It's difficult to breath underwater. Especially if you are a Lapi. Aviri is being twirled about through the darkness by a devil! Actually, it looks like Scarlet, but the braids of her red hair turn into the scaled body of a serpent that stretches off into the depths. And she's laughing, somehow, underwater. Just when Aviri is sure his lungs will burst, the devil-otter leans in as if to whisper in his ear..
With a gasp, Aviri lurches awake.. or would, if not for the corset making the maneuver unlikely. The gasping for air at least works, and the restraint of the corset makes him feel like he really is drowning. And the devil-otter is licking the inside of his ear! With very long licks, since it's a long ear.
And to make it worse, Scarlet is naked, curled up against him ... and she sure seems to be enjoying licking that ear.
With the corset-induced breathing problems, shedding the nightmare takes Aviri an abnormally long time. The wet sensation on his ear only makes it worse. He flails as though fending off serpents or waves or a combination of both, until he manages to get a grip on himself, and remembers the all of everything. "S-sorry," he pants, not yet realizing he'd yanked his ear from her and is holding it tightly against his chest.
Scarlet is too busy laughing to actually get mad about that. It's a good minute or two before she can actually speak clearly. "Wow, you haf problems," she says between giggles and snorts, "You passed out while rubbin' me feets. So ... I decided to haf a little fun with ya."
"She's easily amused," Silv claims, whispering into Aviri's other ear.
Aviri, still clinging to his ear, forces himself to take slow, as-deep-as-he-could breaths. "My problems are many," he mutters to nobody in particular. "Sorry 'bout passing out. Must've been the rum. And peircings." He winces as Silv's whisper makes his ear twitch, which in turn makes said peircings jangle.
"Well," the naked otter comments, "It did give me time t' find ze collar." She holds up her left hand with a shiny metal collar dangling from it. It's quite fancy; lots of scrollwork decorating the outside, coiled serpents, and other more abstract designs. Right in the center of the front dangles an ornate metal bell that jingles melodically. She shakes it lightly to demonstrate this.
"Oh good, it's an around-the-NECK collar," Silv whispers.
"Collar?" Aviri asks, though of course the Lapi had heard her correctly. That doesn't mean otters can't mis-speak, though. His eyes fall slightly when she demonstrates that she hadn't mis-spoken. "The dress isn't enough?" he asks, his brow knitting in confusion as he wonders what other types of collars there would be. But answering Silv out loud would probably come off as more crazy than he was willing to show.
"'Course not. I can't leash the dress," Scarlet says and the otter even rolls her eyes. She pats the spot on the bed right in front of herself and grins. "Plop the bunny butt right 'ere."
The wind up cymbal-Kavi's gaze seems a bit judgmental.
Aviri glances warily at the mechanical Kavi, and supresses a shudder as he plops said but in the indicated location. "Not sure how good a maid I'll be if I have to stay in leash-range of you," he notes dryly.
Oh goody, the collar has a lock. And Scarlet makes quite the show of unlocking it right before the bunny's nose. "Chin up," she instructs. Wow, she can sure smile evilly when she thinks she's doing something to torment him.
Aviri sighs, but looking at that demonic Kavi-thing, he remembers that this will, at the very least, remove him from Waddle's viscinity, and thus his chin does go up, both in the physical and emotional sense.
Scarlet leans in and kisses him right on the nose. When she sits back, the collar comes forward and slips around his neck. It closes with what seems like a really loud click. It's also quite snug; not uncomfortable, but noticeable. She tests the lock, then nods when it seems to hold secure. "Dere you go," she says and pats his cheek. "So, ya ready for the other ear now?" she asks next. Oh joy of joys, she didn't forget during his nap.
Silv is standing right in front of Aviri, and leaning in close to examine the collar. "It's right nice.. I'd have pinched something like that.. but it smells funny to me."
Aviri winces at the sound of the lock, and prepares himself to have to fight through yet another barrier to get air. He's pleasantly surprised that the collar isn't that tight, and even smiles. The smile almost immediately fades, though. "Oh, right," he says. "Yes." It was a lie, but answering 'no' wasn't really an option, he presumed. "Er, do you have less-valuable rum? I once heard it should be poured on the wounds." He glances to Silv and mouths "I thought you weren't a pirate."
"Oh sure! I have rum that ranges from the high end stuff down to 'strip yo' paint'," Scarlet remarks, "So how much do oyu want t' feel like you were kicked in the head?"
"That doesn't mean I wasn't a kleptomaniac," Silv notes, with a bit of pride. "I've got lots of different manias.. hey.." The raccoon looks at Aviri a bit more closely after that glance. Is she starting to suspect that the Lapi can see her?
Aviri thinks on that. "No more'n a bottle," he says finally, indicating with his hands the size of the bottle she'd given him earlier while he continues to look at Silv, his distrustful gaze not really leaving. "Captain, what's the difference between you and, say, a ship captain who steals things?"
Scarlet gets up and saunters away, making sure she ways her bare bottom at the bunny. As she's looking for some rum presumably, she answers that question. "Depends on if the one who steals 'as a writ. Other than that, the difference is jus how many barfights ya get into, and how many ports ya gotta avoid later," she notes.
Silv decides to experiment.. by wiggling her hips and.. cupping herself while licking her lips and winking at Aviri.
Aviri's eyes go to Scarlet as she answeres, conveniently just as Silv starts her experiment, and so his bashfull blush-and-look-at-the-bed-beside-him could've been easily caused by the sight of Scarlet's bare and swaying bum. "I see," he says, not really sure if that actually proved anything about Silv's alleged non-pirateness. "'M curious as to why you're naked," he asks the bed. "You weren't when I fell asleep."
"Ask her to show you her tattoo," Silv suggests, glancing at otter-butt as well.
"De girls needed t' breathe," Scarlet claims as she saunders back towards Aviri. She doesn't even ask before sliding herself right into his lap and waves the bottle in his face. "Found eeet," she chirrs. "Wanna do body shots?"
Aviri rolls his eyes at Silv's suggestion, and squeaks when Scarlet settles onto his lap. He leans away from her, as best he can, but the front of the dress, now pinned beneath her butt, keeps him from going far. "Body shots?"
"Body shots! I pour dis in places on me an ya lick it out. Like me navel," Scarlet explains, complete with a waggle of her brow.
"I like her, you could learn a lot from this one," Silv encourages, standing beside the pair.
Aviri's face wrinkles at that. "What's wrong with the bottle?" he asks, obviously not getting the point of body-shots.
