[[open post: a new friend!]]

[ravkanwitch]

After speaking with Sagramore at the dance, Nina now has her heart set on finding a pet of some sort. She isn't necessarily lonely, not with so many friends, but sometimes when she lays in bed alone at night and thinks about her past, her memories, and her worries, it all feels... a little too quiet and empty-- alright, maybe she's slightly lonely. But only at night. And only when her mind gets away from her. That's why after her morning walk, she's planning on going to ask Aziraphale about producing a rabbit for her.

Is a rabbit right for her, though? She considers this as she takes one of her favorite routes through the forest; it eventually leads to a small waterfall and she's enjoyed watching it slowly freeze into ice and then slowly start melting again. She doesn't mind the cold too much, not with her Ravkan blood and Fjerdan tendencies, and this forest is starting to feel like home. Only on short, ambling walks, though. She enjoys her solitary walks and the feel of the wind and sun on her face -- but at the end of the night, she wants to be in a soft bed with silk sheets.¹

Perhaps rabbits are too skittish, too terrified of loud noises, Nina thinks to herself. She is a loud talker. She does like to talk to herself and sing terribly. Right as she considers these thoughts and as she makes her way past a large pile of rocks, she hears a low wuffling sound emerge from it. She pauses. A rabbit?? A small squeak emerges that is distinctly not rabbit-like. She walks towards the tumble of rocks as it squeaks again, and she stoops down to peer into a crevice followed by another. On the third try, small beady eyes stare back at her. She offers her hand to it, tentatively. In a flash, a small furry blur streaks out and up her arm, ending up on her shoulder. She screams -- stifling it and feeling slightly silly when she realizes that the definitely-not-rabbit is just sitting on her shoulder and not attacking her. She slowly turns her head, meeting eyes with a very self-satisfied, mischievous little face.

"Hi," she says, cautiously reaching up to touch it. The ferret makes a soft dooking noise. "Aww," she says, petting its head, at which point the ferret gently nips her and then makes a dash for her jacket pocket, making a huffing laughing sound. "Ow! You rascal." Nina's already gone. Head over heels. What a perfect little creature. As she makes her way back out of the forest and indoors, anyone is welcome to meet the newest resident of the mansion.

¹Nina Zenik, you would love glamping.

Comments

[summerdude]

Magnus crosses her path while she's still in the forest -- he's out on a little walk. "Hey Nina! What's up?"

[ravkanwitch]

"Magnus!" She says, happy to see him. "How are you? We didn't get to talk much at the party."

[summerdude]

"Oh, you know," he shrugs. "I'm good."

[ravkanwitch]

"Good! I was going to tell you, Tally did end up getting her bracelet off--" At this point, Nina is interrupted by a couple of loud squeaks from the pocket of her jacket. She laughs and forges onward. "--so there's no need to worry there. No hand-cutting needed!"

[summerdude]

"Oh yeah! She told me when she came to check on m— Nina," he says, breaking off and staring at her pocket. "Who is that?" And since that's rude and he can talk to animals instead of just about animals in front of them, he crouches down and says, "I'm Magnus. Who are you?"

[ravkanwitch]

The ferret pops her head out of the pocket and looks at Magnus for a second, then looks up at Nina as if to say what the hell are names. "I think I'm going to call her Khitka," Nina tells him. "Khitkii are beautiful, spiteful, bloodthirsty forest spirits. Usually female."

I like that, Khitka informs Magnus. Your pendant is shiny.

[summerdude]

"Hi, Khitka," Magnus breathes, and touches his pendants in turn. "Which one? Jack or Hanguang-jun's?"

[sagramore]

Sagramore is out with Szarka so Laertes can have the room to himself -- there's some assignation or other planned that he's leaving space for -- and he brightens when he sees Nina coming across the lawn. Szarka, halfway between them, wavers. When someone new appears, she's supposed to go back to Sagramore and wait for an introduction, but she can smell Something Different coming from Nina's direction and she very much Wants To Investigate.

"Nina!" Sagramore calls. "Szari, stay."

[ravkanwitch]

"Sagramore! Szarka!" Nina calls out to them, rubbing her hands together to get them warm again as she heads towards them. "I have a surprise for you."

[sagramore]

"Do you?" as he catches up with Szarka, whose tail is beginning to wag slowly. "What is it?"

