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 Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2007 7:24 pm
Oh, there was a light snowfall? He hadn't even realized....just watching and spacing out on the landscape before him. Ronan had long placed himself on the hilltop, resting on its snowy cap to just observe the changes around him. The realm was so different, with no greens remaining and not a trace of the brown ground that had become so familiar. No. Now everything was powdered over in a cold embrace, even the kitsu himself. Ronan laid on his tummy, chin resting on his forearms for who knows how many hours. A good layer of powder had made home along the length of his pelt, and if he was white, he would have blended perfectly. But instead he looked like a discarded and vibrant rug. It was no bother to him though, being his winter coat had grown in. It's thick texture made him look all the larger than he already was. But so long as he was warm, it didn't matter.
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Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2007 8:38 pm
She was heading back to a little burrow she'd made for herself with a pair of bottles clenched carefully between her jaws when she noticed the blotch of familiar color atop the hill and altered her direction. Imagine running into him again out here! She'd known he returned, of course, though they'd split ways before actually arriving. It was good to see Ronan; he was her oldest friend, after all.
She padded atop the hill and carefully set the bottles down before prodding at his shoulder with a paw. "You'd make a pretty statue and all, but I'm not sure what the point is trying to freeze yourself all the way out here where nobody can appreciate all the trouble you went to." She grinned and wagged her tails gently. Just a little friendly jibe.
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Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2007 8:49 pm
The powder was disturbed as Ronan twitsted one ear back, the blue spotted piece waving to the sound of crunching snow, soon followed by a voice. White eyes turned to peer at the other kitsu, Ronan giving a grin while remaining still. Now what was she doing here? The male assumed almost everyone had been in the hq, with its windows lit of the glow of the fireplaces.
"Is that what I am now, a statue?" He chuckled before finally moving. And honestly, he was surprised that he wasn't frozen like she had suggested. Front paws lid forward and tails flagged out, followed by him shaking out his pelt of the snow. "Heh, you know me already. I like to sit to the side at random times. Besides, it's just a habit I remember from childhood." How long ago had that been? Shaking such thoughts from his head, Ronan smirked to Paradise, blinking to the glasses. "Mm, hot chocolate? Having a party at your home eh?"
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Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2007 9:05 pm
Paradise chuckled very softly. "Well, you moved, so I guess you're not a statue just yet." She scanned the sky out of habit, but the air was clear of any more impending precipitation for a while yet. "Though there's opportunity to try again later, I'm sure."
She nodded quietly to his comments about his behavior but gasped in mock suprise at the end. "You, a child? Amazing!" She grinned again while idly tapping a claw at the base of one of the bottles. "And no... not hot chocolate. I think it's sake. At least, it's obviously fermented something or other and the label looks Japanese. Can't read a word of it." She shrugged. "But yeah, taking it home, or to what I've decided to call home for now. Made a little burrow out here when the weather started getting cold. I don't mind putting up with people but I don't feel like being cooped up with all the weirdos that collect at the HQ until the weather warms up again."
She tilted her head and nudged one of the bottles at him. "You can have one, if you want. I didn't really need two, I just grabbed 'em both." Shrug.
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Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2007 9:20 pm
"Haha." Curiousity made him too look up at the sky, raising a brow to himself. What exactly were they looking for? Nothing but a light and non-threatening overcast of soft clouds. A normal feature of winter. "Yeah, I plan to..." His maw hung midsentence to Paradise's smart remark. His own gasp was real, and he squinted eyes while pointing to the girl. "It's not that strange, for goodness sake!" Honestly! Ronan huffed as he turned away, tails flicking his ankles.
"Come again?" Did he hear right? Sake?? Eyes turned down to the scribbled bottles before looking back at Dice. "Just what are you doing with alcohol? I didn't take you for that type." Oh well. Tis the season, as they say. Ronan seated himself, before standing back up swiftly. He had forgotten that taking a seat would mean a wet and icy pose. "A burrow? Now why would you choose that when you have your own place to go too? Unless the habitants there are just as odd as the ones in hq." It was more a mumble than a question. Ronan was an outdoor kitsu through and through, so a burrow seemed more normal to him than a building, honestly. An ear flitted to the side at the offered drink. Sure he liked his occasional alcohol...but they didn't even know what it was. "Fine, if it's just to keep you from overdosing." And he chuckled to that remark.
