QUATHERAL TALES
Why hello young ones! Specifically humans, I think. My name is Quatheral! I am the mother of over 500 monsters (And still growing!) If you don't already know, I have made my own planet for all of my precious creatures to live! With some encouragement of my children, I have decided to share some stories! And who doesn't like a good story? So it is this place where I share them. And with many monsters, you can count on there being plenty of stories!
Now, I believe Belsra and Kenun told me to say this, but if you do manage to respond to this, please do not! We have a discussions topic for you to discuss these stories! Whatever that means. I'm really not up to date on this internet thing here on Quatheral.
Anyways, I think It's time for our first story, yes? It features my first ever creations meeting one of my newer creations at the time. It's honestly one of my favorite stories to remember and tell around the snow season. So please sit down and enjoy yourself as we get into...
Now, I believe Belsra and Kenun told me to say this, but if you do manage to respond to this, please do not! We have a discussions topic for you to discuss these stories! Whatever that means. I'm really not up to date on this internet thing here on Quatheral.
Anyways, I think It's time for our first story, yes? It features my first ever creations meeting one of my newer creations at the time. It's honestly one of my favorite stories to remember and tell around the snow season. So please sit down and enjoy yourself as we get into...
FEATHERS & SWEATERS
___________________________________________________Location: MaCreeloo Forest, half a mile away from Cthelee’s home.
The winds were blowing hard against Cthelee’s face, specks of snow catching onto him. The snow season was really stronger than last year. Cthelee shuddered, trying to keep warmth. He really didn’t like to venture out during this time of year. Despite all the warm feathers, the cold was still freezing to him. It’s like if he’d jump in a frozen lake. That was another thing he missed. Swimming. He regretted not spending enough time just relaxing during the Sun Season. To be honest, he wouldn’t mind taking a long nap once he got home. Afterall, he did just help the Lotists get to a better place to stay in during the Snow Season with the heavy wheelbarrow-like device connected to him.
Cthelee sucked in a big breath of cold air, and continued to move forward with the wheelbarrow device behind him. It really didn’t help that this thing was so heavy! Cthelee wrapped his wings around himself and began to rub them all over his body. There was still so much snow falling too! He looked behind him to see how much he had traveled, only to find his foot prints and trail were already starting to be covered up. At this rate, there was going to be 4 more feet of snow before he even got to his home! Cthelee continued to struggle to move towards his hut. He really hoped he could at least open the door!
A few more minutes of struggling later, Cthelee saw a dim, red glow to the right of him. It was far into the forest. Now who could that be? Or maybe what? Could it be one of Dr. Illakes and Dr. Evoex’s experiments? A possibility. Or actually it was Okell? He had no idea what that pyramid thing he holds actually did. Maybe he was trying to find his own way home as well. But before Cthelee could take another step, he heard whimpering sounds coming from the light. Cthelee’s stomach tied in a knot. He really didn’t want to be scared by Dunnou. If that was him anyway. Creepy little Quatheral that liked to lure beings in just to spook them for fun. He always fell for it. He really should learn to stop it. But he couldn’t help himself. He always tried to do the best he could, even if it did get him into various troubling situations.
He heard the whimpering turn into soft sounds of sobbing, the wind nearly causing the sad creature’s voice to be deafened. Cthelee stopped in his tracks and thought about what to do. It didn’t take long for him to decide. He unlatched himself from the device and began to step towards the unknown voice. He called out to it, shouting over the winds. The big bird narrowed his eyes and raised a wing to the side of his face to try and see clearer. The sobbing stopped for a moment, and Cthelee hesitantly took another step towards the voice. He called out to the creature once more, this time telling it his name.
Still, no response. Cthelee’s feathers stood straight up. This most definitely was a trap, right? Cthelee squinted his eyes to try and see further into the forest. The faint red glow soon fading away. Worrying for the thing, Cthelee quickly galloped through the snow to try and catch up to it. He tried once again speaking to it, hoping it was still okay. Still… Nothing. Pushing himself forward, Cthelee found what was making the noise. Or, was at this point.
What lay before Cthelee, was a small monster he'd only seen once or twice before. It was primarily green in color. At least, based on its head. This creature seemed to be wearing a sweater. Probably due to the raging cold he assumed. Six eyes, and four tendrils attached to their head. Speaking of its head, it had no neck. Instead it was detached from its body, floating above. Cthelee brushed off some snow off the unconscious Quatheral to get a better look at it. The sweater was also dark green, but near the center of it was a bright red circle that seemed to almost glow. Aha! So that was the red glowing thing he saw moments ago. This was indeed the monster!
Cthelee placed a wing over the small creature’s forehead and frowned. A small bump on it. He looked at the nearby tree then back at the being. Poor thing must have knocked itself out while trying to go somewhere. Cthelee rubbed the beings head with his wings. He couldn’t just leave him to be put under a blanket of snow! He looked around, only to see a great grey fog surrounding the two. Cthelee let out a sigh and patted the being on the head. He lifted the small Quatheral up with his wings and made his way back towards his device so he could head home. Maybe once the poor fellow would wake up, they could go back to their own home.
