Going For A Ride (reviewer characters)

[IHeart]

(OCC: Prepare for the feels. I will bring Critic and spoony in just a tiny bit but I wanted the shock of IHeart to settle in. Because I want it too)

"Shhh. It's ok. You're gonna be ok. You're alright. You're here" Joe replied, holding closely onto Ma-Ti. He knew the boy was hurting. He knew he had to be there now. He held on. He didn't care if ma-ti felt he didn't deserve it, Joe was simply there for him. That was it. He was so engrained in holding Ma-Ti he didn't notice Roses and Goggles appear at first. He shushed the boy, trying to assure him the best way he could. "I'm not going anywhere buddy. You're gonna be ok. It's all ok"

He then indeed noticed Roses, Nella and Goggles at the moment. He smiled softly to them and responded "Yeah but Ma-Ti's in bad shape. We need to get him inside soon" He turned to Roses "See? I wasn't kidding. Call Spoony and Critic. I'd call them but, well, Ma-Ti's in a bad place right now" He turned and his heart broke at the despair Ma-Ti was clearly showing towards them
XXXXXX

IHeart was not aware of the surprise she was going to have. But she heard chatting outside and assumed something pretty big was going on. Despite her healing nicely, she didn't really have a lot of courage to step outside, yet her curiosity was starting to peak up again. She opened the door of the house, due to her still living here to heal and recuperate, and looked about hearing crying. "Oh god. Is somebody hurt?" She was worried she'd get repremanded for leaving the house but if there was chatting, it was obvious a group was there so why not add more help? So she ran to where the crying was, only to see nella, roses and goggles' backs.

Then the truth came. Due to trying to move on, IHeart thought that this was the least likely thing to happen. Yet she saw him. Ma-Ti. Could it be? Could it really be?! Was it true? Was her prayers, for once, being actually answered. Ma-ti was alive? Tears streamed down her face. She didn't want to punish herself but it was obvious she wasn't the only one not seeing it. Yet somewhere, the critic in her heart, felt it would be wrong. And yet, even then, she wanted to relieve herself. So she allowed the tears of joy to flow, she allowed the tears of her lost love being brought to her to flow. She had ma-ti back. She had him back. And even if it was a joke or a illusion, maybe it would be worth it just to see him back. But then she realized he was hurting and despite her disbelief and own selfish joy, she slowly moved forward.

"Ma-ti. Ma-ti. You're... Back. You're with us. Ma-ti, you're here" She sounded assuring but who was it for she didn't know. Maybe for ma-ti. Maybe for herself. Maybe for both. But she said more "You're back ma-ti!" She then just stood there and covered her face, not wanting to show ma-ti that she was crying but the muffled sobs were a clear indication. Due to ma-ti with joe, she didn't go over to hug him, not sure what to do, so she just was there.

[Ma-Ti]

(ooc: ok cool. up to you who ma-ti bumps into here.)

Ma-Ti sobbed silently as he held Joe tighter. He looked up seeing others arrive. He froze seeing Iheart. He didn't want to see her like this. He didn't want her to see him like this. He got up and bolted taking off this time towards Roses's house. If he could get to his room he could lock the door and just be alone. He just wanted to be alone right now. He got inside opening the door as he ran right into someone as the force shoved him to the ground. He paused looking up shocked at seeing who it was. He wanted to see him and didn't at the same time.

XXXX

Goggles was in shock as Ma-Ti took off running towards Roses's house.

"The poor boy. We have to go after him. Make sure he's okay. Come on." said Goggles.

She turned rushing back to the house although Ma-Ti had a good head start on them.

XXXX

Nella was heartbroken to see Ma-Ti like this. But when Iheart arrived it had the opposite reaction she expected. He ran away from her not towards her. As if he was ashamed to be seen by her.

"Damn Malachite, and anyone else who had a part in this. If I still had my powers I'd go and take care of him myself." said Nella.

She paused hearing Goggles and nodded.

"She's right. We need to check on him. Oh my god. Critic and the others don't know. Someone needs to call them and warn them. They might think it's a trick or something." said Nella.

She turned to Iheart wrapping an arm around her as they made their way back to the house a bit slower than the others.

"Are you okay?" asked Nella.

XXXX

Roses frowned as Ma-Ti bolted upon seeing Iheart. He looked so hurt. So broken. She echoed Nella's statement.

"I understand completely. The people who did this to Ma-Ti need to pay." said Roses.

Goggles then left chasing after Ma-Ti and she nodded. Seeing Nella was taking care of Iheart she turned to Joe.

"Come on. We need to get Ma-Ti. I'll text Spoony. You text Critic. Hopefully they pick up." said Roses.

She texted a quick message to Spoony.

Spoony. Ma-Ti's alive. He was midnight. Now he's human again and he's heading back to my house. Get here fast."