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Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2007 9:39 pm
Paradise laughed a bit and gave a teasing n** at one of Ronan's tails when he huffed and turned around. "No, not that strange. At least not any stranger than the fact I was one not too horribly long ago." She tilted her head at the thought. "Feels like longer... but it wasn't, was it?" Huh.
Paradise shrugged at his question about why she had the sake. "I've snuck a little here and there when I stumble across one of Ifrit's stashes, but I've never really sat down and had myself a good drink before. Figured what the hay?" She grinned both at his hasty return to standing and his question about the burrow. "They're at least as odd, though personality wise somewhat more tolerable. But honestly... I like it better outdoors. I'm not much for buildings."
She gently rolled one of the bottles to rest at Ronan's feet. "We wouldn't want that." She picked up her own bottle and delicately twisted the cap off with her teeth before sniffing at it. "I think it's sake. I haven't had it before. Ifrit doesn't keep it in his stashes as often as he keeps things like bourbon and rum. Guess he just prefers those." She shrugged again tilted the bottle to let Ronan take a sniff if he wanted. Maybe he could identify it better than she could. "I did get it from one of his stashes, though, with permission, so I know it's safe, at least. He just wasn't around for me to ask what kind it was."
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Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2007 9:56 pm
The tail was quick to flee from the insulting bite. "Let's just not talk about age then." It made him fell....well, aged. Dx Thick fur ruffled at the topic, and the male settled a paw on his own bottle. The air had done its job well to keep it chilled.
His head shook with a crooked grin, his nail busy with scrapping off the cap on his bottle. "Little sips are nothing compared to a good chug though. I'm sure your aware of that." He leaned forward to sniff at the opened beverage, pulling back with a headtilt. "Eh, that scent isn't familiar to me. Smells tasty though." Ronan could only nod his head in agreement to the preference of environment. "Too true." It was nice to know that not everyone fleed to the signs of winter. And Ronan knew the only reason Setsumi wasn't here was that she wanted to be with her family. That thought made him take a swag of the drink without any pause. Made his throat tingle, but nothing of affect. "It is good.."
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Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2007 10:22 pm
It made Ronan feel old and Paradise feel young. A little too young. She was far more comfortable with being an adult. So she agreed to his suggestion with a silent nod.
"I know. Another reason not to sit around at HQ. Funny as it is when Ifrit gets drunk and starts arguing with the lamp stands, I don't think I'd like to follow his example." She sniffed at the bottle again and took a swig shortly after he did, shaking her head a little with a bit of a shiver at the odd sensation it left down her throat. "Yep..." Not that she'd have doubted her shaggy-headed benefactor when it came to his taste in good alcohol.
She glanced off in the direction she'd been going and tilted her head again. "D'you wanna sit out here or you wanna see my little hole in the ground? Might be a little cozy for two but we could at least sit down."
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Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2007 10:34 pm
The male laughed heartily at Dice's comment on her friend. "Sounds like quite the character meet." That would surely be amusing. An argument with a lamp? Priceless. Oh yes, Ronan would definately like to meet others like this Ifrit.
Canting his head to the side, Ronan allowed a half-grin. "Eh there, take it slow." He didn't want her rolling down the hill in one go. Though that would ba a paintball of a snowball to witness. Heh. Ronan took another sip of his 'sake', deciding that this was much better than hot chocolate. White eyes blinked before his striped shoulders gave a shrug. "Why not? Let's meet this little cavern of yours." Or he could sit out here still, either way wasn't a bother to him. He continued to drain his beverage as he waited cooly for an answer. "Don't mind me seeing your secret hideout, do ya?" It was almost like a territorial permission thing when it came to what was considered 'homes'.
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Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2007 7:24 pm
Paradise returned Ronan's laugh. "Well, if'n you ever do head to HQ for something you could keep an eye out, he's there from time to time. Really big guy, kinda flamey orange and brown. Big rack of horns. Kinda hard to miss if he's around." She shrugged, still grinning. "He can be a real hoot."
Paradise stuck her tongue out at Ronan a bit defiantly but took his advice. She didn't really know what her alcohol tolerance was and would much rather still be able to walk back to her burrow. His last question caught her a bit off-guard though and she looked at him with a slightly confused air. "Why would I mind you seeing it? I trust you." Ronan was her first and longest standing friend... maybe she wouldn't let a lot of people know where her little hide-away was but him not being allowed there had never crossed her mind. She screwed the lid back on her bottle and stood up. "It's this way." With that she carefully grabbed the neck of the bottle between her teeth again and trotted toward a patch of trees at the edge of the field.
