Down the Rabbit Hole [Itakshir/Private]

Itakshir liked rabbits. They were cute, small, quiet, and abundant out in these parts (although they curiously weren't white like the ones in his homeland). They were also delicious. 
 
Which was why he'd set traps for them out in the woods near the caravan, in the hopes of snagging some extra (free) food for the crew. They weren't as good as the kind he'd liked to have set, though, as materials were lacking. A critical flaw, he'd understood too late, as he discovered over half of them (the rest having never been tripped) broken by their captives. 
 
It was early in the morning, before most people were awake (and before he had anything better to do). He'd been tramping through the underbrush for the better part of an hour, finding one failed trap after another. A little disappointing, to say the least. Though he knew it was like fishing: some days, hours could go by without a single nibble. 
 
Arriving at the site where he knew the last one was located, with nothing successfully caught thus far, he approached it, half-hopeful-- 
 
...Nothing. 
 
Although, when he stepped closer for a better look, he realized that it wasn't for the reasons he thought. The trap had been tripped, and hadn't broken, but it seemed some other predator had beaten him to the punch. A carcass that consisted mostly of bones remained, ants and flies picking the leftovers clean. Well, so much for that. 
 
Inspecting the ground, he saw the rabbit's tracks and then those of whatever had eaten it--a wolf or a wild dog or something of that nature. He expected the tracks of the latter to lead to and away from the dead rabbit, but...instead, they veered off towards the den located at the base of a nearby tree. 
 
Curious, he got down on his hands and knees to peer into the hole, but it was too dark to see what the larger animal had been interested in. 
 
There was only one way to find out, then. 
 
Reaching inside the opening up to his elbow, giving little to no thought to his safety, he groped around in the cool underground cavern. At first, it proved to be uninteresting, yielding nothing but some grassy, soft material that he could only assume was bedding. But then...something furry brushed against his fingertips. 
 
A baby rabbit. His heart leaped with excitement...but promptly fell again when he felt that the tiny form was still and cold. Dead. A sweep of the surrounding area revealed five or so similar casualties. 
 
When he thought about it, the hole was too small for even a small-ish dog to get through, which explained why the babies weren't eaten. However, that certainly didn't mean that they hadn't been terrified, and bunnies were notorious for being literally frightened to death. A wave of guilt washed over him as he thought about how he'd indirectly caused the demise of an entire litter. 
 
He was about to extract his hand, feeling decidedly bad, when something moved against his thumb. For a moment, he froze in disbelief. Could it be...? It was: one was still alive. 
 
Cupping his fingers around it, fearful that he would somehow hurt it in his inability to see, he scooped it up and out of the den. It was brown, no bigger than the palm of his hand, and clearly still scared. It trembled and attempted to escape by beating it's hind legs at him, tearing small gashes into his hand and wrist (he'd forgotten what a bitch it could be to control these things). 
 
Using the edge of his shirt, he wrapped it up so that only it's head was sticking out, and stroked it between the ears until it calmed down. 
 
What to do with it? It was way too small to eat, and he couldn't just leave it there to die. It was awfully cute, with it's large eyes and tiny ears... And then, inspiration struck. Most girls liked cute baby animals; would Franze be among them? It would probably be a pleasant surprise if he showed it to her. Maybe it could even be a gift, though he wasn't sure if she wanted or knew how to care for a rabbit. 
 
Making the trek back out, he emerged from the forest and neared the women's car just as the misty dawn began to fade into morning.

Franze usually woke up early-- it seemed to be genetically predisposed in an austrian to wake up at the right time to be punctual for the sun.

...Not to mention she didn't want to sleep another minute on the floor. Curlers on the floor was a bad idea; Her head hurt more than she'd ever thought possible. At least she'd been well-received by most of the women there... but she'd rather not be practically force fed by the american woman again.

