Sleipnir tumbled out of his chrysalis after working to break it open. He collapsed into a pile of limbs, where he lay for a moment, listening and paying attention to himself and his surroundings. Already hatched, and the creature was vigilant. He was out of his prison, out into wherever he happened to be. Next, his attention turned to himself. He has some limbs that he can feel and...yes, he can move them! Six legs - two in front, two in the middle, and two behind those. His ears twitch and flick as he listens, but he doesn't hear much.

Slowly, he moved his limbs, untangling himself. His first steps were shaky, and he fell. He winced as he landed on his middle legs, but soon attempted to stand again. This time, he managed to stand fully, though he was still shaky. His middle legs were ever so slightly shorter than the other two, and as he took another step, he nearly fell again but managed to right himself in time.

With that done, he once more looked around. Where was he? And was he alone? He didn't see anyone...but that could mean a multitude of things, right? With a soft plop! he sat down, his middle legs dangling out. He didn't quite trust himself to be able to walk to find anyone else just yet. So someone would have to come to him!

Down the tunnel, the gorilla went. Up the stairs, the gorilla went. Yellow eyes flicked to the left and to the right, scanning the carvings as she passed by them. Elspet paused, pondering over the subject of them: a capped thing, oh-so-similar to the Monarch in her home. A bunch of creatures seemed to be sprouting from it, curiously enough. Of course, she wasn't the smartest thing or particularly in the business of pursuing her home's lore. Surface-level things, only, please. The gorilla had simply shrugged at the carvings and moved on.

Crick! Ah, what was that? Plop! It sounded like something new, like a neonate. Elspet shuffled forward, hastily making her way up the stairs. Despite her rather poor hearing, she managed to spot the odd newborn up ahead --- still wet with amniotic fluid and with some membrane sticking to its pelt. The gorilla hummed softly, a contented, bass sound reverberating from her throat. Her hurried pace slowed, approaching the child. "One, two, three, four... five, six?!" Elspet chimed rather playfully, counting the odd Gembound's limbs.

Rocking back onto her rump, she paused. "Aren't ya cold, l'il lad?" As if on cue, the gorilla's innards began to heat up. A glow began to swell around her palms, pooling along with the warmth she hoped to offer. Rubbing her hands up and down her shaggy arms, Elspet nodded. Good. She offered her hands, palms-up, to the newborn. "C'mere, will ya? I'll warm you up."

@Sleipnir

It wasn't long before a sound alerted him that someone was nearby. Ears perking up, Sleipnir looked around before his gaze set on a rather large creature. She loomed far over him, and he tensed slightly. He didn't move, however, instead watching her carefully as she sat down beside him. Faintly, he was aware of words having been spoken before. One, two, three...six? Those were...He racked his brain, trying to come up with it, before it came to him.

Numbers! So what had she been counting? He looked down then, noticing once more his legs. A slight frown, and then he looked over at the large creature, noticing that she didn't have as many as he did.

He wasn't given much time to think on that, as soon more words were being spoken. He struggled to understand the words and what they meant - cold...As if on cue, he shivered slightly. It was a little chilly here...He watched the creature as she rubbed her hands up and down her arms before offering her hands to him.

His eyes narrowed slightly, he hesitated. He watched her for a moment before deciding no harm would come, surely. So with an awkward step - his middle legs dangling - and then another, he approached her, sniffing at her palms.

@Elspet

Oh, what big ears this creature had! Elspet hunched over slightly, trying to seem a little less intimidating — this neonate was barely larger than her own hand, after all! No need to look all macho and terrifying for the little one. Caves knew there were already enough of those Gembound in these caves. The odd newborn didn't seem to fully grasp her words at first, but stared down at its legs rather curiously. Green eyes seemed to spark with recognition, despite the frown crawling onto his muzzle. His gaze trailed to her own limbs; four, not six.

With her offering put forth, the neonate began to shiver. 'Hadn't it noticed before?' She furrowed her brow slightly, almost imperceptibly, before smiling warmly again and humming. The child tottered forwards, middle set of legs hanging rather uselessly. How odd it was that the caves would give a creature an unhelpful pair of feet. From the looks of them, they didn't even have hands. Just paws.

Regardless, Elspet gently lowered her palm, resting it atop the gemling's head. "Now, that feels nice, doesn't it?" After a short pause, she began to run her hand down its neck and its back, removing residual membrane and amniotic fluid as she went. Due to her calloused skin and fingers, the feeling would likely be akin to a mother's grooming tongue, rough but soothing. "You can call me Elspet, or Ellie, if that's easier, little one," she hummed, pointing at herself with her free hand. The gorilla then pointed toward the gemling, gesturing clearly.

"D'ya have a name for yourself, yet?"

@Sleipnir

Sleipnir flicked his ears as the large creature set her hand on his head. He could feel the warmth from it, and he subconsciously moved a little closer. The hand ran down his neck and back. It felt amazing, and was immediately comforting. He found himself beginning to trust the creature completely, despite her much larger size.

His tail, fluffy and curled over his back, began to wag. He wasn't even aware that it was happening, too preoccupied with the creature in front of him. Her name..."El..els- p..." He paused, frowning. "E-ellie."

When he was offered to give his name, he paused. What is his name? He didn't have to think on it too much, however, when a word came to mind. He figured it must be his name, as he had no idea what else it could be. "S-sleipnir." He stumbled over his words a little, still unsure of speaking.

@Elspet

The child was hesitant at first, and Elspet adjusted accordingly; she only continued to pet him as long as he seemed to accept it. Judging by the eager wag of his tail, he was contented. A smile broke out onto her face, as she moved her free hand in order to cup the little one's cheek; her thumb moved side to side, scratching behind the ear — the universal sweet spot. After a little struggling, the odd creature managed to say the shorthand of her name. Fair, considering the complexity of syllables on a new tongue.

"Yep," the gorilla chirped, popping the p. Humming some more, Elspet cleaned off the last bit of membrane. Sleipnir, if she hadn't missed any spots, would be clean and dry — and warm, hopefully. Regardless, she continued to pet away. "That's a fun name, Sleipnir!" She tried it out a few times, lips curving in exaggerated ways. The glow of her horns faded, becoming a muted, pale yellow as her skin returned to its normal shade. Residual warmth clung to the folds of her hands, but nothing magickally enhanced. It was fine, though; she had already accomplished that mission. Elspet paused in her petting, though, pondering. What else did children need? Warmth… water — there wasn't any of that around here that she could see — ah! Food!

"Are ya hungry, lad?" Helpfully, she indicated towards her stomach, rubbing it in one smooth gesture before pointing at — at least where she assumed — Sleipnir's own tummy. What did puppies eat, anyways?

@Sleipnir

Sleipnir was content with Ellie just petting him, but as she started to scratch him behind his ear, his tongue lolled out and he closed his eyes - all four of them - and his hind leg began to kick, a completely involuntary action he soon found he had no control over.

His eyes opened again as she continued cleaning the sticky stuff off his fur. He watched her for a moment, tail still wagging excitedly, as she tried out his name. He let out a little yip of joy, unable to contain himself.

As she spoke again, his head tilted. Hungry...? When Ellie pointed towards her stomach, rubbing it, he began to understand. Hungry...Was that what he was feeling? His stomach felt...empty. So he nodded, tongue once more starting to loll out of his mouth.

@Elspet

Oh, that little hind-leg kick? That was just damn adorable, wasn't it! "Must be the sweet spot, eh?" Elspet chuckled softly, giving the floppy ear a few more scratches before withdrawing her hands entirely (they were rather cold, at this point.) The gorilla hummed contentedly, knuckles resting against the floor and giving her a bit of balance as she leaned down to inspect little Sleipnir. Two sets of eyes, horns --- and not the gemstone sort, either, it seemed --- six legs. What an odd little creature.

Perhaps his diet would be odd too? Elspet knew that dogs tended to eat meat and stuff, but this wasn't your run-of-the-mill pup, you see. Tilting her head, she offered two things: "aye, chap, mind if I putcha on my head while I go lookin' for somethin' to eat?" and "what do you eat? Show me those teeth!" For both questions, she indicated accordingly. Elspet pointed to her domed head, miming picking up the neonate and placing him on it. Then, she pulled up her lip and pointed at her large, curved canines with a quirked brow.

@Sleipnir

Sleipnir's tail continued to wag. He watched as Ellie motioned toward her head and tilted his head slightly. As she mimed picking him up and placing on it, he began to understand, and gave a little yip of joy. Riding on her head looked like fun! He bounced around a little, but his middle legs made him stumble a little and he fell. It wasn't long before he got himself back up, though.

At her next motions, he blinked - both sets of eyes. Teeth...Show? Show his teeth? He opened his jaw, revealing his sharp canines, before closing it and letting out another yip. Would he get to ride on her head soon? He hoped so!

@Elspet

"Your wish is my command, Sleipnir!" Elspet, careful and delicate as ever, bowed low and cupped a hand beneath the neonate's middle pair of legs. She brought another hand around the rear, then gently lifted the pup up and onto her domed head, perfectly between the pronged horns on her head: a perfect fit!

The kid had sharp little teeth, like most of his... shape. Four paws, long legs, big ears. This was definitely some kind of a canine, and canines usually ate meat and stuff with flesh and blood. Now, the gorilla wasn't the greatest hunter, but she sure could try.

She lumbered along on all fours, careful to keep her gait and head even with one another and move minimally. Her senses of smell and hearing weren't the greatest, but she could still see quite well. Piercing yellow eyes scanned each rock, each crevice, for any signs of life. As soon as a bit of movement came into view, Elspet turned toward it and mustered up some magic in her right hand. Supporting herself easily on her left arm, the trollish creature extended out a hand and cast a full-on bolt of lightning at it. The air then smelled of ozone and both Gembound's fur would likely be standing on end. The gorilla's was, at least.

Elspet laughed, a hearty sound, "I'm not that good at hunting, little one. Hope it's not too fried." She raised her arms and lowered her head, offering herself up to be an impromptu staircase or slip-and-slide.

@Sleipnir