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Post by Deleted on Mar 5, 2018 19:59:55 GMT
Timeline: TBD Previous Threads: N/A Characters Involved: @jian , @squirrelgirl , A Dastardly Villain! Location: Central park
 The wind whipped past a big bushy tail as it pushed with desperation through the brush. Tiny feet working in tandem to elicit greater and greater speed. Blood pumping. Heart pounding. The battle between life and death as the terror bore down on the tiny creature. If it could just make it to a tree, it would be safe. The bushes didn't work, the monster ploughed through as if it was nothing. It could feel the touch of claws against its fur. It was tired, running on pure adrenaline now and all looked lost. Could it make it? To that Magnolian sanctuary that lay beyond the bush? It bounced through the tiny branches. It pushed off with all its might! It flew through the air with its predator right behind it! As a pair of paws and claws began to close around it, the Squirrel knew. It was doomed. But nothing came. It ran a few more metres out of pure adrenaline and stopped. It wasn't being chased anymore. It turned to look side on at the way it came and saw its malicious attacker suspended off the ground by a figure silhouetted against the late afternoon sun. Its saviour.
The cat hung limply from Jian's hand with what could only be described as the feline version of deep unamusement on its face. He held it by the scruff of the neck, pinching down where a mother would bite to carry its children without it squirming. An unfortunate evolutionary 'off-switch' of the species. Jian brought his face close to that of the pint-sized predator and sniffed the air in front of it. Running his eyes up and down its body, he could determine three things. One, this cat was male. Two, this cat had eaten recently and three, it was in perfect health. "You don't need to feed." Jian said matter-of-factly to the cat who could do nothing but blink and let out a low grumble in response. "And you're not seeking to feed kittens." At this point his tone had become one of a lecturing parent. He'd seen many things about the animals that lived here in New York that had upset him. But most of all of those had been one simple fact. "Don't be greedy." he said with a scowl. It was unnatural for animals to hunt beyond their needs. It had even been known in nature for prey and predator to drink from the same pond in perfect knowledge that it was safe because the predator was full and to overhunt meant less food for the future. But years of being raised by humans; being fed with no effort, animals' instincts had been warped. "Don't be like the humans." he said strongly, placing the cat on the ground who just sat there and continued to listen to him as if possessed by some compulsion to do so. "I won't warn you again." The cat mewed the equivalent of 'fine' by means of understanding and then turned and walked away, it's tail straight up in the air in a pompous, defiant attitude despite following his words to the letter. Jian watched the feline disappear into the bush and then turned to look at the tiny tree-living sciurine that had tentatively come closer to the rock he was sat on. It didn't seem to know how to approach him, nose wiggling as beady little eyes looked him up and down. Jian merely proffered a closed-mouth smile and held out his hand to the squirrel, which the animal took as an invitation to 'come on board'. The squirrel mounted his palm and ran up the length of his arm until it was perched on his shoulder, then gently rubbed its cheek against his in the squirrel way of showing affection for another of its species. Now that it was this close, Jian could properly examine the animal. A frown crossed his features. "You look emaciated." Jian stated, his eyes searching the trees not too far from him. Something was off. "There isn't any food around here?" "The nuts are all gone" the animal responded, its shrill squeaks translated by the power of the totem in Jian's chest. "I see..." Jian was worried. With the number of trees here this squirrel should have been able to find food to eat. If it was a territorial dispute then it would have moved on somewhere else, but from what it was saying this was true for as far as this squirrel could look. And it had been for some time, judging from how he could see its bone structure beneath the fur. Something told Jian that something unnatural was occurring here in central park. Something he may need to investigate. Tag: @squirrelgirl
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Post by Deleted on Mar 12, 2018 20:21:46 GMT
All so new, but so much the same, they spoke with a subtle but yet distinctive difference to the normal she had grown accustomed to. Like people, different areas had their own dialects, different accents, and more often than not, their own slang.
Displaced, finding herself in a new New York, one devoid of an Empire State University, devoid of everyday freedoms, instead filled with a fear of those that were different. It hadn’t been the easiest of weeks to say the least, a week of sleeping rough in a abandoned building and seeking for employment hadn’t exactly made her feel all that comfortable in what had become her new home. But at least she had Tippy, the two surviving as best they could so far from what they knew.
