Disapora's smile widened back to its normal levels as the compliment was furthered, giggling spritely. She watched the wolf go under the spray, joining them just for the sensation of water upon her fur. Xer ear perked at the muttering, but hearing it directed at the snake instead of xer, xe returned to xer spot, sitting peacefully. Xer tail attempted to curl around xer paws, not quite making it.
"Yes, I've been travelling as well, although not by choice like you. I'm on... a greater mission, let's say." The mood was so light that she deigned not to bring it down with talks of missing brothers. "Mind if I follow you on that path for a while?" It fit where she was supposed to be going next and, "Company helps liven up long journies."
The fog didn't bother Disapora, used to seeing through their own mist when it decided to travel to her head area. Really, the white plumes were almost comforting to xer, reminding the serval of when xe had much less control over said mist as a child. Of course, childhood wasn't always a pleasant place to go, but these particular memories were good, and these days, the fact that her brother was in a memory made it good. Xe did notice xer companion's dislike of it, however, so xe said, "Here, let me help you there," conjuring a sky blue fire from the ground. It was small, but tall, positioned on the left side of the two of them. The heat from it helped to disperse the fog, making it easier to see. And, due to its magic, there was very little smoke to hinder their sight. A few of her sparkles, like in her mist, were within it. She smiled sultrily, "Now we can see each other better."
The serval sat quietly, allowing Larkspur to speak. When the snake neared her, she tensed, but decided to try pressing her nose against it in a friendly manner. When Larkspur was done speaking, xe looked up at them, eyes blinking slowly as xe processed. "Yes, I suppose that makes sense. Better to rip out the knife yourself and all that." There was a layer of unasked questions under their understanding tone.
"Perhaps but I suspect I would know yours from a crowd," Larkspur remarked, glancing toward the burbling geyser. This little one didn't seem to go off as frequently as the ones around it which was good, or else wolf and serval alike would be a great deal damper. More importantly to Larkspur though, it meant they only had to step a bit into the drizzling remnants of a shower for a moment to finally chase the bee now buzzing annoyingly on their shoulders having danced between two of their flowers off to wherever it deigned to visit next. They huffed with satisfaction - then immediately muttered an apology to poor Folke who had not consented to getting wet for the moment, though the serpent did at least seem to understand where the wolf was coming from.
"I am certainly not opposed," Larkspur agreed with a light laugh. "Take as many blossoms as you want - and perhaps a meal. I do warn you though I am an unusual wolf: I don't settle for long. Presently I am exploring northward, I intend to follow this river to its source and when I get there... find another river and follow it out I think."
That would be fun now that they were considering it out loud - following rivers in and out. Rivers went everything, brought you to everyone practically. It would be a brilliant way to see as much of the land as possible and the neatest possible method for avoiding confusion while they were still in the midst of attempting to map things out.
They shook their head a little, attempting to peer through the hanging mist, ear flicking in mild annoyance - they had known it would be foggy and vision would be fairly obscured when they saw the hotsprings and the plumes of white steam floating into the air but they had to admit, they'd only landed so late in the day in the hopes that the sun would have burned most of it off. Clearly though they were wrong.
"It isn't a problem - I certainly grow more than enough for any collector," Larkspur chuckled, adopting something of a slightly more serious expression as they explained. Folke twisted around, stretching out toward the serval now pressed into Larkspur's legs to offer a curiously flitting tongue and tilted head that unknowingly mirrored the wolf it was draped across. "It's not a fun feeling but I am rather unfortunately used to it - sometimes they get caught on branches or twisted while I'm laying down. At times a bird will deign that I carry perfect nesting material and so on. It hurts but it's a hurt I'm long used to - if anything, it's nice to experience it of my own will for once."
---
Text. Speech.Thoughts.
The serval smiled and giggled gently at Larkspur's response to xer flirting. This was good, her flattery was working well. Although they'd admit, they weren't sure of the final purpose of this. Really, swidling was just second nature at this point. Perhaps this one could be just for fun... Disapora awed quietly at the wolf's wings disappearing, an added bout of impressiveness to such an already intriguing thing. It was quickly added to the list of things to talk about with Larkspur. Then, they complimented back and the small cat allowed xerself a short purr in response. "They're quite common in servals, but thank you nonetheless," her smile stretched her maw. Her constant magical mist brightened, like a peacock displaying its feathers.
The serval blinked rapidly, this time subconsciously, out of mild confusion. The idea of giving away something that benefited you had rarely occurred to the feline, and especially not when it was something so pretty. Still, they were being complimented again and that fueled them. "Then I must visit you again come this summer, hm?" she hummed thoughtfully. Then, xe were back to focus as the wolf spoke again. The pain made sense to them, although they still didn't quite get why someone would give away a piece of themselves so easily. She'd never share her mist (if she could), or a piece of fur, that was certain. Well, it did make one of her missions easier. Then, Larkspur demonstrated their point. Disapora allowed xer eyes to widen, watching as two flowers landed in front of xer, one with blood and one without. Her smile had finally dropped as she stared down at them for a moment. If they'd been more artistic, they could've waxed poetic about the metaphor there. Instead, they gingerly picked up both, placing the flowers in a satchel.
