Cats in a Cradle {open}

[Beau LaRoux]

Beau was enjoying the woods, which was something he did from time to time. If there was one thing he really appreciated about Bellefonte, it was its proximity to the great outdoors. Just a short walk off campus and you'd wind up in something very akin to the Montana wilderness. It had probably been left on purpose: offering terrain for training or for people to utilize their mutant abilities, or maybe the original Bellefontes had just figured that having a woods nearby would make their school more appealing. The reasons didn't matter; they certainly didn't matter to Beau.

He sang as he walked, his hands in his pockets. Just a spare tune, one that wouldn't quite leave his mind, and hardly worth noticing. He let his eyes roam the trees, which encroached on the wooded path he wandered. Said path was more likely just a sign that many people had walked through the same area, though it wouldn't have surprised Beau to find out that someone had actually hacked out a path through the trees. Several trees hung over the path proper, forming a canopy overhead. Really pleasant for walking, really.

Something rustled in the trees overhead. Beau paused, not certain that he heard it, what with the singing. He leaned back to look up, frowning and raising a hand up to shield his eyes. The branches above him rustled again, and Beau saw a feline face poking out from the branches. Barely had he seen it when a crack resounded throughout the area. A feline fell from the trees, heading earthward. Beau barely had time to let out a curse; he moved without thinking, diving straight for the cat, his arms outstretched. He wasn't certain that he'd be able to reach the animal in time, but he was definitely going to try, that was for darn sure.

[Deleted]

"Libby!" Abel cried, lunging for his cat as she flew from their shared perch in the tree above Beau's head. He had been using it as a comfortable sleeping place, again using his talent to make himself at home anywhere. Unfortunately Libby, his long-furred tabby was much more restless than he was, and as soon as Abel woke up she was gone, flying out of the tree.

While he was certain that the rule 'cats always land on their feet' applied to Libby just as much as it did to any other feline, Abel had moved instinctively after his best friend. What he hadn't expected to see was Beau, his room-mate, beneath the tree racing towards the falling Libby. He would have smiled if he wasn't so busy falling himself, his balanced upset.

With an oofhe tumbled out of the tree, landing with a thud on his back. Struggling up into a sitting position Abe glanced frantically around for Libby, breathing an audible sigh of relief when he spotted her perched neatly in Beau's arms, seeming completely unfazed by the trouble her owner went through to try and save her.

"Beau. Hi," he greeted awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck with a laugh.

[Beau LaRoux]

Beau thought he heard something else moving overhead, and he really hoped that there wasn't some massive creature up there that had been planning on feasting upon the cat. Knowing Beau's luck, there was some kinda shifter, like, a tree-bear or something. True, Beau had never heard of a tree-bear before, but that didn't mean he didn't believe such a thing was possible. Tree-gator, maybe? He was pretty sure he heard of that.

Beau wasn't really in a position to worry overmuch about tree-gators though, as he had very real issues to deal with, namely in the form of a cat that was landing roughly into his arms. Beau felt the cat's claws catching upon his jacket as it slid down, the poor beat desperate for some kind of purchase. Beau's football reflexes helped though, and he managed to hug the cat to his chest, turn and twist, landing on his back with the creature atop him. Said creature looked strangely pleased with the whole affair, as though tormenting Beau had just been on its to do list. Beau stared at it for several breaths, feeling the heat on his arms that told him that he probably had some variation of scratches there.

An omph came, drawing Beau's attention away from the cat. He soon saw his roommate landing a few feet away, looking quite comfortable. The cat meowed at him, obviously pleased. The awkward "greeting" just made Beau blink a few times, "Hello yourself," he managed. He tilted his head, looking back up to the trees, "So, uh, you pushin' cats outta trees now?" he asked, lowering his head to look at Abel. That didn't really seem like something that the other guy would do, but then again, Beau had just been diving for a cat. He shifted, but the cat countershifted, moving about, obviously far too comfortable, or possibly too scared, to really want out of Beau's arms. He just gave the feline a frustrated look and grunted.

[Deleted]

Once it was clear that Libby was more or less safe and comfortable with Beau, Abel sighed and sat up properly, crossing his legs. The easygoing smile hadn't left his face, even though Beau seemed less cheerful than him. From his fall he had all manner of leaves and twigs in his hair, and considering his thick hair, he'd never be able to get it out easily. Still he attempted to make a start, plucking some of the looser leaves from his head.

