10-01-2011, 12:02 PM
The cheetah was silent for the next few days. His aggression and fear had mounted off into an intense depression. The only instances in which he moved were to get up and stuff his face with food from the offered bucket. He no longer reacted in any way to what Clinton had to say. He also hadn't changed forms yet, so he had been stuck in his cheetah form for days now. This long stretch of depression showed no signs of letting up. He was a big wild animal...maybe he needed a large outdoor enclosure to live in? He was bound to be depressed indoors.
He hadn't made an effort, either, to communicate with the rest of the animals living in the space. He ignored them just like he ignored that terrible human, no longer seeing them as possible prey.
Adam had not had the best of nights. The very moment he'd felt one of his inconvenient and irritating emotional spells coming on, he'd grabbed his fedora and his coat and headed out to the home of the very first friend he could think of. This time, Clinton was the one he'd gone to. He'd gotten lost on the way there and had spent an extra ten minutes wandering around the streets bawling like an imbecile. Immediately, when the other opened the door, he ran into his arms, clinging to him wordlessly while he cried.
There were a few things that could trigger these intense breakdowns. Problems at work, mainly, were the cause of all his woes.
"Fine..." His voice was a little unsteady. Hot chocolate sounded good right about now. Maybe that would help to calm his nerves. Slowly, he sank down onto the sofa and took the offered box of tissues. He used one to start absently dabbing at his eyes while he sniffed and reached down with his free hand to pat the cats on their heads.
He seemed to feel, almost at once, that something wasn't normal. He sat up straighter and glanced around, and then his eyes fell on the lone pen with the large cat in it. The cogs started working in Adam's brain, and a frown graced his features. ...That didn't seem like a healthy animal. It wasn't even moving. It looked...miserable, actually. Well, being trapped in a cage would be enough to make any wild animal miserable.
Adam lifted his head when he heard Clinton starting to return. "...Shouldn't you be keeping him outside?" he asked solemnly, nodding toward the very still cheetah.
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