Learning about Halloween
Sometimes Alaina really had to question the choice of company she kept.
Somehow her companion continued to wrangle her into these situations and she wasn’t entirely certain she approved. Okay okay their little trail ride for Tokoween had certainly been something interesting enough – filled with unexpected events and a certainly spectacular ending – more than she’d ever actually admit but that didn’t necessarily mean that this was going to go the same way.
Really, she was too smart to get her hopes up concerning it. “Where is he?” She muttered as her gripped tightened on Riggs’ reins, the sphinx tokota beneath her wuffling a little bit as he steadied from where he had been drifting off to the immediate right… wanting to go say hello to everyone else around. Friendly beast. If it wasn’t for the fact he simply showed so much so much potiential she would’ve already passed him off to a different owner.
Alaina would never admit to any fondness towards the tokotas she handled. Never. It was far too much of a soft thing and she completely and utterly refused to be seen as soft.
“He’s late, Riggs. We should probably head on home.” What a waste of her time when she didn’t even know what the heck he had wanted her to meet him for. The tokota snorted as if he understood her words, tail wriggling a little bit as he looked around the area curiously.
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They were going out for Halloween, to have some fun. He had been indecisive about what to wear- and what to put on his tokotas. After all, they needed to be positively festive. This was an important and wonderful holiday and they had to be perfectly prepared. He'd gotten everything in time, long ahead of time actually. Getting it all on, however was taking some time.
Cheryl was antsy and getting her halloween tack on was hard, and took longer than he thought it would. Nux didn't take as long, and once Cheryl was suited up he was quickly finished. That was a plus at least.
Still, he was running late and he needed to make sure he caught up with Alaina before she gave up and went home. Once he had thrown his own outfit on he was up on Nux's back, with Cheryl tethered to the older tokota, and off. They rushed down to where they'd agreed to meet, barrelling forward just in time to hear her suggesting that they head home.
"WOAH HEY! Hey I'm here! I'm here." He pulled Nux to a slow stop beside Riggs, with Cheryl between them. Immediately the albino- clad in pumpkin-pattern tack with a pumpkin basket mounted to her saddle. "Sorry it took so long, little lady got a bit nervous and fidgeted the whole time I was putting her tack on." He laughed warmly.
"You guys didn't dress up?" A pause. "Man I should have brought some spare things. How are we supposed to have Halloween fun if you're not in the holiday spirit?" He teased, knowing the woman would never agree to it. As he spoke, Nux wuffed a greeting to Riggs, and Cheryl approached him curiously to sniff at him, wondering if he was a friend.
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Oh.
Well he had certainly taken his sweet time now didn’t he? The perhaps too serious woman visibly frowned for a moment, a brow raised as she considered the two tokotas and man before her. “Why would I dress up? We’re only going to get treats for the mounts you said.” Perhaps it was a difference in culture, really… Alaina was rather mostly unfamiliar with the entire Halloween concept to begin with much less with the addition of the beasts they road.
Meanwhile Riggs offered a little dance, an excitable shuffle of paws, beneath the woman the moment that Nux had drew near. After their first adventure together the sphinx had seemed to have grown comfortable enough with the other male, although he half-shoved his head over the back of the other male’s next to get a good peek towards the little albino… offering her a comical wuffle of greeting.
After a moment his rider offered a disgusted look at best, clicking her tongue against the roof of her mouth in a disapproving sound before she moved to pull her mount away. “Where to first?” That was her companion’s idea… she’d allow for him to lead the way for this one for now. Maybe. If he proved to take too much time, time that he’d already well wasted in getting here oh so late, she would likely either take over and hit up the closest few areas or simply leave.
Really, she couldn’t grasp the idea. Couldn’t she just buy a few treats and they work just as well for Riggs?
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He'd been busy! Of course he'd taken his time because his tokotas had slowed him down a bit, but he was here now. It was careful work, making sure their tack was on properly and not hurting them- even moreso when one was a fidgety, antsy pup. Cheryl was still learning all of this, but he thought this would be a good learning experience- for her and for Nux. Really it would help them both.
"Well, it's tradition. The treats are for the tokotas, sure, but you should at least put him in something festive." He nodded to Riggs. "Too late now though I suppose." Anik shook his head, clearly just amused by it all.
Nux licked the sphinx's cheek when he moved to look at Cheryl, who barked in a squeaky sort of way and wagged her tail excitedly at him. There was another squeaky bark, tongue lolling out of her mouth contently, and she scuttled forward to sniff at him better, getting used to his scent. She was slowly getting used to the presence of others.
