Time to Move On? [Kota, Lukasse, Open]

[meixiaotian]

It wasn't a long walk, even with their slow pace. Dragonfly had run that way in less than a minute. Even with their detour to avoid where the lizard had been seen, they were there quickly. She glanced around and was glad to see there were plenty more edible plants she could gather to share. There was comfortable moss in case they felt like spending the night there. It was noon, but it wasn't like they were headed anywhere special. She glanced behind herself to see Kota and Lukasse keeping up.

A small break in the reeds signaled her wide, flat rock. She trotted over its gray surface to the edge that jutted into the river, forcing the water to move around or attempt the impossible and go over the rock. It tried and couldn't get even a claw-length on, so the water receded and went around in order to continue downstream. The dead rat was dropped next to her store of edible ferns and began to warm itself on the stone. Dragonfly walked over to the edge, but there wasn't a very good view of the land below. It wasn't near the center of the river and the small wall of reeds on both sides of the river, upstream and downstream, prevented her from seeing the entire side they were traveling on.

She walked back to land and took a couple steps toward where the land fell down. It was obvious what powered the river to go one way. It came down and didn't feel like going any other direction but the way it already had been. She didn't know where all of the water came from, maybe a large lake. Whatever the source, the River Garden was beautiful to behold, especially when she had a good view of it from above. The slowly moving water curved right, left, and away into the horizon. There was growth everywhere, and despite recent events, she still felt it was a very safe place. She stood taller to... Well, she didn't really know. She just knew she liked the view a lot and it felt, for some reason, incredible, to stand there watching the land below.

Notes: Hey, page two!

[Deleted]

Kota was so focused on the ground in front of him, making sure each of his one-legged steps landed safely, that he didn't even notice Dragonfly had stopped. So, he kept hopping forward, Lukasse at his side, until he splashed right into the river. The blue-grey male's bright azure gaze flew up in surprise, but quickly assessed that they must be at the 'fall' that the dusty hued reptile had mentioned. The river widened here, and then seemingly vanished over a lip of the same, smooth, round stones that littered the whole riverbed. Curious, the male feline hopped forward, though his paces were unsteady from the momentary pause, and his front paw slid against an algae covered rock. He landed safely on the paw though, just a bit deeper in the river. With a huff, he bunched up his haunches and then hopped forward again, coming up by Dragonfly's hip so that he could see what she was looking at and where the water went.

At first, his electric blue gaze went down, following the 'fall' of the water before it landed below, and slithered off into the distance. It was strange to see that the river didn't end somewhere, but then again, he had never seen its beginning either, Kota noted silently. Wondering about both directions of the water, he didn't notice if Lukasse had followed him into the river or not or the rock where Dragonfly kept all of her things hoarded. Instead, his mind wandered to places he'd never been, or seen, and then back to his injury. Where ever the river went, it wasn't as if he would get there very fast. Even if he wanted to explore, he'd have to wait until his wound wasn't bleeding so profusely, and he could at least put some weight on that leg. That's what he want before leaving anyway, what his companions wanted might be a completely different matter.

Thinking of the two female reptiles made Kota look over at Dragonfly, and then over his other shoulder for Lukasse. Instinctively, as he waited, he raised his injured leg and lowered his head to keep cleaning it. Touching the actual punctures with his rough tongue was still painful, so he tried to keep the area around it clean of blood since it was beginning to mat and dry in his fur. However, after he was done with that, he gave the wounds a few licks each, just to make sure.

[Deleted]

The journey wasn’t long, though it felt that way. Kota’s injury meant they were going slower than Lukasse was used to. She didn’t mind this. He needed to be kept safe, and she’d never forgive herself if something worse happened. As it was, she felt bad that he’d gotten hurt at all. Unfortunately, she couldn’t change the past. All she could do was try to prevent it or a worse event from happening again.

Splashing and the sensation of water running over her feet alerted her to the fact that they were now in the river. She frowned at that. Weren’t they trying to avoid getting Kota’s paw wet? Before she could think or act, he nearly slipped. She froze, preparing to catch him, but there was no need. He managed to avoid falling and continued until he reached dragonfly.

Lukasse sighed and stopped a half step behind her friends, gazing around at where they’d stopped. Here, the water fell to a lower level of land. Her companions were standing on a flat, dry rock, but she kept in the water for now, wanting to wait until they settled before she dared to make herself comfortable. A glance down informed her that the rat had been safely dropped onto a pile of plants. Hopefully, Kota would eat soon. He’d need the food to help him heal. Plants obscured her view of her surroundings. That made her nervous, but she reminded herself that it also meant they were shielded from view.

Kota started cleaning his wound, and Lukasse took that to mean they were essentially settled. She found an empty spot on the rock and curled up, her gaze looking over the waterfall. Eventually, they’d need to make nests for themselves, but they had plenty of time.

[meixiaotian]

Dragonfly looked around as she felt Kota come up next to her. He looked fine and she spotted the watery tail of Lukasse behind the reeds. They seemed ready to spend the rest of the day and then the night there. She hadn't confirmed it with them, but she was sure that was going to happen. Maybe they'd head off somewhere new on their trek, somewhere like the hazy orange off in the distance. They could also go back to the Blue Plains. They'd travelled through it briefly, but for whatever reason, hadn't stayed.

