12.17.08 - Ask Me Again

Location: Redwall Great Hall

Characters Involved: Harper, Tameus, Sivaine, Jarril, Bottlebrush

Harper is seated by the fireplace, not in a chair but on a cushion! There are two wooden boxes beside him, wrapped in some gay-looking cloth. Very festive! He is cross-legged, just waitin'.

Tameus yawns as he descends the steps, a blanket curled around him, dragging slightly along the floor. He's adorably disheveled and groggy.

There's a Sivaine, venturing up from Cavern Hole. Well, a study in steel blue drapery that /probably/ contains Sivaine, or may not, or possibly both at once, but then she collapses her own waveform by pushing back the hood.

Harper's ears perk as if he was EXPECTING THEM, dundunduuuuun. He glances up, looking first to one and then the other.

Training, training, training. Well Jarril hasn't done any yet as he makes his way down the steps and comes to a stop at the bottom as he looks about and begins to make his way across the room so that he can head outside.

/No one/ is supposed to expect Sivaine. Her chief weapon is surprise. Surprise and fear. Fear and surprise. Her /two/ weapons are.. she'll come in again. Only she doesn't; she pauses when she spots Harper, then quirks a brow at his expectant posture. "..Harper," she says, carefully eyeing the boxes, the buck, and the Tameus.

Tameus is half-asleep and doesn't even notice Harper - or Sivaine - or anyone at all, until the name makes his ears twitch up. "Hn?" With some effort he forces his eyes to stay open, and smiles a little, shuffling over toward the buck. ".. hi."

"Siv, Tam, come have a seat." Ahahahaha. He points to a couple of cushions.

There are .. cushions. On the floor. What. Tam lifts his eyebrows.

Sivaine complies after a moment. "I didn't get you anything, you know," she says as she has a seat, plumping herself down onto one of the cushions beside him. Sitting on the floor, apparently, isn't an alien concept. "Or do I guess which box the pea is under?"

Jarril slows down and erm, takes a bit of interest on the goings on. Old habit for a old runner....

Tameus takes the other cushion, kneeling on it, which is certainly more comfortable than kneeling on stone. The blanket stays around him and he huddles, eyes on the fire, then Harper's face. "'Arper.."

Sivaine casts a vaguely worried look at Tam. Vaguely.

Harper grins at Sivaine, a mischievous glint in his eye. "Oh, /these/ aren't for you." He nods to Tam. "Open 'em, Tam. They're for you." Pause. "We used t'exchange gifts 'round this time o' winter. I was thinkin' about waitin' for midwinter, buuut. I'm impatient." So. "Open!"

Jarril s slow walk kinda comes to a stop as he stands there now watching the goings on from a bit of a distance and gently begins to subconsciously stroke his whisker with a paw.

Tameus's eyebrows lift. "Gifts?" he echoes, sitting up more. That's one easy way to get a kid's attention, and he reaches for the first box, pulling it toward him.

"Oh, well. That's all right, then." Sivaine settles herself back on the cushion, taking up the position of quiet and slightly removed spectator.

"/Yours/ will get to aftah," Harper adds, eyes on Tameus. His ears then twitch and he glances up, eyes settling on Jarril. He pulls a small, oddly shaped and wrapped item out of a pocket and tosses it Jarril's way - a nice, easy lob. "Here - catch!"

Tameus looks rather timid as he tugs at the wrapping of the first box, pulling the paper aside and then setting his hands on top of the box - eyeing it thoughtfully.

"Go on," Harper urges. Grin.

"Will we." Sivaine looks at Harper, startled for the briefest of moments. "Er. We will?" She watches the path of the thrown item and there's.. oh, well. A.. Long Patroller.. This gets a faintly wrinkled brow, and then she turns her attention back to the gift-happy Tam.

Tameus bites at his lower lip, giving Harper a slightly furtive glance and then lifting the lid off the box.

And there's... Taye doll! He is positioned such that he is looking up at Tameus. Taye is now decked out in a miniature LT's uniform and one of his legs has just a /bit/ more stuffing in it than the other, as well as bandaging around it. And beneath that... clothes! For Tam. Harper waits, grinning.

Tameus suddenly beams broadly, snatching up the doll with a little chirp of delight. "Y' foun' 'im!" he just about /croons/, hugging Taye doll to his chest, then holding him out to look at the newest additions. "'Arper! 'Arper /look/ 'e's crippled now!"

