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| Artist | jolteon [gallery] |
| Time spent | 7 hours, 26 minutes |
| Drawing sessions | 5 |
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extras: optional, 1000 words + 5 art pieces can be used!mutations:
pupiless eyes - rare
mutant tail - event rare
hello I am tiny and you can’t read me!
hello I am font and you can’t read me! 




but he who dares not grasp the thorn should never crave the rose



A strange gray viscet approached the entrance of the cave he resided in, blinking sleep from his eyes. He woke up to the sounds of something’s paws shuffling the pebbles outside. Not many viscets come around these parts he resides in - which further piqued his curiosity - though he didn't want any others around.
The last thing he needed or wanted were visitors. He knows they would inevitably rely on him for support and food, and he definitely didn’t need another mouth to feed. A couple of months ago, a viscet came around during a particularly deadly storm. He didn’t want to seem rude, so he hesitantly took them under his wing. It only took several weeks before they were useless, hardly assisting him with any of his hunts and eating more and more of their food. At one point he could hardly stand it anymore and forced them out of his home. He would admit, it hurt a little to live alone again, but it hurt more attempting to sustain himself and another viscet.
As he arrived at the mouth of the cave, the sound stopped. It was unsettling how quietly it suddenly was, putting him on edge. Upon closer inspection, he noticed a hole halted in the process of being dug. It wasn’t there last night, and surely what he heard must’ve caused it. Looking around, no other viscets appeared to be present. That unsettled him. Alert now he scrutinized his territory more looking for any signs of where they could have gone. By the time he was returning to his cave, he had his answer. When he was still in the bushes, he spotted a viscet quickly approaching his home. They wore a worried expression as they dipped down, stopping by the hole he noticed earlier. They began digging into the ground with one paw while the other held something close to their chest. Under their breath, they muttered indescribable words.
He lifted his lip in a slight snarl. He didn’t take lightly to tampering with his territory, let alone someone littering right by his cave. Without hesitation, he left his cover.
“Stop what you’re doing!” He snapped, lips lifted to show his teeth. At the sound of his voice, they jumped, whipping around to face him.
“I, um-” she stumbled over her words and fumbled with something in her paws. “Here! T-take it!”
The viscet chucked the shiny object at him, turning tail and running. With lucky reflexes, he caught it, but before he could even say another word she had disappeared.
He only could see the true details of what she had been fussing over when he finally held it in his own paws. It appeared to be a polished oval gem, encompassed in a golden frame. Something felt so off about it, causing a part of him to scream to drop it immediately. His curiosity was overwhelming it, though, and unfortunately, he didn’t listen to his gut. Only moments after examining it, pain shot through his body, coming from a source somewhere on his side. With a quick glance, there appeared to be nothing causing it despite what he felt.
It wasn’t too long before that pain was followed by more, surrounding him. He looked down at his chest and finally saw the thick, gnarled branches wrapping their arms around him. Deadly thorns jutted out in all directions, making his stomach twist as he only was able to look on in horror. He could hardly move, and the sight of something so frightening less than an inch from his flesh made him sick with panic.
As they finished constricting, he finally felt some sort of peace. The brambles weren’t completely encompassing his body, but now he was restricted with his movements.
When he began to relax, his mind returned to the gemstone that started it all. He lifted his lip in a snarl. He must have been given an enchanted item, and surely the optimal way to rid himself of the thorn branches would be disposing of the gem. As he thought over his reasoning he began to make his way towards a lake near his home. Holding his arms in the same position the entire time during a walk or run didn’t hinder him much, but holding the gem between his paws was difficult considering the brambles around them. Something deep down inside him hopes this wouldn’t last too long.
He approached the lake’s bank, carefully stepping down the small slope to the water and halting when he reached it. “Hope this will be the end of it,” he muttered to himself and held the gem up. With a quick, sharp flick he chucked it into the center of the lake, watching it sink rapidly to the bottom. Expectantly he looked down to see if anything changed, but to his dismay and fear, nothing did. He groused and kept his gaze low in disappointment.
Everything abruptly blinked to black, causing him to reel in shock. What once was a beautiful lush lake with green forest became empty and cold. A gentle orange glow approaching him caught his attention and he braced himself for whatever was coming. As the source finally reached him, he opened his eyes wider and took in the sight of another viscet before him. She appeared to be the culprit.
“Oh, too bad you’re the next one, Myzie would have liked you. Tsk tsk,” Her voice pierced his mind. As she spoke she circled him, chiding him and his current state.
“Myzie?” He spat and showed his sharp teeth to her. “Wait, what do you mean next?”
