This is madness! Madness? This. Is. REALITY! (Private Lani, Rackie)

I felt dizzy, and I didn't like it. I shook my head, fought back the things that tried to change me, tried to bring me back to what I was. A paradox is what I was, though. I never understood that, how sitting on the brink or on this side of the line could keep me whole and in place but being as I was could...

I shook my head and fought it back. I was dizzy and unsure, tired of tapping into the power of my other form and tired of fighting it. Unsteady on my feet, I felt the cage subside, felt it fade away. With it, too, went my little disguise, and the general power of gravity itself. I felt myself float up, and let out a sigh of relief as I did so. I found myself tired, very tired, but still capable. The pain went with the subsidization of everything, and a quick enough massage to my scalp became enough to ease things away. "I think, it might be portal time..." I said, laughing softly. I could handle a jump, certainly, but I'd really rather not, for a spell.

I observed MerryLynn closely, with worry in my heart. I couldn't let her overuse her abilities. When she started floating, ignoring the thread's gravity, I gently took her on my arms. It looked as if I was afraid of her floating away by an accident and perhaps there was some truth to it. "No, Merry, you need rest. Let me handle teleporting this time..." I told her quietly, with a sign of protectiveness in my voice. I started carrying her away from Auroras, Yurio and Glyndwr.
"Now that I'm not tied to any timeline, I think I could actually try and starting using my portals to travel around the site... It's just a hypothesis, of course. Even if it won't work, you need to rest, my dear..." I told her with a soft tone, almost forgetting about what happened when we landed in this thread.

"You can try," I said simply, unsure of just what it would mean if the teleportation didn't work. Of course, it could be as simple as him knowing where he was going and that being enough to get him there. Us there. Thinking about the time jumping was a headache. "Be careful..."

OOC: I know what you're planning... You're crazy... I mean, sure, you know where the HQ is now, but man, you barely know how to travel around the threads! Teleporting to the STAFF section might be risky!
IC:
"Of course, I will, Merry. For you, I will be." I told her with a serious voice as we entered some random back alley. I closed my eyes, focusing my magical power. I cleared my throat, preparing to say my magical mantra-thing. Seriously, who's thought that mantras were a good idea?!
"Mantras are stupid and this is mine..." I whispered and repeated my words twice. At least my mantra is poking fun of other mantras such as "Coon, Coon, Raccoon" et cetera.
Magic was around and inside me. I feel like a proper sorcerer for once! "Teleportatio: Opening portals between this world, this place, and the sacred SERP Staff Headquarters..." I reached one of my hands out, holding Merry in one arm. An orange magical circle appeared right in front of my hand, gathering energy from me, becoming brighter and brighter with each second. It became almost blinding when the magical circle shot a yellow beam which created an elliptical circle. It looked like a tear in the spacetime. On the other side of the portal, I saw a silhouette of some office building. "It works..." I whispered to Merry. I took a deep breath. "Are you ready?" I asked her slowly.

I nod, leaning into him. It's easier, this way, safer, in a way. "I wish I could help," I say, the words seeming almost like an offer as I patiently await the return of my energy and abilities. Im useless otherwise. Worse, even.

"It's okay, Merry. You've done a lot already. Let me handle things until you recover " I told her with a smile. I approached the portal, carrying my cute companion. "Also, it shouldn't take you too long to recover, am I right? After all, I'm your source of madness, correct?" I added, looking at her, then at the portal. I chuckled. "Take as much as you need. I want to see you full of energy as soon as possible." With these words, I stepped through the portal, holding MerryLynn close.  It felt like walking through the door. No pain, no itching. Just a simple step forward. I liked this about my portals. Using them was so simple and natural. Once we both were there in front of the Staff HQ, the portal closed behind us and I looked Merry in the eyes with a wide smile. "Here, we are! We're safe here, which means that we can rest a bit..!" I told her enthusiastically

I took his words as he gave them, doing my best to be obedient and not try to read through his messages myself. Honestly, I didn't want to admit to him that he was, in fact, my Madness source. It had to be obvious, of course it did, but I still didn't want to admit to it. The fact alone made me feel like I was using him. Saying it aloud would only work as a form of proving it to myself, and it was the last thing that I wanted to do. "I don't see any beds..." I teased, perhaps overcompensating my lack of energy with the amount of mirth I put into the words.