Cthelee quickly made his way back to the heavy device. He looked down at the wagon and stopped for a moment. It had already gained about two inches of snow. Cthelee had to make it back home fast if he wanted to relax. Even if for a little bit. Cthelee wiped a majority of snow in the wagon off towards the ground and was about to place the green monster in before he hesitated. That thing was probably freezing! He didn’t want to have this monster feel even worse. He decided to instead carry this Quatheral back to his home. He strapped himself into the device, and began to continue on his journey.
After about 30 minutes of struggling, Cthelee finally found his way home. With a pleased smile, he began to walk towards the garage next to his little hut. Honestly, the two were roughly the same size. Just one was Cthelee’s personally storage area. He’d need an expansion sooner later. Hopefully after this Snow Season he could get Migue to extend his house and garage a bit. The black striped bird unlatched himself and carefully put the creature in the wagon momentarily. He lifted up the door of the garage and pushed in the device. After that was all done, Cthelee lifted the green monster up from the wagon and began to carry him towards his house. After a few more minutes of kicking snow away from his door, Cthelee had finally made his way home.
Cthelee wiped his feet on the welcome carpet and looked to the right to see his raincoat sitting upon a stack of newspapers. He really should have brought it today. Oh well. Cthelee brought the monster towards his cozy circular bed and ever so carefully put the creature down upon it. He started to place several blankets made out of his own feathers and carefully tucked him in. Cthelee placed his wing against the being’s head. Knocked out still, but should wake up within an hour. Cthelee stood back and smiled at the being. It was quite a cute looking one. Especially with that sweater. The big bird turned around and began to turn on the lights in his small cabin. After pushing the last button, Cthelee let out a sigh of relief. Time to relax for the time being.
The first Quatheral began to hum out loud as he rubbed himself against the zitarinuoun heater, embracing the warmness that soon spread out throughout his body. Cthelee made his way into the kitchen, and began to make something for the new being. He hoped that the creature liked this meal. Maybe he should prepare some more meals just in case. Afterall, it was a nice thing to do, wasn’t it? He started to slice into some fresh durian fruit and inhaled deeply. He always loved the smell of durian. Seemed to be one of the greatest things to calm him down and ease himself in times like these.
He started to cut into the core of the durian fruit into small slices. A bit of worry soon whispered it’s way into Cthelee’s mind. He didn’t see a mouth on that being! Oh, what if it gets worried it’s been kidnapped when it finds itself awake!? He didn’t want it to panic, he sped towards the other side of his hut and looked at the small being. He carefully looked at it, trying to spot a mouth. No luck. He did see what the creature’s legs were though now. Root like, sort of like a tree’s roots. It didn’t seem like they walked on them however. Too smooth for that. Perhaps they had their mouth right under their sweater… That made sense, right? Quatheral was creating some wacky looking creatures. Zcopus was one that definitely came to mind.
Holding this being in his wings, feeling it breathing, it made him start to calm down again. He exhaled deeply. He rested the green monster down on the bed and covered him back up. Cthelee really did need to keep control of his nerves! He walked back into the kitchen, and continued to prep food for this new being. After tasting a small sample and being pleased with it, he set it in a small refrigerator-like device with a wheel on top of it. Cthelee began to whistle a tune he heard Uarso sing a couple days ago. It was very catchy. He wasn't even a musical Quatheral, and he really enjoyed it. Well, not that anyone knew of. Luckily Ebbrv was the only one who caught him singing once before, and it’s not even like he’d remember anyway.
Cthelee turned on the radio, prepping more food for the young one. It’s been about two months since someone came over to his little home. Even if this time it was due to a snowstorm. Still, it gave Cthelee a nice and warm feeling when someone did want to stop by and chat. He would’ve liked to visit Quatheral but.. She was very busy lately. But that was okay he supposed. Everything has been a bit awkward recently.
Cthelee thought back to the times where he was with Quatheral on her dangerous adventures. Crazy, crazy times. The time where he and Quatheral had to face off an entity called King Psquillneon, a demon who wanted to make them his servants. Wasn’t a pleasant experience to say the least. Or the time where they had to run away from an armada of Daleks! Despite all these horrible experiences, there was one thing that helped Cthelee stay sane… And that was his mother…
His relationship with her was much more different than any other Quatheral. Since he was the only Quatheral being to actually have been outside of the planet, they two had formed more than a mother and son relationship. They were best friends. Cthelee wished that he’d gather up enough courage to see her again. Lately Quatheral has been a bit stressed, and still trying to rebuild the world and creatures. He still popped in once in a while, it was just very awkward.
