Nemo

He'd flown back as quickly as he could from Draco, after speaking with Vargas - their conversation echoing in his mind, along with some of what Giggle has told him whispering in the back as well.

The lammergeier isn't used to others seeing him as capable, worth rewards, or as... anything other than just him. Being an omen, a family member- that's all new to him, as well, but it has encouraged him to step forwards into what he's been seriously considering since he found his odd, dark pearl all those cycles ago.

Children.

Others of him, not just like him, and he has a bit of a panic to himself as he rifles through his stash in his nest, withdrawing the black pearl first, his oldest and most interesting find. Something about it had pulled at him, and he feels that pull as well now as he opens his wings to drift down to the floor of the ledge beneath his nest.

Somewhere safe to hatch, no winds, no fate, nothing other than the past to greet someone new... he finds it sort of fitting, and he huffs from his nose as he settles the small thing so carefully it makes him smile.

Well. Here goes... something.

Nemo

It feels like something between a feather falling from his moult, and drawing some kind of leftover from deep in his core as he focuses himself into something more refined, and into the stone.

It feels like a mix of adrenaline, of cold air and fear, of the thrill of dropping from the sky all at once.

It... they are alive, now, in the earliest sense of it, and he feels warmth swell in his chest as the pearl seems to swell, shine, to live before him.

They aren't going to hatch alone if he can help it, and so he takes off with a hop and snap of his wings, back up into his nest to retrieve another stone from the bones near him. Something bright, an opposite to pair with the black pearl living below him, someone they could learn from and also teach in the same breath as living.

A sibling, a hatchmate.

Nemo


He finally finds a stone almost hiding along the wall- under a bone he'd set to drape leaves across, to dry them and turn to dyes and bedding. The clear quartz he carefully lifts with his beak feels right, something in his chest flutters and agrees, so he ducks low to jump from his nest and catch himself with a flap of his wings instead of a glide.

This one is perfect, he'd found along a large chain of bones like a spine, and it had fallen into his grip when he'd touched it.

The quartz had come with him, and now he gave apart of himself to it, to whomever they will be and he settles the quartz a few lengths away, to give them both space to grow into whoever and whatever they choose to be- wait. Do they get to choose? He hopes they do, to some extent, not locked into looking exactly like him of whoever they used to be. He isn't sure how older stones react to magic, but he does know some of Giggle's children and that makes him feel at ease.

These two will never be alone if he can ever help it.

Never be nothing.

Nemo

This pull hadn't been as strong, but was just as draining, and it makes him worry if the magic had actually took for only a second before the quartz begins to shift and grow, attach itself to the wall and floor like the other did.

With both stones growing... dare he say happily, and feeling exhausted, he decides against adding another child to the mix... and he doubts he'd have the energy to to that, this time. So, he makes his way back up into his nest, and he sighs looking over the clusters of bones and dried berries, crumpled leaves and his dye mixing smears all over the wall.

Maybe he should... clean a bit?

Yeah, he'll do that.

First thing to do is to head to another cave and get some moss- the ledge is large enough to host two more gembound of his size, and he's excited to have his hatchlings up here with him - but little does he know how quickly they will both out grow him.

Nemo

A deep sigh, and he gets down once more- landing with a whumpf of dust and shed feathers. He's got nests to build, and colors to clean from certain areas of the rock...

-and maybe he can get his talons on some wood or a stone to use as a mixing pallet, instead of the floor of his nest.

With a shake of his whole body, a glare at his new and still awkwardly long tail, he starts out at a brisk pace to his favorite cave to go moss hunting.

; Exit Nemo to Eridanus