[B] First Star I See Tonight (HT, Starstuff)

[Scaramouche Fandango]

[imgleft]https://matope.pixel-blueberry.com/images/phoenix/halftruth-legendary_uncert.png[/imgleft] Half Truth ambled through snowy fields, listening to the muffled quiet that came with winter snow. The only noise was the crunch of hooves on frozen grass, and perhaps if you listened very closely, the tiny splintering noise of cracking frost. The world was a quiet place in the winter, but it wasn’t dead. It wasn’t even sleeping. It was just waiting. Her breath hung in the air, curling over her muzzle as she answered the call of the Motherfather.

Someone needed her.

She’d stopped questioning what it was that drew her to parents yet-to-be. There was something they all shared, mothers and fathers alike- well, at least if the fathers knew, or cared to know- a sort of nervous energy existing in simultaneous affect with a fierce intensity. Every parent was the same in some ways, and different in all others. It was something she’d learned to recognise at a glance and love for its conflicting duality. How could something so universal be completely unique? It was like the stars. They all looked the same at a distance, but when you stopped and studied them, each one varied in size, brightness, and of course position. Parents were just as special as the stars.

So who was the parent she was here to find? Who would be out this late, pacing an empty field, other than someone who needed something only the Swamp (or its mortal conduits) could give? “I’m here,” she called, her voice echoing. Perhaps the parent in question was holed up somewhere warm- or perhaps they were out here, counting stars. Either way, this was the place. They’d be here soon, and she would greet them.

@Anhelisk

[Anhelisk]

[imgright]https://matope.pixel-blueberry.com/imag ... uncert.png[/imgright]Starstuff had always been drawn to the night. Something about the quiet had always struck her as magical– or intimate, even– in a way that direct sunlight burned holes straight through. Darkness, or at least dimness, was her domain, and as was her lot in life, she stirred when the moon began to shine.

She'd known something was amiss for a little while, now. She'd been listless where she was normally bounding ahead of everyone else, restless when she usually felt the deepest of slumbers, and she was so terribly, awfully hungry. It had been an offhand comment that put the pieces together-- a stranger's smile and laughter at how she'd dug into the river's edge for fat cattail tubers... but nevertheless, it had stuck with her. 'Putting on weight for spring, are we?' Surely she'd have put it together herself, and probably not after too terribly long. She frowned, pushing deeper into the bush she'd found to crane for the leaves and winter-frozen berries that hadn't yet been plundered-- until she heard a voice.

'I'm here.'

Who was this, and why would they announce themself like that? It wasn't a voice that was familiar to her, certainly, but she'd be damned if she couldn't share company and bounty with anyone, even in these lean months.

She sighed, turning her head so she could back out from where she'd wedged herself. "Aren't we all?" the portly doe chimed in response.


@Scaramouche Fandango

[Scaramouche Fandango]

Ah, there she was. The mare practically flowed into her space, a ghostly form tracing her tracks.

“Sometimes you need to just... assert yourself in the world, remind the Swamp that you’re here. The night sky can make one feel so very small, like a flea or tick on the back of the Motherfather- but then, fleas and ticks sharing a meal are an intimate part of that meal, whether they like it or not- or even know it.” She looked the acha doe up and down, an amused twinkle in her glowing blue eyes.

“Sometimes you just have to shout I at the heart of the world to make yourself known- to others, and to you. But listen to me, getting all rambly. I’m Half Truth. And like I said, I’m here. And so are you.” All of you, she thought. Did the doe know? Sometimes they did, sometimes they didn’t. That was part of the fun of meeting new parents.

@Anhelisk

[Anhelisk]

Well! A very... very tall kimeti doe, the newcomer was, and one who had a delightful way with words. And the most intriguing demeanor. "You're a... mare, aren't you?" For an acha on the taller side of her tribe, it had been strange coming to a place where the kin were so tall, that much was true, but she'd met Peep and her firefly eyes, and how grand the kin who'd awakened to some revelation of the MotherFather's design could be.

At this moment, with blue eyes boring into her under a smattering of starlight and a moon swelling its way towards fullness, nothing could be quite as grand as having to look so far up-- she was barely even eye-level with her shoulder.

She stared evenly up at her for a moment, before continuing slowly. "...and you have business with me."


@Scaramouche Fandango

[Scaramouche Fandango]

She pranced in place, gleeful at having been caught out. “Right in one, and partially right in the other. I do have business with you- that’s the singular you and the plural you, mind. Not just me, but we. Did you know?” She smiled warmly, waiting to see the doe’s reaction. Some of them weren’t happy. Others were thrilled. Some took it neutrally, it being just another part of life. Some planned, some tried; some didn’t, some cried. Some were happy accidents; others were less happy. Each one unique, but in so many ways the same. She never metaphorically looked down on an expectant parent (though in this case, she’d physically have to- such a small doe!)- whatever their response, it added to the collective song of kin existence.

