[PRP] Sneaky Beasts (Amy x Dema)

[Sara Siren Noire]

It really was a beautiful day, perfect for training outside today...or at least, that's what Amaryllis had thought when she looked out the windows. Actually going outside, however, proved that it was much warmer than it appeared. The curse of summer...but it wasn't all bad. It really was a beautiful day and, despite the heat, she felt like it would be a waste to not enjoy it.

She carried her practice bow and quiver of practice arrows for when it managed to cool down enough that she could do something without feeling like she was going to pass out, as well as a small bag strapped across her torso that had a few things in it; her discovery study journal, pencils and pens, a canteen of water and some snacks that was a combination of rations and things they'd come to know were safe, like some of the fruit they'd gathered and what appeared to be nuts and berries. Getting accustomed to the taste of local goods was important.

Amaryllis made her way into the forest, hoping that the tree cover might provide enough shade that she might be able to feel cool enough to train...but even if she didn't, she was able to make some discoveries and study. As she made her way deeper into the trees a flash of movement in the branches caught her attention, looking up just in time to catch a glimpse of a couple of long white-ringed bushy tails disappearing into the leaves. A bright smile crossed her face and she immediately found a place to settle down, pulling out her book and a pencil after she set everything down and just quietly watched....waiting....until eventually she saw the little narrow snouts and big eyes of the creatures she was looking for starting to emerge once more.

Big bright eyes, pointed ears that were large and wide, a long and narrow muzzle, body no bigger than that of an Earthly squirrel and covered in a fox-red coat of fur, save for the white of its belly, muzzle and a series of white rings down the very long and fluffy tail. Tiny paws with little cured claws held onto the branches or reached up to search for food while the tail wrapped securely around the limb it stood upon. These little creatures had fascinated Amaryllis the moment she saw them and had since spent a good amount of time watching and studying them, just like now, writing down notes and observations...even sketching ones that seemed to be holding still. She loved watching them; they were as fascinating as they were cute and she made sure to move slow, making very little sound. They were pretty skittish, after all.  

[Sara Siren Noire]

Truth be told, Amy was just enjoying the nice summer day watching this adorable little animals as she nibbled on some of the snacks she had packed. Training was fine and all but sometimes it was just nice to do...nothing...but then again this was also kind of research. She wondered what Argent would think of her notes on these little creatures if she showed him? Would he like the name she thought of for them or the lizards he showed her before?

Ah....her attention was caught by the now familiar sight of one of these little creatures; they were particularly small and Amy was able to recognize them by an inverted teardrop shaped white spot on its forehead. She'd guessed based on its size that it was fairly young but it was strange to see young ones without their parents or any others that may play guardian....at least, based on her findings. She could see the little one was sniffing and rooting around; was it hungry? Amy looked down at the piece of melon that she had in her fingers, thinking for a moment before she made soft click sounds to get its attention. Once it was looking in her direction, she gently tossed the melon towards it. She watched as it skittered back a little bit, then cautiously inched closer as it sniffed the air. Just as it had gotten to the melon piece and started to nibble, it looked up as the others did and scattered (with the melon.) Amy looked around at first, alert to whatever may have caused them to run until she heard the near-crashing sounds and the sudden appearance of something big hanging from the trees.

She yelped in surprise and scooted backwards, grabbing her training bow with one of the practice arrows drawn, shakily aiming for whatever it was that had almost dropped on her. It was only then that she realized it was....another genome? She hadn't met this one yet but they looked strangely familiar. "....Y-you scared me....I might have shot you.." Not that it would have done much damage to him other than causing a badly stinging bruise. She set the training weapon down and got up, now worried about this mystery boy's condition if he fell like that. "Are you okay? Did you get hurt? Can I help you get down?"  

[Sara Siren Noire]

Amy blinked a bit, both at what he said and the grin on his face despite his current position. Her face flushed a little pink when he pointed out her shaking wouldn't have done much, but she was at least glad he didn't seem hurt. She set down the practice weapon, ready to help if he needed it but mostly watched as he twisted himself to get off of the branch. She rushed up a little when he slipped and hung there before dropping, worried till he stood up and brushed himself off. Thankfully he didn't look injured from the outside. "Me? Oh, I came out here to train but it was too hot, so I figured I'd do some research observations of the tree foxes since I was out here. Plus, it's cooler in the shade of the trees." She smiled a bit at the unfamiliar boy; why did he seem so familiar? "I'm Amaryllis but you can just call me Amy, if you like."  

