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 Posted: Tue Mar 01, 2011 7:51 am
 In a quiet little glade in Woodhaven, a little mouse has set up his home, and developed his yard into what appeared to be a bug-breeding pen!
Large rotting logs had been dragged from the forest to decorate the yard and its pens, and little pools of water have been dug into the ground to water the bugs the mouse collected. He has quite a meticulous set up going, with an awning opening out from his tree-root home, with a haphazard sign set up outside the abode with 'SUNFUR'S BUG-STOP' written upon it in black dye-paints.
Sat on a hand-crafted picnic bench, a large crystal-stone magnifying glass in his paw, peering at a small pearl-like item that could possibly be a bug-egg, the mouse looks up as he hears your approach.
"C-c-can I help you?" He stammers, putting his magnifying glass down and carefully and gently replacing the egg into the little acorn cup filled with peat and soil. "If its a bug you want, you should take a look about, I guess. Be careful, don't tread on anyone! Come back and see me when you've decided." He turns back to his checking of eggs, his careful, tender fingers holding each egg in turn to assess its progress. Above, on the awning lashed together using spider webs and beech leaves, a little glow-worm beetle flashes his rear, and casts a soft greenish glow on the scene, his wide eyes looking at you, as you traipse off to investigate the pens and their contents.If you would like to claim one of the below insects that are still available, all you need do is select which one you want, then start a little mini-RP with Sunfur to request it, trade for it, and leave with it! Once finished, you can take the little critter to the Bug Certing thread, and claim him officially for your Stonecrestian!Available Bugs  Blue Banded Bee
A sweet little chap that Sunfur acquired as a maggot. He has been hanging around ever since, not a particularly clever bee, though a solitary one by nature.  Red-Velvet Ant | Crazy Ant
An unusual find, and a feisty ant! | A busy body ant that will not sit still!
You'd best keep your eye on this one, he can be particularly nippy! | Best to keep this one occupied with small jobs, or he may go missing! Assassin Bug
Another bug trained from larva-age to respect and be kind to Stonecrestians. He is, however a fantastic guard-bug for your valuables, as once given the command, will not fail to protect it. Has a bit of a stinging bite, so command with caution!   Poplar Leaf Beetle | Peru Beetle | Metallic Green Beetle
A bit of a lazy-bug, but a good companion nonetheless | An unusually large beetle, but also calm of nature | What a dazzling little bug!
Would rather hitch a ride on your shoulder then walk itself! | A good starter-bug for the budding bug-keeper! |This one could win prizes if there were such things as Bug Shows!  Sow-bug | Pill-bug
An unusual bug in that it spends much of its time in the pools, and dries out rather quickly! | The well-behaved, hardy-as-stone pill-bug!
It seems apparent that without a good supply of water, this one may well perish! | This one can withstand most things, including, it seems, being squashed! Giant Lungless Worm
What a weird creature, but so dazzlingly pink! Could provide a nice pet for those of a girly nature... if you can get past the sliminess of this bug!  Johnson's Jumping Spider | Utah Daring Jumping Spider
RESERVED | A beautiful addition to any home!
TRISTAN SWIFTPAW | A dazzler! Those iridescent blue feelers are possibly the most beautiful last sight one might see!
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Posted: Wed Mar 09, 2011 1:54 am
 The circus endeavor had gone better than Tristan had expected, but he knew better than to think he could keep riding the coattails of his early success. No, any good businessmouse knew that it was prudent to always work to improve what was already good. And, besides, Tristan was all too aware that even Clancy the Wonderbug couldn't carry a circus on its own.
The little white mouse wound way along the pens, brow furrowed, examining each bug with a curious gaze. He wore a frayed red cloak and carried a weathered-looking tophat in his hands. He would fiddle with it, intermittently, twirling it by the brim. His eyes were narrowed shrewdly, lips pursed slightly, whiskers trembling a little.
Clearly, he was looking for something very specific. "Excuse me," he said, after a moment, realizing that the shopkeep was here -- he'd seemed quite oblivious to that until just now -- and turning toward the bright-furred mouse. "Have you a moment, friend? I've got a rather...specific...request to be filled, and word is that you're the mouse for the deal."
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Posted: Wed Mar 09, 2011 3:45 am
Looking up from his meticulous work, placing the crystal-rock magnifying glass down, and taking a deep breath, the golden mouse looked over the other, intrigued by his regal appearance and formal manner. Sunfur did like a formal Stonecrestian! He had great respect for those that were eloquent and direct in what they wanted. Above, Sparky clicked his beetle-wing cases, and skittered down to the bench where his keeper worked. His large eyes peered at the Ringmaster, and he seemed to smile, his eyes creasing a little, his fluorescent butt wiggling.
