[Forge Solo PRP] All in a Day's Work (Morrow)

[Kyaishi]

A heavy sigh escaped the tired stallion's misshapen mouth as he meandered slowly through the thick boughs of his forest, wondering how he had gotten himself saddled with an errand like this. He liked Evie, of course- the bubbly happiness that she exuded was charming, if not a little exasperating at times- but sometimes she didn't know when to mind her own business, and he was dubious that this task had anything to do with being productive. She had been on a mission to keep him busy for the last several days since he had confessed he was a bit lonely; a fact that he regretted almost immediately. It didn't help that Akemi seemed to find excuses to stop by and poke fun at him for no reason other than she thought he needed it.

It wasn't as if he was unused to being alone, and the forest creatures and kodama had always been more than enough company in the past, but in recent months he'd found himself... restless, aimless, itching beneath his hide for something he didn't quite understand. At times he allowed himself to wonder where Teleri had found herself, if she had found peace with her flock... but that was neither here nor there, and hardly his business. Wythe had occasionally proved himself a suitable companion, but he wasn't generally a good conversationalist- although neither was Morrow, were he completely honest with himself. The small family of rabbits living in a burrow beneath his favorite tree seemed to enjoy the tenor of his voice when he soothed them, but that was hardly the same thing.

In any case... here he was. Collecting mushrooms. For a moment, he let himself wonder if Evie even knew that he was blind, but dismissed that idea out of hand- she couldn't have been that unobservant. His lack of eyes were usually the most offputting feature to other Soquili, he'd have been shocked if she hadn't noticed. Perhaps his forelocks had grown so long that they hid the worst of his features, but somehow he doubted that she could possibly miss the extent of his disfigured face- not that he really minded, of course. She was sometimes a breath of fresh air and a soothing balm to his jagged edges, even if she could get a little... overzealous at times. Much of the time.

Well, best get to his task- the longer he put it off, the longer it would take, and he didn't relish continuing this hunt for plants well into the night. While the darkness didn't bother him, a lack of sleep may prove trying.  

[Kyaishi]

The first idea of where to look came to mind mid-step, and Morrow paused to feel the wind and the plants brushing his legs for a moment before he redirected himself to start near his favorite tree. Perhaps the family of rabbits he was so fond of would have some idea where to start. His senses were acute and he felt comfortable relying on them most of the time, but for tasks like this where he couldn't simply feel his way towards his quarry, some outside help would most likely be appreciated.

Stepping through the tall grasses he had come to know as well as his own mane in search of his small clearing, the dark stallion allowed himself a small smile as the telltale rattle of a kodama heralded the appearance of one of his small friends. The skittering and small spray of dirt that accompanied their rush across the field to meet him made the edges of his mouth curl up further in affection, his features going soft, although he was aware that no outsiders were there to see. A soft scent came across on the breeze as the little forest spirit reached him, and he could sense little hands holding something up for his appraisal.

"Hello my little friend," he intoned softly, lowering his head to sightlessly inspect what was being offered, "what have you got there?"

Mushrooms: 0  

[Kyaishi]

The soft rattle he received in answer made Morrow chuckle softly as he lowered his head further to sniff at the little present the thoughtful kodama had brought to him- a mushroom, by the smell of it- but a snap of brush on the edge of the clearing made his ears p***k to attention. Before he could grasp what was happening, another creature darted across the grass and snatched the small gift from the kodama's tiny hands, taking off with it and disappearing into the foliage. Head risen in alert, the large stallion made little effort to pursue, not too worried since he didn't sense any danger, but the kodama's little wail of distress made his ears fold back in sympathy.

Lowering his muzzle, he nudged at the forest spirit with a soft croon, speaking in low, soothing tones. "There there, little one. It was a good gift, but we can find more. Whatever stole it probably needs it more anyway, yes?" The answering rattle might have been incomprehensible to most other Soquili, but Morrow smiled at what he understood as an agreement. "We don't want any residents of the forest going hungry, do we?" The question was rhetorical, of course- the kodama were just as dedicated to maintaining the balance of life in the forest as he was, if not moreso. The little creature straightened it's back in answer, bringing another affectionate smile to the giant stallion's maw.

