Orinoco was a bit put off by his shoving but when he showed her the rock she understood. Her ears fell back and she licked his self inflicted wound as a means to say 'I'm sorry'. Her eyes looked across again seeing that their time was running out. Brooks stomping turned her attention back to her mate and when he motioned for her to get on she shook her head and backed up. There was no way she was letting him swim that with her on his back. There had to be another way. She looked around frantically and ran up stream a bit. Perhaps there was a sandbank or rocks that gave them access somewhere up ahead.

--

edit: page 7 is mine allllll mine

Orin smiled feeling proud of herself for finding a much safer route. She skipped after him and nudged him when she was at his side. She fully intended to cross with him side by side. Her eyes turned on the stag before them. He seemed to have followed them. She wouldn't deny that she was a bit nervous at meeting this stag again and this time outside of the endless forest. What would he be like. Had he changed since then? What would he think of them being mates? All these questions rolled around in her head as they progressed forward.

Orin followed quickly and made sure she watched her step. Once on the other side she shook her legs free of water and plant debris. Her head shot up when she heard Brooks speak. How could he speak here? She trotted next to him and cocked her head to the side, obviously confused as to his vocalization.

Orinoco opened her mouth to call out the same word but only a bleat came out. She frowned and tried again. Finally after who knows how many tries she took a deep breath and called out long and hard. At the end of her mau came a breathless but audible "HEY"The doe smiled, her tail shaking in excitement and she looked up at her mate smiling at her achievement.

Orinoco felt excited like she had when she was a fawn. A rush of playfulness filled her and she bolted off after them. Her own body mimicking the excitement that her mate was exhibiting. It was a thrill. The place was new, everything about this place felt new and the adventure of chasing down another seemed almost too much. The doe laughed as they ran and dodged around boulders, jumped over logs and dove under fallen trees stretched across little cuts in the earth. Part way through Orinoco felt herself begin to get tired. She was not too far along in her pregnancy but the little one or ones was beginning to use up her energy. Long bouts of play usually got her to slow down. She didn't want to ruin the fun so she slowed her run to a quick trot.

Thanks Shallowfall! It's really appreciated. :3

~~~~~

Brooks looked behind him every now and then, making sure Orinoco was keeping up. She had been up until the last few bits of their run. When he looked back this time, she had come to a trot, so he did as well, falling into step beside her. Looking back ahead of him, Helaryon had disappeared from sight, but in his place were three little creatures that ran at a trotting pace in the direction he went. Brooks smiled to himself, good on you dad, never leaving anyone behind.

After a while of following the little critters, they came to a very large clearing. The clearing soon dropped off to a wide, shallow creek that ran around an island. In the middle of the island was a mass of large trees covered in vines and moss, creating a sort of natural 'hut'. Halaryon sat under neath the moss, waiting. "Welcome to my Dad's home, Orin."

Brooks ran up to his dad, nuzzling him on the shoulder and doing some sort of little giddy dance because he couldn't contain his excitement at seeing him again. He turned back to Orinoco, smiling. "Come on, hon. He won't bite." That was very true. Despite his appearance of a silent watcher, Helaryon was a little fawn on the inside. Albeit, a little fawn who liked to keep watch over things, but still.

The large stag turned his attention to his son's mate, offering a light bow to her.

"So tell me..." Helaryon spoke first, his old voice crackling and breathing out. "What brings you here?" The old buck asked, walking around on the mosses a bit before laying down across from them, his old bones audibly creaking.
"You haven't come back to the forest in a long time. I was worried plus the fact that Orinoco and I have something to tell you prompted us to come visit." Brooks replied, settling down on the soft lichens beside his mate, giving her cheek a reassuring touch with his nose.
The old buck shifted positions on the moss, the magical blue tint on his fur shimmering before settling back down again. "Good reason. What did you want to say?" Helaryon asked. Brooks looked to his mate, wondering if she wanted to say it.

Helaryon nodded, his aged eyes glittering and a smile seen on his lips. "Ah, congratulations, you two. And if I may, nice choice, that will be one sexy kid." He looked at Orinoco, cocking his head as he peered curiously at her. "You can see it when you look in her eyes. She has life." Despite just sitting down, the stag got up again. "I have something new to show as well." He said walking outside the moss hut and stepping into the water that surrounded the little island the hut was on. Brooks craned his neck a bit to see over his mate (teehee) at what his father was doing, as it was in full view from where they were sitting.

The old blue stag reared up on his hind legs and splashed into the water, feathers falling from the crest on his head and dancing as they floated down to the water. The feathers glowed a bright yellow before fizzing as they were seemingly sucked into the water. Helaryon stepped out of the water and reared up again, this time causing a spiral of water to rise where the feathers fell in. The water, after a few moments, started to contort in the air until it resembled the form of a large carrion bird, a California Condor to be precise. The figure in the levitating water shifted again, the water dripping away until it revealed a real, living, breathing animal. The Condor hovered in the air for a few moments before flapping his wings and landing on the many tines that made up Helaryon's antlers. "New magic trick, summoning. I can make anything I want appear out of this water."

"The magic from your forest added to the magic I received from my past lives is a great force, indeed. It's all just raw power. My feathers act as containers that hold onto the raw power until it's ready for 'refinement', or ready for casting. All you need to hold the magic is objects. Likes stones or beads." Helaryon said as his head thrown back as the Condor kicked off his antlers and landed gently on Orinoco's back, its big black eyes staring at her with child-like curiosity.
Brooks stood up and trotted outside. "Our daughter, Calida, uses her feathers the same way. As holders for her magic, though her magic is primarily focused on healing I think." He said, touching his nose to the feathers of the bird. It absolutely was covered in the hot smell of fresh magic. It reminded him of the taste of copper, the way the smell was on his tongue.
"Would you like to learn some summoning magic, Mrs. Orinoco?"

Brooks sat back on his haunches, a small smile on his face, wanting nothing of the magic. All he could do was get them between worlds. That was good enough for him.

Helaryon shook his head, casting several feathers down. Picking one up with levitation, he set it on the ground in front of Orinoco. "Until you know how to transfer magic into items, we'll use already charged ones. Take the feather into the water and drop it in. Then you must very quickly form the complete figure of the creature or object in your head. Disturb the water with a splash to kickstart the transformation." Helaryon leaned down so he could look Orinoco in the eyes. Lowering his voice, he spoke, "Now, I must warn you. Magic can be painful, detrimental to health, and very taxing on the mind. Don't create an animal with this first spell. If your memory of it is shady, or you can't remember all of what it looked like, don't make it. If you do, it will most likely end up coming out of the spell deformed or mangled in some way. Start out with a stone, they're the easiest to make. Once you've mastered making things, we'll start creating creatures. Then we can go onto bringing those creatures that already exist to us."

Brooks shrunk back a little, preparing himself for the following stream of short yells and exasperated gestures that were surely to stream from Helaryon's figure like they had when his father had tried to teach him magic as well. But they didn't. Instead the large figure remained calm, sitting back on his haunches and pushing another feather forth. "Try using the figure of an inanimate object that means something to you. Something small, simple, and doesn't have organs is the best."

Brooks smiled warmly, sharing her excitement. He remembered that stone. Looking to his father, he saw the stag give a small nod. "If you want, you can use that as a holder for magic instead of my feathers. You just have to keep it in your mouth during the next spell and it'll absorb some."

