September 30th, 2013

Today the little kirin set off to continue his studies. He watched a pair of stags sparring for a time, and watched in confusion as they then chased each other round and round a trio of does. Oolong thought this behavior was rather strange as the does seemed rather disinterested in the goings on around them. He might have investigated further, but a familiar scent caught his nose and he set off in search of his Oolong-appointed-mentor, Walter.

After spotting the old stag slowly lumbering his way past the great oak, Oolong [strike]stalked[/strike] followed after him, watching carefully the ways he interacted with the forest and the other deer. When Walter bowed, the little kirin bowed; if Walter sat, Oolong sat. When the stag got up and moved from the rocks to the twin gods hill, and then later took a long walk through the forest, the fawn was trotting slowly behind him, keeping pace and trying to look regal.

This worked for a while, though from the god's hill they watched an even bigger herd in-session - stags chasing about aggressively and does munching away at the tall grasses. Though his kirin patience was long, his fawn patience was not, and so after a time Oolong rose and tried to practice his arts of 'intimidation' on a nearby tree.

He stopped when another fawn approached, afraid that he might just be so terrifying that she would run away. (He assumed the amused look on Walter's features was due to the new fawn's bowing.)

Later however, when he resumed his practice on a different hill, he discovered one of the differences between stags and kirin....

Oolong's horn was not a pair of antlers, branching out on either side of his delicate head... It was a sharp and only slightly curved prong, with a small hook branching off near it's center. After quite a few misses and several jarring knocks against a nearby tree, his 'opponent' finally bested him with a wickedly underhanded move! Oolong rammed the tree head on - and his horn pierced the tree and STUCK TIGHT!



Walter had fallen asleep, and the other fawn on the hillside simply watched in surprise as the little kirin fought and struggled against the tree, pulling with all his might, until at last with a scattering of bark and beetle he was finally able to pull his horn free.

As he rested his aching neck and inspecting the deep gash in the side of the elm the most horrifying thought suddenly occurred to Oolong... one that made his blood run cold and his sides shiver with terror. What if he had been sparring with another stag? His horn was special... it was sharper than antler, sharper than tree... and most stags had two great branches that caught at each other and held the other fighter at bay.

My horn would have pierced my opponents bowed head! He realized with shock, remembering the ways the other stags charged at one another. He shuddered again at the thought of the gashes they inflicted on on another, even in relatively ordered sparring. The blood always made him feel ill, and he was suddenly terrified at the damage he could have inflicted on another being.

His heart sank with these thoughts. How could he spar? Or even learn to fight? He could use his hooves, yes... but every competition he had seen thusfar involved the charge.

Later on he sought out Reate, hoping the unicorn/bicorn might be able to offer him some advice on the matter - being like a kirin himself with his centered horns. But Oolong was too embarrassed to admit his worries to the adult and so he sat in awkward silence until at last sleep overtook him.

September 27th, 2013

Oolong rose late in the afternoon, having slept through the morning while the bruises on his side healed. He was still achy when he took deep breaths, and the little kirin was a bit mystified at this new experience. He was definitely learning, however. Pain hurts, sometimes even long after it's been inflicted... Maybe this was not something he really liked the idea of, but it was life and he was beginning to understand that it was a great deal more complex than who snuggled you next or what you would eat for breakfast.

After gingerly stretching the aches out of his side and legs, the kirin faun set out into the forest in search of someone who could teach him about this new thing. What were the rules? Charging someone so much smaller than yourself seemed to Oolong to be something that didn't make sense. Before now all the fighting he had seen was in the form of friendly sparring between stags preparing for the rut. This was different... Why would that stag have been intimidated by ME? he wondered to himself as he searched. Intimidation was the only conclusion he could reach... after all, who would attack someone smaller than them-self simply for approaching?

Oolong tried greeting a pair of stags bounding between the trees, hoping they were friendly. They ignored him however, so instead of pressing he moved on. A nameless stag was no help either, he seemed more interested in chewing on the trees and rubbing his antlers on everything in sight.

