I'm packed and I'm holding

(For @Kuhn! iPad post so apologies for the crappy quality )

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She still loved exploring, of course, it was like . . . one of her favourite things to do while she searched for a proper home to settle down — which was kind of the same thing as exploring, but don’t tell Lasagna that. What she planned for was to roam around as a vagabond so much that she wore out all of her nomad juices and then never felt the need to leave home again, and so far, she thought it was going pretty well!

A new scent was quick to catch her attention, though, and her stormy-blue gaze quickly found it’s place upon an orange-and-black-striped creature, making their way throughout the tundra with intent in their step, as if they were travelling somewhere. Lasagna gave a chuff, announcing her presence as she bounded towards the creature, now realising it as a feline! Neat-o! She smiled.

“Where ya headed?” She asked particularly smoothly, as if she was trying to charm some hot loner boy.

But, no, he wasn’t really her type. Not for romance, anyway, but definitely to be friends! She studied him as they walked, occasionally almost falling behind, though doing her best to keep her chunky legs moving at an almost-matching pace.

 Goodness, slow down, soldier!

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He had to admit, he did enjoy the trip with his comrades. Having spent more time with @Olive his respect and appreciation for the slender woman only grew deeper. Over the course of the journey, she had displayed her own form if personal power. She was both cunning and kind, growing into her own as a true ruler of the north.

In addition @Archon and @Dalmatia had been pleasant. The young bard filled the air with his songs, and Dalmatia was warming up to the big cat.

As much as he appreciated those in his life, being a very antisocial creature by nature, the cat fell back to walk on his own for awhile, waiting until his comrades where out of site. By this point he hoped they wouldn't take it personally.

Striding over last night's snow he moved his large frame northward with an elated prowl, his tail flitting in counterbalance. After all, it would be good to get home.

The cats large head pivoted to his side, stopping for a moment. Cocking his head curiously, a dog that he hadn't seen before called out to him with a nonthreatening smile, approaching him without apprehension. Maybe they where all like this, excessively friendly.

Gently smirking in return, he allowed the dog to close the distance, his eyes scanning over the ginger, noting the curly tail. "Oh...who, Me? I'm just heading home.", he said with a warm exhale, his excitement for the prospect not well hidden.

Once again looking over sturdy ginger woman, his feline gaze evaluated her structure. Shaking out his mane, he looked out at the horizon. "You should be careful though... Not all strangers are so friendly...", he added looking back at her with a fang filled smirk.
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Lasagna felt a weird urge to wriggle uncomfortably as she felt the big-cats eyes scan over her pelt, coming into a little swoop at her tail before returning to her face. "Oh...who, Me? I'm just heading home." The way he said it, giving that small giddy breath of excitement, gave Lasagna an ounce of reassurance;

 maybe this guy wasn’t creepy, after all!

"You should be careful though... Not all strangers are so friendly..." He said, looking outwards with a toothy smirk after studying her build again, Lasagna huffed, he seemed so keen to throw her off! The dam continued walking besides the cat, strutting with a sort of “you cant get rid of me now” vibe as she occasionally glanced back up at him.

“You keen on getting your alone time, huh? You don’t seem all that unfriendly to me, if not a little grumpy,” Lasagna chuckled, unknowingly potentially tempting fate; little did she know what sort of scars this man had been able to cause, instead treating him like a fresh, blank slate. He had yet to scare her off, and Lasagna was brave compared to most.

She hummed for a moment, still strutting as she planted on paw in front of the other; quite well-versed in the art of snow, she was, thinking before she spoke. “What’s your name, ah? I’m Lasagna.” Because one way to ward of bad vibes was to learn that they’re people, too, and most people have names!

 Great job, Lasagna!

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It seemed his odd way of being hadn't scared the dog off yet. It wouldn't have been the first time someone may have misread him, but this one, she was here to stay.

Resuming his walking pace, the woman continued at his side determined to make a friend it seemed. "Grumpy? I'll have you know I'm in a great mood..." ,retorted the tiger with a playful scoff, even though she had inserted herself into his alone time.

"I'm just in a hurry that's all.", he hedged flipping his head so that a loose part of his mane would get out of his face.

"Kuhn...", he answered with a grin and a small shake of his head. Dogs where really something special.

