Blinded By Silence wrote:[imgleft]http://matope.pixel-blueberry.com/image ... uncert.png[/imgleft]The morning was still; the light from the sun held true, the leaves of the swamp's trees lay unmoved by the stagnant air. Not a bird sung nor did the wildlife move among the brush. This was an odd part of the swamp. Dead, silent, and unmoving.

Perfect for the bone-gatherer to do his work.

A buck, tall and gaunt, moved silently over the roots of the swamp floor. Within his jaws, held there ever so gently by razor sharp fangs, he carried a foal, dead from starvation. Framed by trees, one of many shallow pools of clear water lay, no more than three kin-lengths wide and barely knee deep. Ever so gently, he lay the child down and watched it sink. It wouldn't stay that way, he knew. So out came the stones. With a nod, he stepped out of the water and found his usual spot on a sunning rock to wait and watch as the body of the child returned to the MotherFather.

Lirilei wrote:

Blinding Silence wrote:Don't worry about being slow. I can be too sometimes.

Blinded By Silence wrote:Pestilence had scented the doe long before she charged into his clearing. At her startled gasp, he turned his head slowly to see her white form hurrying forward. As she reached the edge he held out his long, spear tipped tail and spoke in a low, hushed voice.

"Stop. You will disturb them."

As he spoke, shadows shifted in the still water. For a moment, the tiny body seemed to shudder back to life, but his knowing green eyes found these movements belonging to the fauna of these pools.

"Crawfish and beetles. They feed on the flesh of the dead."

Lirilei wrote:Sorry for the late response, I'm pretty sick right now. ^ ^;

Blinding Silence wrote:No prob, I hope you're feeling better! I had to wait till my kids went back to school yesterday to be able to have the time to respond.

Blinded By Silence wrote:The darkly colored buck watched her unblinkingly for some time, drinking in the details of his visitor. She was almost perfectly white, save for the sheen of blue that danced off her fur when the light hit it. Thinking back, he tried to place that blue. Ah, there. The color of dead eyes gone, or the blue tinge of one out of air. It was strange, such a pure-looking doe having the scent of death cling to her fur. Blinking slowly, he shook his head once, shrugging off the accusation. It was one he heard often enough for it to no longer bother him.

"You did not disturb me." He said simply, lowering his tail so the doe could get a better look, "My work never ends, visitors are always a welcome surprise to us."

He was silent again, for a time, watching as he did over his brood. He felt no need to explain himself, but yet this doe seemed uprooted over the fact that she had judged him wrongly. And so, slowly, he spoke again.

"My family, my two sons and myself, we spend our waking moments putting lost souls to rest. We clean them, give their flesh back to the MotherFather's creations. The beetles and worms. My son lives for them, caring for them, breeding them." He chewed his lip thoughtfully. It was a rare sight indeed, this odd buck speaking so much. "I care for the bones. Piece them back together, as they once were. Clean them of this life, prepare them for the next. My eldest son sends them back. Their souls. With song."

The pause was long after this. He had said more to this doe than he had spoken to his sons in a year. He never expected anyone to understand, but, although he would never tell anyone, he secretly wished for it.

Lirilei wrote:

Blinding Silence wrote:

Blinded By Silence wrote:He watched unblinkingly as the doe spoke of a truth he knew but had not experienced himself. How many times had does and bucks alike been brought to him by someone like her? Pestilence never needed the survivors words to tell him the story of the dead. Their bodies said it all. Their expressions. The bruising of the flesh. The old wounds on their bones. He nodded slightly.

"Life and death are often at each other's sides." He said softly, offering his own respect and understanding.

He stood there silent for a good while, watching her, watching his workers, watching the waters. After a few moments, a few toxic-colored beetles trickled their way up his leg and into his mane.

"They are done." He said simply, nodding to a pool just a few steps from the one with the filly. There were many, mostly empty except for the almost glistening white at the bottom of a few. "You are welcome to stay, if you wish." If she looked closely, maybe she would see the small up-tilt of his lips. A smile, how rare.

Lirilei wrote:If you want, we can end with your response? Or we can continue into the ceremony if you want. I don't mind either way.  :3

Blinding Silence wrote:Continuing on is just fine!

Blinded By Silence wrote:The slight twinge to his lips returned as he found himself pleased that she would stay. That was all it took for this slow and steady buck to creak into motion. He motioned with his jaw for her to follow and off he went into the tree line.

The plants were lush here, and large; a sign from the MotherFather was pleased with his work. For a good, long moment Pestilence looked around with his acid green eyes until...

"Here. Hold this."

The darkly colored buck reared up, gently grasping a large rubbery leaf in his jaws, pulling it down so she could grab it. Step one, of course, was getting the bones home. This leaf would double as a carrier and the kin's final bed when they were done.

Lirilei wrote:This is exciting~ I've never written out his process before!

