Water meets Earth
[None]
Jo walks up the rampart steps and into the area gazing out to the east towards camp willow, "Why did ye' go Ayita?" He says to himself, but then catching the squirrel at the corner of his eye, "Why hello there, I don' think I 'ave seen ye' before."
The black squirrel starts at Jo’s voice, whirling and jumping at the same time, ending up on the solid red rock of the parapet in a blue of speed. There she crouches, creeping backwards a bit, small paws clinging tight to the stone. She stares at the otter for a long moment, not answering, her brush twitching nervously, as does the rest of her. She fidgets and shifts her weight a little as she calms down, not staying still, though keeping her eyes on you. She doesn't answer, and she certainly doesn't look like she lives in the Abbey.
The otter tilts his head toward the squirrel, ears pricked foward, "Where did ye' come from if I might ask." Jo crouches a little, weary he may either be trampled or attacked. (odd thing to think about, it's a squirrel for goodness sakes! She wont hurt me will she?" This he thinks in his mind
As he shifts his weight, the black squirrel makes a strange little squeaking noise and skitters backwards, nimbly hoping to the further parapet stone and whirling to keep an eye on Jo. She's standing now, her small hands opening and closing rapidly with nervous energy, her eyes wide and focused on his own. Her feet shift a few times, and she glances about, her ears perked straight upwards. "Fff..." it might have just been a trick of the wind, but then the small, tremulous voice, "Fffor-rest?" spoken slowly, as though unsure of the word.
Jo replies gently, "Shh sh, don' worry I won' harm ye'. Ye' came from the forest, I also came from the forest a long time ago, but that is past." He says, inching forward slowly toward the nervous squirrel, “What is ye name?” The otter climbs onto the rampart to stay even with the new beast, crouching on his haunches and hanging his tail off the edge"
The squirrel retreats yet another stone as the otter moves, though slower this time, not so skittishly. Her brush flicks a few times, her head tilting at a comical angle, eyes wide and ears perked. When Jo settles onto the parapet, the squirrel glances about, her head swiveling in rapid start-stop motions. Then there is a quiet sort of giggle and with a quick and graceful movement, the squirrel is onto the rampart's walkway, leaving the otter perched on the parapet.
The squirrel chitters and backs up a step, "Nay-mmmn? Name. Name!" she cries, hopping from one foot to the other.
The otter exclaims, "Y-yes! Name, what is your name?" He asks, "I am called Jo." He points to himself then at the squirrel half expecting her to reply.
"Jo? Jo-jo!" says the strange squirrel, her hopping ceasing. She whirls in place for a second, her brush tracing her path like a cloak, then she hops back up onto the parapet stone, crouching again, two spaces away. She giggles and rocks from side to side, saying in a sing-song voice, "Awwwww-riiii, awwww-riiii!" She stops moving and stares at you expectantly, her ears perked straight up, shiny eyes wide.
Jo laughs openly, a wide grin showing on his face, "Heh heh heh, Auri." he says then just for the fun of it, "Awwwwriiii...." The otter sings back in a lowish sounding voice.
Auri's tail only flickers a little when you first say her voice, but when you sing it back to her she starts to vibrate with glee, brush flickering, clapping her hands and hopping back and forth upon the stone, her joy palpable. "Sing! Sing song?" she cries, her little voice conveying her child-like glee. "Song for Auri?" she asks, settling down, but perched so far forward upon the parapet she's like to fall over.
"A song." Jo mutters to himself, he crosses his arms and moves his tail back and forth in though, he snaps his fingers and grins while starting to recite, "There was an otter by a stream,
Come ringle dum o lady,
Who fell asleep and had a dream,
All on the bank so shady.
He dreamt the stream was made of wine,It flowed along so merry,
And when he drank it tasted fine,
Like plum and elderberry.
And all the banks were made of cake,
Come ringle ding my dearie,
As nice as any cook could bake,
That otter felt quite cheery.
