[B] Tooth-Giver [Tooth-Taker x Real Big Fish]

[Gl!tch~]

You should take something with you, Stay Back had said. Something of value. To make it worth their time.

The zikwa doe had said this with no malice in her words; in fact, she was just as excited as Tooth-Taker at the prospect of foals. But she kept a steady head on her shoulders, and as she was not the father or the mother (this time), there was only so much she felt comfortable involving herself with.

So Tooth-Taker would make the trek on her own. Between two zikwa and a totoma, it made the most sense for the totoma to go on the journey.

She also would bring best offering, in her estimation. She carried it with her now in a bundle of pelt. The contents rattled within.

Some of her favorites among her collection. She looked forward to sharing them with someone worthy.

Aaaaa

[Scaramouche Fandango]

Real Big Fish was on the move. She felt that pull again- the one that meant someone needed her. And not just for fishing advice. No, this pull was the call of the parent, the call of the one who needed the Swamp's blessing for their children. Her favorite kind of call- there was nothing the big bear of a Totoma loved more than ensuring the next generation grew up healthy.

Well, maybe fishing during the annual salmon run. Maybe she loved that as much.

It didn't take her long to find the doe she was fairly sure was seeking her. If not her, then someone like her. She roamed a lot, places you couldn't often find others like her- she blessed all sorts, and was no stranger to the unusual. But the doe's appearance was striking; she had some of the most incredible armor that Fish had ever seen. It was gorgeously twisted, outgrowths wreathing her neck like rotala drifting in a current. It was an arresting sight, the movement stilled in hardness and horn. She wondered how it had grown- and how it might look in this doe's children, when she had them.

"Well met, friend!" she called. "Have you traveled long to get here? Sit and rest, I've got-" what all did she have? "Dried salmon, fresh roe, and some of the nicest char you've ever eaten."

[Gl!tch~]

If Tooth-Taker was surprised at the other doe's arrival, she didn't show it. She just gave an appraising stare. She listened, and continued to stay quiet for moments beyond the legendary's introduction.

Finally, she drifted over. Tooth-Taker placed the (bloody) pelt on the ground. "An offering," she stated. Simple and to the point.

Her gaze bore holes in the fish, though.

[Scaramouche Fandango]

Fish was used to offerings- but never like this. It wasn't that she wasn't grateful; the flash of enamel on a lure was often enough to trick a fish, and she certainly had use for them- but when a pregnant doe had spare teeth to give... well, that could be cause for alarm.

She stared at the offering. Some of them were clearly not from kin, but the others...

"Are... are these..." She stared at them. "These aren't yours are they? I mean yours originally. Did they come out of your mouth? Because a lot of does suffer from a pretty serious nutritious deficiency during pregnancy, and it impacts Totoma like us way more, since we're live-bearers. Lambs are great, but y'know... they are parasites, kinda. They leach minerals from our bodies, and there's a saying that we loose a tooth for every child. It's not always true, but it can be, especially when you're having a large clutch." Her eyes softened, hoping that the doe still had all her teeth in her mouth, or at least as many as she started the pregnancy with.

"Have you been experiencing any gum bleeding, my dear? Finding it harder to chew, or experiencing any looseness, especially in your molars? You can tell me, and I can send you home with extra bones to chew on, or suck if chewing is hard. Something in them really helps replace the minerals lost to a pregnancy."