The city layout was much the same, it wasn’t difficult to find the parks, the safe places that afforded her an opportunity to make friends, and perhaps learn more of where she had ended up.
Lost in thought as the soft chorus of chittering rose around her. Absentmindedly emptying out her nut sacks to the growing horde of grateful squirrels. Reality snapping back as something created an incredible pain in her earlobe.
“Oh my god..! Tippy..! What the actual... “
If looks could kill with intensity, she still wouldn’t have done it… the moment her ire filled stare met Tippy’s adorable form it would melt away. And the ribbon didn’t help matters either…
The gathered horde recoiling slightly at her flinched reaction, though returning from the momentary startling to continue consuming the proffered nut mix, the chittering returning to its previous cacophonous levels. A mixture of gratitude and unspeakable curses because of an apparent lack of food in the nearby parks.
It wasn’t the first time she had heard the local fauna complain about this lack of nuts and berries, but she originally chalked it up to squirrels hoarding nature, though the more she listened, the more she became convinced that she needed to intervene. It wasn't long before she heard the sounds of distress, one of her friends in danger, mayhaps she had happened across the culprit behind the shortage, or possibly it was Kraven attacking the squirrels again…
A small legion of squirrels converging on the location, staying hidden in the bushes and trees as Doreen took a moment to rifle through her card collection to see if anyone resembled the man, before announcing her presence.
“Hey, You! Do-Baddie..! Step away from the Squirrel and no-one gets hurt!!”
Her arm instinctively curled as she broke from a trot to a run, flinging an angry ball of teeth and fur with a pitch that would make major league players weep with joy at its technical execution… Charging headlong towards the man holding the haggard squirrel hostage!
@jian
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Post by Deleted on Mar 14, 2018 4:14:27 GMT
In one fluid, effortless motion, Jian's eyes flicked to the flying attack squirrel and caught it out of the air with right hand. The way he held it restricted its movement in the most efficient way possible, whilst at the same time was gentle enough as to not harm the tiny creature.
"Calm down" he said with all the serenity of a man who'd spent his whole life meditating atop a mountain, the squirrel in his hand looking up at him and immediately ceasing its rabid fury with recognition of his words.
Jian's eyes narrowed in a serious expression as he then turned his gaze to the woman who was running toward him. Her choice of attire was certainly peculiar, speaking to the individuals sense of connection to the critters of the park. It seemed her intentions were hostile however, so Jian reacted in kind by standing up and taking a defensive stance on his rock.
"A friend of yours?" he asked the squirrel he had saved that was still perched on his shoulder, his right hand opening to let the one he had caught escape and make its way toward the bushes.
"Never seen her before!" the squirrel responded to him, it's tiny head shaking back and forth with the same rapidity that his emaciated little body shook with adrenaline.
Satisfied that the encroaching assailant was not in fact a friend to the squirrels, Jian concluded that their choice of attire and insistence that he abandon his furry companion must then mean that she was behind the tribulations of the creatures of the park.
"I don't know who you are." He called out to the rapidly approaching woman, his now-empty right hand raising up in front of him, fingers spread wide. "But anyone who is willing to use wildlife as weapons, is an enemy of nature."
Green smoke coiled around his torso and his outstretched arm, exiting the sash at his waist and forming into a long object in front of him. The smoke in his hand solidified into an ornate dragon handle of pure jade and the rest into a straight, sharp blade about the length of his arm. The sword was clearly Chinese in origin and obviously magical in nature.
"And of mine."
He pulled his arm back and readied the blade, point toward her, his left foot lifting into a fight stance straight out of a kung-fu movie. He was poised to strike, but otherwise didn't move, tension in every muscle as the trained eyes of a fighter studied her movements carefully.
Jian was fully prepared to engage in lethal combat.
Tag: @squirrelgirl
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Post by Deleted on Mar 24, 2018 21:26:46 GMT
Tippy was at ease with the man, as was the other squirrel, the thought piercing through her mind that maybe, just maybe, she had jumped the gun. Between that and the way that he had delicately picked Tippy out of the air, taking every care to assure her well being, it was reason enough for her to doubt her current course of action.
