Jungle Jam

[Liam Gelt]

Diana nods in approval. "Briarwolves are very susceptible to concussive damage, especially when applied to sensory appendages like ears and nose." She says all this with an odd cheerfulness, as if relaying her favorite fun fact from class she'd taken or a Reader's Digest she'd read.

Liam scratches his chin, the pine needle stubble rustling under his branchlike fingers. "Hmmm. I can see that. I mean, you are loud but you're not rude about it." He gestures apologetically. "No offense." He does smile at the mention of 'living in the moment'. "That's not always a bad thing. Sometimes I think we could learn to live in what we have now rather than dwell on what we've lost." It certainly made sense that Beasts like Sonnie would find a home in the Spring Court. "Really? I can't imagine anyone being mad at you for long. You're so kind."

He scratches the back of his neck, trying not to look too long at Sonnie as she mentions her...wardrobe debacle. "Yeah, that does make sense. I guess for me I always thought of my bark as a second skin, so clothes came a bit more naturally." Though shirts were a bit harder for him than pants. Maybe it was the association of his torso with carrying more branches? ​"I'm sure Sera was a bit part of that transition, unless you got here before her?" He didn't know much about the Freehold's history yet, just the people who'd lived there the longest. ​"Was Sera the one who made you Claviger?"

[Sonnie Wu]

She nodded along with what Diana said, as if she were a doctor agreeing with another medical professional's diagnosis. "I concur! Boop 'em on the snout!"

Sonnie looked up at Liam, somewhat fascinated by his evergreen beard. "Well, not for long. Had a couple monarchs get annoyed with me because I partied a little too hard at their coronations. They got over it, though. I'm too cute to dislike." She grinned.

"Sera? Oh, no, she was here for some time before I arrived in town," the Beast thought back, "I, uh, returned in San Francisco, not here. Spent some time traveling around, then settled here." She smiled proudly, "Yup, she appointed me Claviger."

[Liam Gelt]

Liam can't help but chuckle at the mental image of Circe shouting various curses at a prankster Sonnie. "Ha! I can only imagine what that must've looked like." Considering how patient most of the Monarchs seemed, Sonnie must've really over-partied to raise their ire. She returns the Monkey's grin. "Awwww, of course you are. You're..." Liam finds himself caught between a compliment and a hard place; not wanting to say anything overt around Diana but also not wanting to patronize Sonnie with something simple. "You're...really smiley. Yeah, that's it! Nobody could stay mad at your smile." Nailed it! Maybe... Diana looks up at Liam with suspicion, but doesn't say anything.
Liam takes a seat on the stump bench. "I'm sure you earned every bit of it. The Springs are really lucky to have someone like you watching their backs." He thinks for a moment. "Which reminds me, do you know much about Eleanor? She was with Worm and I when we rescued Timmy and Gassie from the well last month, but she seems kind of aloof." From what he recalled from the Spring gathering, it seemed like Eleanor...Titania...whatever her name was had been there for a while, at least as long as Sera and Sonnie.

[Sonnie Wu]

"Smiley?" That was a first, actually. She glanced curiously at Diana, then craned her neck back up towards the Ogre, "Thanks! I do smile a lot!"

The Steepscrambler returned her attention to the Archive, visually studying the Dryad as she spoke to Liam, "A Claviger is supposed to protect the monarch and other important peoples in the Court, but we're so small, I might as well guard all our bodies. Ya know?"

Her eyes shifted over at the question, "Starlight? She's always like that. Ellie is from World War II era UK. She's actually like 100 years old or something. She was away for that long. Anyway, she has some trouble adjusting to modern America, sometimes."

[Liam Gelt]

Liam hides a sigh, relieved he didn't offend his guest. He did genuinely appreciate Sonnie's bright and friendly demeanor. Diana, though her 'torso' is rooted to her home tree, follows Sonnie's eyes with her own. Dryad and Monkey briefly engage in a staring contest until the living Archive finally relents with a giggle. Liam smiles as he watches the two of them. "I figured you two would get along. I think she gets lonely while I'm not here, so I've been trying to give her 'playdates' of sort. Trying to show her the people I know rather than just tell her." Though he would hardly call Rhodes and John a 'playdate'.

