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Post by Carrow on Jan 3, 2011 17:08:11 GMT -5
"Oh, it's no problem, Caden," Carrow responded good-naturedly. "No need for you to apologise at all." The pine marten spoke a little more, and the mouse's eyes brightened considerably, his tail rising into the air once more, but not falling over his face - as this wasn't an embarrassing moment for him.
The delighted rodent was doing his absolute utmost to keep the aforementioned appendage positioned in mid-air, squirrel fashion. So much about Carrow could be discerned from the way he carried himself, but more than anything else, what his tail was doing quite often indicated what sort of condition he was in.
When he was upset, or unable to conceal the almost-constant weariness that plagued him (albeit not quite as badly as it had been known to do in the past), his tail scuffed the ground despondently. When he was asleep (even though his slumbers were still not as deep as he would have liked to achieve, even though he was indeed making progress), it curled around his footpaws.
In cases like this, however, when he was ecstatic about something, it rose up behind him, sometimes swaying ever so gently from side to side. It remained static for the moment, however - though there were times when it really did seem to have a life of its own.
"I'd love for you to accompany me, of course! It doesn't matter to me when we go, Caden. Anytime we could manage it would be superb as it is. I too have heard a lot about the place, so believe me when I say I'm not just drawn to it because of the opportunity to meet the famous Franz Mesmer. It fascinates me, so I'll seize any chance we get with both paws!," he exclaimed, smiling as he peeked over at his longtail companion's painting.
It was with wide eyes that he gazed at the picture. Selvis caught him admiring it and smiled. "This is a terrific paining, mate, take it from me," the mustelid murmured. "Rather eye-catching, I'm sure you'll agree. Caden, yes, I will certainly tell you anything you might want to know about me," he said gently, glancing up.
"I'll admit I haven't been all that forthcoming about my home life, but I could certainly amend that. Tell you some more about Crittenden if you want," he added as his mouse friend returned his brown-eyed gaze to the pine marten. His eyes twinkled softly as he received a wink from Caden. He was quite excited about *that* particular prospect, too; hence his tail still standing erect above him.
"That painting was a very well-chosen present, and thanks must also go to the creature who portrayed my home so wonderfully. It's almost like I'm transported back there when I look at it, and such a thing makes me feel quite good, regardless of the circumstances I find myself in. I should expect to have this for always now. It's very kind of you."
--
Sveltlana was indeed facing into a bleak future, and she was indeed wondering if she could cope with the strain of seeing everything she had ever known being swept away before her very eyes. Her life was crumbling around her and she had to do all she could to keep her emotions in check and not burst into tears there in front of everybeast.
When she finally spoke, however, it was no use trying to disguise the tremble in her voice, so she let Monty in on a little secret. "I look frightened because... well... I am frightened... I'm not sure what to do from here," she admitted, her face the very picture of despair. She needed time to get things together, or at least to try and put them behind her until such a time as she could deal with them properly.
"This is all happening far too fast for my liking... I am... how would you put it? Caught between a rock and a hard place? I think that's what I'm looking for... I need time to think, but,,, oh, I don't want to think of such things on a night like this. I really don't... not here, and not in your company. I owe it to myself not to spoil my evening with such ruminations. There's a time and a place for that... and right here and now just doesn't suit..." She trailed off. There had to be somewhere she could start. There just had to.
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Post by bookity101 on Jan 4, 2011 9:36:17 GMT -5
Elle watched as her friends exchanged gifts, and smiled as Selvis clearly was thrilled with his present, or "absolutely chuffed" as the weasel might say it. her smile stayed as she turned and bowed slightly to Lady Margrove as she came up,but she choose to remain silent, simply nodding along with Selvis and Caden's assurances that he wasn't a bother, and he really wasn't... noisy yes, and a little loopy, most assuredly, but not any trouble.
Elle found that her mouth seemed to be sealed shut right now. It seemed that everything was going to fall to pieces latter tonight. And she wanted to remember everything as it was, for even a few minutes more...
