A breath of air froze on contact with the outside world. It was a wonder that the forest wasn't blanketed in fog today or any other day of winter. Hundreds breathed here. Just a moment of silence was completely lost in many parts of the Forest. One could hear others calling to their kin. Footfalls that one would think were dampened by the snow were easily picked up on just because of how numerous they were. The forest bustled even in the early morning hours, now. It was difficult to catch a break.
A deer took the opportunity to steal away into the quieter part of the forest. The snow thinned here beneath the glare of the sun. Orange and black and white turned from glaring exposure to the best of camouflage against the Birch ground that was still dappled in places with piles of melting snow. This place was at least quieter, and the further he trekked into it the more quiet it got. The deer trod along until he found sufficient silence.
The calls were far away as the stag's ears pivoted about his head, radar to catch any noise. Thank the Gods there was little. Another cloud of breath floated off on the winter breeze. The humanoid face appeared to be nervous for a moment as a bird flew away from the safety of the brush. Finally, the koi-pelted deer huffed out a sigh as he relaxed. A shake later, the calm had settled in and the human-faced deer set to sniffing the world around him. His humanoid nose moved along the earth until a dry spot was sought. With a grunt, Moss placed himself on that dry patch of ground. He found it warm and in direct light of sun. Black ears fell back not in upset, but in sheer bliss. To match, the stag closed his small eyes. The world just seemed right when it was this calm.
As of late, the stag seemed more in-tune with his natural side. He was less inclined to follow pursuits of knowledge, and more to enjoy the simpler things. It felt therapeutic, he thought, to forego using word in favor of body language, and to leave behind the dramatic quarrels of higher-thought for the peace of laying in the sun for a nap. He once again took pleasure in eating from the veritable buffet that lay before him even in the midst of winter. It wasn't even like him to think with words at the moment. Feelings grew to be a way to look at the world anew.
The beast opened his eyes to look around him. Fiery grasses poked out above the snow and swayed in any breeze. The trees' dappled barks fluttered where they pulled free from the trunks. Birds moved about on their business, and a fountain bubbled away not far off. No sound of hoof or holler could be found. Moss took joy in it. Maybe he could see time for a nap in the warm sun. But first, the stag took a moment to scratch an itch behind one ear. He folded his neck around to meet the reach of one leg, the cloven hoof scratching just where it needed to. Moss hummed in satisfaction. He chose to remain folded, sticking his head in the crook of that outstretched hind leg in order to block his face from the sun. He would attempt a nap here, but plans don't always go that way.
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Note:
To me my stag is feeling more and more feral in his ways since gaining the Koi pelt. Because of this, I'd like to try RP-ing him as such. If anyone would like to attempt to RP more ferally, I'd love if you joined. If you don't know what 'feral' means in this context, please just watch instead of replying.
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May I? ------- As she
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As she hopped through the trees, Ramen chirped aloud. It was a strange noise, resonating in a melodious way. It hummed through her mask, making the pale feathers shiver with happiness. She had no reason to feel so light and peaceful -it was just her natural response to having nothing to do, and so much time to decide on an activity. Usually, she would opt for tree-battering, but that didn't feel right today. She wanted to do something more exciting, something that didn't mean eating the evidence. Today would just have to be another day for sleep.
Until she saw the stag.
Although Ramen had seen other deer before, the spirit was still fascinated. His eyelids fluttered gently, ghostly pale in the cold winter sun. The ashen fur he wore was tinged silver-gold in the light, and the orange patches grew more intense, like a kindling fire. The stag seemed so gentle as he rested, and Ramen took some time to study that. She resisted the urge to pounce, to poke and prod. Now was not the time. Now was the time to hide, to wake the sleeping and to challenge them. The spirit loved these games, the games where the players track down another, and she loved to stay hidden for hours, until she was found or the other gave up. She had all the time in the world, and she wasn't inpatient. For now, she would sit there and examine the stag, in the hopes that he would wake up.
