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 Posted: Fri Oct 15, 2010 12:44 pm
 Once he finally came to step in stride next to his father, Junior's demeanor had changed. Being with his family brought out the goofy, funnier side of his personality -- they were the only ponies in the pasture he felt comfortable enough with to be himself around. But when it came to one of those family members possibly being in danger, Junior was all business.
When Yuuki bent to sniff at the ground, Junior stood next to him to look through the trees surrounding the edges of their pasture. It was dense and dark, thick tree trunks covering every inch of the land. That seemed to be the only place Junior could think of for Imani to go, even if their father warned them of what could happen there after dark.
"Well," he started off, his voice a little distant as he tried to think. "When we were still young," prefacing it, so hopefully Yuuki wouldn't get angry. "Leila, Imani and I found a little meadow in the.. middle of the forest when we were in there exploring one time." Pausing, he cast his eyes sideways over towards his father. "That's all I can think of, though. I swear that was the only time we were in the woods."
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Posted: Fri Oct 15, 2010 4:31 pm
 Narrowing his eyes at Junior for a moment, he mumbled quietly, his eyes searching the area absently for any signs that another pony came this way.
"Kids will be kids I suppose.. You're all lucky you didn't get hurt though, or worse."
Trotting forward a few feet, he leaned his head back towards the sky, sniffing the air again, picking up not the scent he was looking for, but a familiar one all the same. "This way!"
He took off again, heading right into the forest this time, bobbing and weaving his way around the branches and thick trunks of the trees, pausing ever now and then to sniff the ground to make sure he was on the right track.
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Posted: Fri Oct 15, 2010 5:11 pm
Heaving a sigh of relief, Junior nodded enthusiastically towards his father. Back then, he and his sisters had no idea of what kind of danger they could find in the forest. But as they got older, and heard the story (many, many times!) about how their parents had originally met... it was far too ingrained in, at least, Junior's head to set hoof inside the woods alone now. Thankfully, Yuuki wasn't angry!
"It's probably not far from here, I bet. Maybe.." Squinting a little, he looked again towards the woods. "...maybe a hundred yards, or so.."
Blinking as his father ran off again, Junior ducked his head and ran alongside of him. His legs moved him quickly, following his father's direction. Junior didn't think they were heading to the secret meadow, because how would his father know where it was? But where ever they were going.. Yuuki seemed to know exactly the way.
 With her mouth full of flower stems, Flossy wove her way around several tree trunks. Her magenta and black tail waved lazily behind her and she was humming, softly, to herself as she moved.
It was a wonder that flowers could grow underneath the canopy of trees. But the light purple foamflowers she held grew beautifully in the shade. They'd look lovely in a vase, sitting in the window in the kitchen.
Her humming stopped though, and rather abruptly at that, when she heard the rough stampede of hooves on the ground. And coming in her direction, no less. Both of Flossy's bright orange eyes went wide as she saw two familiar ponies come charging through the trees.
"Dad!" she called out, all her flowers falling out of her mouth to settle on the ground at her hooves. "And.." Squintsquint. "Junior!!"
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Posted: Fri Oct 15, 2010 6:01 pm
Straight ahead, the familiar face he was looking for was standing in front of him, his hooves hitting heavy against the forest floor finally skidded to a stop and he trotted over quickly to lean in and nuzzle Flossy gently.
"Are you alright?! Is Imani with you?!" He spoke quickly, his voice giving off just a hint of worry and he pulled back to look her over, making sure she had no injuries.
"What are you doing all the way out here? How many times have I told you not to come out here by yourself?"
He furrowed his brows, staring at Flossy sternly.
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Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2010 12:25 am
Flossy was... perplexed. She leaned into her father's nuzzling and returned it in kind, ignoring the fact that Yuuki's hooves were trampling her freshly picked flowers. Her head cocked a bit and she peered between her father and her brother, voicing her confusion.
"Yeah, I'm fine!" she replied to Yuuki, nudging his neck with her nose in an attempt to be playful. "Of course I am.... why wouldn't I be? I was just picking flowers, that's all."
