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[PRP] An Auspicious Start (Derasan/Aniella)

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MoonRazor

PostPosted: Sat Sep 17, 2011 8:34 pm
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Raised voices rang out across the theater. Players dedicated to their craft shifted up- and down-stage, gesturing, speaking, acting as their lines came and went. Behind it all, Derasan lay sprawled in the generous shade of a thick, old tree. When his cue came, he would rise and hasten to the stage, but it was a newly rehearsed production and the scenes came slowly and with more care than it would in the coming days. His cue seemed far off and there was nothing better for him to do but to laze about for several moments, enjoying his break.

There were few things that Derasan would not do to ensure that the show would go on, and he would be the first to admit that the theater was his life. There was nothing in the world that he loved more, but when the grind of rehearsals started to wear down on him, he needed to take some time for himself.

Today, that time involved passively seeking out some gossip. Passive, in that he wasn't quite inclined to physically move about in search of it, but still seeking. Derasan was not a lion to pass up the chance to know more of the countless rumors that floated through the pride. But he would wait and see what happened. Everything, he knew, would soon fall into place.
 
PostPosted: Mon Sep 19, 2011 10:26 am
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With every throw of a paw or gasp from crowd, Aniella felt her excitement rise. There wasn't much for her to do that day, so like another, she found herself drifting towards the stage. What few Players she held in esteemed regard eyed her favorably, though more likely looking for something other than returning her affections. Still, one could dream.

Or make that dream a reality. Aniella decided on her own to approach a particular lion, one she had the pleasure of seeing more than a few times, to gain his attention. Still, as she snuck around the back of the stage in search of him, she saw an entirely different lion all together, but never the less aesthetically pleasing. She bit her lip. Should she ask him where the other Player was? Would he be angry? What if she-?

Her confidence waning, Aniella found herself timidly approaching the male, her ears pinned back against her head and her left eye covered by her mane. "E-e-excuse me, good sir....? I-" Slam! One shaky paw had caught itself on a root, sending the jittery lioness face first to the ground.
 

Painted Moose

Dapper Codger


MoonRazor

PostPosted: Mon Sep 19, 2011 10:57 pm
Derasan had been watching languidly as the lioness wandered closer. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't have hesitated to walk right up and befriend her, but she seemed... cautious at best, and not entirely sure of something so he thought it best to leave her to figure it out first.

But of course, one minute she had made up her mind (albeit rather timidly) and the next, she had disappeared from view. The pale lion hastened to his paws, glancing down at the ground to see the blue lioness sprawled on the floor in an (unfortunately) less-than-dignified manner.

Oh, dear. He had better help her before more people saw and she became the next object of gossip around the pride. Not that that was necessarily a bad thing. Derasan had learned that, at the very least within the Players, there was no such thing as bad publicity. Having a rumor go around only helped to put somebody on the map, and that... well, that could never be a bad thing. But perhaps that was just his inner actor talking.

"Are you alright, miss?" He asked, concern hanging heavy on his face as he loomed over her. She looked... well, not familiar. Derasan had never met her before, but he knew who she was. He knew who everybody was, at least by face if not by name. "You ought to be more careful, huh?" He added with a sympathetic smile. "Those roots aren't so good at moving out of the way, unfortunately."
 
PostPosted: Wed Sep 28, 2011 10:28 am
Aniella wanted to cry. He probably thinks I'm some kind of bumbling idiot....or worse, she mentally bemoaned her rotten luck. She could only thank whatever higher power there was that her Superior's hadn't been there to witness it.

"I-I-I think so," she whimpered as she straightened herself up. Try as she might to fix herself, her fur now held some very unbecoming stains and a twig jutted out of her mane. "No, that's not right. What I mean is that I will be, once I've had time to put that behind me." Aniella closed her eyes and took a deep breath; visibly struggling to stay calm. When she opened them, she took stock of his expression, and felt worry gnawing at her insides. He did think she was a bumbling fool, or at the very least, nothing more than a cub.

"I would be much pleased to see them go." She smiled softly. "Forgive me, good sir. You should not have been privy to such a scene."
 

Painted Moose

Dapper Codger


MoonRazor

PostPosted: Wed Sep 28, 2011 1:22 pm
"At least you're still in one piece," he said with a light-hearted laugh as she got to her paws, apparently none the worse for wear except for a few tell-tale signs of the fall. "There are some that have come to worse fates at the hands of tree roots." His sneaking smile betrayed the feigned seriousness. Making light of the situation was usually Derasan's first reaction to anything unfortunate. In his experience, a joke or two always managed to brighten damp spirits, even if reluctantly.

"Oh, fear not, miss," he said with a shake of his head. "Better I than any other, I reckon. You're secret's safe with me." That was the hope, anyway. There was really no telling what might happen if somebody came by to bribe him with even juicier information, but at the very least, she could rest assured that he wouldn't betray her secret for anything that wasn't... well worth the price. Derasan had a propensity towards gossip, but that didn't mean he wasn't smart about the exchange.

"Ah, here, allow me." Spotting the twig ensnared in her mane, he stepped closer, leaning in to gently to dislodge it. From afar, it might have looked as though he was lightly nuzzling the top of her head. Having disentangled the offending stick, he dropped it to the forest floor, and stepped back with a grin. "There. Perfect again."
 
PostPosted: Sat Oct 08, 2011 4:57 pm
Aniella couldn't help, but to smile at his words. She dipped her head politely, lifting her eyes just enough to keep looking at his face. The longer she looked at him, the more he was beginning to grow on her. What grace! What kindness! Oh, she could have melted on the spot.