But that wasn't fun.
So, Ramen dived into the long, red grass, nestling herself among the plants, silently giggling.This was surely a great place to hide.
Hmmm, I wanna try this. Ashe
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Rest. That's what was needed right now. And Ashe was just far enough for the calls to barely be a bother. He lifted up his head and yawned, letting a cloud of visible breath form in the cold air, before curling back up. The snow wasn't much of a problem, not with all this extra fur to curl up in. Buried half into the snow and curled like this, he probably seemed like an odd lump of a snow with flowers on it from a distance. For that, he was grateful at the moment. He had enough excitement for the night, jumping, running, and tackling others. Now was time for a bit of rest.
Hearing light hooves approach, he tilted his head enough to see who was approaching. It was a stag with a pelt as the fish he has seen in the pond. Interesting. He was nosing at the ground until he came to an area without snow. He wasn't that far off. The stag didn't seem to know he was there. Maybe the snow was doing the trick of hiding his scent. Or maybe he smelled like a nearby flower patch and not too much of ash. He sniffed the air as quietly as he could, trying to pick up a scent. He couldn't really. He has seen him around a couple of times but has never gone up to him. Ashe just sits there and watch for now.
Just as the other seems to be going to sleep, something odd comes around. It seemed to be a floating mask. As it drew closer he could almost make out a figure. Oh. It must be another deer. It stopped a ways from the stag and stared at him, just as Ashe was doing. They continued to do this for a while before the little deer rushed and dived into the grass near him. He nearly jumped from his position from the sudden act, but he stayed put and turned his ear to the masked one while keeping his gaze on the stag.
I am fangirling so hard right
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At the edge of sleep, there was always that little bit of hyper-alertness. Moss was caught at such a moment by a sound in the grass. He wouldn't sleep now, unfortunately. Icy air didn't carry scent very well, but the air struck the inside of his nose and ignited the nerves that sent a message to his brain: Had he caught her scent on the wind? A spirit was hard to smell, or maybe scentless.
The stag focused inwardly, still feigning sleep. An unknown pictogram sprung to mind, glowing there. He knew it was near, but not where or whom it was. It was just near. Confusing, because he still didn't know if he smelled the little one hidden in the grass on the other side of his eyelids. A second appeared not too far off as well, so found himself again in the thick of a heavily-populated forest. Oh well, it wasn't easy to get away.
A bruised-looking tongue flicked over his lips as the stag chose a different sleep-position, rolling onto his side and exposing a fluffy snow-colored tummy to the sun. There he lay limp, ear pressed to the earth while the other secretly gathered sound. This display of complete content was intended to be used to display that he was no threat. Calm, easy-going Moss wasn't something that was to be feared or wary of, despite being twice the size of the little spirit-floof.
The stag couldn't help but smile slightly. The mood of today seemed to be playful.
Ramen observed the scene from
As the spirit gazed over the scene, she saw a disturbance. Another deer, with a face of bone and the same motives as the stag who came before him. However, this deer lingered for a moment, apparently seeing Ramen. She locked onto him, amused. He had definitely seen her, and she was going to toy with him. The spirit melted into the grass, shrouding herself in shadow. Her eyes flared white, then softened to a low shimmer through the holes in her mask. She lay there still whilst she changed, her mood calm but mischevious. This would be interesting.
May I join? I want to try my
(Psst. Is there an order
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Ashe huffed, amused and interested when the stag rolled on his side. He never saw to many stags in such a submissive display. Apparently he had picked something up. Well, it wasn't like he was trying to hid from this stag in particular, or anything. He always seemed kind when ever Ashe had a chance to see him from afar, but something was slightly different to him now. He was positively interested to where this was going to lead. Before he could even begin to stalk up to the stag he noticed something.
Apparently it wasn't enough to just keep an ear to the one in hiding. He heard nothing from them, but he did feel a slight disturbance in the air near him. His fur began to rise along with his suspicion of this other. Oh that must been a mask of a trickster, going by what he felt. Guess he'll just go along with it for the moment. Maybe it'll turn up in his favor, somehow.
