Balancing (Open)

[Rocky]

"Supposedly made from a fallen star, miss." Skip called from across the room. Him, Meko, and the other otters were basically walking around doing as they pleased. "Boar the Fighter, Badger Lord around the time of Martin made that for Martin. Slew the evil wildcat queen with that very blade." Skip concluded.

[Varjak Juskarak Taggerung]

Verona gripped Oaklea's paw in her own, shaking and then releasing her paw. She smiled slightly. 'Nice to meet you, Oaklea.'

Boar the Fighter, Badger Lord around the time of Martin made that for Martin. Slew the evil wildcat queen with that very blade.

'Tsarmina,' Verona added, subtly accenting that word, and then shivering slightly. To think she was related to that cat, even at all, reminded her of how most wildcats were considered vermin of sorts.

[Rausaro]

For perhaps the first time in his life, Rau was able to marvel at the mysterious tapestry. "Th' warrior....
For a long while the otter eyes were locked on the unusually realistic eyes of the tapestry. Listening to Tirael describe some of the past events, he moved up to the blade, and examined the fine badgerlord handwork. As Oaklea mentioned, the blade was untarnished by rust nor blight. Rau had heard ofsuch a metal, or rather, a metal present in falling star ore.

{By the way, it's probably iridium, for those wondering about realism. Iridium is very strong, corrosive resistant metal in the platnium family, and it is present in Meteors}

"I'd love t' find some of this ore, but aside from rumors in th' Desert about smaller fragments th' size of a claw, there's none around." He patted his wahizashi. "At least I have this." With a quick flick of his wrist, he flipped a piece of an obsidian arrowhead between his paws.

A few moments went by, and Rau realized that he still didn't know all that much about the others, or for that matter, anything about the resident holt. "If ye' don't mind, I would like t' known who's who..." They paused as the Smell of food drifted through the hall, leaving his stomach gurgling. He was pretty sure he could hear other hungry stomachs, too. It had been a long time since he had last eaten, and foraging in winter was not a pleasant task...

{How was that?}

"Whenever I see a seabird flying, hope in me shant be a dyin'." ~Rausaro

[Wildrun]

Still with her head tipped to one side, Oaklea listened without interruption as Skip finished explaining, and as Verona shook her free paw she flashed the cat another pleasant smile.For another second after the talk had ceased, she remained silent, weighing her sword in her paw. Her eyes had a soft, curious look, as though pondering something. Then, absently letting the sword swing like a pendulum where it's point hovered above the flagstone floor, she said thoughtfully, "Wildcats and stoats, I suppose, appear as some of the worst villians, if not the most often of them." A brief momentary flicker of something, and then she blinked. "Eh? Oh!" Her eyes widened in dismay, and she hastily aplogized to Verona, "Sorry, Miss Verona! I wasn't talking about you, obviously, just thinking, you know, didn't mean anything against..." She stopped again, twitchign her tail sheepishly in her profuse apologies. And waited anxiously, owrried she'd offended the wildcat in front of her.

[Varjak Juskarak Taggerung]

Wildcats and stoats, I suppose, appear as some of the worst villians, if not the most often of them.

Sorry, Miss Verona! I wasn't talking about you, obviously, just thinking, you know, didn't mean anything against...

Verona smiled again, cutting the mouse off with a wave of her paw. 'No, it's fine, Oaklea. Oh, and you don't have to call me 'miss'. Just call me Verona, and that'll be fine...' The wildcat's voice trailed off as she noticed Rausaro. 'Ah, yes, I believe it is time for a meal.' She motioned to the otter. 'If you want food, go off to Great Hall. We'll catch you up in a few minutes.'

[Wildrun]

((That's great, Rau! Sorry I kind of ignored ye in my last post, I think we posted at the same time, sicne yours wasn't there when I was typing mine. ^^" Er well, sorry! ^^"""))

Relief that she hadn't insulted anyone ade Oaklea laugh, and she turned to Rausaro. "Well, mate, I'm pretty new here meself, and don't know much. I'm Oaklea, though, you've been introduced to Tirael, Theurl lost us, I think, and..." She paused. "...and I've also not a clue where the kitchen is. Heh eh, erm...Miss--Ah, I mean, Verona, mind pointin' the way?" Then, checking herself, "No, wait, I should put this away first...in the Gatehouse, you said? Erm..."

