moonchild

She didn't know where she was.

Wasn't that wonderful?

Having woken up as if out of a dream, she gently shook herself mentally. Physically, Nikki rose and began to walk. Sitting about would accomplish nothing. While it was very clear she was out of place and a bit dazed, she kept going. 

The moon was a companion. Whatever it had been before the fog, she knew the moon would always be there. Looking down at her. Looking out for her, in its own way. She took comfort in that when all else failed to give her this.

"Hello...?" she called softly out, spotting a firefly flicker into her vision before illuminating the dark form of another "pardon me, but I am quite lost. Would you happen to know where I am?" But she did not seem disturbed.

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The achromatic wolf stood out on the wide open plains. She was thankful for any sort of hill or dip in the geography of the land where she could rest from her constant trek. She had returned, still interested in what the wolf Izumi had talked to her about. It was difficult to settle somewhere, her mind was still in chaos.

Passing through tall grass, she naturally looked for herbs. But the grass obscured anything useful and it was getting dark. Her vision was now better at night, but it wasn’t good enough to identify plants. She might get herself poisoned doing that.

Hearing a voice calling out to her, Camillia perked her dark ears. Oh no, had she found another newcomer. It had been confusing and depressing the last time, at least at first. Perhaps it would go differently this time. Striding forward, she made herself known, “Greetings, you are in the land of Canis, in the plains to be more precise.” Camillia came closer so she could properly see the wolf. Camillia’s eyes widened, it was like the night’s sky had been captured on this wolf’s pelt. It was fascinating, so the desaturated wolf took a moment to remember to introduce herself. “I’m Camillia la Traviata, or just Camillia. I’m sorry if you left behind something important, but you might be stuck here.” The words were nearly the same as before. It left a bad taste in Camillia’s mouth having to utter them.

@Nikita
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"Oh."

She still did not seem perturbed. Nikki kept her neutral look, gazing over the pretty female subconsciously. She liked the darker colors on others, to be sure. Bright colors hurt her eyes. "That's fine." Was she really all that there? Maybe not, but no use crying over the gods' will. If it was a god that is.

Could be tricky little spirits.

"If I cannot recall anything important, it must not be important" Nikki shrugged "being spirited away is a common thing, to what I do remember." A term, for all intents and purposes, that she was thankful to recall. She smiled kindly at Camilla, giving a nod of her skull.

"I seem to be called Nikita. Nikki is fine, I don't have a preference either way. A pleasure, Camilla."

@Camillia

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Was she really okay with it? Camillia doubted what she heard at first. The starry wolf seemed almost used to being swept away into a different land. Or maybe she was just that carefree. Camillia was far too anxious for that. She wondered if the wolf had also had the misfortune of being something else before becoming a wolf. Was she okay with that too?

“Uh- Nikita, you seem rather calm about this. Are you sure you are alright?” Camillia asked in a concerned tone. Maybe she just wanted to forget about it though. Camillia looked around, trying to think of something to take Nikita’s mind off of the situation. Her eyes were caught on Nikita’s fur again, she then lifted her yellow eyes to the sky. “The stars are pretty tonight,” she said softly. Her eyes flicked to the wolf's pelt again by accident. She wasn't sure if she was talking about the stars in the sky or the flecks of tan in the other woman's fur.

@Nikita
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She smiled kindly. "I suppose I just don't let things beyond my control bother me" she admitted with a gentle shrug "gods, spirits... Whoever placed me here had a plan. I may not know it, but I shouldn't stress. All will be revealed in time, I should hope." She had faith in that.

Camilla would glance at the sky and Nikki walked a bit closer, joining her if allowed. "Yes" she agreed, lifting a paw to the darkening sky "it feels like summer's end so Orion will become more visible, I think?" A splash of knowledge flickered from her lips, confusing her briefly.

She lowered her paw. "Which is it though? The Three Sisters or the Three Kings?" Orion's Belt had many, many details but almost all were different. She wondered what Camilla thought "do you look at the stars often?"

@Camillia

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Camillia had a growing respect for the woman who could be teleported suddenly and seemingly be fine with it. Camillia had been far from that. It was refreshing to meet someone like this. Camillia did not worship any gods or spirits, she wondered if she should be. She had heard gods could get angry if they weren’t worshipped properly.

Although she had heard of Orion before, the rest of Nikita’s words were confusing to Camillia. She accepted the offer to move closer and sat next to the wolf to observe the stars. Nikita had a very calming aura that lessened Camillia’s fear of other wolves. “Orion is familiar, but I’m unsure what you mean by the Three Sisters or the Three Kings? Do you mean those three stars in his belt?” She asked, then continued with an answer to the other question. “I do not, my father did not feel astrology or astronomy were good pastimes.” She looked down and frowned, her father had controlled much of her life. Now, without him, she felt lost, even though she had no wish to return. She turned her muzzle back up to the stars with a more neutral expression. Maybe even a light grin at the thought of breaking free of her father’s grasp. “But I feel that I will now,” she spoke softly to herself, but loud enough for Nikita to hear.

