Into the World {Closed,complete as far as I know}

[pizza98]

All Ghost could see was the darkness in which she was trapped in. She could hear the tweeting of birds and the rustling of leaves in the wind. Her pod was getting crowded, and she felt she was ready to hatch. How do I get out? Ghost wondered. She liked that name-Ghost. What was she thinking? She had to get out of this pod. Suddenly, Ghost heard a cracking sound and she felt herself falling! She squeaked in surprise as she felt her pod hit the ground, and she snapped open her eyes. She turned her head to look at her surroundings, only to see a bob for a tail. "Who's tail is that?" She turned around, and the mysterious tail moved. She turned in a circle once more. Frustrated that she couldn't get the moving tail, she started running in circles. "Get back here you no-good fluff-head!" She barked toward it.

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She didn't know if it was restlessness or curiosity that brought her back into the orchard so soon after leaving it for the first time, but here she was. River glanced around at the trees, marveling at how high up the pods seemed. Had she really fallen that far when she was born? It seemed like it should hurt, but she noticed that creatures tended to land safely despite the apparent height.

A crack sounded from the distance and she turned in time to see a pod fall. She padded toward it, neither hurrying nor dragging her feet. She was curious about what sort of creature it contained, but not exactly desperate for the company. To her, companions were like the phases of the day - it was nice to soak in the warmth of the sun or the laughter of a fellow creature, but the cool night breezes and thoughtful solitude were equally appealing.

When she made it to the pod, it had already cracked open and the creature was out and chasing her tail. River sat down, fighting back a laugh. What was she trying to do - catch her own tail? Then the creature spoke and confirmed what River had been sure wasn't the case. Well...to each their own, she supposed.

"Hello." She waited for the creature to hear her, or notice her sitting there.

[pizza98]

Ghost suddenly stopped. Ghost was stocky, with tall white stocking on her hind legs and a white capped muzzle. Her muzzle was curved and naturally looked like a smile on her snub-nosed face. "Hello! What's your name?" Ghost walked over and started sniffing River. "I'm Ghost. I like that name--do you see that tree? I hatched from it! Is there anything to drink? I'm thirsty!" Ghost looked up. "What kind of creature are you?" She asked. Ghost's black fur seemed to soak in whatever light was in the orchard, while her white markings seemed to reflect it. Her eyes stared inquisitively at River, as if she would know the answer to her question just by looking at her.

[pizza98]

Ghost wondered why River was ignoring her. "Hello?" She sniffed River and realized she must be sleeping. "Sleeping." All of the other words felt weird on her tongue, just like this one. She just wouldn't admit it. "Ghost.....Ghost..." Her name rolled on her tongue naturally, like it had already been said. She decided to practice speaking these words. She looked down at her paws to see something shiny and pointy stick out of them. "Claws." She continued to look around,saying words. "Feline." She said, looking at River. "River is a feline." Ghost turned back,and started wandering the orchard. "I wonder if there's a water here-I'm still thirsty." She said to herself.

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River blinked as the canine talked, tying to process her words as fast as she was saying them. The feline wasn't slow, by any stretch, but she wasn't used to having so many questions throw at her at once. She blinked again and looked around - the brightness o Ghost's pelt was hurting her eyes a little - but she must have shifted in just the wrong way because suddenly pain crept into her paw and halfway up her leg. She missed what the canine said after the pain hit her, and by the time she found the thorn in her pad that caused the pain and was able to yank it out, she had gone.

Gah! She shook her paw and followed the canine. "There's water. I can show you. I'm River, by the way."

[pizza98]

"Hi River! Do you look like water?" Ghost saw River's bleeding pad. "Oh no! I'll go find some....cobwebs! Yes, cobwebs!" She scanned the clearing, finding a cobweb in the branches of the Tart Cerasus tree." She dug her claws into the tree and started to climb. She grabbed the cobwebs in her front left paw and fell down as soon as she had grabbed them, doing a complete flip and landing on her behind. She ran back and nosed River's paw and pressed the cobwebs onto the bleeding part. "When we go into a forest, we'll find marigold." She tole River.

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She blinked when Ghost asked if she looked like water. "I look like a feline. Perhaps a deeper water hit by sunlight, but I don't think I do." It had taken her a bit to figure out why "River" seemed like a good name for herself. Maybe it was in her eyes. They were about the right color...

Ghost noticed her pad and went to get her cobwebs. She watched as the other canine did some rather impressive, likely accidental acrobatics and then treated her wound, mentioning something - it sounded like a plant - called marigold. "Er...thanks. I wouldn't have thought of any of this." Oddly enough, it was even working. It stopped the bleeding and cushioned her pad so she wouldn't hurt it further or get anything in it. "Water's not too far. Come on." She headed between two trees and down a gentle slope, which lead to a small stream. "I found this when I was in here earlier, before I ever stepped out of the orchard." And she was talking as if she hadn't only just left the other day. Life was still a new thing to her, but this creature was even newer.

[pizza98]

Ghost took a drink from the river, and eventually started slurping it up. She looked up. "Thanks!" The water tasted fresh. It was a clear-blue color and flowing rather slowly. She leaped into the water and started splashing the water, rolling in it. She felt something squishy under her paws. "Gross!" She squeaked. She got up and looked at her paw. "It's a small fish...." She wiped it off in the grass and started chasing her tail. Suddenly, she stopped. "I'm traveling to the Maple Forest! Want to come? It'll be fun! There's going to be neat plants and animals we haven't seen before!"

