ORIGIN - Bones

One could say that Giggle "led the way" as she trotted from Pisces, through the tunnels, skirting along Orion and finally slipping through the dark and mysterious tunnel to Canis.

But, in truth, she wasn't leading; she was carrying. Bevy was neatly perched in her matted coat, tiny talons clinging to the sheets of gore-and-filth-feasting fungal growth in the hyena's pelt.

"Let me just check--" Giggle muttered, pausing. She sniffed along the tunnel briefly--her concern was for Bones, but she wanted to be sure that the fungal growth in the tunnel, which she could access at a distance, was still active. It was her sentinel, and it would help her ensure that they were not interrupted by an unfriendly face while tending to her son.

Her mind slipped into the living organisms easily, one sentience splitting into thousands, testing their health and the soil and temperature with her strangely compound cognizance. All was well; the fungus was flourishing, even here. With her tending to them, they'd taken root and spread, and she could project her mind into them from her den and view the only entrance to Canis.

"We'll be safe," she told Bevy matter-of-factly, turning to trot back along the worn stone path into Canis.

As they'd travelled, she'd briefly explained what she knew, at least as best she could past the two sticks held in her teeth: that Baratheon had severely wounded Bones in some strange fight, where he'd been attacking another Gembound and Bones had tried to help. That Kerberos had saved Bones; that the wounds had, for the most part, superficially healed, but that there seemed to be lasting damage beneath. She'd paused for her magic, but now she continued.

"Like I said in Pisces, Bevy, I'll understand if you can't do anything. But what sort of mother would I be if I didn't at least ask you to check...? I hope I'm not imposing on Maji Walezi by doing this; it's more of a... a personal favor. I'll owe you, that's for sure," she added, and she meant it. Even if Bevy could do nothing for him, the fact that she'd dropped everything to ride Giggle's fur straight to Canis meant the world to her.

Down she wound, along the stone path to her bone pit. Bones had fallen asleep, here, cradling a femur-like bone that he'd found. Giggle paused a few yards away, quiet.

"It's his back. You see the burn wounds," she murmured softly, glancing back at Bevy. She then moved closer, setting the sticks down and licking her jaws; her speech had been awkward while carrying them, and she was glad to be rid of them.

Then she moved closer to Bones himself, gently nuzzling the short, soft fur on his head, to gently wake him.

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ROLL THE BONES

@Bevy ; @Bones

A soft whimper escaped the dog's throat as he looked up bleary-eyed at his mother. He held the femur bone a little closer to himself as he gave a rather stiff yawn.

In fact, he felt stiff all over. This must have been one of those days when his legs just simply wouldn't respond to him and he couldn't feel his back at all. The dead skin covered the entirity of his back, either black or scarlet and any fur on his back had been entirely burnt away. His paws didn't seem to be in any better coniditon - they were also burnt beyond belief.

He didn't notice Bevy at first, but both his ears lifted as he caught sight of her, murmuring to Giggle. "Who's that?"

It all sounded quite troubling. She imagined a wound similar to that of when Usui's earth magic had backfired and nearly crushed him-- except, perhaps worse ad untreated. She simply listened quietly as Giggle spoke, trying to plan ahead. She had a whole idea of what she would do, she just hoped she would be able to figure out a solution to the injury by the end of it.

"It's no problem at all," Enna peeped to Giggle. "It's the one thing I'm good at, what use would it be keeping my abilities all to myself?" It was as simple as that-- she wanted to heal and help people, no matter what group they belonged to. Maji Walezi's purpose was to protect the life blood of Origin Cave-- and she would do that.

Finally they had arrived in Canis, among the bones, and finally, they had come to where the painted dog was sleeping. He seemed absolutely adorable in that moment, though almost every gembound appeared peaceful and docile while vulnerable. Giggle nosed him awake and promptly, Bones asked who she was. Hopping down to be next to the dog, she dipped her head.

"Hello, Bones. I'm Enna-Bevy, a friend of your mother. I practice healing and she thought I might be able to help you. How do you feel?" She asked the canine, first trying to focus her vision, before attempting to do any sort of magic on the pup.

Giggle gave the dog a brief lick on the head, then stepped back and sat down to give Bevy room to work--not that the tiny bird would likely need much. She gave Bones a reassuring, eyes-half-closed steady gaze as she answered, looking composed and calm, letting Bevy introduce herself in response to Bones's question.

"A friend of mine," she echoed a moment later. "Bevy works with magic the way I do--works with plants, and life, the way I handle fungus and death. She's going to look at your wounds, make sure everything's okay. Please stay still and do as she asks, okay?"

Giggle's voice, as masculine as it was, still held a gentle and reassuring tone. She wasn't babying him, though, far from it--instead she was just as matter-of-fact and kind as she always tended to be with him--when they weren't having a playful back-and-forth exchange of some kind. She treated Bones like an equal, and tried not to patronize him, and she wasn't about to start now.

She then yawned and sat back, glancing to Bevy at the tingle of magic, watching her do her work. She waited patiently and quietly, wondering what the bird would find--and hiding well all her concern, her fear, her brimming heartache at her son's horrific injuries.

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ROLL THE BONES

@Bones

Bones was quiet for a moment, blinking and ears pinned to the back of his head. "I can't feel my legs," he said simply. He couldn't think of what else he felt, because there was really nothing to feel.

He plonked his head back onto his forelegs, staring at his bone fondly. He'd yet to show it to Kerberos, who he knew would either like it or want to eat it. Either way he'd like it.

@Bevy

Bevy took a deep breath-- it wouldn't do her any good to mess up now. She attempted to remain calm and in control of the situation. There was no danger, nothing that she couldn't handle. She peered at the pup's legs, trying to get a look at his damage, watching the bacteria fester around in his seemingly lifeless legs. He needed to move them, somehow, she thought. There had to be someway to build up muscle, something, anything to keep the strength in them while he recovered.

At first, however, besides seeing the bacteria in his body, she couldn't tell much apart-- like most animals, he was teeming with bacteria. She was going to add her own, some she could track, and hope that she could get a clearer picture from the mess.

First things first-- she needed that bacteria. Focusing, she pulled the healthiest bacteria she could, into a nice little invisible cloud, and tugged them gently towards Bones. "Alright, just breathe in and out, nice and slow. I'm going to have to do a bit of poking around, if you feel anything let me know." Then, she waited, hopping up to his hind legs, and gently, prodded her beak into his fur, waiting for the magic to take hold in his body.

Giggle watched.

She remained silent. She didn't intrude. She didn't wander off; she stayed close enough to Bones, a hopefully comforting figure in the bone-strewn cave. But nor did she get in Bevy's way.

She could feel some twist of magic, and though she tried to sense it, it was beyond her. At length, quiet, she finally spoke.

"Can you sense anything?" she asked softly, trying to sound nonchalant.

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ROLL THE BONES

@Bones