[Jaykobell]

He had the impression Insima was ever-so-slightly delighted with this conversation; a feeling Sikke could not exactly... share. He was never one to interact with strangers, or even with just anyone. He was more of a loner, he was an independent person. He never felt the need, nor the necessity, to rely on the help of others. Call it stubbornness or what you want, but that was his philosophy.

With that said, it was not surprising for Sikke to react so badly to Insima's sudden move. As the fox-colored female moved forward to put a paw over his, Sikke automatically got up onto his four paws, he whom had been sitting, stepping back to avoid contact. "What are you doing?" he asked with an astonished look on his face, keeping his distance from Insima. What was this... this overly friendly gesture? Conversing was friendly enough, there was no need for contact. No. "Er... Like... wise," he replied reluctantly, trying to let his fur lie low. Would she try something like that again, he would be gone from this place in the blink of an eye.

He watched as she let the crayfish go. He would have asked why she had let the crayfish go, but then she shouted after it, saying she would get back at it later. Then again, he figured that water creatures probably got... bad after being out of the water for too long. Sikke then moved back and forth awkwardly as he did his best to avoid getting in contact with Insima. Going outside was just... so troublesome. It just was not worth the trouble.

He was relieved, however, when Insima said that she could scent the farms from miles away and that they would be able to get there before too long. He sighed and hoped for the best, but it did not turn out that way, at least not quite, for the female kept on talking to him even on the road. He sighed a second time, looking away. "I am not going there for the sake of sightseeing," he replied, avoiding eye-contact with his brand new road companion; he was, instead, keeping an eye up ahead. "I am going to see someone who lives there." If Insima wanted to be friendly, good for her... but her personally had nothing to ask her.

[Kallile]

Insima had quite the spring in her step as she walked alongside (then ahead of, then behind, and then beside again) her companion. Picking her paws up an inch or so higher than needed she pranced along. A road trip! How the days always seemed to just get better. And today it was with an actual traveling companion! She frowned slightly at his answer—which still avoided the specific answer she wanted.

“We’ll ya’ll are just wound tighter than a mouse trap, aren’t ye?” She said, taming the springs in her legs to walk normally again beside him. Unexpectedly she twisted her head to the side, inhaled deeply, and shifted her direction slightly. Deities help them if the wind shifted.

“I bet’cha have a pretty lil’ lady waiting on ye, that’s what all this hush hush is about.” She mused, trying to pick the locked defenses Sikke had placed around his motives. “Ye know… most gent’s that are so hush hush about their girls usually have lil’uns they don’t want others knowin’ ‘bout.”

She grinned widely at this, for whatever reason, leaning her head towards him as closely as possible while still maintaining the distance he had been trying so desperately to keep established. “Ye ‘taint’ a daddy, are ye Sikke?” She said smugly.

One way or another, she’d pick at him until she got the answers she wanted.

[Jaykobell]

Why was Insima so hyperactive? Why was she springing forward, then coming back to walk beside him, then slowing down to walk behind him? Why was she... acting so childishly, like a child who can't wait to get to the destination? Why did she keep on acting in such a way? Her behavior was but confusion to Sikke. And a headache.

He tried to avoid looking at her. He did not pay attention to the mouse trap analogy, keeping to his goal and simply moving forward. He did not like to talk about himself, nor about his motives, and that was his choice. It was none of Insima's business to know about his life, nor about his hobbies, nor about anything he did, nor about anything at all. His was life was his, and his alone. He did not want to share.

Her second comment, however, caused him to swirl around to stare at her. He had stopped in his tracks, now just staring at Insima with a look on his face. "What are you talking about?" What was she rambling about? What girl? Waiting for him, huh? Where had she gotten such a foolish idea? She had no proof of anything she was saying! "'Lil'uns'.... huh?" What the heck was that word? He was getting so infuriated and flustered by her words that he could barely focus enough to decipher her weird accent. Fester would definitely hear about this. Sikke was trapped with this female because of him.

