A predator's instinct guided Phineas away from the place of his birth in search of food. Following his immediate hatching, hunger had been slow to develop, but all of a sudden it hit like a freight train. Without having to think about it and without being taught, the young lynx picked his way down the stairs and padded away, down a tunnel that seemed to dip into the heart of the earth itself.

Phineas didn't know much about this, though. He didn't know much about anything, so when the floor grew slick with ice and the temperature began to drop, he was confused more than anything. There was no instinctual knowledge of these conditions, and fear of the unknown quickly grew. He abruptly stopped walking just in time to control himself from sliding completely down the slope.

Here he cowered, peering uncertainly at the seemingly gentle slope that glistened like crystal.

Bevy tried not to wander to far from Pisces-- it seemed like parts of her wanted to run away and never come back, but this part of her loved her home quite dearly thank you very much!-- but she always thought it was a good idea to keep tabs on the tunnels that left her home. After all, as a guardian, it was practically her duty to make sure that anyone who wanted would get safe passage through the realm of waterfall where her and her friends ruled.

Besides... There was always a chance of meeting new friends. The icy tunnel that lead to Orion was a bit difficult to navigate, and even worse to try and flap around in, but she was determined to at least know the branches to and from her home by heart. Especially since she, at least, the part of her who went by Enna, kept waking up in strange places far from home. She tried not to think about that one too much.

The ice was slippery, but it was fairly fun to slide down. Her talons and tail feathers felt frozen after only a few minutes, but she didn't mind so much. With just a few wing flaps, she could be off the cold, slidey wet ground and in the air... Though, honestly, there wasn't much flying room. So the small bird often worked as such, flapping up a hill and then slipping down it. It was good exercise, and where the tunnel was wider she tried to navigate purely by flying.

It didn't take too terribly long for her to reach Orion's end but that was where she suddenly drew to a stop, flapping back in alarm. There was a gembound, right before her eyes! And they were a feline, like all of her friends! Oh, wonderful. She had yet to meet a cat that wanted to eat her, surprisingly enough.

"Hello there!" She chirped up the hill, flapping hard to stay midair in the tunnel without hardly so much as a breeze. Her light, shrill voice echoed through the cavern, making her voice sound odd reflected back at her. As much as she wanted to land, she was sure she'd slip right to the bottom of the slope again.

Even with his paws splayed out and his weight shifted backward, the lynx kitten was beginning to slip. It was like the ground was moving beneath his feet, inching him ever closer to the drop of doom that was the first in a series of icy slopes. The young Gembound was understandably worried and concerned about that, and was just lifting one huge hind paw to step back when a voice made him snap his head up.

The sight of the hovering bird triggered something deep in Phineas' breast that made his saliva run and his stomach growl. His instincts told him that this creature was prey even though she wore a gem visibly on her breast, but he could tell that she wasn't easy pickings or even worth going after, and not only because she was a Gembound like him. She was much too high in the air for him to hope to catch, and her friendly tone was very disarming. Being such a young predator with imperfect instincts, Phineas was the one who fell prey to her seeming kindness, and his brief desire to eat her dissipated.

He greeted her in kind with a bright exclamation of, "hi!" This greeting, he had learned from Azumi the tanuki, and it would be his go-to until he learned better. The way the bird greeted him was different and yet the same as Azumi's, so Phineas made a mental note to remember that greeting for later. Right now, he wanted to get to know this remarkable prey-that-was-too-kind-to-be-prey better. He made to edge one of his large forepaws forward, hoping to approach Bevy without risking a tumble.

Phineas attempts to move forward without slipping.

Of course, being a newborn Gembound, Phineas was the furthest thing from graceful there was. His movement was too imprecise, his weight shifted too far forward, and next thing the young lynx knew, he was sliding. He tried to dig his fresh new claws into the ice, but he found no purchase. Instead, he lost his balance, rapidly picked up speed and disappeared down the slope with a bloodcurdling yowl of terror.

The kitten mewled a sharp, cheery 'Hi!' at Bevy, that warm, bright attention and curiousity in his eyes. By her guess, the cub was only a few days old at most. She knew quite a bit about baby gembounds-- she had seen a whole wingful of them hatch in her young life.

"I'm--" the pitohui bird began, only to be cut off by the lynx slipping and shooting past her down the hill with a yowl. Worry filled the tiny bird, for even if she could catch up and grab a tail or something, she definitely didn't have the strength to so much as slow the feline. "Wait!" She cried, shooting off in a dive after the sliding cat. Hopefully he wouldn't bang his head on anything. Bevy already had a few bruises from her trip through here, and she slipped down hills on purpose!

The bottom of the slope came soon enough and the bird landed beside the clump of fur, her feathers ruffled and anxiety hitching her tone up a few notes. "Are-- are you alright?"

As he rushed down the slick hill, Phineas squeezed his eyes tightly shut. The squealing of his fresh baby claws scraping on the ice sent chills racing down his spine, and all his hair stood on end. Thankfully, the combination of his small size, his nails digging through the cold ground, and the upcoming incline being steeper still than the hill he'd just slid down, Phineas came to a stop before he went shooting all the way down the tunnel.

Bevy soon caught up with him, and when she did, she would see the frightened lynx huddled into a ball with his hair sticking up all over. Adrenaline coursed through his veins and set him to trembling. He started when she spoke and curled in closer on himself, awaiting the next awful dip down the tunnel, but when it didn't come, he slowly unfurled himself and peered at the brilliantly plumed bird.

