Cheetahing

[Odqura]

(( Continued from: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] But anyone feel free to join in. c: ))



The castle corridors were nearly as chilled as the night air of the outdoors as the dean led his student from the fire-warmed confines of the history classroom. The door clicked quietly shut behind them, and it could have been the bell at the start of a horse race. As one foot fell to the cold stone floor, the other kicked off hard and Odqura leapt into a fast-paced sprint through the corridors. Top speed impossible to muster in the sharp angles of the hallways, keeping from skidding into walls proved a trying task. But the professor avoided any such fails of dignity as the swift bounding of his bird-like feet drew out the path for himself and his student to travel.

In no significant amount of time, racing past doorways and windows, the pair quickly approached the grand wooden doors to the ballroom. It had not been a planned destination but Od considered it as good a place as any as well as spacious, and as they appraoched, he picked up the pace.

As he drew too near to stop gracefully, Od struck off the floor with his talon's spread in front of him like a rooster, skillfully nabbing the door handle in his nimble toes and bursting into the cavernous room beyond. Giant blue and black feathered wings beat twice, noisily slowing his reckless pace until he had regained his poise and balance. Managing to suddenly stand rather regally in the foyer of the ballroom, the dean turned his head to carefully preen a flight feather and coax it into settling perfectly into place, as if he had not just been tearing through the hallways like an irresponsible student.

[Ndale]

Ndale was quick to leap into pace behind Od, back legs kicking off the ground and spine flexing in time to his long strides. The speed was not full out, and the cheetah kept behind the raptor, tail whipping around corners as nails scratched against stone.

Seeing the grand doors ahead at the end of the long, final stretch of hallway, Ndale slowed and the professor pulled ahead that much more. He burst out with a loud guffaw at Od's unique entrance, amazed at the ability of the man to open the door in such a manner.

The cheetah blinked though, with the raptor stopped, taking the care to tend to a feather. Ndale knew the man knew he was coming in second, though the option to make a quick turn was always there. He snickered, where was the fun in that? Lowering of the body and an extra burst from hind legs had the cheetah flying through the door way. There was another pace over the floor, front legs and back touching briefly, before the feline's spine snapped back out and front paws spread wide to pounce upon the blue and black feathered back of his friend.

[Odqura]

The raptor crouched low to the ground under the unexpected weight of the cheetah. The pounce was unanticipated, but Od remained perfectly calm, making only a quietly dignified bark of amusement. The feathers that had just been preened neatly into place along his back burst open beneath the cat to physically propel him from the dean, and into the air as the case may be.

Od's expression was both amused and mockingly unimpressed as he returned to preening, tail flicking rhythmically to and fro across the shiny floor of the ballroom.

The large windows of the grand hall allowed the light from the moon and stars to illuminate the area. In such a large room, the cool air was persistent, but not unwelcome against Od's feathers after the hasty exercise.

[Ndale]

Ndale let out a rather startled chirp at being rather abruptly displaced. Being tossed into the air was unexpected, but fun all the same. The lithe and slender body twisted around wildly, repositioning the legs under him to make a safe landing. Indeed the cheetah's paws hit the floor, nails scratched at the marble floor to find suitable traction. On the ground again, Ndale looked up grinning.

"That was so cool." A chuckle rose from his throat and his shoulders shook. "Do it again." The excitement in his voice was clear and he crouched down suddenly, prepared to pounce again, tail twitching happily in concentration. Quick to be distracted in such a state of bubbliness, his pupils dilated and went large as he focused in on Od's swinging tail. His head twitched side to side in time with the sweep of feathers, and he shifted his weight back and forth from his his front paws, testing his muscles and preparing to shoot forward.

[Odqura]

Od witnessed the cheetah landing agilely back to the floor, as he knew he would. You could toss that kid around all day and he's still manage to nail the landing. Tsk, cats.

