[Revamp] A Light in the Night (Sticky Toes)

Mon Mar 31, 2025 3:46 pm

Sticky Toes was willing to brave the ache for what she knew was out there; the thing called to her with promises of change. For ages now, she'd felt off. She couldn't identify it precisely, but she'd long felt at odds with her body- or perhaps it was her body feeling at odds with her mind. Whatever it was, she believed- she had to believe- that unification and peace lay outside the edge of the world she'd always known.

She wasn't sure how the thing that called to her would lead to these changes. It was a crystal- that she knew- and the rest, she could only chalk up to magic. Sticky Toes didn't know much of why the world worked the way it did, and she was always willing to admit that she didn't understand. It was her actions that mattered beyond the mystery, and she would follow her heart to where it led. Or to where it was being led. There was a difference, but she wasn't quite sure how that difference would manifest.

She found it in a rock shelter, an outcrop that butted up to the sands of the desert. The swirling sandstone belied an ancient river bed; she was amazed to see how her vibrancy camouflaged her. She could hide here forever, if she wanted to- and perhaps she didn't. But she was here to find out. If nothing else, she'd satisfied her curiosity; perhaps she could satisfy her discomfort in some other way.

That night, she dreamed. She curled around the pale crystal, its steady light soothing and safe. It promised becoming.

Mon Mar 31, 2025 3:51 pm

In the soft, even glow of the crystal- it followed her into her dreamscape- she saw herself, reflected into infinity, and each vision was her. Here was one with a tall, leggy body like her mother's- here was one with dreadful teeth. Here was one that snarled, one that stared- but soon, she found the one that was her and she knew it because it smiled, matching her own. Inquisitive tongue flicking in and out, yes, this one was her.

She was a creature of the desert, but not of the daytime, nor of the deep night. She was dusky sunset and rosy sunrise, subtle blends of orange and yellow with variegation that matched the rocks outside. She was a creature of the rocks and crevices, the pebbled hide covering her back and flanks protection against the dehydrating heat and the swirling sands. She looked tougher, the soft pink that had always looked uncomfortably like puckered, burned flesh had overgrown in a hue that helped her camouflage here. Her tail was still delightfully fat, like her mama's; she was still her, her shadow recognizably hers in every way that mattered- and yet, she'd been made anew by the desert sunset, as though she wasn't just a reflection of the kin who'd sired her and her mama Gecko who'd birthed her, but with touches of her other mother, Fair Hunter, as well. Or maybe it was just the unspeakable wonder of a desert evening, wind howling in the distance, stars twinkling into existence and sleepy lizards waking up, their days about to begin.

The last thing she remembered about her dream was taking the first bold step- not timid, like her waking world steps typically were!- through the crystal holding her new visage and knowing that she would awaken changed. How much, she didn't know- but something about her desert dream brought her peace.