In one of the stalls in the barn, Arethusa stirred not long after the sun began its ascent into the sky, blinking groggily and letting out a quiet chirp. She enjoyed mornings greatly, but it took her mind a little bit to start functioning properly. She stretched and snuggles into her nest of old sheets, letting the fuzziness of slumber wear off...

And when she remembered her meeting with Alaric she had to bite her tongue to keep from cursing or squawking. Alaric hadn't said how early he wanted to go to the place with the flowers, so she had no idea if she was late or not. She stumbled to her feet, then hastily made for the open doors, as quietly as possible to not disturb the many other creatures that slumbered in the barn. Once past the archway she bolted, heading towards the front of the house, hoping if Alaric was up that he hadn't been waiting long.

When she rounded the side of the house and saw the other Dustling resting there, she let out a sigh of relief... Then darted back, hoping he hadn't seen her yet as she looked over herself, fur and feathers disheveled from sleep, wild and out of order. Oh lord, I can't let him see me like this! she thought, not even sure why she cared. There wasn't time for a proper grooming; she couldn't keep him waiting much longer. Holding in a groan of frustration, she took a few minutes to try and put herself in order as best she could to smooth out her feather-fur, trying her best to look less like a bedraggled fluff-ball.

She wasn't satisfied with the result, but she couldn't postpone things any longer. Taking a short breath, she calmly stepped back around the house, padding towards the porch with a greeting chirp, willing herself to look more composed than she felt. "Good morning, Alaric," she called warmly. "Hope you haven't been out here long..."