(Skye, as long as you
The one that was further from
The one that was further from him seemed to give away his position with a huff of air. The stag stretched his legs before rolling them back beneath him to stand up. The movement was swift and singular, seeing the stag from the ground to his hooves quite quickly despite his size. Though he was but an average deer in stature, he was slightly girthy from a breakfast had earlier in the day.
Moss looked around himself as if wary of the position of others. His ears were on high-alert, though inner senses were closer at hand. Both deer and spirit nearby still remained that way. Moss turned his striped face to the ground yet again and sniffed it. He moved forward, sniffing again. On this went until he began to explore the grasses nearby, taking the opportunity to pick at little sprouts as if unaware that just beyond his nose he may find the little glowing spirit.
One ear was always trained on Ashe, a deer that unbeknownst to Moss was named as the scent he carried could be described as.
The stag halted for a moment, tail raised like a white flag and fur on ruff equally so. Just prior to finding the cute little wraith, the male raised his head as though he had heard something in the distance. He would play the game, but in his way. Not only spirits could be tricksters.
The koi-pelted deer stole a quick glance in Ashe's direction, eyes glimmering with mirth. Would he play with the deer and the spirit?
(The only one I have of right
Ramen stared serenely at both
As the deer-koi approached her grass patch, she returned to her full coloured state and nestled into the ground, appearing to lie down. Under all the ivory fur, she was coiled like a spring, energy fizzing beneath her skin. She waited in a cat-like pose, her ears pointed towards the stag. She just needed to wait a few more seconds, and...
Ramen darted out of the scarlet grass, a high-pitched hum escaping her mask. It was accompanied by a variety of squeaks and purrs, all soft and strong simultaneously. The spirit sprinted into the next patch of grass, awaiting a chase.
Seeing the stag swiftly and
He watched as the stag with the multicolored pelt slowly neared the grass that the masked one had disappeared into. The other suddenly stopped and looked at him, a message showing in his eyes. Stealthy as possible Ashe moved in position, ready to take off when the time came; ready to join the game.
He felt another shift in the air. Seconds passed by, everything silent and everyone still. Then a hum interrupted the silence, and the deer sprung out of its hiding spot and into another patch. He took sudden chase to the other deer, no more waiting, just as he had done the day before.
(I think I know what feral
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Namir awoke with a start on the tree branch where he had fallen asleep about two hours ago. Looking down, he saw tree deer; one orange, black, and white; one ivory with a mask; and one with a fawn pelt and a skull mask.
Oooh, Namir thought. I'll have a good meal today
Namir quietly slithered down the trunk and crept across the ground toward the deer.
This is going to be to easy! Namir got ready to spring, but hesitated when the koi deer raised his head. Discouraged, Namir ran back into the cover of his tree.
This is going to be harder than I thought
That bright hum caused Moss
It was unbeknownst to him that a predator seemed to stalk them, but it wasn't a problem for the koi-pelted male. Subject to the Golden Rule, he wouldn't be in danger unless he attempted purposefully to hurt the cougar. It wouldn't make him less wary, though, since there was one deer with blood here that didn't seem protected.
The male hopped up and dashed again after Ramen, closing but most likely not fast enough to catch the little fluff. Play was the word of their day, or so Moss thought. He shook his head awkwardly in joy.
(Just to be clear, I am
(Not mine, Skye. I made that
(My character is the one
(Yeah, and I kind of want
Ramen watched as the chase
After scurrying to the centre of the action, where the koi-stag had previously been resting, Ramen felt another soul nearby. She looked up instinctively, being partly lapine, and saw a strange sight. A tawny lion, with long ears and velvet antlers, gazing down at them hungrily. What was it doing? The spirit supposed it was hunting, and dashed off again, crouching into another grass patch. From there, she could stare at it, assess the way it moved. It was hunting, and it seemed to fancy some deer. Ramen hissed loudly at it, in the hopes that it would target her instead - she was a spirit, and she could survive if the lion tried to kill her.
