[PRP] lucky coincidence (Rylan&Isobel)

[Ephebe]

"Rylan!" Tibbie wasn't usually a loud person, but when the person she'd been hoping to meet for some days now appeared on the other end of the street, you can bet she was.

Of course, being Isobel, it was quickly followed by intense blushing and muttered 'sorry's to the people around her. Then she was mashing her way through the crowd, for once not that shy - she had a goal. A mission! One hand was protectively held over Madam Nibbs, once again perched in her bag, to make sure that none of the other passerbys accidentally rammed into her cat. The little Madam grumbled goodnaturedly as they made their way, not seriously upset at the jostling - she'd quickly gotten used to the everyday dangers of travelling by bag.

As Isobel finally got close to her target, she broke into a wide smile. "Hi! Do you, um, have a little bit of time? I wanted to talk to you!"

MoonRazor

<33

 

[MoonRazor]

He was out walking the dogs when she found him. Fidget pranced alongside, excited by everything and everyone, while Cas' dog Cafall slunk along behind him, watching the world through careful and guarded eyes. It wasn't until recently that the shepherd would willingly follow Rylan anywhere. Even now, Cafall only rarely listened to anyone but Cas, but at least he had deemed them worthy of his company and that was good enough reason for Rylan to bring him along on Fidget's morning walks.

Tibbie's voice sounded familiar, but he couldn't quite place it until he turned and saw her across the street. It occurred to Rylan then that it had caught him off-guard to hear the quiet young woman lift her voice that way. But she seemed infinitely less sad that she had during their first meeting, and that was enough to make him smile and wave to her across the way.

"Hi Tibbie," he greeted her when she came close. "Sure, I'm just walking these two. I'm not in a hurry."

Fidget promptly stuck his nose up to her hand, sniffing her with infinite curiosity, while Cafall stood just behind Rylan and studied their new company from afar.

Ephebe

 

[Ephebe]

"We can walk with you then," she said decisively before faltering a bit; "if it's, um, okay with you? We won't be a bother - or at least I don't think so, Nibbs and I haven't really walked any dogs before, but she's very, um, chill about things in general. As long as they don't try to eat her we should be fine?" She ended on a quizzical note, not entirely sure. Looking down, it was obvious that the little Madam was alert and awake, but she didn't look ready to do battle or anything, Tibbie thought; just, well, ready in case something happened.

Just to be sure, she laid a warm hand on her cat - for both of their comfort. The other hand was being sniffed by an adorable dog, and gently, with a smile, she turned it over so it was palm up. "He's so cute! What's his name?"

MoonRazor

 

[MoonRazor]

Rylan paused to consider Tibbie for a moment, thinking she must be right around Corra's age but different from both his sisters in so many ways. His was not a particularly shy family. Casey, now a senior at OSU, had more fire and spunk that anyone would've thought possible for her tiny stature. Corra, in her sophomore year at Rider-Waite, was possessed of a cool confidence that manifested itself in the way she expected the world to simply concede to her decisions.

"You don't need to ask," he said finally with a grin. "We're glad you offered to join us. Of course you're welcome."

He laid a hand on Fidget's head to quiet the lanky dog, and said, "The dalmatian is Fidget. He's our firehouse dog, actually, but lives with me about half the time. The shepherd is my roommate's dog, Cafall." It was probably obvious in the way Cafall had chosen to hang back that he was much more aloof a creature than either Fidget or Rylan.

"So what is it?" he added as they started to walk again.

Ephebe

 

[Ephebe]

Her smile was pleased and her crown of flower buds were blooming into colourful, happy flowers. Rylan was just as kind as she remembered him, and for that she was glad; it made it easier to ask what she was going to, after all.

"That's so neat! You're a real hero then, right Mister Fidget?" She added the last bit to the dalmatian, reaching out to pet him with a brilliant smile. Cafall got a smile too, but she didn't reach out to him - if he wasn't comfortable with her presence, she didn't want to accidentally pressure him. Especially with Nibbs here.

To Rylan she added; "I didn't know firehouses had dogs - does that mean you're a firefighter?" There was innocent curiousity in her voice; honestly, a firefighter seemed just the right career for someone as kind and wise as him. Something heroic, doing grand deeds every day and saving lives! "Is it true that firefighters have respirators for pets these day? I heard someone say that and it sounds eminently wonderful!"