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Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2007 7:34 pm
Wow, now those were noticable features. Ronan kept that to mind for the next time he'd wander in hq. A non-Nightmare with horns? Interesting. Sorta like his friend, wingless with feathers. What oddities that kitsu can create.
Replacing the lid to his bottle, Ronan canted his head with a tilt. "I suppose. Just had to ask." He didn't even know what impulse drove him to say it. Guess it was sorta like knocking on a door before opening it. Who knew. As Paradise stood and padded to leave, Ronan gave another glance to the landscape. Just to remember where his hill was. And as a last instinct to check his surroundings. But no, this winter certainly was a sedate season. Picking up his bottle, Ronan made trail after the other kitsu, following her cut through the otherwise smooth snow.
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Posted: Sat Dec 22, 2007 8:44 pm
Not-quite-asleep birds perched in the trees were the only ones to see the two kitsu treading quietly through the snow, and a few even woke up to get a better look at the brightly colored display. None seemed interested in leaving their warm perches for further examination however.
After a few minutes they arrived at the base of a threadbare looking old pine, the tree about as out of place this far down the mountain as they were in the middle of the snowfield. Paradise set her bottle down between a couple of gnarled roots and padded around to the other side of the trunk where she tugged a dead branch out of the way of her little hidey-hole. "Helps keep things like snow and wild animals out," she gave by way of explanation as she retrieved her bottle. Then she stood by the entrance, a sort of silent invitation to go first if he wanted to. It was small; it would fit two kitsu comfortably, but things would be a bit snug.
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Posted: Sat Dec 22, 2007 9:04 pm
A passing glance was given to the birds, but nothing more. He could understand those little lives trying to rest out the winter. Smart little buggers. It'd be best though if they migrated like the rest of the birds...
Black rimmed ears twitched to the sight of the upcoming tree. Was this the other kitsu's hideout? Padding quietly, Ronan followed Paradise around the width of the tree trunk. It was a well aged plant, when looked at closely. He could just imagine the burrow possibilities to be weaved under its roots, if the ground weren't so cold and solid. Ronan bared a grin to the homemade door. "A wise little device, eh?" Or at least that what it sounded like past his bottle. Tails flicked as he leaned forward, peeking inside the little cavern of sorts. A brow rose to Paradise, and he had to release the bottle near his paws. "Well, who should go first? If you haven't noticed, I am on the...poofy side." No, not fat! Just...larger than the average kitsu, especially with his winter coat now.
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Posted: Sat Dec 22, 2007 9:28 pm
Paradise grinned at Ronan's "poofyness" and poked teasingly at the side of his belly. She kept comments to herself though. "It should fit us both all the same. And... I suppose it's guests first. 'Sides, I wanna make sure the door's shut right." She waited for Ronan to climb inside and then shimmied down behind him to deposit her bottle before climbing part-way back out and then backing inside carefully while she tugged the branch behind her. She fiddled with it to make sure it was as properly secure as a branch over a hole could be before flopping down next to her bottle.
There wasn't necessarily a lot of space left between them, but it wasn't necessarily uncomfortable and there was enough light peeking in between the twigs on the branch that they could still see. Paradise unscrewed the lid on her bottle again. "So... a toast to friends, or some such?"
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Posted: Sat Dec 22, 2007 9:43 pm
His tummy retracted to the poke, and with a mumble the kitsu slid into the den, making sure to roll his bottle along. White eyes took a moment to adjust to the dark, but it was much better than the glare of the snow. That was always too harsh for his sight. The male shuffled about, pressing one side near the soil wall to make as much space as possible. It wasn't actually that small, but just enough for its purpose to keep warmth inside.
"Oy, got enough room for yourself?" He sat up as best he could, though it'd probably be better for his own form if he rested on his tummy. Ronan blinked to the screen door, finding an amusing instinct to spook any others that came near the hide away. It would be so amusing, especially if it was one of the feathers. Chuckling to himself, Ronan opened his 'sake' bottle, ears flitting to Dice's toast. "Heh, sounds good to me." He clinked the two bottles before sipping down his beverage.
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