Almost tripping over her self in an attempt to stop, her feet desperately attempting to find purchase on the yielding grass, barreling towards the man now enveloped in smoke and brandishing a blade, all the while trying to stop herself from looking any more undignified than necessary.
Coming to a halt with her nose mere millimeters from the sword’s exquisite point. Looking at the man before her with wide eyes, her body bent forward and arms outstretched in an effort to stem the momentum.
The moment in which they existed could have lasted an eternity if it hadn’t been for Tippy’s interjection, with a series of chits and chucks, she proceeded up to cross the man’s chest and carefully run along the flat of the blade, coming close enough to the end to boop Doreen on the bridge of her nose...
“You know Doreen... he kinda cool…”
“Not now Tippy…”
“But he is… and he doesn’t act like a villain…”
“I know..., I might have done goofed a little bit…”
“A Little bit?”
“Were doing this..? Right now? Seriously..?”
“Well…”
“...!?!”
An ire swelled within her, the two with their eyes locked together, irrespective of the man beside them, and his current posture. The pair exchanging a look of contempt only to be broken when Tippy decided to open her mouth once more…
“He’s kinda cute though? yeah…?"
A burning sensation began to erupt in her cheeks as she attempted to disregarded the subject of the conversation, electing instead to focus on her closest friend’s previous thoughts and observations.
“WHATAYA MEAN BY THAT….!?!”
Her outburst was met with a titter, the mischievous ribbon bound squirrel was mocking her.
Attempting to get a rise for reasons known only to herself.
“Just because he’s got some kinda Doctor Dolittle, Jet li thing going on… It's not like...”
@jian
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Post by Deleted on Mar 26, 2018 14:32:18 GMT
"You are aware that I can understand both of you?"
The calm voice spoke from behind the blade that had been naturally turned to allow the squirrel sat on it to occupy the flat. Since realising that the woman approaching him had begun to second-guess herself, his posture had relaxed somewhat. He still had questions of course, but the conversation happening in front of him, while amusing, was useful in determining that she was not in fact the enemy to nature he had concluded her to be.
"If I may interject?" he asked genuinely, pausing for a moment to allow the two of them to finish if that was their intention.
In one flowing, natural movement, Jian reached out with his left hand and held it beneath the tip of the blade as it once again turned to smoke, the tiny squirrel falling into his open hand while the green mist recoiled back from whence it came. Thus disarmed and non-threatening, he pulled his arm into a more relaxed position and idly brushed the side of Tippy's cheek with his free hand in the same manner that squirrels themselves showed affection and closeness with one another.
"I assume by your rapport with this one" he spoke when he was given the go ahead to begin, his hand rising and falling to indicate the creature in his hand. "That I was also mistaken in believing you lack respect for nature. I apologise."
Jian then proceeded to lift Tippy up so that she was a couple inches from his face, his eyes looking her over with a serene smile on his face.
"She looks healthy. Has a beautiful tail." he said softly, before offering the squirrel to the woman in front of him in a gesture of friendship.
"You must be taking good care of her." he continued, bowing his head in respect. It wasn't a hard conclusion to leap to that the fact that Tippy was wearing a ribbon meant that she had been 'marked' by a human as a companion.
"If only I could be so unconcerned for the health of the denizens here"
He looked around the park and sure enough there was a genuine look of concern etched into his Asian features. The squirrel that still sat on his shoulder looked sickly and emaciated and it was easy to see that that was the case for much of the wildlife here.
"Is this why you have come?" he asked, his eyes flicking back to her suddenly. "Are you here to determine the cause of their distress?"
Tag: @squirrelgirl
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Post by Deleted on Mar 30, 2018 3:17:59 GMT
For the briefest of moments she felt relieved as he informed them of his ability to understand their conversation, before being overwhelmed with embarrassment. The relief stemming from his understanding that she wasn’t some nutter who made random noises at squirrels, the embarrassment from the conversations subject matter.
As a deep sense of panic began to consume her ever fiber, a desire to catapult him skyward took hold, she could launch him into near orbit and scarper, not to escape him, but to escape her own thoughts. It was a standard practice of hers at this point, if she needed to buy more time to formulate a plan, but something made her feel at peace, enough that she didn’t need to resort to an instinctual response anyhow.
