This was it. He felt so... nervous, despite there being little reason to be. Though perhaps that was untrue. What if Jampa and him didn't click? What if she didn't like how he stuttered over his words sometimes or how his feathers looked or-

Easy, he thought, breathing out and then back in, You will be fine.

James had left Cirrus to babysit before making off to where he would find the child, the child of his mentor and a Master, of all things. Certainly very incredible by her fathers' achievements, though he wished to see her for himself. He would certainly be deterred if she turned out to be a brat or something. Not that she would with Pride guiding her along her journey to adulthood. And his guidance, perhaps. Though he intended to move to Pegasus, his heart would remain here, and so his journeys to and from would be consistent.

He shook those thoughts off and aimed his flight path downwards, headed towards where Pride generally wandered- and hopefully where his daughter was, too. Hopefully she liked fruit, because he had plenty. He'd even used his magic to do his mane and tail into braids. The equivalent of dressing himself up.

Well, here goes nothing, he thought.


"Jampa?", he called out, ears perked up and eyes searching, hoping she was here and that he wasn't just calling out for no one like an idiot, "It's James- Pride told you about me, right."

Oh caves- he certainly hoped so, or else he sounded creepy.

@Jampa

Not long after meeting with her somnolent father Jampa was on the move. It didn't sink in that her visits to Pisces might be limited in nature, that she might not see Tenzin for a long while as he recovered from whatever it was that made him so tired. She was glad to be away from the noisy water at any rate. With Pride to accompany her on the route through a descending tunnel of ice, Jampa felt confident they would make it home in no time at all.

She felt as if she knew the way already; this was primarily because of Pride's mind messages. Bits and pieces of the cave layout lingered with her. When they passed the Union Pillars she wanted to stop and admire them; the five pillars stood together with a platform in the center, wide enough for multiple large bodies. The air was sweet. They could not linger there for long, so Jampa committed that smell to memory and told herself, 'I'll come back and see it.'

As impressive as the pillars were to her, nothing compared to her emergence within Orion's cavernous limits. Pride lead the way, giving her ample space as she ducked from the corridor in to the immense room, and even gave her some leeway (-'Go on, explore, I'll be nearby.' He'd told her-) and before she knew it, Jampa was striding cautiously along the entrance to the valley.

The juvenile was careful with her steps but as she grew accustomed to the cobbled pathway, her strides became more purposeful, herself more assured. The sound of her hooves echoed in to the deep shadows between the structures; almost like high-heels. Her eyes were drawn from shape to shape: some more natural, like the alcove of her birth, while others were hard-edged and square, made through the manipulation of the terrain somehow.

When she saw a glimmering overhead, her attention drifted heavenward - at which point her strides halted entirely, and her breath hitched in her throat. The ceiling was emblazoned with glassy structures that reminded her of the chrysalis she had left behind. Pale light refracted within some, while others seemed to animate with a dire light. They twinkled on a backdrop of shadow.

While she watched, a strip of that shadow pulled away from the dark and made way towards her. Jampa was not afraid of it. Intrigued may be the word. As it got closer on a spread of silent wings, she grew a little bit nervous and turned her attention to the surrounding structures, looking for her father. She opened her mouth as if to call out for Pride, but before she could - someone called out to her, instead.

"Jampa?" swam her name on the wind; the girl looked back to see a towering dark shape tucking wings across its back. The sound of hooves caught in her ears, and so did an introduction. This was a person - and they knew her father! When they were near enough she looked them over, shy for a moment, but nodded a confirmation.

"Father showed me some things," she explained, as if that would make sense as a stand-alone statement. "Well, Father Pride did. But... Father Tenzin is sleepy, so he went back to the water." Her fluffy brow creased ever so slightly at the mention of the phoenix; but whatever bothered her in that moment passed swiftly. She was staring at James - or more appropriately, his dark wings.