He paused at Beau's question and cocked a grin. "I'd like it on the record that she pushed me" he joked. Looking down, he began brushing off his clothes, though he stopped pretty quickly when he remembered he hadn't yet thanked Beau. "Thank you, by the way, for saving Libby." While it was more than likely she would have been alright on her own, the fact that Beau had tried to save a cat was both heart-warming and amusing for Abel. In the least it mad him curious about the boy.

"Libby, Libby come here," he attempted holding out his hand to the cat in an attempt to free Beau from her grip. Unfortunately it was to no avail, she seemed much too comfortable. "I'm sorry, for all of this really. She didn't hurt you, did she?" he asked worriedly, cocking his head to stare with scrutiny at Beau, checking for claw marks or bruises.

[Beau LaRoux]

Beau chuckled at the joke, turning his gaze to the cat again. "Looks like it would do somethin' like that," he agreed. He tried shifting again, but the cat shifted in response, so Beau just sighed and relaxed, propping up his body on his elbows. "An' don't worry nothin' 'bout it. I'm bettin' that she woulda turned out jus' fine," Beau could've sworn that the cat gave him an arch look that suggested that she would likely have been better off without his bumbling human assistance. She shifted and curled her tail along her body, clearly indicating that she was quite comfortable and not in the slightest bit of a rush to move any time soon.

The shifting did not bode well, especially as the cat did her level best to ignore Abel. Then again, that struck Beau as being quite catlike behavior, so he was willing to just discount it for now. Abel seemed to be equal parts frustrated and amused, but Beau could really only land on amused, chuckling a little. "Again: ain't a big deal. Ain't the first time a critter's made me lay low," he shrugged, which got him a bit of a nasty look from the cat. He thought he felt the claws dig in a bit, but he couldn't be sure. Thankfully, winter meant bundling up, especially in Montana. Beau would have hated to think what would have happened to him had he been in shirt-sleeves.

"I'm thinkin' I'm alright," he said, raising up his arms and giving them a look over. "Got the jacket an' shirt, an' they don't seem too tore up," he rotated his arm, noticing a few light tears, but those could have been there from the start. "Nothin' I wouldn'ta gotten from wanderin' 'round the woods anyways," he paused, lowering his hand and looking up, "what were you doin' in a tree anyway? Cat climb up an' you decide it looked like a good time?"

[Deleted]

"She's a little troublemaker," he admitted with a sigh, lowering his head to hide his bemused smile. "But fair warning, I can't defend you if you insult her," Abe laughed. He finally stood up, dusting the leaves and twigs off his back and arms. Libby was practically the ruler of all things Abel, and he was a sucker for cute things. Whatever she wanted, most of the time she got it, and that was the same for every other thing in Abe's life. He was incredibly meek and most of the time didn't even realize when he was being used.

Strolling over to Beau, Abe hooked one hand into his jean pockets and stretched the other out to his friend, an easy smile on his face. "Here, if you stand she'll move either way," he offered. If they started walking Libby would follow them anyway, so he had no fear of losing her. It was rather doubtful that Beau was incredibly comfortable, despite what he said, Abel knew how demanding cats -especially Libby- could be. 

"I'm glad," Abel sighed in relief. He would have taken full responsibility if Beau had actually hurt himself on his account. As to the matter of the tree, Abel blushed -as he did much too easily for a guy his age- and shrugged. "Ah, well you see it was more of a case of her following me up. It seemed like a good place for a nap...at the..time." he trailed off rather awkwardly, clearly embarrassed by his own stupid mentality. 

"How about you, what brings you out here? Bear hunting?"

[Beau LaRoux]

Beau eyed the cat as he listened to Abel's warning. He would've sworn that she narrowed her eyes dangerously, but then again, he could just be personifying the animal to a much greater degree than was strictly necessary. He tried to experimentally shift, and felt Libby again move. Abel moved toward him, and Beau looked up. Abel's smile got Beau to smile right back, chuckling. "Don't take this the wrong way, Abe, but probly ain't the best idea for us to be touchin'. Wouldn't want to make some kinda weird feedback loop. I'll take your word for it, on the cat thing, that is," Beau nodded slowly and then twisted. the cat shifted, and Beau felt the claws digging into his clothing. This time, Beau kept going, and eventually Libby hopped off. she looked thoroughly offended, but she definitely wasn't pinning Beau down any more.

