[PRP] Planting Colors (Harvest & Duga Couleur)

[divena]

This is an RP between Harvest (Bardess Ookami) & Duga Couleur (Divena and DivenasMom)

Duga pranced, and there was no other word for the light steps she made, down the lane, humming a jaunty tune to herself as she admired the wild flowers blooming along the path. Spring was such a lovely time of the year. It was always nice to see the blasts of bright colors, after the long, dull months of winter. The polychromatic little mare hated the winter. It was cold and bleached of all life. Not to mention the fact that there were fewer places to hide. Oh, sure, folks were more inclined to huddle together and make some killer music to pass the long nights, but the songbirds were always so quiet. Those that stuck around all year long, at least. There was a definite, dreary tune to winter. Spring, however, was always bright and full of life. Duga loved the song of spring. Not as much as the hot, fast tune of summer, or the ominous crinkling of autumn, but definitely more than the quiet, weeping winter.  

[Bardess Ookami]

Harvest was especially busy in Spring. She was lonely, to say the least, but at least her work kept her from noticing that, too terribly much. As she pulled her plow, Polly Nate, her small companion, dropped seeds into furrows to be buried. The problem was the bird brain ate as much as he planted. Thankfully, this was not their first Spring together, and Harvest had learned a few tricks to ensure she had a good crop. One of those tricks was to make sure there were three times as many seeds in his pile as she actually needed.She hummed as she pulled on the heavy machine she had found ages back from an abandoned human settlement, and hauled, working hard. She never felt the desire to stop though, knowing the sweet treasures that autumn would only bring if she was diligent now.  

[divena]

A new sound cut into nature’s music. Something that sounded like… humming? Curious, and with nothing better to do, Duga followed the faint thread until it became stronger and she finally stumbled upon… a large mare. A VERY large mare. Pulling some… strange contraption. With a parrot. Okay. She had seen stranger things, she was sure, but she couldn’t think of them at the moment. For a moment, she contemplated going on her merry little way, curiosity satisfied. Except her curiosity WASN’T satisfied. “Hello?” she called, deciding to give in to that curiosity.  

[Bardess Ookami]

Harvest stopped humming, and glanced over at her. She smiled warmly, without pausing in her efforts. "Hello, friend," she called to the smaller Soquili. The other was bright like all the colors of nature in full bloom set against the dark of night. It gave her hope, energized her, reassured her that all this work was in fact worth it. Because once the dark of planting was done, she could watch the shoots come up in bright green, and with water love and care, she could see them flower, blossom, and then fruit. She always loved how pretty the flowers were on some of the best fruits and vegetables. They did not ever last long, but when the flowers fell, the food began to make itself known. It was wonderful. There was always something wonderful to observe, and work to be done, from the start of planting til the end of the harvest for which she was named.  

[divena]

Friend? Duga studied the larger mare, trying to discern if she had met this soq at some time in the past. She was fairly certain that she hadn't. So the "friend" was just a generic greeting. That was something Duga had never really understood. Why would you call a complete stranger by so intimate a label as friend. One never knew what relationship would bloom from any meeting. Friend always seemed bad luck to her. But then, that was just her. She shook it off and asked the other question that was on her mind.

"What in the world are you doing?" she asked, rather bluntly. Why waste time with tact when the answer might not be worth the dancing? No, better to get the mystery out of the way. Tact and dancing could come if the answer was worth it.  

[Bardess Ookami]

"Preparing the ground for planting," Harvest said, with a warm smile.

"Duh!" Polly Squawked, fluttering over to land on Harvest's back.

Harvest flicked the familiar with her tail once, not hard, just enough to serve as a warning. "I have tended to this land for a few seasons now, learning the ways of it. Humans often have more food than we in the cold months, and by watching them, I have learned much of the same. I have some food I preserved for the winter that is still good, if you wish to share a meal once I have finished enough to take a break. Would you keep me company, and tell me of your travels in exchange for some food and my company?  

[divena]

Duga studied the larger mare, turning this information over. It was true, the winter months could be pretty rough, though she had noticed the humans seemed to do alright. Not as well as they did in the summer months, but better than some. Though, she had also found that those same humans were willing to share their carefully cultivated food with a friendly usida, if said friendly usida was willing to share some songs or help out around the village for a spell.

