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Post by PenguinwithSocks on Nov 22, 2009 23:51:04 GMT -6
Great. A hero. Exactly what Penguin needed.
Well. Maybe it was. Regardless, Penguin wasn't happy about it. Not like she was in a position to complain. She wasn't injured, but the shock of the experience wasn't allowing her to move in any convenient way. She allowed Scourge to help her to her feet and back to the Old Rock Inn. The world was spinning in a very unpleasant way, and it forced her to leave even more heavily on the wild wolf's side. He didn't smell as bad as she would have supposed a wild wolf to have smelled; the scent was musky, rather nice. He could use a bath, certainly, but she supposed he would clean up quite well.
As they entered the Inn, Penguin tried to take more of her weight onto her own feet, but Scourge seemed determined to take care of her. She was beginning to feel guilty. He was being so nice to her; crazy or not, he didn't deserve to be treated with the disdain that she showed. Even now, though, as he was being so kind to her, a part of Penguin fought against it, and she tried to sit up. "I'm fine," she muttered.
Scourge just pushed her back down. She was still too tired from her long run, lack of food, and near-death experience to fight, and complied. At least she might get a meal out of this situation. Maybe she could even subtly pick up some hunting tips from him. The guilt of how she treated him pricked her again as she watched him care for her, and she tried to find some humbler words to say.
"Thank you," she began. It was a start. "This is... awfully kind of you." She paused again. "Given my treatment of you earlier." The words of the actual apology caught in her throat.
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Post by Redclaws on Nov 23, 2009 20:33:48 GMT -6
Yes! Yes! Finally, I'm making a friend! The joyous though bounced around his head like a kangaroo. What a great day this was becomming. First, he meets some wolf that needs him, and he's an idiot towards her, but then, as luck would have it, he saves her from a near death experience. He looked at her face. Judging by what he saw, there was a million other places she'd rather be and a million other wolves she'd rather be with. But that didn't matter. She was here. And whether she liked it or not, "here" was where she was going to stay.
She had been pretty compliant when he helped her into the old inn, but after he let her lay down, she was back to her old self again. Crabby as she was, Scourge knew that he'd get used to it, and she'd get used to him... If she stayed around long enough that is...
She tried to sit up a couple of times, but he quickly and gently pushed her back down. She was no where near strong or awake enough to do anything herself. She needed rest. Badly.
After her thanks, which were very surprising, Scourge remembered how hungry she seemed. "I'll be right back." He muttered. He dashed off to another room and nosed his way through a hole in the old fading wall. It was one of the few places in the inn that wasn't exposed to wind or rain, and was also quite warm. He grabbed a rabbit and a squirrel from his stash of prey and brought them back to her. "Here you go. You must be starving." He set the pieces of prey on the ground. "Go ahead, you can pick which one you'd like. I also have mice if you'd like, this is just what I grabbed." He sat a few feet from her and waited for her to take one.
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Post by PenguinwithSocks on Nov 25, 2009 1:08:41 GMT -6
Penguin thought she would faint. The food in front of her smelled amazing, and should couldn't believe she got to choose. Definitely no to the rabbit; her empty stomach squirmed a little as the scent reminded her of just how close she had come to death. Not wanting to make Scourge get the mice, she quietly picked up the squirrel and began to gnaw on it. It actually tasted quite good; much fresher than the meat she was given at the zoo, and certainly different than the artificial nutrition the food had been lined with in order to keep her "healthier" than she would have been in the wild.
She didn't know what to say to Scourge. He was clearly happy to have her back. She wasn't sure why, as she was hardly thrilled to be at the Inn. This wasn't what being wild was supposed to be like; she had imagined it to be much different-- much less dirty, somehow, and more running with the wind in her hair catching prey with ease. Today had been an interesting wake up call.
Penguin did have to admit she had a grudging appreciation for Scourge. He had been kind to her, and although she still thought he was crazy. She would have been careful not to say anything to set him off, but she wasn't sure what had triggered his outburst the first time, so she chose not to say anything at all and just eat her meal quietly.