Jarril lets go of his whisker and catches the item with his paw quickly and blinks at Harper. "I'm glad ya have such faith in my quickness or that could've ended up someplace." He chuckles and then looks at it and turns the package in his fingers. "Thank you." He coughs and walks a bit nearer before he looks at it again intently.

The item in Jarril's paws is distinctly... flask-shaped! You know, sans-wrapping paper, anyway.

"So I /see/..." Harper agrees with a knowing grin. "What, doncha like the clothes?"

He didn't even notice the clothes. He sets the doll aside and leans over the box more to pull these out.

Jarril smiles as he looks at Harper and gives one of those loving fathery looks and a nod as he inspects the flask now unwrapped in his paws.

Sivaine snorts in amusement, the corner of her mouth twitching, though there's a resigned sort of crease to her eyes. She fingers the edge of her cloak with her good paw.

They're not spectacular, but they're clothes! There's a wool shirt and trousers, and a cloak! And some gloves.

Tameus snatches up the gloves as soon as he sees them, and beams. "/Gloves/! I can 'old snow an' not 'ave m' fingers fall off!"

Meanwhile, the flask isn't anything all that special, but it /does/ have the Long Patrol insignia engraved in. It's the little touches, ya know.

"Thought ya might like that," Harper agrees with Tam. And that other box just sits there aaaall by its lonesome. XD

Tameus is distracted for now by the new clothes. Who knows if he's ever even /gotten/ clothes before. Not his own, anyway - not anything but hand-me-downs. The leveret is up on his feet now, pulling the cloak around himself and. Twirling. He /twirls/.

Jarril idly ponders what to put in said flask. Hmm, start drinking maybe....  :)

That little quirk in Sivaine's mouth grows deeper. And wryer.

Harper covers his mouth with his paw, to hide the goofy grin there. He then points to the other Tameus. "There's another, Tam." Haha.

Jarril smiles at the flask in his paw and then slowly he places it in one of his pockets on his jacket and pats it gently before going back to watching the goings on, remaining quiet for the time being.

Tameus finishes spinning, releasing a slight giggle as he reels a little to the side. The doll and the other clothes are left strewn around the first box as he picks up the second, plunks down, and rips away the wrapping paper with more enthusiasm.

Harper's grin sneaks out around the edges of his paw, oh noes! Ahem. He throws on a serious face, waiting.

There's a smirk and a dry comment just /waiting/ to come out by the way Sivaine's mouth twitches. But instead she tucks her knees up, rests her chin on her good paw, and watches with a softening expression. Her gaze flicks up to Jarril and back. Thoughtful.

Blink. Oh! Harper glances up, looking from Jarril to Sivaine, and then back. "Sivaine, this is my Da'. Da', this is Sivaine. Sorry! Forgot you haven't met."

Tameus glances at Jarril - he hadn't even noticed the Major. Too busy for greetings, though! The leveret yanks away the last piece of wrapping paper and pulls the top off the box.

And there iiiis... something green and brown! More clothing? Hmmmm.

Wait, is that...?

It is!

It's a Long Patrol Uniform, Tam-sized!

"Huh?" Sivaine starts. "Oh. Well, I thought that might. Erm." She clears her throat, looks at Jarril. Looks at Harper. Looks at Jarril again. "Hello," she ventures, voice catching slightly. "You're Major Jarril, then." There go the eartips, reddening.

Tameus's jaw drops. It's disconnected from its hinges or something. His expression is just. Astonished.

Jarril shakes his head with a grin on what he is witnessing himself, bit shocked as Tam is at the moment but Jarril definately likes it. Hearing Harper introduce him he smiles at Sivaine. "I am, yes. Pleasure ta know someone who knows Harper." The major bows slightly, ears flopping forward before pinging back up again.

Wait, there's something about that uniform, isn't there? Something about the badges... What rank could it be?

Tameus stares. His ears are stuck up straight.

He has forgotten to breathe.

"Is that.." the little buck just barely gets out.

Sivaine randomly reddens. "Right. Pleasure. Brennig. Sivaine. Erm." She shuts her eyes for a moment. "Most of the time I speak in complete sentences," she assures him - just a /touch/ sheepish, really - and focuses on the gift-giving again. "..is he breathing? Harper?"

"You've got eyes," Harper admonishes Tameus with an amused snort. It certainly /looks/ like the markings on the Colonel's uniform.

Jarril just nods his head in understanding and also to allow Sivaine to get used to him in her own time as he watches Tam with a amused grin.

