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Post by Leda on Jul 24, 2008 10:50:15 GMT -5
Shouldering the backpack she'd retreived along with her sewing supplies, Rouge snapped on the plastic container's lid and grabbed the freshly loaded ice pack before making her way out of the kitchen yet again. At least three hours had passed since the string of outbursts earlier that morning; rather than get involved, Rouge had busied herself with continuing to restock the food and water, then eventually made her way to a storage lodge to dig up the necessary materials for fixing Rob's cloak. En route, it occurred to her that he may need some refreshments, and the bat had stopped at the kitchen along the way. Carefully she made her way up the winding staircase to the hedgehog's second-story lodge. About halfway up the stairs, Rouge's heart had started thumping harder, and her ears drooped. I hope he's not still angry, she idly thought. Upon making it to his door, Rouge paused for a preparatory breath, then lightly rapped the back of her knuckles against the aged wood. " ...Rob?"
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Post by Jamie Lee on Jul 25, 2008 0:43:01 GMT -5
Rob laid sprawled out across his bed inside, his ice pack from earlier now melted and laying beside his face. Hearing the soft knock caused one of of his ears to twitch in agitation, but wasn't enough to rouse him. Both his cloak and quiver hung from a nearby chair.
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Post by Leda on Jul 25, 2008 0:54:14 GMT -5
No answer. Rouge's ears dropped as her mouth scrunched to one side. He was probably getting some much-needed sleep, and she shouldn't disturb him... but now was likely the only window of opportunity she'd have to mend his cloak as promised. The bat's right hand fidgeted, indecisive as to whether or not she should knock again. Her pulse throbbed clear through to her fingertips. Maybe... Maybe I could get it quickly, and leave before I bother him, she reasoned, her eyes drifting down to the knob. That would probably work.. and she could leave him the snack in its place, and take the ice back to save for another time. Rouge's clammy hand wrapped around the cool metal of the doorknob and gave it a slow, careful twist. She peeked carefully into the room prior to entering. As predicted, Rob indeed appeared to still be sleeping off his stress. Rouge opened the door just enough to slip inside, then delicately tiptoed to the hedgehog's desk to make the exchange.
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Post by Jamie Lee on Jul 25, 2008 1:06:37 GMT -5
Unfortunately for all her careful effort, Rouge wound up putting her weight down on a loose board, resulting in a loud and agitated creeeaaaaaak.Both of Rob's ears twitched this time, and with it came a soft groan. Slowly his eyes cracked open. "Muh?"
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Post by Leda on Jul 25, 2008 1:08:44 GMT -5
For one that rarely wears her emotions on her sleeves, Rouge's expression filled with a surprising amount of horror at her misstep. " Uh oh..."
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Post by Jamie Lee on Jul 25, 2008 1:20:13 GMT -5
Rob closed his eyes again, and for a moment seemed as though he was going to drift back off. That is until he heard the bat's comment, suddenly looking up slightly more awake. "Rouge?"
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Post by Leda on Jul 25, 2008 1:25:01 GMT -5
"U-Um..." The bat glanced at Rob, then frowned down at the container in her hands. " Ah-I was... I came for your cloak... I shouldn't have come in without permission." Deciding that everyone would be happier if she'd just get out of his quills and let him rest, Rouge went ahead and deposited the plastic dish on Rob's desk, then gathered up his cloak. "I'll leave it at your door when I'm done. I'm sorry I woke you."
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Post by Jamie Lee on Jul 25, 2008 1:32:09 GMT -5
"No, no, it's alright," Rob said, suddenly sitting up. "Better you than somebody looking to toilet paper my lodge anyway."
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Post by Leda on Jul 25, 2008 1:35:42 GMT -5
Just as she was about to leave, Rouge halted herself and glanced into her left hand. "Oh. I almost forgot." Turning and approaching him, the bat offered up the small bundle, its contents dripping every so often. "I brought you a new ice pack. I figured the first one probably melted by now." Motioning with a glance to the container resting on the desk, Rouge further explained, "I also cut a couple of apples up. ... They have peanut butter, too."
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Post by Jamie Lee on Jul 25, 2008 2:12:18 GMT -5
By now the hedgehog was sitting on the side of his bed catching a yawn. Taking the offered bundle he gave a gracious smile and chuckled. "You know you're too kind for your own good, don't you?" he then hesitated, playing around with the next words in his mind. "You know... you could stay and eat them with me."