(Ramen cannot be harmed.)
A chirp joined the spirit's
Entering the clearing, he was surprised to hear hissing coming from the masked deer that was yet again in a patch of grass. He looked in the direction that she seemed to have locked on, and saw a feline in the tree. Well, this just took a turn. The yearling backed up back into the trees and went still, watching.
Well, Namir couldn't back
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(Just to be clear, Ace, I would never make Namir severely wound or kill Ashe.)
The stag felt the weight of
He grunted, throwing all of his weight into launching a stored spell, aimed to put a mask on the cougar to impede his mouth without hurting anyone around him. Sometimes, simple forest magic was all that was necessary, and Moss was glad to have eaten a number of mushrooms for breakfast. It wasn't a wonder he had always adored the kind that grew on trees. They were useful. However, he would have to eat more if he kept on using spells. There were only so many in his stomach, and they would continue to disappear with each time he cast one.
The anger the koi stag held was rare. His ears were pinned back to his head as if glued there. The stag's whole body tensed and he braced himself against oncoming attack although it wouldn't hurt him. Moss stood tall. With the combination of anger and confidence, the stag took on an imposing facade. This was much unlike him. The sound of his hoof coming into contact with the ground as he stomped it was hollow, yet strong. It was a warning. There were more mask spells where that came from.
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Just so everyone's aware, Moss' "Golden Rule" protection gives him the power that we all take for granted in-game, how the deer in the game aren't solid. Most of the time, he's as solid as any other animal. However, when someone tries to hurt him he becomes intangible. If you just looked at him, you couldn't tell that he wasn't as solid as you or me before.
Actually, I'll edit that.
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The spirit saw the lion crouch in a similar way to herself when she was about to cross the stream by the Crying Idol in a single bound. It was, she supposed, beautiful in a terrible way - the curves of its muscles and gleam of its teeth were only built for killing. As it leapt, she saw it in slow motion, the ripple of tendons as it launched, the widening of its jaw, and the flame that burst behind its eyes. It was then that she noticed it was diving for the koi-deer, and she dashed forwards with another hoarse growl. The koi-deer then raised his head, antlers displayed fiercely in a crown of white. A white glow built up between the ashen tines, and a burst of blinding light was thrown at the feline.
The lion seemed to bounce off the stag, and it was just as surprised as the spirit. Was this magic? The spirit had seen many deer playing, throwing glittering orbs at each other, acquiring new masks and antlers, and some becoming different animals. Ramen had watched them, and discovered that the magic came from the spirits of the Forest, whom she thought were incredibly important. They certainly were of a higher rank than her, and she suspected they might have been angels. There was nothing angelic about the conflict though - the lion was spitting furiously at the stag, who's ears showed its confidence. Ramen straightened up alongside the stag, feathers rattling, and glared at the hunter, trying to look as magnificent as him.
(Understood, Skye. I would
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Ashe was surprised when he saw that the feline was unable to touch the stag, and double surprised, along with horrified, when the predator leaped onto him, making him stumble to the ground. Horrified at the thought of being killed and the pain of the claws going into his skin, he screeched, loud and high-pitched. He was mildly aware that the predator wasn't biting, but that wasn't good enough. He wanted the beast off of him! Getting up, the young deer tried to buck the feline off his back.
Namir wasn't surprised when
Namir leaped off the young deer, and started to thrash around, pawing at his face. When that didn't work, Namir started to panic. What if he could never get this thing off!? Going to the extremes, Namir smacked his covered face against a tree, and stumbled back, falling down. Still with a covered face. Namir moaned and collapsed, whimpering as he pawed his masked face. He was giving up. He had tried all the ways he could think of in his panicked state, and none had worked.
