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 Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2013 6:02 pm
“Well this is a lovely haul,” Embry said cheerfully into the peaceful silence as she and Boni broke through the undergrowth and into the clear area in front of his den, her tail wrapped several times around a thick bundle of pine boughs. The needles poked her tail a bit uncomfortably, but they released a lovely musky-sweet scent into the air and she knew from experience they made a cushy place to sleep.
As soon as they reached Boni’s little cave she didn’t stop like she had with her last bundle; she carefully marched over her neatly arranged pebbles, bringing the boughs into the den and carefully disengaging her tail. She thumped it against the stone floor to get rid of that tingly sensation from holding onto something so tightly for so long, then began spreading the boughs on the cold stone floor as evenly as she could. “When do we start adding the herbs,” she asked, hearing her mate enter in the den behind her.
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Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2013 6:19 pm
“I’m going to add half the rosemary and mint on top of the first layer, then we’re going to build two layers of boughs over that,” Boni said, feeling his way over what Embry had laid down and carefully adding the herbs as he spoke. “Then the rest of the rosemary and mint. We layer the pine boughs on then until we have enough left for one layer. Then I’ve got some fleawort we can put down to keep away pests, then the last layer of boughs.”
He gave one of his tiny smiles; though he wasn’t even facing in Embry’s direction, his ears were twitching and following her actions. “Between the fleawort and the rosemary that should keep away any crawlies. The oils from them work through the bedding and coat the fur, which makes trips through the forest a lot more pleasant as well.” Midges, in particular, had been his worst enemy until he learned how to repel the worst of them.
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Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2013 6:45 pm
Written by Yushika Embry cast a glance towards him, having briefly drifted in thought. She had gone back to before, when he had carelessly joked of becoming ill. Of course it was just a joke and he had aplogized, yet... The thought worried her. What if he did become ill and it was serious? How would she know while she was all the way back home? What if when she came to visit he was gravely ill? It frightened her at times to admit that sometimes she won't be there to help him. Not only that, but she did wish she could see Boni more.... Though she did enjoy the time they spent together.
"Alrighty!" She chirped, having actually listened to him speak while thinking. She shivered at the mention of crawlies, deciding to remember the information he was giving for when she returned home. She'd need to make sure the dens were just as clean there! Again, she smiled at her mate despite him being able to see, tail wagging gently. "You sure know alot~"
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Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2013 6:46 pm
Boni chuckled quietly at that as he finished scattering about the herbs. “Well, I’ve had a lot of practice,” at it,” he said, slowly walking back to the entrance of the den to gather more boughs for layering. “My father…. I won’t say that he didn’t care about me, but I think he was lost too far in mourning for the longest time to do anything other than the bare minimum to keep me alive.”
It was hard to properly explain his father to others, sometimes. A lot of the things he had to say made his father seemed absent, at best, and downright negligent at worst. Perhaps Boni just didn’t have enough words to convey what the man who’d raised him had been like. How he’d bring a variety and plants to him, teaching him by scent, touch, and occasionally by taste what the forest held and what was safe. By setting him on game trails and helping him stay on the right path until he’d learned to track and hunt on his own, something his father had been unfailingly patient at.
That strong, silent, comforting presence that appeared out of nowhere when Boni got lost or when he found himself in danger.
Yes, Boni had had to fight for every scrap of learning and knowledge he had with experience as his main teacher, but his father had been right behind him the whole way, guiding him until he was certain his son would survive on his own. It saddened him to this day that he didn’t know whether his father was alive or not…
“Compared to some of the healers in your tribe though, I’m sure my knowledge is barely basic,” he said lightly, pulling his mind back to the present and away from a suddenly heavy heart. “I’m sure even you could teach me a thing or two I’ve never known.”
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Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2013 7:06 pm
Written by Yushika She watched her mate quietly as he spoke, and even when he suddenly stopped and seemd to vanish for a short period of time. When he came back and began to speak once more a smile crossed her face, a habit she could not drop even if she wished to, and eyed him. She moved to gather the bough but stopped, turning and padding up to her mate. She nipped under his chin, gently, and nuzzled the spot where his neck curved. smiling once again.
"I'm sure you'll learn more as I do!" She already planned on trying to learn more about healing and herbs, she wouldn't mind teaching him as she went. She looked up quietly, wondering if to touch upon the subject of his father. She wanted to, but she was worried. Worried to over step, or even hurt her mate. He was strong, yes, but she wasn't sure what the topic of his father did to him. He had faltered before... it was obviously a hard topic... Yet he shared it with her. Gently licking his cheek, the woman flicked her tail around her mates, head tilting. "I'm sure he loved you... I know if I lost you I'd be really sad, too. I bet he was a great man, just like you."