"I have those!" She chirruped as she drew a step closer. Her own wings had been fashioned around her body to keep her warm on the journey, but now that she was reminded of them she fluffed them out a little bit - the blue sheen rising up behind her like a controlled tsunami. "See..?"

@James

Two wing-like crests on either side of James's head, just behind his ears, flared, colored white near the insides and a gorgeous gradient of pink, purple, and blue around the outer and middle feathers. His wings- the insides, were the same, with his more downy, softer feathers being as white as the stars above and the primaries and secondaries being the same pink-purple-blue gradient. Four tail feathers were the same, with a single white eye at the end.

"Ah- hello," he said, fluffing up his own feathers and smiling as she did, "You do! I've been eager to meet you- Pride seems- well, proud."

He lowered his head as if to bow, but instead, a netted back slid off of his neck and onto the ground, thankfully not ruining his braids. He plucked an apple from the sack and set it down in front of her, and tipped out the rest of it, quickly herding the wayward fruit back to where they were standing.

James lifted his head again and inhaled, "I brought snacks! I'm certainly hungry, my apologies if you are not, I thought that we'd probably be here a while."

He picked up and apple and munched on it, humming happily. He loved apples, but there was nothing like a crunchy carrot. He needed to get some of those.

"So... I'm uncertain if you know this, but Pride sort of... sort of raised me too," he said, "Though we haven't discussed it- we really ought to. But anyway, I suppose that makes you a sibling of some kind. That being said!"

He fluffed up his wings again and puffed out his chest, "I, James the first of the Kingdom of the Seven, do pledge myself as your friend-slash questionable sibling- I suppose siblings are who you choose- but anyway. I hope I got that right, I practiced at my reflection for an hour before this."

James grinned sheepishly and fluffed his wings again, "Sorry if it's too much- ah... what do you do for fun? Or have you not figured that out yet?"

@Jampa

He was pretty. Not pretty like Pride, who had a sort-of familiar feeling to him due to being such a close resemblance to herself; and not pretty like Tenzin, with his gorgeous blue feathers and tapered face. James sort-of looked like Pride but with a wider more domed face, a strong jaw, nostrils that could flare and weren't hidden by a spade-nose... Jampa looked him over as he prattled on, seeing the feathers that sprouted on either side of their face (the color of a setting sun! Not that she'd be privy to such a sight). The rest of him was dark, though. Very dark. Where she was pale he was atramentous, catching the light on his braided mane - which she reached for with a lean.

Just as she was starting to understand that James had a mane tied in to a braid, they ducked their head, and something tumbled off of their neck. Jampa stepped back and stood there with one bird-hand raised, tucked against her chest in the manner of a hound at point. The sweet smell she'd caught at the pillars suddenly filled the air again. She looked down, spying first the apple that he'd offered up, and then the tumble of other curiousities he'd brought to her.

"I brought snacks!" He proclaimed. Jampa listened as intently as a child could when faced with new things, and watched as the horse bowed again to grab at the apple, crunching through it with thick teeth. Juice sprayed as he munched, dribbling down his chin. Jampa didn't know what to make of it and leaned in to sniff at the other fruits, but remained quiet.

When James had fully consumed the apple, they began to talk again. Jampa used her chin to scoop one of the fruits closer to herself, then grasped at it with one taloned hand. Her claws sunk in to the surface rather easily and left her palm feeling sticky.

"Pride sort of.. Raised me too," he said with a slight pause, mumbling through an afterthought, then went ahead to say, --I suppose that makes you a sibling of some kind."

Jampa was a little bit busy investigating the fruit now locked on to her talons, but she nodded when appropriate, smiling softly at the overwhelming wave of details filled her ears. She did not understand what a sibling was exactly, but she knew she had others by now. Pride had told her anecdotal stories on their walk through the passage. There were a lot of names to keep track of between family and this sevens thing.

Using her other taloned limb, the girl managed to pull the apple free. It hit the dirt and bounced in to the collection of others and she moved to hastily gather it up again, her cheeks warming with tangential embarrassment at how foolish she must appear. She flexed her sticky palm before placing it down on the soil again, as if nothing had even happened.

