The Town

[Finculmir]

Mir had shut the mental connection to the stranger with a snap that was almost audible, ashamed of herself. What was she doing? Didn't she always say she'd never listen in if she didn't have their permission? No wonder he'd reacted that way! Taking a moment to get a hold of herself, she shook her head and folded her wings down tighter along her spine before shooing the kids gently out the back door.

Then she froze.

They'd moved faster than she'd thought. The children had been seen. Closing her eyes, she sent up a swift prayer to Inari, hoping against hope that the Fox god would keep them safe. The patter of paws... Ila and Levi were gone. Oh heavens. She pressed her hands against her chest for a moment, then walked into the kitchen as the stranger's voice said, "Hello...?"

She offered him an apologetic smile, not even bothering to slick her ears back or hide her tail. He'd already seen, so what was the point? "Hello there... My apologies. I shouldn't have listened in. You have very strong thoughts, and I didn't want to take chances, what with all the bandits in the area, but that's really no excuse. I've stopped listening now, and don't intend to do it again without your permission. But I missed your name." She offered her hand, delicate but strong, to the man before her... She had to stop herself smiling wider. A fox - a kitsune - just like the rest of the Den here. So then why was he so surprised and frightened to see her...? She cut off that train of thought ruthlessly. It was not her business. He would tell her if he wished.  

[Red Fox 104]

He was in the kitchen apparently, odd and ends on the counters. This was most likely why it reeked so tremendously of fish. From the moment he had called out, the woman he had seen back at the window was standing in a doorway. Her ears were perked up like a dog who was happy to see someone, and her tail was close behind her(duh, of course whee ).
Reynard was about to address her with another hello but she spoke first, stepping out of the door frame and into the kitchen.
"Hello there... My apologies. I shouldn't have listened in. You have very strong thoughts, and I didn't want to take chances, what with all the bandits in the area,"
Yes, the man outside said something about people breaking in and slaughtering their children... are things really that bad around here?
"but that's really no excuse. I've stopped listening now,"
Really? What number am I thinking of........... ...3...!
"and don't intend to do it again without your permission."
Splendid...!!
"But I missed your name, Mr. ....?"
She held out her hand to make his acquaintance. Reynard blinked up at her, she had a very kind and sincere face. Unblinking, intense green eyes penetrated his own, even when so many people looked away, unable to look and his orange fox eyes... not even himself when he looked into a mirror. Gingerly, he took her hand(the way any gentlemen should take a lady's hand) and gave a quarter bow before releasing it.
"My name is Reynard, Reynard Hunter. You need not apologies, you... startled me is all. I'm just not used to this town."
(This marked the second time he gave out his name and did not recive one in return.)
She smelled nice, whatever she was wearing had a perfect floral smell to it, a wonderful upgrade from the fish. Though, she could smell like onions and it would be an upgrade. Come to think of it, anything could be an upgrade!
She was smiling, but seemed to be holding back, trying not to smile more. A side of his mouth twisted into a curious smile, his top and bottom canines gave off an unintentional look of deviousness. Catching himself, he shut his lips but continued smiling.
"What, may I ask, is so... entertaining?"  

[Finculmir]

Bother. She couldn't do anything right this evening, could she? Should have kept her amusement to herself... if you could call it that. "My apologies. It's not so much entertaining as... ironic. Well, Mr. Hunter, welcome to our little town. I apologize for what must seem like a very hostile greeting. I'm Finculmir, or just Mir, if you'd prefer, and I'm one of those on the council of this little town. You are quite welcome to stay the night in our infirmary and choose where to go or stay in the morning." She gave him a little bow from the waist, making sure that he noticed she was taking her eyes off him for a bit. If he wanted to attack her, now was the best time.  

