sleepyhollowed | IC Inbox for redshiftrp

That's not a problem. Barn's always open to you and the little guy, Reynir.

You can bring him up once he's done eatin'. I'm sure the animals that are already there are gonna love havin' a new friend around.

[Kieran grins at the prospect.]

D-Did you wanna keep him here? There's space if you wanna stay and keep an eye on him, too.

[ Reynir considers the kind offer for a minute before he answers: ]

Maybe after a couple weeks. He's so small now, I'm worried about him keeping warm, and he's going to want fed really frequently. I can't ask you to do all that.

[ It's more than that, though, and Reynir is someone who is both honest and upfront about his feelings, so he adds: ]

Besides... he's got me a bit homesick and I just want to keep him close for a bit.

[ He does, however, head up to Kieran's barn once the little lamb has filled his belly. Reynir's easy to spot from a distance, with the long bright red braid and the baby animal in his arms - wriggling a lot less now that he's had a good meal. ]

[Kieran nods in understanding. He gets it. All of it, really. The homesickness, wanting to keep an animal companion close, wanting to make sure said companion is well taken care of... they're all sentiments he can fully sympathize with.]

[He waits patiently for Reynir and Lamb Friend to show up, filling the time with some menial tasks that always need addressing on any kind of ranch. When he catches that stark red of Reynir's hair, Kieran calls him over with a happy wave.]

Welcome back!

Hello!

[ Reynir gives a small wave, although it doesn't last too long, since he needs both his hands to keep the little animal tucked close to his chest. He tucks the blanket that is wrapped around the lamb back a little to free his floppy little ears. The lamb bleats, expressing some opinion or another vehemently. ]

This is Anne.

[ The name had been simple to choose, the moment he considered giving the little thing a name. He thinks that, wherever she is, in whatever afterlife, the pastor would appreciate him using her name for this innocent new life. Reynir hadn't really understood her ancient religion or what lambs had to do with any of it, but he knows they were important and it seems like a good way to honor her memory. ]

He's a little troublemaker, I can already tell. Would you like to hold him?

[Kieran's brow furrows at the lamb's name, but chalks it up to some cultural thing he doesn't get. He's heard plenty of different names for plenty of different animals. He's not about to judge this one.]

[Instead, he's going to reach out with his arms so he can hold the little guy.]

Yes, please.

[Kieran takes Anne in his arms and brings him close, scratching underneath his chin and down his neck.]

Yeah, you can tell he's real new. He doesn't have that sheep smell yet.

[ Reynir places the lamb, and the blanket he's wrapped in, into Kieran's arms easily, and it's immediately apparent that he's perfectly comfortable holding small animals. It's what Reynir had expected, but still: he approves. And he grins when Kieran mentions that he doesn't smell like sheep yet. ]

Oh, you mean the way I tried hard not to smell my whole life? Yeah, I know that sheep smell.

[ He smiles broadly at Kieran and continues chatting away: ]

I never would've thought I'd actually miss sheep, but life's just full of unexpected twists and turns I guess.

[Kieran scratches underneath Anne's chin and along her tiny jaw as he listens to Reynir.]

Yeah, I get what yer sayin'.

It's like, uh, we take fer granted all the stuff we had until it gets taken away.

[He chuckles.]

Sheep smell counts too, I guess.

[ Reynir gives a quiet nod of agreement to the way Kieran puts it into words. He wonders if he is only talking about Reynir, or if he might have some personal experience with that particular blend of bittersweet regret. So, he asks: ]

Do you miss home much?

[ He has grasped from context clues that Kieran definitely wasn't from a city, at least not originally. He knows way too much about animals, and seems very comfortable just being out in nature. But Reynir hadn't actually heard much about where he's from. To him, 'America' is just a word. He has no sense of what sort of a place it is, how big or small, how warm or cold... ]

You really don't mind if he comes here to stay with the rest of the animals, once he's a little older?

[The question gives Kieran pause. He has to really stop and think to see if he does miss home. There are certain events he certainly doesn’t miss, and there’s one in particular that settles like an icy blanket of existential dread on him, but home wasn’t all bad.]

I, uh, I-I guess I miss certain folks, but I ain’t in any rush to go back.

[And he has no idea if he even can, or what awaits a dead man if he does.]

And yeah! Anne’s more than welcome to stay when he’s bigger. Hopefully by that time we’ll have lots of friends fer him.

[ There's something about the way Kieran pauses before he answers, and then says that, even though there are people he misses, he isn't in a hurry to go back, that sort of dissuades further questions. Perhaps another time, when it comes up naturally - or once he has a better sense of why Kieran might have mixed feelings about the place he comes from.

Reynir is trying to be better at not always chattering, even though he knows he is inclined to, sometimes. He had said he would bring Anne up so that Kieran could see him; that offer ought to come without an obligation to talk, if Kieran doesn't want to. So Reynir lapses into companionable silence, watching the other man interact with the tiny lamb. It's nice, really. Just being together, the two of them, and the little animal. ]

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