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Post by Kadin on Oct 9, 2020 16:34:37 GMT -6
Elk yipped in delight at the older houluh finally showing interest in him! He ran in a circle around Gelert, then Nadia, and then Gelert again, just to get rid of some of his excited energy! Then he went right back up to Gelert, prancing at his side while sniffing at him back, tail wagging madly the whole time. If nothing else could be said about Elk, one could tell that he was easy enough to please.
"Zeal!" Kadin complained, completely oblivious to the mental breakdown that was happening mere feet away. "Get the fuck off me, you menace!" Even as he cursed at the Chelcauda, Kadin was smiling while he shoved at the beast's face, a rare enough sight as it was. In response, the chelcauda flopped down onto the floor, thus trapping Kadin's legs and causing him to groan in mock outrage. "ZEAL! I have actual fucking work to do today! Let me go!" He dug around in his pockets, which had luckily not been crushed under the weight of the animal, searching for something... There! He grabbed a handful of treats and flung them away, scattering them across the ground.
With a huff of excitement, the 'cauda ran off to get the treats before all of the houluh and other scavengers could steal them from it, finally giving Kadin a chance to sit up. He rubbed at his face and looked over, a bit embarrassed by all that, but he instantly sobered at the sight of Nadia.
"Hey..." Kadin said, scrambling to his feet. He walked over, but stopped several feet away, hands outstretched and at an utter loss what to do. "Are you ok? What- never mind, here, do you need to leave? The exit is this way." He said as he backed towards the exit so she could follow his voice. "What's wrong?" He had no fucking clue what had just happened, but the sight of a crying girl in the middle of his kennel was quickly climbing to the top of the "Worst Situations He'd Found Himself In" list.
Elk whined at the sight of his new friend so distressed, actually walking away from Gelert for once to press against her side.
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Post by Nadia on Oct 10, 2020 20:43:20 GMT -6
It helped, to have the houluh around her. Even as the panicked tears began to fall, Nadia held her hands out to touch their fur - she kept them there as she moved, slowly but surely, in the direction of Kadin's voice. A way out. Yes, a way out, she wanted to get out. The documents, the aviary, it was all long forgotten in the heat of the moment (as terrible a phrase as it was).
"It's nothing, it's-- it's nothing," She tried to conceal it even as she sobbed. What kind of a wretched fool would he take her for? The second she felt a doorframe, she sagged against it, throwing her arm over her eyes. "I-- I feel unwell, that is all--"
That was not all, and Gelert wasn't pleased with her trying to behave as if nothing was happening. The houluh was insistent, pressing close against her with his muzzle at her hand, in case she sagged. It had happened before.
"Please, p-please, continue," Nadia managed to choke out. How hideously guilty she felt for her reaction; that poor creature would not mean to hurt a fly. "I will-- all will be well, if I... if I stay here."
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Post by Kadin on Oct 12, 2020 13:10:35 GMT -6
Elk couldn't help as much as Gelert, but he still wanted to try. He kept his side pressed up against Nadia's legs, lending her whatever support he could from his furry body alone. He whine at her, at Kadin, at anyone who would listen! He was very upset that his new friend was so distressed, why didn't anyone do anything about it?
Kadin, meanwhile, was panicking. While trying very hard not to panic. He had no idea what the fuck had set her off. It has just been... Zeal. Coming to great him, as usually. He'd even warned her before hand! But was it even Zeal? Had she seen something else while he was under the chelcauda that had upset her? Why the fuck was this happening to him?
"Can you tell me what it was?" Kadin asked, sounding calm but feeling desperate as he watched her slowly walking towards him before finally reaching the door. He'd moved out of the way so she could clutch at the doorframe, but now he was just standing there. Fucking useless. "Is it chelcauda? I'll send Zeal away." He promised, grasping at something to do. That was the most likely cause, right?
He walked a few feet away, gesturing to the 'cauda who had, at this point, finally finished all of the treats Kadin had scattered to distract him. "Come on. Shoo. Out." He said firmly. "I'll see you later, just go back to where you're supposed to be."
Zeal got one last good lick in before bounding out of that main room. Kadin watched him go, frowning slightly, before turning back to see how Nadia was doing. "He's gone. Are you ok?"