And Imani? Why the very specific question? Her head then turned towards Junior as he came up beside Yuuki, looking her brother over to try and figure out exactly what these two were referring to. "What about Imani?"
"Heya Floss," Junior started, stepping around Yuuki to lean closer to his sister. "You haven't seen Imani around, have you?" Then, in a more gentle voice, he spoke on after giving Flossy a small nuzzle of his own. "No one has seen her for a while."
Trying her best to think back, Flossy's eyes closed. When had been the last time she saw Imani?
Jasper, she remembered, had been in the kitchen. Sneaking pieces of peach cobbler from the pan cooling on the counter (as usual). Her father had been out, patrolling the pasture gate... it must have been night time. Her mother and Leila were going through one of Peophynnia's cook books in a room off the hall, discussing whether chocolate cupcakes or vanilla cupcakes were better to make to welcome a few new ponies to the pasture. She hadn't seen Junior that evening, perhaps he'd been gone already. Maybe on his way back? And Flossy, she'd been laying on the floor with her mother and sister, listening to them talk in between dozing off.
Imani... had been asleep in the next room. When Flossy had headed off to bed, very late at night, Imani had been asleep. But when had that been?
"The last time I saw her was a few nights ago," she replied in a troubled voice, after a long moment of thinking. "She was asleep." Why had it not occurred to anyone until now that she was missing? Why hadn't it occurred to her that she hadn't seen her sister around since then!? "I didn't even see her leave..."
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Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2010 6:27 pm
Yuuki was at a loss for where Imani could be, how careless on his part for such a thing to happen. He hung his head in frustration, closing his eyes.
"This is all my fault.. I should have been watching her more closely."
Kicking his front hooves against the grass absently, he lifted his head after a few moments, looking around. "It would take to long to search this entire area, she could be anywhere by now."
Yuuki trotted forward slowly, combing the ground, looking around trees, searching for any sign that Imani had been here and was coming up with nothing. It was like she had just vanished into thin air..
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Posted: Sun Oct 17, 2010 2:11 pm
Watching her father, Flossy frowned. Now she, too, was worried about Imani. If Yuuki was at a loss as to where to find her, who else better would there be? Flossy didn't know any pony she would depend on more than Yuuki to find her if she was lost.
"It's not your fault," she said to him, quietly. Her hooves took careful steps around to come up beside Yuuki's flank and she leaned against him. "She'll come back."
Or at least, Flossy hoped her sister would come back. Their family was strong and loving, each of her siblings had a special place in their home pasture. Just thinking about what it would do to her father... or oh, especially to Dolci... if Imani was lost for an extended period of time... made Flossy frown with worry further.
Kicking a bit at the ground again, Junior grumbled a little to himself. His dad should be happy right now, playing with his three little ponies (that Flossy didn't even know about yet!) and having a good time. His family as a whole should be carefree and excited! The good news he'd brought home seemed to be pushed off to the side, and while that bothered him a bit, the fact that what should be exciting was now worrying was what bothered him the most.
Keeping his eyes down, Junior walked a little bit away from his sister and father. He wished inwardly that he could figure it all out and find his sister for Yuuki. Imani was somewhat.. naive and very innocent when it came to certain things. Being out on her own for as many days as they could figure... didn't seem like something she would do. She wasn't stupid, after all. Imani would know, wouldn't she, when she was getting in over her head?
But then something on the ground caught Junior's eye. Where he'd laid his front hoof down on the dirt, it settled almost perfectly into.... into..... "A hoof print." His head bent further and he sniffed at the ground. It didn't smell like Imani, but the scent was familiar all the same. A pony from their pasture, no doubt, but Junior couldn't pinpoint which one. And all four prints headed forward, in a straight line, moving north through the forest. Towards where, Junior knew, the large body of water that no pony was allowed. A few yards ahead of him, following the tracks, a peach hued feather laid on the ground. It was trampled into the dirt next to one of the hoof prints. Where had he seen that color before...?
"Hey Dad... come look at this. Do you recognize the scent here on these prints?"
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Posted: Tue Oct 19, 2010 5:47 am
Yuuki raised a brow when Junior spoke and he trotted over quickly, examining the ground to look over the prints that were left in the dirt. Lowering his head to sniff at them quickly, he was thankful that he had taken the time to get to know some of the ponies that were from Dolci's pasture.