[Sara Siren Noire]

"Yeah, mostly. I had a few friends help me get it started and a lot of gathering that Argent did, which was really nice." The boy didn't give her his name yet but she wouldn't quite push for it. He didn't seem like the shy type...maybe just someone who withheld information till he was comfortable. When he asked about the tree foxes, she smiled and nodded. "Yeah, or that's what I've been calling them. They're these cute little animals that look like foxes but are small like squirrels and have prehensile tails. Here, I'll show you." She turned and picked up her research journal, flipping it to a page that had some sketches of the little critters to show him along with her notes. "I was just watching a bunch of them for research...but I think you might have scared them off when you came through. They seem to spook easily when they hear bigger animals coming around.."

While explaining and showing the boy her sketches, Amy failed to notice that the small tree fox she'd given the melon to earlier had peeked out curiously and was climbing down the tree it had been in. Gradually it hopped its way towards her bag, sniffing at the air as it went...following the smell of food. The big strange creature had given it something good earlier and apparently she had more. Finding the bag's opening, the little tree fox figured out how to lift it and stuck its head inside to look for the food, long tail upright and twitching.  

[Sara Siren Noire]

Amy smiled warmly when he complimented the garden, even chuckling at him telling her to use the seeds well. "Thanks. It was...almost a disaster but we managed to pull it together. I think everything has a good start, so now we just have to keep it up and see what happens." She really did hope it would succeed. If even just a little bit of it grew, then they had a chance. She smiled as she showed him her sketches; not professional illustrations but they definitely were accurate enough. "They're pretty hard to catch if you're not quiet and slow. They hide up in the canopy or in their dens under the tree roots when they hear bigger creatures coming."

The little tree fox dug into the bag and finally pulled out of it with what appeared to be some kind of cracker held between its paws, nibbling on it while looking at the two tall creatures. Its big ears tilted and twitched, trying to catch the sound of whatever they were saying.  

[Sara Siren Noire]

"Ugh, don't remind me of that Red Menace. It was the first time I ever felt the nagging urge to smack someone upside the head.." Amy grumbled, shaking her head at the memory of that unfortunate introduction. "Oh, I don't think they will. They're omnivores and typically- ....wait, what?" She paused as something he said suddenly sunk in. What was that he said about dad working hard to bring the seeds back? But....Argent was the one who brought them back...did that mean-?

"....Huh? My bag?" Amy turned and looked to where she had set her bag down, seeing the little tree fox that she'd been keeping an eye on. Sure enough, it was munching on a ration wafer but when the two genomes were both looking at it, it froze with the half-eaten wafer still in its mouth. Amy gasped and that startled the little creature to dash back to the tree it had come from. "H-hey, wait...don't go, little guy..." She frowned a bit as she and the little tree fox were staring at each other. She looked worried, kneeling down and looking through her snacks to get out a few more of the ration wafers. She held one up so that they could see it. "...Are you hungry? I have more.."  

[Sara Siren Noire]

The little tree fox's ears twitched as it watched them while finishing the rest of the wafer. Those big eyes just stared at Amy for a bit before processing that she had one of the things it just ate in her hand, crawling down the tree again in short spurts while its nose kept twitching. It was so cautious, not that she could blame it, so she gently tossed the wafer a couple of feet away from her onto the ground. "They might. I usually see them eating berries and nuts from the trees." She spoke rather softly, not wanting to scare the little thing away again now that it seemed to be coming closer to grab and eat the wafer. It didn't move away again this time. She slowly brought out a piece of the melon she'd brought, which was kind of big, looking back at the mystery boy when he asked if they ate bugs. "Yeah, they do. Usually things that are in the dirt or trees, like grubs."

Amy held the melon slice out in front of her, staying as still as possible....watching and waiting. The little tree fox finished the waver and sniffed towards the smell of the fruit; the same thing the big creature gave it earlier. It seemed hesitant, slowly approaching and keeping an eye on the two genome children, sniffing the melon closely before ducking back....then coming close and licking it, then ducking back again....and then finally, after doing this a few times, it started to nibble on the melon with its little front paws grabbing onto the piece and just holding it steady. Amy's eyes were wide in awe, afraid to move or make a sound suddenly.  

[Sara Siren Noire]

Amy smiled softly as she watched the little creature eating on the melon, looking into its eyes and feeling...concerned for it. Where was its family? She'd been watching these creatures for a while now and knew they stayed in family groups, especially when they were young. She'd never seen one alone before until she saw this one. "I think this one is really young..." She spoke softly as the tree fox was eating the fruit of the melon slice rather quickly, already half done and gradually stepping closer as it ate along the rind.

"Usually they're in pairs or small family groups with their babies until they're grown. This one's been alone since I first saw it....and now I wonder if something happened to its family." Amy shifted very slowly and carefully to sit while she let the critter continue to eat, watching its ears and tail twitch as she spoke.