Catch that gourd! {Seasonal Event}

ashe They may say, "You're too small, you're too young to do it all," But you're a giant on the inside. They may say, "It's not enough, leave your dreams collecting dust," But there's a fire that you can't hide. "I swear you drink more than I do." Ashe's voice was dry as she leaned back against the roots of a tree she'd found to settle in. The assassin frowned down at the kitten-sized spider that peaked out from beneath a gnarled root, little eyes gleaming up at her with a barely audible chittering. Fire-blue eyes rolled and she sighed, grabbing the bottle of wine beside her and leaning over to pour a small amount on the scrap of leather she'd laid on the ground. Soot made no further sound, but he stumbled on spindly legs to the little puddle of wine until it was half over the top of it, then lowered itself down to it. Ashe quirked a brow. "Shameless, you are." Ashe looked out at the little hidden oasis she had found herself in. The small waterfall was a gently splashing sound into the stunning water, the grass and trees smelled sweet - still so lush and green even in the midst of fall. Clad in all black and armed to the teeth beneath her blue cloak, the raven-haired girl was sorely out of place in such a peaceful spot. She didn’t belong, but she was getting pretty fucking tired of the multitudes of gray everywhere else. She raised the bottle of wine to her lips as she glanced down at Soot - did that little fuzzball nearly finish that already? - and she took a long drink herself. The bottle was still full, no doubt she'd have a comfortable buzz going in no time. What she had seen on that bridge… Ashe pursed her lips and swallowed past the constriction in her throat. Ashe blinked a few times and raised the bottle to her lips again. She was just tipping it back when movement at the edges if her vision caught her eye. Alarm bells pinged in her head, but she simply lowered the bottle and set it on the ground beside her. Slowly, without looking, she nudged Soot into her hand, raising him to her shoulder. He gave a small squeak of protest, but was interrupted by a hiccup that nearly knocked him off balance. The little spider clung to her shoulder as she slowly turned her head and … Is that a fucking pumpkin? The assassin furrowed her brow at the side of the lumbering gourd. She'd heard people talking about them in the time she was actually around them, but she assumed it was some silly superstition all these locals seemed to have. But.. real? She watched it come closer, and it looked…. Vicious. The raven-haired girl smoothly rose to her feet, leaving the wine and her satchel on the ground as she took a step towards the thing. Then it started moving fast for a pumpkin monster with no legs. She conceded a step as it approached and reached behind her back, and with a ring of steel Reckoning was unsheathed. She flipped it once in her hand and faced the rapidly approaching gourd, bending at the knees… then it was within striking range, that strange mouth gnashing towards her ankles. It was cut in two without even a blink from the assassin. She was just starting to lean down and examine it, but then there was more sound and movement, the same sounds and movement. Ashe looked up in time to see a hoard of bloodthirsty pumpkins closing in. ”What in the five hells…?” They were all coming at her, and with the first three that came, she sliced cleanly through them. Another two were exploded with short blasts of lightning. Soon the peaceful oasis was filled with Ashe's muttered cursing and the clamor of angry demon-gourds. Just as she kicked away one that got too close for comfort, she heard a squeak from her shoulder. She blinked and just barely caught sight of a spindly, fuzzy black spider fall from her shoulder. She barked a curse and reached for him, but he landed atop one of the gourds that was fleeing it's assault on her. ”Hey!” Ashe lunged forward to go after it, watching with something like horror as the violent gourd moved away with surprising speed, a drunk spider clinking desperately to its stem. ”Soot!” Ashe cut through gourds and made herself a path, but five hells, where were they all coming from? She charged after the one that held her spider, snarling curses about him being a clumsy fucking drunk. It had a head start, and she could only catch glimpses of it through roots and trees as it headed the direction of the water. Two more of the gourds she cut through as she darted after them. Ashe swung herself around a tree and kicked away another pumpkin that went for trying to take a chunk out of her leg, and - ”Fuck!” Ashe ran head on into the solid shape of someone, nearly toppling the both of them over. She retained her balance, but she flashed her eyes up to.. ”Kalt?” She glared at him, but she shook her head and shoved herself past him, her eyes just barely catching sight of the gourd that had her spider. ”Soot!” she cried. ”I have to-” Ashe didn't even finish her sentence before she shoved past Silver Wing, blue cloak billowing behind her as she cut through another gourd in her way.