"Down the trail a ways, a lot of people up here set out some treat stops along the trails, instead of at their houses. They put faith in people not to take too much." Because around here people were mostly trustworthy. They didn't go around taking too much.
As he said that he gently judged Nux's sides, encouraging him forward and towards the tail he'd meant. "After the trail there's a farm handing things out and then we can call it a night if you want, don't want to keep you out too late tonight. I know this Halloween stuff is uh....new to you." Or he could assume so anyways by the way she acted about it.
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While it certainly was something understandable in the long run. It was the simple matter that Alaina was a perhaps too-serious woman who preferred to not idle away and completely and utterly waste her time in the long run… of which she was already considering this to be.
It was what it was after all.
All in all Riggs appeared, if anything, extra happy to meet another tokota. While he was already comfortable with Nux, tongue darting out to lick towards his friend in return, the bulk of his attention remained on the little albino… seeking to offer her friendly overtures. Before he could bound off in the effort to coax the other two into play the rider moved to rein him back in with a sound akin to a tired sigh.
“Let’s just get this done with.” It was a long suffering sound, really. The things she had to do thanks to whatever companionship of sorts she tolerated with the other handler. “This sort of thing doesn’t happen back home.” They had their own different sorts of traditions and cultures… everything remained new enough her that she sometimes struggled to keep up.
Not that she’d ever admit to THAT either..
Either way it would be an easy enough ride down the trail and even easier for the unlikely duo, and trio, to get themselves their share of treats. Riggs was a clown at best and good at working a metaphorical crowd… using his antics to earn them happy glances and treats in their wake. “Sure are a lot of people out for this.” So many. It must be a big even or something to attract so much attention in the long run. “We don’t do anything similar.” A rare moment, almost wistful from the woman, but she didn’t often speak of her old home anyway. It didn’t matter in the long run. There wasn’t likely going to be anything more spoken on that from her tonight.
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As far as the shapeshifter was concerned, they weren't wasting time. This was fun, this was an excellent thing! How could this EVER be wasing time? Besides, they got to bring their tokotas out to get them some exercise. That was productive, right?
Besides, one look told them their tokotas were already having fun, and that was incredibly important, wasn't it? They were out here to get them treats after all! Halloween may have been a human holiday, but that night it was all for their tokotas. They were the ones getting anything out of this- though Anik considered seeing them so happy the best reward.
Not to mention he'd already bought discounted bulk candy to chow down on. He was set for at least a week. Maybe less.
When Riggs was pulled away back to seriousness, Nux made a low whine, and Cheryl skittered back a bit to press against Nux with wide eyes. "Hey easy, you're gonna spook the kid. She's still learning!" Which was exactly why he'd brought her out here after all. She needed experience.
"Well when we get back you can tell me all about your October traditions." A pause. "Because I get the feeling you'd rather not talk very much while we do this." He was learning at least, she wasn't a very chatty person, and she certainly didn't seem to be in the mood for it now. Not one bit. It was good that she was trying to learn how things worked here at least.
Even if she was grumpy about it.
Moving down the trail was fun, observing all the other tokotas and riders- some of which were in full costume not just themed tack. Nux paraded happily about, trying to show off mostly as they gathered their treats from each of the stations and moved through the crowd. He was enjoying himself, and why wouldn't he be? He was out with his rider and a tokota he was pretty good friends with. He loved this!
Cheryl simply followed along, happily carrying the treats in her saddle-bucket. It was almost overwhelmingly new to her, but relatively sandwiched between two tokotas she was mostly familiar with had her feeling safe. She stopped once, to grab a stick and chew on it for awhile as they walked but otherwise quietly and happily tagged along. Anik was sure she was getting a lot of healthy interaction and experience.
"Well it's Halloween y'know, it's kind of a big deal!" Or rather...he supposed she didn't know.
The shifter kept relatively quiet for once, trying to be respectful to his friend and companion. They could talk when trick or treating was done, and hell maybe they could even go back to his place and enjoy some candy together. As they slowly headed down the trail and eventually out towards the farms on the far end, he found himself wondering if she even liked candy.
He supposed he'd find out soon enough.
For a moment more at the end of the trail he was quiet. Idly his fingers were run through Nux's fur, and the piebald tokota leaned into the touch with an appreciative wuffle. Cheryl padded along next to him, glancing up curiously- stick long since discarded. It had been a pretty damn good night as far as he was concerned. They had a big bucket of treats and they hadn't finished up all their stops yet. That definitely was going to please the tokotas. Finally he cleared his throat to speak up. "Hey, when we're done...do you want to come back to my place and have some candy, maybe talk about some stuff?"
He could hope, right?