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Post by Vyn on Feb 25, 2008 22:17:26 GMT -5
The singing of song birds would be the first thing to rise the dirt-smudged canine from his sleeping. His long, slender limbs stretched and bumped unceremoniously into the thin walls of his cardboard home causing his blue eyes to cringe open. He really needed a bigger box, didn't he? Changing into his bipedal form, the dainty ball of fur and color reached out to gently brush aside the curtain which served as his door. The sun was just barely peeking into his little alley and he let out a cheerful little sigh. Sunrise was his favorite time. When the world was all new with its dewy freshness, quiet and still and sleepy. Blue eyes were instantly bright and alert, used to waking up fast. There was only so much time that he would have before the world fully awoke and he wanted to get breakfast still. His mane was in a tangle of brilliant dreads and his fur wasn't much better either, but there wasn't much one could do for being dirty when they slept in an alley. As quiet as a mouse, he crept through the back alleys until he found the bazaar. The venders were only just putting out their wares and in their distraction he was able to score himself some breakfast. With a small loaf of bread and an apple tucked in his bag, he hurried back through the shadows of sunrise and made it back to his small 'home'. He ate as quickly and quietly as he did everything else, not wanting to risk his meal being stolen by others like himself; starving -- desperate. It wouldn't be the first time either. Some time later, when the birds had stopped singing their morning songs, he sat out in a patch of rare sunlight in his grimy alley and whittled at the makeshift flute he'd been fine tuning for the last couple of weeks. And, as he worked, his soft voice would fill the alley with warm song. It wasn't the sort of singing one expected to hear from the depth of an alley, oh no, but the unrefined beauty of a natural artist of the voice. Singing was the best thing in the world and his passion was so great that if he were ever to be muted he would've died shortly from pure despair. So, with a light heart and an angel's voice, he sang and he whittled and passed the morning into early afternoon. |
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Post by Kari Muffin on Feb 25, 2008 22:38:52 GMT -5
Another nightmare. Theofilus gave a frustrated sigh as he brushed his gloved fingers through his hair. It wouldn't be as bad if he hadn't forgotten half of what was said in the dream. He just had a lingering feeling of dread at something he shouldn't know, but desperately wanted to know. It was those damn birds, he was sure of it. A walk would make him feel better, hopefully. The sparrow sighed as he walked down the empty streets. No one was out this early, where they? He should enjoy it while it lasted, he had to go back to the palace very soon. Matters couldn't be put off very long because he felt like taking a trip to see his family. Well they could, but people would complain about it. Screw them though, he had gotten amazing news while he was home. Theofilus stopped dead in his tracks when he heard a voice. Who... who on earth was singing in a place like this. His good eye widened as he looked around for the source of the rather amazing music. After a short while he was able to find something... a box... the voice was coming from someone inside a box? He raised an eyebrow, "Hello...? Is someone in there?" |
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Post by Vyn on Feb 25, 2008 23:11:32 GMT -5
The song he was weaving on the spot was very abruptly cut short by the sudden intrusion of a voice. Not just any voice, but a voice that he did not know. He knew most of the other homeless in this area and that voice definitely did not belong to one of them. Fuzzy yellow ears perked forward and the fox set his work down to crawl up to the curtain and peek his dainty, but painfully filthy, head out.
Bright blue eyes blinked up at the Human and he shrunk down a little in uncertainty. He looked like someone important and important people were rarely nice to him. They made fun of him for living in boxes and being dirty and skinny from hunger. "I... I'm here." He said softly, voice high and feminine and as melodious as it was in song. "Is there somethin you need?"
For a little street rat, he sure didn't fit the stereotyped part.
He was delicate and beautiful despite his dirt-smudged features and appeared to have a decent head on his shoulders for all that he lived in a cardboard box. He was an autodidact, or at least that's what his one and only 'teacher' had ever called him. Even growing up on the street he had hungrily devoured everything he could about the world above his little 'pit'. Even if he couldn't write and would fail at even some of the more basic mathematical equations, he could proudly announce that he had perfect pitch and could play any song on any instrument after hearing it even once.
If only people would just give him the chance.
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Post by Kari Muffin on Feb 25, 2008 23:23:46 GMT -5
Well, that was an interesting turn of events. A girl in a box. Well, it generally looked like a girl and sounded like one, but Theofilus had been surprised more than once. He smiled at the person. "I heard you singing and was wondering..."
What exactly was he wondering? What could you say to a person who was obviously homeless with amazing talent. Well, you could offer them a job. "I was wondering if you wanted to work at the Court of Diamonds."
It was a little more direct than he wanted it to be, but he didn't feel like playing with word choice this early in the morning. "What's your name by the way? I don't want to call you "Hey You." My name, by the way, is Theofilus." Maybe the girl would make the connection maybe not. He wasn't sure how homeless people kept up with the news, or if they would even care. He wouldn't if he was homeless.
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Post by Vyn on Feb 25, 2008 23:35:57 GMT -5
As the man spoke, the fox edges more fully from his box. He heard him singing? He wasn't telling him to shut up though... Did he like it then? Some people did, and they'd sit and ask him to sing songs and toss a few coins to him, maybe this man would do the same!
He'd been moments from crawling out of the box and offering to sing something for him when the man said something that the lithe canine could not believe. A job? A job in the Court of Diamonds?! The flood of emotion that rushed through his feminine features was absolutely indescribable. Happiness, tears of joy even, and all the while his jaw hung open in an adorably unmannerly expression of his shock. He attempted to speak once or twice and simply made a few soft, inarticulate noises before something of coherency finally fell out in the most graceless way possible.
"Y-yeah."
