Refuse To Die

"Don't ask me what I've done. Don't ask me who I've killed. It's all aged data now. There's more to me than the programmed predator, but always remember that it's still there."

[wreckingduty]

A Family Christmas

[wreckingduty]

((Darwin version.))

Ralph beams as they all thank him, he politely responds in Cy-Bug to them one by one. Their thanks are adorable and endearing and he appreciates them. It’s cute to see some of them bringing their cookies with them to play, while others look more like their snacks.

It’s nice being surrounded by all this love and warmth, it’s relaxing and comfortable.

He looks to his Queen with a smile, “I’m glad they do, my Queen! Now it’s your turn!” He’s got three presents for her, though two go together. It takes him a little bit of time to figure out which one to start with.

Finally he decides to just open with the best present he’s got for her. He’s been excited about this for a while, ever since he had the idea for it.

He carefully pulls out the object and quickly hides it behind his back, wanting to give an introduction for it first. “Icarus was the one that got this for ya. It was a little difficult, but he was able to find it after I told ‘im about it.” He slowly brings his hands around to the front, still hiding the present from her sight.

“Say hello to an old friend of yours,” with that, he moves his hands to reveal Darwin, the Queen’s long lost tattered teddy bear from her days before the Cy-Bug uprising.

[exile-queen]

The Queen’s relaxed expression lingers as he contemplates his order, a sign of patient waiting. Ralph was always so good with gifts, she knew that whatever he had, she would love it.

But she hadn’t been expecting that.

Her expression shifts sharply, from relaxation to shock. She can’t even bring herself to speak for a moment, claws carefully reaching forward and picking up the bear with the utmost care. She seems completely awed by the sheer existence of the old, tattered toy, enveloped in disbelief. She’d thought she’d lost this forever.

Optics snap back to Ralph, and it’s a sharp flurry of pixels as she shrinks down to size. Immediately, arms wrap around his shoulders, lips peppering his face with tear-stained, smiling kisses. 

He’d done the impossible.

[wreckingduty]

A Family Christmas

[wreckingduty]

After Ralph’s parceled out all of the treats, he stands back to watch everyone’s reactions. He chuckles softly as the ones that eat it become more cookie-like, it’s rather adorable seeing them transform. He’s pleased that some of them take more time with the cookies, to look at them and play with them. It’s very sweet to watch.

The Hivemind being full of their happy thoughts is very pleasant to experience. Ralph sighs softly in contentment, then sends warm feelings to all of them. He’s very glad that the cookies are a hit with them. This is probably one of his favorite moments.

[exile-queen]

Once they’ve settled down from the excitement of gifts, each and every baby totters to him, giving him a little tap on the foot and a chatter in thanks before tottering off to return to their games, some with cookie in tow. It seems that everyone’s loved their gifts, and the warmth humming in the network even seems to have the Queen smiling wistfully.  Eyes blink in a relaxed manner, and a warm laugh bubbles up from her core.

“They love them, Dear~”

[wreckingduty]

A Family Christmas

[wreckingduty]

Ralph’s glad that his Queen has approved of his plan, he gives her a smile and a nod, “Thank you, my Queen!”

With her approval, he starts going through and pulling out the treats for each baby bug, starting with Junior. His was the easiest to find, and with him on his shoulder, it just worked out better.

Junior gave his King a pleased chirp before thanking him and starting to eat his cookie.

It takes some time for Ralph to figure out which present belonged to which Little One. He’s carefully carved and iced gingerbread cookies to look like each one, down to their individual cracks and injuries. Junior’s was black and red and stood out among the crowd of green cookies.

As he places each cookie with each baby, he gives them a gentle pat on the head and a cheerful, “Merry Christmas!”

[exile-queen]

Hands fold neatly in front of the Queen’s chassis, observing the fun from her spot. Some of the little ones immediately identify the edibles, and after snacking on them, seem to take on a more life-sized rendition of their cookie forms. Others seem to marvel at the handiwork, observing and even playing with their tiny cookie doppelgangers. All in all, they all seem pleased, as the Hivemind hums loudly with thanks and excitement. 

