Hullaballoo! (all Creatures)

[nikki]

“C’mon in, miss, wot!”

Heartsease flicked her ears toward the older hare who'd addressed her and beamed, trotting obligingly to him and the otter at his side and giving them a little salute with her spear.

"Afternoon, gentlemen!"

"Here, try this!"

She took the pastry the hare offered, nose twitching eagerly at the scent of the hotroot before she took a large bite, eyes closing as she considered the flavor. The sharp flavor of the cheese mingled beautifully with the earthier taste of the roots, topped off perfectly by the hotroot's bite. The rabbit swallowed and laughed, brushing crumbs from her whiskers.

"Woo! Nips back a bit, doesn't it? Fantastic, I've never had the like!"

She finished the treat off in two bites and nipped a few stray crumbs from her claws, licking her lips; the pastry's scent and taste had suddenly made her ragingly hungry, and her ears stood straight as she looked curiously over the other refreshments.

"Hm, rather a nice spread altogether, isn't it? So what is the occasion?" She paused briefly and then flushed as she remembered her manners. "Ah, sorry. Name's Heartsease Whitefoot." The rabbit bobbed a quick curtsy before wiggling the toes of her white footpaw. It was the first time she'd used the chosen alias out loud; she liked the sound of it, and couldn't quite surpress a grin as she looked up at the other two.

[greek101]

“I don’t live at the abbey.”

Streamlilly's ears twitched nervously. Ever since her first day at the Abbey, her emotions have been all over the place. She wasn't all over the place like this, but Streamlilly had been trapped in an emotional whirlwind and it simply never seems to stop...

"Oh.." Streamlilly muttered.

“It was a good trip.” She looked at Brush and smiled slightly, her bad eye turning for the first time completely towards Streamlily.

Giving a nervous smile, Streamlilly's rudder swished on the ground. "Glad you had fun!..Uh...Are you enjoying..uhh..the uh..party?" Streamlilly twitched visibly as she heard a shot ring through the air. Eyes flashing over to the source, Streamlilly breathed an inward sigh of relief when she discovered that it was just an archery tournament. It's fine..It's fine...Relax...Streamlilly struggled to tell herself. No one is hunting you here...relax...Focus on your conversation.

[Grath]

"Hm, rather a nice spread altogether, isn't it? So what is the occasion?" She paused briefly and then flushed as she remembered her manners. "Ah, sorry. Name's Heartsease Whitefoot."

“Skipper of Otters,” Skipper introduced himself, holding forth a paw to shake the maids. Aidan performed a elegant bow of the sort you just didn’t see the younger generation performing anymore, delighted by the rabbitmaid’s manners.

“Brigadier Wavebob, but ye can call me Aidan, wot!” He winked at her as he purchased more of the pasties, sharing them with his friends-- new and old. He brushed the crumbs from his whiskers as he informed her of the occasion.

“Mm. Scrumptious, wot! The reason, my dear Heartsease, is a bally summer’s long celebration! Games! Food! Sport! Contests!” The brigadier motioned grandly in the air, nearly hitting Skipper in the eye. The otter caught his friend’s paw, lowering it to where it no longer endangered his face.

“It’s the anniversary of the end of the war in Mossflower.” He informed her, his rumbly voice deeper than the hare’s.

[nikki]

"Oi, can't a mouse get a snack without wearing it?"

Saxifrage reached to steady the spotted mouse he'd bumped into, a huge paw resting gently on the smaller beast's shoulder until the mouse moved to remove the cream-covered tunic. The huge gray hare couldn't help chuckling, offering the mouse a friendly grin.

"Ah, mah apologies, wee mukker, Ah hud mah eyes oan thes brammer spread 'stead ay th' braw moose right afair me."

He offered a paw in apology, allowing his long ears to flop along his back as he smiled.

"Here noo - whit can Ah gie ye tae replace 'at? Huh, at leest yoo've got a shirt as delicioos as yer dinner."

