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 Posted: Sun Jul 12, 2009 12:30 pm
A small Chirop, brightly marked as owned by one of the Message Outposts, landed in Willowbreeze's territory. It started calling nervously to catch her attention, but seemed aware that not every Sentinel honoured the bright dye of the messagers. The risk of being eaten was part of the job description.
"Do not eat," it chirped, "Message for Willowbreeze the Bard."
As soon as it had caught her attention and was reasonably sure it wasn't going to become a snack it started to repeat the message it was tasked to deliver. The poor creature looked terrified, and couldn't have been the brightest Chirop the Message Outpost had to offer.
"You must be nice to Tails," it chirped, "Give her food. She is nice if you are."
It took a deep breath and continued, staring at a point to the left of Willowbreeze, refusing to meet her gaze.
"And take care of Drywood. He's a good male. Don't hurt him or so help me... me... um..."
The Chirop looked confused and stayed silent for a while before sprouting the last part.
"End-of-message thankyou"
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Posted: Sun Jul 12, 2009 1:34 pm
"Do not eat!" The shrill cry startled Willowbreeze from the branch where she was perched, carefully preening her primary feathers. She fluttered close to the messenger to hear the words he delivered.
"I'm not going to eat you." Willow muttered, rolling her big golden eyes. The fact was, she wasn't overly fond of Chirops, either as food or in general. However, she was very intrigued by the unexpected arrival of the message, so she did her best to appear non-threatening. She waited calmly for a few moments as the dye-marked companion gathered its courage to speak.
After listening to the little creature's message, she stared blankly for a moment, nearly as confused as the Chirop. "Ah, thank you, but... who is Tails? Who sent you?"
She was nearly as offended as she was perplexed. She had no intention of hurting Drywood! After all, he was to be her mate, and she was rather fond of him, dispite the arranged nature of their pairing. Willow considered it rather rude, sending an anonymous message beginning with apparent nonsense and ending with a vauge threat. Very bad manners indeed.
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Posted: Sun Jul 12, 2009 2:07 pm
The Chirop looked decidedly uncomfortable. It was chosen for its ability to find a Sentinel, repeat a message, and avoid getting eaten in the process. It didn't need to understand the message, just get it right, and judging from the mood of this Sentinel it hadn't managed to get it right.
"Donoteat. Message for Willowbreeze the Bard," it started again, clutching the bark of the tree with the claws on its wings.
"You must be nice to Tails. Give her food. She is nice if you are. And take care of Drywood. He's a good male..."
The Chirop seemed to cut off the message earlier this time, as if the little creature was unable to remember the rest. But just as it had done before it blurted a last part after a few heartbeats of silence, and this time something was different.
"Message from Berry. End-of-messagethankyou."
The Companion started to hesitantly edge away, trained not to leave until dismissed, but also trained not to overstay its welcome.
"Do not eat. Thank you. End message," it squeaked.
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Posted: Sat Jul 18, 2009 9:22 pm
"Ah, thank you. No return message." Willow nodded to the messenger, indicating that he could return to the outpost at will.
Tails. Berry.
The bard could make little sense of the message. Berry could be almost anyone: Cloudberry, Berrywind... any number of females went by that nickname. And Tails. She hadn't heard of any Sentinel who went by such a moniker.
Give her food.
At least, she gathered, she was to bring food when she visited Drywood, and to be nice. Rather crossly, she scuffed her claw along the branch. Of course she was going to be nice!
She failed to see what giving another female food had to do with mating-- in general, it was the male's place to bring such offerings. Perhaps Tails was Drywood's mother, and she needed to impress her to gain approval of the pairing?
Well, there could be no harm in bringing a little something. Drywood didn't seem the type to be overly dismayed by slightly unconventional courting behavior.
Now, what did she have in the larder that was fresh?
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Posted: Sun Jul 19, 2009 4:56 am
Drywood weaved through the trees, feeling exhausted even though he had taken plenty of rests on his way over. He halted on a thick branch once again, and closed his eyes for a moment. His heart was beating too hard and too fast, and it only seemed to get worse the closer he got to Willowbreeze's territory. Strange. It wasn't as though the Skurri was that heavy...
