Welcome to Gaia! ::

After the announcement, Filament informed them that he had something Very Important to do for a little while, and took solace in the knowledge that Vexed was far more competent in taking care of the entire bunch than he was. He indulged in a friendly cheek-kiss before he left (much to the gagging of the young'uns) and went on his way.

He intended to find a Legendary. His first clutch of children still haunted him, guilt seeping through the contentment of being around the feather-tree, and he knew he had to start this second chance on the right hoof, as much as he could. He started out optimistic, trusting that his determined heart would somehow find an ascended kin somehow wherever he wandered, without any preparations but observation and hope.

After a while, the hope wavered a little, and the old pessimism creeped over his shoulders, reminding him of all the terrible things that he'd ever done and hadn't stopped. Then the fear kicked in - first a selfish one that he deserved no happiness, then an overwhelming terror that he would only bring harm to the swamp. Then he stopped to stare at a lake, and tried to let it dissipate. He looked at its concentric ripples, followed the source, and saw a crane. He looked up to the sky, as darkness faded, and a songbird flitted by as the dawn came. He saw them, and thought of Vexed.

Then he tried to smile, and moved on.

It was when he had paused for a meal, chewing on the last remnants of Rise & Co. preserved meat he brought on his journey, that it came. It shot out of the bushes, startling him - he dropped the slivers and it stopped right in front of him.

It was a slender little dog with a teal and gold coat, clearly desiring a snack.
"Sure," Filament said, bewildered.
It ate the remains, then wagged its tail with a brief bark.

It was well-groomed, and clearly well-trained. It had a lively disposition, and as he got up to move on, it followed his heels with another bark.
"Sorry, doggie - " he started, and stopped. It was kind of a disservice to compare this to the moment that he backed away from encountering Be Mine and his son, but he felt that pang of guilt hit him all the same, and looked down at the dog. It clearly belonged to someone, and it might have been lost, since it was hungry. He had to find a Legendary, it's true, but he had to find this dog's owner too.

Filament was ready to be a good buck. He could find a Legendary later.

"Right, pup, come with me. Let's find your owner." He nodded to it, it nodded to him, tongue out, and went along. They started jogging through the swamp.

Filament jumped when the pink one dashed out, being the sort of pathetic buck he was, but by the end of it was thoroughly delighted by the little doggie pantomime, and the fact that his little charge had found a friend at last. It clearly looked as if she (he assumed unthinkingly, due to colour really) knew where to take them, and smiled at the little paws hopping up and down. He felt a warmth in his chest, and was glad that he had decided to do what he did.

"You two willl be going home then," he pronounced chipperly to the pink dog, and carefully stepped out of her path to take his leave. "I guess it's a bit late to expect a legendary to be out and about," he said to himself, smiling at the reunited pair fondly, "maybe I'll be lucky tomorrow.

Filament, on the other hand, did care. There was a very undignified, horrified, "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA" and then heavy breathing as he lost control of his knees, eyes wide.

He stared at her changed features for a while, then as his consciousness returned, so did his shame, and he looked away, feeling bad about staring. "Um, I think I was the lucky one. Um, it's not exciting...my evil son" (he said without irony) "made a really sweet doe fall in love with him and then dumped her, and then we went to find her um, her godmother and then we got along very well and she's pregnant. I just don’t want the kids to turn out like my first clutch’s kids. Uh, I - I guess you're a legendary?"

Filament flushed, and at the last part, looked up earnestly into her Acha-doggy face. "Please don't be evil. That's a good one. That's a really good one. I would really love that."

He was near tears in gratitude, it all sounded so wonderful that even her disclaimer swept by absolutely fine. "Ohhh that was all so beautiful I've never seen it done before. Thank you so much. I'll do my best not to worry, not after all that."

The doggie pressed itself against his hoof, and Filament tried to blink away the wetness in his eyes. That went so much better than he could’ve expected. The Motherfather was giving him a second chance, after all.

“You’ll be… Spark,” he decided, and nuzzled the top of its head. “Let’s go home, Sparky.”