She asked if he was all right, and Phineas nodded mutely. His brain whirred with emotions and panic, so although he knew the word "yes" thanks to the not-memories that sometimes floated to the surface for all Gembound, he couldn't think of it to actually say it out loud.

Bevy was relieved when the furball uncoiled and nodded to her, though the poor think seemed too spooked to speak. She tilted her head and hopped around him carefully, fluttering her wings when the ground slipped under her talons, and checked that he wasn't bleeding anywhere.

"Nothing hurts, right?" Despite asking so plainly, Bevy wasn't about to wait for an answer. If she could give him a boost of healthy, uh, stuff like she did for Makyna, any injuries he might have would heal just fine. With the practiced patience of a nurse, the pitohui bird tried to gather bacteria on her beak, where it would be easiest to transfer without worrying about her poisonous feathers on the cub.

Her eyes lit up as she finished her search. No blood. He could still be hurt, of course, but... "My name's Bevy. I'm a healer, so if anything's wrong, it'll be okay," she told the kitten in soft, gentle peeps. He reminded her of her best friend Cancer-- felines seemed downright dreadful on ice, didn't they? Of course, she wasn't much good either, but she could fly, so not being good at walking wasn't a big deal.

Phineas instinctively flinched when Bevy approached, having associated her with the fall, but the kindness in her voice and way she inspected him put him at ease. Maybe she wasn't so bad after all. Though it would take the young Gembound much more than a single chance meeting to trust anyone, Bevy seemed to command trust. It was easy for him to believe her, suspicion aside, when she said she was a healer who could help.

There was nothing amiss as far as the newborn Gembound could tell, but his body ached from the bumpy ride down. Bruises were likely developing already. He slowly found his feet, careful not to bump against anything in the process, and turned to face her fully. His bright eyes were still wide.

My name's Bevy, was what he focused on. That was what she'd said, right? He remembered the strange memory-that-wasn't-a-memory from when he'd first awoken from his stasis, the understanding that he had a name. "Me," he said slowly in a voice that cracked with the new word, "Ph-Phin... Phineas." He furrowed his little brow, concentrating, and childishly said, "no hurt."

Phineas! It was a fantastic name for the little boy. Delight filled Bevy as the lynx insisted he wasn't hurt, and as such she let the bacteria flood back through her body. The tingling made her feathers twitch, but it was a good boost for her own system even if the kitten didn't want it.

"That's good, Phineas. It's wonderful to meet you!" She peeped, backing away to give the lynx some space. The ground slid under her talons and she plopped on to the ice on her tail feathers.

A giggle trickled from her beak as she closed her eyes in a smile. "You had me all worried. Are you going to keep going through this tunnel? It goes a really long way, back to my home. It's not an easy path but I can show you the way." The bird figured the young gembound would sooner go back to where he had come from after such a scare, but she would be happy either way. However, he might be just about tough enough to stick it out-- stubborn, like Cancer, maybe.

"If not, I was going to scout out the side you came from, so if you want to head back, I can go that way too. Ah, if you don't mind. It's always a bit scary being out alone, for me."

Her voice dropped down to soft, timid chirps at the end. Cancer liked staying close to home, and Leon and Makyna were always busy together... Midas might take her offer to come, but it was difficult to find him sometimes and she wasn't sure how she felt about the snake. It was just easier to go herself... If... If there was danger, she could just fly home, right?

Now that he was unable to slide either way, Phineas relaxed. The little bird was neither friend nor foe, but he knew now that she wasn't prey, and better yet, he'd forgotten all about his hunger. He was interested in her, but for a little while, he was totally quiet while she spoke. As words flowed from her beak, they triggered knowledge in his brain[mdash]he knew what all of them meant, somehow, and just had to hear them to understand.

Other words were coming, too. Language acquisition was truly remarkable. "Nice t-to meet you," he stammered over his tongue, which still tripped in his mouth with inexperience. He giggled along with her when she fell on the ice, then shook his head in response to her question. No, Phineas didn't think going any further this way was wise. Maybe when he was better able to navigate the treacherous ground, he would explore further. "Go back," he said, "to tower. Me born."

"Bevy come, too?" he asked, half-plea and half-question. Solitude would suit him later in his life, but for now, Phineas succumbed to loneliness easily. It would be easier for him to brave the climb back, and hopefully actually make it there, with someone keeping him company. Besides, he wanted to know what a healer was and how they worked and how she did it, and he couldn't find that out if she left now.

The lynx seemed to be feeling much better. A bubble of happiness threaded through her chest as the boy asked her to come back with him to the tower where he was born. Even when young gembounds barely knew all the words yet they could still communicate so well. Bevy found it all fascinating, and that was why she was always on the lookout for young ones. It seemed like every gembound was born good, and if she could help the babies avoid becoming selfish monsters like the terrifying monkey she had met as a newborn, she would.

"Of course I'll come," she replied with a stretch of her wings. She had only briefly been through most of the rooms- Calypso knew the cave better than Enna ever would- and she would love to see the tower he spoke of. "There's probably an easier way to Pisces anyway." The tunnel really was a pain to navigate, but at least now she would have been through the whole thing. It seemed valuable to her group to know these things.

"I'll be right behind you so if anything happens I'll be here," she suggested, taking a few test flaps into the air. She definitely prefered the wide, open misty landscape of her home. The water did make her feathers slick and hard to fly with, but it was easier than the constant battle to climb up into the still, cold air. "Lead on!" She peeped once she had gotten properly airborn, eyes bright and eager to visit the room of stars and Phineas' home.