A very, very small part of him however missed that action. He pondered if Quatheral would be up for the task. Very doubtful however, as now she had children to look after. And it looked like she wasn’t planning on taking a vacation anytime soon. Cthelee sighed out loud and continued to ponder about before a buzzer went off in the kitchen, snapping Cthelee out of his thoughts. He opened the oven and pulled out a large tray of Malaganite Cookies. Cthelee frowned as he noticed the treats were really burnt on the edges. Baking these cookies always tripped him up! No matter what they always came out with some sort of flaw. He set the tray on the counter and thought to do with them.
Would this creature like burnt stuff? Likely not. No one ever liked burnt edges, unless you’re Fircol. Oh well, hopefully the green creature would be okay with it. He looked around the kitchen, noticing the wide array of snacks he made for the guest. Whoops… Didn’t mean to make that much. Guess his brain was just on auto pilot for the past 20 minutes. He shrugged to himself and began to deliver the food towards the creature. After that, Cthelee finally had time to relax on his own.
He unplugged the radio from his room and carried it towards the kitchen. He didn’t want to make too much noise to wake up the being too early. He plugged the wire in, and switched the channel towards the sweet voice of Erver. Cthelee then grabbed a nearby newspaper and began to catch up on the news.
A few minutes later however, a loud shriek sounded off from within the hut, making Cthelee jump out of his seat and bump his head against the stove. Cthelee whimpered and rubbed his head with his wing for a few seconds before running towards the yelling creature.
“AAAGGGH!! WHERE AM I!? I-I’M NOT THE ONE WHO DID IT I SWEAR!!” The being stated out loud, swinging its arms around. This was a surprise to Cthelee to be sure. He wasn’t even sure how to respond. The small creature floated upwards, their sweater glowing a bright red. Their eyes narrowed, leaning in a bit closer to get a better look at the strange bird. “Waiiitt a minute.. Aren’t you Cthulu? Or was it Cthelee? Cthelee right?”
Cthelee raised an eyelid. How did he get his name? Or close to it? He didn’t think of himself as a famous being. He was just...there. He nodded yes at the being. Cthelee then asked who this being was.
“Oh? Me? Ishome. Just that! Didn’t expect to find you out here. Well, more like you found me, but that’s besides the point.” Ishome stated as he started to float back down. His sensors then detected a delectable smell coming from below him. He looked down and saw a wide array of snacks to munch on… And some burnt cookies that looked inedible. He lifted up a cookie and glared at Cthelee. “You expect me to eat this shit?”
Cthelee’s heart sunk. He knew those cookies weren’t up to par, so why did he even attempt to serve them? He sucked at anything cooking related. He at least hoped that the other food tasted good. What did upset Cthelee more than the insult to his baking skills was that Ishome swore!
Especially swearing with an insult! That was just plain mean! This was being he was already starting to dislike. He hoped this was just a reactionary response after just waking up. He really hoped. He leaned down and picked up the tray of burnt cookies and started to carry them to the kitchen so he could throw them out.
Ishome’s expression softened once the bird left the room. Perhaps that was a bit to mean? Yeah, probably. But you know, sometimes you just have to say the truth. However brutal it may be. Hopefully these other snacks the nice creature gave actually tasted good. He decided to try the durian fruits. He’s never actually tried durian so why not try it now?
He let his root legs crawl towards the fruit, and began to absorb it into his body. Hmm, not too bad! He could deal with this. He continued to suckle on the fruit even after Cthelee returned to the room. Cthelee was surprised to be sure. He thought that Ishome here would dislike everything he put out. It was nice to have something you made be liked by something. Cthelee still had to address a small thing however. Cthelee started to ask Ishome not to swear around him, before Ishome cut him off.
“Hey hey, sure buddy I’ll try to fuckin’ contain myself.” Ishome said proudly, not realizing he said a swear word in that sentence.
Cthelee glared at Ishome with an unamused look.
“Wh-What? Why are you looking at me like that? What did I do wrong?” A few moments of silence passed before Ishome came to the realization that he actually did just swear in the sentence before. “Ohh.. Oops! Sorry about that! I actually didn’t mean that!”
Cthelee just rolled his eyes and shook his head. He stepped a bit closer to Ishome and smiled however, and asked Ishome how he knew his name.
“Oh! That!” Ishome’s tendrils stood straight up. “Well, Mommy talks a lot about you. Like, a lot. Told you to treat you well! Like the same respect we give her.”
Cthelee’s eyes widened. Really? He hadn’t expected that! He thought he would only get a mention or two from her, but it seemed like she was telling everyone to be nice to him. The corners of Cthelee’s false mouth rising up a bit. So she did care about him a lot. That was nice to hear.
“Yeah, anyway. You did make some good food though. And… Thank you for saving me from being buried in that snow! I mean by fucking Quather- Oops! Sorry about the swears! Anyway, holy crap it’s snowing hard! Didn’t think it would snow so hard my first season! At least cut me a break!”
