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 Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2011 6:44 pm
 It was chilly - frost was already starting to form on the last few crisp, autumn leaves that remained on their branches. Almost all the ones that had fallen were already blanketed by a first layer of snow, but an adult cervi still heard them crunch under his hooves as he made his way through the forest.
He usually preferred to slip away from his home in the heart of the woods when the snow was thick and he could walk in near silence stepping light enough so that the bells on his forelegs were quiet. But this year was different. This year he had become rather restless; something he was not used to. Being one of the oldest taur he knew, he hadn't believed it was possible for him to still feel such vigor that he had once been sure was only for youth. Still, something in him stirred. He had to know what it was.
A warm, fluttering feeling in his chest lead him onward through the trees, urging him to find other taur. He felt so warm and energetic despite the frigid atmosphere, the jingle bells around his legs ringing to echo the happiness of his heart. What was this feeling? Never before did he remember so desperately craving company.
There was such joy welling up in him, and he wanted to share it with others. Like the sound of his bells, however, it was lost on vacancy of his surroundings and swallowed by the silence of the snow. The younger taur he had once cared for were all grown and lived on their own now, but if only he could see a familiar face again. Or any face.
Eager to spread his new-found happiness of the coming season, the once-meek reindeer cervi ventured toward the glen where he once knew other taur used to gather.
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Posted: Sat Dec 17, 2011 5:05 pm
 Today was a day for wandering. He could smell it in the air. No staying home for Whitaker! The pale cervi stood at the edge of the property, head up, listening for a direction. Though not exactly a whimsical teen, he did tend to follow impulse. Today, he had the feeling of moving.
So, with a heavy fur coat to keep the bite of the wind from his skin, and a small pack at his hip holding a snack for later, he waited for inspiration. A particularly strong wind suddenly blew at his back, and he nodded, stepping forward purposefully.
And he wasn't disappointed. After quite a bit of walking, his cheeks and nose pink from the chill, his ears perked at a strange sound. ...Bells? He paused, ears twitching back and forth to locate the sound that echoed to him. The barren woods seemed to make the sound bouce from every corner, but soon enough the bells got louder and clearer, and he stepped off again in search of the source.
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Posted: Mon Dec 19, 2011 4:57 pm
Fritzi hesitated, feeling a set of eyes on his back. He stopped in his tracks, twisting around to get a glimpse of the area behind him. He had to blink a few times for his eyes to adjust to the blindingly white snow, but at last he thought he spotted some hints of faint green and dusty rose. Those weren't natural colors to find in the winter forest.
"Hello?" he called, still having some trouble distinguishing the newcomer from their surroundings. The other taur was so...pale. He blended in well with the snow. "Who's there?"
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Posted: Wed Dec 21, 2011 12:02 am
Pulling his coat a little closer around him, he froze at the sound of a voice. Ears twitching, his head swiveled until he found the source; a large male in the distance. The man seemed to be looking at him, and yet.. not. He glanced down at himself and smirked. He was already hard to see against the snow.. perhaps the white fur jacket hadn't been the best idea.
His clear blue eyes rose again, and he waved his arm high. The gent sounded pleasant enough, his tone curious more than as if he felt threatened. "Hello!" The teen called cheerfully, curious about the strapping male he was looking at. After greeting, he started walking forward, apparently not at all concerned about who the stranger might be. He couldn't properly say who he was from such a distance, of course!
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Posted: Wed Dec 21, 2011 7:57 am
The reindeer cervi squinted before seeing the younger male wave. He offered a timid smile in return and turned to face the unfamiliar taur. "Well! That's quite some camouflage you've got yourself there," he commented, dipping his head in greeting. "I didn't think I could be snuck up on in these woods, but I must have been living alone too long. My name is Fritzi," he introduced, bowing at the waist. "Are you...new to this part of the forest? Or have I just been secluded for longer than I realized?"
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Posted: Thu Dec 22, 2011 6:15 am
Looking down at himself again, he gave the older taur a bashful though pleased smile. "I guess I wasn't thinking about that when I started out today. I didn't mean to sneak."
Ears twitching at the name given, his smile quickly warmed again. "I'm Whitaker. And... I wouldn't have said I'm very new. I live with my dad and brother, and we've been around." He cocked his head slightly. "I've never seen you though. Are you new?"
