Fruit for the Court [Collab]

 Morning in Atlantis was unlike morning on the surface. The sun didn't quite rise- because there was no sun. Instead, the still working parts of the artificial sky jerkily lightened in quick brusts- resulting in quite an abrupt awakening.

 Of course, Mary and Mintee were not woken by the fake sky- still tucked away deep in their “guest house” (cell). They were instead waken by the loud banking sound of something large slamming against their door before shoving it open. “Wake up, pheasants!” Agnus bellowed, the grey and white igunaodon poking her head through the door she could barely fit into. “Another day of work awaits! This time you get to leave Atlantis for a bit- get those strange hooved legs moving!”

 Mary groaned, slowly standing. Mintee mimicked the action, and the two shuffled their way towards the… enthusiastic herbivore. They had been servants for only a few days and already it was wearing on them. Agnus especially with her loud voice and lack of care for their safety (and sanity) was especially annoying. But they just had to get through it- they needed the trust and good will of the court.

 “Oh, and I forgot.” Agnus added casually as they paused at a set of doors they had never paused at before. “Another one of you weirdos came down a few days ago. Court said they were to come with us today before they decide their punishment.” Agnus pushed open the door to reveal another parasaurolophous, a soft brown color covered in stripes and small rosettes. Mary and Mintee had never seen them before- and the same was echoed back. But there was no time to talk.

 The trio of guests were marched down the hallway, outside, and towards the front gates of Atlantis- at which points they were given large bags to carry. “Fill these up with edible fruit.” Agnus instructed. “Avoid anything from a carnivorous plant- everything else should be fine for us to eat. Oh! And if you don’t come back by night, you will be considered an enemy of Atlantis. Have fun! Don't fail us.” And with that the gate was slammed- stranding them outside, the two groups staring at each other awkwardly.

Emmeline nodded nervously as a goodbye as the larger Herbivore locked them out to forage. She couldn't help but think back to how she got herself in this predicament in the first place. She usually was not the type of dinosaur to explore unknown areas like this, but here she was. Dealing with the consequences of her own actions. 

The sandy coloured para wanted to strike a conversation with her fellow kind as they were out the gathering food for the Iguanodons, but she was pretty shy and despite knowing their captors weren't present, she feared they would suddenly appear and scold them for being chatty, so she just quietly looked at the other two paras occasionally, making sure not to stray too far. 

They had been instructed to find fruit for the court, but Emmeline was not too sure what they would be satisfied with. Would berries count? She hoped so, as that was what she was most used to sniffing out and feed on herself. It was a struggle for her to not eat as she was picking the delicious berries, her stomach was empty and loudly made it known. She awkwardly smiled when the others acknowledged her rumbling stomach, but she didn't say anything.

After some time scavenging for fruit trees, she managed to locate some bananas. Those would surely satisfy the court, she thought, and stood up on her hind legs to reach for the ripe fruit. She leaned against the tree with her front feet so she wouldn't fall over and pulled down the bananas a few at a time. She wasn't strong enough to pull down the whole bunch at once.

After not too long, the pile of bananas she had placed next to the basket looked like it would fill it to the brim, so she stopped her harvest and poured out all the berries so they wouldn't get crushed under the weight of the fruits. After filling the basket with the bananas, she reluctantly also dropped the berries back in. She wanted to eat them so badly, but she knew better than to risk angering the court. Their size alone was intimidating enough to comply.

 Emmeline searched for the other two paras and when she found them she smiled carefully, since she didn't know how friendly they would be. “We should probably head back, if you are done.” she said sheepishly as she placed her bag down on the ground.

Mary and Mintee had spent their time harvesting as well- they had found an interesting tree to knock against. The fruits that dropped were large and seemingly hollow, but a fruity juice emerged when they were broken. The pair worked together to fill their bags until they were near bursting, before rejoining the other parasaur. “Sounds good.” Mintee responded through her bag. 

Mary cocked a head at the other. “We have a moment before heading out- who are you? What are you doing down here? It's quite a horrible place.” Her bag sat between her hooves- despite her urge to kick it, Mary refused to spill the harvest and start over again.

Emmeline was pleasantly surprised that the red para seemed to want to talk for a bit, even if it was just to be a little friendly. “I'm Emmeline, who are you two? Did you know each other before? I haven't seen anyone I know here and I hope I don't have to. They are so mean.. I don't want my friends to be treated this way by anyone. I was just exploring a cave and the next thing I knew I had been captured.” the shy para anxiously replied. 

Mary and Mintee exchanged looks. The green parasaur continued. “We came down here to investigate what was going on. And well. Clearly something is.” The three looked around at the jungle around them in silence, only broken by the occasional animal call. There was too much risk that a scout was nearby spying on them to continue talking- not to mention the fact night was approaching.

“But you are right. It is time to come back. The fake night comes too fast down here.” Mary nodded at the other two and grabbed her bag- the others followed her actions as they set on back.

 They arrived just before nightfall, an annoyed looking Agnus angrily huffing once they knocked on the gate. “I was hoping you wouldn’t come back.” She groused, angrily grabbing the bags and looking through. “Good enough, although you pick like a hatchling.” She tossed the bags on the ground, a few nervous oviraptors quickly running out to store the harvest.

 “We’ll send some food to your rooms later. Guards!" At the iguanodons call several warriors appeared, quickly herding the parasaurs away with bumps to the back of their legs. Mary and Mintee shot smiles at Emmeline as she vanished from view- it was nice to know they were not alone.

Emmeline did her best to hold back some whimpering as she was being shoved away back to her holding cell. The guards were unnecessarily rough with her, she thought, but at least her work had been good enough not to warrant instant punishment. She was worried about what was going to happen to her, but she tried her very best not to speculate too much. The stress wasn't worth it. All she wanted to do now was eat and rest. 

Well back in her cell, she quickly laid down on the hard floor. Her legs were shaking, both from being exhausted and from anxiety. She missed the fresh air and sunlight. She didn't belong down here.