The Gathering (dead thread)

[Fleur]

Fleur stretched a bit as she emerged out of a quiet little log cabin on the edge of city. Her hair was tied into a low pony tail and braided. It had grown a little out of hand with the local humidity and travel. The rabbit would inevitably be forced to have it cut at some point, but for now the braid will have to do. This specific home was that of Hermie the owl. He had it rented ever since he first left his clan about five years ago. It was his home before he joined the Thousand Scales. And it was his home before he met and became integrated into Fleur's little troop. Last night though it was everyone's home. And it would continue to be her troop's home for the next three months or so. It would soon be time for the great gathering. A time where taguel and humans from every corner of Vinland come together and barter. Even the most protective, remote dwelling, taguel, and humans will send at least one representative here. There were certain things that only the power of trade and skills could provide. Things like leather stuffs, clothing, and weapons smithing.

Tribes of all kinds would be here and they would need the extra security of the Thousand Scales. At least that's what Fleur thought. In reality there hasn't been a great need for the Thousand Scales's interference in the last few gatherings. With such a large gathering of humans and taguel most of the islands bigger threats tended to stay away. Minor fights were usually resolved by claw, fang, or book. But, there were other motives for Fleur being here. A great gathering like this meant plenty of reunions. Both good and bad ones. While some of her troop didn't see eye to eye with members of their own family. Mavis was hoping to avoid the whole gathering all together, as it often attracted the wolves of her old clan. But, her weapons had grown dull and her clothes needed to be replaced. Ferris for example was ecstatic to see his siblings again. They had a tradition of sport every time they met. Who could run the fastest. Hunt the best. Wrestle the best. So on and so fourth. Fleur liked to talk with the few representatives her warren would send. Hermie himself was looking forward to seeing his foster father again. His mother abandoned him as a boy for being too small and she had other children to feed. A Bear took pity on him and raised him as his own. Taught him how to survive in the forest and hunt his own food. At least until Hermie was old enough to be considered a man.

Her troop agreed to split up for the day in order to prepare themselves for the arrivals of their families. Fleur was the fist to rise and there for the first to go. And so she went into the city to browse the local wares.

[Galahad]

"So this is Vinland", spoke Galahad as he walked the streets. His hair was no longer cut short, nor was he wearing the stuffy clothing of nobility. Galahad had come to Vinland on both a vacation and a effort to improve Tania's understanding of the outside world. He and a few other soldiers had made the trip. There official goal was to visit the land and bring back valuable information. However every man and women on this trip had there own personal goals. Lancelot simply wanted to hook up with one of the natives. Gwendoline wanted to learn the secretes of lost magic. Tristan simply wanted a good fight, and Galahad himself simply wanted a vacation.

Taking the opportunity to pull away from the others Galahad and Lancelot began to move toward this gathering. From what he understood this was the time that the locals came together to sell and trade goods. It would be a good time for Galahad to see the sights and Lancelot hopped he might meet a local beauty along the way. So the two men entered the town together.

"Oh man, did you see that last maiden", spoke Lancelot as his armor gleamed in the sun. Galahad simply walked along at his own pace absorbing all the scenery around. He was largely ignoring the lecher, mainly due to the fact that he lecher was ignoring him. The two where moving together out of both convince and protocol. Author did not want any of them moving around on there own and as a result the buddy system was in effect. Galahad was tied to Lancelot as much as Lancelot was tied to him. This meant that the two of them were forced to hang out with each other, though Galahad usually got along with his perverted friend.

"You mean the one with the cat ears right", spoke Galahad humoring his friend. To be honest Lancelot was not the only one noticing the local maidens. Galahad however was just more reserved about it. From the information he heard about them, any one of them could transform into a mighty beast at any moment. The idea of your bed partner turning into a wolf did not sit well with the acolyte. As a result the females had been mainly a oddity and not a goal. For Lancelot it was a entirely different ball game.