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Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2013 7:07 pm
Boni set the boughs down that he’d brought in for a moment to return his mate’s nuzzle. While he wasn’t normally against touching, for the most part he also didn’t like it when others were overly touchy with it. It was slightly disorienting and got in the way of the other things he tried picking up. Probably because he was so alone all the time and thus not used to being touched. With Embry, though…
He knew it wasn’t that he was just getting used to it, because he still shied away from being in groups whenever he went to visit Embry down at her tribe. They were lovely people there, one and all, but he preferred handling others in ones or twos.
No, it was Embry’s touch and hers alone that he’d come to love, even crave. That thought, combined with Embry’s words, brought something else to the fore of his mind.
“He wasn’t the same after Mother died,” Boni spoke quietly. He struggled to find words. “She was dead before I even hatched, so it’s not like I knew either her or my father while she was alive, but… I could feel it. Sometimes, when he’d get really quiet, it was like I could feel he wasn’t complete. Like Mother took a piece of him when she died.”
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Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2013 7:17 pm
Written by Yushika His words weighed heavy on her, ears flipping back. What would she do if Boni.... no. She didn't want to think about it. Yet, she couldn't help it. The conversation had become this, something darker and frightening, and it scared her. Perhaps if he lived closer it wouldn't. Perhaps, if she knew he was always safe she wouldn't feel her heart pounding within her chest. The idea that his father had lost his mate... the idea that if she lost him she knew she wouldn't be the same... If Boni wasn't here, in a place she couldn't always visit, maybe then she'd calm.
The sweet vixen had always worried, yet recently it had gotten worse. Her eyes flicked to look at him, head tilting gently. What could she do? Was she being selfish for worrying? She eyed her mate, wondering how his father had felt. Wondering how it was like to grow up knowing these things. Yet, her mate had grown up strong. He obviously still loved his father despite the circumstances. He hadn't let it bring him down. It was things like this that made her heart surge with pride when she viewed Boni.
"Thank you. For telling me about your father."
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Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2013 7:27 pm
Boni felt a small, sad smile on his lips, covering it by nuzzling Embry on the back of her neck and lower part of her head. “You’re welcome,” he replied simply, then turned to the forgotten boughs he’d brought in and began distributing them around the floor, trying to make it as even as possible, lifting his paws carefully with each step so he didn’t scatter the herbs he’d just placed.
He wondered a little what Embry’s parents had been like. They must have been amazing people, to create so sweet and caring a vixen as she. Though mildly curious, he didn’t ask. It was alright to ask questions when the person brought up the information themselves, but to dredge up something that might be private like it was some form of entertainment the asker had a right to was just rude. They had their whole lives, and Embry would tell him, or not, on her own.
“So how’s the tribe doing,” Boni inquired as he moved about. “It’s been some time since my last visit. Nearly two months, now.”
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Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2013 7:44 pm
Written by Yushika Helping him even out the bough, she stayed quiet, relishing in the peaceful quiet for now. Unlike her mate she was not as careful at first, however with help from her tail she managed to get her part done, stepping back and turning to see if he had the fleawort. Her ears pricked up at the question, biting her bottom lip in thought before smiling wide, tail wagging carefully away from the bed.
"It's okay!" She loved talking about her tribe, though right now wasn't such a great time for it. "Um." She needed to space out what she wanted to say, realizing she had plenty and almost too much. Besides, gossip was bad, she didn't want to start spilling everything out and then realizing it would be hurtful to her fellow tribe-mates, would she? "Amy is happier." She finally said, tail wagging gently. "Um. Tenma is, too. He returned to the tribe and recently Champagne has been seen nearby. She may return to us! Elder Kithara.... she had a falling out briefly with her mate and we were worried. But everything is alright now. We're just trying to get back on our feet again, though it's a little difficult at the moment since a few members have gone missing."
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Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2013 7:52 pm
Boni had been in the processing of spreading the second half of the rosemary and mint over the third layer of pine boughs. Embry’s last sentence made him stop though, and his ears swiveled towards the sound of her voice with intent interest. “Gone missing,” he repeated, quiet voice filled with worry. Was it anyone he knew? Granted he didn’t even know a half dozen of the tribe members personally, but he recognized a goodly amount just by their names from Embry’s stories on tribe life.
“Like they appear to have left the tribe, or…” he asked, trailing off and letting the silence ask the rest of the question that was too horrible a thought for him to put into words. He’d thought Embry being a part of a tribe, a peaceful healing tribe at that, would be safe. Predators rarely attacked Modifoxes, already large creatures themselves; to attack a group of foxes, almost unheard of.
He gathered up the rest of the pine boughs, setting out enough for a single layer outside the den entrance next to the bundle of fleawort he’d collected, then began spreading the remainder of the boughs while waiting for Embry to assemble her answer.