Cthelee just nodded as Ishome continued to talk. This really was a recent Quatheral being. His first snow season? He’s lucky to have gotten near him the time he did. But why was Ishome crying earlier? And he did mention running away from something too? Cthelee thought it would be inappropriate to bring that up now. Afterall, it wasn’t part of business. Well, whatever it was he hoped that it wouldn’t follow him to his hut.
Cthelee asked Ishome if he needed anything else, which then Ishome placed a tube arm to the side of his head. “Uuhhhh, I could go for some juice! If you have any that is.” Cthelee smiled, and went back into the kitchen. While he was gone, Ishome began to look around Cthelee’s home further. It was a nice and cosy area he was in. To be honest, Ishome wondered where Cthelee lived. He was always talked about here and there, but never got the chance to talk and chat with him. Not like it mattered though. Like anyone would want to chat with Ishome.
Ishome let the circle on his sweater glow, and began to float upwards. Since he was here, why not explore more of Cthelee’s little home. It wasn’t anything big, that was for sure. Kind of cramped actually. How did that big bird fit through everything!? He looked over towards the shelves, and saw a variety of children’s toys and other worldly artifacts. These were interesting to say the least.
He moved in closer, carefully taking off a strange glass-like statue off of it. Ishome nearly fucking dropped the thing! He didn’t expect it to be that heavy! He floated back down and inspected it further. It resembled coral, and was surprisingly rough. He rubbed his tendrils against it to get a better feel of it. This wasn’t like anything on Quatheral. How in the hell did he get this thing!? Whatever it was, it looked cool!
His other root legs extended outwards and absorbed the other snacks that Cthelee gave to him while he still inspected the artifact. Ishome placed it on a lower shelf and continued to look around for other things to touch with his greedy arms and legs. After looking over a few more shelves, something caught Ishome’s eyes. A book. Normally, he would just skip it, reading was boring as all hell. But luckily, it seemed to be a book with pictures based on the title just labeled “Photoalbum”. He pulled it off, and began to explore through it.
He flipped to the first page, and saw something he didn’t actually expect to see! A very, very small Cthelee! Just around Ishome’s size! He was in some bright red blankets, a smile on his face. Beside the photo was a striped feather that was taped onto the page. Mostly yellow in color. He brushed his tube arm against it. This thing felt ancient! How old was Cthelee actually!?
Underneath the image, it was labed in Quatheral’s handwriting. “Cthelee and I’s first vacation.”
Now this was something that peaked his interest! He was about to look at the next photo, but heard the approaching footsteps of Cthelee. If only a few seconds to truly think about his next decision, he decided that the best option was to chuck the book under the covers before Cthelee got a chance to notice what he was doing.
Cthelee smiled at Ishome and lowered the glass of durian fruit juice near Ishome and even more plates of food. Damn, why was he so intent on bringing him food? It’s like he’s trying too hard to be nice! Well, at least it was good food. Except for those cookies. “Thanks Cthelee! I should be able to go back home after this meal!” To be honest, he was lying through his nonexistent teeth. He didn’t have a home. He didn’t want one! It was much better to explore than to stay in one place.
Cthelee smiled for a second before frowning. He motioned for Ishome to follow him, and went towards the window. Ishome floated up to get a better view and narrowed his eyes. The fuck? He couldn’t see shit! “Uhh, it’s just white! Are these windows tinted or something!?” Ishome shouted out loud, which caused Cthelee to wince a bit from the yelling. Cthelee remained silent however, as he used his wing to make Ishome look at the window again.
“What!? What do you even want me to look at!? It’s all white! ...Ohhh wait yeah..” Ishome looked towards the top of the window frame and it still had a sliver of an opening. How much did it snow while he was passed out! He knew running full speed through the MaCreeloo forest was a bad escape route. But hey, it got him out of the situation, right?
Ishome turned his head to face Cthelee. “Y-Yeah, sorry about that.” This small being was certainly strange, Cthelee would give him that. And a bit ruder than normal beings. Not worse than Bioo at least. He still doesn’t know why Quatheral ever created him. Bioo was just a straight up bully! He supposed it was just Quatheeral trying something new. Sometimes she needs to control herself. Maybe that’s a reason why she always stayed with Cthelee. To make her stop when she should. He should visit her soon. He really did miss her.
Cthelee’s thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Ishome speaking to him again. “Sooo, I don’t mean to prod buddy, but how exactly old are you?” Cthelee paused for a moment before giving a fake answer.
“189? Huh.. Didn’t expect you to be that old!” Ishome doubted Cthelee’s claim. No way he was only 189! No absolute way! That feather looked like it was 1,000 years old or something! Now he was very suspicious of what Cthelee’s past was. He needed to look back in that photo album somehow. Ishome looked over to the artifacts on the walls and an idea formed in his head. Maybe he could get Cthelee to slip up on what those were. “Oh Cthelee, what are those things on the shelves by the way? They don’t seem like something Mom would make!”