Ah, I might need a map to this place eventually...

"...where's the Gatehouse?"

[Tirael]

Leading Oaklea back to the main door of the abbey, Tirael pointed to the gatehouse. "It's there, right by where everybody came in." Turning, he pointed to Cavern Hole. "The kitchens are through that way." Having lived at Redwall for as long as he could remember, Tirael found it strange that somebody wouldn't know where the gatehouse was. Well, this is why we decided to show them around, he thought to himself.

[mullisbt]

Theurl didn't like all these new people. He normally would be very talkative, but he grew shy when there were new creatures around. He went up and buried his face in the hem of Oaklea's tunic. He seemed to trust her the most and had formed an attachment to her especially.

[Wildrun]

Oaklea blinked down at Theurl and whispered secretively, "What'sa matter, boyo?" She smiled and winked at him. "Can ye help me get this sticker to the gatehouse, mate? Ye look strong enough, that's sure."

((urg, muse is DEAD. *pokes dead muse* Sorry it was kind of mushy, but Oaklea is a softy at heart.

Oaklea: I deny that!
Me: *points to a baby squirrel*
Oaklea: ...Okay, I'm a softie at heart. Darn you, TWM!
Me: ^^ ))

[Rausaro]

Rausaro quietly followed the group, his mind absorbing as much information about the abbey as possible. It had been so long since he had been to the abby, hadn't it? Grimacing, he struggled to remember. His memories, while intact, were faint compared to recent trauma. "This way". Tirael led the way to the cavern hole, and Rau could detect the smell of his favorite dish, which was Hot root n' Shrimp stew. "It's been forever, mate!" He muttered at his bowl.

[Tirael]

((...when did Tirael ever go to Cavern Hole? I just typed that he pointed...))

Tirael smiled at Rausaro's happy reunion with Shrimp n' Hotroot Soup. Unlike most otters, he wasn't particularly fond of the spicy concoction. (Not to say he wouldn't eat it, but he preferred other things.) Loading his own tray with a few slices of a soft white cheese, an onion pastie, and a slice of turnip 'n tater 'n beetroot pie, he sniffed it appreciatively. Indicating the table, he asked "Care to sit?"

[Rausaro]

Rau nodded, and together they sat at a table. It had been months since he had had such a dish. In the desert, he had been happy to even find food. But his search had been successful.

{OOC: The Redwall cookbook actually has some of the recipes. I've tried the hotroot "soup" stew, and I love it {In real Life}

As he looked around at the walls, Rau continued to marvel at the handiwork. It was nice to be out of the cold, wet forest. Maybe that's why he liked exploring in the dry, arid environments of deserts. With a final scoop, he finished off the Stew.

"Tirael, any idea where the others went?"

[Tirael]

A loud clatter, accompanied by several yelps of alarm, came from the kitchen. Tirael looked in its direction sharply, then smiled. Pointing to the kitchen, which continued issuing similar sounds, he said "I think they're in the kitchen, but what they're doing in there right now I can't imagine."

[Wildrun]

((sorry, slight gmodding, sacrifice me to the internet monkey if you so feel the need to. ^^"))

Having put her sword away in the gatehouse, tied the cord of her daggord more firmly about her waist, and then having picked up a whiff of soe delicious smell emnating from the kitchen, Oaklea had run with Theurl to the entrance of Cavern Hole and exploded into the kitchen like some jack-in-the-box mouse. Having spotted a large pot of stew bubbling next to an oven ready to spit out some flaky pastries, she had without preamble added a good pinch (pinches) to the stew and then passed two of the pastries to Theurl, blowing on them and shaking her paws to allay the steam. A jar of honey had caught her eye, and in reacing for it, Oaklea had stepped up precariously onto a stack of cooking slates...

CRASH! The jar of honey tipped out of her grip as she was introduced to the floor, and Oaklea watched in horror as the sticky substance spi-i-i-i-i-i-l-l-l-l-lllledddd...

There it went! The jar smashed open before the black-furred mouse could throw herself to dive for it, and in her scramble to stand up again, she grabbed onto a corner of a bag of flour.

Riiiipppp--!!!

"Oh, crabapples!"

...So proclaimed a black-furred mouse who was powdered in domestic snow, glaring down at a sticky puddle of clover honey. Oaklea stooped, mutering to herself mutinously, and gingerly picked up the shards of glass from the jar, sighing longingly at the honey that would never be eaten. Picking her way out of the giant mess she had made, she looked sheepishly towards the door.