There was something entirely disarming about his demeanor, his words and how they were delivered. A quiet calm wrapped in an abundance of mild manners, she fell silent while observing his interaction with Tippy. Almost choking on her on words as she set to apologize herself for her brazen charge.
“N...no… it's me should that apologize… Sorry”
As he cast a scrutinizing eye over her companion she could already see that he took some measure of enjoyment from her condition and appearance, and that Tippy took an equal, if not greater, amount of enjoyment from being treated like a prime specimen, Preening as though she had been granted first prize at a show.
“I...Yeah… Tippy’s family… we fight… but I love ‘er”
His words as to the condition of the other squirrels of the area spoke to her and a intense level, she had taken note of the situation herself, but at a certain level she had dismissed it to their hoarding natures, it was only as the days proceeded onward and the complaints continued, (and her money ran out from replenishing her Nut-Sack’s contents), that she had decided to get to the bottom of this shortage.
Nodding firmly in agreement with her counterpart as Tippy made her way up and onto her shoulder.
@jian
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Post by Deleted on Apr 1, 2018 16:42:33 GMT
"Then if you would allow me" he began, then brought his hands together so that his right fist was planted into the palm of his left hand with the finger running across the top. This action, coupled with a bowing of the head, was a clearly rehearsed action with meaning from his ancient home.
"I would like to accompany you in your investigation." He held this bowed position, his higher elevation from his position on the rock giving her the vantage point to see that his eyes were closed while he held the pose.
"Jian Bai." he added, using this time to introduce himself as their initial meeting hadn't provided them the time to get acquainted. "The Wudang cannot turn a blind eye to the suffering of nature."
He seemed adamant to keep this posture until he received a response as to whether she would allow him to become her partner in this investigation. What he intended to do if she said no was a mystery.
"Balance must be restored."
Tag: @squirrelgirl
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Post by Deleted on Apr 3, 2018 21:04:13 GMT
He bowed before her, the gravity of the gesture almost lost in a muddle of confusion, but it was appreciated all the same. As the posture held and he continued to speak she found herself feeling a inexplicable compulsion to reciprocate it in kind.
Excitement frothed and bubbled inside her as she imagined herself alongside this mysterious man, fighting as they were in a Kung Fu epic, running along the treetops and having fantastical encounters with overly grandiose evil doers in perfectly choreographed ballets composed of grace and brutality in equal measure.
The notion in her head was most enticing, she almost felt a move her mouth and speak words that bore no relation to the actions, but this, alongside the fact that she was far from a ‘graceful’ combatant, seemed to derail the idea at its basic concept.
Her hands clasping together as she attempted to stop herself from flailing in expectation, her jaw tightening as her lips smiled. Eyes wide and world aflutter, doing what little she could to hold back the squeak of excitement that attempted to force its way into the world.
Separating digits and reaching towards the man before her, raising herself on her toes as fingers brushing over his hands as they passed, gently encasing his salute, while she looked where his eyes should be.
The image in her mind taking form as she looked to him, was this it, she had found a friend in this world so far away, and they were about to embark on a journey to save her friends from their plight. He had introduced himself, but in all the mounting excitement and thoughts of what could be, of the coming encounters. Her mind racing through possibilities of what would be behind such a shortage of food.
Her eyes wavering, her hushed voice broke forth in a tender tone, heavy with expectations.
“Maybe... maybe it’s a dinosaur!!!”
Turning away from the man, a bounce and skip finding its way into her step as she began to hum, the strangely familiar sound filling the air, before she realized that she had neglected to introduce herself in kind. Stopping mid stride and pivoting to face him once more. A slight stubble in her words…
“D..” a finger raised in a subtle motion as she checked her words “I’m Squirrel Girl! And this here's Tippy-Toe!”
@jian
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Post by Deleted on Apr 4, 2018 4:32:38 GMT
He offered her a polite smile as her eyes met his and hands rested upon his own. It was by far the most unique reaction he had seen to his usual greeting. He'd seen many try to emulate him and he respected them for trying, but the gesture had a deeper meaning that they could not convey. Her attempt seemed to be a gesture of connectedness. It was his favourite response so far.
