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Lysander the builder! 500+
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The girl’s eyes gleamed excitedly as they ran over the field. She had yet to discover the terrible thing she had done, because her love for flowers still blinded her. It had been a few weeks since she and Oceane had been in the fields. By closer investigation, it was clear that there was life. Not only vegetables, but also flowers were crawling up from the ground. The girl did not see the weed the same way other creatures would. They would bloom into pretty flowers and smell so so nice, so it spiced up the fields and made them look pretty, because the vegetables were not really that pretty in her opinion. She wondered why flowers were not edible when fruit and vegetables were. Of course, some fruit smelled nice, but the girl was not extremely fond of vegetables. Flowers smelled so nice, but she had once tried to eat the pretty blossoms, but the taste had not been magnificent. It was sad, but on the other hand, not eating flowers made them last longer, and that was a very good thing, because they were so so pretty!
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The sprouts had yet to bloom, but it would happen soon enough, the girl determined as she wandered through the sowing field. ”So so pretty, Baby Duck!” the girl announced, nosing the sprouts lovingly while letting her golden eyes settle at her little baby, Baby Duck. A few days had passed since she had found the little creature and helped it out of the egg. Of course, Noir had wanted to play mother and child with it, but the strange thing was that the baby animal actually followed her around willingly. The puppy had not known that the duckling actually believed that Noir was its mother because it was the first creature that it had laid its eyes on. The tan Aston child found it rather charming, and had, because of her nature, already grown attached to the little creature. It was cute and it squeaked back at her when it talked, unlike Toefur, who never talked back when she spoke to him.
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The girl left the field behind and slowly made her way back towards the family den, a gray duckling wobbling behind her. The girl’s creamy tail moved elegantly back and forth as she made her way through the forested landscape, her baby following without any questions. Noir wanted Baby Duck to have a nice place to sleep, because mommies made nice beds for their babies. Her mother had found a piece of an old rabbit cage that could possibly serve well as a little house for the duckling, if only a few holes were mended and the floor was covered with some bedding. Her mother had left the scene, but she would be home later, and perhaps then she would help her daughter make the duckling’s house ready for Baby Duck. The girl let a light pout enter her face. She wished she knew how to shape shift like adults, because then she could have fixed things without having to fully rely on others. Unfortunately, Noir did not know how to shift.
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What had become of Leland the male wasn’t sure, but as he stroll through the pack lands that his brother had once called home Lysander knew that wherever he was, he wasn’t here anymore. The thought didn’t sadden him, but rather he felt as if he had done Leland a favor. Whatever life Leland had been pretending to live here wasn’t meant for him. Not really. Lysander was sure, almost hundred percent so, that his true purpose in life was chasing about his childhood sweetheart. Never mind that Lyla had chosen another over him. Never mind that she had children. Never mind that Rue would be upset to see the male’s return. Lysander was sure that he had done his brother a favor. Aniwaya, the crazy tribe with it’s silly member’s, was not for his brother. Only nut cases lived there.
He moved happily along on two legs, not at all surprised how easy it had been to cross through the borders and into the pack lands. He hadn’t come across a scout, and it did not surprise him for he rarely scouted the Phoenix Valley borders, why should the wolves in Aniwaya be any less lazy? It was common courtesy for most to stop at the borders and wait for entrance to be granted. Lysander was above that. Or perhaps below it. Either way he ignored protocol and he didn’t come across a single soul until he saw her.
The tiny child with the tiny duck and his face lit up in a grin. Immediately he thought of Oliver and Jake, his two little boys. Had they grown big? Did they have pet ducklings? Sighing away the nostalgia the husky crept up closer, clearing his throat as so not to startle the little girl. Little girls were probably scared rather easily. “Hello there little miss... it’s certainly a nice day to take your duckling for a stroll, don’t ya think?” Lysander slowly crouched down, finding it far easier to converse with children this way.