It seems they love it!

[wreckingduty]

A Family Christmas

[wreckingduty]

(( <3 :D ))

Ralph grins as he watches the Little Ones excitedly rush to completely crowd around him. It had been fun feeding them the scraps of gingerbread, though after the first day or two, he decided to bring some extra set aside just for giving them snacks, along with feeding them all the rest once he had finished his projects. Their presence had been helpful for him to finish their presents, so sometimes he had given them a bit more gingerbread to keep them around a little longer.

He beams to his Queen, “Yep! I’ve been workin’ on some of ‘em for a while! If it’s okay with you, I think I’ll give all the kids their presents first.” They all seemed rather excited and it would keep them occupied for a little while, hopefully long enough for him to give his Queen her presents.

[exile-queen]

Broad legs settle against heavy chassis as she sits, drawing the blanket up to fold it for storage, “Hmmhmm~ My Busy Bee. Of course, Love, do as you please.” She could tell he had his plan, and she had no qualms with following it through.

The hoard of little ones at his feet seem thrilled that they get to go first! THe King always had the best presents!

[wreckingduty]

A Family Christmas

(( @exile-queen ))

Ralph’s been busy during the month leading up to Christmas, he’s been bringing things to the cave and working long hours on them.

If Junior or any of the Little Ones happen to come to him to see what he’s doing, he’ll give them a scrap of gingerbread and send them on their way.

After Icarus had obtained a very special item for him, he made sure that his adopted son was okay, and that he went back to the bakery to pick up the item where it was dropped, Ralph was ready to give his family their gifts.

He scoops up Junior and plants him on his shoulder. Junior’s excited about getting a present, so he’s bouncing in place.

With everything finished on his end, he calls for the rest of his family, “My Queen? Little Ones? I’ve got presents for everybody!”

Junior chirps and cheers, “Hooray! Presents!”

[exile-queen]

It’s the rising patter of what feels like hundreds of feet that signal that he’s been heard. The little ones had been almost antsy in their ways, being more of a burden on the gingerbread supply than one would expect. Of course, that came with their curiosity.

The gaggle of young ones immediately herd to their king, leaving their royal blanket tent abandoned and allowing The Queen to finally roll off her side, standing and stretching her legs idly.

“Presents?”

[exile-queen]

(-dusts off blog- I’ve gotta get my energy back for this blog. May drop current threads and give it a refresher…)

[wreckingduty]

((I’m totally cool with dropping our threads if you need/want to! I think the only thing we had going was the Dragon AU thread. If you want to continue it, that’s cool too, whatever works best for you is fine by me! ^_^ ))

[exile-queen]

(If it’s all the same to you, I’d like to kick up a new thread, but I’m not sure what. ;u;)

[exile-queen]

(-dusts off blog- I’ve gotta get my energy back for this blog. May drop current threads and give it a refresher...)

[wreckingduty]

It takes him a few minutes to realize that the babies are only playing on his back and sides, in fact, he has to look back behind him to see them at all. He relaxes once he discovers this, with them nowhere near his head, he’s free to eat without worry.

He’s curious about what she’s doing to the nest, he’s never seen a dragon’s nest before and he doesn’t know much about setting things up for the day. Back when he was a human, he sometimes didn’t make his own bed.

He looks down at the cows again, still feeling a little guilty about being the only one that’ll eat. It just didn’t seem right. Thankfully, she brings up something to talk about, so he can delay the guilt a little longer.

The male dragon nods, “They told me my Mama named me Ralph, so that’s what I’ve always been called.” He looks to her, “Do you have a name?” He hadn’t thought about dragons, or any other creatures, having names, but after having actually met a dragon, it makes sense that they’d call each other by something.