She turned away from the falls and walked over to a young tree with the green moss growing on its trunk. It could be very useful, despite being uncomfortable. If it could close Kota's bite and be eaten, perhaps there were other uses for it. She hadn't experimented with it, so she didn't quite know. While the tree was young, the moss seemed to have been growing on there for a long time. She leaned forward, using both her mouth and the talons on her arms to pry off a small piece.

With the glob in her talon, Dragonfly walked back over to Kota, who was cleaning the area around his wound. She dropped the moss for him to chew. She could have chewed it up herself, but something about that idea didn't seem right. Unnecessarily getting her saliva in his bite wasn't something she was willing to try.

"Well, um, just chew this until it's really sticky and soft and I guess we'll see if it stays."

[Deleted]

As Kota licked clean his leg, his bright blue gaze flicked from Lukasse to Dragonfly. The multicolored female had settled unto a dry spot nearby, and was laying down looking over the fall. The dusty brown reptile was checking out something on the opposite bank, though he couldn't be certain what since there was an array of foliage in sight. Within seconds, Dragonfly made it obvious what exactly she had been looking at when she trotted through the river and straight up to a rather small tree. He didn't have much experience with trees, but some instinct made the blue-grey feline think that it was young. That wasn't what his reptilian companion seemed concerned about though, since she stopped beside it and immediately began to prying moss off of its bark. Kota cocked his head in confusion, before slowly shuffling about so that he faced the earthen hued female.

By the time he got turned about though, Dragonfly was in front of Kota, placing a good mouthful's amount of moss at his feet. He nodded and smiled softly in gratitude, but went still when she explained that he should chew it up and put it on the wound to see if it would stop the bleeding for good. Only then did he remember that she had mentioned much the same earlier, and he nodded a bit more firmly to acknowledge her words before dipping his head down to the moss. Right above it, he gave it a sniff, and then parted his jaws to breath in the scent. Finally, he reached out and took it in his mouth, biting down so that he could rip off a chunk. Raising his head, he chewed the moss, though it quickly became more work than he expected and the taste was awful. He persisted though, and after a couple of moments he had it at what he believed was a good consistency.

Raising his injured leg up, Kota lowered his head and parted his jaws enough to let the moss paste he had made to ease out and unto the wound. It took a few minutes for him to cover the entirety of the punctures, but thankfully there was enough from his first mouthful to do so. Afterwards, Kota lowered his leg to rest on the rock, though he made sure to keep as much of his weight as he could off of it. He kept his gaze on it for a few moments though, watching as the paste slowly dried, sticking to his fur but most importantly, to the wound and the area around it. Kota looked up to Dragonfly with another small smile as he said,"I think it's going to work."

Now that he was done with taking care of himself, even with the help of his friends, Kota realized out worn out he was. Faintly he recalled that he had been napping before he went to find Dragonfly and instead got bit. However, he brushed that thought aside and instead began to ease his haunches back and down into a sitting position, all the while making sure to only move his injured leg when he needed to. After he was sitting, he slowly began to lower himself all the way down, so he could lay on the wide, flat rock that he and Dragonfly were on. Hopefully there was enough room for her to stay if she wanted to, since he didn't even think before laying on his side, his leg sticking out before him.

[Deleted]

Movement somewhere nearby startled her, but it was only Dragonfly, walking toward a tree. Lukasse watched her, blinking, and then gazed around the landscape. No one else seemed to be nearby. Good. She really didn’t want to confront anyone nasty. A friend might perhaps be welcome, but she was wary of anyone that wasn’t Dragonfly or Kota at this point. And Artemis, but she doubted the bold-colored reptile was anywhere close to them. She wished she knew what had happened to her. She was happy wth her group, but she still missed one of the first friends she’d ever made.

Dragonfly approached Kota and dropped something – moss? – beside him. She instructed him to chew it and apply it to the wound, and she watched curiously. Could that even work? It did make sense, though she wasn’t sure if she’d want to stick anything on an open spot on her body. She trusted Dragonfly, though, and if the earthen-hued reptile said to try something, it was probably for the best.

Kota did as instructed, and eventually stated that it might work. Lukasse’s tail twitched and she smiled at her groupmates. “That was a good idea, Dragonfly. I wouldn’t have thought of it.”

Then Kota slowly laid down, and she blinked at him. “Are you tired?” It was probably a stupid question. He was hurt and had had to work to get this far. Of course he was tired! She glanced at Dragonfly. Should they go ahead and make nests? Well…one for Kota, anyway.

[meixiaotian]

Dragonfly watched Kota chew the moss, her violet eyes only leaving him once to scan her surroundings. As she watched the green pulp dry on the bite, she thought it might not have been the best idea to get something inside his wound. Obviously, she told herself. That's why she suggested the moss in the first place! It was better that got onto his bite than glob of dirt or a plant that was poisonous. The moss dried faster than she thought it would, a pleasant surprise. She smiled with the rest of her friends at Kota's words.

