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Post by Silver on Sept 21, 2023 1:18:32 GMT -6
They jumped slightly, causing them to fall over from their precarious position. Their head hit the ground cheek first and they involuntarily grunted with a mix of surprise and exertion.
They blinked a few times, almost not believing what just happened. They didn’t come out here to be assaulted! Their eyes snapped over to where they expected whatever grabbed them to be. It was merely a little green wyrmling, cheerfully grinning and stumbling around. It must have fallen off while they were training Kwist.
“Of course…” they said to themselves. They felt silly being so surprised by something that now seemed so obvious. It was just a harmless little Wyrmling, which if they remembered correctly, was one of the reasons they were there in the first place. They had gotten so caught up in the excitement of teaching Kwist something new that they had completely forgotten about it being Wyrmling season.
12 [151.4, 7.4]
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Post by Silver on Sept 21, 2023 1:18:49 GMT -6
“You’re doing well,” Silver said to Kwist. A healthy Wyrmling was a good sign indeed.
They rolled over onto their back so they could look up at the trees gently blowing in the breeze. The garden was generally a quiet and peaceful place. They had to remember that next time they were snuck up on by such a horrible monster as a little Wyrmling. They grinned at the thought of how they had just been so surprised. It must have looked very silly. Thank goodness nobody was watching.
There were actually two Wyrmlings. The one near Silver, and another one wandering off in the other direction. It moved awkwardly on its fresh new legs and tumbled about often. Thankfully, as everyone knew, babies were a lot tougher than they looked. Especially when it came to solitary creatures like Whiptails. The world was just too busy to bother with that whole helpless infant thing.
13 [151.45, 7.6]
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Post by Silver on Sept 21, 2023 1:19:13 GMT -6
Quin watched the other baby carefully, crouched up on the ground with his butt high in the air. He wanted to pounce on it, but he knew better than that. Silver would be very unhappy if he touched the tiny creature, so he just had to sit and watch. After a few moments of intense staring, he got bored and flopped over onto one side. He wanted to take a nap now.
Silver felt something brush against their leg, but this time they weren’t afraid. It was just Kwist. She scooted in beside them and curled up next to their body so that her leg was touching theirs. Silver’s heart was filled with warmth knowing that she trusted them enough to get close like that. It was cute to see her all curled up like that. She usually didn’t let her guard down.
They placed their hand on her side, careful not to catch themselves on any of her spikes. For such a fangy and pointy creature, she was actually pretty nice. Silver found that, once they gave them a chance, creatures were often different than one might expect.
14 [151.5, 7.8]
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Post by Silver on Sept 21, 2023 1:19:36 GMT -6
Whiptail Vine-snatchers were well known not to be very friendly, but Silver knew better than to listen to the rumors. Just like any other creature, if you were patient and kind, they would come around eventually. They had been bitten and clawed and even tail whipped more than the average person, sure, but they still have absolute faith in their methods. With enough kindness they could overcome even the most stubborn creature’s desire to eat them.
In their time as a trainer, Silver met more than their fair share of vicious creatures, both ones they owned and ones they were contracted to tame. It was an experience they valued a lot, even if it was difficult and stressful at times. It certainly taught them a lot of lessons, many they had to learn twice.
Now that Kwist wasn’t actively threatening him, Quin’s curious streak got the better of him once again. He floated over and landed on Silver’s head, looking down at the curled up creature next to them.
15 [151.55, 8]
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Post by Silver on Sept 21, 2023 1:20:46 GMT -6
He wondered about many things when he looked at her, but mostly he stared at her face where her eyes should be. He chirped softly and waved his tail.
“You better not rile her up,” Silver said idly. It took Kwist such a long time to settle down, so they really hoped Quin would relax and not try anything funny. He really liked to play and explore, which got the two of them into a ton of trouble. It seemed like he was getting into something no matter where they went. Silver often found themselves thankful for his limited ability to knock things over, though he was still the world champion of startling people.
The sweet smell of the earth was stronger than usual. It must have rained recently, they thought as the smell buzzed around in their head. For a brief moment, it was the only thing they could think about.
