He was oblivious to the effect his presence had on the darkened stranger; he was far too busy getting a closer look at him. The blackness seemed to stretch out endlessly, from the muzzle rising several inches above his own, down his body and into the tail that seemed as if it would never end. It swallowed in the light, ensnaring it so that he simply appeared as what Ipomoea had first mistaken him for: a single, three-dimensional shadow. One with the ability to move and breathe and talk, albeit brokenly. Only the bits of gold layering his topmost feathers seemed to break the spell, glistening brightly against his otherwise muted hide.
It was his voice which caused Ipomoea to realize he was staring, pulling his attention away from the vast expanse of hair and back to this Damascus’ face, zeroing in on the gold protruding at the end. He wondered if it had been his own choice to pinch and puncture the skin; were there people who did so willingly? He wasn’t sure. He certainly did not remember consenting to his.
”Damascus,” he tested the name, rolling it slowly off his tongue as though saying it aloud might settle it into his memory, liking the sound of it. It made him wish to show off his own, hoping it could compare. ”I’m Ipomoea!”
Flower I seen no, but help you I can. His disappointment came and went in an instant, a brief flash eclipsed instantly by the offer. Po was accustomed to help, expected it even; he wasn’t going to begin turning it down now, especially knowing he had made it here on his own. That feat was enough of an accomplishment for him, and the more pairs of eyes to look the faster the search might be. ”It’s supposed to be really beautiful, it blooms at night,” he insisted, a sense of urgency in his tone promising the search would be well worth the effort.
Damascus’ excitement seemed contagious, his addition spurring Po’s search on. He followed him eagerly, being sure to keep a spare length between the two in order to cover more ground. His spotted head swung back and forth in no particular pattern, cerise eyes scanning the cliff top as quickly as he dared, lest he miss the small green buds from which the blue-centered petals would unfurl. But only a moment later, he found his attention was quickly shifted once again to his new helper in astonishment.
”You fell? From way up there? How, why? How far?” He couldn’t stop the hoard of questions, not bothering to think they might be too invasive or insensitive. A glance was given to the sky, noticing as if the first time just how vast it was. The possibility that it might go on forever alongside the ocean seemed far more plausible.
@Damascus
