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 Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 9:36 am
Jester glided through the tangle of fallen branches the storm had brought. After finishing up with Birch, his first instinct was to return to Twilla's territory to see if she was alright.
Flying slightly lower then usual he landed on a lower branch of Twilla's willow. Turning around and hopping up a few branches, "Twilla?" He called out, the worry only slight in his voice but threatening to grow. Peering into her hovel to see if she was perhaps further in the old willow and couldn't hear him, he called again. "Twilla?!" Anxiously shifting weight from one foot to the other. Where was she.
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 9:54 am
Silence was the only sound to meet Jester. Neither Twilla or her companions were in the depths of her tree at the time.
Twilla was exhausted and still freezing from her ordeal with Sly and the little fledgling, Nica. The flight with the youngster was enough to warm her up, but that hardly reversed the effects the worst of the storm had had on her. She had done her best to preen her feathers to the point that they were sleek and straight, but she still had a haggard look about her.
Her pack had lost a great deal of it's contents during the harbinging storm of spring, some was eaten by Auze and Tikki, some had been dished out before the shelter had collapsed, the majority of the rest had been kicked out by the skurri and mus while Twilla was flying, in an effort to make her load lighter until she had a chance to stop and regain her energy.
The shadow sentinel drifted solemnly through the trees and tangles of debris. She had passed by Jester's territory on the way home and had not seen him there. Worry had crept into her heart.
Her territory was not far off, now, and she would welcome the sight of it, although it would surely be a mess from the storm.
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 10:03 am
When no answer came Jester's worry came up high in his throat as he pulled himself from the hovel to shout once more loudly, brimming with worry to the point it crackled as it came from his beak. "TWILLA!?" then going silent in vain hopes to hear the sound of her voice or the flutter of wings or some other sound of life.
The most horrible things flashed through the bard's ever active imagination, not the humorous ones he was used to but horrific things that scared the color from his face. Had he lost Twilla?
Hopping up to another branch and nearly missing it because his nerves were shaking down to his talons. Gripping it tightly and looking around frantically, for anything.
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 10:09 am
"TWILLA!?"
The booming sound of her name caught the gatherer's attention as her willow came into her sights. She took quick note of the damage, very quick note. In several places smaller branches had snapped and leaves were torn and strewn about, otherwise it seemed to have fared alright. No major limbs had snapped, it seemed.
Her icy blue eyes quickly fell on the shape of the quaking, green painted wildtype.
"Jester?" She called quietly as she settled down on one of the cleared and wavering limbs of her tree.
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 10:21 am
At the utterance of his name so softy broke the sound of silence ringing in his ears, Jester was nearly knocked off his perch. Whirling around to see the dark Sentinel settle onto a perch behind him.
Blinking in disbelief thinking her just a figment of his imagination, then in the next breath leaping joyously onto the perch with her, nuzzling in close with out realizing he was doing it. Instantly starting to preen her haggard feathers, but she was the most beautiful sight Jester had ever seen.
Words utterly failed him, his voice was shot for the moment. His Twilla was alright, a bit worse for wear, but alive.
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 10:27 am
Twilla sighed with relief as Jester pressed close to her and began preening her feathers. He seemed well, which was wonderful. As he had not been home, she had been worried something might of happened to him. There were always a few casualties in storms such as those and she feared he might of been one of them.
But here he was, safe and sound.
She leaned over and began preening the feathers attop his head thankfully.
"Bad storm..." She said after a moment, as little else came to mind.
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 4:55 pm
Jester nodded as he preened her feathers back into their proper places. Knowing this would take a while he nudged her slightly, in attempts to get her into her hovel. Jester didn't want to leave her side for a little while, he hoped she wouldn't be adverse to this.
Taking a quick glance into her pack, to see if Auze was still with her. Hoping no ill came to the small companion during the storm.
(i just realized Jester doesn't know about Twilla's skurri, does he/she have a name perchance?)
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 8:05 pm
Auze blinked tiredly up at Jester, as did another creature. Both Auze and Tikki appeared similarly as drowned rats, though they had both gone through great measures to appear somewhat drier. The skurri, Tikki, was startled by the male's appearance, but Auze was unphazed.
