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 Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2011 3:34 pm
There were pleasures in being an omnivore. While Calder could not deny that meat was a glorious thing that he could not live without, there were equally delightful foods to be found outside, growing up from the ground. Most of the time, when the cafeteria was serving something not exactly up his alley (and not able to be dunked in water for taste), he just held off till he could slip outside and graze for a while. Amityville was cursed with a wide variety of plants and, ever the explorer, Calder trampled all about the place finding both places to swim and places to graze. The best were plants about the bank, but he often found nice mushrooms in the damp swamps or ripening, oozing plants rotting in some dead tree.
It was, on this particular day, he stumbled upon the jackpot. Having skipped breakfast, it was a real treat to find a small patch of a vast array of plants. Tomatoes, peppers, beans, and, oh yes, carrots. Giving an excited whiney, the white horse set to work tearing up the soil with his hooves to get at the treats underground, nomming away as he tore up plants, chewed leaves, and eat vegetables and fruits alike. Whatever makers that were left to claim it as anyone's were either trampled or unnoticed by him, and he chewed on a fat carrot that he noticed had a worm on it. Yum!
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Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2011 4:11 pm
If there was one thing Ren was sick and tired of, it was people gawking at him - and then laughing at him - when he told them he was a vegetarian.
"And what is so wrong with THAT?" he'd fumed, once his mother had managed to stop her giggles. "Plenty of people are vegetarians!"
Laila had looked at him and said "Not gryphons. We're carnivores, through and through. Nice joke, though, son."
Needless to say, he had stopped mentioning it around his family. And he was determined to keep it relatively quiet here at school as well; or, at the very least, not the center focus of who he was. There is nothing wrong with it, dammit!
Not that he cared what people thought. But it was still downright irritating, which was why Ren had not told anybody about the little garden he had managed to start, off in a relatively secluded place and away from the prying eyes of the rest of the student body. Ren kept it very well maintained, dedicated to making sure it was neat and tidy. So far he had had a very nice selection of vegetables growing, and he was quite proud of them.
Which was why, when Ren arrived at his little garden on this day in particular, he almost had a heart attack.
There was a horse. A horse, in his precious garden, tromping around and mashing all of the tiny plants under its hooves as it scarfed down its "meal" of Ren's peppers, tomatoes, beans - was that a carrot in its mouth?
"Hey!" Ren shouted, mouth dropping open in astonished outrage as he booked it across the grass, towards his garden, and waving his hands at the horrible creature. "What in Jack's name are you doing?! Get away! Shoo, shoo!"
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Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2011 4:26 pm
This particular horse was not a horse at all. He looked like a horse, clearly ate like a horse, but in fact he was of the proud class of kelpie. It was the other horse look that threw people off, not to mention that this horse looked very happy to be munching on a carrot.
Calder was humming to himself, singing The Carrot Song in his head. I'm eatin a carrot. Eatin a carrot. Carrot. Carrot. Carrot. I like to eat them all.
Eatin a carrot. Eatin a carrot. Fat, Skinny, Slimy, Rotten, and ones that are very smallllllll.
As he chewed on the delicious vegetable, he was shouted at. SHOUTED at for eating - which really ruined his song. Opening his eyes, he turned his head, the green tail of the carrot sticking out of his mouth, as a young student walked up to him and started to shoo him away.
Frowning, he threw his head back, sending the end piece of the carrot in his mouth, and then started to talk as he chewed. "I'm eating a carrot." He said, as if that wasn't clear. To prove his point, he opened his mouth and then closed it. "See. Carrot. It's really good. There are lot of them here. You want one." He looked down and pawed at the dirt, digging his hoof in until he uncovered another one. "There. That one can be yours." He smiled, continuing to chew as he looked at the boy. He wished he'd stop shooing him. It was very annoying.
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Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2011 4:36 pm
Ren was not pleased. Ren was not pleased at all. In fact, he was very nearly totally pissed off. The creature was IN his garden. It was IN it, eating his food, the vegetables he had spent hours upon hours carefully cultivating, carefully preparing, taking care of, watering, weeding and -
Did that thing just talk?
Ren stared at the horse for a moment, his expression blank. However, it was quickly replaced by a frown, and then a scowl, dropping the bag of supplies he held in his hand to clench his fist, pointing accusingly at the...well, it was still a horse, even if it talked.
"I know that's a carrot!" he snapped, stepping over his now ruined plants towards the horse. "Because it's my carrot! You're eating my food!"
Ren pressed two hands to the horse's flank in attempt at shoving him bodily from his garden. This was probably not the best idea, since A.) It was probably not a horse at all, but something that could turn into a horse, and Ren did not know exactly what that something was; and B.) Horses were heavy.
"Move, dammit!" Ren growled, turning around to use his back now, digging in the heels of his feet. "Get ouuuutttt!"
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Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2011 4:47 pm
He finished his carrot, swallowing and looking over at the monster that was now pushing on his backside. His ears naturally went back as it was never smart to go behind a creature, horse or kelpie. Already he had a tendency to kick, but he was still trying to figure out why the guy was so upset. Here he was being friendly and sharing and he was trying to push him. Of course, Calder didn't even budge with the boy's attempts at moving him out of the garden.
"I know its your carrot. I'm not eating it. You can eat it. See." He bended down, pulling the carrot by its top, pulling it out of the ground and turning his head to hold it out for the boy to take. "Thee. You kan 'ave it." He said, offering the boy the carrot he seemed so upset over. Maybe he would like a pepper?
Bending down, he found one, nipped the stem, and pulled it, breaking it from the rest, and held both the carrot and the pepper for him to have. "Ow ah'bout this?" He offered, trying to make the boy stop pushing on him and less upset.
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Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2011 5:00 pm
"What are you talking about?" Ren cried, still attempting (uselessly) to shove the horse from his garden. "You are too eating it! You're standing there with carrots in your mouth! You're eating them right now!"
Obviously whatever this...thing was (and Ren was still not quite sure), it was stubborn as all hell. It refused to budge, and after much pushing, shoving, and swearing, Ren finally gave up, wiping his forehead as he blew a few loose strands of hair from his face.
"I don't need tha - warrrghhhhh what are you doinggg?! PUT THAT CARROT DOWN RIGHT NOW!"
The situation was going from bad to worse. Reaching out, Ren snatched the dangling carrot from the beast's teeth, cradling it against his chest like it was some precious object or something (it was not pathetic, no, it was only protecting his vegetables!). He glared at the horse, fuming.
"Who are you? And what are you doing in my garden?"
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Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2011 5:08 pm
Maybe Ren was hard of hearing and didn't get what he was saying. Calder didn't know why. He spoke just as clearly as he did when he was in his other form, but who knew. Monsters. Some were just weird, and this one clearly was as he wasn't EATING his carrot, but holding it as if was his first pumpkin and he was waiting for it to hatch.
Sitting his rump right on top what used to be a small patch of cucumbers, Calder thought about it for a moment and then shifted into his humanoid form. He also decided to speak SLOWLY and CLEARLY as this boy seemed hard of hearing. It was probably why he was yelling so much. He was going deaf.
"I'M A KEL~PIE! I WAS EATING HERE. DO YOU NOT LIKE CARROTS?!" He said, slowly and as loud as he could for the other to hear. Of course, this probably didn't help that he was doing thing, but Calder thought so. Sitting on the ground, he looked up at the other, before looking around and grabbing a cucumber and holding it up to him. "DO YOU WANT A CUCUMBER INSTEAD?!" He looked at the carrot he was holding and was wondering why he wasn't eating it and then caught on. "OOOOhhhhh. THIS IS YOUR GARDEN?" He asked, looking around. It was a rather messy garden and tiny too. He wished there was more to eat. "WHY DON'T YOU HAVE A SIGN? A BIG SIGN! LIKE….THERE!" He pointed to a spot that a big sign would be perfect for.
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Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2011 5:26 pm
Ren had been about to throw something (maybe a broken carrot, or maybe his fist) at the horse in frustration when it changed -
- into a boy. Ren stared, momentarily nonplussed. Yes, that was certainly a boy - he thought - or was it a girl? That long, pale (albeit, messy as all hell) hair and slender face made it difficult to tell.
The loud, patronizing voice, however, was quite easy to distinguish as clearly very annoying.
