|
|
Post by Vyn on Feb 23, 2011 11:11:27 GMT -5
Kaden honestly wished he could be nicer to Alicia. Ever since Marchie had had a 'fit' last fall, not even Hatter had let him go talk to the Jack. Kaden was terribly sad to lose his bizarre window into the Rabbit world, however confused and muddled it could be at times, and had honestly hoped he'd get a chance to question Alicia for more. Not so, it would seem, this was all too busy and, honestly, holding her all day was going to be a pain.
Maybe they could find her a cute little harness? Or he could slip off for a moment and beg her to behave? He could always claim that impressive mane covered her rank...
All questions and concerns aside, Kaden relaxed notably when Alicia amended her statement. "I can understand that," he mumured to her with a little frown briefly brushing the edge of his beak. "Little concerned about it myself, but I want to give her the benefit of the doubt..." There were good questions floating around -- especially about the effects of the potion on the living --, Kaden took them all in with a hopeful ear but momentarily focused on Brandy and Alicia.
He smiled to the horse. Thankfully thinking on the spot was his strong suit. "Nah, actually. Friend of a friends. 'Tis why I was comin' out this way, was supposed to be sitting her. No one told me she was an escape artist." He chuckled casually. "I'm sure she appreciates the compliment, don't ya Alicia? She really is a beauty of a Highlander." He leaned his long neck in closer, whispering slightly. "Got the temper of one too, right?"
|
|
|
|
Post by Nathalia on Feb 23, 2011 23:30:27 GMT -5
((Suvius gave the girl, Kendra? A light pat on the back at her delight over the little figure. Ah, she liked kids, usually, wanted a good bunch someday; some proper brats to bat around and feed sweets to when they were good.
"I'm glad yeh likes it. T'were a good little luck charm fer me, hopefully it'll be the same fer you, righ'?"
She turned back to Kaden and his questions, giving him a sweet smile. "From whit me'n my Corvie pal could figure, 'spretty permanent, ye ken? Sticks inter der fur like nobody's business." Her smile faltered, only slightly at his next question.
"Really, now? Dey's jus' toys, y'know? If dey's made t'look like important people...well, le's jus' say dat my history leanrin's coulda been better, yeah?" She chortled and gave him a flirtatious push before watching her Pallie squirm in the water.
"De fish be fine, mate, no worries. We tested dat first, all right. Heh, yer Mum'd ruin any good party jus' by showin' 'er mug from de way you been puttin' it. Good ting you got Juall der t'liven' up de place, eh?" She snickered, letting out a small yelp of surprise when a fish was flung her way, but then laughing, tearing it in half and offering some to Jordan, before downing her piece.
"Ah, Don' feel too bad fer us, den. Me Mum's already said it was de stupidest ting she ever dun did, ye ken? De thought he mighta loved her was de one what shot her in de foot, damn Selkies." She spat a fish bone. "Ah, no dat magic's not easy tae find. My whole life's work, dis. Me 'n a Corvie pal, old Bull, poor guys been out a while, haven't heard from him in a bit. Expensive, but I got him n' his Foxy friend tae back quite a bit into it...expectin' a lot by backin' de Benyan, y'see?"
She smiled, showing off her teeth and snickered, taking her Animal form for a second in order to better frolic about to show off her good humor, reverting to her usual, taller form, directly after.
The other girl, the good runner, looked a bit put out.
"Aw, girl. Now worries, jus' don't tink abou' dat 'un. It involves lots o'wailing about dem poor pretty coats and some tears what looks like ink...n'such." She shrugged and seemed to be trying to shrug it off. "Me 'n m'Pallie tried it last night, actually, but I been runnin' this little operation here fer abou' a week, now."
She completely ignored the Horse, having taken a disliking to the prissy thing.
Instead turning to show off the river, the black goopiness completely gone and the entire thing looking like harmless water again.
"See, what'd I tell yehs? Perfectly clear again. Not'ing outta place...not until it's too late, ye ken?"))
~Nathalia
|
|
|
|
Post by Harpsdesire on Feb 24, 2011 13:57:39 GMT -5
Now that she felt reasonably comfortable that the potion, whatever it was, didn’t have a fatal effect on the Selkies it discolored, Kendra didn’t flinch away from Suvius’s hand. The pat transferred some water onto her shoulder, and it stayed there, making her fur damp but having no other consequences, just as water should. This was a great relief to her, and she felt her mind settling back into a calmer pattern.
