[Bonfire PRP] Hic! [Fair Gecko][Fin]

[Scaramouche Fandango]

Somehow- and she really had no idea how, because the entire point of coming to this festival with Gecko was to keep an eye on Gecko- Fair Hunter had gotten pushed into food service. Specifically, drink service. She was told to ladle out some sort of weird juice and keep it away from the little 'uns by a friendly doe who'd given a big wink and stumbled off laughing. Great. Just great. With furrowed brow and toothy scowl, she ladled out shell after shell of the pungent juice. She didn't quite understand why anybody wanted to drink it; it smelled just awful. Like rot- fermentation. She'd never been a fan of fermented fruit- the cloying sweetness was just too much for her. But apparently everybody else wanted some; her line was extremely long. Time and time again, kin came by for a slurp of the strange brew. What did they see in it? She observed them as she doled it out. At first, they'd wince a bit, like they were getting used to the taste. Then, they'd gulp it down like water. Their noses would flush, their eyes would glow, and they'd laugh a lot. Which was odd, because it didn't smell like it'd taste that good. A lull in the line- some kin had wobbled into somebody they knew- gave her an opportunity to sniff at it. The overpowering sweet aroma was off-putting... but still, she had to know. She lowered her muzzle to the liquid and took in a slurp.

It was so sweet it made her teeth ache. It was almost... slimy, in a weird, not entirely pleasant way. But it felt kind of nice in her belly! She took another sip, then another, then another. Fair Hunter frowned a strange, confused frown. What was this stuff?  

[So Long Gay Bowser]

It was a very good thing that Hunter had not joined the line earlier, because Gecko had gone through her fair share of sampling. By sampling, of course, she meant drinking entirely more than was entirely healthy. Her hooves were so relaxed now, and Gecko herself just felt... happy. Her giggling seemed really loud in her ears, and she just couldn't stand up all of the way??? But that was fine! Everything was fine. Everything was g r e a t.

"H-hunter!" Gecko hiccuped, bumbling over to her friend. With a great guffaw, she flopped onto her belly, and stared blearily up at her friend. When had hunter gotten so TALL? She. She didn't seem so tall last time. Tally tally tall. She blinked several times, trying to get hear bearings on the sight before her.

"You- you know you're really pretty when you smile? You. You should smile. You should just smile all the time forever!"  

[Scaramouche Fandango]

"Really? Most kin are put off by it," Fair Hunter said, then dipped her head for another sip of the drink. It made her mind feel all warm and soft, like a pile of bunnies. "You ok? You're, um. Kind of on the floor." She had another sip- really more like a long drink, if she was being honest. "I'm gonna ask this guy, hang on." She turned to the kin in front of her and cracked a little smile, then an enormous grin... then threw her head back in laughter as he ran away whimpering. "No determination! None at all!" She took a loud slurp of the fruit juice and looked back down at Gecko. "I'm not sure you're right about me being pretty, but if that's the effect it has, maybe I SHOULD smile all the time forever! Who needs to fight when you can just smile in combat instead!" She nudged Gecko in the side, helping her stand up. "Come up here and gimme a hoof with this- this line is never going to end!"  

[So Long Gay Bowser]

"I think they are just put off by how PRETTY it is," Gecko replied easily, though if she were more sober, it may have sounded quite like HOLLERING, but that was okay! For the time being, she was blissfully unaware. She could not help the horrendous guffawing that poured out of her mouth. His loss! If he did not see the beauty of Hunter, he was a CHUMP who did not know better.

"Goodbye, loser!" She called cheerily after him, stumbling up to her hooves. Hunter was telling her something or other that seemed important, and she nodded along, more to be polite than really giving much contributing or thoughts... or things. Something.

Wow that was really good juice!!!

"Yes okay!" Gecko was very much a great helper. Bumbling next to her friend, she began to dip cups for the friends in line! Passing them around, Gecko hummed to herself, clearly catching the festival spirit. Whether or not she knew how loudly and obnoxiously off-key her humming was... well. That was another question entirely.  

[Scaramouche Fandango]

"Ok so we gotta give all these kin some juice- they'll come up to us and we use this big shell to dip in because..." Something struck her. "Huh." It worked in her fuzzy brain and got to the thinking part. "That's. That's odd." She turned to Gecko and frowned. "Gekco. Gekco. I'm- hang on, I have something here." She thought a moment more. "Wait. Is- how come somebody has to be in charge? How come we can't trust kin to get their own drinks? Is this not against very nature itself? Is this how kin are truly meant to be, dependent on somebody to give them a drink? Why can they not get their own drinks with the little shells they're drinking out of? Is it... is it because we only have one really nice shell here? IS THAT IT?"  

[So Long Gay Bowser]

Gecko listened along to Hunter's pontificating as best she could, appreciating the thoughtfulness of her most super duper smart friend. It was a good point. A very good point! About... a thing. Something thing. Gecko was doing her best to listen, but listening was very hard? And she just wanted to laugh a lot??? The reptilian kin bit her lip to keep herself from laughing, and nodded along very seriously.

"I think... you are think too much. That is a lot of think." Gecko added, super thoughtfully contributing to the conversation. She flicked an ear in thought, then deciding to say it, continued.

"But. Um. I sort of, maybe, think that it is important for kin to help each other? And maybe like." She paused, squinting to make her brain work better. "...Maybe helping each other have FUN and live life to its fullest. Fullerest. Is a part of why we're here, and what we're meant to do. There's. There's more than actually just eating and hunting and being a grumpy gus. We need to laugh and love, and. And stuff." Gecko laughed.

"And that is why I am here for you! ...But I also think it is maybe the shell?"  

[Scaramouche Fandango]

"See, this is why I need you- because sometimes it's hard to have fun. You don't even know. I'm so bad at it. But like. Gekco. I wouldn't even be here tonight if it wasn't for you and look at how much of a good time this has been. I've even learned to like this weird fruit!" The acha fixed her friend with a smile- good old Gekco wouldn't run away. "Now- ...hold up. Those kin... they want to see a dance..."

The acha's eyes narrowed. "I have to take care of something. No. We have to take care of something."  

[So Long Gay Bowser]

"Having fun is very hard," Gecko agreed, her voice suddenly taking a serious tone. She seemed distant a moment, remembering a thing. Remembering several things she very much did not want to remember. But Hunter was here to chase away the scary! Gecko forced herself to smile, which turned more natural at the mention of a dance.

"I am ready to dance when you are, my friend!"