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 Posted: Mon Jan 31, 2011 12:39 pm
Below, to the right and for a great distance the ground was carpeted in deep green and brown; bare trees and evergreens making up a large, sprawling forest. Her feathers fluttered and she banked, looking the other way, down at the patchwork of green, grey and brown - the fields, the ground and rocky outcrops. Threads of blue seemed to weave it all together, but when she drifted even lower they formed into streams and rivers.
The land really was beautiful from this vantage point, and she enjoyed being up here, listening to the whistling wind, feeling it whip through her feathers. Lower and lower she drifted, making wide circles as she approached the ground, looking out now for anyone moving around. She'd had her wonder for the time being, now she wanted to be social. And other than the occasional bird, there had been no one to talk to whilst she'd been in flight.
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Posted: Mon Jan 31, 2011 2:34 pm
A modest and quiet life were preferred. This preference was made clear upon arrival and the stallion hadn't strayed from this particular path. Now that his kind were settled comfortably in the Kawani Province, it was not for him to disrupt their daily lives. Instead, it remained his duty to observe and protect from a distance - should the Cerynei ever require his guidance again then he would be there, but, for the time being, they seemed more than content with their lots in life. One might say it was more accurate to assume that his kind were now delighted with their new home.
Consequently, the moment he had stepped cloven hoof into this province, he had reverted to the life of a relative recluse. He'd selected the most appropriate locations, scouting out each in turn before staking out each as an adequate vantage point. Once these had been chosen, he wandered back and forth between each in turn, staying only for a few days to update himself on the overall condition of those in the immediate area.
...He was blessed in the knowledge that they were fine.
This afternoon was of no exception and the Cerynei was once again on the move. Having set off from one outpost, he now moved at a comfortable pace across the foothills lining the eastern slopes. Cloven hooves clipped swiftly across the weather beaten grass and amber eyes set their sights on the chosen destination. His intention was to reach the next vantage point by noon, two o'clock at the very latest.
Once he had reached the rocky outcrop he would permit himself a rest, consider a meal and gather his bearings. It would be the next day that he would commence his rather brief patrol - after all, if he were required to protect any of his kind then he needed to be healthy as well!
He heaved a sigh, pausing briefly to regather his thoughts and then proceeded forward again. For the time being, he remained unaware of the mare, her descent a silent one at her current distance - relative to him, it would only be when she was much closer that he would detect the wind against her wings.
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Posted: Wed Feb 09, 2011 8:06 am
Lower and lower, the ground nearer and nearer, she cast about now for a good place to land, somewhere with grass should she misjudge her landing so she would have a soft one. Neena directed herself towards a gentle slope near a line of trees, and as she dropped ever nearer she saw the moving brown object which coalesced into a fine looking Cerynei stallion the nearer she got.
She headed towards him now, but aimed a little away from the direction he was walking, not wanting to get buffeted by the wind and accidentally blown into him. That would not make a very good impression!
After one last circular pass above the area she flew down and landed with a thump onto the ground, her mane falling in disarray around her face.
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Posted: Sat Feb 12, 2011 10:03 am
Company was not something he ever anticipated, it simply wasn't a regular occurance in his life. However, it appeared that the mare in question had made the decision to defy the 'typical' and had elected to seek him out as a form of company. He would have been lying if he claimed he knew who or what she was upon her approach, but as she shifted on the winds and headed towards him it soon became apparent.
His gaze lifted, amber eyes fixing themselves upon the mare as she touched down with a muffled thump. She was by no means a pureblood, that was for certain, and he would hazard a guess that she wasn't the same sort of Cerynei as he based on the antlers upon her head - but she was of his kind in some manner of speaking. To this day it still came as a surprise to him that so many of his kind had opted to mix and dilute their blood, but he permitted himself to accept that what brought happiness was not necessarily in line with preserving what was once pure.
His lips pursed briefly and he drew himself to a halt, continuing to regard the mare with mild interest as she approached. He'd only taken a few moments to assess her and once that was done, there was little else to do! After all, it was impolite to continue to stare beyond a few seconds and those few seconds were often reserved for insuring the soquili in question was of no threat.
"Good afternoon," he offered softly, only just raising his voice enough to be heard.
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Posted: Mon Feb 14, 2011 6:20 am
Neena swiped a wing near her face, attempting to get the hair off it, and then settled for a hard shake, hoping that the last few stubborn tendrils would shift so that she wouldn't be conversing with a face full of hair.
'It's terribly awkward.' she said with a little giggle and then remembered her manners and dipped her head.
'Hello there!' she chirped, pleased that she had spotted him, for he was a good deal finer up close, and had an overall noble bearing. Whether he would want to chatter away with a cheery mare such as herself was to be seen.
'It's glorious around here, such pretty scenery.'
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Posted: Mon Feb 21, 2011 1:55 pm
The locals often had a habit of speaking to themselves, he had noticed this through his observations. No matter where he chose to rest and reside, it always led to the same (or similar) events. Rather than voicing their thoughts inwards, the vast majority of soquili preferred to express them vocally and at first it had taken him a while to realise this. However, his years of observation had paid off and as a result, he had acertained very quickly that the mare was referring to something else, rather than addressing him.
