Wilder was starting to regain her confidence, just piece by piece, and even giggled alongside Aquarian's laugh, completely missing the tone of his voice. "No, I don't know much! That's why I wanted to see you, so I could know more, I guess." But what to ask? There were many many things she could ask this giant serpent but the only thing that came to her mind was a flash of blue.

Her body stiffened and a visible shiver went down her spine, but she didn't start hissing. "What did the blue thing do to me?" she blurted out suddenly, knowing that it was probably her most begging question short of 'Why did the blue thing hit me' which she highly doubted that Aquarian would have any kind of answer to. Not that he would probably have much of an answer to this one.

@Black

Black sat back, bewildered, turning to peer at Wilder. That was her question? He wasn't sure what she was asking--his mind ran through all the blue things he knew, which wasn't many. And in his mind, the Spire wasn't "blue." It was teal, turquoise, blue-green--but not blue.

Or well, kinda bluish-greening-gray, to his canine eyes.

But what did she mean? And why ask this of Aquarian?

Puzzled, he looked from Wilder, up to Aquarian, then back. How was he meant to know of something that had happened to her, far away, while the serpent had still been resting beneath the lake?

________________

Is it speaking nonsense?! Suspiciously Aquarian narrowed his yellow eyes, the pupils slitting down as he hissed. "WHAT ARE YOU SAYING? WHAT IS SHE SAYING?" he demanded, looking to Black.

"I DO NOT HOLD KNOWLEDGE OF EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS TO YOU. I LIVE IN A LAKE." He wasn't sure just what they thought he was but it certainly wasn't "interested in the mundane goings-on of the Gembound lives."

@Wilder

Aquarian's loud voice was making her nervous again and her stiff form began twitching a bit. She didn't want to say it in case something happened but...obviously he didn't understand. She didn't really understand what she was asking. But he said that he knew many things so he probably knew something about this too!

"The...the blue thing! In Polaris! Big crystal, magic, glowing...it zapped me and now I'm weird!" She tried explaining but it was probably extremely unhelpful and she looked extremely unhappy that she couldn't just speak normally. "What does it do?"

@Black

Black stared at Wilder, puzzled. Hadn't she said the name of it, earlier--or hadn't he? Why was she incapable, now?

With a soft woof of confusion, his brow deeply furrowed, he looked up to Aquarian.

"She speaks of the Spire," he explained patiently. He was beginning to wonder (in a distant, vague manner) whether this had been a good idea. Aquarian was the serious sort, and Black had thought that Wilder would ask questions that the serpent might feel were worth his time. This one seemed oddly personal, and Black peered at her, confused.

How would Aquarian know what the Spire wanted of her..? He was not the Spire. But perhaps he knew more than Black had thought. He was, after all, one of the eldest of them. Maybe he knew something of its origins, its nature, that they did not?

Curious now, he peered back to Aquarian, a soft "hmph?" escaping him.


________________

Aquarian twisted in place, a little, to look back over his shoulder at the Heart. He would go back, in a moment, but first--he begrudgingly turned back to face Wilder, staring down. Blue thing? What was all this nonsense? The Spire? The crystal, blue? Zapped? What?

"IT IS BLACK," Aquarian screeched. "YOU SPEAK OF THE SPIRE. LIKE DRAWS LIKE! MAGIC TOO CLOSE IS CONSUMED--YOU ARE MAGIC. IT WILL NOT MAKE YOU 'WEIRD.' DO NOT GO NEAR IT!" This seemed simple enough, to him. "DO YOU HAVE ANY MORE QUESTIONS?" Reluctantly patient, he waited, water still dripping from his scales.

@Wilder

Just hearing the word made Wilder a little dizzy but she tried to fight through it. Too important, this was too important. "N-no its not, the Sp...Spi-....its blue!" Her knowledge of the different colors wasn't exactly up to speed and the Spire certainly looked blue to her so that meant it was blue.

She shook her head a little more violently this time, her tail twitching behind her impatiently. "No no it did I hatched next to it! It zapped me and I sometimes forget things. You don't know about the...the...thing?"

It was getting too difficult to focus. The buzzing was starting again in the back of her head and her vision was shifting in and out of focus just thinking about all of this so she tried to think about other questions she might ask. But what questions did she have? So many, but none great enough to ask of Aquarian. So she settled on the same thing she had asked of Black some time ago. "Okay...can you tell me a story? One of your favorites!"

@Black

Black listened quizzically. There was definitely something wrong with Wilder, though he could not tell quite what it was.

He could also see that Aquarian seemed to be growing less and less patient; he worried, in truth, for Wilder's safety. Perhaps even for his own. That being said, as much as he screeched, the serpent had always seemed wise or, at least, reasonable.

Hopefully that state would continue.

Quietly, he lowered himself to his haunches, listening and watching with his own silent patience.

________________

Aquarian stared.

A story?

"ONCE, THERE WAS A SMALL GEMBOUND THAT CAME TO THE WATER'S EDGE." He settled in, his length sinuously coiling down as if he were about to tell a long, involved tale. "I ATE IT. THEN I SLEPT." He stared intently at Wilder, before adding--"THE END."

With a surge of his coiled muscles he sprang back and away, his immense bulk powering off into the lake and leaving behind it a surging tide of water--one liable to wash over the dog and the cat.

Aquarian likely didn't notice, or perhaps, didn't care. He vanished beneath the black surface, his enormous length slipping out of sight in the crash of water.

exit Aquarian

@Wilder

Wilder smiled up at him as Aquarian stared at her and she leaned forward excitedly as he began his tale. But it was a short lived excitement as he ended it short and he lunged back into the water. She didn't grasp the meaning of his story and just frowned with disappointment that he'd stolen a perfectly good tale from her.

But, a moment after he'd disappeared, her face split into a great grin. She'd met the huge beast from Black's story! He had been massive, huge, and wonderful! Despite the fact that he didn't seem to like her very much, Wilder couldn't help but love him back.

She turned to Black, her whole body almost vibrating with happiness. "That was so cool! Aquarian is so cool! Thank you for bringing me, wow! It was an adventure!"

@Black