[ravkanwitch]

Nina reaches into her pocket, scooping the ferret up with both hands. She's already discovered that the ferret enjoys being coddled and squished and stashed away in pockets. "Ta-da!" She says, holding the creature out to Sagramore in both hands. If ferrets could have skeptical expressions, this one would. She gives him a questioning dook.

[sagramore]

"Christ, is that a polecat¹?" as he inspects it. "Where did you find it?"

¹Görény, referring to the European polecat.

[ravkanwitch]

"I believe she's a ferret," Nina says, as Khitka now squeaks inquisitively at Szarka from her hands. The Shu Han domesticated the creatures and some of the richer residents of Ketterdam kept them as pets. "I was thinking about a rabbit and wondering if maybe I was too loud to keep a rabbit as a companion... and then I found her in a pile of rocks in the woods!"

[lightbearinglord]

The rabbits were never in danger of starvation during Dark -- perhaps the mansion drew the line at such cruelty, but Lan Wangji always found he had just enough hay, and just enough greens, to see them through. That said, they have not been appropriately spoiled of late, and thus Lan Wangji finds himself seated in that particular parlor just adjacent to the welcome table, one rabbit on each knee, feeding them gai lan with great focus upon his task. He does hear Nina coming inside, however, and he does glance up with anticipation in the event that she chooses to come and speak with him, Xiaoxue, and Danding.

[ravkanwitch]

Lan Wangji will most likely hear what seems to be Nina talking to herself, since there's only one set of footsteps. "Are you hungry? I wonder what you eat. Maybe there's a book in the-- oh no no, that's the welcome table, don't chew -- hey, come back!"

The ferret appears in the doorway of the parlor before Nina does and lets out a small soft hiss of surprise at seeing the two rabbits. Nina catches up to her quickly though, scooping her up before she can run inside, giving him an apologetic look in the process. "Hi, Hanguang-jun."

[lightbearinglord]

Lan Wangji tenses briefly as the ferret darts into the room, setting one hand protectively atop each rabbit, but when Nina follows quickly behind, he doesn't otherwise move. "Young mistress Nina," he says, calmly enough. His gaze flicks from her face to the creature cupped in her hands. "And...?"

[ravkanwitch]

"Khitka," Nina says, as the aforementioned creature scuttles up her arm to perch on her shoulder. She's keeping a good distance from Lan Wangji and the rabbits because she's not sure how the animals will interact quite yet and doesn't want to risk anything. "I was going to ask Aziraphale if he could produce another rabbit for me-- but instead I found this little demon in the woods."

[lightbearinglord]

Likewise, Lan Wangji doesn't make any move to get up, and he keeps those shielding hands over the rabbits, both of whose attention is fixed warily on Nina. "Khitka," he repeats, then offers, "I came across Sir Sagramore's dog in a treetop."

[ravkanwitch]

"I was going to say that if we all thought hard enough maybe we could summon a dragon, but we already have one," Nina says, lightly amused. Khitka has decided that the cold and the trek in has pooped her out and snuggles up against Nina's neck where it's warm.

[onthewillowsthere]

It's a few days later before Galahad runs into her. He has a carefully packed basket of chocolate chip cookies for the cafe, and an adolescent griffin shrieking at his heels (about Angus, although he has no idea about that part).

[ravkanwitch]

By this time, Khitka has learned that if she rides on Nina's shoulders, she can steal warmth from her neck when it gets cold and get a little bite of everything she eats. It's a cushy life. Deciding to hitch a ride with this "pushover" of a Grisha was probably the best decision she's ever made. She gives Drosera a tentative squeak from up high.

"Galahad," Nina says, happy to see him. She hasn't seen much of him throughout Dark. "Hi!"

[onthewillowsthere]

"Hi." He's still a little shy around her. Then he notices Khitka, and his eyes widen slightly with interest.

[ravkanwitch]

"This is Khitka!" Nina extends an arm and Khitka runs down it, nose twitching as she sniffs at Galahad with interest (AKA to see if she can get a scent of food).

[onthewillowsthere]

"Is she a marten?" he asks, even though she doesn't look like the martens that Percival used to point out to him. He does smell like chocolate chip cookies still.

[ravkanwitch]

"I think she's a ferret. I looked it up in the library and they're in the same family as martens, weasels, and stoats. Do you have food on you? That's what she's sniffing for."