"Let's go find some more, shall we?" he murmured, motioning with his head towards his favorite tree, the oldest in the forest, and no translated was needed for the louder rattle as his small companion nodded enthusiastically, skittering to walk at his hoof as he turned. He deliberately slowed his pace for the tiny creature in return, although he could sense that an offer to carry the little spirit would be rejected at the moment, with its determination to find more of the plant that he sought. The kodama were incredibly loyal, earnest creatures- at least to him- that usually sought him out for companionship when he made his rounds through the forest, but sometimes for help or protection when something threatened their home. He could tell this one was on a mission to be helpful this evening, although what in particular had spurred its focus was unclear; it was appreciated, whatever the reason.

After a few moments of patient, measured steps, Morrow scented the air as they neared his tree, testing for the smell of mushrooms as his little friend skittered forward.

Mushrooms: 0  

[Kyaishi]

The happy rattle of the little kodama and the fresh scent of mushrooms on the air told him that they had found their quarry, and another gentle smile stretched upon his maw as the forest spirit ran back to him with one in its little hands. "What a good find, little friend. Can you put it in the sack on my shoulder?" he motioned with his head towards the small burlap pouch that Evie had fashioned for him and draped haphazardly across his glowing tendrils. It was an odd little thing that he wondered where she had gotten, but it didn't smell of leather and animal skin as he had feared when she approached with it, so he had allowed her to do what she pleased. It made collecting things easier, anyway.

"All right, that's one down, and... nineteen to go?" he fought back a wince at the statement, but shrugged off the exasperation and nodded his thanks when the kodama skittered up his leg and deposited its find into the pouch. It stayed up there, much to his relief as he realized how much more searching was in store for them- slowing down his pace to accommodate tiny legs indefinitely would have certainly hindered their progress, but hopefully the extra pair of eyes would be of help.

"Where to next?" he intoned thoughtfully, more to himself than anything, but he nodded at the responding noise he got from thee forest spirit. "The river? All right, let's try there." Turning, he aimed himself at where he knew the desired place to be more out of memory than feel, although he enjoyed the familiarity of the scene around him just as much, even if he couldn't see it in the same way as others could.

Mushrooms: 1  

[Kyaishi]

Before they could venture far, Morrow jerked himself to a halt as a familiar scent drew his nose to a smaller patch of tall grass, smiling as he found his desired quarry within the strands. "Look there, little friend," he murmured with a gesture of his head, "can you get that mushroom for me?"

A soft, but enthusiastic clatter was his response as he felt the spirit slide carefully down his bent leg and carefully pluck the small plant from the dirt, skittering back up with remarkable speed and placing it carefully within their cloth pouch. "You're getting good at this, aren't you?" he intoned affectionately as he aimed a grateful look at where he could sense the small creature perched, and he could swear the little thing perked up proudly in return. Chucking, the tall stallion turned, resuming their trek towards where he could hear running water in the distance.

Mushrooms: 2  

[Kyaishi]

It didn't take long to arrive at the river, and Morrow was delighted to scent a patch of growing mushrooms along the shoreline where they stood, but it struck him that the scent seemed a little... off, somehow. He stopped a moment to wrinkle his nose, turning to give pause to his little friend, who had already slid down and was running happily towards where the scent was coming from. "Wait-"

The spirit didn't seem to heed his warning in its excitement, immediately scooping up as many as it could carry and running towards him in chattering happiness, but the large stallion could already sense the rotten smell making him faint, and once the overzealous creature touched one of the slimy things to his nose to show its prize to him, he felt his stomach turn and the feel of the world slipping away, however unwillingly.

----

He wasn't sure exactly how much time passed after that, but he came back to awareness with the same kodama tugging at his mane in distress, joined by two others who had shown up and were assisting in efforts to wake him up with limited success. "Little friends?" he asked groggily, shifting to lift his head with considerable effort and shifting his tongue to get rid of the odd taste in his mouth. All at once, he remembered the pouch, and a nose at the bag's contents made him heave an exasperated sigh as he realized that their mushrooms were gone. "Well, time to start over, I suppose."

Mushrooms: 0  

[Kyaishi]

With a sigh that was more tired than before, he heaved himself back to his feet and waited for the kodama- all three of them, this time- to skitter up onto his back, and he turned to start deeper into the forest.

