12-22-2018, 10:35 AM
Nocturne left the scary komodo dragon monster behind him, following the path he plotted for himself on the way down the Mountain. Following the Hyaline side of the border, he managed to miss the worst of the mountain range separating the shore from the mainland, but he still found himself traversing the treacherous footing of yet another mountain, this one darker and spookier than the last, with towering trees that cast deep, dark shadows on his path.
Nocturne wasn’t afraid of the dark, though. Maybe it was foolish ignorance, or maybe it was just the fact that his best, if fuzzy, memories were of the dark inside his father’s abdomen, curled tight and held close, safe and warm and comforted by the steady beating of their hearts and the knowledge that he was not alone. Dark was the only place he’d ever felt at home, so the shadows didn’t bother him.
The hint of moonlight limned the land in silver, lit him up with its soft white glow, making the perfect target of his pale baby coat. Really, he shouldn't have been surprised when a great and fearsome beast appeared, a wide grin spreading its lips and revealing wickedly sharp teeth. And yet, he was surprised enough that the strange creature startled a bleat out of him. His eyes widened, and ice he’d thought had been stripped away for much longer came flooding back through his body, making the ground around his tiny hooves harden and frost spread up his legs again.
Oh, hello.
“I’ve been waiting for you,” the new monster said, its voice sending shivers down Nocturne’s spine. Words. That was a good sign, right? Words meant it was intelligent enough to communicate, and maybe it was a friend instead of a foe. Maybe they could work together!
“Ah!” Nocturne answered, grinning back at the beast. “Guh!” Wait. No, that wasn’t how the word good sounded. “Heh?” No, that was supposed to be help, but how did he make the end sound? Well, fuck. It wasn’t really til that moment he realized he hadn’t actually spoken aloud before, and apparently that took practice? Shit. Okay.
His brow furrowed as the beast circled back around him. His ears followed, tracking its movement, because after all it was still a scary-looking stranger and he wasn’t dumb. Even if his lack of speech probably gave the opposite impression. Well. What the shit was he supposed to do, then?
The ice tingled in his veins again, distracting him for a moment with its familiar presence. Hmm. Maybe...maybe it could help? Okay, he could...he could mime it out! Sure! So when the beast circled all the way around him and back to his front, he sneezed dramatically, like the first scary monster had. He didn’t, of course, sneeze spit and plague drippy grossness all over the beast, which was probably for the best if they wanted to be friends.
Okay. Yes.
He grinned, then sneezed again and pretended he was feeling so, so icky, just like the lizard monster. Ice helpfully trickled down his nose, mimicking the way blood had dripped from the lizard monster’s, and when he sneezed a third time, it shattered and scattered, and then gathered back into little clumsily-sculpted figures on the ground. One, a little vaguely horse-shaped, and the other bigger and chompier. An icy sprawl of beach and mountains took awkward shape, and the figures shuffled toward the beach, picked up rocks, and headed off to--oh, right, yes, big Mountain formed, and a fairy thing on top, and the two icy figures went and gave it rocks.
Nocturne grinned at the beast and tilted his head, brows raised in invitation. “Heh?” Dammit. Still didn’t come out help. He’d have to practice.
Nocturne wasn’t afraid of the dark, though. Maybe it was foolish ignorance, or maybe it was just the fact that his best, if fuzzy, memories were of the dark inside his father’s abdomen, curled tight and held close, safe and warm and comforted by the steady beating of their hearts and the knowledge that he was not alone. Dark was the only place he’d ever felt at home, so the shadows didn’t bother him.
The hint of moonlight limned the land in silver, lit him up with its soft white glow, making the perfect target of his pale baby coat. Really, he shouldn't have been surprised when a great and fearsome beast appeared, a wide grin spreading its lips and revealing wickedly sharp teeth. And yet, he was surprised enough that the strange creature startled a bleat out of him. His eyes widened, and ice he’d thought had been stripped away for much longer came flooding back through his body, making the ground around his tiny hooves harden and frost spread up his legs again.
Oh, hello.
“I’ve been waiting for you,” the new monster said, its voice sending shivers down Nocturne’s spine. Words. That was a good sign, right? Words meant it was intelligent enough to communicate, and maybe it was a friend instead of a foe. Maybe they could work together!
“Ah!” Nocturne answered, grinning back at the beast. “Guh!” Wait. No, that wasn’t how the word good sounded. “Heh?” No, that was supposed to be help, but how did he make the end sound? Well, fuck. It wasn’t really til that moment he realized he hadn’t actually spoken aloud before, and apparently that took practice? Shit. Okay.
His brow furrowed as the beast circled back around him. His ears followed, tracking its movement, because after all it was still a scary-looking stranger and he wasn’t dumb. Even if his lack of speech probably gave the opposite impression. Well. What the shit was he supposed to do, then?
The ice tingled in his veins again, distracting him for a moment with its familiar presence. Hmm. Maybe...maybe it could help? Okay, he could...he could mime it out! Sure! So when the beast circled all the way around him and back to his front, he sneezed dramatically, like the first scary monster had. He didn’t, of course, sneeze spit and plague drippy grossness all over the beast, which was probably for the best if they wanted to be friends.
Okay. Yes.
He grinned, then sneezed again and pretended he was feeling so, so icky, just like the lizard monster. Ice helpfully trickled down his nose, mimicking the way blood had dripped from the lizard monster’s, and when he sneezed a third time, it shattered and scattered, and then gathered back into little clumsily-sculpted figures on the ground. One, a little vaguely horse-shaped, and the other bigger and chompier. An icy sprawl of beach and mountains took awkward shape, and the figures shuffled toward the beach, picked up rocks, and headed off to--oh, right, yes, big Mountain formed, and a fairy thing on top, and the two icy figures went and gave it rocks.
Nocturne grinned at the beast and tilted his head, brows raised in invitation. “Heh?” Dammit. Still didn’t come out help. He’d have to practice.