Tarot perked at her low toned words, his cheeky smile pulling further along his lips. “Likewise, princess” He’d chirp softly. He was rather pleased to hear directly from the source that their crossing paths were a positive thing, so much so he felt a bit embarrassed by the little flip his heart would do in response. Of course he’d met plenty of pretty dames and maidens alike, however none felt like.. well like this. it was something about her, something new, he just couldn’t put his paw on it!

He would wonder if he was just being delusional from all the sweetened fumes that wafted through the air, or maybe it really was the ripened berries from earlier, or perhaps she really was an other worldly being trying to lead him off a cliff.

Truthfully, and perhaps idiotically he hadn’t minded any of these possible reasons, if anything he welcomed them, happily dunking into whatever fantasy had conjured itself up to his paws, and thrown him in for a good soaking.

However suddenly his body would jolt to a stop, his ears thrusted to an alerted angle and his golden visage widening ever so slightly.. he had unintentionally passed over the dames recognition of his tales, as well as the reciprocation of his presence looming within future dreams. Something had caught his attention, something wildly nostalgic, something that made his heart thump an extra beat, maybe even two.. he hadn’t noticed the trickling hum of water, not until it was pointed out to him. He hadn’t heard anything actually, in fact it was a smell that caused such a reaction from him. Faint, and entangled with the flowery fumes, yet still very much present. It was a scent from his childhood, something he believed was too far for his paws to reach, just what game had this dreamy tunnel been playing on them?

His attention would soon snag by the view of the maiden in front of him once more, a laugh crawling from his throat. This was quite the silly dream, it’d be a waste not to enjoy it to the fullest! “Cmon, doll!” With that he continued his padded steps, quicker this time, and passing Alue with a light, playful bump.

He would follow this scent, a nearly excited pep in his every step, while his tassel was set to a paced wagging motion. Tarot could clearly hear the dancing of moving water draw closer, all the way up until he could see it right infront of him. There was finally an opening to the tunnel, the sudden brightness of the sun impairing his vision if not momentarily. The river looked nearly exactly how it sounded, thin enough to jump over, with small rapids that led downwards and smooth river stones decorating the bottom.

Though that wasn’t quite what caught his eye. It was a tree.. the tree. He could spot it anywhere. It was distinct, tall with branches crawling out from atop it, it reminded him of a spider, and that’s precisely why his younger self named it as such, ‘The spider tree’. It sat on a steep grassy hill, less steep than he’d imagined as a pup for sure, but steep nonetheless! He bounded towards the creaking bark, his strides holding an excited energy to them. Immediately he looked towards the prissy chestnut dame, an extra twinkle in his eye before taking a few steps back.

“Ya ready, Sugar?” He baited, only moments before completely abandoning the maiden atop the hill, while he bounced and rolled down. The thick brush of grass made the hefty tumble more cushioned than he imagined, roots, weeds and flowers alike would entangle themselves within the strands of his fur, his stray piece of straw that accompanied his lips far gone by the time he reached the bottom. Once rumbling right into the flatter clearing at the base of the hill, he could feel the likes of some thicker tree branch cracking beneath him, maybe it was the adrenaline, or the fact that it wasn’t that big, but he could truly care less of the tingling feeling it left, he’d felt worse after all.

However that was definitely not where his attention staggered, instead it rested intently on the girl above, the one who hadn’t yet started her decent. “Cmon Alue! Your turn!” He barked, his tail batting from side to side and his tongue loosely hanging from his maw in a light pant, though for a quick second he’d paused, glancing down from his paws and the rest of the stretched base from the hill, there were a few rocks there, and branches too, not too big in his opinion, but the lady above might’ve thought differently. “Wait-wait..! One moment Sugar!”

He’d hold up a quick paw, glancing up at her before back on the ground, from there he’d throw aside an assortment of rocks, branches, and anything else that would make for an uncomfortable landing, putting them aside and out of possible reach. Tarot would examine his work for a few short seconds, simply making sure he hadn’t missed anything, until finally craning his crown back up the hill with a huff. “Alright, now!”



She couldn’t quite explain what ignited the butterflies that fluttered in her belly or what warmth coasted her veins in a heady delight—if it were him or the pheromones in the air, she could not be sure, but she did not mind it. Not as the man, the stranger of silver-imbued words ambled beside her.

It was nice, she concluded. To be able to exist without the pressure of death or monsters lurking in her rearview mirror. To live and feel for the briefest of moments.

However, while her mind was focused on the world, of the rabbit, and of the intricate feelings that wrapped like weeds across her veins, his words and that gentle bump brought her ears to a point and her eyes to fixate along his retreating steps. Where was he going? A part of her had almost the decency to ask—but as she hurried to meet his own, Alue would find her paws would come to a startling halt.

Ahead lay a loping hill, and above, nestled at the very top, were the spindly branches of a larger tree. How did that get there? She had briefly wondered, for a moment, her train of thought captured by the inklings of fantasy and reality that seemed to merge. The woodlands were certainly not the woodlands she had remembered.

But her companion---that handsome man of warmer shades was already halfway up the hill before Alue had come back down to earth. “Wait up!” She called out to him as she forced her paws to action, pursuing her steps to follow dutifully in his wake.

