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Montamillion

Member

Registered: 2018-10-28

Posts: 56

"It's the thought that counts..." (Long Patrol RP, 11/23/18)

Location: The Training Room, then the Rec Room

Characters: Monty, hare (LP Private), Jinora, hare (LP Major)

A conversation between friends/Patrolmates Monty and Jinora, before Monty heads off on his mission in a few days.

Log:

The Training Room is active: a group of recruits are pushed through another set of grueling exercises in one corner, a training dummy is mercilessly battered in another, and Jinora, in her exercise casuals, is drenched with sweat and shaking at a pull-up bar, dragging her chin to touch the metal over and over and over and over... Have you ever done a pull-up? A single pull-up? It's hard - she's over here killin' it.

After having taken a short break to grab something to eat and rest up a bit, Monty re-enters the training room and heads over towards the push-up area. The young hare had been in the room for a good portion of the morning and afternoon, much like he'd done pretty much every day since finding out about being sent out on the recruiting mission. Hardly taking a day off from training, Monty wanted to make absolutely sure that he is ready for the trip. Dropping down onto all fours, he begins to do a set of twenty push-ups, counting to himself under his breath as he does so.

Finally, /finally/, Jinora releases her grip and drops to her feet with a groan, rolling her shoulders. Everything hurts - why does /everything/ hurt? She hasn't trained this hard since she was a recruit... But she can't be expected to enforce the increased training, the more rigorous routines, if she isn't following it herself. She rests a moment, folding her weight forward onto her knees as she pants, ears pinned back against her head, and it's from this position that she catches sight of Monty. "P-Private Fleetpaw." She greets, politely waiting for him to finish his set before saying it.

Monty hadn't really been paying much attention to who was in the room when he entered...he generally liked to keep to himself while in the midst of training, so as not to distract himself from the business at hand. Upon finishing his set of push-ups, he hears his name, and his ears perk as he hops back up to his footpaws and notes who it is. Quickly standing at attention and giving a quick salute, Monty barks, "Major Jinora, SAH. Just getting in a bit o'th' good ol' trainin', y'see! Got an important mission, an' I don't want to muck it up, SAH!" He stares straight ahead as he speaks.

"At ease." The Major sighs, still rubbing at her shoulders. "Tha's, uh... Commendable, Private." Jinora allows, the ghost of a smirk slipping onto her muzzle as she moves towards the wall, grabbing a slip of fabric she brought in and scrubbing it roughly over her face. It comes away pretty damp - gross. "Seems t'be tha' ye an'Corporal Swiftbuck will be leavin' shortly aftah th'feast." That smirk widens as she throws the fabric over her shoulder. "Fatten y'up before we send ye into th'wilds."

Monty drops the salute and relaxes again, smiling at the praise received. "Aw, s'not anything anyone else wouldn't do when they're about t'look danger an' th'unknown right square in th'face, sah. But I think I'm ready to kick it square in th'sniffer if th'situation calls for it, y'see." The buck grins, before nodding his head. "Oh yeah, I heard about th'feast! Quite a conundrum it is, tryin' t'figure out if I should stuff m'face, or go a little easier than normal so I'm not weighed down when out there with Adrian. I can't always save 'is skin every single time, yeah?" he jokes, before dropping back down to do a smaller set of ten pushups.

"M'sure it won't stand a chance." Jinora teases, her nose wrinkling. "I'd suggest eatin' everythin' ye can - dunno when yer next good meal may-" She pauses as he drops to another set, waiting for him to finish before: "-be." Another smirk and her attention is caught by a pair of privates in the wrestling corner. She steps away from Monty to interrupt them, and waves her paws, demonstrating something. She taps one of them in the lower back and hunches, obviously reminding him to lower his center of gravity. She steps back, and the next time the two collide, it's a more efficient battle. She returns to Monty. "So. Nervous?"