Oh, that's right. He checked the carcass in his talons closely. It was still a little bit warm, which was excellent, but wouldn't last for very much longer if he kept taking breaks like this. It had cost him quite a bit of his stock of simpler remedies to find just the right Keeper, and even more bargaining to make sure that he got the biggest, plumpest, juiciest-looking Skurri that said Keeper had in stock. Curiously, the negotiations had smoothened out significantly when Drywood had informed the Keeper that it was meant to be a gift for his intended mate, to prove that he was a good provider.
Most agreeable fellow, that Skurri Keeper. Certainly a lot less biased against the Apothecary than some certain Mus and Parus Keepers tended to be.
Right right. He was almost there, now. Just a little further. Couldn't let the Skurri grow cold. Drywood pulled in a deep breath and left his perch before his heart could start racing again.
It seemed only minutes later that he pulled up on a branch on the outskirts of Willowbreeze's territory. He roused his feathers once just to rid himself of the uncomfortable stiffness that seemed to permeat his skin, and then preened himself carefully. He hesitated before announcing his presence, struck for an instant by a horrible notion that he might have flown to the wrong place, but quickly dismissed it.
He cleared his throat, took a deep breath, and hooted into the night. Then settled back to wait for a reply, while his heartbeats thundered in his ears.
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Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 10:36 am
Willow was slightly surprised by the greeting hoot, and quickly straightened a few errant feathers before she replied with the low call of welcome that indicated it was safe to approach.
The hoot sounded rather familiar, but she couldn't quite place it... she peered through the trees in the direction of the visitor's voice, faintly making out the shape of smallish Sentinel. The bronze glint of feathers confirmed her heart-racing suspicion-- it was Drywood.
Suddenly, Willowbreeze felt an odd sensation behind her chest-feathers: a tickle hovering somewhere between delighted and slightly ill. He must have approved of her if he was coming to visit. Her ear tufts pricked forward in an expression of intense interest.
"Drywood!" She called, not bothering to disguise the pleased excitement in her voice.
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Posted: Thu Jul 23, 2009 5:24 am
That was it. She was home. He even caught sight of her bright chest feathers through the dusk (the forest was quite a lot darker here than far out west, where he kept his home, wasn't it?), and her voice as she called out his name left no room at all for uncertainties.
His talons dug into the branch as if struck by a sudden cramp, and it took him a few awkward moments to free himself again. Why in the name of Noctus did this keep happening to him?
Though, it was true that a part of him would rather have turned tail and flown in the other direction as far as his wings could carry him. And he would be dishonest to say that that part of him wasn't fairly large. But still. He had come this far. He had brought a gift. And he did need to speak to her.
But oh, how he would have preferred not to have to bring this particular point up. He... appreciated Willowbreeze. She seemed nice and was easy on the eyes and, most importantly, she seemed happy to see him. That was a rare trait indeed, and the thought that she might change her mind about that tonight made him feel quite uncomfortable.
But he unwedged his talons, took a deep breath, prepared his smile and left the branch. He made sure to land at a polite distance away from Willowbreeze, and greeted her with a bow and a smile that he hoped looked genuine.
"Good evening, Miss Willowbreeze," he stated, a little bit more loudly than necessary. "I hope you don't mind my dropping by... You're not... entertaining any other visitors, I hope?" He threw a not-so-furtive glance around, searching the nearby area for any signs of other Sentinels. Particularly Sir Hollysong or Lady Hazel.
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Posted: Thu Jul 23, 2009 7:46 am
"Oh no, I am quite alone tonight. Pleasure to see you again, Drywood." She smiled and bowed back, suddenly feeling a little stiff. The handsome male was smiling back at her with ill-concealed worry, and she couldn't help but chuckle softly at his nervous glance around. Zephyr whistled from his perch nearby, as if to remind his mistress that no, she wasn't entirely alone. The Parus fluttered his small wings and bobbed his head, watching drywood with a trace of suspicion in his clever black eyes.
Willow blinked at the unexpected visitor, quite unsure of how to proceed. She thought, but did not say, that this must have something to do with the very odd message she had recieved earlier.
"I trust you are well?" There was a slight warmth in her voice, a tone of welcoming that would be difficult to fake. As awkward as she felt at his sudden appearance, she was glad to see him. It was a nervous, tentative gladness, but still genuine.
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Posted: Thu Jul 23, 2009 8:30 am
Drywood did a very poor job of hiding his relief at finding Willowbreeze without the company of any other... well, any other Sentinel, at least. He exhaled and roused his feathers slightly, and his smile was a bit more genuine as he let his attention return to Willowbreeze.
