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 Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 8:19 pm
It had been a long day in Elaphe's world, as days tended to be. He'd dealt with the constant annoyance of shuffling about on two ridiculous legs, of pushing clumsily through the halls, of being dwarfed and shoved and irksomely ignored in too many classes, and now... well, now, thankfully, it was all officially over 'til tomorrow, and the scrappy little monster hadn't idled a moment longer than absolutely necessary.
Nosi had ferried him back to his dormitory with surprising speed-- albeit at a particularly queer prancing pace. From there, he'd taken a bit of time to groom her out, stripping out twigs and leaves and whatever indeterminately sticky somethings she'd always managed to roll in, preened Lapid a little, filled both the food bowls, read, studied...
It was a fine enough ritual to keep him going privately, but it still proved inadequate to smooth his hackles in the end and thus, shutting his books with a flick of the tail, he finally bounded to the window, whistling between his fangs for both the latter creatures to hurry along. To the lake, was it?
Oh, yes. To the lake. To his lake.
As Lapid darted about in the bluer depths and Nosi cheerfully scooted pebbles here and there with her nose by the shore, he lay at the water's edge, tail curled about him, just... basking, really. The water lapping around his ankles felt so nice, and the low sun warmed his fur ever-so-gently. It was a rare state of peace he could only savor privately, and ever so pleasant... which meant, of course, that Fate would inevitably be interrupting him soon.
Jack forbid he ever get too comfortable.
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Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 8:28 pm
Somehow or another.. . . she'd become the Vice President. People had actually voted for her, she'd been in the lounge for the student coucil members only; even now she wore the badge on the front of her shirt - the gnome she'd talked to earlier had suggested she do so. Something about "presence" and "respect" and "sticking it to the scary taller people with attitudes". Chuppi didn't really understand that last bit but she did understand that she needed to wear the badge to make friends. That's what she thought respect meant anyway.
But of course somehow or another she got overwhelmed, even to the point where Thermos couldn't help her or calm her down, and eventually she found herself running away from everyone and trying to find a place to hide. Seeing as she'd been in Mr. Darcy's class and she was small hiding wasn't such a problem. The problem was that she was crying while she was supposed to be hiding, producing this hiccuping sound that mingled with the screeches that her body naturally produces while weeping. Thankfully she wasn't wailing just yet in her unhappiness or else those around her would either be out cold or out of it with vomiting.
Chuppi had been down by the lake for quite some time crying so she didn't think anyone would notice her; she certainly didn't notice when someone else came up the water's edge. It was only when she sneezed that she worried someone might have heard her and she looked around, face blanching a paler shade of green when she did indeed see someone.
Please, please don't let him have noticed her!
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Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 8:39 pm
... He heard a noise. Jack dammit all WHY HAD HE JUST HEARD A NOISE.
Elaphe's slender ears both twitched with a kind of spasmodic recognition, and in the span of an instant, he had jumped to his feet (er, paws), clearly stiff, on edge, and a far cry from happy. Just the sight of his little hackles bristling like cacti probably told enough, but he whirled around and faced the direction of... whatever it was, little throat rumbling in a sound something like a growl-- or was it a hiss?
"W-Who dares to enter this place?!" he roared furiously-- or... okay, it was as close to a roar as he could ever get. His sail was raised, his eyes were glowing; he clearly intended to put on every warning display at his disposal. Sure, he could have been making threats at a hundred foot tall spaghetti monster, for all he knew, and maybe the thought of being severely mangled was already creeping in on him... but he'd be damned if he showed any hesitation!
A real monster never backed down!
... Funnily enough, neither Lapid nor Nosi seemed even vaguely alarmed by the screeching. Clearly, it was such a common occurrence that they'd simply grown immune to being unsettled by it.
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Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 8:46 pm
Ohnoohnoohnoohno she'd been spotted and seen and now someone was demanding things from here and - WHERE WAS HER THERMOS? It was somewhere near her but she couldn't reach for it, she was being told to come out in a manner of speaking if she understood the English correctly, and the chupacabra got to her feet (she's been sitting, or squatting) and started out from the bushes where she'd been hidden.
Slowly she walked out and instantly froze when she saw the angry character, her large red eyes nearly doubling in size in her head. Her skin was pale to the point she looked ashen green-gray rather than her dark green, and her hands were folded together and up to the level of her chin. Never mind all in this fact that the person threatening and yelling was no larger than she was.