"I..." The serval drew a breath, composing themself as their smile slipped back into place, albeit lighter now. "I'm not quite sure that was necessary, but thank you anyway." She looked away, then back at them. "Impressive you're able to do such a thing to yourself." Xe'd seen that wince, almost felt the pain xerself. She watched the bee passively, considering, for a moment, biting it for them. "I see your point," they leaned into the larger animal, slowly so Larkspur could pull away. Her mist lightened, retreating into her fur as though she could get it on them.
"My apologies if I'm acting a bit odd - I'm not used to that," Larkspur admitted. This entire conversation had them a bit on the backpaw - admiration for their wins? Yes. Admiration for their pelt's color and pattern? Yes. Remarks on their eyes and the similarly colored marking around them and placed on their brow? Undoubtedly. But general appreciation for their appearance was... pretty foreign. And they concluded that Disapora probably meant them no harm (and that they would likely be sticking around for a bit) and thus, quietly retracted their wings; allowing them to slink into sinking her skin and fur vanishing easily from sight as if Larkspur had always been naught but an ordinary wolf albeit with an interesting pattern. "You're rather beautiful as well - I've rarely seen markings so striking."
Though it would be a nice change of pace if they suddenly became more common.
They offered a light laugh when the serval batted their eyelashes at them, adopting a bemused look of their own.
"Oh you are rather striking but this is for my peace of mind too," Larkspur said, never all too secretive about their motives. They twisted to gesture with their nose to some of the smaller, still unfurling blossoms along their back and the few tiny green buds that the wolf knew would only blossom toward the middle of summer, blooming and dying in rapid succession and a few that wouldn't blossom at all, more leaves to gather sunlight than additional buds. "I don't mind sharing - they'll grow back eventually, in fact come summer I'll probably be bluer than I am brown."
They shook their head a bit ruefully, "But I've had... incidents where others have tried sneaking one off. I don't think it occurs to most that they are growing from me and thus, to have them plucked incorrectly hurts."
To more clearly visualize the point, Larkspur allowed their teeth to sink into a longer stem and easily snapped it. They tossed that one lightly toward the serval then readied themself, grasping another and instead yanking. They couldn't entirely bite back the pained wince that crossed their face the new flower joined the old one. The nipped flower had been removed through snapping the stem seemed more like an ordinary flower - the roots were a little browner but otherwise, it was a normal larkspur. The second flower however had the slightly traces of blood stained into the thin, winding roots that had been yanked out.
"Much easier to just offer than risk someone taking," Larkspur explained, giving a second little shake to lessen the mild prickle they felt where the secondary plant had been taken out. "Truly, you're doing me a favor however. The less blossoms the better."
As they spoke a bee came bumbling out of the nearby forest and landed on their ear earning an annoyed look from the wolf though they didn't bother trying to dislodge it. They just ignored the insect as it crawled its way around before concluding that it had aimed incorrectly and instead, went for one of the flowers on the back of their neck.
---
Text. Speech.Thoughts.
The smaller feline smiled at the chuckle their actions got them. "You're simply gorgeous, it's my pleasure to compliment you~" the serval replied to the thanks. Compliments, xe was back to xer forte. Although...- No, they were probably just being illogical, Larkspur had no reason to distrust her. They mentally shook the idea away.
Disapora's head tilted lightly at the idea of sharing a thought bond with another creature like that. 'The company would be nice,' Xe thought, 'very nice.' She'd have to inquire about how one went about beginning something like that with Larkspur later, once they'd established a bond. They added that to their ever-growing list of mental notes. Her shoulders relaxed at the snake's peacefulness being confirmed. It was always good to have fewer threats to look out for.
But the next thing the wolf said had Disapora balking. They were just...offering up something that was growing out of them? No catch? Offering literally a part of them to a near-stranger? Willingly? Without coercion? Again, the serval had been thrust far out of xer comfort zone, mask thrown off in the process. But she quickly recovered herself, at least partially. Behind her smile, there were still hints of confusion and distrust.
"Darling, are you sure? You'd just offer that..for me?" Their eyelashes batted at the end of the statement, voice lilting. "Either you're very generous or you really like me," Xe teased, bumping xer shoulder into the wolf's elbow.
Hm, they couldn't really get a read on the serval and that only further confused them but well... there wasn't exactly a need to distrust them in the moment. They gave the mental equivalent of a shrug and elected to just be prepared for an intrusive question or unkindly behavior. They adjusted their wing, lifting it a bit higher onto their back to prevent them from unintentionally smacking xe with their wings while chuckling. Are all cats this affectionate? Larkspur wouldn't begrudge that but it was still a bit of a surprise. The focus on the flowers clarified the intent and they felt a hint of wariness entering them - they... had an inkling of what this was about now.
