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Buko bounded over and under the branches that formed the canopies. He hadn't told anybody about what he was doing, or who he'd seen. He thought that they'd get too curious. He wanted to see the Andalite alone, at least for the moment. He found her very interested. He swung through the branches with one arms clutching a huge pile of grass to his chest. She had given him bark. It only seemed fair that he would offer something in return.
Akari woke earlier than expected, but she could not get back to sleep. She was too excited. She decided to gather up some bark for Buko, but she still had an hour at least to wait. Akari booted up her computer, opening a strategy game.
Buko arrived bright and early, slamming with big tyrannosaurus feet on the woodland substrate. He saw no activity on the more open areas of the scoop, but he ascended the ramp anyway. He looked around, trying to spot her.
She could hear him coming a CV mile away. He wasn’t exactly stealthy. Akari exited her game and clopped our into the open. <Good morning!>
"Hello, Akari!" He said, leaning down to allow her the sight of the enormous mound of grass he'd brought.
That shouldn’t even be there lol
Her eyes widened at the grass, then she giggled, doubling over and clutching her sides. <You... brought me... grass?> She was smiling and laughing, her body shaking with waves of it. <no one has ever brought me grass!>
His smile faded, and he felt a little disheartened. "Is it bad? Do Andalites eat certain types of grass?"
<No!> Her giggling ceased and she smiled brightly. <The grass looks delicious! Thank you.> She picked up hoods bark bundle off the table and headed towards him
He grins, eager to have his own breakfast. "Thank you, Akari. You wished to have breakfast?"
<Yes, but I don’t usually eat here. Here > the bark was transferred to him and she could have sworn he was almost drooling
He takes it in his only free arm and looked back to her. "So where do you eat? Are we going there?"
<There is a meadow just past the river. Come with me!> She trots past him, eager to run today
He watches her pass. Her backside comes into clear view. His eyes trailed on it longer than they would normally. He felt that strange feeling again... He followed her, carrying all the food like a packmule behind her.
He didn’t have to carry it far. She jumped the small stream into the meadow of wildflowers. It wasn’t as big as she would like, but it would do. She dipped a hoof in the stream
He emerged from the trees and stopped before colliding into the back of her. He looked around. He remembered the place vaguely. "This is where you eat?"
<So far, its very close to my scoop and the yellow flowers are delicious. A little sour, but it’s nice.>
He looked to her face, and realized an issue. He almost felt stupid asking it. "How do Andalites eat?"
She lifted her hoof out of the cold stream. <With my hooves Of course.> with another soft smile she headed deeper into the meadow
He followed, still trudging with the food in tow. "Are you going anywhere in particular?"
<No, there is plenty of grass here! >She was moving at a slow trot, unsure of how far he could run. Or if he even liked to run. Apparently most humans hated it. Strange
Thankfully, he seemed to enjoy it about as much as she did, even with the load he was carrying. He stayed behind her all the time, and he watched he a lot.
She stopped after a while. Sitting down on the grass, she waited for him. <That was delicious. I want to try more types of grass >
He stops beside her an blinks, shocked. "I didn't see you eating..."
<I ate plenty, don’t worry.> Akari waited, wondering what having a mouth would be like. She wanted to taste the bark
"So..." He humms and places the pile of grass down before him. He sits and takes one of the pieces of bark.
<Oh! Sorry, I eat like this.> She lifts one hoof and presses it to the grass, crushing it.
He chomps down on a piece of bark and gobbles it down. "So is that all you eat? Grass?"
<Mostly. I can eat leaves too, but who wants to pick them off the poor trees. Eating grass doesn’t kill it, I just absorb some nutrients. Not too much at once. I don’t want to kill it.>
He looked at the third piece of bark before he gobbled it down. "Oh... Do you think it's the same for bark?"
<I’ve never tried... it seems too hard anyway.> She settled her leg back underneath her and was content to sit and talk with him while he ate. <Do you live close to here?>
"Yes. I live north." He pointed to the canopies of the trees. "We live in groups. There are thirty-five in our colony. I've been told that there are many hundreds of colonies."
<Three hundred forty two.> Her stalk eyes raised to the massive trees. She couldn’t imagine being so high. The cold wind blew and Akari shivered again, rubbing her upper arms.
"Oh... You know?" He rubs at his snout, feeling a little embarassed. While chomping down on his next piece of bark, he notices her shivering. "Are you cold here?"
<This planet is very cold. Only one sun... one moon. It gets dark and cold.> She frowned. <I’ve never been very cold on Andal>
"Do you have a quick way to become warmer?" He asked. He assumed that Andalites would have such technology.
<I usually go into my enclosure, but this cold is too much. I might have to go back to the ship. That would be so embarrassing.>
"Why would it be embarrassing?" He asked, before eating some more of his bark. He was going through it speedily.
