Return to the Warren (solo)
Dec 27, 2015 12:42:23 GMT -6
Post by Fleur on Dec 27, 2015 12:42:23 GMT -6
Fleur and her group left the humans and returned to the forest. The little rabbit child had fallen asleep on her back as they made their way back to the warren. The warren was deep in the Foxatross woods. Far away from the wooden settlement of Aurion and safely tucked away underground beneath the trees. Behind her the old she wolf Mavis was lugging around the carcass of one of the doog’s from their hunt. The small group’s prize for saving the lives of those strange humans. The lynx taguel was helping the old she wolf by carrying the back legs of the creature. Meanwhile, the owl simply walked alongside Fleur in his demi-human form. Happy that he wasn’t going to get his hands or his feather’s dirty with the bloody mess that was the doog.
“I’m still upset the other one got away.” Mavis spoke with shades of annoyance in her breath.
“And I’m glad it did!” Hermie, the owl responded.
“Honestly how would we have even carried that thing back? You twhoo are struggling with just the one!” The owl responded with some curiosity in his voice. His brown wings fluttered lightly as he held his arms out to balance himself as he walked atop a fallen log.
“Grr. You fowl feathered welp. If you weren’t so puny then the three of us could have easily brought back two sets of game.” Mavis talked back. Fleur’s ears twitched slightly towards their bickering. The lynx rolled his eyes at the two of them. There were certain things that were universal among all tribes. One of these things was that the old and young would never truly see eye to eye with one another. But despite that rift between them both owl and wolf made a great pair in combat.
“Have you two forgotten that some of us cannot eat meat? The extra creature would be wasted upon me and the warren. Now had that been a Bael.. then I would have been upset.” Bael meat or bugs in general was one of the few proteins that the rabbits could eat. Fleur turned her head to look back at the three other Taguel with a small smile on her face.
“Your warren’s aversion to meat, means that there is more food for us!” The old wolf spoke again.
She returned her gaze back out towards the forest. Her encounter with the new humans left her thinking. She did not like how defensive they were. She did not like how one nearly hit her with an arrow. And despite the ivy haired one’s best efforts at diplomacy she was still left with doubts. The woods where her home, and those humans walked around as if they owned the place.
“Mavis please. Such gluttony is unbecoming of an old shrew like yourself.” The Owl chided, much to Mavis’ annoyance. The old wolf dropped her half of the doog to chase after the owl. Who quickly flew up to the higher branches and gave a laugh. The lynx nearly fell over with the sudden shift of weight. He was forced to transform and managed to he moved the doog carcass onto his back and continued to walk. It wasn’t long now until they passed the rabbit sentries and entered the territory of the warren. Fleur gave them a bit of a greeting before walking forward. A large maple tree that seemingly looked to be growing alone in a small clearing served as their landmark.
Fleur’s warren was a communal warren. One where rabbit taguel from all corners of Vinland could live in peace. It was something similar to a town or village but exclusive only to bunnies. A bit of a rarity among taguel, as they were one of the few who grew food. Their ancestors learned the trade from some native humans and they merely expanded upon it underground. Most rabbit taguel were vegetarian and there was only so much food they could gather from the woods. The rabbit farms consisted mostly of grasses, herbs, dark leafy greens, a few mild peppers, and some wild carrots. These farms weren't to the extremes like commercial farms of some humans. The rabbits simply grew was much as they needed to live with.
Despite, this calm lifestyle of farming, death was inevitable. Rabbits still died to things like old age, illness, hunters, monsters, and accidents. Fleur’s warren wasn't very large. It consisted of roughly of forty adults and many kids. Simply, because rabbits were born to the warren did not mean they had to remain. It wasn't uncommon for taguel to roam, searching for mates, searching for territory, or to find new sources of food. Fleur herself was one such case. She chose to leave the den and seek out a life for herself as a member of the Thousand Scales.
Rabbit taguel of all sizes, shapes, and colors were roaming around top side. Some were gathering leaves, branches, and twigs and dragging them underground. Other rabbits were busy digging out new holes into the warren. Some were hauling small wooden sleighs full of dirt out of the warren holes. Others were bringing in hollowed out gourds filled with either water or tree sap. Almost all of them turned their heads to stare out towards Fleur and her group as they made their way towards the main entrance of the den. Fleur and her group were not strangers to the warren as they frequently passed through the den. But the doog corpse the lynx carried was a bit of an oddity. The main entrance into the Warren consisted of one large unassuming hole into the ground.
But before they could do that several rabbits swarmed around them curious and eager to learn what had happened. But Fleur dismissed them and told them to return to their work she would explain later. Then she called out towards the tribe of the western rabbits. The western rabbits were the taguel who occupied the western end of the communal warren. Those whose warren was responsible for maintaining one of underground channels for fresh water. To those who cultivated moss and water rooted plants for the rabbits to use. Several rabbits emerged out from the western end of the den. Fleur pulled from her back one sleepy little rabbit taguel. The same rabbit that her group, and the strangers fought to defend.
