The Unknown World (Simi)

[Sky Lily]

"I dunno...what it's like, to have to leave your home like that. I chose to leave mine, but it sounds like you diddun have a choice...selfish greedy monsters made it for you. In mah book, that ain't right...it's disgusting!"

As Zero stamped his foot to add emotion to his words, Simi blinked and pulled her head back in surprise. To be honest, she had had no idea that anyone could be so angry at that. When she thought of the humans, she felt sadness and frustration at their greed, but Zero's reaction was very different. He responded with rage and disbelief at her enemies, and a sort of proctectiveness. She would have thanked him for that if he wasn't so caught in the moment.

Zero continued to speak. "I dun know what you think of yer old forest...if ya ever intend to go back, or if thass even an option. But...if Deep Forest is gonna be yer new home, or even if yer only gonna stay fer awhile, well..."- the black cat grabbed his tail in a peculiar manner- "I'll keep an eye out then! If any singleminded jackass with a hairbrained scheme to get at yer horn comes 'round here, I'll make personally sure to sting em real, real hard!"

Zero's tail twitched oddly, and from out of his soft black fur emerged an army of hard, steel-like barbs, each equally as tall and sharp.

The unicorn's eyes widened with alarm.

"Maybe they'll think twice 'bout mussin with yeh if they get a rear full o' these!" Zero released his grip, and in its place grew even more of the pointed tail-spears.

Breathing in deeply, Simi remained fixated on this very unexpected ability of Zero's, blinking every now and to make sure that she really was seeing this. "My..."- she finally spoke out- "goodness."

For a crazy moment, she was almost tempted to touch a barb herself, to poke it lightly with her horn and see just exactly what it was, but she decided strongly against it.

[ZeroDrawn]

Zero's tail slowly swung back and forth behind him. Of interesting note were the barbs themselves, which retracted and actually 'moved' along the tail in regards to the tail's location compared to Zero. Whenever the tail moved in a manner that would bring it close to Zero's body, the barbs would either surge towards a new location, as if they were alive, or would simply retract back into the tail. It was virtually impossible for him to sting himself as the nanomachines constantly kept track of the tail and relocated the barbs to compensate.

The fact that he had alarmed Simi made him cringe a little bit on the inside, but he ignored it this time. Realistically, Deep Forest probably offered it's own form of protections far greater than what he alone could, evidenced by the plain fact that he could not yet see into the forest. But he was stalwart in his conviction regardless, and wouldn't back down from it.

"My..." There was a slight pause. "goodness".

Zero flicked an ear and blew a puff of air from his mouth.

"I'm sorry if I startled you...you dun haveta worry bout mah tail too much, the barbs wouldn't touch yeh long as I'm aware of yer presence...but, besides that, I jess can't stand injustice. To bring ill will upon anyone or anything...to inflict pain and suffering just 'ta fufill yer own selfish desires...ta put yer wants above another's needs...if there's anythin in life that makes me angrier 'an a cat stuck in the middle of a tuna strike...iss that."

He merfed again as his tail continued it's motions. He hoped his actions hadn't alarmed Simi to an irreversible point, but at the same time...this was him. Innocent, happy, joking, affectionate on the outside...but an ardent defender, firm believer in truth, and unwavering resolve to always do the right thing on the inside.

[Sky Lily]

Zero flicked an ear and blew a puff of air from his mouth.

"I'm sorry if I startled you...you dun haveta worry bout mah tail too much, the barbs wouldn't touch yeh long as I'm aware of yer presence...but, besides that, I jess can't stand injustice. To bring ill will upon anyone or anything...to inflict pain and suffering just 'ta fufill yer own selfish desires...ta put yer wants above another's needs...if there's anythin in life that makes me angrier 'an a cat stuck in the middle of a tuna strike...iss that." His tail continued to swish around, slow and deadly.

However, Zero's first sentence reassured Simi that she'd be just fine, though she still kept a little wary of the sharp points. Yet, as she continued to watch his tail, she realized that he was right. The barbs, whenever they came close to her, inched and moved away, aiming towards another direction as if they had a life of their own. This, in fact, facsinated the blue mare even more. Her horn was fixed upon her forehead for good- it couldn't move like that. She then looked at Zero once more.

"Thank you, though... No one's ever expressed such a promise to protect me." Though the show was quite surprising, it touched her that anyone would be that caring for her safety.

"Do you move all of them individually?" She suddenly asked, her eyes narrowed as they traced back to the barbs. "Or do they move on their own?"

