Blackfeather Woods silently he came

@Seff if you still wanted a thread? :D with whichever character you like. :)

Unfeeling he walked through the Woods with a rabbit between his teeth. After the famine, he still looked unhealthily thin, ribs sticking out and eyes sunken in their sockets, giving him a ghostlier appearance than he already had normally. Yet this food was not for him; he was on his way to @Althaia , for he was unsure who cared for her, and reasoned that someone ought to. She had given birth, he'd noticed, and so he would not come too hear the den.

As he reached the den, Cicero dropped the rabbit and chuffed from a short distance to alert her to of his presence. If he'd get no reply, he would just leave it there for her to take and be on his way again.

So sorry for the wait! Is it okay if we date this before Seff's thread with Xan?

spiderling's glenn. a place he hardly visited, and yet today he found himself near it. potema's instruction had done the boy well, and he had a rich instruction and knowledge of herbs- and poisons. today, for amusement, he searched for the later. poisons were bad, this he knew, yet he was curious about them.

he could hardly believe such a small plant could provoke such pain, yet he did not doubt Potema's word. but curiosity had overtaken him, and as he sniffed something he though he recognized as...something-weed, he wondered what would happen if he ate it. just a tiny bit. curiosity was a powerful thing, and as he stared and wondered and thought at the plant, he did not notice the proximity of Cicero, leaving the glenn just a short distance away.

fine for me :)

There was no response from the den, and so Cicero left the rabbit near its edge, clearly intended for its inhabitant; he nosed it as well inside as he could so that it would not attract any predators. It was a shame what had happened to her, really, but he feared she may not find what she was looking for here. But such was the way of life, as it often was.

And so he turned around, banishing the thoughts of Althaia and her children from his mind as he made his way towards the woods. Yet before his departure he noticed there was another child nearby. Ragged ears swung forward as he watched the child look at the plant that he was quick to identify. "Curious?" he asked non-commitally, not encouraging nor discouraging the child from having a bite. The best way to learn was to experience.

He reached forward, nose brushing along the plant as the boy considered. Footsteps had him draw back hurriedly, a voice he had not heard before causing him to swivel around and glance at the other. He was taken aback a moment at the man's odd appearance, the glowing eyes and patchwork fur. He was silent a moment, surprise filtering across his face, before he answered. "Mhm. Potema says...this weed does bad things. But I wanted to know, and I..." he looked to the other for approval, for anything other then a scathing gaze he felt he should be getting. He waited for the other to push him in a direction.

There was no judgement in Cicero's tone of voice nor expression. He simply looked upon the boy neutrally, though a grin cracked through as the boy looked racked with guilt. "Hmm, well informed, then. Yet at times, experiencing is the best way to find out..." Cicero licked his lips as he looked upon the herb, though he did not taste it. Potema would likely not appreciate the example he'd set for the kid.

"But before one tries such a thing, one needs to realise that it has risks and begin small... Or accept the risk of death." The latter was something that Cicero had made peace with long ago. He did not fear death, and he accepted each time he'd eat a new herb that he may die from it.

He grinned,  and spoke, and Seff felt this a somewhat positive reaction to his idea. However, the patchwork male was not finished, and at his next words the boy took a careful step back. Nope. His nervousness was evident as he glanced at the plant, but his curiosity was peaked yet again. 

"How can a plant kill you? Why doesn't grass, of leaves kill you when you eat them?" Confusion and a small amount of nervousness at the plant clouded his features as he looked at the other, for he had no idea why some plants were God and some were bad.

Cicero smirked at the boy's reaction. "No worries, it is only lethal when one eats too much." Certainly was not lethal by just staring at it. Cicero licked his lips and looked at the boy, nodding at his earnest question. "Not all plants are equal. Like there are small and big wolves, and harmless and dangerous wolves, there are also plants with such qualities."

He licked his lips again, feeling the urge to take a bite from the herb, but decided in the end not to. He did not want to set a bad example for Potema's student, for he might not know how to dose as well. He would learn these things eventually, when he was ready, but not from watching Cicero lead by example.

"oh"
he said simply, accepting this explaination easily. he found himself liking this Cicero, and the information he provided. he watched the male carefully, deciding that his nervousness was foolish. questions still swam throughout his mind, and he bent easily to the will to ask them. curiousity still ate at his mind, and he asked the question, "What happens if you ate only a little? would you be sick?" he questioned, looking to the plants a moment. he had no desire to try any now, still put off by the prospect, and he eyed it warily. yet still, he was curious.

The boy seemed to have a never-ending thirst for knowledge that pleased Cicero. He himself was much like that, and he enjoyed teaching others who had similar minds. Instead of answering the question, however, he said: "Some things are best discovered by trial..." He displayed a dry, toothy grin as he added: "... and error."

And he waited to see what the boy would do. He doubted the boy would eat the whole plant; he was cautious enough, his questions betrayed that much. Cicero licked his lips and waited. He remembered well his own curiosity, albeit more reckless than Potema's boy's, on such matters at the boy's age.

The man's arid suggestion had him shift closer to the plant, peering at it curiously. Trial, and error. And though the boy had a great deal of curiousity, he found it of great stupidity to eat a plant that could kill you. And with knowing nothing of the doses, he decided such things would be better learned through observation, first. 

Nevertheless, under Cicero's gaze, the boy sniffed delicately the plant, remembering it well, the scent and the appearence of the deadly thing before him. His gaze looked to Cicero, not quite willing to try the plant and hoping that the male thought no less of him. One day, perhaps. "Thank you, Cicero." He said sincerely, glad that the man had been able to tell him somethings. With a small smile he dipped his head respectfully as he felt he ought to do, and slipped away...wondering at the man who created equal feelings of awe and nervousness within him