Down a Rung
If all went according to plan, this would be a good day.
The black-furred wolf, clad in only a green gown matching her sharp eyes, paced the hallway beside her room--having been woken up on abrupt call--whilst cradling the phone between neck and shoulder. She was actually happy that it was about nothing important, especially on a Saturday.
Fiela Rose's gaze drifted lazily about, glancing periodically at encased portraits of her family that sat upon the shelf beside. One was of a female wolf like herself, a state reminiscent of the past that bore a striking resemblance to her, albeit with much softer features and dimmer eyes. Another was male, and the expression on his face was a precarious mix of snarl and smile; it only bordered on presentable.
It had been some time since she'd seen them. She couldn't help but wonder what had changed at her old home since she'd left, how they were faring...but she knew such questions solved nothing; it was all part of growing up after all, and she was proud that she managed to accept that as readily as she did.
Fiela snapped herself from other thoughts. "One sec," she muttered into the phone. With all the grace of one without a care in the world or the need for any, the wolfess sauntered with purpose back into the dining room, dismissing the photos of her parents. Her fingers twitched with the clear desire to fiddle with a phone cord if there was one. She then took a peek toward a sheet of paper upon the table, quick green eyes scanning it briefly for relevance.
Heck, her schedule was empty. When wasn't it? A little waltz in her step might do her some good.
"...Yeah, I've got nothing to do, Elsa. Just call me when you want me to head over, I still have to shower." Fiela scratched her raggedy mane absently.
"Will do!" buzzed back the voice of a collie on the other end of the line. "Sam's bringing the whole pack. Don't you hold back on us!"
"The whole thing? Have you seen what happens when you're wasted?" But Fiela's inquiry went unanswered save for a long tone that went unregistered in her mind for a few good seconds. Hung up on again.
Well, if her impulsive friend wanted to wake up feeling like a beached whale then that was none of Fiela's concern. Maybe if it was only a six-pack then it wouldn't be so bad.
Bored and nearly lethargic, Fiela took to quiet pacing and absent thought. It wouldn't hurt to get out of the house for a time, surely. She would think that if she was feeling the drive to go anywhere at all, that is, but today just wasn't a hangout day, and especially not a hangover one.
Looked like she was trapped, though. If she played her cards right then maybe she could get home at eight and with all her clothes on.
Suddenly, she caught something out of the corner of her eye. It jerked her from her sleepy state near-instantly, replacing lethargy with instinctual adrenaline. There was a stifled movement behind a chair leg, but clumsily hidden; something she'd seen so many times before. If she had to think about it, she would say the tiny treated her house no better than a mindless obstacle course.
With foolish abandon, the tiny walked out into the open, thinking itself safe. Hell, even Rey knew better than that the first time they'd met. He got better about it, too, but this was just sad.
Fiela leaned to her side and raised an eyebrow. "What--what the hell are you doing?" she growled sternly. The tiny jumped at the sight of her but was not quick enough to start running before Fiela bent down and smartly snatched the insect from the ground in one swift movement. Experience made such an act as simple as cutting cake, let alone eating it. Not a challenge to be found, sadly enough.
The tiny was a young-looking otter girl, probably around her own age--maybe a little older, with keen scrutiny. Rather than blubbering for recourse or fighting back uselessly--two things the canine had jadedly come to expect from the tinies she'd previously captured--the otter simply began to scream, head poking out from Fiela's fist. Thankfully it wasn't loud, though under other circumstances the wolfess might not mind it. She rolled her eyes as the sound quickly became grating.
"Shut it!" Fiela barked. The caterwauling instantly died down to humbled whimpers. "Now you just sit tight while I figure out what do with you. After all, goodness me, I could swear I'd never have another thief in my house again as of two weeks ago." She said the words dismissively but they apparently came across as menacing to the tiny, who barely contained her fearful vocalizations.
Fiela was obviously indecisive, though this did not echo to the tiny; in the otter's mind, her fate was all but ultimate. The wolf did not want to deny herself the example she wished to make--Rey was the only exception she desired to apply to her way, in all brute honesty--but something was holding her back. It was her experience with Rey that had taught her it was not a good idea; she had to prove she was above that.
