ORIGIN

Blackberry was doing a small bit of housecleaning around the nest. It was extremely unusual for her to be doing something as low as this, but the place was a mess and the smell was really getting to her. She sighed as she leaned down, tossing reeking bones into the garbage pile and tearing away pieces of old bedding that hadn't been changed. If they weren't going to care for their own nests, then she'd have to do it for them. She thought that she had raised them better.

It took her a while, but the nest was smelling considerably better by the time she was finished. The garbage dump was still disgusting - she wasn't big enough to clear it out. Perhaps Blueberry or Huckleberry could change it later.

The crack interrupted her thoughts and, despite knowing what the sound was, immediately whipped around, her feathers tingling as if ready to fight an enemy. She bared her teeth and took off towards the place where she had heard the sound.

As soon as she saw the young gembound, though, she stopped. Was it a newhatched? No, it didn't look like a baby. It was older. Maybe not full grown, but definitely not new to the world. She didn't know why they had gone back into their chrysalis. They didn't look hurt or strange in any way, just a bird.

She stepped forward curiously and looked over the little bird with one of her piercing red eyes. "Welcome back to the caves, young one. What did you leave for?"

Blackberry snorted at the explanation. She sometimes forgot how incredibly stupid the gembounds of the caves could be. They retreat into pre-life just because they lost their friend? She went into that state because a wolf ripped her apart, feather by feather. It didn't seem like they had a bad time in it, either - they looked unscathed, mostly normal, and perfectly sane. That would make things easier.

She looked around at the tunnel. They weren't exactly very close to one of the openings to Polaris or Orion. Although they were some distance away from the nest, the bird was dangerously close to their nesting spot. "Alright, but what were you doing in here, anyways? Hell of a place to pick to sleep, really." Then again, perhaps word of her family had never reached their ears. Too few people knew about them. Perhaps that was a sign that they should become more active, present members of the caves.

Blackberry widened her eyes with surprise, not really sure how to react. Should she be mad that this creature had dared set foot near her family's nest? Should she be worried that someone could get so close without them noticing? Or should she be happy that there was yet another child presenting themselves to her so willingly?

She remembered that Blueberry had mentioned to her that growing the family would make them stronger. And this kid had guts, that was for sure. Blackberry always liked having more children to protect, her motherly instincts wanting to bring in as many as possible under her wing, but also her need to make her family strong with fierce warriors. While this bird didn't display any obvious signs of physical or magical strength, there was still potential, just as Dewberry had.

She couldn't refrain from letting out a chuckle. "Well, we're definitely here now. What do you say? Would you like to meet some of them?" She wondered what the bird would think about the family. She wanted to scare them, but she also wanted to inspire them. She wasn't very good at manipulating people, since all the ones that had joined her family had either joined at birth or had been hatched into the family. This would be an interesting change.

Triumphant, Blackberry glanced back at the nest, imagining the little bird fitting in with her family. How strange it would be to have another very small little creature be part of such a bloodthirsty group. She wasn't complaining, though - any member of the family was welcome, anyone willing to learn would learn. And maybe even those not too willing.

She looked back at the bird and gave them a nod, her eyes glittering, but giving nothing away. "Excellent. Follow me. If anyone's there, I'll introduce you." She turned and began heading back towards the nest, only looking back at Heart-Song's question. "I'm Blackberry. As you'll see, Heart-Song, all members of my family have 'berry' in their names. It is our family's title." She held herself from revealing the family's true name just yet. Let them meet someone first. See how they reacted to first impressions.