"I'm saved then. I would really hate if that news of this got out. I've been trying to straighten up, after all, and this would...." Aniella shook her head. No use worrying about it now. She giggled lightly. "As much as I love a juicy bit of gossip, I would hate to be the center of it."

And then he did that. Aniella couldn't breathe. Her eyes widened as her heart beat out a tattoo against her rib cage. Wha-what...? What was he doing?! Too close, he was too close! (Or not close enough!) "T-thank you, I-" she stilled. Perfect? Did he mean her perfect form or that she was perfect? Oh Gods above!
 

Painted Moose

Dapper Codger


MoonRazor

PostPosted: Sat Oct 08, 2011 10:57 pm
"Oh, I am much the same," Derasan admitted with a smile. "Although I've come to figure, if the gossip is bound to spread, then the only thing to do is to find the silver lining. In the case of gossip, I would say, at the very least, that it serves as free publicity. That can never be such a terrible thing." Unless, of course, you were attempting to stay out of the limelight. Being reclusive was not a concept that Derasan grasped well, however, and figuring it into his considerations was not something he did actively.

"But no matter. If you remember that Noble gossip spreads twice as fast and twice as far, just find something out about some Lord or Lady - or even make something up - and before you know it, the heat will be pass. Handy little trick, eh?" He added with a conspiratorial wink. Unfortunately for the nobility, some of the commonfolk held a policy of silence when it came to them, and it could be much more difficult for a Noble to obtain gossip.

"Oh, it was my pleasure," he reassured her quickly. "I couldn't possibly let a beautiful lady walk off with a twig in her mane. How shameful would that be on my part?"
 
PostPosted: Tue Aug 14, 2012 9:23 am
MoonRazor
Sorry for the freakishly long delay! ;o;


"That is...that is horrible!" Aniella balked. She shifted on her paws, every nerve ending in her legs reacting to that bit of advice. "Keeping that kind of information...on a Noble, no less! Why I c-couldn't...oh no no no." She shook her head. That would just be awful! "I can't imagine blackmailing anyone, much less someone who could report it directly to the...to the..." The longer she spoke, the paler she became. If the King were to hear about that he might ban her from tending to his family, or worse! He may even exile her!

Try as she might to keep a level head, almost everything he said at this point had her freaking out. "Very shameful, indeed," she squeaked. "I-I-I really should be getting back to my duties, but...would you mind giving me your name?"
 

Painted Moose

Dapper Codger


MoonRazor

PostPosted: Wed Aug 15, 2012 9:36 am
Derasan had to chuckle. "Oh, not blackmail," he answered with a reassuring shake of his head. In a pride where the elite held all the power, trying to blackmail a noble was akin to asking for exile. With a mere word, any purple-coated lion could wipe him off the face of the earth, and Derasan enjoyed living and performing too much to want that. "But we do live in a pride that thrives on the scandalous. Everybody wants to know something new, and everybody wants to deliver news."

He always felt a certain pride whenever he realized he had been the first to pick up a juicy bit of gossip on someone of a respectable rank. "We're just... helping them along, so to say." He shrugged, smiling. His fellow pride-members had a thirst, and gossip was just one way to satisfy it. "And if, along the way, it helps to turn some of the heat off of you, then that's just a bonus, and everybody wins."

Almost everybody, anyway. A lion caught in a scandal might not appreciate it as much, but when new information and new scandals were springing up every day, such things blew over soon enough, and even the most embarrassing situations diffused themselves with ease enough.

"Ah, then I ought not take up so much of your time," he said with an understanding nod. "My name is Derasan, and if I've scared my lady, I do apologize." He did, indeed, and his bright smile seemed to say as much. As befitting his role as a player, that smile of his seemed convey more than mere words only ever could. "If ever you find yourself low on duties to perform, do come by the theater, and perhaps I can convince you that meetings with me don't always end as such."


Painted Moose
No worries! biggrin
 
PostPosted: Mon Jan 21, 2013 8:34 am
Aniella heaved a sigh of relief, and placed her paw on her chest. For a moment she thought she may have had to turn him in. Blackmail was serious business, and if he had even a scrap of evidence against the higher ups...She shivered. No, that wouldn't do at all! She really would hate to report such a kind soul.

"Oh, gossip." The petite attendant rolled her eyes, and then stilled. Wait; wasn't that just as bad? "That's still trying to save your own hide by exploiting someone else. It's just....well, it's...it's just wrong." She nodded. Even if she did secretly like hearing the rumors...That one about the Merchant and the Costumer had been amusing, in the very least! "It should be fine, though, if the information isn't terribly bad, but watch who you talk to."

After giving herself another once over, Aniella stood tall (or as tall as she could) and slightly firm infront of him. It was time to get her work face on. That is, until he smiled, and she felt her knees wobble. "Only slightly, Derasan." She gave him a meek smile in return. "Do you truly mean that? Oh, oh!" She was being welcomed to return? An actual guest instead of a stalker? How marvelous! "I-I would like that very, very much. My name is Aniella, and I'll definitely be telling the Nobles about you. Hopefully they'll come see your work!" She dipped her head,"Good day to you."

She couldn't have scurried away faster if she'd had wings. Aniella's nerves were at a breaking point; in both a joyous and panicked way. She couldn't wait to tell Kihalua all about this! Her friend may have mocked her before, but even he would be able to see the golden lining in her day.


MoonRazor
C: You can post again if you'd like, or my post can be the last.
 

Painted Moose

Dapper Codger

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[IC] Suka'Fumo Lands [IC]

 
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