people tell me to shut up and they go on ignoring me?”

@mouseminded

Tina just muttered something under her breath before she even thought about responding. She had gotten stuck in some sort of safe mouse trap thanks to her instincts. It was so cramped that she couldn’t turn around to open it with the mouse sized knifes on her. 

tv tropes !

Master of Disguise: He had an interesting fondness for disguises and clever identity lies, which he usually backed up with some persona-appropriate accent.

Harmless Lady Disguise: Harmless lady with a gun concealed in her robes. (It’s not like it was even loaded, though.)

Master Actor: The main selling point of his identity tricks is his ability to act like the person he is trying to portray, arousing little to no suspicion of a fallacy even without a donned disguise.

Wishlist!!

1) I’m kind of in the process of this one right now, but more is always better!!Let’s dig up the history of the Hero of Men!! Link’s mysterious heroic predecessor who saved Hyrule from an ambiguous darkness!! That means travel to the places he [they*] went! Discover some items he left behind or somethin’!! Just… Hyrule’s Heroic History! Always a fun adventure in making up stuff as we go~[*I write the hero of men as a character on @beckonedcall, and they’re genderfluid so “they” pronouns are what I usually use, but Hyrule’s history calls them a “him” :)]