"Body shots are more fun"," Scarlet insists as she leans in. "Don't you like me?"
"You put holes in me....!" Aviri counters, his body now mostly supported by the tension of his dress. "And plan on putting more holes in me!"
"Ooooo... prolly not the right answer there, sport," Silv says, and makes an exaggerated wincing face.
Scarlet's smile somehow manages to look colder. "Dozens, then," she says through clenched teeth. She drops the bottle in his lap; and yes, she was aiming to have it land in a painful place. The otter then rises ... and goes to get that scary-looking weapon she had earlier. She looks to it, then to the lapi. "Feh, the hole would be too big," she says as she grudgingly puts it away.
"You need to learn to talk nice to ladies," Silv explains to Aviri, putting her hand on his shoulder (which is now getting chilled). "'specially the ones with bladed weapons and sharp teeth. You gotta talk her up, say you want 'er, all that. Worse thing then is you get to disappoint her in the sack! Better than maybe losin' YOUR sack though."
Aviri falls backward as Scarlet stands, the bottle hitting its target, but not with enough force to cause more than a squeak from the rabbit. He sits up again, picking up the rum and watches Scarlet with more than a bit of horror. He uncorks it and takes a short swig, then a longer one, and glares at Silv. "Don't need your snark too," he mouths. He drinks more as his shoulder is chilled, letting Silv's advice wash over his ears, thought he cold makes him subconsciously rub his shoulder with his other hand to warm it back up.
"'hink once I done wit you I'll let de crew have dere fun wit you," Scarlet says rather coldly. She's back to rummaging around, looking for ... something.
"Hey, I trying to help you out here," Silv claims.
"'Preciate it," Aviri says to Silv unsarcastically as he drinks more, obviously wary of Scarlet's rampage. Several dozen sentences float through his head, each one rejected by the rabbit as ways to 'talk up' Scarlet. He settles on "Can understand why you'd 'need to let 'em breathe'. Your clothes must get warm with you inside 'em."
Scarlet stops mid-rummage. "'scuse me?" the otter asks and glances backward. One eyebrow is slightly cocked upward.
Silv runs a hand over her face. "That's.. uh.. you wanna just say she's hot.. more clearly," she advises.
Aviri was obviously a master craftsman when it came to social situations. Even still he didn't think just bluring "You're hot" would be best. He gulped, trying to clear his throat of phlegm and rum. "Bet that's why you b'came a ship captain; always be around water to cool off...." he says.
"Actually, it was so I coul' shoot jerks in the head," Scarlet remarks dryly. "Finally got t' release dat urge after the Uni; lotta pompous jerks."
Aviri frowns at that. "Did you shoot anyone at Uni?"
"Body shots maybe," Silv whispers to Aviri.
"'Course not. That would be detrimental to education," Scarlet says as she returns with a tray of scary-looking needles and a whole assortments of, well, things that look like they go into holes.
Aviri's ears hurt just looking at the tray. He puts a cork in the rum bottle and sets it aside. "Guess that's a 'no' to body-shots, then? Or just a 'later'?" He blanches at the needles. "If I'm still alive," he adds at a whisper.
Scarlet eyes Aviri. "Are you damaged in the 'ead?" she asks him rather bluntly, "'cuz I remember you turning that down."
"Say you was too intimidated by her confidence," Silv suggests. "Ye' just need a few sips to loosen up some."
Aviri looks back. "I didn't, Captain," he says. "Never done 'em before. Was kinda confused why someone like you'd wanna do that with someone like me. I merely said it's kinda hard to 'preciate a lovely body when they're busy hurting you." He blushes and looks away. "Would ya agree to a couple body-shots b'fore y' stab me s'more?" He pauses. "Or at lemme have some sips to get s'more spirits so I c'n at least match half yours?"
A cold ghostly hand pats Aviri on the back. "That's better!" Silv says proudly.
"Dagh's fornicatin' buttcheeks," Scarlet declares as she throws her arms upward. "Yer worse den a drunken rat. Hot, cold, hot cold, lukewarm, nutsville!" she goes on and grouses. "So now ya want t' haf fun?"
"Feel free to just be honest too, tell her you have no idea what to do and you've never had the attention of a real woman before," Silv says. "Maybe she'll be more forgivin' then?"
Aviri supresses a shiver from Silv's touch. "How'd butcheeks fornicate?" he muses to himself, before blanching. "Nevermind." He stops the tray of tools from sliding to the floor and spilling. "'M just a bit out of my element," he says apologetically. "A bit shocking to be invited for body-shots by you."
"Oh, well, dat is true," Scarlet has to concede. So, she swipes the bottle back from Aviri, then flops back on the bed on her back. The otter then fiddles with the bottle and pops the cork. Cackling, she pours some right into the dimple of her navel. "Start lickin'," she commands.
"The key is to not just slurp," Silv advises.
Luckily Aviri already had several swigs' worth of rum to soften the whiplash of seduction to sadist and back. He gently pushes the tray away so it probably wouldn't be disturbed by anything short of fornicating buttcheeks. With inner ears still bright pink he lays down with his head at her belly and laps at the navel-full of rum. The taste of otter doesn't tarnish the rum too much.
Scarlet ... actually giggles girlishly! She also squirms. "Dere you go," she croons. "Fun, eh?"
Aviri didn't think this was nearly as fun as studying rare varieties of heather or mushrooms, but he wasn't going to let such secrets into the open! He grins and nods, still licking the rim of her navel even though all the available rum had been taken from that little shot-glass.
And once it is empty, Scarlet fills her navel back up! "Don' worry, I won' pour it anyplace else ... for now." That last bit sounded a bit ominous. "Feelin' relaxed yet fer de stabbins?"
"She means stabbing your ear, not you stabbing her.. that's in-your-endo for fornicatin' buttcheeks and such," Silv notes to Aviri.
Aviri's eyes look up at her as he licks the fresh rum out. These tiny little bits weren't much, in comparison to his earlier swigs, but hopefully this at least put her in a better mood for said stabbings. He wondered if Silv was enjoying the show, but only idly. "'Bout relaxed enough," he says. "Though can only think of a couple places that'd be more fun than this." He winks and keeps licking.
"That's it, keep her curious!" Silv cheers.
"Dere sure is," Scarlet agrees and cackles. "It be all the right kind-o tingles. I guess I only do six instead o' de two dozen you earned." She wiggles her feets all about.
