ORIGIN - once a true love of mine

It had been a day. Pointedly, a lot of cooking- two of his chrysalises have hatched at the last cycle (he had checked the other- nothing had emerged yet), he had a fair bit of family, and the raid was coming up.

He didn't want to think about it. So, instead, he turned to a feast, one that perhaps even Nedies would like. If the guy liked anything, really- they didn't have much interaction outside of that one time, after all.

But here and now, he had a fair amount of roasted things, things (experimentally) cooked with vegetables (and vegetables themselves) in the kiln, smaller edible bits and more raw bits for those more comfortable with it, and dear caves, the spices. While it wasn't spicy, Attikias had gotten used to flavoring, to impressing and accenting flavors, and many of the pieces had careful dry pepper and herbs rubbed into the meat or mixed with the vegetables.

And, it wasn't all that he'd done. Hidden in his pile of everything he'd had a few gifts to pass around- nothing for anyone in particular, but he figured they could share, and they could enjoy the items he'd found up in Ursa. They seemed safe, after all.

And, with all that said and done, with the campfire burning low and the seats all prepared, Attikias had gone out in search of his family. They must have known he was working on this- caves, he'd gone on about this for a while, and now he could finally do this with the rest of his family. Perhaps, even, friends- allies! People he loved, and people who loved him, who loved his children and friends and everyone who took up the name Elenya.

His clan. His people. Finally seated on one of the logs, closer to the worktable that'd been dragged over to hold the food for everyone, he raised a cup he'd blown himself from the kiln, the cider inside visible against the dark glass. In the happiest voice he could muster, he spoke loudly to the others.

"Let's eat!"

(Non-Elenya are free to join and have heard about the feast! He has a lot of raw and cooked meats and vegetables, as well as blown glass to hold water, fruit juices, or alcohol. No need to ask what he does or doesn't have- you can just kind of assume! A lot of the food is strewn on the table and has some clay bowls for handed people to grab and use. Also, feel free to look at this thread for info on the camp layout.

This also stands as the Elenya group establishment thread! No post order or anything.)
@Astéri @Vivilene @Hunter @Thalia @Carja @Lyra

Carja flung herself from the forest and sat her butt down, tail wiggling happily as she bent over and daintily picked up a plate, holding it out.

”This all looks so good!!”, she praised, having been watching from the branches above so her excited tail thrashing didn't ruin anything, ”I want a bit of that and that and that and that and-”

She ended up taking one of everything and managed to eat without scarfing it down, but it was really hard. It was the best food she'd ever tasted!!

Carja sat next to Attikias but would move if asked, and was delicately (read: not delicately) sipping from a blown glass of cider, peering into it when she drained it quickly. She ended up just picking up an urn of the stuff and using that as a cup, apparently intent on getting smashed.

”This is awesome!!”, she chirped, her tail wagging, ”Oh yeah Attikias I made some kids back in my nest if you want to see.”

That was way too casual of an announcement but cool beans.

Astéri
seek what sets your soul on fire
It's been a while.

He doesn't know how long it's been, exactly, too busy following strange bugs and figuring out the intricacies of fire construction, (he'd say he's pretty good at it now, even with paws!) but a while.

But he's always more than happy to come back home.

His tail swishes this way and that as he walks through the familiar trails of Eridanus with a bounce in his step. Ferns tickle his fur as he passes through them. Late, orange-y afternoon light streams through the canopy at some points, dappling his pelt.

And the smell—oh, the smell in the air makes him walk just that little bit faster, eyes set forward as he walks with a bounce in his step towards what, no doubt, will be a glorious prize.

Dad always was good at cooking.

He keeps his nose high in the air, following the scent of food, walking that familiar path down to the Elenya clan camp. And when the trees finally part and give way to that little collection of buildings, his eyes picking out the seats circling the campfire, he breaks into a sprint.

His arrival is announced both by the rustling of undergrowth and the cracking of twigs trampled underfoot, and—

"Dad! Dad!"

—a loud, joyous call, no doubt familiar to Attikias, after so many times hearing it before.

He darts into Attik's arms like a big, furry arrow, tail wagging and chuffing happily as he winds himself over his legs and generally begs for his father's attention. "Hi!"

His own attention, however, is soon captured… by a gembound whose scales glitter like the night sky.

He's never seen this one before, although with how big she is, he can't help but wonder how he'd ever missed her. Big, batlike wings and clawed paws that hold a mug of cider, spines that run from her horned head all the way down to her back, complete with a big ol' lizard-y tail—

—Astéri gasps, voice full of childlike wonder.

"Are you a dragon?"

In a few moments, he's up from his spot on Attikias, charging over to the dragon, a tirade of words falling from his mouth. "Dad—dad you never told me there was a dragon here! I heard of one in the big windy cave that was huge and had a lot of treasure—other gembound said he could breathe fire! Can you breathe fire?"

His eyes are wide, glimmering with excitement and awe. Well? Can she? Can she?

