ORIGIN - Adventure

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((All welcome, anybody free to drop in at any point!))

The pup found himself lying on his back on the dusty cave floor of a very different room than he was used to.

That wasn't a bad thing, of course. He lay there with his mouth open and pink tongue lolling out contentedly, tail swaying left and right gently. He knew the dust and dirt would make his coat filthy, but he could clean it later. For now, he watched the ceiling, mesmerized by the glinting white crystals.

He liked it here. It was quiet and didn't smell as awful as home did. There were no bones in sight - no, the bones seem to have been replaced by shining white rocks in this room, and he was told bones were the best thing. He could still appreicate this room, though.

Bones rolled onto his side, stretching his stubby legs contentedly, before he stood again. He shook his fur out and quickly groomed himself before he continued to trot forward. He liked walking, because whenever he walked, he'd find new things. New things were good, he had decided.

He had already found some new things in this room! Like the lights above, different from lights in Canis, which came from orbs of light that sometimes flickered off. Strange rocks someone could take shelter in, but he believed that was called a 'den.'They were different too, they had rectangles carved into them that you could stick your head in. And... hm. This thing.

He didn't know what it was, so he just stared at it. It was another den-like thing, only there was not much above it. There walls, the back one much higher than the other two, and a strange little elevated platform in the centre.

He had decided not to touch what he didn't know, and so he just sat there, staring at the throne.

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Usui had wandered into Orion before but stuck around the main area. He was keen on exploring the glittering room of quartz and so found himself back here once again. This time, he was armed with his oversized leather pouch and a couple of light pebbles to document his findings. The lion had sketched out rough rectangles for buildings to represent the main area of Orion, but the other pebbles were a blank for he did not yet know what lay ahead. Thinking that there might be someone else here, Usui cast gem sense to reveal the presence of other gembounds to him. Alas, his magic did not work, and the lion relied on his nose instead. The scent of other gembounds were rather fresh – it seemed that Orion was a popular hangout these days. He caught on to one particular scent reminiscent of Giggle’s, and decided to follow it. After all, the hyena had been rough but kind to him in many ways and perhaps he could pay her a visit. Surely she’d welcome that.

Following the scent, the boy padded across a trail he’d never been on before, and turned round the bend. There, he saw something that wasn’t exactly hyena. It looked like a hyena-dog, and it was looking up at a monument ahead which was new to Usui too. An odd seat of sorts stood in the middle and this sparked the lion’s curiousity. However, not to be rude, he approached the gembound and called out a greeting. "Hey there.” He then looked back towards the throne. "D’you know what this is?” He asked the dog, eyes still fixated on the stone seat.

The dog was silent. He craned his neck back to stare blank-faced at the lion, but he was motionless otherwise. He hadn't talked to another creature other than his 'mother,' and he surely hadn't ever seen a creature that looked like this one. Especially with ears that small.

Bones briefly hoped that Usui was talking to somebody else - despite being fully aware that there is no one else around. The puppy's giant ears flickered slightly back before he hesitantly whined, "...No."

He looked between the throne and the cub before he began to scuttle back, perhaps assuming he is getting in the way. He doesn't look too far off planning an escape route. Once back at a distance from Usui, he began to groom himself in an attempt to calm himself.

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"Oh,” the lion replied simply when the other mentioned that he did not know what the throne was. He felt disappointed, but not overwhelmingly so, for Usui knew that Origin held many mysteries, such as that in Tunnel J, which all gembounds he’d met so far he dare say, were oblivious about (himself included). Pale green eyes followed the hesitant, shy movements of the dog as it shifted away and groomed itself. The cub knew that it seemed rather afraid of him then. He cocked his head to the side, curious about the dog. Although Usui was bigger than the other gembound, he had meant no harm to the critter. "Hey, you okay? I don’t mean to hurt you.” He sat down then, and rolled onto his belly, limbs splayed to the side while lion tail whipped about languidly behind him. "What’s your name? I’m Usui,” he offered, and waited for a reply.

"..Bones," muttered the pup. He didn't want to be here anymore in this place with the strange sparkling ceiling and... whatever this statue was.

That said, he didn't want to go through Tunnel J again. He shuddered and continued to lick himself clean, even rubbing his forelegs against his face. As much as he tried to forget this Usui-thing, it's presence kept reminding him of it.

Until a thought crossed his mind - what if it was lost? He opened an eye and glanced over with a tiny whine. He started to wonder where his mother was, and where he came from. Unusual scents clung to the cub - he didn't know anything about it. Nothing was familiar about it.

He whined once more as he remembered his usual policy - 'don't go near what you don't know.' He was a bad rule-follower and a bad son for leaving his mother alone in Canis.

