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Prompt: Don't Chicken Out:
We've all heard it before. "Don't be a chicken. As if facing your fears was the most natural and easy thing in the world (spoiler: that's a hard no). This month we'd love to see one of your shyest, most reserved and reluctant soquili have to face up to a challenge by accident or on purpose. Is your soquili afraid to confess their love to a certain someone? Do jellyfish make them tremble in fear so much that it keeps them from the water? Is there an adversary that needs standing up to? This month, we want you to take a stand against something. The possibilities are endless and we're eager to see what you come up with! Make us root for your soquili, and have a chance at---you guessed it!---a chicken! If you're brave enough to make the word count alone or by taking a friend, someone else will likely follow you home this month.
We've all heard it before. "Don't be a chicken. As if facing your fears was the most natural and easy thing in the world (spoiler: that's a hard no). This month we'd love to see one of your shyest, most reserved and reluctant soquili have to face up to a challenge by accident or on purpose. Is your soquili afraid to confess their love to a certain someone? Do jellyfish make them tremble in fear so much that it keeps them from the water? Is there an adversary that needs standing up to? This month, we want you to take a stand against something. The possibilities are endless and we're eager to see what you come up with! Make us root for your soquili, and have a chance at---you guessed it!---a chicken! If you're brave enough to make the word count alone or by taking a friend, someone else will likely follow you home this month.
Wordcount - 1823Porty was busy, she could do this. Porty was busy, she could do this.
....
Blythe absolutely could not 'do this'.
Portabello had told his twin sister he'd be departing for a day or two to generally check out the Soquili in the area they were in, and that she'd need to look after herself -- and while looking after herself was usually quite easy for Blythe, they didn't typically go through heavily occupied areas, per se. They'd sideglance them, but enter then? Portabello was usually far more sensitive to his sister's fears and anxieties to do that, the diminutive mare being a quiet, shy, and fearful, flighty little creature on her normal days -- but on good days with her twin present she could be cheerful and pleasant; however, in this moment, she was not left in a good scenario for her to be couragious and pleasant. No, the mare was dead in the middle of unavoidably populated lands and Blythe had to suck up all one ounce of courage she had....
To get something to eat. Her twin brother had apologized profusely, but she was indeed forced to try braving strangers just to feed herself. There wasn't even a herd nearby. It was a bloody forest. And she liked forests! The pairt blended in to them well, minus their mushrooms, and normally it wasn't so busy, but this forest lie close to a swamp, and on top of strangers... What if there were Shifters? Shifters! A Shifter would eat her! The mere idea made her start tyrembling, but unfortunately, Blythe needed to eat.
The marte's eyes peered at the open spacve filled with Soquili milling about and shook her head. No, she couldn't go into that crowd, not alone. Social Anxiety prohibited her from daring by herself, and so the gentle mare turned and crept for the swamps. This area was quieter, and calmer, and even if the grasses might not be as good it was functional, and the mare studied her options before dipping her snout in the water to pluck some near-shore water plants when a voice interrupted her, low, calm, if... Grouchy.
"Huh. Not normal for some outsider to enter my territory."
Bylthe's head shot to look aroiund before what seemed like a log shifted, eyes looking up as it shook a bit, and Blythe began to back away from the predator before it transformed from an alligator... Into a Soquili, and Blythe froze at the sight of the Shifter, not sighting the charm on her forehead even as the Shifter mare shook herself off, visibly unphased before turning a cool look on Blythe, who, at this point, was terrified, frozen in place as the massive Gatorshifter ambled over and stuck her face in Blythe's analyutically.
"Rex. If you're looking for something you plant eaters find palateable, you'd do better in the forest with the other folk. Y'know. Other Soquili?" Rex wasn't lashing out -- she was just surprised someone not local was sniffing in Obviously Infested Waters, as she saw it. Was the mare sick? Rex hoped not. She didn't feel like dealing with a Soquili sick in her space, she'd have to play ferryman and find one of the Woads to help her. However, the tiny mare was frozen in fear, and Rex made a thoughtful face a moment. Oh, right, she was a giant intimidating Shifter, and the charm that BLASTED ANGENIIIIII had left her with was bloody subtle. Rex had to remember that sometimes, and the crocodilian mare arched a brow, looked at her a moment longer, and raised a foot to nudghe her. "Hello?"
Blythe reacted immediately, jumping three feet back, it seemed, before huddling, making small, frightyened noises more like a foal than a grown mare, and again Rex's brow arched. Well great. She had a chicken on her claws. Fantastic. Babysitting.
"...You are aware if I wanted to eat you by now I would right? You were kind of in easy reach." Rex drawled. Blythe, for her part, drew back even more, eyes wide in fear as Rex frowned, finally plodding closer. "Huh. You really are a chicken."
"Please don't kill me." Bythe whimpered at last, closing her eyes and huddling low. "I just wanted something to eat. Pleaser don't hurt me... Please..." Blythe huddled, and again Rex stared.
"Seriously? You plant-eaters wouldn't like the plants in my area. Some complaint about the taste being muddy or something. Unless it's some Mer, Seathi, or kelpi. You don't look fishy enough though. Why don't you go try the forest?" Rex wasn't letting up and Blythe's eyes were still wide in terror, small body lowered to the ground as she trembled.