The canine shook his head abruptly, pulling himself from out of his box and standing promptly before the man who had so wonderously offered to give him a job. The name, as well as politics, meant little to a mind filled with nothing but music, but he would never forget it now. Not ever.
"Thank you, sir. I'd love that, I'd love a job!" The Villa/Garden mix was trembling for joy. "Thank you again. Thank you, Mister Theofilus." Er, how many times had he said that now? Was he making a fool of himself? Probably, it had happened before... Oh please, don't let me screw this up again! He forced his happy trembling to stop. Or, well, it would have regardless since Theo's question caused him to come up quite short. Name? He didn't...really have one. "U-Urchin, everybody calls me Urchin."
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Post by Kari Muffin on Feb 26, 2008 1:55:00 GMT -5
On closer inspection the girl... was very flat chested for a girl. Actually it might be a boy. Theofilus was having a really difficult time telling, and judging from the bright colors this person was from Yarrow and from the writing Villa. That didn't narrow anything down.
At least she... he... was happy with getting a job. A bath would be needed beforehand though. And maybe a proper name? "Well... Urchin, I don't think I can call you that with a straight face for very long. Maybe we should try to give you a different name more fitting for your job? But uh..."
Oh he hated to do this. "I don't mean to be rude, but what exactly is your gender? It's rude to ask, but if you're going to have a name it needs to find your gender as well. Also... you need to get cleaned up. Maybe we should walk and talk?"
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Post by Vyn on Feb 26, 2008 9:09:11 GMT -5
Urchin, for that was what he'd always heard himself being called by others, blinked in surprise at the questions offered to him. He wanted to give him a name and take him somewhere... Would he be coming back? And...his gender. Oh, that was harder to answer! Well, not so hard that Urchin didn't know that he was very much a boy but hard in the fact that he wasn't sure what would be the safer answer.
The fox scuffed his foot on the dirty ground. "I'm a boy." He murmured softly, looking at the ground in a manner that could only be called shameful. "But... But I can be a girl, if that's better for you." He shifted his body, accenting his more feminine features. "I get mistaken for one all the time anyway, I don't mind."
As for walking... He didn't know if he was coming back and he wasn't going to leave home without his stuff. Not that he had much of anything. "Alright, walking and talking... One moment." And with that he dipped down and slid into his box, gathering his few earthly possessions into the dirty shoulder bag he carried with him.
"Okay! We can go now!" He bounced a little bit closer, running delicate fingers through his terribly matted mane. It fell roughly to his shoulders and would probably need to be cropped a good deal shorter in order to remove all the terrible knots that had taken over. "Will I be coming back home again? I brought my stuff, though... So I don't really have to, if... if I can stay somewhere else?" He glanced over at the Sparrow with hopeful blue eyes. He couldn't remember the last time he had a real home...
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Post by Kari Muffin on Feb 26, 2008 12:01:59 GMT -5
"I'm perfectly fine with you being a boy. There's nothing wrong with your gender the way it is," Theofilus said with a slight sigh. Apparently he had grown up with the Yarrow Gardens mentality then? Thank you society for screwing up the youth once again.
He watched as the young man slipped back into the box to gather things in a rather dirty handbag. This was going to be interesting, wasn't it? He waited until the boy was ready to go before he started walking. "If you intend to work at the Court of Diamonds, you'll be living there. You'll have a room to yourself, proper meals, and so forth." Theofilus explained.
"But until then you need get get cleaned up at my apartment. You're going to have to look proper before you step into the palace. And... I need to figure out something to call you beside Urchin." What to call an feminine young man who had amazing musical talents and was formerly homeless? "Would you mind if I called you Neil?"
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Post by Vyn on Feb 26, 2008 12:42:26 GMT -5
It was not so much that Urchin followed the Garden mentality, but that he had grown accustomed to people being disgusted or disappointed by his gender. So many assumed, at first, that he was a girl that when they realized he was a boy, they were revolted.
But that was neither here nor there. Theo knew he was a boy from the get go and he wouldn't be upset when he found out, because he said he didn't mind in the first place. So they could be friends and Urchin would only have to wear skirts or dresses when he wanted to.
Everything Theo said just seemed to get better and better! The little fox's tail was wagging quite heartily by the time he'd finished speaking and his eyes were brimming with happiness.
Not only was he going to have a room of his own and proper meals and all that stuff, but he was actually going to have a proper name too? Not just the obscene shouts that angry venders tossed at him? He bobbed his head eagerly, hurrying back to Theo's side after the shock of Theofilus's statement wore off his and his legs seemed capable of moving properly again.
"No, I wouldn't mind at all! Neil is great! Thank you!" His fluffy tail was wagging heavily with excitement, his eyes shining. What could he ever do to repay Theofilus for all of this?
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Post by Kari Muffin on Feb 26, 2008 13:23:36 GMT -5
Theofilus smiled. All right, now that was settled they could walk to the apartment and get him cleaned up. It was going to take a lot of work, wasn't it? Theofilus sighed as he remembered trying to clean up Eilwyn, and that Neil would probably need to visit a doctor very soon as well. His health couldn't be that good if he was living on the streets.
The walk was longer than he expected, he hummed to himself quietly, and was probably out of tune. He never was good with music.
He unlocked the door and ushered the boy through. "This is my apartment. Let's get you cleaned up," Theofilus said cheerily as he shut the door behind him. "Please follow me to the bathroom," he said as he made his way to the said room.
He had no idea what experience the boy had with running water and all of that. A shower would probably be easier if he knew how to use it, and then Theofilus would sit him in a bath and try to deal with his hair. Might need a professional for that though. "So, do you want to take a shower or a bath? Either way this is going to be a drawn out production."
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