@Nikita
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Nikki raised a paw to her chin, giving a gentle 'hmm'. "Orion's Belt, yes" she confirmed "there are two names for it, to my knowledge" Actually... Many, many more; if folklore was to be placed into the running "the stars themselves are called Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka."

And due to various tales and word of mouth, one could not settle on a 'name' for them. Sisters or Kings? Which one did Orion covet so dearly that they made their way into the sky with him? "It seems others cannot settle on who they were." Nikki chuckled, shaking her head. Every star had a name, a personality...

@Camillia admitted that her father never liked her hobbies. "I don't think I can remember my parents" she scrunched her face for a moment, chuckling again "ah, nope" Shaking her skull "perhaps that is a good thing?" The other woman did say that she would look more now.

"The stars and moon are our friends" Nikki said with belief "they shine brighter than the sun, letting us know they are here" She glanced at Camilla out of the corner of her eye "they guide us when we are lost. Especially in new places. It is helpful to have them on your side."

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It was fascinating to listen to the starry wolf. Her thoughts were vastly different than Camillia’s. The monochromatic wolf nodded along to her teachings, thoroughly captivated. Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka, she wanted to remember those. The stars were far more interesting than she had initially thought them to be. Now she could recognize how they were apart of the environment that she was so absorbed with.

“My father had a lot of control over my life, I wish I could forget him,” Camillia admitted. She was a little jealous that Nikita couldn’t remember her parents. She knew that was a rude thought, but she couldn’t help it.

“Yes, trustworthy friends, you cannot have enough of those,” she whispered in a pleased tone. The thought of having constant companions was a comforting thought to Camillia. “Is it true you can navigate by the stars? How is that possible if they are always moving?” Camillia asked, having heard that from other horses but never having learned it. Nikita also seemed to be hinting at it. Camillia was beginning to wonder if, with her coat, she was meant to be a friend of the night instead of the day.

@Nikita
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"I hope you can" Nikki said almost whimsically "it is not good to hold onto things. Sometimes, the best thing is to let negative thoughts go... It is a type of closure, even if it is not a traditionally healthy one." She hoped this father was somewhere, worried about his child instead of worried about controlling her.

@Camillia was more interested in the stars. Nikita nodded and pointed at the sky as it darkened. "Different lands have different stars, thankfully this one has the same I'm accustomed to" A good thing! "the stars are moving, yes, but so is the earth with it. Rotating" She hoped that made sense "each rotation brings the stars back."

A sort of...

"Different places will be night, and others will be the day" Nikki said simply "while stars are clear at night, they are present during the day too. Just in different places and brighter during different times" She paused, frowning lightly "I hear if you travel south a long time, the day is different. The hour is also different. What is night is day, and vice versa."

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Camillia only uttered a “Hmm,” at Nikita’s words about negative feelings. Would she even be able to forget about her father? She would need to chew on the thought some more, so she tucked it away.

“How interesting,” the black-marked wolf said allowed. It was true, every bit of knowledge that @Nikita was giving her was fascinating. The fact that the stars were there during the day was unknown to Camillia. But she did know something, “I know of the night and day’s shift in seasons, but I have not heard of the far south yielding different results as well.” Camillia tried to imagine the earth tilting in different seasons and giving the south different climates, but it was quite difficult. After all, she had never seen an image of it and was forced to solely imagine it.

“Don’t some stars have stories as to why they were named? I think I heard the story of Cassiopeia a long time ago. It had something to do with a beautiful queen I think.” Camillia hoped Nikita could fill in the blanks where she lacked. She had been taught the story by one of the mares used to make more children in their herd. She was discarded shortly after she bore a child though so Camillia only learned a few stories from her.
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She knew it was hard to let go of things. She didn't pressure @Camillia to do such a thing because it'd make her feel better, oh no. She gently suggested moving on, because the woman's father was not here and there. To knowledge anyway. Nikki could only guess. She hoped the man wasn't here but she kept that to herself.

"Cassiopeia" she murmured, moving on as well "it has a distinctive shape..." Visible all year round, in the northern sky, yes? "it is named after a queen of great beauty, yes" And birthed beautiful daughters "she insulted a god who placed her in the sky after declaring her daughter was more beautiful than his nature children."

Her eyes flickered to the north. "The god made her 'queen' of the northern skies" and "was duty-bound or punishment-bound to keep the sky there rotating" This is what they did talk about briefly, so it made sense from a religious viewpoint "she shines brighter at night, where she rests on her throne."

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The story was captivating to Camillia who had never heard it told in such a way. She wondered if she could ever tell a story like that. The way the words flowed out of Nikita’s mouth was lovely to the ear. Camillia wished she could capture that sonorous and musical sound and keep it for herself.

“Gods always seem fickle and impatient in these stories, cursing mortals for ridiculous things.” Camillia wasn’t particularly careful about her words as she didn’t believe such volatile gods existed. If they did and she was certain to be cursed, maybe she could be turned into a star and watch over everyone. “Do you believe gods to be as capricious as the stories say?” Camillia cocked her head and turned to Nikita. "They seem so difficult to deal with that I don't understand why anyone would worship them." She stated, again inviting the curse of a god.

@Nikita
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"I believe... there are different 'sets' of gods."