"I....I'm very....sorry. I...didn't think anyone....was here."
She spoke slowly, her voice shaking as tears made their way silently down her face. Chuppi was doing her best not to speak in Spanish, she didn't want to upset this other person any further, but it was hard and made her sound like she was stupid for taking so long to answer.
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Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 9:02 pm
He remained planted in that same spot as she slowly revealed herself, his small back crooked up in a great arch with every hair impossibly bristled, claws kneading the pebbly lake sand with a secret, wild anxiety. That girl... that was the student who'd run for Vice President, wasn't it? And hadn't she even won that asinine circus of a competition? Why on earth would she be alone out here in the first place, let alone on the verge of a weepy tirade?...
Well, no matter. He told himself very sternly that it wasn't his problem, and that all he needed to focus on right then was putting her in her damn place, because this was his lake, and she had no right to be there!
"Well you thought wrong!" he boomed ever-so-impressively (... in his mind), waving that tail over his head with all claws flashing. To prove his point, and just drive home the fact that he was so very terrifying, he took a small, hissing, fox-step closer towards her. "T-this lake is mine, understand?!" Oh, curse the slight waver to him right then, but he recovered just as swiftly. He was still scary! "You are in my space here-- and you've interrupted me. I hope you have a damn good reason for that!"
In the background, Nosi continued to gleefully scoot small stones around. In fact, she'd collected quite a little pile, apparently making some kind of... nest? A nest of pebbles?
One never knew, with that Kirinni.
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Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 9:13 pm
"Ahhh, I-!"
Chuppi stumbled a bit as she tried to back up, falling over and knocking her head into the ground. She winced as the pain caused her to reach up and rub at her forehead, unaware that in doing so she knocked off the skull pin that she was told to always keep on. In doing so her body shifted, ripping her clothing, and instead of being the little creature she had always been she was now a full Chupacabra, her true form now before this tiny creature that rose no higher than her knee. Even in true form Chuppi was barely two-foot-seven but still she towered over him. The quills on her back trembled with the lake breezes and her tail swirled behind her in an effort to help regain balance.
Just how long had it been since she was in her true form, the smell of sulfur leaking from every pore on her skin. Glancing down at herself while still rubbing the bump on her head, the chupacabra turned and looked at the other creature after finding that she was how she should have always been. Chuppi didn't like wearing clothing, not that anyone would know, but for now she was happy to be her natural self. This lake was amazing, and her tears were drying.
"This...this space is meant for all monsters. You...you need to learn to share, chicito nino - little boy."
In her natural form, Chuppi felt brave. She took a hop forward instead of walking, pulling her closer. She would back off if threatened, but she doubted he knew it.
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Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 9:27 pm
For a moment-- just a moment-- Elaphe felt a rush of exhilaration and guilt both wash over him, forcing away the latter in favor of delighting in his scare attempt actually working... only to have it all melt away in an instant when he realized just what it was suddenly towering in front of him, all spines and teeth and reeking sulfurous flesh. Sure, he'd heard about her being a chupacabra and all, but he'd never actually seen the girl's natural form up close!...
Worse still, the change had apparently instilled a new confidence in her and she wasn't that scared of him anymore, causing the little Nguruvilu's farce to suddenly falter a little as his sail flapped down and his ears lowered back, shrinking for just a moment--
"I--..."
... And then she used that word.
"I AM NOT LITTLE!" His tone momentarily broke into a very strange, squeaky higher octave there, but he was clearly more livid than EVER, and even his fangs were bared now, remaining as firm as he could in the shallows, but still, even then, he found himself desperate to step back, towards the deeper water. "And this domain is mine!" Well, in his mind it was, anyway; very few creatures came to swim there, at least! "You've no right to tell me what I need to do!"
This was probably going to end like a train wreck, wasn't it?
... No, this was definitely going to end like a train wreck, without a doubt.
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Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 9:40 pm
"Don't worry, I won't go in the water. I only came down here to hide."
Chuppi gave a semi-shrug, her tail swishing behind her as she watched the different actions of this strange creature. He obviously had to be a student but it was a monster that she had never seen before, not really a surprise all things considered. Part of her told her that as the VP she had to learn more about all the students more about all of the school. People were going to be wanting things from her, expecting things from her, and she couldn't let them down.
