Twelve Days of Wzzt-Chaos

[The Legion]

OOC: Since the cats live with Ophyra, our resident witch gets two times the Whazzitmas chaosfun!  Let's see how she reacts to discovering not just one but TWO new piles of trouble, courtesy of her houseguests.

---

On the third day of Whazzitmas, Saint Keehar gave to me...

Oui, French wolves! When you wake up, it'll be hard to miss the puppy curled up right beside your head. When it got there isn't exactly clear, but there it is, wearing a bow around its neck, and a sleepy canine expression of confusion. Maybe it doesn't know why it's there either. When asked, the pup will absolutely respond -- and exactly how well you know French might determine how much of the explanation you understand. Yes, it seems that in addition to the mother tongue of drow, this fuzzy little pup speaks that old terran favorite. Whenever you decide to get out of bed, there are also three slippers at the foot of your bed; two for you, one for your Ikal'daka to chew on? They're shaped like little hens, complete with ridiculous feathers. Why do the slippers babble in French when you walk? The world may never know. At least the puppy seems to like theirs.

---

When Alabaster did not immediately get up from napping on Ophyra's books to show the newly arrived pup around, Khaliizi decided to explore on his own.  But first he had to get down from the books, too. Don't ask how he ended up on top of the books without tipping them over; it was part of the magic of Whazzitmas.  Going back down, however, had no such benefits, and it did not go smoothly.  There was a scrabbling of paws, some high-pitched yelping, and a solid THUMP.  The books survived, and Alabaster was not knocked off them.  That's about all that went right.  Khaliizi?  Khaliizi ended up sprawled on the floor, chin resting on one of the army of slippers that had accompanied him - one for every paw of The Legion, plus his own larger slipper, made for a full baker's dozen - and the rest scattered all over from his exceedingly undignified tumble. Ooops.

Alabaster glanced down, huffed a sigh, and promptly tucked his head back onto his paws, drawing his tail over his eyes resolutely. This was sooooo not his problem right now. Nope. Not going to touch it.

[Deleted]

Ophyra had not been prepared for puppies or babbling french-hen slippers. She couldn't even understand the language. Korit'al, at least, was a well-behaved puppy and spoke drow which she did understand. The witch discovered pretty quickly that he wasn't a trouble-maker, and was quite intelligent for being so young, which was a plus. She already had to deal with two young whers, and they were handful enough. The slippers were pushed under her bed for now, though Korit'al claimed his and stashed it elsewhere. Finally, when Oph though the morning had settled down, she heard the large crash. She gave a heavy, long sigh.

Korit'al beat his bonded to the scene of the crime. The neccasalmor approached Khaliizi and sniffed, eyes grazing over the sight of strewn books and a sleeping Alabaster, still on the bookshelf. Ophyra walked in shortly afterwards, eyes sharp. She took in the sight of Alabaster, the books across the floor, and the puppy, sprawled amongst said books. "... Alabaster, you dropped your puppy. And my books," she said, peering at the sleeping cat sharply. Korit'al nosed Khaliizi, attempted to help the poor puppy to his feet.

[The Legion]

I don't have a puppy, Alabaster insisted, tail still covering his eyes as he held his spot firmly atop his book perch. And I didn't drop anything. I didn't move one hair, thank you very much. Ask the puppy, if you can understand the beast. How is your French?

Khaliizi was more embarrassed than anything - the books and slippers had broken his fall, so he was without injury to anything save his dignity. And hey, he didn't break any of the books or slippers, so that was all good, right? Right?? Tail wagging, he accepted Korit'al's nose up and scrambled to his feet - okay, so now maybe there were some scratches on book covers, but it wasn't that bad. Just surface damage. Ahem. Beaucoup d'excuses, ma chère dame. Je ne m'attendais pas à ce que les livres soient si ... glissants. Je vais les remettre, the pup said fervently and, suiting action to words, promptly started trying to pick up the books to put them away. Of course, all he had to use was his mouth, so, add some slobber and teeth marks to those scrapes?

[Deleted]

Ophyra shook her head at Alabaster as he insisted the puppy was not his. Korit'al glanced back at his bonded, but the witch gave up on the cat, knowing he wouldn't budge from his spot or take any responsibility for the puppy. Her own pup seemed pleased that Khaliizi wasn't injured, as he stood right up at his nosing. When Khaliizi spoke to her, and began trying to pick up the books, the witch stared at him blankly before turning to Korit'al.

Uk telanthus uk zhahus taudl, lu'uk orn'la pict l'books phor, he translated into drow for her. Ophyra then turned back to Khaliizi, carefully stepping over books to kneel next to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I don't expect you to be as graceful as a cat from that high," she said, nudging him so he'd turn around to face her. Once he did so- if he did so, anyways- she'd look him up and down, making sure he actually was perfectly fine. Then she sighed, dropping her hand away from him. "I'll pick these up. Why don't you go along with Korit'al?" I mean really, who could get mad at a puppy? Wasn't his fault he was dropped onto the bookshelf.

She idly considered getting more books to fill up the bookshelf so Alabaster couldn't use it as a napping spot.