Oaklea asked Theurl in a hushed, guilty whisper, "Think anyone heard all that, mate?"

((...I'll go sacrifice myself to internet monkey,s how bout that? Tell me if you want me to alter anything and I will...^^"

...Happy Thanksgiving, people! ))

[Tirael]

Still smiling, Tirael peered into the kitchen. "Oh, we heard you sure eno..."

His jaw slowly dropped in horror as he looked around the ruined kitchen. Honey dripped off the counter into the ever-growing sea of sticky fluid on the floor. Flour was liberally dusted everywhere, as though winter had visited the kitchens. Powdering the honey, it looked...well, it looked almost delicious. Tirael remained mortified until his gaze fell onto the snowy Oaklea. His smile returned as he began laughing hysterically. Hanging onto the doorframe with one paw and his ribs with the other, he actually began crying with his laughter. Grabbing a mop, he managed to say "Ahaha, we should really, heehee, clean this, ha, up, haha!"

[Rocky]

Skip was normal a moment ago, but now... He wasn't... He refused the bowl of soup offered to him, and sat in a chair by a fire, staring into it as if some secret would pop out and appear to him. He leaned back idly and just looked at the fire intently, thinking of his past, and what had just happened to him. Why didn't he feel happy anymore? Why did he just change in a snap? Part of Skip wanted to stop feeling like this, while the other half wanted to stay like this. He liked the feeling, but hated it at the same time.

Meko sat next to Rau, shaking his head slowly, "I wonder what happened to Skip. He just... changed..." The brawny otter turned back and looked at his friend, "Something's up, but dont go and try to talk to him now. He's dangerous this way. I've seen him like this once before. It should pass. But in his current state, he's unpredicatable."

[Rausaro]

Rau nodded, and filled his bowl a second time. He'd seen creatures act unusually. Whatever was bothering the Skipper, he couldn't help. The otter nodded towards the Skipper. "I've seen more than most my age. And, I might suggest, we leave." Picking up his bowl, he silently and swiftly padded to another part of the room. While under normal circumstances he'd hang around trying to be friendly... he'd seen creatures snap.

Still, Rausaro enjoyed the warm, friendly enviroment of the abbey. When he heard a crash and a startled yelp, his blade flew to his wrist, and he moved to the kitchen door. The lack of the coppery smell of blood, however, relaxed him. Looking over Tirael's shoulder, he spotted Oaklea on the floor, covered in a mess of honey.

"Yew seem t' be in a sticky predicament, mate!"

[mullisbt]

Theurl watched as Oaklea tipped the pot over. He laughed uproariously as he munched his pasties. He liked seeing a grown creature acting like a mischevious dibbun. As all the creatures poured into the kitchen Theurl added, "I ope the friar dosen't catch you upsetting his kitchens."

[Wildrun]

"It's not funny," Oaklea muttered, scowling at Triael and Theurl, or trying to, anyway, before the frown dissolved and she looked overherself and smiled. She stuck a toungue out at Rau as if to say, 'Am not!', beut then immiedately realized her claws had stuck themselves together.

Then, Theurl said, and Oaklea stared at him as he said it, that he hoped the friar didn't catch her.

Oaklea's eyes opened very wide and she immiedately leaped t her feet, spouting something in a fast northern language. Realizing in dismay that it was highly possible no one else in the room understood her, she came to a full halt, swallowed hastily (and realized she could taste honey), and blurted out, "We gotta clean this up!"

A long history of usetting kitchens and getting in huge trouble for it always made the mircale clean-up enjoyable for Oaklea, and she began to zip around, looking for a bucket of water. Seeing as her claws were still stuck together, she made a face. "Anybeast know how to get this goop outta my paws?"

[Rausaro]

Rausaro hesitated. "You may want to use 'ot water. I 'ear it works the best." Carefully, he used an old rag on the counter to hold her sticky paw and pull her up. Glancing at the small buckets and other materiel, he shrugged. "Yew might want to just take a dip in the Pond. It's cold, but it will do better to wash that mess off. But first, let's get your paws clean." It took a half hour, but it was a short time considering the sticky concoction. However, her hands were the only part clean of honey. Her head was covered.