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 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."

[heretic_hamlet]

Cu--

[Ramza slows his stride as his train of thought hits a full-stop upon hearing the name. Boco slows a bit as well, his head turning to see his master.

That... can't be right.]

Are you sure?

[NO, Wait, that was an absurd thing to ask. let's try again.]

...Know you your namesake?

[beforetights]

My...namesake?

[He shakes his head.]

You mean that hound? Or do you mean me when I'm grown up? I'm gonna be a big hero someday, and when that happens, I'll be very famous! So if you're from after that time, you'd know about me.

[heretic_hamlet]

Ramza is nonplussed to receive Aibo's aid, if a little confused by the strange placement and... abundance of hands. In the end, he gives the Ambipom an 'all okay' nod before returning his attention to Gold.

"Not half as much as the snowballs," Ramza replied. "If only for the cry I had mistaken them for a Red Chocobo's fireballs out the corner of my eye."

"And to speak of her-" he continued, crouching down to greet Chobo a bit more eye-to-eye. "Glad to see she's well. I pray she hasn't caused you any trouble...?"

[absolutepower]

Don't worry, by the end of the night I'm sure you would have passed me by.

[He flashes a grin, joking of course. He wasn't going to force Ramza into drinking over his limit, especially if he wasn't keen on the stuff anyway. But having a drinking partner at all would be welcome. It would be fun, he had no doubts about that!]

If Rudy's around we should bring him along. Poor kid needs to get out more himself.

[uncouthhatcher]

Fireballs, huh... Yeah, that'd explain a thing or two. Like why she gets along so well with Exbo. And the tough girl act. Probably explains the singes too, unless that's his Typhlosion getting frisky...

Aibo mimics Ramza's movements, crouching down to give the squawky bird a pat. Her response is to ignore him in favor of the human, watching him curiously.

"Other than my partners bein' overly excited at a new family member and thinkin' about wreckin' the wall between my place and a friend's? Nah, she and I are birds of a feather." Heheh. Bird puns. He thinks he's so clever, chuckling like that at his own dumb play on words. In truth, they only get along when it comes to shared interests, since they're both pretty defiant and do their own thing, but otherwise Chobo hasn't really got any respect for him outside of Mama Gold.

He joins them by the ground and claps his hands, grinning as he speaks and studying the bird. "So! When do they start spittin' flames? Right out of the egg? That's how it is for creatures back home, anyway, and I'm wonderin' if it's just Exbo gettin' a little too happy."

[heretic_hamlet]

[Hound? Hero? Ramza shook his head... he was starting to get a headache trying to get all of this in some recognizable order.

He wasn't having any success.]

There was a Cu Chulainn I had known, but... I do not know if I could call it a hero...

[heretic_hamlet]

Doubtful, if the pace of your drinks matches your footwork.

[But to speak of the one time he did see Jack fighting... the last time Ramza had seen Rudy was up against snowman, wasn't it?]

He strikes me as the timid sort... you think he would be the sort to enjoy a night of drinking?

[beforetights]

...What do you mean?

[heretic_hamlet]

Cu Chulainn was...

[Fallen lord? Demon? Monster? Bespoiler?

No... he could not say that to him. Ramza stood in silence for a minute before he began the fable proper.]

A servant to the Gods who created the world... a mighty being, said to be able to eat the impurity and wickedness from the world and leave whole the good that remained in its wake.

But the gods did not know for true the rot of the world; over the years, he came to swallow too much, and...

[Well... this retelling would have an end more honeyed than the original.]

...He sealed himself away, fearful that he might hurt the good.

[He paused for a moment... but smiled, albeit weakly.]

His was a parable of temperance, you see; a man may do many great deeds, but know the limits of deed and virtue as much as drink, lest one poison himself by it. Your parents must have known the great deeds of your future and named you thus to impress a lesson of restraint!

[Ramza could happily forget coming eye-to-eye with his corrupt, bloated form for now, anyway..]

[heretic_hamlet]

Heheh. Bird puns. Ramza wasn't above appreciating it, though it only earned a small smile. He reached down cautiously to pet Chobo... it had been a long time since he'd handled chicks himself, but hopefully he was correct in remembering that they weren't too nippy.

"What a curious thought; to see so many beasts of so many sorts at peace with each other..." His glance returned to Aibo- that had to be the sixth or seventh sort of Pokémon he'd seen, come to think of it, and each one was as well-mannered as the next! "...Then again, Chocobos never seemed to make enemies of other monsters."

But Gold quickly reclaimed his attention with his question. "Not until they start to approach their full size... not that I've ever seen. I pray she does not grow too eager to demonstrate it- or, heaven forbid, meteors..."

[beforetights]

[He shakes his head.]

My parents didn't name me Cu Chulainn. That was the name I took on as a hero. And I don't think there's anyone else named Cu Chulainn, because then I would've had a different name. But...whether that was my story or the story of another Cu Chulainn from another world, it still sounds like a great story! I'll work hard until I can eat away all the evil from the world too!

[He shows Ramza a big, gap-toothed grin.]

Thank you for telling me that story!

