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Posted: Wed May 17, 2017 4:42 pm
 Amber trotted along the park trail, humming happily and stopping constantly to sniff at various pretty plants. From time to time she would run back down the trail to where her big sister, Quartz, was walking, albeit at a slower pace than Amber. She would latch on to one of Quartz's furry legs in a hug, giggling happily as Quartz continued to walk even with the additional weight of her younger sister. Mama explained that Baphomet usually had really strong bodies, especially their legs. It made Amber a little jealous sometimes, but Mama would just gently ruffle her hair and tell her that Amber had plenty of special things around her and not to worry about her lack of hooves. "Where're we going," Amber asked Quartz during one of her leg-clinging moments. The family was a pretty physically active one and took walks frequently, but Quartz had specifically brought Amber along with her to "see something neat". Normally a very patient child, Amber was afire with curiosity and couldn't help asking questions.
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Posted: Wed May 17, 2017 4:44 pm
 Quartz walked along the narrow park path, listening and taking in the scenery. While it was technically park grounds, it was almost like being in the middle of wilderness. It wasn't traveled often, so the sounds she heard were all nature sounds. The wind rustling through the trees, the song of birds and the scuffling of small creatures through the undergrowth, the muffled clops of her hooves against the leaf-strewn path. Mixed with the sounds of nature was the cheerful sound of humming. Quartz made sure to never get so lost in nature that she lost sight of her little sister, but she rather fancied that if she did she could always follow her ears to find Amber. Quartz smiled to see the young freshling come running back up the path, and slowed her pace a little so that Amber could cling to her leg. It was hard work to keep walking with the added weight, but the happy giggles and joyful expression made it all worth it. "You'll see when we get there," Quartz replied mysteriously to Amber's question. She wasn't usually a secretive person, but she wanted Amber to get the full impact when she saw their destination, without any preconceived notions.
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Posted: Wed May 17, 2017 4:45 pm
Amber pulled her face into a bit of a pout, but quickly brightened up again. It was too nice a day to be making sad faces, and she loved taking walks no matter what! The path alone was pretty new. She and her family took walks all the time, but it was usually around local areas. She'd been in forests once or twice with Mama and Quartz and she loved the feel the wilderness about her. It was such a change from the usual walks, and she reveled in the difference.
Most of the walk was in silence since Amber didn't want to destroy the atmosphere with her chattering, but she couldn't help the snatches of humming that leaked from her from time to time. Birds and other small creatures seemed to echo her cheer, calling out in equally bright voices. Even the weather was perfect, from the snatches of sky Amber could see in the areas where the tree branches thinned out.
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Posted: Wed May 17, 2017 4:46 pm
Quartz kept an eye on their surroundings as they walked, looking for a specific turn-off. She'd stumbled across the path by complete accident last time, having spied an interesting looking plant and moving from the trail to get a closer look. That was when she noticed a very thin game tail smoothed into the earth, and out of curiosity she'd followed it. When she left the woods to return to the main path she had tried to memorize the area she'd stepped off from; she hoped she'd done a good enough job!
Aha! Straight ahead Quartz noticed a thin tree sporting a curling, bright green vine growing up its trunk. She stopped and called Amber to her.
"We're taking a turn here," she said, lifting her little sister clear of the clinging undergrowth until they made it to the thin path, then set her down. "Now be very careful not to wander, and keep me in sight always. The path is hard to spot and I don't want you to wander off it by mistake. It should be okay, but I'd rather be careful."
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Posted: Wed May 17, 2017 4:47 pm
Amber couldn't help the small giggle as her sister lifted her up into the air, and looked around with interest while she was carried over denser bits of plant life. Quartz wasn't as tall as Mama, but she seemed to be heading in that direction. The world looked so different high up! She was a bit sad to be set back down, but knew in a moment she'd be just as happy to be walking around on her own two paws.
Amber listened carefully as Quartz instructed her to stay close, her large ears flicking around independently on her head as she took in the sounds are her. She didn't really see or hear anything different, but for some reason being on this line, rugged little path made the already wild woods feel even wilder! She nodded her head to show that she'd heard Quartz's instructions. If the path hadn't been so narrow she'd have probably reached up to take her sister's hand, but as it was she was going to have to be careful to keep her tails from getting snagged on all the plants pressed up against the path!
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Posted: Wed May 17, 2017 4:49 pm
Quartz set off, taking the lead this time. She kept her ears peeled for the sound of anything out of place, though she was pretty sure there were no dangerous animals in the park considering how close they were to homes. Mom said mountains and bigger patches of wilderness were the ones you needed to look out for, but drilled her daughters to be careful regardless. Just because there shouldn't be danger didn't follow that there wouldn't be danger. She was also listening to make sure Amber was staying with her, though if her own hooved feet were quiet on the soft path it was nothing to how quiet Amber's paws were. Quartz had to look back frequently to reassure herself that her sister was still there.
