That he may well have been mistaken as some form of female feline in heat having lunged upon the nearest suitable male has evidently not crossed his mind, Tetradore's shouts and frantic shoving- even with the emerald eyed man's superior strength, doing little to dissuade the over-energetic leopard that frantically struggles to get as close as physically possible to the object of it's affection, halting only long enough to allow the shift of forms and meet Tetradore's gaze equally at last. His animal form, it would seem, had gone unrecognized, his human form however seems to finally illicit a reaction from his long lost companion. The other man's hands lift to cup his face in nothing short of bewildered shock as Tobi simply grins brilliantly at the sound of his name, mind taking pleasure in the knowledge he has not been forgotten after all this time, that possessive, obsessive need to be in the presence of his favoured person readily stirring back into life in those moments as he willingly allows the other man's touch- something refused even to Sister in human form and indeed perhaps, should have been the young woman's first clue that the man he had assaulted was hardly a stranger. He refuse touch for anyone and anything else, at least, until some level of trust can be earned, the time having passed seeming to have unaffected his unyielding faith in his emerald-eyed companion. He continues to rest very near atop the other man, determined, it would seem, to keep him pinned down for as long as possible lest Tetra make an attempt to run away from him, unlikely as that is, a bizarre growling sound stirring within his throat, evidently making some attempt to purr his utter satisfaction even in human form. He has found his Leader, at last- and he will not be parted from him again.




The whispered words the man offers in reply are barely heard over Sister's shouts, the girl racing up behind him before desperately attempting to pry him away from what she believes in an unfortunate stranger. For a moment he allows her shoving before those dark eyes flash, leopard gold running briefly within those depths in a very clear and obvious warning. He likes her, truly, likes the way she looks and the lovely scent of her skin and hair and yet, it would seem, any effort to remove him from his companion is not appreciated. He will protect what is his- even from her. His pants suddenly shoved toward him however, seem to break this momentary animalistic hold as she demands he put them on. For a second or so he merely blinks, as if utterly confused by the command before muttering to himself in a series of unintelligible words, rolling away from Tetradore long enough to scramble into his terribly worn, pathetic excuse for jeans. In truth, the garments look little better then there wearer, the young man equally as dirty and....tired. For years he has searched for his friend and finally.....finally....he can rest. Jeans finally in place, the skinny, lanky boy manages to right himself once more, scowling readily now towards Sister, her reaction to his find....inappropriate to his mind, one finger moving to point directly towards the still toppled man.




"Sister! It is...Tetra!"




He waits now, for the women to understand, or for Tetra himself to see that not one but two had survived Risqué and her attack that night, unable to understand perhaps, the full extent of the emotions at play. He is....basal, perhaps, in so many of his desires and yet he is nothing short of unfathomably honest. If he is happy, he will show it, if he is angry- he will display it in any and every way he deems acceptable, his nature so very volatile that he is often given to leap sporadically from one emotion to the next. Fortunately, in this moment, he is simply and utterly delighted, a truly rare good mood on display as he rests contentedly between the brother and sister, allowing them a moment or so, it would seem, to become reacquainted before he moves to offer Tetra a hand, helping haul him to his feet once more. He moves in that moment to shake that unruly mop of black hair from his eyes, one hand reaching into his back pocket, fumbling for a moment before producing the toy he had shown Sister earlier in the day.




"Tetra?"




He waits for his Leaders attention again before abruptly reaching out to snatch his hand, pressing his own hand and the little red Ferrari with the broken wheel into the other man's own, dark eyes lifting upward once more.




"I am coming with you."




He manages a slightly lopsided grin once more as he finally releases the toy back to its rightful owner, his words entirely assured, leaving no room for argument, that decision clearly and entirely made as he offers his companion a moment to inspect the childhood toy he had promised all those years ago to return. No amount of shouting, ordering, commanding, pleading or otherwise will see him change his mind in this. Tetradore cannot stop him following, not now, even if he desires it. Perhaps his mind is not as others and indeed perhaps he does not understand the life he is willing to walk into and yet, the skinny, starving boy has nothing else.




"You said...I could...borrow it. I promised to...give it back. See how good I...watched it?"




Just in case the man has forgotten, looking expectantly towards him, clearly expecting some form of praise for having guarded it so well for so long, indicating perhaps, for the first time, that this is not a chance meeting, that Tobias has been searching ever since that fateful day for the friend he lost. He turns then, at last, back to Sister, dark chocolate eyes meeting her own with a look that is nothing short of smug.




"I win. I....found him first."




He does so enjoy winning after all, assured that since he had been the first to crash tackle the other man to the ground, the victory is his own.

madness, as you know, is like gravity: all it takes is a little push