"Are you out here with a pack? When sun falls the cold isn't fun to deal with alone... No good dens out here either."
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"Grumpy? I'll have you know I'm in a great mood..." Well, Lasagna wouldn’t be able to understand why he’d lie about such a thing, and with that playful scoff, the girl just gave a bit of a mental shrug and chalked it up to him either not knowing how to socialise, or having RBF in every way possible. That thought garnered a small smile to creep up her features. “If you say so,” She cooed simply, glancing back up at him with a smirk.

The man flipped his “hair”, akin to how she saw some lady-humans in neighbouring cabins try to approach and — what she thought to be — “court” her owner. Each time Lasagna would glare at them, and her human would reject their advances; never had they found a woman that a) wanted a dog — aka her — and b) wasn’t . . . just trying to ‘get’ with her human. Lasagna quirked a brow. "I'm just in a hurry that's all." “Why?” She asked curiously, tone reminiscent of a little kid’s wonder. She smiled as she tilted her head, studying the tiger. How . . . curious.

 He told his name; "Kuhn..." and Lasagna’s tail swayed.

“Kuuuhhnnnn,” She tested on her tongue. “How fancy! Is it some sort of princely name? Are you a king, my good sir? Should I be bowing to you, as of this moment?” She joked, occasionally running up ahead so she could act out what she was describing, waiting until Kuhn reached her to fall back into step with him. Lasagna was most certainly having fun.

"Are you out here with a pack? When sun falls the cold isn't fun to deal with alone... No good dens out here either." “Not yet!” Lasagna smiled, doing a little dance on her toes at the thought of finding a home to bunker down in. She could smell a million little scents upon Kuhn’s fur; perhaps he was part of a pack, but Lasagna thought that cats liked the solitary life . . . ? Huh. “I’m tryna squeeze out all of my adventure-juices so then I can settle down and not feel the need to leave 24/7, y’know?” Though she wasn’t completely sure if it was working or not . . .

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All he could do was roll his eyes and keep walking as the dog continued with some sarcasm. He wasn't grumpy.

Looking back down at the dog, he figured that she didn't seem like someone who meant any I'll intent. "I'm trying to catch up to some...friends." he replied with a narrowed brow. Maybe he wasn't sure what to call them now. Packmates?

"We have been traveling for a long time, its going to be nice to get back and see everyone else."

Biting his lip, a wash of excitement came over him at the thought of re-uniting with @Valmúa if she happened to be around.

"Its funny you say that... I have gotten something like that before", he chuckled thinking of the infamous 'lord Kuhn' pet name he had. "I'm just a hunter...." , he insisted, choosing not to talk further about the court or any battles fought. Just a hunter, he liked it that way.

"Ahh... So you are a loner?" Purred the cat obviously pleased. "Trust me, I get it."

It was quiet aside from the footfall, slowing his pace some, his ears pivoted to the woman, almost feeling a kinship over that title of loner.
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Catching up with some friends? Made sense, she supposed, thought unfortunately she couldn’t particularly relate; she had yet to make many friends in this world, having only been summoned recently, but hey, Lasagna thought she was doing quite well, since she hadn’t been bloundering around and crying about her old life. Straight to the exploration for her! If anything, she’d been quite relaxed, since there was no need to really put herself to work anymore, and while occasionally training was nice, she could just . . . lay down, and no one would tell her to get up and ’get to work’!

"We have been traveling for a long time, its going to be nice to get back and see everyone else." So, was he part of a pack, or just a very, very large friend group? Maybe he lived in one of those community places, and they went on some sort of massive roadtrip, though Lasagna hadn’t seen any roads nearby, and she doubted there were any cars or music players here. Ah, she missed listening to the one with the yellow road — Goodbye Yellow Brick Road — Elton John that one johnny guy that her owner loved. She missed her owner. Like, really, really missed her owner, but she was quick to snap back to reality.

“So . . . are you in a pack, or do you just have a lot of friends? Can I maybe join your pack one day? Maybe, maybe, I’m not sure yet, but do you think I’d be let in? Would you let me in?” Because he was massive, and Lasagna was pretty sure that it was always the biggest that led the pack, even if he was a cat and it didn’t make sense. She batted her lashes, trying to pretty herself up to try and garner a more positive reaction. He spoke again, reacting to her titles for him; "Its funny you say that... I have gotten something like that before"

Really? Maybe he was a king. "I'm just a hunter...." Lasagna evidently fell flat, huffing. Oh. How disappointing; he wasn’t in a pack, then? Why was he going to meet with them? Maybe he was one of their allies, or something, Lasagna didn’t know, but she felt like she’d been tricked; deceived; fooled. Haha, that was funny, though. How dramatic of her, amusing herself, goodness gracious. He continued.

"Ahh... So you are a loner? Trust me, I get it." “More or less,” She replied with a polite shrug, her tail partially uncurling, then recurling in a hypnotisingly smooth fashion as her paws fell into the snow. “Not for long, I hope. I’d like to have a permanent place to sleep, and friends and family to wake up to, instead of the potential that I was rained on all night. I feel like constant company would be nice!”

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It was admittedly odd to hear someone from the outside ask if he was part of a pack. For so long he would have taken this opportunity to laugh and mock the very idea.

But now, it was official. "Uhh, Ya...", admitted the cat. "I can't tell you yes or no.
I'm not in charge...", he continued with a semi sarcastic drawl.

Continuing his pace, the big cat did his best to watch the woman from the corner of his eye, making note of her entertaining yet high energy mannerisms. He could only roll his eyes and grin as she batted her lashes.

"You know what, I'm heading that way anyway... You can ask the big man himself."
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“So . . . you're not the leader, but someone bigger is? How could anyone be bigger than you? You're . . . like . . . massive. That doesn't make sense.” But she supposed she'd be good with asking once they got there. She hummed a small tune as they went, paws dancing around the snow as she bopped her head back and forth, and – whether riskily or not – she'd try to bump her shoulder into his leg, sending a smile up to him. She was definitely the friendly type, probably too friendly, but when did being entertaining hurt anyone? Lasagna grinned.

He was so quiet . . . It was weird. “Is being stoic and reserved and cool like . . . your whole personality?” She asked with a playful wink, trying to make it clear that she was most definitely joking. Sota had said not to worry about it, but he was also definitely the entertainer type, and she wasn't sure whether or not the striped man would take to a joke so easily. She didn't want to upset him, or worse, be eaten by him. “I'm joking by the way~!” She loudly whispered, glancing around wildly as if someone was going to take her captive for making a joke.

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"Massive?", replied the cat with a bit of shock.  He supposed he was bigger than the wolves at least, so it shouldn't be a surprise that this little dog here was commenting on his size.  Though compared to a bull elk, Thraxmundar, or even some boar, he felt tiny. 

Part of the whole reason that he fell back from the group was to get some alone time and recharge before rejoining the bulk of the pack. Now here he was with this overly friendly dog. As she came bumping into his shoulder, a small growl rattled from his chest without his consent.  Closing his eyes, the cat just sighed continuing his pace.  "No...", he replied, he could be more than stoic and cool...

A bit grumpy now, his hackles began to come up ever so slightly.  Despite that, the dog managed to pry a smile from his lips when she said he was joking, as annoyed as he felt, she was hard to hate.  If he viewed himself from her position he would probably think it was funny to mess with him too.  None the less, he began to walk a little bit faster.  The sooner he could get back to the vale the better.
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Kuhn let out a growl as Lasagna bumped shoulders with him, and she immediately felt bad; she didn't want to upset the tiger, or make him angry, or be eaten, so she was quick to take an apologetic step to the side as she cast him a "sorry" look. "No..." Was his reply, and the dog only felt even worse. Had she upsetted him? Lasagna frowned. She'd have to be blind not to notice his hackles slowly rising, and she gazed back at him again, coming only a few centimetres closer to properly speak to him – and to apologise.

“Did I upset you?” She asked dumbly, though her tone was genuine, and at least her heart was in the right place, right? She didn't want anyone to be upset, she didn't want to be at fault, she just . . . wanted people to be happy! Lasagna blinked slowly, before continuing. “I'm sorry if I . . . like, invaded your personal space, or if something I said made you sad or angry,” Lasagna swore, dipping her head.

 “It wasn't on purpose.”

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"No... Its fine.", replied the cat with a voice that was attempting to be gentle. It was almost as if he was entertained by his own discomfort in the moment, seeing himself squirm at the extroverted tendency of the smaller canine.

Forcing a smile, "its just... something I'm working on." Still, there was just something inside of the cat that just had a hard time adapting to the sheer amount of time he had to spend with others.