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500+
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Although her main attention had been elsewhere, the girl quickly noticed the black and white male’s approach. Her light ears folded backwards in silent awe to see a stranger so close to the Aston family den. The immediate discomfort that always seemed to rush to her whenever strangers made their appearances made her slightly sad, because she was starting to realize that this was not how it should be. Brennt, the puppy eater, had scared her so much that the fear and panic always grabbed out after her whenever a new face looked in her direction. The approaching man did not seem hostile in any way. Actually, he seemed to take care to not seem threatening. Of course, her vivid imagination suggested that it was because he wanted to get closer to eat her, but her more sensible mind assured her that this was hardly the case. However, the girl’s body grew slightly stiff as the other man came closer, yet she was determined that he was not necessarily a bad man just because he did not belong to these lands. The girl did not really ponder the reason why a trespasser was this far into the territories. Uncle Ho came here all the time because he was family and her friend, so maybe this guy had friends here as well? Actually, he smelled slightly like Uncle Ho (of Phoenix Valley, to be more specific), and some of her guard dropped instantly when she recognized that scent.
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His voice was kind, and he crouched down to her level, executing the big difference in height. She liked that. He did not immediately grab after Baby Duck to eat it either, so he had to be a very nice man. Some people wanted to eat her little baby, but the child would not allow such a thing. A good mommy did not let people eat her babies, the girl knew at least that much. The stupid duckling did not know better, and wobbled in-between the two canines and randomly around in circles and random paths close to its guardian. ”Hello Man, you smell like my uncle, so I don’t think you will eat me like Brennt.” the girl said clumsily to the man. He looked a bit weird, his markings slightly alien to her. He had to be a wolf, but he did not look entirely like one. ”I am not strolling my baby, I am repairing its room.” Noir pointed at the poorly maintained rabbit house with her snout. She did not know how to repair the thing, but even though she did not know how, she still wanted to somehow do it without mommy’s help.
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Her golden gaze returned to the man with the light eyes, silently wondering who he was. “I am Noir and this is Baby Duck.” Maybe he would offer her his own name in return. The girl had early learned to be polite, and tried to follow those basic rules as well as she could. It always paid off being a kind to other people, because they always seemed to respond with kindness, except for that horrible wolf that had tried to eat her!
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The unrefined speaking skills of the girl made him grin, and he marveled at the child’s logic. The content, of her first comment, was a little alarming. She was not the first puppy to comment on him partaking in the act of cannibalism. Who was going around eating puppies? Was there a puppy eating epidemic he didn’t know about? Nodding his head in agreement with her, he spoke, warm and jolly. “Well you don’t smell like my niece, but I won’t eat you anyway.” Did he even have a niece? Leland certainly had no children and he didn’t know of any children of Leroy or Lyle.
Steel eyes moved over to Baby Duck, who was waddling about her mistress like a stupid duck is liable to do. “Nice to meet you Noir. And Baby Duck. I’m Lysander. Duck house fixer extraordinaire.” Truth be told he had never fixed a duck house before, but he had built other, more complicated structures. A duck’s house would be a cake walk.
Lysander looked over the poor rabbit’s cage, there were holes in the wire and wood, and the contraption offered no protection from the wind or rain at all anymore. The male rubbed his hands together and looked back to the strange pair. Child and duckling. “Do you folks keep any tools or anything ‘round here? We need some wood too.” They could always trek over to Halifax, but Lysander was willing to bet with wolves so sophisticated as the crazy tribe people, they had tools of some sort.
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Wherever you want to find the stuff. 500+
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He smiled at her, and of course the blonde girl could do nothing but smile back. His words made her ears flicker backwards in caution. His words confirmed that he would not eat her, but he made it sound like he could eat puppies if he was in the right mood. Noir’s eyes stayed on him, not feeling completely safe despite his light mood. Despair filled her head for a moment, settling on her face as well for only a split moment. She did not want to feel this way. She wanted to be happy and feel safe. Strangers were not bad, only one had been. That one loner had been so frightening that she could not escape the uncomfortable feeling that rose when she met new people from outside of Dahlia. She reminded herself that he most likely was Uncle Ho’s friends, and her face relaxed again.
