[PRP] Let's start a zoo [Al+Jordan]

[prolixity]

"You can, but it's not a good idea. Everything here is formed out of Fear. Put too much in the golem's stomach, and you'll get a sympathetic reaction in your actual body. It'll be painfully, sharply cold." Jordan eyed Al, but didn't comment on the velociraptor imitation. "Doesn't mean you won't want to eat, but I wouldn't recommend trying it." He shrugged. "You might end up thinking some of the things we catch look tasty, but seriously, no."

They passed under the Scarefari gate, and Jordan headed toward the small lodge set back off the path.

Saliru

 

[Saliru]

Al frowned at Jordan which looked significantly more pouty with the face he presently had. "I'm no gunnae eat a mini." He shook his head. "Just gross."

He was still following closely even though it was clear he wanted to dally a bit to explore their surroundings. He figured they'd get a chance for that later. The cabin ahead looked very interesting anyway.
 

[prolixity]

Jordan laughed and bared his fangs at Al, an expression halfway between a smile and a threat. He'd been too many different things by now to feel at all uncomfortable about being inhuman at the moment. It came naturally.

The lodge was a single room with a dilapidated sales counter, a rack of brochures and info sheets and maps, and a long wall of small lockers. A bored-looking swamp monster sat behind the counter, reading a magazine which she lowered beneath the counter when the door opened, but she otherwise paid little attention to them. Jordan went over to one of the lockers and put the combination in to open it, taking out a bag and flipping it open to check that the contents were still there; then he took out a few seeds from the bag and stalked over to the counter to drop them in front of the attendant. "Rental," he said haughtily.

The attendant eyed the vampire, then pulled out a similar bag from somewhere under the counter to drop on the counter with similar disdain before scooping up the seeds and getting out a dilapidated lockbox to put them in. As Jordan swept away without a thank-you, the monster muttered something that might have been b***h, or something similar; he ignored it and handed the bag to Al.  

[Saliru]

Al was swept up in Jordan's quick preparations and out the door. Good thing too as he eyed the cabin already behind them again, mouth agape. "What was that thing? Sure was ugly." He took the bag with a grateful smile all the same and pawed through its contents curiously, "... rope?"
 

[prolixity]

"Pretty sure you'd get slapped if you said that to her face." Jordan laughed. "Remember, standards are a little different here. Swamp thing, I think, probably a part-time job when she's not taking classes." He angled a long-nailed thumb at Al and lowered his voice a little; nobody seemed to be around, but the starting field was misty and visibility was low, and he didn't want to be overheard. "You're pretty scaly yourself at the moment. When you're doing golem missions in Halloween, you need to remember that as far as anyone knows, you are a creature, and as such being freaked out or grossed out by things that are normal here will make other creatures suspicious. Nuru can help you with the slang and with figuring out what passes for normal, if you listen to him."

He gestured to the wooded area that was beginning to appear out of the fog at the edges of the wide, grassy fields. "I'm going to set traps in the Dark Woods - it's still a pretty safe area and I refuse to climb or walk in sand in these boots." Either he was keeping the "snobby vampire diva" role in mind, or he was just still snippily annoyed about the golem. The latter was probably a safe bet.

Saliru

 

[Saliru]

Told ya she was pretteh. Nooope.

Al moved even closer to Jordan as visibility went down, even grabbing a small fist full of some of her clothes. "Y-yeah, me too." As if he was even considering wandering off further on his own. He didn't know what kind of creatures could be lurking out there, further yet - the lowering of Jordan's voice implied he knew someone or rather something could be nearby watching them. At least visibility was improving again as they approached a second set of woods.
 

[prolixity]

Jordan startled slightly and suppressed the urge to hiss at Al as his sleeve was grabbed. He shot the dragon an irritated glare, but slowed so that Al could keep up more easily. The trees loomed up in front of them; the region was alive with small rustlings and sounds in the underbrush, and it wasn't entirely clear whether the sounds were all wildlife or if the woods themselves were shifting and watching.

Jordan located a well-worn path and followed it, looking from side to side as they walked until he found a spot where the trees thinned a little and the underbrush was less oppressively thick. "Here should be good," he said, keeping his voice low. He moved over to a spot where a tangle of thorn vines seemed to open into a small tunnel and knelt down to set up a trap. The dress got snagged on a vine; he made a small frustrated noise and disentangled it, then took out a wire and thin rope from the trapping kit and worked it into a snare. "Like that," he told Al, and took out a slip of paper with glyphs on it and pressed it to the base of the snare, waiting till it flared blue. "This is an enchantment," he explained as he got up, showing Al the paper. "It'll help attract certain types of minis. I'll lend you one to use while we're here. Pick a spot where you think minis might hide and try setting a trap."

Saliru

 

[Saliru]

Al didn't relinquish his hold on Jordan's sleeve one bit until they reached their destination. Certain nothing was going to eat him here, he finally - with apparent hesitation - let go. The noises of ******** knows what didn't help the situation.

Al watched Jordan set his trap. Tried not to snicker at his misfortune with the vines - unsuccessfully. Then contemplated the location for his own trap. He took his own rope and attempted to imitate Jordan exactly with a piece of rope. Only his was located in a small clear spot. "How's that?" He looked over to find Jordan's trap flash blue and his eyes widened. "...yes please, I wanna do that too."

Prolixity

 

[prolixity]

Jordan flipped Al off without looking at the snicker. He watched as Al set his trap, nodding when Al succeeded, and looked through his bag for an enchantment. He touched the fire enchantment briefly, feeling the red parchment warm under his fingers, and paged onward through the small sheaf, selecting a purple slip that felt slightly cool to the touch. He took it out and handed it to Al. "Press it to the line until it flashes," he instructed. "You can hang onto it until we're done here. You'll need to reapply the enchant each time you reset the trap."

He returned to the trail and found a fallen log beside the path, checking it carefully for wriggly inhabitants or tendencies to wriggle by itself. When he was satisfied that the log was inert, he sat down on it, stretching his legs out with a sigh. "Now we wait," he said. "When the trap goes, you'll hear a swish and a small snap. The box or deadfall type traps sound more like a thump, but this kind is easier to distinguish."

Saliru

 

[Saliru]

Al took the enchantment gratefully. Smiling at Jordan despite certain gestures being shared. "I understand," he assured as he turned to do exactly that. He pressed the parchment onto the rope and gave a gleeful little sound as there was a flash then aura of purple swirls applied.

He backed off and sat next to Jordan on the log, far less careful than he had been. He turned his head to smile at the temporary vampire. "You are a real pro at this, how long have you been doing it for?"

Prolixity

 

[prolixity]

"Since I first got cleared for golem use and found out I could volunteer for collecting minis." Jordan calculated in his head. "About two and a half years, on and off when there's time," he said, sounding a little surprised. "That's why I have my own kit," he added after a moment. "Sometimes you find seeds when you're trapping, so I hung onto enough to get a kit and a lock, and nobody's ever given me trouble over using a locker in the lodge."

He patted the log they were sitting on. "You should check what you're sitting on before you sit down," he advised. "Sometimes they bite. Or worse, squish."