[Fleur]

Fleur marched through the city streets. Her eyes scanned through the market stalls glancing at all the little bits nad bobs that they had for sale. Taguel and Humans cooperating together to try and get the best deals. A few people waved at her and she waved back. Fleur was tall when compared to the humans. And even by taguel standards, she was taller then most. Her ears only added to that height as they stuck up and stayed up unlike some of the other rabbits who's ears folded down. She made a stop at a jeweler's booth. A cat taguel perked up at the rabbit's presence. The rabbit and cat exchanged small talk for a bit. Fleur pulled from her satchel a small set of simple gold earrings. Earrings that usually part of her general attire, but they had broken sometime during the last mission.

"Oh that's a simple fix." The cat exclaimed.

"The hinges to these thin one's wear out all the time. Best be pickin up a few spares. Got a bit of a sale goin on if ya be interested Fleur." The cat spoke as she went to work on fixing the broken jewelry. The cat taguel pulled from her belt little, screwdriver, and crouched down low so she could see what she was doing with the hinges. Fleur took a moment to browse through the wares. Several rows of bracelets, necklaces, rings, and earrings aligned in little boxes, lined with soft cloth. Most of it was bronze or copper. The golden items were tucked away in a special box behind the cat-girl and her partner. A hawk who kept an eye and ear on every piece of jewelry around him. A copper anklet with a snake pattern caught her eye.

"Three coins." The cat girl spoke. She put the fixed earrings back on the table. Fleur pulled out three coins and handed it to the cat girl.

"Thank you." Fleur quickly put the earrings back on her ears.

"My ears felt naked without them. Say.. how much for the anklet?" The rabbit asked.

"Oh the serpentine one? Yah that's not for sale. It's a custom order. If the lady doesn't pick it up by the end of the gathering I'll put it up for sale." The cat girl replied. Fleur nodded in understanding, said goodbye, and then went on her way.

[Galahad]

"So Galahad, what do you think of the local flavors", spoke Lancelot with a sly smile. His white radiant armor was a waste on him. The lecher should have been wearing some other color. Maybe something that properly reflected his personality. Maybe a Green or even a red. Though Red was for furry and green for envy. Still Galahad thought that green fit him perfectly for some odd reason.

"You might want to lower your tone and chose your words better my friend", spoke Galahad as he pointed his finger toward there nine o'clock. A female bird taguel was giving them a sour expression, one that suggested that she had heard there conversation. "Remember clearly that any one of these, well how did you put it, flavors, can turn into a beast and rip us both to pieces. Between me and you I would rather die by a blade in a meaningful fight than to be mauled by a lion because you could not keep your tong under control."

"Oh lighten up racist", spoke Lancelot with a sly smile.

"Raciest", spoke Galahad practically screaming. Galahad did not like the idea of raciest. Even more so the idea that he was among there number. Galahad was of common birth and of a common house. As a result he lived the life of a commoner. He had seen men and women be treated as second class citizens towards nobles, and has worked his way up in a military filled with noble background. The idea that one is better than the other simply because they were born that was was not only observed to him, but also insulting.

"What in the nine hells makes you call me a racist!"

"Oh look out Lancelot, the taguel might claw your face off. Careful buddy you might wake up in the bed with a lion", spoke Lancelot in a mocking version of Galahad's voice. "All of that sounds very racist to me."

"Nonsense, all I speak is facts. The taguel people can turn into beast. That is a known and well advertised fact."

"Yest that is true my racist friend", spoke Lancelot with a friendly grin. The look Galahad gave him was neither a grin, nor friendly. "However you act as if the taguel are not people."

"What! Of course I ..."

"Oh am I sorry, but do normal people claw peoples faces off for hitting on them?" The knight had backed his magic using friend into a corner. "Do normal people slaughter the innocent for being near the guy they feel that insulted them."

Galahad said nothing, but stared at Lancelot. The knight, thought he was sure his motives were not noble, had a point. Galahad was looking at them more as beast or brigands than actual people.

"Oh, oh, oh, the white knight goes quite", chuckled Lancelot with a evil grin. "Well are you going to defend yourself racist."

"I am not a racist, growled Galahad at his friend!" His eyes however were still focus on the ground and his mind on his thoughts. "However I could have erred in my words and judgement."

"Alrighty then", spoke Lancelot as he clapped his hands together. "Now that we have gotten past the denial stage we can move onto the healing process."

"Healing process", spoke Galahad with puzzlement.

"Worry not my friend. We will breed that prejudice right out of you."