"Thank you," Larkspur said again, the buds on their back suddenly feeling extremely vulnerable in the face of someone who may want them and was very close to them. They relaxed a little when the serval danced out of nipping reach once more, teasing and playful as a pup while Folke curiously inspected their new acquaintance,
"To my knowledge no, Folke doesn't speak but we've developed a strange sort of bond - I do know at least it feels," Larkspur explained. Truly they had to get around to asking if this sort of bond was... normal for this strange world. The stronger their bond to Folke became, the more clearly they're able to identify what they were thinking and any emotions associated. It was almost like their senses with plants but slightly more clear if only because snakes at least are capable of telling the difference between a fish and a bear. "They're rather neutral don't worry - as far as I'm aware, they don't bite anything but the mice I bring them."
After a brief pause, they gesture to the pretty flowers dappling across their pelt that appear to had enraptured the serval, "...would you like one?"Speech.Thoughts.
Disapora's smile softened, content. Xer confidence told xer the head cocking was a good sign. Either they were confused or amused, and either worked for the serval. Those were practically the emotions she specialized in working with after all. They noted their name, a rather pretty one, at that. It matched the beauty of the wings and flowers sprouting out of the wolf's back- the flowers which they mentioned in their next breath.
"They're quite gorgeous, I must admit." She really didn't have to admit it, it was clear she'd been admiring them. "They suit you, Larkspur." Xe tested their name on xer tongue, leaning into the wolf. Being less than half of Larkspur's size, they bumped their head lightly on the wolf's elbow, nuzzling slightly. She pulled away not long after, almost dancing away like a tease.
Then, the wolf revealed there was a snake in their fur. Disapora blinked once, then again, mask dropping in confusion. They calculated how this would fit into their plan, then failed to figure that out.
"Hello, Folke," Xe let out their surprise in the form of a laugh, smile straining somewhat as xer mask fell back on. The snake flicked its tongue out. The serval watched, head cocking lightly. "Does she- or he? They... Does Folke talk or...?" Her plan was thoroughly thrown off, having never seen a friendly snake before. Or at least, xe hoped it was friendly...
Larkspur rolled the dice.Character Diceroll 1: Fail Diceroll must be above 500 to be successful.
0 was added for Charisma.
492 was added for Level 4.
0 was added for A. No Enchantment.
0 was added for A. No Buff / Penalty.
Larkspur refrained from raising a brow thought they offered the slightest cock of their head at the overt commentary. Even they were getting an inking that there was... an interest of some sort being expressed here. The way the felid's eyes raked across their body made that evident but given it was spring, the message was a bit muddied. Was the interest in their wings? They were what the serval had commented on after all. Or could it be the garden now flourishing upon their back - thankfully devoid of hummingbirds for the first time in a few days and free from bees at the current moment given how unusual it was. Or was this standard attraction? Larkspur hold no judgement if it was - they were a bit sad for their part that their interest in the mountain lion that once roamed the north appeared to be going nowhere for the alleged fallen goddess was nowhere to be seen - though they wondered what could be interesting enough about them in these short moments to draw that sort of gaze.
"I am Larkspur - before you wonder, mother had an inkling that I would end up like this," said the chocolate brindled wolf, gesturing wryly with their nose to the brilliant blue blossoms sprouting all down their spine. The other was plotting something, that much Larkspur knew because something that tasted like 'mischief' drifted toward the wolf from the little body but without further investigation, they wouldn't know. Was anything serious enough to actually try that? "Though I wouldn't call myself alone, I have Folke."
They gave a little wiggle, disturbing the reticulated python wrapped loosely around their shoulders to emerge from the remaining plush of a shedding winter coat. The snake looked up, managing to look tired to Larkspur's eyes those they weren't sure how clear that came across to the other, watching the snake flit their tongue out a few times.
---
Charisma Check: Larkspur is getting a tad confused by this level of attention - so now they're double checking the situation a bit. A very minor roll really, Larkspur is just just not used to being obviously flirted with and is confused about it.
Success: Larkspur has confirmation that Diaspora isn't lying about being alone
Failure: Larkspur just has to go by Diaspora's word
Text. Speech.Thoughts.
Disapora watched the canine shake out their wings with interest. 'Flight sounds wonderful. Although lugging those around doesn't...' Everything is a kind of give and take. It would be oh-so useful for travel, though, especially with how far she went. They didn't allow themselves to fantasize long, however, that was for alone time only. So, that thought was stored away for later pondering, unless it could be used for xer current flattery.
"Anytime," she welcomed, then laughed at the follow-up comment. It was a dainty, musical thing, a giggle of a high-class lass. Their tipped tail flicked towards the wolf's playfully. Xe smiled at them, warmth in xer eyes. A warmth as real as her magic fire, but a warmth nonetheless. She looked them over, eyes catching on the flowers growing, smile growing wider with a well-hidden intent. The rake of their eyes against the others' form, however, they didn't make an effort to hide. Another, even lighter laugh escaped xer muzzle at the idea of trespassing.
"Oh no, I'm alone. Well, other than you, of course," they simpered. Underneath xer hooded eyes, however, was a calculating gaze, watching how the new wolf would respond. Flirtation always was a bit of a gambit, one had to be sure their target would accept."Disapora, pleased to make your aquantince," her name was accompanied by a few ice blue sparks of fire. Xe never was able to resist the flamboyancy of it, after all.
