My family.... Have you seen my family?! (open)

[TYGER WEATHERBY]

Under this perfect paradise there was a flawed disturbance. Tyger, an anthropomorphic feline, was pacing unsteadily under the calming scene. It was rather ironic.

He looked up to see who was passing by, which wasn't that often, to ask them "Have you s-seen m-my wife? Or perhaps you've come across my daughter?" There was definitely pitches of anxiety and nervousness throughout his vocals. Passer-byers usually did stop to hear him out anyway.

His wife had been "lost" to the viruses, and his daughter could take care of her self, but Tyger still worried for the loss of them. He fiddled with his white labcoat pockets, before looking at his hand. With his hands shaking clear, you could tell he was looking at his wedding ring.

"Ohhh, shouldn't of come here, no I shouldn't." Tyger began muttering to himself. As he paced, he kept a clearly reserved posture. He had an awkward movement combined with arms that he kept close to himself.

"Alyssa... Where's m-my Alyssa" He asked, to himself. "My g-gun, if only I owned a pistol..." He said, referring to suicide. Though, his fear of death would prevent him from committing such an act. His fear of losing his family would also affect that. Well, if he remembered at the time that he still had Rosie.

The feline stood neat in appearance though. Sporting his black cargo pants and white lab coat. No matter how insane he would drive himself with the thoughts of his family and the thoughts of escape, he would always be superficial of himself.

[hoffman]

Energy depravation, what a drag.

Sebastian, the - dare I say it - most eccentric claw of them all, had ventured far out into reaches unknown (he had admittedly never been out at this particular location, often sticking within the boundaries of cities). Once in a while, he liked to move around a bit.

After all, he was stuck on this endless expanse, doomed to an eternity of being conservative and youthful (which, by the way, doesn't mix too well in certain circles - to spend is to live, as some would say). He had to do something.

But on the subject of energy - the androgynous digital doppleganger wasn't feeling at his best today. Rather tired, and it was only getting worse by the hour. Judging by the difficulty he was having breathing, he figured that he had at the most six hours before he would break away and reveal his chip, meaning that he wouldn't have a whole lot of time to dawdle around.

"What a bother, looks like I'll have a rest here, and..."

Among the lush fields of the Blue Meadow walked back and forth a humanoid with traits not unlike those of a feline, indicating to the self-proclaimed doctor that he would soon be coming across a beast. That's if he bothered to approach the anthromorph, however.

He surely looked troubled, and the boy immediately wondered, "Could he be trusted?"

Such a troubled pace wasn't uncommon amongst strangers in the virtual realm - it was mostly regarded as a clever trap that abused the empathy of the human mind. As soon as passersby came close to answer the cries of the unfortunate, few or more strangers would spring up from nowhere, ambushing the true poor souls and stealing their energy.

Feeling quite confident that he could get out of such a mess today, however, Sebastian decided to investigate.

"'Scuse me, sir," he called out to the beast, waving nicely. "Couldn't help but notice that you, well, look like you're having trouble."

[rosieweatherby]

Rosie yawned and stretched, laying in a small patch of flowers. She sat up and looked around, hearing someone talking about Family. The voice was familiar, obviously. She grabbed Cinderella and stood up, holding the doll tightly. "Yeah, Cinderella, I think he's lost it..." She said with a giggle, moving across the meadow slowly. She paused when she noticed the Claw moving toward Tyger. He wasn't familiar, she was sure. She watched the interaction between the two for a few moments, deciding the Claw had good intentions.

She crouched low, moving through the meadow quietly, sneaking up on the Tiger-Beast. When she got close she jumped at him, wrapping his side in a tight hug. "Silly Daddy... I'm right here!" She called out happily, still holding onto Tyger. "Cinderellas here too!" She smiled, finally releasing the grip she had on her father, falling and landing on her feet with a light thud. "Whos that?" She asked, looking at Sebastian, pulling her dolly close once again.

She wore black jeans and a white shirt, almost matching the clothing her father wore. Her black hair framed her pale features as she looked over at the other person with piercing blue eyes. A hat on her head kept her hair from moving too much.

