|
Post by Fanged on Dec 17, 2021 20:41:50 GMT -6
Fanged wondered if there would be a method for revealing the invisible birds, presuming they were indeed real. She scanned the tree line, seeing if she could glimpse a translucent wing or catch sight of the flash of a beak. When she could not find even a hint of creature, Fanged found herself feeling disappointed. She shook her head and turned back to see where Ingrid had headed off to. The Malii disappeared deep into the thicket of the grove. At first, Fanged had presumed the grove to be rather small, but on second glance it appeared to expand the deeper she headed into it. She found herself panicked as the area stretched further and further around her. She inhaled deeply, trying to calm her fluttering heartbeat. Her methods were only fully successful when she caught sight of Ingrid’s purple fur a few meters ahead of her. She hurried to catch up.
(Ingrid 9 4/5, 25 4/5)
(Black Bones Hunt 14)
49
|
|
|
Post by Fanged on Dec 17, 2021 21:12:33 GMT -6
Ingrid had stopped suddenly, her tail waving back and forth as her gaze fixed on a shape obscured by twisted, bare branches. Despite their lack of leaves, their thickness made it difficult to see past them. Fanged moved close to Ingrid and stopped next to the Malii. If she had her eye on something, she didn’t want to spook either of them. Ingrid didn’t move from her position. Fanged decided to stay still as well. Muscle control had been a strong suit of hers in the past. Often it was necessary to contort oneself into odd positions in order to remain hidden. Fanged wanted to speak aloud and it was a struggle to keep that tick from emerging. She wanted to ask Ingrid what she saw or smelled since neither of those things were clear to her. The more she waited, the harder it was to resist the tick. She could only hope that what they were watching revealed itself soon.
(Ingrid 10, 27)
(Black Bones Hunt 15)
50
|
|
|
Post by Nadia on Dec 19, 2021 7:05:08 GMT -6
|
|
|
Post by Fanged on Dec 21, 2021 11:46:53 GMT -6
The first shape to make itself known was lanky and bug-like. Fanged had experience with this type of creature. This was a Koguma. She’d already tamed two of the beings and she was confident that she could befriend another. Ingrid barely paid attention to it. Koguma were old news to her and she was much more interested in what else could be potentially lurking in the area. After all, the noises they had heard earlier hadn’t come from this Koguma. Fanged decided that since she was on her own for this encounter, she had better get started on making the Koguma like her. The wild critter was busy with its own task and appeared to be as aloof towards them as Ingrid was towards it. She decided to start by talking to the creature and ensuring that it knew that they were there. It was rather enthralled with its fruits.
(Ingrid 10 1/5, 27 1/5)
(Black Bones Hunt 1)
51
|
|
|
Post by Fanged on Dec 21, 2021 12:51:27 GMT -6
“Hi there fella, is the harvest going well?” Fanged asked the critter.
It didn’t appear to mind when Fanged spoke to it. It was still absorbed in its task, but it didn’t act threatened when she took a step closer to it. Ingrid was still poised away from them, watching the shadows for the next creature to pop out. Fanged decided that since she was settled in for a while, she didn’t need to keep her focus on Ingrid for now. The Koguma appeared a bit worried when Fanged took a second glance at it. Was it fearful that it didn’t have enough food to survive the winter? Perhaps it would appreciate if she offered to help it gather some more.
“Do you need some help?” she asked it.
The Koguma raised its head to look at her now. It might not understand her words, but it seemed eager to have some assistance.
(Ingrid 10 2/5, 27 2/5)
(Black Bones Hunt 2)
52
|
|
|
Post by Fanged on Dec 21, 2021 12:56:17 GMT -6
Fanged decided to help by looking around for more fruit. It was the end of the harvesting season, so their options would be limited. The air was already frigid with frost and the trees had long since shed their leaves. A quick glance over towards Ingrid confirmed that the Malii was still frozen in place, intently watching the shadows. The thought of it disturbed Fanged, but there was little she could do to save them from the appearance of whatever shadowy creature was out there. She glanced around at the trees, searching for any that might continue to bare fruit. When that endeavor seemed rather hopeless, she turned her attention towards the ground.
