Well, why don't you say a bit more about what is happening in the search? I know nothing about FBI or the process they'd go through to hunt for a kid in the area around Boston proper. Yet Ethan would have a general idea, so that could be useful. What does she plan to do, both in the near future and further? Is she making any plans, serious or not, about what she'll do if they don't find the kid in time? Also, where in Boston is her hotel? North, south, near the water, inland, etc. I don't need a street corner or a name unless that kind of thing entertains you. :)
Just... write what you would write if you didn't know that Ethan was coming in the next post, yeah? It doesn't need to be long, not at all. I just need a bit of setting, and some context.
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Hai. :D
;-p
;-p
He nearly grabbed the pup again when he began to walk away, like one of his own straying brood that had decided to walk too far away from the den, but he kept himself in place with a single, simple reminder. This was not his pup, even if he might have adopted him for the moment. Keeping him from his pack would most likely do more harm than good. He could imagine what would happen if one of his own pups suddenly went missing, and the King had reason to believe that some other Pack or Prince was responsible for the theft. Of course, this pup's pack had already allowed their member to stray far from the nesting site, which was another reason that the King did not think much of this pack.
All the same, he had no right to grab this straying pup, and keep him in close where he would be safe. Therefore, he let the pup walk away, until even the tremors of his footsteps were too small to be distinctly detected. For a moment longer the King remained still, before he shook himself and began to walk away as well. If this was going to be his new territory for a while, he was going to have to familiarize himself with the area. There was no need to mark out his territory; he would not be staying here long enough for it to matter, and, even if he was, there was nothing else in the area that could rightly challenge him for the land if he wanted to name it as his own. That did not mean that he should be unfamiliar with the area, though.
There was not much in the area. The forest was thinner than he was used to, and there were many stumps that looked like the remains of a fallen tree that had been chewed up by some wood-eating animal, but the trunk did not remain. It began to occur to him that perhaps the wood/rock stones of the clearing had not simply appeared there, but had been constructed using the wood from the forest the way that the birds stole straw to build a nest. That briefly caused him to pause, wondering if he was going to suddenly come across a pack of the creatures, gathering materials, but eventually the King reminded himself that they were noisy enough that he would feel them coming from a long way off. There was only one place that would really be suitable for a den, a pile of rocks that had been covered in dirt at some point and now created a stony bluff in the land. It would be sheltered from the snow in the winter and, once he cleared out some of the rocks, it would make a strong structure that wouldn't collapse easily. He pawed at the dirt a couple times, scraping away some of the grass and small plants, and a brief flare from the orange chips covering his body was enough to cause a cascading shower of loosened soil and create an indent in the bluff, before reminding himself that there was no reason for a den. The only pup to protect was too large to fit in a den, even a den made for a creature his size.
The King continued his patient exploration, even though there was nothing of import left to find. Somewhere in his journey, he began to wonder if the pup was actually going to come back. Perhaps his escape had been an accidental thing, brought about by his own appearance, and the wounds had been collected on its journey from the village to his location. Perhaps the Pack was even now tending to its lost pup, and they would be much more vigilant in their watching and caring in the future. If that was the case, there was no reason for the King to be staying here. He was never going to be a part of this strange pack, if simply because they seemed far more interested in entrapping him than letting him join. Beyond that, he had no interest in being anything but the leader of a pack, and if he wanted that he would have simply stayed with his own. All the same, he knew he would wait a couple of days before leaving again, just in case his initial impressions about the state of pup and pack were correct. A couple more days would make no difference in his strange, new quest.
In the end, though, the King did not even have to wait half a day before the pup returned. He had not stopped his patrolling this new area, so it was more than a few minutes after the pup returned to the forest that the King drew close enough to feel his footsteps vibrating through the ground and air.
He did not race to return to the pup. After all, he was neither a new mother nor a pup himself, and racing to do anything would do him no good. He might have hurried if the pup had left against his will, simply to remind him that he was never supposed to do such a thing again, but he had let this pup go. Now he had come back. It seemed that the negative impressions the King had originally received about this strange pack were true.
The King padded into the shaded stretch of ground where the two had originally met nearly silently, the only sound heralding his approach being the quiet crackle of the needles beneath his weight, and the soft sound of his own breathing. Once more his feelers reached out, brushing gently along the pup to confirm to himself that he was still mostly unharmed, Once the King was satisfied that "his" pup had sustained no new wounds he lay down gently, sprawling out across the ground in a furry lump. He whined slightly at the pup, inviting him over, before settling down to rest in the shade.