She had a goal this time, for getting up early. She would see if there was any place to bathe, at least get to that vat of water before anyone else did. Never realizing how hard it would be to seperate herself from all her luxuries, she missed her brass clawfoot tub as if it had been a lover. Of course, she would get used to it and adapt, hopefully keeping her pride all throughout... but she wasn't certain anymore that she wouldn't let this place break her. She seemed to be cracked already. It was like being in a commune with crazy people-- people who made you eat biscuits, people who would smack their children over the head (and their children would smack them back--)... and frankly, she was starting to wonder if she would lose her mind, too.

Packing up what she thought she would need, she left the car, and-- as if her mind heard her 'I need some sense' pleas, and manufactured a hallucination (which would be the opposite of sense) there was Itakshir. But what was he holding? And if he was real, why did he seem to just appear out of the woods? Leaving her supplies on the steps, she went to meet him, almost touching his face to make sure he was actually there. "What...?" She had too many questions, and they all began in 'what'... and that was all she could really say.

He was equally surprised to see her stepping out just as he was approaching--so they were both early risers, it seemed. For some reason, the notion made him smile a little.

"Morning," he greeted her cheerfully, flashing a toothy grin. Inwardly, he was relieved to see her apparently intact (though he hadn't any idea how she fared emotionally, of course) after the first night with the other women. He was worried about how she'd cope with the radically different atmosphere, and how the others would treat her. He'd find a way to ask her how it was later, but for now...

Keeping the rabbit covered from sight with one hand, he took hers one at a time and lifted them up into the air so that they were cupped together.

"Look what I found," he said quietly but eagerly. Unwrapping the tiny animal, still keeping it hidden, he carefully carried it the short distance to her fingers. "Don't worry, it's gentle," he assured her (because his scratches might have suggested otherwise) before placing it in her hands, revealing the ball of fur. He kept his hands underneath hers momentarily, though, to assure that she could hold it.

"It's a baby," he informed her of the obvious, smiling warmly.

She had to think for a moment-- was it normal for a small furry thing to follow 'good morning'? Not where she was from... And probably not from anywhere else, either. Then again, he wasn't exactly normal.

Normally she didn't like holding wild animals. But young animals tended to be cleaner than most, just as clean as any hunting dog. And he seemed so happy about it. Plus... It really was soft.

The small animal shivered a bit at being traded off, and she kept her voice quiet-- as if that would calm it. "Bezaubernd..." She exclaimed quietly, carefully extracting one hand to touch it's fur. One thing she had missed from either carnival was a true pet. A rabbit would be something new. But... "...What about its family?"

She could be vain. She could be heartless. But when anyone, let alone her, was faced with such delicate life, of course they would be concerned. He should know about the rest of the rabbits, he knew about all kinds of wildlife, after all.

Her smile grew even more when the little rabbit stopped shaking and began to inspect her hands. It was then that she noticed his. All red and scratched-- it couldn't have been from the tiny baby in her hands. "What cut you...?" She asked, a little more worry compensating for her inability to take his hands, at the moment.

He waited expectantly for her reaction, and was not disappointed. It had crossed his mind far too late that there was always the possibility that maybe she wouldn't like it, and he'd just deposited it into her hands without even considering it first. But she was petting it and handling it tenderly, and he was able to relax.

"It was alone when I found it," he answered, keeping his voice equally low, "I heard it moving inside of the den; no mother, no siblings..." He'd skirted around some of the details, but only because they were too upsetting. He didn't want to ruin the mood. But he didn't want to out-and-out lie, either, so he left it at that.

And what had happened to his hands? Well, there was no getting around that one. "It freaked out a little, when I first picked it up," he laughed a bit and rubbed the back of his neck, "It was just scared, though; it's been good since then."

Standing back, he put his hands in his pockets, letting her do as she willed with the baby, "I didn't know what to do with it, to be honest. It's too small to leave on it's own."

He'd saved the little thing from certain death, and it was all alone. She wanted to hug him, but she was still holding the rabbit. She wanted to do something about his hands, too. But he took them out of the picture, and besides-- she knew nothing about first aid.

