2023-07-13: Is There Paperwork For That?
- Log: 2023-07-13 Is There Paperwork For That?
- Cast: Lan Lilac, Chimera
- Where: Sylvara Great Woods
- Date: July 13, 2023
- Summary: Chimera stumbles out of the Lost Woods and into a welcoming campsite.
===========================<* Sylvara Great Woods *>============================ The central island of Sylvaland, Sylvara, is the heartland of the nation. That island is covered by the Great Woods: a massive expanse of woodlands that stretches out as far as the eye can see, and takes up nearly the entire island. While roads and railroads lead through the woods, these forests are renowned for mist that often hangs deep over there. It is well-known that mist can make these woods easy to get lost in. Traveling them on-foot is necessary, too: an ancient Elw Teleporter lay within the woods, and that is the surest way to travel to the Elw Teleporter network. The fact that these woods are so easy to become lost in has given them another name, handed down through the ages: "The Lost Woods." BGM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKnXURkR1ng
<Pose Tracker> Lan Lilac has posed.
It's early evening in Sylvaland. Lan likes the Lost Woods, even if they are well-named and she has gotten turned around in them before. She's set up camp for the night already, her small tent with its lantern and her bedroll plain and unassuming on the outside; it's a beige color that was probably white once. A safe distance away she's lit a campfire, and it crackles away.
Lan's sitting crouched on her heels at the edge of the fire, carefully propping a thin stick with a mysterious (and skinned and spitted) small animal on it over the flames. She's singing something to herself as she works, a song with no words. It's cheerful, even without lyrics, and she's smiling as she la la las her way through dinner prep.
In the shelter of the tent flap, a rather... cloudy bear cub rolls an apple back and forth, nosing it around like a toy. She's still babysitting Runeberry, but Loren should be back to pick it up soon. So she's wasting time near their meetup point until then, and also helping herself to the fine dining available in the greenest land she knows of.
The scent of roasting meat and wood smoke carries, growing stronger as the meat cooks. Lan remains vigilant! What happens if a bokoblin smells her food and comes to take it??
<Pose Tracker> Chimera has posed.
Chimera had gotten turned around from the group they'd meant to be following, distracted by a carved stone alongside the road and by time they'd looked back up, the group was gone. It's... a touch worrying, to be lost in such dense green alone, but they focus instead on the sounds, carefully using their shovel and claw both to step over roots, avoiding stepping on any bugs or larger plants, occasionally even stopping to pet a few of the green leaves. Soon, their ears pick up the low sound of singing, the crackle of a fire, and the smell of something cooking. They follow it through the brush, hoping that it's at least the group they'd been following or someone friendly. Finally they trip out of the forest into a clearing, a young woman tending to a fire and Chimera blinks at the sudden light. They slowly raise their clawed hand, the one not holding their shovel still and mumble out a "hello" staying close to the edge of the camp, in case they were about to get chased out.
<Pose Tracker> Lan Lilac has posed.
Hmm. Not much longer now... Lan turns the stick and jams it firmly back into the earth, letting the other side roast. Now, if she can just get that apple away from Runeberry long enough to wash it off, she can have a little fruit with her ground squirrel. All in all it should be a really pleasant meal!
A rustle, and footsteps in the underbrush. Here on the edge of the forest, it grows thick. Lan hops up to her feet and turns to face the noise just as someone stumbles out of the woods.
Her first impression: It is not a bokoblin. Lan's guarded stance softens, and she relaxes with her weight spread evenly across both feet.
Her second impression: It's a Beastfolk! Lan smiles, lowering her arms to her sides - and then seems to think better of it, lifting a hand in greeting. "Hi! Did you get lost in there?"
Lan likes Beastfolk, for Reasons. Chimera probably couldn't have found a better camp to wander into. "Need to rest a minute?"
<Pose Tracker> Chimera has posed.
"Yeah, I got. Distracted. And then lost." Chimera lowers their hand, nodding as they speak, eyes reflecting in the firelight as they look at the mystery meat roasting over the fire. They come a little closer, crouching near the fire, tucking their knees under the large billow of their shirt as they continue to stare at the fire and meat both.
"Did you mean to be here?" They ask softly, setting their shovel down finally and doodling something on the ground with their claws. "Here. Like, this spot. Not the forest. You're not lost?" They try to clarify, words stuttering as they turn their gaze to the ground.
<Pose Tracker> Lan Lilac has posed.
...Huh. Lan's pale lavender eyes follow the mystery Beastfolk as they settle by the fire. The way they speak (she has not yet figured out of they are a man or a woman or if that's important) makes her wonder if...