They followed the path for a time, perhaps twenty minutes or so. The growth on the ground thickened a little, the cue that they were close. Quartz stopped and ushered Amber ahead of her on the path. "We're almost here. Just keep going forward, and you'll see it," she instructed, the corners of her mouth lifting in a small smile of anticipation.
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Posted: Wed May 17, 2017 4:50 pm
Alive with curiosity now, Amber set off along the path. She had to remind herself of Quartz's instructions to keep from running, but even then the urge was difficult to resist. It helped that it was tough-going in a couple places, and she even had to pause to unhook a plant from one of her tails. Finally when Amber was about to stop and ask Quartz if they were still going the right way, she pushed through a couple bushy plants and found herself in the middle of a clearing.
There was actually grass here, a rarity in woods where light was scarce. Here and there it was a bit taller, waving and rippling in the light breeze. The area was carpeted in more than grass. A multitude of tiny wildflowers bloomed here, filling the air with their sweet scent. If Amber strained her ears she thought she could hear the babble of running water off in the distance, which might explain the abundance of plant life and soft grass here in the meadow.
She walked forward, citrine-colored eyes wide as she took in the beauty of the little meadow. The more she looked the more enchanted she was. At any moment she expected a princess to come wandering by, perhaps a Kirin with flowers braided into their long hair. She turned to give Quartz a wide, amazed smile, then walked a bit further into the meadow and crouched to tenderly stroke some flowers.
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Posted: Wed May 17, 2017 4:50 pm
Quartz couldn't help but smile when she caught sight of her sister's large eyes, and congratulated herself on bringing Amber here. She'd probably had a similar expression on her face when she first stumbled onto this meadow, and even now the beauty of the place still touched her. She'd simply had to share the place with her sister. Mom probably would have enjoyed it as well, but in a different way. Quartz knew her mother loved nature, and had seen her hands breathe life into old, wore objects. It was magical to watch and Mom was good at it, but at the same time Quartz felt like her mother saw the world a bit different than she and Amber did. Less...artistically. She could see the beauty in things, certainly, but history and facts were what she loved. It was a subtle difference, but still something Quartz felt.
Keeping an eye on Amber, Quartz picked her way across the clearing to a tree that had a lack of undergrowth around it. She settled down, pulled her bag off her back, then rooted around in it until she came out with a small pencil case and an art book. Flipping it open to a clean page, she began to color.
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Posted: Wed May 17, 2017 4:51 pm
Amber felt like she could have spent hours in the meadow. She went around from flower to flower, carefully brushing her fingers through the little clusters or tracing the graceful curve of a stem. At some point she found a clear-ish patch and flopped down on her back, breathing in the sweet scent deeply and staring up at the sky.
At some point she came enough to herself to wonder where Quartz was. She lifted her head slightly, ears flicking around, and heard a familiar scratching sound. She looked in the direction she head it coming from and spotted her sister with her back against the tree, coloring in her art book. She watched, noting the look of concentration on Quartz's face. Her sister looked up, caught her watching, and smiled before going back to her coloring. Curious, Amber got up and wandered over to see what Quartz was drawing.
It was the start of a picture of the meadow, trees and flowers sketched in but lacking proper detail yet. Only one section on the board piece of paper was full of color and detail. Amber, lying down in the middle of the flowers. Fascinated, Amber settled down and snuggled close to watch Quartz draw, filled with the same sense of wonder given to her by the meadow.
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Posted: Wed May 17, 2017 4:53 pm
Quartz had started her drawing while Amber rolled around, finally flopping into the grass. The scene was so cute that Quartz started drawing it, adding in all the details before Amber got up and moved. She finished it relatively quickly and had turned her focus to the rest of the drawing when she caught Amber watching her. She smiled, and Amber got up to join her and watch her draw.
The two spent a rather enjoyable afternoon in that meadow. Amber patiently sat and watched as Quartz finished her drawing. By that point movement was in order, as they'd been sitting for so long. Thankfully Quartz had also remembered to pack some drinks and snacks. They admired the meadow a bit longer, then went forward a bit and tried to find the water Amber said she could hear. Unfortunately they'd used up most of their time and had to leave before they found it, but Quartz promised Amber they'd come back and try another day. The shining look of excitement in Amber's eyes made Quartz smile in pleasure.
Together the sisters left the meadow and headed back home. The whole way Amber chatted about showing Quartz's drawing to mom, and maybe bringing paints next time so she could try to draw something as well. Quartz laughed and agreed, as eager as her sister for their next visit.
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