Of Birds and Barns

[heretic_hamlet]

Who:Anyone, Everyone
Where: Fourth District, unoccupied lot
When: 20th-22th January
Summary: Trying to find room for two Chocobos was a puzzle enough; now, with four more on the way, it's in everyone's best interests to get a place together to house them all.
Warnings: Not recommended for those with bird allergies.



Ramza was forced to draw upon a few favors- and no small portion of his stipend- in doing so, but- one way or another- he couldn't simply leave the birds without a roof over their head.

Eventually, and after a bit of generosity from Saeng Seong's administration, he was able to have set aside a vacant, verdant lot in the fourth district for use as a pasture... or, at least, he was assured of its green; in January, it was harder to discern beneath all the gathered snow. The Chocobos seemed comfortable there, at least, the season's weather notwithstanding. It wasn't huge, but... then again, there wasn't a huge herd that called for acres and acres.

The more pressing matter, however, was a lack of housing for the birds. And while there were materials plenty enough for such a task- from tools to planks and old corrugated metal, some purchased, some donated, others 'reclaimed' from the past month's more violent happenings, and some of it even sitting in sorted stacks on the sidelines- Ramza had to acknowledge that, for all the Chocobo stables he'd passed through in his homeland, the process of actually building them was well outside of his skills and knowledge.

Thankfully, a few kind souls throughout the city were willing to offer their help in any number of ways... or at least to come and see the big, strange riding-birds for themselves.

((OOC: Apologies for the delay! Feel free to start your own threads, and don't think you need to focus entirely construction either; get involved, mingle, and play out however you wish... and feel free to use Ramza's two chocobos to lend yourseves a hand. Thanks again, everyone!))

Comments

[dragoncrest]

Freya's come to help with the construction, but her curiosity brings her to come see the birds in question first. She's ridden a few chocobos before, so she's familiar enough with the ones on Gaia, but she hasn't spent enough time with them to really tell if there's a huge difference...

They sure do look the same, though.

[heretic_hamlet]

Certainly none that could be found at a glance; especially in Boco, the more commonplace-looking one of the lot as far as Chocobos go. Persephone's more stubborn, wary behavior to some of the company was a bit different, of course, and hinted to a particular harshness peculiar to Ivalice's wild lineage.

Not that Freya had to worry about such a thing. Heck, they seemed more content with her presence than with most of the humans. Hopefully she wouldn't take too much offense at being comfortably 'animal' by their standards...

Ramza, of course, was more content to pour her to a cup of tea between his measurement-taking. "Again you come to my aid, Freya. I cannot thank you enough."

[dragoncrest]

"Nonsense. It's the least I can do." At some point these two probably needed to stop offering nonstop gratitude to each other, but today was not the day that would be happening.

Regardless, she was glad to see the mounts being so friendly--not that she had expected much else. Chocobos didn't exactly tend to be hostile in her world since they were seeking enlightenment or something. She wouldn't have minded the reason if she knew, since it had such a nice result.

"How many will there be, once their eggs hatch?" she asked, not sure of how much space they'll need.

[heretic_hamlet]

Perhaps it was simply in his nature to be as polite as he was verbose. But Freya's inquiry brought about a thoughtful sigh as he turned his gaze to the not even half-constructed barn.

"Four more by the eggs makes six," he muttered. "And Y'akeno has one of her own, I'm told. They would number seven in all." Of course, he hoped there would be at least some room to spare lest they should yield another clutch, or at least the space to build it later. He'd likely need it, the way they were necking together in their break.

Then again, Freya was probably one of the few people who would know enough of what that entailed. Ramza turned to her with a question of his own. "...Are they as you remember them from your own world?"

[dragoncrest]

She nodded. "They are very similar, if not identical. Do they eat gysahl greens, as well?" Even if it wasn't called by the same name, she couldn't see the birds eating anything that different. Vegetables just seemed like the right thing for them to eat. Hopefully they had something they liked here as well as the space they needed...

"I'm sure we'll manage to build enough for them as long as we keep at it," she said. "Even if it takes some time." She wasn't planning to help for one day and leave, that was certain.

[heretic_hamlet]

"Gysahl greens...?" The name didn't ring a chime in his head but he'd heard of similar things. "I know naught of the name, but there was said to be a wild weed the birds would savor and covet to the point of vicious defense... and one guest had a pocket of the sprouts from her own world stashed away when she was brought through. We might see soon enough."