The wriggling feet attract the attention of one of Aviri's hands, which go to massaging the inter-toe webbing while the Lapi laps at the otter's belly. "Do the tingles come from the rum?" he asks while his tongue slides to fill her navel and wriggles around at the rum-flavored fur.
Scarlet pours more rum into her navel. "Wow, oh the t'ings I could have you do with dat tongue," the otter chirrs. If the goal was to distract her from 'stabbings', he's sure doing a good job of it. Of course while he's licking he can feel the otter has a small hole at the top of her navel. No, two, maybe a quarter of an inch apart.
Aviri grins, wondering just how long he can keep his other ear intact, or how far Scarlet'd go with this! "You need only ask, Mistress," he says as his tongue dabs at the rum, though by now the alcohol is obviously not the point of his licking. The flat facade of his teeth slides and stretches her navel while he licks, and his fingers knead the webbing of her feet.
"You're gonna be either really numb or really excited for the piercin' at this rate," Silv comments, not entirely unapprovingly.
"Oh, don' worry, I be askin' at some point," Scarlet says as she pats the back of Aviri's head. "I can' get too distracted since ya gots piercings t' still get done." Seems like she hasn't forgotten after all. "And den after dat, I teach yas how to use makeup."
Aviri doesn't let his face fall too much upon the revelation that peircings were still in his future. Luckily only three times as many as had almost killed him the first time. He does give a playful pout as he quickly laps the rest of the rum. "Guess that just means more fun for later," he says and, focusing on the offer of makeup rather than the upcoming stabbings, manages to smile.
"Oooo, makeup!" Silv chirps. "That is so much FUN! You need a bandit mask, like me!"
Scarlet pats Aviri again and once he moves, she sits up and stretches. "Right. It's STABBING TIME!" the otter declares with the enthusiasm of of a kid in a candy shop. She hands him the bottle too as she adds, "Drink up, I go heat da needle."
"Look at the bright side," Silv tells Aviri, putting a cold arm around his shoulders. "At least SHE hasn't been drinkin'!"
Said right as Scarlet grabs a bottle off her shelf and takes a big swig.
Once again the cushion of alcohol protects Aviri from mood whip-lash. He obeys, taking another big gulp, and pours a bit over his piercings before corking it. He'd drank enough; already he knew he'd have trouble walking in a straight line. Any more and the room would start spinning, and he'd most likely end up doing unpleasant things to her floor. "Yeah," he replies to Silv quietly. "Least the studs'll be in a line. Though if they're enchanted, too, I might fully become a ghost." He watches the otter drink, and shrugs. "Ghost it is, then."
"Aha, so you CAN see me!" Silv says, and pokes at Aviri's chest. "Can you feel me too? Pat me if you can!"
Aviri tries to brush off Silv's poking.
Scarlet sashays her way back, grabs a needle from the tray, and warms it over a candle. "Y'know, bunbun," she says, "Yer tolerant. But dat just means I haven't found yer limits yet so you can break dem." She draws the needle away from the fire, shakes it, and wipes off any soot. "An dat's the real fun part, breakin' people's limits. S'what Jack told me long time ago and look at me now."
"This Jack fellow sounds like a fun guy too," Silv tells Aviri. "And I know how much you like fun-guys. Right? It's a pun!"
Aviri looks shocked at Scarlet. "You wanna break me?" he asks. Unfortunately Silv's pun comes right after, and he can't suppress the chukcle it elicits. "Sorry," he says thought the giggles. "Just, er ... there's a silly pun in there." His explanation gets quieter and quieter until it's barely more than a mutter. He jabs at Silv. "Are you jewelry enchanted?"
"An ya gots t' tell me," Scarlet says as she plops down next to Aviri on the bed. She takes hold of his untouched ear and peers at it a bit. "Dat hat yer friend be wearin'. I could swear dat be ol' Silver's 'at, but dat be impossible. Probably jus' bought inna touristy shop, eh? Anyway, ready?"
"Ey! You tell her I wasn't that old!" Silv demands of Aviri.
Aviri blinks upon hearing Scarlet mention Silver. "Uh, it is, actually," he says. "And she says she wasn't that old." He grits his teeth and tilts his head to give her better access to his ears. "If I pass out, just keep going, alright?" he advises with a chuckle.
"Eh? Why? This is supposed to be an experience!" Scarlet declares, and apparently assumes that other comment about Silver must be from drinking too much. She wastes no time at all ... and Aviri feels a sharp pinch on his ear, but afterward it's only a dull soreness, even though there's a needle sticking through it. "Heh, couldn't be, ya know. Dat ol' pirate was shot down back in the wars! I mean, de legend goes the gas bag actually exploded," the otter comments as she grabs some stuff from her tray ... including pliers. She fiddles with the needle and Aviri can feel the pressure around the spot where the needle went through, then more pressure as she applies pliers to it. "Right, dere," says the otter, "Now dat de eyelet is in, I put in de stud bar."
Aviri winces but keeps his eyes shut as she works. Focusing on her words helped, though only barely. "She w-waassss," he hisses. "By flaming skulls. How do youuuu! know Silv, though?" He opens his eyes at her victorious claim. "Also, she claims she's not a pirate."
The otter fiddles a bit with that spot and Aviri can feel something being added to that spot. "Know? Gad, boy, dey teach you nothin? She be one of de most famous pirates from de Nceromancer Wars," Scarlet says as she wastes no time; the lapi feels the needle go through his ear, again. "Dere be a few books' on 'er at de University. 'Course lotsa debate on accuracies," she comments. "But general consensus is 'er activities prolly saved at least a dozen townships back den."
"Oh.. maybe I was a pirate den.." Silv says, rubbing her neck.
"No," Aviri says, "'de' didn't teach me anything. Never went to university. Taught myself botany from books and stuff. Never really cared for history." He gulps. "Guess I should, now that I've stumbled upon History's Hat." He squeaks as she stabs him again, clenching his eyes. "I know a bit 'bout her last day alive," he notes, able to think back to that dream. "Could be fun to read those books. See if they get that right."
There is more plier-work and pressure ... and fiddling ... then it is onto the next one! Through the needle goes! It doesn't hurt as much as the last ones; but it might also just be Aviri's ear is going numb on its own to help deal with this. "D' ya have a library card?" Scarlet asks.
"Library card?" Aviri asks, still wincing, still closed-eyed. "No. I get what I can when I can, though." He sucks in breath as he feels a needle again. "Also study on m'own. Got lots of notes." He takes another breath. "Good to know she was on the good side, though. Hopefully means nothing bad'll happen under the lake."