His question was soon answered about "lil'uns" when Insima tried to get close to him (again) and asked if he were... were a... "If I am a what?" A father? What the hell? "What kind of... I don't... I don't have any children! And... and this is none of your business to begin with!" Could she not tell from his behavior that just knowing a girl was alien to him? Having kids was like saying he was sociable. "Just guide me to the Farmlands," he huffed, trying to keep his anger down. Still had to look somewhat civilized.

[Kallile]

Insima watched his small outburst with nothing but pure amusement, her dark eyes dancing like her feet were trying too. Oh, this was too much fun! Maybe she should visit the city one day, that could be a real riot. She shrugged as  she walked—a small feat in itself. “Suit yerself, Sikke.” She said with a playful grin. Had she been closer, she very well might have just nudged him with her elbow playfully. “Just makin’ travelin’ conversatings.”

"All I'm sayin' is that yer being secretive something terrible. Makin' yerself sound like a cheatin' man or summat." She looked around her, and though the woods may all look like the same scene repeating to Sikke, she knew every tree and leaf. Well…more or less. And right now, they were a little off course. Frowning to herself (a rather vivid expression when made by Insima) she nearly dove into a different direction, leading them through a rather thick patch of underbrush. She traversed it easily, and seemed rather oblivious to the fact that Sikke could probably not.

“Come on, then. If ye want guidin’, ye gotta keep up!” She called back to him playfully, her coat making her nearly disappear into the brush and leaves.

[10]

[Jaykobell]

What kind of "conversatings" was this? Asking if he had children? If he had a lady back home waiting for him? He narrowed his purple eyes with much irritation as he noticed Insima's satisfaction from his outbursts. Inside, he felt like he was going to explode. Such topics should not be discussed in public, and especially not with strangers you do not know! It was like prying through someone's mind, it was like trying to unravel their secrets. Such things are not a stranger's business at all. Sikke felt thoroughly insulted and invaded, and most importantly, he felt harassed. He had no interest in those "conversatings" (what kind of word was this!), so why was Insima still rambling on? But he had to remain civilized and composed in the presence of a strange. Deep breaths, Sikke; deep breaths. He sighed and his tails flickered slightly, his body rippling as if he had shivered. "I am not secretive. Likewise, I am not a cheating man. I do not wish to speak of such matters with you, or anyone, for that matter. They are private matters of relation to nobody but me," he answered after he had gotten his collectiveness back together. He still felt like ripping at something deep down inside, however. Such assumptions! He would never forget such an event, even if simply for the incredible amount of ridicule behind it.

He glanced at Insima when he noticed her rather prominent frown. What an incredibly... expressed expression. He was nearly tempted to ask what was wrong, but before he had enough time to even think about something to ask, he watched as Insima nearly toppled right into the undergrowth ahead. His only reaction, however, was to blink and stare indifferently, which was a reaction far from that of a gentleman. He narrowed his eyes when he noticed Insima not too far away from where he was, her coat breezing through the shrubs. Was she really expecting him to get through this... terrain? He tried to keep his lips from curling into a snarl as she called back to him, taunting him and challenging him to follow her through this obstacle. What... what a farce. His brother would pay for this, one way or another.

Sikke approached the path Insima had taken, taking a look at it before making a grimace. Was he seriously supposed to go through this? Really? Well, Insima seemed quite happy about her "guiding him". If Sikke didn't keep up the pace, either Insima would get tired of him and leave him there, or she would come back to get him. Either way sounded bad. He reluctantly stepped into the underbrush and tried to walk through it, his fur sticking to the leaves and sometimes even tugging from a crooked twig or from getting tangled in a bunch of tiny branches. He would growl quietly whenever that would happen, feeling the sharp stinging feeling of his fur tugging. Insima was going to pay for this as well.

[Kallile]

The sounds of her companion tip-toeing his way through the underbrush was all but lost on Insima as she continued to forge ahead. Perhaps it was the fact she lived in a more rural portion of the world to begin with that made the thorns and thistles less annoying to her, or just that this little adventure she found herself on was too much fun to bother taking notice by the little needle-tipped seeds.