@Anhelisk

[Anhelisk]

She'd hit the target in one, and goodness, the mare seemed delighted at her deduction. With that clear sign of approval, a dam she hadn't quite expected to be there broke.

It came all at once. "Yes. There's you, and me, and... goodness, can you tell how many I can expect? I've been famished, lately, and I worry that I might be expecting more than I'd have liked, ideally." Starstuff's eyes gleamed in Half Truth's reflected light. "I'd wanted to ask Peep– no offence meant, of course– I just knew of her and had met her in the past, you know? You seem perfectly nice, and glib besides, which is always good but I'm getting sidetracked." She huffed a small laugh at herself. "I've been doing that a lot lately!"

"I'm... not quite sure who the father is. And I was wondering if there were ways of telling? Or if I have to track down the potential fathers all at once." She paused again, and looked up, and up, at the mare, with her twinkling eyes. "It is just the one father, right? Can there be more? Can you tell how many there will be, or whether I'm to expect a proper hard-shelled egg, or the... softer kind? The mothers have assured me that I'll be fine, but Peep's been away and I've so many questions for... well, you now, I guess."


@Scaramouche Fandango

[Scaramouche Fandango]

“Not so far as I’m aware- though Peep is far more attuned to knowing the mechanics than I am.” Half Truth chuckled. “Peep’s a dear friend of mine. Any doe who knows her will go through the process safely- you’re lucky you met her first! As far as whose they are, well, they’re yours to begin with of course. The father could be any of the bucks in your life- there’s no real way to tell until the kids have had their dreams and awaken.  It’s just the one father, but as for who and how many- well, the Swamp didn’t give me the skill to know that. Mares and Stags- we don’t know everything, though some of my brethren would be loathe to admit it. The nature of what we have isn’t power, as some of them thing- it’s communication. The Swamp opened itself up to us, and we took a chance on listening. But some of the others don’t see it like that- they have their eyes opened, and suddenly everything is all about strength and-” A thought struck her. “Before I say anything else- you haven’t been with any Totoma fellows, have you? Dread sorry for the invasive nature of that and all, but the live births they lead to are hard. If that’s a possibility, I’d stay near Peep’s territory. She’d be drawn back. We go where we’re sent, and an Acha giving birth to Totoma young... That would call her back in a heartbeat. But for now, you’re stuck with me.” Half Truth laughed again. “And now another invasive question- is there someone special you want it to be? I could always help you track him down- I’ve got a nose for it.” She flickered in and out of her eaglehound form, her eyes staying the same in both shapes. “Or if you’ve got multiple special someones, you might want to consider having them all nearby for the process. When my mate’s had sacs since I met her, I’ve been with her each time, even though they’re obviously not mine that way. Families can be a lot of things, and the best thing they can be is together- if that’s what you want!”

@Anhelisk

[Anhelisk]

The acha chuckled gently. "We've each got our own path... but no, I knew that little bit before I met one. It's quite the thing, isn't it?" While part of the doe was eager to see what her children would be like, the trials of childbirth were no joke, and she hadn't had much luck with life in the desert.


She watched uneasily as the doe's form shifted and flickered- it was nothing less than strange, seeing her change was like nothing else. At the doe's next question, she hesitated.  "They're all special, even the ones I didn't get to know," she said deliberately.  "But... well, there's no chance most of them are the father, and I'd like to spend at least part of this process focusing just on making healthy babies, instead of covering every corner of the swamp.

"It's a blessing, you know, that I made it this long here, before the babies happened. There's no chance it was someone from the plains, let alone the desert. I'd feel so bad if the children had no chance of finding their father.... but... I don't know which ones of them would want to have families, like that. I hope whomever it was will be excited."


@Scaramouche Fandango

[Scaramouche Fandango]

“We call the Swamp the Motherfather, but while that can be a comfort, it’s no substitution for knowing who your parents are. Your children are already luckier than many in that regard; plenty of kin grow up knowing the Swamp as their sole parent. It’s a fine way to be, as good as any other, but I have a feeling your desire to know and to have that sense of belonging is heritable. You’ve traveled far and seen a lot, more than most ever will, and that’s opened your eyes, your mind, and your heart. What I’m not hearing in you is regret- just that yearning to know and be known. I’m not a scryer, but I can promise you this: your children will have the strength of heart and body to find their father, if that’s what they want. I’d bless them for love, but it’s clear to me they already have that, and blessing for family... well, they have that, too. You contain multitudes, in more ways than one right now. Blessing for tenacity- you came from the desert, you crossed through the plains. You’ll be a better teacher there than any swamp-given virtue.” Half Truth watched a shooting star streak across the sky and fade out of sight. “The joy you shared with their father might come back, like a comet, or it might be like... well, like a shooting star, made even more beautiful by how quickly it passed. Ephemeral joy is as important and powerful as any other kind of joy. I’m sure whoever he is, when they find him, he’ll be just as thrilled to know them as you are.”

@Anhelisk