"NO, I DO NOT WANT A CUCUMBER!" he screeched, stomping over to the boy (girl?) and looming over him (her?), still clutching the only unbroken carrot in his arms. "AND WHY ARE YOU YELLING?! I'M NOT DEAF."
Obviously this other monster (What were the horse shifter people called again? Ren could not remember the name for it) had issues. Obviously they were slow and did not realize that they were eating all of Ren's vegetables. Obviously Ren was not pleased at all.
Glaring down at the boy (girl?) Ren said "It doesn't have a sign because no one was supposed to know it was here! Then you come lumbering in and have to mess it all up!"
Pressing the carrot to his chest, Ren jabbed his other finger at the other. "You're gonna help me clean it all up and plant new things, now!"
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Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2011 5:35 pm
All the yelling was hurting his ears, and he covered them a moment as Ren shouted at him. What was worse was that he still held to the carrot after making such a fuss that it was his. Why wasn't he eating it? Calder would eat it? He was hungry?
Looking at the carrot, he slowly nodded to the boy, half-listening as he starred at the carrot. It looked big too, and ready to be chewed. It even started to speak to him. Calder. I have lived a good, long life, and now I want to die in a honorable, carroty fashion. Eat me. Eat me now so that I may return to my kin and live among them in carroty paradise.
Calder wanted to chew that sucker right now!
But he was instead given and order, and looked up in time. "What?" He said, confused as he looked around. The place was messy. Why would he help with a messy garden. "Why? If you don't have a sign, no one will know it's your garden, and then someone will eat it." Speaking of.......
"Are you going to eat that?" He said, pointing to the carrot.
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Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2011 5:48 pm
As a gryphon, Ren should have had the strength of mind to remain dignified and calm in every circumstance. His parents, a pair of proud, elegant people, were known for their stature, their smooth, collected natures, the cool way they handled things. It was a common fact that gryphons were supposed to be a very sophisticated race.
Ren was obviously none of these things. He made this very clear when he let out a string of obscenities, most of which would have had his parents gasping in shock and horror.
"NO," he said, half twisting away from the horse!thing. "You may NOT have my carrot! This is the ONLY thing that isn't broken now in this garden, and I am keeping it with me so that it stays this way!"
At least, until he ate it himself. But Ren would not do that until he had his garden back.
"You weren't supposed to find this garden." Ren replied. "It was supposed to be hidden away from everyone. And how am I supposed to know some great big lumbering horse!girl was going to come and eat my vegetables?
"Now," Ren said sternly. "You are going to pick all of the mess you made."
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Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2011 5:59 pm
Kelpies were not known for dignified mannerism. While his father was refined and elegant, his mother was a hellish war house with a wild spirit and a tendency to n**. As for Calder, he was just a hungry kepie with a lot of pride and who didn't like to be yelled at. It took a lot to rile him up, but there were buttons.
One was being called a girl. Another was being called a horse.
Pushing off the ground, he rose up, ears back and eyes narrow. With a finger, he jabbed at the boy's chest. "I – am – not – a – girl –or – a – horse!" He jabbed with each word. "Do I even LOOK like a girl?" Not the smartest thing to say, but he felt he was clearly masculine. Look at this lovely mane and soft features. All stallion!
"If you don't name things, how are people suppose to know if they belong to someone. You hide it, and I found it. It's not my fault that I am observant." And super hungry.
Pouting, he set his hands on his hips and looked around at the ruined garden. "And why would you want to clean this place up again? If I found it, it's not much of a secret then, is it? Anyone can find it, especially if you don't have a sign. You should put up a fence. I know I stay out of fences or maybe a wall……….oh, you could set up guard dogs. That would work." He looked around, thinking that guard does really wouldn’t eat the vegetables.
Frowning, he looked back at the carrot. It looked REALLY good. "You carrot isn’t the only thing still left." He held out the cucumber he offered before, which was actually bitten now upon closer inspection. "There is this lovely cucumber. Wan to trade?"
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Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2011 6:26 pm
Oh. So it was a boy. Ren quirked an eyebrow at him, tail twisting around his legs.
Well, that was a rather stupid question. "Of course you look like a girl," he said bluntly, as if the answer were obvious. "Why else would I think you were one? And whaddaya mean you're not a horse? You just were one, and you were eating my food!"