"'er supposed last mission was an utter failure, though. Scholars think that the war lasted at least two years longer than it should have because she never finished that trip," Scarlet notes, "Though some believe the whole explosion thing was a lie, and she fled like a frightened Eeep off into the sunset to live off 'er booty." Three down, three to go. No, two. In goes the needle, again.
"Well, she didn't run," Aviri says. "Her boat's still in the swamp. A bit less solid, now, but that's not my fault." He pauses as the needle slides in, and lets out his held breath once it's passed. "Swamp's full of not-quite-dead things, anyway, so archaeology's not really a thing that could be done."
"Hey, if I was a big hero, I wanna remember it," Silv says to Aviri.
More pliers. Why is it always the pliers? "Heh, if you ken prove dat, I betcha a few scholars would pay t' see that old ship. Eh, if I was still carin' about such t'ing I prolly woulda been one o' dose. It was de stories of 'er dat ol' Jack told me that inpired me to become the amazing and dashing gal I am today!" Scarlet remarks. Ow. Okay, five down; the needle just went in again.
"Well, we've got her hat, for one," Aviri notes through gritted teeth. "Could lead anyone to what remains of the ship, if any of it's above the swamp any more." He opens his eyes to check if the studs are adding to his perception of the dead pirate.
Silv still looks fairly solid, so nothing has really changed there. She seems a bit prouder though, her chin high, as she hears that she was a hero of sorts to.. well, pirates.
More clamping as Scarlet fits the eyelet and stud. "Right, last one! Unless you want me t' add six more down the other side," she coos. The otter twirls the needle between her fingers, then dart-throws it through the lapi's ear. And somehow, through the right spot. "So ... you know how she die? I 'ope it wasn' alone. No one should die alone," she says.
"Six is enough," Aviri says, quickly closing his eyes and yelping at the stab. "The vision ended prior to her actual death, but her bones were with that of her crew." He opens his eyes again, carefully. "Also I think you've made her day, letting her know she's a legendary pirate."
"Determined to finish me job, that's how," Silv says, and pounds a fist on her chest, which causes no small amount of jiggling as a result.
The needle is extracted and Scarlet fits the last bits. "I t'ink you have had way too much t' drink, lightweight. Y' talk like she's here," the otter comments.
"And you talk like ghosts don't exist," Aviri says, matching Scarlet's tone. "She died whilst on an important mission. Left things unfinished. Classic ghost stuff, from what I hear." He flicks his other ear to point out the slight jest in the turn of phrase, wincing as that causes the rings to jangle.
"There, done," Scarlet declares, then pats the lapi's cheek. "Go check it out inna mirror," she says.
Aviri narrows his eyes slightly at Scarlet, wondering if she's taking him seriously. He stands and walks toward the mirror, managing a decently straight line and peering cautiously. "Someone did try to assassinate her, just before she left port," he says, hoping that tidbit would be in a book somewhere.
The outer edge of the lapi's right ear has equally spaced gold eyelets making little tunnels through it. Within each sets a studded bar, each topped with a different colored stone of some sort. "The eyelets keep ya from tearing yer ear. Plus ya bleed less," Scarlet explains, "And it keeps the holes from healin' closed."
The collar also has an odd shine to it that doesn't seem to match the room's lighting, but that could also be from the pain-and-alcohol.
Aviri eeps at the sight of the eyelets, and the promise that they'd be permanent. "Won't heal closed?" he asks. "I thought..." he starts to say, but stops, and touches the collar, frowning at the shine.
"Thought what?" Scarlet asks.
"I kin lick your ear if it'll help," Silv offers.
"That you'd let me go," he said, "and thus that nothing you did would be permanent." He frowns and glares at Silv. "It would not help, thank you very much," he says. "Your touches are freakishly cold." He turns to Scarlet and tries again to bring her attention to something: "You know these earrings, and possibly this collar, are enchanted? Or in other ways magical?"
"Eh, don' be silly," Scarlet comments and waves her hand. "An I never said I wouldn't do permanent stuff. If I didn' how would you remember me?" the akwavi points out. "An besides, any decent jeweler could get them out, but ... why?"
"Why what?" Aviri asks. "Why would I want them out? Because if I ever do get back home it'd be weird having holes in my ears. Why do I know these are magic? Because before you put 'em in I couldn't see or feel Silv. Now I can." He gestures to her, as though that'd help. "Unless I'm poisoned by the rings and about to die or something."
"The only spirits givin' you problems are what ya been drinkin' kiddo," Scarlet points out. "An in a few weeks, you'll find ya like the earrings and keep em anyway," she insists. "Now I gotta figure out where I put makeup stuff."
"She can't see or hear or feel me, y'know," Silv tells Aviri. "And you look good with the jewelry. Like a proper pirate adventurer!"
"Yes, I know," Aviri says to Silv. "But if you're gonna be talking I'm gonna reply. Can't handle the muttering and mouthing all the time." He turns away from the mirror and sighs. "People thought I was crazy enough without having a literal voice nobody else could hear, let alone see."
"Why did they think you were crazy before?" Silv asks with a big grin while posing in the mirror. "Old.. I don't look old!"
"Because I'm weird," Aviri says. "Because I'm a rabbit who spends most of his time hanging out with flowers. That's apparently seen as crazy."
"An now ya in drag!" Scarlet calls out from where her head and arms are buried in a trunk.
"Aha!" Scarlet declares, then returns lugging a smaller chest. She unceremoniously drops it on the bed next to Aviri and throws it open! It's piled high with other small containers, tiny brushes, and even things that look like miniature torture devices used to pull out unruly ... things. "Don' have much use for this crap meself ... but I think we could make you right pretty!"
"Dark fur is hard to work with usually," Silv notes, looking over the supplies. "You always end up going darker."
Aviri flinches at the drop, scooting himself to the side so his weight doesn't tip the chest, or vice-versa. "Oooo, very nice," he says upon seeing the contents. "Though, are you saying I'm not pretty now?" He puts a hand to his chest in mock offence.
Scarlet smirks. "Eh, yer gettin' there," she concedes. "Now, hm, that collar ... right! Savanite, dats what you need. All spotty!" She wiggles her webbed fingers and then starts picking brushes and containers of some dark stuff ... and a few of some bright red ... goo?
