(no subject)

[wildmage_daine]

This all could be a good deal worse, as Daine often reminds herself.

Kitten's not as big as she could be, first off. Not as big as her ma had been, just big enough that there's no question of her being grown up. Which means the farmhouse wasn't completely wrecked when the change happened, and that what damage there is shouldn't be too much trouble to fix.

(Though there's nothing to be done for the potting shed. That's a complete loss.)

And though Kitten's mind and magic seem the same as they've always been, Daine knows enough other folk with powerful magic to help at least keep her hid. They've found a place out in the forest well away from any hiking trails, and Magnus has done a wonder with glamours and other magics to keep folk from noticing Kitten's there. The dragonet (well, dragon) doesn't seem overly fond of it -- she keeps sneezing when she gets too close to the invisible line where the magic sits, and Daine can't quite tell if it's involuntary or if Kit's trying to make a point -- but she's been staying within the bounds of it. So far.

The two real difficulties are keeping her both fed and entertained. Kitten can eat most anything, which is a small mercy, but it's still hard to buy (and haul) thrice Daine's own body weight in food every day without getting odd looks from folk at the grocery store. Worse, there's just nothing for Kit to do out in the woods. Daine's been keeping her company and reading to her, but she can tell the dragon's getting restless. And a bored, large dragon is the last thing the city needs.

Daine's on her way to Kit's hiding place after yet another food run, a stuffed backpack slung over her shoulders and a bag dangling from each hand. It's a trip she's made often enough for her formerly brisk march to have faded into something closer to a trudge (can she really blame Kit for being bored with all this when she's bored with it, too?), but she's fair determined to just get to her charge without incident.

Tired and preoccupied as she is, when a body appears in front of her, she moves to sidestep them with an absent, "Pardon," not even giving them a glance.


[ooc: who wants to meet a big dragon?? Hopefully someone Daine already knows, because tbh she's not gonna trust a stranger with this. But friends and acquaintances are welcomed and encouraged -- especially those who have met tiny!Kitten before.]

Comments

[modern_alpha]

"If you ask the Church where I'm from, I wouldn't be heard anyway," Biffy said. "Seeing as I gave up the better part of my soul for immortality." Given the circumstances of his metamorphosis, Biffy liked to think that a higher power might be more flexible, but he couldn't really think of any priest that would care to consult on the matter.

Biffy nodded. He worried about the cost of food and the likelihood that Daine would insist that he not help financially but her second concern hadn't occurred to him. A bored dragon seemed indeed to be a bad prospect.

"I suppose there's no playing fetch, then?"

[wildmage_daine]

Daine wrinkles her nose, unimpressed with the Church he speaks of. Biffy has never seemed soulless to her, though she thinks 'soul' might mean something a little different in his realm. 'God' must mean something different, too, because a priest back home would have to be all kinds of mad to suggest that gods don't listen to the folk that pray to them. They might not answer, or give an answer folk want to hear, but they listen. Assuming a god isn't paying attention is a good way to find yourself out of a god's good graces, which is no pleasant place to be.

She has to suppress a snort at the idea of fetch. "I'd need a sling to throw something far enough for it to be worth chasing. And then she'd just level half the trees going after it." She runs a hand through her curls, trying not to look too discouraged. "It might help if she could stretch her wings, but I don't know where she could do that without being seen by folk."

[modern_alpha]

He caught that reaction, small and subtle as it was, and supposed he couldn't blame her. 'Soul' seemed to mean a very different thing in his world than all the others. No one else seemed to think of it as he did, as something that could be measured and quantified, or at least traded for immortality. True, perhaps it had more to do with aether than they'd realized but Biffy still thought of what he'd given up as his soul. At the time, he'd also given up a lot of love and that nearly counted.

"I might be able to keep up with her for speed and endurance," he mused, particularly in wolf form. But it was so...undignified.

[wildmage_daine]

The thought of Biffy bounding along beside Kitten coaxes a smile out of her, if only because he'd look so teeny next to the dragon. And that's to say nothing at all of his dignity.