Keeping up with Rylan and the dogs, she ran a hand down her kitty's soft back and thought of how best to word this. "I've- I've been thinking - about what we talked about last time. With Imp," she added for clarification. "You said that Madam Nibbs and I might be able to do the same, right?" The little Madam in question blinked up at her human at the sound of her name.

"Well, I've been thinking-" wait, she already said that- "and, um, we'd like to try. Or I'd like to try. B-because it sounds fantastic!"

MoonRazor

 

[MoonRazor]

"You bet he is," Rylan said proudly as the dalmatian jogged along beside them. "He's been doing demonstrations in schools for the last few months, teaching kids to stop, drop, and roll." And he'd been a comforting presence at several calls that they'd brought him to, letting shocked children latch onto him and helping put the elderly at ease with his unstoppably happy demeanor.

"Most firehouses don't," he added. "We have him just by coincidence. He wound up in the shelter, and we decided to buy into the cliche. But everyone's glad we did."

Fidget was great for morale and even better for companionship on a slow day. The chief had been skeptical at first, but it hadn't taken the dalmatian long to prove that he was more useful at the fire station than away from it.

"I am a firefighter, and we do have those," he replied with a laugh. "Although not all our engines are equipped with them. The budget hasn't gone through for too many of those just yet, but they've come in handy a few times."

They wound their way along the road and off onto a trail leading into the state park. There was a spot farther up the path where he liked to let Fidget run and stretch his legs, but with Cafall along, that didn't seem like the best idea. But the trail winding along the river provided one of the best views in Ashdown.

"You want to try it huh?" he said with a slow nod. "Well, I'm happy to help you try. It might not be easy though. I'll be honest, the first time I warged into Imp, it was completely by accident. But we'll give it a shot. I should warn you though, before we do, it can give you some awful migraines. I mean, really. Not fun."

Ephebe

 

[Ephebe]

"That's fantastic! There's nothing as amazing as pets, really," she said with absolute confidence in the truth of her words. "They can really save your life. And Mister Fidget is proof of that!"

"Which is why it's so important to be able to save them the same as humans - I hope your budget comes through for more respirators!" Tibbie nodded emphatically, gripping her bag strap. She was sure Rylan would agree - he definitely seemed the sensible sort, to her.

The walk was scenic but she had a hard time keeping focused on the scenery; Isobel's mind was on the conversation, and the little cat dozing in her bag. "Thank you! I really appreciate that," she said, then paused, thinking. "I'm alright with the migraines - for me, I mean. If it hurts Nibb I don't want to do it." Biting her lip and frowning slightly, she looked up at the taller person walking beside her; "will it hurt her?"

MoonRazor

 

[MoonRazor]

"I hope so too," he agreed with a nod. "Public funding though, always more of a nightmare than you want it to be." It made no sense, the lack of funding for a department that existed out of necessity and was, by definition, meant to save lives. He would've thought that a service like that was priceless.

But not, apparently, to the government. The bureaucracy involved in running the fire station had been a major factor into his relief when the department had informed him that it felt obligated first to promote a different Lieutenant. Rylan liked his position just fine - high enough to run his own crew, low enough to avoid the red tape. It was better that way.

"I don't think it hurts them," he said, picking up the conversation again. "Otherwise they wouldn't be happy to do it, but Imp always seems happy to see me, excited even. He likes to fly. It's tough, though. I think you could do it, especially if you set your mind to it, but it's not easy. It might take quite a few tries before you're successful."

Ephebe

 

[Ephebe]

"Okay," she said, reassured. "I'm sure he'd let you know if it was bad for him! And I'm fine with a challenge! I mean, for the chance to have some magic of my own - well, mine and Nibbs'. Amazing magic powers always have a hindrance before you can get them, right?" They'd just have to keep trying, which wasn't a problem if it was only her who got hurt.

There were still a few questions, though. "My friend, Zac... he said that most magic is only do-able in the grey place, um, 'other Ashdown' - and that you can only do minor things on this side. Is it the same with being a warg?"

MoonRazor

 

[MoonRazor]

"Sort of," Rylan agreed thoughtfully. "Seems like the imagination's the limit over there. It's a lot easier to warg in Other Ashdown. You don't get migraines or anything. You can even warg over the divide into real Ashdown and keep an eye on things here."