[TYGER WEATHERBY]

Tygers energy was good, he had destroyed and NPC prior to his recent freak out. A claw was now approaching him, and asking if he was having trouble. Usually people weren't fond to trust beasts, because of their immoral ways of returning energy. Though, the constant dissipation of energy meant that eventually death would come to them all anyway.

"W-Who wants to know?" Tyger asked, his paranoia setting in, "Why do you approach me? W-Why yes... I am having trouble today. I can't seem to find my family." He began pacing again for a few moments before looking back to the claw.

"One stands ab-bout this high" He said, giving a reference with his hands, "She has a ring like this..." He held up his shaking hand, "A-And... Viruses!" He put his hands to his face and looked at the ground.

He started to begin again until, "Silly Daddy... I'm right here!" She called out happily, still holding onto Tyger. "Cinderellas here too!" She smiled, finally releasing the grip she had on her father, falling and landing on her feet with a light thud. "Whos that?"

"My daughter looks just like her" he said, pointing at Rosie. "Unless you are my daughter! Or what if it's this place playing games with me again... What if... What if you are my daughter though."

He sat on the ground next to Rosie, and looked up at the claw. "This nice person was just asking me what was troubling me, Rosie" He continued looking at her, his nerves settling but still uneasy.

He looked up at Sebastian, "What might your name be?"

[hoffman]

Sebastian stopped at a few meters' distance from the beast just as a small girl entered the vicinity, leaping up on the other man's shoulders.

He was certainly wary of this - a beast, and now a strange, small girl, claiming to be the daughter that the man had said was missing. Was it an ambush waiting to happen?

"Calm down, you're wasting energy just being stressed about it," he assured himself, quietly listening to the exchange between the beast and his daughter.

Now the man became hysterical, stating that he was unclear as to whether or not the girl was actually his daughter. Apparently coming to the conclusion that his daughter was right before his eyes, he settled down, taking a seat on the meadow.

Meanwhile, Sebastian came to his own conclusions, deciding that the man before him was a quack and that he shouldn't spend too much time around him. It was dangerous. He kept his mouth shut about such a thing, naturally, hiding any emotions that might indicate a surprised reaction.

The beast asked for his name.

"Sebastian," he replied in a concise fashion, going on to ask, "Your name?"

[rosieweatherby]

Rosie hugged her father again. "It's okay, Daddy. Dont worry. Im real." She said, kissing his cheek "See?" She then turned and looked at Sebastian. He was a Claw, there was no doubt about that. "Im Rosemary Anne Weatherby." She said, bowing low. "This is Cinderella, and this is my Daddy, Tyger!" She announced, holding her doll up, and then gesturing toward Tyger.

"He's having problems dealing with the loss of Mommy. She became a Virus and left us, not wanting to convert us like most others try to do. She's still a good person, but you know, accidents happen." She said solemnly, looking at the grass. "I still get to see her sometimes, but she hasn't came to see daddy for a while... I gotta get her to one of these days..." She pondered, a tear streaming down her cheek. She wiped her cheek, and looked at the Claw. "Anyway... What's your story? Do you have family?" She asked softly, picking at the grass.

[TYGER WEATHERBY]

"Yes, I'm Tyger" He said unsteadily, putting a hand to his forehead. "T-That is indeed my name..." He scratched the back of his neck looking nervously between the two figures. He put his arms in front of himself, crossing his arms at his chest with a gentle motion, keeping his self reserved posture.

"Don't worry dear R-Rosie..." Tyger said, "I'm c-calm. As calm as I'll ever be. After all, we're in the Meadow..." He looked at his wedding ring again. "Ally..." He sighed, grabbing his daughter and holding her close to him.

Tyger was feeling better, though for the moment his mentality was twisted and messed with still. There probably was no short termed cure for something like this.

Rosie had asked Sebastian some questions, and Tyger was eager to listen to the answers. Though, he wasn't quite sure if they should be asking complete strangers this.

Even though Tyger was a Beast, he usually only attacked people who were deserving of death in his eyes. He tries, but when energy runs low, there's only one thing on your mind... Which would be survival. So, he still had his morals... They just sometimes get overrun or clouded by insanity.

[hoffman]

"Tyger... Rosemary... and an oversized doll named Cinderella," he memorized.

