Every now and then, she stop and looks... so surprised, like she didn't expect that anyone would be interested in being around her.
Nevilly transformed me into a squirell when I arrived, and we spent a little while playing the squashing game -- I had, unexpectedly, a bit of a knack for stepping out of the way the moment before she struck. A little bit before the cat-and-mouse (deer-and-squirrel, I should say) got monotonous, I transformed back. We bounced our way around the ruins, our hooves making echoing beats around the dry earth and cool stone. We played for a while in the cage -- the cage, I think, is a funny thing: We play in it freely, we mime being caught -- and sometimes, we mime that there is a reason, that we are dangerous when we are not. Perhaps the cage lets us -- in jest -- uncage something in ourselves? But no, this is besides the point. We played a little longer, and then came to stand on the small platform, and she laid her head on my back. We stayed like this for what felt like a long time.


After she left, I went and joined Zelig and a friend of his (I assume), in sitting in the poppy patch. Alice V and another deer came and joined us, and Saosin, who had been asleep, woke up. We ran around for a while, but I admit -- I wasn't in the mood to run with a large group, so I fled off with Alice V the first chance I got, and I left not long after besides.

The trees whispered to me in my sleep of cool rains; I awoke to go and see the droplets falling for myself. Nevilly was around, and so I went to join her, Saosin, and two others I was not accqainted with on the Playground rocks. We danced there for a while, the raindrops splashing around our hooves and shaking off of our flanks. We even got a passable Mexican Wave going -- the first I've been a part of in a long time that actually worked. Saosin and the deer who danced with him, however, devolved into the most interesting thing I've seen in a while: they alternated nuzzling and taunting, or nuzzling and roaring -- love and agression interfused. After watching it a while, I gestured to Nevilly and we want to sit in the Oak for a while, to dry off and keep out of the cold for a bit. It was so peaceful in the Oak, and despite the rains outside, with all the different deer in there and Nevilly next to me, I felt rather warm. I think I heard the Oak snickering about something, but I can't imagine what.

We took a break from sitting under the tree and began to hop and run in the rain. The droplets pressed against our faces, and the ground was slick and cool as it flew beneath us. With the water flying off her as she ran, I couldn't help but feel there was a poem somewhere in there -- I shall consider this idea. After a while, I had to say goodbye - but it was a very nice time spent.


I woke up again, and darted around for a little while until I ran across Jettem, who I had met before, and Nine. Nine went off after a bit of frolicking, but Jettem and I stuck together and decided to rest on the Playground Rocks. It was very peaceful: the rain is so beautiful and so sad. After a while, I was startled by something -- a deer with an almost exact fusion of Payton and I's pictograms -- I left and went wandering. That deer left nearly the moment I found it, some innocent and naked stag. I felt a little sad, and all of the sudden longed to see my precious Complex again -- she's very much like her mother, often somewhere far away, returning for glimpses.


I found myself sitting alone under the bridge. After a while, another deer came to join me -- and when a doe came along, looking sad in the pouring rain, I decided to move the sitting to on top of the bridge. She left after a while, though, leaving the orca-pelted stranger and I. A Nightfall-pelted doe came and sat with us as well, though I can't say why she did it. Maybe she just liked having company to watch the rain with. We also eventually got joined by a deer -- whose picto I recognize, but whose name I do not know -- in the Day of the Dead pelt, and his high-spirited friend. They hadn't been with us for long before I decided to go to sleep back beneath the bridge.


For a moment almost two brief to mention, I joined what was left of Virgil's little party by the lake. I tried helping him get his set back, but my contribution was...less than meaningful, and I left very shortly after things moved to the Oak. Still, it was very nice seeing everyone.

((I'm a lazy muffin. I'll add pictures tommorow... I may also toss him on again, given a good enough reason, but I wanted this up. Also, this marks the return of what I always thought of as Seed's catchphrase when he was young: "I shall consider/ponder/some other word meaning think about this." I had totally forgotten about it until I half-wrote the sentence. I should use it more often.))