~~~~~

Want to timeskip through all the lessons until later/night?

Helaryon sat back under the moss trappings, the large bird resting on his back. Brooks rested beside his mate. The day had been peaceful enough, that was good. He didn't think his father had noticed him when he munched on his moss house a few times. But god, that stuff was delicious! In fact... Brooks reached over and pulled another clump of moss from the home, chewing on it happily. "You hungry?" He asked his mate.

"I enjoy it, it's a bit dry though when its growing up here. But the moss down by the bank of the creek should be the best." He said, pulling another clump from a rock. The stag yawned, resting his head on his legs. "Maybe tomorrow we might go on one of Dad's hunts."

Brooks glanced over at the predators on the other side of the creek and curled around his mate protectively. Looking back to her, he smiled and nuzzled her neck before gobbling up some of the moss, a bit of unsure of where his hunger was coming from. "You know. They say that stars have pictures in them. Likes snakes, dragons, or swans. You just gotta look for them." The buck said sleepily, half-dozing off. "See you in the morning Nokie."

Double post fail

Brooks yawned as he woke up, but soon scrambled to his feet, looking around. Yes, Helaryon was gone. As usual. "Orinoco, wake up." Brooks said firmly, placing his hoof on her shoulder and giving her a slight shake. He nuzzled behind her ears and stood up straight again. A howl sounded off in the misty morning. Yes, as usual. They had to get going. He shook his head, clearing his thoughts. Did they really want to follow Helaryon on his hunt? Orinoco was pregnant after all... He'd ask her when she woke up.

He jittered on his hooves, wanting to run, yet wanting to remain by his mate's side. "How long can you run at full speed for? How long can you chase something or stand to be chased?" Brooks asked, calming down his adrenaline enough to talk in a normal tone. The buck looked to the treeline and the small creek that surrounded the small island they were on. The howls came closer. Wolf howls?

Brooks perked up his ears. The howls were still far away. "He does this thing he calls The Hunt. It's where he rouses every single predator in this forest and tests their abilities. Fighting, endurance, the like. Since this forest, you know, it's magical, he has to do the natural selection by himself. All we have to do is run, and if it comes to it, I put you somewhere safe then fight. Think of it as... heh... Every single carnivore in the woods coming out from their hiding spots and swarming this area in three minutes."

Brooks felt terrible, he didn't want to make her feel like this. "Honey, come on. We have to go. We have to get away from here. Wolves are coming our way. We need to move." He spoke, a little firmer this time. The buck stood beside her, his side pressed against hers. "Come on. I'm right here."

Brooks shook his head a little, thinking Orinoco didn't quite understand the situation they were in. A low growl came from behind them and he looked over his shoulder, seeing a large, black wolf standing in the water. "Vominos!" He yelled, pushing her forward off the island and to the woods.

Brooks was shocked at her speed, but he ran after her, catching up after a few moments. He couldn't understand her deep-rooted fear, but he could do his best to try. They soon were running through a large field. Looking around him, Brooks grew a little more relaxed, they were approaching a safe area. Yeah, it was a large hollow tree, very similar to the Great Oak, only that it was dead and half uprooted. "Orin. There's a tree up ahead. It's surrounded by magic. It'll keep us safe!" He said loudly, hoping it would be heard over the wind rushing past their ears.

Brooks skidded to a stop beside her and used his body to conceal her eyes from seeing the swarm of deer-eating animals run past the tree. When most of them had run by, Brooks stood standing so rigidly and let his body relax a bit. "I'm sorry Orin. I'm sorry. I didn't mean... I-I..." He sighed and pressed his forehead to her neck, feeling guilty for putting her in a dangerous situation.