[ZeroDrawn]

Zero noted Simi's fascination with his tail, and thusly kept the barbs extended. Although he had revealed the barbs to drive home his point, if they entertained as well...it was a nice bonus.

"Thank you, though... No one's ever expressed such a promise to protect me."

This caused Zero to blush a bit, but he nodded at her with confidence, and gave a thumbs up accompanied by a big, happy smile. A gesture he was quite fond of, apparently. Then she inquired about his tail.

"Do you move all of them individually?" She asked this while tracking the movement of the barbs with her eyes. "Or do they move on their own?"

The nekojin took a brief moment to take the two remaning apples he had not yet eaten and stuffed them into his backpack, which was lying on the ground a few feet from him where he had set it earlier.

The tail swung in front of Zero, and he held his paws above it.

"Iss kinda both. I can't really make them move in tha same way I can move mah fingers 'an the tail itself. I can retract and extend them that way..."

He demonstrated this by twitching his tail, which caused all the barbs to retract and disappear. A moment later, he twitched it again and they came out in full force.

"But as fer movin em around...they react to mah subconscious 'n emotions. Like, I dun wanna hurt myself..."

Slowly he lowered his paws towards the tail, and the barbs directly beneath them shifted out of the way or retracted if there was not room. Then he lifted his paws away, and the barbs resumed their previous position, in sync with the speed of his movements. He followed this by slapping his paws down on his tail as fast as he could, but the barbs surged away from the areas he touched before he even got close.

"...so they move away from meh. Same deal'd be with you too, if ya tried to touch mah tail right now, they'd move away. Or anyone else I considered a friend. Though if they were extended 'n I diddun know you were there 'n you touched em, you'd get stung. I wouldn't mean it though!"

He had a few more examples. He backed away from Simi so that she was well outside of his movements, as not to startle her. Eyes focused on a large rock adjacent to him, Zero whipped his body around as to strike the rock with his tail. Most of the barbs rushed to the side of the tail that would impact the rock, while some remained behind to protect the other side from vulnerability. The barbs made a SHIIING sound as they collided with the rock, and he had to yank his tail a bit to get it unstuck, which caused him to meow in slight pain. Immediately upon doing this, the barbs returned to their normal position.

"I diddun have to think about it. It worked off mah subconscious, and tha' barbs moved so more of 'em would hit at once."

He reached behind himself, near the base of his tail, and closed a paw around it. The paw slid along the entirety of the tail's length, and as it did so, the spikes swelled and moved to avoid it, reforming after it had passed, much like a crowd of people dividing and merging to let someone through.

[Sky Lily]

Simi flinched back as the barbs came into contact with the rock, creating an ear-splitting ring that seemed to echo all around her, but this had fascinated her even more. It was remarkable how the hard spikes swarmed into their positions so smoothly and quickly, how they just "knew" where to go to give a hard enough impact and to keep the tail protected at the same time. What an incredible weapon!

Zero gave the tail a little pull, which made him cry out a little and Simi blink in concern, but he recovered and proceded to smooth his fur. As he did so the barbs slid and ducked out of the way. "I diddun have to think about it," He then said, referring to the rock. "It worked off mah subconscious, and tha' barbs moved so more of 'em would hit at once."

"It's a weapon to be proud of," Simi commented, still quite intrigued by the life-like movements of the spears. However, as the cat continued to smoothen the fur, the unicorn noticed in some amusement that Zero quite liked that tail of his.

[ZeroDrawn]

"It's a weapon to be proud of."

Zero smirked and nodded slowly, as he continued to run the tail snakelike through both of his paws, the barbs lively and responsive as ever. Usually the revelation of his tail spikes were a big turn off to people he met - they'd suddenly become fearful of both him and his tail, and were wary to get close to him. It seemed Simi had not reacted in that way, and for that Zero was quite thankful.

"Yuh, izzuh nice defensive measure. People'd think twice before they go 'an yank mah tail as a bad joke. Tha' crap really really hurts." Zero looked a little annoyed. Clearly that had been an issue in the past and he wasn't too happy reflecting on it. His spikey appendage became docile as the barbs were retracted for good this time. It curled about his waist as he moved back towards Simi to sit near her. From his backpack he withdrew the two apples, and began munching on one, while he sat the other one down in front of him.

"Thinkin bout eatin yummy fruits like thiss everyday...makes meh happy." He only hoped that the sign he'd been waiting on, for the forest to open itself, would come soon, if at all.