Monty pops back up again after finishing his second set. His ear wiggles as he contemplates the suggestion, paw rubbing his chin in thought and his nose wrinkling as he thinks it over. "Hmm. Y'know, y'may be abso-bally-lutely on t'somethin' there, sah. It'd definitely be something t'take into consideration!" His attention strays over towards the two wrestling, watching for a moment as Jinora gives them a bit of instruction. He grabs a towel and towels off his forehead, and she returns shortly after. "They been at it for awhile, seemed t'be gettin' frustrated..." he muses, before he gives a nonchalant shrug to the simple question. "Want me t'tell ya what y'want to hear, or want me t'be honest?" he chuckles, before he sighs a little. "Y'know, the closer it gets, th'more th'butterflies start flutterin'...it'll really be th'first time I'll ever be out on m'own aside from when I left home t'travel here. I mean, Adrian'll be with me, but still...."

"Th'honest answer, a'course." Jinora replies, rolling here eyes and crossing her arms. "Only thing I evah /want/ t'hear is tha' pretty barmaid tellin' me my drinks'r on th'house an'that th'Patrol is grantin' me a vacation." There's a snort, but she falls quiet for his answer, nodding along politely. "Well, yeah, s'bloody dangerous. Ye'd be a fool not t'be worried - ye very well may die, ye very well may stumble 'pon horrors ye can nevah unsee, be maimed, lost, eaten..." Is she helping? She totally feels like she's helping. "Bu' most importantly, ye'll come back more an' bettah than ye are now. At least, tha's th'goal. Well... Really, th'goal ain't abou' /you/ at all. Patrol needs 'ares - I jus' happen t'think ye need this, too." The Major holds up her paws. "Alls t'be done is doin' it, I s'pose. Still trainin', or are ye joinin' me fer drinks in th'rec?"

Monty cannot help but laugh at Jinora's reply, the buck nodding his head in agreement. "Believe me, sah, all those things've been runnin' through my brain from th'moment I wake up til th'moment I hit th'hay. May not seem like it sometimes, but I'm takin' this mission as serious as anythin' I've ever done in m'life. I'm fully aware of how important it is, and I appreciate y'trustin' me with such a crucial mission. An' I also appreciate y'givin' me another chance instead of bootin' me out on m'scut." The buck grins a little, a paw rubbing at the base of his ear. "I think it'll do me a world o'good and get things straightened out up here." He pats his temple with a paw. At Jinora's suggestion, he smiles. "T'be honest, I been in here all day an' I'm kinda gettin' tired of seein' all these same bloody faces in here. Lead th'way, Major!"

They both head to the Rec Room, still chatting on the way...

"Bes' thing fer fixin' yer 'ead is gettin' out of it. Can't be wrapped up in yerself out there. An'... At th'same time, ye cin be more wrapped up in yerself than ye've evah been." The Major shrugs, the conversation continuing as the pair make their way to the Rec Room. She had stopped, on the way, to kip into her quarters and change - her clothes were drenched to a darker color and clinging to her in a damp, sticky way. It was gross - she isn't pausing for a bath, so she's still gross, just... Less gross. "Bu' I dinnae think I'm th'best fer advice on these mattahs. Only real travellin' I did was young with me mum an' later, on me own, from Southsward t'Salamandastron. Been 'ere evah since. All my growth 'appened /'ere/, not out there - bu' everybeast is different." She looks at the buck thoughtfully. "I think ye'll find yer growth out there, Private. I 'ope so, at least." There's a sigh as she drops heavily into a seat at the counter, tapping a claw against the bartop to gain the 'tender's attention.