<Because I would be admitting defeat. I refuse to do that.> She shivered more, her tail curling around herself.
Buko knew that he could help to keep her warm, but he was still wary. The stories he'd heard of Andalites were still haunting him. "Do you need more grass?" He asked, nudging the pile he'd gifted to her.
She grinned and gathered it in her lap. <I’ll save it for later. >
"I hope it's not too much," Buko hummed sheepishly. "I don't know how much Andalites need to eat."
<No! I eat much more than this, but I would hate to kill the grass. I usually eat while i run. Thank you for it > She smiles brightly. <Tell ME about you Buko. You’re so fascinating!>
He smiles and grabs some more bark. "I have one sister, and I live in my parents' tree." He stopped there and continued to grin. It seemed like he felt the answer was enough.
Akari wanted more information, but perhaps she would have to initiate the questions. <What is your favorite tree? Does all bark taste the same?>
"No," He replied. "Not all bark tastes the same. Some are sweeter. Some are more sour. Are you interested in trying some?"
<I wish I could, but I can’t taste like you do. It’s a dream of mine.> She flushes. Why was she telling him. It was an embarrassing thing to say. She began playing with a blade of grass
Buko eats up a few pieces of bark as the pair relaxed by the water. He found himself becoming less anxious around her. After a while, he felt in no danger at all.
<What do you do for fun Buko?> Akari was watching a small grey squirrel with a big bushy tail munching on an acorn overhead.
It was an intriguing question for him, because surely it was obvious! He liked jumping in the trees and finding tasty new bark. Would this Andalite want something less obvious? "Oh... Listening to stories is fun."
<What is that creature Buko?> Akari has thought she might have finally found a good first morph. The creature seemed at home in the trees. It didn’t look too dangerous either...
His eyes followed hers, and he quickly spotted the creature as it spiralled around a nearby trunk. "That's a squirrel." He informed.
<Is it dangerous? It doesn’t look like it.> The squirrel munched happily on its nut, watching them both warily
"Squirrels?" Buko laughed. "No. They're not dangerous at all!"
<Oh! Are they safe to catch? Um.. how would you catch one?>
"It's not very easy. Not at all," He said. "You'd be lucky lucky to be able to catch one."
Her face fell and she went back to playing with the grass.<Oooh. Okay.> She would have to find another way to climb the trees. She could stun it, but she didn’t have a shredder. Maybe a trap?
Buko was very curious. "Why would you want to catch one?"
<It’s hard to explain.> She stood, walking slowly near the edge of the stream. Akari began collecting small nuts from along the water. Maybe I could trap one >
"Trap?" He hummed to himself. The reasons behind trapping a squirrel were a mystery to Buko, but he sat back to watch. His eyes remained glued to her backside for quite some time.
<I’ll have to make this later. How would one trap a squirrel..> She has the bait... but she had never had to trap an animal before. Hmm..
Buko grew bored and came to stand beside her, watching her hands as they twiddled over the bait. "I still don't understand..."
She dropped the acorns and proposed them with her hoof. <I wanted to be able to climb. To be up in the trees >
"How will catching a squirrel help?"
<I could... well... I could become a squirrel. For a little while.> She wasn’t sure how to explain it to him
A thought flew back into his mind. It was a memory from some story he'd heard. "Wait! I've heard about this. Andalites can change their form!"
That surprised her. <Where did you hear that? Do you read books Buko?> Akari loved books. Something About them excited her. She loved the smell of the old pages. Her favorite were the human books made for teaching how to cook. That’s how she figured out how to mix the sap
"Only when I can find them," He explained. "But no, I heard about that from stories."
<I brought books from home. You can read whatever you’d like!> All of akaris friends thought her reading habit was strange. She would sit under a tree in her meadow and read for hours
"You did?" He grinned and bounced eagerly from one foot to the other. " Thank you. I would love to read them, but... how will that help you to climb the trees?"
<Squirrels climb trees. If I am a squirrel I can too.>
Buko had an idea, but he took a moment to think about it. "But... so can Hork-Bajir."
She nods. <You climb trees very well!>
"You don't you turn into a Hork-Bajir? It would be much more fun!"
<I wouldn’t feel right about that. Not unless I got permission of course.>
Buko giggles. "My people would love to help you out, if they got to know you like I have. You just have to show them that you mean no harm."
<I haven’t seen any other Hork Bajir, Buko. I think they’re scared of me.> She was excited though. Could she become a Hork-Bajir? That would be so incredible! Not just to study, but to be one!
He stood tall and proud. "I can help introduce you! You will be good friends, I promise. And then, you can be a Hork-Bajir, like me!"
<That would be incredible Buko! I would really like to meet them.> She doubted they would let her become one of them.
"Would you like to go see them now? I'm sure they'd love to say hello." Buko offered out a big monstrous hand.