[The Legion]

Khaliizi beamed at Ophyra when she knelt beside him and looked him over, gleeful for the attention and readily moving about as directed. He evinced no signs of injury - but he started shaking his head vigorously when she spoke. Ah, non, ma dame, vous vous méprenez. C'était entièrement de ma faute. Je suis allé là-bas par moi-même. Descendre était simplement ... plus difficile. He was not going to blame Whazzitmas magic, or his new cat friend, for his failure to descend without chaos, nor would he leave Ophyra with that impression. Confidently, he continued, Ne sois pas insatisfait de mon ami. Il n'était pas préparé pour moi. Il va s'ajuster. . Having adequately defended his bonded, the puppy wended his way out of the mess and looked to Korit'al for direction, tail still wagging with good cheer.

[Deleted]

Ophyra peered at the pup as he came to Alabaster's defence and took responsibility for the mess. The elf listened to Korit'al's quiet translation, then merely nodded with a bemused expression on her face to Khaliizi. When the pup turned his attention to her bond, the elf peered at the cat still lounging on her bookshelf. "You could learn a thing or two from that pup." She flashed a grin before gathering her books up.

Je pense qu'il neige encore. Korit'al's tone was heavily suggestive, eyes lighting up as his tail began to wag steadily faster.

[The Legion]

Alabaster ignored Ophyra entirely, because that's what cats do when they don't want to hear good sense being spoken.

Neige? Ah, oui, ça irait. Laissez-nous partir, mon ami! Khaliizi bounced in and out of the classic bow of a puppy eager to play, then bounded for the door, all set to play in the snow with the larger 'Daka.

And if playing in the snow meant wet dog odor later, well, that would just further Alabaster's insistence that the puppy was not his. At least the other cats would be willing to help with the drying process.

---

On the sixth day of Whazzitmas, Saint Keehar gave to me...

Nothing happens in the hours of dawn. Nothing still throughout the day, even until the lights of twilight were gathering at the edges of the sky. Right before it gets too dark, there's a knock on the door. Alright, what now. Carefully placed in a basket, wrapped in blankets is an egg. It is medium in size, dashed with any sort of color or pattern or lack of either. What could possibly be in this egg? It's not too heavy, not too light, could be carried around quite reasonably...but it was impossible to tell what exactly was in it. And how soon it would hatch.

---

No sooner had Ophyra placed her Whazzitmas-delivered egg on the mantle than another knocking came at the door. Tinker had watched as Yvalm retrieved the basket and the elf put it out of immediate reach. Peeking out the front windows, she observed, There is another one! And this basket had a little tag on it that read 'CATS' - just like a few other new arrivals. Immediately, Tinker shared her sight with her mind-siblings, starting a brief argument on their private band.

A: Now this is awkward.
M: What?
A: It's an EGG.  What do we do with an EGG?
M: Eat it.
T: NO! Eggs have babies in them. We have to keep it warm and safe and...
A: And what?
T: And take care of it!
A: Fine, that's your job.

That settled, Tinker looked toward Yvalm and Ophyra again. Please, would you bring my egg in and put it up safe, too?

(5/20 egg)

[Deleted]

As Ophyra set the egg atop the fireplace, Tinker's request spilled out of her mind and into both Oph's and Yvalm's. Elf and wolf stopped and turned to her. The elf eventually sighed, relinquishing the basket and stepping around Ophysk as he whimpered, completely ignoring the wher. She walked back over and looked out of the window- "I should be used to this by nice," she said dryly to herself. Opening the arched, wooden door again, she scooped up the basket and brought it inside.

"Don't knock over the baskets when you jump up here," she warned Tinker as she approached the fireplace once more. Upon seeing his bond come back with another egg, one that was clearly meant for him, the sulphur wher bounded over. He nearly knocked over the slim elf on her ass as his claws dug into her legs, trying to get to the egg. Ophyra was quick to yank the basket out of his reach, and Yvalm was faster still to knock him off their bond and pin him to the hardwood floor.

[2/20 egg]

[The Legion]

I promise, I will be careful! Thank you so much for helping. Tinker meowed eagerly as Ophyra collected her precious egg-laden basket and trotted along behind her, keeping a watchful, trusting eye on the proceedings - right up until Ophysk went for the egg. Noooo, my egg! the cat wailed, leaping to interpose herself, only to be beaten to the tackle by Yvalm. Tinker's leap, therefore, overshot, and she landed heavily on her paws on the wher's opposite side. Puffing up in classic upset cat mode, the marmalade tabby hissed and spat at the pinned wher, back arched and tail thick as a bottle brush. You do not touch my egg! That is my baby, not yours! Leave it alone! she yelled at the wher as she continued hissing, growling, and snarling in the defensive rage of a worried momma cat. The only thing she didn't do was lash out; even if she was mad, Ophysk had not - yet - hurt the egg, so she would not - yet - hurt him back.