16 [151.6, 8.2]
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Post by Silver on Sept 21, 2023 1:21:11 GMT -6
It was a sign that they were really relaxing, not worrying about anything else. They had the time to really experience the moment and all of the sights, sounds, and smells that went with it.
It felt good to be back in the garden, though they didn’t accomplish much since they got there. There were so many things to do before the equinox, yet they were sitting there on the ground sniffing the dirt and gently patting a ball of spikes. Well, it would be a day well spent either way, they thought.
Silver stifled a yawn and took it as a sign that they should get up and do something before they fell asleep in the grass. They felt unusually tired for how little they seemed to have accomplished that day. Perhaps they hadn’t slept well, or something like that. They couldn’t really remember, actually. Wasn’t that just a few hours ago? Trying to think about it was stressful, so they ignored the weird feeling and decided to focus on work instead.
17 [151.65, 8.4]
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Post by Silver on Sept 21, 2023 1:21:52 GMT -6
They pushed themselves off the ground and shook the grass out of their hair. A rain of small sparkles floated gently to the ground among the leaves and bits of grass they had collected from the ground. One of the sparkles landed on Kwist, but she was unable to notice. She stirred in her sleep a bit, but they were pretty sure that was just a coincidence.
“Let’s see…” they said in a whisper, as not to disturb Kwist in her slumber. Why did they even say it aloud? Habit, most likely. Once they got started talking to themselves, it was often difficult to stop.
They pondered what they would do next. It would be best to go in with some sort of plan. That way they wouldn't end up clearing something up right into what they wanted to work on next. Those sorts of things often happened to them. Sometimes it seemed incredible that they got anything done at all.
18 [151.7, 8.6]
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Post by Silver on Sept 21, 2023 1:22:35 GMT -6
They often approached things in an odd way compared to others, but it worked for them. Or they made it work for them, perhaps because they had no other options. If they knew another way, they would do it that way instead, wouldn't they?
It would be best to clear out a section and move on to the next one, they thought. Many of spring’s flowers had dropped their seeds and shriveled up, blanketing the beds with dried up husks of plant matter. It was difficult for new things to grow from under the tangled web of dead flowers, so it made sense to clear them out to make room for new life.
In the natural cycle of things, it would eventually decay into fresh soil, allowing new life to spring up out of death. They would still compost the old materials, of course, but the whole process was a lot different with them there to encourage it along.
19 [151.75, 8.8]
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Post by Silver on Sept 21, 2023 1:23:22 GMT -6
Besides, in the natural cycle, things would not be encouraged to grow in quite the same way in the first place. It was incredible how fast a system could snap back to equilibrium with no extra effort being put in by a caretaker.
Silver found the entire process infinitely fascinating. With their care and attention, they could cultivate something that would otherwise be impossible. It was a nice feeling, really, though they didn’t usually think about it that way. To them, it was simply doing what they could to encourage plants and the plant-like creature that existed in tandem with them to live their best lives. That was its own reward, really. Though they also enjoyed bringing home the (literal) fruits of their labor, too.
As Silver grabbed a basket to put the wilted flowers in, Kwist woke with a start. She jumped to her feet already growling. Her tails flicked behind her in a lazy warning.
20 [151.8, 9]
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Post by Silver on Sept 21, 2023 1:24:48 GMT -6
“What’s the matter?” Silver said calmly. They didn’t bother to reach out to her, hoping their voice would be sufficient. “Did you have a bad dream?” they asked.
A bad dream? Is that why they were feeling so tired? Their mind suddenly circled back to their abrupt yawn and how difficult they found it to start working. It seemed like they would do anything to avoid working, even playing a silly game with Kwist where they had her skewer a deluge of berries with her spines. Did they have a bad dream? Why couldn’t they remember it?
They often struggled to remember their dreams, even though they felt like dreams were important. If they could only remember, perhaps their subconscious could be telling them something. Maybe they could remember something they thought they had forgotten. They might even get a better sense for their own emotional state. Something.
