Like a Toddler Tornado [Ezra][OPEN]

[Windra]

Saori drew back with a bated sigh. Hands on his hips, the young refugee cast a long look down the wherhandler quarters. Orisk was a handsome, friendly beast with a heart of gold. But like most whers, he was huge. And sometimes clumsy. And he might just trample onto the bowls of plant-based watercolors intended for painting with his massive paws and trip, roll, fling everywhere.

The rocks were coated in hues of blues and violets. A particularly thick line of green spattered against the ceiling, pooling in places and dripping vicariously to the ground. Some pink extended out the wherhandler entrance and into the main hallway. And say nothing of Orisk himself!

"Well, you are ... just ... " Unable to help himself, Saori snorted. "A big oaf that just happens to look spectacular in pastels."

Big mess. Will clean easy? Orisk himself was coated head to do in a dazzling rainbow which became a poopy brown when they mixed heavily in some of his body's crevices, but the once-white wher was more concerned about their surroundings. Will make others mad?

Saori shrugged. "They'll get over it."

[FirebrandPhlox]

A loud clattering outside her room drew Raev's attention away from the letter she was writing, or attempting to write at least. She had promised she'd write her sister often, but could never find more than a few short sentences to jot down which didn't seem worth the effort of sending. Whatever commotion was going on outside the room was more pressing than the letter that had already been put off for weeks.

"What is going on out here? Raev barked as she exited her room. The walls were streaked with bright colors. She felt a splash as she stepped out and looking down, was standing in a shallow pool of pink. Damn it, these were just polished, she thought to herself. She gripped the bridge of her nose with one hand and sighed loudly.

Pretty! Rask exclaimed as she poked her head out of the room. Rask want Rask's room pretty too!

Absolutely not, Raev quickly fired at her wher. Turning her attention down the hall, she saw a white splattered with paint and presumably its handler standing next to it. "You," she said, pointing at the handler. "What the forsk happened here?"

[Windra]

Saori felt a ripple against his back. Shards! Of course somebody would come charging in to see the scenery in chaos right now and not later when he'd have it straightened away! Orisk hid behind his bonded, only poking out the white wedge skull when a garnet wher exclaimed at the beauty.

Think pretty? he queried. His head angled, eyes blue and bright and wide. Thank! Purple wher, pretty too!

"Calm your hormones," Saori barked back, a clear look of agitation spreading across his face. As if he wasn't having to deal with enough right now. "It's watercolor! And from flowers. It'll wash off easy with some water!"

Orisk butted his head against Saori's hip. Am sorry. Not do again.

Tenderness spread from the boy's smile. "You are a pain in my rump, Orisk. It's not your fault you've got big feet." Really though, the white was dappled in a rainbow assortment and it was really nice on him.

[FirebrandPhlox]

Rask think very pretty, yes! She responded, chipper and eager. White wher pretty too! Rask want pretty colors! Her whole body wagged with excitement.

"No, that's even less likely to happen than painting the room, Rask." Raev shot back at her wher.

Raev no fun.

"I know I'm no fun." Raev scowled, but did reach out to give Rask a quick scritch on the chin, letting the wher know she was joking in her overly serious way.

Raev felt a slight relief when the handler assured her it was watercolor, but she did not care for the tone in his voice. He was the one who had made the mess, after all.

She opened her mouth to scold him, but saw his face soften when he addressed his bonded. He was just a kid, probably barely old enough to have bonded to a wher. He seemed kinda scrawny too. She sighed.

"Alight kid, I don't care how it happened, but it has to get cleaned up. You got any water nearby or do we need to go fetch some?"

[Windra]

If whers could blush, Orisk would have. Being called 'pretty' was unsettling and false. Plain and white, that was him. He looked away, finding something nice on the ground to stare at. I not pretty. You all pink. Like big flower.

"Oh hush, you're handsome."

Oh good, she was settling. Saori should have been holding his breath or bracing for a reprimand, but really ... he didn't care enough. But at least now there wasn't about to be bickering and arguing over something as pointless at this.

Saori clicked his tongue. "S'a real shame to wash it off," he sighed.

Can leave? One week.

"No can do, buddy. It'll wind up staining and we'll never hear the end of it. But damn, it's hardly bad." Resigning to his fate, Saori tucked his hands into his pockets. He glanced down the hall. "Orisk kinda knocked it all over, so I'm gonna have to get some from the bath. Warm water'll work best anyways."

[FirebrandPhlox]

No, no! Wher Pretty! Rask insisted. She wriggled with even more excitement at Orsik's compliment. She loved flowers. Thank! Be friends with Rask? She inquired eagerly.

Raev sighed and addressed the pair across from her. "Yes, it needs to get cleaned up, now." Kid seemed to have a good handle on his wher for his age, at least. Well, despite the beast making a mess in the first place. At least he wasn't arguing with her, so maybe he was fairly responsible, despite his young age.

She followed the kid's glance down the hall. It was quite a mess, wasn't it? It would take him ages to do it all alone. She nodded at the suggestion to get warm water. "Good call. Let's gather some buckets and go get some bath water. I'll help you." She turned to Rask. "Please stay here and do not make the mess worse than it already is."

Rask make no promise. Raev sighed again.

[Windra]

Despite Saori's rolling of the eyes, he followed dutifully. Orisk, all giddy with the compliment despite his humble nature besting his desire to be thankful for the compliment, bobbed his head as they left.

