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 Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 1:00 pm
Shadow and the Soul came to a stop and plonked himself down on his haunches, watching curiously. "What do you need me to do?" he asked, thoughtfully. He wasn't certain this was going to work... but he definitely wanted it to, if only to see Ghost happy.
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 1:16 pm
"Set the mushrooms to the side, and find the rock in there. I need to start carving the circle, " Ghost Orchid told him as she cleared the spot under the trees. "Then I need the first bunch in the basket spread around the circle."
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 1:36 pm
Turning the shell over so he could dump it out and more easily get to the contents, Soul picked up the rock and passed it to Ghost, then found the first bundle as she'd indicated. "This one?" he asked, poking at it with one hoof.
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 2:17 pm
"Nuh-uh, the one to the left. The fronds," Ghost said around the rock she was carving into the soggy ground. She finished the circle quickly, if not perfectly, and picked up the bundle Soul had indicated. "These," she said, "go in the circle, evenly spread. Then the last is separated half and half, around and in, and then we eat the mushrooms and call Ghost Thistle."
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 2:41 pm
Fronds, fronds... there they were. Soul helped to spread the fronds about as Ghost had told him to do, then started on the last bundle, placing everything carefully. "Are you sure you still want me to try the mushrooms? Would you rather I watched from outside the circle?"
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 5:19 pm
"If you take them as well, you can back up everything that happens. Or at least, that's what I'm hoping, anyway," Ghost said as she scooped the mushrooms back into the bowl. "Now we eat some, call for Ghost Thistle, and wait!"
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 5:43 pm
Soul had a feeling this was going to be a very interesting evening... He glanced up at Ghost, then nosed at the turtleshell full of mushrooms. "So which ones are we starting with? Since I'm doing this too, it seems."
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 5:50 pm
Ghost cocked her head thoughtfully, then shrugged. "I don't think it matters; I say just grab whichever one you want. I'm trying the purple one first, then a red, then a brown and the white." She proceeded to eat the purple mushroom, humming at the pleasant taste, then bit daintily into the bigger reddish capped mushroom.
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 7:02 pm
There was very little Soul remembered, once he woke up. There had been colors; he remembered that much. Beyond the colors... No, there was nothing but the colors. And weird sensations. And there was Ghost, tangled up with him in ways that had Soul a little... concerned. Lifting his head muzzily, he stared at their tangled state, attempting to make sense of things.
...What in the world had happened?
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 7:24 pm
Ghost raised her aching head, barely missing Soul's jaw as she yawned and winced. Apparently those white mushrooms could do some damage.
...Had it worked? She searched her mind, looking for a gray-coated doe with red eyes....plenty of red, but no does. Just some foggy memories of...oh dear. That would explain the position she and Soul were currently in. Hmm.
"Good morning? Did we do what I think we did?"
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 7:53 pm
"...I think we did," Soul mused, feeling his whole body flush as he tried to untangle himself. "I think, anyway. Uh. Maybe those mushrooms weren't meant to be ingested in quite that combination?" Oh, this was embarrassing.
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 7:58 pm
"Probably not," she agreed, then moaned as fresh pain lanced through her head. "And the ritual didn't work. Gonna have to go through the legends again, see what they say about Thistle." Something tweaked in her mind, a hint of something that narrowed her eyes and shot a potent mix of rage and utter despair through her veins. "Of course it didn't work. It was never going to work, because she wasn't named 'Ghost' Thistle, she was just 'Thistle'!" Ghost Orchid slumped back down--not very far, she was still sort of trapped by Soul's weight, and he wasn't a meager buck by any means--and buried her head in her forelegs in a mirror of her actions yesterday.
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 8:08 pm
Soul watched Ghost for a long moment... then butted his head gently against hers before settling closer against her side. "Chin up," he murmured, his tail wrapping around hers. "It'll be okay. Maybe it was supposed to happen like this. There's always something to be learned, even when it seems a mistake has been made."
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 8:14 pm
"Oh, there was a mistake all right. Those damned white mushrooms! Remind me to steer clear of those in the future?" she asked as she returned his head butt with a somewhat chagrined nuzzle. "And hey, I did get a new friend out of this whole thing, and a lot of information. And maybe kids!" The last thought brought her up short. "Kids. Oh dear. What do I do with kids? Do I want kids? Do you want kids?" Ghost was just short of panicking--again--when a thought hit her. "Hey, if I do have kids, they're easy test subjects! Sweet!" No one ever said Ghost was going to be the greatest mother the Swamp had ever seen.
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2011 8:24 pm
"You are not testing your drugs on our children," Soul countered firmly, before a wry laugh escaped and he rubbed his cheek against hers. "Though I fear for them -- between my dream and your drugs, I think they're kind of doomed." He did want kids, though, he had to be honest with himself -- the idea was quite appealing. Little ones with a mix of his coloring and Ghost's...
...Though hopefully less with the interest in experimentation with certain fungi.
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