The Lapi tilts his head at the containers, already trying to discern which plants could be used to emulate those colors, those textures. In all likelihood, he realizes pretty quickly, there's a lot more than just plants. "How're you gonna prevent me from just going dark?" he asks as though it were his own idea.
"Maybe a gold powder base.." Silv ponders.
"Powder to lighten it first," Scarlet echoes as she pulls out a container of some golden'ish power. She unscrews the lid and pulls out a very dusty-looking puff. "Close yer little bunbun eyeeeees," the otter instructs.
Aviri rolls his eyes at the 'bunbun' before closing them and even holding his breath, not wanting to inhale strange gold-tinted powder.
Puff puff puff! Aviri can feel the powder-thing bopping against his face. He can almost feel the swirl of powder around his head, at that. Oh great, she's even powdering his ears.
"How long can you hold your breath?" Silv asks.. which of course Aviri can't answer while holding his breath.
Aviri's glad he decided to hold his breath. Even still he could feel his nose tingling, and he fought back the sneeze lest he vanquish himself and Scarlet in a violent puff of makeup powder. He bats in the direction of Silv---he's still closing his eyes, too.
Ack! The puffing has stopped, but now Aviri feels a brush tracing out his nose with a little triangle. Soon the brush is filling it in.
Aviri's face scrunches is his attempt to ward off the sneeze. A high-pitched, almost groaning sounds seeps from his throat, but it soon reaches the point he can't hold back anymore. He turs his head aside and lets out a tremendous sneeze. Right toward SIlv, too, though that may have been unintentional. "Nngh, sorry," he offers to Scarlet.
"Well, ya missed me. So, I won't put a bone through your nose," Scarlet remarks dryly. She reaches up and slowly turns Aviri's head back to face her using just one finger hooked under his chin, and an insistent tug. "Close yer left eye," she instructs.
"I'm not that crazy, to sneeze in your face," Aviri says, closing his eye as per instructions. "Y'realize this is all gonna wash off in the lake, right?" His right eye blinks. "Er, if it does, that is."
"Nah, it won'. I have fixative," Scarlet notes. She takes a delicate brush coated in something dark. Slowly and carefully she traces out that left eye with the material in short strokes. Once that's done she traces down the lapi's cheek, stating close to the nose. Tearmarks. Savanite tearmarks.
"Missed me too!" Silv notes, and licks Aviri's nose. It doesn't do anything to the makeup, but does give him a chill.
Aviri acks at the lick and bats again at Silv. "Would you stop that?! You're cold!" He huffs and settles down for Scarlet. "Not you," he says to the otter, apparently not even noticing that she's painting tear-tracks. "Ghost's being ... cold."
"Next time I won't dodge," Silv claims. "So be careful what ye' battin' at," she cackles.
"You be crazier then I though'," Scarlet remarks absently; she's focused on getting the marks right apparently. "Left eye closed," she requests next. The otter then twirls the brush just inside each of the lapi's nostrils. "And there, got the remaining nosey," she claims.
Aviri just sighs at that and keeps his left eye closed. "Just ask Lin and Tril where Lin got that hat," he says.
Scarlet starts on the right eye now, even if Aviri won't close it. "Hey, dis be kinda cute," the otter remarks.
Aviri does close his right eye when she starts working on it, a bit confused why she didn't warn him to close that one, but not saying anything. "Cute's good," he says with a chuckle.
The next eye goes reasonably quick. Then it's ... a lot of dabbing around his face, forehead, and cheek-sides. Aha, she's making spots. The ones closest into the actual face are small, and get larger as they move outward. Scarlet is also biting her tongue in concentration.
Aviri holds his breath as needed, but just does his best to stay still for her, wondering just what he'd look like when all this was over.
"Pucker," Scarlet instructs next. "De lips will take a bit of work. Layers."
The corners of Aviri's mouth rise into a smile and he makes a subtle kissing motion with his ips as he puckers.
And Scarlet first does his lips in black, because, well, savanites have black lips. That gets set aside quickly enough, then she's on to tracing on some red to make, well, traditional 'kissy' lips. She's giggling the entire time, too.
The giggling certainly doesn't help Aviri's state of mind, but after a few minutes of it he manages to get back into the mindset of just having fun with whatever happens.
Scarlet fishes out more powder and she starts puffing that on. "Fixative," she explains, "Helps make it last a long time." Once done, she declares, "And now to test!" The Otter grabs the lapi's shoulders roughly and pulls him close, then kisses him right on the lips. Egad ... she just licked his lips while kissing. When she sits back, she announces, "Yup, et sticks."
"Great!" Aviri says, managing to make it sound not in the least bit sarcastic. "I can stay pretty for a long time, th---" His words are cut off in the kiss. He squeaks and simultaneously tries to recoil and fight his recoil, which mostly manifests in his hands just flopping around on the blankets beside him.
There's a warmth growing on Aviri's throat, coming from the collar. It spreads out along his body.. and things feel different. For one, the corset doesn't seems to fit a lot better around the hips.. and some other parts that were pinching aren't anymore.. and things seem fit better in the chest as well. He even feels.. a purr starting in his chest.
"Ooooo.." Silv comments.. but whether on the kiss or something else isn't clear.
"I always haf that effect on people," Scarlet remarks smugly. She's busy looking in the chest again and not at poor Aviri.
Aviri puts a hand to his neck and shifts awkwardly on the bed. He gets a bit dizzy at the prospect of yet more enchanted things fiddling with his constitution. "Really need to stop pirating magic things," he mutters, putting a hand to his forehead.
His voice feels a bit hoarse as well. "You might wanna check the mirror," Silv advises with a big grin.
"Eh? I pirate everyt'ing. Might be useful some day," Scarlet insists. She reaches over and pats Aviri's leg. "Y' worry too much."
Aviri looks at Silv and groans softly. Silv being happy is cause to worry. For a brief moment he toys with the idea of using this to prove Silv exists: she could just describe what he looks like, which he'd be hard-pressed to do without a mirror. But the creeping sensation in his body wins over and he stands up and walks toward the mirror. "Gonna just check real quick," he says to Scarlet.
"Haf fun!" Scarlet says.
He's a bit wobbly.. it's like his center of gravity has shifted. And in the mirror he can see the makeup. Scarlet's pretty good! It does look like a Savanite face on a bunny. The colors and patterns are even creeping out along the arms and throat, right down to the tops of Aviri's... breasts?