His back straightened and his arms crossed behind his back as he looked on in sedated amusement as her hopping and bounding. It was as if she was channelling the energetic enthusiasm of the woodland creatures she seemed so fond of. Her suggestion, though ludicrous to most, did make Jian wonder, long enough that he turned his head suddenly when she introduced herself, clearly lost in thought for a moment.
"Another alias. I see that is common here in the west." he commented, replicating the polite smile from before.
"While I have been told since that dinosaurs are extinct, I did meet someone who insisted that one was loose in the city." he said with no hint of mockery. As if he genuinely believed her suggestion could be true. "It was far from here however."
Without any warning whatsoever, jade-coloured smoke wrapped itself around his body as it had done before to unsheathe his weapon, but this time in much more volume than before. When it cleared, Asian features had been replaced with sleek black and brown fur. His ears had moved to the top of his head and now stood directly upwards, flicking back and forth like tiny radars searching for sounds.
"There are no unusual sounds." he stated as if his transformation was the most unsurprising development in the world, Doberman-like features calm yet serious.
"A lot of chatter from the squirrels." he continued, then turned his eyes to the girl in front of him. "but nothing to suggest the presence of a prehistoric creature."
He almost sounded apologetic. Like he was sorry her suggestion wasn't closer to the mark.
Tag: @squirrelgirl
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2018 12:52:53 GMT
The realisation that there probably wouldn’t be a prehistoric pugilis for them to encounter brought with it a momentary sensation of utter dejection, a wash of disappointment riding over her, however briefly, as reality tightened around her once more.
It’s never a dinosaur… ever...
The feelings of disheartenment passed as the mysterious man in front of her was enveloped in an emerald mist, transmogrifying into a much more animalistic appearance in the blink of an eye, and for a moment she found herself deeply envious, wishing that she had a more spectacular transformation to her ‘hero form’ than untucking her tail…
But then again, she had a theme song, and surely that counted for more than a cool transformation, After all, who else saw them getting ready to fight crime. Now if only she could get others to sing it…
Her attentions returned to Jian as he continued, making a quiet approach towards him as he made his observations, taking care to not disturb him in his search as ears twitched towards the source of even the merest of sounds.
“Their a noisy bunch, but short of complaining, they don’t know much about this nut shortage,”
Entwining her arm around his, and looking to him with a smile, she made to step forwards once more, this time bringing him along at her pace. Making an overly dramatized stride as she continued to speak, her smile replaced with a stern expression, through her eyes maintained a posture of warmth.
“Standing around isn’t going to find anything... Time to forage for the answers!”
@jian
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Post by Deleted on Apr 17, 2018 10:50:30 GMT
He sniffed the air. Something was strange. Two things in fact, one much closer than the other.
Before he could speak however, the girl was off at dramatic pace, leaving him to have to leap off the rock he was on after her and bound to catch up. Normally he wouldn't walk around in broad daylight in this form after the recent run-ins he'd had with the people of the city, but he couldn't change just yet, he was following a peculiar smell.
Well, it wasn't peculiar in the means that it was something he didn't recognise, it was more the source of the smell that had him interested.
Matching Squirrel Girl's pace, and without warning, he sniffed at her. Now the smells of her being a girl, that wasn't unusual. Nor was the fact that she smelled like the squirrels she seemed to spend a lot of time with. But that should have been trace amounts, surface smells. Not deep like this.
He sniffed at the region around her behind, much like a dog would upon meeting another dog. It was perhaps a little rude and probably very surprising, but Jian acted as though this wasn't unusual in the slightest and the information he got would probably lead him to believe it was worth the social reprisal he was sure to receive.
"You're an animal." he said abruptly, his head cocking to the side like the dog he was currently in the form of. "Your scent is..."
He trailed off, forgetting to finish the sentence that may have included an opinion; positive or negative she would never know. His thoughts were lost elsewhere. Was she like him? Another one gifted with the power of the totem? No, this was different. He felt no magic from her, this was something else. Was she a shapeshifter like Ms. Marvel but took an animal form? But then, if she was naturally like this, it would explain her connection to the squirrels...
SNAP.
Suddenly his head turned and looked off into the treeline. Whatever situation he had caused by his abrupt evaluation of her would have to wait as he tore off away from her without warning toward a sound she may not have been able to hear.
