"But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura
06-06-2020, 09:14 AM (This post was last modified: 06-06-2020, 09:14 AM by Pollen.)
Pollen has taken it upon herself to explore. Having overheard so much conversation about the vast and varied lands here, how could she not do exactly that? Before she could point her nose in a particular direction, she had to decide which land to visit. The more communal ones seemed the likeliest of choices so she didn’t commit a trespass against one of the kingdoms.
Her golden face grew ponderous as she tuned out the buzzing of the bees around her head. If she noticed the slow drip of honey down her neck, she did nothing to stop it or clean it up as her thoughts wandered off long before her legs could do so. Meadow, forest or river? The first seemed too much like where she was now - in an open field, staring at nothing as she kept to herself.
That left either the forest or the river, trees or water? She knew the bees would prefer the trees even if they’d never leave her and build their hive elsewhere besides in her pale mane. Water though, was kind of a repellent and they avoided it except when she had to drink or travel through it. It seemed like the bees made her mind up for her as they crawled over the honeycombs and wind-knots in her hair.
Their buzzing was endlessly in her ears even though she could have commanded them off. It had become the rhythm by which to measure out the hours and sometimes, her loneliness when it crept in. Except right now she was growing giddier by the moment now that she’d made a grownup decision to abscond to the forest. Not that there was anyone there to stop her.
Pollen trotted down a random path and sent out a couple of scouter-bees that would report back to her which trail to actually take. It worked out well and she soon found herself traveling beneath the interlocked boughs of trees she didn’t even know the species of. Just that they were tall and she liked the cool green peace beneath their leaves.
More bees swarmed out of her honeyed mane and began to fly in circles around her head, just as happy as she was to be here. Sometimes they’d come close and alight on her nose for a moment, knowing it tickled and made her laugh. She’d pretend to pin her ears back and snort them off again but the swarm knew it was her own brand of mischief.
Their buzzing songs lulled her into listening only to them and the sounds of the forest grew dim. Pollen made the perfect example of prey in that moment, happy and oblivious on her forest jaunt.
06-07-2020, 09:29 AM (This post was last modified: 06-07-2020, 09:30 AM by Amarine.)
Tornados from a butterfly's wing
Ama rarely left her home. Especially not since Neverwhere had gone missing. There were too many strangers out there, with their own chaotic emotions and mind's that rattled against her own. It was often too much for the girl, and so she stayed in the safety of her home.
Today though, there was summer on the breeze, and it made her hooves itch restless. She dithered on the border for a while, a disconsolate crease to her brow. But at last the pony lass pushed herself beyond the reaches of home, and out to where the world opened up beyond it.
The day stretched before her, endless and hot. It made her sweat just walking as slowly as she was. Teal tail flicking at the biting flies fretfully, Ama paused to gain her bearings. The waving tall grasses she was wading through were doing little to cool things off, but there were trees in the distance. They cast long shadows on the ground, shadows that seemed far more welcoming than the sweltering sunlight she'd been roaming.
As soon as the branches closed over her head, she sighed in relief. It was still warm, yes, but the shade here was far more bearable to the black coated girl. Better yet, a scent sweet as wine trickled through the broad trunks, mouthwatering and demanding investigation. Her crystal hooves sank in the soft mulch as she followed the scent trail.
The source of the trail was an unexpected one.
Ama paused to see another girl wandering the woods, goldenas sunlight and dappled with genteel florals. Her mane was pale, or at least the dark girl thought it was. The white strands were plastered to the palomino's neck with viscous golden fluid, and it was then that Ama noticed the crawling, buzzing creatures in her hair.
"You've got bugs on you. Just so you know."
She had come to a prim halt by a wide branching maple, her head tipped to one side. Pupiless, gleaming eyes watched her unblinking, a vague smile on her lips. For all her eccentric looks, this bee girl projected a happy, peaceable energy. At least she had been before Ama spoke.
06-12-2020, 10:56 AM (This post was last modified: 06-12-2020, 11:02 AM by Pollen.)
Flies never swarmed her. How could they with all the bees that buzzed around her? So any flick of her tail was never in retaliation to an insect, not that she wasn’t capable of harming one or assisting it in making the decision to leave her alone, they just didn’t bother her. Must be all the honey that runs down her skin in sticky little rivulets. Oh, and the bees.
So the palomino is trotting along the trail, happily oblivious and lulled always into a sense of safe complacency by the sound of the bees in her ears. She can hear the notes of the forest in the background but there is nothing in the quiet noise to give her a reason to fear being there alone. Perhaps she was just far too adventurous for fear to come knocking along.
She never hears the other girl’s approach until she speaks and Pollen lifts her head, a beatific smile in place on her lips. “Oh goodness! Do I?” Pollen stops, gives a little gasp and turns in a small circle trying to look at herself before halting again and collapsing into a fit of giggles. Mischief glimmers in her eyes as she meets the teal-tipped girl’s gaze.
“Silly me! Those are just my bees,” and she gives no further explanation but creeps a little closer to look the girl over. She was gorgeous! Certainly not like anything she’s ever seen with eyes lacking a pupil and looking more like jewels unearthed from the ground. Pollen was captivated by her sparkly look and all that midnight-dark skin. “You are very pretty to look at.”
Sure, the comment might seem odd but it was honest, and Pollen never once stopped smiling. Even one of her bees flew close to inspect the jeweled parts of her, hovering and buzzing. “Don’t worry, he won’t sting you. You’re just sparkly and throwing off some light whenever it touches you.” It was like the sun found her through the breaks in the trees, lighting the dark girl up as the shadows flocked to the sunlight color of Pollen’s fur.
A bemused smile turned up the corners of Ama's mouth, her ears flicking too and fro as she watched the bee girl chase herself. She had not entirely planned on meeting strangers today, but this curious girl seemed as good of an acquaintance as she could have hoped for. She seemed as sweet as the honey clinging to her skin.
The gemstone lass had not spent much time worried about insects. Mostly all she cared was that the black flies in summer had nasty bites, and that the trill of crickets kept her awake some nights. This golden girl she'd come across, however, seemed as much a hive as a horse, and Ama couldn't help but take a few steps nearer to look at the buzzing little creatures as they crept.
Wholly focused on the striped creature making its way up the palomino's shoulder, she didn't look up at the words that were said. She simply shrugged, and nodded. "Thank you," she mumbled, tangles of windswept forelock falling across her eyes.
They had come together beneath the trees, each fascinated by the other's eccentricities. The cool blue orbs of her eyes blinked softly, inspecting the bee and the sticky-skinned girl it seemed so at home on. She was tempted to stick her tongue out, to lap at the honey that flowed freely from the white blonde mane, but she knew that would be an overstep. As much as that scent had drawn her in, one really couldn't just go about licking others. Even if she was positive they would taste delicious.
Satisfied with her assessment of the little winged insect, the shining girl stepped back a pace, her vague smile in place. "Have they always been with you? Even in winter?" She asked, suddenly buzzing herself with questions. There was so much to wonder at, when such tiny creatures chose to live with something so different from themselves.
