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 Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2008 7:24 pm
A lynx-point palui lay on the porch of a simple cabin, to all appearances asleep. Her blue eyes were closed and her head rested on her hind paws, while her tailtip covered her nose. She occasionally made soft, contented paoru-ru-ru noises as she shifted or stretched. She was not really slumbering; rather, she was resting, and only half-asleep. She was vaguely aware of her surroundings: the sounds of the birds in the trees and the cicadas in the grass and the smell of the sea air and her Aurelie-human baking some sort of chocolate decadance. It was restful to be home, and not driven by some insane urge to seek out others of her kind. She didn't know what had caused the strange impulse in the first place, but she was relieved to no longer be within its grip. She knew her Aurelie-human was glad she was no longer wandering, either.
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Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2008 7:35 pm
Watching the other palui in her repose was a dark figure whose points were the color of embers and who bore other, odd markings on his coat which some others of his kind claimed were unnatural. He didn't particularly care what others of his kind said or thought about him. He thought they were all growing too soft, and too attached to the humans which were spreading distressingly over the island. He despised humans, and he would not be so near a human dwelling at all were it not for the fact he was hungry and it was more expedient to scavenge from human waste receptacles than to acquire food by other means. He recognized the hypocrisy in the situation, but survival outweighed everything else, and lately a rook of ingi birds had moved in near his favorite hunting grounds, making it too dangerous even for him to hunt.
As he watched the other palui yawn, her pink tongue curling and her ears lying flat against her skull with the effort, Mephistopheles found himself slinking closer, fascinated by this utterly unconcerned pet-palui, who seemed unaware of the potential hazards of slumbering in the open, where any manner of predator could take advantage. On occasion, Mephistopheles himself was a predator who might have taken advantage, but this was daylight, and he was not in his element. It was part of his personal creed never to indulge his nocturnal pleasures by the light of day. He reserved the more despised daylight hours for unavoidable activities, such as sleeping or, sometimes, scavenging.
With a soft growl he called attention to himself when he was close enough almost to touch her with an outstretched paw.
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Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2008 8:00 pm
Sascher-tort woke at once and with a start that - true to her skittish nature - nearly had her clinging to the ceiling of the semi-enclosed porch. Her fur stood on end and her eyes were wide and wild. She tried to look menacing, but in reality it was she who felt menaced by the ember-eyed palui who had growled at her. Never before had she actually encountered any of the palui who occasionally crossed through the territory she considered hers, which encompassed Aurelie's yard, house, and a little into the surrounding woods and meadows. Not in her territory, anyway, though her unusual quest had brought her into contact with a number of palui recently.
In her low, slightly accented voice, she demanded the intruder tell her who he was and what he was doing in her territory. Her hind legs were stiff and slightly quivering with fear, and she was tempted to cry out for her Aurelie-human to rescue her and chase off the stranger, but she was determined to try to get rid of him by herself, first. Then Aurelie-human would be very proud of her indeed.
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Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2008 8:15 pm
Mephisto watched with amusement the other's antics and attempts to seem frightening, and wondered if they actually worked on other palui, or anything, really. He doubted even a human would be stupid enough to believe this soft ball of fluff could be dangerous. Her efforts were clearly in vain, but he took pity on her and backed off a few tail lengths. Otherwise there was a very good possibility she would manage to injure herself should she make any subsequent moves to put distance between them. On the other paw, her reflexive leap into the air, complete with a full turn, had been quite impressive to watch. He somehow got the feeling she wouldn't be able to replicate that move on command, though.
"I'm Mephistopheles," he said, his voice even lower than hers and rough as a cat's tongue. "I'm here because I choose to be here. If this is your territory, it's not very well marked, or defended, for that matter. I smelled several other palui as I was passing through."
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Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2008 8:23 pm
Sasha's lips curled back from her teeth unconsciously, even though she knew she was not terrifying the invader away with her act. She couldn't help it: she was now running on adrenaline, and it would take her a bit to calm down completely. She wasn't entirely sure she wanted to calm down completely. It might be dangerous. The palui who introduced himself as Mephistopheles did seem to have an air of danger about him which both attracted and repelled her.
His attitude definitely repelled her.
"It is my territory. Just because I don't follow that disgusting practice of urinating everywhere so that everyone will know exactly where the boundaries of my territory lie does not mean that my territory is not marked. I leave scent markers and fur markers and scratch markers, which should be clear to anyone with the manners and good sense to recognize them as such," she snarled. It wasn't by any means a fearsome snarl so much as an infuriated snarl.
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Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2008 8:56 pm
Mephistopheles was amused. He wasn't sure why, because he'd met with other palui who had reacted similarly and been irritated or even offended by their blithe dismissal of natural behavior, but this indignant, outraged pet-palui amused him. He smirked lazily and his eyelids lowered to give his eyes a more amused slant, which had the unintended side effect of making them seem to glow through his dark fur.