...By the manner in which she blew at her hair and swept it away, he would have hazarded a guess that it was in relation to her mane. Alas, it was not his place to comment, particularly when he had so little experience which such things. Afterall, given his pure blood he lacked any semblance of a mane to begin with!
Eventually she did return her attention to him though and he gave another bow of his head in response to her greeting. She had recognised his presence, had returned his greeting, evidently there were manners in there somewhere. Apparently, there was also a conversationalist too as she proceeded to speak to him directly as opposed to excusing herself and drifting off as the general populace did. Alas, he'd never been terribly good at conversation but he would certainly give it an attempt. Consequently, he took a few moments to look around his immediate vicinity before replying - he supposed there were elements of beauty nearby...
"I cannot claim to recognise it often, but I would have to agree with you," he said with a hint of a smile. He certainly would not be one to deny nature's beauty, even if he did not often turn his gaze to it. "There is a majestic grace to the slopes that no other landscape can immulate."
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Posted: Fri May 06, 2011 11:46 am
'No? You don't stand around and gawp at your surroundings? I suppose you'd never get anything done or go anywhere if you did that though.' Neena mused out loud after her odd question and gave a little smile at her own silliness.
She felt a little gauche in this elegant stallion's presence, but still, life was too short to worry about being too much of a fool, and she might not ever see him again. And if she did, well hopefully he would forgive her for being herself.
The mare gave a short wiggle, settling her wings and taking a moment to sneak another good look at the stallion.
'Umm, well I'm Neena, and may I say, sir, that you're very impressive looking.' she bobbed her head as she spoke.
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Posted: Mon May 09, 2011 4:51 am
He refrained from lifting a brow at her compliment, largely unaccustomed to receiving them. Years as a hermit had ensured that such things rarely came up, in fact, it had been years since he had been presented with that sort of thing. When his kind had scattered into their new home in search of adventure, companionship and friendship, all pretence and former rank were left behind. The necessity to try in remain in good standings with him was now long gone - granted it had never been there before as he'd never appreciated brown-nosing, but this did result in a significant decline in any form of attention...especially when it came down to his appearance!
"You have my thanks," he replied amiably, his modesty evidently intact despite the indirect effort to boost his ego. "I would echo your sentiments," he added with a bob of his head towards her form. He was not blind and was more than capable of recognising one of his own. Even if her blood had been mixed and she had been graced with the wings of her non-Cerynei parents she still had the delicate build that was blessed on his kind. "Though perhaps you are suitably more impressive than I could ever hope to be," he observed. It was not meant as an insult, merely an observation based on her extravagant appearance.
"However it is a pleasure to meet you, Neena," he allowed a smile to lift his lips and crinkle his eyes just a touch, an indication that he was genuine. "My name is Kozue, or that is what I am known by at least - though I sincerely apologise for my lack of manners," he mused and shook his head. "Suffice to say, that should have been one of the first sentences out of my mouth upon your arrival."
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Posted: Mon Jul 11, 2011 3:59 am
'Yes, you think so?' Neena gave herself a cursory glance downwards, rustling her folded wings at what she perceived as a compliment. It seemed that way at least. She wasn't naive, she knew she had some interesting looks what with her mixed parentage, but nor was she vain and given to over reflection on her own looks.
'Thanks. But really, you do cut the more impressive figure out of the pair of us. I'm all over with feathers and hair, and you're just so..well neat.' she giggled, her light humour ever present.
'Kozue. I like it.' she declared and then shook her head.
'Oh, no apologies needed. I mean I did kind of drop out of the sky in front of you. You greeted me perfectly politely given that I came upon you so suddenly.' she smiled, out of the two of them her manners were the rougher so him apologising for that didn't sit well with her.
'Speaking of, I didn't interrupt anything did I? I would hate to think I was keeping you from a destination or meeting.'
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Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2011 5:12 am
'Neat' was a very diplomatic way of putting it - most other individuals would have claimed he was plain, or more amusingly, bald. Truth be told he found their fascination with his lack of a mane to be almost comical, but given the pureness of his blood it was simply a given. They didn't have to like it and they could find humour in it if they wished, it was no skin off his nose. However, he had never heard his appearance described in quite the same way as the mare had done and he couldn't help but release a small chuckle as a result. He would have to store that away and make use of it at a later date when the situation warranted it.
"My mother was graced with a reasonable level of creativity," he responded, bowing his head in acceptance of the compliment. He certainly couldn't take credit for his name and neither could his father, after all, it had been his mother who had raised him until the point of adolescence! "I believe she drew her inspiration from the trees," he glanced to the side to inspect the way he had come and the trees that had lined his path. "Given that it means 'Tree Branches', that should probably be obvious," he mused, a warmth in his tone as he recalled his parents.
"However you have no reason to concern yourself with what I was or was not doing," he continued and shook his head ever so slightly. "It was nothing of importance, I was simply enjoying a small walk when you made your entrance," he explained. His explanation wasn't completely true but he had no reason to bore her with his duties, given the circumstances and their voluntary nature, they were of very little importance to anyone except him.
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