"Lyra.. These are hers, the feather too." Feeling a small bit of relief that they had perhaps found some sort of clue as to where Imani went, he turned to look at the direction the prints were heading in.
The ocean.. but why? Most ponies knew that it was forbidden, a dare perhaps? He could see Imani getting herself into some kind of trouble like that. Taking a deep breath, he took a moment to decide what to do, mumbling quietly. "To the ocean it is.." He started to walk forward slowly, not looking forward to this, but what choice was there.. If Imani was hurt..
He shook his head quickly, waiting for the other two ponies to catch up. "Did you tell your sister about your good news Junior? I'm sure she'd like to know."
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Posted: Tue Oct 19, 2010 12:51 pm
"Lyra?" Which pony was that again? Junior's eyes closed for a moment, trying to place the name to the pony.
Hearing the name, and then thinking back to realize the peach feather was from a wing, the image popped into his head almost an instant later. Lyra wasn't the sweetest pony in their pasture, but Junior knew she was cunning. Smart. And would do whatever she pleased if an idea occurred to her...
So what did that have to do with Imani? Did Lyra get herself into trouble and Imani went after her, or even worse.. did Lyra lure his sister to the water? That's where the tracks were headed, but Junior didn't figure a winged pony would be so interested in the ocean...
He trotted off after his father and then blinked, quickly, when Yuuki mentioned his news. "Oh that's right," he started off. "She doesn't know.."
Turning his head to peer behind him at Flossy, Junior's muzzle flashed with a wide grin. "So, Floss! Guess who Seraphim blessed with three little ponies..."
Leaving her flowers behind, Flossy kicked up her legs and galloped on, following her brother and her father. Those hoof prints had to be a clue, or else Yuuki would have dismissed it. And there was no way on Kolum's green earth that she would miss helping to find her sister!
She came up beside Junior's flank when he spoke to her, looking at him with a puzzled expression on her face. "A guessing game?" Well, without any clues, she didn't have much to work with...
Unless....
"OhmygoshJunior, is it you?!" Both eyes orange eyes went wide and she ducked her head to nudge it against Junior's rump. "Why didn't you say so!? That's so exciting!! Are they back at home?" But most importantly.... "I want to see them!" And her gaze glazed over, filling her with an excited giddiness to see her new nieces and nephews.
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Posted: Fri Oct 22, 2010 6:49 am
Yuuki slowed to a stop, looking back at Junior and Flossy for a moment before speaking quietly.
"Flossy.. before we go on, I think it would be best for you to go back to the pasture. I don't know what will be awaiting us..where we are going and I don't want anything to happen to you. I also think your mother could use help looking after the little ones.."
He walked over to lean in, nuzzling her gently. "I don't know what I would do if something were to happen to you, too." He turned to look over at Junior, smiling slightly before lifting his head to speak to him.
"I know you can take care of yourself, but you are free to return with her. You have little ones you are responsible for now."
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Posted: Fri Oct 22, 2010 11:10 am
And now... Flossy was very torn between two options. She could stay, help find her sister (and maybe give Imani a piece of her mind about getting herself lost like this!), and keep her brother and father company while they looked for her. Flossy knew she wasn't needed in the search, because she wasn't as adept at scent tracking the way Yuuki is, but she wanted to be there all the same. For moral support!
But heading back to their home pasture sounded appealing, too. Junior's babies were there, after all. She could only imagine what the three little darlings might look like... partly black and pink, she assumed, since they were Junior's offspring after all. They were probably so small and so cute, and even if their pasture seemed to be bursting with babies lately.. these were her nieces and nephews! She wanted to see them, desperately.
Once Yuuki moved over and nuzzled her, she realized it would probably be easiest on him if she went back. Where she was safe, and where he didn't have to worry about her. So she nodded a bit and leaned against him.
"All right, I'll go home." Then she turned, her eyes narrowed as she looked between the two males. "Promise me, you'll both be careful."