The little bear ambles over towards their visitor on its baby paws, wisps of cloud and water vapor trailing off of it. It makes a grumpy sort of sound, something between a bark and a squawk, before trying to climb Chimera's leg and find a fold of their shirt to chew on. "Ack-- no no, bad bear!" Lan fusses, distracted from her worry for the moment. "Sorry! Sorry, they're still a baby, so--" she cuts off. 'So give them some slack,' hangs unspoken.
"But no, I'm not lost. How long have you been lost? Do you want some water, or some food? It'll be ready soon." She can always dig out another apple, or some jerky to make the meal stretch farther.
<Pose Tracker> Chimera has posed.
Chimera doesn't seem to mind the little bear as it climbs them, holding it gently with their larger claw before hesitantly patting it's head with their human hand. their "They're okay. Uhm. It's been..." They tilt their head back, squinting at the sky. "Only a couple hours. I think? I don't have water, I would like some please. I can share. I have - " They stop petting the little bear to shake their human arm out over the dirt, the reason why becoming clear as a little cloth wrapped package falls out of their sleeve. They quickly undo the knot on it one handed, seemingly unwilling to stop cupping the cub in their claw. Inside is a handful of what looks to be rice crackers, a few broken but otherwise in good repair.
<Pose Tracker> Lan Lilac has posed.
Lan can't help it - even if she likes Beastfolk, even if Chimera has been nothing but a bit dreamy and a bit halting - she's ready to snatch the bear away from their guest if things look ugly.
But things don't look ugly. They look... peaceful. Lan lets out the breath she didn't realize she was holding, with a small smile to boot. "That's not too long! What a relief~" She goes to her tent to retrieve a glass bottle full of clear water, and another pair of apples from her bag. She returns to Chimera's side at the fire and offers them both over, eyes soft at the sight of Runeberry trying to clamber up their guest's side. (It likes to be tall sometimes.)
"Oh hey, are those crackers? Nice! Here you go. I'm Lan, what's your name?"
<Pose Tracker> Chimera has posed.
They take an apple first, setting it on the ground before taking the water, their claw still hovering near Runeberry as it tries to climb their side, eventually pushing it up closer to their shoulder. their "I'm Chimera. Thank you very much, Lan." They murmur before taking a long drink of the water, holding it back out to Lan after they're done. their "Aren't you thirsty too? What's the bear's name?" They ask, seemingly perking up a little bit after some water. They hadn't realized that they had been so parched.
<Pose Tracker> Lan Lilac has posed.
She can't help but worry a little when strangers are involved. Runeberry is like Loren's kid! ...Well okay, it's more like a pet he doesn't always know how to take care of, but he seems to be really fond of it despite himself. If anything were to happen to it, they'd both be devastated.
But Chimera looks after it like it's a natural instinct, and Lan realizes she didn't have anything to worry about after all.
"You're welcome," she smiles, crouching on her heels again to check the meat. "I drank plenty earlier, and I can fetch more if we need to. There's a stream not far from here. I think the meat's done, so we can eat first." There's a plain earthenware bowl waiting close to the fire; Lan manages the finicky task of 'getting the critter off of the stick and into the bowl', setting the dish between them.
The bear cub doesn't seem to care about the food, but if Chimera doesn't stop Runeberry it absolutely will gum the side of their face or maybe their horns. It has teeth, but... they're as ghostly as the clouds that cover the bear. "That's Runeberry! I'm babysitting them for a friend. Go ahead and help yourself to some of the ground squirrel, and whatever else. Thanks for sharing your food with me, too."
Lan picks up an apple and bites into it with a crunch, juice dripping down her chin. The meat's still hot.
<Pose Tracker> Chimera has posed.
Chimera nods, taking another sip of the water before setting the bottle on the ground, switching which hand is hovering over Runeberry's side so that they can wipe their claw on their shirt and use one of the tips to tear off a little bite of meat, popping it in their mouth. They immediately regret that, the meat still hot, and they're trying to chew whilst muttering 'hot hot hot' mouth half open and eyes squeezed shut. Once they've gotten the piece of meat down, they skewer the apple with two of their claws, nibbling on it to soothe the burn of their mouth, not seeming to mind as Runeberry finds their ear and begins trying to nip at it, though it keeps flicking away from the tickling feeling.
"T'ank you." They mumble again around a bite of apple, a faint flush to their cheeks as they realized they've made a bit of a fool of themself. "Can I ask. What you're doing? Out here, I mean."
<Pose Tracker> Lan Lilac has posed.
If it were illegal to make a fool out of yourself, Lan would be in Ultra Mega Jail. Possibly for life.