Ndale's excited remark brought a toothy smirk to Od's face and he spun to face the cat. Mirroring the crouch, the raptor lowered his head and the ends of his flight feathers fanned to offer balance and size-intimidation, as if he were facing a foe. His tail was swung around behind him, but continued to flicker slowly back and forth, ready to support maintaining balance in whichever direction he chose to veer next. A guttural rumble thrummed deep in his throat like a playful warning and the massive hooked talons on his toes tapped the marble testily, the rhythm echoing hauntingly through the spacious room.

His head tilted at an angle so that one bright orange eye could watch Ndale carefully for sudden movement. He waited to see if the student accepted his silent offer for a gamesome spar.

[Guest]

Andraste woke up hearing people enter the room, but she spoke not a word. She hid under Aesis's cloak as she watched the two from the chairs. Her friend was nowhere to be seen. She really didn't want to bring attention to herself just yet as she was trying to figure out what really was going on... a cheetah, and a dinosaur... nothing terribly out of the ordinary.

Andraste slowly let the cape fall away from her and sit on the chair beside her. She recognized Od from when he turned into this form and got dubbed as the coolest person ever. She watched for a few minutes before she slowly and quietly stalked her way over to the very familiar dinosaur.

He was just low enough for her to jump and perhaps get around his neck. She pounced trying to grab him.

[Ndale]

Ndale tensed and jumped back at Od's quick turn, and he hissed in mock aggression, accepting the challenge. Fur stood on end, and the cheetah pinned his ears back. He stalked towards the left before turning quickly and stalking back around. It was on this path that he noticed a small girl sneaking up near them, her eyes focused on the large, feathery form of his friend.

Whiskers quivered and his lips peeled back to release a stuttered, chirping meow. Mind finding a new focus, the cat's muscles sprung and the slim body was propelled to intercept the girl.

[Odqura]

Od was pleased when Ndale accepted his challenge. His crouch lowered, ready for the dodge should the cheetah pounce. But faintly, beyond the distracting mewling of his friend, the dean's ears registered a soft and muffled repeating 'thump' like little feet trying to fall quickly and quietly on the marble floor. The air felt displaced as his attention extended farther than just the cheetah before him, finally realizing there was another presence in the ballroom.

In the same moment that Od twitched his head to the side to view the third individual, the cheetah pounced. Pushing off the marble sharply, the dean stretched out his neck, deliberately sticking the broad side of his face directly in the path of Ndale. He knew that in his excited and caffeinated state of mind, the big cat was likely to interpret the small girl as an easy plaything, and the professor wished to interfere before Andraste ended up an accidental kitty-chewtoy.

The cat's stomach collided with Od's cheekbone and paws wrapped over top of the raptor's head, extended claws buried firmly but harmlessly amidst the blue feathers. The cheetah remained perched there on the side of the raptor's face as Od's playful rumbling quieted into an uncertain hum.

With the eye that was not shut beneath spotted fur, Odqura regarded Andraste with glance. What was such a young girl doing out this late, alone in the ballroom no less?


(( a little god-mod with permission from coni~ x3 ))

[Guest]

The child let out a giggle as she looked at the cat on top of the dean's head, "TOLD YOU YOU'RE AMAZING!" she giggled hard. Her eyes were practically shining as she actually stopped, not getting to touch the dean. "AND YOU HAVE YOUR OWN BIG KITTY! THAT'S SOOOOO AWESOME!" she yelled. She was very energetic for just waking up.

Andraste giggled and pushed her hair back out of her face, it was a bit of a mess from not getting combed or brushed. Her mother usually did that for her in a way to bond with her. That wasn't the case now, and at this point, it truly looked knotted. She'd get a good brush through on it later... maybe...

The child giggled a little more as she reached out to try to touch the cheetah now, as well as the dean. The two of them were so so so so so so so so so so so cool in her opinion. She was just completely amazed. She giggled again and looked between the two.

[Ndale]

Ndale lost the air in his lungs as he collided with the raptor's head. Clinging on, the cheetah blinked, brain not processing at the same speed it should be. When'd he get here? He should be..wait, when'd he get here? Pulling himself higher, the feline found himself peeking over the edge of the professors head, paws buried in the feathers, and a girl laughing on the other side. He blinked and shifted, scrambling to get over.