“You haven’t figured it out yet? You’ve been cursed, boy!”
He hated that joyous look she had.
“Nothing? You don’t want to find out how to lift it?” The last words teased him and he bristled slightly.
“Tell me how.” He commanded, but she only smirked in a taunting manner. The viscet stepped close to him, in front of his face and finally held a serious expression.
“Heed my words boy, I will only speak them once. When you bear blooming flowers, no longer the curse will power. Have fun,” before he could press her further, the darkness vanished, her along with it. A fading laugh echoed through his head, causing him to wince.
With a grunt, he readjusted to his surroundings. The light was jarring compared to the dark, but what shocked him more was exactly how to lift his curse. ‘Flowers?’ He thought and peered around at his surroundings. Not many grew by his home, so the next best place to go would be numerous miles away. His only option would be to travel however far it took to find one of those civilized communities.
The thought made him cringe slightly, as he didn’t enjoy the company of other viscets well. Packs were too reckless and often were taken over by larger groups. Communities overwhelmed him, as he was too anxious to figure out how to communicate well with large groups of viscets. All he knew was the quiet outdoors of his current home and interactions with occasional strangers. Those were situations he thought himself to be adequate with.
His stomach twisted as he accepted his only option. He didn’t find a need to bring much with him, as it would be difficult considering the brambles and he will need to carry flowers, which were more important. Whatever it took to release him from his new cage. That was the only positive aspect of this whole situation that he could see and it served as his only drive forward at this moment.
After traveling for several miles, the sun had mostly descended through the sky and his legs ached. He wasn’t used to coming this far from home, as he normally foraged or hunted within several miles away. Wherever he was going was definitely much further than that. All of that was forgotten, though, when he laid eyes on a village. Gentle light emitted from its direction, drawing him in.
It was only in this moment he realized he needed to conceal his identity. From where he observed, he noticed several stands set up with masks and different other objects. Viscets walking through the town seemed to be dressed up strangely. He grimaced, unsure how much he would stand out from the crowds. Perhaps if he was quick enough, he could snatch one of the masks to use. His only other option would be to wait for the viscet running it to take a break, as he didn’t have any of their currency or items of worth.
He was determining how fast he could snatch a mask when the viscet left the stand, forcing his second plan into action.
Light on his feet, he dashed through the foliage and halted at the edge. Quietly he tailed a group of viscets and pretended to be with them, taking in more of his surroundings. As soon as they passed the stand he glanced around for any possible witnesses to his theft. Other viscets hardly paid him any mind, instead of chatting to one another in small groups. The coast was clear, and he had the most perfect opportunity.
With a swift movement, he grabbed a mask - a skull one - and hustled away to tail another group. By the time the viscet would have returned, he was long gone.
He felt somewhat more relaxed wearing the odd mask. It concealed his identity, allowing him to draw less attention than he would’ve before. As he looked around, he took note of several places growing flowers. One, in particular, lied in someone’s backyard. A garden that was filled to the brim with a large, beautiful variety of flowers. Many shades of oranges, yellows, pinks, and blues drew his attention from the life around him.
He found his first target.
--
Alani finished ushering the last of the other viscets from her home, not looking forward to the amount of cleaning she would need to do. At least she wouldn’t have other worries for the next couple of days, but it was strange having so little otherwise to do. She was used to the busy life, and feeling suspiciously relaxed put her on edge.
As she cleaned the cluttered table, she let out a gentle sigh. Maybe tonight could be better considering the break. How could she fully unwind? The only solution that came to her mind consisted of trying a paw at writing and drinking warm tea.
Everything seemed just fine for once, leaving her to curl up with tea, paper, and a pen. Once the pen hit the paper, a loud noise startled her into scrawling a line down the paper. She cursed softly, feeling her feathers beginning to rise in alarm. Did that come from her garden? The realization caused a surge of adrenaline as she leapt from her spot and raced to the back door. Grabbing one of her lanterns and slowly opening it, she couldn’t see far at first after being in the light so long.
Taking several steps forward, her eyes were finally able to readjust to the dim light. There she saw him, an odd viscet with a slightly different silhouette. Moonlight bathed them both in a soft light blue, lighting some of his features but not comparing much to his gaze. His eyes were unique, glowing shades of vibrant yellows and pinks. Alani was stunned for a minute, but when her eyes took in the sight of him holding a pawful of her flowers she snapped.
What came next was seething pain and rage. He had taken her marigold flowers.
--
He stood like a statue, somewhat guilty of his actions. In his paws, he held a cluster of golden yellow flowers. Across the small garden stood the other viscet, who seemed lost for a few moments before he saw her feathers bristle. They were just flowers, why did she care so much about them?