[Angry Joe]

(OCC: This is the best I could do. Wanted to ease the tension slightly. Hope this is ok. Also, quick question but don't you want me to make a IHeart/Ma-Ti thread that helps ma-ti get his voice back/romance with IHeart yet or are we doing that much later? I forgot when we were supposed to do it)

90's kid was busy with hanging out with chester, that he was blind to most of current events, so ma-ti running into him was most likely. He then said to himself as he breathed in the fresh air "Yep. I sure love standing in a possible spot to be trampled on. Ah, I love irony" Suddenly he got crashed on by a random body and saw that it was the actual body of Ma-Ti. The two stared for quite some time before 90's kid shock sinked into excitement "Ma-Ti! You're alive! Dude! This is the most awesome thing ever!" Despite the boy's evident nervousness, 90's kid hugged the boy "Dude! You're alive!" He then saw Joe, Spoony, Roses, Nostalgia Critic and Goggles. 90's kid, unaware of the tension and drama, exclaimed excitedly "Dudes, you're not gonna believe it but ma-ti's here!"
XXXXX

Joe was also shocked with the reaction ma-ti gave to seeing IHeart. He realized it was because of all the drama the poor boy was under, yet a pain was entered into Joe's chest. Suddenly joe saw Ma-Ti running, goggles chasing him and roses telling him to text critic. Without a moment to spare, Joe nodded and ran as well as text Critic. Ma-ti's alive. This is not a joke. Quickly. He's at Roses' house. He was midnight and he's back to being a human. Get here! He then saw Ma-ti collide with 90's kid, spoony and critic arrive and joe just smiled softly at 90's kid naive reaction to it.
XXXXX

IHeart was very shocked that instead of a pleasant response, Ma-Ti ran away. That broke her heart more than anything. Instead of sobbing though, she just wanted to go follow him and demand why he ran off but it was too late. Quickly as he came, he disappeared and IHeart just felt a bit abandoned by that point. It didn't help that goggles, roses and joe were all chasing after him while she felt stuck to the ground. However Nella was very quick to comfort her and IHeart just slowly walked with her, beginning to cry after her shocked reaction to Ma-Ti's running away from her. "Not really" IHeart said honestly "He ran off. I thought he'd be glad to see me. I guess I was wrong. Maybe he just doesn't want to be around me anymore because of all the pain he's been under" She wasn't feeling sorry for herself. She was feeling sorry for Ma-Ti. Unhelpful or not, IHeart never wanted ma-ti to be in pain so this whole thing just made her feel terrible. It was the worst thing for ma-ti and herself. "I don't blame him at all. He was so used to everyone believing he was dead and now he's back and things aren't the same. I'm not the same and neither is he. Maybe... Maybe he won't ever want to be around me anymore because of this. I didn't want this!" She then started sobbing again. She was regretful of this but she was so upset. She couldn't help it.
XXXXXX

Spoony. Ma-Ti's alive. He was midnight. Now he's human again and he's heading back to my house. Get here fast

Spoony read the text over a million times to make sure he was reading what he was reading. Ironically Critic was doing the same thing with Joe's text. The two were simply eating something to calm their stomachs when they got their texts. Critic rubbed his eyes and said to Spoony "Spoony. I got a text from joe. He says..."

"That ma-ti's alive? Got the same thing from roses. It's gotta be true. We gotta get there quick" Spoony said, grabbing a transporter. Critic nodded and did the exact same thing when the two transported right to Roses' house. They ran after goggles, roses and joe and then saw Ma-Ti with 90's kid. Ignoring 90's kid, Critic ran over and responded "Ma-Ti! Oh my god. It's..." Tears began to form on his features "It's actually you! You're back! And human!"

"Ma-Ti. You have no idea how happy you just made me" Spoony said, tears of joy streaming down his face. He turned to Joe and roses before also running over to Ma-Ti "You're back! You're actually back! I can't believe it!" He began getting excited before getting nervous "Ma-ti. Do you need anything? What happened? Are you nervous? Hurt? What do you need?!"

[Ma-Ti]

(ooc: wasn't sure when i wanted the thread. but didn't want a "quick fix" as it were. i think he was going to try to avoid her for awhile and she eventually would be like "stop avoiding me!" xd.)

Nella & Iheart:

Nella shook he head.

"I think that's not it. I think he didn't want you to see how much pain he's in. I can see it. He was broken even as a horse. Afraid to let anyone come near him. Now that he's human again it's even worse. Whatever those bastards did has affected him so badly. I just hope we can help him." said Nella.

Nella paused as she tightened her hug around Iheart.

"I know this has affected all of us including you. He was part of the group that went to rescue you. And when we all thought he died it hurt. But to find out he was a prisoner all this time.... Malachite and Facilier will pay for what they've done to him. Taking his memories, making him their puppet, turning him into a horse, making him afraid... all of it." said Nella.

Everyone Else:

Ma-Ti whimpered as 90's Kid hugged him. He pushed himself off him. He had to get away. The others were catching up. Then he froze seeing Spoony and Critic arrive and paled. It was bad enough seeing Iheart but seeing them made it worse. Facilier and Malachite's words echoed in his mind. They all thought he was dead. There was going to be no rescue. If they hadn't been caught during their last attack he would still be their prisoner. And to top it off he couldn't speak to anyone except Facilier, Malachite, and horses like Spirit thanks to him still being partially under their spell. He turned realizing the stairs were blocked so he just bolted to the living room. He just wanted to be alone. He couldn't take their pity or their apologies. Now he was starting to wish he was still a horse. Now the only comfort he had Spirit was going to be ripped away from him.