"Wet bad. Need dark sleep." He stated in slurred speech.
Twilla was not adverse to this. In fact, the tired shadow sentinel moved willingly towards her hovel, although somewhat sluggishly, and was greatful for the bard's appearance at her home.
As she entered the hovel she moved towards the back of the slightly spacious hollow and shrugged off her pack. The two companions scrambled out and nestled close to her talons.
"Y'can come in, Jester..." The exhausted gatherer offered.
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 8:33 pm
Blinking slightly at the two pairs of eyes that stared back at him. "Glad to see your alright Auze, I see you have a friend now too." Jester tried his best to sound slightly less shot then he was, worried he'd frighten the new companion. "We'll do introductions tomorrow."
Only after the brief moments of realizing Twilla was alive, did the slight embarrassment return to Jester. Preening himself slightly, to calm his nerves, he stepped closer to Twilla. Leaning his head down slightly and placing it on top of hers gently. Tenderly preening an ear tuft, he whispered "The rain that pours, The wind that blows,Comes as it comes,Goes as it goes..."
Jester sleepily yawned as he continued to recite the well known poem till sleep claimed him.
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 8:51 pm
"The rain that pours, The wind that blows, Comes as it comes, Goes as it goes..."
Almost as soon as Jester rested against her and began to preen and recite, the exhausted gatherer's eyes closed and sleep overtook her. His words became nothing more than a small sound in the background as her hovel faded from her mind, though it was comforting in and of itself and his words helped to bring her to a deep and easy slumber.
The two companions were not far off. The stress and chill from the storm had taxed them as well and in the warmth of the hovel and the two feathered bodies over them, they drifted off to join their master.
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 9:05 pm
As Jester slept a horrid dream of what might have happened during the storm took him. He was finally able to slay the nightmare by leaning slightly closer to Twila, and tenderly taking her ear tuft in his beak.
It wasn't till the chirping of crickets from outside the hovel roused him like an alarm telling him it was time to wake. It seemed to soon to be awake but he yawned himself more alert.
Stiffening slightly before realizing the warm body next to him was Twilla. Sighing watching her ear tuft as it wiggled in the breath of his sigh, his eyes smiled.
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 9:11 pm
The day had passed and nightfall seemed to come quickly. It was not the chirruping crickets that caused Twilla to stir, but the stiffening of Jester beside her.
Her waking was slow, though, and she sought a few more moments of quiet darkness. Eventually her eyes parted and drowzily searched her hovel. The companions had slept soundly until early evening. The two had seemingly vanished, but were not far off. For the most part, they did not fear venturing only a ways away to gather a few nuts and berries for Twilla and her guest.
"Mmm?" She murmered before parting her beak in a yawn.
Although she was well rested, her sleep had felt short and undisturbed.
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 9:23 pm
Jester leaned back on his two toed feet, to give Twilla some room to rouse. Stretching his own wings back a bit, "Did you sleep alright?" he questioned, concerned he might have stepped on her or hurt her by tugging to harshly on her ear tuft. Although he had grown quite fond of her dark ear tufts, but he wouldn't admit it, not yet anyway.
Almost on cue, Jesters stomach rumbled a threat that it needed to be fed soon. Nervously preening his chest feathers from where he was pressed up next to Twilla all day. A sort of sentinel version of bed head.
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 9:30 pm
Twilla took advantage of the extra offered room and wobbled a few steps away. She leaned over and stood on one two toed paw and extended a wing, stretching it out, then repeated the process with her other wing before settling to preen her own feathers. Truth be told, she did not even wake during the day's rest.
"As sound as a serpe." She chuckled softly, then yawned again. "Yourself?"
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 9:40 pm
Jester's jaw went slack and his beak was agape as he watched Twilla stretch nonchalantly in-front of him. It was like watching her, doing something intimate. But he couldn't take his green eyes off her sleek dark form as she effortlessly did what must have been the most menial thing in the world.
Now exceedingly nervous he preened his back feathers in vain attempts to take his eyes off of the female sentinel. "Fime, Mm Fime." was all Jester could manage through the feathers he had in his beak. His stomach betrayed him yet again and yowled out it's argument.
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