Would this mare expect her to help out in the fields? She wasn't opposed to hard work, but she also wasn't one for digging in the dirt. "Would I have to help?" she asked, just to be sure. It was never a good idea to assume. She had learned you could miss out on a lot if you did. Best to ask.  

[Bardess Ookami]

"Help by keeping me company, if you would," Harvest said with a warm smile as she resumed her work. "If you wish to do more, of course, I would be happy to teach you. I was just asking, however, for the company. I do not have many visitors, and cannot travel myself."  

[divena]

“Ah, well then. I could certainly do that,” Duga agreed, easily. “Why can’t you travel?” She couldn’t imagine staying put in one place. There was too much to see, too much to do, too much to hear for her to stay rooted to one area. Then again, as she watched the larger mare farm, she realized that maybe it wasn’t the same for Harvest. After all, if your life was all about farming and plants, then it certainly took “rooted” to a whole new level. One couldn’t take their farm with them, and it was clear that the other mare was very invested in her crops. Why, Duga didn’t know. She wasn’t a gardener, herself, though she appreciated a pretty plant. Perhaps farming to this other mare was like music to Duga. Something that was part of her very blood, inescapable. If that was the case, then no, Harvest wouldn’t need to travel, would she? She’d have everything she could possibly want and need here. Except, perhaps, the company she had asked for. All these thoughts flitted through her mind in the matter of seconds.  

[Bardess Ookami]

Unaware of the path the thoughts of the other had taken, she smiled slightly as she worked. "I might travel, but my fields cannot. It took me a long time to find a perfect place and to work the land as I have, I could no more leave it, than I could walk off without my heart and soul. No, I am tethered to the land, and I do love it, and my work. The food I grow tastes sweeter than any I had ever tasted from the wilds. I could not travel, nor do I wish to for aught but company."  

[divena]

Well, that confirmed what she had suspected. “I can respect that,” she said, with a small nod. And she could, especially since she’d just come to the same conclusion. “Ever think of ways to get some more company out here? You’re not exactly off the beaten path. So why don’t you have company?” Was it possible that plenty of people wandered by but she was too distracted to notice them?  

[Bardess Ookami]

"I think that most see the hard work I do, and fear that they will have to do the same, should they linger, so they leave before taking the time to get to know the situation. Also, anyone who comes by in Winter I generally miss, for I rest most of the winter, I dig in and hide from the cold. And of those who do stay a time, not all of them get along so well with Polly."

"Not my fault they're all cracker heads," Polly muttered. "I have more brains in my talon than all your guests have had put together."

"Be nice!" Harvest said.

Polly grumped.

"I apologize," she said softly to Duga.  

[divena]

"What is there to apologize for?" Duga asked, slightly amused. "Either your friend has an overinflated sense of worth, or he wasn't talking about me. After all, neither of you have had a chance to get to know me well enough to judge how smart of dumb I am, have you?" Not that that would have stopped some others. Duga knew she could come off as flaky sometimes, when she was listening to music others weren't open enough to hear. And her coloring tended to lead others to think she was an airhead. Sometimes, she fostered these misconceptions. Not always, but whenever it suited her purposes, and right now, it didn't.  

[Bardess Ookami]

"Dumb means unable to speak, you oxymoron," Poly squawked.

"Before correcting someone else's use of vocabulary, perhaps you should check your own use of idioms in your insults," Harvest said gently, fighting small smile.

"Did you just call me an idiot?" Polly asked, furiously.

"Not at all, dear," Harvest said mildly, then she smiled at Duga. "I should be ready to take a break before long, another few hours at most," she said with a warm smile. "If you are willing to keep us company until then, I will happily share what bounty I have with you, for a pleasant repast."  

[divena]

Duga decided she did not like the bird, not one bit. It was rude and irritating. But it wasn’t her familiar, so she chose to try and ignore it. Instead, she tried to focus instead on what Harvest had said. Something about bounty? Ah, right, food. She smiled and nodded a bit. “Alright, that sounds fair.” At least she would get a meal out of this. Assuming that was what Harvest was talking about.