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Fey was learning her limitations.

Or at least the limitation of hooves.

This would be easy with some nimble little mongoose fingers but all she had was her nose and tongue and four useless hooves. Not that it was stopping her from wrapping her lifeline around a sturdy rock, a long coiled vine that she had painstakingly collected and carried here.

With one final tug, Fey decided it was at least tangled up enough to be somewhat knotted and tight, and then looked up at her nemesis.

The cave awaited her.

The entrance gaped dark and gloomy, with long dripping rocks like sharp teeth and dark muddy water disappearing inside. It was spooky and she was going to adventure within. There was a rumour that beautiful glowing mushrooms were located deep inside and she was determined to find them.

Someone would trade quite a lot for a fancy glow mushroom.

She squeaked in excitement.

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Cutting Words had been milling about in the area, lazily nosing around the fallen leaves for any summer plants that hadn't yet succumbed to the creeping autumn winds or any juvenile fungi he ought to remember the placement of. Something that felt just productive enough to ease his boredom, but not entirely intensive enough to be considered actual work.

Though even this was becoming boring to him. He considered turning around and heading back home - until he heard a noise.

Ears perked, looked around curiously as he trotted towards the source - though it didn't take long for him to spot, beyond the bushes, a doe... Tethered to a rock... By some expertly woven vines?

He hadn't even known there was any one else in the area, never mind someone capturing helpless innocents. He puffed out his chest, put on a smile, and strutted out into the open.

"Caught in a rather thorny situation, are we?" He said, continuing stride over to the rock that acted as her anchor, "There's no need to worry - I'm here to free you."

@Ruriska

Startled, the doe turned to look at her wannabe saviour, her ears swivelling forward and her eyes going big and wide. “What-” she began, the very beginning of a frown creasing her brow and then immediately smoothing out as soon as she caught on. Oh! Oh how fun!

“What a relief!” Fey cried, the vine indeed looped around her neck but in no way tethering her to anything at all. All she needed was to dip her head. But he clearly didn’t need to know that - and oh my, that pun was terrible.

“M-my saviour!” Her lips quivered and her eyes went glossy. “Some cruel villain thought to trap me here. Will you help me?” 


@Naberius

So his assumption was correct! An innocent, trapped by some evil force - probably in that cave, if the stories he was told as a foal was any indication.

"Of course, of course!" Cutting Words laughed, strolling over to her, "You know, my father always told me that we - my clutch and I - were destined for this sort of thing. He was blessed by a legendary, you see, and --"

...And the doe could totally get out of that easily, couldn't she. If there wasn't fur in the way, his face would be a bright red; now that he was close enough to actually inspect the rope, he realized that there was no one who actually needed rescuing. Aside from himself from this situation, maybe. He cleared his throat and ducked his head apologetically.

"And... he... didn't have many wits to pass down with him, apparently," He laughed again, this time far more genuinely, "I... You don't need help, do you?"

@Ruriska

Fey kept up the act, big eyes full of hope and admiration for her hero, until he realized that she wasn’t the damsel-in-distress he’d first presumed. Her laughter wasn’t cutting or cruel, just a high chime of amusement.

In response to his quest, she dipped her head and stepped backwards until the coiled vine slipped to the ground.

“Nope,” she said brightly, grinning.

“Buuut, you are still useful. You wanna go on an adventure with me?” Wits or not, Fey was always keen for some company and exploring a spooky cave would be a lot more fun with two.

@Naberius

Cutting Words gave an embarrassed groan as she stepped out of the coiled vine, considering how best to escape this entire situation - but snapped to attention the moment she mentioned an adventure.

"An adventure? Is that why you have all of those vines?" He tilted his head curiously, bending down to inspect it. He had been curious as to why she had been wearing this if she hadn't actually been captured by some sort of ne'er-do-well. He prodded it with a hoof.

"Are you going to, like... Capture something in there?" His eyes widened as he looked back up at her, "Something with a big enough neck to fit in there?"

@Ruriska

“That’s a neat idea but no.” She hoped there wasn’t anything that big lurking about in the cave. Wandering in the dark in search of glowing mushrooms was one thing, encountering scary beasts in pitch black was another thing entirely.

