Event Catch-all Post

[widows_kiss]

Who: Natasha Romanoff Liddell and [OPEN] to whoever wants her in human form or leopard.
Where: Around the mansion and the grounds
When: the duration of the event
Rating: Anywhere from PG to ??? (depending on if she reverts to human on any of you)
Summary: Natasha's cursed with the Spirit of Leopard.
The Story:

[Option 1: Natasha]
Natasha falls somewhere in the middle generation of Liddell cousins and siblings that inhabit the mansion. She's not one of the most social of them either, preferring to be more solitary like the animal spirit she was cursed with. That doesn't mean she doesn't still keep tabs on family members and keep an eye on the happenings around the mansion, just that she's usually fairly subtle about it. For a few years when she was younger, she traveled the world to see what she could see, but in recent years, she's been more than content to stay home, around her family, for whatever she might be needed for. Family's important to her, despite the fact that there's so many of them and she might not be the best at showing it sometimes.

Most days (or nights, as she's known to have a nocturnal streak) she can usually be found wandering, or possibly curled up somewhere comfortable with a book or a companion. If you spot her alone, feel free to come join her or lure her out into into some fun. Despite her occasional aloof manner or cool stare, she does have a mischievous playful side that shows up at unexpected moments.

[Option 2: Leopard]
In a house with so many people inside its walls, its inevitable that sooner or later collisions occur. Natasha's not usually overly worried about this - she understands the need to keep their curse a secret and faithfully endeavors to do so but accidents happen and unlike some of her relatives, she's just as comfortable in her cursed form as she is in her human one.

It's why she doesn't sweat it too much if she does accidentally bump into someone nearby - she's good at vanishing out of sight quickly if need be, and there are plenty of shadowy heights to perch in out of sight. Sometimes this plays out to her advantage, especially if she's feeling particularly bored or playful. Not everyone in the mansion is very good at staying aware of their surroundings when there are predators looking to pounce.

((OOC: This is Natasha's catch-all post for the event. Feel free to pick either option, if you want to interact with her as human or in her leopard form, or even both, if your character's inclined to trigger her transformation in some way. I'm up for anything!))

Comments

[widows_kiss]

"Surprising," she muses as she pads down to the water's edge, then bends her head to sniff at it. Fresh, not salty. Interesting. We'll have to remember this is here. Could be useful." She didn't know for what, but she liked learning things about her surroundings. You never knew what could be useful.

She didn't wade in after him just yet, merely dipping a paw in it to test the temperature before glancing out into the vast cavern the cave had opened into. The stream was wider than anticipated too, the sound coming from the narrow passage it passed deeper into the cave through. "How deep do you think it gets?"

[alionsheart]

"Could be," he agrees, swimming out even further, now that he's had a chance to acclimate to the water. It's not too cold, which is a relief, and after a moment, he submerges for a few seconds before resurfacing, shaking his head back and forth for a moment.

"It's hard to tell," he muses. Since it's dark, it's difficult to accurately assess that. "Maybe fifteen feet?"

[widows_kiss]

"A hidden swimming hole. Now this could be fun."

There's definite mischief in her voice now as she pads into the water and then swims out easily, a long dark shape in the water, slick and sleek.

[alionsheart]

The nice thing is, now that they've discovered it, they can come here whenever they want, as often as they want. A secret place, just for them. It might even be fun to camp here some evenings, in their human form.

Robin dips beneath the water again, then tries to spin a little, surfacing completely and shaking his rear end enthusiastically. "Aren't you glad I dragged you out here, cousin?"

[widows_kiss]

She opens her mouth to reply, but just at that moment, there's a quiet poof and she sinks down under the surface of the water, out of sight for a moment. She surfaces a moment later, having needed the seconds to get back her equilibrium as a human instead of a cat, but luckily most of that happened underwater.

She coughs to clear her lungs and swipes a hand across her face to get her dripping hair out of her face.

"Well. That could have been more graceful."

[alionsheart]

Robin can feel himself close to shifting again as well, and he looks back at her, then ducks beneath the surface himself. The water makes it more comfortable somehow, and like his cousin, he imagines, it gives him an extra moment to just get his bearings.

When he resurfaces, he rubs a hand over his face, smirking over at her. "Certainly not the worst I've seen."

[widows_kiss]

She laughs, because she's had her share of embarrassing moments this week.

"No, probably not. And it's certainly less mortifying than being petted by a someone not family when I suddenly chance back."