Not that permanently disfiguring an entire realm of people wasn’t still quite reprehensible, of course, but if what Suvius said was true, maybe the Selkies were kind of asking for it… No, she couldn’t really believe that. Logic dictated that there was no absolute consensus among all the cards of a realm, and this nasty prank would harm those Selkies who wanted to help the Riverlands and those who had nothing to do with the exploitation just as much as the cards who had been involved. That wasn’t fair or nice. She knew she wouldn’t like being turned yellow just because some other Corvie had done something bad.
She was sure Suvius wouldn’t approve, nor consider it fair, if the Selkies took revenge for her ‘harmless’ prank by dying all the Benyans mauve or something, either. It was just… not a logical course of action. "A permanat color change... that's a serious prank."
Her ears perked up at the mention of the Corvie bull. And then… Fox? It was an odd coincidence that the breeds were the same as the little tin toys she had produced. Why would she have toys exactly like her friends, anyway? And if she did, wouldn’t she have mentioned it when Kaden asked about the trinkets? She examined the small gift with a thoughtful expression.
Alicia was feeling more comfortable with the clever Kaden as time passed, and it was somewhat comforting to see that he was the type that hoped the best of people, but prepared for the worst. That was sort of how she was too, or at least, how she wanted to be. If he thought the Benyan card deserved the benefit of the doubt, well… ”I suppose.” She agreed with him rather grudgingly. ”Just don’t get me anywhere near that water. I’m sure she hasn’t considered what the effects on rabbits might be.” She peered at the now innocuous-looking river suspiciously. Good thing this particular body of water didn’t flow anywhere near Vikenti’s warren. At least, not as far as she knew.
When Brandy appeared, Kendra nodded solemnly at her, eyes wide in an attempt at an innocent expression. This was something she had practice in—looking innocent, or playful, sweet or sensual. Anything a Jack might like, preparing for the day when she would find a Jack worthy of owning her as a Doe. Secretly, she had spent an obscene amount of her free time posing in front of mirrors or cultivating a womanly voice and posture. This was carefully hidden from the other leverets, who would probably think her insane.
She smiled at the compliment, careful not to show teeth. ”Thank you.” She said to Brandy in a childlike voice, as if responding to Kaden’s prompting. To her surprise, she felt a funny little jolt of pleasure when the bird noticed her beauty. She was an exemplary specimen of classic Highlands beauty, but it was quite a rare person, card or rabbit, that seemed to notice.
Part of becoming the idea Doe she dreamed of being was cultivating the temperament of a true Highlander, too. Strong and proud, fiery in spirit but well-bred in manner—She knew herself to have the bearing of a lady but the heart of a warrior. Alicia considered the comment about her temper a compliment, and held herself a little straighter and prouder. Her posture of abject misery was not fitting to one of her realm, nor quality. Golden eyes closed just a touch, shaded by long lashes as she looked up at Kaden, obviously pleased by his flattery.
((She’s so vain it’s painful sometimes. Guhhh.))
|
|
|
|
Post by Nako on Feb 24, 2011 23:00:29 GMT -5
Brandy was suddenly distracted by the lack of rank and suit of the "child" by the fact that he was being outright ignored. He filed it away in his mind that perhaps the girl's marking was hidden by her strange mane. She certainly seemed nice and polite enough for a child; it would be terribly rude to go out pointing any disfigurements. What if the poor girl's marking was abnormally high on her chest? How embarrassing would that be? Was that even possible? Perhaps he could find a book on that now that he was out of the brothel; they severely limited the books that he was allowed to read and he hadn't fully taken advantage of his new freedom yet.
He flashed the little child a smile, but quickly resumed watching the whole ordeal, folding his arms over his chest in his best pout. How rude! Not that he'd say anything to cross her openly… she was a woman after all. Instead, he'd just do his best to look dejected in his own sad little corner.
|
|
|
|
Post by Vyn on Feb 25, 2011 10:36:18 GMT -5
Kaden broke in a wide grin. "Ha! I see! I gotta admit I'm in the same boat with that," he admitted with a cheerful nudge back. "Musta just reminded me of someone I saw in a bar not too long ago." He chuckled, casually letting the statement hang in the air however she'd take it.
Were it not for that fox with an eyepatch he'd have thought the dolls could've been anyone but that was just too striking. However, if she said it was no one than it was no one.
He'd rather believe in the best than just accept the worst.
Except now she was chatting about and old Bull and his Foxy friend and... Hadn't been back in a while? Might be because the old chaps had a rather large knife stuck through their skulls. Huuuh. What had seemed like problematic before now seemed highly unfortunate.