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He did not seem to want to eat her baby either, which was a very good thing, because he was not food, he was a baby, and people should not eat babies. Not her babies anyways. Lysander the duck house fixer extraordainaie. Extraoorli. Extra. Ordinaire. The child huffed, wanting to repeat his words but doubted she would get the last word right. Her golden eyes took in his steel ones, and she let her tail resume its usual wag. ”Duck house fixer man, whoah, I need a Duck house fixer man, and so does Baby Duck because he needs a Duck house and a Duck house fixer man to fix the house that needs fixing.” The girl’s voice was strained in the end, out of air. The girl inhaled deeply, though proud because she had made such a long sentence without having to make a break to inhale in the middle of it.
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Tools? The girl took a moment to turn around in a useless circle. Yes. Her Mommy had found that too so that the house could be fixed. ”Yes, is over there!” the girl said, pointing her head in a random direction, not actually knowing if there was anything in that direction. ”Mommy said she had found wood and things to repair with but I do not know where.” the child said with a touch of sadness attached to her golden voice. She started to step around aimlessly, wondering where tools and wood could be. She knew that trees had wood in them, but she did not know how to make trees into wood. Maybe it was in the den? How did tools look like? The girl felt useless, but the Duck house fixer extranaire could not be! ”Maybe tools in den, go look?”
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The girl did not think about that her family might get sour if they found a stranger’s scent inside their den, but Noir did not know what to look for. She would explain anyway. There was nothing in the world that could not be solved. Her family could never stay angry with her for long, at least not her light mother.
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Lysander watched happily as the girl spun in circles and paced to and fro, speaking childish words with bad grammar. Why didn’t he have children of his own? If he did, surely some crazy wench from Dahlia de Mai couldn’t barge into his home demanding their release. Not if they were his, his, his. Of course, to have a family one normally needed a women first, and those, while not hard to come back, weren’t really on his list of things he wanted to keep around. And even if he did find a women who produced puppies but didn’t want to stay with him, she probably wouldn’t just hand over the children anyway. Women were funny like that, so protective of their little creations.
“Okay, okay, I’ll go take a look.” Lysander moved slowly towards the den, pausing to sniff carefully at the entrance. No one was in, which meant with little Noir’s permission he was free to enter. It did not take long to find the tiny scraps of lumber and the hammer and flimsy nails. There was no saw, but he would make due with what he had. Picking it up in his arms he emerged from the den and returned to the girl and Baby Duck. Dropping the wood in a pile Lysander was careful not to drop it all on Baby Duck’s head.
Once again he looked over the rabbit house. He had no wire to repair the holes, but he could at least file away the sharp edges so tiny little Baby Duck did not snag himself on the wire. Maybe though, if they could find some twine they could weave a netting to keep Baby Duck in, and bad things out. Grabbing some wood that seemed about the right size Lysander began to patch the biggest hole in the structure, almost forgetting little Noir as he became absorbed in his work. Looking up he saw the girl watching him, and he smiled. “Anything special ya want done with this house?”
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300+
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It was cosy to have a guest. Only guests were allowed to come down into the family den, and when she watched him disappear into the darkness, she realized that this was exactly what he was. A guest in her home, and she had to try to be nice to him. This would be not be very hard, because Noir usually behaved nicely always, except when she had something on her heart that was very important to her. Normally she was bright and warm like the flattering summer sun. The girl waited outside for him, wondering if he found what he needed. She knew not what was tools and stuff for the duckling’s house and what was mommy’s private stuff, so it was better to have the guest find it. If Mommy got angry at her for messing around with her things, the light furred girl could always explain that it had not been her, but Lysander the duck house fixer ordainares. That last word he had said was very tricky. ”Extradoiraire.” the girl mumbled under her breath, wondering what it meant. The girl’s questioning gaze turned to the gray duckling, but it seemed to have no clue either. It was usually clueless about everything anyway.
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The man exited the den carrying lots of things and she hoped that was what he needed to repair the house. She hoped it was not him stealing a lot of them. Obviously, he would have taken Toefur too then, because he was the most valuable thing inside there (okay, in her opinion, that was), so she quickly discarded that silly thought. Special she wanted with the house? Hmm. ”I want it to be pretty looking and very pretty so that Baby Duck will love it and like to live in it even if it means he has to sleep all by himself. He must not freeze.” the girl said, too excited to notice her horrible speech. She bounced around the wrecked box, wondering how it would look like after Lysander the duck something was done fixing it. It would look so so so pretty and Baby Duck would be so happy and live all on his own kind of except for that she would live close by. Her siblings did not particularly like having the duck in the den, and Noir was actually slightly afraid one of them might snap the animal’s neck by accident. Or step on it, anything.