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Luxe cocked his head to her. Some things really confused him about the jill before him, she was constantly asking for his stories, but rarely gave any of her own background. He didn't mind it though, when she was ready, he got the feeling he would getting an earful. Again, not that he minded it all...
"You're welcome, and I don't see the ship anywhere." He made a show of glancing around them before smiling impishly and finishing;
"And since I can't find it, its Luxe, remember?" The golden brown furred stoat cocked his head, the music was coming to an end, pity, he had enjoyed dancing with her. Ah well, as Luxe followed the example of those around him in a deep bow, resolving to dance with her again at least once before the night was through.
"How about we go get a something to drink, and I'll see if I can find something from my past that doesn't involve me ending up on my rump in front of a crowd.... And no..." Luxe shook his head a little as he offered her his arm;
"Being hypnotized, then falling off a stage is not very relaxing. At all."
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Miri watched her boss and his new client. Both were uncomfortable. Both seemingly relieved, and yet concerned, or distraught in one case, over what was to come. Miri shook her head as she moved to leave the two.
"Boss, I'm going to get a drink and see if i can't find Jal Calone to speak with him about..." She flicked her eyes to the Countess, "-something. I'll find you in a little bit." She took all of two steps before turning and hissing to Monty.
"Do something, ask her to dance, talk about the weather. Something." With that Miri turned and nodded to Svetlana, rolling her eyes and shaking her head at Monty as she did.
"I'll see you both in a little bit." She dipped her head a little to both of them, then made good on her escape to the refreshments table....
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Post by Ladorak on Jan 4, 2011 13:20:46 GMT -5
"Hah! Fine...Luxe." Zephyr finally used his first name. "Forgive me...I'm so used to addressing you as my boss on the ship. You're just so...well we have to be formal there. Not that you are formal...oh no. It's just I have to watch myself around Jasper, as I don't want him thinking I'm being impudent or anything." she responded, giving him a very discreet wink.
"So...yes...I wouldn't mind hearing more about you as we partake of some punch...also...I might have a present for you stowed away under that tree somewhere. Now don't look surprised...and don't feel bad if you didn't get me anything...I didn't ask after all. I figured sure...why not be good to the boss jack for Christmas huh? And I saw something you might like so...yes. It wasn't terribly expensive so don't feel like I'm spending my hard earned pay on you." she gave him another sly wink.
"I'm merely enjoying my holiday. So...let's get this little information session started. A present for a story perhaps?" she asked, reaching the buffet table with him in tow.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Caden looked about his friends, nodding at each in turn. "Well...Merry Christmas all!" he exclaimed, raising his paws with the pads upward and smiling. "This is such a relaxing break from the work we've been doing...and I want to enjoy it while it lasts. Also, well...it's SUCH an improvement over Tunis. Florence has been the highlight of my visitations to foreign nations so far I think! Not sure what it is about the Kostritz way, but the manner in which they go about doing things impresses me." he eyed the tree again. Somewhere under there...Ladorak's present waited for him.
All that glittering gold, red and green. So much light in this room. It lent an almost fairy tale atmosphere to this place that would leave him with a lasting impression he was sure, and leave him looking forward to returning here in the future. While the Agamemnon was receiving a new main topmast, the striplings were living it up here in Tuscany.
"Well then Carrow..." he turned to his mouse companion, his red eyes gleaming a bit. "Shall we move on to your present...or would you rather ask Jis Tally for a dance?" he asked, his smile widening into a mischievous grin now. He only wished Elle were here for a dance...but he would hopefully get his chance whenever they returned to Welkin.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Monty could see how spooked Sveltlana was with her life as of late. It wasn't like her at all. She was scared, and he could tell. She wasn't going to conceal or hide it from him like this. At least not easily. And then she admitted point blank how she felt...and then Miri dropped that rather surprising revelation that she was leaving.
