ORIGIN

Delphine's features lit with recognition upon the mention of Bevy and all at once, an easy smile broke through her trepidation. "I know Bevy, she was there during the hatching of a dear friend of mine, Meredith. She is so very kind, I do like her very much." Eager to rain praises upon the smaller bird, the young mare was more than delighted to discover that they had a shared acquaintance. "Maji Walezi, huh? However did you guys come about?" Delphine asked curiously for she had heard from Magdalena of her family and of groups that congregated but she knew not their purpose or how it was they had come together. Could she and Meredith count as one too?

All at once her features softened considerably upon hearing Dark's inquiry and her gaze flickered upward to where she imagined the owl to be, perched atop her head. "My favorite are the two I would call home, Eridanus and Orion. Eridanus and Cetus are fairly alike, a lot of trees and foliage, damp too but with Eridanus, it's brighter, more lively. Louder, for you but more beautiful to me. The colors are vibrant and right in the center there's a large mushroom that we call the Monarch. Orion on the other hand is very different, it's darker with a ruined city of strange structures all around. The ceiling is filled with crystals that sparkle beautifully. Meredith, my friend, and I often sleep on the ledges along the walls. It is always so peaceful." She stopped, knowing that she was rambling and perhaps boring the owl in the process.

"Shall I tell you of Cetus? Since you like this place so much maybe I can give you an idea about what it's like here." She promised silently that she would objective.

"I don't know how they came about," Dark answered, and it was perhaps worth noting that he did not say "we." Maybe he didn't consider himself one of them, yet. "I followed Bevy. They say they protect the water of all the caves, even though I don't think they ever leave...? They call it the 'life-blood.' And I think I've seen Eridanus once, then--I saw Tal'at eating a mango. Maybe it was in a place like that."

Dark clicked his beak, thinking about the rest of what the black horse had said, pondering her words carefully.

"What is... Meredith?"

Or who, but... what? I wonder what it is?

He thought about Delphine's descriptions, trying to picture the ruined city and sparkling crystals of Orion, for the most part. All he'd ever seen there was darkness, for the most part.

"And yes--you can tell me of Cetus? I've seen it once, with magic," he said again, but his tone indicated that perhaps it hadn't been quite enough.

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'Life-blood.' The term logged itself to her memory for future reference, the first of which she'd ever heard it mentioned for whenever Delphine gazed into the waters, all she thought was, well... Water. "Life-blood? The waters? And who's Tal'at? I've never had a mango before, have you?" The two of them were a series of quid pro quo; questions and answers that bounced between one another without pause. She enjoyed their exchange, it was without bounds, they simply spoke what was on their minds.

"Well, he's almost exactly like me." She started, "And I really mean almost exactly like me, a black horse with grey eyes and his gem is as black as his coat! He's a bit younger than me though, so he's smaller. I care for him very much." Delphine declared with a smile.

Her head then cantered to one side, yet another habit that was made smaller in motion to accommodate her passenger. "Cetus is big, or at least it seems so. When you first walk in, the floors become damp and there's a mist that blankets over this place and makes things hard to see. There are tall, towering trees all around us and their roots are gnarled and all over the place. The waters are black and I've yet to try them, I'm not sure if I should. Otherwise, well, that's all I see so far... Was that okay...?" Again she turned right, still unconvinced by her sense of direction.

"Tal'at is a bat!" exclaimed Dark brightly. "Like--if I had fur instead of feathers. Only nothing on my wings. Just skin! And he has a rock on his face so he's blind too but he can see other things. And a mango's a bright thing you eat," he added. In truth, he really had no idea what a mango was. He'd never eaten one; he'd only seen Tal'at eat one, in his brief vision, so he assumed he could eat one, too.

Dark, too, was taking to this strange question-and-answer session with a sort of gentle, mild ease, as if he'd known Delphine for years and they were just making small talk. He was overtrusting and naive, perhaps as much as she was, and the end result was peaceful chit-chat. The owl ruffled himself up, adjusting himself a little as she canted her head to one side. At the mention of Cetus's water he squeaked, abruptly and happily, almost like a bat himself.

"The water! You can drink it! It's okay," he reassured her. Dark wasn't aware that there were different types of water in Cetus--muddy pools and thick dim channels, and the vast swamp at the Heart. Maybe it was all good to drink, anyway, but he'd had sips at the pools now and again and aside from it tasting faintly metallic, he knew it was fine--no worse than cave water anywhere else in Origin.

His sense of smell was very poor, and so his sense of taste, too, was dulled; as a result he only knew that it was good, drinkable water--at least for birds.

"...I drank some," he added. For a moment he was silent, and then--realizing that they'd been walking for rather some time--he said a bit more quietly, "Where are we going?"