Just a moment later, the striped cat realized that he had just shared that with a stranger. Slowing down his pace a bit, he looked back over his shoulder to see if the dog was going to keep following.
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"No... Its fine." Lasagna wasn't completely sure of that, though she didn't want to push her luck, so all she did was give a small apologetic whine and left the topic alone. Only when Kuhn spoke again would her ears perk as she considered what to say; "it's just... something I'm working on." He said with a forced grin, and the dog felt terrible. She shouldn't of said anything, damn it. “Working on things is good,” She offered softly, face decorated with a warm smile.

She'd subconsciously slowed a bit, so when Kuhn turned to look at her, she was quickly motivated to hurry along behind him. “Ah, sorry.” She apologised, dipping her head. Though her eyes still gave a jovial flare, her demeanor had quieted down a little, in hopes to not repeat the same mistake as earlier. She was quite keen to be liked.

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"No really... Its nothing", he said,  trying to reassure the dog.  She seemed perfectly nice, but he couldn't help but just find himself in these moods.  "You don't need to apologize its just me.", he added starting up his pace once the dog joined him again.  

"Im Kuhn by the way", he continued.  "Uhh... wait I already said that.", he stammered, trying to dig himself out of this conversational hole. 

Looking away, the cat continued his oscillating prowl, now just embarrassed with himself.
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Ah, so it was 'just him', he said, though Lasagna believed that having a naturally negative personality wasn't extremely common. While some could believe he was a rare jewel – a diamond in the rough – the dog would rather think he was merely having a bad day, and she most certainly hoped that she'd be able to help, if he'd allow her to get close. Of course, Lasagna was but a (hopefully) not-so-strange stranger, so she'd understand if he wasn't exactly comfortable with the prospect of opening up to her . . . yet.

 She was a stubborn one.

"Im Kuhn by the way," The lady chuckled. "Uhh... wait I already said that." “We don't have to talk if you don't want to,” Lasagna generously offered, her tone happy and her gait joyful, though most certainly a little quieter than how it'd been when they'd first encountered one another. It could almost seem as if she was trying to match the massive sun-cats feline-like stalk. It was weird on her. Her paws felt strange. Nevertheless, she hummed it off.

“Just because I'm really talkative and energetic doesn't mean that I always need constant entertainment and talking and noise. I'll gladly slip into quiet-ness if you'd like that.” Because, deep down, Lasagna just wanted to make sure everyone was comfortable around her. She hated how humans would assume that she made messes, or was difficult with children, when she wasn't like that at all! She just . . . wanted to be liked. It really wasn't fair, especially for someone who couldn't talk before she came to this new place.

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Even in this wide open space, he felt cornered.  With his hackles slightly rising, his gate started to become a bit more uncertain.   There was nowhere for his perturbed energy to go.  He knew that the dog was doing their best to be nice to him.  Either option started to seem bad at this point, either he was going to get overwhelmed by the stranger or they where going to walk in awkward silence: that he would cause. 

"Uhh... its fine either way.", rumbled the cat with a bit of irritation slipping through his voice.  He knew it slipped though, and he was digging himself in deeper.   

But there was nothing he could do
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Silence didn't necessarily mean "awkward" for Lasagna, it just meant that the talking had finished and now they were coming up with new topics, but she didn't know that the big, muscled, supposed-to-be-intimidating (but actually very shy) death-cat thought otherwise. "Uhh... its fine either way." Kuhn finished, his tone clearly irritated.

She smiled. “Just lead me along and I'll follow until . . . hm.” When was she planning to leave again? Lasagna still wanted to see new places. She wanted to venture around a bit before checking out his pack. “How about . . . until you see your home in the distance? Then I'll leave.”

Ah, hopefully that would work for him.

If he wasn't planning on eating her, that was.

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(Potential fade! <3)

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Typically, the solitary cat loved the silence, but in this instance he knew that he was coming off rather rude for no reason. But, he felt powerless to control it, not wanting to make this dog think he hated her or something.  Trying to smile back, he tried to be reassuring.  

"Ya, that works for me, but you really should come back. There are some great people here, i'm sure they would want to meet you...", replied the tiger, with a genuine tone.  He really did mean that.  Duskguard was exactly what she was looking for, there where plenty of people around, plenty to do and always a warm den and food.  

Hopefully he would see her again.  

   fade?    Sorry if he was awkward, haha. 

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