More paint inside, he stated simply. The white wher was not the mischievous sort but he adored the colors splashed about them and shared the sentiment that it was a shame to wash it all. A wher did not have eyes like their handler, but even to his altered perception the technicolor rainbow was something striking. Saori weaves yarn. I watch. Paint on skins. Put brush between teeth and swish. Want paint? Must be careful.

Saori ducked into the paths, filling two buckets with hot water and strapping them to a long stick to be balanced across his back. "Hey do me a favor and don't rat me out to the wherleader? It's hard enough keeping my head down with all this holdless hate beastcrap floating around." If one more angry snippet on the matter would launch his way, he was going to blow his top.

[FirebrandPhlox]

When asked if she wanted to paint, Rask nodded her head so fast it nearly fell off her body. Yes!!! Rask want paint! Orisk show Rask how done? She eagerly asked.

Raev carried a pair of buckets and walked alongside the kid, filling up her own set to help with the cleaning. She frowned sympathetically when he asked her to not speak to leadership about the incident. Was this kid one of those holdless she had been hearing about? He really had drawn a rough lot in life it seemed.

"Don't worry about it. We'll just clean it up and make sure it doesn't happen again. No need to get the higher ups involved. I'm Raev, by the way. What's your name, kid?"

[Windra]

"Saori," he said simply. A bit stuffy, and a little irritated still. "Weaver and handler, from High Reaches." He hoped no questions would arise. The woman's eyes felt needling to him, whether they actually were or not.

And ...

To say nothing of the sudden absence of both whers from the hallway ...

"Orisk?" called the artist, a bit troubled by the colorful footprints left in the white's wake. "Bud? Did you go back inside?"

The wher didn't answer. Silence meant he was busy, and that was a little bit concerning. He was like a toddler. When he was quiet, he was getting into something he shouldn't be.

"He's a bit put off at his, uh, lack of color," Saori tried to explain, attempted to soothe the atmosphere before the inevitably broke it with whatever chaos awaited them. "Likes to practice with paints when I'm working. I've been at a tapestry for a bit and he can paint. Kind of."

Kind of. Just like Orisk was currently demonstrating to Rask. He took a larger-than-usual paint brush - it looked more like a miniature broom - and tilted his head, lowering the tip into what was left of a watery blue paint in a terracotta bowl.

Take brush like this. Dip in. You get it nice and wet. And! The stretched skin before them was bleached from the sun. Orisk lurched forward, awkwardly drawing a long and jagged bar across it. The bristles formed a gorgeous feathered texture to something that didn't really have form. Tadaa! Rask like to try? He placed the brush at the garnet's feet. The wher's little butt wiggled with excitement.

[FirebrandPhlox]

Raev simply nodded. Saori kept the introduction concise and clear, and she appreciated it from a handler so young. "Good for you. I never had much talent for the arts," she commented as they made their way back to the mess.

As Saori called after Orisk, Raev just sighed. If Rask wasn't in sight, she was probably causing trouble. "Let's hope they have't caused too much mischief."

Inside the weyr, Rask was watching Orisk demonstrate his painting skills, eyes wide like she was gazing upon the most succulent piece of meat in the world. So pretty! Orisk talented!

Rask bounced up and down with excitement. Yes! Rask want try! She picked up the brush stumbled forward awkwardly, so eager that she was tripping over herself.

She mimicked Orisk's movements, carefully dipping the brush in the bowl, only spilling a little bit of the colorful water. She then swept her neck like Orisk had, making a shaky bar across the skin. Her brush went past the skin though, and got some more paint on the wall and floor.

Rask did it! Rask make pretty! She wiggled her whole body in excitement as she dropped the brush in front of Orisk. Now Orisk turn. Make more pretty!

[Windra]

Goodness, Orisk's body was quivering from the wobble of his booty. He was generally a quiet wher, but engaging with somewher that was interesting in what he was doing was exhilarating, to say the least. He chomped the brush handle and did some dipping of his own.

Can paint weyr! Saori likes! Not in hall though. He tilted his head sideways, acutely aware of the pitter patter of not-so-tiny-feet. Yes, Saori would love the intricacy of Orisk's designs! Even better it Rask did her own part. He calls it ... mural?

Orisk suddenly dropped the brush. Instead, he took a large forepaw and dipped it into the mess - some watered down blues. The opposite appendage slipped into a violet. Then he stood on his haunches and began to stamp footprints across the wall of Saori's room.

Beast tracks! Can only go so high. Shame can't walk on ceiling.

Saori frowned briefly under Raev's eye and covered his mouth with a hand to conceal his grin. "Yeaaaa ... my weyr, I don't care if they mess it," he whispered. His eyes darted across the room. At least Orisk was staying clear of his tapestry. "I don't have it in me to tell 'em to stop."

[FirebrandPhlox]

Rask let out a warbling roar of delight as she watched Orisk paint footprints on the wall. She jumped up and down with excitement. She had never seen something so fun and pretty at the same time.

Rask next! Rask next! the garnet boomed excitedly as she stepped forward to get her own forepaws covered in paint.

"Hold it right there, Rask," Raev said, her tone cutting and stern. Rask held a paw above the bowl of violet paint, it trembling with anticipation. "This isn't your weyr, we're not going to have you mess it up."

Please! Rask want stomp on walls! The wher responded, her tone pleading.

Raev shook her head. "Not our weyr, not my call. That's up to Saori and his wher." She turned to the younger handler. "You can tell her no," she said in a low voice to him. "I know it'll be a pain to clean this all up, even without footprints on the walls." This was turning out to be quite a bit more mess than she had anticipated, and if Raev had to be the bad guy and put an end to the mischief, so be it.