So she did what she knew how to. Leaning up, she kissed his cheek, smiling. "How valiant... A hunter saving a baby rabbit." She'd heard sometimes he would come back with food he caught... She didn't want to think that what she'd be eating was rabbit. She just wouldn't ask when she ate it.

He didn't know what to do with her? Not recognizing it as maybe a passive gift-giving, she asked, "Can... Can I take care of her? I've had pets before..." dogs. ...close enough. Not to mention, maybe taking care of something would quell those bloody dreams she'd had.

Thinking she had to prove it (this guy knew his animals, after all), Franze braced the rabbit in her hands again and hurried gently to her supplies, bringing out a soap basket with a small towel fitted in it. Carefully, she placed the baby in the basket, looking proud of herself. "See? She has a home, now."

((...Gotta reply, just one last time. Then I'll sleep. :I /shot))

He didn't know what 'valiant' meant, but he supposed it must have been a good thing, if he merited a kiss over it. And...when she put it that way, it was funny, he realized with a laugh.

But she had a point: in the end, he was, in fact, a hunter.

When she offered to take care of it, even putting it in her basket to show that she was capable of doing so, he pretended to consider it. "Hmm... Maybe... But you know, then we'll have nothing to eat." He looked up and down at her, "Well...you're about the same size, so maybe we could have you instead?" He laughed, tapping her lips lightly with one finger, "That'd be okay, right? You probably taste better anyways."

Setting the jokes aside, he grinned, "Sure, you can have her." (How did she figure it was a girl, he wondered--) "But I wonder if she's even old enough to eat real food yet?" He didn't know what they (because of course, he'd contribute what he knew about the animals when needed; he assumed she wasn't familiar with raising a baby rabbit found in the wild) would do if she was still of nursing age.

Her face fell as he looked to be mulling it over... But rose again as he turned another thing into a joke. Kissing his finger, she put on a pout and held the rabbit close. "That's not okay. Why would you share me with other people, I thought you liked me. Besides," She laughed sadly, brandishing the healing bruise on her wrist. "You wouldn't want someone else's leftovers, would you?" Though she wished differently-- and maybe with the joke, she'd get the answer to a rather serious question that had weighed her down.

It was then she realized how she looked-- no makeup, hair in curlers... What a mess. How was he supposed to give the preferred answer when she looked like... This? She wanted to say 'don't answer it yet', but there was more to be solved about her new baby... Pet. Yes. That's what it was.

She (the gender subscribed to franze's rather childish 'cats are girls and dogs are boys theory, which applied to all feminine looking/masculine looking animals) certainly did look too young to be eating greens. "We could go into town... I still have some money saved, we can buy milk for it." She was truly not a wilderness woman-- her first thought was 'you could always milk a rabbit'. "I just... Have to put my face on first."

((you two have NO IDEA how badly this makes me want a bunny. :I. Just wanted to throw that out there, so feel free to delete this. /rolls away))

((No, panic, no, don't do it--your skin will never be the same again. :'I I seriously still have the giant scar one of those fuckers left on my arm...SIX YEARS AGO. /NEVER FORGET.))

Of course, he didn't say so, but that rabbit had been something's leftovers, too. It seemed he was not the only one attracted to small, delicate, defenseless creatures that had nowhere else to go.

Taking her fingers, he returned the kiss to the back of her hand (he didn't want to touch the bruise, least he hurt her) and reassured her, "Some people just can't see a good thing when they have it." Straightening back up, he grinned, "And I'm happy to take advantage of his blindness." It was possibly the cleverest thing he'd said in years. In the back of his mind, he half-wondered who 'he' was--the man who'd put that bruise on her. Could he even be called a man? Monster, was more like it. Itakshir was sure that he never wanted to meet the fellow.

Go into town? "Sure," he answered, "I can't drive, though...can you?" He could ride a horse like nobody's business, though; they could always borrow one or two of the show's horses, if it came down to it. Or get someone else to drive them. But honestly, he didn't want to squander their alone time on other people.

