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 Posted: Sun Aug 16, 2009 12:53 pm
Granny smiled bashfully at the praise. Such a compliment coming from Hazel was not bad at all. Perhaps she should go see the Apothecary some day, and see for herself how he was doing. Or at least send him a Chirop and congratulate him on finding a mate. It was hard to keep in touch with old students sometimes, even if many came back to visit their old Teacher from time to time.
"Where does he live these days," she asked, "And more importantly - will the territory be big enough to support the two of them?"
Drywood had been a troublesome child, but she was not sure about his talent for fighting and holding a territory. He was a rather small male and his task wasn't a combatant one... But hopefully they would have more success as a pair, if they ever needed to take something bigger.
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Posted: Sun Aug 16, 2009 10:31 pm
Hazel nodded, recalling the Apothecary's territory. "It's a nice territory; he's set himself up in a huge old dead chestnut tree, and it's easily big enough to support a young family. He lives quite far to the west; he's practically on the edge of the Open. I think it will be safe enough for my... well, my great-grandchildren, though. It's got plenty of cover, and I'm certain that they will be incredibly careful parents." The elder Sentinel paused for a moment, seemingly lost in thought. Great-grandchildren, from a grown granddaughter. It seemed nearly yesterday when she'd met her own predestined mate and hatched her first clutch. My, my, how time flies. "It's bigger than the territory my own mate and I had; he's done well in acquiring and defending it for just himself; when he and Willowbreeze have children, I'm sure that will just provide that much extra incentive to protect his trees. And, need be, I'm sure Willow will be no small help. She's got my fighting spirit, after all!" A steely glint flashed in Hazel's eye; a ferocious nature lurked under the Teacher's grandmotherly skin. Age was just a number to her, it really was, and she was still willing to fight for any cause she deemed worthy of championing; in this case, the future of her family and of her adopted type.
Perhaps those hooligans had ruffled more than just her feathers. Look out, Noctua- Hazel was on a new kind of warpath!
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Posted: Sat Aug 22, 2009 2:32 am
"The open?" Granny asked, and from her tone of voice it was evident she wasn't admiring Drywod's choice of location. She would definitely send a Chirop and ask for a visit then. In her opinion it was a bit far to fly all the way out there. Let the younger generation do the flying!
"It's a bit out of the way," she continued carefully, "and you know how fledglings are around forbidden things... Keeping them from straying too high or falling too close to the forest floor is difficult enough. They'll have a third direction to worry about!"
She was extremely wary about the open despite (or maybe thanks to) the fact that Linnéa used to work as a Gatherer when she was younger. It wasn't dangerous for an adult to live near the open, and in some cases it could even be a smart strategy since the territories near it would be less contested. As long as the clutch hadn't fledged it shouldn't really pose a problem either, unless the close proximity to the open attracted unusual carnivores, but as soon as they did fledge...
She was curious. Wouldn't Hazel miss her granddaughter is the girl moved to the very edge of Noctua. Leaving the nest was all well and good, but for a bard to settle so far from most other Sentinels seemed like suicide for her task... Oh, but what did she know. Most bards she knew either lived or spent most of their time around the central Minder enclaves. But never mind the girl's task, some families put work on hold while raising a clutch after all. She might be old fashioned, but it was the fact that they might move so far from the rest of their close family that seemed odd to her.
"Drywood must have won you over completely," she said with a crooked smile, "I haven't seen you this optimistic about the younger generation in a long time. Wont you miss her?"
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Posted: Sat Aug 22, 2009 5:25 am
"Well, as far as the fledglings go, I'm quite certain that they will be intelligent parents when it comes to the Open, or perhaps they'll move to her territory for the time." And leave that Serpe behind to guard his territory. That, Hazel admitted to herself, would be an ideal situation. "I think that they will be socially responsible as well; I know that I'll be dropping subtle hints that they should move closer while their young ones are fledging, so that they'll be exposed to the rest of society." Even if that society is cruel to them. It will make them strong. Hazel thought about the prejudice she and her own chicks had faced. But the Chestnut blood ran strong in her granddaughter, and Drywood was pure Chestnut. Would her great-grandchildren be seen as freaks or Abberants? Would Willowbreeze? At Drywood's side, most would probably mistake her for a full Chestnut, unless they knew her immediate heritage. But if the chicks looked Chestnut enough, even that could perhaps be ignored. Oh, my little Willowbreeze. Fate has certainly played you an interesting hand.
"If they do stay out there, I will certainly miss her. She is my favorite grandchild, after all. But she's been chosen for a great honor." Hazel fluffed herself up ever so slightly, even puffing out her chest a bit. "She already looks nearly Chestnut herself already; when she was approached with an arranged mate, that was proof enough for all of us that the plans set into motion two generations ago were working." She spoke of her own partnering, thinking back to that fateful day so long ago when she said yes to the Chestnuts' request. It hadn't been easy; far from it. She had to admit that there were times once, a long time ago, when she regretted the decision. But knowing that a grand old bloodline was safe and that the Chestnut could still contribute their unique talents to the clan was enough for her, no matter what those feather-brained birds thought. Still, though... nights like tonight did get under her skin, no matter how much she denied it. Her eartufts drooped a bit as she began to speak again.
"I made a difficult decision many, many seasons ago, the consequences of which haven't always given me much confidence in the rightness of it. But seeing my granddaughter being chosen to bring the next generation of Chestnut hatchlings into the world with such a well mannered male... I was always terrified that the mate that they'd pick would be brash and rude, or vain and self-centered, or just a silly airhead. Drywood will make a good father, and he'll be good for my granddaughter. She'll never have her heart broken." Hazel smiled sadly and looked down at her toes, picking a bit at her perch with the tip of a claw. "So... as much as I'll miss her, I'm extremely happy for her. It's not just her chicks I'm thrilled about; it's her whole future."
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Posted: Sun Aug 30, 2009 10:57 am
Granny nodded in agreement as Hazel spoke. Drywood had a good head on his shoulders and had grown out of his bad fledgling behaviour thanks to her firm guidance. And Willowbreeze sounded like a sensible young female so there shouldn't be much trouble talking them into finding a suitable territory when the first clutch came. And she was sure Hazel's subtle hint would turn into good old fashioned guilt tripping if there should be a need for that.
"Ah, yes," she said, "Starting a family way out near the borders of Noctua has always seemed a bit suspicious to me. Privacy is important, but it can be taken too far."
Linnéa was still not entirely comfortable when Hazel strayed back to the topic of her personal choices in life, but it was good that the gamble had paid off. Aberrants or not, it looked as if the Chestnut type had managed to acquire the injection of new blood it needed. Was it worth it? Probably. Was she happy that someone this close to her had mated outside their type? No, not really. But never mind that. Hazel knew her opinion of the matter, and she knew that Granny still valued her as a friend and colleague.
"Sometimes it feels as if that's all we ever do," Granny said, "We do our best to bring these chicks up to become productive members of society, but there's always that point when we have to let go. I imagine it must be even more difficult to see them move on when they're family."
She sighed and started arranging her flight feathers. Some of them wouldn't line up quite right anymore, but it didn't impact her flight much. A slight noise when she flew, but not enough to be too much of a bother.
"I should get back to my territory," she said, "Snowdrift is watching it for me, but I imagine she might want to hunt tonight too."
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