“Who do you think you are?” Her voice dripped with anger, almost making him step back.
He didn’t have a name, or at least he hadn’t for a long while. After his silence, she spoke again.
“Why?” It was a cracked whisper, full of hurt. His curiosity kept his gaze locked with hers, lost as to why she was like this. She went silent again, expression softening when she noticed the gnarled brambles trapping him. He grew self-conscious and dropped his gaze to the dirt. He knew he should have left when he knocked the bucket over.
“You’re not from around here, are you? I would’ve believed that was a costume but you look like you’ve been cursed.” Her tone was sympathetic and almost forgiving. All he could make himself do was nod in response, and she took in a breath, causing his anxiety to rise.
“Would you like to come inside at all? Maybe I could help you,” he hesitated to answer her offer, unsure of her. Then again, she would have tried something by now if she had ill intentions. Slowly he nodded again, and she didn’t skip a beat as she whipped back around to open the back door. Maybe it would be okay, and the whole interaction could turn out for the better. Or, he would find another reason to return and stay at home.
When he went through the door, the light hurt his eyes at first, but he managed. She promptly offered him a seat at her table, which he paused before finally taking. He couldn’t help but feel somewhat cautious around her still. “So,” she began as she made more tea, “you don’t have a name at all? Nothing you have gone by?”
“No,” he croaked, glancing between her and the table. “If I had to go by one…” he grew quiet as he thought, “Claude.”
“Well, Claude, I’m Alani. What’s your curse, and what caused it if I may ask?”
“Someone crossed into my territory, left an enchanted item.” He paused to recall. “Another viscet met me in some sort of dream, and said… ‘when you bear flowers, no longer the curse will power’ or something like that.”
“That definitely explains you crossing into my garden. Those were my father’s marigolds,” she trailed off, bringing two mugs of hot tea over.
“Sorry,” he murmured sheepishly, not making any attempts to meet her gaze.
“It’s alright. Not all of them are ruined at least. About your curse though, so you interpreted it as stealing flowers? To wear?” She looked at him, thinking while she anticipated his answer. He nodded and still refused to look up, feeling even more embarrassed when she said it out loud. "May as well give it a try, now."
For a brief moment, he met her gaze. He still felt guilty for ruining something personal to her, despite the harsh odds of the plan not working in the first place. The least he could do was try it for her, so it wasn't all in vain. Claude stood up from the table, plucking out some of the marigolds and staring at them for a moment. Then he began to place them in the shape of a flower crown , perching them atop his mask. Several others he placed in various spots on the brambles caging him. For just a moment he was hopeful, believing something may indeed result from this.
Nothing happened.
A minute or two of silence passed, and he finally gave up hope. At the least he knew it wouldn't have worked now, but the action still felt vain. Claude looked at Alani, who seemed to be watching him, anticipating some sort of response or reaction. He shook his head and she couldn't quite meet his gaze for a few minutes after that. He felt miserable, so he took his spot back at the table and made an attempt to start up a conversation. It was frightening at first, fearing she wouldn't respond or would completely ignore him altogether. She at least had the decency to respond, and after a while they picked up pace.
Claude was surprised how interesting some of her stories were, even if they were about flowers. Some even involved her father. She seemed somewhat more upbeat talking about her childhood, which helped him relax. He wanted to make up what he did, even if it meant simply chatting with her for a while. It was odd even to him to want such a thing, as he'd usually take his leave and push everyone away instead of attempting to fix it. He even smiled a couple times.
When it came time to leave, they said their goodbyes and Claude went on his way. His tired legs could hardly hold him through the miles, but before he realized it, he made it home. That night he slept well, but something happened that shocked him. In his dreams he found himself in an empty void again, yet this time it was much lighter and less ominous. A long haired viscet approached him, the long mane swaying and trailing behind her. He couldn't find it in himself to be on edge, and he almost felt relaxed by her presence. She smiled warmly.
"I'm proud of you, and I wish I could have come sooner. You don't need to know who I am, or why, but I'm here to lift your curse. You've met the conditions," she closed her eyes and lifted a paw, emitting a strange type of mist from them. It swirled around him, reaching into the branches and suddenly their vice-like grip released him.
Claude turned his head to see what changed, surprised to see flowers on him again. Each and every one of them was in the same place as they were yesterday. This time, they were pink and gold, and shimmered gently in the light. By the time he turned to thank her, the void disappeared with her along in it, leaving him giddy and relieved. He thought of visiting Alani to tell her the news, and for once in a long, long time,
he felt things would be okay again.
wip







You can call me, Mint or Minty.
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