God that was such a stupid question.
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Post by Nadia on Oct 13, 2020 9:29:20 GMT -6
Nadia was overwhelmed by the barrage of questions. Bless his heart, she understood Kadin's frantic behaviour - she, a perfect stranger, had taken a turn for the worse in his kennel without any warning - but it did little to help her think straight. Instead of cobbling together an immediate reply, she held her tongue. Wait. Breathe. Come back to yourself.
"One... one second..." She held up a hand, leaning her side heavily against the doorframe. When she could hear the retreating footsteps of the chelcauda, she felt a more tangible relief, and straightened herself up so she could speak. "I... pardon me, I... I am not a fan of fire."
It was an unfortune disposition, and not one she wished to detail beyond that. Gelert nudged his nose against her hip, and cast a rather accusatory glance at Kadin. Damn strangers making his mama act out. As soon as he'd seen that cat, he'd known something was wrong.
"All will be well. I just... just need to catch my breath."
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Post by Kadin on Oct 13, 2020 18:26:37 GMT -6
Kadin kept his distance, not wanting to crowd her and also not liking the look the houluh was giving him. He was sure that it was too well trained to bite without cause, but the distress of his owner was clearly distressing him, too. And Kadin wasn't about to push his luck.
Finally, she seemed to gather herself enough to speak. And when he learned what the problem had been? It felt as if he'd been doused in cold water.
Kadin looked around the room, a frown firmly in place. He didn't see any of his other pets who were actively on fire in the room, but there were certainly a few in here who could be... questionably trusted not to light something on fire at any given chance. He glanced back at Nadia, relived that she was still looking away, and said, "Hold on a minute, let me lock some doors."
He moved around the room, first going to where Zeal had left from. He closed the gate to that section and then turned to the rest of his creatures, trying to quietly and subtly shoo a few of them through different sections, too, before locking those doors, too. Once he was reasonably sure he'd locked away or at least prevented most of his fiery pets from having access to the rooms they were supposed to be going to, he made his way back over.
"He shouldn't be able to come back now." He assured her, but then he hesitated a moment. "You can leave, if you need to. I should be able to find the permits." Or she could wait outside. Even if he'd tried to lock everyone away, he had more than a few creatures who were literally on fire and, unfortunately, excellent escape artists.
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Post by Nadia on Oct 14, 2020 12:00:52 GMT -6
Nadia kept her focus on the walls beyond Kadin's kennel. She didn't trust herself not to vomit, if she turned around - it was too soon to think about moving, or trying to bury what she was feeling. It bubbled too close to the surface. Her fingers strayed to one of Gelert's ears, rubbing it between them, concentrating on the silky texture and the warmth. All would be well. Nothing was going to hurt her.
Or at least, her acquaintance was doing his best to prevent it. She heard doors closing, but did not look; she felt awful for making him feel like he had to accommodate her in that way. They had known each other for such a short time.
"I apologise, Kadin," Her voice was both earnest and steadier when he returned to her. Bolstered by his assurances, she slowly rotated to face him, and offered a shaky smile. "Please, do allow me to assist. It is the least I can do after this."
Gelert huffed.
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Post by Kadin on Oct 14, 2020 20:31:42 GMT -6
Kadin wasn't so sure about this one. This wasn't what he'd signed up for. He didn't know this woman. He didn't owe her anything and what was supposed to be a simple retrieval of some records from his kennels had turned out to be much more than either of them had bargained for. What's worse, he didn't know if it would happen again. He'd closed off the gates, but there was nothing stopping one of the tainted equillion from getting bored and kicking it down out of spite.
In short? He wasn't too sure about this.
But she seemed so determined to help. And, at this point, he didn't feel like dragging this out any longer. The fastest way to get this done would be to find the paperwork and send her on her way. At least she'd dropped the 'Mr.' Kadin. He sighed, making up his mind. "If you're sure. Zeal isn't close to the only creature in here who's on fire."