Bottlebrush pauses at the bottom of the stairs and peeks into the great hall, his ears perked.

But hey, wait. What's that rattling around at the bottom of the box?

Tameus stands up. He just .. holds the uniform, fingers cinched in tightly, staring at it before his gaze flicks to Harper. He's ... a little too stunned to even notice the rattling.

Harper grins. Glances at Jarril. And Sivaine. Grins again. Grins /back/ at Tameus. "I think I heard somethin' else in that box, Tam," he says very seriously.

Tameus is staring at the Colonel insignia again. It takes a moment, then he realizes he's been addressed. "Huhwha?"

Harper nods to the box, solemn. "Might wanna check it out."

Bottlebrush slips in and watches from across the room, his head tilted and a puzzled look on his face.

Tameus blinks. It's like the amount of happiness is too much for his tiny body and has ruined his ability to even react properly. The uniform is clung onto while he goes to the box and reaches in.

And his paws will come across something that is an odd mixture of coarse and smooth. Is it a rope? No... but rope seems to be a part of it. There's something stiff and curved attached to it...

Tameus pulls out...

A sling!

Tameus exhales very slowly. He has a sling in one hand and a sized-down Colonel uniform in the other. And he ... looks like he's about to cry.

Sivaine hunkers down, a mouse-shaped lump of cloak. A red-faced, straight-faced - well, she's trying, anyway - lump of cloak. Watching Tam very intently.

"You'll have t'work it a bit... soften it up with use," Harper notes, looking at the sling appraisingly. And then his eyes shift to Tameus. "Tam?"

Bottlebrush continues to watch from near the stairs, the fox looking both courious and puzzled at what he sees. Though seeing Tam getting so many presents makes him smile.

Tameus looks up at his name, but not at Harper. "Major?" he aims at Jarril, now.

Jarril blinks, coming out of his thoughts as he looks at Tam and coughs, clearing his throat. "Er, yes?"

Tameus takes a step and goes to pick up Taye doll. The uniform and the sling are still in his hold as he wanders away from Harper and Sivaine, toward Jarril. "'Arper foun' m' Taye doll," he tells the Major. Very serious - his expression nearly crumbling.

Tameus offers the doll for Jarril to look at. "See?"

Jarril kneels down and nods his head as he looks at Tam and nods his head. Keeping his voice low he smiles at him and then takes it as he replies. "Aye I see, lad. So are ya going ta ask him again?"

Well that wasn't the reaction he was going for, quite! He glances at Sivaine, looking uncertain.

Tameus says to Jarril, "'e has t' ask me."

Sivaine looks.. well, she looks uncertain too. "I think he's happy," she murmurs with a glance to Harper, but she doesn't sound sure.

Jarril nods at Tameus. "Then I think it's time, don't ya?"

Jarril gives Harper a look and smiles at him.

Harper returns the smile, but uncertainly. "Tam? You okay?"

Tameus nods at Jarril, and starts to smile. A round tear appears at the inside corner of each eye.

The leveret doesn't turn around to look at Harper as he responds, "'m okay, 'Arper."

There's something going on here, and Sivaine's expression clearly says she's not sure if she's a part of it. She sits back and sinks lower into the folds of her cloak, silent, solemn.

Harper just... nods. He gives Siv another, puzzled glance.

Tameus turns around partway and looks at Harper, now.

Jarril gets a hankie from one of his jacket pockets and wipes Tam's eye gently. "Well, lad. I say nothing like the present ta go up ta him and with a deep breath and say. "Ask me again." I'm sure he will, no in fact I know he will."

Tameus's muzzle angles back around to look at Jarril as he speaks. He nods, eyes shutting for a moment, then turns to go toward Harper - leaving the Major with Taye doll.

Jarril stays kneeled on one knee and watches, giving Harper a reassuring look.

Harper kneels as Tam approaches, looking like he /wants/ to smile, but is just too nervous to.

Tameus gets a few steps from Harper, pauses, and leans over to carefully set the uniform down, resting the sling on top of it.

Sivaine's eyes slide from one to the other, then back.

Harper eyes shift to the uniform and sling, and then back to Tameus. Ear twitch.

Bottlebrush watches silently, ears perked forwards.

Tameus crosses the last few steps and stops in front of Harper. His head angles up and he looks carefully at the Brother's face, eyes a little squinted, more tears present that haven't escaped his lashes yet. "'Arper."

Jarril remains silent.

Harper says, "Tam...?"

