Dancing Bear (Open)

[T-Bone]

Jaroah rocked back and forth, holding his knees. "Whadda 'bout healing?" he asked.

It had occurred to him that healing was something that would prove useful in his and Tobias' line of work. Jaroah had been seriously injured more than a few times during the seasons since their escape from the fort, and it would be nice to be able to fix himself up so that they wouldn't have to wait so long to start business up again after he got hurt. And if he'd known how to heal, maybe he could have saved those mice. . .

Jaroah glanced at the fox's haversack, wherein he noticed something reflecting the firelight. As Victiore spoke, he pulled the bag closer to himself, making eye contact with the witch a few times to ensure she knew he was listening. He reached into the haversack and removed the shiny object, coming to a sudden halt when he realized what it was. It was a flask.

He glanced at the sleeping Tobias apprehensively. Jaroah knew his brother would kill him if he caught him drinking, but it had been such a hard day, and Tobias was already asleep. But then, Victiore would know, and she might accidentally say something. Jaroah closed the haversack and pushed it away, trying to keep his focus on Victiore. . .

. . . But it was right there, so close. . .

[Cross]

"Whadda 'bout healing?" he asked.

Victiore nodded, setting her food aside. "Um, yes, I know healing," she said hesitantly. Hadn't they been through this before? Jaroah had mentioned wanting to learn to be a healer. Well, with a job like his, it couldn't hurt.

She noticed as Jaroah got out the flask and quickly put it back. It wasn't her business whether he drank or not. But when he glanced at Tobias anxiously, she got the hint that he was unsure. Biting her lip, she decided to help him.

"Have you ever had dropsy tea, Jaroah?" she asked, rummaging in her bag. "It's a nice brew, with a taste like lemon, almost. It helps you sleep, too." Her last acquaintance had needed an antidepressant, and dropsy plant was good for that. She had found a wonderful patch of it, but now she had too much to use for herself.

She took out a small kettle, walking over to the little stream and filling it with water. The fire was dying a little, but it was hot enough for her purposes. As the water boiled, she knelt beside the flames and slipped on a pair of purple fingerless gloves. She then pulled the herbs out of her bag and set about preparing them, smiling up at Jaroah.

[T-Bone]

"Have you ever had dropsy tea, Jaroah?" she asked, rummaging in her bag. "It's a nice brew, with a taste like lemon, almost. It helps you sleep, too."

"Dropsy tea?" Jaroah asked. He'd never heard of the stuff before. But it couldn't hurt to try. "Uhh, aye. . . shore." He glanced down at the haversack. . . It could wait.

Watching Victiore prepare the kettle, Jaroah returned to the subject of healing. "I was just, uh. . ." He searched for the right words. "It's just, I was wonderin' if'n you could teach me a liddle 'bout healing. U-Unless yore busy, o' course." And she was, making tea. But of course, he had meant to refer to a later time, hoping that Victiore would stay with the thieves a bit longer. They didn't really have any pressing matters to attend to, but the witch very well might.

[Cross]

"I was just, uh. . ." He searched for the right words. "It's just, I was wonderin' if'n you could teach me a liddle 'bout healing. U-Unless yore busy, o' course."

Victiore chuckled softly as she prepared the tea. Busy? Really? There was nothing she needed to do. Of course, there was one thing she would like to do, but she couldn't really work up the courage to try, anyway. She was not busy, in any case.

"Of course I can teach you, Jaroah," she replied. If she was in his position, she would probably want to learn, as well. "It's actually pretty simple. It's just all the things you have to remember. But I'm sure you catch on quick." It took less than ten minutes to finish preparing the tea, and she passed a cup to him. Blowing on her own tea, she had an idea.

"In fact, you can have your first lesson now, if you like," she said, taking a sip.

((Bleh, short. And it's not my best, but as you've said, one little step at a time.))

[T-Bone]

Jaroah accepted the tea thankfully. He tentatively sipped it. It was. . . interesting, but not altogether bad. He wondered about what Victiore had said earlier, though, about it helping him sleep.

"In fact, you can have your first lesson now, if you like," she said, taking a sip.