"Oops," she mumbles through a mouthful of apple, about to offer the water again when Chimera solves the problem rather handily with an apple. That's clever! "Was it not hot to your, uh. Big hand?" Talk about a nasty surprise... "I hope it didn't burn your mouth too bad!"
Lan looks at Chimera's apple, speared on their claws. Lan looks at her own, non-clawed hand and the apple it's holding. "..." If she poked the apple really hard, and at just the right angle, could Lan also...?
(She will try this later, when she's alone, and give up after breaking a nail and ruining two apples. Some things simply aren't meant for Lans.)
"You're welcome. I'm glad you weren't lost for too long. I don't think anyone's died in there or anything, at least not for a long time, but it's kind of creepy to think about." She finishes the last of the edible apple flesh, and gently tosses the core into the fire. "I'm out here camping! ...Well, I'm killing time while I wait for Runeberry's dad to come back from a trip. But I'm also camping." She tests the meat with a fingertip - still too hot - and settles back onto her butt on the ground. "How about you? Why were you in the Lost Woods?"
<Pose Tracker> Chimera has posed.
"It wasn't hot. They uhm. They're hard. I don't feel a lot unless its in the squishy part." Chimera makes sure that Runeberry is steady on their shoulder before using their human hand to pluck the apple off their claws, clacking the tips together before reaching out to Lan, palm up, to show off the interlocking chitonous armor and the leathery skin that makes up the palm of it. They keep their hand out as they take another bite of apple, thinking about Lan's question before answering.
"There's dead people everwhere though..? I was. Traveling. I like to see places, so I follow. Uhm, Caravans? I don't think. That's the word this far out..." They trail off for a moment, taking another nibble of apple before speaking again.
"Runeberry's dad? Are they... a bigger bear?"
<Pose Tracker> Lan Lilac has posed.
Huh. So they really don't feel much. That's got to be pretty handy, Lan thinks, not realizing the pun. Runeberry is content to relax on Chimera's shoulder for a while, until it decides to shimmy down their back like a tree trunk, ambling back towards the tent with a quiet chuff. Lan has done an acceptable job of teaching it that the tent is their 'den'.
Lan leans over enough to get a good view of the claw, eyebrows rising towards her hairline. It looks a little bit like a dragon's foot, maybe, although the only dragon Lan has ever really seen is Riesenlied and it was not her feet that Lan was paying attention to. "Haha, yeah, I guess there are. --Wait, everywhere like 'in the woods everywhere' or as in 'all over the world everywhere'." They are different! They are very different!!
But talk of caravans is more pleasant than corpses. And in the end, whichever one Chimera meant doesn't really change what Lan should be doing right now: eating dinner and bearbysitting.
She nearly chokes on laughter, though, at that last question. "Aha! Ahahahaheheheheeeee...! I'm, I'm so telling Loren!" She manages to stop laughing like a goober after a moment, though she's still grinning. "No! He's a human. He's my friend Loren. He adopted Runeberry, kinda."
<Pose Tracker> Chimera has posed.
Chimera watches Runeberry curiously as the little bear toddles back to the tent, nibbling on their apple still, nearly to the core. They flex their hand a little as Lan examines it, gently clacking their armored fingers together again for the noise.
"Everywhere. I guess? People die, and they don't just. Poof. Vanish. So there's dead people. Everywhere." They're smiling now though, little fangs glinting in the firelight as they follow Lan's example and toss their apple core in the fire. They smile just a little wider as Lan collapses into laughter, bringing their claw back to their lap as they finally relax and sit on the ground fully.
"How do. How do you adopt a bear? They told me. There's paperwork? To adopt humans. Do you have to..." They let their question trail off, tilting their head to the side as they stare at Lan.
<Pose Tracker> Lan Lilac has posed.
It's good to see them smile! It eases Lan's worry that... well... nevermind. It's probably just her imagination.
Is there paperwork, though? "Aheh... I don't think so. He found it in an old laboratory. I think he worried that it wasn't old enough to care for itself, and took it along with him." Lan is like 99% sure there wasn't any paperwork involved. "Oh, but we adopted my brother without any paperwork either!" she continues cheerfully. The meat is cool enough to eat now, but she's having fun talking instead.
"He showed up at our village one day, lost and alone. He didn't have any family to go back to, so he stayed with us. He's Beastfolk, like you. A fox." Hicalu is the best and fluffiest boy and Lan will rain hellfire on anybody that hurts him. "He's a baker!"
And Lan may just spend the rest of the evening telling Chimera about her village and not eating food, unless she's stopped. Oops!