[PRP] In a world of my own (Vorpal x Vervada)

[Faithofthefallen]

The sky was bloody through the twisted black branches of the tum tum tree wood. The forest eerily silent as the daytime critters settled down for the night and the creatures that flourished in darkness began to stir. ripples played across the surface of a brackish pond as something massive moved beneath its surface, navigating lazily towards the shallows, a pair of nostrils emerged first, snorting a spray of water into the air as the stallion pulled his heavy body from the water, droplets streaming to the ground as he stepped foreword onto land. Whirling violet eyes surveyed the forest around him thoughtfully, he blinked slowly and yawned as he dragged his long powerful tail from the pond. His horns and claws emitted a faint glow that staved the gathering darkness, somehow deeper in the small copse where Vorpal had been sleeping, concealed within the deep pool of water, his face breaking the surface to ensure a steady supply of oxygen.

 

[Faithofthefallen]

Vorpal's unnaturally wide jaws opened and closed with a sharp snap as he ventured forth into the night, dark mist swirling around his shadowy body as he wove his way through the hunched and misshapen tree trunks. As he walked he hummed a disturbingly jaunty tune that drifted off into the distance in eerie disjointed echoes. He wasn't entirely sure where he was headed, only that he would get there eventually if he just walked far enough. He had been at this for days, wandering in an aimless, nonsensical sort of way. It had been a long time since he had encountered other creatures he hadn't needed to devour, the thought made his stomach rumble and he eyed the surrounding underbrush in a hungry sort of way. Nothing moved but he was sure that if he just kept going, some unlucky little tidbit would wander across his path eventually.

Now that the sun had set the Tulgey wood glowed with a creepy blue light that stemmed from the fluorescent mushrooms that dotted the forest floor and grew in thick clusters on the tum tum trees. Glistening wisps of sparkling mist floated and meandered between the tree trunks and all the while, Vorpals inane little song filled the silence.  

[Faithofthefallen]

A flash of movement caught his eye and he swiveled his head to peer off into the shadows. A slender mare knelt at the base of a tree, scraping the luminous mushrooms off the trunk into a small... Thing, that she then hoisted in her mouth and carried off into the trees, out of sight. His interest aroused, Vorpal ghosted between the trunks after the mare, his steadily whirling eyes easily piercing the darkness to follow the mare's hoof prints in the soft earth.

He followed her for quite some time, silently observing as she gathered various species of plant and fungus into her little carrying contraption before moving on. She seemed to sense that she was being followed because every so often she'd c**k an ear in his direction or raise her head to sniff delicately at the air, strangely she never tried to see him, which would have been nearly impossible regardless. She didn't seem alarmed by her follower, merely irritated. Vorpal trailed after her for a few more miles, he was beginning to grow bored and was considering how to liven up the situation when the mare suddenly turned to face his hiding spot and emitted a disgruntled huff of breath. "What do you want" she hissed sharply, "Why are you following me?"  

[Faithofthefallen]

Vervada was busily scraping mushrooms from the twisted trunk of a tree when she first sensed the presence of her watcher. She could feel his eyes boring into the back of his head, her sensitive ears picked up the soft whooshing for inhaled breath and the quiet crackling of leaf litter beneath his hooves. Her world was dark, she could barely make out the faintly growing patches of mushrooms but mostly, she found the various herbs and fungi she was after by smell. As she walked along she could feel the faint vibrations of his surreptitious footsteps through the ground and she knew she was being followed. Her stomach twisted slightly, she hated venturing out of her home stretch of forest but her stores were getting low, it had been ages since she had visited this section of the woods. Of course this would be the day when a curious and quite possible dangerous stallion would happen across her and decide to make a bother of himself.
 

[Faithofthefallen]

The creatures who resided in this twisted area called it the Tum Tum tree woods, it was full of creepy, maniacal, and often mad characters. The pathways were twisted and more often than not served to get you even more lost than you were already. The mist gave everything a hazy dreamlike quality that most found unnerving and many of the plan life that flourished here was either poisonous or hallucinogenic. Thankfully, Vervada navigated by way of her other senses, in a place where things ofter were not what they appeared to be, it was actually better to be blind. She was less likely to be led astray, and she could always sense the way back home.

She put up with the silly creatures irritating antics for an hour or more before she finally halted. She had gathered all she needed today and she didn't want the thing following her back to her home. "What do you want?"she hissed sharply in the stallions general direction, "Why are you following me?"

She gritted her teeth, Vervada absolutely hated interacting with other soquili. She avoided it whenever possible, but she couldn't have a madman creeping around her section of the forest. She didn't want the stallion dropping by for tea or to slaughter her when her back was turned. She just wanted him gone.  