Two adult rabbits went out to grab and hug the child. The mother had long ears that stuck up like Fleur’s. And the father had the same soft folded ears like the child. Both had green tribal markings on them similar to Fleur’s but of a different pattern. The mother wore a similar attire like Fleur’s except her top was longer to cover the belly. The father was in simple slacks made of plant fibers and covered in more fur. The little taguel stirred slightly in their grip but still remained asleep.
“I suggest you discipline him and those who were supposed to be watching him after he wakes. Had we not been there the little one would have been lunch for the corpse my companions carry.”
She watched as the mother held and hummed to the child. The mother gently stepped away from her mate and Fleur.
“I’m sorry to have to put you through that Fleur.” He apologized to her. Meanwhile, behind Fleur the Lynx, the She Wolf, and Owl started to reenact their heroics using the dead doog as some sort of ghastly meat puppet. It attracted a crowd of younger rabbits to sit and listen. Many of them had never seen a Doog up close and for good reason. Fleur’s ears twitched again in their direction her face shifting to a slightly annoyed expression.
“It’s alright we were simply doing our job. But there are other.. more pressing.. issues that need attention. I need to call a meeting of the warrens. In the meantime spread the word that the area beyond the southern grove of oak is off limits. We have.. unwanted visitors passing through.”
“Are they dangerous?” He asked.
“Yes. Extremely.” She spoke with seriousness in her voice. By now there was a loud crash behind her where the others were acting. And again Mavis shouting at the “ungrateful flying cretin”.
“Excuse me.” Fleur dismissed herself from the older rabbit’s presence and returned to her mates.
“Will you cut that out!” She shouted at them in the same manner a mother would shout at a bunch of unruly kids.
“The cook pits are over there.” Fleur pointed towards the eastern patch of the warren. There were large pits dug into the earth surrounded by stone in order to cook multiple things at once. Mostly it was used to roast nuts or berries collected from the woods. It was also used heat rocks to bring into the den for warmth.
“Ferris.” Fleur called and the Lynx stood up.
“Watch them.” Fleur pointed at the owl and wolf. The lynx nodded and followed after them. Ferris and Fleur have been together ever since she first joined the Thousand Scales. They had seen each other through many missions. Enough to form a bond of loyalty towards one another a bond a kin to that of family. Fleur’s family of rabbits even welcomed him as an honorary rabbit (provided he behaved) out of gratitude for looking after their own. And so Ferris was deemed responsible enough to handle the antics of the other two. Fleur herself went inside the warren off to find her family.
“I’m still upset the other one got away.” Mavis spoke with shades of annoyance in her breath.
“And I’m glad it did!” Hermie, the owl responded.
“Honestly how would we have even carried that thing back? You twhoo are struggling with just the one!” The owl responded with some curiosity in his voice. His brown wings fluttered lightly as he held his arms out to balance himself as he walked atop a fallen log.
“Grr. You fowl feathered welp. If you weren’t so puny then the three of us could have easily brought back two sets of game.” Mavis talked back. Fleur’s ears twitched slightly towards their bickering. The lynx rolled his eyes at the two of them. There were certain things that were universal among all tribes. One of these things was that the old and young would never truly see eye to eye with one another. But despite that rift between them both owl and wolf made a great pair in combat.
“Have you two forgotten that some of us cannot eat meat? The extra creature would be wasted upon me and the warren. Now had that been a Bael.. then I would have been upset.” Bael meat or bugs in general was one of the few proteins that the rabbits could eat. Fleur turned her head to look back at the three other Taguel with a small smile on her face.
“Your warren’s aversion to meat, means that there is more food for us!” The old wolf spoke again.
She returned her gaze back out towards the forest. Her encounter with the new humans left her thinking. She did not like how defensive they were. She did not like how one nearly hit her with an arrow. And despite the ivy haired one’s best efforts at diplomacy she was still left with doubts. The woods where her home, and those humans walked around as if they owned the place.
“Mavis please. Such gluttony is unbecoming of an old shrew like yourself.” The Owl chided, much to Mavis’ annoyance. The old wolf dropped her half of the doog to chase after the owl. Who quickly flew up to the higher branches and gave a laugh. The lynx nearly fell over with the sudden shift of weight. He was forced to transform and managed to he moved the doog carcass onto his back and continued to walk. It wasn’t long now until they passed the rabbit sentries and entered the territory of the warren. Fleur gave them a bit of a greeting before walking forward. A large maple tree that seemingly looked to be growing alone in a small clearing served as their landmark.
