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‘Returning to the Source is stillness, which is the way of Nature. the way of Nature is unchanging.’ -Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching

Tune in to the Wisdom of Nature by High Lotus

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Mid kiss smiles >>>>>

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“You will always be fond of me. I represent to you all the sins you never had the courage to commit.”

- Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray

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The Pictomancer??

"What are you doing, Kupo" the voice came out of nowhere causing the Sharlyan to swivel his head this way and that. Dimitri had taken the morning to paint a rather pleasing location in the depths of the Shroud where a waterfall rushed over a study rock face into an abnormally clear pool surrounded by trees and lush greens. In all the Moons he had lived there now, he had still not adjusted to stray voices in the woods. This, however, was not a normal voice and these were not just anywoods.

"I am painting." it was the simplest answer he could muster and he found himself hoping that it would be all he needed to say to encourage whomever had come upon him to leave so that he might continue his project.

"Painting, strange magic you have there Kupo." The voice continued on, and again his head moved. This way and that way causing his long ginger hair to slap him in the face a few times before he finally just sighed. "Well come out already if you are going to keep talking at least let me see your face and why are you calling me Kupo? Are you pretending you are a Moogle today?" Dimitri was a master at keeping his voice even and polite even when inside he could feel his irritation growing. Painting was one of the few things in life that stilled his spirit besides an afternoon hike with Laurent and the untimely interruption had taken that from him. Still, Xixa had warned him of wood sprites, sylphs, and all forms of other creatures that lived in the Twelveswood and enjoyed sneaking up on those who believed they were alone.

"Well, Kupo. It may have to do with the fact I am what you call a Moogle." This was when Dimitri heard the air around him tear apart as something swiftly moved through it, the sound of wings buzzing past his ears and then there it was. The white-furred, black beady eyes, small winged and orange pom, shape of one of Eorzea's strangest creatures. "You may call me Mogbius"

At first, the Sharlayan sat there staring, this was in fact one of the things that Xixa had warned him about. It was not rare to see them in the woods, but it was rare for them to approach one of the humanoid races unless something unique attracted them and it was rather hard to determine what Mogbius could have found interesting at this stage in the conversation.

"You do know, Kupo, it is polite to introduce yourself." The creature nudged, leaning in just a bit further so that their noses almost touched "I am Mogbius." it said again "And you are?" Dimitri found himself swallowing hard, there were stories all over Sharlayan about not giving things that asked your name because you never knew what power they gained when they did. This was especially important to the Occult Investigators as their line of work was rather volatile at times.

"Pan!" he squeaked out, out of nowhere thinking of the cast iron frying pan he tripped over that morning on his way out of the cottage door, he had set it on the ground the night before to catch droplets of rain from holes in the roof and then forgotten that it was even there. Of course this way pre-coffee and he was rather surprised he didn't break his foot in the process.

"Pan, that is a strange enough name Kupo, but I accept this." Around his head, the moogle moved several times and then it came to a stop in front of him again. "You are a strange one, come here paint for me, Kupo. I must see if I see it again."

By this time the entire interaction had Dimitri on edge, but he turned his attention back to the scene on the easel and nodded "Is there something particular that you wish to see Mogbius?" one thing was true even in the strangest moments of his life, the Duskwight was always polite and kind, even when his heart was racing out of his chest like it was now.

"I noticed the glimmer when you were painting this, Kupo." outstretched a paw and it pointed towards the rushing water over the rocky face. "Paint more of that, Kupo, I must see up close to understand you."

A rather odd look appeared on Dimitri's face then he dipped his brush into the mix of white and grey that he had prepared for that particular part. That was one odd thing about the Shroud, almost none of the water he had ever seen while exploring carried that blue tone that you often saw in other bodies of water. The water here either carried shades of green, shades of grey, or if you were lucky sometimes both from the light that streamed through the trees and created the stunning aesthetic. "Alright then, I was just about to start the pool when I heard your voice." He commented finally, his hand reaching out steadily and his mind following after it, thankfully he had sketched the lines for this particular piece before he had arrived to paint it that morning. It made it rather easy then follow his process and begin to fill in the colors where they belonged.

"Yes, yes there it is again, Kupo." The Moogle said excitedly, spinning around in mid-air gleefully. "Can you not see it, Kupo, the water is moving in the painting." Its paw moved again to a particular place in the area Dimitri had just painted. "What you paint comes to life! Oh, that is very good. It has been a while since I met one of your kind, Kupo."

"One of my what? What do you mean kind? Is this one of your Moggle mind tricks? I've been warned about the lot of you a few times over by my Mentor." he brandished his brush then like it was a weapon even swiping at the air in front of him in erratic motions.

"You are a Pictomancer, Kupo." the creature replied proudly like it had just found a shiny little treasure in the woods all its very own. "You look young, Kupo, so you cannot be from long ago but I must know, has anything strange ever happened, Kupo, while painting?" The question made Dimitri blink and he found his head nodding. "Well yes, when I was younger I was painting a kitten and I accidentally trapped it on the canvas. Oh, they were most cross with me, and it took the Professors bells to figure out how to get it back out. They eventually did, of course, and the darling was not harmed at all. After that, I was not allowed to paint anything living and I had special lessons that discouraged me from ever doing that again. Eventually, I stopped using magic altogether, the Sharylans were not much for fighting, I did lean standard hand-to-hand combat. It was not until recently that I began exploring my magical capabilities again under the guidance of my Mentor." a frown appeared on his youthful face.

"It is just magic, Kupo, strong magic yes but just magic all the same. Instead of telling you no Kupo, they should have taught you how to use it. You can still learn Kupo, there is time." Mogbius finally came to a stop right beside Dimitrti again, watching the painting and what he could see there that was hidden from the Duskwights eyes.

"How can I learn what I cannot see?" It had always been a question that rose in him when magic was involved. He felt so stunted in his growth compared to his Sister, and this just made him feel a bit worse than he already had.

"It is an old art, Kupo. Far older than any Moogle had ever lived. You will figure this out, Kupo! Give it time." and right before Dimitri could ask another question the creature disappeared into thin air leaving him in the clearing alone again which was another thing that Xixa had warned him about. The never stayed long, often gave you more riddles than truths and then vanished leaving you with far too many questions for you to answer.

"Well fuck, now what." His eyes returned to the painting and he stared at it, trying to see the water move like the Moogle had but all he saw was paint.

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🖤 In my dreams, this is my home 🖤

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"I don't want to go to heaven. None of my friends are there."

-Oscar Wilde

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"Into the woods I go to lose my mind and find my soul."

Different shades of green,

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Sunlit Forest Floor

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Evening Light

(c) gif by riverwindphotography, May 2024

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søurce

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“Just be fucking honest about how you feel about people while you’re alive.”

— John Mayer