Cthelee’s eyes widened a bit. This is why sometimes he actually didn’t want people over. He knew he should’ve hid those things in the garage when he had the chance. He wiped off some sweat from his forehead using his wing and moved a bit closer towards Ishome. He explained that Quatheral did indeed make them. Yet another lie. He hated lying. Abhorred it, even. It just didn’t feel right. But, he did it for Quatheral. To try and maintain her perfect world. Oh well.
Ishome narrowed his multiple eyes at Cthelee. Now he knew the big striped bird was hiding something. The artifact he held had no signs of Quatheral energy in it. The question was: Why was Cthelee hiding something? Was it some sort of dark secret? He wanted to know! He needed to know! But how could he get Cthelee away so could continue looking at that photo book!
Ishome tapped his tube arms together, and a new plan hatching in his mind. “Yo, since it’s snowing pretty fuuu.. Er, just really bad, you should probably at least shovel away some snow so we can at least leave the house!” Ishome said, chuckling a bit after his sentence.
Cthelee raised an eyebrow. He wasn’t stupid. He knew what Ishome was trying to do. Distract him so he could learn more about his past. He couldn’t have that. Cthelee had to think of something fast so he could keep busy Ishome busy. And like a whisper in his mind, Cthelee thought of an idea. He suggested that Ishome join him getting snow out of the way.
Ishome’s tendrils perked up. “W-Wha!? But I’m your guest! I’m not supposed to clean! That’s the hosts job or something!” Ishome glared at Cthelee and crossed his arms. “Besides it’s cold out there! You expect me to go out there with just a sweater!?” Ishome floated upwards and pointed towards the window. “By the time we get it all cleared out there's gonna be like, another 15 feet of snow!” Ishome protested.
Cthelee smiled and went over to pick up his raincoat. He picked it up and walked on over to the green being. He slipped it onto Ishome and smiled down at him. He asked if it was comfortable enough for Ishome to go. Ishome grumbled. Ishome did have to admit, it was comfortable. Cthelee then suggested that they could build some sculptures in the snow to try and make Ishome feel a bit better.
“Hmmm, sure. I guess. Let’s go big guy.” Ishome floated upwards and went towards the front door to open it. Cthelee’s eyes went as wide as saucers as he tried to stop him, as to try to not let all the snow fall into his house. It was too late however, as Ishome had already started turning the doorknob. Ishome swung it open, and a pile of snow started to seep into the front area of Cthelee’s house and buried Ishome deep in the snow.
Ishome groaned out and soon clawed his way out of the snow with an unamused look. “Yeeeah that was pretty dumb of me. Oh well! Ya live and you learn! I b-b-barely feel cold sort o-of!”
Cthelee let out a panicked startle and rushed over towards Ishome and picked him up with his wings. He began to cradle the small being, brushing off some snow that still clung onto the raincoat and Ishome’s face.
Ishome rolled his eyes and tried to push himself away from Cthelee’s fluffy chest. “H-Hey! I’m fine! I swear! Let’s just have some fun, eh?” Ishome got himself free from Cthelee’s grasp and floated up. He turned his head to face the mound of snow and scratched his head. “Uhhh, where do we start, huh?”
Cthelee frowned at Ishome’s question. This was going to be tough work to try and get all the snow out of here. He wasn’t quite sure how to. The best idea he could think of was just pushing it out. After taking a deep, cold breath, he pushed forward and began to push out the snow bit by bit.
In a matter of minutes, Cthelee was able to dig a way up towards the surface of the snow. Cthelee kept taking ragged breaths after finally making a way out. There was so much snow on him that nearly all of his stripes were coated in snow. He imagined himself looking like a snowpile with eyes and a pair of wings. Cthelee shook his head a bit to shake some snow out of his face and hair. He looked up towards the cloudy skies and smirked. It wasn’t snowing as much as before. It pretty much was just a little sprinkle at this point. That means it wouldn’t be impossible to get everything out of the way.
Cthelee suddenly fell face first into the snow after being pushed by the small green monster. He saw Ishome float above him and twirl around in the air. “Ya’know, this ain’t so bad! Yeah! Good idea taking me with! This is pretty damn cool to look at!” Ishome floated over to the tree line, intrigued on how much snow was piled up.
Cthelee whimpered, slowly raising himself off of the snowy ground. He can’t believe Ishome actually did that! Pushing him into the snow, and swearing! Cthelee frowned and wiped some snot coming out of his nose. Cthelee could start to feel himself getting a spark of anger. However, Cthelee kept his composure and let himself calm down. The striped bird stood up fully, and shook himself like a dog to get rid of the clingy snow. Why was snow insistent on sticking to him!?
Cthelee sighed and began to try his best to shovel the heavy amount of snow that was nearly twice the size he was. Well, it was more about 7 or 8 feet. He couldn’t tell at this point. He glanced over at Ishome, who was busy building snow spheres. He did not like where this was going. He’d never participated in those types of snow battles, he just was too cowardly. If it was building structures out of them, then maybe he would enjoy it.