Jaroah nodded eagerly. "Aye, shore! Anythin' you could--" He stopped midsentence, interrupted by the fox who had come to and was presently releasing a stream of curses. "Excuse me," Jaroah said to Victiore. He set his tea down, stood up, and walked calmly over to the fox. There was a resounding whump, and Jaroah returned to his tea, smiling politely at Victiore as though nothing had happened.

((Sorry, I just couldn't make much of a post out of it without a little something extra.))

[Cross]

Jaroah nodded eagerly. "Aye, shore! Anythin' you could--" He stopped midsentence, interrupted by the fox who had come to and was presently releasing a stream of curses.

Victiore raised a paw to her mouth in astonishment at the fox's colorful vocabulary. Where did vermin learn all these words in the lonely expanse of Mossflower?

"Excuse me," Jaroah said to Victiore.

The witch pretended not to notice as Jaroah calmly walked over to the fox, knocked the bound creature unconscious, and just as calmly walk back to his seat with a smile on his face. Okay, that happened, Victiore thought, trying to shrug it off.

Clearing her throat, she began the lesson. "Well, dropsy plant is good for insomnia, as I said earlier," she began. "But it's also used as a relief for anxiety and an aid in digestion." She took another sip of the brew, recalling all she knew about dropsy plant. "It normally grows in direct sunlight, on open, slightly rocky ground. Fortunately, I was able to find a good patch of it during its flowering time, midsummer to early autumn."

Swirling her tea, she leaned back on one paw, tilting her head up at Jaroah. "It's also known as Melissa, cure-all, honey plant, or lemon balm," she went on. "Its leaves are long and slightly serrated, and its flowers are small and yellowish-white. Here." She set her tea down and rummaged in her bag for the leftover herbs. Handing a small bunch to Jaroah, she said, "That's dropsy. It's best as a tea for medicinal purposes, but it can be used as an aromatherapy, too."

[T-Bone]

Jaroah turned the leaves over in his paws, brow furrowed, studying them. He didn't have a perfect memory, so he was trying very hard to burn the image in his mind. This was dropsy.

"That's dropsy. It's best as a tea for medicinal purposes, but it can be used as an aromatherapy, too."

He nodded. It sounded like a generally helpful plant. Something to relax the body and mind, basically. But there were two problems. "What's 'serrated' an' 'aromatherapy' mean?" Those were big words, and Jaroah's uneducated vocabulary only stretched so far.

((Short, but I needed to post something.))

[Cross]

"What's 'serrated' an' 'aromatherapy' mean?"

"Oh, sorry, uh," Victiore tried to think of a way to explain the terms to Jaroah. She took a leaf from the bunch of herbs and held it up for him to see. "Have you ever seen a knife with little teeth on one side? Or a shark's tooth? That's kind of what serrated means." She traced her padded finger down the edge of the leaf. "These little jagged edges here are serrated."

Aromatherapy, how was to explain that one? "An aromatherapy is like smelling salts, I suppose," she began, fiddling with her gloves. "But not as sharp. People use aromatherapy to relax. It's often a really nice smell that either relieves stress or induces sleep. In the case of a dropsy plant aromatherapy, it's used to rejuvenate, help you feel less tired."

She glanced over to the dying fire. There was little left besides some glowing embers. The gray tint of early dawn had begun to light the woods, and the witch vaguely wondered what on earth would transpire today. Would she be staying with the thieves? Or would she simply leave? Jaroah wanted to learn healing, a long and complicated art. If she really wanted to teach him everything she knew, she would have to stay.

Raising her cup to her lips, she made to finish off her tea, but hesitated. "Jaroah," she said quietly, setting her cup in her lap. How should she say this? She would have to choose her words carefully. "Learning the art of healing, and I mean really learning it, takes a long time. And I'm more than willing to teach you, but . . . You should know that I'm not completely comfortable with this thief business. Your methods have much more class than other thieves I've run into, I admit. But you're still taking what isn't yours, and pretending to be some beast you're not. I'm not going to stop you and Tobias from doing it. I wouldn't be able to."

