Welcome to Gaia! ::

Well this was different.

Celeste stayed at a polite distance above, gracefully circling as she came closer to the ground. Ever since she discovered something worth caring for that existed lower than the skies, the bird found herself becoming more interested in the ongoings of humans. This strange gathering, for example, was certainly not common and warranted much interest.

The crane landed gingerly behind some bushes (if the scraggly weeds could be called a bush), her sharp eyes glazing over the scene. A blaring red flag bestowed the gathering the name of "Renaissance Faire." The myriad of people in bustling clothes and interesting scents that wafted through the air, tantalizing Celeste to inch closer to the crowd. This would certainly be a tale to bring to the dinner table tonight.

Fidgeting uncomfortably, Celeste wanted to see things closer, but was afraid to get underfoot of the humans. Not that she would ever admit it, but she wasn't all that skilled at long term walking. Flying was much more to her taste, but for this she was willing to adapt. Perhaps if she perched somewhere on a building? She frowned to herself, ruffling her feathers as she tried to decide what to do.

The voice surprised Celeste, but she refused to give any indication of having been startled. With a haughty eye, the crane arched her head upwards towards the sky. For a moment, she almost thought she was basking in sun itself before she shook her feathers to stare at a young woman.

A quick glance around confirmed that the human wasn't speaking to anyone else. It was strange for her to be directly addressed, however the bird gave a mental shrug and with a blank stare that could only point out the obviousness of it all. Celeste had never bothered communing with humans before, and she certainly didn't know how to go about starting such.

While she was curious as to who this woman was, she was even more curious as to what this strange gathering was all about. She was perplexed as to the meaning of it all, with images of horses and lances and foods dancing in her mind. It was a lot to take in and the crane wasn't sure where to even start. Giving the human another look, she bestowed her with another haughty look, but peeked back over at the bustling human world as if expecting an explanation of sorts.

Reenact old days? Celeste stared back at the festivities, confused. If they were reinacting it, why did they move out of the old days in the first place? Were they unsatisfied with what they were born into? The crane paused at that thought, but quickly shook it to the back of her mind.

The stream of images that had collected in her mind were surprisingly easy to understand. She was certain most humans didn't use this method to communicate, as most were too dense to notice something good when they saw it (namely her, flying high above them) which could only pique her interest about the woman herself.

Who was she? Celeste pondered. Why did she seem so much more connected to everything than that of a regular human? The crane looked back to the sky, the golden sphere reaching its warming hands across the horizon. The bird spent so much time in the sky that she couldn't help but feel familiar in some manner. Was it possible? Celeste looked straight at the human woman, the image of the sun burning brightly in her mind, as if reaching ethereal hands towards the woman and handing the globe to her. To ask: Are you the sun?

Celeste blinked, a slight frown tipping her beak. No, she was fairly certain she had awoken quite early this morning, just before dawn. Went to eat some berries, go fishing, stretch the wings a bit.. The bird gently sighed. Somehow she knew the woman didn't mean that kind of awake.

It was something else, something she sensed changing inside of her. She had even recently met a human who started to hand feed her little tid bits, which were surprisingly quite delicious, considering. It was on an expansive land with a grand house, which Celeste recently came to learn was considered something of an upper class living among humans. Which, of course, suited her just fine. High places to perch and good food and all.

The one called Hinalle even moved in an almost surreal manner, only reaffirming the image of the sun that she bore in her mind. The crane gave a pleasant fluff of the feathers, as if she was close to the sky again. Celeste, while surprised that the young woman actually received her ideas of the sun, tried to further adapt to the concept. This was a storage bank of knowledge, and she didn't want to waste it.

Celeste felt for those ethereal hands again, gingerly reaching forward as if exploring, but hesitant as if trying not to intrude. This time she wanted to send more images, more detailed. Those large metal things with wheels that were so loud and people would sit in and move faster than any animal. What were they? How did they work? What about short grass. Why was it cut so?

The crane had to hold herself back from bombarding the poor woman with too many things at once, and she struggled to keep the images and ideas in order so as not to confuse things. She wanted to understand this new world, and to share these things with another.

Celeste tried to concentrate and keep track of the foreign words, but the things of engines and gas was beyond her. She did, however, catch onto the names of those metal creations. Small, car, big, truck, super big, bus. When Hinalle came to the grass, however, Celeste was baffled. Why ever would short grass be pleasing? She rather liked being able to have the privacy of tall grass surrounding her, the kind that would waver gently in the lightest of breezes and tickle her feathers. Considering humans were a bit big to be hiding in grass, however, perhaps the privacy tall grass provided simply wasn't enough for a human. How puzzling.

The crane instantly perked up at the offer. If she had the mouth of a human, she would probably have smirked. Feeling more comfortable with the link, she sent images of her own views high in the sky. Though not as far off as the sun, she still understood what that distance felt and meant. But today she didn't want to see if from her place in the sky, but so low to the ground was an inconvenience as well. If this human was willing to take her, it would be as close to a full experience as she would likely ever get.

Long legs glided closer to Hinalle, a graceful strut as she peered upwards at her. As other humans walked past in the distance, she listened more carefully now. Their words weren't some jumbled cawing now, but pieces of a puzzle. Once in a while she could hear "sky" or "car", her eyes soaking in what they were referring to and doing as they spoke. They were so much more complex then what she had given them credit for.

Carefully analyzing the images in portions, Celeste looked towards the woman with apprehension. It wasn't common that she was touched in any way, but if it would allow her into the human realm, she supposed she would have to permit it. The crane had observed other humans carry things before, so the concept wasn't necessarily new. It was just awkward since that 'thing' to be carried was her.

With a daring puff of the chest, the crane glided to the kneeling woman's hands. When her beak gingerly touched Hinalle's hand, the warmth and reassurance reminded her once again of the sun, reaffirming her earlier thoughts and making her feel at peace.

Comfortable and ready, Celeste turned her eyes towards the vast horizon of human oddities. The first thing to catch her attention was a human riding a large, four legged beast with a short cut mane tied back. Why did humans ride this creature when they had.. cars? The crane looked up at Hinalle, relaying images of a human on a horse versus a human in a car.

Ah, food. That always boggled her. Why ever would they toss their food on flames? Images of meats and stews and vegetables were sent, all over a fire of sorts. What about the tents? Ah, and those shiny pieces of jewelry? And those things over there, and the other things just that way? The crane shook her head, taking a moment to compose herself to begin sending her questions, one image at a time.