[absolutepower]

I doubt it would be his first choice, but he'll have good company, won't he?

[Depending on your definition of 'good' of course. He's not sure how Ramza will be after a few drinks but Jack wasn't exactly expecting to hold back.]

He's stuck here just like we are. We might as well make the most of it. It won't do him any good being stuck inside all day.

[uncouthhatcher]

Me--

"Meteors?! Dude, that's sweet!" Chobo will let Ramza pet her for only a little bit, but when Gold tries to scoop her up she snaps at him. No, your hands are snow covered and cold. No. Gold frowns a tad, but shrugs and continues. "Must be the chill. Anyway, we're talkin' about the same big rocks that fall from the sky, right? I can't think of a Pokémon that can pull that off."

That's because he hasn't met Cynthia's Garchomp yet, but still.

"So, how fast do they grow?" This part's important, really, and he keeps Chobo in the corner of his vision as he speaks.

[topgun_textiles]

"Yeah," he conceded.

"This place is pretty chill. The snowmen showin' up was way too weird, but I gotta wonder if somethin' else is comin'. Can't imagine that'll be it, especially after everybody's started askin' questions about this priestess or whatever."

[heretic_hamlet]

A small part of Ramza kicked himself for having mentioned meteors. But, then again, he had little to gain from dishonesty... and so much the better for Gold to know to teach her discretion.

"In truth I know not how they do it... they've an earned reputation of being magical beasts; mayhap the Gods have eyes for them as well."

After seeing her response to Gold, Ramza pulls his hand away from the diminutive featherball. Got to give the girl her space, after all.

"Quickly, if well fed. A month or two should see her ready to saddle." He rose and dusted off his hands, but his arms folded as his focus shifted to Gold.

"But speak true, gold. Do you aim to use her as a mount, or for battle?"

[heretic_hamlet]

"Ah... yes."

In his bustling to get the barn together, he'd almost forgotten about the broadcast; if nothing else, it was a relief to know he was not alone in his concerns.

"...What do you make of it, Kanji? The interruption, I mean."

[topgun_textiles]

Whoa, someone was asking his input?? That's a first. But even though he was flattered, he still had to rub the back of his neck and shrug. "Search me, man."

"I think there's a lot that native group ain't tellin' us. Nobody'd break through a video like that unless they had no other way, right? Like there was a message they hadta get out but knew no other way how. But the person that busted in ain't innocent, neither. They wanted to make that shit public, but why, y'know?"

[butterflop]

"...fireballs?"

Nobody told him the birds were magical, Ramza. Why keep creatures that were able to perform such feats, especially within the vicinity of a very non-fire-proofed structure built to stay warm and dry??

[heretic_hamlet]

"Fireballs."

He spoke as though it were the most sensible and ordinary thing to mention... but soon remembered not everyone knew so much of Chocobos. Ramza quickly corrected himself..

"Fear not; they only resort to such means in desperation."

...For what it was worth.

[heretic_hamlet]

"A challenge to her station, perhaps," he spoke, as his sight trailed away alongside his thoughts. Thankfully, there were no souls but a few birds within earshot to them. "It would not be the first I had seen. In this world, mayhap, but..."

He glanced down to his gloved hands... he swore he could still feel the scratch of timbers from the snowmen's strikes.

"...If those snow-monster attacks were their doing, I cannot say they have my sympathies."

[butterflop]

He'd seen way too many randomly-cantankerous beasts to really believe that entirely. The face he made was one of worry.

"Desperation, I'd hope, that will never occur. Building a structure like this is still hard work." He erased one last detail, and rewrote a quick equation before jotting down the completed measurement.

"...Regardless, this is complete. This will hold and be large enough to house a great number of these..." He let it hang. What were these called? They looked nothing like ostriches.

[topgun_textiles]

"Back home, I got to learnin' that the most unexpected people can get up to no good. Taught me a good lesson. I got my eye out on 'em."

So they weren't like Adachi, maybe, but it was worth remaining vigilant. With a nod he stood, setting down the thermos.

"I figure they need a solid talking to and sooner instead'a later. But right now some birds need a place to sleep. Back to it."

[uncouthhatcher]

And, without a moment's hesitation:

"Both. Togebo'll be teachin' her all he knows about bein' somethin' like that, and Exbo's helped me with that in the past too. But," and he shrugs here, "it ain't like this place is too much to worry about unless we get a round two of those creepy snowmen, so we'll probably ride the town together more than battle. If she lets me. She's got an attitude problem worse than I did as a kid."

And he won't press her to do either til she's fully grown, of course. Unless he has to train her somewhat before then. Gold obviously doesn't mind being taught things if it'll better his understanding of a new friend - even if he seems carefree about it.

... And, well, if she wants to join in on whatever Pokémon spars come up, he might let her join in if she's interested.

[littlewhitelies]

"Maybe...Because it looks really nice?" That's the best M'gann can come up with. "It looks really nice against green grass and blue sky, maybe with a little bit of white trim on it?"

From that far off look in her eye, it's clear she's visualizing a nice summer barn...And not unlike every image she's seen on television. "That sounds like a pretty good reason, I think."