[Red Fox 104]

"My apologies. It's not so much entertaining as... ironic. Well, Mr. Hunter, welcome to our little town. I apologize for what must seem like a very hostile greeting. I'm Finculmir, or just Mir, if you'd prefer, and I'm one of those on the council of this little town. You are quite welcome to stay the night in our infirmary and choose where to go or stay in the morning."
With that, she returned the bow.
"Finculmir...?" Reynard said, rolling her name off his tongue. "Its a fine name...!" He proclaimed.
He turned slightly, the kitchen was a bit messy. But he was sure that if she knew that he was coming that it would be spotless. This thought made him feel bad to a degree...
She's probably feeling very embarrassed right now...
One-by-one he pulled at the fingertips of his leather gloves. Stuffing one into his pocket, then started on the other one.
"Need some help cleaning up here...?"
She looked a little shocked by the random question. She tried to decline but Reynard wouldn't have it...
"No, I must insist... I came quite unexpected, scared you and your family half to death..." As he said this he started rummaging under the kitchen sink for soap. "and in return I get such kindness(acceptforthepartwhereyoureadmymind, andthebigguyoutsidethreatenedtoshootmeinthehip...), I simply refuse to go and rest for the night until I have done something to help out."
With that he flashed her a very sad look, his ears drooped down, his eyes very large and moist, his bottom lip slightly puckered.
"Please...?" He said, with a somewhat emotional tone to it...  

[Sever Citrin]

"I'll have none of it," Came Sever's voice as if he'd quite literally come out of nowhere. His steps were silent, but he stood behind Finculmir and smiled, placing his hands on her shoulders. He leaned his head down and kissed her cheek quickly, then looked to Reynard. "I appreciate the fact that you wish to do something, but rest assured that the silver you've dropped on our front step is quite... well, sufficient. You can unexpected, yes, but that's nothing unheard of. It was your bike that startled us. Please, put the soap back. We're the hosts, and you'd be doing me a great dishonor if you did any sort of work around here. As a host, I hate to have my guests do things I do myself," he said with a smile.  

[Red Fox 104]

"I'll have none of it,"
Reynard's facial features snapped back to attention the moment Finculmir's husband appeared behind her. Quickly, he stood on his feet.
The man thought he was sneaky, but Reynard heard that behemoth since he entered threw a door somewhere in the house. Surprise tingled his mind as new realization hit him; there was a gun he had forgotten about attached to his right shin, in a leather holster placed just above his boot top, his cargo pants were tucked-in and hid it from sight. He hoped the man wouldn't find it, he didn't mean to bring it into his house when he told him not to...
Later, when Reynard hand a chance he would remove and put it with the others. But now, it was silent comfort.
Or an Ace-in-the-Hole...
"I appreciate the fact that you wish to do something, but rest assured that the silver you've dropped on our front step is quite... well, sufficient. You can unexpected, yes, but that's nothing unheard of. It was your bike that startled us. Please, put the soap back. We're the hosts, and you'd be doing me a great dishonor if you did any sort of work around here. As a host, I hate to have my guests do things I do myself,"
When the man had finished speaking, Reynard said;
"Well gosh... you people are speaking like you've never heard of a motorcycle before..."
He tossed the soap into the air and not taking his eyes off the man, he caught it in his left hand.
"Please understand that I don't like feeling... unused."
Reynard then returned the soap to where he found it in the kitchen sink.
When the man reminded Reynard of the silver, and when he tossed the soap into the air... it reminded him of what he had done earlier that day, in the woods.
He looked down at his hands, they were moist and sticky from the soap so he wiped them off on his pants. Shortly after doing so he realized that the olive t-shirt he was wearing showed his tattoo on his left forearm. 'WKD-44-96'
Seamlessly, he put his hand behind his back, pretending that he was leaning up against the counter.  

[Finculmir]

She had, indeed tried to refuse when the stranger had offered to help her clean, but she hadn't even jumped when Sever had entered the room. Instead, a small but bright smile and lit her features for a moment, and she'd tilted her head just enough to be able to meet his kiss as it descended.
"Well gosh... you people are speaking like you've never heard of a motorcycle before... Please understand that I don't like feeling...unused."