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Posted: Thu Dec 22, 2011 7:32 am
"Whitaker. What a very sophisticated name," he replied merrily. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Whitaker. I'm sorry, I'm a pretty old taur, so I have trouble keeping up with the families that have been growing in the last few years. Everyone seems to grow up so fast." He gave a deep, hearty laugh that sounded from the depths of his throat.
"Actually, I've lived in this forest for quite some time," Fritzi admitted. "It's just that I usually keep to myself, and with my home in the heart of the forest, I don't get too many visitors. For a reindeer cervitaur like me, it's too warm to venture out of the woods too often, so I usually wait for winter before going out." He scratched the back of his neck sheepishly, brushing back his long, ivory hair. "May I ask who your father and brother are...? Perhaps I knew one of them."
Goldenrod eyes alighting upon the pack at Whitaker's waist, Fritzi hesitated. "Oh, please forgive me. I didn't mean to keep you from your destination. Are you going somewhere?"
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Posted: Thu Dec 22, 2011 6:13 pm
White ears perked curiously. So.. fist.. i.. kay..ted? He wasn't quite sure what that meant, but he was sure it was a compliment with the way it was said, and he beamed proudly. "You don't need to be sorry." He assured, thoroughly enjoying this new taur already. He'd never heard anyone laugh like that before! A reindeer cervi.. He seemed to recall hearing of them, but Fritzi is the first he's ever seen of one.
Pausing before replying, he looked down at his pack as well and shook his head. "I reached where I was going." He said with a nod, certain that this was where he'd been led. "My brother's Etienne, and my dad's Elijah." He smiled proudly. "I look a lot like dad. Like.. a lot a lot."
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Posted: Mon Dec 26, 2011 10:14 am
"Did you?" Fritzi asked curiously, once the younger cervi confirmed that he'd reached his destination. "Well, then. How about I build us a fire so we can talk comfortably while warming ourselves? You must be freezing." He bent to gather a few sticks for tinder as he continued to listen to Whitaker speak. "Haha...I see. Hmm, I think I might have heard of Elijah. You really do seem to remind me of someone, but it's been so long that I think I only knew him by name and sight. I don't think we ever actually met."
He smiled warmly as he began to rub one of the sticks against the other in order to produce a spark, having made sure there were enough stones around the firepit to keep it away from the other trees. "Ever made a fire before, Whitaker?" Fritzi asked. "I don't usually make them for myself since I can stand the cold, but I used to take care of a bunch of younger taur. One of them - a pygmy - taught me how to make a fire to keep the little ones warm."
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Posted: Wed Dec 28, 2011 7:43 pm
He nodded confidently, and rubbed his hands together as Fritzi commented on the weather. He paused a moment before nodding again. "I wouldn't say freezing, but it is kinda cold out." He pulled his jacket a little tighter around himself and knelt to watch the fire be put up.
"Yup." He nodded yet again, tipping his head as friction between the sticks began to create a little smoke. "I make them all the time to get meals ready or to warm the house." He looked at the adult as a foreign word reached his ears. "Pygmy? What's a pygmy?"
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Posted: Thu Dec 29, 2011 1:23 pm
The adult cervi knelt to shield the smoking sticks from the cold air, blowing lightly on the kindling fire to encourage the tiny flame. "Oh? And was it your father who taught you?" he asked, looking up when the twigs began to catch afire. "Hm. Do you mind if I ask what you mean by 'house'? What kind of dwelling is it?" He'd never heard of a taur living in a house before.
"A pygmy? You mean you've never heard of them before?" Fritzi questioned, appearing genuinely surprised when he seated himself by the fire pit. He gestured for Whitaker to take a seat as well. "They are immortal, fairy-like creatures that take often take the form of taur like us, but as children. Once they do, they are stuck in that form forever, so they can never grow up or have families. Because of this, one can never be sure if a pygmy taur has the mind of an infant or a child, because they aren't what they appear."
He sighed fondly at the memories of the taur children that used to play about his hooves, mixed with the pygmy taur who guided, watched over, and taught them what Fritzi could not. "Some pygmys serve as playmates or guardians for other young taur while others are tricksters, advisers, or just good friends. One cattaur pygmy I knew was very wise and went by the name of Matteo. A few others also lived with our little family...Berwynn, a cervi, Libby, a centaur, and Natalie, a harpy."
"Matteo was the first, though, and he taught us the most. He seemed to have magic that extended...beyond other worlds, producing sweets out of nowhere that he called 'candy'. He was the one who taught me how to kindle a fire for the other little ones when it was too cold for them to sleep." He chuckled. "I wonder what they're all doing now."