[exile-queen]

She looks up from her work, which seems to be... reorganizing the nest? Making it bigger.

“I did not start with one, no, but the humans took to calling me ‘The Queen’. So, that’s what I go by. Not that there’s usually anyone around to ask.” She hums a laugh here, apparently tickled by her own joke, even if it was the grim truth.

[middleground-mechanic-deactivat]

            If there’s anything I hα†ε most

                                           it’s щąşŧïŋɠ the potential

                                                                           In a ᗰᗩᑕᕼIᑎᕮ.

Wildstar Draken OC

8+ Years of RP Experience

OC Friendly

Multiship Friendly

Multiverse Friendly

Semi-Selective

[middleground-mechanic-deactivat]

            If there’s anything I hα†ε most

                                           it’s щąşŧïŋɠ the potential

                                                                           In a ᗰᗩᑕᕼIᑎᕮ.

Wildstar Draken OC

8+ Years of RP Experience

OC Friendly

Multiship Friendly

Multiverse Friendly

Semi-Selective

[wreckingduty]

He fidgets again, it sounds like it could be a fair deal, especially if he left some for her on purpose. He is awfully hungry and a little worried that he might gobble everything down, leaving her with nothing. He’ll have to watch himself in order to make sure that she gets something to eat, too.

The two carcasses are getting more tempting by the minute, he could be eating, instead of arguing. He sighs, “Fine…but, you’re welcome to eat anythin’ you want to.” He once again offers the invitation for her to get some dinner as well.

It takes him just a minute to process the rest of what she’s said, if dragons could smile, he’s definitely doing so. “Company is rather nice.” He was using to having others around, even if they weren’t always the friendliest.

He then realizes that the babies are climbing all over him, he had been so distracted by the conversation, that he hadn’t felt them scaling up him. He looks down at some of them, blinking in confusion. After a few moments, he laughs, “I guess yer right! I like ‘em a lot, too, they’re pretty cute.” So far, they had been fun to spend time with. He doesn’t mind them using him as a jungle gym, though, he’s a little worried that they might get in his way while he eats, he definitely doesn’t want to hurt them.

[exile-queen]

Despite their youth, they seem wise enough not to get near the front end of a hungry drake. Instead, they simply take to scaling his sides and maneuvering themselves up onto his wings. They seem to enjoy their new perch...

With the debate said and done with, the large female seems intent to rearrange the nest she’s got set up. Claws work diligently yet carefully, stretching the materials out further and kneading them back up to snuff.

“Is there something the humans call you? Or that you call yourself? Most dragons have some kind of moniker, at least, as far as I know.”

[wreckingduty]

((Ah, please don’t worry, it’s fine! <3 ))

He awkwardly shifts his weight between his two front feet, she was right about that, he had survived all that time without food. However, he was also new to being a dragon, so perhaps that had been some factor in him not having severe consequences in going that long without eating.

“You caught three different things today and you haven’t gotten to eat any of it, it’s not really fair to you.” His tail swishes slightly as he considers his words, “This looks like a lotta food, I’ve never eaten that much at one time before.” He also wasn’t a huge dragon back then, but he’s trying to ignore that point. “I wouldn’t feel right eatin’ all of it on my own. Why don’t ya take a few bites or nab a leg or two, at the very least?” He wouldn’t mind if she took more, but it seems that she was angling for him to have the largest share, so he’s hoping that if he’s phrased it right, she’ll take him up on eating some of it.

He watches and waits for the hatchlings’ verdict. He figures that they’ll probably let him stay, after all, they had found him and brought him here in the first place. Once they all agree that he can stay, he politely dips his head first to their mother, then to the group of babies, “Thank you for your hospitality.” It occurs to him that this is probably the first time he’s been asked to stay anywhere.

[exile-queen]

A warm laugh rises from her throat, and she shakes her head, “Stubborn, stubborn Drake. How about this, you eat your fill, if it’s so much, and I’ll take what’s left, alright? And it’s not a problem, of course. This cave is plenty big enough. Besides, company is lovely, and the hatchlings seem to adore you.”

