The snake and the Seer...but mostly the snake. :)
Ferravale Chieftain's home
Basilisk the snake. Nightbreath the ermine. Blisa the cat and Ferdinand the ferret.
It's quiet for the moment in the Scioto household. Mostly because the snake has no desire to move from in front of the fire place. He stares with out blinking into the flames, Occasionally he will look down at his coiled body. What has he become? His scales are fat and soft, his bite has dulled and his instincts are waning. He doesn't feel like a snake anymore, some kind of large, pet reptile. He has given up his pride for a soft bed and good food. The reptile sighs deeply.
Nightbreath walks in and freezes. A snake. Quickly and silently he draws his blade, preparing to strike.
Blisa has been cleaning her room (she's getting to that age where it's oh-so-easy to just let be a mess and show that someone lives there), and she comes out of there so she can get a wet rag because she found a dead....well, she /thinks/ it used to be a sandwich, but she's not sure. Anyway, so she comes into the living room, sees the Seer about to kill her pat snake, and leaps into the way, spreading out her paws and yelling, "NO KILLING MY SNAKE FRIEND!" Ferdinand, who was in the cellar trying to figure out what to do with the partial shed snake skin he found down there, comes running up the steps and through the kitchen, brandishing his sabre fiercely. Upon seeing that it's only the ermine, he sighs and sheaths his sword, half wishing that sometime someone would find the snake when Blisa and himself weren't at home...
Not even knowing the ermine was there the snake gasps in shock at the kittens yowl. He turns his head quickly to see a tasty ermine here brandishing a sword. The large whiptail raises to his full height against the ceiling. He is large enough to gobble down the ferret and ermine whole now. "You threaten Blissssah!" The snake hisses, completely miss reading the situation. "You're death will be most unpleasssent..." The snake rattles his tail in excitement, even though he doesn't have one, as he gets ready to strike at the ermine.
Nightbreath quickly sheaths his blade, holding his paws out apologetically. "I did not know it was your friend," he explains. He suddenly lunges and seizes the snake firmly by the neck, staring it in the face unblinkingly. "Don't even think about it," he murmurs.
Blisa screeches like, well, a very angry cat and pounces upon the two of them, going to dig her claws into the flesh of the both of them. "Both of you, KNOCK IT OFF! Nightbreath, let go of Basil NOW!! Basilisk! This ermine is a friend, even though he's not acting like it, SO JUST CHILL OUT!!!!" Ferdinand rushes forward, leaping over the very large snake's tail and tries to pry the Seer's paws off the snakes neck, temporarily forgetting that he's wanted to do this very same thing to the whiptail on multiple occasions.
Basil gags and coughs, "ACK!" with the ermine's claws around his wind pipe and the kittens claws in the side of his softened scales. "Ermine...friend...got it." He says with difficulty.
Nightbreath releases the snake immediately now that it's made clear that he's not an enemy. "Very well," he says, folding his arms behind his back, satisfied that the snake's learned his lesson.
Blisa stamps her foot, obviously not satisfied. "Now both of you, apologize to each-other. And you!" she points an accusatory finger at the ermine. "I thought you were a Seer! One would think you would've know he was a friend all along!"
Basil Breaths deeply for a moment. His throat a little sore still. "Define...friend?" the snake hisses, looking like he is still ready to gobble up the ermine. He peers at him for a long while, now, he's about as well fed as Ferdinand. No meat on his bones.
"The voices are very...selective in what they reveal," Nightbreath says defensively. He offers his paw to the snake without thinking, then embarrassedly retracts it. "Cry your pardon, sai Basil." Nightbreath freezes. "Something's wrong at the tavern." He quickly excuses himself and runs out.
Blisa sputters a little as the ermine leaves the house, her green eyes flashing angrily. Ferdinand sighs and sits down on the floor, going to lean against the snake's side as he covers his eyes with a paw.
The snake tilts his head to the side then begins to coil slowly around Ferdinand, "Friend eh?" He smiles at Ferdinand, "Don't worry Ferret...Basssilissk isss jussst giving you friendly hug..." He is still amazed how someone who can cook so well is still such a scrawny shrimp. Perhaps one day he /will/ eat him merely out of spite.
Ferdinand gets his sabre out and gives the snake a meaningful look. "It had better be." Blisa presses her fists to her temples and tries to calm down. "Yeah, he's a friend....he just has....selective hearing...is all.....yeah, that's it."
The snake gives an innoscent look to ferdinand, "What elsssss would it be? You don't think I would eat my ssservant and friend would you?" Basil has come to realize that threats do not work on these beasts, prehaps a new tactic can be used to get under the ferrets skin. After all, if Ferdinand attacks him Basilisk can eat him in self defense.
Ferdinand just glares knowingly at the whiptail, clearly not believing the charade. Blisa has calmed down significantly, and so she gives the snake's nose a light tap and says, with much finger wagging and frowns, "No eating Ferdy! He is a friend and an ally, and absolutely /not/ a servant! You hear?"
Basilisk leans back when his nose is bopped. Then smiles, "Oh? But he ssservesss me food, cleansss up after messsess, picksss up ssscales. Are these not the actions of a ssservent?" The snake releases his grip of Ferdinand but still coils around the general area as he talks.
Ferdinand makes his escape and climbs up onto a couch, loosly and expertly holding his sabre as he nervously watches the little confrontation. Blisa puts her fists on her hips and juts her little chin out. "So maybe they are, but what else can he do? We don't have a hired help! Maybe we should get one..." she suddenly gets lost in thought.
The snake zig zags around still encircling Ferdy but at a distance, "Did you hear that ferretsssss...you are getting a fellow ssservent..."
Ferdinand glares coldly at the snake, but stays silent. Why? Because Blisa is talking for him. "Stop calling him a servant, or so help me, I'll call you a worm!" she accentuates this with 2 solid stamps.
The serpent hisses once or twice then goes to curle around Blisa, again at a distance and looks down at her, "FIne...I will call the ferret something besssidess ssservent." He scratches at his chin with his tail, "I know! Buttler!"
Blisa growls deep in her throat and bares all her pointy, sharp-looking white teeth. "No! You will /not/ call him Butler, servant, maid, slave, orderly, footman, or any other kind of servant name. You won't even call him 'the ferret'. His name is Ferdinand, and that is what you shall call him, or /I/ shall call /you/ Mud the worm. Sound good?" She smiles coldly, daring the snake to challenge her.
The snake chuckles at himself. He may not strike terror into the hearts of beasts but he still strikes annoyance at least. It makes him feel warm and cuddly inside. Ruffling Blisa's head fur with his tail the snake smiles pleasantly, "Sure thing Blisa. Oh Ferdinand...do be a friend and warm up ssssome cheessse bread. I am ssstarving." He giggles as he slithers into the kitchen.
Ferdinand roars with frustration and flops over onto the sofa. No. Just, no. Hopping up, he grabs Blisa's paw and dashes otu the front door, leaving the snake behind. He can warm up his own stupid cheese bread.
Thanks for reading!
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