"Huh? Wait a moment Jis Talian..." he trailed after her, looking behind him at Sveltlana only briefly before he caught up to the jill. He was flabbergasted when she recommended he try asking Sveltlana to dance, or talk about the weather...or just be with her. "R-really?" he stammered, at a loss for words.
"But I don't understand! I was trying..." trying to what? Ensure Miri wasn't bored at this party? He didn't want to just push her away after all. "Look...come back at some point OK? I...I owe you a dance." he said, more like blurting the words out suddenly. That was odd...he almost never appeased jills by asking them to dance, save for Jis Bludd of course. He wasn't sure where that came from, and he hurriedly nodded, turning around to return to the Countess lemming.
"Sorry about that Countess. Had to settle some matters. Erm...look...I don't think you should be alone right now. For once...you aren't actually trying to hurt me or do some sort of wrong. Why don't...why don't you just relax and enjoy my company?" he tried, admitting he was terrible at this sort of thing when it came to jills. They weren't exactly his strong suit, as he was normally very immune to their charms and never bothered pursuing them.
"Do you dance? Or perhaps you'd like to talk about the wea...er..." he stopped himself from rambling off the things that Miri had suggested to him. He shook his head and slowed himself down. "OK...OK...sorry about that. Just a little nervous. I don't...it's not everyday you get to spend actual quality time with a jill you've admired for so many years." he stated in a tittering manner. He glanced at her in profile, and tried to compose himself. "I'll...I'll be here...OK?" he finally settled on saying, turning to face her in full now.
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Post by Carrow on Jan 4, 2011 18:03:45 GMT -5
"Many happy returns, Caden!," Selvis exlaimed, and this was echoed by Carrow. His first Christmas away from home... away from Archie. He'd sent his letter home before they had set sail and now faced another agonising three- or perhaps even four-month wait to hear from her again. As he thought of her, he couldn't help but recall certain Christmases he'd had back in Welkin.
They had been good. Very good in fact. The two hadn't had much, but they'd made do. Some Christmases the mouse had got a belated birthday present as well; it had been a choice between a Christmas gift or a birthday present in certain years, as the impoverished weasel, who had been doing odd jobs just to stay afloat, had barely been able to put money aside after basic living expenses had been taken into account.
Nothing could quite compare to this, though. He had the same good company, but he felt better than he ever had back home. His circumstances had weighed heavily upon him then, and while he could never forget where he had come from, he knew where he was now, and he loved it all. His life had changed, and he had too; there was no denying that. He could bask in this glorious evening and celebrate what he had found in the last year: three wonderful friends and a sense of purpose.
When Caden asked him what his plans were, he blushed slightly, a lok of intense concentration on his face. "Cor...," he murmured, shaking his head a little. "You know, I really can't decide... I mean, both of them seem very attractive options..." Nearby, Selvis had to do all he could to suppress a grin at the field mouse's unintended double entendre. Oblivious of this, the rodent racked his brains a litle more.
He saw Caden grinning at him, and he smiled back, albeit rather bashfully. "What I'll do is.. er... try and I see if I can do that with her first... and then later, whenever you might like, I'll, hehe, present my present." Still looking a tad flushed, the mouse nodded. "Er.. yes, that's what I'll do. See you three later." He padded nervously off, unable to help his doubt. "Probably sooner...," he added sadly, well aware he'd probably just melt away into a pool of shyness if she even bothered to speak to him.
The mouse spotted her soon enough. Tally, was it?, he thought, before this was confirmed in his mind. Ah, so she does have a name. At least I can try to get her attention... Already with a sinking feeling in his chest, Carrow approachd her. Shuffling his paws nervously, he spoke softly so as not to risk alarming her, knowing she was probably as nervous as he was. "Hello! Tally, is it? It's nice to see you here." It really was.
"Poor Carrow," Selvis murmured, shaking his head but letting that smile finally reveal itself. "He's really not prepared for this at all! I can't blame him, though. Ah, I'm sure he'll be alright. At the very least I'm hoping he'll help her introduce herself to us. The two are as shy as each other, it seems. Good luck, mate," he said softly, turning to Caden and Elliot. "So, you two, I think it's time you both learned a little more about me - where would you like me to start?," he enquired cheerfully.
