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 Posted: Mon Jan 18, 2016 10:43 pm
Tarashikomi scoffed. "Nonsense," she stated firmly, stomping a hoof down. She waited until the pixie looked up at her and met his eyes, wanting to be certain he was listening. "You should be allowed to wander without the threat of the evils in this world. You shouldn't have to fear for your life just because you go into the forest. Do not blame yourself. You had no way of knowing what would happen. I'm just glad that we were here to help, and that we're all going to be okay. That's what's important. Okay?" she asked, more softly now, and offered him a smile. "You aren't to blame for what happened -- the skinwalker is. Now," she said, lifting her head up again. "We should get going. My mother has healing abilities; she'll be able to help with our injuries." And she didn't want them to be here if the skinwalker decided to return.
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Posted: Mon Jan 18, 2016 10:54 pm
Parthenos was a little taken aback by the mare's adamant insistence that none of this was his fault. She was... well, a very passionate mare. Maybe her words did hold some truth, but he couldn't help but still feel a little guilty, anyway. "Are you sure? Cygnus and I aren't that bad off, we don't want to overtax your mom too much with healing, especially since your fami-- I mean, Yamato-e? Needs healing so much more than we do."
"If it's all the same to you," Yamato-e butted in before anyone could continue, "can we talk about this on the way? Broken wing, lots of pain. Please?" He felt a little bad about being so blunt; he didn't want the pixie to blame himself for anything, either, but -- well. Pain."Oh." Parthenos blinked. "Oh -- yes! Yes, let me help, it's the least we can do. Cygnus, could you--?" He didn't need to finish his sentence, the owl already helping to lift Yamato-e up onto Parthenos' back, settling there to make sure he was safe and wouldn't fall, just like before. Parthenos looked up at the mare again, and when she smiled and nodded her head in indication to follow, he fell into step beside her. "Um. Thank you -- for helping us. And saving us. I don't know if -- well, we haven't really introduced ourselves. I'm, uh, Parthenos. And the owl, he's my familiar. His name is Cygnus. He's great. Always keeping an eye out for me. So what's -- uh, what's your name?"
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Posted: Mon Jan 18, 2016 11:09 pm
"My name is Tarashikomi," she said, smiling when she saw Parthenos' confused look and laughed. "I know, a bit of a mouthful, isn't it? You can just call me Tara. My envoy there -- familiar -- is Yamato-e. It's a pleasure to meet you both; I only wish it could have been under better circumstances." She made sure to keep her pace a little slower than usual, conscious of Parthenos' shorter legs and injuries. "Yama and I are a part of an Order which vows to protect the innocent. Fighting skinwalkers, well -- it's part of the job description. They're the purest form of evil, and we take it upon ourselves to eradicate them. So, even if you hadn't been there -- we still would have fought that skinwalker. It's because you were there that Yamato-e isn't worse off than he is now. Thank you for that, knocking the skinwalker away -- that was very brave."
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Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2023 2:56 pm
Brave? No one had ever called him brave before. Parthenos' cheeks felt warm, and he couldn't stop the small smile that appeared on his face. Him -- brave! He never would have imagined describing himself that way. And to hear such a compliment from someone who fought shifters and protected soquili regularly? He could hardly believe it. But maybe he was, just a little. Parthenos had a long way to go if he wanted to be as brave as Tarashikomi, but maybe he could get there one day. "Th-thank you," he mumbled shyly. They fell into a comfortable silence after that, with Tarashikomi leading the way quickly home.
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Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2023 3:50 pm
Once they were close, Tarashikomi called out for her mother. "Mom! Hurry, please, it's Yama -- he's hurt!" She led the group over to a tree stump, where she and Cygnus helped move Yamato-e off Parthenos' back and onto the stump's surface. Yamato-e groaned in pain, and Tarashikomi nuzzled his face gently in an attempt to comfort him.
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Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2023 3:51 pm
"Tara?" Ukiyo-e rushed over to them, quickly scanning them all over to assess their injuries before turning to Yamato-e. She could be introduced to the usdia and the owl later. "Oh, poor thing, what happened?" she tisked, and leaned her head down to begin the healing process. Yamato-e whimpered as he felt his bones and muscle begin to mend themselves.