He warned her, watching for her reaction briefly before turning back towards they way they'd just come from. "It's this way." He crossed the wide first room and headed into the hallways beyond. At the first set of doors, he took out a key and shoved inside, revealing another room that was fill to the brim with stuff. Tack, food storage bins, an entire wall of refrigerators and freezers for keeping meat chilled, rows upon rows of various training equipment. The doors outside had been misleading. This room was easily as big as they one they'd just come from, but more packed full of stuff.
"They should be in here some where. We're looking for filing cabinets or safes." He reminded them both, a frown set on his face as he considered the overwhelming question of where the fuck to even start.
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Post by Nadia on Oct 14, 2020 20:54:56 GMT -6
She was being annoying. Nadia could tell that she was getting on his nerves - she couldn't blame him, and wanted to apologise, but the words died in her throat and faded into nothing. Saying sorry usually only wound people up more. Instead, she petted Gelert's head and made the move to regain her footing properly, so they could start the search.
It was unavoidable, the twitch that her face gave at his comment. There were plenty of fire-related creatures around. That was fine, that was fine; she swallowed the knee-jerk panic as best she could and followed him, off towards the room with the documents. She felt relieved to have a task that she could quietly throw herself into, in all honesty, now that she had made a mess of things.
Gelert was less sure about it. He hung around her, relentless in his mission to keep an eye on her; if Kadin stepped one foot too close to her, the houluh stared daggers. No one could say he wasn't protective.
"I'll start here," Nadia said, simple, no room for theatrics. The filing cabinet nearest to her was her target. She began pulling out drawers and sifting through papers without another word.
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Post by Kadin on Oct 14, 2020 21:13:47 GMT -6
Kadin made his way over to the opposite end of the room and set to work. The atmosphere was a bit... tense, to say the least. Kadin knew that it was probably his fault. Somewhere along the way, he'd fucked something up. He didn't quite know what and he kept trying himself not to fucking care but that was hard to do with a houluh staring daggers at him and some woman who'd only wanted to help being so fucking withdrawn.
He should say something. He had no idea what the fuck to say to make any of this remotely better. He didn't even know what was wrong.
After what felt like years of awkward silence that he was drowning in, Kadin's hands passed over some glossy, blue papers. He almost set them aside entirely, he was so fucking distracted, but something about the weight and feel of them reminded him of the permit for the cafe. That was enough to jolt him out of whatever funk he'd fallen into.
"Hey, I think I found something." Kadin said, pulling out the stack of documents he'd found clipped together. The top permit said something about an Aviary, so that was good. He flipped through the others, too, and was a bit surprised to see that they were additional buildings that seemed to be attached to the aviary proper. Expansions, he supposed? "This must be it." He sounded relieved, standing up to walk over to wherever Nadia was, still thumbing through the documents. Once he was close enough, he'd hold them out for her to examine herself, if she so chose.
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Post by Nadia on Oct 15, 2020 8:09:00 GMT -6
Nadia was praying that she would just hurry up and find what they needed. The sooner she'd done what she'd come to do, she could leave and get out of Kadin's hair, and they wouldn't have to think about the incident any more. Her heart was still fluttering in her chest, unsettled. Any slight was going to set her off.
It was, therefore, a great relief when the silence was finally broken. When she glanced at the papers being offered to her, a bell of recognition sounded in her mind - had she not flicked past one that looked similar a moment ago? After rifling through the stacks again, she came out triumphant.
"I found another permit of yours, if that is of any use to you," She held her offering out to him while taking the Aviary's permit to look at. "It appears to be for some farmland. I trust you know what it signifies."
Why wouldn't he? Nadia scanned over the document, which was certainly for the Aviary and was certainly in his name. Gelert leaned up to take a sniff at the corner of the page, and had to be gently discouraged, to stop him leaving wet nose smears on it.
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Post by Kadin on Oct 16, 2020 12:37:20 GMT -6
"Huh?" Kadin looked down at the papers offered back to him, surprised. He took them without even thinking about it, letting Nadia take the ones he was holding, too. He thumbed through them, frowning at the declaration that he apparently owned a property. Not kennels. A proper house on a decent bit of land. And it could hold... two people and 29 pets.
What the fuck.
"I... don't need to live in the kennels?" He muttered to himself, still frowning down at the information in front of him as if he didn't fucking believe it. All this time, he'd had a property? And he didn't even know it? Was it- yeah. Yeah, it was even in his name. What the fuck?