--
"I'm not even sure I'd want to be alone at a time like this, Monty," Sveltlana admitted honestly, pleased to see she had returned to him. "It'd be just me and my own thoughts... and I'm not sure I'd be able to pawdle that right now. So I don't think I should refuse company of any kind," she told him, a faint smile playing about her lips despite all her troubles.
She could still smile even if it did seem as though she had the weight of the world on her shoulders. "Thank you for wanting to spend time with me, though yes, it is in rather different circumstances that we meet this time around. I'm flattered that you should want to do this, but also immeasurably thankful."
Her eyes brightened a little however when the weasel detective mentioned dancing. "Yes, as a matter of fact. I do indeed dance. On a night like this, a dance would be a perfect way for me to unwind and let go of everything for a little while. Now, I wonder who it might be with..." She looked him up and down, a playful gleam in her eyes.
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Post by spender on Jan 5, 2011 8:36:26 GMT -5
Seeing that Zheep was in company of friends (they had met him before? that gave her a bit of a shock, until all his stories of the stoat and the star and the white marten clicked into place upon seeing Caden), it wasn't long before the rat excused herself from their company, leaving them in charge of the feisty little whelp.
"If he's any trouble at all," she said, waving at them as she weaved away, "just give me a whistle! Behave now, Reggie!"
Zheep pouted, folding his arms and sinking his chin into his chest. Despite all the lights and glamour, he managed to sink himself into shadow. It was almost comical how serious he was taking it all. There wasn't even anything to take serious.
"Presents are done now?" he said, perking up a little. "Can we go outside?" He'd completely forgotten to share his plate of biscuits. "Oh. These are for you... where's he going? Oooh."
The little weasel watched as Carrow went over to Tally. He grinned.
"She's got a star on her head," he informed them. "Is he gonna kiss her? That's icky. I kissed Char, once. Wasn't any fun. He had mud in his whiskers. Adults are so weird. Biscuit?"
"Hello! Tally, is it? It's nice to see you here."
"Oh," she said, before she could remember not to.
She'd been startled by him. She glanced at him quickly. There weren't many mice on the ship—he might have been the only one besides her—so she recognised him, but she didn't remember his name, or how she was to act around him. The entire hierarchy of the ship's crew had her confused. Was she allowed to speak to him? In her old household, an "oh" could have gotten her a caning.
Tally stared at the floor, eyes flickering left and right. Her tail, curled unobtrusively around her legs, shivered a little. Her paws clenched, clasped behind her back.
She was bored. There. She admitted it. For once in her life, she was bored. Her owner was nowhere in sight, she had no task to accomplish, no reason for standing around... She was used to being told to keep out of view when she wasn't needed, but to stand here in plain sight of all these fancy creatures was nerve-wracking, and yet somehow tiresome. Not the kind of tired you got after working or walking all day, but a new kind of tired she'd never really experienced before. She longed for something to do, an order, a task...
"How do you do," she hazarded. She couldn't see where Molly had gone—the tree had blocked the stoat's fainting spell. It looked like Miri was busy across the room, and it Wouldn't Do to go all the way over there, possibly interrupt the weasel, to ask for permission to speak. As Molly had said... what beasts didn't know didn't hurt her.
It was just when others told that she got hurt.
"I oughtn't to speak to you," she added quickly. Never once did she meet his eyes with her own. "I vill get in trouble."
"Featherston," Molly sighed, remembering the old stoat. "He gave me jewels... Just not anything like this. Nothing of significance."
She held her arm out, examining the ring on her paw with on eye shut.
So it was the same ring...
"Why this one?" she said at last. "Why did you keep it? After everything Ublaz did to you... I understand giving it new meaning like this, but why not find a different ring? I don't want you to look at this and remember Sampetra..."