"A specific goal in mind, sir? I suppose I have the free time currently to take a request." Carefully moving the items about himself to the side, he took a charcoal nib and a scrap of barch-parchment, and indicated the seat opposite himself at the bench. The little glow-worm beetle wiggled and skittered about, before taking the seat next to where the new-comer would seat himself. "Take a seat, sir. I like a challenge, I guess!" Idly, his hands shifted to a small pebble beside his work station, and gently turned it over and over.
"Come, talk with me. Your name, sir? Your trade? Your request?"
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Posted: Wed Mar 09, 2011 9:33 pm
Tristan watched him keenly, noticing his odd fidgety mannerism. He smiled a bit, nodding his head obligingly and making his way over to the bench. He sat his hat down next to him and slid in, extending a paw for a pawshake before carefully folding his paws before him. "The name's Tristan, Tristan Swiftpaw," he said, his red eyes glinting a bit. "From Fleuve, though I trust you won't hold that against me overmuch." He winked, good-naturedly, and then leaned back in his seat, contemplating his request.
"Here's the situation, friend. Some time ago, I was lucky enough to make acquaintance with a certain ladybug. He's quite the...unusual...specimen, I think. Very active. A bit of a performer at heart. A, ah, circus bug, as it were."
Why was he suddenly self-conscious?
"But a circus with only one bug doesn't really bring in much interest. So I think you can see my concern."
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Posted: Thu Mar 10, 2011 2:20 am
Sunfur looked at the proffered hand-paw, and nervously inspected it, before using only the tips of his own fingers to give it a gentle squeeze and one short shake. He was not, by any stretch of the imagination, a socially adept creature. He had always been a loner, and had always found it difficult to converse openly with others. At the other's joke about being from Fleuve, Sunfur's face remained impassive, perhaps with a hint of not understanding the joke at all. He just smiled a little forcedly, a slight lift of the lips.
"Right, Tristian Swiftpaw of Fleuve. You seek more bugs for your circus?" Sunfur turned in his seat, and looked over at the pens. There was only one, really, in his collection thus far that would be of any use to the mouse, and that was the Johnson's Jumper. He motioned a paw towards the spider enclosures. "I only have one that may be of interest to you. He is a natural showman, being a jumper. You strike me, however, as a mouse that is looking for something else?" He turned back and looked at the bedecked male with a glance of knowing this request may lead to Sunfur being off on a bit of adventure. That, in itself, was a scary prospect, but he was a dedicated mouse to his bugs, and their welfare, and also to find one that would suit the need of a potential keeper.
"Special little beetle hm? Unusual you say? What is it you seek then?"
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Posted: Thu Mar 10, 2011 10:17 am
"Ah, yes," he said, "the spider. I read his sign." He contemplated this. He really wished he knew a bit more about bugs, suddenly, as he wasn't even sure what he was looking for, or if it was in the realm of possibility.
"Clancy has this act, you see," he said, then, in an attempt to get at the point. He gestured somewhat emphatically with his paws. "He'll run up the wall and do this backwards somersault off of it, like this. And he does a balancing act up on a stalk of grass, sort of like..." he tried to find a way to mimic that in gesture and came up short. "What I'm thinking, is maybe...I don't know...a pair of other beetles, that could balance with him. Do a pyramid act? Or maybe a couple of spiders that could do a trapeze act, with their webs...."
He trailed off, considering this.
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Posted: Fri Mar 11, 2011 4:38 am
Sunfur listened, his face a little screwed up in confusion as the other mouse struggled to get at what he wanted to do with his circus. His nose still a little wrinkled, Sunfur twirled his paw around on his wrist beside his head, a motion he often did when thinking.
"You want a selection, then? To become working bugs. Well. That spider I would definitely suggest; he is hard-work unless he's given something to do, and perhaps your circus is just what he needs." He considered his other bugs, and shook his head. "The others here, unfortunately, are less showy then him. The selection of beetles I have are more of a lazy variety. I suppose, for a decent trade, I could go out and look specifically for you, for lively, high-potential beetles? If it is just beetles you wish?" The gold-furred male stood, and motioned the other mouse to follow him to the pen of the Johnson's Jumper. Leaning against the little fence, he clicked his tongue, and the larger spider came peering about, his striking orange colours bright in the sunlight.
"A bit of training with food items, and he'd work well, I think." He reached out and petted the head of the spider, that shivered and leaped away, high onto the top of a rotting log. "He could easily escape, but he doesn't." Sunfur cleared his throat and looked at the white mouse with his deep red eyes. "So this one is open to you, and for a fair trade, I'll seek the others you wish, or attempt to breed some? Just tell me the temperament and colour palette you wish. I'll need seven days at the most to gather together a selection of bugs for you. What do you say?" His reedy voice faltered a little. Sunfur clearly wasn't used to this business lark, but he enjoyed his work, and he aimed to please, even if he was a nervous beast.