"Uncle Spirit! He doesn't know I'm human. I have to let him know I'm ok." thought Ma-Ti.

He kept running opening the back door as it slammed signaling he left. He went to the stables rushing up to Spirit and hugged him.

"I'm human now. The spell's worn off. Well partly. But I still can't speak to anyone except Facilier, Malachite, and horses like you. I tried and it came out like a neigh. It was so humiliating." said Ma-Ti.

To anyone who followed him it would look like Ma-Ti was neighing with Spirit.

XXXX

Roses and Goggles walked in remaining quiet not sure what to say. Poor Ma-ti was a wreck. And they didn't want to make things worse. Goggles walked up to Spoony hugging him as Ma-Ti bolted to the living room.

"Be gentle with him. He's scared and hurt. Whatever those bastards did to him changed him. He hasn't spoken since we found him." said Goggles.

[Spoony]

(OCC: Sorry for being so late. But yeah, I know it's not going to be a quick fix, it'll take a while and the thread is the icing to the cake. Starting with IHeart just demanding ma-ti to stop avoiding her and eventually have the spell-breaking kiss where he gets his voice and his feelings back. I still feel bad we're torturing this boy. Good thing once this is over he and IHeart will get a well-deserved break together)

Nella and IHeart

IHeart turned, listening to nella's words carefully and realized she was right. Ma-Ti was just struggling. It wasn't even his fault. He was just so scared and broken. Worse than she was. It wasn't fair to him to assume he didn't want to see her. "You're right nella. I shouldn't be thinking like that. I know deep in my heart he still loves me. He's just upset and so confused. And malachite and facilier did god knows what. They'll pay for what they did to him, I'll make sure they will never touch him again" Her tears stopped but her eyes burned with rage. She hated those two for what they did to him and she would make sure they got a scar or two from her.

She then softened her temper as Nella tightened her hug and she hugged right back. Listening to nella was extremely helpful. She nodded softly, tears resuming to stream down her face "You're right. We will. It's just hard for me to see this happen to him. I want to make it better somehow. I just want to hug him again but... I know he's too panicky. I think I should give him some space for a bit"
XXXX

Others

"Whoa dude where are you going?" 90's kid said shocked as Ma-Ti silently ran off to the back and went to the stables. He then saw Roses, Goggles, Spoony and Critic stay around for the moment. 90's kid sighed and said "He's back but not the same huh?" He asked to Joe. He then took off his glasses and wiped his now teary eyes "I came too strong huh. Poor ma-ti. I didn't mean to scare him off"

Joe was silent and very saddened by the very unfortunate occurrence. He turned to Goggles and responded "He can't speak because he's a bit cursed still. He can talk but in horse neighs. But he's really scared so we'll give him some space and then we'll check on him. He might still not wanna talk to us but it'll give us a update" He then turned to 90's kid and sighed "I'm afraid not my man. But it's not your fault. He's just in a really bad place. Don't blame yourself it won't do good"
XXXX

Critic was shocked to see Ma-Ti so frightened but then looking back at all that has happened, ma-ti's death wasn't being a death at all but just some scam by malachite. The very person alongside facilier that constantly tortured, frightened, abused and harmed ma-ti, it immediately made sense to why he did so. So critic's shock immediately turned to self-loathing. How the hell could he be so stupid?! How did he not notice the signs? Why did ma-ti above all people deserve such abuse? It just wasn't fair to the critic. He turned to Roses, a sad smile on his features "I'm glad to see him back" His smile immediately vanished "But not like this. I want the poor kid to be happy"
XXXX

Spoony meanwhile just frowned upon the instant look Ma-Ti gave him. He was so foolish to believe that Ma-Ti would be back to normality. What was he, an idiot? Spoony was about to talk calmly, trying to appear non-threatening but ma-ti gave him the slip by running off. He then felt someone hug him and he turned to see it was goggles. Saddened but glad she was here, Spoony hugged her back, gently kissing her head "I know. He needs space. I'll give him whatever he needs" He then turned to hear Joe say that ma-ti's suffering was still in tact, due to being cursed to neigh. He growled softly "Those magic-loving sons of bitches. If I see them, I'll get my gunblade and slice it through their spines" He then kept hugging goggles, as he turned to Critic and said "So do I. But he also needs to be free in order to be happy and that's not really done it seems"
XXXXX

Spirit turned and immediately recognized ma-ti due to his familiar neighing and scent, that and spirit remembered what ma-ti looked like as a human. Spirit in relief to see ma-ti ok, allowed the boy to hug his snout and spirit nuzzled and tried to comfort the child the best way he knew how. "It is alright, my friend, I'm here. I am very sure it was completely out-of-place. How the spell worn off in this fashion I have no clue but I am glad to see that you are partly finished with this terrible curse" He nuzzled some more and responded softly, looking at the boy's eyes, and saw nothing but fear. He knew ma-ti was scared to face the others, and spirit wouldn't push him now. He was here to comfort at the moment. "You are safe here. The door should be easy to open, should you choose to hang around here longer"