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Post by Taurian on Jan 20, 2016 18:45:35 GMT -5
(Also entitled "An otter is raised by his mother, her girlfriend, and a pirate")
It was unanimously decided that family dinners were the worst. Taurian sat at one end of the table, with Tarlya on her right. To the left was usually Argrav, although sometimes little Aldous would sit there, and the other would sit at the other end. On the nights where Argrav sat at the head, he and Taurian would have an intense glaring match throughout the meal. Tarlya would chat with her son about his day, both otters making sure to avoid crossing through the iron bar gazes of the other two. On other nights, when Taurian sat across from the young otter, things were nominally less tense.
Sometimes Tsaron from downstairs or Hiacynth from down the hall would visit, which would diffuse the situation a bit. Sometimes Argrav's old buddies came for dinner, which quite often meant the night ended with drunken pirate ditties, and Tarlya trying in vain to cover Aldous' ears even as the young otter belted out the lyrics with gusto.
Taurian thanked the tempest that family dinners were only once a week. She didn't like Argrav, mainly because of the hell he put Tarlya through those seasons ago. And the things that young otter learned on the days he spent with the pirate cat. One day he came back with harefur mittens, and scared the living daylights out of the poor barista at the coffee shop.
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Family dinner was tonight, and Taurian was not looking forward to it. Hiacynth had come over early in the day to help with the cooking, and Taurian had been very glad that they had agreed to help. The shrew offered to stay, but Taurian waved them off. She had decided that tonight she would try to be at least civil to Argrav. After all, the court had agreed that both he and Tarlya would have co-custody of Aldous, so the wildcat was probably going to be around for a while.
{I did some background, just to set the scene. I hope it's okay.}
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Post by Margorr on Jan 22, 2016 2:33:02 GMT -5
((It's really good!! It works out really well. Thank you!))
Tarlya was not in the mood to have Argrav over for dinner again tonight. She knew that there wasn't really a choice, they did a family dinner like this once a week, but the parent teacher conference she had just left was not a pleasant one. She needed to have a serious talk with Argrav about the kind of language he used around her son. The otter didn't even acknowledge the fact that the court assigned Argrav custody too. If she had the money, she'd fight for sole custody again.
Returning home, she was excited to see both Taurian and Hiacynth in her apartment. She gave a little wave to the Shrew. "Hey there, Hiacynth! Staying for dinner?" She asked.Making her way over to Taurian, she gave her a kiss on the cheek.
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School had ended early that day, so Argrav went ahead and picked Aldous up from school. He'd taken him fishing afterwards, with an old buddy of his, Margorr. The three of them generally had a good time out on Argrav's boat, which he normally would have lived on, but he'd moved into the same apartment building as Tarlya to be closer to Aldous. He knew that the kids mom didn't care for him much, but Argrav didn't really care. It was fun to antagonize her sometimes. Though that girlfriend of hers really hated him too.
Argrav and Aldous made their way down the hall towards Tarlya's apartment, Aldous holding the cooler with the fish they'd caught close to him.
"Do you think mom'll be proud of the fish we caught?" he asked Argrav. The wildcat nodded, and put his arm around Aldous.
"Aye lad, I think she will. You caught the biggest one of all."
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Post by Taurian on Jan 22, 2016 15:21:23 GMT -5
Hiacynth smiled at the arriving ottermaid. "I've got t' go an' play checkers with Tsaron today, actually, so I can't stay." They glanced down at their watch. "I'm actually supposed t' meet the ol' featherbag in a few minutes down at the coffee shop. Taurian, are ye sure you can handle the rest?"
"Aye, I think I can," she said, releasing Tarlya from the bear hug she had caught her in upon her arrival. "Thankee greatly fer all yer 'elp today."
"It's no trouble. Good luck," they whispered to Taurian, who nodded in thanks. Hiacynth let themself out of the apartment, and met Argrav and Aldous in the hall. Hiacynth nodded at Argrav. While they didn't like him very much, they had an amount of grudging respect for his skill as a fisherbeast. "Captain," they uttered, before turning to the young otter. "Well hello there, young fisherbeast! Caught anything good today?"
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"So, how was your day?" Taurian asked, turning back to the pots and pans in the sink. "How did parent-teacher go?" Parent teacher conferences were always a hit or miss with Aldous, and when it was a miss, the fault usually fell on Argrav. Taurian opened the fridge and poured two glasses of a sparkling pinkish-red liquid. "Hiacynth helped me make strazzleberry fizz today. Remember that time we went to the farmers' market? I found those strawberries and raspberries in the back of the fridge today, so we decided to use them."
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Post by Jared Sandeye on Jan 22, 2016 16:07:52 GMT -5
The ring of a small silver bell sounded in the coffee shop, and a pair of squirrels stepped in through the door. Jared and Madeline Sandeye were the newest creatures in town, living directly above Taurian, Taryla, and Aldous. Having been there for barely three days, they really didn’t know that much about the apartment complex and the surrounding neighborhood. But there was a first time for everything, and it was the siblings’ ambition to learn as much as possible. As the newcomers, they might as well settle in properly.
Jared closed the door behind himself and Madeline. Sitting herself down at a round table, the young maid dug into her backpack for her wallet, only to find that she had accidentally left it in the apartment room. She slumped back in her seat, but her brother grabbed his wallet at the last minute, smirking a little. While Jared went to order food and coffee, Madeline took the time to look around the shop.
The siblings had mostly spent their day exploring the apartment complex, finding that they had their second-floor hallway all to themselves. Despite finding the circumstance a bit unusual, they still tried to abide by the rules, never fooling around or misbehaving. Rather, they simply used the morning to move in the last of their belongings and other things into the room. Occasionally, they could be found in the lobby, competing against each other in board games and chatting with their fellow tenants, all of whom liked to listen to Jared play the piano in the music area just down the hall. Two days, and already they loved their new place. Maybe, even their new home.
“Not bad prices here,” Jared noted to Madeline, coming back with a box of peppermint lattes and butter croissants for the two of them. “We should definitely come here more often. Good place to find friends, too. We’ve been in the apartment all day; it’s best that we came out to walk around town.”
Madeline welcomed the warmth and peppermint flavor from her latte, holding her brother’s paw on the table and curling her fingers around his. A croissant in his other paw, Jared unconsciously set his eyes on an attractive young squirrelmaid sitting in the corner, also sipping coffee and not seeing him. He didn’t even know that Madeline was giggling at him at the same time.
“She’s cute, isn’t she?”
Jared jolted back to earth with a start, nearly dropping his bread. “What? I…I wasn’t doing anything! I was just, uh, looking out the window! Yeah, yeah, that’s all I was doing! Nothing wrong with that, right?”
Madeline resisted the urge to laugh out loud. “Aw, come on, Jared, admit it! You were looking at her! Why don’t you just focus on something else for now?” She picked up a music magazine and browsed through it, stopping on a particular section on the opera. “Look at this. Don Giovanni performs at the local symphony hall next month. Tickets are 20% off if bought early.”
Jared swallowed his bread and glanced at the magazine. “They have an opera house here? You learn something new every day, I guess. That opera is amazing, probably one of Mozart’s best. In Italian, at least.”
“We should totally go see it!” Madeline said encouragingly. “You love that opera! I’ll look up where to buy tickets when we get back home.” She stopped suddenly, and a worried expression crossed her face. “Jared…is this our new home?”
Jared worriedly put down his latte on the table. “I can’t really say, sis. We’ve only just gotten here; it’s too early to call it home right now. I can’t say it will be any better than our old home, but complaining and questioning would just be pointless. Let’s just try to make the best of everything, OK? Let’s get those opera tickets as soon as possible.”
Exploring the shop once more with his eyes, he saw one of the barista hares coming towards them. The siblings put on a friendly smile as the hare came up to their table.
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Post by Taurian on Jan 24, 2016 8:43:10 GMT -5
"Your move, Hiacynth," Tsaron said to the shrewmaid sitting before them. Hiacynth studied the board for a moment, carefully picking her next move. The owl was renowned at checkers, and was always favored to win in the game tournaments the coffee shop held every Friday. Tsaron had been Hiacynth's legal guardian, and while the shrew was now all grown up, she still checked in on the owl, and spent time with them whenever she could. She was still thinking about where to move her piece when Tsaron interrupted her thoughts. "Say, do ye think one o' those squirrels would want to play checkers?"
"Yer in the middle of a game wi' me, you old featherbag!"
"I know, I know, but yer goin' t' lose soon, anyway."
Hiacynth harrumphed, knowing that the owl was right. "Ach, fine. But ye've got t' go an' ask 'em, I ain't askin' strange squirrels if they'd like to play checkers."
"They're not strange squirrels! They moved in on the second floor a couple of days ago. I haven't got the chance t' welcome them t' the complex yet, an' what better way to welcome newcomers than checkers!"
"A'ight then. Go an' welcome the squirrels. I forfeit, since yer so eager t' play wi' the newbies."
"Don't be cross about it, Hiacynth. Thankee fer playin' checkers wi' yer ol' pal Tsaron."
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Post by Margorr on Jan 25, 2016 4:31:33 GMT -5
"Hi Hiacynth!!! I caught a black sea bass today! Papa caught a baby shark, but we had to throw it back." Aldous said enthusiastically. "I would show you but I don't think we can take fish out in the hallways."
"We've got to get to Tarlya's anyway." Argrav interjected. Aldous gave Hiacynth a wave as they left the Shrew to head to the apartment.
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Sighing, Tarlya leaned up against the counter and launched right into her story about the conference. "Well, I had work in the morning, but I got off early today specifically for this conference. Mr. Gruffspike had a lot to say about Aldous and his recent behavior in class. It seems he learned a few colorful swears from Argrav, and turned them into a little jingle, which he proceeded to teach to his classmates. He's a smart kid, I just wish he'd use his talents for something other than irritating his poor teacher."
Tarlya gratefully accepted the Strazzleberry Fizz that Taurian gave her, and took a sip. "This is really good, Taurian. Thank you."
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The Coffee shop was unusually slow today. Not that Lucerne minded all that much, it gave her a lot of time to think, and most of the time she thought about that handsome young barista that worked with her. Her spaciness tended to get her in trouble with the boss, which is what happened today. To keep her busy, he made her make a round of the tables, making sure none of the customers needed anything else. She decided to start with the squirrel duo. Most of the customers that came in were regulars, but she'd never seen this pair before.
"Hello!! How is everything over here?" She asked once she approached, giving them her best smile.
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"Honey! I'm home!" Argrav announced as he opened the door to Tarlya's. He had a key to her apartment, and she had one to his, that way if they needed to drop Aldous off while the other was away, they could. His cheerful mood faded a little when he saw how more irritated than usual Tarlya was to see him. He was probably in for a lecture before the night was out.
"Mom!! Papa Argrav took me fishing today, and we got some huge fish! He even caught a shark!" Aldous said, cutting the tension that was starting to form. Tarlya smiled at him, and took the cooler from him when he approached her, before giving her son a hug. "I'm sure you did. I'm glad you had fun! Now, go wash up, Taurian and Hiacynth worked hard on dinner, and now it's time to eat."
Aldous rushed off to go change and wash his paws, and Tarlya turned her attention back to Argrav.
"You and I need to have a talk tonight, after dinner. I had a parent teacher conference today with Mr. Gruffspike. And don't you dare ever call me honey again. We're not a couple." She said sternly. Argrav shrugged and took a sip from the Strazzleberry Fizz that Tarlya had left on the counter.
"Whatever you say."
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Post by Taurian on Jan 26, 2016 5:29:04 GMT -5
Taurian put a paw on Tarlya's back, then gave her another hug. "Aye, that 'un's a bright young thing. Per'aps if I spoke tae the lad, an' asked
'im tae tone it down a bit, tae be polite in school an' in public. I dinnae like seein' ye so distressed o'er the boy," she added. Just then, Aldous and Agrav let themselves into the apartment, and Taurian stood up.
She hovered in the background a bit, waving to Aldous as he came in, and glowering at Argrav. A low growl sprung from her throat at the word "honey." That pirate didn't deserve to even be in their lives, let alone call Tarlya "honey." As the other otter put the cat in his place, Taurian relaxed slightly, taking another sip of the strazzleberry fizz as Tarlya upbraided the wildcat.