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Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2013 8:05 pm
Written by Yushika "We think left the tribe." She responded quickly with, not catching on to his tone just yet. "Um. Voltarie and Nora aren't around, but they're mates. Voltaire went off looking for her awhile ago and hasn't returned. Champagne vanished, but she has been seen nearby, and with Tenma, and there's rumors she may return. Tabby Cat... he's been gone since a very long time ago." She paused, ears flipping back when she remembered how hurt Amy had been at his absence. "Then there is Aruna. She left the tribe because her and Tenma broke up."
Or? What had he meant by or? Suddenly, it clicked, hear jerking around. "Oh no! They aren't - well, you know. We'd find out." Eck. That sounded gruesome. "Uhm. We have wolves nearby, yes, but we always know where they are. Elder Kithara makes it a habit to track them when she can. They haven't given us trouble since she drove them off. Other than that we're alright! They probably just left... I hope they come home soon, though."
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Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2013 8:17 pm
“I hope the same, if for no other reason than the tribe knows they’re alive and well,” Boni responded, breathing a little easier with Embry’s reply. Hearing others had left the tribe was sad, in an detached sort of way since he wasn’t close to any of them personally, but tribe life wasn’t for everyone. Unfortunately some didn’t discover how ill-suited they were to such a life until they’d become a part of it; every tribe had a few such foxes that ended up walking away.
Despite his claims to having little knowledge of the tribe, a bit of knowledge did tickle at the back of his mind. Boni poked at it curiously, but decided to let it work itself forward on its own. “Why don’t you put down the last layer of boughs while I put down the fleawort,” he said, gathering up the herbs and being to carefully distribute them. “After that we’ll be done.”
It was as he placed the last sprig down in the back corner that the knowledge finally came forward. Or most of it, anyway. “Didn’t your Elder have a sister in the tribe,” he asked curiously. He was pretty sure it was none of the names Embry had mentioned, though he couldn’t remember the name of Kithara’s sister for the life of him at the moment.
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Posted: Mon Feb 25, 2013 10:03 am
Written by Yushika Embry nodded gently towards his first statement. It always saddened her when she lost tribe-mates, though she knew sometimes it was best to leave. She hopped off to grab the last layer of bough, tail flicking to help her with her load, and began to set it down, using her front paws to help spread it. She had to remind herself to be careful, though this time it was easier. Gathering herself up when she was done, she sat down beside him and snuggled into him.
Head tilting, she clicked her tongue in response. Yup! Why was he asking? Nodding hastily despite him being unable to see, the woman didn't need to search her memory much to remember the strong vixens name. "Yup. Nitya. She's a fighter. She isn't mean or bad, but she's tough and sticks by Kithara when the Elder needs someone. Tenma is their brother, he serves as a guard sometimes. He worries a lot about our Elder."
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Posted: Mon Feb 25, 2013 10:12 am
“I think that’s natural though, to be a brother and worry about your sisters. I imagine if I had sisters I’d worry about them as well,” Boni said with a soft chuckle, laying his head down on top of his mate’s and sighing in content at a job finished and well done. Her scent mingled with the pine and herb smell in the air. He was debating whether he’d need food tonight or if he could just stay in the den for the rest of the day, snuggled up to Embry, and get something to eat tomorrow.
“I’m an only child though, so all I can really do on that part is speculate,” he continued, wondering for a moment if life would have been any different for him if he had had a sibling. Probably. His father’s attention would have been divided between the two of them, for one, and perhaps Boni would have been a bit less lonely. On the flip side of it though less attention might mean Boni didn’t get to learn as much as he had from his father, which could have worsened his survival chances if his hypothetical sib vanished with his father.
And he liked to think the loneliness had been character-building. He’d taken it into himself and transformed it into a quiet and still patience.
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Posted: Mon Feb 25, 2013 11:06 am
Written by Yushika At the contact she nestled into him, tail flicking gently around his form as she sighed happily. Ahh~ Working hard paid off! Now he had a nice den that smelled pleasant as well. The mention of siblings caused a twitch of her ear, nodding gently. "I bet. I could see you worrying plenty." She wasn't exactly raised with her siblings... It was a complicated story. However, she knew she worried a bit when she thought of her siblings nowadays.
Boni would be a good father in that sense. Concerned, worried, but strong... Ah. Kids. She wanted them! She really did! But how would kids deal with their parents being so far apart? Not only that, who stayed with which parent? It scared her to realize that Boni may not be with her 24/7 when they have kids... Though hadn't they spoke about this before?
"I wonder if being a protective brother is like being a good dad." She mused out loud, glancing at her mate briefly.
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