"Okay, good. Thanks, I wasn't completely sure it would work."

She shuffled her talons away from the blue feline as he lay down on the stone and stretched his limbs out. The rock was warm and was relatively comfortable for a rock, but it would be a good idea to gather some of the moss upstream. Kota looked up for a long nap. Dragonfly doubted she or Lukasse were going to sleep before night fell, so they might as well prepare.

"Uh, well, if we're going to stay until tomorrow morning, which I think is what will happen, we should probably get some of that blue moss. Maybe one of us could gather that and the other could get more edible plants. Then I guess we'll... Figure out where we're going."

[Deleted]

Kota's wide, blue eyes began to flutter close, starting with one slow blink and then ending up almost all the shut by the time Lukasse asked if he was tired. He was vaguely aware that she had said something earlier, as well as Dragonfly, but he couldn't recall what. Instead, he nodded very slowly, his eyes widening back to normal as he looked from one reptile to the other. Before he could form an actual reply with words, the dusty hued female mentioned finding blue moss and then discussing where they all wanted to go. With his eyes hard to keep open, and so much being said, Kota quickly became confused. The only thing he could really understand, and clung to, was the fact that he and his companions were leaving the river, eventually. Would they go back to the Blue Plains, he wondered silently as an image of the flat terrain popped into his head. The band had crossed it rather quickly on their way from the Orchard, and for some reason hadn't decided to explore much or settle. Perhaps now they would, the feline thought, before finally finding his voice to reply to Lukasse.

"Yeah, I think I'm going to take a nap," Kota said drowsily, before laying his head down on the smooth, warm rock. The scent of the dead mouse permeated the air around him, but he was far too tired to eat right now. His injured leg was throbbing, pulsing hot tendrils up to his shoulder and between his toes. The pain wasn't anything like the initial bite though, so he kept its existence to himself. In his opinion, he had placed too much reliance and responsibility on Lukasse and Dragonfly, but in his condition he really had no choice. Before today, their friendship had always seemed optional to him, even if he hadn't thought that exactly. Now, the bond they had formed was being tested, and he was really seeing what having friends was like. He only hoped he could equal their actions if he had to in the future.

With a yawn, and no thought of resting on something more comfortable, Kota relaxed against the rock. His large, fan-like ears flicked every now and then, to track his companions' positions more than anything else. After a moment of silence, he suddenly remembered that Dragonfly had mentioned leaving. His eyes popped open, since he meant to say something, but he wasn't sure what. The reptiles knew about the plain like him, and neither one had suggested it thus far. So, with a lazy blink, Kota looked back and forth between the two females, waiting for Lukasse at least to say something about leaving before he did.

[Deleted]

“It’s better than sitting back and letting whatever happen,” she responded to Dragonfly’s statement about not being sure her plan would work. Sure, there was the risk of making things worse, but there was also the possibility of making it better. What kind of friends would they be if they didn’t try? It would help to know a thing or two about treating wounds, of course, but they had to make do with what they did know.

Kota’s eyes closed, and he seemed to have trouble opening them again. He responded to her, though, saying he was going to take a nap. She nodded to him. Good idea, it looked like he needed one. They’d have to make a nest for him, though it seemed like he was perfectly content to lay on the bare rock.

Dragonfly then spoke again, saying they should get some of the blue moss and more edible plants. She nodded at that, and at the mention of figuring out where they were going. “I think we have time enough to figure that out. We won’t be going very far or fast for a while, anyway. Though I suppose it doesn’t hurt to plan, and a direction would be nice.” She looked down the river. They had tasks to perform. May as well get started on those now. “Which thing should I gather?”

[meixiaotian]

Kota began falling asleep, though he didn't seem ready to completely lose consciousness. Dragonfly maneuvered around the feline and to the grassy shore. It seemed like a pretty comfortable area to sleep. She wouldn't mind making a nest on the tip of the stone so she could hear the river as she fell slept.

"Why don't you get some more plants?" She didn't feel like gathering greens again in the same area. "Since you'll be closer to Kota, you should probably stay within eyesight of him."

She knew they'd both be within hearing range; that had been tested only a bit earlier. With those words, Dragonfly decided not to waste any more time planning what to do before they made another plan, so she bounded off to the blue moss. Her tail waved as she sped along the reed wall. It felt good to run without being worried about something.

Temporarily away from Kota and the worries currently associated with him, she gained a why not? attitude and splashed happily into the water. She gulped some and spluttered a bit as her head went under. She quickly bobbed up to the surface and swam to the other bank that held the moss.

The parts that would be best for a nest were also the most embedded into the land, so she took a while to pry off good patches. Halfway through, the young reptile realized there was no way she could carry enough material for three nests all at once. She gathered a large pile she estimated was more than enough. Then she took as much as she could safely hold and waded through the water. If she didn't have moss in her talons, she would have swum.

It took four trips to ferry the entire pile to the the right side of the river. Dragonfly shook herself, splattering water everywhere, and picked up another blue load. She was pleased to realize her first trip's moss was already drying off. She walked slowly, making sure she didn't drop any bits along the way. Finally, the nest material ended up a few feet from the stone.