He recalled when they met, it was in the fall, and they'd both been hunting for berries and other foods to add into their individual stores to have as the cold set in. Fallen Leaves had caught his eye, and he ended up helping with the collecting of the berries and such Fallen had been going after. He didn't even care it was taking away from his own gathering. There was something about Fallen that he couldn't put his hoof on but he was enamored.

As was evident by the fact he had stuck around so long, and now they were expecting little ones. He was thrilled by this, and after ensuring his mate was safe, secure and settled with plenty of foods to not need to hunt or forage had gone off on a hunt for something entirely different than food. All he'd been able to tell Fallen was he'd be back soon. However long soon would be, was a mystery.



@Ruriska

[imgright]https://matope.pixel-blueberry.com/imag ... uncert.png[/imgright] The tree was heavily laden with apples and Once Forgotten was standing beneath it, peering up into the branches. Nearby he had laid flat a large leaf that he planned on using to transport his delightful find home.

He was already pleased by the thought of calling the family over for a bite of such crisp and juicy apples (of course he had already taste tested one).

Dinner tonight at sundown, he thought and obediently six orbs swiftly floated away towards their intended recipients, keen to deliver the message.

But surely he couldn’t just feed them apples!

He could do something to make it far more interesting, maybe - oh. His hoof was tingling. That could only mean one thing. The stag turned around thoughtfully, hoping that whoever was in need of his assistance wasn’t too far away.

Fallen was surprised to see a colored thing go floating off a short distance from him, he wasn't sure what it was...a bird maybe? He wasn't sure. He pondered it a long moment before he continued on the way he'd been heading, and paused a little seeing the tree full of apples ahead of him, it catching his attention before the monochrome stag did.

Though to be fair there was a tree between them.

It was as he got closer he started to notice things. The large leaf, the white tip of a tail, and he stopped again a cautious "Hello?" called out. Maybe someone laid claim to this tree and apples...he wasn't sure and no sense in angering someone by taking something they considered theirs in the end. But maybe...he'd be able to grab an apple to munch on his walk.

@Ruriska

Once Forgotten had turned back to the apples and was contemplating whether he should try and pluck a few now or deal with the blessing first. The MotherFather probably wouldn’t appreciate him shirking his duties for very long.

It was an absolute delight to hear the cautious ‘hello?’, his ears immediately perking up. “Hello!” He replied instantly. “Greetings.”  He backed away from the tree and turned towards the newcomer, looking at the Kimeti with a warm and fatherly smile.

It was his lucky day! Not only had he found great apples but his blessing had come to him.

He gave a soft ‘thank you’ under his breath to the earth and then began his approach towards the buck, opening the conversation with, “what do you think about apple soup?”

@Lirilei

He appraised the stag curiously, more so after the question asked of him. "Apple soup?"

Buried was a little baffled, needless to say. He liked apples a lot but soup? "I didn't know they could be made into soup? I usually grab low hanging ones to eat."

"How do you make apple soup?" He was momentarily sidetracked from anything else, very curious about this answer.


@Ruriska

“Well,” Once Forgotten began, expression thoughtful, “I’m not sure. I haven’t made it before. But I presume it would be much like making any other kind of soup.”

Although he spent a good deal of time wandering the Swamp, Forgotten was always happiest at home, beside the fire, cooking up fresh meals for the family. He wasn’t nearly as good as anyone at Rise & Shine (he also had a suspicion Cue actively avoided his cooking some days) but he tried his best.

“Normally I would add meat and vegetables to water and let them cook for a while so why not apple? Apples are so crisp and nice, surely they would also make for good soup. Perhaps if I crushed them first?”

Buried listened, a gentle laugh from him. It was such an unusual concept and yet...

"You might be on the right track, crushing them first might make it easier. Or if you use whole ones maybe the softer ones?"

He sounded thoughtful as he tried to think of what way would be better. "Not that I have any experience with soup, but I'm not against new or different things. I hope my kids have that same sort of open minded thinking."  he gave the stag a bright smile.

"Can I help you gather up some apples before I keep walking? Well...after I maybe grab an apple for the walk?"

He was glad his idea wasn’t immediately shot down. If a stranger thought there was potential in apple soup, maybe he was really on to something. If it was a hit, he could introduce it to Rise & Shine and become known as the apple soup legendary! Once Forgotten chuckled to himself at the thought.

It was a good thing the buck mentioned kids because otherwise they might have spent a lot more time discussing soup with apples in it.

“Of course,” he agreed with a nod, there were plenty of apples to go around and he would appreciate the help. “And I’m not sure if you are aware but I can ask for that! The open-minded thinking thing. From the MotherFather.”

Well, that had come out awkwardly.

“I’m a legendary and you’re going to be a father soon!”

"Thanks." he grabbed one of the ones laying around, with his teeth and was in the middle of crunching down on it when the other started in again.

He thankfully didn't choke on his mouthful of apple in his surprise, but he did quickly swallow it down and there was a "You can? You are?" well, he'd never seen one, and while he did look a bit different than Fallen it wasn't by a lot so he didn't think much of it.

He gave a vigorous nod of his head. "I know I am!" and how happy he was about that. "Open-minded thinking is good I think. If it wasn't for it....well things wouldn't go so well for my mate and I, I think." so it made sense he'd hope their kids would be open minded too!

“I can! I am!” Once Forgotten replied, his head lifted proudly.

It would have been nice to be the bearer of good news but it was also wonderful that the buck not only knew of his impending children but was happy about it. Not every parent who wandered the swamp was aware they had progeny on the way or at all excited.

Forgotten had never quite understood those who had no interest in raising their offspring. His own children were fully grown and he still fretted and watched over them.

“In the name of the MotherFather, I ask that they be blessed with good health, happy hearts and open minds.” He smiled broadly. “How does that sound?”

"That sounds good! I don't know how this whole thing works, so if you say that's all that's needed then okay!"

Buried was smiling at the other, looking more than a little happy over the whole situation. "Well, before I return to my mate, let me help you gather up some more apples. It's the least I can do in thanks!"

He would have to try his own experiments with making apple soup once he got back to her and collected his own, because now he was a little curious.

“Yes, it’s all rather casual,” Once Forgotten agreed, although the other buck hadn’t said it in quite those words. He had always thought the easy process made the MotherFather out to be a rather level headed character.

Despite the huge size of the swamp, it was surprisingly easy to come across a legendary and acquire a blessing exactly when you needed one. Which made Once Forgotten’s inability to find his lost father over many many years all the more telling.

It had either never been meant to be or impossible.

“It was my pleasure but I wouldn’t say no to the help.”

What a nice fellow. He was sure to have some lovely children. And with any luck, maybe they would cross paths again and they could discuss apple soup and their kids.

With a pleased grin, Once Forgotten started picking the very best apples for dinner.

@Lirilei

all done! <3 sorry for the wait on the last one!