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Post by Redclaws on Nov 25, 2009 15:15:40 GMT -6
Scourge took the rabbit and delicately ate in in small, clean bites. Every piece of prey was a gift from the spirits, and he was always sure to give thanks for it.
As he nipped at his prey, he took another look at Penguin. Where had she come from? She didn't look like any of the other wolves her had seen. She was much fatter and fluffier than anyone else he had ever seen before. The question of her origin was burning a hole in in his mind, but as much as he wanted to ask, he decided against it. He didn't dare strike up a conversation that might hit a sour note and make her leave again. Whether or not she liked him, Scourge liked having her around. Definately not as a mate, but hopefully as a long term friend. He then thought, why shouldn't she be my mate? I'm a perfectly good wolf. I saved her, I fed her, I sheltered her... He shook his head to clear his mind of these thoughts. He didn't want a mate like her. She seemed too stuck up and snooty for him. He wanted someone who wasn't always trying to prove she didn't need his help, even when it was obvious that she did.
When they had finished, he dug a hole in the ground (the inn floor was so old and broken that ground was showing through in some patches.) and buried thier bones. Then he stretched and padded to the stairway. "If you'd like, I can show you where you can sleep." He waited at the stairs for her response.
OOC: sorry for the long wait for the not very long response.
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Post by PenguinwithSocks on Dec 5, 2009 0:54:55 GMT -6
He had been staring at her the whole meal. Normally, that wouldn't have bugged Penguin; growing up at the zoo had desensitized her to the constant attention. This was different however; this was not the passive, half-interested gaze of curious humans; he was studying her.
Now, he wanted to show her where she was sleeping. Could she refuse? She didn't exactly have anywhere else to go, she might as well stay with this strange but hospitable wolf.
A small twinge of fear twitched through her, though; although he seemed a caring enough wolf, something about his staring put her on edge. What was going through his head? Why had he taken such an interest in her? Regardless, Penguin accepted the offer. "Yes, thank you," she said, and buried her bones as she had seen him do.
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Post by Redclaws on Dec 5, 2009 1:10:41 GMT -6
Scourge wagged his tail and bounded up the stairs. "Come on! Follow me!" He was so excited she was staying with him that he almost tripped going up the steps. Once at the top, he noticed the look she was giving him and he quieted down some.
He led her to the end of a hallway where he nosed open a door and held it for her as she walked inside. It was a small room with faded blue walls and a few windows here and there, letting moonlight seep into the room, giving it a peaceful glow. Scourge motioned to some blankets in the corner. "This is where I normally sleep, but you can sleep here for as long as you like. I'll just sleep on the couch downstairs or something. I hope this room is suitable for you." One look at Penguin's face told him it wasn't. This didn't help his curiosity at all. If she was so accustomed to better living, why would she just be wandering around not knowing how to hunt or stay away from thunderpaths? Even though possibilities of her origin were swimming arond his head, he managed to get out, "Well, if you need anything, I'll be right downstairs." With that, Scourge exited and left Penguin to her new surroundings.
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Post by PenguinwithSocks on Dec 5, 2009 1:16:03 GMT -6
This wasn't too bad. The room wasn't amazing; it certainly wasn't like the warmth of the zoo, but it had a sense of freedom about it. She never did get to see the moon while she slept. She had, however, hardly dreamed that her first night away from the zoo would involve sleeping in a broken down old building in someone else's bed. She decided to take what she could get, however, and curled up in the place Scourge had shown her.
The moonlight across the floor was beautiful; Penguin had never imagined that the night could shine as brightly as the day. Why had she been herded inside night after night all the years at the zoo? Why were the humans so intent on keeping this from her? Eventually, she drifted off to sleep, warm and surrounded by Scourge's scent all over his bed.
