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Post by Max Füchs-Kojote on Apr 19, 2009 3:03:39 GMT -7
His eyes widened as he realised where they were heading. "The castle?" His voice was quiet, but betrayed his surprise. "Your friend is meeting you there?"
He was surprised. A Cat in this kingdom was rare enough. A Cat with an appointment at the castle was very unusual. His tail actually drooped. He didn't have any quarrel with the royalty, but was in slight awe of the Kitsune king. He kept walking, his fur was rather wet now.
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Post by Siren on Apr 19, 2009 15:05:36 GMT -7
Siren was a little worried about the way Max's tail drooped as he realized where she was leading him, but she smiled at him. "Yes. I suppose I can tell you now. It is part of my job to keep up relations between my King and the Kings of the other Kingdoms in the Crater. I'm supposed to be meeting with the King, but I suspect most of my time here will be spent with his adopted son, Jacob, who as I already told you, likes me. A little more that I'd like, but he is an excellent friend. You don't have a problem accompanying me, do you?" she asked, letting him know she'd be alright if he decided against it with a comforting smile.
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Post by Max Füchs-Kojote on Apr 19, 2009 15:34:58 GMT -7
The information surprised him. No wonder they wanted me to try. I suspect some people aren't fond of this Cat for the reason of her travelling.
He hesitated. "It's not that. Just been in awe of the Kitsune king from when I was a pup." He chuckled. "Hard not to be really." He tail lifted again. "I didn't expect that you'd be meeting him though, I confess. It's kind of new for me, meeting royalty."
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Post by Siren on Apr 19, 2009 16:11:17 GMT -7
"I know what that's like. I was quite shy the first time I met my king, but we have grown quite close. I regard him as the father I never knew." she smiled serenely at the thought. "Perhaps you too will get to have a better understanding of your king than most do?" She said, laughing. They had reached the gates now, and Siren looked through them at the guard who was approaching. He was staring at Max curiously, although it didn't appear to Siren that they would have much trouble getting him through the gates. "I am here to see the King. Colby!" she smiled excitedly as she recognized one of her favourite Fox castle guards. "Welcome back, Miss Siren." he said, returning the smile. "Who have you brought with you?" "This is Max. He's a tracker friend of mine, and he refuses to let me out of his sight." she smiled jokingly at the guard. Colby laughed and nodded. "Then please enter, and welcome to the castle." He bowed his head respectfully at Max. Smiling, Siren lead Max through the gate as Colby held it open for them. That's strange... Jake usually meets me at the gate... she thought, too soon, as he rushed her and closed her in his arms in an embrace. Siren squealed in shock and then laughed. "Jake, let go. I have to introduce you to my friend." she growled playfully. He released her, a joyful smile on his human features, his wolf ears perked and his tail wagging happily as she had just seen Max's do. "Jake, this is my friend Max. He made sure that I made it here safely, so be nice. Max, this is Jacob." she said, turning to Max with a smile. "It's a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for taking care of my friend. She is quite important here." His expression had turned cool and formal. Siren rolled her eyes at him.
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Post by Max Füchs-Kojote on Apr 19, 2009 16:37:04 GMT -7
Max kept his hackles down, barely, as he felt the cool greeting. He returnd it. "The pleasure is mine, your highness." Jacob had changed his mood visibly, his tail drooped as did his ears. He felt out of place, his fur soaked, although his oil-treated clothing had repelled most of it.
I think I'm done here...He looked at the pair. "Perhaps I should be going now..." He murmured as he began to turn to leave.
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Post by Siren on Apr 19, 2009 17:10:21 GMT -7
Siren looked at her new friend worriedly as he seemed much less happy now. She turned a dark expression to Jacob as Max said that he thought he should be going. Hiding it quickly, she looked sadly at Max. "But I thought you wanted to meet the king?" Siren asked. "My father?" Jacob repeated, looking curiously at her. She nodded. "He's waiting to see you, Siren. I'm sure he would be quite happy to see you brought a friend." he said, his voice sounding warmer once more. Siren resisted the urge to hit him, and said, "Please don't leave yet, Max."
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Post by Max Füchs-Kojote on Apr 19, 2009 18:09:47 GMT -7
The coyfox turned, ears back up. But his tail still drooped, showing a lack of confidence rather than being upset. He would like to see the king up close. A bit of his sense of humour returned. "I um... I don't know if I'm exactly dressed for such an occasion..." He chuckled sheepishly.
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Post by Siren on Apr 19, 2009 18:22:14 GMT -7
Siren smiled, laughing a little bit. "And you think I am?" Siren asked, looking down at her own clothes. Most humans wouldn't agree with her attire, dressed to look more like a male than a female. She wore skinny black pants that accentuated her body, and a long sleeveless black knit shirt that hugged her waist but was loose fitting otherwise. Under the knit shirt she wore a form fitting red tank top since the knit top was made so that it was sort of see through. Around her waist, over top of the black shirt, she wore her leather belt, which had a knife attached to it. On her feet she wore knee high brown suede boots. She looked almost like a hunter herself the way she was dressed. Jacob rolled his eyes. "You both look fine." he said, laughing. "Come on, I'll show you where he's waiting." Siren jumped excitedly to Max's side, grabbed his paw and started pulling him towards the castle, smiling the entire time.
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Post by Max Füchs-Kojote on Apr 19, 2009 18:42:20 GMT -7
He was surprised as she dragged him to the castle, but he laughed. "I was more concerned with the soaking fur. But I'm sure it's fine as long as I don't smell like a wet dog."
Nonetheless, he complied and was walked/dragged to the castle, smiling more naturally as well. To meet the Kitsune king... A dream he had from when he was a pup. It was certainly thrilling, if a bit nerve-wracking. He continued walking, hoping his fur would at least dry somewhat. More to the point, what would the king be like?
