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 Posted: Fri Feb 05, 2016 10:42 pm
 Percy had already finished unpacking his room. When he came to the Academy he had to leave quite a few of his prized possessions behind, but there was just one thing he couldn't bring himself to abandon: his childhood friend Bismae. Bismae was a Naga. Percy a Bakeneko. The two had practically grown up together, despite his Naga companion being of a lower tier in both societies. Percy remembered all the nights he'd sneak off just to talk about the 'real world' with Bismae. Percy had been raised within a lavish life style; everything handed to him on a silver plate. When the Swirling Storms broke, the world barrier collapsed, he finally had a chance to really see the world for what it was, and the bakeneko, though highly praised and well cushioned in his position, decided to strip himself of all his worth and move to the Academy. He wanted to learn about the other races. He wanted to get down in the mud and be with them on their level. He wanted to be with the people. There as more to this world than the Nagas and the Bakenekos. He was eager to explore this new world, and with his one comfort from home -- his childhood friend -- Percy knew he could tackle this adventure head on. Orientation for the new students would be in a few hours, but for now, they were still settling in to the quarters. Percy's new space was rather cramped in comparison to what he was used to, but he found it quite quaint and charming all the same. His room was littered in cushions and low tables to give him a little taste of home, a cast iron pot sitting on a warmer for him to invite his snake friend over to share a cup of warmth and tea together. Frankly, Percy was excited to taste this new life. But first things first! "Bismae, m'dear?" Percy lightly knocked at her door. "How is the unpacking going?"
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Posted: Sat Feb 06, 2016 4:59 pm
 The knock came at the door and Bismae considered whether or not to answer. She knew that if she did, Percy would come sauntering in to evaluate her decorations. She also knew that if she didn't, he'd come in and evaluate her. She uncurled a little from her heap of blankets on her futon and blinked at the doorway. "It'ss cold," she grumbled.
When Percy had announced they were leaving to attend some 'academy' it had never occurred to Bismae that she might have had a choice in the matter. Percy was going, therefore so was she. Wherever he went, she followed -- albeit at a slower pace most times. Percy was passionate about it, talking of the world, and all the other races, and all the things to see and learn. He had told her to pack up her things and he'd take care of the transport.
It hadn't taken long. She didn't own much. Most of what she cared about, she couldn't even bring. Her plots of garden would not be excavated and tagged like so much chattel, after all. So she gathered her heat dish and her futon and her blankets and a small valise of her go-to clothing choices. There wasn't much else to bring. Her bare bedroom now attested to how little she possessed and belied how little she valued.
Most of what she thought of when she thought of 'home' was Percy, and Percy's things. His pillows and lamps, his divans and tea sets. When he had informed her that they would be roommates, she was content that the rest of home would follow that fact.
Now that she was here, she realized just how alien of a place it was. Gloomy, murky, chilled. Percy and his irritatingly chipper tone was all she had left of the sunlight of home. Suddenly, she wanted very much for him to burst into the room, if only to light it up. "You can come in," she offered quietly.
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Posted: Sun Feb 07, 2016 11:08 pm
The unpacking was going cold? What an odd way to describe unpacking. Well, that was Bismae for you! Always a question mark, and always saying the strangest things! How amusing! This was why Percy kept her around. "I have some tea going in the other room." Percy tried to coax her a little as he pushed open the door. He knew that the temperature in these parts were quite colder than it was back home, and figure his poor darling friend was likely feeling sluggish and a touch miserable. "If we cannot warm you up on the outside, I figured we could warm you up on the inside!" Percy gave a decisive nod as he sauntered in to the room, hands on his hips with his head held high as he surveyed the room. Bismae had him pegged. "Hmmmn, yes! It looks as though you are making yourself comfortable enough! What a lovely shade of green you have chosen, my dear girl." Percy assessed, slit pupils contracting subtly, his tail swishing behind him. "Have you set up the heating blanket I had purchased for you? And what about the heat lamp? I hope it's not faulty. I have heard such mixed reviews on how efficient those things are. Do they warm the room or just one spot? How peculiar, indeed!"
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Posted: Mon Feb 08, 2016 1:29 am
"Tea?" Bismae asked, more eagerly than she might have hoped to sound, and perked from her nest of blankets. At his comment on the shade of green, she blinked up dolefully. "You chose it," she replied, not giving away any sense of if you approved or not. Of course, secretly, she was very pleased, as if she squinted, she could pretend it was a forest or meadow somewhere.
When he asked after the heating pad, she reared up on her tail to reveal that she was already curled on top of it, and at last slithered down, hauling all of her many blankets with her as she drew nearer.