The phone rang yet again, forcing a start and then a sigh from Fiela. It was all too obvious who it was.
Tentatively, she picked it up anyway. "Hey!" Came the voice of Elsa. "You can come over now. Sam dropped by early and stuff. I've already downed two bottles, so you'd better hurry up before it's gone!"
Something told her that she wouldn't really want to be around her drunk friends while sober. Saturdays were fun, but not that fun. If I hurry it'll be because I want to get there before you're unbearable, she thought.
As she listened to the eccentric and tipsy babbling of her friend, she cast a glance back to the tiny in her fist. Its eyes were shut tightly, braced for what punishment she might bestow upon it. She gave it a curious look, sighed, then brought her thumb over its head in a gentle caress. Its hyperventilation slowed down just a little. She whispered a quick "Get out," and then set the creature down on the floor, watching it waste no time in hightailing it straight out of there.
While she did view it as some kind of humorous, she gave no hint to the receiver of what she was doing.
"...And don't tell anyone but I'm beginning to think you can't hold your liquor, but that's never been a problem befo--" Elsa's rambling came back into focus, which Fiela chose to decisively interrupt.
"Yeah, stuff came up, sorry. Exciting as watching you binge all day sounds, I'm gonna have to reschedule to next weekend...you have fun." She clacked the phone against the hanger before she could hear the protests she knew were spilling from a certain collie's tongue right now, about three blocks away.
Hopefully she'd made the right choice. Again, that is.
****
There was that greying wall, the one that spurred the wolf to ask herself just why it was she had agreed to be here. That wall had never been gotten its second coat. Yeesh. Ugly to look at; peeling here and there, a dusty color that contrasted the well-kept wood of the bookshelf to her left and the desk just before her in a bad way, and overall it only exemplified her question.
Fiela was never a political person--"Personally, it seems pointless to argue about anything in that regard but the most pressing issues" was what she told anybody who asked--and yet here she stood in the mayor's office of Scotton, advocating for tinies, in the most general sense at least, by answering questions for a journalist. And to her, what happened to most tinies wasn't really the most pressing thing. There was Rey, to be sure, but it's not as if others were really any of her concern.
Politicians: sitting at a snug tenth place on her list of things closest to the scum of the earth. Hopefully this one wouldn't prove that too readily.
The wolfess sat with one leg crossed over the other upon a stool, in front of her placed a desk and atop which stood a tiny white figure with crimson eyes.
"Beginning..." the tiny started, "I'll need your birth names, first and last."
"Fiela Rose," she answered leisurely.
"Legal first and last?"
"...Same thing, Max. I've never changed them."
"Yes, of course. And age?"
"21. You know that too." She was already growing just a bit exasperated, as she knew she would at some point. It was simply a matter of when. And patience was a lot harder to come by with only four hours of sleep under the belt.
"Necessary questions..." Max muttered dispassionately, jabbing his pen with both ferocity and finesse. It only took a few seconds for him to finish jotting down the answers for each of the questions. "How long have you lived in Scotton?"
"Four months."
"Indeed. And have you supported tinies for that long?"
Fiela could have laughed.
"No. It's been two weeks since I started. I'm not super hardcore about it or anything though."
"Yes, that would be so." It appeared as though the rabbit wanted to fidget, but he hid the desire well. After copying the latest two answers, Max tucked away his pages and clicked his pen. The albino looked Fiela in the eyes, no clear sign of uncertainty or within his own whatsoever. Fiela found that just a little jarring. "Why did you start?"
Fiela's brow tensed. "You put away your notes. That's not a journalist question."
"Whether or not I write down what you say immediately makes no difference toward the purpose of the question."
What did that mean?
"...Your cousin." It was something she hated to admit since she had only just finished climbing the fence with her feelings for him. To both her relief and twinge of anger, the rabbit did not save the response in any way.
"Rey's got a way with words, doesn't he?" Fiela got the irking feeling she was being mocked, but she didn't dare twitch a finger.
"I owe him nothing," she spat, emitting a guttural growl. "Anything else? Or are we just going to sit here and shoot the shit until one of us gets bored?"
