ORIGIN

Mm. This place was awfully windy, Macawi noted to herself as she trotted along, humming a tune. With winter having come to the Cave, the wind was biting now, but she didn’t mind. Things like cold didn’t bother the little coyote much. She’d learned to ignore most things that might bother others. What was the point in fretting? It’s not like she could control the wind. Her headdress and leather bag bounced along and made jingly sounds, and Tangakwunu – her Bonded Rainbow Spinner – fluttered along the cave above her, chirping merrily. Then Macawi stopped and sniffed the air. Oh! There was another Gembound here. But… where were they…?

The coyote cleared her throat. “Ahem! Hello, wherever you are! Macawi smells you!” She looked around the room, then down into the gorge. “Are you down there?” she asked. “Macawi will come and see.” She padded up to the edge and peered down into the depths. There was a dark-ish shape at the bottom. It moved. “Oh, hello there! Maacwi has found you! What are you doing down there?” Without waiting for a reply, she began to make the trek down to the creature. She was impatient like that, not one to wait for others. It was her way.

"Speech"

Macawi grinned easily as the maned wolf stared at her without speaking. She was crazy and weird, so others could be crazy and weird if they wanted to be. She didn’t mind. This included awkward silent stares at her. Like that one Gembound she’d met in Orion… Come to think of it, he’d never told her his name. Huh. Well, he was a cat of some kind, and a silent one at that, so… that was enough of a descriptor for her. This little one… he certainly wasn’t a cat. Actually, he reminded her of… herself, in an odd way. Long legs, skinny form… But he was definitely not a Coyote. Nope, nope, nope.

Oh, well now he was staring at her bag. “Does This One like Macawi’s satchel?” she asked, out of politeness, or something. You know, whatever sane Gembounds did. Her eyes caught the two mushrooms and the sparkly thing by his paws. Hmm… “Was This One treasure-hunting, like Macawi? Coyote is always looking for new things to add to her bag. She tells fortunes, you see. Perhaps you would like your fortune read?” Without waiting for a response, she lowered her body, letting her headdress slip off, as well as the strap of her bag.

“All you must do is reach a paw into the bag without looking and pull out the object that feels right. It costs you nothing; it just a hobby of Coyote’s. Go on, if you want.” She nudged the front of the bag towards the little Gembound, smiling encouragingly.

"Speech"

Oh. What was going on here?

Odyssey had plunged to the ground below the ledges where they typically lurked now in search of Othello. They had requested privacy, for time spent with their Mother was precious time indeed, and Odyssey couldn't allow themselves to be interrupted by the pointed canine. They knew all too well that their Mother would be displeased; Mother had already given Odyssey strict regulations by which they had to follow if they wished to keep this Othello like the pet they treated him as, and Odyssey knew that if they deviated in any small form, Mother would send the maned wolf away from Monoceros. Or worse, she would take his life and present him to Odyssey as no more than the jagged crown of gems as punishment for parting from her expectations. Odyssey coveted their pet like a child adored a stolen puppy, and as such they would do everything it took to protect him from their Mother's wrath.

But now that their lesson was over, Odyssey was bored. Illiad was elsewhere and Odyssey's limbs were aching for play, tail wagging furiously as they dropped to the floor of Monoceros in search of the silvery canine, but to no avail. They spent the next few minutes glossing over the ridges carved into the wall above, searching, and then wandering to the gorge. It was there, at its edge, that Odyssey had spotted him deep among its twisting routes. But he wasn't alone. The instant they spotted the other dog, Odyssey's heart had quaked with jealousy, and Odyssey's paws took them down the descent to where the coyote was now inviting him to rummage around the mysterious sac hanging from her side.

"Who are you?" Odyssey blurted, quickening their pace until they had reached the pair. The red hybrid's bright eyes remained fixed on the coyote while their body sidled up next to Othello, their shoulder pressed possessively against their pet's while their head elevated to gaze with cold and jealous accusation at the stranger. "And what's going on? What are you doing in Monoceros?" They added, narrowing their eyes slightly. Such a stranger so boldly making nice with their pet, this was an act of treason, it was an outrageous overstepping of boundaries - this trespasser - how dare they!

