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 Posted: Mon May 04, 2015 4:35 pm
 Isuru scrambled up Tesni’s tail and onto her back, settling herself in the saddle to look around. The mare didn’t even flick her ears at the scrambling of her mouse, so used to her constant companion now. She did lean in though, to whinny softly at Koletis, nuzzling just under his chin for a moment before pulling back. She whickered at Vein as well before glancing back at the mouse on her back.
“Owl.” Isuru grumbled which caused Tesni to tilt her head slightly. The little family had grown close, and come to rely on each other a great deal. They had traveled far to meet each other and neither had really understood just what it would mean for them when they had met.
Now they traveled together, or wandered was more the term, as they didn’t have a direction or destination they were really heading in. Merely enjoying the time spent together, having friends around was a wonderful sort of feeling. Tesni could just barely remember the times spent alone, the cold winters and harsh climates of her previous home. The memories of solitude and fear a soft of strange distant memory in the warmth of friends, and perhaps something more.
“What owl?” Tesni finally seemed to snap out of her thoughts, shaking her head slightly to clear it. It was strange for an owl to be out this early, weren’t those birds that normally hunted at night? She tilted her head and stepped away from Koletis, running her tail along his leg to signify her departure as she stepped across the path and into the trees on the other side.
They had been wandering along a trail, and had stopped mid day to get something to drink and bite to eat. There were plenty of lush grasses around and the trees were full and leafy, the little stream off to the side made a perfect backdrop for the little family to pull over. Tesni felt no fear here, nothing seemed to cause her distress as she stepped lightly through the trees.
“Flying, it was flying! I don’t know where now. Stupid bird.” Isuru grumbled from her back, moving in front of the saddle to tuck close to the back of Tesni’s neck.
“Now now, I’m sure there isn’t anything to worry about.” Tesni stated soothing her familiar’s ruffled fur as she found the trees were growing denser the further in she went. It would be a tough area to navigate, and she was glad that they weren’t going that way. Her mane would catch on debris of the earthen floor no doubt and Koletis would get his horns caught in the low hanging branches.
She stilled however when she felt Isuru shift on her back, lifting her little head up. “Do you hear that?” Isuru spoke softly her voice squeaking at the end as Tesni strained her ears to hear. The mare could just make out something in the distance but she wasn’t sure what to make of it. It was a steady sound, repetitive, but it was too far of for her to truly know what it was. “I wonder what it is?” Tesni queued glancing back over her shoulder at the little mouse.
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Posted: Tue May 05, 2015 10:53 am
 Repetition was the only way to form -or break- a habit. Do something enough times and soon it would be second nature to you. But what if the habit you were trying to break was your first nature? Something that was instinct, that every part of your being told you was right. Like, for example, being nocturnal. Gethen wasn't sure how long it'd been since the incident, surely more than a few months by now. Maybe even longer. In all of that time he still wasn't used to being awake during daylight hours. The urge to find a hollow tree and let his heavy eyelids fall had to be shooed away constantly. How he longed for the old days when he could sleep during the day without worrying about the well-being of his bonded. Now he had to settle for nighttime naps. And they were hardly even naps. Paranoia about something happening to Branwen in the middle of the night kept him from sleeping much. If he was lucky, Branwen would let him perch on her back for an hour or two to catch up on his sleep a little.
And another issue that came with these new hours was hunting. He was so used to having the cover of night aid him in sneaking up on unsuspecting prey. Catching food in broad daylight was a skill he was not born with, and a few months worth of practice was a poor substitute for inherent talent. The owl had managed to catch a few victims, but most of the time he gave up and cut even further into his sleep time to hunt properly. His need to keep Branwen within sight at all times made things a bit difficult as well. Small animals tended to scatter at the sound of anything big approaching and to a mouse or squirrel, a soquili is quite big. In short, sleep and food were in high demand for the owl and the supply was lacking. As it were now, he was quite tired and quite hungry. Enough so that he was willing to attempt a hunt at this hour.
He swooped through the trees with relative ease. He only nearly crashed into a branch a couple of times and he'd even managed to spot a tiny mouse before sleep-depravation blurred his vision and it was gone. Every now and then he'd perch for a moment and look back to check that Branwen was still following. And she always was. She tried her best to keep quite while her familiar hunted. But for a mare that was on the bigger side of average size, it was impossible to be silent. She always got pangs of guilt when she remembered all the sacrifices Gethen made for her sake. Even if she had never asked them of him, she still felt it was her fault he was always so tired and hungry. She gave a reassuring smile as her companion made another check for her and continued to plod along at an even pace as he took flight again.
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Posted: Sun May 24, 2015 9:54 am
Tesni stepped a few paces before stopping to listen again. It was only after the sound had grown incredibly close that she realized it was the sound of someone walking through the trees. They seemed to be very small or perhaps they were attempting to be quiet because the sound was faint and not at all the the sounds she made when she trampled through the wooded area. Tesni whickered slightly as she poked her head through the underbrush, stepping quite loudly through the underbrush towards the sound and eventually breaking through onto a trail.
She started as a shadow drifted overhead and she nearly ran into another mare. Her sound of started distress was entirely unbecoming but that didn’t seem to bother the mare any was she stepped backwards and flicked her ears forward. “Oh.” Were the first words out of her mouth as she glanced at the other. Her tail swaying back and forth like a dogs might when they were curiously happy. Tesni was a large girl, and her appearance was quite odd but she didn’t seem threatening at all.
Tesni smiled warmly at the other mare as she moved back a bit more to allow the female her space. She was terribly interested in the spaded tail she had and the wings on her back. “I apologize for busting in on you. I was just following the sound you see.” She smiled glancing upwards and then back at Branwen. “You must be the owl’s friend right? Isuru was talking about one, I always thought they were night hunters though.” Tesni glanced back at Isuru and nudged the little mouse slightly.
“I don’t like owls!” She squeaked and refused to move which caused Tesni to frown. “Now I’m sure it’s not going to eat you. You should come say hello, it’s not polite to ignore a new person.” Tesni chided slightly which caused Isuru to glare slightly. The little bloody mouse moved to sit atop the mare’s head glancing at the other female. “Hello.” She spoke, her tone clipped which only caused Tesni to sigh.
“I apologize for Isuru’s tone, she’s not usually so mean.” The mare frowned again before smiling once more. She stopped for a moment before she seemed to remember something and started. “Oh! Oh goodness, I’m sorry, this is Isuru and I’m Tesni. It’s a pleasure to meet you miss.” Tesni stated inclining her head slightly as she stepped from one foot to the other. She seemed a bit nervous as if she wasn’t sure what else to say or if she was supposed to say anything. She was still new to this whole speaking to others thing. “I won’t hurt you!” She blurted out rather suddenly before lowering her head and looking at the ground.
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Posted: Tue May 26, 2015 8:00 am
Branwen's ears perked up at the sound of twigs snapping and leaves crunching. Something was in the woods with them. Well, obviously. They certainly weren't the only living things in this forest. And even though birds did some how manage to be incredible loud while hopping along the forest floor, these were definitely the sounds of something much larger. Though she wasn't any kind of tracking expert, Branwen was willing to bet it was another Soquili sharing the space with her. The mare was honestly surprised her familiar hadn't given his alarm call yet. He always did when even the slightest hint of a threat was present. The poor thing must have been incredibly tired. And, quite frankly, Branwen was grateful for that.
Too many meetings had started with tensions high. She was ready for something a little more friendly this time. Even if it only lasted until Gethen realized what was happening. And being so focused on her familiar at the time, she nearly missed the stocky mare coming towards her. They narrowly avoided a collision, both making startled sounds while trying to find their footing without stumbling too much. Branwen spent a moment taking in this other mare's features. She found herself staring longer than she intended as she tried to work out how there were icicles hanging from the mare's horns in this warm weather. With a small shake of her head she focused her attention on what the mare was saying instead and gave a warm smile.
"Don't worry about it. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going either." She laughed lightly, which turned slightly sour at the mention of an owl, "Ah, yes...The owl is my familiar."
There was a distinct screech in the distance. Branwen winced. He'd come to crash the part any moment now. She'd have to make the best of the short time they had. The tiny mouse went completely unnoticed until it actually spoke. It was a bit amusing to taking in the size difference between familiar and bonded, "Don't worry about Gethen. He's not so bad once you get to know him. But until you do, well....I'll just apologize in advanced."
They were running of borrowed time at this point and Branwen wanted to make this introduction fast. In her mind, having exchanged names would make Gethen less irritable about this meeting. It was an irrational thought, but it was hard being rational when you were in a hurry, "Tesni and Isuru...It's nice to meet you. I'm-"
The mare's sudden outburst caught Branwen off guard. She was genuinely confused for a moment, wondering why Tesni felt the need to say such a thing. As the other mare turned her gaze downward Branwen felt an overwhelming sense of pity for her. Naturally, as soon as she was about to comfort Tesni, the party crasher arrived.
"Who are you? What are you doing here?" The owl landed on a branch with such a clamor, obviously discombobulated by too many factors at this point to be graceful. But his tough, intimidating demeanor faltered as he caught the look Branwen was giving him. She often had an expression of exacerbation or disappointment, but this was a very different look. It was a look that said only one word. Don't. And so he didn't. He went silent and switched from offensive to defensive. For now.
Branwen approached the other mare and spoke in a soft, comforting tone, "I didn't think you would."
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Posted: Wed Nov 04, 2015 12:26 pm
Tesni almost flinched at the bird and his voice, lowering her head a bit more in the process. This caused the little mouse that had been previously hidden against her neck to buck up. Isuru stepped up onto her head and puffed out her cheeks eyeing the owl agitatedly. She’d never been fond of birds, especially owls.
Tesni on the other hand didn’t seem to understand the fact that she could quite literally squish the owl if she really wanted to. Instead she looked terribly ashamed though the sound of the other mare’s voice caused her to lift her head slightly, tail swaying almost like a dogs. She gave the smallest of smiles glancing up through her mane; she really was terrible at this people meeting huh? She gave a small whicker before lifting her head up a bit more to look at the mare. The night sky was wrapped around her legs; at least that was how it appeared to Tesni. Her mane was long, her wings clearly that of a wind but her tail was spaded. She was smaller than Tesni but that wasn’t hard to do really.
“I’m sorry, I’m… I… I felt the need to state my intentions weren’t to hurt. Since many… so many seem to believe otherwise. I didn’t want you to attack or run away.” Tesni stated her tone whisper soft as she lifted her head up to smile before glancing up at the owl offering him a small smile as well.
She shifted from hoof to hoof as if she was nervous before glancing back towards Branwen. Though it appeared Tesni had easily forgiven the owl, Isuru had now. The little mouse was still puffy cheeked and agitated, her little tail flicking almost like a cats. Her eyes never left the familiar though she didn’t seem all that upset at Branwen.
“You shouldn’t be so mean.” Isuru puffed at the owl before turning finally to look at the mare before them. She eyed her for a long moment, an appraising look which was quite comical coming from the tiny mouse.
“It’s nice to meet you. Tesni means well, there is a stallion a little ways away who means well too. They’re used to being called monsters and assumed to be the bad guys. So you better be nice or else!” The little mouse stepped forward slightly as if she was going to… do something. What it would be she could do was anyone’s guess. Tesni lowered her ears and sighed.
“Isuru, be nice.” Tesni whispered softly glancing up at the little mouse. Isuru crinkled her nose slightly before pawing in Tesni’s mane. She picked up a strand and preened it gently before brushing it back into place.
“I just don’t like when they hurt you.”
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Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2015 4:21 pm
The sudden outburst made a little more sense now. Past experiences did have quite a heavy impact on one's actions in the present. And if what the little mouse said was true, Tesni seemed to have a lot of unpleasant experiences in her past. Branwen couldn't even imagine why anyone would think this other mare a monster. From the few minutes they'd shared so far, Branwen felt like Tesni was very sweet and gentle and just a little bit shy. Whatever happened to make others believe this mare was dangerous must have been an awful mistake. A case of mistaken identity or wrongful assumptions. And deep down, Branwen felt something resonate with that. Something from her own forgotten past.
In spite of all this, Branwen found herself laughing. Certainly not at the misfortune Tesni- and a stallion as well, it sounded like- had to endure. But the sudden boldness of the tiny familiar had caught her off guard. She'd always thought mice as rather meek and skittish creatures, but this one looked as if she was ready to pick a fight. And probably win it too. It took Branwen a moment to pull herself together, trying her best not to seem rude. "Ah, I'm sorry. You're a brave little familiar, aren't you?" She gave Isuru a genuine smile, "Please, don't worry. Neither of use mean you any harm either." A very poignant look was given to Gethen that said Isuru was not to be the owl's dinner. And thankfully, though Gethen was quite hungry, he had no intentions of eating anything that was bonded to a Soquili. He'd just have to hunt for something a little less intelligent later.
"And I won't run away, either. I see no reason to. You seem like a very nice mare." Branwen truly meant that, and she hoped that Tesni would believe it. Having so many treat you like a monster could make you skeptical of honest compliments, she imagined. It made her wonder about something, a thought that had crossed her mind many times since she'd been rescued. Had she ever been called a monster? Kalona didn't exactly have a shining reputation in the Kawanii lands and their blood dominated her features. Had her wings been membranes instead of feathers there'd be no trace of her wind heritage. She'd always been too afraid to ask Gethen, and Branwen doubted he would have given her an honest answer anyways. But it wasn't hard to imagine others might have seen her as threatening...
"Oh! I never actually got to introduce myself. My name is Branwen. And it sounds like you've already seen Gethen." There was no point in pondering hypothetical situations right now. Not when there was a perfectly pleasant and entirely real interaction to be had right now. "You said there's also a stallion nearby? Are the three of you traveling together?"
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