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Post by Leda on Jul 25, 2008 10:20:34 GMT -5
Rouge paused at that last comment. She didn't typically accept those sort of offers, but coming from Rob, there was something different about it. He wasn't someone that beat around the bush; if he asked for her company, she was sure he genuinely meant it. Plus, he deserved at least that much, considering the trouble he'd been having lately. It was around that point that Rouge's train of thought suddenly passed by the fact that she'd never actually eaten anything herself. Suddenly the offer to share his snack seemed much more tempting. Besides, eating alone wasn't always preferable... Having company could be rather pleasant, depending on the circumstances. And these circumstances seemed very, very pleasant. Rouge glanced into the hedgehog's face, and that rare, faint smile surfaced. "Of course I'll stay."
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Post by Jamie Lee on Jul 27, 2008 0:36:36 GMT -5
Rob smiled even wider, until it became compounded with the reminder that his headache still wasn't entirely gone. The pounding had largely ceased for the moment, bit his forehead still felt tender. He was probably going to need to tread lightly to keep it from returning. With a faint exhale he took the fresh ice pack and pressed it to his head, pondering vaguely over what he would do later.
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Post by Leda on Jul 27, 2008 0:57:22 GMT -5
Upon bringing Rob the box of treats she'd prepared, Rouge took a seat beside him on the bed and let the backpack down from her shoulders. For a moment she almost dumped its contents onto his bed, but it occurred to her that Rob may suddenly get tired again, and opted to instead rummage inside of the bag itself. It took a little longer, but she still eventually found the thread puller, then turned her focus onto the hedgehog's cloak. "Are you feeling any better?" the seamstress asked in passing as she set to work. In what was probably an utterly unexpected move, Rouge began ripping open the garment's seams, not mending the tatters.
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Post by Jamie Lee on Jul 28, 2008 8:53:40 GMT -5
"Aye, a bi--Wh-what are you doing?!" he had started to answer, then cut himself off mid-sentence in surprise.
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Post by Leda on Jul 28, 2008 10:51:13 GMT -5
Rouge's voice remained calm as she answered, "Your cloak won't last much longer in its condition. I'm going to put in a lining. But I'm not skilled enough to do a straight alteration, so I need to take it apart and put it back together." As she spoke, the bat continued to carefully disassemble the seams, and began laying the weathered sections of fabric aside in a pile. "It ought to serve you better in the long run this way."
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Post by Jamie Lee on Jul 28, 2008 15:54:00 GMT -5
"... Ah..." Rob said slowly, calming down slightly, "Well, okay then." I suppose. It was only natural he would be concerned over his cloak. It was more than just a fashion accessory for him; it was important to his archery. Brushing a hand through his hair and quills he found himself suddenly reminded; he was probably going to need to make a hunting trip sometime before nightfall. "Anyway," he spoke back up. "I'm alright mostly. Just a slight headache."
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Post by Leda on Jul 29, 2008 13:01:21 GMT -5
By now, the bat had begun migrating to Rob's desk, setting up the segmented pieces of fabric and retreiving even more from her backpack. Rouge pulled out a large, folded section of a deep black material, then a similar one in green. She glanced between the two for a moment, then came back to the hedgehog's side. "Here, pick which of these you like better. These are the colours I thought you'd most like... If they're no good, I'll get another. They should both be tough enough to handle your quills, but still be gentle to your coat."
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Post by Jamie Lee on Jul 30, 2008 1:02:37 GMT -5
Looking between the two choices, the hedgehog shrugged. "Black I suppose." really, it didn't matter that much to him.
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Post by Leda on Jul 30, 2008 1:10:46 GMT -5
"Very well," Rouge replied with a minimal nod. As she turned and began to stride back to Rob's desk, however, she suddenly faultered, appearing to wobble in place for a moment. The bat quickly clutched the back of the nearby chair and rubbed her eyes. Why did she feel so dizzy all of a sudden?
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Post by Jamie Lee on Jul 30, 2008 1:16:01 GMT -5
The stumble didn't go unnoticed because he was checking out her ass, and instantly Rob was on his feet watching her with concern. "Hey, you alright there?"
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Post by Leda on Jul 30, 2008 1:18:59 GMT -5
"...Yes, I'm fine," Rouge whispily replied as she carefully seated herself at the desk. The seamstress continued to rub at her eyes with her free hand. "I just suddenly felt lightheaded. I'm sure it's my own fault. I still haven't eaten yet."
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Post by Jamie Lee on Jul 30, 2008 1:44:15 GMT -5
Glancing at the container apple slices besides him, Rob snatched it up and brought it over. "Here luv, why don't you have a few of these and relax for a bit?" he offered. "I had that bagel so I'm fine."