Cthelee shivered, the cold starting to fill Cthelee’s body. He rubbed his wings tightly around himself and rubbed around his fluffy body, trying to generate a bit more warmth. Before he knew it, Ishome shot a snow sphere towards Cthelee’s face. The poor bird yelped and slipped on the snow, making him fall deeper into the white snow. Ishome stifled a laugh as a large cutout of Cthelee was left in the snow, almost like a cartoon.
Cthelee raised his head up to get a sense where he was, only to get smacked in the eye from another snow sphere, Cthelee shrieked out and hid in his little hole that he found himself in. He felt another snow sphere land near him, a bit of snow rolling into the hole. Cthelee shouted out to Ishome, begging for him to stop.
“Awww, why should I!? I think it’s a fun idea to pass the time!” Cthelee quickly made his response, poking his wings out from the hole. “Ugggh.. You promise?” Cthelee sighed a breath of relief. At least Ishome was reasonable. Using his wings, Cthelee was able to pull himself out of the snow pit and get himself back on the high ground.
Cthelee opened his mouth along the sides of his neck, blue tube extended outwards. He let out a yawn that sounded more like a pitched up whistle than a yawn. Ishome looked at Cthelee in a mixture of confusion, disgust, yet intrigue. He wasn’t quite sure what Cthelee was doing. All he knew that it fuckin’ looked weird. And that’s coming from a monster who can create living creatures out of his own arms! ...Okay, maybe he was just as weird as Cthelee. Speaking of his little trick, maybe he should try and show it to Cthelee to try and cheer him up!
Remembering the artifact he touched earlier, he started to construct miniature versions of Cthelee made out of the strange glass object. Ishome’s tubes began to vibrate violently before finally settling. That felt weird. They didn’t normally do that! That must be something dangerous Ishome thought. Perfect! He wondered what other possibilities he could use using the other strange things found within Cthelee’s little shack.
In mere moments, three small versions of Cthelee popped out of Ishome’s arms. They the small Cthelee’s gleamed a bright red and yellow in the snow. Their eyes even started to shimmer as the stared back Ishome’s own.
“Wow, this material is actually pretty cool! Feels a bit weird too.” The miniature versions of Cthelee looked at each other, flapping their glass wings around, attempting to fly. Wait, could Cthelee even fly? Ishome doubted it. Cthelee looked about as heavy as a building!
Ishome rubbed his tube arms together and sent out the miniature Cthelee’s out towards the original, letting out a giggle. This would be a good thing to at least confuse him! Cthelee was almost finished shoveling and pushing the snow away from the front door. The first Quatheral was now shaking rapidly from the cold at this point. He really just wanted to head back inside and go to sleep. He worked a lot of today and- ...Was there tiny versions of him made out of the Ultimatim Rock? He leaned downwards and spread out his wings. He wasn’t quite sure how to deal with them in this situation. Did he always look that fat or was it just the replica? Nah, it seemed accurate.
Two of the smaller Cthelee’s jumped towards the much larger Cthelee, causing him to let out a confused startle. This was most certainly strange! Wait, was Ishome controlling these things!? It would certainly make sense, wouldn’t it? Cthelee sat down and lifted up the smaller crystal Cthelee with his wings. Cthelee’s eyes filled with amazement. If Ishome was able to do this… This was fantastic. No other being was able to do something like this except Quatheral herself!
Cthelee looked over at Ishome, who was hiding behind a tree giggling to himself. A small smile spread on Cthelee’s face. This truly was a cute being, even if he didn’t like to show it with his rude actions. Cthelee looked back towards his tiny copy after he felt his wings start to shake. The tiny copy began to vibrate violently before crumbling under Cthelee’s touch.
Cthelee then heard a loud audible “FUCK!!” coming from Ishome’s direction. And like that, Cthelee was back to frowning. Who taught him how to swear? It had better not have been Quatheral herself. He would be very disappointed. He looked down at the other copies and noticed that they’ve shattered, much like the one he was holding earlier. Cthelee gave Ishome a concerned glance.
Ishome was leaning with his back against the tree once Cthelee got to him. The striped bird questioned why Ishome swore out loud and how he was able to make the tiny versions. Ishome just rubbed his head and groaned.
“Uggh, sorry about the swears. It’s just a force of habit. And.. I don’t really wanna talk about that ability..” Ishome said in an embarrassed tone of voice.
Cthelee raised an eyebrow at Ishome. From the short time he spent with Ishome, he never spoke in that tone of voice before. Ishome never seemed to regret anything except for his swears. Why was he upset at his own ability? It was amazing to witness!
He sat down in front of Ishome and smiled at him. He questioned why Ishome was feeling doubtful.
Ishome sighed, pushing aside a bit of snow. “I.. I just dunno, dude.” Ishome glared down at the snow, slamming his arm down. “I-I just wanna get better.”