‘Adore’ is right. Once they’ve realized he’s staying the night, there’s a mess of wings and legs and tails as they trip over each other excitedly to use the new, sturdier dragon as a jungle gym. With someone around, even with mom gone, they can play!

[exile-queen]

wreckingduty:

He’s not sure what to think of her odd expression, but he’s got other matters on his mind.

He shakes his head, “I haven’t seen you eat today and they’re growing and probably still hungry. I can find something else.” Not to mention that he hadn’t earned it. If he’s going to live as a dragon, he needed to learn how to survive as one.

The kind offer is greatly appreciated, it would make things easier and it’d be nice to have friendly companions, however, there’s a little matter that’s preventing him from accepting.

If dragons could blush, he was definitely doing so. He lowers his head in shy embarrassment, “Thank you, but it’s improper to stay alone with a lady.”

As a knight, he had an honor code that he had been taught. It was more like guidelines than strict rules and some of the other knights didn’t follow them too well, but he had taken the matter very seriously. One part of him wanted to do the right thing, but a small part of him had hoped that if he followed the code to the letter, perhaps that people would accept him more. Unfortunately, that hadn’t seemed to work.

An amused noise escapes her, a soft puff of smoke escaping her nostrils, “I ate yesterday. You haven’t eaten in at least two days, yes? If you won’t accept it as your kill, then please accept it as a gift. To welcome you to this life.”

While the little dragonlings would happily crack into another cow, their mother knows that if they eat too much, their little bodies will be too big for their wings. Not good for learning how to fly.

“And I’m certainly not alone. Not when you’ve got a nest of hatchlings. Besides, in certainly no lady. That’s a title saved for pretty young women who are well behaved, not for large dragons that eat cattle raw.“

[wreckingduty]

He fidgets slightly, she’s making a very compelling argument for him to eat. The cattle are still looking awfully tempting and, she’s right, he has no idea how long he’s been out and hasn’t eaten, two days is a pretty good guess, if not longer. “Thanks, but…do dragons not need to eat every day?” Humans were a lot happier if they ate at least once a day, so were most animals. With the amount of food that dragons ate at once, could they go a day without eating?

He’s not aware of this, however, if she explained it to him, he would completely understand. It would be harder for too-well-fed baby dragons to survive.

It’s his turn to make a noise, he responds with a snort, however, there’s no smoke accompanying his. “The definition of ‘lady’ isn’t so narrow. You still count as one.” It’s something that he wouldn’t budge on. But, she does bring up a good point about the hatchlings. He thinks for a moment, if he was human, he might would scratch his cheek as he ponders, finally, he says, “Thank you, but…I’ll only stay if they say it’s okay.” He waves a hand towards the group of hatchlings. Their comfort is important, too.

[exile-queen]

The soft him that escapes the large reptile can be held akin to a laugh, and one could swear she was smiling, "You were out for a couple days, yes? You didn't eat then. Besides, it's not the first time I've skipped a meal. Eat, would you?"

She doesn't seem to speak anymore on the 'lady' subject, but one can easily see the thankful glow in her eyes as she turns to the pile of hatchlings watching the two adults intently, "Well then, what do you say? A guest for the evening?"

The response is an obvious one, the cacophony of chirps and clicks make for a resounding 'yes'.

Looks like you have a place to stay for the night.

[exile-queen]

wreckingduty:

He’s not sure what to think of her odd expression, but he’s got other matters on his mind.

He shakes his head, “I haven’t seen you eat today and they’re growing and probably still hungry. I can find something else.” Not to mention that he hadn’t earned it. If he’s going to live as a dragon, he needed to learn how to survive as one.

The kind offer is greatly appreciated, it would make things easier and it’d be nice to have friendly companions, however, there’s a little matter that’s preventing him from accepting.