He hated seeing the predator
He hated seeing the predator thrashing around, despite what it had done to his playmate. It was rough on everyone, what had happened. The stag nodded to the little spirit that had joined him at his side. She did good. Carefully, so as to avoid the cougar, Moss made his way over to Ashe to check his wounds. He sniffed the buckling over, and deemed that there didn't seem to be anything life-threatening to his eyes and nose. This look-over was likely a weird sensation for Ashe, who would be able to feel the stag's breath but nothing solid next to him at all. Of course, Moss couldn't be sure as to what kind of healing was needed. Injuries in the cold could be difficult to clean since warming up after cleaning off would be a life-threatening task in itself.
The deer eyed the cougar again. Moss thanked the Gods in silent prayer for the mask they chose to let him cast: the NOH mask. It covered the face completely, and Moss felt safe knowing that the jaws of the animal were contained. However, the Golden Rule remained as protection to the deer, and didn't seem to fade yet. It only would once everyone was out of danger here.
Moss carefully stepped toward the predator, head low and eyes unwavering. He'd get close enough to assess the cat, but not to touch at all. He grunted disapprovingly at the beast's scent. Anyone with a nose could smell death on the cat. However, one curiosity hit the stag that made him feel like he may be able to talk to the beast: he had a pictogram. Moss had no clue how to pronounce it, or anything about the beast other than he was a predator, but if the Gods let the cat into the forest he might be worth speaking to at least once.
Again, though, Moss was hesitant. So he backed away a few paces and put himself between the beast and Ashe.
Sorry, I've been having huge
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The little lapine spirit smiled - with her body, of course - at the praise she received from the stag in the form of a glance. It was strange, how you could tell exactly what another was thinking just by sight, hold an entire conversation without moving your lips. Ramen didn't have lips, but she had ears and a voice, so she could still communicate pretty well. Her feathers helped too, as they were like an extra set of ears that twitched this way and that, showing exactly what she needed to say. Right now, they were quivering, partly with pride, and partly with anger. How dare this beast try and attack her friend! How dare it prevent the other from having a fair chance at escaping!
The little spirit glanced nervously at the one who had been attacked, and watched on as the koi-deer examined the damage done. He seemed satisfied that there was nothing serious that needed to be dealt with immediately, and the spirit wandered over to the pair to take a closer look. The buckling was still in shock, and the spirit brushed against his legs like a happy cat, purring softly and loudly to reassure the young one. Ramen then looked over at the hunter, who had a mask glued to his face. Ha! That would stop him hurting anyone, but the spirit then felt a bit guilty. Perhaps they should talk to him, try and help him find other sources of food. Ramen doubted her knowledge in the field of nutrition - she didn't need it, so she never really knew where to get it.
When the stag had checked
He watched the the koi-pelted stag, done with his inspection, step up to the feline, when he felt something brush his side. He looked down and over to see the masked-deer-- oh! She's a spirit--purring to him. Ashe coos back at her, thanking her for the comfort.
Turning to the attacker, the deer grunted, annoyed and displeased. He thinks he doesn't like cats. But it was unpleasant seeing the feline like this. He huffed at the feeling. What now?
Namir lay still, hoping the
Finally, the cat struggled to his paws and shook his head fiercely, hoping to get the mask off.
It didn't work.
Namir yowled, the noise muffled because of the mask, and sat down miserably, all hope of getting the mask off diminished.
Namir stumbled forward blindly, lashing put with his paw once or twice in hopes of hitting a deer. He yowled again, and gave up, sitting down with his head bowed. This day had gone horribly wrong.
Moss watched the cat struggle
The koi deer turned to look at those who he had been playing with, and his face softened. Ashe had taken the brunt of the attack because Moss wasn't a very good target. He felt sorry for that. There was nothing that the Golden Rule did to help other than save its own charge.
Moss turned to look at the predator once more. He snorted and stamped a hoof in warning before gathering himself. Moss would move off up the hill toward De Drinkplaatz and away from this violent creature.