ORIGIN - Of the former and the future

Niveus grinned, exploring this strange cave. It was so shiny! Unlike anything ae had ever seen, before. To be honest, it was a little overwhelming, almost enough to give Niveus a headache. The crystals were so shiny that it made the room seem near-infinite. Though the room was anything but- Niveus had found out the hard way enough times to make the tip of aer beak sore.

Imagine a dye made of this stuff! It would be so pretty! Now on a mission, Niveus fluttered aer wings- more out of habit than anything, still unable to truly fly- scanning the caves for any pieces of crystal small enough to crush into dye.

Ae quickly stumbled upon a viable crystal- quite literally, nearly tripping over the pebble-sized gemstone. It was a clouded blue color, not quite as reflective as the surrounding gemstones but still quite pretty. Blue was the best color, anyways!

@Wilder

Wilder stood at the entrance to Gemini, eyes sparking with awe. This was the most beautiful cave she'd ever seen in her life! A paw reached forward to touch carefully at the walls, the cold surface of a gemstone chilling her sore pads. How incredible that a cave like this exists and she didn't know about it all this time! Unable to contain her excitement, she did a giddy little leap and a high-pitched squeal that was quickly silenced when it echoed strangely over the crystals.

Right. Have caution.

Still, she couldn't help but not look at everything around her. Where her paws were leading her wasn't important - everything else was. Some of the crystals were big and reflective enough that she could see her own face in it - and what a clear image too! She'd only ever seen herself through pools of water or the memories of others. But this was different. A crystal (hah!) clear image looking back and blinking up at her, as if from the eyes of another. She took a moment to observe herself, touching the heart on her cheek, and inspecting the scars hidden here and there under her pelt.

After a minute or so, she tore herself away, continuing to trot along the cave, eyes looking at everywhere except where she was headed. Of course, that never ended well, as she suddenly bumped lightly into something very solid and warm, unlike the cold surface of the crystals that she felt underfoot. She let out a small, surprised "oh!" as she stepped back to face whoever she'd bumped into.

"Sorry about that," she squeaked, flustered. "I was so distracted I didn't see where I was going!"

@Niveus