Of course, thoughts of all that pressure made her stomach seize up and she knelt down, her nostrils twitching a bit as she smelled the blood of the student and the minipets. Chuppi was hungry, she was in her natural form, and there was likely nothing that could stop her if she tried to get something to eat. Nothing but her conscience of course, as it warned her off the pets of others - even strangers. If she was truley hungry she could go for a fish in the lake, or find where people were slaughtering animals again.
" . . . . Yo tengo hambre."
Of course thoughts and actions were different, and Chuppi's lizard-tongue slid between her lips as she hissed out the words. She was leaning closer to this odd boy (its voice made her assume boy) and still sniffing, her red eyes growing brighter.
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Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2010 12:05 am
Okay, now that? Yeah, that look of hers gave Elaphe a very particular sense of dread, his innards suddenly twisting up in a tense knot that he almost choked on, swallowing hard and trying so very hard not to tremble. Suddenly, all the power of fear he had was dwindling, and he seemed more like the victim than the victor. Stupidly, stubbornly, he refused to step back another foot-- even as she narrowed the margin between them to a terrifying nose-length and sniffed.
(That was so, so predatory. Candlejack. He could just sense it.)
If it was possible for the little fox-snake to puff up and look larger than he already was, it happened right then, that same low adder hiss emitting from him as loudly as he could stand it.
"Tch, to hide? Well... clearly, you're doing a poor job of it!" he attempted to snap haughtily as best he could, but by then, half of his volume had already left him. He just hoped she wouldn't notice, and that her LITTLE commentary would keep the fire of rage cooking within him long enough to... uh. What WAS he trying to accomplish in all of this, again?
At this point, it seemed like 'not get eaten' was the baseline. Too bad he didn't understand Spanish or he would've known immediately that said baseline was doomed to fail, though.
"... And is that an insult?!" But of course, he just had to assume the worst of her babble anyway and take offense to it. Smart, right?
By that point, too, it seemed that Nosi had finished nudging together her nest of pebbles and was quite happy with it, because she plunked her fuzzy rear down right on top of the lumpy pile and bleeted with delight-- so proud of herself that she failed to notice any of Master's grave danger.
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Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2010 7:54 am
"I was hiding until you called me out."
Chuppi leaned closer as the stranger puffed up once more, her red eyes practically glowing in her head. Her mouth was slightly open, revealing a nice set of razor sharp fangs, and her tongue slithered out over her lips once more. She was tasting the air as it was, like a snake did, but it was in all her self control not to just snap the back of this creature. It was a student because it could talk, and not sense after attacking Calder had Chuppi ever thought of hurting someone again. She still carried a pang of regret over that action, something that prevented her at this moment from repeating it. Even though he looked so tasty. . . and small. . . .and . . .
Chuppi's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of an animal bleating, and she swung her head away from the little creature and looked over at the pet that was sitting upon a stash of rocks. Pets didn't count, she wouldn't eat a pet. She was....so nervous and hungry though.
"Yo...tengo hambre. I am hungry."
She repeated herself as though to assure the little one that what she had said was not an insult, but maybe she should have let him think it was.
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Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2010 10:34 am
Suddenly, Elaphe was wishing she had just babbled insults at him instead, because realizing her HUNGER was infinitely more terrifying. Still, stubbornly, stupidly, he remained firm (... ish) where he'd been planted, inwardly chanting to himself that he would NOT move, and he would NOT falter, and there was NO WAY she would be allowed to win this fight of... wills... or whatever it was!
Just don't show weakness and she wouldn't be prompted to strike, right?
RIGHT?...
"Ha! Hiding? W-with all of that noise?!" He had to feign a growly scoff there. "You couldn't hide from the deaf like that, girl!" Although that was probably true enough; anyone with decent working ears could've heard her screechy sniffling in the area with ease. "If you're hungry, look elsewhere! This lake is my fishing place!"
Ooooh, he was trying SO HARD not to tremble and run screaming for the depths right then. So, so hard. He knew full well that there was something at the edge of the lake that she was already eyeing, and it took everything in him to hold his ground. Those teeth of hers... they looked an awful lot like little knives sticking out of her mouth, and that sent a shiver through him like no other.
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Posted: Sat Nov 13, 2010 7:43 pm
"Yo no como pesca. I don't eat fish."