Out for a walk with hardly a care, Kalt kicked a small rock, a smirk on his lips as he walked with his hands stuffed in his pockets. That moment was one of the few that he wasn’t completely decked out in weapons. Why? Simply because he didn’t feel like it. Of course that didn’t mean he wouldn’t be dressed in his uniform with a few weapons, namely Whisper, the whip which hanged at his hip. A few sounds drew his attention, and the vision of a few orange shapes moved across his eyes, his brow quirking upward at it. And whose voice rang in his ears with obvious frustration and slight desperation? He smirked. What the hells was she doing out here? To raise a few more questions, one of the… Was that a fucking pumpkin? One of the…demonic pumpkin creatures…waddled past him at surprising speed with what looked to be a large spider clinging unstably to it. Again, more questions. However, as soon as he turned back around to keep walking, a small person crashed into him. He quickly took a step back, bracing himself easily to keep from toppling over, and looked with slightly widened eyes, a huff of a laugh escaping him at the sight of Ashe. Of course. Soot? Wait, so she… Kalt shook his head, as she ran past him after the spider. Why didn’t these things remotely faze him anymore? He smirked, turning on his heel and hauling ass after her. He waved his hand in the direction of the spider, trying to magically swipe it up, but it didn’t work. He looked at his hand, pursing his lips. What the fuck was going on with his magic coming here? Instead of dwelling on it, Kalt jumped up, swinging on a tree branch and landing on one of the demonic gourds, grinning at the splat! sound it made before taking off again after Ashe and the spidernapping pumpkin. Ashetta kalt give into the night.

ashe They may say, "You're too small, you're too young to do it all," But you're a giant on the inside. They may say, "It's not enough, leave your dreams collecting dust," But there's a fire that you can't hide. Ashe didn’t wait to consider Kalt, or what he was doing, or the fact that she just ran into him. Her eyes were locked on the fleeing shape of a bumbling, savage gourd and the wine spider clinging to it for dear life. Ashe was closing the distance quickly, racing through the lush trees until she burst into a clearing of long and soft grass. ”Shit!” she hissed as the gourd - and her spider - disappeared from sight. ”Soot, you stupid, drunk son of a bitch!” Ashe watched the grass rustling, and - She yelped sharply and leaped to the side as one of those gourds suddenly lurched out from the grass. Her lip curled back, and a spark of lightning leaped from her fingertips and burst the gourd on sight chunks and seeds and pumpkin-innards exploding outwards and covering her legs. She snapped her head back around to see the grass moving… everywhere now. Shit. Where had Soot gone? Ashe kicked at another gourd, sending it tumbling back into the grass as it came at her, but there were more following. She grit her teeth, eyes glancing about and trying to catch sight of Soot. There was a glimpse of wobbling fuzzball over the top of the grass, but then she had to swing her now gourd-guts covered sword down through another one that came snarling at her. She glanced over her shoulder, and… he followed her. Of course he did. She bit back her pride, however - her spider’s life was on the line. ”Kalt!” Ashe called as she stomped her foot down, bursting apart another sweet-smelling demon pumpkin. ”I have to catch that one!” She pointed her sword in the direction of where she saw that glimpse of Soot - she was afraid of blasting it, afraid of hurting her spider.

There was no chance of stopping the smirk that pulled at his lips when she called after the spider. Soot. Soot and Ashe. The amusement threatened to overflow, but her distress in chasing after the little spider creature gave him enough reason to shove it down for another time. He raced after her, catching up at the edge of the tall grasses, right as she loosed a bolt of lightning to blow up a pumpkin. Kalt looked down, again smirking, this time at the sight of her black clothing covered in bright orange guts and seeds. Gods, that shouldn’t have been as satisfying at is was, but oh well. The man grabbed the whip at his side, unraveling it smoothly so about half of it thudded on the ground. However, it wouldn’t remain on the ground for long, as more demonic gourds started for them. He eyed Ashe quickly, making sure she was out of range of the whip, then released it on two pumpkins, the metal tip of the whip cutting beautifully through the pumpkin flesh. He looked at the whip briefly, almost shocked that he would degrade his weapon to striking at vampiric pumpkins, but hey, improvising was a skill. Besides, she was using Reckoning. His attention was drawn to Ashe when she called his him and pointed at the spider bobbing above the grass. He flashed her a quick wink. ”Go on then, wolf girl!” He said, grinning at her. ”I’ve got you covered!” Ashetta kalt give into the night.

