Eridanus was peaceful.

The plants swayed in an invisible breeze, beautiful and serene. It was nearly silent, aside from the chirping of birds and the sounds of Lesser Gembounds going about their lives.

If one listened closely, they would be able to hear an odd thumping sound, strangely muffled. The sound of a Cave Deer's hooves on moss, one might recognize it to be, if they knew such a sound.

A Cave Deer, calm as could be, slowly strode into a grove. It was majestic, as Cave Deer go, with gleaming fur and sharp horns. Its eyes were clear, and it looked hale and strong.

Its head would swivel, ever so gracefully, on its neck, scanning its surroundings, ears twitching. Only once it felt safe did it lower its head to graze. If one looked closely, a pair of red eyes gleamed in the shadows.

And then the peace was broken.

The shadows seemed to come alive, a felid figure melting from them. There was a horrible sound, a strangle 'mrow-row-rowr!' that only a mountain lion could make.

The Cave Deer froze, then ran.

The puma did not care that he had not caught his prey. He landed mid-stride, and kept running. The Greater Gembound stretched out, deadly claws digging into the ground beneath him, as he chased the Cave Deer. His heart pounded in his ears, each breath bringing him his prey's scent. He loved the chase, it made him feel alive!

"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

His patience stretched thin once again, Rift had been more active as of late, jumping through the trees as he patrolled the area, desperately looking for something to do, but it seemed that Eridanus was completely at peace that day. Just the gently stirring of animals on the forest floor and the birds in the trees. Rift didn't bother to try and catch one and they didn't bother to fly away. He was so cloaked in plants and greenery and smelled so deeply like the forest that many lesser gembounds couldn't even tell him from the scenery.

Having already gone through much of the forest, Rift settled down on a sunnybranch and stretched himself out, fluffing up his fur as he prepared to have some lunch but his photosynthesizing was interrupted by a familiar smell. Like the forest and like fire and also like him. He looked over towards the ground and just managed to catch the flicker of a black tail in the shadows. Sebastian.

But it seemed that the puma wasn't having much luck that day with his hunt as he quickly alerted the deer and it took off into the forest. Without really thinking about it, Rift tapped a claw against the tree as energy flowed into the bark and down through the trunk in an instant. The roots of the tree lifted slightly at his command, tripping up the Cave Deer as it raced by. With a cry of shock, it stumbled forward and collapsed onto its side.

Rift retracted his claw and laid his head down again, wondering if Sebastian would notice him in the tree. He was a little high up and definitely hard to spot with his green, floral pelt, but his brother knew him well. With a small twist in his stomach, he wondered if he would thank him for making the hunt a little easier.

@Sebastian

To Sebastian's surprise, the cave deer stumbled, and fell. But he would not ignore his good fortune, and launched himself through the air, claws extended. He landed on the cave deer with a satisfying thud, and was quick to set his teeth into the back of the cave deer's neck. While he loved the hunt, he loated making his prey suffer. With a twist of his head, the cave deer was internally decapitated, dead beneath him.

Keen ears twitched, picking up on the breathing of another. He looked up from his future meal, bright eyes easily picked out the shape of his brother in the trees. Green and covered in foliagy Rift may be, he would recognize that silhouette anywhere.

"Thank you, brother. Would you care to try some of this meal? After all, it's only because of you that I caught it."

@Rift

"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

Rift flicked his tail. He thought that he was perfectly camouflaged up here, but it seemed that Sebastian knew him too well. That had, after all, grown up together. He would recognize his brother's black pelt even when he was hiding in the shadows so it was no wonder he could see Rift in the trees.

He got to his feet and gracefully leaped from branch to branch before hopping down and landing softly on the ground. "It was no problem," he replied with a hint of amusement, disguising the disgust in the back of his head. The forest seemed to be at his command. A single tap of his claw and he could bring down a deer with ease. Is that what he wanted to be proud of?

He looked down at the warm body of the deer and thought about taking a bite. There was once a time that he would have happily shared the meal with his brother, but that was a time long past. He hadn't had meat in a very long time. He didn't want to think about the meaty, bloody taste of the deer and instead busied himself with the thought of juicy, sweet fruit or the refreshing, warm light he absorbed through his skin.

But, at the same time, he was curious. He had forgotten what meat tasted like. This was a good opporunity to try a little bit. He wouldn't ever kill something on his own, but Sebastian could spare a small bite of this deer. "I guess I'll give it a try." Carefully, he leaned forward and dug his teeth into flesh, trying not to retch as blood filled his mouth. He tore away a chunk and chewed heavily, the meaty, warm flavor seeping through his tongue. He shivered with disgust and it took all of his willpower not to spit it out. He managed to force down the swallow and gave a silent cough, his tongue lolling out, as if the wind would take away the taste.

He whipped around and spotted a berry bush and shoved his head into the middle, licking up as many of the sweet berries as he could while using his magic to synthesize the ability to digest the fruit. The sweet flavors of the berries covered up the disgusting, bloody taste of the meat and, after a moment, the memory of it was gone from his mouth.

Letting out a sigh, he stood straight again and turned back, more then a little embarrassed. "Sorry, it's been a long time since I've had meat. I...don't think it's really for me. You can have the rest."

@Sebastian

Brother, understand whySee it's burning me to hold onto thisI know this is something that I gotta doBut that don't mean I want to

Sebastian's head turned to follow Rift as the puma leaped from the branches, landing easily on the ground. The tawny big cat had taught him how to do so, able to travel like the shadow he appeared to be.

His ears twitched at his brother, and he offered him a grateful grin. "Still, I appreciate it. I've always enjoyed working together with you." and he had. Whether it was hunting or tending to the plants or just raveling in silence, nothing was better than doing it with his brother. It was the only time he felt truly comfortable, as though he could just let go and relax.

The panther knew that Rift hadn't eaten meat in quite a while, having long begun to subsist only on air. The green cat had tried to explain it to him before, but it flew far over his head. He simply accepted that Rift no longer needed to eat meat. But it was only right to offer Rift some of the kill the puma had helped him to bring down.

To his surprise, Rift actually accepted the offer. He watched curiously as Rift began to chew on the meat, feeling a laugh begin to roll in his chest at Rift's reaction. His brother's tongue lolled out of his mouth, and Sebastian snickered.

He finally lost it when Rift lunged to eat some berries, and the black cat threw his head back and boomed a laugh. He laughed so hard he began to wheeze, and he had to bite out his words. "Don't, don't worry about it," he snickered, "You pre-prefer plants and a-air, and I like me-meat, I ac-accept that," oh, that had been so, so funny!

@Rift

"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

What I'm trying to say is that, I love you I justI feel like this is coming to an endAnd it's better for me to let it go now,than hold on and hurt youI've gotta let it burn