[PRP] Death in the air [Death Take Me/Born of Death]

[rexcorvus]

Death made a mental note to look for said mossy caves; he enjoyed exploring, enjoyed new discoveries and had yet to find a cave matching that description. It sounded like something that he could study more in depth, perhaps bring his father along so that both of them could see what sort of things grew in such a place. "I don't mind decay," he said, after a moment of realization that he had been silent too long and it was likely awkward. "I mean, it's a part of the cycle of all living things, is it not?"

Born was such a delicate little thing. Death found his eyes moving back to trace the brightly colored hair, the sleek outlines of the slender body with a sort of detached interest that bordered on factual, but there was something else there too, something that he couldn't quite put a name to. He liked the different colors, how stark they stood out against his more muted ones.

"Do you eat plants?" Death asked, then wondered if the question was stupid. "Or meat? And mountains are...well..."

He tried to come up with a description that wouldn't be completely out of the depth of a blind kin. "Imagine yourself rising higher and higher so that the grass at your feet feels like nothing more than just tiny pricks against your hooves. Barely there. Tall enough to feel the clouds around your head, like a fine, wet mist that you can taste."

[Beejoux]

Dainty hooves paused on the path, pair ears perking up brightly at Death's statement. "Yes. That exactly." They were all a part of the great cycle. Born to live, live to die; over and over and over again. Their energies, all energies, returning again to the earth to nurture the next generation of life.

Born flicked a glob of mud off their tail as they moved to keep up, head tilted to listen as Death continued. "I do eat plants, and meat, when I can get it." They made a softly amused little hum. "Meat does not often stand there and let you eat it."

Their head tilted further as Death described a mountain. It certainly sparked an image in their mind, but it was hard to tell if that image would align with the truth of the matter. Hard to know unless Born found a mountain to wander here in the swamp, which was a bit unlikely. "That sounds magical."

[rexcorvus]

In spite of the fact that even conversing with another kin was not something that Death was exactly used to, he didn't feel uncomfortable in Born's presence. If anything, he felt a strange sense of curiosity that had started low in the pit of his stomach and was now reaching its way up to his chest, settling there warm and insistent. He didn't quite know what to name that feeling, so he pushed it aside to the back of his mind to consider later.

He almost smiled, not that Born could see it. "Hunting is something of a sport in my family," said Death. "I was raised knowing how to trap and catch the creatures I want to eat. Or keep, I suppose."

They continued on the path, Death leading them slowly, in no hurry to get to their destination. "I'm not sure there's anything magical about a mountain," he said, with a slight frown of consideration. "But it is quite something when you reach the top. You almost feel as though you could accomplish anything at all from that height."

[Beejoux]

There was a calming presence to the big buck Born was following, a certain sense of safety and comfort that was fairly new for the dainty Zikwa. Something they hadn't really found in abundance since they were very little, and they had the soft melody of their mother's voice in their little ear. Born's head lifted, tilting to tune in to that deep, rumbling voice. Likewise, they were in no hurry to reach their destination, despite the heavy clinging mud, because once they were clean, they would be parting ways, they assumed.

Pale ears flicked back at the thought. Even if they'd only just met, they weren't looking forward to saying goodbye.

"Keep," they repeated softly, thoughtfully. "That would be nice, I think. A little friend to keep company." Born had encountered many creatures in their wandering, but none that had felt compelled to stick around. It did sound nice though, having someone, something, there with them. "I'll bet those skills come in handy when you're hungry," they mused allowed, smiling. It'd been a long time since they'd last tasted meat.

Death said mountains weren't magical, but they sounded like they must be, at least to Born. They couldn't imagine anything as large as a mountain must be, or as high. Or even what it might feel like to be up that high. "I've never really left the swamp, not far. The ground firms up, or softens, but it always smells like moisture and growing things."