ashe They may say, "You're too small, you're too young to do it all," But you're a giant on the inside. They may say, "It's not enough, leave your dreams collecting dust," But there's a fire that you can't hide. Ashe flinched sharply at the first crack of a whip. She couldn’t help it, the way she spun and shrank back, the way her heart stumbled. She didn’t have the chance to consider it long, because one of the ones she kicked away had come wobbling back at her. She growled and stomped a foot through it, not flinching when she heard the whip crack again. Kalt snapped his whip cleanly through two more that had been making their progress towards her, and she lifted her eyes to him. Wolf girl. She flashed a smirk that might have been a snarl for how savage it was, and she shifted. The jet black wolf was racing into the grass without wasting a moment, large paws propelling her forward and straight for that stupid get-away pumpkin. She growled as she closed the distance with easily, fluid strides, trusting Kalt to take care of any of those things that tried to meddle. At the sight of a large predator coming at him, she heard the squeak he let out with keen ears, but he held fast to the stem of the gourd she could now see. Part of its side was caved in - must have been why it was speeding away. Well.. as quickly as a bumbling legless demon gourd could. She let out a sharp bark that turned into a snarl as she snapped her jaws down on the caved in side of the pumpkin. Where the hunter in her expected the rush of blood through her teeth, she got a sweet taste of.. Actual fucking pumpkin. This land was growing stranger every day. The gourd let out some kind of angry sound as she ripped out a large chunk of sweet rind. It thrashed, and her golden eyes latched onto the shrieking spider atop the gourd.. And he lost his grip. A spider lost his grip. Drunk little shit. Ashe let out a snarled bark and darked forward and dove down just in time for Soot to land and latch onto the dark fur of her neck, all but disappearing. She shewolf let out a huff of relief as she felt the wine spider nestle himself into her coat, and then it was followed by a sharp and loud yelp. Ashe snarled and snapped her head around to see that stupid gourd with a chunk bitten out of it decided to return the favor - biting down on her leg.

For the sheer absurdity of the situation, Kalt could have barked a genuine laugh. Fucking vampire pumpkins. What the actual fuck was this place? Silver Wing returned the smile she gave him, then peered slightly, watching her shift smoothly into the black wolf. He kept his word, dispatching a few pumpkins nearby with his whip, before jumping onto another one and taking off in a run after her. The Guild had been the best and worst time in his life, but one wonderful thing that came out of it was that whip. He used it for quite a bit more than it was intended for, but gods damn, it was a useful weapon. Today? Well, today it would need to be cleaned of fucking gourd guts... Something he never expected to even think about. Kalt kept his ears out for Ashe, letting her handle the retrieval of her spider, while he kept the pumpkins from flanking them. Of all the times the Assassin in Blue and Silver Wing has worked together, they hadn’t come close to doing anything like this, and he had to admit that it was surprisingly fun. After kicking one of the pumpkins, he whirled around at the sound of Ashe yelp. A snarl crossed his lips as he sprinted forward. His whip snapped on the gourd that has latched onto her leg, and he quickly touched her shoulder and waved his arm, telling her to move. ”Blue, let’s go!” He shouted, pretty sure she could still move. He’d seen her a lot off than a bite from a pumpkin. Sure, he had ridded them of the majority of the ones that had gathered, but there was no telling how many were waiting to after. Ashetta kalt give into the night.

ashe They may say, "You're too small, you're too young to do it all," But you're a giant on the inside. They may say, "It's not enough, leave your dreams collecting dust," But there's a fire that you can't hide. Ashe was going to spin and bite down on the demon that had its fangs sunk into her leg, but it was split cleanly in two the moment the crack of a whip sounded. She yelped at the sound, immediately swung her hind end away from the whip with her tail between her legs, but she darted her eyes up to find Kalt approaching - the whip in his hand. The wolf drew her tongue over her jaws and snuffed at the touch to her shoulder, her ears pricking forward as she looked behind him. The field of sweetgrass was covered in the carnage of demon-gourd slaughter, but there were stragglers wobbling and waddling their way towards the man and wolf. She didn’t even have it in her to snarl - what kind of world was this? She’d have thought herself hopped up on some new drug back in Northwind if she didn’t know better. She looked back at Kalt with her nickname, and she gave a short bark of agreement. She didn’t think much of it as she nudged her head under his hand briefly, and then she bounded forward into the trees. She let out a quiet yelp when her back leg touched down, but it was a minimal pain. She’d deal with it when they left the little round monsters behind. Her nose nudged her spider closer into her fur as she ran over roots and trees, glancing at Kalt. They’d just been slaying bloodthirsty pumpkins to save her drunk spider. Ashe let out a high bark at him, her tail flagging with a wag. If she’d been in her original skin, she might have been laughing as she ran. She angled herself until she was running at his side, ignoring the sharp ache of her back leg and breathing in deeply. Beneath the smell of those sweet gourds and her own blood, there was his scent, and she swore it reached every part of her as she let out a small and playful bark. She darted her head down to nip her teeth at his heels, mischief gleaming in golden eyes.