She exhaled slowly. "All I'm trying to say is that there are certain things I don't agree with about what you do," she finished. "And, as you're friend, I'm telling you now, just so you'll know." God, she sounded so pathetic. But she felt she had to say something about it.

((Hope I gave you enough to make a bigger post this time. I felt like I wasn't giving you much to work with. Sorry about that.))

[T-Bone]

((Nah, don't worry about it. I'm just running low on creativity for the moment.))

"An aromatherapy is like smelling salts, I suppose," she began, fiddling with her gloves. "But not as sharp. People use aromatherapy to relax. It's often a really nice smell that either relieves stress or induces sleep. In the case of a dropsy plant aromatherapy, it's used to rejuvenate, help you feel less tired."

Jaroah chuckled. Sounded like something Tobias could really use. As much as that mouse stressed over cons, he needed some time to relax. Even his dreams were restless -- he had programmed them to solve problems. In fact--

Jaroah's thoughts were interrupted by his eyes; they had noticed the horizon. Apparently, it was nearly morning, which meant that he and Victiore had been up all night. He glanced down at the empty cup in his paw and wondered exactly how drowsy the dropsy would make him.

"Jaroah," she said quietly, setting her cup in her lap.

He looked up at her, tilting his head slightly because of her tone. That was the "you-won't-want-to-hear-this" tone. Clearly, they weren't talking about dropsy anymore.

"Learning the art of healing, and I mean really learning it, takes a long time. And I'm more than willing to teach you, but . . .

Jaroah's shifted in his seat. He didn't much like where this was going.

"You should know that I'm not completely comfortable with this thief business. Your methods have much more class than other thieves I've run into, I admit. But you're still taking what isn't yours, and pretending to be some beast you're not. I'm not going to stop you and Tobias from doing it. I wouldn't be able to." She exhaled slowly. "All I'm trying to say is that there are certain things I don't agree with about what you do," she finished. "And, as you're friend, I'm telling you now, just so you'll know."

Jaroah waited, but she didn't say anything more. . . That was it? No ultimatum? No blackmail? What trickery was this? He took a breath as though to say something, but he paused. What to say? Victiore wasn't happy with his job, and, given the evening's previous events, this was completely understandable. Yet it seemed more than that. It seemed like Victiore wasn't just upset with the thievery's effects on her -- it was more like she detested the very idea of thievery. Like she wanted Jaroah to give up the lying, the stealing, and the general hooliganism.

"Look," he began gently, "I get it. Y'don't like me bein' a thief -- most beasts
don't. . . But d'you wanna know a secret? . . ." Apparently, he wasn't asking.
". . . I don't either." He dropped his gaze, shaking his head. "I don't. Bein' a thief is not somethin' I always dreamed o' doin', but it's just. . ." He glanced at the sky in search of words. "I think that's just who I am. I was pickpocketing things from beasts since I was a dibbun. I was lyin' t'beasts afore I knew my own name. I was fightin' onna streets t'stay alive since I was born, Victiore-- I don't think there's a way outta this! " He spread his paws out wide helplessly.

His paws dropped to his knees and his shoulders slumped. He stared at the glowing embers. Who was he arguing with, really? Victiore or himself? ". . . I can't help it," he muttered.

Tobias woke up suddenly. "Pulchritudinous!" Glancing around, he realized where he was and let out an embarrassed, half-hearted laugh.

Jaroah scowled at him and rose to his footpaws, walking away. He took care to step in the stream on his way. Tobias' brow furrowed. What was that about? He glanced at Victiore. Hmm. . . This looked complicated.

Tobias shrugged it off. Ah, well. Whatever it was could sort itself out later. Right now, a brand new baby day had just begun, freshly spanked! He winked smugly at Victiore, touching the brim of his hat. "Haha, I don't know about you, but I'm ready to steal a mountain!" And with that, he got up and left.

[Cross]

"Look," he began gently, "I get it. Y'don't like me bein' a thief -- most beasts don't. . . But d'you wanna know a secret? . . ." Apparently, he wasn't asking. ". . . I don't either." He dropped his gaze, shaking his head. "I don't. Bein' a thief is not somethin' I always dreamed o' doin', but it's just. . ." He glanced at the sky in search of words. "I think that's just who I am. I was pickpocketing things from beasts since I was a dibbun. I was lyin' t'beasts afore I knew my own name. I was fightin' onna streets t'stay alive since I was born, Victiore-- I don't think there's a way outta this! " He spread his paws out wide helplessly.