She demurred, "Oh, no, it's not that we've not heard of a motorcycle before, it's simply that no one here has one or has need of one, really. We've cut back to a slightly more primitive style of life, though we still have some electronics. The bandits tend to keep many folk from trying to find us, and most of them come in the daytime, so it was doubly surprising to hear your bike this evening. We're unsure how much technology those hiding in the woods have, but if you were let through, it was possible that you were somehow in their good graces, which made us, perhaps, more wary than we ought to have been." She cocked her head slightly to one side, as though pondering asking him something, but continued.

"As to your being unused, as you put it, if it would make you feel better, I'm sure we can find something for you to help out with tomorrow. Most of our chores and such take place during the sunlit hours." She flashed him a brief smile, eyes sparkling a moment with her gentle tease. Stepping forward, she took the soap from him and replaced it in its proper place with the easy deftness of long practice taking things from too-curious kits.  

[Sever Citrin]

As Finculmir took the soap deftly from Reynard, Sever moved forward as well, smiling brightly and nodding as to her words. "Technology is something... well, my wife and I have come here to sort of separate ourselves from. I lived a very hustle-and-bustle life, you could say... coming here to this den helps an old cougar get away from the endless hunt, if you catch my metaphor," He said kindly, in a somewhat reminiscent tone.

He placed his hand lightly on Reynard's left shoulder, his eyes ducking down - noticeably at that - to the tattoo showing on Reynard's forearm. Not that it worried him, the apparent understanding in his eyes spoke volumes about a seeming sense of... brotherhood. But Reynard's brushing his pants had really brought only one thing to Sever's attention, which was then quickly hinted to.

Sever shifted his weight a bit and his boot brushed up against Reynard's right shin as he moved past the younger warrior, purposely tapping against the gun just a bit. Old habits die hard, he thought to himself. "But I'm sure I could use you for various projects in the morning if you need something to do. For now, please. We've a rather comfortable reclining chair out in the main area, have a seat... won't you?"  

[Red Fox 104]

Finculmir replied;
"Oh, no, it's not that we've not heard of a motorcycle before, it's simply that no one here has one or has need of one, really. We've cut back to a slightly more primitive style of life, though we still have some electronics. The bandits tend to keep many folk from trying to find us, and most of them come in the daytime, so it was doubly surprising to hear your bike this evening. We're unsure how much technology those hiding in the woods have, but if you were let through, it was possible that you were somehow in their good graces, which made us, perhaps, more wary than we ought to have been."
'Primitive style of life...' Like some kind of Amish community? But, that would account for their speech... words like, whence and folk.
She continued.
"As to your being unused, as you put it, if it would make you feel better, I'm sure we can find something for you to help out with tomorrow. Most of our chores and such take place during the sunlit hours." She said, flashing him a friendly smile. Her teeth were surprisingly white and healthy for living a 'primitive style of life.' Soon after she smiled, she took the soap that he was apparently, still holding.
What the... thought I threw that thing in the sink!
She took the soap and took a few steps somewhere to put it away, her husband then moved up to Reynard, as he did so he said;
"Technology is something... well, my wife and I have come here to sort of separate ourselves from. I lived a very hustle-and-bustle life, you could say... coming here to this den helps an old cougar get away from the endless hunt, if you catch my metaphor,"
Reynard did, if he was indeed a General once in his lifetime, a little stress relief it good for the mind.
And thats who Amish people are; people who cant handle the pressures of real life, so they choose to live in a humble bubble world of their own.
Lightly the man placed his hand one Reynards left shoulder.
Cougar? Then what the heck is he doing married to a Foxgoose?
His thoughts flashed back to a few minutes before, the two fox kids?
Did they have wings? Were they foxes? Or cougars?
Reynard was slightly frustrated, desperately trying to figure out the combination of Cougar + Foxgoose = !?!?!
A freakish creation he thought up...
Softly, he brushed the mans hand off his shoulder, which was a bad move, because the man saw his tattoo clear as day!
Crap!
He didn't seem to mind, he didn't say anything about it. Instead, before he backed up a step, his weight shifted and his boot brushed up against the cut down revolver holstered there. Reynard wasn't sure if the man now knew, what reason should he? But Reynard knew that he knew something was indeed there...
He might think its my wallet or something... but, did he do that on purpose?
"But I'm sure I could use you for various projects in the morning if you need something to do. For now, please. We've a rather comfortable reclining chair out in the main area, have a seat... won't you?" He said.
Reynard would prefer to stand, but the man spoke kindly... he would just find a chair or something, he wasn't used to first class treatment like this.
Reynard nodded to the man, then said;
"What's your name, sir?"  

