Dancing with Ducks (Juniper)

[Ari Jasinski]

(image credit)

Ari made his way a little awkwardly around the edge of the Lake, not really sure where he was heading or what he was even doing out here. He wasn't really a nature guy, or at least he'd never paid much attention to it before now. Maybe he'd just never given it a chance, like just about everything else in life. Okay, no self-pity. Get yourself out there, see what there is to see.

He'd managed to find an old backpack in a box (full of stuff he'd kept from high school for some insane reason), and tossed a couple of bread rolls, a bottle of water, and a paper bag full of cracked corn. Originally, he'd been planning on bringing bread crumbs from a catastrophically bad attempt at foccacia, but apparently bread wasn't a great idea for ducks, after all. He'd find something else to do with them. Compost maybe? One more thing to learn about.

So instead, he'd stopped in the grocery store to grab some cracked oats, feeling a little bit stupid, and then headed off to the Lake to commune with nature. In the form of ducks.

[Juniper Birdsong]

Juniper had had the same idea as Ari, although unlike him, this was quite a usual outing for her. She often went out to the lake for some time alone in nature, and today was so warm and sunny she just knew there would be wildlife to feed. She had picked up some seeds at the store, along with peanuts in case she ran into any squirrels or chipmunks. Then she had made her way to the lake, knowing a certain area from her frequent visits that was more than likely to be occupied by wildlife. And she wasn't disappointed; as she walked towards the area, she caught sight of many waterfowl congregating around the banks.

She didn't notice the man standing there until she reached the bank, and she flinched involuntarily as he suddenly appeared to her. "Oh, hello!" she said brightly, recovering quickly. "Are you here to feed the ducks too?" She noticed the brown bag in his hand and the cracked corn on the ground, and she smiled. "I see you're smart enough not to feed them bread. I've heard it gives them deformities." She tossed a handful of seeds to the birds and watched as some of them turned from the stranger to her own food. "I hope you don't mind," she said belatedly with an embarrassed chuckle. "I've been looking forward to this all day. Ducks remind me of my hometown, so it's always nice to see them," she explained. Yes, she talked a lot, even to strangers - hopefully he wouldn't mind.

[Ari Jasinski]

"Here, duck duck duck," Ari muttered under his breath, feeling like an idiot as he tossed a handful of corn in the general direction of the ducks. "That's right. Good little birdies. Uh, duckies. Whatever. Eat your snacks like good feathered friends." He wasn't really feeling the whole "communing with nature thing yet when a girl appeared from apparently out of nowhere, bag in hand. Probably a student, judging by her age, and willing to talk to a fellow duck-feeder, even though he was a stranger.

"Nah, I don't mind at all. Plenty of ducks for everyone," he said, backing off to give the ducks a little more room to graze. "I didn't actually know a single thing about what they do or don't eat, I Googled them before I came out; otherwise, I'd be stuffing them with muffins or something else wild animals probably don't need to be eating. Hell, they'd probably be showing up at the shop wanting coffee and a cinnamon roll if I kept it up long enough." He paused. "Why do they remind you of home?"

[Juniper Birdsong]

"Oh, well at least you do your research," Juniper nodded, smiling. "Muffins wouldn't be a good choice, no. All that sugar and vegetable oil, it can't be good for them." She cocked her head as she threw another handful of seeds, glancing at him as he made the comment about a shop. "Do you work at a coffee shop or something? I would love to work in one, all that delicious food... Mmm." Food, one of her ultimate weaknesses. She was fortunate she had a high metabolism, otherwise she was sure her love of food would show.

"Oh, well, the University I lived near, their mascot was the Ducks," she explained with a chuckle. "Silly choice of mascot, if you ask me. They were all over town too, so I suppose it sort of made sense. You'd think with so much wildlife in Eugene, though, they would have come up with something at least a little more.... Ferocious? I mean, come on, who's afraid of a duck?" She grinned and looked up again, hoping he would think it was as funny as she.

[Ari Jasinski]

"Yeah, I just moved to town and opened one," he said, tossing some more corn to the ducks, aiming away from where she was, just to spread things out a bit. No sense in causing a duck... stampede? Whatever, it wasn't like they were armed or--

Then he registered what she was saying. "Eugene? You're from Eugene? That's my hometown-- my folks still live there, my brother was a U of O graduate! Hell, I still have a Ducks jersey somewhere!" He grinned broadly and offered her his unoccupied hand. "Ari Jasinski. Good to meet you!"

[Juniper Birdsong]

Juniper kept feeding the ducks, smiling pleasantly until the man said... Wait, what!? He was from Eugene too? Weeeird. "You're kidding!" Juniper gaped, eyes wide. "Out of all the people in Pilot Ridge... What a small world! My mom still lives in Eugene, but she's moving up here really soon. This is so strange! I didn't think ANYONE up here was from that far west." She took his hand, shaking it energetically. "Juniper Birdsong, wonderful to meet you Ari!" She was practically bouncing from excitement. "Oh, you'll have to meet my sister, she'll be so glad to meet a fellow Oregonian. We both miss it so much. I mean, Pilot Ridge is nice, but I miss the warm rains and mild summers of my hometown. How long ago did you move here? I've been here for five years, ever since my power manifested," she chattered on. "Willow's only been here for three."

