The Forgotten Zodiac

"Thank you." Bird said softly. He turned to the half of the log he hadn't used yet. "Would you like a mask? I can make you a necklace with a miniature mask on it. I know there's not many who would understand the symbolism, but...I'll make you one." He got to work at once, and smiled a bit as he did so. "Masks are like faces for my people. We make facial expressions often, but showing one's bare face to someone in public is rude and shameful. Even eating is a very quiet and private thing, as most people have to take off their masks to do so. I figured I'd leave my mouth open so I don't have to hide away from you and your friends whenever you partake in food. I...understand that my customs are different from yours. And a lot of what I do can be seen as strange and foreign. Which is why I will try my best not to be insulted by anything you or your friends do on accident. I noticed you were trying not to look at my face when I was without a mask. I'm grateful for that, too."

"No problem," L'arc said, listening with some intrest. "While I might not be able to read the things you write, I did learn some about Nymph culture before having to evacuate the royal villa. I knew that you'd probably feel more comfortable if I wasn't staring. Not that anybody can really feel comfortable when someone's staring at them," he said. He smiled at the suggestion of a necklace. "Certainly," he said. "But only if it's no trouble. Sylas is holding on to the seed right now, I'll have him give it to you as soon as he gets back."

"No trouble, no trouble at all...my voice is about to give out again." He sighed. "I have a request to make of you, though...before I stop talking, could you...just...not bring up Rosa again? The more the dead are spoken of, the more unrest they have in their afterlife...I'd like it if she were able to sleep in peace," He murmured.

"Consider it done," L'arc said, nodding at once. "Don't worry about it."

"Than--" Bird stopped, then sighed a bit more. He nodded at L'arc, then went back to his necklace making. Before long at all, he was busy painting the beads he had carved, and soon down to weaving grass together to make the string. He ate another rat before he finished, bones and all.

When he was done, he held up the finished product. It was a very tribal looking necklace with red and white beads, and a small mask shape hanging from the center. He hooked it around L'arc's neck, just as Sylas returned with a lute. "Hey, you made a necklace! That's awesome," He marveled at it. "You can carve just about anything out of wood, huh?" He grinned at Bird, who nodded.

L'arc smiled up at his friend. "Hey, Sy," he greeted. He waited for the human to sit down before asking, "You mind if Bird holds onto that seed for us? After how long he's been watching over it, I feel like it's only right."

"Sure." Sylas handed Bird the Lute, who set it aside. He then reached into his bag and pulled out a small wooden basket with a glowing blue light from within it. Bird blinked in alarm and ripped off the lid, holding the seed close. It hummed and glowed happily in his hands. "Hey, Bird," Sylas drew the Nymphs attention again. "What do you think about some clothes? Those look kinda old. And filthy. You should probably wash up somewhere, sure, but would you like some new clothes? We can get you armor of some kind..."

Bird nodded quickly, especially at the mention of armor. "Right, then. I'll let Verolen know, we'll pull together some old outfits and see what we can get you." Sylas nodded. "I'll be back, L'arc, you should show him somewhere he can wash up. I think there's a new pool to the south side of town, you can try there."

"Right," L'arc said, standing up and offering Bird his hand. "Follow me."

((GOING TO GO EAT FUDS.))

Bird bobbed his head and followed, still holding the seed in one hand, his new Lute in the other. The seed was bright blue, and it glowed with a gentle light; it wasn't shaped like a seed, though. It was a small circle with two little sprouting leaves coming from the top. It moved almost like a jelly, or a bag filled with water, wiggling with each step Bird took.

The pool was shallow on one end, and very deep on the other. Like a trench, the incline was sharp and very sudden. Bershee was sitting on the edge, looking tired.

"Hi there, Bershee!" L'arc called as he and Bird approached. His expression became a bit more concerned as they got closer and he saw how tired the Octi looked. "Are you okay, there?" he asked, his voice a bit softer now as he was closer.