She burst into the open, looking behind her at the huge lump of vines and thorns she had just come through. She paused a moment, flickering her ears to and fro as she listened for Sikke. He sure wasn't quick--that much was certain! "Come on, Sikke!"

Her tails were waving madly behind her but she seemed to be doing so without actually knowing it. "It's just like a band-aid--rip outta thar!" Well, she assumed. She'd never really worn a band-aid before, but she'd heard the expression used enough times that it...must relate to this somehow. She lowered her torso to the ground, backside in the air with triple tails still waving excitedly.

"If'n yer stuck, I can always come back in and get ye out..." The words were more a taunt than an honest offer. She doubted he'd like her method of getting him out, since he didn't seem too keen on any of her methods to date. How funny these city people were! Yes, she decided, she'd definitely have to visit the city some day...

[11]

((Live again, oh thread of Sikke-tormenting goodness. x3))

[Jaykobell]

[[ Time to see if I remember his grouchy character. XD;! ]]

He had to try to remind himself why he was here. He had to remember why he was sticking with this over-the-top guide, and why he was enduring this painful trial. He was not obsessive compulsive, but Sikke had one thing that he had a very hard time with: his fur. He liked his fur clean, slick, and in order. Some people had nothing against taking a shower every two or three days (gross!), but Sikke could not afford to skip a single day. A day without a good shower was just... out of the question. It would mess his focus and make him feel miserable and disgusting throughout the day. He hated it.

And this made it no easier to get through this shrub. Sikke started to growl dangerously as he stepped on those spiked seeds, and as more branches scraped his skin under his fur. His lips were starting to curl into a snarl, his claws sinking into the ground with burning irritation. And obviously, Insima was not making it any better. He was not known for his lasting patience, unlike his older brother. Whom would certainly hear of this adventure.

When Sikke heard Insima calling from the other side, he felt a switch pop in his head. His nerves were running short, and he was definitely not in the mood for this. "Quiet!" he snapped from the bush, stopping for a moment so he could talk and not suffer from every tiny hazard there was in this thing. "This is entirely your fault!" As for him, yes, he had worn band-aids before. And yes, as anyone would guess, he hated them.

When she proposed to come and get him, Sikke's fur stood on end, and he stopped again. Some of his nerves snapped again, and this time the snapping was replaced with growling. "You are not coming to get me!" The only way he could think of would be for Insima to grab him by the fur with her teeth and drag him out. And this was out of the question. "You should have thought about this before dragging me through this terrain!" He was like a fish out of water. An angry fish out of the water.

[Kallile]

Insima tilted her head comically at the bushes Sikke found himself stuck in, and to the average passerby she would have looked like your average, "one too many screws loose" dogs staring at nothing. Her tails slowly stilled behind her as she focused more energy on listening to Sikke and about where he was. She giggled: wow, he was still way back in there.

For a long moment there was nothing but the sounds of Sikke grumbling and trying to move through the terrain. It sounded almost as if the female had actually listened to him for once and had fallen silent to let him get through on his own. At least...that's how things seemed.

A few moments later Insima's face popped through a patch of brush beside Sikke, grinning widely. "Aw, Sikke, ya know ya'll don't mean that; a'sides, here I am anywho. We're having an adventure!" She frowned slightly, looking at the way he was trying to pick his way through the brush. "A'course, your adventur'en skills ain't all that practiced..."

She stayed where she was, making no real move towards or away from the male she was supposed to be leading. Well, he had said she wouldn't come get him, but here she was. The look on his face, however, told her she might want to wait until he actually asked for help. Which, she decided, was just fine with her. Her face all but smothered with a goofy grin, she watched his struggle in barely sustained silence as she tried to keep her laughter to herself.

[12]

[Jaykobell]

For a moment, it was pure silence. There was no sound. Only the natural sounds of birds singing and the lapping of streams against pebbles, far in the background. And this moment of silence was such a relief for Sikke that he stood there in the bush, listening to this wonderful silence. Insima had kept quiet, and she was saying... nothing. It was like melody to his ears. Nothing to listen to, only nature itself. Despite the spikes under his paws and the branches tugging at his fur, it felt like nothing could make him feel better. It was just...