Molly sat up, tossing her legs over the side of the bed. She placed her arms down behind her, supporting herself as she leaned back and cocked her head at him.
"Or is that your plan? To give me something to work towards—being such a wonderful wife that when you see it, you can't remember a time before it meant me and you, forever? Oh, Laddy, you tease..."
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Post by Ladorak on Jan 5, 2011 13:45:26 GMT -5
Caden watched the departing mouse with a chuckle. "Hah...hope he can pawdle himself. At least he has someone to dance with, you know? We very well don't." the albino marten looked down as he heard Zheep talking again. "Oh...why thank you Zheep." he picked one up, munching on it. They could've made a trip to the table...but it was nice that the young weasel kit was trying.
He looked over at Selvis, meeting his enthusiasm with a coy glance down at the floor. "Oh...Selvis...not really sure. Maybe later Zheep." he interrupted himself to inform Zheep about playing outside. Spender was outside too, last he'd checked...and he really didn't feel like encountering that ferret tonight. "I'd have to change my clothes...I can't get these dirty after all. So...Selvis...I must admit...I've never really talked to friends in this manner. You see...I mostly beat others up in my neighborhood growing up...and didn't care much about where they came from or who they were." he gave an embarrassed look at the yellow belly furred longtail.
"I wouldn't even know where to start. How about your family and how you grew up?" he tried, hoping it didn't sound too broad. "I don't know." he said, rubbing the back of his neck. It was probably too broad...he sighed. "I...I'm not good at this. Why don't you let Elliot ask about something, and I'll listen?" he suggested, glancing up with his paw still resting on the back of his neck, his features a bit more serious now.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Oh Molly...I think you misunderstand." Ladorak shook his head, smiling down at her. "Actually...that is a rather nice idea...if I harbored ill feelings about it...but truth be told...I really don't. Ublaz...yes he treated me as his personal servant and slave...but really...he was the only father I had...my real father never did raise me after all. I grew up on Sampetra...and with Ublaz. I've reconciled myself to my past...some things I actually enjoyed about it...it wasn't half bad, and I survived. So yes...I'm giving it to you..."
He studied the stone briefly before continuing. "Because it's my link to my past, but now it'll serve as a link to my future as well. So I think it's appropriate...don't you agree?" he asked, still smiling down at her as she looked it over, and how it fit onto her claw.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Monty couldn't suppress the smile that was slickly sliding over his snout. She was looking him over now...contemplating a dance with him. Was this really happening? The weasel decided it was, and gave her a nod. "Why...I'd be delighted to be your partner!" he exclaimed, throwing his arms wide to emphasize his point.
"Come then...let us try this thing called...dancing...though I believe we've done this before...haven't we?" he asked, winking at her in a knowing manner. "I seem to recall a masquerade after all..." he was hoping to lighten her spirits a bit (though for the life of him he couldn't imagine why...maybe because dancing with her was more a desire of his than anything else at the moment), and this seemed like just the thing she needed.
He places his paws in the correct spot...right paw in her left, and left paw on her waist, and led the ravishing lemming out onto the dance floor. That large harp broach really dazzled him, and he paused for a moment to admire it before he started off with her, footpaws moving nimbly yet in no way clumsy. He hadn't danced in ages so he was a bit slow and rusty, but not by much. No more of that crazy weasel bending and swaying...he was going to do a proper dance with her. "How am I doing? I'm out of practice, so I forgive you in advance if you end up stepping on my claws...or vice versa." he stated in a good humored manner, not being serious in the slightest.
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Post by Carrow on Jan 5, 2011 15:36:49 GMT -5
"I'm sure he'll do his best. Carrow always does, it seems... even if he just won't give himself his due when he does everything he can to succeed at certain things. I have faith in him," Selvis said simply. "It is a shame that I have seen absolutely no other female longtails around, yes, but I don't really mind. I'll find other ways to enjoy myself here tonight."