I was okay with me being her Madness source. I don't mind her using some of my madness to live, after all, I think I've fallen in love with her anyway. "Hm..? Well... Perhaps the admins don't need them?" I replied shrugging. "The plan is as follows: I'm waiting for you to rest, then we're going to ask why we've been asked to come here." I said leading her into the HQ. I needed to at least find a sofa for her or anything.
"Hey, Admin people! Is that how you greet your guests?! With silence?!" I shouted, trying to get their attention

OOC: "Yeah... Search in the offices if you need a place to rest. We don't use this place often, you know."

ooc:

My old one is fully furnished, but be careful. The dragons still use it.

ic:

Oh. Right. Adminny lady has dragons. My face flushes at the memory of this and I test my feet for a moment before drifting away a bit in my walking. I say drifting because, in short, it's the simplest way to describe my movements; I'm borderline weightless unless I choose otherwise and I tend to move like a ghost if I'm not paying attention. My hand glides away from him, down his arm and catching his own with my fingers. I lead him, now, because adminny lady's old section of the building is more than a bit confusing. At one point, it was going to be revamped into a dungeon or cave or... something. She never did decide.

"AaaaaaAAAaaaaangel~" I call out, my voice carrying through the corridors. Surely, she would have thought to reduce the size of this place before instructing people to come? Apparently not...

Further in, I hear a roar. It sounds more threatening than it is; Royalty's Angel is really just an overgrown lapdog of a dragon. All bark, no bite... unless you're a fish. I giggle, though, whistling a tune that he manages to mimic with a sound that seems like he's whistling through his nose. It works as a guide, and we make it through to him far quicker than we would have, otherwise. Its my admin's old office, which is directly connected to the others', but is currently covered in makeshift dragon nests. I see the largest of them, the end of his tail flicking back and forth, his face seeming almost angry, judgemental. I lunge.

At least she could walk. Good. It's a good sign. I felt relief to see her feel better after the whole ordeal with FakeAurora-thing. WAIT! DRAGONS?! C-Can't we just go to my creator's office? I bet it's safer than a cave full of dragons, right, right?!

OOC: No beds. Only two chairs and a desk

IIC: Oh come on!
MerryLynn's creator's part of the building was big, too big and the dragons... At least Merry seems to know quite a lot about this place, so I might survive here. I suddenly heard a roar, which caused my face to turn pale.
Then... dragon whistling? What is going on? I wanna go home (x_x). someonesaveme
We finally arrived at the office! ... Only to see more dragon nests. "Eheheh... Merry... Please... uh... speak... I dun wanna the dragons to eat me" I whispered into her ear quietly, slightly nervous and scared.

He spoke too late; I'd already launched myself at the largest dragon there. For a moment, I seemed to disappear, only to reappear atop the dragon's head. It was surely a terrifying sight; Royal Blue dragons had a secondary, partial skull that grew overtop of their scales, making it seem as though they wore that of a fallen one. That was silly talk; they weren't Cubones! ^{waitwrongfandom} My hands wrapped around his horns, thumbs rubbing at his scales affectionately as my legs wrapped around the top of his neck, straddling him loosely. He was humongous, but he really was a giant baby, despite his grumpy face. "Who's a good boooooooOOoooooy~?" I asked him, nuzzling against him. He made a rumbling sound that I'd grown to associate as a purr... or the dragon equivalent, whatever that was. His eyes were mostly closed, now, and his tail thumped the ground. It made a loud sound but didn't shake the floor or anything, thankful. Luey already seemed like he might wet himself, afterall. ( >:D )

ooc:
Royalty's Angel:

I don't know whether to feel scared, confused or amused, but the dragon surely looked mighty and powerful. Perhaps I shouldn't fear him after all? Then he thumped the ground with his tail. "Eeek!?" I squeaked, transforming into my raccoon form. Bad idea, bad idea! I'm even smaller than the dragon now! Merry will be making fun of me till the rest of my life, I'm sure of it.
I quickly transformed back into my human form and stared at the clown, with my eyes wide and my face pale. "S-So...Uh... This room was supposed to be furnished, wasn't it?" I finally spoke, trying to protect what's remained of my dignity

"The main office," I called down to him, using the dragon as a jungle gym. His jaws opened slights, his teeth receding beneath his gums as I hooked my feet inside, hanging upside-down as I rubbed at his chin. "Just one more moment~" I said, unphased by having my legs halfway in a dragon's mouth. Soon enough, I dropped back down, however, finding myself a little off-balance as I did so. Patting the dragon's neck, I bid him ado and led Raccoon to the glass doors, oblivious to whatever he'd done while I'd been petting the beast.