... Insima! Sikke had been spacing out in there, and suddenly he heard the voice of his "guide," with her head right next to him. At first he tensed from her voice, but after that, he howled in surprise and fright from seeing her head right there. His only reaction to this sudden appearance was to struggled to the side. And eventually, some of the branches broke, and Sikke went rolling a few ways back into the bush... only to get stuck — really stuck — between a bunch of branches. Oh... oh why. His paws and legs were stuck in a bunch of branches, and he couldn't get them unstuck. If he tried to pull his paws up, the branches would scratch at his skin and make him reconsider.

Of course, his reaction to this unfortunate turn of events was a glare in Insima's direction. "What is wrong with you?" He really wanted to know now. Who sneaked into a bush to scare the living heck out of you? Insima was one of them, apparently, and he could tell you right now that he didn't like that kind of people. "This is your fault! Now look what happened!" He felt a toy. She was really just toying with him, nothing else. And he really didn't like that, at all. He let out an angry noise as he tried to get his paws unstuck again. And... Insima wasn't helping him at all! She was just.. staring at him! "What are you doing? Would you mind helping me out?"

[Kallile]

She'd never realized how hard it was to stifle a laugh when someone was angry and yelling at you...but hopelessly stuck and therefore not that threatening. Holding back her mirth, Insima pushed her way through the rest of the brush; her wingblades looking more like floral arranging gone wrong than sleek, bone-like weapons. She came closer, taking an amused survey of his situation.

"There ain't nothin' wrong with me, Sikke." She said with a grin, leaning down to nose at the tangled mess around his legs. Yup--they were stuck alright. "Yer the one jumping like a toad on a hot highway road!"

At this thought she couldn't help but giggle lightly, leaning down and taking one of the smaller branches in her mouth. It snapped easily with some quickly applied pressure and a moment later she was spitting bark fragments out of her mouth. "Yeah, yeah; hol d yer horses, Sikke. Thes little 'uns tend ta hold the big'uns in place--les'se if we can't fix ya up."

She took another small twig in her mouth and snapped it as well. The sticks seemed to get thicker with each one she picked...and it was a slightly scary realization that, for all her bungling mannerisms, Insima's jaws were really that strong. Well...she hadn't shut up yet...so maybe the idea of dangerously strong jaws wasn't so far fetched.

[13]

[Jaykobell]

He had lost his patience now, and he had also lost his composure. Now he only sounded like a brat, more or less. His fur stood on end from all this anger he had, and his ears had flattened against the back of his head. Well, at least she was helping him. And, really, it was the least she could do. After all, yes, it was her fault that he was stuck in this thing.

He tried to keep his lips from curling back into a snarl. Don't go too far, Sikke. As infuriating as Insima was, it would still be uncalled for to just physically lash out at her. No claws, no teeth, no wingblades. Claws are only to scrap at those branches, not to claw other Lucain in the face. "I am not," he snapped, gritting his teeth. "You're the one who scared me! You can't just do something like that, surprising people like that!" But, why bother to explain to her? Obviously... Insima wasn't interested in listening to him, and she just wanted to do what she wanted. So why bother, he wondered? He had no patience with people, nor did he know how to communicate with them.

He stayed there as Insima gnawed on the twigs and the branches and snapped them away from his paws. Sikke just made an angry face as she did that. Now he really wasn't motivated to try to communicate anymore. He especially hated people who didn't listen to him, since that was the sort of thing he had to bear with at home. It was enough that his own parents were always ignoring him and making him feel like he didn't exist; but when even strangers ignored you? Or just did as they wanted, despite your complaints? He couldn't stand that. All he wanted was someone he could talk to in all seriousness; not someone that would jump on him out of nowhere. "You do that. I'm not talking anymore," he said as Insima continued to snap the branches away. "Keep talking all you want, but I'm not replying anymore."

This was just getting too tedious for his nerves to handle.