“Oh, looks like there still might be some pumpkins over there,” she mused aloud.
The pumpkins weren’t in the greatest condition, but it was a better find than nothing at all. She approached one and ran her palm over it.
(Ingrid 10 3/5, 27 3/5)
(Black Bones Hunt 3)
53
|
|
|
Post by Fanged on Dec 21, 2021 16:02:21 GMT -6
Once she deemed the pumpkin suitable, she plucked it free from the ground and picked it up. Ingrid perked her head up momentarily as Fanged carried the pumpkin past her. She called out to the Koguma first before approaching it with her offering. She held out the pumpkin and waited to see if the wild critter was going to accept or reject it. To her relief, the Koguma appeared rather pleased with her selection of food. She handed the pumpkin over to the critter who accepted it eagerly.
“Well, if you’re happy with that one, I’d also be happy to find you some more,” she remarked.
The Koguma seemed pleased with this new development and waited eagerly for Fanged to go and get something else to add to the stash. Fanged scanned the area, deciding to head towards a covered patch of plants that could possibly hold some vegetables within.
(Ingrid 10 4/5, 27 4/5)
(Black Bones Hunt 4)
54
|
|
|
Post by Fanged on Dec 21, 2021 16:14:48 GMT -6
A sudden rustling noise had Ingrid on edge. Fanged froze as well, but the noise stopped as suddenly as it had started. Fanged took the chance to reach the patch of plants before whatever it was disturbed them again. She crouched down and began to push leaves aside to see if they revealed any vegetables underneath. To her delight, she had come across an abundance of finds. Like the pumpkin she had found earlier, they weren’t in the greatest condition, but one couldn’t be picky this close to winter. She grabbed a handful of leave and began to pull out a few carrots that had managed to grow in the vicinity. When she had gathered enough carrots, she moved on and found a few onions as well. With her arms full of various vegetables, she began to make her way back over to the Koguma. She glanced quickly at Ingrid to confirm she was still there.
(Ingrid 11, 29)
(Black Bones Hunt 5)
55
|
|
|
Post by Fanged on Dec 21, 2021 16:20:32 GMT -6
Ingrid was frozen in place. For a moment, Fanged panicked and had to wait to see her draw a breath before she was convinced that the Malii was still fine. She made her way back to the Koguma and dropped her haul close by to the rest of the pile. The Koguma was growing more used to her presence. It didn’t tense up when she approached its pile and it helped arrange the vegetables into its pile of other food.
“Well now it looks like you have a good store for the winter. How about we be friend?” she spoke softly to the Koguma.
It might not understand her words entirely, but it seemed eager to have a helper to gather it more food. It glanced around from its pile of harvested food before glancing back over towards Fanged. After a few moments, it decided to gather up its finds and bring them elsewhere.
(Ingrid 11 1/5, 29 1/5)
(Black Bones Hunt 6)
56
|
|
|
Post by Fanged on Dec 21, 2021 16:33:11 GMT -6
The Koguma carried its finds in its arms, despite the whole ordeal looking rather cumbersome. Fanged decided to take her backpack off and unzipped it. She held it down to the Koguma and offered to carry its finds for it. The Koguma made a few attempts to carry its horde over towards the pathway before giving up and deciding to allow Fanged to take the food for it. It took them a while to fit everything in her backpack. The Koguma grew anxious when Fanged tried to zip it completely closed, so she ended up leaving a gap open which seemed to calm the creature.
“Alright. I’d offer to take you to another area, but it looks like we’ll be sticking around here longer while Ingrid is still obsessed with that patch of shadows.”
Thankfully there was still lots to find in their current area. They could stick around for a while as Ingrid waited.