Tameus reaches to set his little hands on Harper's upper arms. He looks the buck right in the eye and takes and deep breath.

And says, "Ask me 'gain."

Sivaine closes her eyes. Her mouth broadens in a faint smile.

Jarril holds his breath as he watches intently, silent.

Harper gets very still. He looks past Tam, to Jarril, and then back to the dibbun. He smiles ever so slightly. "Tam... Would be be... c'n I... Would you want t'be my son?"

"Yes," Tam answers firmly. "Yes 'Arper. I wann' be y'r son."

Bottlebrush smiles widely at what he hears, the foxes tail wagging behind him.

Jarril smiles broadly as he witnesses what is happening and to reassure Harper he gives a approving nod.

Sivaine eyes open halfway. She watches the two of them, still as a statue.

One that's smiling.

"Whoop!" Harper shouts, pulling Tammy into a fierce hug, perhaps even more jubilant at this than his own promotion. He stands, lifting Tammy up and tossing him into the air, only to catch him again on the downswing. He grins!

Jarril has a small chuckle as he gets up. "About time those two did it." He walks over and places Taye on top of Tam's new clothes etc and smiles at Harper. "Congratulations." He looks at Tam with a grin. "Welcome ta the family."

Sivaine closes her eyes again.

Tameus squeaks and suddenly laughs, clutching at Harper as he's caught again. He's beaming fit to burst. "Heh, heheheh. Ask.. ask me th' other question, now!" he tells his dad - his dad! - and hugs him around the back of his neck.

Bottlebrush smiles widely and watches silently. He wants to clap but he does not want to intrude.

Harper thinks for a looooong, long moment. The other question... He thinks, thinks-thinks-thinks back to the conversation that started all this. His ears twitch, and he smiles. "... D'you love me?"

Tameus pushes his muzzle against the side of Harper's face, silent for a moment, with his eyes shut. He nuzzles there and whispers, "Yes. I love y'."

Sivaine looks asleep. Almost. Her mouth is a careful, wavery line.

Jarril straightens his uniform and gives Harper another smile as he slowly turns around, best to leave them both for the time being to enjoy their moment. The major getting the urge again to get his daily training out of the way.

Harper hugs his arms around Tameus, tightly, cupping the back of his head with a paw. He kisses his forehead, eyes settling briefly on Jarril, to whom he beams. Oh! So happy. "I love ya, too, Tammy."

Bottlebrush starts to move across the Great Hall now, the fox making his way towards the kitchens.

Tameus churrs all .. blissful-happy and hugging onto his new parent. His grin is a mile wide.

Jarril opens the door but stops to take one more look at Tameus and Harper and then the hare steps out to get his daily training out of the way, muttering. "Hmm, woods or grassland t'day...." Then closes the door behind him.

Sivaine is.. not watching. She's curled up - knees to her chest as much as her arm will allow, chin resting there, eyes closed. Asleep-looking, almost. Her ear gives a twitch at Tam's happy noises.

Harper goes back to kneeling, so that Tam's feet touch the floor. "Why doncha try somethin' on?" He wooonders what Tam will choose. He looks around, spying Sivaine. Hmmmmm. He'll get her yet.

Bottlebrush slips into the kitchen.

Tameus keeps him arms around Harper for a moment, then lets go. "Kay," the little boy chirps, and turns around, taking off the new cloak and going to grab up his uniform. "This!"

Sivaine lets out a slow breath. Opens her eyes, finds Harper. "Good," she murmurs to him.

Harper watches Tameus go with a pleased grin. His eyes shift to Sivaine again, and he nods his agreement. "Aye," he agrees.

Harper calls out to Tam, "Remembah, the sling's only for when an adult's around t'supervise. We'll keep it in the healah dorm otherwise." Harper pauses, thinking. "I'll have t'ask Nicodemus about that... Hm." And to Sivaine! He sidles over her way.

Tameus squirms out of his shirt. He's hopping back and forth from one foot to the other with excitement. "Y' got me a /Colonel/ un'form! 's that even /allowed/?" It's kind of entertaining to watch an over-excited, bouncy child try to change clothes.

Harper grins. "Well, s'long as you wear yer eye patch on the wrong eye m'sure there won't be any mix-ups."

Harper thinks to add, "And anyway, I made it. Recruits had t'help with mendin' 'n' makin' uniforms, so it's pretty much the real thing - jus' smaller."

Tameus hops around on one foot, the other leg shoved out as he struggles to pull the uniform pants on. "Which eye's th' Colonel got her's on?"

