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 Posted: Thu Mar 16, 2017 8:21 pm
This thread is here to house my RP entry for my fox, Sly, just for ease of access to it now that it's canon for my pasture. :3
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Posted: Thu Mar 16, 2017 8:22 pm
The Sly Fox  Sometimes, it paid off to be an opportunist. Sly had learned, through years of experience, that there was an ebb and flow to hunting. To knowing the right time to pounce, in being able to read his surroundings.. making a mistake often led to a rabbit finding an escape, or a fish slithering out from between his paws, and most importantly.. it often led to an empty fox tummy.
Being clever was indeed part of it, but so was being patient. Rushing in too quickly could give his position away. Finding just the right way, at just the right time, was of utmost importance.. and, as dusk settled in across the sky, Sly could feel it on the wind. The time was now.
He'd observed this enclosure.. this fenced-off meadow.. for several days from the edge of the forest just beyond it. Watching creatures of all manner of color and marking wander in and out. A few of them, like the bright pink mare with the black-streaked mane, she came and went through the gate several times. She belonged there, it seemed, and came home every evening. But there were others, in an almost constant stream.. five stallions, each in jewel tones, entered the gate and hadn't yet left. Another colorful filly, with brilliantly colored wings, had arrived just before them. An entire herd of smaller, brightly patterned ponies had all clamored to get inside just that morning, passing a dark navy unicorn heading out.. that had returned right back to the gate hours later. And what it told Sly was that this.. residency, this pasture of beings both like him and unlike him, had many new arrivals and even more that simply stayed there.
Like clockwork, just as he'd observed everyday for the last few, the pink mare walked a worn grass path towards the open white gate once the sun dipped beneath the horizon. She was very clearly heading home, a home full of sweet smelling baked goods and fresh, crisp apples and a lake that.. from what he could see from outside the border.. was teeming with fish. A home he wanted to be a part of, and thus it was not this pony he was hunting. Not a thing was being hunted, but a place. And off he took on quick legs, moving from the edge of the trees and up behind the pink mare on her flank.
"Hello," he said, very calmly. As if he were greeting an old friend. Sly's voice was smooth as silk, and his words slid off his tongue in such calculated familiarity. "Have you had a long day?"
The pink mare, apparently rather used to seeing new faces by now, didn't so much as flinch as she walked beside the fox.. not one eyelash batted as he followed her inside beyond the gate. "Oh, goodness yes!" She answered, shifting her gaze to peer warmly towards the fox. "I had fourteen produce deliveries today, and couldn't find Honeydew anywhere to help. Have you seen him?"
A grin appeared.. wide and smug, baring just the hint of pointed teeth beneath Sly's muzzle. Success. She hadn't even questioned it. "No, I'm afraid I have not seen him." Who Honeydew was meant little to the fox, but playing along could only help. "Shall I look for him for you?"
"Would you? Yes, please! That would be so helpful, thank you. Tell him to come see me when you find him, I'll be home." And that home, it appeared, was just inside the gate, for she turned with a small nod of her head towards a large building a few feet away.
As the mare disappeared inside the doors, Sly kept moving. His steps were deliberate -- slow, steady, but not in the least bit sneaky. Creeping along as if he didn't belong there would break the ruse, you see. And now that he was within the gate, he only needed to find somewhere to sleep to really stake his claim.
He moved beyond the two front-most buildings, walking a path further inwards that led him past them. Several yards in front of him was the lake.. rippling, shimmering in the fading sunlight, with tiny little splashes that caught his hunter's eye. Yes, indeed, there were fish, and a sweet, fat salmon would make the perfect meal--
"Ah, what a pretty thing you are, love."
Without missing a beat, Sly's head turned towards the second voice he heard.. and his eyes settled on a peculiar creature. A little jingly hat, heavy face makeup, and a harlequin pattern across his legs. Was it common for enclosures to have jesters?
"Thank you," the fox replied, though his tone was quizzically amused. "As are you."
This, it appeared, flustered the jester greatly, and his head shook so fiercely that each of the bells dangling from his hat jangled vigorously. "New arrivals, never can tell," he said, though more to himself. "Nevermind. I've not seen you before. I assume you're another relative of Lucius'?" This question, from the jester's expression shifting from aghast to rather confident, seemed to be a logical explanation. "You can find him back there.." And at this, the jester gestured with his head, causing more jingling of the bells, towards the last building nearest the lake, ahead of them.
"I am," said the fox, just as confidently. These ponies were making it far too easy. His grin returned, wry and slick, and he bowed his head in thanks. "Much appreciated, friend. I was just looking for him."
Without another word, Sly turned from the jester and moved in the direction he'd been given. He didn't run, but still moved swiftly, leaving the jester behind and.. passing what was, apparently, Lucius' stables.. he trotted right up to the edge of the lake instead.
Even in what, by now, was early evening light.. the water was a beautiful sight. It was clear, and just calm enough to see beyond the surface, and Sly's eyes darted from fish to fish to fish. Such easy hunting, just as this new home had been easy hunting, and he'd never even seen a lake full of so many fish.. so many fish, just waiting to be caught, that would be caught soon enough..
"WHAT A BEAUTIFUL TAIL!"
From across the lake, the voice hit him like a ton of bricks. It made his ears flatten, and his eyes grow wide, and Sly peered, rather obviously startled, at the source of the screaming.
She came flying towards him, galloping around the shoreline faster than any other creature he'd seen thus far. And when she came up against his side, she promptly wrapped her intensely fluffy tail around his side.
"Hi! I'm Floofs, and yoooooou're new."
Of all his encounters, this was the only to rattle his veneer, and his smiling faded into a cautious grimace towards the very cat-like pony. It was all so simple to just be accepted into the flock, because so many were, and that had been his plan all along... to act as if he belonged until he did, indeed, belong. But the one thing Sly hadn't counted on, and the one thing he had yet to receive, was a real, actual warm welcome. A warm welcome for a stowaway...
"I'm Sly," he answered, his mottled fur bristling underneath Floofs' rather.. spirited rubbing with her tail. While his voice was unsure, he made sure at least that his rouse didn't falter, and he followed quickly with, "I've just arrived, yes-"
"Do you have somewhere to stay, yet? YOU CAN STAY WITH ME! And Lance. We have a Fabulous Tail club, you see. You can be a part of it, your tail is beauuutiifulll."
In vain, Sly tried to swat at Floofs' insistent tail with his own, but this only seemed to spur her on further.
"You're not a cat, but you're close enough. You're cute! Were you hunting fish? So was I, but I can never catch them. Lance says I make too much noise, but I can't help purring. And splashing. Cats aren't supposed to like water, but I think it's fun to splash in! Do you wanna try with me? We can now. But oh, wait, where will you sleep. YOU CAN HAVE MY BED, it's warm and fluffy and I'll even let you play with my favorite ball of yarn. I stole it the last time I went past Bright Sprite, she has TONS of yarn and string that just flies around everywhere and..."
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