Welcome to Gaia! ::

As Isi rattled off a modest speech about ownership and responsibility, Josh listened intently. His mind seemed to grasp and absorb each word curiously. Nevertheless, the boy couldn’t help but feel a bit disgusted at how Isi was degrading himself. His stomach began to churn; either because of the nausea Isi’s lecture had induced or the now blistering heat. The musty haired boy seemed to have a penchant for self-pity. It wasn’t everyday that you found a boy who could put himself down so quickly. Josh had to applaud him on that. On the other hand, Josh couldn’t deny the fact that he was just like any other parent: Determined to be the best. He was the kind of person who would never see themselves as good enough; the kind of individual who blew up their little setbacks and let them outshine their positive experiences. Josh’s face remained blank and rather sullen, “You give yourself too little credit,” he sighed, “You aren’t a god or something like that. You can’t protect him from every little thing that comes your way, as much as you want to. Sometimes you just have to let him go and have him learn from his own experiences, but be there to catch him when he falls. Everyone makes mistakes that they wish they hadn’t. It‘s a part of learning…” Josh felt rather sickened that he had allowed himself to go off on a motivational rant too. Being serious was taking too much energy, but he had to maintain some kind of diplomacy in front of the crippled boy next to him. Yet, Josh hoped that Isi would take his advise to heart. Then maybe he wouldn’t be so uptight all the time.

Josh noticed quiet suction sounds as they continued through the swamp. He cursed the fact that he had worn flip-flops and cringed as his feet sank into a mixture of dirt, water, and algae. He could also see that Isi was having just as much trouble as himself. His eyes flicked over to Eiry who was already a good number of feet ahead of them. He also noticed the fact that the raevan was simply floating through everything. Josh didn’t remember him being able to do that before! The boy simply groaned as he was forced to step over another large tree root and duck under a horribly positioned tree limb.

Josh listened fastidiously for any peep from Isi; a gentle noise of conformation, a slight squeak of approval, or a subtle twitter of concurrence…

The beanie clad boy smiled tenderly as Isi began to show some sign of hospitality again. At least he was still replying to Josh. The boy was proud of that fact. The last thing he wanted was Isi fuming at him all day with an abnormally large chip on his shoulder. That would definitely prove fatal to their mission… or at least Eiry’s mission. At this point, the vivacious raevan seemed the most involved in the hunt for the Br’er rabbit.

Eiry announced their location in a barely suppressed whisper. Josh perked up and hopped behind the mint hued frei, narrowly avoiding a thick veil of jagged tree limbs. Auburn pools inquisitively scanned the lumpy and haggard terrain. The group was practically inches away from what they were seeking! If Josh were brave enough to reach out a tentative arm, he could practically touch one of the loosely packed holes.

The boy was also amazed at the diversity of the miniature mounds. They were not simply a few piles of shifted sediment. No, the rabbit dens seemed to have a pattern to their chaos. Josh’s eyes followed the bulging dirt and wayward tunnels of earth until his eyes came across the largest den in the center of the clearing. There they paused in complete astonishment. Two fluffy rabbit ears were staring right back at him. The velvety brown appendages swayed to and fro in a hypnotic metronome that seemed to entice the future guardian. “I think I see one,” The boy spoke flatly as to not risk startling his imminent prize, “How do we get it?”

Josh cringed at the thought of simply shooting at the rabbit. It would be like shooting at a fish in a barrel… or a couple, giving the shear amount of dens present. The boy denoted that it was not the best option. The other option rested even more unbearably on Josh’s mind; taking the horrendously barbaric approach of crushing every pile until they caught a rabbit. He didn’t want to turn the scenic meadow into a battle field of desecrated mounds and broken livelihoods. Josh’s hands rested thought fully on the back of his head as he contemplated just what to do. His slim fingers slid into his tidy mane of hair and slowly disappeared. He let out a solemn and droning, “Hmmmm…” An answer seemed to elude him.

“What about that tar thing?”