Zero took a glance towards Simi's own tail and admired it, with it's eye catching shades of blue and elaborate growth of hair. With a quiet meow he smiled softly, but he didn't hold the gaze for too long, lest it have been misinterpreted as a lewd stare.

"Yer tail's real pretty, jess likeya."

He blushed softly and looked into the sky thoughtfully.

"What'd life be like without tails? It couldn't be nearly as fun 'er interestin, I think. There's so much ya can do with 'em. Wouldn't give em up 'fer all the catnip, yarn, fish, and Plasma Flux Capacitor's in tha whole world. Wouldn't wouldn't."

[Sky Lily]

Zero returned to her, sitting down with his tail curling around his waist. "Thinkin bout eatin yummy fruits like thiss everyday...makes meh happy."

Simi nodded in agreement. "It's unlike other fruits that I have seen. So much healthier and brighter, and a sweeter smell, too." She could still see the forest in her head, so beautiful and warm... and all that wonderful food.... How she would love to gallop through it, exploring all its hidden paths and secrets. But she didn't want to, not just yet. She wanted to wait until Zero, too, could see the forest for what it was.

"Yer tail's real pretty, jess likeya."

That comment was a little out of the blue, and Simi looked over at Zero with her ears laid back, flattered, but also shy about compliments. She blinked once. "Thanks."

Zero then turned to look at the sky, his eyes thoughtful and pondering.

"What'd life be like without tails?"

Simi was a little surprised that Zero would be thinking about that, but his question made her curious.

The black cat continued, "It couldn't be nearly as fun 'er interestin, I think. There's so much ya can do with 'em. Wouldn't give em up 'fer all the catnip, yarn, fish, and Plasma Flux Capacitor's in tha whole world. Wouldn't wouldn't."

Plasma Flux.... Capa.... Again, words that I will have to learn at one point or another.

Simi then narrowed her eyes to wonder a little. "As a phoenix, my tail gives me balance and an extra hold on the air. As a unicorn, it's there to cool myself off, and for comfort. I've never thought of a life without a tail."

[ZeroDrawn]

"It's unlike other fruits that I have seen. So much healthier and brighter, and a sweeter smell, too."

With that, Simi's mind seemed to have drifted for a bit. It was not hard for Zero to guess what she was thinking of. The forest, no doubt, he thought to himself. I wonder...what does it take to get inside? Mebbe...mebbe the forest dun like people who muss with gadgets 'n crap...I hope it dun get the impression I'm gonna experiment on the inhabitants 'er somethin...

Simi took the compliment to her tail a little shyly, but Zero only continued to smile as he gazed into the sky and touched upon the pleasantness of tails.

"As a phoenix, my tail gives me balance and an extra hold on the air. As a unicorn, it's there to cool myself off, and for comfort. I've never thought of a life without a tail."

Zero looked to her and chuckled.

"Sometimes yeh gotta think about the nice things yeh got...'n think about not havin em. Makes em even more special, 'n ya wanna hold onto em fer longer. Yeh'd be a wobbly flyer 'er a swelterin, discomforted mare without'chyers. I'd be half a cat 'n bad at walkin without mine." He feigned imbalance by tipping to the side, but resituated himself and just giggled whilest he hugged his tail to his chest tightly. He peered at the apple that sat in front of him, poked it with an extended claw and then looked to Simi again.

"Yeh sure ya dun want half of it? We could toast to tails, though ya usually do toasts with sparky drinks, but like I said before, improvisation!" Zero shrugged lightly and grinned a big stupid grin.

[Sky Lily]

Zero chuckled in reply. "Sometimes yeh gotta think about the nice things yeh got...'n think about not havin em. Makes em even more special, 'n ya wanna hold onto em fer longer. Yeh'd be a wobbly flyer 'er a swelterin, discomforted mare without'chyers. I'd be half a cat 'n bad at walkin without mine." As if to give life to his words, he tipped the side as if he were clumsy and imbalanced, then propped himself back into a good position and giggled, hugging his tail affectionately. Again, Simi found herself laughing along, Zero's carefree humor proving itself quite contagious.

Zero then poked the apple in front of him with an extended claw.

"Yeh sure ya dun want half of it? We could toast to tails, though ya usually do toasts with sparky drinks, but like I said before, improvisation!" he finished, giving a wide grin.

Again, Simi was a little doubtful of taking a piece, but when she remembered the forest, the unicorn was reminded of the many other apples still waiting there, that could always be picked out and brought over here.