Finding the feathers slippery for his claws to get through, he bit and licked at them in annoyance. He coughed and stopped, opening his mouth wide, trying to spit out the feathers, choking on the odd texture in his mouth. Of course, this warranted another bite, and consequently, another mouth full of blue fibers.

His attention was caught by the girl screaming. Why was she being so loud? He ears fell back and he stared at her, wondering vaguely who she was and why she was here. The face didn't bring anything to mind, he obviously hadn't hit on her yet, and he probably wouldn't in the future. Too young, too giggly and wide-eyed. His eyes trailed to a limb that neared him. With a feather still caught in his teeth, he focused on that hand, batting at it with a clawed paw, trying not to fall in the action.

[Odqura]

Od completely ignored the war Ndale was waging on his crown feathers, continuing to eye the girl uncertainly. He recognized her as Andraste, a student of his in fact, but he still didn't know why she wasn't in bed. Her appearance suggested that she may have been napping.

"Andraste." He nodded very mildly in greeting, wary of the student still clinging off his skull. From above in his peripheral vision, Od spotted a speckled paw reaching towards the girl and wisely raised his head so that the limb was in no danger of accidentally-or purposefully-swiping the girl. His gaze fell back down to the girl below with the cheetah held aloft high above her now. "Child, what are you doing out of bed at this hour? Shouldn't you be safe in your House?"

To distract the student on his face, the dean discreetly swept his tail up, arching the appendage over his back. The tips of the feathered plume batted mildly in the cheetah's direction, barely brushing the cat's ear and sending tickling gusts of air to play with his whiskers.

[Guest]

The girl ran her fingers through her hair with a soft giggle, her fingers got stuck, and she made them fight the rest of the way through her hair. Needless to say, she didn't try that again.

"You have a kitty on your head." she giggled looking over the teacher with bright green eyes. She was so happy and hyper for the middle of the night, she had probably fallen asleep hours ago, and was only just waking up to the noise of the room.

She was very surprised to see that the kitty's paw was out of reach and she gave a little "humpf". She crossed her arms, but then caught sight of Ndale's claws and her eyes grew really big. She let out another giggle, and then relized that Od had just asked her a question a few moments ago.

"Bed? House? I don't understand..." she still hadn't been to her room, and she really didn't know where it was, she had just been so busy running around, or sleeping in someone's arms that she just never got around to finding out where she was actually suppose to be staying.

The girl watched him play with the cheetah on his head and let out another giggle. She thought the cat was so cute, and she coudln't help but to be amused even if she wasn't the one who was playing with the cat.

(if there are spelling errors, please correct them, I am on a compute w/o spell check and it's driving me nuts...)

[Ndale]

Ndale reached, despite the new height, for the girl's arm. Unfortunately, he could not reach and his limb just lay there outstretched but not really trying. His head twisted swiftly, neck arching back, as the feather tipped tail brushed at his ear and made his whiskers tickle. With a quick swipe, the cat almost fell off the dean's head. It was only with some furious scrambling that Ndale made it up to the tops of the raptor's head, running down his friend's neck in pursuit of the runaway tail. Of course, blue feathers were a lot less solid than they appeared, and a careless mis-step had the cheetah falling from Od's shoulders. Being of the feline type, though, of course had Ndale twisting to land of his feet in a crouch. The confusion only came when the object of his focus was no longer in front of him. When turning around in a quick circle did not reveal it, he paused to think about the last bits of the conversation.

With a flick of the ear, Ndale looked over to the girl whom Od had addressed as Andraste. He grinned and slinked his way over, noticing how short the girl actually was. He himself stood at about a little over three feet at his shoulders, this girl was only but a few inches taller than that.

A quick conversational chur came from the cheetah, letting Od know that he wasn't interested in the girl. Circling around back behind the red-head, he looked back up to his friend, giving a high-pitched chirp. This wouldn't be the first time he had given this signal to Od, it was only meant to show that he would not be speaking for this interaction; a cheetah he was, a cheetah he would be.