21 [151.85, 9.2]
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Post by Silver on Sept 21, 2023 3:03:06 GMT -6
Instead, it was like waking up every morning to a storybook with completely blank pages. They were used to it, of course, but sometimes they couldn’t help but to pause and reflect. At least they never woke up growling, they thought with a smirk. Well, they didn’t think they did anyway.
“It’s alright Kwist, I’m right here,” they said. They clicked their tongue a couple of times to help her locate them. They would have done so regardless, but the fact that she couldn’t see them made her really appreciate the little sound to indicate where they were.
She shook her body from head to tails, then stomped over to where Silver was to investigate what they were doing. She sniffed around them in a wide circle, taking in what the smells were telling her. Nothing too interesting, apparently, as she promptly sat down and started chewing on her own hip. Molting season was very itchy and she was clearly annoyed by it.
22 [151.9, 9.4]
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Post by Silver on Sept 21, 2023 3:03:54 GMT -6
“I can’t spend the whole day scratching you,” Silver said with a grin she couldn’t see. Though they probably would do just that if she let them. Anything to avoid actually working, apparently. They seemed to be getting distracted even more than usual that day.
Despite their protest, Silver crouched down and scratched Kwist between two of her spines where she couldn’t reach. She leaned her head into their hand as a show of gratitude, pressing into them until they had to move to avoid being knocked over.
“You sure are sweet today,” Silver mused. It seemed that their bonding experience really did help and the two of them were closer than ever. It was always nice to win over a creature, especially one who started a bit hostile like her. Whiptails were notorious for being a bit touchy, so in a way it felt extra special to have this kind of bond with one.
23 [151.95, 9.6]
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Post by Silver on Sept 21, 2023 3:04:48 GMT -6
Now, for those flowers. Silver turned back toward the wilted garden bed and adjusted their gloves. They wanted to be sure that the gloves were secured properly before they started pulling on dead foliage. They never knew what could be in there and what might jump out and try to bite them. Even non-living things were a threat with sharp thorns and various poisons and toxins being a very real possibility.
It felt a bit sad to pull what remained of a flower out of the ground. It had long since lived its life, in flower terms at least, but looking at it reminded them of what beauty it once possessed. It wasn’t much to dwell on, but they felt strongly that it was something worth thinking about, if even for just a moment.
The first couple of flowers were so heavily tangled within the pile that pulling them out required a significant effort.
24 [152, 9.8]
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Post by Silver on Sept 21, 2023 3:05:11 GMT -6
After that, each subsequent one became easier and easier as it was teased apart from its neighbors. Pull up a flower. Put it in the basket. Untangle the next one. The process was easy to get lost in.
Kwist didn’t find this very interesting, so she wandered off to look for something else to do. She sniffed around, eventually ending up with her snout in the basket, only to get a dead flower plopped onto her face. She hissed indignantly then promptly shook the dirt off her nose. That was not what she was expecting to happen at all.
Quin chirped in a way that sounded like he was laughing. He was perched in a nearby tree and had clearly been watching what was happening. It was clearly very funny to him to watch Kwist bumble around. Perhaps he was just glad that he wasn’t the one getting himself in trouble for once.
25 [152.05, 10]
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Post by Silver on Sept 21, 2023 3:05:47 GMT -6
Silver didn’t seem to notice that Kwist was annoyed with them, and they kept pulling up old plants and tossing them roughly toward the basket which was quickly filling up. After they had cleared what seemed like a reasonable amount of space within the bed, they walked back to see how their lazy tossing of plants toward the basket had gone.
Most of them landed in the right place, which they thought was pretty good considering how much effort they put into it. They grabbed the handful of old flowers that didn’t make it and dropped them onto the top of the basket. It was overflowing a bit, but nothing they couldn’t handle. They lifted it easily, though it was quite heavy, with the help of their enchanted bracers. It was easy for them to forget they were even wearing them, so they often grabbed or threw things a little harder than intended. Seems like even magic couldn’t make them less clumsy.
26 [152.1, 10.2]
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