"Breed", spoke Galahad with confusion. It took him a moment, but he finally figured out what Lancelot was up to. "Oh god! No you don't..."

"Off to hitting on girls", shouted the knight as he rushed forward toward a rabbit girl coming out of a shop.

"He is going to get us both killed", spoke Galahad with annoyance as he watched the knight go. He took a deep breath and followed behind him.

"Hello there pretty lady", spoke Lancelot as he walked up to the maiden.

[Fleur]

Fleur twitched her ears lightly. She was listening for anyone she knew, listening for dangers, and kinda sorta testing the earnings. They weren't flying off her ears which meant that the hinge would hold for now. She'd have to transform to truly test out the hinges strengths. She knew eventually she'd have to switch over to the earring with the pin and clip. Her ears picked up a conversation between two boys. Something about one boy being a racist pig and the other daring him to prove he is not. The rabbit mentally sighed. It seemed that foreign man spawn from across the sea had managed to make their way over to this little haven of the island.

She kept walking. Fleur had no reason to associate herself with these humans. The rabbit secretly hoped that these humans would eventually be consumed by the natures of the island. Or perhaps by one angry taguel who would take the boy's words the wrong way. That would show the little welp. She shook her head lightly. Great. Now I've lost track over what else I needed. What did she need? She knew the carnivores would be find hunting dinner of their own. At least the boys would. Mavis would probably like to ambush the little food pub run by that one family of coal-colored haired humans. Fleur liked their cooking to as they had a basic understanding of rabbit diet and offered a vegetarian option.

And then she was interrupted. One of the humans she had overheard had approached her and gave her a compliment. So she responded to his comment with a stern voiced question of her own.

"What is it boy?"

[Colchys]

Colchys had heard tales of Vinland from many of her employers. From what she’d heard of it, you could probably buy a baby dragon in one of these tents. So many things washed up here that it seemed an almost endless cornucopia of merchandise. ‘If you could stomach the beastmen, that was.’, many of them would add, with no small hint of disdain in their voices.

Now that she could see it for herself, she was…less than impressed. The garish tents and flags had been an impressive sight from afar, but from up close their brightness could not conceal the muck and filth in the streets.

She meant that literally, by the way. Like, her boots were practically caked in mud.

Her current employer, a fat, balding man, had been spending most of his time either bartering, ogling passing women, ogling her, or shooting fearful glances at beastmen. He was a man of some repute in Laus, though, and she couldn’t argue with good coin.

For her part, she didn’t mind the sight of them. It became easier after the first few days to accustom herself to the sight of the creatures. Just think of them as men and women with some…extra features, she told herself.

She walked past one such individual talking to a group of dark-skinned foreigners. Her employer turned around, glanced at the stall, shot a look at the taguel, and then bent down to examine them.

“Colchys, dear,” said the fat man, turning around for a moment, “could you stay there for a bit and watch my back?” His voice was oily and rank as the rest of him.

She sighed and nodded. Standing there with her sword at the ready, she tried her best not to glare at the taguel.

[Galahad]

Yep things were going just as Galahad had expected. Lancelot was bugging a local and he was pulled along for the ride. He could only pray that this encounter did not end in the mans death. Lancelot was not a bad guy per say. He was just annoying and a open pervert. Either one of those two could get you killed in human society. Out here were things were more natural, well he was sure that Lancelot did not stand a chance.

"Not to much my dearest", spoke Lancelot while giving a slight bow. "I simply wish to take up a moment of your time. I am new to this land and I know very little about your people. I would be thrilled to learn a lot more, but alas things don't seem to be going my way. I am a bit of a shy creature you see. Most of the people I walk up to seem to be a bit intimidating and as a result I have not been able to get much information out of them. I was wondering if you would be able to help me out in this effort. How about a nice cup of tea and a fine cinnamon bond. I am pretty sure the two of us could gain a mutual understanding of each other."

He left me out of the conversation entirely, thought Galahad. It was probably for the best. Galahad was not interested in foreign women in the first place. Though he was a bit curious about there culture and the nature of the island itself. He was sure that Lancelot would be talking about neither if he got his meeting. Though Galahad could take it as a opportunity to throw her some questions while he was there. That is if Lancelot even allowed him to follow.