The room I brought us into had not one, but two couches, a large desk, and a great, comfortable desk chair. Seeing a place to rest triggered my need for such, and I collapsed onto the nearest one, ignoring the forced shape of my jester skirt, my hat tumbling to the ground.

I opened my eyes even widely when Merry put her legs in the dragon's mouth. I was about to shout that it's dangerous, but then, she was back on the floor. What a relief! After a short moment, we found ourselves in the admin's office. A normal looking one. I sighed with relief at the sight of a normal room in an office building filled with dragons!
I looked at my companion, who was already resting on the couch. Her jester hat was on the ground. I picked it up and with a smirk put it on her forehead. "I guess, I need some rest too..." I murmured as I sat on the admin desk, with my arms crossed. I guess, this building is protected by the unlimited power of our admins. Man, I'd like to live in this building... I mean, it'd kinda make sense for us to start occupying this building. After all, we're the only ones who know the truth about this site.

I was almost asleep already, but I rolled to my side, letting my hat drop to the floor again. I smiled a bit, a crooked gesture --- adminny lady loves crooked smiles, so most of us end up with them. My expression's lazy but gentle, and my eyes are just scanning over him, absently. I suppose that I'm probably staring.

"I wanna see your eyes..." Adminny lady's one of those people with some sort of eye fetish. It's contagious, but you begin to understand the fascination with them when you begin to drown in someone's. I feel like I'm drowning, now, and I don't want to come up for air. Let me develop gills, I'll survive.

Her request surprised me a bit, yet I'll happily comply. I took my glasses off, got off the desk and walked over to her. I kneeled next to the couch she was resting on and I looked her in the eyes with a smile on my face, feeling that my heart started beating faster- such a nice feeling. After picking her hat up from the ground again, I put it on the edge of the couch. ""Ask and you will receive"" I said, before giggling quietly.

Stupid crooked smile, getting bigger without my permission. I reach my fingers out, still baffled by the sensation of touch; granted, my senses are weird, heightened. In many ways, it's like my every nerve should be attached to antennae rather than whatever body part they actually operate with. Every sense is picked up with a touch, a sound, or a taste. Colors taste funny. My fingers reach out, brushing against his cheek. It's a weird sensation, more intimate than it normally would be. It's just a simple caress, but it sends a shiver down my spine.

When she touched my cheek, I felt a sudden, yet pleasant shiver that went through my body. I couldn't stop smiling, enjoying every second of this sweet feeling. I moved a little bit closer, sitting beside the bed, on the floor. A huge blush appeared on my face. Love is funny. Makes you feel so different. I wanted to say something. No. Speaking would destroy this moment. I kept looking at Merry in silence, enjoying the touch of her fingers, enjoying looking at her sweet eyes. To be honest, I have an urge to confess my feeling to her right here right now, but, would it even be appropriate? I mean, she deserves a proper date first. I was so unsure whether to tell her now or later, which was so strange considering how sure I was of my feelings. What if she rejects my feelings? For now, I'll just keep looking into her eyes, it safer, it's better. This moment is too good to destroy it. Silence fits. I reached my hand out, to touch her shoulder, feeling that my blush became even bigger than it was.

My hand didn't move, not away from him, at any rate. Instead, I continued to stroke his cheek, staring into his eyes as we stayed there, in silence. It was comforting and comfortable, magnetic in its own right. I didn't want to leave where I was, and the fact that I am a clown made it so that I didn't have to move just because my arm fell asleep. It wouldn't. Carefully, I moved just a bit closer, closing my eyes slightly as I leaned my forehead against his, breathing in the scent of him and releasing it with a sigh. This felt right. It felt like home.