"But there's so many other Soquili there..." Blythe offered feebly. Rex eyed her with one eye and then the other, the Shifter trying to figure the small creature out on the spot. Rex eyed her this way and that for several minutes, considering her options. She supposed she could wash her claws of it and pawn the coward off on Gavin -- or Itzal! Itzal would be entertaining to watch with a tiny coward. The mare might be herd-loyal but she was terrifying as well, and more than happy protecting her herd while trying to ensure the weird gods she worshipped kept the lands fertile. That interaction might be fun -- oh, but the mare was out collecting herbs for... Stars knew what. Gavin might be less terrifying, but the young Stallion? Was also a stallion in a mare's skin. The confusion might be hella entertaining, but at the end of the day Gavin would probably be dull so Rex decided not to badger him. That meant she had to comntend with a tiny mare that seemed convinced she was the devil, because she didn't see her charm. Wait, did the marte know what a chartm was? Oh sodding-- did Rex have to explain? Immediately her nose wringkled, earning a frightened whimper from Blythe before Rex looked down, staring a moment.
"D' you even know what charms are, runt?" If Rex had to explain, she swore to the gods, she was going to scream. Or bellow. A bellow would be fun aty least.
"N-no ma'am." Blythe responded quietly. Immediately Rex shut her eyes in frustration, and gave a loud, crocodilian bellow in frustration. The area vibrated and Blythe startled, backing away in fear before Rex hissed, and shook her head, lowering it so the charm was in Blythe's face, preventing escape. "TThe rock you can barely see--" Rex began -- to her, it seemed like a rock. "-- is made by an Angeni. It means I'm not bloody going to eat you." Rex snapped her head back up, grumbling as Blythe blinked. The faint gleam of the charm was impossible to miss, but Blyther was still perified.
Today was terrible! She just wanted to eat, and she'd upset a Shifter, Porty wasn't here, and she was so scared and - and - Blyther began to cry pitifully. Rex regarded her a moment unsympathetically. She didn't know how to handle something this scared, so she finally sighed slowly, made a face, and moved, snorting in the weeping mare's face with a distinct air of irritation.
"You stop that. Don't be a chicken." Rex scolded. "I mean, really. This kind of thing is exactly why thje uncharmed sodders wouldn't hesitate to eat you." Rex groused, and all Blythe did was cry more. Rex couldn't roll her eyes hard enough, huffing gruffly before headbutting her roughly. "Stop that. Seriously. You're scaring the prey away."
"I..I...I don't.... I..." Blythe couldn't form the words and Rex made a noise of frustration.
"You're being noisy and annoying. Seriously. Stop it. I'm not going to kill you." Rex furrowed her brows, the pelt's ridges matching before the mare moved, nosing Blythe upright on her hooves, before snorting. "Don't be such a chicken, the world's not out to get you."
"But I'm scared!" Blythe protested. Rex eyed her agasin.
"Most of you plant-eaters get scared.. There's folk who'd think ytou're terrifyin'. Seriously, you are such a chicken." Rex shook her head. "How do you exist?"
"N...Normally I'm with my twin brother...." Blythe admitted. "He's the brave one."
"Oh, I see." That did make sense. Rex still wasn't feeling much sympathy though. "And obviously he thinks you can handle a few plant eaters. But instead you entered a shifter's territory. Brilliantly done."
Was... Was Rex mocking hert? Blythe wanted to cry again, but at best she could muster was a teary angry look. This elicted a look of delight from Rex. She had SOME spunk! rex liked spunk! This was why she even talked to Gavin and his pet mouse.
"Oh, are you mad at me?" Rex asked. "Oh how terrifying, a tiny little thing like you. So scary." Rex was laughing in amusement, even when Blythe finally lashed out in her upset and kicked her. Rex fell on her side, but she was laughing hard, and for a moment Blythe looked stunned with herself. Had she.... Had she just kicked a Shifter? Even a so-called Charmed shifter? She kicked a Shifter! For a moment, Blythe wasn't sure how to process this information, however Rex rose still chortling mirthfully, before grinning, rows of sharp teeth bared in amusement.
"Oh, good, even a chicken can fight back. Good. Do that." Rex praised. Blythe... Blinked, still numb.
"What? You aren't...." Bluthe was so confused, but Rex shook her head.
"No. I'm fine with it. Even other alligators bite. I like spunk. Spunk is more fun than sobbing into nothing becvause the world is out to get you." Rex shrugged a shoulder, Blythe blinking numbly again. Rex... Wasn't angry? .... What? Blythe made a confused whicker before blinking again at Rex, head tilting as fear turned to curiousity at last. Rex caught her look, however, and shook her head.
"Naqh. Sorry. Most Shifters would be annoyed. I prefer being kicked over cryin'. I mean. Gator. We don't do some things so good. Or maybe it's just me? Eh." A half-shrug, before Rex approached. "It still takes a lot of gall to kick a Shifter. So how's this. I'll take you into the good spot myself. Y'know. Keep an eye on things." Rex offered. Blythe blinked, before realizing Rex was trying to be friendly, and looked thoughtful before nodding slowly.
"Okay. Uhm... Blythe." The mare introduced finally, still amazed she'd even kicked the larger mare. Rex blinked, visibly impressed by her name, and nodded, moving beside the tiny mare in a friendly manner.
"Huh. That's a nice name. Blythe. Well come on, don't need you dying of fright like a rabbit now and kicking me is adventure enough. Come on, then. I'll... Maybe there'll be rabbits. Little pains are avoiding the water these days anyhow and frog is revolting[." Rex's long alligator tail swayed behind her as the charmed pureshifter moved to walk with Blythe towards the meadows where most other Soquili were, and Blythe couldn't help but finally smile, just a little, to herself. She.. She braved a Shifter, and... Did she make a friend?... Maybe. And a friend... That sounded not scary at all.