Green mist enveloped him again and Doberman features melted away, replaced with the black and yellow stripes of a tiger. He fell onto all fours and bounded at great speed, leaping over bushes paying no heed to who might have seen him.
As he reached his destination, one tree seeming the same as any other, he pushed off from the ground in an impressive leap, green smoke trailing as simian hands gripped a high branch and he swung to on top of it in a half circle, his 'feet' gripping to the wood.
He wrestled the object that had made the noise from the tree and dropped down from the tree, a third trail of smoke dissipating quickly as he landed in his human form.
"What is this?" he asked, though it wasn't clear if he was asking thin air or assuming that Squirrel girl had kept up with him.
In his hands was a metal trap, a simple mechanism with a sliding door, but what was curious about it was the way it was decorated. It had been camouflaged in the tree, but once Jian had pulled it out it had been revealed that the outside was painted in bright colours woven together to form the image of a man. It looked to be some kind of soldier wearing red, with a painted musket rifle and a tall black hat. Where its eyes would have been were two holes that let you see the inside of the trap where it was baited with nuts. Its current occupant scrambling for escape.
"This imagery means nothing to me" Jian said, a muted frown on his face as he released the squirrel from inside. The animal immediately bolted, nut bait in its grasp.
He turned and held up the trap so that Squirrel girl could see it. To someone not from a mountain top in the east, the painted man was obvious. It was a depiction of a nut cracker.
"Do you know what this is?" he asked with no sarcasm whatsoever. Skilled as he was, he was at the mercy of cultural differences.
Tag: @squirrelgirl
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Post by Deleted on May 27, 2018 15:24:27 GMT
It took a moment to realise what was happening, the snap to bang time in her brain borderlining on broken. Was he really sniffing her.. Butt…
“Really… I mean... Really?!?”
He had turned into a dog-man and all, but even still, it was a bit rude… though he was cute...
A mixture of flush and anger filling her as she stopped in her tracks to talk to him over this breach of… whatever it actually was…
“I mean, if your into that kinda thing...then I suppose that’s okay... But it'd be polite to at least ask me to dinner first or something…”
If the alarm bell in her head was audible to others it would have been deafening, what in Ratatoskr’s name was she thinking… that was until the realization of the why she doing what she was hit her… A coy smile crossing her face as she continued.
“But I guess it’s only fair I get to smell yours now ?”
The words being delivered with a knowing wink and as the smiled widened. Though before they had landed, his attention waned. Drawn instead to the snap of a branch, her tore away in a fog of vermilion, erupting in a blaze of black and yellow fur towards its source. Leaving her standing facing a slowly dispersing cloud with a face of thunder…
“Don't…”
Her words directed towards Tippy. Who perhaps in knowing, (or maybe unknowing…), decided to mime zipping her lips closed… the gesture being met with narrowed eyes before she turned to follow the Dog-Tiger-boy that had just so casually ignored her after sticking his snout in her badonkadonk…
Reaching his location as he dropped from a tree into his human form, almost stabbing her feet into the ground with every step as he casually talked to her with an expectation of her following him like some kind of floosey...
Mouth open ready to berate but instead she found herself at a loss for words as he turned to face her once more, this time with the festive trap in hand. Her mind emptied. As clean as the first snow of December.
Lifting a finger and wagging it infront of him as her face scrunched…
“Christmas… Mouse king…”
Wagging turned to clicking as she attempted to drive the thought process onward… as Tippy folded her front legs and looked on disapprovingly…
“Nutcracker?”
Hands dropped and eyes turned in a gaze of death to the shoulder squirrel…
“I knew that…” the words leaving her mouth through gnashed teeth,
“Yeah…” exasperatedly returning her gaze to him once more... “It’s a nutcracker...”
@jian
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Post by Deleted on May 28, 2018 17:10:26 GMT
"I see. Thankyou." he said, speaking directly to Tippy and nodding at this new information he had just gained. The irony of how seriously he was taking the imagery was completely lost on him.
"It would make sense that someone that calls themselves 'Nutcracker' Would be an enemy to squirrels." It wasn't a joke. A completely straight-faced comment.
"If they are so well known..." he paused, one hand resting on his chin while he examined the strange appearance of the object in order to mentally picture the enemy he would be facing soon. "The apathy of the locals is disheartening."