He turned and glanced down at Zheep. The Dibbun least weasel was offering them biscuits now, and the longtail wasn't one to refuse such a treat. He took one, smiling down at his fellow weasel. "Don't mind if I do. Thank you very much, Zheep." Reginald, he thought. Little Reggie being looked after by a ratwife as friendly as that? That *was* surprising.
He took a bite, his smile widening at its taste, before transferring his gaze back to Caden. "No need to be embarrassed. We've all made mistakes in our lives but I'm glad you changed from what you yourself said you once were. The Caden I know... put it this way, matey, if you hadn't told me that I'd never even have guessed." He liked the marten's honesty. Even if he was embarrassed, he wasn't putting himself down over it. No... leave such things to a certain rodent companion of mine, Selvis thought, his heart going out to Carrow. Why couldn't he just give himself a break? Surely he couldn't be that dispirited...
His next remark was met with a reassuring smile from the kind least weasel. "You only see yourself as not good at it because you haven't had much chance to do it. You'll improve in time. I just know it. Whatever you migt prefer, I suppose - makes no difference as far as I'm concerned. Well then, Elliot," he said softly, smiling at 'him' now. "What might you like to ask me? I'll answer everything as best I can."
--
Carrow was disappointed to see the incredibly nervous Tally being... well, her incredibly nervous self. She reminded her of how he had been at Whistleminster. Elle had helped to coax him out of his shell that night, but now the shoe seemed to be on the other footpaw. He didn't mind this. He wanted to try and help her relax, and as that thought crossed his mind, an idea formed.
Caden was going to be hypnotised later that night because he *wanted* to go under, but Carrow reckoned that his fellow mouse could perhaps use a little assistance from him. He knew that it might not even need to come to that, but the option was still there all the same.
She wasn't meeting his eyes, so Carrow decided to change tack, trying his hardest to dispel his own nerves and play the friendship card. He crouched, looking up at her and doing his best to try and get her to look into his eyes. He wanted eye contact from this creature more than anything at this point, wanting to try and put her at ease.
"I'm fine, thank you. How are you? A little nervous, I see... but that's fine, You and I already have something in common. I'm a bag of nerves sometimes too," he said softly, giving her his warmest smile. "And don't worry, you can talk to me if you, wish. It's just fine. You won't get in trouble for something as simple as that here," he assured her, taking things as slowly as he could with Tally, another possible new friend... perhaps even more than that somewhere down the line.
--
"You would?" Sveltlana watched as a smile grew on Monty's features, from a small one to almost an ear-to-ear grin. It was absolutely clear from the way his eyes sparkled that the weasel was quite fond of the idea of dancing with the lemming Countess - and then he threw his arms in the air, further emphasising his joyous reaction to the rodent's veiled suggestion. "Good, that's exactly what I had actually been hoping to hear.
"A masquerade?" For a moment, she looked slightly puzzled. If he was speaking of what she thought he was, then that had been a considerable amount of a time ago. They had been better days back then, before everything had started turning sour... No, she told herself, put those sorts of thoughts out of your mind and just enjoy this moment; you know you've been lusting after it for years! Then she remembered and her own eyes shone at the recollection. "Ah, yes... now I recall... sorry... I'm just rather distracted at the moment as you can imagine... but regardless of that, well, they were different times, and I have to say I think I prefer the circumstances under which we met earlier this evening."
Despite it all, she found herself trembling with excitement (and just a little nervousness; this was another thing new to her after all - now they actually knew they were dancing with each other) as she let him lead her out onto the floor. Her paw in his own felt absolutely wonderful, and the other was almost caressing her waist in a comforting manner. They began to move about, Sveltlana gradually made aware of the fact that Monty was admiring her brooch. No wonder: it was sparkling just as much as her dark eyes were. "Neither have I, so I'll forgive you any mistakes you make. You're doing pretty well for a weasel who calls himself 'out of practice', that's for sure!"