(7/20 egg)

[Deleted]

Ophysk was less than thrilled about being thwarted from his egg. He thrashed against the watcher, but the large kal'daka was more than a match for him. He held the sulphur down easily while watching Tinker curse at him in silence. Ophyra, meanwhile, was cursing herself. "I'll make sure he stays away. Yvalm, were going to need to keep him out of the hut." As the watched nodded in agreement, the elf gingerly stepped around the tabby and snarling wher to put Tinker's egg safely next to her own.

The sulphur realized his chance was gone, and he started to whimper instead of growl.

[3/20 egg]

[The Legion]

Tinker's aggressive stance eased slightly as Ophyra successfully deposited the cat's egg atop the mantle, though her tail continued to lash and her attention was largely fixed on the wher. Thank you, Ophyra, Yvalm, she murmured, shifting to the side to leave a clear path between Yvalm and the door so that the 'Daka could move the wher around without a feline obstacle. My baby!  Mine! she said again to the sulpher as he whimpered, then she turned her back on him and leapt to the mantle, stepping lightly around its contents until she reached her basket.  With a single claw the marmalade cat hooked the blanket covering her basket and pulled it back, exposing the opalescent shell. Ooooh, it is so pretty! she cooed, leaving in to touch her nose gently against the shell. What does your look like? she asked Ophyra, raising her head for a moment to look at the witch, then toward the other basket on the mantle.

(10/20 egg)

[Deleted]

As Yvalm dragged the sulphur out of the living room, and consequently out of the hut, the witch watched Tinker leap onto the mantle of the fireplace to inspect her egg. Ophyra was mildly amused at the cat's swift and firm attachment to the egg; it was rather large for a cat to be coveting, after all. At her question, the elf approached the mantle herself and lifted the blanket to reveal her own egg. It was a darkly colored shell, black around the bottom and edges, the center a glowing copper shade and fading out to bronze as it got closer to the black edge. Black and white speckles covered the egg in its entirety, concentrated at the edges and sparser towards the bright copper center. "Unlike any egg I've seen before," the elf eventually answered. After allowing Tinker to get a good look at it, she dropped the blanket so it covered the shell again. "I'll have Yvalm watch them if you need to leave for.. cat things. He likes watching, anyways." She winked, before kneeling to tend to the fire.

[4/20 egg]

[The Legion]

Tinker purred appreciatively as she joined Ophyra in inspecting the witch's egg, turning her head this way and that to examine it. Your egg is very pretty too, she crooned with approval, and leaned forward to give it a sniff. It didn't smell like anything familiar, and neither did her own egg, but they sort of smelled alike to each other. Sort of. And the smell made her nose itch, just a little. Huh. At Ophyra's generous offer the marmalade tabby hastened to say, Oh, only if it is not a bother![/i] She set about adjusting the folds of fabric within which the egg nestled, kneading at the piled material with her paws until it all settled in juuuust right. But if he wants to, I would be happy for the help. Thank you both.

Now if only they could figure out what was IN the eggs....

---

On the tenth day of Whazzitmas, Saint Keehar gave to me...

It was so close to the big day! Whazzitians were mostly prepped and ready for Saint Keehar's grand arrival. Trees were up and decoratered, stockings were hung- this year supplied by SK himself!- and some even had lights up! Everyone would be in a good and cheerful mood that day, no matter what it had in store for them, as if a blanket of cheerfulness had enveloped the Weyrd. While everyone was crawling into bed that night, they'd discover a surprising little friend! All curled up and nice and cozy were little firelizards, clutching a note with each Whazzitians name on it. But everyone would notice that these flitts weren't all that normal; flitts didn't usually have fur, did they?

---

The next time Tinker went to snuggle up with her strange egg, she found a new surprise: a pretty, fuzzy firelizard with soft, supple fur in oranges and an extremely pale yellow that eerily matched Tinker's own coloring and markings. The dozy little firelizard had a note clutched in one hand that, like many other shinies before her, read 'Cats', so Tinker at least knew the firelizard wasn't here to steal her egg, but, well, it really didn't look quite right. Ophyra had a few firelizards, and none of them were furry.

Ophyra? I think something is wrong with this firelizard. HELP!

(Egg 19/20)

[Deleted]

Ophyra heard Tinker from her bedroom. She herself had noticed the firelizard a little late; it was only after she had checked her bed, trying to find one of her gemstones that had gone missing, that she found the fuzzy creature. She was currently standing in front of her bed, head tilted to the side, brow quirked. The sleeping noon was not waking up for the eyes that were upon her, snoring quietly, little tip tail draped over her nose. Sighing, she decided to leave the noon there and sought out the feline whom had called out for her assistance.

It didn't take her long to find the tabby in her hut. She was almost always with that egg of hers now. Her own egg was placed next to it, atop the fireplace, but the witch usually only checked on it once, maybe twice, a day. Her creatures checked on it more than her, which eliminated the need for her to watch it at all, honestly. Ahem, anyways, the witch arrived and stopped in front of the fire, eyes taking in the sight of the startled cat and the unphased firelizard. "Looks fine to me," the witch countered, peering at the lizard that looked half-asleep with a keen eye. No (life-threatening) mutations, injuries, or malnourishment here.