"Oh, why yes, thank you, I am quite fine," he answered. It wasn't true, though: Lately, he had felt ill in all kind of different ways, and there was that intermittent trouble with his talons... but the warmth in her voice had prompted him to automatically try to put himself in the best light possible, so he said nothing about that.
Eager to stay within her good graces for as long as he could, Drywood put the dead Skurri in front of her, with a small hop and jerk that brought him just a little bit closer to her.
"Oh, I hope you don't mind, I took the liberty of bringing you a little something."
He watched for her reaction with great anticipation. The Skurri was first-class: fine, fresh meat, carefully bred and fed for the sake of good taste, and he dearly hoped it would be enough to impress her. Maybe then he would feel bold enough to bring up what he had to discuss with her tonight.
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Posted: Tue Jul 28, 2009 2:21 pm
"Good, good." Willow tilted her head to one side, her ear-tufts tilting forward at the sight of the deliciously plump Skurri. "My, that looks wonderful! Thank you, Drywood. This is a most generous gift."
The bard bobbed her head in a gesture of gratitude. The tantalizing scent of the meat was already making her hungry. She was, as he had hoped, rather impressed. It was clearly a valuable offering, keeper-raised and so fresh that it was still slightly warm. "I would be honored if you joined me. It's far to plump for me to finish alone." She blended a compliment with her offer, hoping that the male would agree to share her meal, if only to spare her awkwardness of eating alone in front of him.
There was no use in letting such choice food go cold a stiff- a prime hunt like this was best enjoyed warm, and she had no intention of letting his considerable efforts go to waste. As was expected of her, Willow took the first bite, stripping the meat neatly with her strong beak.
As she swallowed, she cooed a small sound of appreciation. It was as delicious as it looked. "It's fantastic, you should try some."
After a few moments of contented eating, Willowbreeze asked, "To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?" It was casually asked, and indeed she was pleased to see him, but curiousity prompted her to try and determine the purpose of his unexpected arrival.
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Posted: Wed Jul 29, 2009 1:30 am
That tight feeling about him evaporated somewhat as Willowbreeze praised his offering, and he puffed out his chest a bit in pride - and relief. When she told him that it was too plump to eat by herself, he blinked once, not having thought of that when he picked the creature. But, he thought to himself and his smile widened a bit, It sure must show that I am a good provider, mustn't it?
He knew he ought to be hungry after flying all the way here, but his insides still felt... uncomfortable. Nevertheless, he was far too polite not to accept an offer of eating together with her, and he was pleased that she wanted to dig into the Skurri right away, so he nodded.
"I'd be delighted, Miss Willowbreeze."
He bent down and ripped off a piece of meat as cleanly as he could, but took his time in swallowing it, pondering the best way to start talking about what was weighing on his mind. Her question startled him back into awareness, and he blinked a few more times at her before deflating a bit with a resigned sigh.
What better way to start could he ask for? Oh well, he might as well get to it. Plastering his amiable smile across his face he sought her eyes, but found that he was unable to keep contact with them. Suddenly his feet, or that branch over there, seemed a lot more interesting to look at.
"Yes, I... Actually, Miss Willowbreeze... Hrm. I came because I felt I should talk to you. Since it seems as though we are going to be... mates soon. There's something that... you need to know." Oh, this was hard. Getting the words out was almost physically painful. He peeked up at her, anxious to know her reaction. "Something I've never told anyone before."
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Posted: Mon Aug 03, 2009 6:33 pm
Willow swallowed a bit of meat as Drywood began to speak. She noticed with some consternation that his broad smile was quite at odds with the awkwardness of his speech.
"Of-of course." Willow said, tripping over her words as a slow sense of dread crept over her. What dark secret could such a pleasant and amiable Sentinel harbor?
She was both terrified and intrigued by his words, both dreading and anxious to hear the secret Drywood seemed anxious to reveal. Despite his smile, it was clear that her intended mate was acutely uncomfortable. "Go ahead." She said gently, encouraging him with an understanding look. Whatever he was about to say, she would take it gracefully. If worst comes to worst, she thought, I can always tell Hollysong I've changed my mind... Make some excuse to spare Drywood's feelings...