If dragons could blush, he was definitely doing so. He lowers his head in shy embarrassment, “Thank you, but it’s improper to stay alone with a lady.”

As a knight, he had an honor code that he had been taught. It was more like guidelines than strict rules and some of the other knights didn’t follow them too well, but he had taken the matter very seriously. One part of him wanted to do the right thing, but a small part of him had hoped that if he followed the code to the letter, perhaps that people would accept him more. Unfortunately, that hadn’t seemed to work.

An amused noise escapes her, a soft puff of smoke escaping her nostrils, "I ate yesterday. You haven't eaten in at least two days, yes? If you won't accept it as your kill, then please accept it as a gift. To welcome you to this life."

While the little dragonlings would happily crack into another cow, their mother knows that if they eat too much, their little bodies will be too big for their wings. Not good for learning how to fly.

“And I'm certainly not alone. Not when you've got a nest of hatchlings. Besides, in certainly no lady. That's a title saved for pretty young women who are well behaved, not for large dragons that eat cattle raw."

[exile-queen]

wreckingduty:

He sticks close to her, worried that they might be discovered by angry farmers. They’d have a better chance together then they would separately. He’s very thankful that the trip back is shorter, the longer he holds the cow, the more tempting it is to just eat it here and now.   

Right after she sets her cow done, he quickly places his down next to it and stands back. He hadn’t caught it, she had done all of the work, so he doesn’t feel right digging in. Plus, she hadn’t eaten yet and the babies might still be hungry.    

He’s glad that she seems to be happy with the way things were, even though he hadn’t been able to help in the hunt. If it wasn’t for her, he’d probably have gotten injured, unless he could have escaped or scared the bull off.   

He feels a little awkward, this is her home and her family, he doesn’t exactly belong here. So, he politely nods his head to her, “Guess I need to be headin’ back to that cave I woke up in.” It was big enough for him, so he’d be plenty comfortable there. Unfortunately, he’s not quite sure where it is from here.

She glances back at him with a strange look. Surprise? Curiosity? Its hard to tell.

A few moments pass, and she tilts her head, giving a gentle hum, "For one, those are yours. You need to eat, and I'll be fine. Also, you can stay here, if you'd like. This cavern is large enough for all of us."

[wreckingduty]

He’s glad that she’s accepted his help, that makes him feel a little better about the situation. He may be not too good at hunting, but he could at least help her carry things.

It takes him a few moments to look over the cow and decide on the best way to haul it. He had originally wanted to use his front legs like arms, but after watching how she carries the bull, he decides to copy her.

Unfortunately, that means using his mouth and he’s awfully hungry. It takes a lot of willpower to just clamp down on the carcass and lift it up, instead of taking a chunk out of it for himself..

He looks to her, nodding carefully and talking around the cow in order to tell her that he was ready to go.

[exile-queen]

She gives a soft nod, and simply makes to lead the way back.

It seems she’s used to this path, as the way back seems to be shorter than the trek here. Sure as sunrise, though, they make it back to her cave, heralded in by a cacophony of excited chirps and peeps. Once inside, she sets the cow down for him, giving a pleased little hum. His efforts had been a good attempt for her, it seems. He’d tried his hardest.

[wreckingduty]

He nods, glancing nervously back towards the farmhouse, “Good idea, I’ve had enough excitement for one day.” Certainly all the noise that the cows had made would gather attention and it wouldn’t take long for someone to come looking for what had upset them.

He quietly follows her, he doesn’t know the area well, so he has no idea how to get back to her cave or the one he woke up in. Once they reach the cow, he looks from it to her, “Do you want me to carry one?” It was the least he could do after she saved him from a nasty bit of trouble.

[exile-queen]

She blinks, giving a gentle nod and a warm hum, “Thad’d be lahvly.” Despite the hunting failure, she seems pretty calm about it. It happened, success wasn’t always guaranteed. 

Having an extra mouth around to carry things was nice, though.