The fawn finally spotted a group of deer lounging near a log, and decided that the large stag with the broad red antlers might be a good fighter. He approached and bowed, and was ignored yet again. This frustrated him. How was he supposed to learn if no one was willing to teach him?

Off to his side, the great stag Walter rose from a nap and shook himself off, bits of twig and leaf tumbling off of his large horns. Oolong eyed the scarred creature cautiously. He looked strong, and he looked tough... but he didn't seem to be bothered by the fauns playing so close to him. So the kirin ventured close and bowed.

"Excuse me... um... Mr. Stag?" he said, trying to think of the most polite way to approach the subject. "I... I want to learn how to fight. I need to know the rules, and how it's done, and why stags don't like fauns and..."

The large creature cocked his head curiously at the fawn, his eyes not quite meeting the spot where Oolong stood - and the kirin realized that his chosen mentor was blind.

"I... I got beated up for following a stag... and... and I want to learn what I did wrong... and how not to get beated up, because it hurt." the little one stammered, uncertain how to proceed. The stag gave a slight chuff that Oolong realized was a laugh, and nodded as he turned to begin venturing forward, an amused look playing across his chiseled features. The kirin took this as a non-threat, and decided to accompany him.

Oolong followed in amazement as the old stag navigated his way around the forest, even easily avoiding trodding on the other fawns that seemed comfortable in trotting after him. He received no challenge as he made his way about, and before long the kirin had decided that this was a good choice in a teacher.

They settled down finally on the big rock at the playground and watched the birds flitting through the birch trees until the great stag finally faded off with a sigh. Oolong gave a strong leap and agilely landed on the closer branches of the nearby tree, settling down in the nest-like bowl that they made.

He contemplated what he had learned so far. A good fighter doesn't go LOOKING for trouble.

September 26th

This evening Oolong went out to the forest and helped a purple fawn get himself back in order. After that it seemed like everyone in the forest was taking a NAP. This somewhat disgruntled him, as he wanted to play... but if they all wanted to sleep the little kirin wasn't about to deny them their right. So he began prancing about giving every deer he came across a bedtime snuggle.

... apparently there was one stag who did not like being snuggled. He charged at the little kirin and then took off running. This was something new! A stag that ran? Oolong LOVED to chase running deer, so he began to tear off after the great red beast.

The darted and weaved, spun and whirled in their mad dash from one side of the forest to the other. The little kirin was so intent on following his quarry that all else slipped from his mind, and for the first time all of his senses focused on a single thing - that great red blurr!

Without realizing it, his hooves left the ground as he leapt off one large hill, and he completed a jump that surprised even him - he hadn't realized he could jump that far. This only occupied his mind for a moment however, as his boundless fawn energy finally began to wear the stag down.

Then, to Oolong's surprise, the stag turned and charged him. His first lunge was a feint which would have been enough to scare off any lesser fawn, but Oolong had never encountered such a thing and held his ground, watching the massive legs whirl past him without a thought that he could possibly be hurt.

The next charge however, caught the little kirin off guard and he experienced pain for the first time in his life. Though it was only enough to knock him off his feet, it was a surprise, and a very unpleasant one at that. He screeched in the anger that suddenly filled his head... and kicked his sharp hooves at the beast in front of him. Darting and weaving and kicking, and butting with his two sharp horns he finally began to feel the drain that only such anger can bring.

When he finally paused, he realized his attacks had seemingly had no effect on the great stag, who simply gave him a disgusted look and trotted off. Oolong was left to contemplate this experience from a distance... and as the pain in his aching side brought his mind back to the moment, he realized how small he must look to such a creature.

Out of respect he approached again, this time only to bow... accepting defeat in the manner he had seen the sparring stags do, since he felt it was the right thing. Then he trotted off to settle down in the flowers to rest and contemplate the tender spot where the stag had caught him. The little kirin began to realize he had a great deal more to learn about the world.