Still, he nodded cautiously to Alicia. "Yeah, I understand. Won't let you near it for a sec." He smiled at the exchange between her and Brandy. Highlanders were always so vain and, if it wasn't just his imagination, Alicia seemed to relax a little in his grip. Maybe he could set her down? He kept his voice low, watching Suvius romp in her animal form for a minute. "Hey. So if I let you down, will you just hang tight and ride on my back? I think stickin' together's our best bet and, honestly, I'm sure hanging in my talons like that ain't fun."
When Suvius stopped, Kaden perked back up and his head tilted a little to the side. The water looked right as rain, as if nothing had ever been there. He tried not to frown and forced the look of interest back on. "So it's still potent even though you can't see it now? How long does it last in the water before it dissipates or dilutes?"
Considering the water rushed downstream at a fairly steady rate, it should clear out of this area rather quick... but if the stuff didn't dilute and just continued on down... It could make it to the Capital, into people's drinking water... Everywhere, really. And all those Selkies who thought that what their higher ups did to the Benyans was terrible and booked it out of the region to live a fresh life elsewhere... They'd get sick as well.
It'd never been so hard for Kaden to maintain his smile in all his life, but he did it. For the sake of science, and for the tiny tiny hope that this was all just a horrible discoloration and nothing more. They'd be upset, yeah, but ultimately fine. It was a small reassurance, but it was the only one he had.
|
|
|
|
Post by Nathalia on Feb 27, 2011 21:08:34 GMT -5
(( Suvius gave a wary glance in the direction of the water as her Pallie crawled out.
Something had sounded...
Nah.
"Aye, I git yer reservations onn'at." She shrugged to Kendra. "Might seem a bid deal fer some, but you know...when yeh've lived it. Well, den it gets different, ye ken?"
She didn't want to make the girl uncomfortable, Corvies thought things through too hard sometimes, she knew. But, what had been done had been called for, she knew...
She knew...
Kaden's comment seemed to catch her off-guard and she stared at him for a few seconds, unable to say anything while her brain seemed to be trying to catch up before she smiled.
"Weird world sometimes, do et be, eh?" She shrugged. "Oh aye, potent fer as long a it can be, I reckon. Tweren't made to dissolve. I was jus'-"
The water behind them all roiled and then smoothed back over, as though something beneath it moved.
Suvius didn't seem to have noticed and had instead, pranced back over to Jordan and was talking happily.
Kaden, Kendra, and Brandy; however, all saw what looked like something huge and black heave its way out of the water and roll into the tall vegetation on the bank.
There was silence for a minute.
Then, with a roar of rage and horror, a monster burst out of the undergrowth.
Without another sound, it hurled itself at Jordan, writhing like mad and making a horrible, guttural scream.
Suvius made a desperate strangled noise, and took off back towards the hotel.))~Nathalia |
|
|
|
Post by Harpsdesire on Feb 28, 2011 0:43:10 GMT -5
”I can only hope so, could use a little good luck.” Kendra smiled, trying her best to remind herself that whatever quarrel Suvius had with the Selkies was none of her business and what she had done to the water was done, there was no way to undo it any longer. It was beyond her control. Beyond her control-- the phrase grated uncomfortably, it prodded that panicky part of her brain that was beyond the reach of logic's cool hand. ”I can see how that would be different.” She told the Benyan noncommittally. She sounded agreeable enough, if unconvinced.
Alicia was growing weary of being held as if she was the filthy card's plaything, so when he offered to let go, she was eager to accept. It didn't hurt that he promised to keep her away from the water, and seemed to actually have some concern for the discomfort she was feeling in his tight grip. ”I will cooperate with you.” She agreed, perhaps a bit less enthusiastic as would have been strictly polite, but if he loosened his grip she would be true to her words and cling as best she could to his back, watching the goings-on over his shoulder. ”Thank you.” Her tone was more relieved than haughty as she settled against him lightly, long ears pricking forward to take in Suvius's words.
The water in the river seemed to bubble, then stop for a moment as Kendra stared into it curiously. It looked like something just came out of the water, then hid. Maybe some of the river-life actually was affected by the potion after all? ”Hey, you guys, did anyone else see--” Her words were cut short when a huge inky thing appeared, bellowing. Kendra wanted to say something, an expletive seemed uniquely appropriate for the moment, but when she opened her mouth only a high-pitched scream came out.
