because we’re all one of a kind

[dontpokethat]

Who: Ginko and whoever!
What: Ginko tries to do his job and restocks on cigarettes
When: Before and during performance week
Where: Around the carnival, specifically the menagerie and trailer park!
Warnings: Drugs not actually drugs. Weird animals, though!

A - evening of Day 81 - outside Trailer 13

Contrary to what some might assume, Ginko’s ever-present cigarettes don’t manifest out of thin air. At some point, if they want to make sure that they’ve got a steady supply, he or Tanyuu has to make them - and tonight, that’s exactly what Ginko is doing, since he’d rather get this done before performance time starts up.

He’s sitting outside his and Tanyuu’s trailer, with supplies laid out in front of him on a cloth - a mortar and pestle, a roll of paper, stacks of leaves harvested from an assortment of plants grown in and around the trailer - and the spewpa that Tanyuu had dubbed Miu nestled against his leg.

It would be a lot more convenient if mushi repellent could be made from just one kind of plant, but, no such luck. So here he is, grinding the herbal mix together, setting each rolled cigarette in a wooden box as he finishes.

It’s not particularly fast work, but he does it with a practiced hand and seems relaxed as he works, not paying particular attention to anything around him.

B - All week - Menagerie

Everything is always busier during performance weeks. It’s no surprise, really, but even after this long, Ginko is still impressed by the sheer degree to which that energy seems to permeate the carnival. It’s… exhilarating, in a way.

At the same time, though, it makes him glad that his involvement with the actual performances is so minimal. He’s not sure he could deal with that much excitement.

Instead, he keeps mostly to the menagerie during performances, focusing on the animals; there’s a lot to do, though it’s more manageable now that he isn’t the only animal keeper.

He won’t object of anyone wants to come by and chat… provided they don’t interfere with his work or try to mess with the animals. That, he’d rather avoid.


(( OOC: If you want to do something else, hit me up at omixgirl10 or on discord! (Maggie#9624) ))

Comments

[kingsroads]

"A rat king?" That gets Strange's attention first so he's going to focus on that first--lord knows he's going to bug Ginko about the dragon later as it's a friggen dragon.

"Are we talking literally or metaphorically?"

It's a possibly silly question but, then again, he just got bitten by a book, this rat could be a literal king of a tiny rat kingdom with tiny rat subjects.

[dontpokethat]

"Metaphorically; I'd be pretty shocked to hear Rex was the actual ruler of anything. Don't think he's suited to it, frankly."

He gestures for Strange to follow and leads him over to the large-animal enclosures - which may be the first hint that this animal is not only not an actual king, it isn't really the size of a typical rat, either.

The rat king does resemble a rat, as it turns out, but one somewhat larger than a polar bear... and with six heads, all snuffling separately at whatever is nearby them as the animal roams around the enclosure. When the two men get closer, one of the frontmost heads looks up from chewing on a log, and its whiskers flick toward them.

[kingsroads]

That is certainly a giant rat with six heads. Huh! That's unexpected. Strange frowns as he takes a few steps closer towards the rat king, giving the creature a tentative frown as he looks it over. He can definitely see why it would be the metaphorical rat king—he's never seen any rats that are remotely close to that height. Strange keeps a safe distance as he looks it over with an expression that can't decide if he's awed or disgusted.

"He's certainly..." massive "...impressive, to say the least. Do you have any idea where the Ringmaster picked him up from?"

Because it's certainly not Earth, what with how huge the rat king is.

[dontpokethat]

Ginko, meanwhile, approaches the enclosure without hesitation. The head that's noticed them strains toward him, and a couple more look up too. One of them seems similarly interested in Ginko, but the other appears more focused on Strange, its nose twitching as it looks him over quizzically.

"No idea. He's been here longer than I have; I just know he's not from my world, that much is for sure."

[kingsroads]

Since Ginko's approaching without any trace of fear, that just means that Strange should approach as well. After all, Ginko isn't scared of the giant rat and he probably couldn't do anything to defend himself from said giant rat to begin with. Strange is a magician, he shouldn't be wary about this thing.

But again, giant rat. So the steps he takes as he walks towards the rat king are veeeery tentative and veeeery cautious.

"He's not from my world either." Which is very obvious considering how slowly Strange is doing this. Eventually, he's close enough to the edge of the enclosure that the rat can actually sniff him. "In my world, rats are only a fraction of this thing's height and only have one head."

Ginko's got horns, after all, and Strange isn't sure if those are natural or a change. Who knows what his world is like?

[dontpokethat]

By the time Strange is by the enclosure, the rest of the heads seem to have noticed the visitors. The rat king scurries closer to the visitors, sniffing curiously at Strange in particular.

Ginko laughs, reaching out to pat one of the animal's noses. "Same here. I hardly knew what to think first time I saw this; turns out he's pretty harmless, so there's that."

[kingsroads]

There's a pause as Strange holds his hand out for the rat king. Do rats sniff hands? He's no idea, so he's treating the animal as a dog or a horse might. Time to let the rat sniff him and find out.

"I wonder...how terrible could a rat be? Would a giant rat be more harmful due to the giantness or would the inherent ratness win out overall?" Obviously bigger animals were more fierce than smaller animals, with the exception of certain small dogs. Was it the same with rats?

[dontpokethat]

This one sure seems to, anyway; a couple of the heads poke their noses through the bars, whuffling curiously at his hand. After a moment, one of the rat king's paws reaches over to try and get a hold of his hand, too.

"Beats me. I didn't actually work with rats much in my own world, anyway... I guess this guy probably does have the potential to do more damage if he wanted to."

[kingsroads]

Strange lets the rat king take his hand. At least if the animal tries anything, he can give the rat king a little smack with his other hand or with magic. He's not worried about any of this.

"I suppose the lazy thing knows just how good he's got it! Food, water, shelter...he's probably better off here than wherever his home is."

[dontpokethat]

Fortunately, the rat king mostly seems interested in snuffling at his fingers, and lets go once it becomes clear that Strange isn't hiding any food in his palm.

"Probably. I don't know if he even remembers where he's from to begin with; either way, he does seem content here."