Tyger weakly put a hand to his forehead, as nervous now as he was before, if not more visibly so. He reaffirmed that 'Tyger' was in fact his name, as if Sebastian doubted the girl's words. Resisting the urge to raise an eyebrow, Sebastian stared blankly in thought. He never understood why it was commonplace for other people to continuously repeat things like a broken record.

"He's having problems dealing with the loss of mommy," Rosemary explained, "She became a virus and left us, not wanting to convert us like most others try to do. She's still a good person, but you know, accidents happen."

A tear went down the girl's cheek. Sebastian wondered what the girl thought, but he didn't dwell on it too much. It likely had to do with her mother, anyway.

"Don't worry, dear R-Rosie," the beast stuttered, "I'm c-calm, as calm as I'll ever be. After all, we're in the meadow..."

"Ally..."

"I... see," Sebastian remarked, raising a leather gloved hand to his chin. Ally must have been his wife's name, he thought. More intriguing was the way Rosemary explained the situation: it seemed as if this didn't happen recently, but rather had happened quite a while ago. He would deduct, then, that Tyger was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. He was still trying to get over it.

He didn't get too deep into thinking, however, before Rosie interjected. She asked about his background.

"Can't really tell you much, little miss. It's nothing worth noting. I came here alone, I've been here alone for the past ten years... I've tried to make friends, but you know, people can be a little loopy. Books have been my friends instead. I've been doing nothing but studying from these books and surviving for the past decade so that I can get to the bottom of this energy crisis and, more importantly... return home. I don't have a family, at least, I don't think I do, 'cause all I had was my father. All I know is... when I get back, and I will, I'm gonna be a doctor, and I'm going to find a nice girl, and... then I'll have the family that I didn't as a kid."

[rosieweatherby]

"That sounds wonderful! I'm hoping that after we get back to the real world, my family goes back to normal. Mommy, Daddy, Cinderella and me. Even Uncle John and Uncle Gabe too!" she said excitedly, then snuggled down into Tygers arms, still holding the doll by the arm. She listened to Sebastian talk about wanting to solve the energy crisis. She broke free from Tygers grasp and stood up.

She straightened her hat, and looked at Sebastian. "You too are working toward the seemingly unachievable goal of a new energy source? Myself and a group of scientists back at the Anullus Institute are working on that as well. We could use another scientist to help with research. Just find yourself a signup sheet, and you'll be contacted." She said, her voice different than before. She had dropped her innocent little girl act, now talking to the other person with a serious tone. She turned back and looked at Tyger. "Soon, were going to find a way to reverse the Virus problem. Maybe it'll help the PVTD patients get their minds back..." she said with a nod, holding her doll in her arms again.

[TYGER WEATHERBY]

Tyger looked up at the two people. Suddenly Rosie was speaking in intelligent terms. His little girl was speaking quite more intelligently than he had last known. "Rosie?" Tyger asked, as if he was beginning to think that it really wasn't his daughter again.

He listened to Sebastian's story. It was sad that he came here with no family. It was, however, better he came here with no one to be attached to so he didn't have anyone taken from him. It was better being alone here than it was being in a group.

Tyger couldn't think like this, he didn't regret having his family. He regretted more not being able to protect them and coming here in the first place.

It was a horrible outcome so far. Paradise turned mad. His family in danger no matter where they turned. Though, he hadn't realized Rosie was... Intelligent, and evil. Groups of scientists working on the energy problem and working on virus research? And his Rosie working with those people.

Tyger's mind was just drawing blanks. He wasn't sure exactly what to think. He didn't know where his wife was and for all he knew she could end up dead any minute as a virus. And now Rosie is working with intelligent people.

Tyger had a fluent intelligent mind once. Not that he wasn't still intelligent, but it was becoming difficult to align those thoughts coherently.

[hoffman]

Sebastian was colored surprised, this girl certainly wasn't ordinary. Quite intelligent, as a matter of fact.

She spoke of the "Annulus Institute", a team comprised of scientists who were working towards resolving the energy crisis as well as curing viruses of their afflictions.

"How noble," he thought, tucking his hands away in the pockets of a very tight pair of leather jeans. The team in particular must have been thrown together only recently, for he had never heard of it before until now.

"That sounds... about right up my alley, actually. I'm not much of a team player, but I do think that we're at a point where this situation requires not one, but many minds working together."