(( The height I got from Andraste's student sheet, it said she was 3'5". Ndale's about 3'2". Though it was interesting xD ))

[Odqura]

The orange eyes sparkled amusedly down at Andraste. "Yes, your House, child. Do you know where your room is?"

The dean was mindful to remain still when he felt Ndale move about and finally make his way down the feathered neck. He was unconcerned when the cheetah slipped to the ground, but turned his head to watch him anyway. Best to make sure his playfulness was under control with the girl present. Ndale's noises were familiar and Od understood, so he didn't wait for the cheetah to introduce himself.

"My kitten's name is Ndale. Have you met him yet, Miss Andraste?"

Od's wings ruffled for a moment before settling neatly down his back.

[Guest]

She was giggling looking up at the dean, "I have my own room?!" she seemed amazed, like was just given candy, "Really really really?!" she asked getting excited. She looked at Ndale now as he circled around her. Andraste reached out to stroke his fur, "Your kitten is so big and pretty, and nice," she spoke softly and then gave a yawn, she was still tired, but her excitement to see her favorite dean and the kitten was keeping her up. She then noticed how big Ndale really was "OH MY GOSH YOUR KITTEN IS REALLY REALLY BIG!" Andraste tried to really get close to the big kitten to be able to pet him over and over and over, and then probably fall asleep.

[Ndale]

Ndale blinked at the girl, was she really so happy to receive her own room? Obviously, she must know that even if she was in a single at the moment, she would receive a roommate eventually, and then the room wouldn't really be all her own.

He eyed her hand as it neared his side and he sniffed indignantly before stepping back just out of reach; he was not a kitten. Ears pinned back as she exclaimed loudly, and his tail flicked. The sudden attack from the girl had Ndale reeling back, dancing always just out of reach with a grin and a glint in his eye. It was only a moment before her sudden attention and assumed persistence sent shocks of energy down the feline's lean limbs, unconstrained, and just like that the cheetah was shooting down the ballroom.

[Odqura]

Od arched a brow, not sure what to make of the girl's fawning over Ndale. But he watched with mild amusement as the cheetah handled it himself by evading her fingers, and was thankful that the fit of energy chose to release itself in the form of taking off across the ballroom, rather than continue to try and be 'playful' with Andraste.

The dean sighed because he was responsible enough to know that it had become his unhappy duty to show the girl to her room, even though he had planned on spending these night hours chasing his kitten around the estate. He glanced across the room to where Ndale had gone, then back down at Andraste. He really wanted to go chase after the cheetah.

"Miss Andraste, you are a member of Dòbhran House, correct?" He knew the answer, but felt it polite to inquire.

[Guest]

"Yep. But I'm not tired no more..." she giggled and ran off to try to catch Ndale. She was giggling and full of life. Ndale evading her really woke her up, and she was quite ready to play. Her feet hardly touched the ground as she tried to run as fast as the "Kitty" who she was now engaged with.

"How do you keep getting cooler 'Fess'r Od? E'ry time I turn 'round yar'ven cooler than befur!!" She laughed.

(sorry it's short.)

[Aesis - DISCONTINUED]

He'd heard some commotion in the ballroom after leaving Andraste.

"..okay...I'm just going to go...and see if everything's alright. Aesis, don't start getting dance-hypnotized again. Just...checking....and getting my cloak..maybe."

He straddled and paced before he'd reached the doorway. There was some noise inside, so he peered in, to see Andraste, fine. He sighed contently, then looked back and angled his head to see some more. There was a man he'd met during his carriage ride...and...

"...not good....It's him..." he muttered, eyes intently glaring at Ndale.

'Quick, now's the chance to run while he doesn't spot you! Run!' he thought.

'...but...what if that disgusting pervert lays his hand on Andraste? I can't let that happen!' he contemplated in the back of his mind.

He backed away a short distance where Ndale wouldn't spot him easily. However, Aesis was never that much of a quiet person, in movements, and he stepped forward, to have his brass-banana-staff clatter from his belt.

Hoping nobody noticed, he crouched down to pick it up.

[[Well....concluding the ballroom RP with Aesis and Andraste, you led me here with a link, so here I am :>

...