"I guess I can take half," she replied, giving in to her faint hunger pangs.

[ZeroDrawn]

Zero was delighted to have Simi laughing along with him, as it was his goal to be a positive, pleasant presence - it seemed he had managed to fufill that so far, and only strengthened his resolve about Deep Forest. This is gotta be a good sign...makin such a nice friend and I haven't even been here for long!

Simi seemed hesitant to take a piece of the Apple. Zero guessed it had either to do with modesty or the plain fact she was not hungry. However, she seemed to have reconsidered and folded back on her original decision, as she spoke to him.

"I guess I can take half," said Simi, and to this Zero emitted a high pitched, excited mew. He extended one of his claws and stuck it into the apple, with which he turned and applied pressure until the fruit fell apart into two roughly equal halves. He studied them quickly and held out one towards Simi. He would have held it there, but it suddenly slipped from his paw, which was now trembling. His eyes were wide and his mouth was partially open. But it should not have been mistaken as an expression of fear or horror - no, it was one of wonderment. He was amazed.

For looking beyond and past Simi, for the first time since he had arrived, the tree line did not appear so oclusive and thick anymore. Now, between the thick, brown trunks, he could see the details of the forest. He couldn't quite make it all out, due to distance and positioning, but he could see lush grasses, and evidence of more trees bearing the fruit that Simi had brought earlier. No longer did he feel the foreboding, the part of him that felt he should not enter Deep Forest yet was now gone. In it's place was a warm feeling. A welcoming feeling. He wasn't sure how or when the forest determined him an applicable entrant, but he had no doubt that was what he was now considered.

"Deep...Deep Forest...Simi...I can see into Deep Forest!" He looked to her and climbed slowly to his feet, his eyes bright and alive with excitement. Although he had intended to share apples with Simi, the pure intensity Deep Forest's vista had overwhelmed him.

[Sky Lily]

When the apple half dropped, rolling in the snow for a brief moment, Simi flicked her ears forward in surprise, baffled by Zero's wide eyed expression. His paw was trembling, and his gaze was fixed ahead of them, unbelieving yet so joyful at the same time. Curious and alert, she pushed her hooves forward to get herself standing on all fours, and turned her head in the direction that Zero was looking, but other than the forest- Deep Forest, she now knew- there was nothing to see... Wait...

The forest...

Simi spun around to face Zero. "Can, can you-" she had no need to finish the sentence as the black cat stood slowly, his eyes bright with life.

"Deep...Deep Forest...Simi...I can see into Deep Forest!"

The unicorn smiled in excitement and relief. She was right! Zero could see Deep Forest for himself, and now they could both escape the cold of the strange barren land around them. "Zero, that's wonderful!" She danced a little with her front hooves, making her look skittish although she was really just happy, and she turned back to the forest, trotting a couple steps towards it but stopping abruptly. Her tail swished slowly. "Come on then, let's get out of this cold!" Simi suddenly reared, although she did not screech with the action like that of a horse, and threw herself into happy trot.

[ZeroDrawn]

Zero beamed as Simi smiled at him, and it took all his effort to resist the urge to start shooting celebratory pink fireworks all over the place. Probably wasn't a good idea to make his entrance into Deep Forest quite so loud. He stood wobbly and unbalanced for a moment, but took in a sharp breath and regained his composure.

"Zero, that's wonderful!" Simi followed this with a little dance of her hooves, and to this Zero meowed and shot her another of many thumbs-ups. He almost felt unsure as wether to follow her or not as she began to trot off, but felt relieved when she stopped. "Come on then, let's get out of this cold!" The Nekojin was quite happy to oblige, but as he began running towards her, he remembered there was one last thing he had to do. He did not attempt to draw attention or add flourish to what he did next, but simply turned away from the forest, drew back his paw, and hurled a firey ball of pink energy into the sky, that sailed upwards for a bit before it shot off in a straight line away from the forest. That ball of energy would travel for some time, until eventually it would reach the destination of Zero's laboratory...and act as the signal for the Cyborg Puffles to make the journey here.

I hope tha forest welcomes you too, Puff...you'd like it here.

Zero turned back just as Simi reared, and he meowed loudly, as he dashed towards her and slowed down to match the pace of her trot. The moment they crossed the border between the Edge and Deep Forest, he felt a sort of safe warmth and assurance sweep over him.

Home sweet home.

[Sky Lily]

Aaaand another bump!