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Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2023 3:52 pm
Tarashikomi watched quietly, her heart in her throat when Ukiyo-e asked them what happened. "It... it was a shifter, mom. A young one was attacking Parthenos, my friend here, and Yama and I jumped in to help them." She shook her head. "It tricked me just for a moment, but that's all it took. She pretended to lunge at me and then --" Tarashikomi stopped, shutting her eyes at the memory. Not just of what happened, but what she had done. Or, more to the point, what she hadn't.
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Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2023 3:53 pm
"D-don't, Tara, I'll be okay," Yamato-e tried to assure. It was a risky business, fighting shifters, and he knew it was dangerous, that something like this could happen. Or worse. He didn't want his bonded blaming herself over this. "Remember what you said to Parthenos. This was the shifter's fault -- not yours or anyone else's."
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Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2023 3:54 pm
Ukiyo-e smiled down at the little bird, still focused on healing his wing. "You should listen to your envoy's wise words, honey. He's right. You're right. No one here is at fault. Now, while I'm working on healing him, why don't you tell me about your new friends?" she asked, curious about her daughter's new companions. It looked like the usdia would need some healing too, but his injuries didn't appear too bad. She'd be able to help him later, if he was willing to wait.
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Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2023 3:56 pm
"Oh, yeah, um -- this is Parthenos, and his bonded familiar, Cygnus. We found Cygnus looking for his bonded after he'd wandered off, so Yama and I helped him look. That's when we found the shifter attacking Parthenos." She turned to smile at Parthenos and his owl, and nodded towards her mother. "Cygnus, Parthenos, this is my mother -- Ukiyo-e."
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Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2023 3:57 pm
"O-oh, it's a pleasure to meet you, ma'am!" Parthenos said, standing up straighter when he spoke to Ukiyo-e, but the movement made him wince a little as hit pulled on his injuries. He kept his posture straight, wanting to show that he could be brave too, just like Tarashikomi had said. Besides, his injuries weren't nearly as bad as Yamato-e's. He could tough it out! "Your daughter and Yamato-e were really brave, as soon as they saw me in danger they jumped in right away to help!"
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Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2023 3:57 pm
Ukiyo-e laughed softly, glancing at Tarashikomi with a warm, proud expression. "That does sound like her. Well, I'm glad that they were both there to help you. That shifter may have been young, but they are fierce no matter their age, as I'm sure you noticed!" She paused in her healing, looking over Yamato-e to assess the progress so far. It was going well, but she'd need to keep at it a little longer. "Tara, dear, why don't you take Parthenos and Cygnus to get some food and water while I finish working on Yama? It won't be long now, and he'll make a full recovery," she said, looking down at the bird with a smile, and Yamato-e smiled tiredly back. "I'll need to get some rest once I'm done, but if you two are willing to wait, I'd be happy to help tended to your injuries too, Parthenos. Does that sound alright?"
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Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2023 3:58 pm
Parthenos smiled brightly at Ukiyo-e, grateful for the offer. "Yes ma'am! Thank you so much, take all the time you need," he said, nodding his head. "I'm really glad you'll be okay, Yama." Yamato-e chirped in reply, and Parthenos giggled a little. He looked over at Cygnus, who hooted and hopped up to settle on Parthenos' back. The little usdia looked to Tarashikomi, waiting for her to lead the way again.
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Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2023 3:58 pm
The relief was clear on Tarashikomi's face at her mother's words. She looked down at her envoy one last time before she smiled at Parthenos and Cygnus, nodding her head at them to indicate that they should follow. "This way," she said, waiting for Parthenos to approach before leading them to a small lake for them to drink. "Wait here, I'll be right back with some food. Get some water and some rest," she encouraged -- and had a strange, sudden urge to nuzzle Parthenos before she left. She resisted. They'd only just met; that would be weird. Quickly, she turned and trotted away to scrounge up something for them to eat, and found herself blushing over the urge to nuzzle him. How embarrassing!
She gathered a small variety of sweet berries, and carried them back to where Cygnus and Parthenos were resting by the lake. She set the basket down near them. "There we are," she said with a smile, and then turned to the lake to get a few sips of water for herself, too.
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Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2023 3:59 pm
"Thank you again," Parthenos said, watching Cygnus peck at a few of the berries. "I can't say it enough. You and your family are really kind and brave, and I'm really glad Yama is going to be okay, too. I don't know what would've happened to me, if you two hadn't found us," he said, voice going soft and quiet. He probably wouldn't be here now, if they hadn't.
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