You could run, says a tiny voice in Aviri's ear. Bolt the door, swim away, become a hermit somewhere. Aviri just closes his eyes at the sight of his new body. "Can't swim faster than an otter," he mutters to himself. He slowly returns toward the bed. "'D better never see that demon-chest again for the rest of my life."
Scarlet finally looks up. "Dagh's left tit!" she exclaims, "Dat's new!" The otter hops up and hurries over to Aviri. "Ey, you okay?" she asks him as she starts feeling him all over. Especially the, er, breasts? "Hey, these are real! And perky!" the pirate claims.
Aviri squeaks as his new bust is prodded by the pirate. "OI!" he says, trying to fend off her hands. "Now d'ye believe me your stuff's enchanted?"
It's Silv that checks down below with a hand.. and almost as disturbing as what's absent is that the ghost's paw doesn't feel cold at all. It's warm! "Yup, got a Savanite ghost attached to you now.." she confirms.
Another squeak form Aviri, and the poor Lapi just crumples to the ground right there. "Savanite ghost?" he mewls into the floor.
"Dis is ... hey, great! I mean, imagine what you could ... ah, this could sell for!" the otter claims as she circles the crumpled, then kneels down to sit behind er, her? She spoons up to Aviri's back, and cups one hand high, then one low, and gets Aviri to sit back up. "Instant girl, just add lapi," the otter declares ... then breaks down into giggles. "Don' feel so bad, I mean, how many get de chance yer gettin?"
"Well, not a full ghost," Silv says. "Just.. a physical impression of the owner of the collar. So, there must be something sort of unfinished, or that you have to do to mollify it.."
At first Aviri's just limp in Scarlet's arms as she triest to get h--her to sit up. "Nnnngnh, no," Aviri says, shaking his---her head. "No more gosts, no more unfinished business or mollifying. The Lapi's hands go up to the collar, obviously to undo it and hope the effects wear off or something, but Aviri manages to pause mid-action. With a twist of her head she peers at Scarlet. "Y'not gonna let me take it off," she notes.
"It's probably something simple," Silv says encouragingly. "Just gotta find whatever else is here that's related to that collar."
"Of course not," Scarlet says and taps Aviri on the nose. "It be locked," the otter points out. "Ya frankly look adorable. Is dis really so horrible? Of all de possible t'ings in life, havin' t' squat t' pee is pretty minor."
"Not sure how the girls will feel about this," Silv notes. "You look prettier than they do. Even with the spots."
Scarlet cups Aviri's bosom and squeezes. "An new sensations too," the otter points out as she demonstrates.
Aviri says, "Well whomever it is can just stay semiundead," Aviri says to Silv. "'M not a maid to go cleaning up peoples' post-death messes." Of course, even as the words come out of her mouth she realizes that she is dressed as a maid. She closes her eyes and has to take a few deep breaths against the corset. "Don't like magic," she mutters. "Too---" she squeaks and jumps at the squeeze from Scarlet, tumbling backward and falling unceremoniously back to the floor."
And Scarlet straddles Aviri. "Of course dis does mean I gotta tighten the corset more," the otter muses and taps her chin. "An ... I pretty sure I have a chastity belt in 'ere somewhere in case yer worried about me crew," she adds.
"I can teach you some really FUN things you can do too!" Silv says, and wiggles her fingers at the Lapi.. doe. Spotty-doe. "Or you could ask your mistress here if there's anything else that came wi' the collar."
Aviri says, "More?!" Aviri offs as she feels the otter atop her. "Is already tight!" She wriggles, trying to extricate herself from beneath the ship's captain. Her eyes flick from Silv to Scarlet and back, panic starting to rise in her chest."
"Yeah, if it's tighter you may not want to change back while wearin' it," Silv opines.
Scarlet leans forward and pushes down on Aviri's shoulders to keep her from squirming away. It also means Aviri is staring into her cleavage. "STOP" she says in a surprisingly commanding voice; it even seems to echo in her quarters.
The command reaches the still-panicing Lapi doe, who stops squirming, but the fright is still clear in her eyes, her chest heaving beneath Scarlet. She looks like, well, a rabbit caught in the grip of some predator.
"Everythin' a'right in there, Cap'n?" comes the voice of Rob Anybody through the cabin door. "Heard a shout."
"Now, listen to me and do exactly what I say," the otter commands. "Breathe. In, hold for three seconds, then exhale, slowly. Do this several times. It will calm you down." She then looks up and says, "Yeah, evert'ing is fine. The cabin girl is jus' having some issues in bein' broken in. Y'know 'ow it goes."
"Well, yell if you need any help," the first mate says while laughing, and then wanders back to deck from the sound of the footsteps.
Aviri nods, the motion almost birdlike in its jerkiness, and takes a few rapid-fire 'deep' breaths before she manages to hold one for more than a second. After about a minute she manages to actually obey Scarlet, and hold her breath for a full three seconds, already looking a bit calmer.
Scarlet eases her weight off of Aviri's shoulders, though she remains straddling the lapi. "Okay, good," the otter says. "Now, 'ere is an offer. I'll let you out of dat dress for a bit for you to get comfy wit', well, t'ings. Plus, I kinna curious just how ya now look."
"Ah, must be the Savanite bit making ye' more docile," Slv says. "Although buns is supposed to be pretty docile.. 'cept when they aren't."
Aviri's eyes are partly glazed over, obviously not focusing on anything. The roof of the cabin is a delightfully fuzzy shape in her vision. It would be easy to assume she just slipped off into her own happy world, and left boobs, dress, and cabin behind, until she says, "Thanks." She takes another breath, holds it, and adds, "Ain't the dress t's the problem." A hand goes up to her collar, but only to pull it away from her windpipe a bit.
"Yeah, but that is not coming off," Scarlet says with a tone of finality on the matter.
"Wouldn't hurt to see where all the spots are," Silv comments. "And you can really wiggle without the corset."
"An somet'ing you might need t' prepare yerself for," Scarlet adds and holds up a finger. "Y' might lose your voice at some point. Spots normally can't speak. Time will tell on that."
"Wasn't asking for it to," Aviri notes, her tone flat. "Just informing." The next exhale she takes lasts a good six seconds, the doe seeming to deflate beneath Scarlet. Her lips move, but not much sound comes out. Either ghost or otter might read or hear "worst" or "change" among the things she mutters. She blinks, and her eyes focus a bit. "Don't expect to do much wriggling, Silver," she says as she pulls herself up onto her elbows and looks around the room as though for the first time. He glares at the wind-up cymbol toy, then looks to Scarlet. "I know; met a few of 'em. Silv tried to sleep with one."
Scarlet gets off of the
Scarlet gets off of the 'lapi' and holds out her hand to her. "Y' gotta know I keep ya safe, right?" she asks. "Y' be fine. Think of it as a learning experience."
Aviri accepts the hand, her eyes flicking across the spots on her arm. "You planned this," she says, just as flatly. "Painting my face all spotted...."
"Not one bit," Scarlet says as she helps the lapi up. "I jus knew dat collar was from a spotty. Seemed appropriate."
"I'm the first to wear it?" Aviri asks, a bit wobbly on her feet, her hand squeezing Scarlet's sharply and jolting it as she almost falls over. "Anything else you got from the Savanite?"
"Few t'ings, yah," Scarlet says, "And not from her per se. More like stolen from her grave..."
"I didn't even get a grave," Silv pouts. "And me a legendary hero and all!"
Aviri rolls her eyes at that. "Of course you did," she says to Scarlet. "Well, Silv says ...." she realizes she's just about to agree to be spirit-maid, and stops herself. "Er, I'll dig you a grave in Stonebarrow," she says to Silv. "In a not-swamp."
"It's gotta be a proper one, with me remains and all," Silv says, crossing her arms. "And a statue! Looking 'eroic. And sexy!"
Scarlet goes behind Aviri. "As promised, y' get to be out of the dress fer a bit," the otter says and pulls the lace-knots. Wow, when the laces give, she can breathe so much better.
"Erotic and sexy statue, got it," Aviri says dryly, lifitng her arms so her dress can be undone. With the release of the corset she gasps. "By Fickleberries that's an infernal article of clothing!"
"Eh, dat no so bad," Scarlet remarks as she undoes the rest of the lacing, then helps the lapi remove the various bits and parts of the outfit. More and more spots and curves become visible as pieces drop. It's also quickly apparent that yes, Aviri is now completely female.
The only doe of the same age that Aviri has experience with is Parsley Chalk.. but Aviri seems leaner, and probably more feline. Savanites are more lithe than curvy, compared to Lapi.
"Too skinny," Silv declares. "Not as skinny as Scarlet though, at least."
And the naked otter feels Aviri up again. "Yah, it be real. Huh," the otter remarks. "Haf to admit, ya look kinda nifty."
The quasi-Lapi doe is still shaken by the whole thing that she doesn't seem to mind as get gets more and more naked in front of Scarlet. Or maybe that's just the power of the Savanite collar muddling her mind, or maybe she just didn't care anymore. She manages to compartmentalize the shock of having a feminine body, such that whenever she catches sight of herself the only thing she thinks is Oh, alright, that's what I look like now. "So do your hots for me go up or down," she asks Silv with a smirk. She flicks her tail experimentally, wondering if it, too, would become cat-like, although from an outside observer it'd look like the spotty bun was flicking it teasingly at Scarlet.
"I still gotcha beat in the tail department," Silv claims, and swishes her big poofy striped tail about. "And it's more 'bout willingness than looks, eh?" she replies, waggling her ears.
Scarlet steps away from Aviri. "Lemme see where the other stuff from the grave was," she says, then pats Aviri on her spotted butt.
"Maybe if you didn't freeze everything you touched," Aviri says quietly to Silv with a chuckle. Louder, to Scarlet, she says, "What, you wanna see if I can be made even more haunted?"
Silv then pats Aviri on the butt as well.. and again, it's warm. Probably because the Lapi is possessed by a spirit as well.
"Might be fun," Scarlet claims, "But ... you asked me a bit ago, remember?" She's back to digging about in one of many crates of 'loot'. She holds up an odd instrument and announces, "Lute, loot!" The otter cackles, puts it aside, and digs more.
Aviri eeps, her eyes going wide as she realizes that it's no longer cold. She blushes, but doesn't say anything, doesn't want Silv to realize. "Hehe, cute," she says at the lute, and ambles over, mostly to get used to walking, to pluck at the strings.
It's hard to walk without swaying her hips and backside, it turns out. Or put another way, Aviri now sashays.
It feels like Aviri should know how to play the instrument. Maybe the Savanite was an entertainer?
The experience of feeling like she should have knowledge is entirely new to Aviri, who was used to either knowing, or not knowing, but being sure which was which. She picks up the lute proper, and fiddles with the strings some more, hoping something would come up.
A bit of experimenting produces something that might be Himaatian.. or might not. Aviri has never heard any Abu-Dhabian music before.
"Aha, yes, dis was from the grave," Scarlet announces and holds up a small, hinged, box. "A cheap music box. Kept it because selling it wouldn' have gotten much grog."
"Music-box?" Aviri asks, looking up from the lute. She tilts her head at the box and smiles. "Oooo, does it still work?"
"Might!" Scarlet says. She opens it, then turns a small key several times just inside the box. The otter then sets it on the small 'captain's desk' and steps back.
The music starts slowly, then picks up speed to play at a normal rate. It's.. unfamiliar.. but it stirs Aviri. The new doe has an urge to start dancing.
Aviri closes her eyes, and remembers the ballroom scene, from the tea set he'd gotten at Eve's place. The music is nice, and without even realizing it she's swaying a lot more fluidly than buck-Aviri would have been able to manage.
It's not quite like the ballroom style though.. this one doesn't need a partner. And soon her arms are joining her hips.. and other parts begin to move that she never thought were needed for dancing, like her belly. She's belly-dancing to the music-box.. and it feels great. Liberating, exhilarating.. as if this was the best thing ever in the life of the former slave.
Aviri hardly noticed what she was doing, only that it was quite enjoyable! If she'd been able to look at herself, she'd have probably fainted from the shock or something, but since she was safely within the body dancing, she manages to get by without such hassles. She sways and slides and moves as only seems natural, as though she'd done this a million times.
Silv tries to keep up, but is mostly spinning around and laughing.
"Woah, dagh, that's hot," Scarlet remarks, blinking, "Not sure I want t' let you go now. That is quite an improvement ... an it'll really cheer up me crew."
"My crew always enjoyed MY dancing," Silv claims. "'course that was mostly on top of tables in taverns. Good way to get free drinks though!"
Silv's laughter and Scarlet's remarks make Aviri open her eyes again and while she'd have normally stopped and asked the ghost what was so funny or something, couldn't manage to actually stop herself from dancing. She looks a bit confused as she watches her hands and hips and feet move seemingly of their own volition. She does blush, though.