At the very top, Alue released a breath of wonder. This place was certainly not the Woodlands she had remembered, but at the very top, the horizon expanded for miles and miles ahead. The hill hadn’t looked very tall, surely not as steep as she had initially believed. Yet as her heterochromatic gaze washed across the milky horizon of sun and sky, the dappled tops of trees greeted her—as if she were standing atop a mountain cliff.

Beautiful and breathtaking, a gentle smile caressed her lips in a surge of beating blood.

’Ya ready, Sugar?’

Alue’s head turned—ready for what?

Within what felt like seconds, her ruddy companion was soaring down that hill, causing the briefest of flutters to harbor deep within her chest. What..what was he doing? She watched as his body tumbled and rolled, and for a moment, her head tilted, and her brows furrowed in quiet contemplation as she watched. Before the words could leave her lips, his name to call out from a worried tone, he rose from his descent and beckoned her forward.

Her turn?

She couldn’t.

Could she?

Her heartbeat pattered in her chest as she glanced down at the hill that now greeted her in a complexion of wavering depths, steep and gentle as her paw steps danced along its softened edge. She considered for a moment and then a moment longer, watching carefully as he instructed her to wait. Alue was notably unafraid of most things, her daringness evident by her need to waltz across a war-torn battle camp and nurture those on the cusp of death. And yet, rolling down a hill seemed to cause the briefest flutters of fear to warp her senses and hold her limbs, hostage, as she stared.

How odd, how ironic.

She swallowed down the lump that formed in her throat, her widening eyes staring off at Tarot as he once more beckoned her forward. A part of her wished to resist, to walk back down the hill they both had come from—and yet, that warming lull whispered her forward. To try, it seemed to say, and so she would.

Her paw steps were carefully placed as she readied herself against the hillside’s edge, her butt softly making its way to the ground as she positioned herself in the safest way possible. She would take it slow, nice and easy, she figured as she scooted a bit further. Yet, as if the wind had pushed her, her body suddenly was sailing down, and her yelp of surprise was a lingering note that echoed throughout the wind.

She couldn’t explain the resurgence of fear and joy that mixed within her smile as her body tumbled, twisted, fell, and rolled—but it did, and her heart soared. In some way and some fashion, she found herself enjoying the chaos that twisted the world in a kaleidoscope of spinning angles, and at some point, laughter bubbled from her lips as she twisted to her belly.

She hadn’t known when that had happened, but Alue would find herself at the base of the hill, her nose greeting the paws of her companion as her body practically dolphin-dived toward his feet.

After catching her breath through a series of giggles, the healer shifted toward her side as the growing pupils of her eyes rose to meet the man from a place upside down and on the ground. That was…fun, she said through a racing heart and the labored breath of her lungs, Again?

Tarot waited patiently, one moment, two.. for a moment he wondered if she wouldn’t come along, if this was too much of a roguish activity for a damsel such as herself. A twinge of disappointment would cross his face, flicker in his chest..

Until suddenly she was tumbling. Tumbling down the hill just as he did if not with a more graceful approach. The flicker seemed to seep into something stronger, it was like a warmth that bubbled through his chest, bubbled so much he couldn’t help but laugh along with the giggles that flew like dust in her trail. How silly of a sight this was, he half expectedly figured she’d either gawk at him with those blue- no; green eyes, and high tail it back to that tunnel, or maybe even just simply walk down, but no, she most certainly didn’t walk.

She resembled a tumbleweed for a moment, quick and free and light. What strange things this weird not dream he’d been thrown into, it was almost as if something was in the air, something that made her look.. different? Weird. Very weird.

With careful eyes he watched the chestnut blur descent from the steep hill, and within seconds that certainly didn’t seem long enough she was at his paws, panting, giggling, and on her back. Her sleek and neatly dressed fur was no more, now she was scruffy and disheveled if not more than he himself was. Though he had only known her for an hour or two at best, this look seemed to fit her a bit more than the usual, only assuming the ‘usual’ was how he’d met her. Yea.. she definitely looked different, in a way he almost couldn’t even describe.

Another soft flowing of laughter passed his lips, and a silly grin made its way permanently to his features. "Well I’ll be" He mumbled, mainly to himself before continuing. "Tell me, Sugar, was this the first time you’ve went diving down hills??" He inquired, leaning down to the dame with a cock of his head, picking a stray twig or two from fur from her head before continuing. "Couldn’t be.. you’re a natural if id ever seen one!" He mused, his chest rising with a light breath, watching as she’d finally caught up to her own. ’Again?’ She’d huff, and another round from the top is exactly what she’d get, she was still a lady after all, and who was he to deny such a request from one?

"Race ya to the top!" Unfortunately for her, he bolted before the challenge had even completely made itself apparent. He’d trudge up the hill with a few huffs in protest of his sudden departure, looking back at the dame who seemed to be hot on his trail, or not, truly he couldn’t tell. Though regardless they’d meet at the top, catching their breaths before starting back down again. "How about.." He huffed. "How about we go together this time?" He offered lightly, nodding to the hill as if it wasn’t obvious what he was referring to. "On the count of three..?" This time he’d let her have the honor of counting down, and instead of leaving her behind as he did before, he’d be beside her. So from there he’d wait, prepared and nearly as excited as before, his tail and plastered grin reflecting just that.