(OOC~I am in a thread with another canine and she was thinking about traveling to there or the blue plains-it's no wonder they call it liquid time. Ghost is a canine by the way.)

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((Gotcha, sorry. The forest and plain both have a group living in them, but both groups are pretty lax about borders, mostly because the people involved know that'd severe limit everyone elses' options. XD))

River drank alongside the canine, but jumped ack once she started playing in the water. It wasn't as though River hated water or anything like that, she just didn't feel like washing the wet out of her fur afterward.

She blinked when the canine squeaked and watched as she examined her paw and wiped it off on the grass. She then sniffed the fish. "Nothing harmful. It would have been food if it hadn't been so damaged." Granted, messy prey wasn't harmful, but she preferred hers more or less intact.

When the canine invited her to the Maple Forest, she nodded. "Sure. I've never been, but I know someone that lives there." That was where Silva had said to go if she wanted to find her, right? Well, she wasn't going to meet Silva, but it would be nice to happen to come across the large canine again.

[pizza98]

"Yay! I hope we can meet other canines and felines!" By now words were rolling off her tongue like they were soap. "I was hoping to form a little group that could travel together-I could be the healer, there could be a leader, and everyone else could hunt or protect! It's be great! There could even be trainees!" The word trainees came to her as canines and felines still in training to be healers or hunters or fighters. She looked toward the rising sun-they'd already passed a whole day! "We passed a day already! Is there a group already like that?" Ghost asked.

[Deleted]

"We're sure to meet others at some point." She backed further away from the water and listened as the canine talked about forming a group. It sounded interesting, but she already had plans. "You've thought a lot about this, it seems. I know of two groups at the moment, but they both have set territories so I don't believe they do much in the way of traveling."

Ghost had mentioned that a whole day had passed, and River looked up at the sky. "Huh. I hadn't noticed." Usually, she was more aware of things. She'd have to watch out for times when she let the day slip completely away from her.

[pizza98]

Ghost felt almost felt like crying. Her first friend, and they'd have to go separate ways. She tried to hide her sadness as she said, "Will I be allowed to visit sometime?" She asked-was River going to one of the groups, or was she going to be a lone feline? What would Ghost do without her friend? "I guess it's your choice, but, it'd be nice if you could come." She walked back to the river and swiped a paw in the river. "Cloud-fluff!" She growled as she swiped another paw into the river. This time, a large silvery fish flopped around. Ghost pressed her paw against its spine and it died. She brought it over to River. She saw a cobweb nearby and she pulled it off. She pulled a scale off the fish, punched a hole through it with her claw, and threaded the spiderweb through it with one of her smaller claws. She struggled to tie it at the end. Getting frustrated, she stuck the cobweb together by pressing the ends togather. Ghost pushed it over to River. "Necklace-it'll even fit you as you grow older." She told River.

[Deleted]

She blinked when she asked if she could visit sometime. "Of course, if you can find me. My home will be the plains, but I will also be traveling when I can, just so I can see more of this world." Once she had seen the whole world, would she be content to settle in one area? She wasn't sure. Time would tell, she supposed.

The canine walked back to the river, and river watched as she caught and killed a fish, and then used a scale from the fish and a web thread to form a necklace. She sniffed the gift, and then - with a little trouble - fit it around her neck. "I...thank you." She wished she was that creative with things. "I wish I could go with you." She wouldn't break former plans, though. She had made a promise and she planned to keep it. "We're sure to see each other around from time to time."

[pizza98]

"I guess we go separate ways then......?" Ghost asked, looking at the furry little feline, hoping they would meet again. "I'm not sure if my plan will go well, but if it does, chances are I might never see you, for my group will be traveling quite a bit until we find territory. If it doesn't work, I guess I could go to your group as a last resort." Ghost frowned, but her natural smile made it hard to convey her sadness. Trying to force a happy tone, she barked, "Maybe our destinies will intertwine again, maybe our paths will cross again, maybe we will see each other once more." She tried her best not to cry, for this was her first friend ever. Destiny is a funny thing-it's the unknown, but it is the known as well. It is the thing that determines life or death, the thing that makes our lives. It is the thing that determines who we meet. But that's not all it is; it's one of the mysteries of life-one of the things we can't control, one of the things we can't fight. Ghost thought to herself. Even now she was thinking about what destiny really was, even though it may not be the correct definition. Usually she wasn't of this thinking level, but today just might be one of those random days where she is.

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"I suppose so..." River hated that she had to leave the canine behind, but she supposed that was life. Besides, something inside her told her the two would meet again. How big could the world be? Still, she listened as the canine stated the might never see each other, and that they'd be traveling until they found territory. Made sense to her. "That could take quite some time. You'll need an unclaimed piece of land with plenty of prey and water, and I don't know how easy or hard it is to find such a thing."

When Ghost said they might meet again, she nodded. "I'll keep my senses alert for you. Even if I am in a group with territory, I won't confine myself. There's too much to see and do." A thought occurred to her, and she spoke again. "I don't think they'll mind if I accompany you for at least a short distance. I can't stay with your group, but I can maybe help you find the perfect place to settle."