Sivaine shakes herself a little, rearranging cloak folds and brushing strands of headfur into place.

Harper thinks a moment. "The left... no, no, that's my left. The /righ'/ one," Harper says confidently. Nods. Sidles the rest of the way over to Sivaine. Shoulder bumps!

Sivaine blinks. "I used to have a sling." It's the first thing that comes out of her mouth.

Harper looks amused. "Mm, did you? Well, I didn't get you one." His eyes remain on Tameus, looking pleased.

"I didn't think you would. I nearly put my uncle's eye out with it," Sivaine responds. She seems.. subdued.

"You might not like what I did get you, then." Harper muses.

Sivaine blinks. Blinks again. "You," she starts, turning to look at him. "What?"

Success! Tam gets his pants on, snatches up the tunic, and pulls this on over his head. He smooths it down in the front and looks toward Harper and Sivaine. "How d' I look?" He looks... like a tiny Colonel. It fits perfectly.

"Mnuh." Sivaine tears her attention away. "..military," she decides. "Very military. ..It's good, Tam."

Harper starts snickering - at Siv, that is. He coughs! Cough. Ahem. Serious. He blinks innocently at her, then turns his attention back to Tam. Ah! Perfect. "You look like a ferocious fightin' hare, Tammy."

Ahem. "I mean. /Colonel/ Tammy."

Tameus's toes wiggle. He frolics over to the box to take out the boots, plopping on the floor to pull these on and. "... 'Arper. I d'nno 'ow t' tie laces."

Snickering? Sivaine quirks a brow. "What." She reaches over and pokes him. "_What._ Did you get me. Why did you- what."

Harper laughs at the poke, pretending to be rocked to the side by it. He rubs his shoulder, grinning sidelong at her. "Patience is a virtue, y'know." He walks over to Tam, kneeling down. "Here, I'll do it. I'll teach ya later, too."

Entering the place again, Jarril looks to be a bit hot and bothered which usually comes from some running that was just done, no matter how short the period. Closing the door behind him the major takes a deep breath and then ponders something to eat and replenish the energy he wasted by the feeling of empty space in his stomach.

Tameus pushes out his booted feet for Harper to tie the laces. "Okay," he gruffs, watching carefully.

"Heh." It's a weak grin; Sivaine doesn't quite meet his eyes. Instead, she twitches her cloak's mantle into position and falls silent. Eyes on Tam again.

Harper goes about tying the laces, doing so slowly so Tam can watch. He stands away when he's done. He glances around and Siv. "Do you think... Ardice'd draw 'im?" Tentative brow-quirk.

How many times is being addressed going to startle her? Once more, apparently. "..'course she would," Sivaine replies, looking ever so slightly nonplussed. She pushes off the floor and stands. "Assuming he'll stay still."

Tameus reaches to tug at the laces of one boot after they're tied, loosening them. "Do 't 'gain," he says to the buck.

Harper looks pleased. He looks at Sivaine. Nods. "Good," he grins. Then goes about untying and retying the laces. "We'll see about things later, Siv." Mm-hm, we will.

"We will. Will we?" Sivaine's brow creases faintly; a wry half-smile tugs at the corner of her muzzle. "You're worrying me, you know that. All right." A thought crosses her mind; she glances up at the windows, then to the kitchen. "Mumbledypeg. /Ardice./ I forgot-" Her eyes widen slightly; she looks back to Harper. "Right. I'm leaving now, so you actually /will/ see me again." She turns on her heel and heads for the kitchen, though she pauses near the buck to rest her paw on his shoulder for a moment. Muttered, to herself, "She's going to kill me."

Harper looks after Sivaine, looking /very/ amused. Once finished retying Tam's laces, he stands. "I'll teach you a rhyme that'll help you learn how 'n' remember tonight before bed."

"Okay," the leveret says, leaving them laced up for now. He gets up and collects his gifts, dumping everything else into the largest box for easier transportation. ".. thanks. Da'."

D'aww! "Yer welcome, son." Griiiin. He ruffles Tam's headfur. "Put the sling up on the shelf above the bed. You c'n give it a try tomorrow mornin' - me or a Patroller, doesn't matter." He then looks towards the stairs. "I have t'get to an infirmary shift now, though." And he starts towards the stairs. "They'll have dinner up there soon if yer hungry."

"Okay," Tam chirps again, leaning into the ruffle. And he follows Harper up the stairs, hauling everything with him, his scut giving little happy twitches.

And off they go!