Monty had already taken the opportunity to change before he had returned to the training room, and so his own clothing hadn't gotten a chance to get nearly as gross as his first set had been. In any case, it's not as if it was a fashion show or anything. "Y'know, for me, I think I did a lot o'growin' up ever since I arrived here an' went on m'first mission. Been through more than I ever would've if I'd never left th'farm. Probably would have never lost half m'ear and got bonked on the bonce about fifty times, but hey..." he grins, with a nonchalant shrug. "Y'never get anythin' accomplished by stayin' home an' not takin' any chances, yeah? S'not somethin' I'm ashamed of in th'least, an' I'd like t'think m'daddo's proud o'me." He seats himself at the counter, peering down at it contemplatively for a few moments. "And yeah, I'm thinkin' I'll do me more good than harm."

It absolutely /is/ a fashion show, Montgomery, get it together. "Well, tha's th'idea." Jinora shrugs with a lazy smile. "Bu' s'pose anybeast joinin' th'Patrol is a 'ere 'cause they believe in a greatah good, an'... Maybe they're jus' a wee crazy. We're all a wee touched, in th'end. 'Ot toddy, if ye will, lad. Thanks." The latter is directed at the bartender on duty. "An' if ye don' lose yer wits a bit, yer at least losin' othah bits." She taps the scar on her cheek and points a claw at his ear. "But yer still 'ere. Says enough abou' yer character."

"Cider, if y'will please, thanks..." Monty smiles to the bartender, before he turns his attention back to Jinora. "Oh, yeah, f'sure. M'dad filled my head with all sortsa stories ever since I was a leveret, an' I couldn't wait til I was old enough t'be able t'leave t'come here. I know farmin' helps others, cause of th' whole 'providin' everyone with food' n things, but, I dunno...it's just different helpin' others in the Patrol." He shrugs. "S'more meaningful, I guess." The buck smiles at the compliment, "Hey, you've been through Hellsgates n'back yerself, sah, an' yer still here. It says a ton about YOUR character, especially since y'didn't run off screamin' th'moment they made ya a Major." He winks. "Heh, look at th'both of us, bein' all serious an' such. I remember when I first met ya, an' ya almost murdered me with a ball o'yarn..." he laughs.

"Think everybeast 'ere 'ad their 'eads stuffed with stories." She waves a paw. "'Specially th'ones that grew up 'ere." Which, statistically, would be most of them, really. She snorts, shaking her head and watching as her hot toddy is brought to her, steaming and wonderful. It's always better when she doesn't have to make them herself. "I don' remembah tha'. Bu'... Y'know. Everythin' I am, is th'Patrol. S'my life, s'all I want t'do, s'all I evah will be - y'know, tha's th'life I chose. S'no runnin' from somethin' with nothin' bettah t'run to." She pauses, the seriousness returning. "If ye do find somethin' bettah t'run to out there, ain't a beast what'll 'old it against ye. Do yer duty t'the Patrol, but... Yerself, too. Aye?"

Monty also receives his cider after Jinora gets her drink. He swirls it around slowly as he stares down into it, before taking a sip. "Yep. It was up in the crater, I think you were makin' one of your hats at the time." He chuckles. "Of which I never got one, even after I asked..." he grins, before returning to a more serious tone as well. "I totally understand that, sah. In all honesty, I think if y'don't have that way o'thinkin' then y'shouldn't even be here. If you're not one hundred percent committed to the Patrol, there are a lot of other places you c'n go, y'know?" The young hare gives a light shrug, then quickly shakes his head at even the remote possibility of Jinora's suggestion. "Nothin' better out there than where I am now, sah, y'can count on it. As much as y'wanna get rid o'me, I'm not goin' nowhere. Well, I mean, I AM, but...I'll be comin' back, is what I'm tryin' t'say. Yeah."

"Ah, right... Heh, haven't made one in..." The doe frowns. "Well, ovah a season, now." She shrugs, and then laughs, obviously pleased with his response. "Then th'Mountain will be 'appy t'have ye back, when ye an'Swiftbuck return." Major Tottheim sips at her toddy, relaxing into her seat. She looks so tired these days, like she's always waiting for bad news.