"We'll be okay, Flossy," Junior replied. He had faith that he and Yuuki would somehow stumble upon Imani and that they'd be dragging her home by sunset. Or at least, he wouldn't let himself think otherwise. "We'll find her and be back before you know it."
Junior kept his grin on and shifted to press his nose to the end of Flossy's muzzle, speaking to her quietly. "You be careful too on your way back. But mom is probably going nuts. Jasper's there, but... well. He's Jasper." Junior paused, chuckling to himself. "I'd bet he's asleep while the babies bounce all over him."
Then nudging his sister with his muzzle, he nodded back to her. "They are really cute," he went on, proudly. "I'm sure you're gonna love 'em." And at that, he watched Flossy's entire face light up with excitement, and he kept his gaze on her as she turned and trotted back off into the forest.
Once she was just a pink blip on the horizon, Junior spoke lightly to Yuuki. "The ponies will be okay with mom and Flossy, I wanna help you find Imani first before going back."
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 12:58 am
After saying his goodbye to Flossy, Yuuki waited for Junior to say goodbye as well and when she was well on her way, he continued on to follow the path that Lyra had left behind.
"I'm not sure how far I should follow this.. I have a very uneasy feeling."
Pausing, he ducked his head down to sniff the ground, spotting another peach colored feather a few feet ahead of them At least he was still going the right way. He turned to look at Junior, speaking quietly as they walked side by side.
"Your little ones sure are something. I'm proud of you.." He nodded once, nudging Juniors side gently with his shoulder.
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 1:24 am
Walking alongside Yuuki, Junior was quiet while his father tracked Lyra's prints. They were in a straight line, headed right through the trees, and the only thing Junior could think of that was in this direction was.. the ocean.
That huge body of water was forbidden to ponies, Junior knew that for sure. He wouldn't put it past Lyra to go off exploring there, forbidden fruit and all, but water and feathers did not mix. And the few times he'd seen Lyra around the pasture, she seemed rather keen on her large wings. It seemed logical that she might get curious and go off to investigate, but it seemed illogical on the other hoof for her to want to be near the water. The whole thing both made sense and didn't make sense all at once. And how did Imani fit in there?
"It's odd," he replied after a moment, thinking aloud. "There's not anything else this way, right? Other than the ocean?"
But his thoughts paused momentarily when his father nudged against his side. "Thanks, Dad." Junior's head turned towards Yuuki and he grinned wide, bumping the older pony back gently with his own shoulder. "They are, aren't they? I was sorta confused at first about it, but I'm glad Seraphim blessed me with 'em."
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 1:34 am
"Your mother and I were confused at first, too. Especially since it had never been done before, we really didn't know what to expect."
Yuuki stared head, the trees were beginning to thin slightly the farther they walker and he could smell the salt in the air as they neared closer to their destination. "Mm.. The ocean, yes."
He nodded again, his hooves slowing their pace as he thought to himself. He wasn't quite sure what he was expecting to find and what if they found nothing at all? Where would they go from there.. and would there be consequences from Seraphim for venturing out this far?
"I don't know what I'll do if we don't find her."
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 2:05 am
Grinning even wider as Yuuki replied, Junior puffed out his chest a little bit. It was something he was quite proud of, being one of the first ponies Seraphim blessed on two parents. Made him and his brother and his sisters unique and special, though they were the first of many.... many orbs to come later.
His pride deflated though, and rather quickly at that, when Yuuki went on. He watched his father speak and his obnoxious grinning faded slowly into a deep frown. Junior had never seen his father this worried before, especially about one of his siblings. Truthfully, all five of them were usually glued to the pasture, but it wasn't uncommon for them to wander off for a while. That's how Junior had encountered Seraphim with his orbs, of course. But for it to worry Yuuki in this way, it in turn made Junior's insides twist up.
"I don't know what you'll do either, 'cause we are gonna find her," he said quietly, but in a confident tone of voice. Or at least, as confident as he could muster. "Don't think about it, she'll be up past the trees. You'll see."
Then he ducked his head and butted his forehead against the side of Yuuki's neck. Hoping he could lighten the mood, he mumbled a quick, "You're it," before galloping on past his father. Moving fast, but not too fast, and keeping his eyes on Lyra's tracks in the soft ground.
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