All the same, he had no right to grab this straying pup, and keep him in close where he would be safe. Therefore, he let the pup walk away, until even the tremors of his footsteps were too small to be distinctly detected. For a moment longer the King remained still, before he shook himself and began to walk away as well. If this was going to be his new territory for a while, he was going to have to familiarize himself with the area. There was no need to mark out his territory; he would not be staying here long enough for it to matter, and, even if he was, there was nothing else in the area that could rightly challenge him for the land if he wanted to name it as his own. That did not mean that he should be unfamiliar with the area, though.
There was not much in the area. The forest was thinner than he was used to, and there were many stumps that looked like the remains of a fallen tree that had been chewed up by some wood-eating animal, but the trunk did not remain. It began to occur to him that perhaps the wood/rock stones of the clearing had not simply appeared there, but had been constructed using the wood from the forest the way that the birds stole straw to build a nest. That briefly caused him to pause, wondering if he was going to suddenly come across a pack of the creatures, gathering materials, but eventually the King reminded himself that they were noisy enough that he would feel them coming from a long way off. There was only one place that would really be suitable for a den, a pile of rocks that had been covered in dirt at some point and now created a stony bluff in the land. It would be sheltered from the snow in the winter and, once he cleared out some of the rocks, it would make a strong structure that wouldn't collapse easily. He pawed at the dirt a couple times, scraping away some of the grass and small plants, and a brief flare from the orange chips covering his body was enough to cause a cascading shower of loosened soil and create an indent in the bluff, before reminding himself that there was no reason for a den. The only pup to protect was too large to fit in a den, even a den made for a creature his size.
The King continued his patient exploration, even though there was nothing of import left to find. Somewhere in his journey, he began to wonder if the pup was actually going to come back. Perhaps his escape had been an accidental thing, brought about by his own appearance, and the wounds had been collected on its journey from the village to his location. Perhaps the Pack was even now tending to its lost pup, and they would be much more vigilant in their watching and caring in the future. If that was the case, there was no reason for the King to be staying here. He was never going to be a part of this strange pack, if simply because they seemed far more interested in entrapping him than letting him join. Beyond that, he had no interest in being anything but the leader of a pack, and if he wanted that he would have simply stayed with his own. All the same, he knew he would wait a couple of days before leaving again, just in case his initial impressions about the state of pup and pack were correct. A couple more days would make no difference in his strange, new quest.
In the end, though, the King did not even have to wait half a day before the pup returned. He had not stopped his patrolling this new area, so it was more than a few minutes after the pup returned to the forest that the King drew close enough to feel his footsteps vibrating through the ground and air.
He did not race to return to the pup. After all, he was neither a new mother nor a pup himself, and racing to do anything would do him no good. He might have hurried if the pup had left against his will, simply to remind him that he was never supposed to do such a thing again, but he had let this pup go. Now he had come back. It seemed that the negative impressions the King had originally received about this strange pack were true.
The King padded into the shaded stretch of ground where the two had originally met nearly silently, the only sound heralding his approach being the quiet crackle of the needles beneath his weight, and the soft sound of his own breathing. Once more his feelers reached out, brushing gently along the pup to confirm to himself that he was still mostly unharmed, Once the King was satisfied that "his" pup had sustained no new wounds he lay down gently, sprawling out across the ground in a furry lump. He whined slightly at the pup, inviting him over, before settling down to rest in the shade.
No hurry. I mean, I've left you sitting a very long time.
You are free to do a time skip if you have nothing else you want to have happen in this moment.
I'm going to go ahead and put a bit of a rush on the King learning language. I figure if he shifts while Kir-Kon is speaking, his brain will naturally change to adapt to the understanding of verbal language, which will allow him to understand rudimentary and simple human language.
I'm going to go ahead and put a bit of a rush on the King learning language. I figure if he shifts while Kir-Kon is speaking, his brain will naturally change to adapt to the understanding of verbal language, which will allow him to understand rudimentary and simple human language.
The King’s feelers continued to gently explore the creature/pup, but they came to linger gently on a cut on the creature/pup’s leg, a massive bruise on his back, and many other small wounds that covered its... his, this was definitely a male creature/pup, body. What was his pack thinking, allowing him to sustain such damage while under their care. He would always let his pups explore, and that naturally meant that there was a risk of injury, but until they learned the risks of the world he would keep them away from the most dangerous and harmful of situations. Surely this pack was not so inexperienced that they would let this pup get harmed. Or, even worse, harm him themselves.