The Southern boy took advantage of this, spinning and hopping up to his feet. He dusted himself off, giving his jeans a quick shake, knocking loose a few loose leaves. While he finished up, Beau looked over at Abel, nodding to him. "Looks like you were right," he confessed. he then moved into a stretch, wincing a little. He probably had a bruise or two that he hadn't noticed until that movement. Yahoo.

Abel's answer drew a chuckle from Beau and he lowered his arms, letting out something like a sigh as he did. "Suppose my answer ain't much better. I was out enjoyin' the weather," he shrugged. "I'm used to headin' out every so often, you know, doin' somethin'. Sometimes gets a little stir-crazy, what with the school an' all," he nodded to the building and then slid his hands into his pockets. "Guess you'd know more 'bout that than I do. They let you out every once in a while though, right?"

Cuz otherwise, that would suck, and it would also likely mean that the roommates were going on an impromptu road trip soon.

[Deleted]

"Ah, right," Abe accepted with a somewhat awkward chuckle, retracting his offered hand. Of course he fully understood the logic behind Beau's request, but it was still a pain. "But as soon as we both get out powers under control, I'm going to demand a manly handshake," she joked with a grin. He had always seen such a greeting as a acknowledgment between friends, even if the idea was somewhat silly, he liked it.

Abe shuffled back as Beau stood up, giving the boy some room. Libby leapt off, looking disgruntled and Abel watched her in exasperated amusement. "Of course. I'm almost always right," he informed Beau quite amiably. He frowned when Beau began stretching himself out. "You sure you're ok?" Perhaps he'd get him an icepack or something when they got back to the dorms later.

"Enjoying the weather, huh?" he repeated with amusement. "Well at least you kept your feet on the ground...for the most part." Why on earth couldn't he be normal, like Beau? Honestly, he didn't know what had coaxed him to try sleeping in a tree in the first place. Thinking on it now, it didn't sound very smart.

"The academy tries to let us out as much as possible, with field trips and holidays and the like, but it's not a big thing. Of course you've also got those few that sneak out after hours or skip class."

[Beau LaRoux]

"Sure thing," offered Beau. He didn't want to burst Abel's bubble by pointing out that they'd both need to be trained in Abel's specific power in order for that to work. Then again, maybe once Beau got fully trained he could just whether or not to activate the power of whomever he was closest to. The whole missing a handshake thing did feel off for Beau too; he liked being amiable and getting on people's good side, and nothing said happy camper like a hearty handshake. It was pretty much a Southern staple.

Fortunately, they kept the tone light. Beau chuckled at Abel's comment, which did make him wince again. "Nah, I wouldn't worry none 'bout it. I get more banged up from football practice an' such anyway. I'd feel strange if I weren't all scratched up," he chuckled and rolled his neck a bit, feeling the muscles stretch. He gave his fingers a few quick squeezes, looking them over. So long as they were okay, Beau was doing just fine. and he confirmed that easy enough, nodding and looking up at Abel again.

"Man, I gotta take you out sometime then," said Beau, nodding. He jerked his head. "I perform at some gigs at local towns every once in a while. Sometimes can talk 'em into lettin' others tag along, an' nothin' says you couldn't hide away in the back or somethin'. 'course," Beau grinned, "that would mean listenin' to country music for a few hours, so maybe you'd rather just stay at home."

The cat meowed, and Beau chuckled, looking down at the animal. He bent low, but she dodged his hand, her tail heading into the air in that haughty manner all cats had.

{uh, I am assuming I can control Libby. I've just got a thing for cats and inflicting them upon Beau}

[Deleted]

Abel grinned broadly at Beau's acceptance. He realized he was probably being annoying and far too pushy, but he couldn't help it. Honestly he was just thankful that Beau was so easygoing to happy to go along with his schemes.

He plays football...he probably has some great-
Abel cut off his mental train with a cough, glancing back at Beau with a nod. "Really? I'm glad," he expressed yet again with a sigh. He looked down at his own hands in comparison, smooth, unworked and small. He felt a great deal of resentment towards his body a great deal of the time, free from any semblance of hardship or pain. Sometimes he wished that something would happen, to leave him with a scar.