[Ari Jasinski]

"I actually moved to Montpelier to work with a friend of mine a few years back," he said, grinning broadly, "but I did some looking around, and Pilot Ridge seemed like a good place to start a business-- because of the school, you know?-- so here I am, got here about three months ago, so I'm still a newbie."

He tossed another handful of corn to their web-footed friends. "Gotta say, it's good to see someone from back home. You know what I miss? I miss the Saturday market. If I'd had time, I'd've spent most of my day there, just wandering around, I mean, don't get me wrong, Montpelier's got a great market, too, but it isn't like home, right? And yeah, Vermont weather, still haven't got used to that. And-- power?"

[Juniper Birdsong]

"Oh wow, only three months? That's not very long - it took me ages to get used to Pilot Ridge. But then again, it was the first time I've ever moved, so it was a big deal. By school, do you mean Hammel?" She tilted her head, grinning. "Because that's the reason I moved here to. I think it's the main reason why... Well, a lot of the population moves here." Namely, people her age. It wasn't like they had a choice in the matter either, attending school was mandatory for meta-humans. "I've never met anyone from Eugene before though! A few Portlanders, but that's about it."

She clapped her hands and laughed at the mention of the Saturday Market. "Oh goodness, I practically lived there during the summer! I actually make some of my own clothes, so I would sell them to make a little extra money. I still go there maybe once a month or so when I visit my mom during the summer. I miss it so much. Pilot Ridge doesn't even have a market, it's too small of a town." She pouted for a moment, tossing a few more seeds until his question. At that, she brightened again. "Oh yes! I'm an aerokinetic, um, I can manipulate air. Like this." Twirling her hand, she bended the breeze to blow around them in a circle, then made a waving motion and blew it out over the water, creating ripples on the surface. "It's not the most aggressive of meta-human abilities, but I like it," she said with a smile. Too late, she hoped he wasn't one of those people that hated meta-humans. He was just so nice, she couldn't imagine he would be.

[Ari Jasinski]

"Yeah, I figure that students of any age will ditch school food for outside food at the drop of a cookie," he said, "so why not take a shot here? I've been in food service since I was your age, and I've got a good head for numbers and the business side, so it isn't like it's a huge risk. So far, it's going okay."

"I gotta say, I miss it, too. Haven't been back except for holidays for... damn. Six years now. Time gets away from you sometimes. If you happen to be in Montpelier, the market there is pretty good, though," he added, "even if it isn't the same. I think the food vendors are better in Eugene, though."

Ari had never met a meta before-- that he was aware of, anyway, and like most things in life, he hadn't thought much about them one way or the other. Watching the way the water moved beneath the breeze, he couldn't help but be a little fascinated. "So... aerokinetic, huh? You know how to fold paper airplanes? Because that sounds like you could have your own little air force, which let's face it, would be pretty sweet! I mean, maybe not such a great idea, but it'd be pretty funny for a while."

He knew the things that some people claimed: metas were dangerous, a threat, unnatural, blah blah blah. But looking at this kid-- young woman, she wouldn't appreciate being called a kid-- watching her feed ducks, all he could think of is that she was the right age to be his... niece. If Myles had ever got around to having kids, anyway.

[Juniper Birdsong]

"Oh, you have no idea," Juniper agreed about the food comment. "Hammel's food is decent, but they have this thing with making us eat super healthy stuff all the time. Which, really, I appreciate, but it does get old after a while, and their vegan selection is really thin." She glanced over at him. "Do you sell vegan stuff?" If he did, she would find his shop pronto. There was a severe lack of vegan options available in Pilot Ridge.

"If I'm ever in the area, I'll be sure to check it out," she assured him, smiling. "I love markets. All the handmade items and local food.... It's just so much better than buying everything from China. Maybe we could make a Pilot Ridge market!" she exclaimed enthusiastically. Of course, she was mostly kidding, but it WOULD be pretty neat.

Her eyes widened at his idea. "I DO know how to make paper airplanes," she said,"That is a WONDERFUL idea. I wonder how many I would be able to control at a time..." she trailed off, musing for a minute before looking back at him. "I could wreak havoc all over the school," she grinned. Of course, paper planes couldn't do much damage, but at the very least it would be a good way to pass notes. And she was glad of the fact that he didn't seem freaked out about her ability.

Tossing the last of her seeds out, she said,"Well, Ari, it was a pleasure talking to you. What's the name of your shop? I'll be sure to visit sometime!"

[Ari Jasinski]

"I have a couple of vegan options," Ari said, tossing another handful of corn down. "Getting the butter right was a challenge, but the good kind, I like to kind of test myself, you know? I figured with a big student population, a little diversity on the menu-- gluten-free, stuff like that-- couldn't hurt."

He smiled at the thought of a Pilot Ridge market. "It'd be good to see one," he agreed, "but I'm going to guess that the town itself isn't big enough to support one, at least not year-round. Maybe a holiday market, though, lots of smaller towns do that, and it might be a good way for students who do craft stuff to make a little extra cash."

"You know, you could set up your own message delivery system," he suggested, jokingly. "Like they used to do with passenger pigeons, only you'd have little airplanes. But as a prank, it'd be even better, except that I'm guessing you'd get busted pretty fast. Be funny while it lasted, though."

"And yeah, come stop in at the Velvet-tone sometime," he said warmly. "Always glad to see a friendly face-- and an fellow Oregonian, too, so take care, Juniper, and I'll see you around."