They bounded through the trees, strangely lush for the time of year – he had to remind himself how much about the world they had yet to understand – and he kept glancing at the large wolf by his side with a devious grin. Her bark and wagging tail elicited a breathy laugh from the man, mostly cut off by the feeling of her teeth pinching at his boot. ”Hey!” He snapped, hopping slightly with a smile. ”Watch it, ya little shit!” The playful pursuit by… The fact that they were demonic pumpkins would never let him sleep without a chuckle. The playful pursuit by pumpkins reminded him of the few times that the two of them had to haul ass away from guards on a job. Only the threat of guards was surprisingly less than the threat of bloodthirsty gourds. Their run brought them through a break in the trees, emerging in a small paradise. The grass was vibrant and looked soft; there was a beautiful pool of gently moving water. In his time, he had only seen place back when he was in the Guild in a kingdom neighboring Northwind. He hadn’t had the chance to return to it before going to Northaven, but this place gave him a feeling of peaceful relaxation. He didn’t like it. Kalt slowed to a walk, pulling his whip through his hand, cleaning the pumpkin off of the leather. Giving Ashe a mischievous glance, he would plop the pumpkin guts on her head with a laugh. Ashetta kalt give into the night.

ashe They may say, "You're too small, you're too young to do it all," But you're a giant on the inside. They may say, "It's not enough, leave your dreams collecting dust," But there's a fire that you can't hide. The bright light of that field of sweetgrass was receding, plunging the wolf and the man into the dappled shadows of unseasonably lush trees. She let out another sharp bark at his curse, but the sound of Kalt’s laughter seemed to replace her sprint with an airy bound, golden eyes bright. She snapped her teeth at his leg when he danced away from her, jaws closing on empty air with a playful growl. The scent of those gourds was fading, the little beasts unable to keep up with the full run of the shewolf and assassin. Soot seemed to have an easier time of clinging into her fur, a quiet hiccup sounding in her ear as four paws propelled her forward. She favored her right side, but her heart was racing too lightly to care about the minor pain. She yipped after him as she dropped her pace and weaved behind him, around his other side. She didn’t quite know what she was feeling, and she didn’t let herself think on it. She just knew her chest was light and her heart was racing and she knew the laugh that bounced off the trees. Then they were through the short patch of trees, and a paradise-within-a-paradise surrounded them in an explosion of space and grass, water and blue sky. Ashe forced her legs to slow, the ache in her leg making her all too happy to steady her paws and pad towards Kalt with light panting and a swaying tail. She’d have to go back for her things - her wine and her harness back, but for now? She looked up at Silver Wing with shining eyes and ears forward as he swiped his hand over his whip - Ashe let out an indignant bark as wet, slimy gourd guts were slapped down between her ears. She dropped her head down and shook her entire pelt, earning an indignant squeak and then hiccup from the spider desperately clinging to the fur of her shoulder. She growled up at Kalt and then roughly butt her head against his hip without warning - smearing what was on her head across his clothing. She ended the firm headbutt with her teeth nipping at the cloth of his pants before she quickly dashed away. She loped a few paced towards that pool of glittering water, every step with her back legs tender and short. She glanced behind her at silver wing with a glare, and then she shifted smoothly and fluidly. A raven-haired girl stood in place of the wolf, but she perhaps never looked any less wild than the beast beneath her skin. Ashe let sharp eyes linger on Kalt, and then Soot was peeking up from behind her shoulder with unsteady, spindly legs. He let out a quiet chitter, but she shot a glare down her shoulder and nudged him back towards her hood. ”I’m none too happy with you, you clumsy drunk,” she scolded the wine spider. Her only response was a hiccup as the spider setted just beneath her hood, but she flickered a soft smile at the sound with relief. She gave a brief glance down to her leg, but then quickly looked away - blood was seeping into the fabric of her pants, and it ached, but she was more concerned with… In a lightning-quick movement, Ashe swiped a small handful of gourd-innards from where it had stuck to her pants and hurled at Kalt, a wicked grin on her face as she aimed to hit him square in the face.

He laughed again at her bark, then glared playfully as she thumped her head against his hip. She was stronger as a wolf, so Kalt had to take a quick step to keep himself steady at the unexpected action. ”Wha- Hey!” As soon as she stopped, he looked at the orange smears on his pants and pursed his lips at her, wiping as much of it off as he could. He would take care of it when he got home later. She dashed away after nipping at him, and he couldn’t help the grin that pulled at his lips. She approached the pool and easily shifted back into a girl, and something had the man stalling where he stood. Eyes that matched the pool of water held her form, the black of her uniform and clearly artificial blue of her cloak so starkly contrasting the vibrant blues and greens of the little paradise they found themselves in. Ashe scolded her little spider – of course she had a pet spider. Kalt had to stop himself from laughing at the absurdity, instead dipping his head and pinching his eyes closed. This day was fucking bizarre, but he was definitely used to strange. He brought his gaze back up only to be greeted by orange mush hurling towards him. Silver Wing threw up his hand and was met with a nasty splat! Grumbling, he shook it off of his hand and huffed, knowing it had splattered in small areas of his beard. Well, he needed an excuse to shave it off anyway. He smirked at her deviously. ”I’ll get you back,” he said, a hint of a dare in his voice. ”You just won’t know when.” It didn’t matter that he had gotten her first. He would knock her on her ass at least once eventually and that’ll be named revenge for the murderous pumpkin guts. Ashetta {end thread} kalt give into the night.