Fleur’s warren was a communal warren. One where rabbit taguel from all corners of Vinland could live in peace. It was something similar to a town or village but exclusive only to bunnies. A bit of a rarity among taguel, as they were one of the few who grew food. Their ancestors learned the trade from some native humans and they merely expanded upon it underground. Most rabbit taguel were vegetarian and there was only so much food they could gather from the woods. The rabbit farms consisted mostly of grasses, herbs, dark leafy greens, a few mild peppers, and some wild carrots. These farms weren't to the extremes like commercial farms of some humans. The rabbits simply grew was much as they needed to live with.
Despite, this calm lifestyle of farming, death was inevitable. Rabbits still died to things like old age, illness, hunters, monsters, and accidents. Fleur’s warren wasn't very large. It consisted of roughly of forty adults and many kids. Simply, because rabbits were born to the warren did not mean they had to remain. It wasn't uncommon for taguel to roam, searching for mates, searching for territory, or to find new sources of food. Fleur herself was one such case. She chose to leave the den and seek out a life for herself as a member of the Thousand Scales.
Rabbit taguel of all sizes, shapes, and colors were roaming around top side. Some were gathering leaves, branches, and twigs and dragging them underground. Other rabbits were busy digging out new holes into the warren. Some were hauling small wooden sleighs full of dirt out of the warren holes. Others were bringing in hollowed out gourds filled with either water or tree sap. Almost all of them turned their heads to stare out towards Fleur and her group as they made their way towards the main entrance of the den. Fleur and her group were not strangers to the warren as they frequently passed through the den. But the doog corpse the lynx carried was a bit of an oddity. The main entrance into the Warren consisted of one large unassuming hole into the ground.
But before they could do that several rabbits swarmed around them curious and eager to learn what had happened. But Fleur dismissed them and told them to return to their work she would explain later. Then she called out towards the tribe of the western rabbits. The western rabbits were the taguel who occupied the western end of the communal warren. Those whose warren was responsible for maintaining one of underground channels for fresh water. To those who cultivated moss and water rooted plants for the rabbits to use. Several rabbits emerged out from the western end of the den. Fleur pulled from her back one sleepy little rabbit taguel. The same rabbit that her group, and the strangers fought to defend.
Two adult rabbits went out to grab and hug the child. The mother had long ears that stuck up like Fleur’s. And the father had the same soft folded ears like the child. Both had green tribal markings on them similar to Fleur’s but of a different pattern. The mother wore a similar attire like Fleur’s except her top was longer to cover the belly. The father was in simple slacks made of plant fibers and covered in more fur. The little taguel stirred slightly in their grip but still remained asleep.
“I suggest you discipline him and those who were supposed to be watching him after he wakes. Had we not been there the little one would have been lunch for the corpse my companions carry.”
She watched as the mother held and hummed to the child. The mother gently stepped away from her mate and Fleur.
“I’m sorry to have to put you through that Fleur.” He apologized to her. Meanwhile, behind Fleur the Lynx, the She Wolf, and Owl started to reenact their heroics using the dead doog as some sort of ghastly meat puppet. It attracted a crowd of younger rabbits to sit and listen. Many of them had never seen a Doog up close and for good reason. Fleur’s ears twitched again in their direction her face shifting to a slightly annoyed expression.
“It’s alright we were simply doing our job. But there are other.. more pressing.. issues that need attention. I need to call a meeting of the warrens. In the meantime spread the word that the area beyond the southern grove of oak is off limits. We have.. unwanted visitors passing through.”
“Are they dangerous?” He asked.
“Yes. Extremely.” She spoke with seriousness in her voice. By now there was a loud crash behind her where the others were acting. And again Mavis shouting at the “ungrateful flying cretin”.
“Excuse me.” Fleur dismissed herself from the older rabbit’s presence and returned to her mates.
“Will you cut that out!” She shouted at them in the same manner a mother would shout at a bunch of unruly kids.
“The cook pits are over there.” Fleur pointed towards the eastern patch of the warren. There were large pits dug into the earth surrounded by stone in order to cook multiple things at once. Mostly it was used to roast nuts or berries collected from the woods. It was also used heat rocks to bring into the den for warmth.
“Ferris.” Fleur called and the Lynx stood up.
“Watch them.” Fleur pointed at the owl and wolf. The lynx nodded and followed after them. Ferris and Fleur have been together ever since she first joined the Thousand Scales. They had seen each other through many missions. Enough to form a bond of loyalty towards one another a bond a kin to that of family. Fleur’s family of rabbits even welcomed him as an honorary rabbit (provided he behaved) out of gratitude for looking after their own. And so Ferris was deemed responsible enough to handle the antics of the other two. Fleur herself went inside the warren off to find her family.