He drank and ate with right good will,
Till wakened by his daughter.She said,
I hope youve had your fill,
Of mud and cold streamwater!
Come ringle doo fol doodle day,
Come wisebeast or come witty,
A fool who dreams to dine that way,
Must waken to self-pity. "
The jaunty tune is received with a rapt audience - maybe the perfect one, save that she is but one squirrel. Auri bobs back and forth as the otter starts to sing in his deep basso, and in short order she is clapping and whirling upon the battlements, giggling and laughing in untainted joy. At the final words, she is on her back on the stone, kicking her feet and holding her belly, giggling and rocking as like to topple off the wall.
Jo laughs along with her, tears of mirth rolling down his cheeks, 'Why does everyone else except ayita make him joyful?' This he briefly thinks, while trying not to fall off the abbey wall
'because ye' never sang for her, think harder next time otter!' This he also thinks to himself, slightly dampening his mood a tad but not enough to burn out the joy
The madly giggling squirrel calms down after a little while, rising back to her paws and peering at Jo through the gloom of the night, her painfully lean form hunched up a bit, her nervous, twitchy energy showing in her tail and the way her tail and ears twitch and shift, but she doesn't seem so inclined to bolt and run now. "Mud-eater-otter! Muddy-belly-otter! Heeee!" she says, giggling and capping her hands together. She stops all of a sudden though, looking down sharply and fiddling with something at her middle. She stands up, hopping from one footpaw to the other, "Ooh! Oh oh oh! Gift! Gift! I give gift!"
Jo just stays silent and puzzled as he was at first.
Auri's nervous energy comes to a fevered pitch as she whirls and hops about on the stone in a circle, the strange dance ending with a sudden leap. With little more than a flash of black fur and bright eyes, the young squirrelmaid is on the stone just opposite you, close enough to touch. She looks painfully thin, her fur patchy, but her face is pretty and her smile genuine. With some small hand, she holds out something to you; a little stone no bigger than the tip of her finger, gleaming white in the moonlight. "Gift! Gift! Piece of the moon for you! Piece of moonlight on water!" she says, her voice bright and clear as the chiming of a bell now, though her words are cryptic as ever.
Jo excepts the gift willingly and perks his ears towards it, "A piece of moonlight?" He asks questioningly
The squirrel bobs her head excitedly, clapping her hands together and laughing, "Yes! See? Moonlight!" she says, in a loud whisper, like exchanging a secret just between herself and you.
The gift is just a pebble - a small piece of granite with a fair amount of quartz vein, smoothed on one side, probably from a riverbed. It catches the moon's luminescence in a somewhat pretty way, but is otherwise completely unremarkable; you can find a thousand of them on the path or in the Abbey pond.
The otter rubs it a little with his thumb and puts it in his bag, "Thank ye' Auri." He thinks a little and starts to rummage through his bag.
Auri looks absolutely pleased that you accepted the gift, but her eyes follow your hand as you examine your bag. The energetic youngling starts to hop from foot to foot again, eyes bright, "What bring me? What bring me?" she asks, barely able to keep her voice a whisper.
Jo pulls a necklace out of his bag and offers it out to auri, "Give gift." he says, pointing at himself then to the squirrel and holds it out for her to take
Auri takes the necklace with reverential hands, her eyes wide with unfettered joy. She holds up the trinket for it to catch the moonlight, and she laughs, her voice ringing like a bell. She prods the small sapphire with a finger, "Water! Gift of ocean and river!" she cries, her tail flicking, the young squirrel ecstatic. She drops the necklace over her neck, then with the briefest of smiles, the strange squirrel is gone - leaping from the battlement out into the night! "Sing-song for Auri! Call Auri!" comes her voice from the gloom. "Aaaaawww-riiiiii..." comes the voice, fading into the whisper of the night
Jo blinks and looks bewildered, "I-I suppose I will my friend." he says with a grin.
[None]
Groups:
