[oom] April Fool's Day

[hell_in_highheels]

Oh, River is not a morning person, but this prank requires some dedication and preparation.  She has her sonic screwdriver set to wake her an hour before the alarm, and she'd packed the blanket and the picnic basket the afternoon before while he was out running.

The matter of the prank itself is a simple few moments with the screwdriver on the red setting.  Quick.  Harmless.  And best of all, reversible. 

She still expects to get a bit of a hiding for it, but he did throw down the gauntlet.  Her cheeks ache from grinning at the very thought of the look on his face when he figures out just what she'd done.

Prank accomplished, she slips into her boots and shushes Damocles, swearing him to silence.  Rather, bribing him with future promises of bacon.  She leaves the note on the pillow and catches herself just before she kisses him on the cheek.  If he wakes, the surprise will be ruined before she can make her escape. 

Dear Richard~

Have been kidnapped by rabbits.  They said something about their pelts being used for "unseemly" purposes. Their leader says, if you ever want to see me again, come alone.

(crudely drawn map of the lake side and the meadow with an X)

Love,
~River

Comments

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

"Me? What did I do?"

Richard helps by tossing the rest of the dead rabbits to the centre of the blanket. He's thinking he'll make a little picnic satchel of his own.

[hell_in_highheels]

"You don't remember?"

She watches him throwing the carcasses and give him a speculative look.

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

"...no?" He suddenly looks wary.

"I still haven't had breakfast," he explains at her look.

[hell_in_highheels]

She blinks rapidly, swallowing once, her smile never faltering even as she sighs. The perils of dating a werewolf, she supposes.

"Dinner, that first night. You challenged me to prank you on April Fools. I've been planning for weeks."

The picnic debacle tidied, she holds her hand out to him.

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

"That was playful banter! I didn't actually expect you to follow through," he grumbles.

He finishes gathering the corners of the blanket together and throws the whole thing over his shoulder before taking her hand.

"Remind me not to offer you idle challenges."

[hell_in_highheels]

She turns to face him, an incredulous smirk on her face. "Honestly? So you didn't give it a second thought?"

She's decidedly disappointed. She'd been looking forward to seeing what he'd come up with.

Congratulations, Ryan. You've made River pout.

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

"If I had, I would have expected something besides Bar's prank and you wouldn't have surprised me."

There's a faint little smirk on his face as he adds, "Anyway, now you won't know when to expect me to return the favour."

[hell_in_highheels]

"Well, all right then." Still a bit disappointed, but mollified. Somewhat. "I suppose that's fair."

She squeezes his hand, falling into an easy pace beside him. Her legs are long enough, it's not at all difficult for her to keep up with him.

"Where are we headed?"

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

We're going to the den! Dam yips happily before bounding ahead of them.

"It's not much," Richard warns, not sure how much of that she understood. "But the rabbits avoid it upon pain of death."

It still took them a while to learn even that much, stubborn little bastards.

[hell_in_highheels]

River grins at Damocles. Sleeping place where he forgets?

It's rudimentary canine still, but the gist is plain.

"I think, if it's safe, we can make do." She raises an eyebrow at him in silent query.

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

Yep! You just gotta remind him lots!

Richard's...a hair anxious, actually. No one except Damocles has ever been back here with him. He's suddenly wishing he cleaned out that pile of bones ages ago.

"It's...not what I would call romantic," he says apologetically. It's just practical, but then, he's a practical sort of guy.

[hell_in_highheels]

River has no problem at all with practical. She wears field boots under her skirts, for pete's sake.

"I bet it has it's own beastly charm about it," she teases gently.

She bumps her shoulder against his, bringing their clasped hands up to her lips. "Besides, I think you and I don't need candlelight and mood music, do we?"

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

"Not particularly," he agrees with a soft fond smile.

The forest around them is already wide awake, full of birds and chittering squirrels calling warnings to each other as the predators pass. The path, if it can be called that, is faint and twisty, following the bends of the forest floor. It's one of the many game trails that run through the place and Ryan uses them to help hide his own passage.

"It's not quite as warm as the jungle," he says after a moment of looking around.

[hell_in_highheels]

"No, but it's real," she observes quietly. "And down to earth. Anyway, the best part of the cloud forest was sharing it with you."

Her pace lets him know she's hiked before, and her scent tells him she's missed it.

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

He tugs on her hand, pulling her closer so he can bump her shoulder. He's still not quite recovered from his earlier scare.

"It was beautiful," he agrees. "Hot, but beautiful." He prefers Scotland.

[hell_in_highheels]

The bump turns into a bit of a lean. She grips his hand tight.

"I'm glad you liked it."






"You were going to tell me what happened..."

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

He doesn't look at her as he slips into debriefing mode.

"It was about a year ago," he begins, emotionless. "There was some sort of...creature stalking the outdoors. It kidnapped people in such a way that they were instantly sent to other worlds, worlds they weren't always compatible with. I'm not sure if they moved or teleported or what, but you could be talking to a person one second and they'd simply be gone the next." He pauses, gritting his teeth for a moment.

"So when Dam just disappeared in front of my eyes, I thought it'd come back. And since I smelled you, but didn't see you, I thought it had taken you both."

[hell_in_highheels]

"Bloody hell," she exhales. "Oh Richard, I'm so very sorry. I should have waited until you found me to activate the privacy screen. Well at least you know I can't plot my way out of a wet paper bag."

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

He arches an eyebrow. "You couldn't have known," he says, starting to thaw again.

[hell_in_highheels]

"Doesn't matter. A good plan poorly executed is still a failure." Her scent is one of self-recrimination again. "Will you let me make it up to you?"

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

"Through no fault of your own," Richard says firmly, bumping her.

"And only if we skip the part where you turn my things pink."

[hell_in_highheels]

"But that was my favourite part," she teases.

The forest is getting denser now, but the path is getting more clear. She's watching him from the corner of her eye, trying to get a sense of him in this context.

"You've never brought anyone out here before, have you?"

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

He shakes his head a bit wryly. "I dragged Deitmar into the mountains once for an overnight survival trip, much to his chagrin." He smiles. Good times.

"But no, no one's ever been to visit and it's too deep for most people to accidentally come across it."

[hell_in_highheels]

"Deitmar?" She gives him a befuddled, amused look. "On a survival trip? Oh that poor lad."

"And I don't suppose you're set up for entertaining, from what Damocles has said."

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

"I've a few blankets and pillows out there, but very little else." He'd mention Suzi brought them out, but that was a full moon night and he doesn't want to give her any ideas.

"I might be able to pull something together," he says a bit dubiously.