Chuppi pulled herself back and away from the smaller creature in the water once she realized just how far out she'd moved her body. She couldn't swim despite how she looked, not that she wanted to learn. Bodies of water weren't something Chupacabras were known for lurking in anyway and Chuppi pushed herself onto the shore with a solid thump of her tail. It kicked up some sand as she swayed her head towards the creature that had bleated before and her eyes seemed to glow inside her skull.
Rationality < Hunger, or so it seemed. The Chupacabra got down on all fours and slowly started to slink over towards the pet, her body low and to the ground. For such a small creature Chuppi was certainly not little, her body bulk roughly the size of a small bear. If it weren't for the fact that she was chubby in her human!form it would have been safe to assume all of her kind was this thick, though it may have only been her. As she drew close enough to get back onto her rear legs the Chupacabra let out a fierce shriek as her eyes flashed, quickly knocking out whatever it was. If she didn't act fast it would recover soon, so . . .
" . . . . . no. Yo no puedo comerlo - I can't eat that."
The Chupacabra paused in her steps, hovering over what she wanted to be her meal.
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Posted: Sat Nov 13, 2010 8:38 pm
A part of him was in denial when she clarified... because not eating fish meant she ate things that weren't fish, and he qualified as a not-fish, which meant he might very easily be in her range o-- ... oh Candlejack no she was not stalking Nosi.
How ironic that the well-being of a tiny sparkly unicorn thing was what ultimately sparked some kind of raw courage within him, tiny, previously paralyzed limbs unlocking as he actually abandoned the shore's edge and scampered after the great greenish monster, frantic, terrified, and FULL OF RAGE all at once.
Nosi, all the while, remained completely unaware of the danger as she continued to occupy herself with the little pebble nest she'd made, just so proud of herself... and when the screech blasted into her ears, she jumped, bleated just half a note, and promptly spilled over sideways with a muffled, tiny thud, never having known what hit her.
"D-DON'T YOU TOUCH HER!" the tiny, high pitched, and for the first time GENUINELY infuriated scream rang out as Elaphe literally threw himself at Chuppi's face, short limbs and claws and stingers all flailing like a frantic squirrel on the attack. It was a stupid move, sure, but what else was a little monster to do?!
Even Lapid had heard that noise under water and popped his head up in the distance, fins twitching curiously. What was going ON over there?...
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Posted: Sun Nov 14, 2010 6:17 pm
"!!!!! ME DUELE!"
As soon as Chuppi felt sering pain on her face the Chupacabra started to claw at the obstruction, her tail thrashing as she rocked back and forth; her mouth was opened to screech but no sound came out. In an effort to get whatever was on her off Chuppi knelt down and smashed her own head into the sand, ignoring the jarring pain that came with the impact. She repeated the motion again and again, hoping that whatever was on her would let go.
"Let go, let go! No me moleste!"
She reared her head back and fall over, quills poking into the sand with a harsh push. The weight of the object on her face forced her to topple, even her tail unable to keep her balanced.
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Posted: Sun Nov 14, 2010 6:32 pm
There was an audible sort of squelching sound as Elaphe hit the sand, his little insides acting very much like quivery red Jell-o might when crushed against a glass plate. A sharp, squawking choke spluttered out of him, too, yet he was still trying valiantly to claw and bite and sting anything within his reach. She was going to eat Nosi, and now she was probably going to eat him, and he would be JACK DAMNED if he didn't go down without a fight!
Of course his little stand didn't last but a few seconds as she smashed him twice, three, FOUR times into the sand again, his grip loosening under the constant abuse of claws and squashing and, when she finally reared her head back, he went flying, like a squirrel from a catapult, even farther from the shore.
There he landed, twitching and fairly bloody, and there he stayed in a miserably dazed heap, feeling nothing but OUCH from nose to claw and most definitely seeing spots.
"...'Dun yooooou... even... thing'bout it..." And the most hilarious part? He was STILL trying to slur garbled threats. "Sh'not... yer damn... food..."
Nosi was still firmly OUT in the meanwhile, which might've been for the better... though Lapid was clearly VERY wary to leave the water, tensed and standing at a level just to his belly. He looked wary-- and rightfully so. Elaphe was out there... but that THING looked liable to eat them, and he was smart enough to have a proper sense of self preservation, if nothing else.
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