"Take me..?" Abel's head shot up as Beau continued talking. "Oh aha, that'd be great," he interrupted eagerly, gripping his hands tightly. "I don't listen to much country, I mean, there are only three artists that I know of. But I'd love to hear you play Beau, I bet it'd be great." Even hiding in the background sounded exciting, and Abel couldn't remember the last time he'd actually been off campus.

"Oh Libby," he sighed, shaking his head in disappointment of his friend's behaviour.

(Of course, not a problem :3)

[Beau LaRoux]

Beau chuckled, "I get that a lot, the whole not knowin' country thing. Trust me, I can get ya good an' introduced to it, though I ain't guaranteein' that you're gonna fall in love with it or nothin'. 'course, I'm dang good at it, but I also play some good Southern or classic rock from time to time," Beau was obviously used to throwing out this last part; it tumbled out almost as though he were reading from a script. He was tempted to detail how his shows often went, with his playing rollicking tunes and eventually moving into stuff that he'd written himself.

Libby meowed at hearing her name, flicking her tail and looking over at the human that she claimed as her own. She stared for several seconds before moving forward, butting her head against Beau's fingers. The young musician flexed them a little, miming scratching movements. Libby seemed to take pity on Beau, moving to nudge at his fingers. Beau obviously knew cats well enough to move his hand and begin giving her the scratching that she was clearly asking for.

"Seems like I keep runnin' into cats," said Beau, sighing and rising to his feet. "don't even know why; prefer dogs myself," he dusted off his jeans. He looked down the road, scrunching his face up against the sun. "I'm still thinkin' I wanna head a little deeper in, see if there's somethin' there. Libby gonna follow if we head deeper, or should we head back to the school?" Beau looked over at Abel quizzically, obviously figuring that the other guy would at least be along for the ride.

[Deleted]

"I'd be honored, Beau," he accepted warmly. "I bet you're awesome. Seriously, I can't wait." He really loved any kind of music, and if one of his friends was playing, all the better. Lifting one side of his mouth in a crooked smile, Abel nodded towards Beau, "One of these days I might have to ask for lessons, I'm not musically gifted at all." Abe admitted with a chuckle. What's more Beau seemed incredibly proud of his talent, as he should be, and that just made Abel proud.

He could only smile in relief as Libby finally accepted the attention he knew she loved. "Looks like she's taken to you after all," he laughed. "She's spoiled. Feel free to push her away if she annoys you." He offered, concerned by Beau's comments. If he didn't like cats, then Libby shouldn't be forcing herself onto him.

Folding his arms behind his head, Abe began walking. "She'll follow, no doubt about it."

[Beau LaRoux]

"I'm good enough," drawled Beau, smiling again. He actually thought he was really good, but he generally didn't push it unless he was trying to flirt with someone, which, of course, wasn't the case here. Still: "An' I can probly give you some pointers sometime. Wouldn't be the first time someone's asked me for a lesson or two," Beau nodded to Abel, further confirming this fact. Hey, there were decided advantages to the whole musician thing. Guys with guitars attracted girls like catnip, and Beau had been using that for ages. Not quite so much anymore,  given the way things had been moving, but he still certainly knew how.

He also knew how to handle animals. He nudged Libby with his foot, making sure to be gentle with the feline. Apparently Abel's assertion that she'd accepted Beau was spot on, because she just whirled and batted at him a few times, before essentially showing her stomach. The Southern boy chuckled. "Ain't a problem. Jus' 'cuz I prefer dogs don't mean I don't like cats too," he looked over at Abel and nodded again, "somethin' about all God's creatures that makes 'em kinda lovable, right?"

Which was sort of part of the reason why Beau had opted to go walking in the woods. he definitely preferred the outside to the in though, even if there was good music to be had. he stretched again, lacing his fingers behind his head and looking deeper into the woods. Soon he and Abel were moving that way, with Beau casting a quick glance to confirm that yes, they were being followed by Libby.

"She's an odd one," he commented, nodding to the cat. "She always follow you 'round like that? I figure that's almost dog behavior, right there," though the climbing into trees was definitely more feline than canine.