@Attikias @Carja

Thalia wove her way between the meals, offering up a bright, wicked grin at Carja--look at those WINGS--before picking up an apple from a nearby table. She had a sort of rough wooden plate in one hand, and as she swaggered through the feast area, she took a bite out of her apple and set it on the plate. She glanced around, cheerful, and picked up any bit of food that caught her eye, piling it high.

She hadn't really done much to help gather it--brought some fruit herself, and a few roots she'd happened on, but nothing too important.

"Damn, Dad, you sure went all-out," she told Attikias. "I didn't ask--what's it all for? Or just--for the heck of it? Not that I'm complaining," and she flashed him a cheerful grin. If she saw the gifts hidden in the food, she didn't take one; she likely hadn't noticed them. She was too busy offering the big spotted cat a wave--and nearly dropping her dish in the process, swearing quietly and fumbling to catch it.

"This is gonna be something to sing about later," she added, making her way to a seat on a log near her father. She flopped down gracelessly, hooved legs sprawled forward without a care in the world, and started to stuff her face. She was a kind person but had never been a particularly refined one; in a strange departure from her other father she was brash, loud and violently happy. The grin on her face now was typical for her, and she offered it to Attikias now. "Let me know if you want some music."

That one song she'd picked up in Cepheus, maybe.

"I'm glad you guys like it!" It certainly wasn't a secret that he'd been planning this with gathering the foods enough for everyone and the people themselves. Though, as he watched everyone pile on their plates, he rumbled out a laugh. "Here's hoping there's enough for everyone." It was certainly meant as a joke- he'd definitely had enough, thanks to the work he'd put in and the help he'd gotten.

Astéri's familiar cry caught the elf twisting to see, leaning over and already aiming a bit away from the fire. Even full grown, the jaguar could still get into Attikias's arms, and he laughed with his chest as his first son nearly ran him over. "Hey, bud! Glad you could make it!" He pressed in his forehead to Astéri's in the brief moment he had of holding him, the (relative) kid's attention grabbed by Carja.

"Oh." He looked between the two. He snorted for a moment- Astéri's enthusiasm was totally expected, and he tousled his son's fur as he broke off. "That's Carja. She does a bit more-- watery stuff?" He glanced to her in a soft question, shrugging briefly as Thalia had joined him.

Even despite their differences, they did have more than enough similarities- one of them, apparently, a liking for food. The elf's hands planted themselves on the log as he chuckled again. "Ahh- for the heck of it, mostly." Mostly.

He paused for a moment, concealing a brief distant look with an inward sigh and a smile. "I figured it'd be best to get everyone together, y'know? Been a while since the family's been here." He took a sip from his glass, leaning back just slightly as he stared to the fire. Brief instinct brought one hand out to help catch the dropping plate- Thalia had grabbed it long before he could, but he still rumbled out humorously at the action. "Make some music, definitely. You wanna grab the plucking board?" It was an old instrument of his- various short strings tied to a piece of wood, not unlike a very strange handheld harp if it weren't just vaguely out of tune. Still- with Thalia around, perhaps it had gotten tuned up just right- he wasn't the resident bard, after all.

He hesitated, again, though. "Oh! I actually got something for you, particularly. Here, lemme-" he stood up from the log and stepped over it, placing his cup on the table before stepping about, rummaging through the various items that he'd placed beside it. One would be of interest, probably- a brass metronome, and he brought it closer to Thalia to hand it to her.

"This knob here controls how fast it goes," he explained, leaning over and pointing at it. "It's like a beat, and I thought you'd like it for your songs." His head tilted gently and his long hair draped over his shoulder, smiling. "Try it out? Maybe it'll help!"

Carja's next words snapped his head up, though. "You made kids?" He huffed out, already grinning again, planting his hands on his knees to shove back up. "I had no clue! I thought the-- I guess they are chrysalisish, but I had no clue. That's amazing!" He reached out to pat Carja's side, just like a proud father(? close enough) should.

"How long ago was it? You think they'll hatch soon? Oh, where's the other parents?" His tail was flicking a mile a minute as he fawned over the news. He stopped, briefly- Astéri probably had more than enough questions for Carja, and he backed off as he realized. "Actually- let me go see how everyone else is doing. I think you two'll make some great company, anyways, but I still wanna hear about those kids once you're both done." And he turned to Astéri, too, nudging his head towards his son. "And I wanna hear what you've been up to, okay? But lemme go make sure everyone's got a bite to eat."

Stepping away, Attikias grabbed his cup again and made his way around the fire, looking to check up on the rest of his family.

@Carja @Thalia @Astéri

Carja squealed as Asteri grew more excited, offering a wave to Thalia before tucking her tail under a leg to control its excited whipping, ”I am!! I am a dragon!”

She craned her head down and cooed, ”You're a cat!! What kind of cat, you're super cool! Are you soft?”

Carja looked up at Attikias and chirped, ”Yeah! Ice and water but yes I can breathe fire! I'm working up to it.”

She ground her teeth together, producing sparks, tail almost escaping. She reared her neck and spouted a stream of superheated air up above, making the air shimmer and waver, threatening to catch fire but not quite. When she pointed it at a piece of her meal it immediately burned, and she grinned down at Asteri, smoke twirling out of her nose.