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Post by Redclaws on Dec 5, 2009 1:39:18 GMT -6
Scourge couldn't sleep that night. His thoughts were too focused on Penguin for him to be able to sleep. He couldn't get over the fact that a wolf, a female no less, was sleeping upstairs in his inn! His thoughts mainly focused on whether or not he should make a move on her or not. He decided that he should wait until he had a clearer sign that she planned on staying long term, and not just for the night.
After a few hours, he finally snuggled into a comfortable position and fell asleep. His dreams were weird that night. He dreampt that Penguin was all over him, wanting to kiss and nuzzle him. When he woke the next morning, it was still early, and he thought about his dream. What was that all about? It was so weird... I don't know if I could ever like her enough to do all the stuff she wanted... Oh well. Time to wake her up!
He grabbed a few mice from his prey stash and quietly padded upstairs, in case she was still asleep. When he discovered she was, he dropped the mice by her head and left to go hunt.
His hunt was very pleasurable, and helped clear his mind of the confusion caused by Penguin. He caught two mice and a rabbit that almost escaped him, but tripped over a bush in its haste. Scourge easily captured it. After returning and putting his prey in his stash, he padded upstairs to check on Penguin. He pushed open her door and said "Morning Princess! You awake?"
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Post by PenguinwithSocks on Dec 5, 2009 14:31:08 GMT -6
Ew. They called her Princess at the zoo. "*Never* call me that," she growled. "My name is Penguin."
As soon as she said it, she began to regret it. Scourge had come in looking happy, and at her words his face fell into a look so pitiful that Penguin would have laughed. "I'm sorry," she said. "Thank you for leaving the mice; they were delicious." And they were. She woke up this morning to find the mice lying by Scourge's bed. Starving, she had devoured them, groomed herself, and was just about to leave to explore a little bit more of the inn when Scourge had come back into the room.
When Scourge still didn't say anything after a couple of minutes, Penguin decided not to just stand there awkwardly waiting for something to happen. She moved past him and out of the room, taking a curious glance around the landing. She had been too tired to notice last night, but this upper floor did not seem to be the of the safest construction. There were holes every few feet, and some of the boards seemed to be rotting. Penguin froze, a little afraid to navigate now.
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Post by Redclaws on Dec 6, 2009 0:19:07 GMT -6
Scourge winced at her harsh words. Sadness instanly overtook him, and his cheery mood was completely destroyed. "I'm sorry." He mumbled. "I was just joking... You seem kinda pampered to me, so I thought I'd call you princess as a joke... I'm really sorry if that offended you..." He relaxed a little when Penguin thanked him for the mice, but he was a wolf who took harsh words badly. It would take him a little to get over this, but he knew if she kept acting cheery, he'd be fine within a few minutes.
Penguin, however, didn't seem to hear him. She just walked right past him without even acknowledging his words. Maybe he just spoke too quietly. He certainly hoped that was the case. Not wanting to let her roam his home alone, or escape, he hurried out of the room after her. He saw her looking in fear at the many holes in the floor. "Don't let them bother you, as long as you walk around them, you're safe." He saw that she still had a fearful look on her face and added, "If you'd like, I can put some blankets under the holes in case one of us does accidentaly fall through the holes." Hoping this brought her some comfort, he wove his way around the holes to the top of the stairwell and offered, "Would you like to see the rest of my 'fine establishment'" He chuckled and headed down the stairs. "If you'd like, you can come hunting with me later too."
He looked behind him at the bottom of the stairs and was relieved to see that she'd followed him down. "Now, if we go to the right, you'll see what used to be a lobby. There's still an old desk in it, and a couple chairs as well. The desk is kinda fun to play in, and there was a weird human machine that used to make clicky noises if you put your paws on it, but most of the letters are faded and dont click anymore." He motioned over his other shoulder. "This here is the lounge area. There are some couches and a big cabinet thing, but I can't open it anymore becuase the knobs fell off, and there's no where else to grab it by. Well, that's the main floor. Would you like me to show you the rest of the upstairs, the basement, or would you like to go hunting?"
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