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Delphine's green eyes widened exponentially upon hearing Dark's explanation of Tal'at and even the mango. She struggled then to imagine the owl matted with fur with a... Rock, was it? On his face. The whole image was strange and peculiar though she imagined the world in her passenger's eyes must have been even stranger with its kaleidoscopic bursts of images that he received every now and then. "I've never seen a bat before... I do hope to meet this Tal'at of yours, he sounds so very strange. Have you ever tried a mango before?" It certainly sounded delicious.

She knew then what the advantages of being blind were; the owl approached situations without bias and though there bore more consequences for his actions, at the very least he was not inhibited by senseless fears. For that, the young mare felt a small spark of admiration light from within. Though the feeling did not remain when he inquired where it was they were going. She laughed sheepishly and if she could, she would have blushed. "Well I was trying to get us to the entrance but um... Well, I'm a little lost." It was admittedly embarrassing having to admit to her lack of direction but since the inquiry had been placed before them, she could not lie to him. "I'm supposing you wouldn't know the way? It's hard to see so I can't really tell with benchmarks."

Dark pondered, ruffling his feathers.

"No, I've never had a mango. Hold on... Let me listen."

He turned this way and that, shuffling to and fro and tilting his head at rather awkward angles. He listened for awhile, catching the way the mist muffled the insects' hum, the way the air shifted through the cave, and the way the mist drifted along. It was a little less... open, a little quieter, off to his left and ahead of them, and he hooted softly.

"I think... it's that way?"

He turned a circle; he wasn't sure, and it showed.

"I... think..."

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The young mare abided the owl's request though she wondered how he intended on using hearing to seek the entrance to this grand place. Just the thought alone seemed impossible but she was also without the heightened sensorial gift to accomplish such feats. So she waited patiently for her companions final decision, comfortable in the silence because she was not alone within these treacherous regions. It was ironic really how Dark viewed this place to be a sanctuary of sorts and she considered it nearly purgatorial in semblance. Then his voice booted from above and she glanced up, struggling to catch the direction he faced through her peripheral vision.

"Alright." She responded with ease.

Though he was without sight, Delphine trusted that he knew where it was that he led them, certainly more so than her blind meanderings. Pun unintended. She strode confidently where he directed, no longer fearful of her surroundings for the sheer reason that his presence lent her courage. "I would like to taste a mango." She added randomly and as she did, an awning darkness formed in the mist ahead. Dark was right. "Oh! You were right! We made it back to the entrance and so soon too!" Delphine exclaimed excitedly, her steps quickening so that they were both by the tunnels. "I suppose this is where we part ways then, my friend?"

Dark hooted softly, leaning down to briefly tousle Delphine's mane with his hooked beak, a small and affectionate gesture.

"I was worried. If I got lost here I might die," he explained, matter-of-factly. "It'd be hard to find my way again, if it's as big as you say, and hard to hunt with the sound of bugs everywhere. I guess I could eat bugs," he added as an afterthought.

With a soft swish, he hopped down and glided neatly to the ground, the short distance this time not leaving him tumbling.

"It was nice to meet you, Delphine," Dark hooted softly, turning with a quiet shuffle of feathers to peer unseeing back up at the horse.
"Thanks for taking me home. Don't break any more legs and if you find a mango enjoy it and if you find Tal'at can you tell him where I am? I'd like to see him again," he added, a little wistfully.

He'd wait to see what she had to say, and then he'd hoot a soft final goodbye.

Unless she asked him anything more, he'd then whisk off into Cetus once more, back to the trees and back to his nest.

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Delphine warmed instantly when she felt the owl preen her mane to which she emitted a soft nicker in her gesture of thanks. Though she was not soon after forced to expel a disbelieving gasp at his matter-of-factly tone of voice, "I would never have left you in such dire straights, my friend." And indeed, the owl had easily become someone of import even if they'd only just met and spoken to one another in depth, the young mare was a creature who loved too easily those who reciprocated kindness. She knew it to be an immense flaw in character but one which she was wholly willing to embrace for all it was worth.

Her gaze followed Dark's smooth landing and a smile graced her black lips at the sight of the blind owl. "And you, Dark." She added easily enough before basking in his seemingly random tirade of well wishes. "No problem. I won't. I will. And again, I will." Delphine returned with equal parts tenacity though it was all in good fun before her head lowered to reward the owl a gentle nudge upon his crown, the barest graze so as not startle him. "I will visit you again, soon." The promise was one she fully intended to keep before the young mare turned and ambled toward the tunnels with a click of her hooves against familiar stone.

Though she still did not love Cetus, she had made a new friend and for Delphine, nothing gave her greater joy than this.

exit delphine!