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Post by Jared Sandeye on Jan 30, 2016 14:37:10 GMT -5
"Hello!! How is everything over here?"
"Great, absolutely great! Thank you for asking!" Jared replied cheerfully. The siblings clicked their cups together (regardless of being made of styrofoam). Jared raised it courteously at the barista hare and took a short drink of it.
"My name is Jared Sandeye, and this is my sister Madeline. What’s your name? We’re new in town, and we’ve only just started exploring the area. This is our first time in this coffee shop, and I assume this place is quite popular?"
While the two were talking, Madeline turned around to watch a game of checkers in progress between an owl and a shrewmaid. The owl said something about wanting to cut the game short to invite…them? To play? Madeline almost couldn’t believe it at first, but something in the owl’s voice made the request sound very genuine. The squirrelmaid made a mental note to ask Jared about it later. Her brother had extended his paw in greeting to shake the haremaid’s.
Meanwhile, the squirrelmaid sitting in the corner put down her coffee and her book, to steal a secret glance at the young male squirrel, whom she knew in her gut had been looking at her. She had never seen the pair before (siblings, maybe), not around town or in the coffee shop. New? Perhaps she could make friends with them.
Something about the male squirrel struck a sudden spark in her heart; he appeared quite handsome, very laid-back and happy, eager to get to know the city and its creatures. His red-brown fur brought out the latter color in his eyes, reflecting a certain gentle but determined strength. And from what the maid with him had said, he apparently had an interest of sorts in the opera. The squirrelmaid suddenly felt herself blushing a light pink, which she tried somewhat desperately to suppress. Hiding behind her mystery novel again, she kept the very attractive male squirrel in her peripheral vision.
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Post by Margorr on Jan 31, 2016 19:24:50 GMT -5
Taking her cup back from Argrav, Tarlya took it to the table and set it down in her spot. "Argrav you better start taking things seriously. This isn't the first time I've had to sit through a parent conference because you're teaching my son the wrong things. Now get yourself a drink and come sit down."
Argrav got himself a glass of water, and took a seat at the table right next to where Tarlya would sit. He ignored whatever it was she had said to him other than the request to sit down. He'd heard it all before. Instead, he decided to have a little chat with Taurian.
"My dear Taurian, how are you? You've hardly said a word since I've gotten here."
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"It's only popular with the locals around here. We're a small business dontcha know. Chap that owns this place is a sweet old badgery chap named Cyphel. He makes even better coffee than I do." Lucerne replied. These squirrels seemed friendly enough.
"How are you liking our city, Jared?"
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Post by Jared Sandeye on Feb 1, 2016 12:26:12 GMT -5
“I think it’s a great city! My sister and I are definitely liking it.” Jared wiped his paws on a napkin, then rolled it up into a ball, and tossed it expertly into a nearby wastebasket.
The squirrelmaid dared to peek over the top of her book again at the pair of squirrels speaking with Lucerne. Jared leaned back in his chair…and actually turned around. Unintentionally, their eyes met, neither of them moving for a whole minute. The maid felt her heart leap in her chest, and she noticed Jared blush a similar shade of light pink. Both could not make themselves turn away from each other, but friendly smiles did spread across their faces, matching the embarrassed and flustered colors on their cheeks.
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A small black Chevrolet Impala pulled up to the apartment complex, making sure to park within view of the second floor. Its engine powered down, and out of the driver’s seat stepped out an older male squirrel. Tall of stature, physically well-built, brown-furred, hipster sunglasses covering up his cocoa brown eyes. A carpet bag was slung over his shoulder, embroidered with the name Edoran Sandeye.
As he made his way to the elevator, Edoran made sure to check his cell phone. Earlier that morning, Madeline texted him the room number on the second floor, and an extra key was left for him under the welcome mat. He opened up the apartment to find that none of his siblings were in. But Jared did leave him a written note so as to know where to find them. Those dorks thought of everything; Edoran couldn’t have arrived at a better time.
Madeline and I are going around town to explore. We’re headed to the local coffee shop - 63 E Bromley St, opposite the mall on cross-street Prague. Meet us there when you have time! When you go out, make sure to turn all the lights off, and take your key with you.
