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Whiskers twitched as the scent of dead wood and charred earth tickled the bard's nose as she moved through the burned forest. Paws still wet from crossing a nearby stream picked up bits of dirt and ash as she slowly meandered deeper into the forest. Around her a mist was forming, not fully rain but something akin to a drizzle beginning to pick up as day faded towards evening and light began to dim around her. It was as if something was drawing her forward. A sense of opposing forces each beckoning her attention overwhelmed her - yet she could not identify one side or the other as she explored. Maybe it was just her imagination as she roamed, a busy mind seeking out inspiration for darker tales in a creepy forest. She couldn't say that she was particularly scared of the forest as she went, more intrigued than anything. What lurked in the coming dark? Rolling wildsevent 1d13: 4 An eerie blue flame seems to appear and hover before you. It’s almost like it wants you to follow it. Will you see where it leads you or turn your back on it?

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Between the out-of-place undergrowth and the engorged pumpkins, Genesis found recent events to be awfully curious. Orei's confidence had told her that this had been going on for awhile, leaving her feeling rather disappointed that she was so late to the party. Not that she should have regretted it. After all, she had hardly wasted her time, having merely spent it furthering her studies and her work. Then again, when she tried to convince herself that that was a good reason for being blinded to the magic happening around her, she could not help feeling a little...lame.

So, when during her stroll her thoughts were cut off by a flash of blue, Genesis gave it her full attention, finding herself both amazed and delighted by the sight. It glowed and hovered in front of her almost beckoningly, attempting to lead her toward a cluster of charred trees. Against her better judgment, the pale healer chose to follow it, stubbornly refusing to put her blinders on this time around.

Genesis followed it--and followed it--until along with it she spotted another walking the same path just a ways up ahead. Her own face lit up with recognition, and she called out excitedly, hoping to catch her attention before she missed the wisp floating by (and perhaps hoping she actually saw it too). "Hey! @Rose! It's me, Genesis!" she greeted before bounding to catch up with her. "Look! I...think it's trying to show me something."

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Ears flickered as she picked up on the sound of another behind her. She turned to look just as @Genesis called to her. Hi Genesis! she greeted before her eyes locked into the wisp she was following. Wow! Maybe it’s a spirit that needs help? she suggested as she moved to fall into line next to the smaller (but not that much smaller) lioness. May I follow with you? she asked. She wouldn’t mind catching up with the other lioness - to see how she’s been since she’d spotted her at the wedding fiasco. A strange pride scent she couldn’t place lingered on her. They could wait as the flickering blue orb urged them forward though. Whatever could it be leading them too?

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There might have been a point, before Amaryllis, at which Genesis would have responded to @Rose's declaration with a blink and a tilt of her head. However, talk of spirits hardly fazed her now. She had not seen much yet, but she had seen more than enough to be convinced that these lands were alive in ways that were incomprehensible to the mortal eye. So, when the spotted woman caught up with her and asked if they could follow it, she nodded fervently and stepped aside, as if to welcome her at her side. "Of course!"

Anyway, Genesis would be fooliah to investigate this alone. Not that either she or Rose could (or should) necessarily count on each other for defense, but she was eager to have a supportive presence all the same. Not to mention how relieved she was to get to see Rose up close and in one-piece.

She moved, then, with a mixture of curiosity and apprehension, following the wisp as it lit the surrounding air in a dim blue glow. Eventually, it revealed, strewn haphazardly about the ashen ground...pumpkins! Genesis' features contorted into a look of suspicion as she approached one of the orange gourds and placed a paw on it. Last she had encountered one it had spelled a sticky situation for her and Orei, as harmless as it had been. Tossing a glance at Rose she said: "I wonder what's in these?"

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Rose eagerly joined @Genesis as they both followed the bobbling blue bulb through the ash covered forest. The burnt trees were rather creepy as they progressed farther into the scorched woods, and she may have subconsciously taken a step or two closer to the other lioness.

As the blue flame seemed to take them to where it had intended and the orange squash became visible she tilted her head toward them. Oh, strange! Have you seen one of these before? she asked, taking a step closer. She hadn’t yet had the pleasure of encountering a pumpkin - let’s see what this had in store for them!

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double, double toil and trouble;
fire burn, and cauldron bubble...

Nafasi watches from the bushes, never once letting herself be seen by those huddled around her perfectly-placed pumpkins. They really were a curious bunch, weren't they? But, unfortunately for them, the sprite was feeling extra mischievous today, and had a trick up her sleeve! And so, with a small grin, the being tilted her maw down towards the earth, eyes glowing, before she gave a pointed flicker of her tail and brought her vision to life in the process.

Uh oh...

The pumpkin beneath you beings to vibrate before decaying and collapsing in on itself. Seconds later, what looks to be thousands of spiders begin to crawl out of every crevice of the oozing pumpkin, skittering across the earth in a leg-filled frenzy. By your next breath, the ground is completely covered in those gross, ghastly bugs - and judging by the way that they're moving towards you, you just might be next!

Hesitant to answer @Rose's question, Genesis only stared at her for a moment as she tried to come up with a safe response. "I have, actually. Once. But it"--her lips pursed in thought as she looked back at the pumpkin--"it wasn't an ordinary plant. It harbored a storm inside." In the end, despite her burning curiosity, she simply could not keep the other woman in the dark for the purpose of her own satisfaction. That was assuming Rose did not think her crazy for the claim she spewed. Nonetheless, she wanted to offer her an out, just in case.

She surprised her, though, by coming forward to investigate, leading Genesis to do the same. However, this gourd did not give them the opportunity to break it open. Instead, it practically disintegrated before their eyes, rotting from the inside out and collapsing onto itself in a heap of dust and goo...freeing an outpour of--

Spiders!?

An uncharacteristic noise burst out of the young healer, then, a mix between a scream and a roar as she lurched backward and flailed each of her limbs in turn, nearly shouldering Rose in her attempt to place distance between herself and the cursed creatures.

A blizzard would have been much more preferable.

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Rose’s eyes grew wide as @Genesis told her of the pumpkin she’d found with a storm trapped within it. Fascinating! she exclaimed, turning her head back towards the orange object and inching her way a few steps closer with an intense fascination. Her jaws parted in a wide smile as she could swear the squash began to move. That smile quickly turned first to confusion as she realized it wasn’t just moving but rapidly decaying in front of them, and then to sheer horror as hundreds upon hundreds of eight legged beasts began to pour from it and move towards them.

She didn’t notice Genesis’s cry of anguish - it was too drowned out by her own scream of terror as she too scrambled backwards, tripping and stumbling over her own limbs. Her fluffy coat was practically standing on end as she began a mad dash, yelling at the pale colored woman but not daring to look back as she moved. Run Genesis! Death is upon us! dramatic, but was it really overly dramatic? She thought not!

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