This feeling of being close to her, I wouldn't trade it for anything. I closed my eyes as well. It's funny how every sense feels stronger when your eyes are closed. I could hear my own heartbeat and her touch was addicting. Addicting? I guess it's a normal thing for someone in love. It wasn't a bad addiction though- or so I think. After all, love is healthy, pure and so sweet. I kept my eyes closed, forgetting about the whole world around us. A sudden and unexpected wave of courage filled me. Today's events flashed in my head. I moved myself a little bit closer to Merry. Our noses met. At this point, my heart was racing like crazy. I had my doubts, I was afraid of getting rejected. I guess, though, it's now or never. I'll explain myself, confess my feelings... I risked. I couldn't stop myself. I'll take responsibility for what I'm going to do now. Suddenly I moved even closer to her, perhaps a little bit to close? I moved my head slightly forwards and... our lips met. It was a point of no return- I kissed Merry gently, with a great hope that she would accept my feelings.

Stupid silly man, I thought, my eyes fluttering closed as I felt him move closer. Seconds felt like hours as we moved ever closer to each other, feeling the air of one another's breath tickle our faces. Would he do it? Another few moments told the truth, and the echo of my heartbeat felt almost deafening. It was like having an internal bass drum, setting the pace far higher than I could have wanted. This moment, for the moment that it was, was serene and pleasant. It was right.

But oh god, it was also wrong. I had my fancy of him, yes, oh god did I, but that had a way of boiling down to a single question: did I want him because I needed him or because I simply... did? My heart ached, aching for more as he pulled away. Instinct had me trying to follow after him. Heart had my eyes beginning to water. Would it be right? Would it be wrong? I was a clown. Should I want a human --- a sorcerer --- so? Whether I should or not... I do. I wanted that thrill again. Warning signs went off in my head like red alerts, staining my vision with caution signs, and I am very, very quickly developing a hatred of exclamation points.

Caution be damned, I want it, again.

Letting my eyes open for but a moment, I all but lunge forward, snapping my eyes closed once more as my lips met his, my head stretching back to cup the nape of his neck. Please don't pull away.

Please don't go away.

I expected her to be angry. I expected to be punched in the face or get smacked across the head by the admins. None of that happened. She didn't reject me. It was a happy moment. I wanted her to be close to me, I wanted to be with her. I didn't care about what we were! Even if it meant breaking my cover as a normal character, I didn't care. I wanted to be with her. Love sure is addicting. It was making me want to throw everything away just to feel her close.
I only managed to pull away for a second, to look at her. Did I see tears? I couldn't look closer because she lunged forward for another kiss, probably making me the happiest person in this crazy world.

I returned her kiss, wanting it to last forever. I wrapped my arms around MerryLynn and moved closer for a hug. This feeling was so incredible, unique, so right. With my eyes closed, senses filled me with sensations. This is so addicting, I don't want to pull away.

I slip from the house and join him on the floor, settling beside him as the kiss continues. It's so weird how a simple movement of the lips can deepen a kiss, allow you to get another lungful of air. Silly me. I don't need air, but if I did, well, I'd be very, very much out of luck. This silly, stupid raccoon-man is stealing my breath away with such an astonishingly simple gesture that I'm baffled. Me. Baffled. That thought alone is comical, but it's overshadowed by the blissful high. And the longer it lasts, the more I realize... it's like I'm recharging faster. I shove the thought away, an action that seems to carry not only from my mind but into my physical actions, as I push, just a little, at him, holding him back as we kiss.

We found ourselves on the floor, like a couple from some romance story. It's funny how it all developed. Four pages ago, we were just strangers put together in one place by the hands that create our fate, and now we're kissing in a different realm. I like this turn of events. I really do. Holding her closer, I pressed our lips closer, enjoying the addicting sensation. It's funny how such a simple act that is kissing, can have such an effect on the minds. Feeling that I'm running out of air, I pulled my head away in a gentle, slow way, ending our first kiss. I wanted more, but I'm a human, a sorcerer, I need to breathe. I leaned my forehead against hers, still holding her close. Slowly opening my eyes, I wanted to look into hers. It was almost time to confess my feelings. There was no turning back.

Logic dictates that there are rules that, properly, should be followed. There are rules, but I am the breaker of rules. Boundaries. Walls. I don't remain caged by such things, no matter how much I rightfully should. Afterall, such behavior was what got us into the mess of breaking our own thread. Rules dictate that none of this should have happened, that this shouldn't be happening.

Rules be damned but I don't want it to stop happening.

He pulls back and I'm reminded that he's still living by the normal, conventional means; just because I don't need to breathe does not mean that he doesn't. It's enough to add an extra edge to the blush already filling my cheeks. My eyes open to meet his, finding that he was already looking at me. What was that look for...?