[Finculmir]

Mir smiled at the two of them and gestured toward the lit door out into the living room where just around the corner was a comfortable sitting area with a couch and several armchairs around a coffee table. "Please, it is more comfortable in the living room. Would you like something to drink?"  

[Red Fox 104]

For a moment, Reynard found himself unable to break his gaze from the mans eyes... familiar?
Finculmir spoke out, sounding quite happy. She seemed so positive all the time.
"Please, it is more comfortable in the living room. Would you like something to drink?"
Reynard turned to her, a bit taken aback by the gesture. He couldn't help but smile at her.
Such a nice lady... but her husband, he needs some manners. Hes not giving me his fricken name!
"Really? Thank you very much, but I think I'll pass unless you have something a little stronger than tea."
Reynard didn't think of himself as a drinker, he seldom had a reason. But when he had made a gas stop back at the last town, he tried some bourbon and found he liked the taste very much.
Its just a whiskey distilled from a fermented mash containing not less than 51 percent corn in addition to malt and rye... right?
She smiled, then turned to get something.
Reynard's eyes fell on the mans gun, a revolver. And, there was something about it.
A memory flashed before Reynard's eyes;
"...Reynard, Don't touch Mr. Citrin's guns..."
A voice of the past, his fathers. The memory took him back to when he was about five years old. There was a shop owned by one of his fathers best friends, Mr. Citrin.
At a young age, Reynard had a fascination with firearms. He often tried handling them whenever his parents went shopping and they weren't looking. Reynard didn't remember Mr. Citrin being married though.
The best, and only gunsmith in town... Mr. Sever Citrin!
"Damn... that was a long time ago..." Reynard whispered, his lips barely moving.
He looked up at Sever;
"Your name is Sever, yes? Sever Citrin."  

[Sever Citrin]

((Be careful when you dip into the past without letting me know, especially when it involves the highly-detailed past of Sever. You got lucky this time. ;3))

Sever looked at him and smiled, nodding as he moved up to Finculmir and took her in his arms as he turned to face Reynard. "Yep, that's me. But come. I have a bottle of scotch locked up in a cabinet in the main room with a few glasses. Let's go to the living room and have a seat... you look like the type who enjoys a little bit the hard stuff now and then."  

[Finculmir]

She wrinkled her nose at the mention of the alcohol. "Oof. That's a bit too strong for me... I think I'll break out some of that honeysuckle mead we got from outside before we were shut in, all right love?" She swept up to her husband, reached up to give him a kiss on the cheek, and whisked out into the other room with a flick of her tail round the door frame. The sound of a door opening and closing in the other room could be heard, but no further footsteps.  

[Red Fox 104]

"Alright, sounds great." Reynard said, turning to the room Finculmir pointed out a little while ago.
He found a arm seat by a small coffee table and sat himself down. Placing one of his vanilla flavored toothpicks into a corner of his mouth, he waited for Sever and Finculmir...  

[Sever Citrin]

Sever nodded to his wife and let her go off, moving into the living room shortly after Reynard had. He moved over to the couch he'd referred to earlier, which was across from the coffee table, and sat down at one end. At that end there was a small box - locked, at that - which had a lamp on top which was nailed to the box. Flicking the lamp on, Sever leaned down and opened up the box in silence, pulling out two glasses and the unopened bottle of liquor.

"So tell me... Reynard Hunter," He said slowly, pouring each of them a glass of the liquor and placing the bottle back in it's lampstand/box. "It's rare that people come here and out of nowhere remember my name." Sitting more towards the center of the couch, Sever leaned back and brought the liquid to his lips for just a moment. "...I used to be a traveling merchant until about four years ago. I traveled for damn near twenty years... Had shops and such in cities all over the place. Did I know your father, perhaps?"