Monty takes another sip from his cider. "Well, I still liked them anyhow." A thought enters his head, and he looks a little concerned for a moment. "In all honesty, I do feel kinda bad for Adrian. I mean, he just got back from Redwall, an' now he's bein' sent out again to who knows where. Seems like his dad is a little hard on th'poor buck. Talked with both of em, an' I'm thinkin' there's just a little bit of a misunderstandin' between em." Monty smiles again at Jinora's words, and a bit of the old awkwardness begins to show as his cheeks turn a little red. "An' I'll be more n' happy t'be back, y'know! Er, o'course. No place like th'Fire Moutain, aye?"

Zolomon steps into the room slowly and glaces over at the two here, and oh well a couple others maube asleep in a corner, he waves "Hey there"

"Aye, s'home." She smiles before the expression disappears in a chuff. Abandoning her toddy to hold up her paws, Jinora snorts. "There's no way I'll touch any family mattahs wi' a ten foot pike... Bu' as far as Adrian goes, 'e signed onto th'Patrol. He dedicated 'is life to it, same as all'a us - he goes t'where 'es needed, an' there's little t'be done fer it." She's very neutral and even on the whole subject, her views tend to run as simple as they can be: Patrol first, personal needs later. She catches Zolomon from the corner of her eye and dips her head in greeting.

Monty gives a slow nod, "Yeah, fair enough. He honestly didn't seem too disappointed in goin'. We're pretty good pals, an' I don't think there's anyone I'd rather go with than good ol'Adj." Monty smiles, before glancing over towards the door as Zolomon steps in. He gives him a pleasant nod. "Hey there," he greets the other buck, before his attention returns to Jinora. "Oh, an' while I have th'chance before I go, I jus' wanted t'apologize t'you just in general, for...I dunno..." Monty glances down at the bartop..."For jus' bein' a general pain in th'scut, not followin' instructions, an' just generally makin' y'feel awkward by anythin' I've ever said or done. Nothin' was ever intented t'make y'feel uncomfortable, it's just how I am, I suppose." He shrugs. "Mebbe it's somethin' that'll change when I'm out there, too. Which would be for th'better..."

The apology itself, it would appear, makes Jinora uncomfortable enough. The Major takes a long draw from her drink - and then grimaces, because it's hot. "Righ'." She finally erms, setting the mug down. "I'm... An... Uncomfortable beast at th'best of times, anyways." She decides, smirking. "S'why I moved up. S'why this life works fer me - anythin' outside of it is, ah." She scratches the back of her neck. "Secondary. Tertiary, even." She raises her toddy to her muzzle again and blows on it. "Ye've done okay, Montgomery. An' ye'll only ge' bettah, jus' hold onto tha'." She takes a sip.

Monty chuckles a little, "See, there I go, doin' it again. M'a total n'right mess, I am. I jus' wanted t' letcha know, just in case I, er...don't...come back. Somethin' happens, y'know how it goes...sometimes...." He rubs at his ear with a paw, his gaze averted. "Y'know. Jus' wanted t'clear th'air n such." He smiles a little nervously. "I understand though, sah. An' I'll do m'best t'avoid it in th'future an' just focus on th'Patrol. But thank you for your words, I appreciate em a lot." He finishes off his cider, but doesn't ask for another...he remains holding onto his empty mug as he fidgets with it.

Jinora shakes her head with a snort. "Yer fine, Private." She waves it off, figuratively and literally, batting a paw at the air in a dismissive gesture. She brings her mug to her muzzle a final time, draining the last of her toddy before that paw rises again to wave off the 'tender. "I got it, Gayle, dinnae sweat on it." The Major stands, slipping behind the counter with her toddy and moving to the wash basin. She rolls her sleeves up and holds a paw out for Monty's tankard. "Almost miss dish duty, I do." Is she serious?