Akari takes his hand. Her small one disappears in his. What would it be like to be so large? She had a feeling she would find out. She just didn’t know how right she was.
Akari woke earlier than expected, but she could not get back to sleep. She was too excited. She decided to gather up some bark for Buko, but she still had an hour at least to wait. Akari booted up her computer, opening a strategy game.
Buko arrived bright and early, slamming with big tyrannosaurus feet on the woodland substrate. He saw no activity on the more open areas of the scoop, but he ascended the ramp anyway. He looked around, trying to spot her.
She could hear him coming a CV mile away. He wasn’t exactly stealthy. Akari exited her game and clopped our into the open. <Good morning!>
"Hello, Akari!" He said, leaning down to allow her the sight of the enormous mound of grass he'd brought.
That shouldn’t even be there lol
Her eyes widened at the grass, then she giggled, doubling over and clutching her sides. <You... brought me... grass?> She was smiling and laughing, her body shaking with waves of it. <no one has ever brought me grass!>
His smile faded, and he felt a little disheartened. "Is it bad? Do Andalites eat certain types of grass?"
<No!> Her giggling ceased and she smiled brightly. <The grass looks delicious! Thank you.> She picked up hoods bark bundle off the table and headed towards him
He grins, eager to have his own breakfast. "Thank you, Akari. You wished to have breakfast?"
<Yes, but I don’t usually eat here. Here > the bark was transferred to him and she could have sworn he was almost drooling
He takes it in his only free arm and looked back to her. "So where do you eat? Are we going there?"
<There is a meadow just past the river. Come with me!> She trots past him, eager to run today
He watches her pass. Her backside comes into clear view. His eyes trailed on it longer than they would normally. He felt that strange feeling again... He followed her, carrying all the food like a packmule behind her.
He didn’t have to carry it far. She jumped the small stream into the meadow of wildflowers. It wasn’t as big as she would like, but it would do. She dipped a hoof in the stream
He emerged from the trees and stopped before colliding into the back of her. He looked around. He remembered the place vaguely. "This is where you eat?"
<So far, its very close to my scoop and the yellow flowers are delicious. A little sour, but it’s nice.>
He looked to her face, and realized an issue. He almost felt stupid asking it. "How do Andalites eat?"
She lifted her hoof out of the cold stream. <With my hooves Of course.> with another soft smile she headed deeper into the meadow
He followed, still trudging with the food in tow. "Are you going anywhere in particular?"
<No, there is plenty of grass here! >She was moving at a slow trot, unsure of how far he could run. Or if he even liked to run. Apparently most humans hated it. Strange
Thankfully, he seemed to enjoy it about as much as she did, even with the load he was carrying. He stayed behind her all the time, and he watched he a lot.
She stopped after a while. Sitting down on the grass, she waited for him. <That was delicious. I want to try more types of grass >
He stops beside her an blinks, shocked. "I didn't see you eating..."
<I ate plenty, don’t worry.> Akari waited, wondering what having a mouth would be like. She wanted to taste the bark
"So..." He humms and places the pile of grass down before him. He sits and takes one of the pieces of bark.
<Oh! Sorry, I eat like this.> She lifts one hoof and presses it to the grass, crushing it.
He chomps down on a piece of bark and gobbles it down. "So is that all you eat? Grass?"
<Mostly. I can eat leaves too, but who wants to pick them off the poor trees. Eating grass doesn’t kill it, I just absorb some nutrients. Not too much at once. I don’t want to kill it.>
He looked at the third piece of bark before he gobbled it down. "Oh... Do you think it's the same for bark?"
<I’ve never tried... it seems too hard anyway.> She settled her leg back underneath her and was content to sit and talk with him while he ate. <Do you live close to here?>
"Yes. I live north." He pointed to the canopies of the trees. "We live in groups. There are thirty-five in our colony. I've been told that there are many hundreds of colonies."
<Three hundred forty two.> Her stalk eyes raised to the massive trees. She couldn’t imagine being so high. The cold wind blew and Akari shivered again, rubbing her upper arms.
"Oh... You know?" He rubs at his snout, feeling a little embarassed. While chomping down on his next piece of bark, he notices her shivering. "Are you cold here?"
<This planet is very cold. Only one sun... one moon. It gets dark and cold.> She frowned. <I’ve never been very cold on Andal>
"Do you have a quick way to become warmer?" He asked. He assumed that Andalites would have such technology.
<I usually go into my enclosure, but this cold is too much. I might have to go back to the ship. That would be so embarrassing.>
"Why would it be embarrassing?" He asked, before eating some more of his bark. He was going through it speedily.
<Because I would be admitting defeat. I refuse to do that.> She shivered more, her tail curling around herself.
Buko knew that he could help to keep her warm, but he was still wary. The stories he'd heard of Andalites were still haunting him. "Do you need more grass?" He asked, nudging the pile he'd gifted to her.