Mushrooms: 0  

[Kyaishi]

It was a wonder he wasn't startled when another creature darted out- a rabbit this time- and took a running leap at his bag, and the kodama's frightful rattles told him he was alone in his composure. Still, there wasn't anything to steal and little point getting worked up about the thieving rabbit, since it was probably hungry if it was trying something like that, anyway. He murmured to it in sympathy even as it took off back into the brush, not pausing to apologize for the attempt, but he hardly minded.

Hopefully, this would be the last of those incidents.

Mushrooms: 0  

[Kyaishi]

He might have been the first to notice if he hadn't already been starting to drag his feet at the lack of success, but the three kodama upon his back started to rattle excitedly enough that he was forced to stop and focus through his exhaustion, and a single sniff of the air told him immediately what they were so happy about.

Mushrooms. A whole lot of them. He smiled at their turn of luck- finally- and asked his friends if they wouldn't mind gathering for him, which was a task that they took to with a flourish. After a few moments, the excited chittering of his friends came nearer again as they climbed up his stationary limbs to deposit what felt like an entire basket of mushrooms in his pouch- in reality just a few, but after their limited success, it felt like a lot. He nuzzled them his gratitude, turning to resume their trek into the forest and hoping they would have more successes like this one.

Mushrooms: 5  

[Kyaishi]

Later, he would blame his inattention on his exhaustion with the whole ordeal, but the truth was, he was just allowing his attention to drift enough that he somehow didn't notice the patch of brambles and thorns that he had somehow stumbled into. Despite being blind, Morrow was almost never unaware of his surroundings- he had senses beyond what most Soquili could understand for one without sight- but there was little excuse for the predicament he somehow found himself in when he found his pouch caught and torn open by the dense branched of the thicket he'd wandered into.

The kodama were helpful in pulling him out and setting them all to rights, but it seemed he'd lost a few of his quarry, which made him sigh in uncommon annoyance. Morrow had a vast well of patience, but this task was starting to wear it down. Hopefully, their recent turn of luck would bring them back to rights and he could relax a fair bit. Perhaps he should tell Evie that her tasks might be better-suited to a Soquili actively looking for busywork... or maybe he would recruit Wythe if she forced another of these tasks on him. If nothing else, it could make things more interesting.

Mushrooms: 3  

[Kyaishi]

In all honesty, he really shouldn't have been surprised when yet another creature darted out, seemingly from nowhere, to jump at his sack and steal another one of his mushrooms. He even debated getting angry enough to fight it or pursue and steal the thing back, but he reminded himself that if an animal were starving enough to try diving at a creature his size, it wasn't worth trying to take it back, and he would want to help them, anyway.

That didn't make it any less tiresome, but hopefully another turn of luck could make him relax a bit.

Mushrooms: 2  

[Kyaishi]

The growing impatience of getting this job done led him to make what was, undoubtedly, a stupid and uncharacteristic mistake as he stumbled upon another patch and managed to completely overlook the sliminess and rotten smell that had alarmed him so much before. It wasn't even a surprise when he woke again, some time later, to two kodama tugging at his mane and trying to wake him with limited success. He wondered if the third was as fed up as he was with this whole ordeal.

Mushrooms: 0  

[Kyaishi]

When the brush rustled again, he was annoyed enough to consider telling off whatever creatures came through to steal more of what he now had none of again- but he held his tongue when no less than three deer approached, hesitantly, and offered him what seemed to be... mushrooms. They must have figured out what he was hunting for, and he was deeply touched by the gesture, smiling gratefully at the gift and dipping his head in thanks.

Mushrooms: 3  

[Kyaishi]

No sooner had he recovered from the unexpected kindness of several of his woodland charges did Morrow catch another scent, and the excited rattling of his two remaining kodama friends told him he wasn't imagining it- there was a huge patch of mushrooms lying in wait, just beyond their clearing. Finally, he felt his shoulders sag in relief as his friends scuttled off to collect them, returning a few moments later with great armfuls (great for the tiny creatures they were, of course). He helped them climb up to his pouch, which was finally starting to feel heavy with their findings as they added their recent successful harvest.

Hopefully, this run of luck would continue.

Mushrooms: 8  

[Kyaishi]

Finally feeling his bag more heavily laden with the task at hand, Morrow turned to venture towards the more dense part of his forest, where he knew the humidity to be greater, and hoped there was more to find and less of the unpleasant surprises.

Mushrooms: 8