Heartsease shook Skipper's paw warmly, thanking Aidan with a cheerful wiggle of her ears as she accepted a pastry.

"Thank you, sir. It's a pleasure to meet both of you!"

"The reason, my dear Heartsease, is a bally summer’s long celebration! Games! Food! Sport! Contests!”


“It’s the anniversary of the end of the war in Mossflower.”

Heartsease's ears came fully upright, and she nodded at that.

"Oh! Yes. My family isn't from Mossflower, you see - they left ages ago I'm afraid, Timothy told me it was when a badger called Bowstripe was Lord of the Mountain." She cleared her throat gently, realizing she was getting off track. "Ah, sorry. In any case, we heard of it from creatures coming out of Mossflower. I'm quite honored to be part of such an occasion!"

Perhaps the delay wasn't so bad. She downed the pastry in a few quick bites, looking around.

"So! What sorts of games and contests?"

[Django]

"Ah, mah apologies, wee mukker, Ah hud mah eyes oan thes brammer spread 'stead ay th' braw moose right afair me."

Django laughed again, wiping off his tunic. "S'no worries, sah," he replied. "No 'arm done, eh?" He glanced the newcomer up and down. The hare was a big brute, wasn't he? Django hadn't seen a hare before. Well, not up close and personal, at least.

"Here noo - whit can Ah gie ye tae replace 'at? Huh, at leest yoo've got a shirt as delicioos as yer dinner."

"Aye," Django chuckled, peeling off the outer tunic. At least he still had his white shirt and breeches. He could get the tunic cleaned easily. Stuffing the pastry-ed garment into his belt, he held out a paw to the big hare.

"Name's Django," he greeted. "S'a pleasure, 'tis."

((Kinda short, sorry, Nikki.))

[Treble Tiderunner]

"Glad you had fun!..Uh...Are you enjoying..uhh..the uh..party?"

Great seasons, she’s as jumpy as a wildcat inna thunderstorm… Enon eyed the ottermaid oddly, for the first time noticing just how oddly she was acting. Not the least because it was the first time she paid much attention to her at all. And just her luck, too, for she seemed even odder than the time they had last met, brief though it was.

“Is there a reason you’re so jumpy?”

Enon put things bluntly at best, and she wasn’t about to disappoint with her last comment. She’d wanted nothing more than to enjoy the contest and spending time with Brush, but this otter had ruined that thought. And now that she was trying to hold a conversation, the otter was stuttering and looking around as if she expected the boogeyman to pop around the next tree.

Honestly…

[Grath]

"So! What sorts of games and contests?"

“Spear-throwing, not like that great big one ye got there, though-- Archery, boxing, wrestling, pike-catching, pike-wrestling… race the pike iffin y’can’t beat it, uh…” The hare stalled and Skipper picked up the mantra.

“Cooking, baking, storytelling’, poetry, plays… All sorts of things, Miss.” The otter leader finished. “Actually, the pike-catching contest is about to start-- we have to have pikes for the wrestling contest, so we decided to make it a contest as well.”

“Barbaric!” Aidan sniffed, but there was a gleam in his eye. If Aidan had been an otter…. As it was, he contented himself to battles on land.

“Aye, and if we’re ‘avin’ a bit o’ trouble gettin’ ‘em in, we’ll just throw in a hare…” Skipper said lightly, not looking at his friend as the trio walked downriver, away from the main crowd. There was a small one gathered, a little ways away from the edge of the bank. A slim ottermaid came out to meet them.

“Hey, Skipper. Brigadier.” She looked curiously at the rabbitmaid. “Come for the contest?” She asked her.

[nikki]

Saxifrage accepted the mouse's paw with a chuckle, shaking it firmly but careful to avoid actually harming him.

"An honur an' a privelege, mah guid Django!"