Cthelee nodded along while Ishome explaining. He then asked with what in particular. He really didn’t want to prod, but Cthelee felt like if Ishome opened up a bit more, he could hopefully try to make him feel at least a bit better. He rubbed Ishome’s right arm gently, trying to keep him bit warmer.
Ishome sighed, trying to avoid looking into Cthelee’s eyes. “I-I.. I’m just n-not good enough. Not a lot o-of people like me.” Ishome’s tendrils drooped downward, tears welling in his six eyes. “And I t-try dammit.. I don’t know what people want from me! I-I wanna be good at s-someth-hing you know!? I can’t even use my damn fucking roots right! The things I make ca-can’t last long! While, objects everyone else makes does! I-I don’t get it! Everyone is just better than me!” Trying as hard as he could, only a few tears rolled down Ishome’s face. “I-I… I wanna be liked.. I wanna be good.”
Cthelee’s face was filled with empathy. He knew how it felt. To be left alone out in the cold, not being talented at all. He understood Ishome’s pain. Cthelee leaned in closer to Ishome and hugged him both his wings, making Ishome’s body feel a bit warmer. After around a solid moment of hugging, Cthelee finally released his hug and rubbed Ishome’s back. He told Ishome that it was okay to feel rejected at first, soon he would find someone that will like him. Quatheral is a big place afterall. No doubt he would find somebody to like.
“B-But.. I j-just can’t. I… I just want one person to like me besides Mom!” Ishome floated upwards, the circle on Ishome’s sweater glowing brightly, even under Cthelee’s raincoat. Ishome began to move further into the forest.
Cthelee squeaked out and got up to his feet. He started walking after Ishome, begging him to come back. However, Something stopped Ishome in his tracks. Cthelee had to peer around Ishome to see what it was. To his surprise, he saw a brilliant rainbow glow in the distance. Along with a purple and blue glimmer to the left of it, and a red star to the right of it.
Before Cthelee could even say the trio’s name out loud, Ishome let himself fall into into the snow and started to retreat back into Cthelee’s home. “Shitshitshitshitshitshit!” Ishome yelled in a hushed whisper as he passed Cthelee. The generous bird let out a confused gurgle. It wasn’t long however as Cthelee connected the dots. These must be the beings Ishome was running away from earlier. What did he do? Or, what were they going to do with him? He didn’t have much time to ponder these questions as the three ice monsters finally got near.
Spriphy, the brightest colored one was the first one to talk. “Aaaah… Hello dear Cthelee, sssurprised to sssee you at here.” Spriphy stated, circling around the striped bird. “At thisss time at leassst.” Spriphy’s chilling breath made contact with the side of Cthelee’s face, already freezing some of his feathers. These guys were ice cold when it came to personality. Pun intended.
Muring was the next one to speak, floating right up to Cthelee’s nose, looking at him with interest. “Yeeaah, seems pretty cold for ya, bud.” If Cthelee would’ve been able to at this moment without freezing, he would be sweating bullets. Instead, he gulped and began to retell why he was out in the first place, neglecting to mention Ishome on purpose. He had to find out what was going on here. He walked over to his house a bit, explaining to them about how he had to clear a way to get out of his house while sneakily covering up Ishome’s tracks left by his roots by kicking around some snow.
“ISSS THAT WHY WE SAW RED GLOW?” Barvinan flatly stated, his own foggy breath causing some branches of ice to come out of his mouth and fall to the ground.
Barvinian was no small creature. He was about as large as Howo! Cthelee was definitely intimidated by the large stature. “WE NEED GREEN BOY.”
Muring floated by Cthelee and looked even more suspicious. “Yeeeaah.. Have you seen Ishome? Small, green fella?” Muring questioned.
Cthelee was starting to panic a tiny bit more, but maintained his composure for now. He had to lie at this moment this time it seemed. He told them that Ishome headed northwest, using his wing to point in that direction.
“I DOUBT YOUR CLAIM, CTHELEE.” Barvinan stepped closer to Cthelee, staring at the terrified bird. “YOU THINK YOU CAN SLIP AWAY THAT EASY? AVOID THE QUESTION? RED LIGHT. WAS HERE.”
Cthelee’s pupils shrank down a bit, and he began to shake a bit more as well. He really wished Howo was here, she was much better at talking to others than he was. Well, more like threatening, but that's besides the point.
He had to figure out a plan quickly, or else they might find Ishome. He asked what Ishome did in order for them to chase after him.
“HE STOLE ONE OF MY BACK STARS!”
“Heee misssstook my tools as a punching bag!”
“To be honest, nothing to me personally, I just wanna help my bros out. He kinda had it coming though, kid’s a punk. Can you just tell us where he is? For real this time?”
Cthelee listened in carefully to their complaints about Ishome. While it wasn;t right for Ishome to do, he didn’t exactly feel comfortable giving Ishome over to these monsters. They would probably incase him ice for the entire season. They had a track record of doing that. However, Cthelee remained adamant that Ishome did indeed northwest. Afterall, he wasn’t known for lying.