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Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2011 4:56 pm
Tristan nodded, eyeballing the spider appreciatively. He was very handsome. "He won't eat the others, will he?" He asked, glancing up at Sunfur before peering back down at the spider. It looked friendly, actually. Almost cute.
"As for the others," he mused, trying to visualize what he wanted in his mind. He should have brought Clancy along. "Not red," he said. "So Clancy can stand out. He'll still be the star. So...something that will work well with him, make his color punch a bit...not too eager to hog the spotlight..."
He strongly suspected that he and Sunfur were not exactly communicating on the same level, or even talking about the same things.
"So far as trade goes, I have a few things to offer you. There's a few bugs I've found, lurking around the pen where I keep Clancy, that are not suited to the life. I could bring them back to you, if you'd like. I've also a fine selection of berrywines I've brought back from Mossflower on my last trip, if you're a drinking chap." He smiled. "I might have something else available, depending on your interests and the, ah, quality of what you can find."
He knew better than to offer too high in an initial bargain.
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Posted: Sat Mar 19, 2011 4:15 am
Sunfur contemplated the offers, and slowly nodded. Though he himself did not drink, berrywine was always a good bargaining tool, and if it was a good quality, then who knew the possibilities of it! He stuck out a paw to the male, and used a piece of charcoal to strike through the 'Available' sign on the spider, and wrote in haphazard writing 'Tristian' underneath.
"Done then, sir. I shall seek out what you ask, and keep this spider back for you. He only eats what he's given." Walking over to his awninged home, the golden mouse searched within a little knapsack for a fresh dead beetle grub, and brought it back to Tristian. The spider in the pen started to get excited, and leapt about, showing off within his home. Grubs meant food! "You will need to start feeding him now, to get him accustomed to you being his owner. I'll throw in a bag of dead grubs for free in this trade, and you must come back every evening till he is yours, and give him one grub." Sunfur gazed over the spider with fondness, the spider itself still bouncing around, showing off in order to get the food it could see.
"A week, I should think. A week, and I will have the bugs you desire."
((Feel free to PM me some references or such for what you'd like! Otherwise, I'll just design some shinies X33))
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Posted: Sun Mar 20, 2011 10:31 pm
Tristan grimmaced a little as the grub found its way in his hand. Ugh. But, well, you must do what you must, and better this slimy grub than a spider running rampant through the circus, eating the performers. So, then, he must do what he must."Well, if it'll make him loyal," he murmured, following Sunfur over. He declined to mention the misspelling of his name on the sign.
Food motivated, he thought. That would be the way to go with these bugs -- food motivation. Check.
True to his word, he did return daily, loyally, for a week. He brought Archibald along so that the young hedgehog could grow accustomed to working with the spider as well. Wouldn't want any accidents.
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Posted: Mon Apr 18, 2011 4:19 am
Sunfur had been busy searching the hedgerows and capturing prospective bugs, assessing them for suitability and freeing those either too old or too untameable. In the end, he came to three prospective individuals that he had a sneaking suspicion Tristan would greatly like! Stepping from his home on the fourth day, Sunfur saw the circus ring-master stood feeding his spider with another, a little hedgehog. He nervously sidled up, his hand carefully fingering the pebble that was his good-luck charm. He bowed his head to the pair, avoiding eye contact until he motioned back at his home in the tree stump.
"G-g-good to see you are here, doing as told!" The mouse muttered, a small smile passing over his lips as the spider wiggled his feet about. "I have three prospective bugs for you, mister Tristan. Would you like to come see? You can choose one, two, or all, it is of no concern of mine." The golden mouse bowed his head again, still avoiding eye contact with Tristan and his new companion, and lead the way to his home. Inside, he carefully opened a curtain and ushered the pair in, to show them the three bugs he had caught.
 
The butterfly was stunning, her wings opening to reveal incandescent blues that shimmered and painted the room with a blue glow as the sun from the little latticed window struck them. The two beetles were less impressive in colour, but showed promise as trick bugs. Sunfur motioned to Tristan to peruse to his heart's content, taking a pen and parchment sheaf, awaiting instruction on which would be taken and which would not.
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Posted: Fri May 27, 2011 1:16 am
"They're all quite stunning," Tristan said, amiably. "Excellent work, Sunfur. You've truly lived up to your reputation."
He circled them all slowly, contemplatively. Already, he was beginning to think of ways to fit them into his act. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, then smiled. "I'll take them all, if you really don't mind. My assistant will be around with the goods shortly, actually."
He extended a paw to shake, grinning -- very pleased at the arrangement and the future successes in business that it would bring.
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