Uh... Help?

[RandomWiktor]

The Story So Far:
The grasslands fire doesn't only result in terrible burning death, it also leads to awkward social interactions. Iqubal and Amor, foxes disoriented by smoke and flame, find an exit strategy in Velox, a swift fox nearly suffocated by the CO2 in her den. The three stumble out of the flames into safety, but what will three foxes of three different species do in the aftermath of a fire that has wiped out their home?
Origional Thread

Last Two Posts:
Velox
___Velox felt a little badly for her outright strange manner of introducing the male. Perhaps he hadn't been ready to speak yet, and she merely prompted him into it. He did still seem strikingly dazed, after all. His mind was probably still clouded by a dense haze of smoke - both literally and figuratively - after running through that wall of fire. Still, it would be awkward to just sit there stammering about who this stranger might be while Amor looked at her like some kind of idiot.
___Of course, now she had no idea how to proceed with the conversation. Neither fox was her species, neither fox was a friend or even acquaintance, and all three of them seemed exhausted, injured, and dazed. It was bound to be a losing conversation for sure.Figures, she thought. My first encounter with other foxes in how long, and I'm sitting here dumbstruck and mute. Snorting and shaking her head slightly, she settled down onto her belly, paws crossed neatly in front of her, finding it easier to breathe lower down - and less exhausting with all of the CO2 coursing through her veins.
___"Never a dull moment here, huh?" She finally said, attempting to laugh but coughing violently instead. "Have either of you been here long enough to notice the distinct pattern of issues this place is plauged by?"
___It was true enough. Droughts, floods, storms, hunters, diseases... it was a sort of intensified version of nature, as if some perverse author were composing a tale of sorrow and woe with little regard to his characters ((uh, that doesn't describe ANY of us. ::coughs:. She finally thought things were calming down, enjoying the brief period of relaxation and ample prey, before humans and dogs kept her trapped in her burrow in terror. Immediately thereafter, fire consumed her home, and now she could feel the cold winds of winter approaching as they carried away the blackened plumes of smoke. What was next? A blizzard? ((Hah...))

[RandomWiktor]

~Neither Iqbal nor Amor worried about where the conversation was going. Amor was only vaguely paying attention to it, focusing on it instead of her exhaustion and aches, almost an instinctive reaction to keep her from collapsing and dying in her sleep. She didn't care about the awkwardness, or even what was being said. As long as the steady buzz was there, wakening her rather than putting her to sleep, she was okay.

Iqbal couldn't find much heart to care either. He didn't blame Velox for thrusting him into the conversation. After all, they were all dazed and confused, and the entire situation was awkward and somewhat unnatural already. He was mainly there for the comfort of knowing he wasn't the only animal alive out in the cruel world that was at that moment burnt to a crisp. And perhaps to be polite as well, but he knew in his heart he was simply relieved to be alive, and not be the only one.

Hence, when Velox suddenly laid down, Iqbal looked worryingly in her direction, wondering if she was all right. However, she seemed to speak just fine, even if her laugh resulted in something far worse. She recovered from that as well, though, and then said something that worried the relatively new fox greatly.

Pattern of issues? That seemed... Well, he supposed the natives would know best. Iqbal frowned, ears flicking backwards, then turned his gaze to Amor. As he had feared, the red fox had stopped cleaning herself at Velox's words, and joined in her coughing-laugh.

"I have. It makes me wonder if someone cursed this place or something."

Though Iqbal didn't find the statement that funny, Amor burst into hysterical coughing anyway, to the point that the kit fox stood up and approached her shakily, whining lowly with concern. However, she soon calmed down, smiling a bit too widely in Iqbal's direction, and then returned to her obsessive cleaning.

Weird. Iqbal stared with confusion, his thoughts a mud puddle, before he decided that she had definitely inhaled too much smoke. Still, she wasn't dead yet, so he figured he could leave her alone and hope her senses returned some time soon. Slowly, he turned and returned to his spot, sitting down with a shudder.

His mind remembered once more that he was in a conversation, and he glanced between the two females, a frown forming on his face once more.

"Is it really that bad?"

Great. The humans had delivered him from the frying pan and into the fire... Almost literally.~

(( xD at all of the comments. That's hysterical, but of course that isn't any of us. *shifty eyes * ))

[RandomWiktor]

___The fuzzy black edges of Velox's vision were finally being replaced by normal vision as the winds whisked the fire and its choking clouds of black smoke away from the trio in the direction of the river. Breathing in, she could almost smell the other two foxes in her presence. Perhaps she could venture standing back up? Moving into a sitting position made her head swim, but at least she wasn't on the verge of blacking out. Blinking a few times and taking in a deep lungful of air, she observed Iqbal becoming a bit uncomfortable with the somewhat jesting remarks about the land. Giving a quick, reassuring whine, ears lowered and tongue lapping the air, she responded,
___"Ah, it's not all bad. Lots of unclaimed land and few other foxes to compete for it with. Plenty of prey too, the wolves here are in such large packs that they mostly stick to large game, and it's easy to hide from them in the tall grass..." she trailed off, realizing that the territory, prey, and hiding places had all just gone up in flames. "Well..." She coughed, this time not from smoke. "So, how long have you both bee living here?"

OOC: Worst post evar?

[Iqbal and Amor]

The wind stung Iqbal's eyes, making him whine and close his eyes. However, a tiny part of him was encouraged by this; though for a moment all he inhaled was smoke, within a few seconds clearer air came to him. The faint pine of the forest in the distance, and then the two foxes with him. Amor's scent was indeed off, more smoke and fire than fox, while Velox smelled of a smoky fox. He could only imagine what he smelled like, and shivered at the thought.

Velox was swift to encourage him, telling him about the area and the advantages it had. However, as she spoke, he found himself smiling slightly, ears half-lowered and head tilting. Amor, too, turned from her injuries -- they were starting to hurt less, and the movement of the smoke away from them was providing the fox with much-needed oxygen -- over to Velox. Perhaps the fox hadn't noticed, but all of those advantages were definitely just hindered by a huge fire.

She did notice, judging by her cough that ended that conversation. Amor sneezed, though she had been attempting an amused snort, then laid down on the ground gratefully. It smelled of charred grass, but if she kept her head level, the air was clear and fresh. She inhaled deeply, eyes half-closed, listening quietly to her companions. Iqbal looked at her with concern, but when she kept on breathing, he turned back to Velox and her inquiry.

"Not very long... I was recently dropped here by humans. They were expanding their territory I think, and didn't appreciate me being there."

He snorted, still a bit confused by it. He was so much tinier and no danger to their territory. Why did they want him to go away?

Amor, meanwhile, vaguely realized she was being addressed and spoke, her voice sounding a bit stronger and a lot more sane.

"Most of my life. I used to live with humans and their nasty mutt--" She shuddered slightly, eyes rolling before she composed herself. "--But they dumped me off and so I was able to make my way here."

Her words left plenty of questions hanging in the air, but Iqbal felt it was best not to ask, and so instead turned to Velox.

"And you? You seem like you know this place very well."