[Faithofthefallen]

Vorpal slid closer to the mare, his eyes partly closed as he inhaled her strange scent, enticingly exotic and unfamiliar. He had rarely had the opportunity or inclination to spend much time in the company of the fairer sex. His long reptilian tail slithered through the crunchy carpet of leaves to encircle her leg, and stroked the strange and intricate patterns encircling her fetlocks idly. She stiffened, and then began quivering as she felt the spikes graze the inside of her legs, her breath shallow as his face moved closer until their foreheads were pressed together, his whirling eyes boring into hers with a heady and frightening intensity. He chose to ignore her previous question, finding it tiresome and predictable, not to mention he wasn't entirely sure of the answer himself. All he knew was she was something different, exciting, she smelled of far of places and exuded a kind of quiet dangerous grace that he found fascinating. Plus, trailing along behind her had seemed like an entertaining way to spend time that would have otherwise been spent lolling about in the swamp lands, playing with his shadow puppets, or pouncing on small terrified creatures. He was following an impulse, nothing more, there was no motive to unveil. "My name is Vorpal," he began in a conversational tone, seemingly unaffected by how close their bodies were wound together, the tips of the luminous golden claws pricked her skin hard enough to sting while avoiding drawing blood. "Who are you and whatever brings you to the Tulgey woods...Alone at this time of night?"  

[Faithofthefallen]

Vervada's heart hammered against her ribcage as she traced the male's approach in her minds eye, she kept her head lowered, her ears flicking to and fro to follow his surreptitious movements through the underbrush and feeling the vibrations of each footstep in her hooves, even so, she jumped as she felt something long and flexible circle her leg, sharp spikes dragging against her skin uncomfortably. His large, well muscled body pressed against along the length of her body and his forehead pressing against hers. She could feel the heat of his stare even if she couldn't meet the gaze. He was damp, as though he had just went for a swim, wet strands of his hair stuck to her cheeks and tickled her nostrils. There was a rich, musky earthy scent abut him that was both pleasing and invigorating, although she found his audacity at so casually violating her personal space more than irritating. "Get off you addle brained creature!" she snapped, twisting away from him and kicking viciously at the appendage circling her leg. A warm rush of satisfaction filled her gut as she felt her hoof connect with something solid, the stallion let out a low grunt and hastily scuttled back a few paces. "Vorpal, is it? I would have thought my purpose was quite clear." She jerked her head towards the full basket at her feet. She'd found the contraption abandoned near one of the human dwellings years ago and had since found it more than suited to carrying the fruits of her rare gathering pilgrimages. It was stuffed with the luminous mushrooms and other odd and often brightly colored plants and fungi that could be found only in this section of the forest. "I am Vervada." She divulged reluctantly, seeing no harm in revealing such a small, if personal, detail, and although disinclined to do anything to prolong the conversation more than necessary her curiosity won out in the end, "What exactly are you, Vorpal? You feel...different, unlike anything I've encountered before. Even here, where one comes across the strangest things."  

[Faithofthefallen]

He felt her muscles flex, and shifted quickly to prevent her small sharp hoof from connecting with his sensitive tail, taking the strike to his shoulder instead, he let out a low 'oof' and staggered backwards at the unexpected strength behind the blow, his muscle throbbed and ached powerfully and he felt his temper fray ever so slightly as each fresh wave of pain washed through that side of his body. Vorpal's eyes followed her motion and stopped at the odd device near her feet. He had noticed her scraping the mushrooms away from the tree trunks and although he found the behavior odd, hadn't put much thought into it. "What are you going to do with all that?" He wondered aloud, while taking the time to examine her features more closely. She was quite attractive, fine boned, her coat glossy and dark, her thick mane seemed to be spun of silky shadows and cascaded down over her face and back in a very appealing manner. Although her face was raised as though she was looking at him, her blood red eyes seemed glazed, never focusing on anything or following his movements, it was as though she was seeing another world entirely. After a few minutes of intense silence, her mouth twisting more and more at the corners in seeming irritation, he realized she has asked a question. "I am The Frumious Snapper" he explained in a conversational tone, "There are no other like me, and since we have only just met, it is to be expected that I would seem foreign to you. I live over there," he gestured vaguely, "Since yesterday... Or was it tomorrow? One can never quite tell when it comes to these things," he divulged sagely. "You aren't from here either are you?"  

[Faithofthefallen]

She felt the rush of air against her face at his motion, but didn't try to follow it, by his scent she could tell he had taken refuge in the swamp that bordered the outskirts of the Tulgey wood. "A... Frumious Snapper?" she repeated doubtfully, her mouth twisting in amusement around words that sounded like utter nonsense. "How is it possible that you are the only one of your kind? Surely you had to come from somewhere, and wherever that was would have others like you? Your parents, they would have to be like you as well, unless you claim to have sprung into existence from nothing?" She began to edge away from Vorpal, trying to keep her movements casual, there was something unnerving about him. He seemed off, unhinged, his words were confusing and nonsensical. She would have thought he was toying with her except they were delivered with such utter conviction she knew he at least believed in the truth of what he was saying... That made it somehow worse. "No... No, I am not from here." She admitted hesitantly, " I came here to gather supplies, I dabble in work as an apothecary, most of the plants that grow here are unique, my stores were running low so... Here I am."