Josh’s eyes made an unsteady beeline from Isi’s expectant glower to the battered backpack resting on his shoulders. He has almost forgotten the one thing that he had spent hours working on. Not that it mattered really, the ‘tar baby’ had turned out a complete failure in the boy’s eyes. It was an embarrassment to say the least. Josh flung off his bag and set it against the withered bark of an adjacent tree. “It’s not anything impressive,” he bemoaned his dilapidated creation as he searched indifferently for said disappointment, “In the old tale of the Br’er rabbit, It was used to temporarily trap it. I guess it could work… if we can get it to touch the thing. Here we are!” With that, Josh ripped the pile of crudely shaped tar from his satchel; a few specs of lint covered it ungracefully. Josh held it out self-consciously to his company as if he half expected them to laugh at his blundering design.

His eyes fell past Eiry and at the set of twitching ears in the distance. They waved like sails on the breeze and shuddered defiantly at Josh. Hmm, they weren’t too far away though… Then the pieces of his ploy fell into place; an idea was brewing in the young teen’s brain. “Maybe I could just throw this at it? There is a good chance it will get trapped when it tries to get away.” Josh proved his point by holding out his palm to the ground. The pile of gunk and mush clung greedily to his hand as if terrified of the ground bellow. A very cumbersome and sticky substance indeed. However, it may prove useful…

Apparently, Josh had the will to catch a soul. Alas, he was lacking the brain power and creativity to actually for a proper plan on capturing the finicky soul. The boy took the slight scolding from Isi wholeheartedly. After all, when you solution for such a complex problem is “Throw something at it!” then you do deserved to be rebuked. The wheels in Josh’s mind began turning again. The clunky gears rotated uncertainly and seemed to create nothing. Josh was out of ideas.

The boy sucked in a harsh gasp of air and sigh restlessly at Isi, “You’re right. I should have planned this more, but I seem to be running short on id-” The boy’s sentence was cut short as a skeptical gaze fell on Eiry. Josh quirked an eyebrow and shifted his eyes between the peculiar raevan and the antsy Br’er rabbit. He gaped in astonishment as the bulky rabbit thumped gracefully out of the confines of its den. It seemed like a furry creature was less of a rabbit and more of a copycat. So their plan was working… except what was their plan?!

Josh turned hesitantly to the smaller boy beside him, "So what do we do now?" His words were carried carelessly on his breath as he spoke in a subtle whisper.

Josh’s frantic auburn pool met up with Isi’s stern gray voids. The boy was alert and took in every word that the younger boy uttered. However, the words weren’t quite as thoughtful or motivational as he had hoped. Isi had a way of making Josh feel lower than dirt; like a worthless slacker. Here he was practically allowing Eiry to catch his soul! Josh puffed up with pride and nodded. It was about time he got into the game!

Josh took hesitant steps behind Eiry as if the minty form would cover up his own vigilant movements. He knelt on the ground placing the wad of gunk on the grassy and dew speckled floor beneath them. It sunk into the earth and seemed to gurgle in protest as it suctioned snuggly between a twig and a few small rocks. The mass seemed to wiggle in waiting. Josh peered up at the frei and spoke in hesitant and gentle words, “Pst, Eiry I need you to get the rabbit to touch the tar… think you can do that for me?” The boy backed up into the obscurity of the shrubs behind the frei. Hopefully this would work…

Josh watched the rabbit intently. It was almost cute how it frolicked with Eiry and skipped about mimicking his every breath and motion with the utmost accuracy. The creature was very good at its game of copy cat. It almost pained Josh to see such an intelligent mammal become entangled in the trap so easily. Josh stomped out of his post behind a bush and made his way over to the rabbit.

The bulbous rabbit’s brown doll eyes, like two tender stones pressed firmly into its head, grew wide as it realized just what was happening. It twitched its fury brown legs which had become lodged in the mass of tar. To its utter horror, the twin appendages sunk deeper into the viscous muck. The rabbit squealed in protest and reared up to strike the pile with a kick. It hind legs were seemingly devoured by the tar as its paws disappeared into the obscure void of the ooze. Its bulky body thrashed violently and small curses seem to escape its fuzzy chops. The tar seemed to spread over the creature’s body like a black virus; its coat becoming a tangled mess of gunk and spiked hair. The only thing left unmarred by the tar was its petite head beating softly under the strain of its prison.