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Post by Leda on Jul 30, 2008 14:12:17 GMT -5
"Thank you, Rob," Rouge replied with a slight huff, rubbing gingerly at her forehead before taking a slice to eat. "I did mean to eventually make something for myself, but there was just so much else to do and I didn't want to get sidetracked... Whenever I'd get hungry, I'd just drink a glass of water." The bat chewed her bit of apple carefully. It was evident that she was mulling over something. " It's strange. Other times that I've done this, I haven't felt weakened for several more hours." The apple slice now gone, Rouge quickly licked the traces of peanutbutter from her slender fingers, then pulled a piece of tayloring chalk from her sewing kit. "Manic was still upset the last time I saw him," she commented in passing as she set about making patterns. "I haven't seen or heard from Espio."
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Post by Jamie Lee on Aug 1, 2008 1:54:52 GMT -5
" Manic can just stay upset," Rob muttered under his breath. "As for Espio, he'll be on lookout duty for the next few days." Despite the sudden sour taste in his mouth, the archer leaned against his desk and eyed Rouge with concern. "You know you really shouldn't let yourself go like that, luv."
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Post by Leda on Aug 1, 2008 2:03:55 GMT -5
"It's nothing," the bat replied in passing. With her patterns marked, Rouge carefully set about cutting out the shapes in the new, black fabric. "Like I said, it normally doesn't hit me so hard... I'm probably just tired." Silence fell in the hedgehog's lodge for a moment, broken only by the occasional snips of the scissors. When all of the lining pieces had been cut, the seamstress stacked them into partnered piles, then began rummaging for thread. "Nik still hasn't come out of his room," Rouge suddenly added without warning.
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Post by Jamie Lee on Aug 1, 2008 2:10:58 GMT -5
"I figured as much," Rob sighed, burying his face into his hand. "Between his fear of us and people like Manic's prejudice I don't know what I'm going to do."
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Post by Leda on Aug 1, 2008 2:20:00 GMT -5
Rouge paused, and stared at the hedgehog at her side. It broke her heart to see him so miserable, despite her stoic expression. Rob did so much for everyone in Meadowood, which was one of the reasons she frequently sought to keep him as comfortable as possible. Unexpectedly, the bat reached out and carefully caressed her companion's quills. "It will pass," she stated simply. "Nik will adjust, and you'll help him... just like you helped me." Releasing him from her grasp, Rouge's focus returned to her task, and she measured out a strand of thread for her needle.
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Post by Jamie Lee on Aug 1, 2008 7:06:27 GMT -5
Rob seemed to melt slightly under her delicate touch and relaxed slightly. It felt sooo nice when she did that. As soon as her hand left however his expression returned to its frustrated state. "Aye, I'll see what I can do. It just... feels like a great big uphill battle. You know the boy didn't even know there was a war going on? Far be it to trust me when I said not to go snooping about Mercia. Apparently he's been living somewhere underground this whole time with nothing but his own kind. Thinks we're a load of uncivilized beasts. I'm hoping some good will have come from that trip in that he'll be more apt to listen now... " He just kind of raised his hands up and shook his head before lowering both in exasperation. "And then Manic. For heaven's sake, no wonder Nik's kind finds us uncivilized! Did you hear his reason for disliking him? Because Robotnik's a human. That's it! That's all of it, right there! If Nik'd been any other species he'd be welcomed opened armed! Why, that ruddy tigress who showed up around the same time... I haven't seen her anywhere since. Why not put her under scrutiny as well?!" He winced ever so slightly, his headache getting agitated.
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Post by Leda on Aug 1, 2008 9:48:56 GMT -5
"Nik and Manic will eventually learn that one another aren't a threat when no threat arises from either...... In theory." Rouge's jaw clenched slightly; she wasn't blind to the fact that Manic was one of the village's notorious pranksters. Perhaps for the time being it'd be wise to keep them separated... Meanwhile, as the pair spoke (read: Rouge listened to Rob rant), the pieces of fabric joined together under the bat's careful guidance.
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Post by Jamie Lee on Aug 2, 2008 0:28:34 GMT -5
"I'm hoping," Rob knitted his brow together, lips pressing together. "It's only the second day and I'm already at wit's end." He paused for a long moment at that point, taking a moment to munch on a couple apple sliced and watch the seamstress work while he mulled over everything. "I offered Nik to help find his way home," he finally said. "But if he's been as isolated as he claims I doubt it's gonna be easy."
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