Child of Nightmares and Everfree is now born · 2:22pm Oct 14th, 2016
The story is now complete at ten total chapters including a lot of polishing on Chapter 1, and will begin to be published one chapter per day starting on October 14 (Today, yea!) and ending when I’ve torn the living hearts out of my readers with a flood of tears or I hit Chapter 10, whichever comes first.
Mama says be careful. The bats are out tonight. And they’re hungry.
~^^~
(From EqD's Pumpkin Carving contest)
Mama sat for a long time, her black eyes blinking frequently as she looked away from her little child. Dee knew her own green eyes were different from the rest of The Folk, as well as her malformed hands and feet, and her odd face. She had always known her mother would love her no matter how strange and out of place she seemed, but there was something different about Mama this morning. Dee tunneled into the warm chest hair and brushed the side of Mama's face with her odd rigid hand, so wishing she had long, thin fingers like the rest of The Folk so she could fit in with them. There were times when she felt so alone, even inside Home with hundreds of other Folk and the warmth of Mama enfolding her. During those trying times, she would sit on a dry branch outside of Home and stare up at the moon, trying to make sense of the dark patterns on the surface that stirred something deep in her chest.
Even that release was gone to her now. One night when the moon had stayed up far too long, the patterns of darkness vanished, and something in Dee's heart twinged with a sensation she had never felt before. It made her itch with curiosity and want to fly there to see what had happened, but she dared not, for the moon was the home of the dreaded Owls. The mere thought of their silent wings and unblinking gaze made Dee hold Mama even tighter, only relaxing again at the reassuring touch of her fingers running through the long and tangled hair on the back of Dee's neck.
"Don't you worry, child. It's time to sleep now, while the Burning covers the forest and the monsters of light come out to eat. When we wake, I will show you something I've been keeping from you for many seasons. It is some distance away, and very dangerous, so you will need your rest. Sleep well, my little one. Do not worry. I will protect you."
"Sleep well, Mama," said Dee, shifting in position as large warm wings enfolded her tightly. "I'm so glad I have you."
"And I'm glad to have you too," said Mama, giving her only child an additional lick across the head to settle down a ruffled clump of her long hair.
It was difficult to sleep upright instead of clinging to the ceiling of their little niche in the giant hollow tree, but Mama had gotten used to it over the last eight seasons. While the rest of The Folk faded into a somewhat noisy slumber, she remained awake for a while with her ears upright, listening intently for the sounds of danger. The Folk had argued strenuously when she had brought Dee back with her, with many of them considering the odd little creature to simply be a snack being kept around for later. Many times over the years, she had nearly lost Dee to the dangers of the forest, but now her daughter was more agile and outgoing than even the most courageous Folk. If the strange hard coverings Dee had instead of hands and feet were not enough, the strange markings she had acquired on her rear during last season only emphasized how different the little batling was from the rest of The Folk.
The warm puffs of breath from Dee ruffled her chest hair, making Mama practice the odd 'smile' she had learned from the little one. It made a blazing warmth fill her body from clawed feet to her wide ears, a fire of determination and happiness at being a part of such a special little batling's life, and nothing was going to separate them.
Nothing.
Ah! More season-appropriate reading to add to my Tracking bookshelf. Thank you!
4255642 Season *and* rating-appropriate, as I fought like heck to keep it as close to E-rated as possible, with the exception of a little bit of ~~^^~~
Drifting Down the Lazy River (Sequel to The One Who Got Away) is going to be similarly E+ rated, with a few minor deviations into... um... deviancy.
The wagon gave a little lurch as the drivers angled themselves downwards, shaking Turpentine out of his musings. Gaberdine had kept up a friendly conversation with the two pegasi during the trip, but Turpentine had been so distracted he had not even studied the way the young pegasi mares’ wings had moved during the trip, even if the stiff breeze of their passage would have prevented him from sketching any motion studies.
He would have dug out his most current sketchbook and tried, if yet another object had not caught his attention and held it firm. The School of Modern Art (because it could not possibly be anything else) sprawled out in an ungainly fashion over several buildings, each of which seemed to be finalists in an Ugly Architects’ contest, with the central and largest one the obvious winner. It was so pink and tan and brown and disfigured that for the longest time during their descent, his mind refused to stick the obvious label on it, but after several exaggerated blinks and a surreptitious glance at the tail ends of the two young pegasi mares pulling the wagon, he had to whisper to Baron Gaberdine.
“Do they know what that building looks—”
“Yes,” said Gaberdine, quite firmly.
“Was it intentional?” he whispered.
“Quite certainly,” said Gaberdine. “Just don’t mention it. To anypony. Ever.”
For shame! Designing a building shaped like a strawberry frosted doughnut? Does their depravity know no bounds? Ban this sick filth!
Mama says be careful. The bats are out tonight. And they’re hungry.
Somehow I was expecting that to be Owls out tonight.
I thought you took this pic from my blog because I did one from the same pattern online.
4447120 Flutterbat is Best Bat
4447143
Adorbs overload.
Dat's one reason I write her in TSJ.