Of all the money that e'er I spent...

[the_marshal]

WHO| Wyatt and OTA
WHAT| Wyatt takes his unexpected new pet for a walk.
WHERE| A Capitol cafe, not too far from Tribute Tower
WHEN| After this.
Warnings| None.



Loaded down with a pair of Miss Pasha's Tribbles and eager to show them off, Wyatt's escort had been quick to leave him to his own devices after leaving the woman's shop, which was more than fine by the marshal. He was happy to find his own way back to the Tower, his own striped Tribble riding along on his shoulder, purring softly in his ear.

Still unexpected, still surprised Pasha had insisted, without repayment, he still hadn't quite figured out what he was supposed to do with the tiny, trembling beast, but it seemed harmless enough and she had said they were easy to keep.... If nothin' else, he supposed Max would get a laugh out of it. This little bit, looking like something his tiger had coughed up in a corner somewhere.

More than once, Wyatt was stopped on the sidewalk by curious passersby, some who had seen Pasha's broadcast, and others who hadn't, but all wanting to know more about the strange creature cooing happily from it's perch as it was petted and fussed over. Dutifully, he answered what questions he could and for the rest, he directed them back to the little shop with its many baubles.

At a cafe not far from his destination, he was stopped by one woman at a table near the sidewalk, but within minutes had gathered a small knot of a crowd, all of them asking after his new friend.

Comments

[the_marshal]

Watching her hand, pleased, he arched an eyebrow, the corner of his mouth lifting.

"Can't say as I do," he replied. "Why, aught I to?"

[knifewithnoname]

"He do be saying things like that all the time. He do no be liking hurting or killing." He fingers had moved now, searching through the fur, looking for eyes, or a mouth. Anything that wasn't just endless trembling fur.

[the_marshal]

His smile widened.

"Sounds like my kinda fella. You'll have to point him out, next time ya see him."

Beside them, a woman at a table took a picture, cooing - not unlike the tribble - as she tapped away at her communicator. Whether man, child, or beast liked it, their encounter was about to be splashed across the network captioned by the words 'too cute!!!'

Wyatt glanced up at the flash, but other than a slight veeing of his eyebrows and wry tipping of his mouth, he didn't react.

Looking back at Pruna, he held the tribble a little closer to her.

"Ya wanna hold it?"

[knifewithnoname]

"I will be." She nodded and scowled at the lady who took a picture, she didn't react past that though because Wyatt's question distracted her.

"Yes." She nodded before remembering to add, "Please."

[the_marshal]

He reached out again and guided her hands into a cup, and gently scooped the tribble into her waiting palms.

"There ya are, nice an' steady now."

The pile of fluff shuddered and cooed, a warm ball of vibrating hair, and Wyatt smiled.

"I think it like's ya."

Granted, he hadn't seen it do anything but purr and shake since he'd gotten it, and it was hard to tell without eyes or mouth to go by, but it seemed happy enough and Pasha had seemed sure they'd be content through just about anything, so long as they were being fussed over.

[knifewithnoname]

She grinned, it felt even weirder when she held it, awkwardly not quite sure which was the best way. She still thought it was pathetic, but it was soft and warm and it's cooing had stopped being annoying.

"I do be thinking so too. But I do be thinking it would be liking anyone, it can probably no even be telling the difference."

[the_marshal]

Trusting Pruna to feel it out for herself, Wyatt rested his forearms on his knees and chuckled softly shifting his weight on his heels.

"Ya might be right 'bout that, but try not to judge 'em too hard. I reckon it'd be a challenge for anybody without any eyes."

[knifewithnoname]

"Do it really be having no eyes?" She balanced it on one hand against her stomach and began searching the fur again.

[the_marshal]

"Well, I ain't found any yet." He reached up with one hand and pushed his hat up an inch to scratch lightly at his hairline, mouth twisting in bemusement. "No mouth neither."

It seemed be exactly what it looked like, a ball of purring fur, as impossible as that should have been. How did anything live without eating? Without breathing?