"I have other ones of those too. Azi.. Azizos, and... And another one." She had, unfortunately, forgotten their names. Having been more invested in studying the terrain and the pillars on the walk-through, Jampa had admittedly not picked up on some of the finer details of Pride's retelling.

That didn't appear to bother James at all; he was puffing up and raising his wings, which drew Jampa's attention immediately. She had already begun to quiet down again but upon seeing the flash of color on the underside of those immense wings, she muted herself and stared. James, meanwhile, went on to make some kind of friendship pledge.

It was all.. A little bit overwhelming. Not that she didn't want a friend! She wanted all the friends.

"Its... I'm.. I don't know. What's... What's fun?" It was probably a good thing considering how he was boasting about it, but Jampa did not yet have the life experience or acumen to judge.

@James

James, having been distracted by his tirade, paused, a hoof raised and his wings flared heroically before everything drooped and he went back to being a total nerd. Just give him glasses, velcro shoes, and a collared shirt and he was good.

"What- um, what is fun?", he said, blinking gently.

No, Jampa wasn't stupid, just ignorant. He seemed to be confused as to why she was ignorant, though. He shuffled and worked his jaw, brows just slightly furrowed, his colors hidden under the darker bay that was the rest of him.

"Um... fun is when you enjoy something," he said, "It can be anything. Sitting and watching the stars, flying, ah... I could show you, if you want."

Besides, when was the last time James had fun? Well, actual fun, not chasing after Comet and trying to keep her from breaking things. That had just been frustrating.

"Hm... we could explore Orion, I find that fun!", he said, "I explore a lot, in fact."

He didn't tell Jampa that he'd explored the entire cave already, seeing as the first 4 cycles of his life had been spent here. Though he would not go near the cliffs again. Never again.

@Jampa

She had expected a patient smile and a quick but effective explanation, which is something she had quickly gotten used to from Pride. Maybe James could share some flashy images with her too! Instead he stared at her. It was impossible not to take notice of his deflation and for a moment Jampa thought she had done something wrong. She didn't feel bad though - only confused.

Thankfully James recovered from his surprise. "It can be anything. Sitting and watching the stars, flying, ah... I could show you, if you want."

Show her -- Oh! That would be easier than trying to explain. Jampa expected a slew of images to flood in to her mind next: colors, sights, sounds, glimpses of memory perhaps, or imaginings. That did not happen though, as James did not possess the same capabilities as her father. He offered to show her around instead.

Behind her the girl's tail fluffed, and she turned to preen at it hesitantly while stealing a glance at her surroundings, wondering if her father would mind if she wandered off. This was a boy that Pride knew, so it wasn't like she was leaving with a total stranger. She finished aligning some of her tail feathers and turned back to answer James - just as a familiar little figure pirouetted out of the shadows, a pearl in the dark.

"Mischief!" She quietly hissed, surprised by the familiar's arrival and suddenly brimming with adrenaline, which then faded and became more warmth to her cheeks; she swept her nose towards the rabbit and offered a friendly nose-boop and a sniff. Maybe having an escort would make it easier. "Do you want to explore with us?" She asked of the hare - and then looked bashfully over to James, a little smile on her face.

"I don't want to go too far from Father..." She explained, but without a pause Jampa clarified: "But if you think it will be fun, then okay. Come, Mischief --" She moved to bump the hare's rear-end as a prompt to get it hopping, and then pranced up alongside James.

"Where do we go first...?"

@James

A memory flashed of him and Pride, his own legs thin as toothpicks and his head too big for the rest of him.

"Follow me," he said, "When I was young, your father and I played something called 'tag'."

He didn't know how to really explain it... hm.