In any case, it caught Persephone's interest enough to stand beside Freya with almost expectant curiosity. Did someone mention the 'G' word? "But they graze in field and forest like any other," Ramza concluded, "and woe to the poor wanderer who strays too close.."

[dragoncrest]

"I regret that I didn't receive any from home," she said somewhat apologetically, seeing the red chocobo's eye on her. "But they were certainly a way to find a friendly chocobo with little effort."

But her thoughts returned to the other one he mentioned who brought in a bird as well--along with the same sort of greens? Was there another world similar to hers and his in the same strange way? "I wonder about this Y'akeno. What did you speak about other than chocobos?"

[heretic_hamlet]

"A friendly chocobo in the wild!" Ramza said, incredulous and almost at a laugh as Persephone returned to her less-expectant admirations of Freya's red attire. "We should all have fortune smile on us so."

And her question brought his own back into focus. He responded with a nod. "I wonder as well. I could have mistaken her for one of my homeland were it not for her feline looks... but we had sadly little time for words."

[dragoncrest]

From his reaction she could only discern that the birds were much harder to tame than she was used to. That brought to mind some questions she'd have to ask later...

"I'll have to seek her out at some point. Perhaps her world has in much in common with ours as the both of ours have." She didn't think this Y'akeno came from Gaia, but perhaps they'd have enough in common to find the comfort of familiarity in their conversations, as she'd found with Ramza to some extent.

[heretic_hamlet]

"It staggers the imagination to consider..." he replied. "Worlds alike, yet worlds apart all the same, and I fear with Y'akeno this puzzle grows far larger than just our homelands..."

But Persephone's interest in her gave him an excuse to change his line of thought. Besides which, his head was starting to hurt. "Have you ridden them before? I can't imagine a dragoon would ever ride a steed into battle."

"Unless it had particularly strong legs," he added with a laugh.

[dragoncrest]

Perhaps it was a line of thought they'd be better leaving to another time, perhaps when they had more specific questions in mind instead of existential ones...

But with the change of subject and his remark, Freya let out a quiet laugh of her own. "Not into battle," she replied, "but for travel, yes. I'm not certain the ones I'm familiar with would be suited to battle."

They took care of themselves in the wild, but she wouldn't call that so much of a battle, especially if the monsters of the Mist left them be as she imagined.

[heretic_hamlet]

"A chocobo ill-suited to battle!" He felt a little bad for his laughter, but he couldn't contain another chuckle. "Such soft-hearted things they must have been in your world! We were not so fortunate... 'twas a death sentence to pass through their territory without a sword to fend them off."

But it was hard to scoff when he spoke out of envy. Those were foes he could have done without, and it was hard to take pride in slaying creatures who only sought livelihood same as any man...

"...Here, at least, they will find reprieve from battle; their chicks even moreso." That much, at least, was a comforting thought.

[dragoncrest]

"Chocobos as the brutal beasts you suggest seems hard to imagine!" she remarked. "But I suppose they must have adapted for a different world. I'm certain they'll adapt to this one all the same."

She reached a cautious hand to pat Persephone's neck, unsure if she would appreciate the attention or not.

"What are they like, the ones you've given the eggs?" She hoped they would all be up to the challenge taking care of one presented, especially if their parents used to be as wild as Ramza said.

[heretic_hamlet]

"They live in the wild, and thus they fear and fight for their lives like any other beast... I could not imagine them any other way," said Ramza, seeming lost in thought for a moment's time.

"...Less those who've grown fond of a rider's touch," he added with a laugh as Persephone proceeded to spoil his point with content placidity beneath Freya's hand. His musings quickly returned to the chicks.

"I saw it only fair to draw lots for their owners... You've met Cupid, I'm sure; as kind and hospitable as one could ask in a foster parent... Kanji's a bit more for showing his bristles, but he keeps a generous heart beneath it all. Gold professes to be a 'Master Hatcher'-- I cannot speak of such things, myself, but he's a beastmaster like any other at a glance. The last, Piper, I fear I only spoke to in passing... but she shows promise enough."

"So many souls seemed enamored by the thought... I only wish I had eggs enough for the lot."

[dragoncrest]

Freya nodded to herself as she gently petted the bird; it seemed as if they were all in good hands.

"I'm certain they'll move past the lost opportunity soon enough," she said to reassure him. "They can always come here if they wish to interact with the chocobos, either way."