Bea plucked a bunch of rotund blueberries, and popped one into their mouth. "Wow. These are way better than the shit they're sellin' at the store." They stared up at the trees, sprawling out over the clearing. Apples, apricots, and a few other fruits that Bea had no idea existed were perched among the branches. They hopped up to grab them, only to miss by a few inches. "Jeez, this is a workout."
Flick watched Bea with an amused expression for a bit and eventually stepped forward to assist in gathering food. He hummed for a moment, considering how they could get the fruit down, and then rammed his antlers into the trunk of the tree. It seemed to be pretty effective, as it caused a few fruits to fall to the ground. They continued looking around and gathering things that they knew were good to eat.
Bea audibly laughed when Flick rammed into the tree. "Well, that works too." They picked up the fruits and put them into a pile. "You sure we can carry all this back to the barn?" The forest was soon becoming even more familiar than the shack…it was an almost surreal experience. Like something inside Bea had been replaced by something better. Not to mention, Flick was a blast to hang out with.
"Mm… well, even if we can't, we can just take another trip!" Flick smiled brightly and gathered fruits into his arms, seeming content for the moment. God, how they'd missed having company. He'd been alone for so long, so naturally he was overjoyed to have Bea with him, even if it was to perform everyday tasks. "It's really nice in the forest. I think you'll like it here, Bea."
Bea chuckled. "I think so too. It all just feels…comfy" They too began carrying the fruits, following Flick's lead. "I'm not sure I'll ever go back to the shack, other than to pick up Larry." Bea had a bit of a love for that shark, who they had picked up from a seafood stand around 2 years ago. They began to walk back to the barn, signaling for Flick to follow. "I wanna create more of a hangout spot, less of a political bargaining chip, like the shack."
"Mm? Who's Larry?" Flick asked curiously, trotting after Bea with his arms loaded with fruits. They looked around as they walked, making sure that there wasn't anyone following. He did occasionally spot hunters sometimes, so he wanted to be extra careful. "Yeah, a hangout spot would be good. Just people with magic hanging out without worrying about the stupid government or whatever else."
"Oh! I didn't tell you about him. He's just my shark. Not supposed to grow past 6 inches long, though. Didn't you see him yesterday?" They watched Flick look around. Quite honestly, it put them on edge. "Yeah. For sure." As the barn came back into view behind the brigade of towering trees, an odd feeling filled Bea. Almost like a sense of belonging that they had never truly felt. "I'll pick him up tonight after most everyone's asleep."
"A shark? That's interesting." Flick smiled softly, adjusting his hold on the fruit. "I don't remember seeing a shark yesterday, although I suppose I haven't ever actually seen a shark before. Where are you going to put him?" They asked. Once they reached the barn, he put down the fruit somewhere safe and looked around to see what else needed to be done. He definitely needed to finish the table, but they were still a bit tired.
"Probably next to my hammock, hehe. His tank's only three feet long, so it shouldn't take up all that too much space." Bea took a bite out of one of the apples. Still, it tasted bounds better than anything bought from a store. "He's not the traditional shark. Got crazy patterns, and he's teeny tiny." They looked over at the table. "You think I could finish that? Maybe you could show me how."
"Sounds good to me." Flick shrugged and stuck a handful of berries in his mouth. They looked over at Bea's question and tilted their head from side to side a bit. "Ah… to be honest, I don't really know what I'm doing either. I'm sorta taking advantage of the fact that wood is included in nature magic, so I'm figuring it out that way. You're welcome to give it a go if you want, though."
Bea took a look at the table, then looked back to Flick. "I'm not sure…I wouldn't wanna mess it up, anyway." They sat in their hammock, humming an oddly familiar tune. "Have you ever had any friends…family…anyone out here? You must've had parents at some point, right?"
Flick nodded and sat beside the table to get to work on it. He wanted to try and have it finished before dark. At the question, they winced and paused their magic for a moment. "Ah… well… yeah. It used to be very busy in the forest. I lived with my parents and sister, and my friends were always around. A group of hunters came through one day, though, and… well… there aren't very many of us left. Those of us who survived scattered throughout the forest, and we don't really run across each other much, if at all."
(Bump)