What was that thing?! For the first time all day, Alicia was grateful to be with the protection of a group. (Although it did cross her mind that if not for Jordan's capture and Kaden's restraint she'd be on her way back to the highlands by now, and nowhere near this tarry monstrosity). She was trembling a little as she hunkered down into the feathers of Kaden's back, ears pinned so that only her eyes and the top of her head would be visible over the bird's shoulder.
|
|
|
|
Post by The Jenn on Feb 28, 2011 16:15:48 GMT -5
Uluani dragged herself cheerfully enough from the water, shoving around a few tiny fishbones in her mouth and shaking herself at the same time. Her fur was waterlogged, but that was nothing new. She would dry quickly. A few spits and the bones were out, at least the ones she could reach. Yummy little snacks.
She missed the rippling in the water entirely, having shuffled over towards Suvius after shaking a bit more. With a yawn, she stared at Kendra. "Dey can pay to have it change or stay ugly. Not like deir fur's anytin' much special anyway. Dis jus' makes it dat much worse."
Then something attacked. Some thing, quite literally, because it looked like nothing so much as a giant, moving mass of sludge hellbent on attacking them. The girl yelled on instinct, jerking back and away from its path towards Jordan. "Ay, WHAT?!" she yelped. "Suvius, whachu wake up in dere, mon?!"
|
|
|
|
Post by Vyn on Feb 28, 2011 16:39:51 GMT -5
(I apologize in advance if this is terrible. Having a long hard day so my focus is... not the best. @_x)
Suivus's response seemed terribly unusual. Had she just... zoned out? Was she thinking of something to say against his comment? But not, she went on as if nothing had happened -- even her pause -- and still she didn't divulge anything about a remedy.
Could there really not be one? That... that would be horrible.
He took a moment from his own concerns to shift about with Alicia and make sure she was comfortable on his back. He'd never meant to have to carry her about like that and Suits was it good to be back on his own two feet! He retracted the four long limbs and fluffed up his feathers happily. Alicia would be cozily tucked between the fluffy white peacock wings, ever exuding confidence...
And it seemed Kaden would need it.
Just as he seemed to have gotten comfortable he noticed something broil in the water. Something huge, black... and ...sludgy? Feeling somewhat uncomfortable, he stuffed the ace pelt into his traveling bag and took a few steps back. He only managed to half opened his mouth to agree with Kendra when something exploded from the underbrush. The muttbird squawked in shock, cobra-esque hood flaring open in surprise as he recoiled a couple steps.
Until he noticed it was rushing Jordan. Suvius, Suiuvs had mentioned monsters but not Rotters... He cursed mentally. "EY JORDAN MOVE!" He shouted before quickly glancing over his shoulder. "Off, Alicia. Sorry, run run... I'm going to do somethin' stupid now." If she didn't move quickly enough, he'd flare his wings and send her toppling into the safety of the grass and then, just as he said, he did the stupidest thing he could've dreamed of and rushed to knock Jordan out of the monsters path.
Which, of course, now put him dead in the way. Oh Suits, he was going to die. Flaring up all his feathers and even that fetching cobra hood, Kaden tried to make himself as big and threatening as possible as he squawked, "STOP!"
|
|
|
|
Post by carcinoGeneticist on Feb 28, 2011 18:41:59 GMT -5
Lost in the conversation about poison and pranks and revenge on the Selkies, Jordan had been lulled into a false sense of semi-security. She was doing her best to push her worries aside, for the time being, but this situation was quickly striking her as somewhat more dire than she'd wanted to believe.
A poison that would spread through the waterways without coming apart? That was a strange and rather terrifying thought. It just struck her as being somehow extreme, though a small part of her was gloating. They deserved it, they did.
Mostly.
She turned her attention away from the river for just long enough to miss the warning blob. She even missed most of the appearance of the terrible monster. What caught her attention, however, was the brightly colored bird launching himself at her and bodily shoving her out of the creature's path. With a yelp of shock, she tumbled head-over-heels out of its way, finally seeing it. "What de FUCK is dat?![/b]" She screeched, scrabbling to get back to her feet. It was headed right for Kaden, which meant it had been heading for her --
Without thinking, the Marten lunged forward and grabbed the bird by one of his strange legs, yanking to try and pull him back out of its path.
There was a long moment in which Sophie was lost. The whole conversation had frightened her and made her feel honest terror. Poisoning people was just wrong, on all accounts. She had to get to her mother, but she didn't know how best to do that now without getting the crazy woman's attention. Now, there was a monster attacking the other Benyan. Was it confused?
Regardless, this seemed like the only chance she was going to get. She tugged urgently at Lyr's hand, eyes wide. "We've gotta go. We need to find my mom." Then she whirled to face the Corvie girl, giving her a similar look. The three of them could get help.
|
|