He suddenly looked up, locking his eyes on hers with a deep intensity.
"Where is this 'Nutcracker'?" he asked, face calm but serious. "They clearly have a hand in the missing food source."
He broke the gaze only to look back to the object. His hand gently trailed over the outside of it, fingers resting on the painted sword at the man's waist. It was narcissistic to paint an image of yourself onto an object unless you were a man of great strength and importance to your clan. Whoever this 'Nutcracker' was, he must have been a strong warrior, enough to even show his enemies the weapon he used in combat. This enemy would be strong and was likely to have followers. As garish as the outfit was, it did clearly appear to be some kind of uniform.
Perhaps his comment of the community being apathetic to the plight of the squirrel was misplaced. Perhaps this man was simply too strong to be fought by them. They needed a true warrior to come and defeat him.
He resolved to be that warrior.
Tag: @squirrelgirl
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Post by Deleted on Jun 5, 2018 13:22:42 GMT
The level of intensity displayed by her counterpart brought with it a certain amount of amusement, washing away the growing ire directed at Tippy. Who was currently preening with pride after being acknowledged by the warrior.
“Eh…”
The audible thought happening almost concurrently as her hand began rummaging in a pocket, fumbling through its contents before withdrawing her hand once more and revealing her phone.
“It’s not a guy… it’s a fable…”
Looking down and away from him and focusing on her phone as her thumbs began to thumb with incredible ferocity, tapping the screen in a blur followed by a pained look of frustration as it attempted to catch up to her inputs. A small circle spinning in the top corner as an image started to load line by line, pixel by pixel.
A traditional german nutcracker in all its garish glory slowly filled the screen as she turned her wrist to face towards Jian, allowing him to see a better picture of what was illustrated on the side of the trap.
“I dunno how it ties, but...”
Her brow furrowing, a strained look that didn’t befit her features, but one that was adopted anyhow. Trying her best to remember the tale.
“Basically, a girl fell in love with one of those dolls, who only comes alive when she is asleep… and long story short, he kills a seven headed mouse who brainwashed her, her family thinks shes gone nutterbutters... and then she vanishes from the real world and lives happily ever after in doll land?”
As she finished her eyebrow was raised, questioning her recollection as much as his acceptance of the story. Aside from the thematic connection of nuts, she was struggling herself to tie the two together.
Strangely though, she couldn’t help but think that this mysterious man was right in some regard, there was a connection, and it was only logical to tie the two together.
Flipping the phone around once more, she began barraging it with a fusillade of taps, desperately searching for anything that could help them track down, all to no avail.
Had this been her own world, she couldn’t help but think, she would have put a picture of the trap on her feed… perhaps tagging Tony, Nancy, or Loki… Someone would've known…
It was a strange feeling, the thought of being so disconnected from the world brought a momentary thought of sadness to her mind.
@jian
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Post by Deleted on Jun 7, 2018 5:59:08 GMT
If there was disappointment in the realisation that the imagery was from a fable and not a specific person, then it didn't show on his serene Asian features. He merely nodded in response, one hand resting on his chin as he pondered the significance of this new information.
Fables always held within them an element of truth. A lot of the time it was a simple moral, something to reinforce a child's nature with information in a way that they can better absorb than simple physical training. Other times, the fable was a dramatised version of historical events, so that important lessons were not lost to the annals of time.
While he was thinking, the woman had produced a small object and begun interacting with it with fevered movements. He looked up when she began talking again and showed him the screen of what he could now see was a portable phone. One of modern technologies many marvels.
"So they can also be used like this." he mused to himself quietly and took a step toward Squirrel Girl so that he was now firmly within her personal space. Touching shoulder to shoulder he offered a quick smile to the tiny animal that occupied it and leant in to look at the screen as if it was some mysterious relic.
Still maintaining what may seem to many as an uncomfortable proximity, he nodded along to what she said. Unfortunately unable to read the characters on the screen.
"It sounds like the work of magic." he said, with the seriousness of a man who knew such things to be real. "Does it say anything about practitioners that may reside near here? Someone perhaps acquainted with magical dolls?"
He turned his head, his face inches from hers.
"Dolls, puppets, marionettes, can all be useful for rituals." he added. Eyes staring into her own.
Tag: @squirrelgirl
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