The Ogre's eyes go wide at the mention of Eleanor's age. "Really? Wow! I can't imagine what that adjustment must've been like." He'd only had to deal with a five-year absence. There had still been a lot to process, but maybe part of the shining Fairest's demeanor was how she processed her own return to normalcy. "I kind of understand then; we're all such interesting, complicated creatures aren't we?" Beasts and Ogres, Princesses and Goblins. Together they made such a strange community. Strange, but good.

[Sonnie Wu]

"Playdates?" Sonnie mulled the concept over, before grinning mischievously. "Oh, I see. She's your daughter."

The Beast gazed about the Hollow, passively studying details and thinking about her own refuge in the Hedge. "Ellie's also a doctor. She's really very smart. Plus, she can do that Spring healing magic really well. So, if you get hurt, she's is the Unicorn to see!"

[Liam Gelt]

Liam looks a bit startled by Sonnie's abrupt statement, but he quickly relaxes with a smile. "Yeah, I guess so. She was a seedling stuck to my needles when I left...Back There. When I found this place, I planted her here and she just kind of grew up." He gets up from his stump and walks over to Diana, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. "All her knowledge on Hedge Fruit and Beasts comes from some kind of ancestral memory from her mother tree. She's given me so much, I want to try and give her a little bit of knowledge from my world." Diana looks up at Liam with a soft smile, her willowy hair snaking around his giant hand like viney fingers. "He tells me so many lovely stories. Some frightening ones too! Like the thing-with-many-hands. The Goblin named Worm slew it with his knives!" ​Liam looks a little embarrassed. "What can I say? Kid's got a memory on her."

"A healer eh? That explains why she didn't do too much when the fighting started. But she could supercharge her shoes for leaping and climbing!" Liam looks down at his own feet, currently bare and barkskinned as the rest of his form. "Guess I'm more of a big Hobbit, so that's why I use magic on my legs and not my shoes."

[Sonnie Wu]

Sonnie listened and nodded along, her mind already going in different directions. "Too bad you can't get a working TV signal in here. But maybe some DVDs? Lots for Diana to watch!" It was... an idea.

The Beast smiled and nodded again, "Yeah, Starlight's not much of a fighter, but she can be clever."

She turned her gaze to Liam, looking up at him curiously, "Do you decorate yourself for Christmas? Like, lights and stuff on your head?"

[Liam Gelt]

The Dryad cocks her head to one side. "TV? DVD? Are these the moving picture devices you mentioned?" Diana looks up to Liam, for the first time not just curious but honestly confused. "That's right, Diana. It's kind of like an Archive, but it's mostly about fictional stories. Grand tales, that sort of thing." She wrinkles her nose as if detecting a bad scent. "But what about the stories that actually happen? Made-up stories don't have to follow any known logic; they can make it up as they go. There's so much perspective that gets muddled." Liam tracks her words, then his pine-needle eyebrows go up. "That's a pretty good point. I guess that's what happens when someone tells a story: it's from the storyteller's view." That, and living stories are something that can exist in Arcadia. Liam looks over to Sonnie. "What do you think, Sonnie?"

At the mention of decorating himself like a Christmas tree Liam breaks out into an almost Circe-esque laugh. "HO! HO! HO! You know, I can't believe that never once occurred to me! That sounds like a wonderful Halloween costume idea. I might just do that." It was a silly idea, to be sure. But Ogres rarely tended to care what other people thought of them. Except maybe among friends.

Diana nods her head to the entrance of the treehouse. "Shepherd. You've got another guest." She giggles a bit like a child holding a secret. As the Lost turn to the entrance, they see one of the critters from outside has cautiously wandered up to the entrance, sniffling the air cautiously. Liam looks over to Sonnie, eyes wide with possibility. "Do you think you could show me? How to talk with them, I mean?"

I think I'm about ready to wrap up if you are!

[Sonnie Wu]

Her eyes bounced back and forth between Liam and Diana, looking at each in turn as they spoke to one another. When asked her opinion, Sonnie shrugged, "I like Planet of the Apes."

"Not just Halloween, but all of December!" She nodded excitedly.

After glancing towards the door, the Beast looked back to the Treant and nodded once more, "Sure! I can give you some tips. How you go about it is a bit more personal, though. You really gotta endear yourself to the animal in question."

Good to wrap if you are! Thanks for the scene!