”See? Almost but not quite. Soon! I can make things burn or catch fire with it though,” she said, and gobbled down the meat she'd burnt, enjoying the 'caramelized' flavor.

Carja turned to Attikias next, ”A month! I asked Talys if he could donate a piece of stone and I told him I'd introduce you two in return, he's a really great guy, and an elf like you! I don't know if you've met him, he's got brown skin, dark hair, brown eyes. Uses a cane to walk. He's great! But the other one I found this... ring? Creature around here and she just kind of threw a stone at me and left. So... yeah!”, she grinned, tail wagging back and forth, ”I've even got some names planned! Vanyel's my favorite though.”

She waved as he exited the conversation, happy to keep talking with Asteri.

@Asteri

Thalia set her food down to one side, the grin broad across her face and eyes widening with fascination as she took the metronome in hand. For a moment she tilted her head close to listen to the clicks, and then toyed with it a little: tampering with the knob, the hand itself, gently shaking the whole contraption as if to listen for moving parts.

"Oh, this is cool," she decided, at once. She took a moment to clear a little place at the base of her log, then set it there, leaving it ticking away at a decent pace; then she went off for Attikias's plucking-board, her grin still wide and cheerful. This she set against the log--and then she went about hunting through the undergrowth on the outskirts of the camp.

She had in mind a sort of new drum, something with bark that she could kick in time to the metronome, but she didn't find anything similar to what she was looking for. A tad disappointed, she just headed back to sit on the log, taking up the rudimentary string instrument alone.

For a moment, cradling it, she sat silent. She listened with a fading, focused smile to Carja speak of heat, and of children, with Thalia's father.

It reminded her of something else--of other dragons she'd once met--and she grinned and settled into a beat of bobbing head, of one hoofed leg (looped over the other) dipping in time to the metronome. Then she began to strum, and started a sort of background tune--not meant to be great, really, but it was music. The tune was a jaunty, catchy sort of thing, almost shanty-like in both its cheer and its strict adherence to the timing of the ticking.

"Oh there's a cave I know (I know),
That has no ice and little snow,
It's got a crystal miles high,
And it's the bluest thing I've ever seen!

And there they brought us pumpkins-oh!
Pumpkins set for carving!
And there they gave out pumpkins-oh!
You can eat 'em if you're starving!

A dragon white like lily-flowers
Had waited under there for hours!
And by his side a child sat
With wings as blue as I've ever seen!

And there they brought us pumpkins-oh!
Pumpkins set for carving!
And there they gave out pumpkins-oh!
You can eat 'em if you're starving!

Around them gathered monsters-oh!
Fangs up high and claws down low,
Dripping black and flapping wings
Coming to see the pumpkins-oh!

And there they brought us pumpkins-oh!
Pumpkins set for carving!
And there they gave out pumpkins-oh!
You can eat 'em if you're starving!

The white dragon, he gave out pumpkins-oh!
His child, she gave out pumpkins-oh!
The monsters, they took those pumpkins-oh!
And everyone had pumpkins-oh!

And there they brought us pumpkins-oh!
Pumpkins set for carving!
And there they gave out pumpkins-oh!
You can eat 'em if you're starving!"

Astéri
seek what sets your soul on fire
"Okay, dad!" the leopard calls back, tail wagging a mile a minute.

Most of his thoughts are still taken up by the big—no, huge—dragon in front of him. As he gets a good look at her, practically skipping with excitement as he paces back and forth in front of her, he realizes that her scales actually sparkle. Like stars.

Whoa…

He gives Carja the biggest, most excited grin a kitty like him can muster, all but bouncing forward to rub against one leg affectionately, the tip of his tail brushing against the other. "I'm a leopard! I can climb things and roar and yes I'm soft too!"

There seemed to be no end to his enthusiasm—especially not when Carja rears her neck up and spouts a wave of heat, the air twisting before her mighty exhale. In the same breath, she reaches downwards, and suddenly the meal before her is charring in an instant, the familiar smell of smoke floating into the air.

Astéri's eyes go wide. A beat passes in stunned silence.

"That was…" He looks from where Carja's meal was, back to her, back to where the meat was before it was charred by magic.

"...awesome!"

He bounces to the spot where her meal was, nose twitching as he takes in the faintest smell of ash lingering from her exhale of breath. "I can do it too but not nearly as well as you—I'm still practicing—hold on lemme see if I can—"

Astéri turns away from the dragon, brow furrowing in concentration as he focuses on magic. He thinks warm thoughts. He thinks—fire, fire, breathe fire, show the dragon I can do it too—

He thinks, he focuses, he pushes—

With an exhale, the air in front of him ripples; the breath in his mouth becomes almost too hot to bear, the heat of his magic a familiar sensation, but one he hasn't felt in a good long while.

He should practice more. Then he can do really cool fire stuff, like the dragon next to him can do.

Excited eyes glance back over his shoulder to said dragon. "See!"

@Carja