ORIGIN

Sora sighed. "So that's what happened to that." Wisely, she did not say that she'd planned on murdering her sister over that. It wasn't really relevant, not if Pumpkin had it. "I think she is, too," Sora admitted, "but not in the body way. In the heart way, like I am." After a beat, she added, "... I don't think it's got the same symptoms, but I think it's the same sickness." Grief could poison you something awful.

She followed Annie's gaze to the blue stone on its little pedestal, and nodded. "That one was Orenstein. He was a monkey." She didn't mind talking about her family, though -- it made her feel a little bit like they were still there. "He was so sweet. I haven't brought his stone back because I know it wouldn't really be him, and I don't know if he would've wanted me to. So I'm just keeping it safe where I can see it." Mostly so that somebody else couldn't take it and do something bad with it.

She closed her eyes. "He was like you. He cared about others, and he wanted to keep the peace in our little band of misfits. He was... trustworthy. You always knew he'd be there for you when it really counted. And he was brilliant, too. A lot of my siblings were really smart. I never really understood what they talked about half the time, but that was okay. It was nice to just hear them talking."

Sora mulled over Simon next. "Simon was a snake, the kind that can bite people, but he never much wanted to. He was... quiet, but he cared so deeply about other people. He loved and he loved and he loved, unconditionally. His greatest wish was to see trees, and it sort of rubbed off on the rest of us." She laughed a little, remembering almost hollowly how faraway and amazing trees had seemed. "Him and Orenstein, they both died trying to save someone else." She sighed. "All of them did, actually." Sora cleared her throat. "He was closest with Morganite. I was going to give her his stone, but she didn't like my condition, so I took it home. Then she stole it back from me."

"Then there was Owlface," she settled on. "He was... kind of a lot of things, but mostly lizard and bird, I think. He had this massive frill around his face, and that's how he got his name. He kind of looked like an owl, especially when he was surprised." She opened her eye now, and scuffed a vague circle with a triangle in the middle into the dirt. She'd been practicing since Deli and had gotten a little better at it. "He was so observant. He noticed everything, and cared about everyone. We were all sort of like that, clinging onto each other. We were all we had."

But then, of course, there was... "And Kini-yolotl, of course." Sora felt grief coil around her. "They were our brother, but they were sort of like our dad, too. Kini was... a rock. You could always turn to them if things got rough. They were always there for me, even when I was just an angry little kid with a grudge against the world. They were my main sparring partner, and they always kicked my ass. Er-- whoops. I probably shouldn't swear around you," she murmured, and then sighed. "Anyway. Kini was a ram, but their tail was super long. I was also just a little bit taller," she grinned. It had been just barely, really, but... well. It had mattered to her.

She sighed. "I couldn't find the stones of anyone else. Just Simon and Orenstein, and a couple of the other Gembound who'd gone in with us. But the person who went with me kept those stones; I was only there for my family's."

Sora laughed a little wetly as Annie moved in to hug her. "Thank you." It was nice to have the validation, in a way, but Sora was also getting tired of people saying they were sorry for her loss. She couldn't be angry at Annie, though. The sentiment was too sweet coming from a child. At mention of a mural, though, she shook her head slightly.

"No, I-- I already thought about that." She nodded at the dye she'd made. "I was going to get a tattoo. I haven't seen the Gembound who was supposed to do it in a few cycles, though. Flowers would be nice, though. A mural would be too flashy. No need to drag everyone else down with us." She thought about Charles, at the meeting. She scowled.

Then, blinked herself out of the thought process and glanced over at Annie again. "Speaking of being with your family," Sora said gently, "I'll bet your daddy is missing you. We should get you home soon."