"It makes a cone." She paused to prod the lamp with its fancy bulb. "Like my own little sun. My Percy Sun." She slithered around him towards the door, offering a small but heartfelt smile as she passed out into the common area.
Of course, he had decorated and unpacked since she'd holed up in her room, and yes, everything looked far less scary than when she'd first arrived. She did a small turn around the room, the blankets trailing like a lumpy cloak. "Tea?" she asked again, a bit more hopefully.
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Posted: Mon Feb 08, 2016 12:36 pm
"Ah, yes, quite!" Percy almost purred her name as she finally stirred, he himself spinning around gracefully on his feet to reface the door as he waited for her to draw closer. "Well, I do suppose I have good taste. But I am sure you would have picked the same shade yourself." Actually, Percy was fairly certain the girl would have chosen to smear the walls with moss and dirt and other foliage had he not selected such a colour. It was probably far more sanitary in the long run that he had selected the paint swatch for her. If painting the room to the Naga's liking deterred the possibility that mold might thrive and start growing in Bismae's space, then the boy felt just in his choosing. Percy, of course, didn't actually know if Bismae would slither off and find such things to adorn her room with, but he certainly didn't want to risk coming in one day to his dear companion ill or sickly from her choice of surroundings, but more importantly, he didn't wish to deal with the smell such a fiasco might produce, considering he lived in the room over from her. Chances were, Percy's imagination was getting the better of him. Surely Bismae would just grow a forest instead, if that were allowed. "Yes, tea!" he reminded her with a purr, waiting for her to make her way through the door as he followed behind her, closing the door behind them. "Come, come! This way! In my room, m'dear! I have the cast iron from home. A little taste of the old and familiar! Surely it will warm your spirits and give you some comforts, yes?" Percy gestured to the door of his own quarters, having left it open so Bismae could enter when and how she pleased. "After you, Bismae dear!"
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Posted: Mon Feb 08, 2016 1:32 pm
Bismae nodded mildly at his comments of her choosing the same colour. Well, if wishes were easily granted, she'd have her walls hung in moss, but she wasn't sure it that were possible, so 'mossy green' was the next best thing.
But perhaps a moss carpet would be permitted...
She slid across the floor towards the inviting opulence of Percy's space, already feeling much warmer and more active now that she was in his glowing presence. "Did you need help unpacking something?" she asked, looking around to see if there was anything she could do to be of use.
First things first, though... She curled to a stop next to the familiar old pot and readied two cups for them to use. With strong little motions, she began to pour out his cup first, and then her own. "Here," she offered his cup to him, dainty pottery with a pink blossom embossed in its side.
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Posted: Wed Feb 24, 2016 4:21 pm
"Oh, I have a few things that I could unpack still I am sure. I am still, however, waiting for them to arrive, so unpacking them now would be quite difficult!" Percy laughed as if he made some funny joke before closing his door behind them to give them some privacy, away from the other Freshling still curious about these two aliens that had decided to attend the Academy. Percy sauntered his way over to the heat lamp he had requested be installed in his room. His intent was that Bismae would be comfortable in his quarters so that she could visit whenever she liked without fear of growing lethargic or sleepy. The boy struggled to position the lamp in to place, but eventually he got it right -- angling the light over Bismae spot as she poured out the tea. Percy silently wondered if the warmer he had placed under the cast iron was now really at all necessary with the oversized heat lamp. "Thank you, my dear!" Percy nearly purred as he settled in on his cushion on the opposite side of the table from Bismae, taking the cup he was handed and waiting for Bismae to take hers before sipping it daintily. "I do hope you acclimatize soon, Bismae. It would be absolutely tragic if you were always stuck in your dorm, too cold to go anywhere."
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Posted: Thu Feb 25, 2016 12:19 am
As Bismae sipped her tea, she coiled up around herself, her rattle making that soft, comforting sound she liked. She listened impassively but closely as Percy prattled on about more luggage that hadn't arrived and acclimatizing and as he finished, she flicked her tongue out thoughtfully.
"I will bundle up my clothes," Bismae offered at last, and felt this was a brilliant solution. If worse came to worse, she could probably convince him to get her one of the fancy 'heated vests' she'd heard one of the other Naga children discussing at her orientation ceremony.
After all, as much as she didn't yet have an opinion on this place, she also knew she'd never form that opinion if she didn't at least go and see what it was offering. If the place was colder than she'd like, she'd make herself a little wandering bundle of heat. Just like these heat lamps. She sank deeper into her coils, roasting under the heat lamp and smiled up into it, eyes closing and slurped her tea with noisy satisfaction.