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Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 2:28 pm
Oh my. He was given the go-ahead. And so easily, too. Somehow, that made continuing all the harder. Drywood looked down again, studying his feet intensely as he cleared his throat. Twice. Then started, hesitantly:
"It's... I..." A false start. Annoyed at himself, he frowned at his talons. He had rehearsed so many different ways to begin this conversation on his way over here, but right now they all seemed to have evaporated like spatters of rain on a sun-warmed stone. But he had gotten this far, there was no way to back out now. Before he had even had time to think about it, his beak had already let slip the honest truth:
"I know that there is something wrong with me." Surprised at himself, he looked up at Willowbreeze and quickly tried to explain before she... something. He wasn't sure what might happen now, and perhaps that was why he felt so anxious not to be misunderstood. "I mean, I am not like other Sentinels. Um. There are... many things that... seems to come so naturally to everyone else, but to me... they are quite difficult to grasp. Even impossible, I feel, sometimes..."
He swallowed, well aware of how unconvincing he must sound right now, and his eyes fell toward his feet again as he spoke into his chest feathers:
"I'm not like everyone else. I'm different, I know that, and... some people dislike me for it. Perhaps you will, too, when you notice... so I'm telling you now, before that happens. So you can... hrrrm. Pull out of this arrangement while there is still time. If you would like to do that. And perhaps we..." It was a bit difficult to get these last words out. His throat felt oddly thick. "...Can still be... on friendly terms?"
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Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 8:36 pm
Willowbreeze waited for Drywood to struggle through his words. Her calm and patient silence was almost unbearably difficult to maintain, but she would not let herself interrupt something that was obviously important to him.
There's something wrong with me.
Her first thought jabbed at her chest like a sharp branch. He was ill perhaps? Or even... unable to father chicks? This would be sorely disappointing to Hazel, and she didn't deny that it would be unhappy news for her as well, but then...
At the male's next words Willowbreeze was almost relieved. He was different, she had noticed that already. His tendency towards awkwardness and odd juxtaposition of cheerful expression with nervous mannerisms was momentarily disconcerting, she had to admit, but certainly nothing as dire as his tone suggested.
Just as she was about to make some comforting remark, something about how she already noticed, but liked him anyhow, or how his concerns were nothing so serious that they could not be worked through---
Pull out of this arrangement while there is still time.
At these words she was struck with a peculiar pain behind her breastbone, and her ear tufts lowered dangerously. The delicious skurri seemed to turn to rock in her belly. “You wish... to be released from the arrangement.”
Rather than a question, it was a flat statement, spoken in clipped and carefully controlled tones. Like many females, Willow was not immune to insecurity. Although in her mind she heard Drywood's offer for what it was-- a consideration of her feelings, her heart heard nothing but the maliciously harsh tones of rejection. So she was somehow not good enough for the apothecary?!? She'd like to see him do better...
“As...” She took a deep breath and stared off into the distance, her face as still and hard as stone, “As you wish.”
Willowed turned away, as if to alight, but could not seem to find the strength to fly. She trembled slightly, hurt, angry and humiliated.
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Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 2:46 am
"Um." Of all the things that he had tried to expect from this moment, that was certainly not one. He blinked, trying to made haeds or tails of what had just happened, and watched Willowbreeze slowly turn away with disconcertingly flat ear tufts.
It wasn't as though people hadn't misuderstood him and reacted negatively to it in the past, but he couldn't for the life of him understand why this particular misunderstanding would make her so upset. Well, regardless of the reason, seeing her so... unanimated made him feel acutely uncomfortable.
"No no no," he sputtered, taking a few steps closer to her as if he could stop her from flying away just by pushing his presence on her. "You misunderstand me, Miss Willowbreeze. I... meant to say that... if YOU would like to... I... That is..." He cut himself off and heaved a sigh. "You see?" He continued in a gentler, softer tone that had a distinct ring of resignation to it. "This is what I do. This is what always happens. Even when I was very young... I hurt people. Without even meaning to. Without even understanding how I did it. I knew it would only be a matter of time before I... quite accidentally, if you can believe it... would hurt you too. And now you're hurt. And I don't understand why."
His feathers flattened out as he finally put words to, and admitted his handicap in front of another sentinel. He felt exposed, as if he had somehow strayed into the above and found himself staring right into Helios' burning eye. And he felt as though all of Noctua could see him now, see him for the aberrant that he was - far more so than Willowbreeze could ever be, bloodlines be damned.
"I'm sorry," he mumbled.
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