Because yeah, that had happened. Granted, he'd been more mortified than she was. The whole transforming thing was to be expected, but he'd looked rather alarmed to have a hand on skin where a moment before there had been fur. And a cat. Not a naked woman.

...Okay she was still finding it rather amusing, if her smirk was any indication. All the same, having Robin human along with her meant she could now take advantage of the water and not feel guilty for animal cruelty. Which is why she splashes a handful of water in his direction.

[alionsheart]

He truly does love being in his animal form, but there are also many benefits to being back in his human form; the water, for one, feels much more pleasant on skin than it does on fur. And he fully intends to indulge in this experience as long as possible.

With a look of mock offense, he splashes back at her. "Careful. This isn't a game you can win, cousin."

[widows_kiss]

"You think not?" She smirks as she splashes him again, treading water easily, thoroughly enjoying the coolness of the spring. "Don't underestimate me, cousins. I don't start games I don't think I can win."

[alionsheart]

He cups his hands beneath the water, then pauses as though to tease her. In the next moment, he splashes the water fiercely in her direction, laughing as he does. "I'll certainly try to beat you, though..."

[widows_kiss]

She watches him with a sly, wary look and vanishes under the water when he starts to move, not coming back up even when he sends the water in her direction. In fact, the water has a chance to go perfectly still again and still there's no reappearance of a redhead.

Instead, a moment later, a hand grabs his ankle and abruptly drags him downwards.

[alionsheart]

She gets quite a few points for that maneuver, because he wasn't expecting that at all. Though surprised, the moment he's underwater, he's trying to pounce and grab her, engaging in a sort of playful tug-of-war with each other's limbs. They really need to do this more often, he thinks.

[widows_kiss]

She;s quick and sly, using the water to her advantage as much as she can to dodge his hands and still get a playful tug or two in herself before finally giving in to the need for air, surfacing once more with laughter as she brushes her hair back out of her face.

"Yup. Much easier to do when you have hands."

[alionsheart]

If he were with anyone else right now, he might be more concerned with modesty, but this is Natasha, and he can't care less, really. So he finally relents and swims over towards a large rock, propping up on it to see a bit in the distance. "Looks like more of the same. Should we stay here for a while?"

[widows_kiss]

She's not usually concerned with modesty at the best of times - randomly switching between forms and always reappearing naked tends to do that to a person. Sometimes it was more bother than it was worth.

Which is totally why she stays where she is and rolls onto her back, floating comfortably, still mostly submerged in the water.

"Mmmm. Yes. Don't feel like moving yet. This is pretty much perfect. Plus there's no one to run into here."

[alionsheart]

"i honestly don't know that we should tell too many people about this place," he decides, stretching out on the rock a bit, taking a deep, contented breath. He wants this to be their place, somewhere they can go, either separately or together, when they need time away from everything and everyone else.

[widows_kiss]

"Keeping secrets?" she teases him, glancing over at where he's stretched out. "I don't mind hoarding this all to ourselves if you don't."

[alionsheart]

"Only a few, and only when it's worth it," he tosses a grin over his shoulder at her. "I don't want this place ruined by people who wouldn't appreciate it the way we do."

[widows_kiss]

"Point," she agrees, letting her head drift back to float once more, her eyes sliding closed as she just relaxed and enjoyed the moment. "Can't blame you. It's nice here. Do we have to go back?"

[alionsheart]

He's quiet for a few moments, then decides he wants to be in the water again, so he carefully dives beneath the surface. When he comes up for air, he says, "I can't think of any reason why."

[widows_kiss]

"How long before someone sends out a search party?" she chuckles softly when he comes up nearby again, although for the moment, she's content to stay just as she is.

[alionsheart]

"Well, there are a few cousins who might be glad for my absence, if only a few hours," he grins, obviously amused with the thought. Although he knows he's quite well-liked among the family.

"Not you, of course. I know better."

[widows_kiss]

"Good, you better," she shot back teasingly. "Then again, the same cousins would probably think the same of me. Boring idiots."

[alionsheart]

He knew there was a reason he adored Natasha so much. And he responds with a bright smirk, dipping beneath the water to wet his head again.

"They are, which is why we need a hideaway like this. A place that none of them knows about."

[widows_kiss]

"Their loss," she chimes in with a stretch and a laugh. "The secret's safe with me, no worries. Although I imagine there might be someone you'd want to sneak in here eventually."