"I did recognize them. I just ignored them. Most free palui would." He maintained his lazy grin, which he guessed was infuriating her. He did enjoy rubbing folks the wrong way.
"I suppose, however, this means I'm not welcome here?"
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Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2008 10:45 pm
Sasha was so mad she was practically spitting as she hissed, "That is exactly what it means. Feel free to leave at any time, the sooner the better."
She narrowed her blue eyes to angry slits and flexed her claws in a manner she hoped was threatening. She was also readying herself to jump onto the window ledge and flee to the safety of indoors and Aurelie-human's lap, where she was almost certain the other palui would not follow her. Her tail lashed furiously, as though she was striking imaginary invaders with each sweep.
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Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2008 4:17 pm
"I think I'll stay," he said, almost purring now that he had found how to irritate this pretty palui.
He wasn't sure what made him think she was pretty, but he definitely felt she was. It shouldn't matter, of course, what she looked like. Appearances were just luck. He knew that better than anyone else. Nothing he had done consciously had caused him to be marked as he was, with eerie glowing eyes and pale markings which shone in certain moods. He would not have chosen to look this way, either. Being an object of scorn and derision among his own kind was not the sort of thing he had wanted from his life.
"After all, your company is so pleasant," he added with a smirk.
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Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2008 4:47 pm
Sasha wasn't stupid. She could detect the sarcasm in his tone, even though he spoke sweetly and looked at her with a sort of appreciation she had never seen in anyone else when they looked at her. She wasn't sure how she felt about that. It was back to the matter of her conflicting feelings on the stranger: was she attracted or repulsed by him. He was so different from all the other palui she'd encountered. More than any of them, he was free, and he actually made her wish that she could be as free as he was. This created further conflict within her, because she would never want to be free if it meant leaving her beloved Aurelie-human.
And her confusion made her falter. She backed up further until her hind paws felt the edge of the porch and she was forced to stop. Her tail swept forward, practically wrapping around one of her hind legs and her eyes widened in something which resembled, but wasn't quite fear. One forepaw was raised, and that one paw quivered with the anticipation of whatever came next.
"Please," she said. "Won't you leave?"
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Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2008 9:15 pm
Mephisto considered. She was acting like prey, which brought a number of emotions to the surface. There was an instinct to pursue her further, to go in for the kill, as it were. This instinct was very strong, but he did not know where it would lead him if he followed through on it. It was intriguing, and a large part of him greatly desired to press her further and take advantage, but he stopped himself. There was another part which acknowledged that she was a housepet, and she was not equipped to play these games, if that's what this was. It felt like a game and it didn't. He almost didn't recognize the protective feelings for what they were, but they were there, and they kept him from advancing.
"If you want me to, I will," he said, taking a step toward the porch steps. He moved very slowly, though, because he half-hoped that she would call him back, which was perfectly ridiculous. They didn't even know each other's names. But why should that matter? Because she was a housepet, and names were important to housepets. Even if his name meant little to him, her name probably meant a lot to her. He was very confused by the whole thing. This was not how things were supposed to have gone.
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Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2008 10:03 pm
Sasha felt panic rising, like a hairball, but worse because she doubted something as simple as vomiting would get rid of it. The power to decide whether the strange, dark palui stayed or went was heady and frightening, because she didn't know what she wanted.
"Wait," she said, feeling utterly helpless and trapped by his ember-like stare. "I think that might be best. If you left, that is, but..."
She looked away, breaking eye contact in hopes that it would allow her to preserve some of her sanity, which she felt was rapidly slipping away from her the more time she spend in the presence of the feral palui. She got the impression if he asked her the right way, she would follow him off the porch and into the wilderness. She hoped he wouldn't ask her, because she loved her Aurelie-human, and she was not suited to life in the wild. She couldn't really hunt, and she didn't know what was a predator and what wasn't. Everything made her jump.
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Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2008 10:07 pm
"But...?" Mephisto repeated, his breath catching and coming with difficulty all of a sudden.
"You're welcome to pass through my territory as you wish."
Sasha's eyes were fixed on the floor. She was a little afraid to look at him.
"Thank you," Mephisto said gravely, his heart hammering within his chest. He had to depart soon, or he might not be able to, which would leave him exposed before whatever human dwelled in the building with the delectable palui he addressed. "If you ever need anything, and you're not with a human, call me."
"Call you what?" Sasha asked. "I don't know your name. And you don't know mine. It's Sascher-tort, but some people call me Sasha."
"And I'm Mephistopheles. Mephisto."
He looked at her, meeting her gaze for an instant, and the bounded away before he could become ensnared by her wide, blue-eyed gaze.
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