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Post by spender on Jan 6, 2011 8:53:46 GMT -5
Boring! Boring, boring, boring. If Zheep didn't know any better, he would have thought these striplings were full-grown adults. Kind enough to tolerate him, some of them enough to rub his ears and smile, but, when it came down to it... boring. Talky-talky-talky-talk! They had all these new presents and they weren't even doing anything fun with them! When were they going to take him out to play?
He wheeled his chair back to the window to watch the snow fall. It was dark and hard to see. Sitting down, he couldn't lift his chin above the window sill to see the lights of Florence, or any of the world. Just the snow.and the vastness of space beyond. The snow was lit from somewhere, however, and each little flake looked like little sad stars falling...
Fishing out his spyglass from the nook in his seat, he put it to his eye and peered through. He saw nothing but the occasional blur of grey through the dented instrument, but he oohed and ahhed as his imagination filled the scope with planets and comets and stars of every colour.
When he lowered it, he noticed something odd about the window. The latch wasn't entirely done up... Somebeast must have had it open for some reason, and didn't close it up properly.
Zheep lifted his paw. He could just reach the sill. Stretching a bit further, he could feel the window frame. He gave it a nudge. It bounced open a tiny bit.
He grinned to himself.
"Hm," Molly said, staring hard at nothing in particular. Then she shrugged. "I suppose..."
She wiggled her bare footpaw. Then she snapped out of it, reached behind her for her shoe, and began to put it back on.
"I don't mean to be so bland at the moment, but it just occurred to me that I'm going to have to tie my corset up again if we plan on going back to the party later rather than sooner... So there's that, plus..." She finished with her shoe and looked up at him, grinning, before throwing herself at him and wrapping her arms around his neck. "I'm bloody well engaged! Miri is going to flip when I tell her! I can tell her, right? Oooh, can I can I can I can I! I might musk myself if I have to keep it in! And I'll tell Luxe and Zephyr and Caden and his friends and Lieutenant Quilliam and oooh, that otter, the gunner, I keep forgetting his name, but he's always asking about us, and oh my goodness oh my goodness, Ladorak, I must write letters to my friends back in Muggidrear—and the Prince! Heeee, wouldn't he like to know..."
She tittered, giggled, cackled, wheezed, and then finally let go of his neck to flop back on the bed and catch her breath.
"I need a drink!"
Tally wasn't ever really this nervous. She'd always considered herself to be unflappable. After what she'd lived through, there was not a lot that could faze her.
Except, apparently, polite beasts trying to be friendly.
She wrung her paws, shifting side to side a little—movements she knew would have gotten her smacked before, for being distracting. But when no smack came, as she knew wouldn't happen, because she had no master to smack her... She grew a little braver. She just needed reminding. It was okay to be... well... normal.
But she couldn't look at his eyes. Even as he lowered himself and placed his face in her line of sight, she stared off to the side, focusing on only the very tips of his whiskers, and the way the light glimmered up and down when she swayed.
"Um... I am fine..."
There. She said it. She waited a second. No one yelled at her to shut up. No paw careened across her cheek. Good. Great, even!
What should she say next? He knew her name. She remembered his now, she was fairly certain. She couldn't think of anything else to talk about.
That was a start.
"I can't t'ink off anyt'ink to say."
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Post by Carrow on Jan 6, 2011 15:58:37 GMT -5
Carrow's smile widened slightly as he listened to Tally speak. "Well, that's great to hear. I'm glad you're doing fine, Tally. I don't know if you remember me, and to be quite honest I wouldn't blame you if you didn't. There's nothing about me that really stands out, but oh well."
He was right, and he knew it. As far as Carow was concerned, honesty was the best policy. He didn't want to lie and try and cover up his many flaws and faults. He just wanted to be himself - the very thing that had almost ended up ruining him. There was no fear of reprisals here, though, so he felt he could relax slightly.