How did it even make noise, without taking in air?

A man could drive himself mad thinking about it.

...So Wyatt was trying not to.

[knifewithnoname]

"How do it be eating then?" She frowned and held it in front of her. "Maybe we do be holding it wrong." She turned it upside down, just in case.

[the_marshal]

The tribble squeaked and shook, apparently aware enough even without eyes and ears and mouth to know it was upside down and that it didn't like it.

"It doesn't, as far as I understand," he replied, holding a hand out as a safety net in case the tribble slipped. "Or they're not supposed to, anyways."

Pasha had stressed that, more than once. No food. They didn't need it and he wouldn't like what would happen if it did get any.

[knifewithnoname]

"Not supposed to be eating." She wrinkled her nose again and lifted the tribble higher so she could talk to it. "Did you be being a bad tribble?"

Could it hear her, did it even have ears. Pruna really didn't like how useless these things were.

[the_marshal]

The tribble cooed in response, a long trilling sound, as if promising her that no, no it certainly had not. Either that or it just wanted to be petted some more.


"I believe it's got less to do with bein' bad, an' more that it's bad for 'em." Wyatt chuckled and arched an eyebrow at her, mouth curling teasingly. "Like when little girls eat too much sweets an' get themselves a tummy upset.

[knifewithnoname]

"I do never be getting an upset tummy." She told him wrinkling her nose again. "How can food be being bad for them. Everything do be needing food, even plants."

[the_marshal]

Wyatt just chuckled again.

"Ya ain't wrong," he agreed with a nod of his head. "But the lady was quite insistent. Tribble's aren't supposed to eat an' if they do, it'll be very bad."

[knifewithnoname]

"Well I do be guessing if they do just be sitting there making stupid noises at least they do no be using up food."

She wrinkled her nose at the tribble. "You do be being a very strange creature."

[the_marshal]

That was one way of looking at it, he supposed. Practical, if nothing else.

A strange quality in a little girl, maybe, but not a bad one.

"To be fair, I expect it'd probably say the same 'bout you iffen it could," he teased.

[knifewithnoname]

She smiled at that. She guessed that too a stupid, useless furball humans must be really strange indeed. She stroked it some more it cooed happily.

"I do no be thinking it do be caring, as long as it do be being stroked."

[the_marshal]

He smiled, and reached out to pet the tribble with her.

"It's mighty big of somethin' so small, to like us in spite of ourselves."

[knifewithnoname]

She wrinkled her nose, "I do be guessing so. But it probably do just be being stupid. Do you no be being." She poked the tribble at that but soothed it's squeaking with more petting.

[the_marshal]

His grin turned into another laugh.

"Well, we should be jus' as big, an like it despite itself."

Or, at least, be nice to it, which somehow he figured was a step up enough for Pruna.

[knifewithnoname]

Like it despite itself, it was a new concept to Pruna, who didn't really much like anyone, except those she decided weren't as stupid as most of the world.

That list was slowly growing now that she was meeting all sorts of people, but she wasn't sure she could extend her new found tolerance of other people to furballs.

"We can be trying."

[the_marshal]

His hand shifted from the tribble to her shoulder with a light pat and a gentle squeeze.

"At'a girl. Tryin's where it all starts."

[knifewithnoname]

Effie said things like all the time and she looked up at him. "Do you be wanting him back, you will have to be being careful though because I do no be thinking Maximus' tiger." She wrinkled her nose, she really hated that tiger. It had come to represent everything that made her angry in the Capitol. "Will no be liking it for what it do be being, except maybe dinner."

[the_marshal]

The corner of his mouth twitched. If he didn't know better, he'd have said Pruna was worried about the little hairball.

"Don't ya worry none," he promised, holding out his hands to take the tribble back. "I'll be sure an' give Max the what for where his new friend's concerned."

He couldn't say he trusted the animal all that much, but he was getting used to it, as often as it could be found at Max's said these days.

"There won't be any tribble on the menu, ya have my word."