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 Posted: Sun May 27, 2012 1:46 am
 He'd had a quiet discussion with the doe he'd spent the last few nights (was it still a few, now? He'd lost count after five, figuring that it no longer mattered how long they spent together - she was a sweet, almost too serious little doe) with before leaving her side. This morning it was Westward Bound's turn to seek breakfast, so it was with confidence that he left her behind. She already knew where he'd gone, after all, and she knew that he would return. To be honest, Sun was a little uncertain as to what exactly they were going to do. No, that was a lie - he knew they'd keep laying with each other every night, but he didn't know what would happen if she bore a clutch. And at this rate - yes, at this rate, Oathkeeper would probably bear a clutch. Was that a problem? No, he was certain that he could care for it, or that if he couldn't care for it - well, his mother had left he and his siblings mainly to their own devices. Until he'd found her, of course, but that was certainly a different matter. He liked the doe, he realized as he dipped his head near a bush full of berries. Black, gathered in little clumps. They were edible, or at least - he remembered that he'd eaten some before, and not gotten sick.
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Posted: Sun May 27, 2012 2:11 am
 The light of day had slipped up over the horizon and the new mare found herself shaking the shadows from her back. She had found herself ever more frequently turning to the night -- a natural environment to test the abilities bestowed upon her by the Motherfather. It was a difficult task to get used to something new and, at this point, sunlight hindered it. Which was why the mare let her mind go. Effortlessly she fell out of her mind and into that of an owlcat. She let out a languid stretch and determined to find a small morning snack. Once her stomach was filled she could curl up for a long, restful nap. She had taken to climbing and leaping into low hanging branches as her pet mutt was still adjusting to this new form. It was odd to see the recognition -- her scent did not change -- and yet the absolute confusion in the hound's eyes. Truly it made her the barest touch uneasy. If she thought on it too long, it sounded absolutely foolish. It was with many thoughts that she came upon the buck. He seemed quite engaged in thought and she paused in her movements. She had had little chance to interact with others (her son and granddaughter hardly counted) since being chosen. This seemed as good a time as any to at least observe and she pranced closer before sitting and curling her tail around her paws. There was some new feeling that made her want to stay; it was almost as if she had some inkling that this was where she needed to be.
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Posted: Mon May 28, 2012 12:05 am
Shrugging, Sun plucked a few of the berries in his mouth and turned to see if he couldn't find a more substantial meal - especially for the two of them. He was a ravenous eater, besides.
He'd almost walked out of sight before he turned and realized that something was there that hadn't been before. And that something was...an owlcat? A dark one, too, with pink eyes that glowed like a kimeti's. Perhaps their glow was even brighter than his own: it was, to be honest, a little disconcerting. At any rate it was a magnificent little thing: beautiful white stripes with a hint of a rosy pink, and its coat was as dark as any shadow. Would it follow him?
Sun inched closer. "Hello. Did you take a kimeti's eyes for your own?" he asked it. He didn't seem as though he was afraid of frightening it.
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Posted: Mon May 28, 2012 2:26 pm
How she felt about him almost walking off without noticing her, she wasn't quite sure of. As much as it pleased her to be nearly invisible -- especially when she wasn't doing anything -- it was a bit foolish to be that oblivious to one's surroundings. Lucky for him she was not a crocodile. Still he saw her now and he seemed quite interested in her small form.
The owlcat watched him without fear as he approached and she cocked her head to the side at such a question. It amused her; perhaps he was not so oblivious as he seemed. And with the twitch of her tail the shadow behind her changed and grew; the shape of an owlcat rose and behind it now stood the shadowed form of a great mare, not quite solid but with the same piercing eyes. Perhaps that answered the question...
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Posted: Mon May 28, 2012 10:05 pm
He watched, transfixed, as the owlcat transformed into a tall, mighty mare. Sun had no idea that she was new to her marehood and saw instead a kin who seemed to him infinitely wise.
He began, then, to laugh quite loudly. Not in ridicule, of course, because even he, so taken with his little Oathkeeper, could see that she was beautiful (although certainly mysterious - she looked almost like a ghost). "Why, I had no idea!" he exclaimed, cheerfully. "I don't think I've ever seen someone who's been chosen by the swamp before."
His mother hadn't, either. In fact she'd told him that the mares and stags he'd heard tales of in the company of other kin did not exist at all. And yet here one was, before him. "Please pardon me, then, for my presumption. When I'd thought you were a little shadowy owlcat, I'd wanted to take you back with me, to show to my - " What was Oathkeeper? Not a mate, yet. "To my friend," he concluded, a little awkwardly. "But you are as mysterious a mare as you were an owlcat."
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Posted: Tue May 29, 2012 12:53 pm
The mare smiled. It was a relief to be thought impressive and, had the owlcat remained it may have purred at such an idea. Oh she might have to play with that -- it'd be great fun to have some kin think her a pet! She tucked the idea away and returned her focus to the buck before her.
"There are few of us chosen," she told him coyly. She was solid now.
The buck's awkward stumble over what he had dubbed his friend had her realizing what he might be in need of. Strange, was it not usually does who sought blessings? Then again oddness could be appreciated. "A lady friend?" she asked, humored.
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Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 10:17 am
If Sun saw the mare's amusement, he certainly didn't show it. He started, though, at her now-solid form - how interesting it was that she could (seemingly) phase at will.
"Very much a lady friend, yes," he said, and then paused. "Say...I've heard. Well, I - my mother tells me she did just fine without any sort of blessing or help as she carried her children, but I can't help but feel...nervous." He cleared his throat, shifting to his side and almost kicking his berries away - luckily, though, he curbed his foot at the last second. It was awkward even implying anything about the activities Oathkeeper and he got up to, and he wasn't quite sure why. He'd never had any shame about discussing the subject with his mother. Not that she knew about Oath yet, either.
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Posted: Wed May 30, 2012 10:47 am
"Many does carry and lay their children without seeking a chosen to bless them," she confirmed. And there were those that struggled and young that never made it out of the sac and foals that died, but she did not say any of that. He seemed nervous enough.
She hummed, "A wise decision to ask for a blessing when you have the luck to find a Legendary." It was not a question; it was the truth and while it was not the grandest show of intelligence, it was not a bad first showing. In the rumble of her stomach and weariness of her limbs, she did not really want to riddle him or set a task. And it was her very first blessing, she could be kind.
"The children will be clever and healthy, of that you can be sure." There was a momentary wonder if that was enough, though she did not show it.
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Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 2:11 am
"I'd have called it opportunism, and not wisdom, but I - "
Sun's breath caught in his throat as the mare spoke again. Clever and healthy? That sounded like a good forecast for their children. "Thank you, ah - I don't even know your name." He spoke as though he'd just realized it. He sunk his head forward as though in a bow, and then noticed the berries on the ground again.
Would it be rude to leave now? Probably, yes.
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Posted: Thu May 31, 2012 11:03 am
Perhaps it was rude, however the mare -- in this case -- would not have agreed. For while the buck bowed his head, her form shimmered and once more the owlcat appeared. She observed him briefly before padding off, the ghostly mare following behind.
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