"Okay, so. One of you is 'it', and that means you have to chase the other person. The goal is to catch them by touching them physically. The person who is being chased needs to run away from the person who is it, and not get caught," he said, and smiled, "We could try now, if you want. Activities like this are called 'games'. Do you want to try to chase me or run? If you want, you can chase me."

James didn't particularly like being chased when he was younger, but he'd grown out of it. So if Jampa was similar, she'd be more comfortable being 'it'. He'd assess her skills and act accordingly, and make sure not to set off a landslide like he had with Pride. Unlike the deer, he doubted Jampa had the skillset to do such a thing. Even he himself had been horribly outmatched- it had really come down to luck. They'd both gotten tired and he'd simply managed to boop him. But anyways-

@Pride

"Activities like this are called 'games.'"

The distant voices had his ears sweeping forward, his head coming up. He'd asked James to look after Jampa, for him--given him some information, even, though not much, about the slumbering child. He'd been... hesitant, about it, in wonder but almost afraid, though as usual his straight-to-business approach--though not unkind--had supressed much of that. If James had seen 'pride' in him, it had been a misinterpretation; there was love, but Pride still hadn't even come to terms with this child. Nothing about her was his doing--not deliberately; he was still a bystander, staring in awe.

He'd gone to warn Mercurius: not only to tell him of a child, but a soft whisper that Jampa might some day come into danger. A tentative information, a feeling-out of possibilities: would Mercurius help him hide her, if that day ever came-? He didn't yet know, but now he was stepping delicately back into Orion and the distant voices echoing over the rock told him that the child was now awake.

Pride's approach was quiet, unobtrusive, though his white coat was hard to miss should either of the pair happen to look directly at him--but like a kind father he simply stopped a good distance away, not wanting to interrupt the child at her new play.

He would watch, for now, and he would see how they got on; there was no reason to come barging back into their lives with... these things on his mind.

@Jampa

She followed him along, listening as he explained something new to her. As attentive as she was, Jampa couldn't shake the unsettled feeling of separation from Pride, and kept looking over her shoulder as smoothly as she could (so to not offend James); catching a glimpse of her father's pale shape at a distance, which alleviated some of her anxiety.

The more she heard about this game of 'tag' the more interested she became. If the goal was for one person to catch the other, that didn't sound too hard. They were walking side-by-side right now and if she'd wanted to, she could flex her wings out and win with a flick of a feather.

The girl abruptly halted mid-stride and let the colt get a little further before making her decision. It seemed only fair to allow some kind of gap to form, or else they'd not be running very much. Something fuzzy brushed against her ankle though, and Jampa looked down to see Mischief trundling along after them.

"Can Mischief play too?" She queried, carefully placing her steps so she wouldn't trip herself on the hare or somehow harm him. Very daintily, as if one touch might shatter the lesser like glass. "If you both run, I'll try to chase. Okay..?" That was how he'd explained it. Once there was a nice enough gap she'd take off after one of them; the easier win would probably be the hare, but then again... Jampa's legs were very new.

@James

James stopped a few steps after and turned, eyes catching white in the distance, his crest flying up. He lifted a wing and waved before looking down at Jampa and mischief, nodding, "I have an idea. What if your dad joined in too? That way there are two chasers and two runners."

He lifted his head and called out to the deer, grinning, "Hey Pride!! You and Jampa are it!"

To be fair, he'd remain on the ground, since his wings were the biggest advantage he had. Adrenaline kicked in and James took off running with a joyful laugh, tail raised and flying like a banner. He was thankful he'd braided his growing locks, as they were less likely to get in the way now as he galloped forward, making sure that Jampa was able to follow.

It had been a long time since he'd done something like this. He only wished Comet was here.

"Come on, Mischief!", he said to the rabbit, "Let's show them a challenge."

A challenge that could be achieved, hopefully. But goodness did it feel great to run! His bones, lighter and hollow, allowed him to stretch and carry his weight a lot better than before. It felt... amazing! He almost got carried away and had to restrain himself, lest he tire and end up with the game coming to a close before anything exciting happened.

@Pride