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The gembound named Bones continued to make a fuss and whine. Usui sighed, then decided that since his company was so unwelcome perhaps he should leave this fellow alone but not before giving him some grub out of goodwill. Leaving the nervous dog where he was, the lion cub cast gem sense in an attempt to figure out if prey abound nearby. His magic sputtered and just barely - he made out one single, greyish fleck in his mental map huddled against the wall. It was probably a mouse. Immediately, Usui padded over and when he neared the now visible lesser gembound, crouched his haunches and locked his pale eyes onto the prey. Then, he shot forward and before the mouse had a chance to run further than a metre away, he expertly brought his paw down and crunched onto the mouse, ending its life. He then picked it up gingerly between his teeth and returned to where Bones was. Usui sat a respectful, non-threatening distance away and then dropped the mouse onto the floor. Next, he shoved it over to Bones with a paw such that the mouse ended lying mid-way between them. It was up to the young gembound now, as to whether he'd choose to step forward and accept this meal.

...Food?

The pup edged forwards. He recalled his mother doing the same thing when he saw her for the first time - she ran off and got food. He got closer. What if it was a trap? He stepped away. He was still for a moment, before he stepped forward once more and craned his neck over to the mouse to sniff it, careful.

It smelled different than the rats of Canis.

He wasn't in Canis anymore, however.

Slowly, he began to eat the mouse, tearing it's gut open first. He ate as much as he could - organs and flesh, though carefully tore the bones away and placed them into a pile. When nothing but scraps of fur remained of the mouse, the puppy was quick to clean the blood off himself - licking his paws and legs, his muzzle, drawing his long legs over his face like a rodent to try and clean the crimson off his face. When he was done, Bones lifted his gaze to Usui.

"Do you like making things?" he asked simply, now turning his attention to the bone pile as he began shifting the little bones with his paws, sometimes dipping his head down to lick blood off them.

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The tawny lion waited for Bones to step forward and get the grub. He blinked his eyes gently and whipped his tail behind him lazily, absolutely not posing a threat at all to the dog. The little guy moved over to the meal then stepped back, hesitant as it was even then still tempted by the scent of the meat. Usui blinked and looked away so as to not cause the pup discomfort. Eventually, Bones stepped forth and ate the mouse. The lion gave no indication of his eating apart from the occasional flick where bone clattered on bone. He wondered if the boy was like Giggle, or knew Giggle to say the least. Usui could tell that the boy was grooming himself now and when he was done, he turned around to face the boy, hoping that he felt much better.

Bones spoke then, a queer question indeed. "Me?” Usui asked, surprised, then turned to look at his satchel. Aha! That must have been why this young one asked him such a question. He gave a contented huff and smiled at Bones. "Why yes, I do. See,” and here, he pulled out a small, sleek oval ruby from his bag and swiped it over to the pup such that it skidded across the floor to land just at the boy’s paws, "I craft gems and metal. Here, you can have that one,” he spoke. He hadn’t cut out any holes from it but if the boy wanted to, he could tie some vines or strings or chords or leather around it and it could be a rather fancy necklace or band or anything he wanted it to be.

Bones

The puppy blinked and carefully sniffed the gem. He hadn't often seen gems; his own was hidden away somewhere deep in his chest, his mothers' hidden under clumps of (filthy) fur. He couldn't see Usui's either, but he was fairly sure it had something to do with the clump of black on his ear. He hadn't seen a lion before, after all.

He was quiet for a moment, nudging the ruby with his paw before he pulled it closer. "What do you use gems for?" he asked. He had plenty of questions already, but he decided this one was the most reasonable.

Perhaps he could give it to someone? How would he even carry it--- he had a long way to go and carrying it in his mouth would get it all dirty.

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The lion's eyes twinkled as the pup showed interest in the ruby and asked him the little question. He chuckled and brought his broader head closer to the other's with a wink. "I give them to young un's like you to keep. Fancy aye?" He then got up and stretched his torso downwards, the base of his paws digging into the ground as he opened his muzzle wide and flicked out his pink tongue in a yawn. Feline tail curled high above his rump and waved there for a moment, then Usui brought his limbs back neatly beneath his body with a shake of his coat and a chuff. "I'd better get goin' then. See ya around Bones," he spoke boyishly to the young mottled pup as he slung the satchel across his shoulders. He'd bothered Bones enough for today - perhaps he'd be on his way. The lion knew that he hadn't fully answer the other's question, but he felt that a man should have secrets too. With a final chuckle at Bones and a wave of his paw, Usui turned around and left the throne and the room, refreshed and ready to embark on a new adventure having fed and gifted this young pup.

-Exit Usui-

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