Surprised, he cracked up laughing when she said that she had to 'put on her face'. What on earth was she talking about? Holding it with both hands, he lightly prodded her cheeks with his thumbs, as though checking to make sure they were real. "What's that, isn't this your face? Or is this beauty some kind of a trick?"

The dark cloud that threatened to hang over her head dissipated immediately as he kissed her hand and said such... Such... She didn't even know how to describe the words.

But Auguste had said nice things too. She thought-- really thought about asking him if he was lying to her. She knew he would answer her with the truth. Then she had stopped herself. It was the truth-- to him anyways. Maybe opinion of her didn't have to be general consensus. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, right? From now on, she would have to try seeing the beholder as not everyone. Just him. He was all that would be there. "I..." She tried to come up with something clever. But she couldn't. She could only say the truth. "Thank you..."

"I can drive--" She immediately said, wanting to get the infant animal food as quick as possible. Nothing would come close to what it's mother would give it, but they could try. "But I haven't in a while. Well, I did when I came here..." Another aspect of her independence she willingly turned over to Auguste. Now she could travel without a man. Well, without one at the wheel.

Her cheeks turned an embarrassed shade of red as he fiddled with her face. It was flattering but... There were some things a woman wouldn't go without. "My makeup," She clarified. "And my hair. I'll be even more beautiful, I promise." Gingerly she removed his hands (she kissed both the palms-- for the scratches, of course) and placed the rabbit in the box on them before quietly disappearing into the car.

Before she left it, there were a few tired groans from the inside ("turn off that lamp", "that perfume, I can't breathe" and "goddammit, who is ever up this early"); because of that and her male friend's (she didn't know quite what to call him) compliments, she'd just settled on mascara and lipstick-- she was sure her cheeks would provide their own blush. After quickly pinning her curls into place and fixing some pins in with pearl ends, she put on an ivory day dress (the ugly clothes only applied to working there--) and went out to meet him. "The car I drove is still here, we can leave."

He just smiled and watched as she escaped into the women's car to get dressed, leaving him with the rabbit. Honestly, he didn't know why she thought she needed to do anything to change her appearance. Oh, he wasn't blind, he could see that it made her look prettier...but she was already pretty. He wondered if she thought so, as well, without all the glitz.

Petting the baby rabbit's ears absently, he noted that the little scratches he'd gotten in the process of procuring it had been totally worth it--though he did still feel bad about it's siblings and mother. Did he plan on revealing the whole truth to Franze? It didn't seem that important...he decided to keep it between him and the baby, unless for some reason, it became necessary to tell the full story.

When she emerged (sooner than he expected, though still after some time), he grinned and offered an arm to her (he was simple, but he could be taught) so that they could make their way to the car. Gesturing back towards the forest, he chuckled lightly and commented, "You ought to be careful, you know? Looking so nice near the woods is dangerous--what'll you do if an evil spirit falls for you?" It was said in jest, but he did wonder, in the back of his mind... Spirits didn't only necessarily inhabit Ainu land, after all. He'd seen a fox or two during his excursions through the denser parts of the woods, and the mere sight of them had caused him to freeze up in alarm. Foxes were dangerous enemies to someone like him; he had no hope of ever outsmarting one.

What would she do if an evil spirit fell for her? She really didn't believe anything like that could happen. Did he? "What would you do?"

She was glad he finally learned how to walk with a woman, but she could bet he didn't know to open car doors for one. So, for the first time, she opened a car door herself. It wasn't without difficulty-- she had no idea it would be so heavy. She barely missed the door crashing into her leg as she pulled it in.

After waiting for him to take a seat in the car, she started it and they headed off. It did seem odd that he didn't know how to drive... But she wouldn't ask at the moment. There were too many things she wanted to know-- where bs was even from, and how someone like him got all the way here-- but she felt uncertain what the answers would mean to her, and what her asking would mean to him. She would just have to give it time.