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Posted: Mon Jan 02, 2012 6:23 pm
Whitaker nodded again. "Dad teaches me everything." He cocked his head at the question, eyes going up to the sky in thought. "Well... It has walls made out of wood. The walls get put together to make a room. Then you can fill the room with things like your bed, and you're protected from the outside." Hopefully that summed it up enough. There was more to a house, but that would have taken forever.
"Pygmy." He repeated softly, associating the word with the description he was being given. "Stuck in a child's body? ...That doesn't sound like it'd be any fun." He'd been thrilled to become a teenager. Thinking about being stuck at that stage... was unsavory. "What they're doing? You mean you haven't seen them lately?"
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Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2012 9:50 am
"What about your mother?" Fritzi ventured to ask, putting another branch on the fire. "Halls...you say? And...walls?" He found it hard to picture such things, but he'd certainly heard about them from Matteo. "But...why would one need protection from the 'outside'?" the older cervi asked, not certain how taur could live so cut off from nature. He could understand a shelter to keep safe from the weather and nature's elements, but with things like walls, it seemed a little excessive. At least in his viewpoint. "Are there lots of houses where you live?"
The reindeer cervi laughed deeply at Whitaker's conclusion of pygmys. "Oh? I don't know. It seems to me like it would be kind of nice to have fun and be young forever. There isn't much benefit to getting old." Rubbing his dully aching joints, he smiled, trying to remember his younger years. There didn't seem much to recall - it was too much of a blur. Whitaker's new question brought him back to the present, though.
"Ah, well, the young taur I was watching over - the actual growing ones - all became adults and learned how to look after themselves. Because of that, they moved away, and with them the pygmys who helped me raise them, since they weren't really needed anymore." He chuckled. "I do miss them all, but different as they are, they live different lives and prefer different habitats and climates. Still...I hope one day our paths cross again."
Fritzi looked to Whitaker. "Do you have childhood friends you still keep in touch with? Or maybe some you've grown apart from?"
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Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2012 9:43 pm
"Mother?" Whitaker paused a moment, and then shrugged. "She comes around sometimes to give things to me and my brother, check on us, but other than that we don't see much of her." He swiftly moved on to the next question. "It's nothing fancy. Just enough to keep you warm when it's cold, and cool when it's hot, and dry when it's wet. Not too many houses."
He smiled again when the other cervi laughed, tail twitching slightly. It couldn't be helped. That kind of laugh forced a smile. His smile fell a little though as the adult continued talking. So.. getting older wasn't something to look forward to? But there was so much more you could do as an adult than a kid!
Friends? He twitched an ear, then shook his head. "There are others I sometimes talk to when I pass through town.. but I wouldn't call them friends. Just my dad and brother. Though, Etienne can sometimes be a pain." He laughed and shook his head at the thought of his brother; as was the case in most brotherly relationships.
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Posted: Wed Jan 04, 2012 7:46 am
"Is that so...?" Fritzi paused, wondering if it would have been rude to ask why their mother didn't live with them. Eventually, he thought better of it. No doubt the young taur had left out that detail for a reason. He probably didn't feel like sharing. The adult still found it sad, however, that their parents didn't live together. So few taur even seemed to know who their parents were, so the fact that Whitaker did but didn't see both on a daily basis seemed like such a tragedy.
"Ah, I see. Hmm, they sound like glorified shelters, these houses," he said with a smile. "I hope I can see one sometime. It seems there have been a lot of changes to the way other taur live their lives since I last left my home." Leaning closer and resting a cheek on the back of his hand, (his elbow propped up on one knee), Fritzi had a twinkle in his eye as he asked, "So, then...you seem to prefer your adolescence over your childhood. What do you find you like best about it? Do you have a girl you're sweet on, perhaps...?"
The adult's face fell slightly as he heard Whitaker mention he didn't have anyone he could call a friend. Even he, who lived in isolation, had made a good few friends in his lifetime. It seemed strange that a youth like the cervi before him had not. "Hmm. Is it that you have high standards for friendship? Or perhaps that you can't relate enough to your peers?"
He grinned as he heard Whitaker's brother, Etienne, being described as a pain. "Ah...yes, I've heard that tends to be what brothers do. You said something before, though - a town? Is it highly populated?" Last he knew, there had been a small town where centaurs traded, but it wasn't all that well-known or very occupied. Perhaps other taur had come to live there since then and the place had expanded.
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