(Ingrid 11 2/5, 29 2/5)
(Black Bones Hunt 7)
57
|
|
|
Post by Fanged on Dec 21, 2021 17:37:16 GMT -6
The Koguma kept an eye on the backpack for a while until it became comfortable enough to stray a bit from Fanged. It scanned the area with a sharp eye before finding a spot that it wanted to investigate further. The insect was quite adept at finding food that Fanged could not spot herself.
“Wow there’s a whole bunch of gourds hidden under there,” Fanged marveled when the Koguma revealed a patch of them. She moved closer to help it gather up the ones that it wanted to take with them. Her backpack was filled a good bit with the food that the Koguma had gathered. With the task accomplished the Koguma appeared infinitely more secure with its situation. They returned to the area that Ingrid was still at. It had become evident that whatever the Malii had spotted wouldn’t be emerging anytime soon. Perhaps it would be better to come back later.
(Ingrid 11 3/5, 29 3/5)
(Black Bones Hunt 8)
58
[DONE]
|
|
|
Post by Nadia on Dec 21, 2021 17:42:25 GMT -6
The koguma has come to appreciate your company. It's a hard task, gathering for winter, and it's glad it had you! It's probably going to see the winter out right here, now... [Congratulations, you have successfully tamed the creature!] There's also... this. Ew.
|
|
|
Post by Fanged on Dec 21, 2021 17:53:42 GMT -6
Ingrid was reluctant to leave, but she eventually conceded when she realized that they had company with them. The Koguma was old news now and she didn’t have much interest in investigating further to see how it ticked. Instead, Ingrid would allow them to go back to the kennels. It would take a bit to find their way back.
“I guess the fastest way would be to retrace our footsteps. Ingrid, do you know where we started?” she questioned the Malii.
Ingrid sniffed around, trying to catch their own scents on the nighttime breeze. They had been here for quite a while now. It wouldn’t be surprising if sunrise was approaching at this point. It didn’t take Ingrid too long to pick a direction. Fanged could only hope that it was the correct one. The Koguma followed them eagerly, having already warmed up to the idea of having company around.
(Ingrid 11 4/5, 29 4/5)
(Black Bones Hunt 9)
59
|
|
|
Post by Fanged on Dec 21, 2021 18:36:42 GMT -6
The Koguma was eager to leave the garden and explore new areas. It had never even strayed this far from its home before! Ingrid led them at a rapid pace, as though she was on a dangerous mission to escort them home. She moved swiftly, her paws barely skimming the ground as they relocated back onto the main path of the garden.
“Almost home now. Then you’ll get to meet all of the other critters as well. I have two Koguma already, so you won’t be the lonely outside. They should welcome you eagerly,” she remarked to her new friend.
Ingrid paused for a moment, contemplating which direction to head in before she picked the one that Fanged thought she recognized as well. They reached the regular entrance not too much later than that. The Koguma was a bit hesitant about leaving, but with some extra coaxing the three headed home.
(Ingrid 12, 31)
(Black Bones Hunt 10)
60
|
|
|
Post by Fanged on Dec 21, 2021 18:40:16 GMT -6
Exploring the gardens with Ingrid had been fun. However, the Malii had been exhausted with her recent growth spurt so she hadn’t been up for another adventure quite so soon. Somehow, they had wrangled the Koguma home and it was busy settling into her kennel alongside her other creatures. For now, she returned to the gardens with a different companion. This time, she had chosen to take a Felusine along. The baby creature had been given to her under circumstances that Fanged hadn’t yet to fully decipher. It hadn’t been the first Felusine she had obtained in an odd manner. The thing she did know, was that the Felusine was a descendent from the same line of Felusine that Iris had come from. “What should I call you?” she asked the small Felusine in her arms. The Felusine squirmed, not much of a fan of being carried. When they got to her garden she could be placed down. (Gideon 0 1/5, 0 1/5) (Black Bones Hunt 1) 61
|
|