Scarlet whistles!
This soon brings another knock to the door, and the voice of Medium-Sized Jock asking, "You whistlin' for me, sis?"
"Naw, for the cabin girl," Scarlet remarks and gestures towards the very naked Aviri.
Peeking in through the door, the Akwavi man's eyes go wide. "Where'd she come from?" he asks. "What's that dancing? It's like she gots a Naga up her bum."
At the prospect of being seen dancing, at least by more than Scarlet, Aviri feels a rush of exhilliration. Probably the collar, though....
"That is the bun we picked up," Scarlet says and waves her webbed fingers. "Turns out some of me trinkets have .. extras they give t' people. Got 'us her from a him. Nifty, eh?"
"Sure he wasn't a her all along?" Jock asks. "Lapis is tricky, I hear. Girls dress up as guys to travel, I bet."
Aviri manages a wink at the Jock while she dances, not bothering to confirm or deny his pre-collar gender.
Scarlet just shrugs! "Mebbe," the otter says, apparently not wanting to press the matter too much. "T'ink the crew might like 'her dance? How's about after de other guests are settled we call everyone to de deck to watch a show? Hooo, can you imagine how de other new otts might react?"
The wink makes the otter's ears blush. "Uh.. I better get back to.. things.. if'n you don't need me, Sis," he mutters. "You needs to dress her up in one of those sparkly underwear desert costumes fer that, I bet. Might cause a riot otherwise.."
"Hah! You made a pirate blush!" Silv laughs, holding her stomach. "I'm so proud of you!"
"Oh yeah! And I have those clip on thingers for her chest too," Scarlet says and snaps her fingers. "Thanks fer the remind! Knew I kept ya around for something."
"The spots is nice too," Jock mumbles, and then bashfully closes the door.
As the music box winds down, so does Aviri's dance, leaving the quasi-lapi doe to stretch and sigh satisfactorily, pulling at her legs as though that had just been a mere workout. "That was fun," she says with a grin. "Can ghosts blush?" she asks Silv with a smirk.
"I dunno, grab me and we'll find out!" the ghostly (but entirely too solid to Aviri) raccoon offers.
Aviri pulls at her heels a few moments longer, as though she didn't just attain the feline paws, seemingly pondering Silv's offer. She lets down her leg and then grabs at Silv.
It's tricky. While Silv feels solid, there's no mass to her. But the Rath'ani squeaks and laughs, grabbing right back at Aviri. It all must look bizarre to Scarlet though, to see the doe squeezing the air.
Scarlet just arches her brow. "Y' totally lost it," she remarks dryly. "But yer calmer."
Aviri drags Silv down to the bed and plops down, setting the ghost on her lap, as difficult as that is wrestling a massless form. Though at least her lap isn't injured by Silv's inertia!
The laughing ghost actually kisses Aviri, and she can feel it. It still looks like air-wrestling though.
Scarlet just rolls her eyes. "If yer done stretchin' and dancin ... time t' go back into the dress," the otter remarks and waggles her brow.
"You should jump 'er!" Silv tells Aviri. "Wrassle her! If yer mackin' on her she might ferget about the corset."
The doe attempts to kiss back, though neither he nor she has had experience in the matter. Then she releases Silv and grins at Scarlet. "Sorry, Silver just needed a hug." She gets back onto her feet and starts picking up the dress and donning it with at least as much apparent experience as before. "Oh, 'bout the corset," she says when she comes to that, "if this all wears off when it's ... er ... this-me-tight, it might crush the other-me." She does wrap the thing around her own abdomen, and even does her best at lacing it up her back. The last time she tried to distract Scarlet didn't work out, and, after all, the dress wasn't that bad.
"I suppose I not lace it too tight," the otter concedes. She goes to help and true to her word she only laces back to as tight as it was before, no tighter. With this body, it really does give her some curves, though, and, er, cleavage. "Y'know, y' have more piercy bits now," the evil pirate whispers into Aviri's left ear.
"Thanks," Aviri says, firmly holding a half-breath just in case Scarlet is lying. She finds, to her delight, that the captain wasn't, and breathes as normally as she can. It only takes a few moments for her to get used to it, breathing-wise. The cleavage would take a bit more. She starts on the last bits of dress and says, "I'd rather risk crushing my ribs than that."
"Y' change your mind in a few days," Scarlet claims, then licks Aviri's cheek, while groping her through the corset.
The doe blushes at the lick, and presses her body back against Scarlet, placing her hands against the otters'
"See, y' already coming 'round'," Scarlet giggles in her ear. "Now, it gettin' late. Mebbe you should get some sleep."
"Still not coming 'round to more piercings," Aviri slaims with a chuckle, her tail bobbing gently against Scarlet's belly. "Sleep's a good idea. Though ... er, is the corset really necessary for sleep?"
"Yes," Scarlet insists. "And ... " the otter continues. She reaches under the bed and pulls out a length of metal chain. She hooks it to part of the collar and snaps another lock closed. "In case you think about tryin' t' sneak off."
So many locks! Aviri rolls her eyes at that prospect, though. Not like she'd be a good swimmer, in this new body. Her boyancy would be all off. She doesn't fight the chain, or the lock, and takes another look at herself in the mirror. "Hmm, the clothes might get wrinkled, though...."
"Dat be lesson one in de mornin', how to use an iron," Scarlet states as she climbs into the bed, then pats the spot in front of her. "Either ya snuggle wit' me or ya sleep at the foot of the bed," the pirate states.
"I'll snuggle with ya either way," Silv offers.
Aviri bits her lip at the options given to her; both her anthrophobic and the feline spirit's submissive nature was impelling her to sleep at the foot of bed, but she couldn't help but note the significance of even being offered the choice, when before Scarlet had promised her she would sleep at the foot. With a monumentous force of will, the bun crawls into the bed in front of Scarlet, so as to not offend the otter. The dress fabric gets bunched up, and with some wriggling she manages to get into a comfortable position being the little spoon.
Scarlet drapes her arm over Aviri. "Yer mine now, little kitty-bun," the otter whispers into the closest ear. "Now and forever." And with that doomy proclamation, Scarlet curls up against Aviri ... and seemingly seems quite fine with just going to sleep.
Aviri manages not to just freeze up at the arm-drape. In a way it feels kinda nice, though her words kept Aviri's eyes open, staring out across the room for a good half-hour after the otter's regular breathing indicated she'd fallen asleep.