Oliver sprang upright at the mention of "seeds," his eyes widening.

"Yes! Oh... Seeds, if you could? It's pretty bright, I guess, but not as bright as other places." With this rather spectacularly vague response, he went on. "I don't know yet what'll grow well and what won't. Do you know any plants here that do okay with really dry air? Everything in Cetus needs wet. Canis isn't that wet."

He fidgeted a little, laying his ear-tufts back and gazing forlornly at what he already had. "You don't know of any easier way to carry all these plants, do you? It means I gotta walk on two legs the whole way, and it's far, and I can't bring as much as I'd like in one trip." He glanced up at Rift sharply, worriedly. "If you don't know of a way that's okay. You don't need to leave here either! Thanks for being nice." It was nice, after all, to have someone not be... mean.

Oliver nodded a little to himself. All was well with the world again.

{Table code credit to Madison, altered a bit!}

@Rift

Rift nodded and glanced around vaguely. It would probably be a little difficult to find some seeds here, but he knew that he had a good stash back at his home. "I have a place where I live that has everything you need. Lots of seeds, plenty of healthy plants that you can move, and I have some hand-made baskets that you can use to move everything."

He stood and gestured with his tail in the direction of his home. It wasn't too far away but he didn't want to just turn and disappear for a while to go and gather supplies for Oliver. "Do you want to follow me there?"

@Oliver

Oliver at once clutched what he had, nodding eagerly and stumbling after Rift on two legs.

"Yes, I will. Thank you," he added, yet again. Trustingly he at once followed, bumblingly friendly and beaming at Rift should Rift glance at him even once. "Baskets are like--those things that you carry, right, and you can put stuff in them? Are they easy to use? It sounds like it'll help a lot!"

His feathered tail swivelled to and fro as he came along, balancing him as he staggered now and then. He could move on two legs, like a bird, but it wasn't by any means easy, nor was it at all graceful. But it got the job done, and he followed Rift happily enough. "Is there anything I can do to make up for borrowing the basket, and for the seeds and things?" he asked hopefully.

{Table code credit to Madison, altered a bit!}

@Rift

Rift led the way to his home and listened as Olive continued to speak. "Yeah! I use them to carry things around Eridanus and through my garden so I'm sure that you'll be able to use them to take your things to the bone room." By now they reached the edge of the trees that opened to Rift's garden and the massive tree that he called home. This was one of few places that had already recovered from the fire, as Rift had spent a great deal of time and energy restoring it to its former beauty. He wound his way through bushes and flowers until he was at the base of the roots and disappeared inside.

He grabbed a couple of empty baskets from inside and pulled them out for Oliver to see. "Here you go. They're no really big but they should be pretty easy to carry. And they're sealed enough that most seeds won't fall out." He looked away and leaned down, nuzzling the ground carefully as he sent magic into the roots. He closed it eyes and focused as the plants around his garden began to shiver. It was a rustling sound that spread throughout the whole garden as each plant threw off seed after seed onto the ground and pushed them towards the center. Vines and leaves and petals swept at the ground like brooms to push the seeds closer to where Rift and Oliver were standing. When it became too much, Rift gasped and released the magic. Immediately, the plants went back to the way they were, waving innocently in the breezes.

All around them were all kinds of seeds that the plants had swept up and Rift began walking around, pawing them together into a small mound. "Is there anything you can do?" He paused and considered. He had never thought that giving favors required some kind of payment but...there was, perhaps, something that Oliver could do. "Besides growing plants outside of Eridanus, if you could talk about here. This place. To others that would understand and perhaps want to contribute to helping nature thrive. That is, if you come across anyone. You don't have to go out of your way." He sat down and began scooping up the seeds with a big leaf and carefully dumping them into one of the baskets.

@Oliver

Oliver leaned back, wide-eyed, as the plants all around him began to move.

"Whoa..." was all he could manage, at first. He'd been so busy inspecting the baskets, awed, that he hadn't even noticed the rustling at first. But now, how could he not?! Fascinated, his head swivelled this way and that--and when Rift gasped, his gaze snapped to the green cat, blinking.

"Are you all right--oh, yes, of course I can do that. And if you ever want to come to Canis, to--see or to help..? I'll show you the garden there," he offered. Though it wasn't like a garden, really--more a stunted oasis, a cluster of wild greenery in an otherwise lifeless cave.

Oliver helped to sweep the seeds into the baskets, and then carefully lifted one. "Thank you," he murmured, wide-eyed, for his thoughts were now on all the plants that these seeds might one day grow into. What sort of wondrous things might they become?! He looked around at Rift's garden, trying to imagine it.

"I'll take them now, then. But I'll tell anyone I find," he added, again, and earnestly.

{Table code credit to Madison, altered a bit!}

@Rift

Rift's whiskers twitched a little selfconsciously but the raising of his ear showed his pride at Oliver's small praise. It wasn't often that he had visitors that he trusted and it felt good to have his skills appreciated. "Yes, yes I'm fine. It's just a little difficult to move so many things at once."

He stepped back from the basket and swept his tail happily. "Thank you for doing this. It's good to know that there are other gembounds that appreciate the beauty of nature and try to spread it to the darkest corners. Hopefully the bone room will be made more beautiful by the garden. And...I'm sorry for being so rude and mean to you when we first met. I'll try to get better at that." He looked around at the soot-stained trees in the distance. Even though his garden was almost back to normal, there was still much more forest to recover. "Hopefully it will get easier."

He sat himself down and gave Oliver a dip of his head in farewell and turned to leap back into the trees but hesitated. "If you ever make some discovery or headway, or you need my help again, feel free to return. I'll be here."

Without another moment's pause, the cat bounded away and scrambled up the nearest tree. Only choosing the strongest branches, he climbed through the burnt canopy and disappeared into the forest.

*exit, unless stopped

@Oliver

Oliver gave an enthusiastic nod, setting the baskets at his own feet.

"I will," he agreed. "And it's okay. I'd be mad, too," he said, glancing about at the burnt patches. Just like that, he dismissed Rift's prior rudeness--and didn't elaborate on the why he'd be mad, either. It wouldn't be good, getting Rift to dwell on that; it must be painful enough, without that.

The hybrid glanced up, somewhat surprised, as he realized the cat was bounding away. He watched him go, then carefully gathered up the baskets, turning away to bring the seeds back to Canis.

Thanks to his new friend, the journey would be a little easier.

{Table code credit to Madison, altered a bit!}

exit Oliver