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This ancient wreck of a tree is found within a stand of new growth, old and dead inside. The hollow within is nicely-sized, clean and draft-free, and it was probably used as a territory for a short time... but there's a hole in the 'roof' that lets in an unpleasant amount of rain when the storm is raging, which is undoubtedly why this tree has fallen out of use. It's relatively sheltered from the wind and it looks safe enough... unfortunately it creaks alarmingly with the stronger gusts, and rocks in the wind.

"I can do this, I can do this, I can DO THIS!" Vinch kept repeating to pump himself up. "Just keep flapping, Vinch." He was not about to let some lousy storm show him up!

...or not. The storm blew against him even harder, the rain poured on him even harder; it was as if the Thunderbird was showing him who was boss. After flapping headstrong for a few minutes, the storm completely overpowered him. He was exhausted and had to face the fact that he could not stay up in the air long enough to get to his territory.

Vinch looked and the first tree that appeared before him was this rickety old tree. He didn't have time to be picky, though. His strength was waning, so he flew over to tree as best as he was able. Vinch slipped into the hollow, just wanting to finally be out of the rain, and abruptly realized that he was not alone!

Vinch just stared for a few moments, his mind not up to speed with his mouth. All he could come up with was, "Uhh...Hullo?"

This was one of those rare occasions where Chase wished he had a companion. Completely alone and in a rather precarious shelter, he felt the need to comfort someone, to tell someone that everything was going to be alright… in other words, to find some reassurance by reassuring someone else. Feeling cold and lonely as he slowly drowned in his own misery, Chase was startled by Vinch’s sudden entrance. Even though his first reaction was to jump to a defensive stance, the shadow quickly recovered from the small shock and his beak opened in a welcoming smile.

“Hello! Not a very pleasant evening, is it?”
Before he could hear the deep woods’ voice again, a small patch of sunshine barged in and Chase found himself suddenly accompanied by two sentinels. Moving around a bit, the shadow tried to make room for the female while avoiding the spots that the rain hit with more intensity.

So the Thunderbird was irate… the rain penetrated the shelter… the tree shook under the wind’s will… none of it mattered. He was not alone anymore.
“Are you alright, miss?” he added at last to the female, more out of politeness than concern.

Clover puffed repeatedly, flicking water this way and that as it continued to drip down onto her head. "I'm fine, fine." She nodded at Chase, sending a drizzle of water down onto the tree in front of her. She blinked at the new puddle a moment before shaking and puffing up again, sending a spray of drops out towards the males.

"I'm really quite alright. Neither of you are built so much for the cold." She stated matter-of-factly to Vinch, spreading a wing as well as she could in the cramped space to flash the snowy white feathers on its underside, proudly declaring her mist heritage. "I'm quite fine, really. If I do get too uncomfortable though, I'll let you know." She fluffed again, and shifted to watch the dreary storm blowing. "It looks like the Thunderbird isn't going to settle back for a while...we might as well get comfortable. I'm Cloverfield...Clover, for short."

Vinch frowned slightly at Clover. "As long as you're sure. I wouldn't want a lady as lovely as you to be uncomfortable." Vinch smiled before looking out at the storm. "Especially for as long as we may be stuck in here."

"My name's Vinch. How did you guys end up in here, anyway? I was with a friend and I just couldn't bring myself to leave her until it was too late," he sighed wistfully. "I knew that I should have stayed there, but..." He hadn't actually known beforehand, but he though the story would sound better this way. He had thought he could make it home, incorrectly as his present whereabouts prove. But saying that would make him look bad. Vinch never wants that, not when he can avoid it.

Vinch nodded compassionately. "I'm sure your Parus will be fine. As long as they stay inside they'll be safe, and I don't think a Parus would have the strength to fight the storm enough to even get outside. They're probably stuck there as much as we are stuck here," he assured her. Vinch didn't know what it was like having companions, but he assumed they meant a lot. Kinda like friends, but smaller.

Clover nodded to the males, more as a sign that she'd heard and understood them than one of agreement. "The Thunderbird startles some companions though. Any the size of a parus...maybe even a lani, wouldn't make it through the storm. I can only hope a good few made it in. Thinking they all might be safe is foolish with these odds." She frowned, shuffling a bit, the cold driven from her mind as she wondered what mayhem she would return home to. Her dearest of parus would surely be smart enough to hide...right? They wouldn't try to come look for her. She'd told them not to, of course.

"I'm fine, really." She smiled gratefully up at Vinch and Chase, fluffing a few drips off and away simultaneously. "I don't think we could get the water to miss us all entirely, and again I say it's better I take the brunt than you two. If one of you was a mist I'd think on it, but a shadow? And a Deepwoods? Lovely males that you are, you are simply not bred for this sort of weather."

The shadow smiled again when Vinch spoke and upon hearing the female state his unspoken worries, decided to follow the playful deep woods’ example. There was no point in worrying about it too much. The weather and accommodations were bad enough as they were without having him or the colorful female fall into a state of gloominess. So he decided to join Vinch, lowering his head until it almost touched the tree’s floor, tilting his head to the side as he spoke (quite seriously!) to the female.

“Yes, you are right of course, my lady! I’m silently cursing my lineage as I look at your lovely suffering features!”
He couldn’t keep a straight face for long though as the second comment from the deep woods made him release a strong, good-natured laugh. “A watcher, as well? My reason for becoming one is less interesting, I’m afraid. I used to be a gatherer and I’m merely looking into my options at the moment.”

“What about you, my dear lady? What made you turn to the keeper profession if you don’t mind me asking? And what do you breed for?“ from his experience, a keeper could speak about his companions for whole nights at a time so he hoped answering his questions could brighten her darkest thoughts… and hopefully not have the opposite effect.