“This is our lifeline!” Fey explained proudly. “We hold on to one end and that way no matter how many twists and turns there are, we won’t get lost!” Though now that she thought about it, maybe the vine wasn’t long enough for what she intended. Oh well! She’d sort it out somehow.

“Are you ready? Adventure awaits!”

@Naberius

"I see - how clever," Cutting Words mused, lowering his head to once again inspect the rope, "And very well made - did you make this yourself?"

The rope didn't quite seem long enough for a thorough investigation of the cave, but it wasn't as though he knew what the doe was even going in there for anyhow.

And he didn't particularly feel the need to ask - that was part of the fun of adventuring, after all.

"Yes!" He cheered, striking a dramatic pose, "Onwards! To adventure!"

@Ruriska

“Not really, no. The swamp made it. I just cut it down. But it was hard!” Fey liked praise too much to give it up entirely. “It’s really hard to get one this long and intact and then drag it all the way here!”

Fey found the end of the rope and instructed, ‘you have to help me with rope management’ before taking it in her mouth and silencing herself. Which was a shame because she loved talking and now she had someone to chat with.

“Fwowwo me,” she said around the rope and lead the way towards the cave.

@Naberius

"Well! I commend the craftsmanship of the swamp and your eye for very good vines," Cutting Words nodded, attempting a very sage and wise look that was likely ruined by his playful grin.

He trotted merrily along after her, beginning to hum a tune before stopping as if he had just remembered something.

"Oh, right, uh - if your mouth isn't too full. What does rope management entail?"

@Ruriska

“Ish iz - hrm.”

Frustrated by her inability to carry and talk at the same time, Fey draped the rope over Cutting Word’s back. He might as well start getting used to his new job.

“You have to make sure the rope doesn’t get tangled or caught on anything along the way. It’s super important.”

@Naberius

"...Right! Right, easy enough."

Cutting Words looked backwards with a cough, as if he was just happening to look in that direction rather than nervously eyeing the length of rope for any knots or tangles. Or nefarious critters gnawing at it. He still wasn't entirely sold that there wasn't some big bad lurking in the caves.

He continued his trot and continued in his tune where he had left off - before going quiet for a beat.

"I don't believe I ever introduced myself - not, ah, properly anyway,"

He grinned sheepishly.

"My name is Cutting Words. I apologize for not introducing myself earlier. Terribly rude of me."

@Ruriska

Fey fussed a bit before they continued, looping it around Cutting Word’s neck properly so they could both chitchat without any worry and then nodded for him to continue.

“Are you ready?” She asked, her voice dropping, adding some gravitas to the moment. The cave loomed before them, dark and unknowing. Danger and adventure was waiting.

Her hoof splashed into the muddy water that pooled at the entrance.

“My name is Fey,” she told him with a grin. She bumped her hip against his. “Let’s go!”

The doe didn’t hesitate to step into the shadows.



@Naberius ten years later!

Cutting Words held still as she adjusted the rope, puffing out his chest a bit and looking away as if she were affixing some sort of mark of honor to his chest. He nodded back to her as she finished, trotting dutifully behind her.

He stared into the dark of the cave, eyes wide. His proud demeanor seemed to falter for a moment; the reality of the situation - the cave, the darkness, the rope around his neck and the stranger - seemed to dawn on him quite suddenly.

But the hip bump brought him back to the moment and his eyes lit back up.

"Fey!" He laughed to himself, following her into the dark closely, "Well, I suppose I'm all yours now that you've got my name."


@Ruriska <3 !!

The doe laughed and her eyes sparkled but she didn’t disagree with his words.

Water drips echoed through the hollow world they were entering, their hooves splashing and the darkness already stealing their vision - Fey was living for it. 

She was glad the things she was looking for glowed, otherwise finding them would be incredibly difficult.

Despite her excitement, Fey stayed close to Cutting Words, always touching his side. “We can’t lose each other,” she whispered to him, not wanting to break the solemn atmosphere with a voice too loud. “Walk slow and be careful.”

@Naberius