Max frowned a little. "Perhaps you'd like to explain why it's important to you. Last I knew, caring less about such a thing would be an impossibility for you." Dismissing his verbosity, the only way he could have sounded more accusatory was if he had finished the sentence with "you vile snake" which Fiela figured he was on the verge of saying anyway--even though his opinion of her wasn't fully understood.
This interview suddenly started to become a lot less professional, and a lot more personal. Tenth-closest thing, tenth-closest thing.
"Don't think you can just ask me whatever you want," Fiela snarled while leaning closer. She eyed the bug-sized rabbit in a way to strike just the right amount of intimidation into him, equal parts scorn and predatory motive. "You're not invincible. If I were you I wouldn't go on acting like I can't just pop you and be done."
_Finally_she felt in control of where this stupid conversation would go. Last thing she wanted was to be craned and dragged around by this rabbit--who, by the way, should be afraid of her in the slightest at least. Why in the world wasn't he? It was almost unsettling that he either didn't know or didn't care, or that he was hiding it incredibly well.
Almost.
"While I wouldn't be the one to remind you of how detrimental that would be to your own cause, I feel that I must correct you. I ask these questions precisely because of the opposite reason: I'm not invincible."
"...So you think you're going to...die?" Fiela found herself a little unclear on what he meant.
"I know I am." She had trouble feeling much sympathy, but she could see his point...however fine of one it was.
And while she was by no means certain of what cause there would be for him to simply keel over, she could think of no reason for her to care to find out.
"That's not a reason to make it happen sooner," Fiela growled flatly. But then, she shook her head. This was for Rey; like Max said, she was better to let him off--and Rey would be none too happy with the results if she decided to harm his cousin, most likely. "...I-I won't hurt you, okay? Just, let's be done with this soon. You've gotten enough answers from me and we can make this happen already."
Control was wrenched from her again. He may well have been invincible after all.
"Fret not, it's merely a little longer." Max reproduced his notes and pen, looking just a little solemn. "My apologies, Fiela, for my intrusions. I'd simply rather not have my cousin going out and getting himself killed just because he sees a pretty face." His harshness returned.
The one thing Fiela realized she was beginning to hate right then was his demeanor. "Seems that everything ends up boiling down to Rey." The words were dismissive and quick in the hopes that they could move on.
"You two _are_a topic of interest. My interest. What with him visiting your house so frequently, one might suspect that a little more goes on behind the scenes." Fiela scowled madly. Ooh, she could just kill him right now...
"You still think that the bucket's close enough as is? Keep this up and I swear I won't even let you kick it!" Fiela found herself nearly yelling. Stupid questions and accusations that in no way had to do with what she came here for; oh, how she knew she would regret trying to be helpful.
"Now that's a temper. My apologies." Bullshit. "This could be helpful information regarding the announcement in the square, you know."
"You dirty...you know what, I'm done. This is the least professional thing I've ever been a part of." Fiela stood up, curling her tail a little in a dignified manner as if to protect it from taint; ninth-closest thing, maybe. "I came here because it would help out my friend, and all you want to do is get some kind of shallow satisfaction out of it." She kicked the stool into place behind her without thinking. And all this trouble just for Rey? What had gotten into her? Perhaps it would be better that the canine left before she did something she knew she would regret...
"Wait! I-I'm sorry, really. I need you. I meant it when I said this information could help." He stopped and sighed. "Rey and some others have a plan...an announcement of sorts downtown. They need my aid, and I need yours."
Fiela halted, clearly considering his words. But the pause was purely for dramatic effect; the wolf already knew how she would respond. He wants my help, but of course he does.
The tall, agile body sauntered back over, looming above Max at its full daunting height. Suddenly, Fiela slapped a hand down against the wood of the table with a smart clap, trapping the rabbit between her fingers and underneath her paw, head showing in the space where her index and middle fingers parted. He struggled to move but there would be no avail, while fear at last ran rampant in his eyes.
It was a sight that somehow satisfied her--not merely in the way of control and comeuppance. He really wasn't invincible, and for a moment, she was almost ashamed that she had just about believed it.
"Let's not forget who the volunteer is here, and who wouldn't be noticed missing if they decide to act up." Perhaps a little harsh--and against her predatory instinct and now-cultivated anger, a bluff--but it drove the point home well. "You're ticking me off and that's the last thing I need." She pulled the brown stool back from underneath the desk and sat back down. "Do you understand me?"
Just then, the squeezing stopped. Fiela removed her hand and let the creature recompose himself. She swept a hand over her head to brush back loose bangs and took a moment let him react.
"I thought you said you wouldn't--"
Perhaps not too long a moment. "Don't try to take advantage of me just because I said I wouldn't hurt you. That can change." Humbled a little, Max nodded vigorously. "Listen; whatever you think is going on between Rey and I isn't true. You want to go back and forth between thinking we're something more than friends or that I'm just leading him into some kind of deathtrap. We're friends. That should be enough for you anyway--a giant and a tiny? The idea's ridiculous."
Max looked somewhat taken aback; just the plan.
"Besides, I'd suggest you keep your little twitching nose out of business it doesn't belong in. I thought this interview was for political purposes, not column gossip."
The rabbit's lips tightened. His eyes, featureless though they were, still hinted at reluctance. He was almost ready to admit he was wrong and Fiela was aware of that. She could sense how dearly he wanted to continue arguing, but her confidence was far too overpowering for him to bring himself to do so--especially after being held down and threatened, even though he obviously wasn't terribly shocked that she retaliated in such a way. And if he continued anyway, so help her...
"Alas," said Max. "Reymont told me himself that you two were..." A sour glare spread across the giantess' face. "Ahem. I suppose he simply over-analyzed things, as he does." It became apparent that his assumption of treachery was his own, while the theory of a relationship was simply Rey's doing.
"Much better." She'd have to remember to have a word with Rey later, though, the loudmouth. "If you don't mind me breaking the mold," she continued with a sarcastic droop, "I'd like to be the one asking questions. First off, what's with the way you talk? No need to sound so...well, I won't say 'refined' because it isn't, it's just verbose."
Max looked like he had just been stung in the nose. "I-I do not mean to talk in any way. Perhaps..." he paused, eyes rolling skyward. "Yes, I think I understand your question."
"There's hardly anything to get about it, to be honest," the wolfess retorted.
"I lived most of my life in solitude, Fiela." There was no mistaking the defensive hiss in his voice. "I had little to turn to but books, not people. It is possible that is why you think I sound strange."
Fiela narrowed her gaze. "So is that your excuse for being a nosy asshole too? Social ineptitude?"
Much to her surprise, the rabbit looked offended--gutted but alive, and yet not at all angry. There was no place for anger and he knew it.
"I'm...sorry, Fiela. I truly am." There was another pause, but Fiela didn't want to interrupt. "It was wrong of me to snoop, I just...I was curious." He looked...after an inspection, indeed apologetic.
"Well? Then _why_are you the one 'interviewing' me to begin with?" She used the term both loosely and mockingly. "You'd think another giant would be more suited to the task. And you're the mayor's advisor anyway, since when were you also a journalist?" Perhaps she could have handled the situation better with somebody else. But then, she didn't see her reactions as her own fault. "I know you were quoted one time, but that hardly means anything here. You know what good that did."
The rabbit shifted; not in discomfort, merely in thought. It was likely he was figuring out how to phrase his answer, something that Fiela noticed Rey did as well. Although he was a little put off in recalling the little his quote alone did; Fiela wasn't sure quite what he must have expected from it, or if it was simply his foray into the issue.
"I was curious." During the beat, Fiela's ear twitched and she barely prevented a sigh. Why were you curious, go on, she urged mentally. "I wanted to assist Reymont before the rally began. I have few ways to do so, and I chose to take charge of what happened here today because..." He drifted away, but he was still making eye contact.
"Yes?" Fiela was no longer angry. Just expectant.
"Because, Fiela--it might be the last chance I have."
The words struck her a little more deeply than expected. Perhaps...perhaps she could trust him. And perhaps he had proven something to her--eleventh closest? Yes...that might be suiting.
"Hm. Well, lucky for you, I'm just full of ideas today." Fiela stood up again, black tail fluidly following her form. "I'll say this much, Max: You don't always make a whole lot of sense. I see now that this...'interview' was completely pointless on my end. I don't need to answer any more of your questions--I know what I'm going to do." As if to recompense him, she continued, "Good luck later. I'll see you there."
If all went according to plan, it might just be a good day after all.