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Lysander grabbed more wood, barely registering the girl’s words. “Yes, yes. Pretty, pretty and oh so warm.” He was in his happy place now. Tools in hand, very quickly the rotten wood was replaced and all the holes were patched rather quickly. It looked like it could contain an animal again, or almost. Taking up the remaining pieces of wood he constructed a wall, with a little opening and fit it snugly in the box so that it was broken into two parts. One “room” was all wood, except for the opening big enough for a duck. It could be lined with warm material and would make a nice nesting area. The other part was open, the wire mesh still needed mending but Baby Duck could be outside without really leaving him home. Lysander nodded and turned to see what other tools he had.
There wasn’t much else to work with, but Lysander set about bending the holes in the wire so that sharp edges would not snag the fragile duck. Remembering his assistant he looked up and smiled. If he made her busy he could sneak off and find more tools and material. “Well, do you see Baby Duck has his own little den now? But he’ll need you to help fill it, otherwise he won’t stay warm.” He smiled and looked around the little clearing they sat in. Maybe she would find grass and leaves or run into the den and take something from there, either way Lysander looked for the best escape route to leave and return quickly, scouting out what other things this pack had to offer Baby Duck and his new home.
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500+
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He repeated her words and she was so very delighted to hear that he fully agreed with her. It was fascinating to see the adult working with the house. It seemed she had been lucky with her newest acquaintance so far. He really seemed to know what he was doing. The girl watched from every angle as he walked, dancing around in circles in her playful ways, although keeping some distance so that she would not disturb the man. Baby Duck followed her movements, although it happened that it ran a few rounds around the man as well. The girl was happy that the duckling had no troubles with wolves in general, but sometimes she had this fear that a wolf could see it as a meal before she could get the time to explain that it was her baby. Perhaps she should put some collar or something similar on it. A PINK COLLAR. Yes, yes, yes, yes.
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Her tail waved back and forth happily when the man finally turned to look at her. The result was dazzling, and she was so amazed at how fast he had done it. He spoke and finally suggested something that she too could help with. ”Yes!” she added quickly, the sun playing in her face. How could it be possible to be so nice. The girl did not know how she could express her feelings sufficiently. She just knew that she wanted him to know how grateful she was. The girl jumped forwards at him, cuddling against him as close to his chest as she could get. She shook her face lightly as she poked her silky muzzle against his light fur. She loved kind people like Lysander the duck house fixer. ”I can do that!” her voice suddenly announced, and she darted away as quickly as she had darted at him.
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She wanted some of that long yellowish grass that she had seen in the nest thingy where she had found the egg in the first place. It was not too far away. As usual, she was full of unused energy, and it took her no time to reach the area close to the pond. The girl tilted her head sideways and closed her jaws around the tall grass. It was hard to just rip up, so the roots decided to come along when she yanked hard enough. The girl wagged her tail and went on, seemingly oblivious of this. At one point the girl hesitated. Perhaps she could take the blanket that Dawali had come with quite a few months earlier. Yes, yes, yes, yes! She turned around and padded back, wondering where she had seen it last. She did not believe any of her siblings were using it at the moment, so it would not be missed.
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She held on to the load of grass clutched in-between her jaws anyway, determined to have it on the bottom under the blanket (if she could find it). Yes, yes. It was not really before now that the girl noticed that Baby Duck had not followed her. Did that mean that it liked Lysander the Duck builder man thingy? She hoped he liked Baby Duck too. At least he already knew that he couldn’t eat the duckling.
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The silver husky was startled as the girl pressed herself against him, her muzzle nuzzling into his chest. Hesitantly, only because he had not been expecting such affection not because he did not enjoy it, he placed a large hand on the girls back and patted her. Then she was off again and for a moment Lysander stared after her, missing Oliver and Jake again. Perhaps it was silly, he knew that they weren’t his, but he felt as if he was missing his own children. Puppies were a joy, Lysander fully understood why others enjoyed reproduction. When they grew up, maybe they weren’t so grand, but as tiny creatures that adored the adults in their life, Lysander wished he had some of his own.