-Jared <3
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Post by Taurian on Feb 1, 2016 17:10:57 GMT -5
Taurian bit back the instinctive, "I 'ave been talking, just not tae you," that sprang to the tip of her tongue. She had resolved to be at least somewhat civil to Argrav tonight, and apart from the "honey", the cat hadn't acted too disreputably. Yet. "Don't ye call me "my dear Taurian," again, d'ye 'ear," she told him sternly. "An' I'm a'ight, considerin' the stress ye put Tarlya through. The food fer tonight turned out well. That fish ye caught'll make a good meal. Maybe if we fry it with rosemary..." she trailed off, starting to mutter to herself about different ways to prepare the fish.
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"Hullo, my dear," Tsaron said to the young squirrelmaid. "My name is Tsaron Wisebeak," they made a sweeping bow. "We live in the same building. Would you like to play checkers?" Hiacynth joined Tsaron near the squirrels' table.
"I'm Hiacynth," she said, sticking out a paw towards the squirrelmaid. "Tsaron and I share an apartment on the first floor. They said you moved in a few days ago, so welcome to the building."
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Post by oxfordlunch on Feb 1, 2016 23:45:44 GMT -5
Brigg blinked as he let his eyes adjust to the dim light of the coffee house.
He was melting, he was sure of it. It had to be at least 30°C outside. The coffee shop was air conditioned, though, bless it, and wonderful chill air soon cooled the sweat that had beaded on his forehead and soaked into his clothes over the course of the afternoon.
Lovely.
He walked over to stand in the short queue in front of the till.
He very deliberately did not look over behind the counter to see which barista was on duty.
He distracted himself with brushing at a smudge of sawdust that had settled into the bright red check of his flannel shirt. That evening he was just finishing up with the cabinetry for a flat in his building that he was gutting and renovating. The previous tenant had just recently passed away. Sad business, a bad bout of pneumonia. Brigg had quite liked the elderly shrew, Mrs. Nuffle. She'd often invited him in and served him tea and a thorough trouncing at a hand of rummy.
He quickly ran out of things about Mrs. Nuffle to remember and found himself staring over the counter from his place in the queue. The young hare ('Hello, my name is Lucerne,' if he remembered her nametag correctly), was out on the floor taking care of a table of squirrels. There was nobody at the register.
No sign of 'Hello, my name is Dmitri' anywhere.
Damn. Disappointment tumbled down in his chest.
There was just something comforting about having the same person fix your drink every day.
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Post by Beekeeper on Feb 4, 2016 4:04:57 GMT -5
Dmitri could’ve been back out to the front already, but didn’t see any reason to hurry. It was a slow day, Lucerne could handle the counter by herself for a few more minutes. Chances were no one would even come in while he was gone, so why not take his time? The storeroom was a nice place to get away for a while and still seem busy. And check your phone, if the boss wasn’t around.
He glanced down at the short list he’d written himself--more as a way to draw out this little errand than to actually help him remember what he was supposed to get--and added a stack each of medium and large paper cups to this pile. The last thing he needed was a package of napkins, from the top shelf. Dmitri was a pretty tall rat, and the shelf was certainly within his reach, but the napkins themselves were on top of another box, putting them right at the edge of his limit. Like hell he was getting the step ladder if he didn’t have to, though. Stretching up, he tried coaxing the box with the napkins forward a bit with the tips of his claws, and felt it move. If he could just tilt it forward a little, he could get his paw in and grab one pack of napkins before they--
“Shit!”
The napkins slid forward in the box and suddenly changed the balance, sending the whole box toppling off the shelf. Dmitri caught the box quickly, still over his head...and cringed as eight paper-wrapped packages of napkins all fell out onto the floor (three of them bouncing off of him on the way down). Muttering more curses to himself, he dropped the box and started grumpily throwing the napkins back into it, suddenly much less enamored with his task in the back room. It was probably that damn badger’s fault, putting things up that high.
Gathering up the last pack of napkins and the rest of the things he’d gone to retrieve, Dmitri left the supply storage area and backed out through the swinging door that separated the back from the area behind the counter, in the front of the shop. He didn’t bother to wipe the disgruntled look off his face until he’d deposited his armful of supplies on a side counter and turned to face the register.
