Grim tittered around in slight frustration as he thought of how best to show this. "If only I could speak, then I could tell her he can't speak.. oh wait that doesn't make sense.. um.." He flitted over to her, landing right under her neck, gesturing towards it with a talon and opening and closing his beak as if he was speaking, and opening and closing his talons as he did so. Then he pointed to his own throat, and with a rattling sound deep in it, his beak open, he shook his head, trying to explain that he can't speak at all. He lowered his eyes in shame before looking back up to her with his head slightly lowered. his eyes wide. He'd only ever spoken to one other gem about his inability to speak before.. that one big owl.. he didn't know how she'd react.. if she'd think less of him or think he was a freak.

The ghost stared with black eyes at the bird, blinking slowly, studying movements. It made motions as if to speak, but no mouth-sounds came from its throat. Instead, there was a strange gurgling, rattling sound. The bird then shook his head no, and she finally understood. He could not speak. He was mute. She watched as his head lowered, as if he could no longer look at her. She knit her brows in confusion at this new look upon his face. What was he feeling?

…

She could not decipher it, nor did she care at this point. So he couldn’t speak. How did that affect her? She hardly spoke herself. She shrugged at the smaller Gembound, unable to feel much sympathy for him. Unfortunately, this lack of emotion would be a problem for the rest of her life. She would never purposefully harm another creature, of course, but if she was supposed to feel bad for someone, she wasn’t sure she could muster it. She cared only for Cetus, her home, for the Divine, her mother. For the Cold that enveloped her. For the Magic in her body. Friends were… an afterthought.

The bird looked back up at her, seeing her confusion. It seemed like she couldn't feel anything. She just wanted to get.. somewhere, he couldn't figure out where though. But he was curious. He rolled his eyes and stepped to the side, motioning for her to pass, and trotting forward a bit, trying to motion that he'd follow, if she didn't get it at first she hopefully would when he started following her. Flitting over to the tree he gulped up the last bit of mouse left and flew back, he ever would waste any meat. If he was going to kill something he was damn well going to make use of the remains. The only time he wouldn't is if he had to kill another greater gem.

tags: here
notes: here

The bird seemed to give up trying to communicate with the ghost, which was fine with her, as she had stopped paying attention to him. Mother. She turned and took in the Tree, wishing very much to simply curl up in its roots. She stepped past the falcon, who was stripping meat from the mouse it had killed, and drew closer to the Divine. She stood in its grace for a time, head back, eyes closed in reverence to the Tree that she believed had given life to her. “Mother…” she whispered, opening her dark eyes and gazing up into its branches. Sometimes, she wished that, like a bird, she could fly, so that she could be way up there, sitting among the large, hanging boughs of the Divine.

She sighed, a long whispering sound, and then curled up somewhere in between two large roots. She closed her eyes and seemed to fall asleep.

[Exit Alaska.]

@Grim

"Such a strange creature.." He thought as he watched her curl up in the roots of the tree, he flitted over slowly. Realizing as he watched her sleep that he hadn't slept himself in a long time. He perched on a root next to her and tucked himself into a ball.

tags: here
notes: -Exit Grim-