Quite useful, really, especially now that he didn't really need Imp in the real world. There'd been a day, a couple weeks back, right after the faerie ball, when he'd woken up and realized his vision had changed. Even through his own eyes, he could see as Imp did - the same vivid colors, the ultraviolet, the distance, the brightness.

Still, it wasn't the same as flying.

"Alright, so warging. This might not really make sense at first, but I think it's mostly trial and error until you get it right. But basically, when I warg, I reach out my consciousness for Imp. Kind of like extending your brainwaves out, looking for him specifically."

Ephebe

 

[Ephebe]

"Eminent! We'll have to try over there as well then, next time we pass over," she said with a decisive nod and a beam. "It's really amazing how someplace so gloomy can have so many wonderful magic properties, isn't it? I mean, if I'd thought of a place of magic, it'd be a lot more colourful and vibrant than what we've got. But I suppose it's nice enough for being what it is!"

Listening carefully to his explanation of how to warg, she made a mental note of everything, just in case. But he was right, it didn't really make sense to her right now - but if it was trial and error, trial and error she'd give it. "Okay, I'll try it! Not here, I mean; it's probably best to do it at home first, what with the migraines." If she was suddenly feeling too ill to make it home herself, it'd be up to Rylan to help her home and she'd already imposed on him enough with this request - adding more to it was pushing the envelope.

"It probably won't be a problem for a while but just in case; how do you, um, get out of your familiar's head? If you're already in, I mean - what's the 'off' button?"

MoonRazor

 

[MoonRazor]

"Uh. At first? Panic, quite frankly," he said with a wry smile. "Losing the concentration required to connect with your familiar. Once you get better control of it, it becomes more of a conscious return to your own. It'll be a little haphazard at first." Or, more precisely, entirely haphazard. But that was true of all new endeavors.

He glanced over and took a quick look at Nibbs, saw the quiet way the cat sat in the bag, not fighting, looking entirely docile. Probably a good companion and familiar for Tibbie.

"Try it at home," he agreed. "Give me a call if you need any help." He reached into his back pocket and fished out his wallet, plucked a business card out, and handed it to her. "Sometimes it helps when you have someone watching. Especially if you're worried."

Ephebe

 

[Ephebe]

She giggled and nodded, "okay, thanks Rylan! That makes a lot of sense."

Taking the business card with a shy but happy smile, she quickly stashed it in the side pocket of her bag for safe-keeping - after giving Madam Nibbs a gentle nudge so she could access it. "I will, thank you again - I'm gonna give it a try by myself first, I think. Do you mind if I, um, let you know how it goes?"

This was it; a tentative offer of staying in contact and maybe even becoming friends. Although she didn't think she and Rylan would be having sleepovers any time soon or anything like that - the thought of it almost made her giggle again. But she felt like she could rely on him, like if she got in trouble he wouldn't mind if she gave him a call. But maybe that was just his firefighter aura at work - she thought it quite possible.

MoonRazor

 

[MoonRazor]

"Of course!" Rylan nodded and grinned, glad that Tibbie seemed so enthusiastic about it. "Call me any time. I'd like to know how it goes. God knows it's reassuring to have someone to reach out to for help."

That was the way of things for Rylan. Any situation in which he could offer his help, he was happy to do it. Some might call it occupational hazard, but he preferred to think that he'd chosen his occupation because of who he was naturally.

And when it came to magic, he knew, help was always welcome.

There was a quiet whine from the end of the leash, and Rylan looked down to see Fidget staring fixedly down the trail. He laughed, and glanced back at Tibbie. "This guy wants to go," he said apologetically. "I'd better take him. But keep me posted, and uh. Don't do anything rash."

Not that he expected her to do anything of the sort.

Ephebe

 

[Ephebe]

"I will! Or I won't, um, do anything rash I mean," and she really meant it - even if Rylan said it wouldn't hurt Madam Nibbs, she wasn't taking any chances with her cat's welfare.

"I'll give you an update once I've tried it out a bit! Have a good walk," a smile to Rylan and then one to his cute dogs. "Thank you and take care!" An enthusiastic wave goodbye and then she was walking off, back home to lay a plan for this warg-thing.

MoonRazor

wrap? <3 thank you for the rp and for your patience with my slow replies!! ;v;