Somehow the argument did not seem to be going anywhere fast - which was strange, because it was quite clear that Ren was right and the other boy was wrong, although the other didn't seem to be able to grasp that. Was he slow, or something? Ren scowled.
"I don't like fences; they make it difficult for me to get into it and garden," he answered, somewhat peevishly. "Not to mention it would draw more attention to it. It was supposed to be just a quiet little place for me to grow some food for myself."
The tiny garden was in ruins now, most - if not all - of the plants scattered around the dirt floor, smushed into the grass; or, in the case of all of the empty carrot holes - straight into this - this person's stomach. Ren eyed the cucumber almost suspiciously.
"No, thank you," he said, pulling the stupid thing closer to him. "Besides, there's a hole in that one. And I want to clean it up because before you - whatever your name is - came along, my garden actually looked nice!"
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Posted: Sun Jan 09, 2011 7:45 pm
This boil was VERY annoying. Sure, he could grow things, but he was just 'Ugh' all over. Frowning, he looked at the once-garden and smiled. "Yes, it was a very nice garden. It was very inviting and full of plants. It's what attracted me to it. See, when no one puts up signs to say it's a garden, you pretty much think it's natural and up for grabs. See.." He leaned in, looking around as if he was sharing a secret, before he tested to see if Ren was deaf or not by whispering to him. "…signs tell people that this is someone's garden."
He stood back up, erect, as he took a bit of his rejected cucumber. Fine then! He would just eat Mr. Cucumber and not bother. Stupid carrot-hogging secret gardener type person hate face.
"For a quiet garden, you are awfully loud." He pointed out, before thinking a moment. "Why are you making a garden secret? It's not against the rules. And fences and signs would tell people to stay away. It would get their attention to keep them away. See….it works if you really think about it." He chewed on the cucumber, looking around.
"……..and I only look like a horse. It's called a disguise. I'm a kelpie. Kellllllllll-ppppppppppeeeeeeeeeeeeeee." He made sure to stretch it out so he remembered. "If I looked like my other form, I would scare your carrot white." But it would probably still taste just as good. The guy was being stingy with that carrot. :C
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Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2011 6:41 am
This boy... Ren thought, snapping his teeth together in a attempt at not leaping out to throttle him. I swear...
"I know what a sign does," he said through his clenched teeth. "It's not like I'm stupid or anything. I just didn't think one was necessary for such a small, unnoticeable garden, all right?"
Ren had tolerated quite a bit of people in his life, especially being a gryphon, but he hadn't ever actually been patronized by someone around his own age, and definitely not by a horse - Oh, he thought sarcastically, excuse me, a kelpie.
"And it's none of your business why I want to keep my garden a secret," he added with a switch of his tail. He had been about to just give up on the whole situation, but then the boy had to go and run his mouth again, blathering on about things.
That was it. Letting out a snarl, Ren stomped over to the boy, reaching out and grabbing one of his ears between two fingers.
"Pick. Up. Your. Mess." he growled, pointing at the desecrated garden.
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Posted: Mon Jan 10, 2011 9:41 am
Calder was about to refuse. He thought it all silly. Gardens grew out in nature and if you wanted to keep things out, you made signs. As a common grazer, he was used to just finding what was good to eat and eating it. It was nature and if it was there for the picking, you picked. This guy didn't seem to understand that concept, and Calder was finding it hard how to get his point across. As a kelpie, the world was his salad bowl, and he could eat the weeds, flowers, thistles, and cattails all he liked since it was there to be eaten. Shouldn't it be a compliment that he was attracted to his garden? Maybe he should mention how delicious it all was?
However, all thoughts were broken when the very loud …cat…thing…came over and pinched his ear. HIS EAR! It was a move both his mother and father had done and he bended down to it, wincing. "Owowowowowowowowowowowooooooooooooieeeeee…" He whined, following the other as he was dragged to the center of the garden.
"Okay. Okay! Okay! I will! Just ….let go of the ear." He said this slowly as if he was telling a hostile shooter to put down his gun. Calder's very ear was in jeopardy of being hurt. Poor ear. It never did anything to his stupid garden after all.
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