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Posted: Thu Jun 23, 2016 11:21 am
"Yes, yes. I suppose layers will suffice until I can get you some better coverage. I do wish for you to be comfortable. For when we're in our quarters, I do hope an unlimited supply of tea and a comforting heat lamp might be enough. If ever you need more, just let me know." Percy sipped on his tea, the floral taste blossoming on his taste buds, making him purr deep in his throat as he sampled it.
"Mmn, what a fine brew. I'm curious to know what types of tea the Academy and surrounding areas have to offer. Are you excited to taste the local leaf?"
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Posted: Thu Jun 23, 2016 11:22 am
Bismae uncoiled her folds and stretched out her rattle, wiggling it in in faux-displeasure. In truth, the only thing still irking her was the idea of going back out into the cold, but really, warm and sated as she was in this moment, the irritation was a mild and distant threat.
She gulped at her tea, sticking her tongue out over the brew to smell and taste its flavours, trying hard to pick up on the elements that Percy was complimenting. "Will they have different types of tea?" Bismae asked mildly. It hadn't occurred to her until now, but the different terrain meant different plants and animals too. She perked a little. It was the new animal species she was excited for!
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Posted: Thu Jun 23, 2016 11:22 am
"Oh, I imagine they would! This land is vast and diverse in comparison to our own, dear Bismae. There are high mountains and lush forests that I am sure provide ample flavor to the plants they grow. I have even heard that there is a tea trader that comes to the Academy sometimes to sell his goods. He has something called an 'herbal tea', imported from a place called Above. They have large trees that bear all kinds of fruit we have no access to, even from our fellow Nightmares. I would be more than delighted to stock up on his goods and sample them with you, Bismae." Percy offered a fanged smile as he set down his teacup on the table, bouncing to the next topic.
"We'll have to explore the grounds together, you and I. I have heard rumors of a forbidden forest behind the school's campus. Just imagine the sort of creatures that might be lurking there! It sounds as though we might have quite the adventure ahead of us, Bismae! I hope you're prepared."
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Posted: Thu Jun 23, 2016 11:22 am
A tea trader was all well and good. But if there were traders for tea, were there then also traders for pets? This was something Bismae would need to look into further. She would very much like to start rebuilding her menagerie. She had needed to set all of her previous pets free when they moved, as many of them were not well suited to either travel or being housebroken.
As if sensing that her attention had wandered, Percy suddenly changed topics. "Forest?" Bismae perked eagerly. A real, actual forest? This was something she simply must see! Forests were where all of the magical creatures resided in the fairy tales Percy's old nanny had read to them at night. Well, read to Percy, while Bismae lurked under the bed. Then, after the old cat had tucked him in and turned out the lights, Bismae would slither out and onto the plush blankets, and they would talk about all of the fantastic beasts and heroes in those tales. Well, Percy would talk, and Bismae would mostly listen and imagine and dream.
"When do we go?" she asked curiously, sliding closer to him with a keen look in her eye.
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Posted: Thu Jun 23, 2016 11:22 am
Percy chuckled to himself, springing to his feet and getting up to gather his coat from his coat rack, slipping it on around his arms. "We can go now, if it pleases you, dear Bismae! Come now, dress warmly! I won't have you freezing on our first adventure in this new land!"
The neko walked to the back of the room, pulling out a small trunk from under his bed, unlocking the little golden-coloured clasps from their secure position, pushing the top of the trunk open, revealing three separate compartments. One level was full of scarves, one of hats, and the other for mittens. He had plenty of them, and more than enough to share.
Pulling out a pair for himself, one for Bismae, and two scarves for them, Percy grinned. Pleased with his choices, the neko rose to his feet and sauntered back over his naga companion, offering her a green scarf and woolen pair of mits.
"I hope this shall suffice!"
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Posted: Thu Jun 23, 2016 11:22 am
s Percy had hopped up, Bismae knew the game was on. She slithered double-pace to her own room and fetched out her thickest, downiest coat and pulled it on. As she re-emerged to the living room, Percy had returned as well with green mitts and scarf for her. Bismae offered a small smile and slid into the outstretched scarf and with a single swift pirouette on her tail, she wrapped herself up in it. Sticking her little hands out to him, she waited for Percy to stuff the gloves on her expectant fingers.
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Posted: Thu Jun 23, 2016 11:22 am
Percy looked quite pleased as he made sure the scarf was snuggly wrapped around her. He gave his companion a small, contented smile before taking one of her hands and squeezing it over her form. "We can't let you get frost bite, now can we!" he gave a fanged grin as he glanced up at her, taking her other hand and wiggling the woolen mit over her hand, and once done, clasped his hands around hers, leaning in with a gleam in his eyes. "Are you ready, Bismae?'
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