Monty blinks, certainly a little surprised as Jinora so nonchalantly heads behind the counter and reaches out for his tankard. He hesitates for a moment, before finally pushing it over to her. The buck seems to understand, however, and he doesn't really question it, save for a simple, "Yeah?" and a smile. "I don't think I was ever put on dish duty more'n a couple o'times. I always had t'sweep out th'infirmary, when I wasn't workin' in th'garden that is." That makes him think of something, and he grins. "Oh, I was going to ask, as well...do you know who will be tending the garden when I'm gone? I've kinda got things in a certain way at th'moment, an' I don't want em t'be confused or anything." The buck smiles. "I like it up there, it's nice n'peaceful. Really helps when I'm havin' an episode n'such."

The doe's expression softens, elbow deep in the soapy wash basin. She does her own mug, takes Monty's from the counter, and then continues to do those dishes already there. Poor Gayle, wringing his paws, looks confused as well - but eventually shrugs it off, moving to take another order from a pair of lovey-dovey Privates as they take two adjacent seats at the bar. "S'pose th'Privates an'recruits'll be circulated out on it. Should still be in ordah when ye return." She pauses and looks up. "Ye know, when ye ge' back, th'kitchens an'gardens'll be in neeed of more solid... Employ. Ye can always test yer paw at runnin' 'em." She shrugs again, nonchalant. "Ye know th'gardens better'n anybeast, aftah all." One of her sleeves loosens and slips towards the water, she pauses and uses her other, damp, paw to roll it back up.

Monty appears to be satisfied with Jinora's response, and he nods his head in agreement. "Aye, sounds good t'me, s'long as they c'n take care of it an' don't use it as their own personal snack shop," he jokes. "Some of th'new Privates, I dunno..." As the two other Privates seat themselves nearby, Monty eyes them for a moment or two, rolling his eyes good-naturedly, before Jinora's words cause him to pause. "...really? Y'think I'd be good at actually RUNNIN' the place? I mean...usually, I just kinda tend to th'plants an' th'veggies n'such...wouldn't wanna take th'spot of anyone already doin' it. But, I mean, if there's an openin'...or somethin'...maybe...." The buck really seems to like the idea however, judging by his pleased expression and the grin on his muzzle. "Maybe. Er, I mean, yeah, o'course, that'd be fantastic! Good, I mean. Really good."

"Well, we'll see if tis still there when y'get ba'." Jinora shrugs. "'Course s'not my call, bu'... Somethin' t'keep in mind. Patrol is... Well, has a place for most anybeast, so long as their 'eart is in it." She shrugs, stacking another cup onto the drying rack. "Seems t'me tha' yer 'eart 'as always been innit. We'll see where yer at, where th'kitchen an' gardens at, when yer back." Finishing up the dishes in the sink, the Major stretches and lets her sleeves fall back to her wrists. "S'pose I should ge' t'papahwork." She muses, disappointed at the thought. How much of it can she lop off onto the Corporals, again?

Monty nods his head eagerly, "Right, right, indeed. I'll, er...I'll definitely look into it when I get back. WHEN I get back, not if." He chuckles nervously, his ear flat against the back of his head, before he shakes off any thoughts of THAT potential outcome. "But yeah, I'd like t'think that it is, an' always has been. I guess it's a bit of m'old home farm life creepin' inta the Patrol life, yeah? Best o'both worlds." The buck slides off his seat, "Oh, er, right, right, yeah. An' I...prolly should get in a bit more trainin' before I hit th'hay. Helps me sleep if I'm totally wiped out n'such." He smiles. "If I could help ya with paperwork, I would, but I'd have no bloody clue what I was doin'." He gives a light shrug. "It's the thought that counts though, yeah?"

"Aye, Private Montgomery." Jinora laughs, heading towards the door. "Tis th'thought tha' counts. Goodnight."

---

“You will find joy, frustration and sorrow in your quest. Never forget that friendship and loyalty are more precious than riches...Happiness can be brief, but it knows no time in the land of dreams.”

Owner of: Monty, Dominik, and Grau