DAY 006

[inflori]

( Hey. )

[ Petre is unusually quiet when he reaches out to the station as a whole. All the fellow hosts, awake or currently resting, get a pressing nudge that won't relent until he has their attention. ]

( Is anybody's powers changing, sorta? Like. In a way that you don't even know they are. )

[ There's reluctance to show any true uncertainty in his voice. Misato told him that wanting everyone to think you were a threat was only a sign of your weakness... or something like that. All he knows is that this feels like showing vulnerability. He doesn't like it, but he's more curious than proud right now. ]

( ... I keep changing whenever I look in the mirror. )

Comments

[inflori]

( My face. It literally changes.

But not like - I can shapeshift, I know that. I've done it since I got here. But I had to concentrate, and now I'm not. It's just happening. )

[batmotif]

[Okay, shapeshifter. Not the first he's spoken to, so Bruce successfully waves aside the wave of skepticism that threatens to breach the surface. It might still echo faintly, regardless.]

(You mean it takes less effort, or it’s happening when you don’t want it to?)

[inflori]

( Both? But I don't want it to keep happening when I don't - want it to. )

[ Repeating words, eyy. ]

( What if we have another mission and someone sees it. )

[batmotif]

(Then you'll have to take extra care to control yourself.)

[Said as if it's the most straightforward thing in the world.

But. He knows it's not, and so he's leading with another question.]

(What is it you normally "change" into?)

[inflori]

( No shit. )

[ Next, on the mysteries of being Petre: how do you maintain control of anything when you're a flesh-eating demon made to incite sin. ]

( Right now it's just stuff like my hair, how tall I get. I think. I feel older and then younger, too. )

[ A pause. There's the brief flash of black eyes on the boy's face, sharp fangs that seem to big and monstrous to fit in his mouth. ]

[batmotif]

[The moment the image flashes before him -- something certainly unexpected (but really, he shouldn't be surprised at this point), there's a sense of his mental barriers strengthening tenfold. It's like the walls of a fortress have risen up even higher, tall and looming. It's the biggest mental step backwards that he can manage.

Yeah, he's not a big fan of surprises like that -- intended or otherwise.]

(And what was that?)

[inflori]

[ It's a spark of his memory, but Petre doesn't realize he streamed it into Bruce's thoughts until they recoil away from the picture.

It gives him some satisfaction. Just a little bit. He likes it when people find he's obscene; it's a demon thing. ]

( That's what I look like when I get hungry. )

[batmotif]

[Obscene? Maybe. Though Bruce is always quick to hermit up when faced with imagery or emotions that he didn't ask for. (He never asks for them.)]

(Hungry for what, exactly?) [That seems like... the most important question to start with.]

[inflori]

( Humans, most of the time. But I eat hamburgers too. )

[batmotif]

(And are you inclined to eat any of the humans here?)

[He's pretty sure if that was a recent development, it would have literally have reverberated through the Nest. Still, not exactly the most reassuring thing to tell a man like Bruce.]

(The answer had better be no, or else you can see how that might be an issue.)

[inflori]

( You just had to threaten me, didn't you. )

[ If only he could see Petre rolling his eyes. like he could do anything about it. ]

[batmotif]

(It wasn't a threat, it was simple fact.)

[Which was basically, in a way, its own threat, in a way that means Bruce would attempt to do something about it, if at all possible. Still, he radiates more caution than actual hostility.]

(I don't know you, and therefore don't know your inclinations. But I prefer to err on the side of caution. Especially if you're having difficulties controlling yourself now.)

[inflori]

( And I don't know you.

Besides, you'd know if I wasn't controlling that part. Not that I'm scared of you, just for you. )

[ Bark bark. ]

[batmotif]

[Bruce was going to say that control is akin to having a line of figurative dominoes placed neatly in the head -- one falls over, and the whole thing threatens to topple. It's usually just a matter of time.

But- wow, defensive much?]

(If you say so.) [Not impressed.] (I didn't start this conversation for the sake of intimidation. Keep your hackles down.)

[inflori]

( Then don't freak out on me. )

[ Super defensive, as brats often are. ]

( What can you do? )

[batmotif]

(I don't do "freaking out".)

[He'll have to deal with a lot of "brats" in his time. Such is the life of Bruce Wayne.]

(Are you referring to my symbiote, or in general?) [Is he being judged now?]

[inflori]

( The symbiote. )

[batmotif]

(I've never tried using it. I prefer to rely on the set of skills I brought with me, rather than something forced into my head.)

[Which reveals two things: 1) This is a very overly cautious and distrusting man and 2) he still doesn't know yet. He wants very little to do with the thing; the fact that he's gotten used to utilizing it for "speaking" like this is nothing short of a miracle.]

[inflori]

( So here I am, talking about how hard it's getting to control mine, and you're just waiting for yours to surprise-bite you in the ass? )

[batmotif]

(If you think I'm not bracing myself for something terrible, or at the very least, inconvenient, you're wrong.

It's not like I can do anything about it until something actually decides to trigger it. A problem to deal with when it arrives.)

[inflori]

( What're you gonna do about it, then? )

[batmotif]

(That depends on what it ends up being, doesn't it? Either way, it all loops back around to the issue of control. Seems to be a trend among the Nest that it's something we all need to work on.)

[inflori]

( Yeah. I guess.

Still think it's gonna bite you in the ass, though. )