Josh frowned as he picked up the pathetic mass of tar and beast, making sure to avoid the creature’s mouth and little fangs. Since he was so much larger, he didn’t have to worry about becoming entrapped in the tar like the poor rabbit. He looked down into the innocent swirling orbs that were left untarnished by the sticky glop. All too suddenly, the rabbit changed its actions. The flailing stopped and its eye hooked onto Josh’s ensnaring his gaze with some unseen force. The rabbit spoke for the first time…

“Aren yo’ gwine ter help me?” Its doe eyes kept staring, unblinking.

Josh was taken aback at its heavy southern drawl. It was so enriched with the accent that he almost didn’t understand the rabbit. Josh simply stuttered unsure how to answer. Of course, the rabbit continued.

“Pu’leez help me goo’ Sir. Yo’ look like yo’ is a ‘spectubble man. I gotter git home ter me family.” It fluffy façade broke and thin streams of water began to stream down its plump cheeks. Who knew a rabbit could cry crocodile tears…

Josh felt a pang of guilt in his chest. The rabbit’s words were confusing, but at the same time gripping. The boy felt as though he was getting shredded by shame inside. His eyes were lost in the russet pools the rabbit was endowed with. However, there was a swirl of mischievousness hidden in their depths. He couldn’t fall for this! Josh frowned intensely at he rabbit and replied tersely, “NO!” His voice was resolute and unyielding. The rabbit wouldn’t be getting away anytime soon.

The rabbit’s face broke out into a glare of frustration. Well, if being nice didn’t cut it. Then he would be mean…

“Why yo’ er a stuck up tramp!!! `Ef you don't lemme loose, I'll knock you one!”

Its shrill cries pierced Josh’s ears. He felt the unrelenting urge to shut the creature up… so he did. He smeared some of the tar across the rabbit’s pristine muzzle thoroughly stopping any noise from escaping its pompous mouth, saving for a few moans of anger. Josh looked from Isi to Eiry with a large grin adorning his face, “Why I think we just caught a soul…”

Josh saw many emotions streak across Eiry’s childish visage: curiosity, frustration, pride then contentment. Apparently, the frei was pleased with his accomplishment. It was written all over the grin embellishing his ghostly and ashen features. He was a very unique raevan indeed. To be honest, Josh would say that to anyone who had just helped him acquire a soul. He chimed behind Eiry, “Excellent job!” He hoped that this statement would give a little more boost to the floating boy’s gratification. Perhaps, Eiry needed a pick me up after a long day trekking through a swamp. Heavens, Josh knew that he needed one.

Josh tucked the struggling mass of tar and rabbit snuggly in the contour of his elbow. Hopefully, this would keep mess to a minimum. He reached to the meadow’s floor and retrieved his backpack. He slung it flippantly over the shoulder of his free arm. Josh kept a steady pace at Isi’s side. He remained quiet for most of the way out of the swamp. The boy was still awe struck and basking in the euphoria of actually catching his future raevan’s soul. He looked at Isi with a chipper smile, “Whenever my raevan is born. They’ll have to meet Eiry. You raised him to be a wonderful boy.” The boy meant it as a compliment to Eiry and as a sentiment to Isi’s parenting. The boy noticed that the rabbit's struggling seemed to be growing weaker. He looked down at the lethargic creature. Perhaps, it was tired like the rest of them.

Once they arrived at their original location, somewhere in a large field perfumed with the sensual aroma of flowers, Josh began to separate from the group that they had formed. As Isi and Eiry made their way back to their home, Josh branched off in a different direction entirely. He piped up at the crippled boy, “I’ll be heading back to my car then.” It was true. He had left his rutty truck somewhere along the parameter of the Delaran residence. Now it was his mission to find it. It would prove not to be too difficult of a task, given the fact that the he had made a slight path when he had originally trekked through the floral rich field. He followed the still fresh impression in the grass and made his own way back home. Ever hopeful of when he would meet aloof Isi and animated Eiry again…