Pulling himself up, and noting that Baby Duck was following, he scooped up the tiny, cheeping creature and strode quickly in the opposite direction. For a long time he did not find anything, no more homes, no sheds, nothing and he thought he’d have to return empty handed. Then he saw it, the barn, and he heard the animals inside but they were not what interested him. “Let’s have a look, shall we?” Baby Duck cheeped it’s consent and inside they went, Lysander happily rummaging through another’s property as if he was more than welcome. There was various supplies in the barn, most of them pertaining to the horses and completely useless to Lysander but he found some twine and a small can of purple paint, both of which he picked up and exited with.
Returning, he found Noir standing alone, and he came over and set Baby Duck and the can of paint gently in front of her. “I hope Baby Duck likes purple, that’s all I could find. What should we paint on her house?” He sat himself beside the Duck box again and pulled out the twine, mending the holes in the wire with it, weaving a netting to keep Baby Duck safely inside.
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300+, end this soon?
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Both Baby Duck and Lysander fixer man was gone, and after a minute or two the girl actually started to fear that the adult had stolen her baby. Thankfully both creatures returned to her before her heart managed to pick up an upset rhythm. A large smile found its way to her lips (again) as she looked at happy Baby Duck waddling after the weirdly coated wolf. It was so cute. Baby Duck seemed to have made its first friend. As its mommy, the girl felt proud as she watched them approach. Soon after though, her golden eyes focused on the can that Lysander was carrying back with him. She wondered what was inside! The man’s words and question explained what was in the can, and Noir’s tail went crazy again at the thought of purple on Baby Duck’s house. Purple was very close to pink, so the idea that Lysander the duck house fixer extradoidare now proposed was most welcome. The girl squealed immaturely in her glee, dancing around the man, duck and duck house with her bum shaking from side to side all too contently.
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”I want whole box to be pretty purple pretty!” the girl said with absolute happiness in her voice. The blonde girl then turned to Baby Duck, who had started following her again now after a few rounds around the small box. ”We going to give you so pretty nice home, Baby Duck, it will be so almost-pink and so super nice, lucky baby.” after the shower of words her tongue started attacking the small water bird, causing it to squeak and start to run away from her rather than after her. The puppy giggled and followed a few yards before she turned back to jump over to Lysander’s side. ”I like flowers, perhaps make flowers all over the box? Baby Duck likes flowers too, because I think he does and I think it is a boy and not a girl but I don’t really know either but you said her and its wrong I think!” Noir had no way of figuring out the gender, though she was quite certain that it was a male just because it fitted best for her baby to be a boy. Maybe the yellow ducks were girl ducks and the gray ducks were boy ducks.
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Lysander smiled down at the girl, she seemed pleased with his selection and Lysander never grew tired of listening to the way she spoke to Baby Duck. The female was so happy and optimistic, Lysander felt that the world would be a much better place, or at least a much more fun place, if everyone were like Noir. Of course, Lysander knew, while he could be that way when he wished, he also enjoyed more deviant behaviors, it was hard to imagine little Noir partaking in some of the activities he enjoyed. Lying, stealing, drinking, sex... One could not be so innocent and careful after indulging in such past times. Lysander could forget about it for a while, he could act as optimistic and childlike as Noir but never would he really be on the same level. Lysander hoped Noir would never grow up.
“Yes, yes, flowers. Very good choice.” Lysander picked up a stick and with a sure and steady hand began to trace out simple, but elegant flower designs onto the wood. At times he would trace over them, the old and worn wood having trouble soaking up the paint, but in the end there were dozens of flowers decorating the little bird's cage. “Nice, huh?” Setting down the stick he smiled at little Noir, standing up. “Well, princess, I think I should be headin' home. It's been great hanging with ya, but I have other things to do.” Just what, he wasn't sure yet, but he would find something fun. Leaving Noir wasn't something he wanted to do but eventually someone would come home and he didn't want to be there when they did. “Maybe your mum can help ya find some nice things to put inside, or another color to paint it, yeah? Take care girly.” Bowing to the girl with a flourish, Lysander took his leave of her.
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