The mountain hare helped himself to a large pastry topped in meadowcream, picking up a second to offer Django. His own was demolished in a scant two bites, as with any proper hare, and any crumbs were neatly licked from his whiskers.

"Sae! Ur ye a natife, ur jist haur fur th' party?" He sized the spotted mouse up and gave him a comradely clap on the back. "Ye swatch loch ye coods be a terrur - pike wrestlin', that's th' tickit! I'll be in singin' contests ay coorse." A grin, and he headed for the river.

"Spearthrowing, hm?" Heartsease laughed, letting her ears fall at odd angles. "I'm afraid I'm a danger to m'self and others with any sort of ranged weapon, sir - best I keep my paws on anything I've got, you know?"

She listened to the rest of the list, ears flicking consideringly.

"Baking, hm, who gets to judge that one? Storytelling, could be a fun one... I like a bit of poetry, doesn't everybeast?"

She kept at their side as they headed downriver, happily chomping her way through another pastry. The rabbit curtsied to the ottermaid as the creature approached, twitching ears and whiskers toward the little crowd at the water's edge.

"I suppose I am now, marm! D'you know, I've never actually seen a pike? Should be worth remembering, I should think!"

[greek101]

Streamlilly was extremely tense. That, she knew. There simply so many creatures and who knew if one of them was hunting her? The possibility was there! Her posters were up all over Mossflower and after the 'meeting' with that big weasel and his ferret companion, she knew the word had gotten out. It wasn't that Streamlilly was afraid of creatures, she just knew better, and well, she hadn't been to a party in seasons.....

“Is there a reason you’re so jumpy?”

"Huh?" Streamlilly looked back at Enon. Having become distracted by her thoughts, Streamlilly forgot she was still carrying on a conversation. Streamlilly shook her head a bit. "Sorry. I suppose an emotional past few days is taking it's toll. This 'party' isn't helping much either..." Looking about again, Streamlillly muttered quietly to herself. "A bounty on your head doesn't help either..."

"But I shouldn't be bothering you..." Streamlilly added, her rudder swishing on the ground. She had noticed that Enon, although was talking with her, didn't seem to have any interest in conversing. She did have a companion already and Streamlilly did interrupt them. Feeling rather awkward, she slowly started to step away. "Uh..it was good seeing you...Enon.."


((Ugh..Hope this is okay. ))

[Grath]

"I suppose I am now, marm! D'you know, I've never actually seen a pike? Should be worth remembering, I should think!"

Tam raised an eyebrow in curiosity, exchanging a look with her uncle. “Is that so.” She pointed at Heartsease’s nose. “No calling me marm. My name is Tam.” She motioned towards the river.

“Well, we chose this spot well. Not only are pike known to gather here at the ford, but we narrowed the field a few weeks ago by gating off the stream. None of the fish can escape, so we’ve had to feed them, but they still have to be caught.

The purpose is more to herd the pike into the pool.” She pointed to a medium-sized pool that looked like it had once been a bend in the river. “We’ll gate it off and have the pike-wrestling contest later. Wanna give it a try?”

[Django]

"An honur an' a privelege, mah guid Django!"

"Wot's yore name, sirrah?" the spotted mouse asked, still grinning. He rotated his wrist a little when the big hare let go. Even though the beast hadn't meant to hold Django's paw so tight, it still kinda hurt.

"Sae! Ur ye a natife, ur jist haur fur th' party?"

"Um," it took Django a moment to decipher the hare's thick accent. "Oh, I hail from Red'all. Jus' came down 'ere furra bit t'see wot it were all about."

"Ye swatch loch ye coods be a terrur - pike wrestlin', that's th' tickit! I'll be in singin' contests ay coorse."

Django chuckled, jogging after the big hare. "I ain't much on pike wrestlin', mate," he replied. "But, uh, ye gonna be inna singin'? Don't know as I've e'er heard a hare sing."

((Bleh, more shortness, sorry, y'all.))