Lirilei wrote:Guardian gave a smile of her own at his reaction to her saying she would like to stay and fell into step with him as he turned to walk away, eyes moving around the area as they went.

She could see how large and healthy the plants were, and gave another smile because it was a nice sign for any kin to get. To know the MotherFather was happy with them, and what they were doing.

Guardian had been half lost in thought as they walked, though she slowed as he stopped. It was his words that pulled her thoughts back to the present fully, and not mulling over spiritual things.

The leaf was enormous, and she stepped up to wrap her teeth around part of it and continued to pull on it to make it so that she could hold it in the long run.

Blinding Silence wrote:Ooooh neat! I can't wait to see!

Blinded By Silence wrote:"Pull."

With some hard work and patience, the plant finally allowed them to take the leaf with a green wood crack. It fell to the swamp floor with a soft sound and with a nod of approval, Pestilence took the stem between his teeth and made his way back to the pools.

The sun was higher now, it's gentle beams of light sifting down through the canopy, peppering the many stagnant pools with golden light. There were eight or so pools of varying sizes, separated by thick roots or risen banks of mud and stone. If one looked closely, they may be able to discern the original three pools from those he had made himself.

He dragged the leaf behind him, his eyes flickering up every once in a while to ensure the blue-white doe followed still. They stopped outside the largest pool and he released the leaf, letting it lay where it was.

"They bring me their dead, mostly. Some times, they find us. Others, we find them." He explained softly, gesturing to the pools, "The water helps loosen the flesh. The fish and insects clean them naturally. I protect them."

Then, carefully, he stepped into the water ever so slowly, trying to kick up as little sediment as possible until he arrived at the first shining white bone. He lowered his head and with careful teeth, he lifted a dripping skull from the water. Holding the skull by one of its huge curled horns, he stepped back out placing the Totoma skull on the leaf. Them he returned, this time picking up a femur, then a rib. Shadows shifted under the murk now and, slowly, a crawfish emerged with vertebrae clasped in his claws. The buck was silent for a time, his eyes swimming in distant thought.

"Once the bones have been gathered, I take them home. Piece them back together. Make them whole."

The leaf was laden now, with all the bones retrieved. Pestilence took the leaf in his teeth again and gently began to drag it over the stones that would lead them back to where he did the rest of his work.

Lirilei wrote:

Blinding Silence wrote:Sorry for the long delay! I got smacked with bronchitis, and have been super sick, and unable to think clear enough to rp.

Blinded By Silence wrote:Pestilence's liquid green eyes flicked back to the death-white doe as her teeth took hold of the leaf. Her assistance was unsurprising, and yet unexpected. Help was always unexpected. And always appreciated. The little smile returned as they plodded along slowly, back to his work space beyond the pools.

He lead her, step by careful step, into a large cave. It looked well lived in; a bed of discarded furs and feathers lay on a raised rock ledge, two more just beneath it. Along the stone walls, hallows had been painstakingly carved out of the soft rock and in then were collections of bones. It was here that his unfinished work lay, waiting for the last of the body to be found. In the high ceiling, a small hole let a wide, clear beam of light filter down making a spotlight of sorts during parts of the day. It was under this light that the unlikely pair came to rest.

Dropping the leaf from his jaws, he walked off silently towards the back of the cave, flicking his tail in a gesture to follow.

Lirilei wrote:months later...

Lirilei wrote:She was happy to lend her assistance to him, to make the task easier. Especially given the size of the leaf. It did seem like something that would be easier for two of them to move, than one though she suspected he had experience working on his own. Still, it was interesting to help and to learn.

She took in everything as they walked, simple curiosity filling her. She'd never met a kin who lived like this, who did this sort of thing. She felt a connection with the buck that ran deep. Two parts of a whole in a way. He revered death as she did life, and neither could be without the other. It was an interesting thing to contemplate, but now was not the time to let her mind wander along such paths.

A good thing too, else she would have missed his motion for her to follow. She caught it after lifting her head up from settling the leaf down. Her hooves were quiet on the stone, her steps slow, and carefully placed. It seemed like it would be rude to be loud here.

Blinded By Silence wrote:It's okay! Take as long as you need to post, I don't mind.

Blinded By Silence wrote:He appreciated her silent movements, but his work place was rarely quiet. Between the strange chirping of Scourge's murmuring to his precious insects and Perish Song's gentle hymns, there was often more to the cave than the sound of rattling bones.

But today, the cave was silent. His sons were off, probably visiting their mother or some other personal things. He didn't mind. They were free to do as they like. Again, help was always appreciated, never expected.

The further back they walked, the darker and colder it became. It was here that the kimeti stored his tools. In large piles lie shells of various sizes, each filled with a thick, black substance. He grabbed one of the larger bowls, pushing it along the floor with his nose as it was too heavy to lift alone.

"This is black tar, collected from the tar pits to the north." He explained as he pushed the turtle's shell over the smooth stone.

Lirilei wrote: