The little off-hue ball was definitely not a part of the fox, unless it had grown a very cute tumor. Large yellow eyes followed Rory, and though he was curious about the little bundle, he didn't want to intimidate it. So he sat there on his workdesk, bracelet clasped in his lowered hands, and watched from the corner of his eye only. It was the universal animal body language for I mean you no harm and given the rather rough start on their visit, he figured it wouldn't hurt to be exceedingly polite.
Then again. Maybe it was just a baby Attuned.
Though thinking about that made his brain break a little. He knew so little of his fox friend—neither name nor age nor gender—that trying to slot a baby into it was just upsetting. It was probably something else, a companion animal of some sort. While Rory had a special bond with his ponies, he'd been told it was nothing like the soul-merge of a companionship.
With an encouraging nudge from its guardian the bundle uncurled fully, reeping and still looking up at Rory. The large yellow eyes; a beak; soft down of a chick, but its anatomy seemed decidedly not bird, at least not entirely. He didn't quite have time to figure it out before the fox sat up and gently grasped it in its jaws, holding it out for him.
Rory sat still for a second longer, surprised—and touched—at the obvious offer to hold it. Then he put the bracelet aside and held out his hands.
The creature was tiny, weighed barely more than the air. He held it gently, waiting to see how it would act; would it be stressed and uncertain he'd merely hold it, waiting for it to settle, but when it seemed okay with some handling he'd straighten up, bringing it closer to his face.
He ran the fingers of one hand gently down its spine, finding it elongated into a tail. Claws on its forelegs, paws on its hindlegs; a gryphon, then, a rare creature though not entirely unheard of. Gently he turned it around in his hands, lifting the tail—and possibly earning himself some insulted reep!s—to check its sex. When he was a kid they had still had cats on the farm, including a couple of litters, but his sister got some hang-up on them after their mother died, and while Rory could appreciate a good cat, he was more of a dog person anyway. Their last cat had died a couple of years ago, and Rory hadn't gotten around to getting a new one since.
"A little gryphon girl," he said gently, releasing her tail and turning her around again and gently scratching along her chin with his fingertip. Birds wasn't his specialty but he was willing to learn. "So you are an Attuned."
To Rory, it was the logical conclusion: dragons for Accepted, unicorns for Abandoned, and griffons for Attuned. What Ascended had he'd never really got a clear answer on, and he'd heard legends of bird-deer, but little more than that.
Belatedly he realized that calling the fox out on its sometimes-state of being human might not be the best idea; it hadn't given any indication it was interested in shifting around him, and even though Rory was perhaps a smidge crankier than usual he didn't want to press his friend. "Don't worry, I'm not asking you to shift or anything," he said, keeping his attention on the gryphon. "I just wasn't sure if you actually were one, or if you were just some .. spirit, of sorts, that took a liking to me. Which would've been unlikely, but..." He shrugged one shoulder, running a thumb over the smooth baby feathers. "She's beautiful."
Then again. Maybe it was just a baby Attuned.
Though thinking about that made his brain break a little. He knew so little of his fox friend—neither name nor age nor gender—that trying to slot a baby into it was just upsetting. It was probably something else, a companion animal of some sort. While Rory had a special bond with his ponies, he'd been told it was nothing like the soul-merge of a companionship.
With an encouraging nudge from its guardian the bundle uncurled fully, reeping and still looking up at Rory. The large yellow eyes; a beak; soft down of a chick, but its anatomy seemed decidedly not bird, at least not entirely. He didn't quite have time to figure it out before the fox sat up and gently grasped it in its jaws, holding it out for him.
Rory sat still for a second longer, surprised—and touched—at the obvious offer to hold it. Then he put the bracelet aside and held out his hands.
The creature was tiny, weighed barely more than the air. He held it gently, waiting to see how it would act; would it be stressed and uncertain he'd merely hold it, waiting for it to settle, but when it seemed okay with some handling he'd straighten up, bringing it closer to his face.
He ran the fingers of one hand gently down its spine, finding it elongated into a tail. Claws on its forelegs, paws on its hindlegs; a gryphon, then, a rare creature though not entirely unheard of. Gently he turned it around in his hands, lifting the tail—and possibly earning himself some insulted reep!s—to check its sex. When he was a kid they had still had cats on the farm, including a couple of litters, but his sister got some hang-up on them after their mother died, and while Rory could appreciate a good cat, he was more of a dog person anyway. Their last cat had died a couple of years ago, and Rory hadn't gotten around to getting a new one since.
"A little gryphon girl," he said gently, releasing her tail and turning her around again and gently scratching along her chin with his fingertip. Birds wasn't his specialty but he was willing to learn. "So you are an Attuned."
To Rory, it was the logical conclusion: dragons for Accepted, unicorns for Abandoned, and griffons for Attuned. What Ascended had he'd never really got a clear answer on, and he'd heard legends of bird-deer, but little more than that.
Belatedly he realized that calling the fox out on its sometimes-state of being human might not be the best idea; it hadn't given any indication it was interested in shifting around him, and even though Rory was perhaps a smidge crankier than usual he didn't want to press his friend. "Don't worry, I'm not asking you to shift or anything," he said, keeping his attention on the gryphon. "I just wasn't sure if you actually were one, or if you were just some .. spirit, of sorts, that took a liking to me. Which would've been unlikely, but..." He shrugged one shoulder, running a thumb over the smooth baby feathers. "She's beautiful."