[Fleur]

Ugh. That was the most eloquent thought she could come up with at the moment. This little wretch was trying to flirt with her. This little wretch whom only up to a moment ago spoke about racism and breeding. At least that's what her ears picked up. And now this little wretch was trying to butter her up for a conversation. She would not have it.

"Foreign human. A word of advice, watch what you say around taguel ears. They can pick up all manner of sounds.. and conversations that you think are private." She gave him a hard look.

"And If you feel so intimidated, perhaps your time would be better spent talking to the native humans of the island." The rabbit had other things to do with her time then talk to a bigot. Two bigots. She had only just noticed the little coal-haired human that stood next to his companion.

"Excuse me." She dismissed herself from the armored human's presence. Fleur had to take a few moments to collect her thoughts. Dumb kids. She thought to herself. She hoped some of the other younger taguel would put them in their place. Teach them the brutality of jungle law. But, would that confirm their initial thoughts? That they were savages? She hoped not. She knew most taguel would prefer to flex their muscles, rather than flap their gums, to resolve a conflict. Simply, because most taguel did not prefer diplomacy, did not necessarily mean that diplomacy was not there. No. No. She would not bother herself in tickling the fancy of these humans. She needed to do other things. She needed to purchase some foodstuffs for their dinner. No doubt the others would be starving after re-meeting their family. They would probably be asking for Fleur's family style stew.

[Colchys]

Colchys failed to stifle a laugh at the taguel's cutting remark. Those dark-skinned humans had, evidently, said some things about her species which they thought had gone unnoticed. She was glad she'd never made that mistake, she thought, even as she tried not to ogle the woman next to her.

No matter how much time she spent in Vinland, she didn't think she'd ever get used to the sight of a taguel woman. Colchys had to admit, if you took away the ears and the rabbit tail, the woman would look quite pretty. She didn't think that she'd ever be prettier than her, but - why was she even on this train of thought, anyway? Despite not having said anything, she cleared her throat.

Her employer was engrossed in jewelry, so she decided to inch a bit closer to the woman. She tried her best to not look at her, turning away and pretending to look at the clouds.

[Fleur]

Fleur's ears twitched. She knew she was being followed. Any rabbit worth their fur would have taken tail and ran. But, Fleur knew she had nothing to worry about. She was among the public. She knew how to defend herself. And this human hadn't shown her to be a threat. Another twitch from her ears told her that something else was coming. The familiar wing beat of her team mate followed by a the large thumping steps of another taguel. They would bowl over any people who stood between them and Fleur. Not in a manner to do harm, they were just very excitable, especially when they were together. The bear had a basket in his mouth and the owl was flying over him shouting to watch out. And Sorry! To those he managed to knock over.

They stopped just short of crashing into Fleur. Who was about ready to jump out of the way. Fortunately she didn't need to. The bear man stood on his hind legs and reached about up to Fleur's chest. Which was rather small for a bear taguel to be. However this was a common trait among this bear's clan. He had black fur, a large head, and some canine features. He also had a patch of whitish fur that formed an enlarged crescent pattern on his neck. The man bear grinned and changed his features back into a man.

He appeared to be an older gentleman. With a simple pair of slacks, a plain shirt, and a leather vest that covered his chest. He had two bear ears on top of his head and short black hair. Patches of fur lined his shoulders and feet. He also had a small pair of spectacles. He also sported a bit of a grayish beard upon his chin and neck. His arms were large. Despite the appearance of his age they appeared to be built within reason.

"Pops! Did you really have to break out into a run like that?!" The owl chimed in. He landed in his human form and looked furious.

"Oh, come now boy. You honestly expect me to approach nicely when I smell something sweet in the air." He gave the boy a grin. Fleur knew this sun bear. Hermes adoptive dad.

"How you been Fleur my dear." He spoke and hugged the rabbit. To which Fleur didn't hug back. She was a bit tense from his approach and hug. And a bit embarrassed. His head was right into her chest. When he let go she breathed a small sigh of relief.

"I have been well, thank you. Samson." She spoke with a slightly rushed voice.
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OOC declaring this a dead topic. It is assumed everyone went their own seperate ways.