"I'll just tell you again to make sure. I haven't seen very much of you as of late, but I just thought you might like to know I'm quite glad to see you again, Please allow me to re-introduce myself. My name's Cerinus Apodemus. If it makes it any easier for you - and it does for most creatures I know - you can call me Carrow. 's my nickname. Well... one of 'em, at least."
The wood mouse was letting words flow out of him as he tried to strike up a conversation with the timid orange-furred rodent, but now he fell silent and waited for her to perhaps talk a little. He simply smiled at her response, reaching out and patting her paw gently, brown eyes full of warmth and comfort.
"It's no problem, Tally, honestly. You seem shy, but that's alright. I was just like you once. In fact I don't even think I've changed in that respect since I left on the ship back in April. I'm still quite timid, but at least I can try making an effort with somebeast like you. You're worth that, I think.
"Why don't we start by you telling me how you're enjoying the evening so far? I'd be interested in absolutely anything you had to say. I really would," the stripling added earnestly, making no attempt to diguise how good she made him feel. Her presence was making this event even better for him, there was no doubt about that.
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Post by bookity101 on Jan 6, 2011 21:40:52 GMT -5
Luxe smiled at her use of his name, and followed along beside as she talked on a little bit about Jasper. And a present? Luxe was surprised to say the least. Of course he had been working on one for both of his assistants, but he had run into a snag on what he was making for the jill in front of him and he had been unable to finish it. Maybe he would save it for another day then, maybe her birthday? After he got that stupid kink worked out…
“Present for a story?” He shrugged slightly, picking up a biscuit for himself.
“That sounds fair considering I didn’t get you anything on time this year.” His smile lit up his face as he waited just a moment, trying to figure out what type of story to tell he chewed on his biscuit, taking in the beasts around him. Finally he gave up and turned to the jill beside him, trying to gauge what type of story she would want to hear… and failed at that too.
“Alright, I give up Zephyr, what type of story do you want to hear?”
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Elle smiled a little as she watched Carrow walk away to talk to Tally, it wasn’t the typical smile that this action on the part of her mouse friend should have brought. She was distracted, and near completely missed that Selvis had invited them to get to know more about him, and Caden had put on the spot. She bit back a groan, knowing now she would actually have to re-engage her mind to think of something, anything, to ask the older beast…especially since the two of them spent so much time talking already. Albeit the talking they did was to help improve her Ferlusan or his Welkin. But they had both learned a lot about the other…
“Um.. Well… Caden’s questions seem like as good place to start as any.” She glanced around, realizing that it was kinda noisy where they were standing. Good for exchanging banter and presents… not for talking.
“Um, how about moving, over there-“ She pointed to an alcove by the windows, fewer beasts were there and no one would interrupt them. “-it might be a lot… quieter. And Carrow will be able to find it easily.” She hid a grimace as a thought raced across her mind unbidden;
‘And easier to talk about things that I wish I didn’t have to…”
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While Molly was having the time of her life, becoming engaged and all that, and Monty was engaged in helping the Countess… Even Luxe was busy with Zephyr for pity’s sake! Miri cocked her head to the side as she watched the pair at the table, deciding that she approved of what she saw, and because of that…. she turned and scanned the room so she could find another way to relieve her boredom… and found… Tally! The female weasel smiled a little, it looked like that mouse that was a friend of Captains son and that lass dressed up as a ladwas trying his hardest to get the reclusive mousemaid to talk to him. And seemed to be having some success at that…
Miri made her way closer to the pair, deciding that eavesdropping would sufficiently relieve her boredom, plus she may find out how that timid little mouse was making headway with the orange furred maid. Though she was extremely careful as to not let Tally see hide nor hair of her. That girl had been a slave for so long she almost didn’t know how to function without a “Master” and had adopted Molly into that place, and apparently had adopted Miri as a fill-in when the loud stoatess wasn’t around.
After about a minute though, she noticed something else that was intriguing. There was a small creature with a… pot on his head? Miri made her way closer, chuckling slightly as the little one stretched to open the window. After a moment she spoke;
“And what are you doing little one?”
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