"I'm not asking you to find a way out of it," Victiore replied hastily, fearing she had angered him somehow.

". . . I can't help it," he muttered.

She stood up, reaching to take his paw. "Jaroah, I wasn't asking you to help it," she said. "I just wanted to tell y--"

"Pulchritudinous!"

Victiore jumped involuntarily as Tobias awoke. She had been just about to take Jaroah's paw, but the sudden noise had stopped her. As Jaroah stormed off, the white mouse made to follow him. "Jaroah, wait, I--"

"Haha, I don't know about you, but I'm ready to steal a mountain!"

"Wait!" Victiore cried again. But the two mice were gone. She fell to her knees. With a frustrated groan, she rubbed her forehead. Great, she lost them. Why had she even brought it up? She didn't like thievery, so what? This was a chance to have a friend, some beast to travel with and keep her company. And now she had lost him!

Without thinking, she scrambled to her feet and rushed into the woods, splashing through the stream. "Jaroah!" she shouted, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. But it was no use. She was no tracker, and the woods were still dark. By the time it would be light enough to see clearly, Jaroah and Tobias would be too far gone. She finally stopped running, slumping against a tree.

She stayed that way for some time, watching the woods as if expecting the two mice to reappear. When she finally convinced herself that she would never see them again, she made her way back to the camp, gathering up her things. The fox was still bound to the tree, and he was coming around. Well, she didn't want to give him a reason to gloat now that the thieves had left her, so she quickly disappeared into the woods, headed west.

((Feel free to finish the thread if you want. Thanks for the fun thread!))

[T-Bone]

"Jaroah!" Tobias called, stumbling over a tree root. "Jaroah!" He was trying to get his brother's attention, but to no avail thus far. His finally caught up and placed a halting paw on Jaroah's shoulder. "Jaroah."

The burly mouse shoved him away. "Leave me be," he growled.

Tobias' brow furrowed, and he crossed his arms. "Jaroah--"

"I said leave me be!"

"What, yore just gonna leave? Our supplies are all back there!"

Jaroah didn't turn around. "So go get 'em."

"Aye, an' how'll I find you?" demanded Tobias. "Yore just walkin' off like that every time y'feel guilty, an' I can't keep up." He ran ahead of Jaroah and stopped, right in his way, pointing an accusing paw. "Look, yore a thief. It doesn't matter if'n y'can't get along with goodbeasts. Yore not one of 'em. Get that through yore thick skull, will you?"

Jaroah clenched his fists, but he didn't shove Tobias away this time. "Aye? Is that right, Tobias?" He laughed mirthlessly. "Hahah'I'm just a thief, right, I don't need t'make friends like everybeast else on the face o'the blasted planet! Is that right, Tobias?"

"I didn't say that!" argued Tobias.

"Then what did y'mean!?"

"I'm sayin' y'just can't be one o' them. We're thieves, Jaroah. Always was! We were born that way!"

"But what if I don't wanna be a thief?"

"What if'n I don't wanna be a mouse?" Tobias replied, holding his paws out wide, helplessly. "Jaroah, we can't change it, no matter how much we want to. There's no point sulkin' about it."

Jaroah fell silent, gaze searching the ground.

Tobias sighed. "All right? Now come on, let's go back t'the camp. We'll say a proper g'bye t'Victiore, an' we can be back on our way t'Redwall. Let's go."

Jaroah nodded absently. They returned to find Victiore gone. Tobias put out the fire, Jaroah gathered up the supplies. They left, traveled for a day. No words passed between them. Nighttime came. Tobias slept, Jaroah didn't. He opened the haversack, dug out the flask, and found a nice stream to soak his footpaws in. He stared at the fog-obscured moon until he fell asleep. He couldn't cry anymore.



((That's a good place to stop. Now onto the Nik-Vaygan-Tobias-Jaroah thread!))