Barvinan clicked his mandibles together to make a horrifying clicking sound, getting up right in front of Cthelee’s face. Barvinan’s cold breath freezing more of Cthelee’s already frigid body. After a tense few seconds, Barvinan backed away from Cthelee and looked to his brothers. “HE TELL TRUTH. NORTHWEST WE GO.” Barvinan turned his snake-like body, and began to lead the way while his brothers followed.
Cthelee let out a relieved breath. He thought he was going to be frozen for a good few months. He waved the ice creatures goodbye, and turned back around to his home. Suddenly, arms from the snow wrapped around Cthelee’s left leg. Cthelee let out a high pitched squawk and tried to pull away from its grasp. He stopped however, as the being soon revealed itself to be Ishome. Cthelee looked at him with a confused look.
“S-S-S-Sorry ab-about that.. C-Couldn’t find a g-g-good friggin pl-place to find i-in time..” Ishome was shivering, hugging himself. Cthelee was quick to snatch Ishome in his wings and carry the poor monster inside. He nestled Ishome in on his own bed, and covered him in blankets. Cthelee turned around to fetch even more to try and warm Ishome up, but was stopped when Ishome asked him a question.
“Wh-Why ddidn’t you g-give me t-t-to them? I-I.. I wasn’t nice to you at all..”
Cthelee paused for a moment, thinking of a response. He soon flashed Ishome a great big smile on his stitched mouth. One that was the biggest Ishome had ever seen since his entire time with Cthelee. And Cthelee told Ishome the honest answer. Because they were friends.
Ishome was astounded. Did he really just say that? B-But… How? He was nothing but trouble for him! How did he think they were friends? Ishome was left to compltemplate these questions as Cthelee prepared one final meal for the night. This time for the both of them. As Ishome smelled the sweet smell of khokolate entered the room, felt the book from earlier that he hid. He opened it up to a random page, and saw a young Cthelee hugging some alien creatures he’s never seen before. And another one where it looked like he was greeting another alien.
He flipped to the end of the book with many blank pages. Now.. He knew he shouldn’t vandalize. It was the wrong thing to do, right? Ishome couldn’t stop himself as he conjured up a small being made out of a green chalk-like substance, and began to draw in it.
Cthelee soon came out with hot khokolate drinks and a spare meat plant he had laying around, and saw that Ishome was drawing something within his photo book! A strike of worry hit Cthelee like a lightning bolt. He really hoped he hadn’t seen the first photos of Quatheral’s world..
Ishome looked upwards and blushed, quickly closing the book.. His mostly blacck face blushed a dark green and slid the book over to Cthelee. “U-Uhh.. I-I’m sorry I peeked in your book, Cthelee.. I won’t do it again.” Ishome said sheepishly. He felt guilty.. He let down Cthelee once again. He just couldn’t help himself and did the wrong thing again.
Cthelee leaned downwards and picked up the book, and flipped through the pages to see what Ishome was doing. He reached at the end of the book and was gobsmacked.
Ishome looked down at the ground embarrassment of what he had done, pulling the fluffy covers over his head. Ashamed to even look at Cthelee.
What Cthelee saw on the page, was a small little Ishome being hugged by the much larger Cthelee. The striped bird felt his vision began to blur a bit as tears formed out of the corners of his eyes had formed tears of happiness. He sat next to Ishome, and held the small being tight with a great big hug.
Ishome was confused. He thought that Cthelee would reach his breaking point. But instead… He gave him that precious hug. And for the first time since his visit, Ishome hugged back. Cthelee gave Ishome the hot khokolate drink and the two began to chat and chat as the night continued onward. Cthelee then told Ishome not just a story, but many. Ones where a young boy and his sister traveled the stars, and went on many wacky adventures, and one last adventure where the young boy finally reunited with his sister.
It wasn’t long until the happy Ishome fell asleep in Cthelee’s bed. Cthelee smiled as he finished off his final story. He patted the sleeping Ishome’s head, and got up andstarted to write a note for Ishome for when he woke up. After that, Cthelee opened the front door and began to set off on his journey he still had to complete. To make the last story he told a reality.
He began to hum a song as he walked towards Quatheral’s temple.
And after that day, Cthelee and Ishome would spend the rest of the snow season together in Cthelee's cozy little hut. They shared stories (Some of which almost compromised the incident, but luckily this was only 1 of 2 times that happened) , played board games. And Ishome even got to see Howo come in once and a while. Of course, later Cthelee made Ishome give back the star he stole from Barvinan by showing him where he hid it, but Ishome finally learned how to control himself and let himself finally be forgiven. And on the final day of the snow season, Ishome requested me to help make Cthelee. I complied, and on the final day, Cthelee came back home one day to find a package at his front door. And within that very special package, was a fuzzy, dark green sweater. Cthelee always made sure to wear the sweater during the snow seasons then on. And Cthelee and Ishome, were happy...
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