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Post by Siren on Apr 19, 2009 20:08:07 GMT -7
Siren slowed down so she wasn't quite dragging him once they got in the castle, and let go of his paw. Stopping for a moment, she sniffed in his direction. "You don't smell like a wet dog, don't worry." she said, smiling, then she turned to follow Jacob again. Jacob lead them to a pair of double doors that Siren had seen before. "He's through these doors. Ready?" Jake asked. Siren nodded, looking at Max, who seemed rather excited. Jacob smiled and turned to open the doors, then he lead the way forwards. "Ah, Siren. It's good to see you again." the Kitsune King spoke kindly. "And who is it you have brought to see me?" "This is Max, your highness. He's an excellent tracker, and he helped me to get here safely." Siren replied. "Oh, then we must thank him. It is a pleasure to meet you, Max, and I am glad to hear she has made another friend." The king smiled at Max. "Father, there is something I would like to show Siren, if you will give her leave?" Jacob said. "Of course, Jacob. She and I may speak tomorrow. Siren, would you mind if I borrowed your friend for a little while?" He said. "I'm sure he would like that very much." Siren replied, smiling at Max. "I'll be back." she told him, then she followed Jacob out of the room once more. "What did you want to show me?" she asked as they left. "Max, you are a tracker?" the king asked as soon as Siren and Jake were gone.
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Post by Max Füchs-Kojote on Apr 19, 2009 20:24:47 GMT -7
He nodded. "Tracker, hunter, trapper." He looked with respect at his monarch. "I try my best to be good at it."
He didn't say anything about his translation abilities, but guessed the king probably would have guessed. He did feel self-concious though. "Ehe... Sorry about my wet fur..."
It was a pup's dream, a coyfox's reality. A simple hunter like himself meeting the king. He smiled mentally, who'd have thought a simple mission would lead to meeting the king himself?
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Post by Siren on Apr 19, 2009 20:44:50 GMT -7
The king looked thoughtful for a moment. "Your skill would be useful in many ways..." the king thought aloud. "Would you consider working for me?" he asked abruptly, looking up at the coyfox.
Siren looked at Jacob questioningly when he stopped in front of a large window. "What did you want to show me?" she asked again. "Look outside." he said, pointing out the window they had stopped in front of, so she looked out the window and gasped. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. A large, pink flowered tree stood right in the middle of the garden below them. "What kind of tree is that? It's so vibrant and full of life!" she exclaimed as she felt its happiness surround her. "Can we go see it?" she asked, looking up at Jacob excitedly. "Of course." he said, smiling at her in amusement. "It's a cherry blossom tree." he said, in answer to her first question. Then he took her hand and lead her down a flight of stairs to a door that would take them outside. He released her hand as they approached the tree, and she ran up to it, leaning into it, her ear pressed against the trunk. The wind through the branches made a beautiful bell-like tinkling sound. "It only blooms for a single day. You're so lucky that you arrived before the flower petals all fell to the ground." Jacob continued. He reached up to grab a flower out of the tree as she turned back towards him. "It really is beautiful. Has it been here the whole time?" she asked him. "Well, yes, since before I met you, but this is the first time you've been here when it was in bloom. My father told me it was a gift from a goddess. He said that it was the only of it's kind in all of the Crater." Jacob said. "It must be so lonely... The trees here aren't as friendly as the ones in my Kingdom." Siren said, looking sadly at the tree. Even though it felt happy to her, it looked as if it could use some company, the rest of the trees standing so far away from it. She closed her eyes and held out her palm to the sun. Magic began gathering there, and within seconds a seed had appeared, glowing, in her hand. Slowly, whispering words of encouragement to the seed, she lowered it into a small hole in the earth near the cherry blossom tree. As soon as it was covered again with soil, a sapling broke through the soil, and grew to about knee height. Siren smiled. "Now she can take care of this seedling and she won't be lonely." Jacob gasped, "Is that a tree from your kingdom?" he asked. "Yes, call it a gift of everlasting friendship." she replied, "As long as this tree remains here, we will be friends." Jacob smiled, his eyes containing a glint of sadness. She would have missed it, except that his happy look didn't entirely look genuine. She sighed, and looked up in surprise as his hand moved towards her face. She noticed the flower that was between his fingers just before he placed it in her hair and she blushed. "Beautiful." he said, and she wasn't sure if he was talking about the tree anymore. "We should get back to Max and your father..." she said nervously and turned back towards the castle.
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Post by Max Füchs-Kojote on Apr 19, 2009 20:54:23 GMT -7
Working for the king? Max's mind reeled. It was an unusual request to say the least. "I... I would happily work for you." He responded once he managed to even talk again.
He was astonished, his tail wagging gently. "Forgive me, but what use can I be to you?" He asked. He was curious, it's not like he expected a monarch to need him of all beings. But it could be good, perhaps help him and Jacob get off to a good start. And being in the employ of royalty is a lot safer than scrounging around and taking jobs that could all too easily be intended for his doom.
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Post by Siren on Apr 19, 2009 20:58:32 GMT -7
The king smiled, "The fact that you are a tracker, and Siren has said a very good one at that, means that you have excellent senses. There are alot of things you could do for me, including some of the things Siren does for her own King. You will be my shadow, in a sense, except when I require you to do something on your own, if that suits you?" He replied.
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Post by Max Füchs-Kojote on Apr 19, 2009 21:05:33 GMT -7
"It does." He smiled slightly. This king had already won him over easily enough. He looked rather shy actually right now, blushing slightly at the praise. But he had one more question. "Will I find myself in the field a lot?"
He liked the field, it meant he could interact with some of his smaller, or larger, cousins. "And I um... I guess you probably can tell I can translate some languages as well. So I'll be able to listen moreso that way."
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