He paused to look at Tyger, who seemed eager to say something, though he never spoke a word. Then he looked back at Rosemary.

"Where might I come across a sign-up sheet? I think something like this could work out very, very well."

[rosieweatherby]

Rosie nodded. Noble... Sure... She said with a chuckle. She didn't have the heart to tell the man that they did all of this for profit. She also didn't tell him that she was doing weapons research on the side, to keep the income coming. "You can find a signup sheet in Clocktower Boulevard." She said with a nod. "You'll be contacted shortly thereafter and told where the institute Headquarters is. It's a very, VERY private collective." She said, turning to Tyger. "I'd tell him to join, but his mind is kinda... off... we aren't sure how that would effect our research." She said with a sigh.

"I don't know Cinderella. Will that work?" The child asked, looking at her doll. "Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Yeah... It might, I'll bring it up with the Doctor when I see him next!" She said with a smile, then turned back to Sebastian. "So. Should I expect to see you inside of the institute before long?" She asked.

[TYGER WEATHERBY]

Tyger remained where he sat. They were talking about some form of research involving the energy and the viruses... It was probably beneficial to everyone. Tyger still hadn't realized that his Rosie was in on it all, that she was actually older than she appeared.

Perhaps it was best that Rosie was more intelligent than she appeared though, after all Tyger wasn't really in any condition to take care of her or himself. Thankfully she was actually 10 years older than she really appeared.

He rocked back and forth slightly where he sat. He gave a pace, a concentrated pace. He was thinking, trying to form a theory, to no avail. I mean, why would your little girl be working on potentially dangerous projects? What would you think if she all of a sudden picked up her intelligence level? Rosie mentioned him not being completely there and might get in the way of research. He could research, but could he convey his thoughts?

"I've determined the results to be false..." Tyger said, "Y-Yes, they are. The virus nest which correlates with five is completely irrational. My reports are written properly, in the air Nitrogen levels raise. Give me a s-shot..." he pleaded, intelligently rambling gibberish,wanting to be involved. He wanted to be helpful.

[hoffman]

Sebastian frowned at Tyger as he babbled incoherent strings of words, half-wishing that something could be done to cure the man's insanity.

Unfortunately as he had come to learn in the formative years of gaining essential survival skills in this virtual hellhole, insanity was practically incurable. Not many people possessed the resources or even the time to deal with such a thing, and it didn't help that crazy people were all you saw, either.

He found it quicker and more effective to dispose of them to end their suffering, much to his dismay.

Sebastian realized that the man didn't have a family, really. This daughter of his had outgrown him, and his wife was outcasted from society as a virus. Not even his capacity for intelligence would be able to reunite the family some day; he could not think rationally.

He felt like crying. But he held back his emotions, holding his ground. How had a broken man, a dime a dozen, led him to the verge of tears?

"He's the kind of person I have to save," he thought. "It's not fair. He's got to have his family back. He deserves to live out the rest of his life."

Rosemary had stated that the sign-up forms were located in Clocktower Boulevard, and asked if he would see him soon.

"...count on it," Sebastian declared, his facial expression matching nothing other than raw, pure determination.

[rosieweatherby]

"We strive to make this world a better place. We will figure out a way to put everything back to how it should be. You will be expected to work along-side other scientists, some as Equals, some as Underlings, Some as Overseers. There are currently only a few of us, but Doctor Benton runs the institute rather well. Despite his mood swings, he has a brilliant mind, and has helped me with a few problems I had in the past." She said, holding Cinderella up, off the ground, she was talking to Sebastien, but her gaze remained upon her dolly. "I'll see you soon."

Rosie looked at her dad with a frown, moving back toward him and wrapping her small arms around him. She sat in his lap and cuddled into his chest. "It's okay, Daddy. I still love you." She said softly, returning to her Baby-Girl act. She looked over at Sebastian and nodded softly. Rosie mustered a yawn, and looked up at her still babbling father. "I think I need a nap, daddy." She stated, patting his head softly. "Cinderella's tired too." She mustered a second yawn, and nuzzled her head into Tygers chest, holding Cinderella in her arms, laying across Tygers lap. "Maybe Mommy will come home soon."