It was at that moment, as those thoughts were running through the King’s head, that the creature reached out and scratched gently under his chin, fingers tugging gently in an imitation of the pups that would chew on his jaw, submissively begging for food and attention. And, like that, creature became pup, and the King’s instinctive protective instinct kicked in. he promptly released the pup, although his feelers lingered gently, brushing against jaw and shoulder like the caress of a parent. If his pack was doing such a bad job of protecting him, then the King would simply have to step in. Obviously the pack leader of that strange clearing was as inept as the Princes of his world, and the King would step in here, just as he had there. He still wanted to come to understand the new things within his own mind, but he had lived with them for a long time already. Until he knew what exactly was happening to this pup, the possibility that these injuries were normal briefly entered into his mind, maybe it was some sort of strength ritual, he would stick around. Once that was complete, he would resume his search for answers.
Hopefully it wasn't going to take too long. It had been many days since the Pack had gone hunting, and while the hunger that had gnawed at the rest of the members had yet to fully touch him, it would find him soon enough. There was very little in this quiet forest that was really suitable for eating, and while he would catch and feast on birds and small rodents if it came to that, he wished for the hot blood of real prey. His tongue flicked out, briefly licking his lips, before his jaw snapped shut again. His feelers moved away from the pup, reading the air lazily. He could still feel the faintest vibrations coming from that strange clearing. He would not be going near there again.
It was at that moment, as those thoughts were running through the King’s head, that the creature reached out and scratched gently under his chin, fingers tugging gently in an imitation of the pups that would chew on his jaw, submissively begging for food and attention. And, like that, creature became pup, and the King’s instinctive protective instinct kicked in. he promptly released the pup, although his feelers lingered gently, brushing against jaw and shoulder like the caress of a parent. If his pack was doing such a bad job of protecting him, then the King would simply have to step in. Obviously the pack leader of that strange clearing was as inept as the Princes of his world, and the King would step in here, just as he had there. He still wanted to come to understand the new things within his own mind, but he had lived with them for a long time already. Until he knew what exactly was happening to this pup, the possibility that these injuries were normal briefly entered into his mind, maybe it was some sort of strength ritual, he would stick around. Once that was complete, he would resume his search for answers.
Hopefully it wasn't going to take too long. It had been many days since the Pack had gone hunting, and while the hunger that had gnawed at the rest of the members had yet to fully touch him, it would find him soon enough. There was very little in this quiet forest that was really suitable for eating, and while he would catch and feast on birds and small rodents if it came to that, he wished for the hot blood of real prey. His tongue flicked out, briefly licking his lips, before his jaw snapped shut again. His feelers moved away from the pup, reading the air lazily. He could still feel the faintest vibrations coming from that strange clearing. He would not be going near there again.
That all sounds reasonable, in terms of reasons for the King to stay. I'll probably piecemeal it as it matches up well with the posts.
As far as shrinking down... It isn't so much a matter of comfort as it is that the King is stuck right now. He's never consciously shapeshifted before, and, up until the villagers tried to grab him, it has been so gradual as to be unnoticed. It's going to take him a bit of time, and maybe getting stuck on/in something, before he can return to a more natural size.
I think I've got enough to write the post at this point. Now all I need is the time...
As far as shrinking down... It isn't so much a matter of comfort as it is that the King is stuck right now. He's never consciously shapeshifted before, and, up until the villagers tried to grab him, it has been so gradual as to be unnoticed. It's going to take him a bit of time, and maybe getting stuck on/in something, before he can return to a more natural size.
I think I've got enough to write the post at this point. Now all I need is the time...
Hmmm... There's a lot in there, so I'll start with the easy part.
The reason I gave the King a shapeshifting ability, rather than just sticking with the elemental abilities of the Pack, was more than just to give him the intelligence needed to begin his quest. His symbolic journey into enlightenment is going to be mirrored by a developing understanding of his ability to shapeshift. A human form will be midway through his "journey", because he will understand it well enough to recognize that his form is mostly at his whim, but he'll believe that being in a human form would somehow help him understand the world better, rather than recognizing that he had to come to his own terms with his new understandings. At least, that would be the reason he changed at first. Staying in that form would probably have a lot more to do with Kir-Kon.