Lucerne wasn’t there, and two customers were waiting, apparently ready to order.
Quickly putting on his “friendly barista” smile, he hurried over and took the first customer’s order, noting as he did that Lucerne was out on the floor talking to some customers. He made the drink quickly, putting his apron back on over his black work clothes as he did (again, there’d been no need to take it off to go into the back, but anything to stretch out a task and look busy a little longer), and then returned to the register for the next customer.
Before he realized it, his automatic work smile was replaced with a genuine grin. He’d been in such a hurry to make up for the wait, he hadn’t spared a glance to the second customer in line. Dmitri leaned over the counter slightly, suddenly more relaxed, though with a giddy little fluttering in his stomach--the one he associated with this game he liked to play with certain customers, that tended to get him the best tips and more than a little personal satisfaction. Dmitri hadn’t seen a lot of this other rat yet, but that feeling was always particularly present whenever he did come in. He found himself looking forward to those times quite a bit.
“Hey there, Brigg, wasn’t it?” His tone was a little more casual, more familiar, than he usually took with customers, and he decided not to analyze whether his smile now was real or not. “I haven’t seen you around in a little while. What can I do for you, today?”
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Post by Jared Sandeye on Feb 6, 2016 15:31:52 GMT -5
“Checkers? Oh, of course!” Madeline accepted the offer without hesitation. She lightly prodded her brother’s head to snap him out of his trance. Jared jumped in his seat, and still blushing, his eyes instantly moved from those of the unfamiliar squirrelmaid to his sister’s. Madeline had to pinch herself to keep from laughing.
“Want to try some checkers, Jared? I’ll play, you help me.” She shoved her brother’s latte back into his paw, and took up her own while joining Tsaron and Hiacynth at their table.
The small silver bell of the shop rung again, and Edoran entered, holding the door open for a few more customers doing the same. Jared waved to him; he took a free chair from the table that his siblings had just vacated, and sat down beside his younger brother.
“How you two doing?” he asked casually. “Been taking care of yourselves? Sorry I’m late; traffic was terrible. You settled in alright?” Jared confirmed with a nod.
“Tsaron, Hiacynth, this is our older brother, Edoran.” Jared explained. Madeline leaned over to kiss him on the cheek before sitting down to play checkers with Tsaron. Edoran waved a friendly paw at his new friends while putting his other arm around Jared’s shoulders.
Madeline looked over the set-up checkers board and beckoned to Tsaron to go first. “Thank you for welcoming us to the complex. Anything special or important we should know? If you’ve ever wondered who’s been playing the piano in the lobby, that’s Jared. Not that he’s going to brag, because that’s not in his nature.”
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Post by Taurian on Feb 10, 2016 18:45:23 GMT -5
"Hello, Edoran!" Hiacynth said cheerfully, helping Madeline set up her side of the checkerboard.
"Greetings, and welcome to the complex," Tsaron added. They turned back to Jared. "That was you on the piano? Twas simply marvelous the other day."
"Aye, so marvelous that the big featherbag woke me up t' 'ear it," Hiacynth muttered. Tsaron buffeted her with a wing.
"You enjoyed it once you woke up enough to hear it properly."
"Ach, shut yer gob, an' focus on playin' checkers wi' the maid ye threw me out fer," the shrewmaid said, trying to hide her small smile. She turned to Madeline. "Important things, hmm. Well, the first floor apartments ye've got t' watch out for. There's Taurian and Tarlya's, and then there's Argrav's."
"Aye, and then there's ours!" Tsaron butted in. "Argrav an' Tarlya have got co-custody of Tarlya's son, Aldous, so some days he spends with his mum and 'er girlfriend, and other days with Argrav."
"An' then there's family dinners. Don't go near the first floor when there's a family dinner. Taurian an' I are friends from school, so I'll go over an' help prepare some days."
"Occasionally we'll stay for dinner. Tends to calm everyone down."
"Don't mess wi' Argrav. He's usually civil enough, but the things 'e teaches that young otter.. t'ain't respectable. Taurian and Tarlya are a pleasant sort."
"An' fine cooks too, the pair of them!"
"There'll be cookies and fresh berry fizz outside your door before the week is out."
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bye!