"Hmm? Oh, I'll be fine. I haven't slept in awhile...it doesn't really feel the same. Do I look skinner?" She looked down at herself, then back up as Bird waded into the shallower parts of the water, stripping off all but his undergartments and starting to clean himself off. He had been absolutely filthy, and was several shades paler after cleaning himself off. He turned his back to them and removed his mask, cleaning his face, too. "Who's your friend?"

"His name is Bird. He's a nymph that was living in the ruins that Sylas, Kendra, and I went to explore. He was guarding some sort of seal but... he can leave now, because I... kind of..." he let his words trail off, not wanting to apologize again now that Bird had made it clear that he'd forgiven L'arc. However, after every time he explained what had happened, he felt an "I'm sorry" working up the back of his throat to be added at the end of the story. So this time, he simply stopped, allowing Bershee to fill in the rest for herself.

"I see...you broke the seal. I sensed something off...no matter. It went in the other direction." Bershee shrugged. "It's nice to meet you, Bird. It's been awhile since I've seen any Nymphs. Water Nymphs that strayed too far from the rivers were most welcome in Oceanica. But they were a quiet bunch, mostly kept to themselves. I'm assuming you're the same," Bird tilted his head towards her and nodded a bit. Bershee smiled. "Not the talkative type, then. That's fine, too." She looked back at L'arc. "You didn't answer me. Do I look skinnier in any way?" She questioned, frowning slightly.

"Oh, that was a real question?" L'arc asked, before wondering if his foot could fit inside his mouth. Speaking quickly and hoping she'd ignore the first words, he said, "I mean, yeah, kinda. Why?"

"I can't sleep because I laid eggs, L'arc." Bershee smiled a bit. She looked down at the water. "They're down there, at the bottom of the trench. The eggs will expand and when they hatch, I'll have five beautiful babies to take care of. It's...a little stressful to think about. When they're old enough to travel, which could be a couple weeks, I'll take them back to Oceanica. I couldn't lay them there because of the Selkies...they rather dislike me for keeping their children away from them. Who knows what they could have done to my eggs if I had laid them there...so I came here. It's calmer here. You can feel it in the air. The war is done, and the forest knows it...it's like the world here is sighing with relief."

"Oh. Oh!" L'arc said, peering down into the water in an effort to see the eggs. "Wow. Really? Wow," was all he could seem to say, looking pleasently surprised at the news. "Well, I hope they're all okay. ...bet they'll be cute," he added.

"Thank you, L'arc. Even if they aren't cute, my race depends on them..." She smiled down at the water again. "I hope I can raise them right...do you want to see them?" She reached into her shirt pocket and withdrew a pearl. "You wouldn't be disturbing them. I need to check on them anyway." She offered, in spite of her exhaustion.

"Well, if you're sure it's okay," L'arc said, taking the pearl and tucking it into his mouth. He slid into the water and hurriedly tried to adjust to the temperature. When he did, he smiled up at Bershee. "Yeah, all set and everything," he said.

Bershee smiled and took him by the hand, pulling him gently down into the deeper parts of the water. The trench went on for a whole minute of swimming at a steady pace, at least. It was deep enough to make L'arc's ears pop with the pressure. "And here they are," Bershee said quietly. Embedded in the rock face was a large, dug out cave of sorts. Big enough to support further growth of the white eggs within. They were large already, and speckled with blue. Bershee hummed a happy note as she looked at them. "They'll be the size of any other baby when they've hatched. Do you see, L'arc? The lives I've been hiding from war and chaos and hatred for so long...I just couldn't hide it anymore. It's been such a long journey...that's why I'm tired. It's finally catching up with me..." She chuckled a bit at herself. "I feel old."

"I'm sure you'll be a great mother," L'arc said, being careful not to let the pearl slip from his mouth. "You're really good at helping others and taking care of people. You're pretty much a natural at this sort of thing already," he insisted.