Haha.. I kinda forgot about the "pet" part. I guess it kinda depends on what we mean by pet. If he is a pet simply for the fact that he gets pet a lot, then I see no reason that he would have a problem with it. If it means he is expected to do Kir-Kon's work for him, which I'm not expecting but it has to be mentioned, then it probably won't go over so well. But before any of that can really happen he needs to get smaller again, I think. Otherwise the villagers wouldn't really let him in, whether he was with Kir-Kon or not. And that may take a little while. But I don't think it would be a bad idea to have Kir-Kon and his relationship take a little bit longer. The King is used to being leader of the pack, it'll take a bit of time for him to accept being an equal. He's got to stop seeing Kir-Kon as a pup first.
I guess I'm also trying to figure out a reason to keep the King close to the village until he and Kir-Kon have a reason to bond. He's kind of realized that trying to get to the center of the ward is a bad idea, and he's not one to stay still for very long.
Hmm... Kir-Kon's got injuries on him, right? If the King sees him as a pup right now, he'd be inclined to protect the pup. And his feelers would certainly find the wounds.
The reason I gave the King a shapeshifting ability, rather than just sticking with the elemental abilities of the Pack, was more than just to give him the intelligence needed to begin his quest. His symbolic journey into enlightenment is going to be mirrored by a developing understanding of his ability to shapeshift. A human form will be midway through his "journey", because he will understand it well enough to recognize that his form is mostly at his whim, but he'll believe that being in a human form would somehow help him understand the world better, rather than recognizing that he had to come to his own terms with his new understandings. At least, that would be the reason he changed at first. Staying in that form would probably have a lot more to do with Kir-Kon.
Haha.. I kinda forgot about the "pet" part. I guess it kinda depends on what we mean by pet. If he is a pet simply for the fact that he gets pet a lot, then I see no reason that he would have a problem with it. If it means he is expected to do Kir-Kon's work for him, which I'm not expecting but it has to be mentioned, then it probably won't go over so well. But before any of that can really happen he needs to get smaller again, I think. Otherwise the villagers wouldn't really let him in, whether he was with Kir-Kon or not. And that may take a little while. But I don't think it would be a bad idea to have Kir-Kon and his relationship take a little bit longer. The King is used to being leader of the pack, it'll take a bit of time for him to accept being an equal. He's got to stop seeing Kir-Kon as a pup first.
I guess I'm also trying to figure out a reason to keep the King close to the village until he and Kir-Kon have a reason to bond. He's kind of realized that trying to get to the center of the ward is a bad idea, and he's not one to stay still for very long.
Hmm... Kir-Kon's got injuries on him, right? If the King sees him as a pup right now, he'd be inclined to protect the pup. And his feelers would certainly find the wounds.
So... we should probably pick a direction at this point. I mean, we can keep them just kind of going forward, but I think we should make a more specific goal. Maybe?
The feel of the creature’s paws in his fur was distracting, but not bad. It was like the feel of the pups, first reaching out to him when they finally emerged from the den with their bitch, carefully moving their feelers through his fur, learning the shape of him so that they would always know to whom they owed their allegiance. This creature’s “feelers” were not as supple, but their motion and intent were the same. It was almost endearing, and when the thing began to lightly work at the vines cutting at his throat and body he let it happen.
There was a sensation of disconnect between the creatures in this village and the one that was now sitting next to him. His instinct told him that there was no difference between this one and the ones that had hurt him and had tried to entrap him, but that new thing that had driven him into that clearing in the first place told him that, just as there were differences within the Pack, there were differences within these creatures. The King could feel this creature’s intent, and it was nothing like that which had tried to ensnare him. Should it change the King would be able to react in a split second. The creature was within range of his feelers, and just a couple of them would be enough to entangle the creature and smother the life out of it. He wouldn’t even need to bare his fangs to kill this fragile thing.
Whatever the creature was doing, it seemed to be working. The bindings slowly fell away, and he began to breathe easier again. When all of the vines were gone from his neck the creature began to move along his body.
The King snapped at it the first time it tugged at the rope on his legs, startling the creature much more than he had intended to. The snap had been a polite reprimand, a reminder that, while the creature may be unbinding him, the King was still the one in control. It was the kind of snap one of his own pups would have gotten if its nearby playfighting had gotten a little too intense for comfort, not intended to harm, simply to remind.
After the snap the King settled back once more, apparently turning its attention away from the creature. He was not one to admit it, even to the one helping him, but the King, in that moment, needed the creature’s aid. There was no doubt he could have gotten the things off eventually, but it would have required hours of uncomfortable gnawing and clawing, and would doubtless have shed more than a bit of his own blood. This chirping creature had saved him much trouble.