She grinned and gathered it in her lap. <I’ll save it for later. >
"I hope it's not too much," Buko hummed sheepishly. "I don't know how much Andalites need to eat."
<No! I eat much more than this, but I would hate to kill the grass. I usually eat while i run. Thank you for it > She smiles brightly. <Tell ME about you Buko. You’re so fascinating!>
He smiles and grabs some more bark. "I have one sister, and I live in my parents' tree." He stopped there and continued to grin. It seemed like he felt the answer was enough.
Akari wanted more information, but perhaps she would have to initiate the questions. <What is your favorite tree? Does all bark taste the same?>
"No," He replied. "Not all bark tastes the same. Some are sweeter. Some are more sour. Are you interested in trying some?"
<I wish I could, but I can’t taste like you do. It’s a dream of mine.> She flushes. Why was she telling him. It was an embarrassing thing to say. She began playing with a blade of grass
Buko eats up a few pieces of bark as the pair relaxed by the water. He found himself becoming less anxious around her. After a while, he felt in no danger at all.
<What do you do for fun Buko?> Akari was watching a small grey squirrel with a big bushy tail munching on an acorn overhead.
It was an intriguing question for him, because surely it was obvious! He liked jumping in the trees and finding tasty new bark. Would this Andalite want something less obvious? "Oh... Listening to stories is fun."
<What is that creature Buko?> Akari has thought she might have finally found a good first morph. The creature seemed at home in the trees. It didn’t look too dangerous either...
His eyes followed hers, and he quickly spotted the creature as it spiralled around a nearby trunk. "That's a squirrel." He informed.
<Is it dangerous? It doesn’t look like it.> The squirrel munched happily on its nut, watching them both warily
"Squirrels?" Buko laughed. "No. They're not dangerous at all!"
<Oh! Are they safe to catch? Um.. how would you catch one?>
"It's not very easy. Not at all," He said. "You'd be lucky lucky to be able to catch one."
Her face fell and she went back to playing with the grass.<Oooh. Okay.> She would have to find another way to climb the trees. She could stun it, but she didn’t have a shredder. Maybe a trap?
Buko was very curious. "Why would you want to catch one?"
<It’s hard to explain.> She stood, walking slowly near the edge of the stream. Akari began collecting small nuts from along the water. Maybe I could trap one >
"Trap?" He hummed to himself. The reasons behind trapping a squirrel were a mystery to Buko, but he sat back to watch. His eyes remained glued to her backside for quite some time.
<I’ll have to make this later. How would one trap a squirrel..> She has the bait... but she had never had to trap an animal before. Hmm..
Buko grew bored and came to stand beside her, watching her hands as they twiddled over the bait. "I still don't understand..."
She dropped the acorns and proposed them with her hoof. <I wanted to be able to climb. To be up in the trees >
"How will catching a squirrel help?"
<I could... well... I could become a squirrel. For a little while.> She wasn’t sure how to explain it to him
A thought flew back into his mind. It was a memory from some story he'd heard. "Wait! I've heard about this. Andalites can change their form!"
That surprised her. <Where did you hear that? Do you read books Buko?> Akari loved books. Something About them excited her. She loved the smell of the old pages. Her favorite were the human books made for teaching how to cook. That’s how she figured out how to mix the sap
"Only when I can find them," He explained. "But no, I heard about that from stories."
<I brought books from home. You can read whatever you’d like!> All of akaris friends thought her reading habit was strange. She would sit under a tree in her meadow and read for hours
"You did?" He grinned and bounced eagerly from one foot to the other. " Thank you. I would love to read them, but... how will that help you to climb the trees?"
<Squirrels climb trees. If I am a squirrel I can too.>
Buko had an idea, but he took a moment to think about it. "But... so can Hork-Bajir."
She nods. <You climb trees very well!>
"You don't you turn into a Hork-Bajir? It would be much more fun!"
<I wouldn’t feel right about that. Not unless I got permission of course.>
Buko giggles. "My people would love to help you out, if they got to know you like I have. You just have to show them that you mean no harm."
<I haven’t seen any other Hork Bajir, Buko. I think they’re scared of me.> She was excited though. Could she become a Hork-Bajir? That would be so incredible! Not just to study, but to be one!
He stood tall and proud. "I can help introduce you! You will be good friends, I promise. And then, you can be a Hork-Bajir, like me!"
<That would be incredible Buko! I would really like to meet them.> She doubted they would let her become one of them.
"Would you like to go see them now? I'm sure they'd love to say hello." Buko offered out a big monstrous hand.
Akari takes his hand. Her small one disappears in his. What would it be like to be so large? She had a feeling she would find out. She just didn’t know how right she was.
Category Story / Fantasy
Species Alien (Other)
Gender Multiple characters
Size 50 x 50px
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