Kadin looked from the property in his hands to the one he'd just offered Nadia. Then he took a step back to really, properly look around the room. All the filing cabinets. All the closed chests he never went into. Just what else was out there that he apparently owned but didn't know about? And why had it taken him this long to actually think to properly... look? For anything? That would give him an actual, real bed to sleep in.
He'd probably been afraid of what he'd actually find.
Clearing his throat, Kadin turned away and went back to the cabinet he'd been searching through. He hesitated a moment before closing it. "Well, I guess we found what we needed. If there's an address I can go check it out and see if anything needs to be repaired before I moved the birds there."
Probably best to focus on something else for now.
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Post by Nadia on Oct 17, 2020 12:08:30 GMT -6
Nadia was... shocked. The idea of him not knowing about the aviary was slightly strange, but understandable, if he had recently returned and was unaware of properties he had inherited. Not knowing about a farm - and more importantly, a home - was harder to believe. She didn't say anything, though. Whether it was because she was afraid of angering him, or to save embarrassment on his part, she held her tongue. If anything, she felt great pity. To think of him sleeping in the kennels... it was lucky that he'd found himself a house on the off chance, because she would've been offering him a guest room, and throwing her already-strained indoor life into peril. Gelert could sense the shift in atmosphere. He sat, looking between the two humans, and blinked at Kadin. At least the suspicion and annoyance in his gaze had cooled down a bit. "I am relieved to hear it," Nadia settled with saying. It was mild and inoffensive, and hopefully would not upset him. "I... can assist with any work that needs doing, if need be. My residence is on a farm called Bloomwood, on Miisaa Ave, should you wish to find me." [Logged]
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Post by Kadin on Oct 23, 2020 21:03:42 GMT -6
Kadin wasn't really sure what to say to that. So instead he just shrugged, even less verbal than usual due to the shock he'd just gone through and the thought that he'd probably have to have a very serious conversation with Rochelle sooner rather than later. He shook off his shaky thoughts, again, annoyed at how fucking. Unhelpful they were being at getting through this current interaction he had to get through.
"Yeah. I'll let you know." He said, fully knowing that he was probably never going to do that. "The permit is for Centu Street, but you probably already knew that." She'd tracked him down after seeing the current state of the aviary, after all. If she wanted to help doing literally anything with it, she'd probably have better luck following that instinct and just randomly showing up one day. Kadin had never been one to ask for help when there was a job he thought he could get done perfectly well on his own.
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Post by Nadia on Oct 24, 2020 11:35:48 GMT -6
Nadia felt it was a prudent time to leave. The discovery must have come as a shock to Kadin, if his story was to be believed - his expression seemed too genuine to be a forgery, in her opinion. Having her hanging around and making a nuisance of herself would not do him any favours. So, she drew her coat closer around her shoulders and petted Gelert's head, alerting him to her movements.
"Please take care, Kadin," She implored him, as she made her way towards the office's door. "And... i-if you need anything, anything at all, please call on me. I am happy to assist, and shall offer no judgement."
Not externally, anyway. There was no stopping the internal voice from chiming in. Still, the sentiment was there, and she hoped he would feel that she was being sincere. Off the two of them went, with Gelert trotting at her side.
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Post by Kadin on Oct 24, 2020 11:46:29 GMT -6
She wasn't one to linger. Good. Kadin didn't want to be a dick about it, but they'd accomplished what they'd come here for and now he had shit to do. He appreciated that Nadia could read the atmosphere and decided to leave on her own. He also appreciated the sentiment she was trying to express, but it was hard for him to really, uh. Appreciate it at the moment. Or ever. He doubted he'd be calling on her for help, at all.
"Yeah, sure." He said anyway. Just to be polite, and perhaps to make sure she didn't run into any more of his fiery pets on the way, he walked her to do the door. He waved as she finally left, before turning around in a slow circle and looking around his kennel. He sighed. He had so much fucking work to do now. Those birds probably wanted to go to the aviary right away, but he'd have to make sure it was safe first. There was... a lot to be done.
Never mind about the fucking house.
*posts added to levels
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