"It's her wings that might prove to be a problem. They're big enough that there's really no reason she can't fly, except that she hasn't tried, yet. I s'pose she might be worried about hurting herself, or someone else, but if there's nothing better for her to do..." she trails off, raising her eyebrows meaningfully. Magnus's spells have worked perfect so far, but she's fair certain he hasn't extended them to Darrow's airspace. If Kit ends up airborne, there won't be any missing her.

[modern_alpha]

"At least she's got a sharp enough mind to be careful of that," Biffy said. Though she'd been many times compared to a human toddler, Biffy had always thought that it wasn't particularly apt. Most toddlers didn't learn discretion the way Kitten had. Having minded and suffered the consequences of his younger siblings, Biffy knew that most children didn't care a whit about hurting others. It simply wasn't something they understood.

"If only we had a tablet large enough to play her a movie" Biffy said. "Though I don't know if that's the sort of thing that would keep her attention."

[wildmage_daine]

"It might. Maybe we could project it onto a bedsheet, or something," Daine muses. She's joking, a little -- but it's less of a joke now than it would have been a week ago. Kitten has been patient, it's true. But she's still a baby in her mind, and Daine doesn't expect her patience to last forever.

As they make their way out of the city proper, she adds, "I think it helps to have company, anyway. Especially when it's not just me." For her part, Daine has barely left the dragon's side. Camping out in the woods is no hardship, and the thought of just leaving Kitten alone overnight had been unbearable. But Kitten's used to more than just Daine's own company, and she thinks the dragon's feeling a bit lonely in spite of it.

[modern_alpha]

It was yet another thing that Magnus could possibly make into reality for them and exactly the right level of whimsical that their friend might be willing, even. It was, however, still only a temporary distraction and not a real answer toward what really needed handling.

The amount of food Kitten would go through, alone, would become a strain on shoulders and finances soon enough.

"Do you think she'd like being read to, perhaps? I could take some time with her."

[wildmage_daine]

Reading is one of the things Daine's already been doing; books are some of the easiest forms of entertainment to bring out to where Kit's staying. She's been trying to find good chapter books that will keep Kitten's interest, and find a good balance between rationing things out and not leaving Kit frustrated.

And she knows, on top of it all, that she's not the best reader. She's not stumbling over words or anything -- or not too many -- but she doesn't have much of a knack for telling stories that aren't true to her, with a mind towards keeping a body entertained. Biffy, she thinks, might be better at that.

"I think she'd like that. I've already been reading to her, but she's probably getting tired of me. It'd be more interesting if it was you, instead."

[modern_alpha]

Even before metamorphosis, Biffy hadn't been much of an actor. He'd had, of course, a theatrical streak as wide as Piccadilly Circus but no training as an actor. However, if there was one thing he loved to do, it was gossip. Properly transmitted gossip required a certain amount of dramatic gusto that could easily translate to story and chapter books, especially when a dragon's good behavior was on the line.

"I'll make sure to bring something to read, next time I visit her," he offered.

"This will get sorted out, one way or another," Biffy added. It wasn't exactly much to be comforting about but he thought it merited saying.

[wildmage_daine]

"These things don't last," Daine says, with the tired air of someone repeating a threadbare platitude. I know, I know. It's not that she doesn't take comfort from that, because she does. Kitten does too, doubtless; she can't imagine how much less cooperative the dragonet would be if she thought this was lasting and not a temporary spot of bother.

But knowing it's bound to end doesn't make her shoulders less sore right this moment.

"Something exciting," Daine suggests, glancing up at him. "With chapters that end on a cliffhanger."

[modern_alpha]

"They don't," Biffy agreed. it was the single bit of predictability in a city that otherwise made a point to avoid it. Eventually, everything worked itself out regardless of its strangeness. That, however, didn't make the current situation any easier.

"And I'll have to end the chapter on a cliffhanger before I leave, won't I? And only promise to read the next chapter tomorrow if she's good?" He wasn't sure if there was an equivalent to Scheherazade in her world but it was an obvious enough tactic. He just hoped he didn't have to wear anything to fit the part.