Nikki let that sink in before explaining more. She smiled kindly, searching the dark sky above them. Soon it would be time to travel again but she hoped not to wake up in another realm so soon. It would be... difficult to wrap her head around! Leaving again, waking up again... Learning more, forgetting more. Sigh.

"I think the gods are the same as us" she added "they have ups and downs. I wish to believe that, anyway" She chuckled warmly "I think others focus on the bad more than the good at times" Sometimes it could be said for anyone "but there are so many deities for each religion. There are bound to be some bad ones."

@Camillia

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Different sets of gods, what did she mean by that? Were all gods not related? Camillia had only known vaguely of gods in her past life. It was strange to think that there were so many out there that there had to be different groups. She looked at the stars again, trying to imagine how many gods there could be. Suddenly Nikita’s knowledge seemed much more amazing to Camillia.

“The same as mortals,” she whispered at Nikita’s words. It was strange to think of gods as anything but superior to mortals in every way. Never making mistakes, always perfect. But were gods more similar to mortals than Camillia had originally thought? “Aren’t their evil gods? I suppose gods can’t be perfect if gods disagree on things.” Camillia thought out loud, perfection couldn’t compete with perfection. It was the unstoppable force against an immovable object. They couldn’t both be right. "I was not raised to learn about or worship the gods, so this is all new territory for me," Camillia said with a soft smile in the direction of the other wolf.

@Nikita
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"Evil..."

Nikki murmured, searching her memory for talk of the bad. Honestly, she thought every god had the capacity to be both benevolent and malicious. It depended on their mood and the actions that they took. "It depends on the, ah, pantheon" she added to the curious @Camillia "that means there are different 'sets' of gods. One could be for one religion. One is another. I think... where I came from, there were pantheons for almost every different culture."

She paused, frowning. Clearly a bit disgruntled she remembered so much about religious beliefs, constellations and stories - but lacking the fine details of her own life. Her frown disappeared at her new friend's admission. "I don't think I worship any specific god" she admitted too "there are so many... so there is no right or wrong answer, I think? I just spread their names, their stories."

Maybe it was fickle of her?

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Pantheons… The word sounded familiar in Camillia’s consciousness, perhaps she had heard it before in relation to the gods. Hearing that @Nikita did not worship any particular god made Camillia feel good. She enjoyed talking with someone with similar views. It especially calmed Camillia to hear that Nikita found no right or wrong answer in their choice.

She had heard that some forced their religion on others. The thought upset her. “While learning, has any tried to coerce you to worship their pantheon?” She asked worriedly. “I do not enjoy confrontation, through words or physical actions. So the idea of someone forcing ideas onto me is frightening.” Camillia added, sharing her own feelings on the subject. She shifted her paws as if physically uncomfortable.
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"I can't remember, to be honest."

It was one of those locked memories. Would the right key ever turn it? She recalled some were happy to teach her. Others would be less so, but she suspected that was because of the person and not the belief. She shrugged in the end, visible for @Camillia to see.

"I think if you are true to your convictions, even if you are under duress... You never truly are converted."

Nikki hoped that was enough to calm and soothe her companion. "Most apostles wish for willing followers. They gain nothing by hesitance and lack of belief." She certainly was turned away if someone pressured her, but she didn't think most would preach and demand successfully.

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Camillia was surprised to hear that @Nikita couldn’t remember something like that. It seemed a simple enough question for an unusual enough event, so it remained a mystery to her. Perhaps when Nikita arrived she had lost some of her memories. Camillia decided to go with this. It didn’t sound like the starry wolf wanted to broach that subject so she left it alone.

“I wonder if my convictions are strong enough to resist them,” Camillia said softly, watching the stars glimmer and shine. “I am only just being freed from one set of beliefs, I do not want to fall into another’s hooves- I mean paws, so quickly.” The thought caused the monochromatic wolf to become downcast for a moment, but she quickly resolved herself. Hopefully, she could take inspiration from Nikita.

Camillia’s brain was thoroughly worked over and she was beginning to feel sleepy. She let loose a big yawn, wide enough to fully show her teeth. “Oh excuse me,” She said embarrassedly. “Perhaps the next time we meet, which I feel like we will, we can discuss herbs and I can teach you something. Unfortunately, my knowledge is rather slim, but a good conversation could be had.” Camillia said, giving Nikita an honest smile. She stood up and shook herself off, preparing to leave.

- Exit Camillia -
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She smiled kindly. "Of course!" Nikki huffed with amusement, but also conviction "you seem a strong person, @Camillia - do not doubt yourself, okay?" Else she'd... have to tackle her! Nibble her ears, tickle her until Camillia told her that what she knew to be true. Okay, she was terribly bad at being... bad.

But her new friend was sleepy. She nodded, dismissing her so the woman could find a place to sleep. "Farewell!" she chirped, curly tail wagging frantically "I would love to learn some herbs from you." It was not something strengthened in her, but Nikki did have a curiosity about it. And anything else about the natural world.

"Sleep well." She would add this, allowing Camillia to go. Her eyes trained back to the night sky. Ah, yes. A new friend and an old friend, properly introduced at last.

/end

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