Resting fingers now. :U]]

[Ndale]

The cheetah slowed and turned to look at Od, giving the man a smirk. He knew Od wanted to follow and was actually miffed that his friend was responsible enough to make sure the kid was okay instead of recklessly charging down the room with him, pheh. Whatever, he knew that Rooster would be bored in there eventually.

Seeing the girl sprint after him, he snorted airily from his large lungs. Flexing his spine for the extra boost, he entered and exited the rounded wall of the ballroom at about 65 miles per hour. He was speeding back towards the other end when a loud clatter echoed through the room from the hall. Tail swinging to keep him in balance as he turned sharply, the cheetah shot towards the door, nails scrapping against the marble floor. Passing through the doors was like being hit with a wave. Inhaling deeply, Ndale recognized immediately the tang of bananas and handsome. Blinking at the elf now just in front of him, he slammed on the brakes, lowering his back half and scrambling against stone to inertia. The big cat skidded, unable to dig his pads into the stone like the dirt of a plain.

[Odqura]

Odqura sighed to himself at the girl's antics, but refrained from responding as she seemed distracted by running. While relieved he would apparently not having to be escorting her back to her room at this hour, it did appear as though he may have to babysit a bit. Not that he minded, he was a professor after all, and it was a responsibility of his to see after the students and their needs. Or so he kept reminding himself. He caught the smirk Ndale shot at him and the dinosaur's long tail swept the floor restlessly behind him.

The dean watched the pair of students bound around the ballroom, tossing his muzzle back and forth to ruffle up his feathers against the night air in the large room. He was debating on whether or not to take off after them, when the clattering noise caught his attention and he snapped his head towards the doors. He took a step in that direction, but of course the cheetah would beat him there.

When Ndale burst through the doors, Od caught a glimpse of the elf boy and saw the potential for collision. Well, there was no point in trying to stop it from happening. There was no time for him to interfere at any rate, and it would be amusing to watch.

So the dean began strutting over with his wings folded neatly down his back to inspect any damage, an amused glint in his eye.

[Aesis - DISCONTINUED]

[[Wait, did Ndale stop in front of Aesis or skid towards his legs? o3o]]

[Ndale]

(( He's skidding, and can't seem to stop. xP ))

[Aesis - DISCONTINUED]

"Oh...great." he muttered, as he saw the cat rushing towards him.

Although, he was in his cat form, so that was kinda fine... he thought, standing there blankly.

The cat rushed into his legs and the collision made him lose balance.

"W-Whoa-" he started, then began sputtering complete nonsense while he fell forward, crashing on top of Ndale, but holding his balance against the ground with his hands.

"...Agh....that kinda...hurt." he mumbled, as the bones in his wrists popped.

Aesis looks forward to see his face meeting with Ndale's rump.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" He screamed loudly, backing away from the cat and hitting the back of his head against the wall.

"Oof." he said, realizing there was fur in his mouth.

"Pfffft." he sputtered, trying to spit out the cat hair, and he wiped his face.

[Ndale]

Ndale closed his eyes and tucked his chin as he slammed into Aesis's legs, having been unable to stop himself in time. He came to a sudden halt crouched on the ground, landing on his stomach with his legs up under him, and he felt the impact as Aesis landed on top of him. Upon opening his eyes, he could see the elf's legs, meaning his head was somewhere under the boy's crotch as his stomach laid along the feline's back. The cheetah didn't have much time to think on this position long because soon Aesis was mumbling and then screaming and scrambling backwards. Ndale blinked as the elf hit his head against the wall.

Finding some amusement in this, the cheetah chuckled airily and stood, shaking out his fur and grinning at Aesis as the boy fussed over some hair in his mouth. Ndale trotted over easily, looking curiously into the boy's face, silently asking if he was alright. At least Od was here. If the boy had hurt himself then it was a small matter for the professor to look at the student quickly. The feline looked over his shoulder to catch the raptor's eye, sending the man a sheepish, although almost devilish, grin.

With his attention returned the Aesis and a gentle nuzzle to the elf's arm, Ndale sent his apologies for running him over.

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