When the last rope fell away the King remained still for a moment, relishing in the slight tingling sensation the absence of the ropes created. But the prickles quickly faded, and as soon as they were gone the King decided he was no longer content to stay in place. He stood up in a quick fluid motion, towering over the creature/pup, and shook, causing his fur to flare out in a bright halo. Then he stretched, pulling the tension out of his body.
It didn’t matter if the encounter at the village had failed. The King had done more than enough moping over the past several days. There may be a new thing in his mind that was changing the way he viewed the world, but it did not change the King’s basic nature. He was a creature of action. When something didn’t work, it was time to find a different way. There was no sense in attacking a creature that had already survived a fight, and no sense in exploring a place that had already been explored. if the King wanted answers to his question, he was going to have to find them somewhere other than the strange clearing.
Perhaps this creature/pup would be able to aid him. These creatures seemed to be a part of the thing that was different about him. their actions in the clearing had not been made of clear instinct, but had seemed to rather follow something that he still did not quite understand. If it was in all of them, it was likely to be in the creature/pup as well. Perhaps he could use that.
The feather-like sensors waved gently through the air, taking in a better impression of it. He took a step forward, one giant paw almost as large as the creature/pup’s head. It had gotten its chance to touch him, now he wanted his chance to touch it. The feeler flew out quickly, wrapping around the its chest and holding it in place. The feeler squeezed just enough to let the creature/pup know that it could not escape, but not enough to hurt it. The sensors followed along after that, running along its body with ghost-like touches.
There was a sensation of disconnect between the creatures in this village and the one that was now sitting next to him. His instinct told him that there was no difference between this one and the ones that had hurt him and had tried to entrap him, but that new thing that had driven him into that clearing in the first place told him that, just as there were differences within the Pack, there were differences within these creatures. The King could feel this creature’s intent, and it was nothing like that which had tried to ensnare him. Should it change the King would be able to react in a split second. The creature was within range of his feelers, and just a couple of them would be enough to entangle the creature and smother the life out of it. He wouldn’t even need to bare his fangs to kill this fragile thing.
Whatever the creature was doing, it seemed to be working. The bindings slowly fell away, and he began to breathe easier again. When all of the vines were gone from his neck the creature began to move along his body.
The King snapped at it the first time it tugged at the rope on his legs, startling the creature much more than he had intended to. The snap had been a polite reprimand, a reminder that, while the creature may be unbinding him, the King was still the one in control. It was the kind of snap one of his own pups would have gotten if its nearby playfighting had gotten a little too intense for comfort, not intended to harm, simply to remind.
After the snap the King settled back once more, apparently turning its attention away from the creature. He was not one to admit it, even to the one helping him, but the King, in that moment, needed the creature’s aid. There was no doubt he could have gotten the things off eventually, but it would have required hours of uncomfortable gnawing and clawing, and would doubtless have shed more than a bit of his own blood. This chirping creature had saved him much trouble.
When the last rope fell away the King remained still for a moment, relishing in the slight tingling sensation the absence of the ropes created. But the prickles quickly faded, and as soon as they were gone the King decided he was no longer content to stay in place. He stood up in a quick fluid motion, towering over the creature/pup, and shook, causing his fur to flare out in a bright halo. Then he stretched, pulling the tension out of his body.
It didn’t matter if the encounter at the village had failed. The King had done more than enough moping over the past several days. There may be a new thing in his mind that was changing the way he viewed the world, but it did not change the King’s basic nature. He was a creature of action. When something didn’t work, it was time to find a different way. There was no sense in attacking a creature that had already survived a fight, and no sense in exploring a place that had already been explored. if the King wanted answers to his question, he was going to have to find them somewhere other than the strange clearing.
Perhaps this creature/pup would be able to aid him. These creatures seemed to be a part of the thing that was different about him. their actions in the clearing had not been made of clear instinct, but had seemed to rather follow something that he still did not quite understand. If it was in all of them, it was likely to be in the creature/pup as well. Perhaps he could use that.
The feather-like sensors waved gently through the air, taking in a better impression of it. He took a step forward, one giant paw almost as large as the creature/pup’s head. It had gotten its chance to touch him, now he wanted his chance to touch it. The feeler flew out quickly, wrapping around the its chest and holding it in place. The feeler squeezed just enough to let the creature/pup know that it could not escape, but not enough to hurt it. The sensors followed along after that, running along its body with ghost-like touches.
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