Ooo! People could be so rude sometimes! And rudeness was just… Well, it was something the coyote had a hard time dealing with, in all honesty. She could feel her eyes burn bright red as she gazed upon the intruding creature who had interrupted her fortune-telling. Meanwhile, the other canine was burying his face into her bag. That was fine… but this… this rude Gembound! She knew she could come off as rude sometimes, but if anyone ever called her out on it (which they hadn’t yet done), she would definitely apologize! It wasn’t like she was purposefully crazy. One couldn’t help the way one was born, could they? No! No they couldn’t! So! … Well, maybe this… dog-thing couldn’t help being rude then?

Macawi let out a huff and allowed her Magic to flow back into the gem in her cheek, deciding to give this rude being the benefit of the doubt. “Macawi is Macawi,” the coyote said patiently, accented voice lilting slightly. “As for what she is doing here, This One will just have to be patient and see!” She turned to look at the one whose fortune was to be told, and saw that he had pulled out a turquoise-colored feather. “Aha!” she said, tail wagging excitedly. “What a splendid thing you have found, my friend! How pretty!”

She sat and thought about the object for a while. “Hmm… Well, a feather represents the element of Air, which is light, as opposed to heavy. The color… a blue-green, also light, not dark. You pulled out this feather perhaps because the Universe is telling you not to let your problems bother you so much. Although…” Macawi studied the maned wolf for a moment, and smiled. “This One does not seem to be affected by anything to begin with.” She let out a laugh. “Perhaps instead the feather is telling you to maintain your current attitude. Be laid-back, light and airy. Yes?”

Fortune-telling done, she leaned towards the feather. “May Coyote Bauble this for you? You may keep it, as a gift.” She glanced at the annoying other canid. “And you — would you like your fortune told?”

"Speech"

While Odyssey stood with their shoulder pressed against Othello's own, they had noticed that the maned wolf had shoved their head into the satchel and furrowed their brow, on the fringe of commanding Othello to retreat and take their head out of the bag because they looked stupid. Instead, it was the coyote that had broken in to answer the flurry of questions Odyssey had thrown her in the first place, and as Odyssey looked up, they had noticed the vivid red colour of her eyes. The fearsome hue had caused a protective surge to lash out from Odyssey's own conniving heart, a sensation that Illiad would be able to feel from where ever the molefox was, and the desire to push the coyote away only grew. "What's a Macawi?" They asked obnoxiously, frowning at the canine.

It must have been her name, but Odyssey wanted to know what kind of a response it would yield. Othello had withdrawn his head, between his teeth a teal feather - its gentle oceanic colour shone brilliantly in the pale light of Monoceros, and seeing their pet's excitement had caused Odyssey's agitation to waver, a wag of their tail slowly mirroring Othello's own. Odyssey shoved their nose in close to sniff curiously at the feather, but the coyote, tricky as she was, seemed to have an answer for that too.

A fortune, or some kind of a reading, which Odyssey regarded with great skepticism. Then again, as she went on to describe the feather and how it related to Othello, the hybrid looked from the maned wolf to the feather to the coyote and found themselves begrudgingly intrigued. When she asked if they would like their own fortune to be told, Odyssey blurted out with an enthused, "Yes!" and stared wide-eyed at the coyote. They had a feeling that they'd have to reach into the bag, but Odyssey didn't want to make themselves look like a fool. They instead waited patiently for instruction, eyes glued with determination to the coyote.

Macawi grinned in amusement as she placed her paw gently atop the teal feather, until it glowed with Light. She then looked up at the annoying red creature who seemed… protective over the other. “A Macawi is me, and I am Macawi. It is Coyote’s name.” It was an odd thing when the tiny canid spoke in first-person. Such an act did not come naturally to her, yet she found herself slipping every once in a while. Probably from exposure to those who spoke ‘normally.’ However, this time was no slip of the tongue. She had spoken in first-person on purpose, to make a point. It seemed not everyone in Origin Cave understood her speech patterns.

The Coyote gently pushed the glowing feather back to Othello, then turned to Odyssey. “So. You watched what happened before. As you can probably guess, you must now reach a paw into the bag and pull out an object.” She chuckled. “Your friend here was… a little excited and shoved their whole head into the bag. Normally, it must only be a paw, to keep Gembounds from looking. Feel around in the bag as long as you like and pull out the object that feels right.” Macawi gently nudged the bag towards the red fox-like creature, and waited.

She had a feeling they might outright refuse, because they seemed the type to be grumpy about everything, but she decided to reserve judgment, for now.rk right away. If you let me try again, I might be able to Light the feather for you.”

"Speech"